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Forums - Politics Discussion - Israel-Hamas war, Gaza genocide

zeldaring on 26 February 2024

Aaron Bushnell rip that was so sad, the genocide effected him on another level he was too good for this world.



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SvennoJ on 26 February 2024
Qwark said:

The ICJ case so far is a joke. A lot countries crying, yet noone is willing to actually lift a finger against Israel or it's allies outside of this court. You would think that the Arabian and African world combined would be a bit stronger than this.

Stop sending oil and other vital products to Israel and there allies, isolate them, sanction them. Hell stop exporting LNG and oil to the EU and UK as long as they send weapons to Israel. Wanna stop weapon exports from Europe to Israel stop exporting LNG to Europe. Drop them in another energy crisis. Show them you can hit their economy too and hard.

This whole case is just a big virtue signal from countries who are not willing to stand for their ideals if it costs them a bit of money. Yet the Palestinians are paying the price for it.

Well said.

It's not the same people presenting the case as the ones ruling the country though. In the end, money always speaks louder than words, and the protection of money trumps human life by everything.

That's why I linked this piece, discussing the new cold war between US and China.



The US keeps its grip on the world by controlling the money, the US Dollar as global currency and also controlling all bank transactions through SWIFT. China has created it's own digital banking system which the US doesn't want anyone to use. However gulf states are looking at China as an alternative place to store their vast hordes of oil money.

The 'problem' with them sanctioning the US now is that tanking the dollar is tanking their own assets. The gulf states are playing the long game, investing in China while protecting their dollar assets.

The Palestinians are certainly paying the price of Geopolitics for over a century now. And continue to do so as for example Saudi Arabia simply looks on to see how far Israel can destroy itself before lifting a finger.

However the veil is getting lifted more and more while US' power (and thus Israel's) continues to decline. The hearings do have an effect, however it will take much more to save people's lives.



SvennoJ on 26 February 2024

Newborns dying in Gaza: UN Population Fund

The UN Population Fund (UNFPA) has reported that newborn babies are dying in Gaza because their mothers are unable to access appropriate care. UNFPA also reported that bombings and anxiety are leading many mothers to give birth prematurely.

As one example, the UNFPA said that the Al Helal Al Emirati maternity hospital in Rafah only has five beds available for deliveries. “Despite the lack of such basic supplies as sheets, the facility recently coped with 78 deliveries in one night alone,” the UNFPA said.


A Palestinian mother carries her baby as she travels from the northern Gaza Strip to the south along Al Rashid Road while smoke can be seen in the distance

Violent clashes as Israeli forces raid Al-Far’a refugee camp in West Bank

Our Al Jazeera Arabic colleagues and local media are reporting that Israeli forces have raided the Al-Far’a camp, south of Tubas in the occupied West Bank, resulting in intense fighting with Palestinian resistance groups including explosions. Raids and arrests have been reported elsewhere in the occupied West Bank in the following locations:

  • The city of Nablus, where a man has also been arrested
  • The Jalazoun camp, north of Ramallah
  • The city of Yatta, south of Hebron
  • The town of Beit Furik, east of Nablus
  • The town of Azzun, east of Qalqilya
  • The village of Jalboun, east of Jenin

 

Ceasefire talks said to include prisoner swap, return of displaced ‘women and children’ to north Gaza

In the last couple of days, since those talks in Paris ended, Israeli media has been ferociously trying to dissect some of the potential parameters for this framework of a deal. They’ve included issues around prisoner swaps. They’ve included issues around the positioning of the Israeli military inside Gaza.

And, just tonight, Al Jazeera Arabic is reporting that it had talked to sources about some of the initial terms, in particular, a gradual return of the displaced to the northern part of the Gaza Strip. That would be women and children. Not men of military age.

Sources are telling Al Jazeera Arabic that Israel had accepted Hamas’s request to increase the entry of aid [to Gaza] – something the US and many Western allies, in particular, had been pushing for for quite some time.


Palestinians gather to collect food aid in Beit Lahia, in the northern Gaza Strip, on February 26, 2024

Footage shows Gaza City residents scrambling for bags of flour

Footage authenticated by Al Jazeera’s Sanad verification unit shows a large crowd of hungry and desperate Palestinians in Gaza City scrambling for bags of flour. On Sunday, UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini said that the last time food and humanitarian aid was delivered to northern Gaza was on January 23.

“We have warned against looming famine, appealed for regular humanitarian access, and stated that famine can be averted if more food convoys are allowed into northern Gaza on a regular basis,” he said.





Biden says ‘hopes to see’ Gaza ‘ceasefire’ by Monday

Biden was in New York. He was at a meeting for his campaign, then he popped into an ice cream store, which he tends to do, and a reporter shouted, “What can you tell us about the ceasefire?” and he said:

“I hope to see a ceasefire by the beginning of this weekend or the end of this weekend. I hope to see a ceasefire by Monday. It’s not a done deal but my national security adviser says we could have a ceasefire on Monday.”

Now there [are] a couple of ways you could take this. This is Joe Biden. He often says things [and] then his advisers come out later and say that he didn’t mean what he said. The other thing is, if they don’t do that, this could very much be President Joe Biden sending a message to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he expects to see a ceasefire.

His wording is very important. He didn’t say a temporary ceasefire. He didn’t say a truce. The United States has tried very hard, gone out of their way to not call for a ceasefire. He said “ceasefire”.

Now is that going be something that his aides later say he meant “temporary ceasefire”? We don’t know.

This is the president very clearly for the first time saying that – while it’s not done – they are close and he expects to see an end to the violence by Monday. So seven days from now. It will be interesting to see if his aides try to walk it back.


Biden was eating an ice-cream when he said, ‘My hope is by next Monday, we’ll have a ceasefire’

Biden’s ‘ceasefire’ comments come hours before Michigan primary

Just hours from now, on Tuesday, voters in Michigan are going to start casting their votes in the primary. And there’s a huge movement in Michigan for the Democrats to write in “not committed”.

I was in Michigan when Joe Biden went there to campaign and the anger is actually palpable. They said Trump basically never said that he cared about the Palestinians. Biden said he did, so they feel a very deep sense of betrayal.

We’ll have a lot better idea at the end of the day as to just how many people are going to take that anger out on the president, Joe Biden. So, it does seem… his campaign is starting to wake up to the fact that there’s a very real chance, because of this, to lose Michigan.

If he loses Michigan, because of the electoral college, it’s a really really hard path to keep him in the White House.

Analyst: Biden’s Gaza position less popular among young Americans than Nixon in Vietnam

Joe Biden is likely concerned about whether he is “going to still be president by this time next year” due to his handling of Israel’s war on Gaza, according to Stephen Zunes, a professor of politics and international studies at the University of San Francisco.

“What’s striking is that his position on Gaza is even more unpopular among young Americans than these other presidents including [Richard] Nixon and Vietnam. And so he has to be concerned about his legacy,” Zunes told Al Jazeera.

Zunes said that while he believes Biden is still unwilling to “publicly threaten Netanyahu”, he believes he will be “quietly” making threats. “Giving Netanyahu essentially everything he wants in the hopes that he will see reason is simply not working. He has to exercise at least some of the enormous leverage the United States actually has,” he said.

He is the president of the most powerful nation in the world, all he can do is hope ??? All he needs to do is stop support for Israel, military aid, political cover, monetary aid and designate the Settler movement as a terrorist group which is what they are.

It's Monday, let's wait another week... so depressing.

Yeah Biden is out of the loop

US supports ‘temporary ceasefire’ negotiations in draft Security Council resolution

The US Mission to the United Nations has circulated a draft resolution to members of the UN Security Council (UNSC) that expresses support for diplomatic efforts to “urgently” reach a “temporary ceasefire” agreement, according to a copy seen by Al Jazeera’s Rami Ayari.

US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield said in an interview on Monday that she believed the US “alternative resolution” is “more relevant to supporting the efforts on the ground to get us to that temporary ceasefire”.

The new proposed text comes after the US vetoed a UNSC resolution put forward by Algeria last week. Thomas-Greenfield claimed at the time that Algeria’s resolution could interfere with the ongoing truce talks.

Last edited by SvennoJ - on 26 February 2024

SvennoJ on 27 February 2024
zeldaring said:

Aaron Bushnell rip that was so sad, the genocide effected him on another level he was too good for this world.

Tragically sad people are driven to commit suicide in order to be heard.

Hopefully his death, as well as all the many other thousands of deaths are not in vain.

‘His last words: Free Palestine’ – vigil held for Aaron Bushnell

People leave notes and flowers during a vigil for US Air Force serviceman Aaron Bushnell who self-immolated outside the Israeli Embassy in Washington, DC, on Sunday to protest the war in Gaza



Aaron Bushnell, 25, wanted the world to know that he did not support the US’s role in Israel’s war on Gaza.

“I will not be complicit in genocide”, he said, as he set himself on fire in a protest outside the Israeli embassy in Washington, DC, sustaining injuries that later claimed his life. He livestreamed his protest on Twitch where viewers say his last words were, “Free Palestine”.

Bushnell described himself on Linkedin as an “aspiring software engineer” from San Antonio, Texas. He served in the US Air Force from May 2020 until his death. Bushnell was described by a friend as “the kindest, gentlest, silliest little kid in the Air Force”, according to a post from Talia Jane, the reporter who first shared his name and details of his protest online.

A Pentagon spokesperson has described Bushnell’s death as a “tragic event” but reaffirmed that US support for Israel is “ironclad”.

on the scene, the fire had been put out.

And also tragically sad US media still can't even say anything about the 'war', just goes on painting him as an extremist

a Secret Service agent states that they “received a distress call regarding an individual exhibiting signs of mental distress outside the Israeli embassy.”
Bushnell emailed several left-leaning websites alerting them to his “highly disturbing” final act [including the BBC...]



Very different here

https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2024/2/26/suicide-vs-genocide-rest-in-power-aaron-bushnell

On Sunday, February 25, 25-year-old active duty member of the United States Air Force Aaron Bushnell set himself on fire outside the Israeli embassy in the US capital of Washington, DC, in a one-airman revolt against the US-backed slaughter currently being perpetrated by the Israeli military in the Gaza Strip.

Over the past 143 days, Israel has killed nearly 30,000 Palestinians in the besieged coastal enclave. In video footage recorded prior to and during his self-immolation, Bushnell states that he will “no longer be complicit in genocide” and that he is “about to engage in an extreme act of protest – but compared to what people have been experiencing in Palestine at the hands of their colonisers is not extreme at all”.

To be sure, Palestinians have long been accustomed to, well, burning to death at the hands of Israeli weaponry, ever since the state of Israel undertook to lethally invent itself on Palestinian land in 1948. The Israeli military’s use of skin-incinerating white phosphorus munitions in more recent years has no doubt contributed to the whole Palestinian “experience”.

After pertinently observing that US complicity in the genocide of Palestinians is “what our ruling class has decided will be normal”, Bushnell plants himself directly in front of the Israeli embassy gate – in full US military fatigues – and proceeds to douse himself with flammable liquid. As he rapidly burns to death, he repeatedly shouts: “Free Palestine”, while security personnel order him to get “on the ground”. One particularly helpful individual points a gun at the blaze.

In the aftermath of Bushnell’s self-immolation, the New York Times announced: “Man Dies After Setting Himself on Fire Outside Israeli Embassy in Washington, Police Say” – a rather strong contender, perhaps, for the most diluted and decontextualised headline ever. One wonders what folks would have said in 1965 had the US newspaper of record run headlines like: “Octogenarian Detroit Woman Dies After Setting Herself on Fire, Police Say – An Event Having Nothing Potentially To Do With Said Woman’s Opposition To The Vietnam War Or Anything Like That”.

Speaking of Vietnam War-related self-immolations, recall renowned US historian and journalist David Halberstam’s account of the 1963 demise in Saigon, South Vietnam, of the Vietnamese monk Thich Quang Duc: “Flames were coming from a human being; his body was slowly withering and shriveling up, his head blackening and charring. In the air was the smell of burning flesh; human beings burn surprisingly quickly… I was too shocked to cry, too confused to take notes or ask questions, too bewildered even to think”.

And while such an intense and passionate form of suicide is no doubt bewildering to many, genocide should be all the more appalling; as Bushnell himself said, self-immolation is nothing “compared to what people have been experiencing in Palestine”, where people know all too well how quickly human beings burn.

In Bushnell’s case, the US political-media establishment appears to be doing its best to not only decontextualise but also posthumously discredit him. Time Magazine’s write-up, for example, admonishes that the US “Defence Department policy states that service members on active duty should ‘not engage in partisan political activity’” – as though actively abetting a genocide weren’t politically “partisan”.

Furthermore, the magazine specifies, US military regulations “prohibit wearing the uniform during ‘unofficial public speeches, interviews’”, and other activities.

Perhaps Bushnell’s ashes can be tried in military court.

 



SvennoJ on 27 February 2024



Bibi FREAKS At Critical Interview As COPS CRUSH Tel Aviv Protests

Israel's Apologists Unleash Racist Firestorm UK falling down



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SvennoJ on 27 February 2024

Israeli filmmaker says right-wing mob threatened family members

The Israeli journalist and filmmaker Yuval Abraham says he is facing death threats after giving a speech at a Berlin film festival calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and an end to Israeli apartheid over the Palestinians, which Israeli media and German politicians called anti-Semitic.

Abraham said he has temporarily cancelled his planned return to Israel after a right-wing mob went to his family’s home to search for him, threatening his family members and forcing them to leave for another town in the middle of the night. He said his Palestinian co-director, Basel Adra, is more seriously endangered living “under a military occupation surrounded by violent settlements in Masafer Yatta”.

“This happened after Israeli media and German politicians absurdly labeled my Berlinale award speech – where I called for equality between Israelis and Palestinians, a ceasefire and an end to apartheid – as ‘antisemitic’,” Abraham said in a social media post.

“The appalling misuse of this word by Germans, not only to silence Palestinian critics of Israel, but also to silence Israelis like me who support a ceasefire that will end the killing in Gaza and allow the release of the Israeli hostages – empties the word antisemitism of meaning and thus endangers Jews all over the world,” he wrote.







US says it does not want to see Israel-Hezbollah escalation

Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant says Israel will continue to attack Hezbollah positions even if a truce is reached in Gaza, but the State Department’s Miller says Washington is working to resolve the Lebanon-Israel crisis diplomatically.

“We do not want to see either side escalate the conflict in the north [of Israel],” Miller told reporters.

“And in fact, we’re going to continue to pursue a diplomatic resolution of that conflict. And while we saw the defense minister’s comments, we have also taken note that repeatedly the defense minister and other officials of the government of Israel, including the prime minister, have said publicly that they would prefer the situation to be resolved diplomatically.”

Israeli army chief: Hezbollah must pay for attacking Israel

Herzi Halevi has said that Hezbollah must pay a “very heavy price” for launching limited attacks on Israel following October 7. His comments came during a visit today to Israel’s northern border, near Lebanon, and represent the latest instance of sharpening rhetoric by Israeli officials that have hinted at a desire for escalation with the Lebanese group.

“We are not waiting for anything, we are saying the following – Hezbollah decided on October 7th in the evening that it is joining and it has to pay a very heavy price for it,” Halevi said.

Israeli army: Hezbollah fire damages airbase

In a statement on X, Israel’s army says that an anti-tank missile was detected crossing from Lebanon into Israeli territory towards the Miron area, where Israel has an airbase. “Damage was detected in the area of ​​the Air Force’s air control unit. There is no damage to the facility’s competence,” it said.

It also said that the launches of about 20 rockets were detected in Israeli territory, and “a number were successfully intercepted by the air defense fighters”. The statement concluded by saying the army is “now attacking terrorist targets of the Hezbollah terrorist organisation in Lebanese territory”.

Strikes by Israel inside Lebanese territory have escalated over the past week, occurring further and further away from the Lebanon-Israel border, fueling fears of the breakout of full-scale war.

Netanyahu says he has been resisting pressure to end war ‘prematurely’

The Israeli prime minister has said that he has been “leading a diplomatic campaign” to secure strong support for Israel.

In a statement presented as a response to Biden, Netanyahu cited a recent poll showing that 82 percent of US respondents favour Israel over Hamas. “This will help us continue the campaign until total victory,” Netanyahu said.

It is not clear what the Israeli prime minister was responding to, but yesterday, Biden said the US is working to secure a temporary ceasefire in the conflict in the coming days. The US president has been a staunch defender of Israel. His administration has vetoed three UN Security Council resolution that would have called for a ceasefire in Gaza.

That is some AAA spin doctoring
https://www.timesofisrael.com/new-poll-of-us-voters-finds-overwhelming-support-for-israel-over-hamas-in-gaza-war/

Looking at the poll https://harvardharrispoll.com/

Approval rating of Biden on Israel-Hamas conflict, from 44% in October, down to 38% feb 24.
I guess they spun the '82 percent' from this slide


Note the segments of never heard of them for Hamas and the PA, how is that even possible after 4 months of live streaming genocide.
Yet fucking Facebook is trending higher than Israel, Israel pares with Fox News...

In typical American fashion, Israel-Hamas conflict is only 6% on the priority list, next to income inequality, while immigration sits at the top at 36% next to price increase / inflation. Also the biggest complaint against Biden is not the Gaza nor Ukraine wars by far (both at 9%) but creating a historic flood of immigrants with his open border policy (44%)

Interestingly 62% of respondents agree the country needs another choice than Biden or Trump. (With the democrats leading on that)
56% say they would consider a moderate independent candidate for the 2024 election (Again democrats leading on that)

Meanwhile Trump maintains the lead if elections were held now (53% vs 47%)


Voters are split on sending money to Ukraine 50/50, while still more in favor of sending money to Israel 55/45
Ah here is the slide, propaganda machine at work.

What kind of question is that anyway? Where is the neither option.

67% favor getting the hostages killed "Ceasefire should only happen after all hostages have been freed and Hamas has been removed from power"

63% support invasion of Rafah



If I didn't know how terribly biased and incomplete the US news coverage was, I would say Americans have no empathy, blood thirsty MFs. Yet 68% think Israel is actually trying to avoid civilian casualties despite daily reports of children getting shot by Israeli snipers.

67% also want the US to strike back at Iran-backed terrorist groups (I assume they mean the Houthis and Iraq resistance groups) and say Biden isn't doing enough bombing (54%).

70 pages of questions and the word ceasefire is never mentioned....
No mention of the suspension of UNWRA, no mention of the humanitarian crisis.
Ukraine is even worse off, hardly mentioned at all. It's all about Immigrants, Iran, Terrorists.

Harvard is firmly in the pocket of Aipac.


Meanwhile other polls, Dec 5 already the majority of Americans wanted a permanent ceasefire
https://www.dataforprogress.org/blog/2023/12/5/voters-want-the-us-to-call-for-a-permanent-ceasefire-in-gaza-and-to-prioritize-diplomacy

Which has only been going up, and early Februari

https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-poll-biden-war-gaza-4159b28d313c6c37abdb7f14162bcdd1
Half of U.S. adults say Israel’s 15-week-old military campaign in Gaza has “gone too far,” a finding driven mainly by growing disapproval among Republicans and political independents, according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

New US poll finds strong support for Gaza ceasefire

A poll released by the progressive data firm Data for Progress has found that 67 percent of US voters support a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, including 77 percent of Democratic Party voters. The Biden administration has consistently rejected calls for a permanent ceasefire.

“Around two-thirds of voters (67 percent) – including majorities of Democrats (77 percent), Independents (69 percent), and Republicans (56 percent) – support the US calling for a permanent ceasefire and a de-escalation of violence in Gaza,” the group said in a memo.

“This represents a 6-point increase in support for the US calling for a permanent ceasefire since Data for Progress last polled this question in November, with a 12-point increase among Independents.”

The poll also found that substantial majorities of voters support making continued aid to Israel conditional on requirements such as allowing displaced Palestinians to return to their homes in northern Gaza, committing to peace talks with the Palestinians and halting indiscriminate bombings to protect civilians.

Last edited by SvennoJ - on 27 February 2024

SvennoJ on 27 February 2024

Palestinian West Bank official describes ‘tough night’ of Israeli raid

Ahmed Asaad, the acting head of the Tubas governorate, says a large number of Israeli military vehicles, including three bulldozers, stormed the Far’a refugee camp in the north of the occupied West Bank, leaving widespread destruction to the infrastructure there.

“It was a tough night, as the governorate lost three young men who were killed in cold blood while living their normal lives at their homes,” Asaad told Al Jazeera.

He said Israeli raids in the area have been intensifying. “If the goal of these military operations is going after young men, why do the Israelis bulldoze the roads and target power generators?” Asaad asked.

“The Israelis are carrying out a policy of terrorising and subjugating the Palestinian people, but they will fail again,” he said.

Palestinian prisoners in Israel facing dire conditions: Advocate

Amani Sarhana, a spokesperson for the Palestinian Prisoner Society, says the number of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel has risen from 5,250 to more than 9,000 since October 7 – and that excludes people detained in Gaza.

“The number of sick and injured prisoners is also growing because of the abuses against them since October 7 and the policies of torture and humiliation and starvation that Israeli prison authorities are pursuing,” Sarhana told Al Jazeera.

She added that it is difficult to know exactly how many Palestinian children are held by Israel because many children are being detained and some are released daily, but the group estimates around 200 minors remain in Israeli prisons.

UN says quarter of Gaza’s population ‘one step away from famine’

UN humanitarian affairs chief Ramesh Rajasingham has said that 576,000 people in Gaza, or about a quarter of the population, are on the edge of famine.

“And here we are, at the end of February, with at least 576,000 people in Gaza – one-quarter of the population – one step away from famine,” Rajasingham told the UN Security Council today, noting that if nothing is done “we fear widespread famine in Gaza is almost inevitable.”

While aid groups have consistently warned that Gaza is being plunged into extreme hunger, Israel has further restricted efforts to deliver vital humanitarian assistance into the strip during February. Some rights groups have concluded that Israel is using starvation as a weapon of war in Gaza.

 

Biden ‘aware’ of US airman’s self-immolation in Gaza protest

White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre calls the incident a “horrific tragedy” without commenting on the US’s Gaza policy or unqualified support for Israel. “Our thoughts are with the family of the service member during this – I can we can’t even imagine – horrible, horrible, difficult time,” she told reporters.

Earlier this week, 25-year-old active duty member of the US Air Force Aaron Bushnell set himself on fire outside the Israeli Embassy after saying that he will “no longer be complicit in genocide” in Gaza.

 

US State Department says truce deal ‘possible’ by Monday

The State Department has backed Biden’s assessment that a deal that would see a temporary halt in fighting, freeing Israeli captives in Gaza and allowing more aid into the territory can be reached in the coming days.

“We do think it’s possible but … ultimately some of this comes down to Hamas and whether Hamas is willing to agree to a deal that would provide significant benefits to the Palestinian people that they claim to represent,” spokesperson Matthew Miller said.

Senior Hamas member says no official truce proposal received yet

Basem Naim, a senior member of Hamas’s political wing with close ties to its military wing, says from Istanbul that, as of this evening, meditators in negotiations to reach an agreement to pause the fighting in Gaza are still working with the Israeli side to cement a proposal.

For any agreement to work, he told journalist Willem Marx, Hamas’s red lines must be met, including:

  • The return of people to their homes, especially in the north of the Gaza Strip
  • The total withdrawal of the Israeli military from Gazan territory
  • Support for rebuilding efforts
  • Aid for Gaza’s population, particularly food and medicine
  • A guaranteed ceasefire
  • Palestinian prisoners being freed

However, Naim said that Hamas is willing to be flexible on the timing and sequencing of these demands, as long as the total ceasefire begins on day one of the implementation of any agreement.

Hamas is also seeking guarantors such as Egypt, Qatar, Turkey, the United Nations, the United States and Russia to ensure and verify that any deal is upheld by Israel, he said. He also said that US President Biden’s public assertion that a ceasefire deal will be reached by this Monday is being seen by Hamas as intended for the US domestic audience, and not as a tactic to put pressure on Israel to accept a truce deal.

As evidence for this, Naim cited the fact that the US continues to veto calls for an immediate ceasefire in the UN Security Council, and also continues to send military support to Israel.

Biden says agreement reached for ceasefire during Ramadan

In comments that came as a surprise, and that have not been echoed by other major players in negotiations to bring a truce in the war in Gaza, the US president told a late-night talk show that fighting could be paused as soon as March 10.



He's flat out lied before so might as well stick with it.



Btw Biden next Monday is not March 4th, can't even keep you dates straight.

Reporter says Israel remains committed to attack on Rafah regardless of US concerns

Akbar Shahid Ahmed, a reporter with the news outlet Huffington Post, has told Al Jazeera that Israel remains committed to carrying out an assault on Rafah despite protests from rights groups and allies in the US.

“Israel has not been able to deal the kind of death blow to Hamas that they promised they would and that a lot of the Israeli public wants them to. So that’s why you see Prime Minister Netanyahu saying, regardless of whether there’s a ceasefire, regardless of whether there’s a truce, he will eventually go into Rafah,” Shahid Ahmed said.

“And that’s because he’s arguing that’s where there’s Hamas leadership, that’s where there are remaining hostages, and that’s why there’s a huge strategic value to Israel. Israel is saying they want to control Gaza in a way they never have before. They especially want to control Gaza’s southern border with Egypt. All of that puts Israel at odds with the US.”

MSF says ‘no signs’ Israel is trying to alleviate suffering of civilians

The medical group Doctors Without Borders, also known as Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF), has said that, one month after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered Israel to ensure basic aid reaches people in Gaza, Israel has instead “tightened” its blockade of the strip.

A statement from the group also blasts Israel’s “blatant and total disregard” for medical facilities and humanitarian workers.

“According to local health authorities, the number of people killed in Gaza has risen to 30,000, while there are no signs of Israeli forces attempting to limit the loss of civilian life or alleviate the suffering of people,” the statement reads.

“Israel’s tightened blockade of Gaza hinders the entry of vital supplies into the enclave. At the same time, the provision of aid within the enclave is nearly impossible due to Israel’s complete disregard for the protection and safety of medical and humanitarian missions and their staff, cutting people off from lifesaving aid. This reality is making the humanitarian response in Gaza a mere illusion.”

Last edited by SvennoJ - on 27 February 2024

SvennoJ on 27 February 2024

Israel perpetrating ‘most heinous form of genocide’: Shtayyeh

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh has told Japan’s Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs Kiyoto Tsuji during a meeting in Ramallah that Israel is perpetrating “the most heinous forms of genocide against our people”.

Shtayyeh, who is currently serving as a caretaker PM after resigning on Monday, added that Israel “works to perpetuate apartheid and acts as if it is a state above the law”, the Palestinian Wafa news agency reported.

“Israel has turned the Gaza Strip into a killing field and is facing a major humanitarian catastrophe as people live without the most basic necessities of life – water, food, electricity, or medicine,” Shtayyeh said.

PRCS says hundreds suffering from infectious diseases

The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) says its teams in Jabalia, northern Gaza, are receiving hundreds of patients showing symptoms linked to infectious diseases that are spreading rapidly due to overcrowding, medicine shortage and a lack of clean water.

THe PRCS Jabalia medical centre is receiving between 150 and 200 cases per day, and medics say they are witnessing outbreaks of preventable diseases, including hepatitis A. Gaza’s health ministry warned last month that a hepatitis A epidemic was under way among the displaced. The United Nations repeatedly expressed alarm at the news that infections had been confirmed in Gaza.

Gaza Health Ministry warns of imminent mass deaths from famine

Ashraf al-Qudra, spokesperson of the Gaza Health Ministry, has called on international agencies to urgently provide food and drinking water throughout Gaza to avert an enormous humanitarian catastrophe. Al-Qudra spoke earlier to our colleagues at Al Jazeera Arabic. Here’s some of what he had to say:

  • “What is happening in northern Gaza is a true famine.”
  • “We have recorded two deaths as a result of malnutrition in northern Gaza, and there are others who are suffering and may die at any moment.”
  • “We have asked international agencies to survey all shelters to document the spread of hunger.”
  • “This escalating famine could kill thousands of citizens due to malnutrition and dehydration in the coming days in front of the eyes of the world.”
  • “Aid must enter the Gaza Strip and reach all of its areas – in the north and the south – to contain this catastrophe.”
  • “Diseases are also spreading along with malnutrition and dehydration throughout Gaza.”

Health Ministry says malnourished infants arrived at northern Gaza hospital

The ministry said in a brief statement that several children suffering from dehydration and malnutrition have been received at Kamal Adwan Hospital. There have been growing reports of children dying in northern Gaza from lack of food and drinkable water due to Israeli siege.

The UN said in last week that one in six children under the age of two in Gaza is acutely malnourished.

Egypt carries out first airdrop to Gaza

The Egyptian Air Forces has carried out its first airdrop of humanitarian aid in Gaza in collaboration with the United Arab Emirates and Jordan, local media reported. State-run Al-Qahera News said 45 tonnes of aid supplies were dropped on the northern and central part of the strip and that the delivery of another 50 tonnes of aid is being planned.

The delivery comes a day after Jordan’s military conducted a similar operation. Footage showed thousands of starving Palestinians in Deir el-Balah jumping into the sea to retrieve the aid.

Sci-fi documentary reimagining Palestine without Nakba premieres in London

LYD, a feature sci-fi documentary reimagining the history of Palestine if there had been no Nakba – the mass displacement of Palestinians that led to the formation of Israel in 1948 – has taken viewers on a journey through the lifespan of the 5,000-year-old city of the same name as it premiered in London.

For Palestinians, the destruction of the city of Lyd is a painful and tragic symbol of the dispossession and loss of a homeland. The film dares to ask the question: What would the city be like had the Israeli occupation had never happened? “The occupation can take many things, but one thing it can’t take is your ability to imagine,” co-director Rami Younis told Al Jazeera.

Asked how the film would be perceived in Israel, co-director Sarah Ema Friedland said she was concerned about the rise in anti-Semitism but noted that “there is so much Jewish presence in our film. Jewish refugees fleeing Europe’s anti-Semitism are welcome.”

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12683280/



SvennoJ on 27 February 2024

REVEALED: NYT Writer Outed As IDF PROPAGANDIST



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SvennoJ on 27 February 2024

‘Palestinians in Gaza are not starving, they are BEING starved’: JVP

The progressive US Jewish group Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) has stressed that Israel, which has been besieging Gaza, is responsible for hunger in the territory.

“Palestinians in Gaza are not starving, they are BEING starved. By the Israeli military,” JVP said in a social media post.

US wants assurances Israel uses provided weapons in line with international law

A report from US news site Axios says that US President Biden’s administration has given Israel until mid-March to sign a letter that guarantees any US weapons provided to Israel will be used in accordance with international law and assures that Israel will allow humanitarian aid into Gaza.

The report cites three US and Israeli officials.

This request follows a memo issued on February 8, which states that, before the US supplies any country with weapons, it must give “credible and reliable written assurances” that the weapons will be used in accordance with international humanitarian law.

Should Israel fail to provide assurances to the US, weapons transfers will be paused, says Axios.

More theater since the US doesn't believe Israel is doing anything wrong anyway and find anything Israel says credible and reliable just on the basis that it comes from Israel.

Arab-American Michigan mayor votes ‘uncommitted’ for Gaza victims

Abdullah Hammoud, the mayor of Dearborn – a Detroit suburb – cited Palestinian grandfather Khaled Nabhan who was filmed kissing the eyes of his granddaughter Reem after she was killed in an Israeli attack in Gaza last year, as he shared a photo of his ballot.

Many progressives in Michigan are voting “uncommitted” in the Democratic presidential primaries in protest against Biden’s “unwavering” support for the war on Gaza.