Palestinians fight for their lives and their stolen lands

[Anthea]

Israeli delegation ignores Hamas demands

According to the source, "Israel" has not provided any answers regarding a ceasefire or withdrawal from the Gaza Strip

A senior source in the Palestinian Resistance confirmed that the round of negotiations in Doha "did not lead to anything new." The source, speaking to Al Mayadeen, added that the Israeli occupation's stance is "very obstinate and Israel has not offered anything new, except agreeing to a gradual and conditional return of the displaced."

The Israeli occupation's delegation, the source stated, emphasized the conditional "return of displaced persons in batches, including women, children, and elderly men, a proposal rejected by Hamas."

Moreover, it was noted that "Israel" did not provide any response regarding a ceasefire or withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, "and there was no discussion about the prisoners demanded by Hamas."

Al-Dali: 'Israel' categorically rejects Gaza withdrawal

Hani al-Dali, an expert on Palestinian Resistance affairs, told Al Mayadeen two days ago that three reasons are contributing to the negotiations' stalemate.

The first reason, according to al-Dali, is "the occupation's categorical refusal, as a first stage, to withdraw from Rashid and Salah al-Din streets, its rejection of aid passage, and the return of the displaced without any conditions."

The second reason is "the occupation's refusal to stop the aggression and refusal to commit to a complete withdrawal from the Gaza Strip at the beginning of the second stage," he added.

Al-Dali continued, stating that the third reason is that the occupation's negotiating delegation "did not show any seriousness regarding the equation set by the Palestinian Resistance, related to the issue of prisoners, which involves exchanging 50 Palestinian prisoners for one Israeli female soldier."

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... -hamas-dem

[Anthea]

EU funds multiple Israeli drone projects

Watchdogs have found that the European Union is funding the development of several Israeli drones that have been appropriated for military use

The European Union (EU) funded a drone technology used by Israeli occupation forces (IOF) in their genocidal war on Gaza, watchdogs Statwatch and Infromationstelle Militarisierung (IMI) found, according to Euronews.

The two monitors say that Xtend — a drone manufacturer reportedly supporting the IOF — received a research and development grant from the EU's Horizon Europe fund.

Pointing to the "supposed prohibition on EU funding for military and defense projects," the watchdogs said that a number of "Israeli companies and institutions received millions of euros for drone development in recent years."

In Xtend's case, the company received €50,000 from Horizon Europe, a multi-billion European research and innovation fund, to produce a study on optimizing its Skylord Xtender drone system and finding "strategic partners for the production and commercialization of the technology," Statewatch and IMI revealed.

The company went on to sign contracts with the United States Department of Defense in 2021 which involved the occupation's military.

Its CEO, Aviv Shapira, stated after October 7, 2023, that the company will redirect its capabilities to supporting Israeli occupation forces "100%". Xtend's drone has been used by multiple Israeli units involved in the genocidal war on Gaza with several saying that the aircraft helps them "perform accurate maneuvers in complex combat scenarios."

"Human rights groups have called on the EU to suspend its association agreement with Israel due to the disastrous effects of the latter’s assault on Gaza: huge civilian casualties, mass displacement, and the razing of infrastructure," said Statewatch Director Chris Jones.

"This report shows that the EU also needs to take a long, hard look at the companies it provides with research and development funding," he added.

"Public money should be used for the public good, not to support companies that profit from war and destruction," Jones emphasized.

The EU also funded several Israeli-linked projects for amounts totaling millions of euros, including funds that the criminal Israeli Security Ministry exploited. The Ministry participated in at least two EU-backed projects in recent years, receiving a total of €200,000 for its work.

One of the EU-funded projects that the Security Ministry was involved in, ResponDrone, was awarded almost €8 million for efforts to develop drone systems that would assist emergency workers. The other, UnderSec, was awarded a total of €6 million to develop systems "featuring multimodal sensors and robotic assets" that can be used in drone technology.

The drone could be easily appropriated for military use, according to the Statwatch-IMI report.

"Israel" has been launching a genocidal war on the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank for 169 days straight, besieging a population of more than 2 million people while murdering more than 32,142 Palestinians and wounding another 74,412, most of whom are women and children. This comes amid a deafening silence from international institutions and Western states that have taken proactive measures to end Israeli war crimes.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... aza--watch

[Anthea]

IOF besiege and raid hospitals

A volunteer worker was killed by "Israel's" heavy attacks on Al-Amal Hospital, while Nasser Hospital is being completely enclosed

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society revealed that Israeli occupation forces are besieging the Al-Amal and Nasser hospitals in Gaza, in addition to the continued siege of Al-Shifa Hospital.

"Israel" has been claiming that Resistance fighters are operating in hospitals since the start of the genocide in Gaza but has failed to prove their presence for six months.

On Sunday, the IOF renewed aggression against the two hospitals in Khan Younis and enclosed their vicinities with military vehicles.

Al-Amal came under heavy and indiscriminate Israeli fire, killing a volunteer worker, Amir Abu Aisha, the PRCS reported. Moreover, Israeli drone broadcast messages demanded that all patients, medical workers, and Palestinians at the hospital leave naked. However, all entrances were shut by dirt barriers.

"All of our crews are currently under extreme danger and cannot move at all."
The Israeli siege of Al-Shifa Hospital

On March 18, Israeli occupation forces forced multiple families out of streets and buildings surrounding the Al-Shifa Hospital in western Gaza City where they had taken shelter.

Occupation forces continue to randomly shell and fire at citizens in the area while raiding several homes in the area. The Israeli military also demanded all Palestinian citizens immediately leave the al-Rimal neighborhood and the Al-Shifa Medical Complex after it launched an attack on the medical facility for the second time since the war on Gaza began.

Al Mayadeen's correspondent reported that around 30,000 Palestinians were besieged in the medical complex, which is coming under the direct fire of Israeli artillery and strikes. The medical complex also hosts around 5,000 wounded people

Following their initial attack, Israeli occupation forces committed another atrocious massacre in the Gaza Strip, executing 50 Palestinian citizens in Al-Shifa Medical Complex, the Gaza Media Office announced.

It revealed that the Israeli military admitted to committing the massacre, a "clear war crime" and a "blatant violation of international law."

"We received preliminary information regarding the occupation army's execution of a number of children among civilians, patients, and [forcibly] displaced people that were executed."

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... in-khan-yo

[Anthea]

EU condemns Israel for seizing 800 hectares

from occupied West Bank

This theft marks the largest since the Oslo Accords in 1994 as the EU called settlements "a grave breach of international humanitarian law."

In a statement on Sunday, the EU condemned the theft of 8000 dunams (800 hectares) of land in the Jordan Valley in the occupied West Bank by "Israel".

"The European Union firmly condemns the announcement by Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich that over 800 hectares of land in the occupied Palestinian territory have been declared as 'state lands'," as this marks the largest since the Oslo Accords in 1994.

The European Union called the settlements in its statement "a grave breach of international humanitarian law.'

"At this week's European Council, EU leaders condemned Israeli Government decisions to further expand illegal settlements across the occupied West Bank, urging Israel to reverse these decisions".

The EU also claimed that it will fight terrorism by continuing to condemn the Palestinian Resistance through sanctions and other measures.

This brings the total area of land further occupied by "Israel" in the West Bank in only 2024 to 10,640 dunams, after 2,640 dunams were seized earlier this year: 2,350 units in "Ma’ale Adumim", 300 in "Keidar", and 694 in "Efrat".

Israeli authorities are planning to construct hundreds of housing units on the occupied land, in addition to establishing industrial and commercial areas. The plan is expected to take about two years to complete and will require political approval.

Analysts suggested that this serves as a further provocation to the administration of US President Joe Biden, as relations with the current government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have been tense in the past months.

Greed knows no bounds

The Israeli settler colonial project in the occupied West Bank aims to dissect and split apart historic Palestinian towns and cities through the installment of permanent Israeli settlements or farms that are illegally built on stolen Palestinian land.

"Israel" plans to lay its hands on 16% of Gaza's territory to establish a “buffer zone", as per an analysis by Adi Ben-Nun, a Hebrew University geography professor.

Construction of the zone has already begun, as per the professor, which naturally will involve the demolishing of Palestinian homes and agriculture to make space for the 1-kilometer (0.6 miles) wide zone.

Israeli officials previously refused to comment on how wide the buffer would be, but the former head of Israeli military intelligence, Amos Yadlin, said he expected "Israel" would enforce a "perimeter" of 500 meters to 1km inside Gaza.

Moreover, "Israel" had bombed factories, warehouses, and civilian infrastructure within the potential buffer zone. Some of the buildings had been deliberately mined by Combat Engineering units, in preparation to demolish the residential bloc.

The surface seems to be for a buffer zone, but the intent may be deeper than that, as many ministers of the occupation have called for building more settlements, according to The Wall Street Journal.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... m-occupied

[Anthea]

Jews want Gaza beachfront

Illegal settler numbers are rising fast under Benjamin Netanyahu's government

Who wouldn't want a house on the beach? For some on Israel's far-right, desirable beachfront now includes the sands of Gaza.

Just ask Daniella Weiss, 78, the grandmother of Israel's settler movement, who says she already has a list of 500 families ready to move to Gaza immediately.

"I have friends in Tel Aviv," she says, "so they say, 'Don't forget to keep for me a plot near the coast in Gaza,' because it's a beautiful, beautiful coast, beautiful golden sand".

She tells them the plots on the coast are already booked

Mrs Weiss heads a radical settler organisation called Nachala, or homeland. For decades, she has been kickstarting Jewish settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, on Palestinian land captured by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war.

Some in the settler movement have cherished the dream - or pipedream - of returning to Gaza since 2005, when Israel ordered a unilateral pullout, 21 settlements were dismantled and about 9,000 settlers were evacuated by the army. (Reporting from Gaza at the time, I saw many who were literally dragged out.)

Many settlers saw all this as a betrayal by the state, and a strategic mistake.

Opinion polls suggest that most Israelis oppose resettling Gaza, and it is not government policy, but since the Hamas attacks on 7 October it is being talked about out loud - by some of the loudest and most extreme voices in Israel's government.

Mrs Weiss proudly shows me a map of the West Bank with pink dots indicating Jewish settlements. The dots are scattered all over the map, eating away at land where Palestinians hope - or hoped - to build their state.

There are about 700,000 Jewish settlers in these areas now and settler numbers are rising fast.

The vast majority of the international community considers settlements illegal under international law, including the United Nations Security Council. Israel disputes this.

Daniella Weiss does not deny charges of ethnic cleansing

We meet Daniella at her home in the West Bank settlement of Kedumim, where red-roofed houses are spread over hilltops and valleys. She's in constant motion despite having an arm in plaster.

Her vision for the future of Gaza - now home to 2.3 million Palestinians, many of them starving - is that it will be Jewish.

"Gaza Arabs will not stay in the Gaza Strip," she says. "Who will stay? Jews."

She claims that Palestinians want to leave Gaza and that other countries should take them in - although in a lengthy interview, she rarely uses the word "Palestinian".

"The world is wide," she says. "Africa is big. Canada is big. The world will absorb the people of Gaza. How we do it? We encourage it. Palestinians in Gaza, the good ones, will be enabled. I'm not saying forced, I say enabled because they want to go."

There is no evidence that Palestinians want to leave their homeland - although many may now dream of escaping temporarily, to save their lives. For most Palestinians, there is no way out. The borders are tightly controlled by Israel and Egypt, and no foreign countries have offered refuge.

I put it to her that her comments sound like a plan for ethnic cleansing. She does not deny it.

"You can call it ethnic cleansing. I repeat again, the Arabs do not want, normal Arabs do not want to live in Gaza. If you want to call it cleansing, if you want to call it apartheid, you choose your definition. I choose the way to protect the state of Israel. "

A few days later, Daniella Weiss is selling the idea of a return to Gaza over cake and popcorn at a small gathering, hosted by another settler in their living room.

She has a projector, showing a new map of Gaza, complete with settlements, and leaflets entitled "Go back to Gaza".

"People are asking me what the odds are this will happen?" she says.

"What were the odds back then when I came to these dark mountains and made it into this heaven?"

The handful in attendance seem already convinced. "I want to go back immediately," says Sarah Manella. "When they call me, I will go back to Gush Katif [the former Israeli settlement bloc in Gaza]."

What about the people who live there, we ask.

"The area is empty now, "she replies. "Now you don't need to think where to put the settlement, you only need to come back and put a new settlement."

Some illegal settlements have established their own checkpoints

Gaza is far from empty, but much of it has been erased after almost six months of relentless Israeli bombardment.

It is the "greatest open-air graveyard" in the world, in the words of the EU's foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell.

More than 32,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza, most of them women and children. The World Health Organization regards the ministry's data as credible.

For some in the Israeli cabinet, the Palestinian territory - now drenched in blood - is ripe for resettlement. That includes Israel's hard-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir - a settler himself.

In late January, he made his way through a packed conference hall, slowed by embraces and handshakes. He was among friends - about 1,000 ultranationalists pushing for a return to Gaza at the event entitled Settlement Brings Security.

Mr Ben Gvir, who favours "encouraging emigration", was among a dozen cabinet ministers in attendance.

"It's time to go back home," he said from the stage, to loud applause. "It's time to return to the land of Israel. If we don't want another 7 October, we need to return home and control the land."

In the shade of a sprawling tree, Yehuda Shimon is playing with his two young sons, who are in hammocks, hanging from the branches.

He has raised 10 children here in a settler outpost in the West Bank called Havat Gilad, or Gilad's Farm, near the Palestinian city of Nablus.

All around him there are Palestinian villages, the nearest 500m away. There is no contact between them, he says.

Yehuda Shimon says Gaza must be Jewish

Shimon has lived in Gaza in the past and claims a God-given right to return.

"We must do it. It's part of Israel area," he says. "This is the land that God gave us, and you couldn't go to God and tell him, 'OK you gave me, and I gave to other people.' No. I believe in the end we will go back to Gaza."

I ask what this means for the Palestinians.

"They have 52 other places to go in the world," he says, "52 Muslim countries". He says the new Gaza will be "another Tel Aviv".

Outposts like his are multiplying in the West Bank, along with larger settlements, fragmenting Palestinian territory and stoking tension.

Settler attacks on Palestinians have surged since 7 October according to the UN, which has long condemned settlements as "an obstacle to peace".

And now settler organisations have their eyes on Gaza once again.

Is there a real prospect of settlers reaching the beachfront in Gaza?

A seasoned Israeli journalist told me it won't happen. "Calls to resettle Gaza won't be translated into policy," he said.

Then he added: "Famous last words."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-68650815

In my valued opinion Jews are evil and should be totally removed from Palestine

[Anthea]

32,333 killed, 74,694 injured in Gaza

Israeli occupation forces have committed 11 massacres against entire families across Gaza

The Ministry of Health in Gaza announced that the occupation committed 11 massacres within 24 hours, killing 107 and injuring 176. This brings the total number of Palestinians killed in the Israeli aggression on Gaza since October 7 to 32,333, in addition to 74,694 injuries.

It is noteworthy that numerous victims remain trapped under the rubble, presumed dead, as "Israel" prevents ambulance and civil defense crews from reaching them.

New Israeli massacre in Deir al-Balah on 171st day of genocide

The Israeli occupation continues its relentless and genocidal campaign against Gaza for the 171st consecutive day, targeting different regions of the Strip and enforcing a complete blockade. This has further worsened the already dire humanitarian situation, exacerbating the suffering of the people in Gaza.

The Israeli bombardment of the Salman family's residence in Deir al-Balah resulted in the killing of 22 people. Additionally, IOF conducted an airstrike on the al-Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip.

Three people were killed, and several injuries were reported, with casualties transferred to al-Kuwait Hospital, after Israeli warplanes bombed the Barhoum family's residence near Salah al-Din Mosque in the densely populated al-Zaytoun neighborhood, where many forcibly displaced Palestinians reside.

Meanwhile, the Civil Defense in Gaza confirmed its inability to respond to distress calls received from Palestinians subjected to Israeli shelling in the al-Shati refugee camp west of Gaza City. The Civil Defense urged the United Nations Secretary-General to "urgently intervene to provide the needs of civil defense to protect civilians."

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... ed-in-gaza

[Anthea]

UNSC demands ceasefire in Gaza

The UN Security Council on Monday passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire of the Israeli offensive on Gaza for the rest of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan

The resolution, which is the first of its kind, passed with 14 votes in favor and an American abstention, also called for the “immediate and unconditional release of hostages” and "the urgent need to expand the flow" of aid into Gaza.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned that the failure to implement said resolution ” would be unforgivable," in a post on X.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office stated in a post on the same platform that “The United States has abandoned its policy in the UN today,” referring to their previous support for resolutions linking a call for a ceasefire to the release of Israeli hostages, including the most recent one vetoed by Russia and China last week. The statement harshly criticized the US for not having vetoed Monday’s resolution despite it demanding a ceasefire not contingent upon the release of the hostages.

“This constitutes a clear departure from the consistent US position in the Security Council since the beginning of the war,” read the statement, adding that as previously threatened by Netanyahu in view of a potential US deviation from its traditional position since October 7, the Israeli delegation initially set to travel to Washington on Tuesday will be remaining in Israel.

On the other hand, in a statement following the passing of the resolution, US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken stressed that the US abstention “reaffirms the U.S. position that a ceasefire of any duration come as part of an arrangement to release hostages in Gaza.”

“Because the final text does not have key language we view as essential, notably a condemnation of Hamas, we could not support it,” added Blinken, reiterating the “need to accelerate and sustain the provision of humanitarian assistance through all available routes.”

In relation to the resolution’s failure to condemn Hamas in relation to October 7, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Israel to the UN Gilad Erdan accused the UNSC of discriminating among victims, referring to the body’ condemnation of the attack carried out by ISIS in Moscow on Friday.

“Civilians, no matter where they live, deserve to enjoy music in safety and security, and the Security Council should have the moral clarity to condemn such acts of terror equally, without discrimination,” said Erdan.

In a statement on X the US Central Command announced having “conducted an air drop of humanitarian assistance into Northern Gaza on March 25, 2024, at 12:10 p.m. (Gaza time) to provide essential relief to civilians affected by the ongoing conflict.”

Earlier this month the UN World Food Programme (WFP) stressed earlier this month that “Half of the population in Gaza is experiencing the highest level of food insecurity,” warning that “famine is looming.”

Over 30,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s war on Gaza following the attack carried out by Hamas on October 7.

https://www.rudaw.net/english/world/250320241

[Anthea]

Al Mayadeen Exclusive:

Negotiations ongoing despite difficult Israeli conditions

A source from the Palestinian Resistance details to Al Mayadeen the latest developments on mediated negotiations between Hamas and Israel.

Mediated negotiations are still "ongoing" despite the difficult circumstances generated by the Israeli side, a source from the Palestinian Resistance told Al Mayadeen on the condition of anonymity.

"Despite the deadlock in the negotiations and Hamas’ rejection of all proposals made by Israel, negotiations are still ongoing," the source told Al Mayadeen on Tuesday.

"Despite all the flexibility that Hamas has shown, especially in the prisoner exchange issue, in terms of reducing the number of prisoners demanded to be released as a goodwill gesture, Israel made bare minimum counteroffers," the Palestinian Resistance official explained.

"Hamas rejects Israel's offer regarding the return of the displaced in terms of the number and mechanism," the source said in relation to detailed clauses brought up in mediated talks.

"Israel proposed transferring the displaced to tents in the northern region under the supervision of the United Nations, which Hamas rejected. Hamas and the Resistance insisted on the return of the displaced to their homes, even if they are destroyed," he added.

In detail the Israeli side proposed a detailed plan that would see the gradual and conditioned return of forcibly displaced Palestinians, however, this would only include women, children, and the elderly. Moreover, in the Israeli proposal, only 60,000 displaced Palestinians would be allowed to return; a fraction of the total number of displaced people from northern Gaza, which amounts to 800,000 people.

The source revealed that "Israel" disregarded the main pillars of the Palestinian Resistance's demands, specifically a long-lasting ceasefire.

"Israel did not mention a ceasefire [in its proposal] and did not submit a clear proposal regarding the withdrawal of its forces from heavily populated areas."

"Clearly, the occupation seeks to establish its presence in the entire north, center, east, and south of the Gaza Strip," the source explained.

On the other hand, the Palestinian Resistance side represented by the negotiators from the Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas "insists" on a vision that includes clear maps that would detail the process of Israeli withdrawal from the Strip.

"Hamas insists on the return of UNRWA to the city of Gaza and the north, while Israel rejects [the demand]," the source concluded.

Negotiations mediated by Egypt and Qatar between the Palestinian Resistance and "Israel" have been ongoing for months, however, multiple officials from the Resistance have explained that "Israel" has been actively disregarding the main demands of the Resistance and proposing unclear clauses to issues such as the return of displaced Palestinians or the withdrawal of forces. On the other hand, the Palestinian Resistance has remained open to talks, welcoming a recent resolution by the United Security Council, which demanded a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip for the month of Ramadan.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... israeli-co

[Anthea]

US wants war on Gaza to continue

The deputy chief of the Islamic Jihad Resistance movement tells Al Mayadeen that the US-Israeli relationship is strategic and extends beyond that between Biden and Netanyahu

A special interview with Mohammad al-Hindi, the Deputy Secretary-General of the Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine, provides insight into the Palestinian situation and negotiations, along with the repercussions of the UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

Talking to Al Mayadeen, al-Hindi affirmed on Tuesday that, while the resolution reflects the isolation that "Israel" is experiencing worldwide, it will not practically change any of the circumstances.

He pointed out that the United States and the Israeli occupation entity are allies, with their disagreements being tactical rather than strategic. He emphasized that their relationship is broader and more strategic than the relationship between Biden and Netanyahu.

Regarding the recent public disputes between the US and "Israel", he described them as "theatrical", adding that they ultimately benefit Netanyahu, who is trying to portray himself as the only one standing in the face of Biden's administration. Al-Hindi explained that the decisions of international institutions are implemented when they serve US interests, and currently, Washington is not inclined to activate them.

The US wants the war on Gaza to continue

The deputy chief of the PIJ stated that "Israel" is dragging on the negotiations. He emphasized that "Israel's" actions are misguiding, despite the clear and specific demands of the Resistance, which has shown flexibility in negotiations. "However, Netanyahu is obstructing the entire process," he stressed.

He added that the Israeli captives are the winning card in the hands of the Resistance, and "Israel" wants to recover them at a cheap price. He affirmed that Israelis have failed to recover a single captive through military means, despite the claims of Netanyahu, who continuously talks about achieving a "decisive victory".

Al-Hindi also affirmed that Netanyahu and his government's priority is to continue the war, not the captives.

"The Resistance activates pressure tools to achieve the best outcomes in the negotiations," he maintained, emphasizing that the Resistance has prioritized relieving the Palestinian people and stopping the aggression and that it "will not hand over [its] people to a truce [that would allow] Netanyahu afterward to return to his crimes."

On Washington's role in the war on Gaza, al-Hindi said that the "US is providing the coverup to ensure that the war continues, the Resistance in Palestine is uprooted, and the Resistance movements in the region are weakened."

Failed to create rifts in Gaza

On Rafah, al-Hindi said "Netanyahu talks about the attack of Rafah as if it will bring victory," confirming that the Resistance is well and resilient on the battlefield despite all that is being promoted by Israelis.

The occupation entity attempted recently to incite a rift between the Resistance in Gaza and Palestinian clans, aiming to form groups loyal to "Israel" that could fight against the Resistance.

On that note, the senior Islamic Jihad official affirmed that the clans in Gaza are deeply rooted in the Resistance and that communications are ongoing between them and the Resistance, noting that Netanyahu has failed to create a rift between the two sides.

Al-Hindi also discussed the support fronts in Lebanon, Yemen, and Iraq, confirming their importance as they represent one of the methods of pressuring the United States to discuss serious solutions to stop the Israeli war.

In this context, al-Hindi said that "Israel" is deeply involved in Gaza, so it cannot expand the war or open an additional front in Lebanon.

The senior PIJ official concluded his remarks by saying that "Israel" has not achieved the goals of this aggression, and any assassination operation of Resistance leaders will not change the equations on the ground.

Israel delusional about achieving objectives

In this context, a member of the political bureau of Hamas, Ghazi Hamad, emphasized to Al Mayadeen that there has been no progress in the negotiations and that "Israel" maintains an obstinate position, noting that it is clear that the occupation wants to continue the war despite all international positions.

Hamad shed light on the Israeli massacres in Gaza committed right after the UNSC resolution was passed, saying that the occupation is defying the international will.

Regarding the negotiations, he stated that the occupation met the flexibility shown by the Resistance with more intransigence, pointing out that the Israeli side has negotiated each time without a clear position, which represents Netanyahu's policy.

In this regard, Hamad explained that the main gateway to the agreement is still closed due to "the occupation's refusal to consider the idea of reaching an agreement in the first place."

Addressing the negotiations, Hamad noted that there is an exchange of ideas with the mediators, emphasizing that this exchange does not come within the framework of pressuring Hamas as it has become clear that the Resistance movement does not offer flexibility unless on its own terms.

Commenting on the Israeli potential attack on Rafah, the Hamas official did not rule out the possibility that the occupation would launch a widescale aggression on the city, yet he stressed the necessity of international pressure on the occupation to prevent this.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... dispute--t

[Anthea]

Fear of Rafah ground attack

The Israeli occupation has bombed at least 4 residences in Rafah, causing more than a million Palestinians to fear a long-threatened ground assault

Health officials said that one of the bombings killed 11 people from a single household.

Mussa Dhaheer told AFP he awoke to the bomb, kissed his scared daughter, and dashed outside to see the devastation. His father, 75, and mother, 62, were among the fatalities.

"I don't know what to do. I don't know what to say. I can't make sense of what happened. My parents. My father with his displaced friends who came from Gaza City," he expressed, sorrowfully recalling that "they were all together when suddenly they were all gone like dust."

At another bomb site, Jamil Abu Houri said the occupation's increased air attacks were a response to a UN. Security Council resolution last week calling for an immediate ceasefire.

Abu Houri expressed that "they [Israel] have threatened us with an incursion, and they say that have been given the green light for the Rafah incursion. Where is the Security Council?" he asked.

Following the United States' abstention from the vote, the United Nations Security Council requested an immediate ceasefire between the Israeli occupation forces and the Palestinian Resistance, as well as the immediate and unconditional release of all captives.

Washington has repeatedly opposed the term "ceasefire", and it used its veto authority to defend its ally for its war on Gaza, which has killed over 32,000 Palestinians and injured over 74,694.

'Israel' to invade Rafah with or without US backing: Netanyahu

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu informed US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during a meeting on Friday that 'Israel' will enter Rafah with or without US help.

According to Netanyahu's office, the prime minister reminded the secretary of state during a Friday meeting that the occupation appreciates US assistance for its war on Gaza. According to a statement from Netanyahu's office, " I told him I hope we do it with US support, but if we have to, we'll do it alone."

As the Israeli genocidal war against the Strip continues, Al Mayadeen's correspondent north of the Strip reported that Israeli warplanes bombarded the Jabaliya refugee camp north of Gaza.

Furthermore, casualties among Palestinian civilians were also reported, as a result of an Israeli airstrike on a house in the al-Daraj neighborhood of Gaza City. Also in the city, the Israeli occupation deliberately targeted a residential house near al-Sousi Mosque in al-Shati refugee camp.

Earlier today, a number of Palestinians were killed, and others were injured, in a series of Israeli airstrikes and artillery bombardments. Additionally, Israeli occupation forces stormed the Nasser Medical Complex west of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip. They opened fire on displaced youths, arrested medical staff, and displaced individuals inside and around it, according to eyewitnesses.

Israeli forces had previously raided the Nasser Medical Complex on February 15th, turning it into a military barracks after demolishing the southern wall and entering amid heavy gunfire.

In the early morning hours, a number of Palestinians fell casualties in a series of Israeli airstrikes and artillery bombardments.

Israeli occupation forces had previously raided the Nasser Medical Complex on February 15th, turning it into a military barracks after demolishing the southern wall and entering amid heavy gunfire.

US wants war on Gaza to continue, Biden-Netanyahu dispute 'theatrical'

A special interview with Mohammad al-Hindi, the Deputy Secretary-General of the Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine, provides insight into the Palestinian situation and negotiations, along with the repercussions of the UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

Talking to Al Mayadeen, al-Hindi affirmed on Tuesday that, while the resolution reflects the isolation that "Israel" is experiencing worldwide, it will not practically change any of the circumstances.

He pointed out that the United States and the Israeli occupation entity are allies, with their disagreements being tactical rather than strategic. He emphasized that their relationship is broader and more strategic than the relationship between Biden and Netanyahu.

Regarding the recent public disputes between the US and "Israel", he described them as "theatrical", adding that they ultimately benefit Netanyahu, who is trying to portray himself as the only one standing in the face of Biden's administration. Al-Hindi explained that the decisions of international institutions are implemented when they serve US interests, and currently, Washington is not inclined to activate them.

On Washington's role in the war on Gaza, al-Hindi said that the "US is providing the coverup to ensure that the war continues, the Resistance in Palestine is uprooted, and the Resistance movements in the region are weakened."

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... und-attack

[Anthea]

Israel seized more Palestinian land

The brutal war of attrition launched by the Israeli occupation on Gaza is not the only front on which it is committing ethnic cleansing, as its seizure of land in the West Bank is on a steady increase

The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) announced that the area of land seized by the Israeli occupation in 2023 has reached 50,526 dunams (50.5 square km), compared to about 26,000 dunams (26 square km) in 2022.

The PCBS also announced that the occupation regime issued 32 orders to seize 619 dunams (0.6 square km), four orders to expropriate about 433 dunams (0.4 square km), and two orders to declare 515 dunams (0.5 square km) as "state land" during the past year.

The PCBS also stated that "Israel" issued four orders to amend the boundaries of nature reserves, through which it seized 48,959 dunams (48.9 square km).

Israeli settlement expansion on the rise

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk confirmed that Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories have increased by a record amount and they risk eliminating any practical possibility of a Palestinian state.

He said that the growth of Israeli settlements amounted to "Israel's" transfer of its own population, which he said constituted a war crime, which echoes the Biden administration's statement last month that the settlements were "inconsistent" with international law after the occupation announced new building plans.

Accompanying the report due to be presented to the Human Rights Council in Geneva later this month, Turk said: "Settler violence and settlement-related violations have reached shocking new levels, and risk eliminating any practical possibility of establishing a viable Palestinian State".

In a related statement, "Israel's" diplomatic mission in Geneva argued that the deaths of 36 Israelis in 2023 should have been included in the report.

"Human rights are universal, yet Israeli victims of Palestinian terrorism are ignored by the Office (of the High Commissioner) time and time again".

According to the report, a sharp increase in the intensity, severity, and regularity of both Israeli settler and state violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank has been evident, especially since October 7.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... n-2023--re

[Anthea]

UN court orders Israel to allow

food and medical aid in

The UN's top court has ordered Israel to enable the unhindered flow of aid into Gaza in order to avert a famine

In a unanimous decision, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) said Israel had to act "without delay" to allow the "provision... of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance".

This follows warnings that famine could hit Gaza within weeks.

Israel has called allegations it is blocking aid "wholly unfounded".

Giving its response to the court order, the Israeli foreign ministry said it was continuing "to promote new initiatives, and to expand existing ones" to allow a continuous flow of aid into Gaza "by land, air and sea", working with the UN and others.

The latest ruling by the court in The Hague comes after South Africa asked it to bolster an order issued to Israel in January to take all measures to prevent genocidal acts in Gaza.

South Africa said it had an obligation to act to prevent genocide as a signatory of the UN's 1948 Genocide Convention.

The country has been highly critical of Israel's military operation in Gaza and its governing African National Congress (ANC) has a long history of solidarity with the Palestinian cause.

Although orders issued by the ICJ are legally binding, the court lacks the power to enforce them. The UN Security Council is the only UN body which can introduce measures to try to ensure compliance.

The ICJ's ruling comes after a report by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification Global Initiative, which is run by the World Food Programme and others, was published last week - warning that a "catastrophic" situation was developing in Gaza.

It said that all of the 2.2 million people in Gaza were "facing high levels of acute food insecurity" and that famine was projected to hit the north of the territory before the end of May.

Famine occurs when a country has such a severe food shortage that its population faces acute undernourishment, starvation, or death.

In its ruling, the ICJ said Gaza was "no longer facing only a risk of famine" but "famine is setting in" and that, according to UN observers, 31 people, including 27 children, had already died of malnutrition and dehydration.

The court also noted comments by Volker Türk, the UN's high commissioner for human rights, who said last week that the "situation of hunger, starvation and famine" was "a result of Israel's extensive restrictions on the entry and distribution of humanitarian aid and commercial goods, displacement of most of the population, as well as the destruction of crucial civilian infrastructure".

Mr Türk recently told the BBC that there was a "plausible" case that Israel was using starvation as a weapon of war in Gaza and that, if intent was proven, this would amount to a war crime.

The ICJ said Israel had to "take all necessary and effective measures to ensure, without delay, in full co-operation with the United Nations, the unhindered provision at scale... of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance".

The aid most needed included food, water, electricity, fuel, shelter and clothing as well as hygiene products and medical supplies, it said.

In recent months long queues of aid trucks have repeatedly formed as they wait to enter Gaza from Egypt, and accusations have been levelled at Israel that it is subjecting the deliveries to complex and arbitrary checks.

Israel has also said that Hamas takes much of the aid that enters Gaza and accused the UN of failing to distribute what is left to the civilian population.

The current conflict began after the 7 October attack, which saw Hamas-led gunmen storm across the border into Palestinian land stolen by Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking more than 250 others hostage.

Of those taken, about 130 remain unaccounted for, at least 34 of whom are presumed dead.

Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry says Israel's retaliatory campaign has killed at least 32,623 people. Earlier this month, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said that, of those killed, more than 25,000 were women and children.

Israel has vowed to press on with its mission to eliminate Hamas, despite the UN Security Council passing a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire earlier this week

Israel's military recently launched another raid on al-Shifa hospital - Gaza's biggest - where thousands of displaced people are sheltering.

Al-Amal hospital in southern Gaza was taken out of service earlier this week after Israeli troops forced medics and patients to evacuate, the Palestine Red Crescent Society reported.

There have also been repeated Israeli air strikes on what it says are Hamas targets throughout Gaza.

Israel has threatened to launch an offensive in the southern city of Rafah, where more than 1.5 million Palestinians are sheltering.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-68691095

[Anthea]

Biden’s Multimillion-Dollar Fundraiser disrupted

As Biden held a star-studded fundraiser in NYC, protesters disrupted the event and rallied outside to protest Biden’s support for Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza

Pro-Palestine activists mobilized to protest a high-profile fundraiser for Joe Biden’s presidential campaign at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on Thursday. The event — filled with celebrities and featuring Biden, Barack Obama, and Bill Clinton — is expected to bring in $25 million for the Biden campaign, shattering previous fundraising records. That the Biden campaign was able to raise this much money with one single event while actively funding a genocide is a sign of the complete emptiness of the Biden campaign, which has based itself around “defending democracy” but which in reality is perfectly willing to subvert the will of the masses to fund Israel.

Indeed, the movement for Palestine has been the victim of many attacks from the state, university administrations, and businesses as activists are fired, doxxed, arrested, and otherwise retaliated against. Social media conglomerate Meta, which owns Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp, banned the pro-Palestinian organization Within Our Lifetime, one of the organizations that called Thursday’s protest. In October, the Senate unanimously voted to declare all pro-Palestinain protests “antisemitic,” despite the fact that many are being led by sectors of the Jewish community who have broken with Zionism. The new McCarthyism that has emerged to combat the movement has been implemented with the full consent of the Democratic Party, whose politicians are now trying to pretend that they are defenders of our democratic rights.

While Biden addressed a crowd which included war criminals, actors, and comedians, he was interrupted by many activists who shouted: “Shame on you, Joe Biden! You are supporting genocide in Palestine! … You have blood on your hands!” Outside hundreds of protesters rallied, chanting: “Democrats, you can’t hide! We charge you with genocide!” and holding signs with slogans demanding an end to U.S. funding of Israel.

Those who mobilized to protest the event can see through the recent shifts in the Biden administration’s rhetoric around the genocide. Recently, Biden and the Democrats have changed their tack and begun to bring more criticisms of the military assault in Gaza and the Israeli government. The widespread opposition to the genocide, increased calls for a ceasefire at home, and Biden’s low poll numbers ahead of the election have forced Biden and other Democrats to take up some rhetorical support of a limited “ceasefire” — a proposal that does not even include an immediate and permanent withdrawal of all Israeli troops and an end to the siege on Gaza. (Then on Tuesday, the U.S. abstained from the recent ceasefire resolution vote made at the UN Security Council.)

But those shifts are cynical attempts to give rhetorical concessions to the movement for Palestine in order to bolster Biden’s re-election chances. The protesters who mobilized in New York City weren’t fooled by these shifts and we shouldn’t be either.

Along with Biden, former presidents Obama and Clinton are both long-standing supporters of Israel who have sent billions of dollars to sustain the colonial state. Each hold their own blood-soaked legacies of imperialist military intervention abroad. Obama expanded the use of drones in the U.S. military, carrying out over 500 drone strikes in Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen during his two terms, while supporting the Saudi monarchy in its relentless bombing of Yemen. Clinton, on top of signing the 1993 Oslo Accords that dashed prospects for Palestinian self-determination, led bloody military interventions in Somalia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Haiti, and Kosovo.

After five months of protests, the forces of the Democratic Party and their allies are mobilizing to try to co-opt and quell the movement — much like they did in 2020 with Black Lives Matter. While it is urgent that we double down our efforts to massify the movement in the streets, schools, and universities, we also need to expand our resistance to the genocide with working-class methods of struggle that include disruptive work actions and larger demonstrations and strikes to force the regime to end all military and economic aid to Israel. In imperialist countries like the U.S., which are playing a key role in sustaining Israel to maintain their strategic interest in the Middle East, these efforts, along with the Palestinian people and Jewish workers who reject Zionism, are crucial.

We defend the right to national self-determination of the Palestinian people and fight for a workers’ and socialist Palestine, within the framework of a socialist federation in the Middle East.

https://www.leftvoice.org/pro-palestine ... undraiser/

[Anthea]

In only 175 days: 32,623 killed, 75,092 injured

Israeli occupation massacres against civilians in the Gaza Strip are ongoing for the 175th day, with no signs of relenting

The Ministry of Health in Gaza announced that the Israeli occupation committed 7 massacres in the Strip in 24 hours only, killing 71 and injuring 112. This brings the total number of Palestinians killed since the Israeli aggression on Gaza started on October 7 to 32,623, in addition to 75,092 injuries.

It is noteworthy that numerous victims remain trapped under the rubble, presumed dead, as "Israel" prevents ambulance and civil defense crews from reaching them

Meanwhile, Israeli occupation forces pursue their genocidal war on the Gaza Strip, for the 175th day in a row, via airstrikes, artillery shelling, and fire belts, while committing bloody massacres against civilians.

Al Mayadeen’s correspondent reported that the bodies of eight Palestinians and the remains of unidentified martyrs, in addition to a number of injuries, arrived at the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital after the occupation bombed a house belonging to the Musa family in the Maghazi camp in the central Gaza Strip.

On his part, journalist Alam Al-Din Sabah told Al Mayadeen that the Civil Defense staff reported sighting hundreds of martyrs' bodies in the vicinity of the Al-Shifa Medical Complex.

Al Mayadeen’s correspondent also revealed that the Israeli occupation committed field executions within and outside Al-Shifa Medical Complex.

Concurrently, several were martyred and others were injured, including children, as a result of an Israeli raid on the al-Zaytoun neighborhood, east of Gaza.

Northern Gaza came under heavy attack, with huge explosions reported as a result of artillery shelling and Israeli warplane strikes, coinciding with violent artillery shelling on the al-Rimal neighborhood, west of Gaza.

In the city of Khan Younis, Israeli artillery shelling targeted the vicinity of the town of al-Qarara, north of the city, coinciding with Israeli raids targeting various surrounding areas.

In Rafah, civil defense crews were able to recover the bodies of several martyrs, including children, transport a number of injured people, and rescue a woman alive from the house of Abu Mu'anar family in al-Nasr neighborhood, northeast of Rafah, after it was struck by Israeli occupation warplanes last night.

UN: Over a million in Gaza facing famine

The United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs warned, on Thursday, that "time is running out, and obstacles to accessing aid persist in the Gaza Strip."

The statement emphasized that "over 1.1 million people in Gaza are facing severe levels of food insecurity," asserting that "there is no alternative to delivering aid by land to save lives, particularly in northern Gaza."

On his part, Ismail al-Thawabteh, the Director General of the Government Media Office in Gaza, has lately cautioned that the nightmare of famine in the northern Gaza Strip will continue if aid is not delivered on a sustainable basis.

Al-Thawabteh explained that the Gaza Strip needs aid to be delivered by land, air, and sea, adding that what is being delivered does not amount to 5% of the needs.

He also expressed deep sorrow for the deaths of martyrs as a result of the mistaken airdrop of aid, calling on the countries of the world to deliver it through the proper and correct channels.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... ed-in-gaza

[Anthea]

US facilitates Rafah invasion

approves thousands of bombs to Israel

The United States just approved over 2,00 thousand bombs and 25 fighter jets to Israel, despite criticism of the Rafah invasion

As the United States criticizes the Israeli plan to invade Rafah and warns of subsequent consequences, it has simultaneously approved billions of dollars worth of bombs and fighter jets for the occupation, the Washington Post reported.

The Washington Post, citing Pentagon and State Department officials, revealed that the new military package consists of 1,800 units of MK-84 2,000-pound bombs, 500 of the MK-82 500-pound bombs, and 25 F-35 fighter jets. The latter is part of a previously approved arms package, and this marks the third 25-jet batch, mounting the F-35 fleet size to 75.

Commenting on the continued aid to Israel, a White House official said conditioning aid is not the United States policy, the Washington Post relayed.

Sixty-nine percent of Israel's arms acquisitions in 2023 came from US corporations, 30% came from Germany, and 0.9% from Italy, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute's (SIPRI) annual study issued in March

The report detailed that “at the end of 2023, the USA rapidly delivered thousands of guided bombs and missiles to Israel."

"By the end of 2023, pending deliveries of major arms to Israel included 61 combat aircraft from the USA and 4 submarines from Germany," according to the report.

According to SIPRI, the US has sold fighter planes to the occupation in recent decades, allowing the IOF to strike Palestinian Resistance movements and the Lebanese Resistance - Hezbollah.

US shields Israel from scrutiny, violations with unlimited weapons

The general public has remained in the dark regarding up to nearly $1 billion in US military aid to "Israel", Responsible Statecraft reported.

The small weapons transfers to "Israel" happened since it is not required by law to notify Congress of any transfer that falls below the $25 million threshold, which the US has been delivering since October 7.

Such reports have been corroborated by The Washington Post, which released a similar report concerning how the US approved and executed more than 100 arms deals and foreign military sales to the Israeli regime since the onset of the war on Gaza in October.

The Post confirms that only two foreign military sales to the Israeli occupation have been publicly disclosed since the war on Gaza began.

According to former officials, such transfers have been made in the past for many reasons, and only approximately 2% of weapons transfers exceed the threshold for notification to Congress.

Additionally, many of those weapons were most likely pre-positioned in the occupation prior to the war. "Israel" holds a stockpile of American weaponry on its territory, to which it has special access.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... of-bombs-t