Images and videos have been coming through #WorldCentralKitchen offloading food aid to #Gaza on Thursday as part of WCK’s #OperationSafeena (boat in Arabic).
The WCK is expected to deliver 37 million meals to Gaza where about 2 million Palestinians have been forcibly displaced by Israeli attacks across the narrow strip. #Israel
The chaos in the #RedSea due to the #Israel-#Gaza war has spread further.
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An Indian navy warship has intercepted the hijacked cargo ship #MVRuen and demanded the #SomaliPirates on board surrender, a navy spokesperson said on Saturday.
Until the Ruen was seized, there had been no successful hijacking of a merchant ship by Somali pirates since 2017. #India #Somalia #GulfOfAden
Happy ending for this one. No one killed, thank god. #India #GulfofAden #IndianOcean #Somalia #SomaliPirates #Israel #Gaza
The #IndianNavy has freed the hijacked ship #MVRuen and detained 35 #pirates
The chaos in the #RedSea due to the #Israel-#Gaza war has spread further. ----- An Indian navy warship has intercepted the hijacked cargo ship #MVRuen and demanded the #SomaliPirates on board surrender, a navy spokesperson said on Saturday. Until the Ruen was seized, there had been no successful hijacking of a merchant ship by Somali pirates since 2017. #India #Somalia #GulfOfAden https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/indian-navy-intercepts-somali-pirates-on-cargo-ship-ruen/ar-BB1k0iBD?ocid=emmx-mmx-feeds&PC=EMMX01
The #MVAbdullah, which had 23 crew members and was transporting coal, was on its way to the #UAE from #Mozambique when pirates in the #IndianOcean captured it on Tuesday.The MV's location changed on Thursday after it anchored approximately seven nautical miles off the coast of Garacad, #Somalia. #Bangladesh #GulfOfAden #Israel #Gaza #SomaliPirates
Anchored in hope: Govt promises swift action to save MV Abdullah, crew
https://www.bignewsnetwork.com/news/274169882/anchored-in-hope-govt-promises-swift-action-to-save-mv-abdullah-crew?utm_source=bignewsnetwork&utm_medium=referral
Sources close to #Hamas said its leaders now recognise that they need to show #Palestinians “a big victory” to avoid a popular backlash after the immense destruction and loss of lives in five months of war.
“They know now that they need to demonstrate that they are really on the side of the people,” said one source.
#GazaCeasefire hopes rise after Hamas abandons key demands | #Israel-#Gaza war
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/16/gaza-ceasefire-hopes-rise-after-hamas-abandons-key-demands
“It’s like we are stuck in 6 October, but with the pictures from 7 October in our mind,” Shita said. “We were naive, or maybe it was hubris … They took everything we thought about reality and shook it.” #Lebanon #Gaza
‘I can’t drink my coffee and see the #Hezbollah flag’: calls for a wider war on #Israel’s border
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/17/calls-wider-war-israel-border-hezbollah
The nuances reflect the tightrope the #US is still trying to walk, seeking to claw back leadership on the issue at the #UN, while keeping pressure on #Hamas to agree a limited deal that would exchange 40 of the most vulnerable hostages for a six-week pause.
The US finally backs a ceasefire, but the nuances in its UN resolution show the tightrope it walks | #Israel-#Gaza war
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/21/us-un-ceasefire-gaza
Representatives of the Yemeni #Houthi movement have engaged in discussions with Russian and Chinese diplomats to secure safe passage for their fleets through the #RedSea. The agreement entails that the #Houthis ensure their ships will not be targeted for attacks. #Israel #Gaza
Houthi rebels negotiate safe Red Sea passage with #Russia and #China
https://essanews.com/houthi-rebels-negotiate-safe-red-sea-passage-with-russia-and-china,7008404510406273a
#US Secretary of State #AntonyBlinken landed in #Israel Friday for talks with Prime Minister Benjamin #Netanyahu, ahead of a #UNSecurityCouncil vote on a US draft resolution noting the need for an "immediate" #ceasefire that would allow in more aid.
Blinken in Israel ahead of #UN vote on #GazaCeasefire plan
https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20240322-blinken-heads-to-israel-to-press-for-immediate-truce-in-gaza-war
A #US effort to ramp up political pressure on #Israel by casting an international spotlight on its concerns failed Friday in the #UnitedNations #SecurityCouncil when #Russia, #China and #Algeria voted against it.
US-sponsored #UN resolution calling for immediate cease-fire in #Gaza fails
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/us-set-introduce-resolution-calling-immediate-cease-fire/story?id=108360065
#UN #SecurityCouncil passes resolution calling for #ceasefire in #Gaza after #US abstains. #Israel
For the first time the UN security council has voted for a call for a ceasefire in Gaza, after the US abstained, rather than using its veto as it has done on previous occasions. #Russia and #China have also previously vetoed texts.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2024/mar/25/israel-gaza-live-unrwa-aid-north-gaza-un-security-council-vote-ceasefire-middle-east-latest?page=with:block-66018d788f0806e0c1f1cce6#block-66018d788f0806e0c1f1cce6
The #US abstained and the 14 other council members all voted in favour of the #SecurityCouncil #ceasefire resolution, put forward by the 10 elected council members who voiced their frustration with more than five months of deadlock between the major powers. Applause broke out in the chamber after the vote.
#Israel isolated as #UN security council demands immediate ceasefire in #Gaza | #UnitedNations
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/25/un-gaza-ceasefire-vote
In the #Hebrew-language newspaper Ma’ariv, #BenCaspit described the approach of the Israeli prime minister as “delusional”, “madness” and “terrifying”, adding: “This man is putting us all at risk: our future, our children’s future, the strategic alliance that is the keystone of Israeli national security.” #Israel #Gaza
‘Madness’: #Netanyahu’s handling of #US relations under scrutiny after #UN vote
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/26/benjamin-netanyahu-handling-us-relations-un-israel-gaza-ceasefire-vote
Announcing the move, Foreign Minister #MichealMartin said that while it was for the #WorldCourt to decide whether #genocide is being committed, he wanted to be clear that #Hamas' Oct. 7 attack and what is happening in #Gaza now "represents the blatant violation of international #HumanitarianLaw on a mass scale."
#Ireland to intervene in #SouthAfrica genocide case against #Israel
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/ireland-to-intervene-in-south-africa-genocide-case-against-israel/ar-BB1kDyWr?ocid=emmx-mmx-feeds&PC=EMMX01
#Corsight, a Tel Aviv-based company, built the tool to identify #Hamas members. But officers say it’s often inaccurate. #Israel #Gaza
#Israel quietly rolled out a mass #FacialRecognition program in the #GazaStrip
https://www.theverge.com/2024/3/27/24114043/israel-facial-recognition-gaza-strip-corsight
A panel of judges at the #UN’s top court, which is already considering a complaint from #SouthAfrica that #Israel is committing #genocide in the #Palestinian territory, issued the ruling after an emergency measure in January obliging Israel to admit emergency aid. Under international law, using starvation as a weapon of war is explicitly prohibited
‘#Famine is setting in’: UN court orders Israel to unblock Gaza food aid
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/28/famine-is-setting-in-icj-orders-israel-to-unblock-gaza-food-aid
#Lazzarini told Switzerland’s Keystone-ATS news agency on Tuesday that #UNRWA had secured funding until the end of May after previously warning the agency could be forced to halt operations in March. #Israel #Gaza
#Japan to resume funding to #UNRWA, following #Sweden, #Finland and #Canada
https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2024/3/29/japan-to-resume-funding-to-unrwa-following-sweden-finland-and-canada
“If the families knew how small the gap is, which #Netanyahu is refusing to close in negotiations with #Hamas, they would explode,” said #AmosMalka, a former head of the #IsraelDefenseForces’ military intelligence directorate who was among the speakers at the rally in #TelAviv. “This is more evidence of his unsuitability to serve.”
Thousands of Israeli protesters call for Netanyahu’s removal | #Israel
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/31/israeli-protesters-call-benjamin-netanyahu-removal
The investigation determined that a colonel had authorized the series of deadly #DroneStrikes on the convoy based on one major’s observation — from grainy drone-camera footage — that someone in the convoy was armed. That observation turned out to be untrue. #WorldCentralKitchen #Gaza
#MiddleEast crisis live: #Israel military sacks two senior officers over killing of aid workers and says strikes were ‘a tragedy’
https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2024/apr/05/middle-east-crisis-live-us-welcomes-israeli-plan-to-reopen-erez-crossing-for-gaza-aid?page=with%3Ablock-660fd4c98f089f4ce52084a3#block-660fd4c98f089f4ce52084a3
“Let’s be very clear. This is tragic, but it is not an anomaly,” #ScottPaul, of the humanitarian group #Oxfam, “The killing of aid workers in #Gaza has been systemic.”
The killing of the #AidWorkers, all of whom worked for #WorldCentralKitchen, were condemned by #Israel’s closest allies and renewed criticism of Israel’s conduct in the nearly 6-month-old war with #Hamas.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2024/apr/05/middle-east-crisis-live-us-welcomes-israeli-plan-to-reopen-erez-crossing-for-gaza-aid?page=with:block-660fd57e8f08fd57229db376#block-660fd57e8f08fd57229db376
#Iran warned of harsh retaliation, raising the spectre of a wider war and prompting the Israeli armed forces to suspend leave for all combat units on Thursday, a day after they said they were mobilising more troops for air defence units. #Israel #Gaza #Syria
Iran vows to punish Israel at funeral for officers killed in #EmbassyStrike
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/iran-vows-to-punish-israel-at-funeral-for-officers-killed-in-embassy-strike/ar-BB1l7lPB?ocid=emmx-mmx-feeds&PC=EMMX01
This year's #Eurovision istaking place in #Malmö, an international city with a young and diverse population (around a third of which was born outside #Sweden) and a strong #PalestinianCommunity- many of whom have been attending regular protests against the #Gaza invasion by #Israel.
‘We are not the arena to solve a #MiddleEast conflict’: Sweden braced for a politically charged Eurovision
https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2024/apr/07/eurovision-sweden-middle-east-conflict-israel
Organisers said about 100,000 people converged at a #TelAviv crossroads and were later joined by families of #GazaHostages. #Israel
Tens of thousands of Israelis rally against #Netanyahu as #Gaza war reaches six month mark
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/07/tens-of-thousands-of-israelis-rally-against-netanyahu-as-gaza-war-reaches-six-month-mark
Finally. Maybe the tragic and completely unnecessary deaths of 7 #WCK #AidWorkers will not have been in vain.
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He promised to “streamline #SecurityChecks” that aid organisations have blamed for choking the flow of assistance to the territory’s more than 2 million people through six months of war. #Israel
“We plan to flood #Gaza with aid and we are expecting to reach 500 trucks per day,” Gallant told reporters in Tel Aviv.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2024/4/11/israels-war-on-gaza-live-hamas-says-netanyahu-hindering-ceasefire-chances?update=2829671
"Another refugee crisis from #Gaza into #Egypt, I can assure you... would make the resolution of the #Palestinian refugee question as a consequence of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict impossible," Grandi told Reuters at #UNHCR headquarters in #Geneva. #Israel
UN refugee chief says outflow of Gazans into Egypt would make conflict resolution impossible
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/un-refugee-chief-says-outflow-of-gazans-into-egypt-would-make-conflict-resolution-impossible/ar-BB1lvYqG?ocid=emmx-mmx-feeds&PC=EMMX01
Israeli newspaper #YediothAhronoth reported Thursday that #Indonesia had agreed to normalise its ties with #Israel. The media outlet said #Jakarta needed Israel to approve its request to join the #OECD.
The #TimesOfIsrael, confirmed the report, citing an Israeli official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity about Indonesia’s possible normalisation of ties with Israel. #Gaza #TootSEA
Indonesia denies reports about normalising ties with Israel to join the OECD
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/indonesia-denies-reports-about-normalising-ties-with-israel-to-join-the-oecd
#Israel has won battle after battle against #Hamas, but its central aims in #Gaza remain unfinished. WSJ’s #ShayndiRaice explains how Israel is on a path to lose the war.
Israel Faces the Prospect of Losing the War in Gaza | Watch
https://www.wsj.com/video/series/on-the-news/israel-faces-the-prospect-of-losing-the-war-in-gaza/99DF6C84-3C3F-41D0-8D96-FBDB8CB4E6ED
Israel has won battle after battle against Hamas, but its central aims in Gaza remain unfinished. WSJ’s Shayndi Raice explains how Israel is on a path to lose the war. Photo: Menahem Kahana/AFP/Getty Images
Few members of the organisation’s top echelons have been harmed so far and much of its extensive #TunnelNetwork remains intact. However, the organisation’s ability to effectively #govern is much reduced, its #MilitaryStores are depleted, and thousands of #fighters are dead.
#Hamas weakened and divided but far from defeated six months into #GazaWar | #Israel #Gaza
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/13/hamas-six-months-gaza-war-israel
If it's Sunday in your part of the world, this is probably the best time to pray for peace in the #MiddleEast. What happens next will affect us all
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Islamic Republic’s first ever direct attack on Jewish state threatens to drag #MiddleEast into regional conflagration.
#Israel under fire as #Iran launches #drones and #CruiseMissiles
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/13/israel-under-fire-as-iran-launches-extensive-drone-strikes
A hastily assembled coalition including the #US and #UK has helped #Israel shoot down Iranian drones over #Jordan, #Iraq and #Syria in an effort to blunt the attack and prevent an uncontrollable escalation.
Jordanian jets had also downed dozens of Iranian drones flying across northern and central Jordan heading towards Israel.
US and UK forces help shoot down Iranian drones over Jordan, Syria and Iraq | #Israel
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/14/us-and-uk-forces-help-shoot-down-iranian-drones-over-jordan-syria-and-iraq
#JoeBiden rushed back to Washington on Saturday afternoon from a weekend trip to Delaware as it became clear from Iranian leadership signals that some sort of an attack by Iran was imminent.
#Iran launches #drone and #MissileStrike against #Israel as #Biden rushes back to #WhiteHouse
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/apr/13/biden-white-house-israel-iran-tension
Most of the #missiles launched by #Iran were intercepted outside #Israel’s borders, while a limited number fell inside the country’s territory, IDF spokesperson, Avichay Adraee has said.
Israel reports minor damage to military base after ‘limited number’ of Iran missiles fall on its territory – live
https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2024/apr/13/iran-launches-drone-attack-against-israel?page=with%3Ablock-661b23938f08f961ba5a8c5e#block-661b23938f08f961ba5a8c5e
IDF spokesperson says total number of ‘aerial units’ launched by Iran numbered about 200; attack comes nearly two weeks after Israeli strike in Damascus killed top Iranian commander
#UNSecretaryGeneral #AntónioGuterres has condemned #Iran’s attack on #Israel and called for restraint and an immediate cessation of hostilities.
“I am deeply alarmed about the very real danger of a devastating region-wide escalation. I urge all parties to exercise maximum restraint to avoid any action that could lead to major military confrontations on multiple fronts in the #MiddleEast,” Guterres said in a statement.
IDF spokesperson says total number of ‘aerial units’ launched by Iran numbered about 200; attack comes nearly two weeks after Israeli strike in Damascus killed top Iranian commander
#MitchMcConnell calls for #Congress to take action on supplemental bill that includes aid for #Israel and #Ukraine.
Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell has said the #US “must stand with our ally.”
https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2024/apr/13/iran-launches-drone-attack-against-israel?page=with:block-661b263f8f08f961ba5a8c67#block-661b263f8f08f961ba5a8c67
IDF spokesperson says total number of ‘aerial units’ launched by Iran numbered about 200; attack comes nearly two weeks after Israeli strike in Damascus killed top Iranian commander
“We will build a regional coalition and exact the price from #Iran in the fashion and timing that is right for us,” #BennyGantz said in a statement as the Israeli war cabinet was due to convene to discuss #Israel’s response to Iran’s attack. #Gaza
Iran International reported that Coalition Council of Islamic Revolution Forces (also known by its Persian acronym SHANA), an organization with close links to #Iran’s Supreme Leader, honored #Zahedi’s “strategic role in forming and strengthening the resistance front as well as in planning and executing the #AlAqsaStorm." #Israel #Gaza
Slain Iranian general planned, executed #Hamas’ massacre
https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/slain-iranian-general-planned-executed-hamas-massacre-797014
The success in stopping so many #drones and #missiles was due to #Arab countries having passed on intelligence about the Iranian plan, as well as enabling the use of their #airspace and providing #RadarTracking. In some cases, Arab militaries (not just #Jordan) took an active role in intercepting the threats. #Israel
Report: Gulf states, including #SaudiArabia, provided intelligence on Iran attack
https://www.timesofisrael.com/report-gulf-states-including-saudi-arabia-provided-intelligence-on-iran-attack/
It's not the end of the world - yet.
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#Iran has no plan for immediate retaliation against #Israel, a senior Iranian official told Reuters on Friday, hours after sources said Israel launched an attack on Iranian soil.
“The foreign source of the incident has not been confirmed. We have not received any external attack, and the discussion leans more towards infiltration than attack" said the official
US secretary of state condemns airstrike in Iran; discussion ‘leans more towards infiltration than attack’ says anonymous Iranian official
Sources have confirmed to the #JerusalemPost that the attack on #Iran at #Isfahan, attributed by sources in the New York Times to #Israel, hit Iranian air force assets at Isfahan, almost right next door to the Islamic Republic's nuclear site in the same area.
The message was unmistakable, 'we chose not to hit your nuclear sites this time, but we could have done worse right here,' sources told the Post.
Isfahan backstory: https://noc.social/@Norobiik/112297666170323206
The head of #Israel’s #MilitaryIntelligence directorate has resigned over the failures surrounding #Hamas’s unprecedented attack on 7 October, the military said, becoming the first senior figure to step down over his role in the deadliest assault in Israel’s history. #Gaza
Israeli military intelligence chief quits over 7 October attack
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/22/israeli-military-intelligence-chief-aharon-haliva-quits-7-october-hamas-attack
The #ColonnaReport, which was commissioned by the #UN in the wake of Israeli allegations, found that #UNRWA had regularly supplied Israel with lists of its employees for vetting, and that “the Israeli government has not informed Unrwa of any concerns relating to any Unrwa staff based on these staff lists since 2011”. #Gaza
#Israel has yet to provide evidence of Unrwa staff terrorist links, Colonna report says
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/22/israel-unrwa-staff-terrorist-links-yet-to-provide-evidence-colonna-report
This is going to be a big problem for #Israel if true. The #F35 sacrifices speed, weapon payload and dogfighting capability for the ability to stealth and take out targets at range. Take out stealth and it's a sitting duck.
#Iran Unveils New Weapon Capable of Taking Out America's #StealthJets
https://www.newsweek.com/iran-new-weapon-bavar-373-defense-system-1892840
Image source: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_Martin_F-35_Lightning_II
This brings up the bad memory of the #KentStateUniversity shootings of May 4, 1970 when Ohio National Guard troops (which had been called to respond to anti-#VietnamWar protests) opened fire on unarmed student demonstrators - killing 4 and injuring 9 young people. No one was ever held accountable.
Let's hope and pray it never happens again. #Israel #Gaza
Dozens arrested at Yale and NYU as pro-#Palestinian student protests spread
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/apr/23/yale-nyu-uni-college-arrests-pro-palestine-protest-israel-gaza-war
Image source: https://edition.cnn.com/2020/05/04/us/kent-state-shooting-50th-anniversary-trnd/
Norobiik @
