19 h. ago Body of Thai hostage retrieved from Gaza, says Israeli defence minister

Nattapong Pinta had been seized in the Hamas-led 7 October 2023 attack and killed, according to Israeli militaryThe Israeli military has retrieved the body of Thai hostage, Nattapong Pinta, who had been held in Gaza since Hamas’s attack on 7 October 2023, according to defence minister, Israel Katz. .Pinta’s body was held by a Palestinian militant group called the Mujahideen Brigades, and was retrieved from the area of Rafah in southern Gaza, Katz said. His family in Thailand has been notified. Continue reading...

Politics

39 h. ago In 1973, I reported freely on Israel at war. Now its censorship has made that impossible | Martin Bell

Today foreign journalists stand on the ‘hill of shame’ overlooking Gaza, reliant on Palestinians for newsWatching the TV coverage of the conflict in Gaza with increasing dismay this week, my mind went back to the banks of the Suez canal in October 1973. I was filming the surrender of the entire Egyptian third army with a team from the BBC, without significant censorship or hindrance. The Israeli commander, Gen Avraham Adan, paused in whatever he was doing to give us an update.Crossing the canal on the Israeli pontoon bridge in a bright yellow Hertz car (not a wise choice of colour) we were even helped when we had to repair a tyre that had been punctured by the shrapnel that littered the battlefield.Martin Bell is a Unicef UK ambassador. He is a former broadcast war reporter, and was the independent MP for Tatton from 1997 to 2001Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publica...

Politics

43 h. ago University of Michigan using undercover investigators to surveil student Gaza protesters

Revealed: security trailing students on and off campus as video shows investigator faking disability when confrontedThe University of Michigan is using private, undercover investigators to surveil pro-Palestinian campus groups, including trailing them on and off campus, furtively recording them and eavesdropping on their conversations, the Guardian has learned.The surveillance appears to largely be an intimidation tactic, five students who have been followed, recorded or eavesdropped on said. The undercover investigators have cursed at students, threatened them and in one case drove a car at a student who had to jump out of the way, according to student accounts and video footage shared with the Guardian. Continue reading...

Events

55 h. ago Rubio imposes sanctions on four ICC judges for ‘targeting’ US and Israel

US secretary of state cites ‘illegitimate actions’ of court that issued arrest warrants against Israeli officialsThe United States is placing sanctions on four judges from the international criminal court (ICC) for what it has called its “illegitimate actions” targeting the United States and Israel.The secretary of state, Marco Rubio, announced the sanctions in a statement on Thursday. They target Solomy Balungi Bossa of Uganda, Luz del Carmen Ibáñez Carranza of Peru, Reine Adelaide Sophie Alapini-Gansou of Benin and Beti Hohler of Slovenia. Continue reading...

Events

57 h. ago Rubio sanctions international criminal court judges for ‘targeting’ US and Israel

US secretary of state cites ‘illegitimate actions’ of court that issued arrest warrants against Israeli officialsThe United States is sanctioning four judges from the international criminal court (ICC) for what it has called its “illegitimate actions” targeting the United States and Israel.The secretary of state, Marco Rubio, announced the sanctions in a statement on Thursday. They target Solomy Balungi Bossa of Uganda, Luz del Carmen Ibáñez Carranza of Peru, Reine Adelaide Sophie Alapini Gansou of Benin and Beti Hohler of Slovenia. Continue reading...

Events

2 d. ago ‘When they are at risk they text me’: Gaza academic in UK powerless to rescue family

Nearly two years after accepting a UK scholarship, Bassem Abudagga has watched Gaza’s horrors close in on his relatives, and British bureaucracy fail to helpThe silence of the early hours was unbearable, perhaps worse than on any night since 7 October 2023. Bassem Abudagga paced around his flat in Manchester waiting desperately for an answer. He knew from a WhatsApp group of 800 relatives, set up by his extended family in Gaza, that houses near where his wife and two young children were holed up to the west of Khan Younis were being hit by Israeli missiles. His wife, Marim, was not picking up.“Every single minute, I am with them 24 hours a day and night. When there is any risk, I keep in contact all the time with them online,” he says. “It depends on the connections, sometimes they are very bad. Even when I am sleeping I keep the notifications very loud and I keep just waking up when one goes off. When they are at risk they just text me. It is very exhausting because they feel that ...

Events

3 d. ago Gaza food hub stops operations for second day as access routes remain ‘combat zones’

Extended closure said to be for maintenance and follows deaths of at least 27 people killed by Israeli troops near distribution siteA US-backed group operating food distribution sites in Gaza has announced that its operations would be suspended for a second day on Thursday, due to “maintenance and repair work”, as the Israeli army warned that roads leading to distribution centres were considered “combat zones”.After Israeli troops opened fire on a crowd of Palestinians, killing at least 27 and injuring hundreds, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) pressed Israel to improve civilian safety beyond the perimeter of its distribution sites. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago Gaza aid points close for day as Israel warns against travel to distribution centres – Israel

Gaza Humanitarian Foundation halts limited supply of food distribution after at least 27 killed by Israeli fire as they waited for food Iran’s supreme leader on Wednesday criticised an initial proposal from the United States in negotiations over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear programme, though he stopped short of entirely rejecting the idea of agreement with Washington. According to the Associated Press (AP), Ayatollah Ali Khamenei described the US proposal as “100% against the idea of ‘we can,’” borrowing from an Iranian government slogan. He also said that Tehran needed to keep its ability to enrich uranium. “If we had 100 nuclear power plants while not having enrichment, they are not usable for us,” Khamenei said. “If we do not have enrichment, then we should extend our hand (begging) to the US.” However, some nuclear power nations get uranium from outside suppliers, reports the AP. Details of the American proposal remain unclear after five rounds of talks between Iran and th...

Events

4 d. ago It’s not Denmark’s children who can’t handle debating Gaza. It’s our politicians | Rune Lykkeberg

In banning a schools debate on Palestinian sovereignty, our leaders have revealed the nation we’re becomingIn Denmark, we like to think of ourselves as being in the vanguard of freedom of expression. We were the first country in the world to legalise pornography. We insisted on the right to publish caricatures of the prophet Muhammad. Rather than marginalise so-called rightwing populists in parliament, we invited them in to political cooperation. We pride ourselves on being unafraid of controversy and we’re good at making authorities who try to tell us what to do – and especially what not to do – look ridiculous.Danes also like to think of our country as a role model for democracy. As such, the national elections for children aged 13 to 16 are a cherished tradition, considered a part of civic education and a preparation for democratic participation. All schools are invited to take part in the exercise, which is held every other year. Students debate 20 issues for three weeks before ...

Politics

4 d. ago Israel warns Palestinians against travel on roads to Gaza aid hubs, labelling them ‘combat zones’

An IDF spokesperson said roads to the distribution centres set up by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation were ‘prohibited’ for PalestiniansIsrael’s military has warned residents of Gaza against travel in areas leading to aid distribution centres, after at least 27 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire as they waited for food at the points set up by the US-backed foundation.An Israeli military spokesperson on Tuesday said roads leading to the distribution centres set up by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) were considered “combat zones”. Continue reading...

Events

4 d. ago At least 27 Palestinians killed after Israeli military opens fire at food distribution point, local health officials say – Israel

IDF says it fired at ‘individual suspects who advanced towards troops’ during incident at food distribution point in southern Gaza StripPalestinians killed by Israeli fire at food point, Gaza officials sayIsraeli strikes on Gaza schools part of deliberate strategy, say sourcesHind Khoudary has been reporting from Deir al-Balah inside Gaza for Al Jazeera, and says that witnesses there told her there was “chaos” at the aid distribution point where at least 27 Palestinians have been killed after Israeli troops opened fire.She reported for the news network that she had been told “There’s no process. There’s no system. You just need to run first to be able to get the food. The Israeli forces just opened fire randomly, shooting Palestinians using quadcopters and live ammunition.” Continue reading...

Events

4 d. ago At least 27 Palestinians killed after Israeli military opens fire at aid distribution point, local health officials say – Israel

IDF says it fired at ‘individual suspects who advanced towards troops’ during incident at aid point in southern Gaza StripPalestinians killed by Israeli fire at aid point, Gaza officials sayIsraeli strikes on Gaza schools part of deliberate strategy, say sourcesHere are some of the images sent to us over the news wires of displaced Palestinians attempting to collect humanitarian aid under the new distribution system being imposed on the Gaza Strip by Israeli authorities. At least 27 Palestinians were killed and nearly 200 injured earlier on Tuesday when Israeli forces opened fire near one of the distribution points in the south of the territory.At least 27 Palestinians were killed and dozens wounded by Israeli fire near a food distribution site in the southern Gaza Strip on Tuesday, local health authorities said. Continue reading...

Events

4 d. ago Palestinians killed after Israeli military opens fire at aid distribution point, Gaza’s civil defence agency says – Israel

IDF says it fired at ‘individual suspects who advanced towards troops’ during incident at aid point in southern Gaza StripPalestinians killed by Israeli fire at aid point, Gaza officials sayIsraeli strikes on Gaza schools part of deliberate strategy, say sourcesReuters reports that the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which Israeli authorities are using to bypass the traditional aid groups operating inside the Palestinian territories, said it distributed 21 truckloads of food early Tuesday.In its statement about troops opening fire on people near an aid distribution point in southern Gaza, Israel’s military has claimed “IDF troops are not preventing the arrival of Gazan civilians to the humanitarian aid distribution sites. The warning shots were fired approximately half a kilometer away from the humanitarian aid distribution site toward several suspects who advanced toward the troops in such a way that posed a threat to them.” Continue reading...

Events

5 d. ago Israeli strikes on Gaza schools used as civilian shelters part of deliberate strategy, say sources

Exclusive: More schools identified as targets after controls on IDF action against Hamas operatives at civilian sites loosenedA series of recent deadly airstrikes on school buildings sheltering displaced people in Gaza were part of a deliberate Israeli military bombing strategy, with further schools identified as targets, the Guardian has learned.At least six school buildings have been struck, reportedly killing more than 120 people, in recent months as part of a targeting effort by the Israeli military. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Israeli strikes on Gaza schools used as civilian shelters are part of deliberate strategy, say sources

Exclusive: More schools identified as targets after controls on IDF action against Hamas operatives at civilian sites loosenedA series of recent deadly airstrikes on school buildings sheltering displaced people in Gaza were part of a deliberate Israeli military bombing strategy, with further schools identified as targets, the Guardian has learned.At least six school buildings have been struck, reportedly killing more than 120 people, in recent months as part of a targeting effort by the Israeli military. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Three killed as Israeli forces open fire near Gaza food distribution site, officials say

Incident took place where more than 30 people were killed on Sunday near Gaza Humanitarian Foundation hubIsraeli forces in the Gaza Strip opened fire as people headed towards a food distribution site a kilometre away at around sunrise on Monday, killing at least three people and injuring dozens, health officials and a witness said. The military said it fired warning shots at “suspects” who approached its forces.The shooting occurred at the same location where witnesses say Israeli forces fired a day earlier on crowds of people heading towards the food distribution hub in southern Gaza run by the Israeli and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Continue reading...

Events

7 d. ago Israel’s ‘violations’ in Gaza make world more dangerous, Norway warns

Low respect for international law and human rights set worrying precedent, international development minister saysIsrael is setting a dangerous precedent for international human rights law violations in Gaza that is making the whole world more dangerous, Norway’s international development minister has warned.Norway has played a historical role in the region, including by facilitating the Oslo peace accords between Israel and the Palestinians that led to a celebrated breakthrough deal in 1993. Last year it recognised the Palestinian state, one of a minority of European countries to do so. Continue reading...

Events

7 d. ago Jewish organizers are increasingly confronting Trump: ‘The repression is growing, but so is the resistance’

As the administration continues to exploit antisemitism to arrest protesters and curb academic freedoms, more American Jews are saying ‘not in my name’On the morning of Columbia University’s commencement last week, an intergenerational group of Jewish alumni gathered in the rain outside the Manhattan campus’s heavily policed gates, wearing keffiyehs and shirts emblazoned with the words “not in our name”. Two had graduated more than 60 years earlier, and one spoke of having fled the Nazis to the US as a child. Others recalled participating in Columbia protests of the past, including those that led the university to divest from apartheid South Africa.They spoke as alumni and as Jews to condemn the university’s investments in Israel, its repression of pro-Palestinian speech, and its capitulation to the Trump administration’s assault on academic freedom in the name of fighting antisemitism on campus. They had planned to burn their Columbia diplomas in protest, but the rain got in their ...

Politics

8 d. ago One afternoon in Gaza, two family tragedies: the childhoods cut short by Israeli airstrikes

Relatives’ trauma over events of 23 May reflects a daily reality in Gaza: the killing and maiming of its youngest citizensAt about 3pm last Friday, Dr Alaa al-Najjar, a paediatrician at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis, received the charred remains of seven of her 10 children, killed in an Israeli airstrike. The bodies of two others were buried beneath the rubble.A few miles away, 11-year-old Yaqeen Hammad, known as Gaza’s youngest social media influencer, was killed after a series of heavy Israeli airstrikes hit the house where she lived with her family. She was watering flowers in a tiny patch of greenery eked out of a displacement camp when she died. Her cousin, 16-year-old Eyad, was gravely wounded. Continue reading...

Events

9 d. ago Carbon footprint of Israel’s war on Gaza exceeds that of many entire countries

Exclusive: Climate cost of war is more than than the combined 2023 emissions of Costa Rica and Estonia, study findsThe carbon footprint of the first 15 months of Israel’s war on Gaza will be greater than the annual planet-warming emissions of a hundred individual countries, exacerbating the global climate emergency on top of the huge civilian death toll, new research reveals.A study shared exclusively with the Guardian found the long-term climate cost of destroying, clearing and rebuilding Gaza could top 31m tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e). This is more than the combined 2023 annual greenhouse gases emitted by Costa Rica and Estonia, yet there is no obligation for states to report military emissions to the UN climate body.Over 99% of the almost 1.89m tCO2e estimated to have been generated between the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack and the temporary ceasefire in January 2025 is attributed to Israel’s aerial bombardment and ground invasion of Gaza.Almost 30% of greenhouse gas...

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