Israel-Hamas war, Gaza genocide

[SvennoJ]

Will the ceasefire progress to phase two?

Meanwhile, discussions are under way on how to transition to the second phase of the ceasefire, which is to include deploying an armed international stabilisation force, tasked with demilitarising Gaza, and developing an international body to temporarily govern the Gaza Strip and oversee reconstruction.

Turkish, Qatari and Egyptian mediators met in Cairo on Tuesday to discuss the second phase, reported Reuters. But major questions hang over nearly every part of the plan, as well as Israel’s commitment to seeing it through.

“Until this moment, Israel has not given up on its plan to ethnically cleanse Gaza,” said Muhammad Shehada, visiting fellow with the European Council on Foreign Relations Middle East and North Africa programme, told Al Jazeera. “Either Gaza stays permanently as a refugee camp in ruins that is unlivable, uninhabitable, and that sustains conditions that are designed to bring about collapse to life there … or Hamas retaliates and Israel uses it as an excuse to resume the genocide.”

Amnesty’s Callamard urged for continued global pressure on Israel to abide by international law and to not allow the ceasefire to serve as a “smokescreen for Israel’s ongoing genocide”.

“The international community cannot afford to be complacent: states must keep up pressure on Israel to allow unfettered access to humanitarian aid, lift its unlawful blockade and end its ongoing genocide,” said Callamard.

This Movie Gives You A Look At Something Rare: Palestine Before Israel

Dena Takruri speaks to “Palestine 36” director Annemarie Jacir about the challenges of making a film about Palestinian history today.

PALESTINE 36 I Official US Trailer

"Fun Fact: About 32 seconds into this trailer you see Arab men unloading barrels from a ship. One of the dock workers accidentally dropped a barrel and it opened up to reveal machine guns. This is known at the "Cement Affair," or "Cement Incident" and it happened in the port of Yaffa/Jaffa in 1935.

The dock workers first reported the discovery of these weapons to my grandfather, Yacoub Al Ghussein, because my grandfather's office was in Jaffa, and my grandfather was a leader of the Arab Higher Comittee, which was the Palestinian government at that time. The shipment of "cement" was destined to a Jewish merchant named J. Katan. This immediately sparked riots not just in Palestine, but throughout the Arab world. And later would lead to the Arab Revolt of 1936, which is of course what this movie is about.

If you pause the clip and look closely, you'll see in the barrels "White Star Cement" which was the name of the type of cement being shipped. Kudos to the directors of this movie for their attention to detail and historical fact. I painted a large scale mural of Palestinian Jaffa Oranges in Cincinnati - Google "Welcome To Jaffa" and you will see my work, or follow me on instagram @welcometojaffa. I am so excited to see this movie. My grandfather was one of the palestinian leaders arrested by the British and exiled to the Seychelles islands for being a leader of the Arab Revolt of 1936. I am proud of all of us new generation of Palestinians who have been using their voices and talent to advocate for Palestine, especially after these past two years of genocide. The world is finally waking up!"

Last edited by SvennoJ - on 27 November 2025