Jeremy Corbyn says UK government is endangering pro-Palestine hunger strikers
The former UK Labour leader has issued a statement in solidarity with Amu Gib, accused of participating in the Palestine Action break-in of RAF Brize Norton airbase this summer.
The action, carried out in protest of Israel’s genocide in Gaza and the UK government’s participation in it, led to the proscription of the group under “anti-terrorism” laws. Dozens of protesters have since been arrested for voicing support for Palestine Action.
Six people, including Gib, are currently on trial in the UK for their role in the protest action, and Gib and eight others have been on a hunger strike since early last month.
Corbyn visited Gib in prison, and afterward said that the hunger strike is “an emergency that should be the front page of every newspaper in Britain”.
“Amu has now been in prison for several months. The trial date is not set until January 2027, which means they will have been in prison for 18 months before the trial. This constitutes cruel and unusual punishment,” Corbyn said in a statement.
Aid flow into Gaza falls short of ceasefire terms: Report
Aid deliveries into Gaza are falling far short of the amount agreed upon under the terms of the US-brokered ceasefire deal, according to UN figures as well as those put forward by the Israeli military, an Associated Press analysis has found.
Under the October ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, Israel agreed to allow 600 aid trucks into Gaza each day.
The Israeli agency Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) said an average of 459 trucks a day have entered Gaza between October 12, when the flow of aid restarted, and December 7.
Throughout the conflict, the UN and aid groups have said the amount of aid entering Gaza is far lower than COGAT claims. Only 6,545 trucks have been offloaded at Gaza crossings between the ceasefire and December 7, amounting to about 113 trucks a day, according to the UN database.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) stressed a “dire” need for more aid to enter Gaza, saying Israeli restrictions on aid have bottlenecked recovery efforts.
Gaza remains ‘place of unimaginable suffering’: UN human rights chief
Volker Turk has warned that the Gaza ceasefire agreement, which entered into force last month, has not translated into the protection of Palestinian civilians on the ground.
“Gaza remains a place of unimaginable suffering, loss and fear,” the UN human rights chief told reporters in Geneva. “While the bloodshed has reduced, it has not stopped. Attacks by Israel continue, including on individuals approaching the so-called yellow line, residential buildings and IDP [internally displaced persons’] tents and shelters, as well as other civilian objects.”
Turk added that “unprecedented” levels of violence are also taking place in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli military and settler attacks have surged. “This is a time to intensify pressure and advocacy, not to sink into complacency, for Palestinians across the occupied territory,” he said.
Arab League calls on ICC to include medical negligence in war crimes investigation
The Arab League has called on the International Criminal Court (ICC) to include the deliberate medical neglect of Palestinian prisoners in its ongoing investigation into war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Israel in the occupied Palestinian territory.
In a statement, the group of 22 nations condemned the death of 21-year-old Abdul Rahman al-Sabateen while in Israeli custody, saying it considered it a crime to be added to the list of Israel’s blatant violations of the Fourth Geneva Convention and international humanitarian law.
In November 2024, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Israel’s prime minister and former defence chief, claiming the country failed to probe war crimes allegations itself.
