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  • The Palestine tragedy – why it should matter to you and our world

    COMMENTARY: By Katrina Mitchell-Kouttab

    As 2024 came to a close and we have stepped into a new year overshadowed by ongoing atrocities, have you stopped to consider how these events are reshaping your world?

    Did you notice how your future — and that of generations to come — is being profoundly and irreversibly altered?

    The ongoing tragedy in Palestine is not an isolated event. It is a crisis that reverberates far beyond borders, threatening your safety, the well-being of your children and family.

    Palestinian advocate Katrina Mitchell-Kouttab
    Palestinian advocate Katrina Mitchell-Kouttab . . . a powerful address in Auckland last weekend about how people in New Zealand can help in the face of Israel’s genocide. Image: APR

    Even fragile ecosystems and creatures have been obliterated and affected by the fallout from Israel’s chemicals and pollution from its weapons.

    The deliberate targeting of civilians, rampant violations of international law, and the obliteration of the rights of children are not distant horrors. They are ominous warnings of a world unravelling — consequences that are slowly seeping into the comfort of your home, threatening the very foundations of the life you thought was secure.

    But here’s the hard truth: these outcomes don’t just happen in a a vacuum. They persist because of the silence, indifference, or complicity of those who choose not to act.

    The question is, will you stand up for a better future, or will you look away? And how could Palestine possibly affect you and your family? Read on.

    Israel acting with impunity for decades
    Israel has been acting with impunity for decades, flouting the norms of our legal agreements, defying the United Nations and its rulings and requests to act within the agreed global rules set after the Holocaust and the Nazis disregard for humanity.

    The Germans, under Nazi rule, pursued a racist ideology to restructure the world according to race, committing crimes against humanity and war crimes that resulted in a devastating world war and the deaths of millions of people, including millions of Jews. A set of rules were formed from the ashes of these victims to ensure this horror would never happen again. It’s called international law.

    However, after the Nazis defeat, it took less than a few years before atrocities began again, perpetrated by the very people who had just been brutally massacred and targeted.

    European Jews, including holocaust survivors, armed by Czechoslovakia, funded by the Nazis (Havaara agreement), aided militarily by Britain, the US, Italy and France among others, arrived on foreign shores to a land that did not belong to them.

    Once there, they began to disregard the very rules established to protect not only them, but the rest of humanity — rules designed to prevent a repeat of the Holocaust, safeguard against the resurgence of ideologies like Nazism, and ensure impunity for such actions would never occur again.

    These rules were a shared commitment by countries to conduct themselves with agreed norms and regulations designed to respect the right of all to live in safety and security, including children, women and civilians in general. Rules that were designed to end war and promote peace, justice, and a better life for all humankind.

    Rules written to ensure the sacred understanding, implementation and respect of equal rights for all people, including you, were followed to prevent us from never returning to the lawlessness and terror of World War Two.

    But the creation of Israel less than 80 years ago flouted and violated these expectations. The mass murder of children, women and men in Palestine in 1948, which included burning alive Palestinians tied to trees and running them over as they lay unable to move in the middle of town squares, was only the beginning of this disrespectful dehumanisation.

    Terrorised by Jewish militia
    Jewish militia terrorised Palestinians, lobbing grenades into Palestinian homes where families sheltered in fear, raping women and girls, and forcing every man and boy from whole villages to dig their own trenches before being shot in the back so they fell neatly into their graves.

    Pregnant Palestinian women had their bellies sliced open, homes were stolen along with everything in it — including my families — and many family members were murdered.

    This included my great grandmother who was shot, execution style, in front of my mother as she carried a small mattress from our home for her grandchildren when they were forcibly displaced. I still don’t know what happened to her body or where she is buried. I do know where our house is still situated in Jerusalem, although currently occupied.

    These atrocities enabled Israel’s birth, shameful atrocities behind its creation. There is not one Israeli town or village that is not built on top of a Palestinian village, or town, on the blood and bones of murdered Palestinians, a practice Israel has continued.

    As I write, plans to build more illegal settlements on the buried bodies of Palestinians in Gaza have already been drawn up and areas of land pre-sold.

    These horrific crimes have continued over decades, becoming worse as Israel perfected and industrialised its ability to exterminate human souls, hearts and lives. Israel’s birth from its inception was only possible through terrorist actions of Jewish militia. These militia Britain designated as terrorist organisations, a designation that still stands today.

    Jewish militia such as (Haganah, Irgun and Stern Gang) formed into what is now known as the Israeli Defence Force, although they aren’t defending anything; Palestine was not theirs to take in the first place.

    There was never a war of independence for Israel because the state of Israel did not exist to liberate itself from anyone. Instead, Britain illegally handed over land that already belonged to the Palestinians, a peaceful existing people of three pillars of faith — Palestinian Christians Muslims and Jews. If there were any legitimate war of independence, it would be that of the Palestinian people.

    Free pass to act above the law
    Israel continues to rely on the Holocaust’s memory to give it a free pass to act above the law, threatening world peace and our shared humanity, by using the memory of the horrors of 1945 and the threat of antisemitism to deter people from criticising and speaking out against the state’s unlawful and inhumane actions.

    Yet Israel echoes the horrors of Nazi Germany and its destruction with its behaviour, the difference being the industrialisation of mass killing, modern warfare and weapons, the use of AI as a killing machine, the creation of chemical weapons and huge concentration and death camps which far surpass Germany’s capabilities.

    Jews around the world have been deeply divided by Israel’s assertion that it represents all Jewish people. Not all Jews religiously and politically support Israel, many do not feel a connection to or support Israel, viewing its actions and policies as separate from their Jewish identity. For them, Israel’s claims do not define what it means to be Jewish, nor do they see its conduct as aligned with Jewish values.

    This is not a “Jewish question” but a political one and conflating the two undermines the diverse perspectives within Jewish communities globally and is harmful to Jewish people. It is important to maintain a clear distinction between Judaism and the political actions of Israel.

    How does a genocide across the world affect you?
    The perpetration of genocide and gross violations of human rights, facilitated or supported by Western powers, erodes the very foundations of the global legal framework that protects us all. This assault weakens democracy, undermines international law, and destabilises the structures you rely on for a secure future.

    The perpetration of genocide and gross violations of human rights, facilitated or supported by Western powers, erodes the very foundations of the global legal framework that protects us all
    “The perpetration of genocide and gross violations of human rights, facilitated or supported by Western powers, erodes the very foundations of the global legal framework that protects us all.” Image: Al Jazeera headline APR

    It leaves your defences crumbling, your safety compromised, and your vulnerabilities exposed to the chaos that follows such lawlessness as a global citizen of this world under the same protections and with the same equality as the Palestinians.

    Palestinian children are no less deserving of safety and rights than any other children. When their rights are ignored and violated, it undermines protections for children worldwide, creating a precedent of vulnerability and injustice. If violations are deemed acceptable for some, they risk becoming acceptable for all.

    Sitting safely in Aotearoa does not guarantee protection. The actions of Israel and the US, Western countries — massacring and flattening entire neighbourhoods — send a dangerous message that such horrors are only for “others”, for “brown people” who speak a different language.

    But Western countries are the global minority. Many nations now view the West with growing disdain, especially in light of Israel and America’s actions, coupled with the glaring double standards and inaction of the West, including New Zealand, as they stand by and witness a genocide in progress.

    When children become a legitimate target, the safety of all children is compromised. Your kids are at risk too. Just because you live on the other side of the world does not mean you are immune or beyond the reach of those who see such actions as justification for retaliation.

    If such disregard for human life is deemed acceptable for one people, it will inevitably become acceptable for others. Justice and equality must extend to all children, regardless of nationality, to ensure a safer world for everyone.

    But why should you care?
    Because Israel and the US are undermining the framework that protects you. Israel’s violations of International and humanitarian law including laws on occupation, war crimes and bombing protected institutions such as hospitals, schools, UN facilities, civilian homes and areas of safety, undermines these and sets a dangerous precedent for others to follow. Israel does not respect global peace, civilians, human rights nor has respect for life outside of its own. This lawlessness and lack of accountability is already giving other states the green light to erode the norms that protect human rights, including the decimation of the rights of the child.

    The West’s support for Israel, namely the US, the UK, Canada, much of Europe, Australia and New Zealand, despite its clear violations of international law, exposes a fundamental hypocrisy. This weakens the credibility of democratic nations that claim to champion human rights and justice.

    The failure of institutions like the UN to hold Israel accountable erodes trust in these bodies, fostering widespread disillusionment and scepticism about their ability to address other global conflicts. This has already fuelled an “us versus them” mentality, deepening the divide between the Global South and the Global North.

    This division is marked by growing disrespect for Western governments and their citizens, who demand moral authority and adherence to the rule of law from nations in the East and South yet allow one of their “own” to brazenly violate these principles.

    This hypocrisy undermines the hope for a new, respectful world order envisioned after the Holocaust, leaving it damaged and discredited.

    Israel, despite its claims, has no authentic ties to the Middle East. What was once Palestinian land deeply rooted in Middle Eastern culture, has been overtaken and reshaped into to an artificial state imposed by mixed European heritage. It now stands as a Western outpost in stark contrast and isolated from surrounding Eastern cultures.

    The failure of the West and the international community to stop the Palestinian genocide has begun a new period of genocide normalisation, where it becomes acceptable to watch children being blown up, women and men being murdered, shot and starved to death.

    This acceptance then becomes a part of a country’s statecraft. Palestinian genocide, while it might be a little “uncomfortable” for many, has still been tolerable. If genocide is tolerable for one, then its tolerable for another.

    Bias and prejudice
    If you can comfortably go about your day, knowing the horror other innocent human beings are facing then perhaps it might be time to reflect on and confront any underlying biases or prejudices you hold.

    An interesting thought experiment is to transform and transfer what is happening in Palestine to New Zealand.

    Imagine Nelson being completely flattened, and all the inhabitants of Auckland, plus some, being starved to death.

    Imagine all New Zealand hospitals being destroyed, Wellington hospital with its patients still inside is blown up. All the babies in the neonatal unit are left to die and rot in their incubators, patients in the ICU units and those immobile or too sick to move are also left to die, this includes all children unable to walk in the Starship hospital.

    Electricity for the whole country is turned off and all patients and healthcare workers are forced to leave at gunpoint. New Zealand doctors and nurses are stripped down to their underwear and tortured, this includes rape, and some male doctors are left to die bleeding in the street after being raped to death with metal poles and electrodes.

    Water is then shut down and unavailable to all of you. You cannot feed your family, your grandchildren, your parents, your siblings, your best friends.

    Imagine New Zealanders burying bodies of their children and loved ones in makeshift mass graves, while living in tents and then being subjected to chemical weapon strikes, quad copters or small drones’ attacks that drop bombs and exterminate, shooting people as they try to find food, but targeting mostly women and children.

    Imagine every single human being in Upper Hutt completely wiped out. Imagine 305 New Zealand school buses full of dead children line the streets, that’s more than 11,000 killed so far. Each day more than 10 New Zealand kids lose a limb, including your children.

    This number starts to increase with the hope to finally ethnically cleanse Aotearoa to make way for a new state defined by one religion and one ethnicity that isn’t yours, by a new group of people from the other side of the world.

    These people, called settlers, are given weapons to hurt and kill New Zealanders as they rampage through towns evicting residents and moving into your homes taking everything that belongs to you and leaving you on the street. All your belongings, all your memories, your pets, your future, your family are stolen or destroyed.

    Starting from January 2025, up to 15 New Zealanders will die of starvation or related diseases EVERY DAY until the rest of the world decides if it will come to your aid with this lawlessness. Or maybe you will die in desperation while others watch you on their TV screens or scroll through their social media seeing you as the “terrorist” and the invaders as the “victims”.

    If this thought horrifies you, if it makes you feel shocked or upset, then so too should others having to endure such illegal horrors. None of what is happening is acceptable, as a fellow human being you should be fighting for the right of all of us. Perhaps you might think of our own tangata whenua and Aotearoa’s own history.

    What could this mean for New Zealand?
    We are not creating a bright future for a country like New Zealand, whose remote location, dependence on trade, and its aging infrastructure, leaves it vulnerable to changing global dynamics. This is especially concerning with our energy dependence on imported oil, our dependence on global supply chains for essential goods including medicine (Israel’s pager attack against Hezbollah has compromised supply chains in a dangerous and horrific violation that New Zealand ignored), our economic marginalisation, and our security challenges.

    All of this while surrounded by rising tensions between superpowers like the US and China which will affect New Zealand’s security and economic partnerships. Balancing economic and political ties is complicated by this government’s focus on strengthening strategic alliances with Western nations, mainly the US, whose complicity in genocide, war crimes, and disrespect for the rule of law is weakening its standing and threatens its very future.

    Targeting marginalised groups
    The precedent set in Palestine will embolden oppressive regimes elsewhere to target minority groups, knowing that the world will turn a blind eye. Israel is a violent, oppressive apartheid state, operating outside of international law and norms and has been compared to, but is much worse than the former apartheid South Africa.

    This will have a huge impact felt all over the world with the continued refugee crisis. Multicultural nations such as New Zealand will struggle to cope with the support needed for the families of our citizens in need.

    An increase of the far right reminiscent of Nazi ideology and extremism
    Israel is a pariah state fuelled by radicalisation and extremism with an intolerance to different races, colour and ethnicity and indigenous populations. This has created a fertile ground for extremist ideologies, destabilising regions far beyond the Middle East as we have seen in Europe with the rejuvenation of the far-right movement.

    Israel’s genocidal onslaughts will continue to be the cause for ongoing instability in the region, affecting global energy supplies, trade routes, and security. The Palestinian crisis will not be answered with violence, oppression and war. We aren’t going anywhere, and neither should we.

    Weaponising aid and healthcare
    Israel’s deliberate restriction of food, water, and medical supplies to Gaza weaponises humanitarian aid, violating basic principles of humanity. A new weapon in the arsenal of pariah states and radical violent countries and a new Israeli tactic to be copied and used elsewhere. Targeting hospitals, healthcare workers, distribution centres, ambulances, the UN, and collectively punishing whole populations has never been and will never be acceptable.

    If it is not acceptable that this happens to you in Aotearoa, then nor is it acceptable for Palestinians in Palestine. It is intolerable for other “terror regimes” to commit such acts, so why is it deemed acceptable when carried out by Israel and the US?

    Undermining the rights to free speech, peaceful protest and freedoms
    During the covid pandemic, many New Zealanders were concerned with government-imposed restrictions that could be used disproportionately or as pretexts for authoritarian control. This included limitations on freedom of movement, speech, assembly, and privacy.

    And yet Palestinians endure military checkpoints, curfews, restricted movement within and between their own territories, and the suppression of their right to protest or voice opposition to occupation — all due to Israel’s oppressive and illegal control. This is further enabled by the political cover and tacit support provided by this government’s failure to speak out and strongly condemn Israel’s actions.

    Through its failure to take meaningful action or fulfil its third-party state obligations, this government continues to maintain normal relations with Israel across diplomatic, cultural, economic, and social spheres, as well as through trade. Moreover, it wrongly asserts on its official foreign affairs websites and policies that an occupying power has the right to self-defence against a defenceless population it has systematically abused and terrorised for decades.

    The silencing of pro-Palestinian activists and criminalisation of humanitarian aid also create a chilling effect, discouraging global solidarity movements and undermining the moral fabric of societies. The use of victimhood to shroud the aggressor and blame the victim is a low point in our harrowed history. As is the vilification of moral activism and those that dare to stand against the illegal and sickening mass killing of civilians.

    The attempt to persecute brave students standing up to Zionist and Israeli-run organisations and those supporting Israel (including academic and cultural institutions), by both trigger-happy billionaire Jewish investors and elite families and company investors whose answer to peaceful resistance is violence, demonstrates how far we have fallen from democracy and the rights of the citizen.

    I find it completely bizarre that standing up against a genocide of helpless, unarmed civilians is demonised in order to protect the thugs, criminals and psychopaths that make up the Israeli state and its criminal actors, and the elite families and corporations profiting from this war.

    Even here in Aotearoa, protesters have been vilified for drawing attention to Israel’s war crimes and double standards at the ASB Classic tennis tournament. Letting into New Zealand an IDF soldier who is associated with an institution directly implicated in war crimes and crimes against humanity should be questioned.

    These protesters were falsely labelled as “pro-Hamas” by Israeli and Western media. They were portrayed negatively, seen as a nuisance. Their messages about supporting human rights and stopping a horrific genocide from continuing were not mentioned.

    The focus was the effect their chants had on the tennis match and the Israeli tennis player, who was upset. Exercising their legal rights to demonstrate, the protesters were not a security issue. Yet Lina Glushko, the Israeli tennis player, claimed she needed extra security to combat a dozen protesters, many over the age of 60, who were never in any proximity of the controversial player nor were ever a threat.

    No mention that Lina Glushko lives in an illegal settlement in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, or that she was in service from 2018-2020 during the Great March of Return. Or that this tennis player has made public statements mocking the suffering of Palestinians, inconsistent with Aotearoa’s commitment to combating hate speech and promoting inclusivity and respect.

    Her presence erodes the integrity of international sports and sends a dangerous message that war crimes and human rights violations carry no meaningful consequences despite international law and the recent UNGA (UN General Assembly) and ICJ (International Court of Justice) resolutions and advisory opinions.

    Allowing IDF soldiers entry into New Zealand disregards the pain and suffering of Palestinians and the New Zealand Palestinian community, dehumanising their plight. It sends a message of complicity to the broader international community, one that was ignored by most Western media.

    Similarly, Israel’s attempts to not just control the Western media but to shut down and kill journalists, is not only a war crime, but is terrifying. Journalists’ protection is enshrined in international law due to the essential nature of their work in fostering accountability, transparency, and justice. They expose corruption, war crimes, and human rights abuses. Real journalism is vital for democracy, ensuring citizens are informed about government actions and global events.

    Israel’s targeting of journalists undermines the rule of law and emboldens it and other perpetrators to commit further atrocities without fear of scrutiny or consequences.

    The suffering of Palestinians is a human rights issue that transcends borders. Allowing genocide and oppression to continue undermines the shared humanity that binds us all.
    Israel’s actions reflect the dehumanisation of an entire population and our failure to enforce accountability for these crimes weakens international systems designed to protect your family and you.

    Israel’s influence is far reaching, and New Zealand is not immune. Any undue influence by foreign states, including Israel, threatens New Zealand’s sovereignty and ability to make independent decisions in its national interest. Lobbying efforts by organisations like the Zionist Federation or the Jewish National Fund (JNF), the Jewish Council and the Holocaust Centre of New Zealand push policies that do not align with New Zealand’s broader public interest.

    Aligning with a state that is violating rights and in a court of law on charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, leaves citizens wide open to the same controls and concerns we are now seeing Americans and Europeans face at the mercy of AIPAC and Israeli influence.

    Palestine is a test of the international community’s commitment to justice, human rights, and the rule of law. If Israel is allowed to continue acting with impunity, the global system that protects us all will be irreparably weakened, paving the way for more injustice, oppression, and chaos. It is a fight for the moral and legal foundations of the world we live in and ignoring it will have far-reaching consequences for everyone.

    So, as you usher in 2025, don’t sit there and clink your glasses, hoping for a better year while continuing to ignore the suffering around you. Act to make 2025 better than the horrific few years the world has been subjected to, if not for humanity, then for yourself and your family’s future. Start with the biggest threat to world peace and stability — Israel and US hegemony.

    What you can do
    You can make a difference in the fight against Israel’s illegal occupation and violations of human rights, including the deliberate targeting of children by taking simple yet impactful steps. Here’s how you can start today:

    Boycott products supporting oppression:
    Remove at least five products from your weekly supermarket shopping list that are linked to companies supporting Israel’s occupation or that are made in Israel. Use tools like the “No Thanks” app to identify these items or visit the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) website for detailed advice and information.

    Hold the government accountable:
    Write letters to your government representatives demanding action to uphold democracy and human rights. Remind them of New Zealand’s obligations under international law to stand against human rights abuses and violations of global norms. Demand fair and equitable foreign policies designed to protect us all.

    Educate yourself:
    Learn about the history of the Palestine-Israel conflict, especially the events of 1948, to better understand the roots of the ongoing crisis. Knowledge is a powerful tool for advocacy and change.

    Seek alternative news sources:
    Expand your perspective by accessing a wide range of news sources including from platforms such as Al Jazeera, Double Down News, and Middle East Eye.

    Be a citizen, not a bystander:
    Passive spectatorship allows injustice to thrive. Take a stand. Whether by boycotting, writing letters, educating yourself, or raising awareness, your actions can contribute to a global movement for justice for us all.

    Together, we can challenge systems of oppression and demand accountability for crimes against humanity. Let 2025 not just be another year of witnessing suffering but one where we collectively take action to restore justice, uphold humanity, and demand accountability.
    The time to act is now.

    Katrina Mitchell-Kouttab is a New Zealand Palestinian advocate and writer.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Pryde ‘may have to wait’ over tribunal report, says Fiji President’s office

    By Cheerieann Wilson in Suva

    Fiji’s Office of the President has confirmed that the Tribunal’s report on allegations of misconduct against suspended Director of Public Prosecutions Christopher Pryde does not need to be made public at this stage.

    The tribunal, chaired by Justice Anare Tuilevuka with Justices Chaitanya Lakshman and Samuela Qica, has completed its inquiry and submitted its findings to the President, Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu.

    The President will review the report, conduct consultations, and seek necessary advice before releasing it.

    Due to holiday leave, this process will continue in the New Year.

    “It is acknowledged that the Report does not need to be made public as required in section 112(6) of the Constitution, and His Excellency will do so as soon as he has properly considered it.”

    New Zealander Pryde had formally written to the Office of the President, requesting that a copy of the report be made available to him.

    Position and pay ‘in limbo’
    An earlier Fiji Times report by Shal Devi said Pryde had written to the Office of the President to request an urgent conclusion of the matter that had left his position and pay in limbo.

    Pryde was suspended in April 2023 because of allegations of misbehaviour, which were linked to him being photographed with former attorney-general Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum — who was under investigation at the time — at a diplomatic gathering.

    Earlier this week, Pryde made public the letter he had written to the Office of the President.

    “I have been informed that the tribunal report into allegations of misbehaviour against me was provided to His Excellency, the President, on Monday the 23rd December 2024,” he wrote.

    “I have written to the tribunal for a copy of the report, and they have advised me to contact the President’s office directly. I am therefore formally requesting that a copy of the report is provided to me.”

    Pryde cited section 112 (6) of the Constitution, which states that the report shall be made public. Pryde said this was a mandatory provision and was not subject to discretion.

    “I also note that section 112 (3) (c) of the Constitution provides that the President must act on the advice of the tribunal and that section 112 (5) provides that the suspension shall cease if the President determines that the judicial officer should not be removed.

    “In other words, if the report advises that there is insufficient evidence of misbehaviour, then the suspension should be lifted immediately and I should be reinstated to my position as the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).”

    Pryde said it had been close to 21 months since he was suspended as the DPP, and nearly six months since his salary was suspended, which had caused him great financial hardship.

    “It is a matter of urgency that this matter is brought to a final conclusion since the tribunal has now completed its task.

    “I am therefore kindly requesting that His Excellency (i) advise me of the outcome of the report, (ii) provide me a copy of the report and allow it to be published, and (iii), if there is no evidence or insufficient evidence to support the allegations of misbehaviour, lift my suspension as is required under the Constitution and immediately reinstate my salary and entitlements.”

    Republished from The Fiji Times with permission.


    This content originally appeared on Asia Pacific Report and was authored by APR editor.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Virgin Australia confirms ‘serious security incident’ with crew in Fiji

    By Anish Chand in Suva

    Virgin Australia has confirmed a “serious security incident” with its flight crew members who were in Fiji on New Year’s Day.

    Virgin Australia’s chief operating officer Stuart Aggs said the incident took place on Tuesday night – New Year’s Eve

    The crew members were in Fiji on night layover.

    Fiji police said two crew members had alleged they were raped while out clubbing and one alleged her phone had been stolen.

    They had gone out to a nightclub in Martintar.

    “I’m sorry to advise of a serious security incident which affected a number of crew in Nadi, Fiji, on Tuesday evening,” said Aggs on New Year’s Day.

    “Our immediate priority is to look after the wellbeing of our crew involved and make sure they are supported. The safety and welfare of our people is our number one priority.”

    Virgin Australia has kept the crew members in Nadi as police investigations continue.

    Republished from The Fiji Times with permission.

  • CPJ condemns ban on Al Jazeera – network decries bid to ‘hide the truth’

    Pacific Media Watch

    The New York-based global media watchdog Committee to Protect Journalists has condemned a decision by the Palestinian Authority to suspend Al Jazeera’s operations in the West Bank and called for it to be reversed “immediately”.

    “Governments resort to censoring news outlets when they have something to hide,” said CPJ chief executive Jodie Ginsberg in a statement.

    “The Palestinian Authority should reverse its decision to suspend Al Jazeera’s operations and allow journalists to report freely without fear of reprisal.”

    Ginsburg also strongly condemned the PA decision in a separate interview with Al Jazeera, calling for an immediate reversal of the “temporary” ban.

    She described the move as “really disturbing”, but said it was not a surprise given the PA’s track record on press freedom.

    Listen to Ginsberg’s full comments here.

    The Palestinian official news agency WAFA reported yesterday that the PA had suspended Al Jazeera on grounds of “inciting material”.

    The ban comes after the authority criticised Al Jazeera’s last week coverage of a standoff between Palestinian security forces and militant fighters in Jenin camp, located in the West Bank, according to reports.

    Israel raided Al Jazeera’s Ramallah offices in September and ordered its closure for 45 days, accusing the broadcaster’s West Bank operations of “incitement to and support of terrorism”.

    Israel banned Al Jazeera’s Israel operations in May, citing national security concerns.


    Palestinian Authority suspends broadcast of Al Jazeera.  Video: Al Jazeera

    In a statement, the Al Jazeera network has condemned the PA closure of its offices in the occupied West Bank, calling the move “consistent” with the Israeli occupation’s “practices against its crews”.

    The network “considers the Palestinian Authority’s decision an attempt to dissuade it from covering the escalating events taking place in the occupied territories”, the statement said.

    It added the move “comes in the wake of an ongoing campaign of incitement and intimidation by parties sponsored by the Palestinian Authority against our journalists”.

    The network further called the ban “an attempt to hide the truth about events in the occupied territories”, particularly in Jenin.

    Political pressure ‘from Israel’
    Political pressure from Israeli authorities on the PA is likely behind the temporary ban decision, claims the network’s senior political analyst Marwan Bishara.

    “There is no doubt pressure by the Israeli authorities to ban Al Jazeera like it was banned in Israel,” Bishara said.

    “The PA is foolishly and short-sightedly trying to prove its credentials to Israeli authorities . . . because they want a role in Gaza and the only way they can do that is by appeasing the Israeli occupation.”

    Bishara said the suspension would fail to curtail the channel’s coverage of events in Palestine, just as it had failed to achieve the same goal in Israel.

    “This is not going to stop us, this is not going to shut us up,” he said. “We question power and that’s what we do, we question the PA and every other authority in the world.”

    Also condemning the PA ban, Mustafa Barghouti, the head of the opposition Palestinian National Initiative, said the ban was “a big mistake” and “should be reversed as soon as possible”.

    “I think this is a wrong decision, especially in the light of the fact that Al Jazeera . . . has been at the avant garde in exposing the crimes against the Palestinian people, and continues to do so — especially the genocide that is taking place in Gaza,” said Barghouti, who had previously served as Palestinian minister of information.

    “This is an issue of freedom of expression, an issue of freedom of press, an issue of freedom of media,” he told Al Jazeera.

    He added that the Palestinian Authority was taking a “dangerous path” that underlines the lack of unified Palestinian leadership.

    “At the end of the day, the Israeli occupation is targeting everybody, including Fatah and Hamas and everybody else,” he said.

    “So our approach should be an approach of unity, encouraging freedom of expression, because at the end of the day, freedom of expression will only support the struggle against the occupation.”

    Palestinian ban follows Israeli ban, killing of journalists
    The PA’s temporary ban on Al Jazeera comes months after the network was banned from operating by the Israeli government.

    Israel, which has sought to disrupt Al Jazeera’s coverage multiple times throughout its 18-year history, ordered the closure of Al Jazeera’s offices and a ban on its broadcasting in Israel in May.

    A month earlier, Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, passed a law that allowed Israel to temporarily shut down foreign media outlets deemed to be security threats.

    Al Jazeera condemned the move as a “criminal act” and has stood by its coverage, particularly of Israeli operations in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.

    In September, Israeli authorities shut down Al Jazeera’s office in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, a move decried by Amnesty International’s MENA director as a “shameless attack on the right to freedom of expression and a crushing blow for press freedom”.

    Several Al Jazeera journalists and their families have been killed while reporting in the occupied Palestinian territories in recent years, including Shireen Abu Akleh, a renowned correspondent fatally shot by Israel while reporting in Jenin in May 2022.

    Amid the war in Gaza, Israeli strikes have killed Al Jazeera cameraman Samer Abudaqa, correspondent Ismail Al-Ghoul and his cameraman Rami al-Rifi, cameraman Ahmed al-Louh, and journalist Hamza Dahdouh, the son of Al Jazeera Gaza bureau chief Wael Dahdouh.

    Pacific Media Watch and news agencies.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • New Caledonia political crisis costs one third of multi-million French package

    By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk

    An emergency 231 million euro (NZ$428 million) French aid package for New Caledonia has been reduced by one third because of the French Pacific territory’s current political crisis.

    The initial French package was endorsed in early December 2024, in an 11th-hour vote at the French National Assembly, minutes before French Prime Minister Michel Barnier and his government fell in a motion of no confidence.

    The “end of management 2024” bill amounted to 231 million euros, specifically to allow New Caledonia’s essential public services to keep operating in the next few weeks.

    But the financial package was pre-conditioned to New Caledonia’s Congress endorsing reforms before the end of the year.

    Out of the three tranches of the total aid, the Congress managed, during its December 23, 2024, sitting, to endorse two.

    Then, on Christmas Eve, New Caledonia’s government fell, due to a resignation by one of its members, Calédonie Ensemble.

    Domino effect
    Since the government led by Louis Mapou was toppled on Christmas Eve, pro-independence MPs at the Congress refused to take part in further votes.

    They did not turn up on the Boxing Day sitting on Thursday, December 26.

    This made it impossible for Congress to endorse the third and last tranche of the reforms, which were a precondition to the last third of the French aid package.

    Outgoing New Caledonia President Louis Mapou
    Outgoing New Caledonia President Louis Mapou . . . tensions have come to a head between the territory’s Congress and government since the deadly pro-independence riots began in May. Image: New Caledonia govt/RNZ Pacific

    Letter from Bayrou and Valls
    In a letter received by New Caledonia’s MPs at the weekend, both new French Prime Minister François Bayrou and his new Minister for Overseas Manuel Valls explained the failure for New Caledonia’s Congress to endorse the last third of the demanded reform package.

    It means the whole package of 231 million euros will not be paid in full, and that one third of the total will have to wait until this year.

    French Prime Minister Manuel Valls.
    French Minister for Overseas Manuel Valls . . . letter of explanation. Image: RNZ Pacific

    The confirmed amount, for the time being, is now 154 million euros (NZ$285 million) which will go towards New Caledonia’s Provinces and municipalities (125 million euros — NZ$231 million).

    The remaining 29 million euros (NZ$54 million) will be paid and used for the payment of New Caledonia’s unemployment benefits and to allow the French Pacific territory’s power company, ENERCAL, which is on the brink of collapse without immediate assistance.

    77 million euros withheld
    “The last third of the initial 231 million euros package for New Caledonia (77 million euros [NZ$143 million]) will be released in 2025, once the pre-condition as stipulated in the initial agreement, regarding a reform of the TGC (General Consumption Tax, a local equivalent of a VAT) is adopted by (New Caledonia’s) Congress. Failing that, it will not,” Bayrou and Valls explained in the same letter.

    They further wrote that those reforms were “indispensable” to ensure “visibility and stability” for New Caledonia’s “economic stakeholders and more generally to all of New Caledonians at a time when a dialogue is supposed to take place on its institutional future.”

    The bloc resignation from Calédonie Ensemble entails that the whole government of New Caledonia is deemed to have resigned and acts in a caretaker mode until the inception of a new government.

    New Caledonia’s Congress has been convened for a special sitting next week on 7 January 2025 to elect a new government, under the principle of proportional representation and a spirit of “collegiality”.

    One particular point of contention was Mapou’s efforts to secure a loan of up to 1 billion euros from France, under a ‘PS2R’ (reconstruction, refoundation and salvage) plan to rebuild New Caledonia after the riots’ damage (estimated at some 2.2 billion euros) and the subsequent thousands of job losses.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • A ‘genocidal project’ – Dr Abu-Sittah on Israel’s destruction of Gaza’s health system

    Democracy Now!

    Gaza’s Health Ministry has confirmed that close to 46,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israel’s ongoing assault, but Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah estimates the true number is closer to 300,000.

    “This is literally and mathematically a genocidal project,” says Dr Abu-Sittah, a British Palestinian reconstructive surgeon who worked in Gaza for more than a month treating patients at both Al-Shifa and Al-Ahli Baptist hospitals.

    Israel continues to attack what remains of the besieged territory’s medical infrastructure.

    On Sunday, an Israeli attack on the upper floor of al-Wafa Hospital in Gaza City killed at least seven people and wounded several others. On Friday, Israeli troops stormed Kamal Adwan Hospital, northern Gaza’s last major functioning hospital, and set the facility on fire.

    Many staff and patients were reportedly forced to go outside and strip in winter weather.

    The director of Kamal Adwan, Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, was arrested, and his whereabouts remain unknown. [Editor: He is reportedly being held in the Sde Teiman base in Israel’s Negev desert, a place notorious for the torture and deaths of detainees].

    “It’s been obvious from the beginning that Israel has been wiping out a whole generation of health professionals in Gaza as a way of increasing the genocidal death toll but also of permanently making Gaza uninhabitable,” says Abu-Sittah.

    “On October 7, the Israelis crossed that genocidal Rubicon that settler-colonial projects cross.”


    ‘A genocidal project’.          Video: Democracy Now!

    NERMEEN SHAIKH: We begin today’s show in Gaza, where a sixth baby has died from severe cold as the death toll tops 45,500 and Israel’s assault on medical infrastructure continues in the besieged territory.

    On Sunday, an Israeli attack on the upper floor of al-Wafa Hospital in Gaza City killed at least seven people and wounded several others.

    On Friday, Israeli troops stormed Kamal Adwan Hospital, northern Gaza’s last major functioning hospital.

    The director of Kamal Adwan, Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, was arrested, [and he is reportedly being held in the Sde Teiman base in Israel’s Negev desert, a place notorious for the torture and deaths of detainees].

    Many staff and patients were reportedly forced to go outside and strip in winter weather. This is nurse Waleed al-Boudi describing Dr Hussam Abu Safiya’s arrest.

    WALEED AL-BOUDI: [translated] Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya was arrested from Al-Fakhoura School after he had stayed with us and refused to leave. Even though they told him to and that he was free to go, he told them that he won’t leave his medical staff.

    He took all of us and wanted to get us out at night. But they yelled at him and arrested him, a man of great humanity.

    We appeal to the entire world, all of the world, all the human rights organiSations to stand by Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, the great man, the man who planted, within us and within our hearts, patience so we can persevere in our steadfast north.

    I swear we wouldn’t have left, but by force. We cried blood on the doors of Kamal Adwan Hospital when we were forced out by the occupation army.

    NERMEEN SHAIKH: A person who was with Dr Hussam Abu Safiya shared testimony that, quote, “The Israeli forces whipped Dr Hussam using an electrical wire found in the street after forcing him and others from the medical staff to remove their clothes”.

    This is Dr Hussam Abu Safiya in one of his final interviews before being detained, produced by Sotouries.

    DR HUSSAM ABU SAFIYA: [translated] I always say the situation requires one to stand by our people’s side and not run away from it.

    Gaza is our homeland, our mother, our beloved and everything to us. Gaza deserves all of this steadfastness and deserves all of the sacrifices.

    It is not just about Gaza, but we deserve to be a people that deserves freedom just like every other people on Earth.

    I think the occupation wants us to get out and for us to ask them to get us out, so they can publicly say that the healthcare system is the one asking to leave and that it wasn’t them who asked us to, but we are aware of that.

    But we will not leave, God willing, from this place, as I said, for as long as there are humanitarian services to be provided to our people in the northern Gaza Strip.

    NERMEEN SHAIKH: That was Dr Hussam Abu Safiya in one of his last interviews before Israeli forces arrested him on Friday in a raid on Kamal Adwan Hospital along with at least 240 others in a raid which left the hospital nonoperational.

    Israel’s military alleged that Hamas militants were using Kamal Adwan Hospital [But have never provided evidence for their claims].

    The World Health Organisation is calling on Israel to end its attacks on Gaza hospitals. Earlier today, the World Health Organization’s chief, Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus, said: “People in Gaza need access to health care. Humanitarians need access to provide health aid. Ceasefire!”

    Last week, World Health Organisation spokesperson Dr Margaret Harris was asked on Channel 4 News whether there was any evidence of the Israeli claim that the hospital is a Hamas stronghold.

    DR MARGARET HARRIS: So, whenever we send a mission, we go and we look at the health situation.

    Now, I’ve not had at any point our healthcare teams come back and say that they’ve got any concerns beyond the healthcare, but I should say that what we do is look at what the health situation is and what needs to be done.

    But all we’ve ever seen going on in that hospital is healthcare.

    NERMEEN SHAIKH: Well, for more, we go to Cairo, Egypt.

    AMY GOODMAN: Nermeen, thanks so much. I am here with a man who knew Dr Abu Safiya well and is in constant contact with people on the ground in Gaza, particularly the medical professionals.

    Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah is with us here, British Palestinian reconstructive surgeon. He worked last year in Gaza for almost — for over a month with Médecins Sans Frontières — that’s Doctors Without Borders (MSF) — in two hospitals. He worked at Al-Shifa, the main hospital in Gaza, as well as Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital.

    Welcome to Democracy Now! You’ve been in touch with family of Dr Abu Safiya. If you can talk about where he is right now, believed to have been arrested by the Israeli military, and then the crisis just right now on the ground with the closing of Kamal Adwan and more?

    DR GHASSAN ABU-SITTAH: So, unfortunately, the family is afraid that he has been moved to the infamous Sde Teiman torture camp, an internment camp where, before him, Dr Adnan al-Bursh was tortured, and tortured to death, Dr Iyad Rantisi was tortured to death, where there is documented evidence of not just Israeli guards taking part in torture, but even Israeli doctors taking part in the torture of Palestinians.

    And so, that is the fear that not just the family has, but all of us have.

    And what we’ve seen in this process, in this destruction, systematic destruction of the health system, with the total destruction of all of the hospitals in the north, so not just Kamal Adwan, before that, the Indonesian Hospital and Al-Awda Hospital, and, immediately after, the targeting of al-Wafa Hospital and then the targeting again of Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital, which was the first hospital the Israelis targeted on the October 17.

    The targeting of al-Wafa Hospital was intended to kill medical students from Gaza’s Islamic University who were sitting in exam in that hospital. And luckily for them, the Israelis got the wrong floor. And then the targeting of Al-Ahli Hospital, which is now the last hospital functioning in that whole arbitrarily created northern part of Gaza, is a sign that the Israelis will now move towards the Ahli Hospital for destruction.

    I just want to highlight there is research that is about to be published that shows that the chances of being killed as a nurse or a doctor in Gaza during this genocidal war is three-and-a-half times that of the general population.

    So it’s been obvious from the beginning that Israel has been wiping out a whole generation of health professionals in Gaza as a way of increasing the genocidal death toll but also of permanently making Gaza uninhabitable.

    NERMEEN SHAIKH: Well, Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah, you, of course, as we mentioned, as Amy mentioned in the introduction, you have worked in two Gaza hospitals. You’ve just talked a little bit about what’s recently — the recent Israeli attacks on medical infrastructure in Gaza, but if you could explain, just to give a sense of what’s happened overall since October 7, 2023.

    If you could say the scale of the destruction of medical infrastructure, as well as the systematic attacks on medical personnel, as you said, this new research that’s coming out that shows that they’re three to four times more likely to be killed than the general population?

    So, if you could just say, begin from October 2023 to now?

    DR GHASSAN ABU-SITTAH: So, what happened on October 12th is that the Israeli army started to call by phone medical directors of all of the hospitals, telling them that unless they evacuated the hospitals, the blood of the patients would be on their hands.

    And I remember that day I was with Dr Ahmed Muhanna from Al-Awda Hospital, who’s still been arrested now for over a year, an anesthetist and a medical director, and he received a phone call from the Israeli army to tell him to evacuate Al-Awda Hospital.

    Of course, we realised at that point that the destruction of the health system was going to be a prerequisite for the kind of ethnic cleansing that the Israelis wanted in Gaza.

    I was in Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital on the day of the October 17, when the Israelis bombed that hospital, killing over 480 patients. And then we had the whole narrative about Shifa Hospital, the siege of Shifa Hospital, the destruction of three pediatric hospitals in the north, and then the first attack on Shifa Hospital.

    And then, after that, 36 hospitals in Gaza have now been reduced to the three partially working hospitals in the south and only a remnant of Al-Ahli Hospital in the north. We have had over a thousand health workers — doctors, nurses, health professionals — killed, over 400 imprisoned, and then the destruction of the health infrastructure, the destruction of water and sewage, the use of water as a tool of collective punishment in order to create the public health catastrophe that exists in Gaza in terms of infectious diseases, and the intentional famine.

    And so, at the moment, we have in Gaza what the doctors are referring to as the triad of death: hypothermia because of the winter, wounding because of the injuries, and malnutrition.

    And with the three, what happens is that people die of at higher temperatures, people die of lesser injuries, because the coexistence of these three conditions means that the body is depleted of any physiological reserve.

    And so, that’s why we’re watching over seven kids in the last week die of hypothermia, an adult nurse die of hypothermia, not because the temperatures are subzero — the temperatures are just hovering above zero — but because they’re so malnourished and they’re injured and a lot of them have infectious diseases, and so they’re dying at the same time.

    Israel has created a genocidal machine that takes Palestinian lives beyond the injury, beyond the bombs, beyond the shrapnel.

    And so people are dying of infectious diseases. People are dying because of the health system has collapsed, and so their chronic diseases become medical emergencies. And people are dying from the famine and the malnutrition.

    NERMEEN SHAIKH: So, in light of that, Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah, if you could comment on the fact that so many people now, an increasing number of people, are questioning this death toll of 45,500, over that number who have been killed in Gaza since or who have died in Gaza since October 2023?

    People are saying that is a vast undercount. From what you’re saying, that seems almost certain. If you could comment as a medical professional? You know, what do you think might be a more accurate figure?

    DR GHASSAN ABU-SITTAH: So, 45,000 are people whose bodies were taken to a Ministry of Health hospital, and they were taken by people who witnessed or who recognised them, and a death certificate was issued.

    This 45,000 excludes the tens of thousands who are still under the rubble, more so in the north, where the emergency services were targeted by the Israelis and so are now completely unable to function.

    And so, we see pictures of dogs eating bodies of those killed in the streets. Not only people under the rubble, people who have been killed and not reported, or their bodies have not been retrieved.

    When you drop 2000-pound bombs, there’s very little of the human body that is left. And so there are people who literally pulverized by these bombs.

    Then you have those whose chronic illnesses, once untreated, became deadly, so the kidney dialysis patients, the heart disease patients, the diabetics, who were no longer able to get treatment.

    It doesn’t take into account the women who are dying from maternal care, from obstetric injuries during delivery, because they’re delivering in makeshift hospitals, they’re delivering in the tents, and they’re malnourished when they give birth, and so them and their babies have a higher rate of maternal mortality, of infant mortality.

    And then you have those who are dying of infectious diseases, of the thousands who have hepatitis at the moment, of the polio, and those who are dying not immediately from their injuries but from the wounds that do not have access to healthcare to stop the infection setting in, and then, eventually, the infection becoming sepsis and killing them.

    The number is closer to 300,000. This is around 10 to 12 percent of Gaza’s population.

    France, at the end of the Second World War, 4 percent of its population were killed. This is literally and mathematically a genocidal project.

    This is not a political term. This is a literal and mathematical term, where you want to eliminate the population and to ensure that whoever is left is incapable of becoming part of a society, because they’re tending to their wounds or they’ve been so severely debilitated by the injuries and the neglected injuries.

    AMY GOODMAN: Dr Abu-Sittah, you have asked, “How can a live-streamed genocide continue unhindered?” What is your response to that question right now?

    DR GHASSAN ABU-SITTAH: Right now with the arrest of Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, where is the British Medical Association? Where is the American Medical Association? Where are the royal colleges? Where is the French Medical Association?

    Western medical institutions, their moral bankruptcy has become so astounding during this genocide. For them to become part of a genocidal enablement apparatus, for their silence and, in a lot of times, their collusion to silence those who speak out against the genocide.

    For me, as a health professional, you’re shocked at how completely empty of any moral value these medical associations have become, when they have become complicit in a televised genocide which targets doctors.

    AMY GOODMAN: You know, I’m speaking to you here in Cairo. In May, Germany did not allow you in to speak. You are a British Palestinian doctor.

    Since you were in Gaza last year, you’ve been speaking out about what’s happening. Explain exactly what happened. I mean, Human Rights Watch and other groups were demanding that this ban be lifted. They banned you from where?

    DR GHASSAN ABU-SITTAH: So, I was invited to speak at a conference in Germany. I was stopped at Berlin Airport and was told that I’m banned from going into Germany for a month, and I was deported at the end of that day back to the UK.

    A few months later, I had an invitation from the French Senate. When I arrived at Charles de Gaulle Airport, I discovered that the Germans, a few days after they deported me, had put in a ban for the whole of the Schengen — and Schengen is the EU plus Norway, plus Sweden, plus Switzerland — using an administrative law so that they wouldn’t have to put it in front of the judge. We then were able to challenge that and have it overturned.

    But at the same time, pro-Israel groups, like UK Lawyers for Israel, submitted multiple complaints against me with the General Medical Council to have my medical licence removed, submitted complaints against me with the Charity Commission in the UK to have me banned for life from ever holding office in a UK registered charity.

    This is what — this is why this genocide has continued unhindered and unchallenged for over 14 months. There are apparatus of genocide enablement that exists in the West, either through collusion or by actively targeting.

    Over 60 doctors in the UK have had complaints against them with the General Medical Council to have their medical licences removed as a result of their support of the Palestinians during the genocide.

    AMY GOODMAN: Finally, Dr Abu-Sittah, Jimmy Carter died yesterday at the age of 100. He wrote the book in the 2000s, which is quite amazing, but after he was president, Palestine: Peace [Not] Apartheid. I’m going to rejoin Nermeen for the end of the show, an interview I did with him on that issue. But your thoughts on President Carter?

    DR GHASSAN ABU-SITTAH: The logic of the relationship between the Zionist colonialist movement and the Palestinian indigenous population has always been that of elimination.

    At a certain point — and that’s unfortunately now behind us since the 7th of October — apartheid separation was the chosen method of elimination of the Palestinians. On the 7th of October, the Israelis crossed that genocidal Rubicon that settler-colonial projects cross.

    And once the genocidal Rubicon is crossed, the elimination of the indigenous population by the settler-colonial project then purely becomes genocidal.

    Israel, even at the end of this genocidal war in Gaza, will not be able to deal with the Palestinians in a nongenocidal way. Once the settler-colonial project becomes genocidal, it cannot undo itself.

    We’ve seen that in North America with the killing of the children in Canada. We’ve seen that in Australia. We’ve seen that everywhere.

    AMY GOODMAN: And Carter, again, as we just have 30 seconds, writing the book Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid?

    DR GHASSAN ABU-SITTAH: Well, Carter had a historic opportunity to change the course of this struggle, had he insisted that part of the Camp David Accords was the creation of a Palestinian state. And no amount of recantation will ever change that missed opportunity.

    He could have forced on the Israeli government, and the first right-wing Israeli government at that point, under Begin — he could have forced the creation of a Palestinian state, but he failed to do that.

    NERMEEN SHAIKH: And finally, Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah, we just have 30 seconds. You just said that a genocidal settler-colonial project cannot undo itself. How do you see this ending, then?

    DR GHASSAN ABU-SITTAH: You see, the world has a choice, because surplus populations like the Palestinians, like refugees crossing the Mediterranean, like the poor people in the favelas and in the inner-city slums, these will either be dealt with through a genocidal project, as Israel has dealt with the Palestinians in Gaza — and this kind of response or this kind of template will become part of the military doctrine that is taught to armies across the world in dealing with these surplus populations.

    NERMEEN SHAIKH: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah, thank you so much for joining us, a British Palestinian reconstructive surgeon who worked in Gaza as a volunteer with Doctors without Borders treating patients at both Al-Shifa and Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital.

    Amy will rejoin us for our last segment talking about her interview with former President Jimmy Carter, who died Sunday at age 100.

    This article/transcript is republished from Democracy Now! under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States Licence.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Pacific leaders remember Jimmy Carter’s ‘pivotal role’ for CNMI

    By Mark Rabago, RNZ Pacific Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas correspondent

    The Governor of the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas has paid tribute to former US President Jimmy Carter who died yesterday.

    “Carter played a pivotal role in the historic establishment of the CNMI as a Commonwealth in political union with the United States,” Governor Arnold Palacios said.

    He said that on 24 October 1977, Carter signed the proclamation affirming the full force and effect of the Northern Mariana Islands Constitution, a landmark moment in the territory’s history.

    CNMI Governor Arnold Palacios answers questions from the media.
    CNMI’s Governor Arnold Palacios . . . paid tribute to former US President Jimmy Carter for his dedication to humanity, peace, and service. Image: RNZ Pacific/Mark Rabago

    Governor Palacios and Lieutenant-Governor David Apatang both said the CNMI honoured Carter not only for his role in shaping the political landscape of the CNMI, but also for his unwavering dedication to humanity, peace, and service.

    The CNMI’s outgoing Congressman Gregorio Kilili Sablan also paid tribute to Carter in a statement.

    “Appreciating his long life and service, Andrea and I mourn the passing of Jimmy Carter. Guided by his faith, Carter lived an exemplary life worthy of imitation,” he said.

    US Congress Delegate Gregorio Kilili Sablan has introduced a bipartisan bill to ban the shark fin trade across the United States.
    US Congress Delegate Gregorio Kilili Sablan . . . “Carter lived an exemplary life worthy of imitation.” Image: USDA/Lance Cheung/RNZ Pacific

    It is a sentiment shared by Sablan’s successor, Delegate-elect Kimberlyn King-Kinds.

    ‘Profound sadness’
    “It is with profound sadness that we like the rest of the world mourn the passing of Jimmy Carter, a true servant leader whose life exemplified humility, compassion, and unwavering dedication to the betterment of humanity.

    “From his leadership in the White House to his tireless efforts with Habitat for Humanity and global peace initiatives, President Carter’s legacy of service will forever inspire us. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Carter family and all who were touched by his remarkable life. May he rest in eternal peace,” King-Kinds said.

    American Samoa’s Delegate to Washington, Uifa’atali Amata Radewagen also shared her memories of Carter.

    “I have fond memories of the entire Carter family from the time President Jimmy Carter sent his son Jeff and daughter-in-law Annette to Pago Pago.

    “Carter designated them as his personal representatives to the first inaugural of an elected Governor of American Samoa, Uifa’atali Peter Coleman.

    US Congresswoman Aumua Amata Radewagen.
    US Congresswoman Aumua Amata Radewagen . . . “I have fond memories of the entire Carter family.” Image: radewagen.house.gov/RNZ Pacific

    “My Dad had me show them around part of that time, as did others, and in turn, they invited my husband Fred and me for private dinner in the White House family quarters.

    “This was a particularly generous act on their part to allow us in the areas that few people get to see, including guiding us through the Map room, the famous Lincoln bedroom, Queen’s bedroom and third floor.

    “While we were there, President Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter arrived and very kindly greeted us.”

    Radewagen said that personal kindness was forever part of President Carter’s lasting legacy.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Palestine protest group condemns NZ’s ‘normalisation of apartheid’ over Israeli tennis player

    Asia Pacific Report

    A Palestine solidarity group has protested over the participation of Israeli tennis player Lina Glushko in New Zealand’s ASB Tennis Classic in Auckland this week, saying such competition raises serious concerns about the normalisation of systemic oppression and apartheid.

    The Palestine Forum of New Zealand said in a statement that by taking part in the event Glushko, a former Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) soldier, was sending a “troubling message that undermines the values of justice, equality, and human rights”.

    In the past 15 months, Israel’s military has killed almost 45,500 people in the besieged enclave of Gaza, mostly women and children.

    The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has declared the occupation of Palestine, including Gaza, illegal, and Israel should end settlements as soon as possible.

    Since the court ruling in July, Israel has intensified attacks on the civilian population in Gaza and their natural resources and infrastructure, including hospitals and health clinics.

    “Welcoming Israeli athletes to Aotearoa is not a neutral act. It normalises the systemic injustices perpetrated by the Israeli state against Palestinians,” said Maher Nazzal of the Palestine Forum.

    “Just as the international sports community united to oppose South Africa’s apartheid in the 20th century, we must now stand firm against Israel’s ongoing violations of international law and human rights.”

    Implements apartheid policies
    He said former soldier Glushko symbolised a regime that:

    • Implements apartheid policies: As documented by leading organisations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch;
    • Operates under leadership accused of war crimes: With an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant issued against Israeli officials; and
    • Continues its illegal occupation of Palestine: In direct violation of international law and countless United Nations resolutions.

    The statement said: “While sports often aim to transcend politics, they cannot be isolated from the realities of injustice and oppression.

    “By welcoming athletes representing an apartheid regime, we risk ignoring the voices of the oppressed and allowing sports to be used as a tool for whitewashing human rights abuses.

    “We urge the international and local sports community to remain consistent in their principles by refusing to host representatives of regimes that perpetuate apartheid.

    “The global boycott of South African athletes during apartheid proved that sports can be a powerful force for change. The same principle must apply today.”

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Hui, protests, kotahitanga, and a new Kuini – a historic year for Māoridom

    By Ella Stewart, (Ngāpuhi, Te Māhurehure, Ngāti Manu), RNZ longform journalist, Te Ao Māori

    On a sticky day in January, dozens of nannies and aunties from Tainui shook and waved fronds of greenery as they called manuhiri onto Tuurangawaewae Marae.

    More than 10,000 people had responded to a rare call for unity from the Māori King to discuss what the new government’s policies meant for Māori. It set the scene for what became a massive year for te ao Māori.

    A few months beforehand, just in time for Christmas 2023, the newly formed government had announced its coalition agreements.

    The agreements included either rolling back previous initiatives considered progressive for Māori or creating new policies that many in Māoridom and beyond perceived to be an attack on Māori rights and te Tiriti o Waitangi.

    So as the rest of the country wound down for the year, te ao Māori went to work, planning for the year ahead.

    This year saw everything from controversial debates about the place of New Zealand’s founding document to mourning the loss of the Māori king, and a viral haka.

    A call for unity — how 2024 started
    The Hui-aa-motu in January was the first sign of the year to come.

    Iwi from across the motu arrived at Tūrangawaewae, including Ngāpuhi, an iwi which doesn’t typically follow the Kiingitanga, suggesting a growing sense of shared purpose in Māoridom.

    At the centre of the discussions was the ACT Party’s Treaty Principles Bill, which aims to redefine the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi and enshrine them in law.

    Māori also expressed their concerns over the axing of Te Aka Whai Ora, (the Māori Health Authority), the re-introduction of referenda on Māori wards, removing references to Tiriti o Waitangi in legislation, and policies related to the use and funding of te reo Māori.

    The day was overwhelmingly positive. Visitors were treated with manaakitanga, all receiving packed lunches and ice blocks to ward off the heat.

    Raising some eyebrows, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon chose not to attend, sending newly-appointed Māori-Crown Relations Minister Tama Potaka and Māori Affairs select committee chair Dan Bidois instead.

    Kiingi Tuuheitia speaks to the crowd at hui-aa-motu.
    Kiingi Tuheitia Pootatau te Wherowhero VII addresses the crowd at Hui-ā-Motu last January. Image: Ella Stewart/RNZ

    Other than the sheer number of people who showed up, the hui was memorable for these words, spoken by Kiingi Tuheitia as he addressed the crowds, and quoted repeatedly as the year progressed:

    “The best protest we can make right now is being Māori. Be who we are. Live our values. Speak our reo. Care for our mokopuna, our awa, our maunga.

    “Just be Māori. Be Māori all day, every day. We are here. We are strong.”

    The momentum continued, with the mauri of Hui-ā-Motu passed to Rātana pā next, and then to Waitangi in February.

    The largest Waitangi in years
    Waitangi Day has long been a place of activism and discussion, and this year was no exception.

    February saw the most well-attended Waitangi in years. Traffic in and out of Paihia was at a standstill for hours as people flocked to the historic town, to discuss, protest, and commemorate the country’s founding document.

    Veteran Māori activist and previous MP Hone Harawira addresses members of the coalition government at Waitangi Treaty Grounds: "You and your shitty ass bill are going down the toilet."
    Māori activist and former MP for Te Tai Tokerau, Hone Harawira. Image: Angus Dreaver/RNZ

    Veteran Māori activist Hone Harawira addressed David Seymour, the architect of the controversial Treaty Principles Bill and ACT Party Leader, directly.

    “You want to gut the treaty? In front of all of these people? Hell no! You and your shitty-arse bill are going down the toilet.”

    A new activist group, ‘Toitū te Tiriti’, also seized the moment to make themselves known.

    Organisers Eru Kapa-Kingi and Hohepa Thompson led two dozen protesters onto the atea (courtyard) of Te Whare Rūnanga during the pōwhiri for government officials, peacefully singing over David Seymour’s speech.

    “Whakarongo, e noho . . .” they began — “Listen, sit down”.

    Activist Eru Kapa-Kingi at Waitangi who spoke before Prime Minister Christopher Luxon.
    Hīkoi organiser and spokesperson for activist group Toitū te Tiriti, Eru Kapa-Kingi at Waitangi commemorations in February 2024. Image: Angus Dreaver/RNZ

    It was just the start of a movement which led to a nationwide hīkoi from the top of the North Island to Wellington.

    Record number of urgent Waitangi Tribunal claims
    In the past year, the government’s policies have faced significant formal scrutiny too, with a record number of urgent claims heard before the Waitangi Tribunal in such a short period of time.

    The claims have been wide-ranging and contentious, including:

    • the disestablishment of the Māori Health Authority,
    • ACT’s Treaty Principles Bill,
    • limiting te reo Māori use,
    • reinstating referendums for Māori wards, and
    • the repeal of smokefree legislation.

    Seymour has also criticised the function of the tribunal itself. In May, he argued it had become “increasing activist”, going “well beyond its brief”.

    “The tribunal appears to regard itself as a parallel government that can intervene in the actual government’s policy-making process,” Seymour said.

    The government has made no secret of its plan to review the tribunal’s future role, a coalition promise.

    The review is expected to refocus the tribunal’s scope, purpose and nature back to its “original intent”. While the government has not yet released any specific details about the review, it’s anticipated that Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka will oversee it.

    Te Kiingi o te Kōtahitanga — mourning the loss of Kiingi Tuheitia
    In August, when the seas were choppy, te ao Māori lost a rangatira.

    Te iwi Māori were shocked and saddened by the death of Kiingi Tuheitia Pootatau te Wherowhero VII, who just days before had celebrated his 18th year on the throne.

    Once again, thousands arrived outside the bright-red, ornately-carved gates of Tuurangawaewae, waiting to say one last goodbye.

    The tangi, which lasted five days, saw tears, laughter and plenty of stories about Tuheitia, who has been called “Te Kiingi o Te Kōtahitanga”, the King of Unity.

    Kiingi Tuheitia Pootatau Te Wherowhero VII's body is transferred to a hearse.
    Kiingi Tuheitia Pootatau Te Wherowhero VII’s body is transferred to a hearse. Image: Layla Bailey-McDowell/RNZ

    On the final day, led by Kaihaka, his body was driven the two blocks in a black hearse to the banks of Waikato River. He was placed on a waka specially crafted for him, and made the journey to his final resting place at the top of Taupiri Maunga, alongside his tūpuna.

    Just hours before, Tuheitia’s youngest child and only daughter, Nga wai hono i te po was announced as the new monarch of the Kiingitanga. The news was met with applause and tears from the crowd.

    At just 27 years old, the new Kuini signals a societal shift, where a new generation of rangatahi who know their whakapapa, their reo, and are strong in their identity as Māori, are now stepping up.

    The new generation of Māori activists
    An example of this “kohanga generation” is Aotearoa’s youngest MP, Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke.

    Elected in 2023, the 22-year-old gained international attention after a video of her leading a haka in Parliament and tearing up a copy of the Treaty Principles Bill made headlines around the world.

    Te Pāti Māori MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipa-Clarke was among those to perform a haka, at Parliament, after the first reading of the Treaty Principles Bill, on 14 November, 2024.
    Te Pāti Māori MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke won the Hauraki-Waikato seat over Labour MP Nanaia Mahuta in 2023. Image: Samuel Rillstone/RNZ

    Maipi-Clarke and several other opposition MPs performed the Ka Mate haka in response to the Treaty Principles Bill, a move that cost her a 24-hour suspension from the debating chamber.

    At the same time, another up-and-coming leader within Māoridom, Eru Kapa-Kingi, led a hīkoi from the top of the North Island to Wellington, in what is believed to be the largest protest to ever arrive at Parliament.

    The hīkoi mō te Tiriti was the culmination of a year of action, and organisers predicted it would be big. But almost no one anticipated the true scale of the crowd.

    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced that he will not be travelling to the Treaty grounds in Northland for Waitangi Day commemorations in February next year, opting to attend events elsewhere.

    Māori met the decision with mixed emotions — some calling it a missed opportunity, and others pleased.

    We’re set for a big year to come, with submissions on the Treaty Principles Bill closing on January 7, the ensuing select committee process will be sure to dominate the conversation at Waitangi 2025 and beyond.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

  • Valls hopes to tackle New Caledonia in Rocard-style ‘spirit of dialogue’

    By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk

    New Overseas Minister Manuel Valls, who was appointed yesterday as part of the new French government of Prime Minister François Bayrou, intends to tackle New Caledonia’s numerous issues in the spirit of dialogue of former Socialist Prime Minister Michel Rocard.

    Rocard is credited as the main French negotiator in talks between pro-France and pro-independence leaders that led in 1988 to the “Matignon-Oudinot” agreements that put an end to half a decade of quasi-civil war.

    At the time 26 years old, Valls was a young adviser in Rocard’s team.

    Valls said Rocard’s dialogue-based approach remained his “political DNA”.

    36 years later, now 62, he told French national broadcasters France Inter and Outre-mer la Première that the two priorities were economic recovery (after destructive riots and damage in May 2024, estimated at some 2.2 billion Euros), as well as resuming political dialogue between local antagonistic parties concerning New Caledonia’s political future.

    On the economic side, short-lived former Prime Minister Michel Barnier had committed up to one billion Euros in loans for New Caledonia’s recovery.

    But France’s Parliament has not yet endorsed its 2025 budget, “which poses a number of problems regarding commitments made by (Barnier).

    On the political talks that were expected to start a lead to a comprehensive and inclusive agreement between France, the pro-independence and pro-France camps, Valls said his approach was “dialogue” with the view of “going forward.”

    “We don’t have much time (…) We have to find a common path”, he said, adding future political solutions should be “innovative” for the French Pacific archipelago.

    Initial schedules for those talks to take place foresaw an agreement to arrive some time at the end of March 2025.

    But no talks have started yet.

    The Union Calédonienne (UC), one of the main components of the pro-independence Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front (FLNKS), said nothing could happen until it holds its annual congress, sometime during the “second half of January 2025”.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Unrelated videos from Maharashtra, MP combined to create false narrative of ‘UP police treating Muslim accused’

    Trigger Warning: Disturbing Visuals/ Sexual Harassment

    A video compilation is going viral on social media. The clip begins with what appears to be CCTV footage showing a group of girls in uniform walking down a street. As they pass by, a man on a bike drives past and inappropriately touches one of the girls. Later, the video shows a man being beaten up and paraded by the police on the road. The viral claim along with the video(s) is that the perpetrator, a Muslim, was duly punished by Uttar Pradesh police in public. Most of the social media posts carry an implicit tone of endorsement of how UP police treated the accused.  

    X user Baba Banaras (@RealBababanaras), tweeted the video compilation on December 20, 2024, with a caption, “Abdul was molesting school girls every day. His activity captured in CCTV camera. Rest job done by UP police. Do you support this action of police ?”

    The tweet has garnered over 1 Million views and has been retweeted around 7,000 times. Readers should note that this user shares communal propaganda and disinformation on social media on a regular basis. 

    Another X account, Frontal Force (@FrontalForce), tweeted the same video compilation with the same caption, “Abdul was molesting school girls every day. His activity captured in CCTV camera. Rest job done by UP police.”

    Similarly, several social media accounts have amplified the claim.

    Click to view slideshow.

    Fact Check

    After breaking the video into several key frames, we ran a reverse search image on a few of them from the first half of the video which shows the bike-borne man harassing the girl. This led us to an article by News75.com with the headline, “Bike rider’s brutality: molested a school girl, hit her breast”. According to the article, the incident occurred on December 6, 2024, in Prabhani, Maharashtra. 

    Taking cues from this we performed a keyword search that led us to a news report by a local media outlet Deshonnati. According to the report, on December 6, 2024, a group of college girls were on their way to the district general hospital via the back road of Mahatma Phule College in Parbhani, Maharashtra. During this time a young man on a bike harassed one of the girls. A case of molestation was registered against the accused at Nanalpet police station. The entire incident was recorded on CCTV, which allowed the police to track down the accused. On December 8, 2024, a persona named Md. Aslam was detained from Dharampuri in Parli taluka and brought to Nanalpet police station for further action.  

    Second Part of the Viral Video

    We performed a reverse image search on a few key frames from the second half of the video compilation. This led us to a news bulletin by News21 on YouTube from December 8, 2024, with the title “Gadarwara: Madhur Chawrasia was murdered over a transaction worth Rs 40,000| MP News | News Update | MP Police”

    The bulletin comprises the same video as the one which has gone viral, where police are seen beating up a man while parading him on the street.

    According to the report, police arrested Vikas Kuchbandia on charges of killing Madhur Chaurasia for not returning Rs 40,000 that he had borrowed, in Gadwara, Madhya Pradesh. 

    Taking a cue from this, we performed a keyword search on YouTube that led us to another news bulletin by Bharat Samvad Tv. The video featured footage similar to the viral video.

    According to this report, a young man, Madhur Chaurasia was murdered in Gadarwara town in Narsinghpur district of Madhya Pradesh on December 5, 2024. The incident took place in front of Nalanda School. The prime suspect in the murder, Vikas Kuchbandiya, was arrested following an investigation. The murder was allegedly committed as Madhur did not return Rs 40,000 he owed Vikas.

    In our investigation, we found several news reports that corroborated the incident. NavBharat, for example, reported that Krishna Sahu, a resident of Shivalaya Chowk Gadarwara, had filed a report that Vikas Kuchbandiya had killed Madhur Chaurasia by slitting his throat and bashing his head with a stone in Chowpatty Gadarwara. Dainik Bhaskar and Aditi News, too, reported on the same incident.

    To sum up, firstly, the two videos compiled together are not related to each other. Secondly, the two incidents are from two different states, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, respectively. The video compilation is falsely shared as an incident from Uttar Pradesh. 

    In the first incident, the accused was identified as Md Aslam. In the second incident, the person arrested for alleged murder is Vikas Kuchbandiya. The two incidents are completely unrelated and neither of them is from Uttar Pradesh. However, the two videos were shared together to create the narrative that this was how UP police treated a Muslim accused (by publicly flogging and parading him). This is misleading. And this is not the first time the Right Wing has tried to ‘credit’ UP police, and by extension, Yogi Adityanath’s government, of meting out a right ‘treatment’ to a Muslim accused in a crime by sharing unrelated videos or false and misleading information. The subtext behind such claims is that police forces from other states should learn from UP police how to treat an accused if he is Muslim by faith. 

    The post Unrelated videos from Maharashtra, MP combined to create false narrative of ‘UP police treating Muslim accused’ appeared first on Alt News.

    This content originally appeared on Alt News and was authored by Ankita Mahalanobish.

  • Kejriwal did not say Ambedkar was drunk while writing Constitution; 12-year-old video clipped, shared falsely

    Amid the nationwide political uproar over Union home minister Amit Shah’s statement in Parliament about B R Ambedkar, a nine-second clip of a speech by former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal is being shared on social media. In the video, he says, “… We were sitting there.. someone was saying that the person who wrote the Constitution must have also been drunk.” While sharing this clip, it is being claimed that he made this remark about Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar and meant that that he had written the Constitution while being drunk.

    BJP MP Manoj Tiwari tweeted the viral video, calling Arvind Kejriwal anti-Dalit and said that this was the true color of the head of the Aam Aadmi Party. (Archived link)

    BJP leader Richa Rajpoot tweeted the viral video and wrote that these were Arvind Kejriwal’s views on Baba Saheb Ambedkar. (Archived link)

    BJP supporter Vibhor Anand shared the video and demanded the arrest of Arvind Kejriwal and appealed to people to share this video as much as possible. (Archived link)

    Similarly, BJP supporters Jitendra Pratap Singh, Anupam Mishra, West Bengal BJP Mahila Morcha’s social media in-charge Laxmi Singh also shared this clip on social media with the same claim.

    Fact Check

    Aam Aadmi Party supporter Siddharth replied to a tweet tagging Alt News and several other fact-checking media organizations and said that the viral video was fake. Along with this, he also shared a longer version of the viral video. In this, Arvind Kejriwal says, “During this time I read the constitutions of all the parties. The constitution of Congress says that no Congressman will drink alcohol. So we were sitting there and someone said that the person who wrote the constitution must have been drunk.”

    Siddharth also shared a YouTube link in his next tweet. It was uploaded on December 3, 2012. According to the information given in the description of the video, this video is from November 25, 2012, when Arvind Kejriwal was addressing a gathering at Rajghat.

    In the video, at the 4:20 mark, Kejriwal criticized the constitution of political parties and said that the parties themselves did not believe in their constitutions. In this context, he further said that the constitution of the Congress party said that none of their workers would drink alcohol. And then, he added, ostensibly in jest, that someone told him that the person who had written the constitution of the Congress party must have been drunk himself.

    To sum it up, BJP leaders and supporters shared a clipped version of a 12-year-old video of Arvind Kejriwal out of context and falsely claimed that he said Ambedkar had drafted the Constitution while he had been drunk. 

    The post Kejriwal did not say Ambedkar was drunk while writing Constitution; 12-year-old video clipped, shared falsely appeared first on Alt News.


    This content originally appeared on Alt News and was authored by Abhishek Kumar.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Fiji’s PM dismisses Tabuya as Minister for Women and Children

    RNZ Pacific

    Fiji MP Lynda Tabuya has been dismissed as the country’s Minister for Women, Children and Social Protection.

    Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka said in a statement that in light of the recent events concerning the conduct of Lynda Tabuya, and in consideration of:

    • the Oath she has taken as a Minister; and
    • standards expected of any Minister

    He had decided to exercise the power conferred upon to him by Section 92(3)(b) of the Constitution, to dismiss her as a minister, with immediate effect.

    She will remain as a Member of Parliament.

    Rabuka said this was not a decision he had taken lightly, but one that was “necessary in the best interest of the people that we serve”.

    Sashi Kiran delivers her remarks at the reconciliation and thanksgiving church service on 14 May 2023.
    Fiji’s new Minister for Women, Children and Social Protection Sashi Kiran. Image: Fiji govt/RNZ Pacific

    Sashi Kiran will replace Lynda Tabuya as the Minister for Women, Children and Social Protection, effective from the date of her swearing in by the President, Rabuka said.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • ‘Block’ resignation over riots recovery plan topples New Caledonia’s government

    By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent, French Pacific desk

    New Caledonia’s territorial government has been toppled on Christmas Eve, due to a mass resignation within its ranks.

    Environment and Sustainable Development Minister Jérémie Katidjo-Monnier said he was resigning from the cabinet, with immediate effect.

    Katidjo-Monnier was the sole representative from Calédonie Ensemble (a moderately pro-France party), one of the parties represented at the Congress.

    He also said in a letter that all other people from his party’s list who could have replaced him, had also resigned as a block.

    The letter was sent to government President Louis Mapou and copied to the French Pacific territory’s Congress President Veylma Falaeo.

    The government of New Caledonia is made up of the parties represented at the Congress, under a proportional principle of “collegiality” — implying that all of its members and the parties they represent are supposed to work together.

    In his letter, Katidjo-Monnier elaborated on growing tensions between Mapou’s government and the Congress MPs.

    The tensions came to a head over the past few months, following the deadly pro-independence riots that started on May 13.

    One particular point of contention was Mapou’s efforts to secure a loan of up to €1 billion (NZ$1.9 billion) from France, under a “PS2R” (reconstruction, refoundation and salvage) plan to rebuild New Caledonia after the riots damage estimated at some €2.2 billion (NZ$4 billion) and the subsequent thousands of job losses.

    New Caledonia government President Louis Mapou (centre) holding a press conference with some of his ministers late November 2024 – PHOTO Gouvernement de la Nouvelle-Calédonie
    New Caledonia President Louis Mapou (centre) holding a press conference with some of his ministers in late November 2024. Image: New Caledonia govt/RNZ Pacific

    Congress vs government: two opposing recovery plans
    At the same time, the Congress has been advocating for a different approach: a five-year reconstruction plan to secure funds from France.

    A bipartisan delegation was last month sent to Paris to advocate for the plan — not in the form of reimbursable loans, but non-refundable grants.

    The bipartisan delegation’s “grant” approach was said to be supported not only by Congress, but also by provincial assemblies and New Caledonia’s elected MPs in both houses of the French Parliament

    The delegation was concerned that the loan would bring New Caledonia’s debt to unprecedented and unsustainable levels; and that at the same time, funds for the “PS2R” would be tied to a number of pre-conditioned reforms deemed necessary by France.

    Katidjo-Monnier said neither the “obligation” for Congress and the government to act in “solidarity”, nor the “spirit of the Nouméa Accord”, had been respected.

    Approached by local media on Tuesday, Mapou declined to comment.

    ‘Lack of solidarity’
    The block resignation from Calédonie Ensemble entails that the whole government of New Caledonia is deemed to have resigned and should now act in a caretaker mode until a new government is installed.

    The election of a new government must take place within 15 days.

    One of the initial stages of the process is for the Congress to convene a special sitting to choose how many members should make up this new government (between five and 11) and then to proceed with their election.

    The cabinet then elects a president.

    Several governments have fallen under similar mass resignation circumstances and this “mass block resignation” ploy.

    It has now been used 11 times since 1999, each time causing the downfall of the government.

    Louis Mapou’s government was the 17th since New Caledonia’s autonomous government system was introduced in 1999.

    He came to office in July 2021, months after the list of government members was chosen on 17 February 2021.

    This was the first time a local territorial government’s leader belonged to the pro-independence camp.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • ‘Block’ resignation over riots recovery plan topples New Caledonia’s government

    By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent, French Pacific desk

    New Caledonia’s territorial government has been toppled on Christmas Eve, due to a mass resignation within its ranks.

    Environment and Sustainable Development Minister Jérémie Katidjo-Monnier said he was resigning from the cabinet, with immediate effect.

    Katidjo-Monnier was the sole representative from Calédonie Ensemble (a moderately pro-France party), one of the parties represented at the Congress.

    He also said in a letter that all other people from his party’s list who could have replaced him, had also resigned as a block.

    The letter was sent to government President Louis Mapou and copied to the French Pacific territory’s Congress President Veylma Falaeo.

    The government of New Caledonia is made up of the parties represented at the Congress, under a proportional principle of “collegiality” — implying that all of its members and the parties they represent are supposed to work together.

    In his letter, Katidjo-Monnier elaborated on growing tensions between Mapou’s government and the Congress MPs.

    The tensions came to a head over the past few months, following the deadly pro-independence riots that started on May 13.

    One particular point of contention was Mapou’s efforts to secure a loan of up to €1 billion (NZ$1.9 billion) from France, under a “PS2R” (reconstruction, refoundation and salvage) plan to rebuild New Caledonia after the riots damage estimated at some €2.2 billion (NZ$4 billion) and the subsequent thousands of job losses.

    New Caledonia government President Louis Mapou (centre) holding a press conference with some of his ministers late November 2024 – PHOTO Gouvernement de la Nouvelle-Calédonie
    New Caledonia President Louis Mapou (centre) holding a press conference with some of his ministers in late November 2024. Image: New Caledonia govt/RNZ Pacific

    Congress vs government: two opposing recovery plans
    At the same time, the Congress has been advocating for a different approach: a five-year reconstruction plan to secure funds from France.

    A bipartisan delegation was last month sent to Paris to advocate for the plan — not in the form of reimbursable loans, but non-refundable grants.

    The bipartisan delegation’s “grant” approach was said to be supported not only by Congress, but also by provincial assemblies and New Caledonia’s elected MPs in both houses of the French Parliament

    The delegation was concerned that the loan would bring New Caledonia’s debt to unprecedented and unsustainable levels; and that at the same time, funds for the “PS2R” would be tied to a number of pre-conditioned reforms deemed necessary by France.

    Katidjo-Monnier said neither the “obligation” for Congress and the government to act in “solidarity”, nor the “spirit of the Nouméa Accord”, had been respected.

    Approached by local media on Tuesday, Mapou declined to comment.

    ‘Lack of solidarity’
    The block resignation from Calédonie Ensemble entails that the whole government of New Caledonia is deemed to have resigned and should now act in a caretaker mode until a new government is installed.

    The election of a new government must take place within 15 days.

    One of the initial stages of the process is for the Congress to convene a special sitting to choose how many members should make up this new government (between five and 11) and then to proceed with their election.

    The cabinet then elects a president.

    Several governments have fallen under similar mass resignation circumstances and this “mass block resignation” ploy.

    It has now been used 11 times since 1999, each time causing the downfall of the government.

    Louis Mapou’s government was the 17th since New Caledonia’s autonomous government system was introduced in 1999.

    He came to office in July 2021, months after the list of government members was chosen on 17 February 2021.

    This was the first time a local territorial government’s leader belonged to the pro-independence camp.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Five journalists killed by Israeli air strike near hospital – media watchdogs condemn killings

    Pacific Media Watch

    Five Palestinian journalists have been killed in a new Israeli strike near a hospital in central Gaza after four reporters were killed last week, reports Al Jazeera citing authorities and media in the besieged enclave.

    The journalists from the Al-Quds Today channel were covering events near al-Awda Hospital, located in the Nuseirat refugee camp, when their broadcasting van was hit by an Israeli air strike.

    Footage from the scene circulating on social media shows a vehicle engulfed in flames.

    The video of the white-coloured van shows the word “press” in large red lettering across the back of the vehicle.

    The dead journalists have been named as Fadi Hassouna, Ibrahim al-Sheikh Ali, Mohammed al-Ladah, Faisal Abu al-Qumsan and Ayman al-Jadi.

    Al Jazeera’s Anas al-Sharif reports that Ayman al-Jadi had been waiting for his wife in front of the hospital while she was in labour to give birth to their first child.

    Civil defence teams retrieved the bodies of the victims and extinguished a fire at the scene, the Quds News Network said.

    Israel claims ‘targeted’ attack
    Israel’s military confirmed the strike.

    It claimed it had carried out a “targeted” attack against a vehicle carrying members of Islamic Jihad and that it would continue to take action against “terrorist organisations” in Gaza.

    “Prior to the attack, many steps were taken to reduce the chance of harming civilians, including the use of precision weapons, aerial observations, and additional intelligence information,” the military said in a post on X.

    The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) earlier this month condemned Israel’s killing of four Palestinian journalists in the space of a week, calling on the international community to hold the country accountable for its attacks against the media.

    The Paris-based media freedom watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) also condemned the killing of the journalists last week as a “continuation of the war crimes committed by Israel”.

    “On December 14 and 15, the Israeli army murdered three media professionals in northern Gaza and the central Gaza Strip,” RSF said in a statement.

    “Some of the few remaining reporters in the northern region, subjected to a ground invasion by Israeli forces, were recently forced to evacuate their homes.”

    RSF named three of the killed journalists as Al-Jazeera cameraman Ahmad al-Louh, a 39-year-old media worker who was was filming a report on the Palestinian Civil Defence in the Nuseirat camp when he was killed on December 15 by an air strike; Mohammed Balousha, a reporter for the Emirati channel Al-Mashhad who was mortally wounded by a targeted drone strike while reporting in the Sheikh Radwan district in northern Gaza, and correspondent Mohammed Jaber al-Qarinawi, 30, who was killed along with his wife and their three children by an isolated air strike — “a sign that his home had probably been targeted”.

    ‘Stark reminder’ on media attacks, says RSF
    RSF’s director of campaigns Rebecca Vincent said: “These latest killings are a stark reminder of the ongoing assault by Israeli forces against media professionals in northern Gaza, where the handful of journalists remaining are now at risk of disappearing altogether.

    “In parallel to ongoing attacks on media in central Gaza where displaced persons are now seeking refuge, this is a clear continuation of the Israeli authorities’ attempts to control the narrative on its war through any means possible.

    “We repeat in the strongest possible terms that targeting journalists is a war crime, and these atrocious attacks must stop. It is time for concrete action by other states — in particular Israel’s allies — to urge the Israeli government to immediately comply with international law.”

    Ninety-six percent of Gaza’s journalists have been forcibly evacuated from their homes, and 92 percent have lost essential reporting equipment, according to data from RSF’s local NGO partner, Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism (ARIJ).

    At least 141 journalists have been killed in Israel’s war in Gaza since October 7, 2023, according to the CPJ.

    However, other monitoring agencies put the death toll higher — the Gaza-based Government Media Office has documented 201 killings of journalists by Israel.

    Israel has continued a genocidal war on Gaza that has killed more than 45,000 people, most of them women and children, since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on 7 October 2023.


    This content originally appeared on Asia Pacific Report and was authored by Pacific Media Watch.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Homeless man’s video from Bangladesh falsely shared as Hindu monk forcibly converted

    A video is viral on social media in which a group of people are seen forcibly grabbing an old man from the street and cutting off his dreadlocks. This video is being shared with the claim that a Hindu monk in Bangladesh was converted to Islam and his dreadlocks were forcibly cut off.

    X User Chandan Sharma, who is often found spreading misinformation, tweeted the video and claimed that a monk in Bangladesh was forcibly converted to Islam with his dreadlocks forcibly removed. (Archived link)

    A user named Navin Kumar also posted the viral video on Instagram and made the same claim.

    Alt News also received a request to fact-check this video on our WhatsApp helpline (7600011160).

    Fact Check

    We noted that Bangladeshi fact-checker Shohanur Rahman had replied to a tweet containing the viral video, saying, “This person was a homeless man who was provided sanitation and rehabilitation assistance by an organisation as part of their humanitarian effort.” Along with this, he has also shared the link of a Facebook page named ‘Mahbub creation’.

    When we examined this Facebook page, we found that the viral video was posted on this page on November 5. Its caption reads ‘Bhinna prakriti ekjon manush’ in Bangla, meaning a man with a different nature.

    Alt News found a statement posted on this page on December 9 by its admin Mahbub Afridi. In this video, he states that some people in India were spreading the misinformation that he had converted a Hindu monk to Islam, whereas in reality it was not the case. He clarified that he helped people living on the streets without discriminating on the basis of religion.

    We also came across the full-length video from which the viral clip was uploaded on October 28, 2024 on a YouTube channel named Street Humanity of Bangladesh run by Mahbub Afridi. In this video it can be seen that his team cut the hair of the elderly man, bathed him and also dressed him in clean clothes. There are many videos on this YouTube channel in which he is seen helping the homeless and in many of these, his team has given haircuts to the mentally challenged and street dwellers and provided them with clothes.

     

    To sum up, many social media users falsely shared the video of a content creator helping a homeless person in Bangladesh as a Hindu monk being forcibly converted to Islam by having his his dreadlocks cut off.

    The post Homeless man’s video from Bangladesh falsely shared as Hindu monk forcibly converted appeared first on Alt News.


    This content originally appeared on Alt News and was authored by Abhishek Kumar.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Cardinal David slams Israel, says Jesus would have been born in Gaza

    By Victor Barreiro Jr in Manila

    Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, bishop of Kalookan, has condemned the state of Israel on Christmas Eve for its relentless attacks on Gaza that have killed tens of thousands of Palestinians.

    “I can’t think of any other people in the world who live in darkness and are always in the shadow of death than them,” Caridinal David said in Filipino during the last Simbang Gabi Mass on Tuesday, December 24.

    Cardinal David, 65, connected this to the Christmas message by leading churchgoers to reimagine Jesus’ birth.

    A biblical scholar educated at the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium, David has often emphasised “the role of imagination” in interpreting the Bible.

    Cardinal David, known for his defence of human rights, especially during Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs, said Catholics should not “romanticise” the manger at Bethlehem.

    “I think that if the Holy Family were to look for an inn today, they would not stay in Bethlehem but in the Gaza Strip and find a collapsed house in which to give birth to the Son of God,” the cardinal said.

    Cardinal David said he understood that many Filipinos showed great sympathy toward Israel because the Philippines was a Christian-majority country.

    Endorsed Pope’s ‘cruelty’ criticism
    In addition, many Filipinos work in Israel under Jewish employers. “So it is but natural that many Filipinos would feel greater affinity with the Israelis,” he said.

    Cardinal David said, however, that Israel’s airstrikes on Gaza should not be condoned. He echoed Pope Francis who recently said that Israel’s bombing of Palestinians, including children, “is cruelty.” and who also criticised Israel in his Christmas message.

    The Israel in the Bible was a far cry from the state of Israel, Cardinal David added.

    The biblical Israel is not the same Israel now at war with Hamas, as the following Rappler video explainer shows. The Israel in the Bible, called Judea, was destroyed by the Roman Empire in the second century, and the current state of Israel was established in 1948.


    Israel’s war on Gaza as viewed by Cardinal David. Video: Rappler

    “It is no longer an Israel that is disadvantaged and defenseless and oppressed by the powerful, but an Israel that is aggressive, at an advantage in war, and supported by world powers,” Cardinal David said.

    Israel, he explained, should learn from the biblical experience of David, who mistakenly thought he only needed to build God a temple to attain elusive peace.

    It is the other way around, he said, and God is the one who will build a temple for David.

    “That will not happen as long as we treat each other as enemies,” said Cardinal David.

    ‘A God of love’
    “No matter our religion, culture, or race, we all come from the same God — a God of love, a God who humbles, a God who does not call for revenge or exacts punishment but a God who forgives,” the cardinal added.

    This was one of Cardinal David’s first comments on a global issue since the Pope elevated him to the College of Cardinals on December 7.

    As a cardinal, David is one of 253 clergymen chosen as advisers to the leader of the 1.4-billion-strong Catholic Church. He is also one of 140 cardinals below the age of 80, who are eligible to join the next papal election.

    The war in Gaza was triggered by Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel, in which 1139 people were killed and 251 taken hostage to Gaza.

    Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza has since killed more than 45,200 Palestinians, according to health officials in the Hamas-run enclave. Most of the population of 2.3 million has been displaced and much of Gaza is in ruins.

    Republished from Rappler with permission.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Gaza Christians pray for end of Israeli war’s ‘death and destruction’

    Asia Pacific Report

    Silent Night is a well-known Christmas carol that tells of a peaceful and silent night in Bethlehem, referring to the first Christmas more than 2000 years ago.

    It is now 2024, and it was again a silent night in Bethlehem last night, reports Al Jazeera’s Nisa Ibrahim. Not because of peace. But a lack of it.

    Israel’s war on Gaza and violence in the occupied West Bank has frightened away visitors who would traditionally visit Bethlehem at this time of year.

    Her full report is here.

    Meanwhile, in Gaza City, hundreds of Christians gathered at a church on Christmas Eve, praying for an end to the war that has devastated much of the Palestinian territory.

    Gone were the sparkling lights, the festive decorations and the towering Christmas tree that had graced Gaza City for decades.

    The Square of the Unknown Soldier, once alive with the spirit of the season, now lies in ruins, reduced to rubble by relentless Israeli air strikes.

    Amid the rubble, the faithful sought solace even as fighting continued to rage across the Strip.

    “This Christmas carries the stench of death and destruction,” said George al-Sayegh, who for weeks has sought refuge in the 12th century Greek Orthodox Church of St Porphyrius.

    “There is no joy, no festive spirit. We don’t even know who will survive until the next holiday.”

    ‘Christ still in the rubble’
    On Friday, the Palestinian theologian and pastor Reverend Munther Isaac delivered a Christmas sermon at the Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem, in occupied West Bank — the birthplace of Jesus — called “Christ Is Still in the Rubble.” He said in this excerpt from Democracy Now!:

    ‘“Never again” should mean never again to all peoples. “Never again” has become “yet again” — yet again to supremacy, yet again to racism and yet again to genocide.

    ‘And sadly, “never again” has become yet again for the weaponisation of the Bible and the silence and complicity of the Western church, yet again for the church siding with power, the church siding with the empire.

    ‘And so, today, after all this, of total destruction, annihilation — and Gaza is erased, unfortunately — millions have become refugees and homeless, tens of thousands killed.

    ‘And why is anyone still debating whether this is a genocide or not? I can’t believe it. Yet, even when church leaders simply call for investigating whether this is a genocide, he is called out, and it becomes breaking news.

    ‘Friends, the evidence is clear. Truth stands plain for all to see. The question is not whether this is a genocide. This is not the debate. The real question is: Why isn’t the world and the church calling it a genocide?

    ‘It says a lot when you deny and ignore and refrain from using the language of genocide. This says a lot. It actually reveals hypocrisy, for you lectured us for years on international laws and human rights. It reveals your hypocrisy.

    ‘It says a lot on how you look at us Palestinians. It says a lot about your moral and ethical standards. It says everything about who you are when you turn away from the truth, when you refuse to name oppression for what it is. Or could it be that they’re not calling it a genocide?

    ‘Could it be that if reality was acknowledged for what it is, that it is a genocide, then that it would be an acknowledgment of your guilt? For this war was a war that so many defended as “just” and “self-defense.” And now you can’t even bring yourself to apologise . . .

    ‘We said last year Christ is in the rubble. And this year we say Christ is still in the rubble. The rubble is his manger. Jesus finds his place with the marginalised, the tormented, the oppressed and the displaced.

    ‘We look at the holy family and see them in every displaced and homeless family living in despair. In the Christmas story, even God walks with them and calls them his own.’


    Christ is still in the Rubble – Reverend Munther Isaac’s Christms message.   Video: Reverend Isaac

    Story of Jesus one of oppression
    “Pastor Isaac joined journalist host Chris Hedges on a special episode of The Chris Hedges Report to revisit the story of Christmas and how it relates to Palestine then and now.

    He wasted no time in reminding people that despite the usual jolly associations with Christmas, the story of Jesus Christ was one of oppression, one that involved the struggle of refugees, the rule of a tyrant, the witnessing of a massacre and the levying of taxation.

    “To us here in Palestine,” Reverend Isaac said the terms linked to the struggle “actually make the story, as we read it in the Gospel, very much a Palestinian story, because we can identify with the characters.”

    Journalist Hedges and Reverend Isaac invoked the story of the Good Samaritan to point out the deliberate blindness the world has bestowed upon the Palestinians, particularly in Gaza in the midst of the ongoing genocide.

    The conclusion of the [Good Samaritan] story is that there is no us and them, Reverend Isaac told Hedges.

    “Everybody is a neighbour. You don’t draw a circle and determine who’s in and who’s out.”

    It was clear, Reverend Isaac pointed out, “the Palestinians are outside of the circle. We’ve been saying it — human rights don’t apply on us, not even compassion.”

    The nativity scene on Christmas Eve in New Zealand's St Patrick's Cathedral in Auckland last night
    The nativity scene on Christmas Eve in New Zealand’s St Patrick’s Cathedral in Auckland last night . . . no mention of Bethlehem’s oppression by Israel and muted celebrations, or the Gaza genocide in the sermon. Image: Asia Pacific Report


    This content originally appeared on Asia Pacific Report and was authored by APR editor.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Bangladesh village fire video peddled with false communal spin

    Amid the ongoing unrest in Bangladesh, social media platforms are flooded with unverified videos and images of alleged attacks on the minorities in the country. A video currently circulating on X (formerly Twitter) claims to show Hindus in Bangladesh being locked in their homes, which are then set on fire. X user @LindaMikhaylov shared the video with this claim and garnered over 20,000 views. (Archive)

    Verified handle @Akhand_Bharat_S also tweeted the same video, garnering 19,000 views, and over 1000 retweets. (Archive)

    Several other users amplified the video with the same claim. (Archives- 1, 2, 3, 4)

    Click to view slideshow.

    Fact Check

    Upon a Google reverse image search on one of the key frames of the video, we found the viral video on YouTube with the title, “বগুড়া সদরের সাবগ্রাম ইউনিয়নের ক্ষীদ্রধামা গ্রামে আগুন লেগে ৫ টি পরিবার একদম নিঃস্ব” (Translation: Five families left destitute after fire breaks out in Khidradhama village of Subgram Union in Bogura). The video was uploaded on December 7, 2024.

    Taking a cue from this, Alt News ran a keyword search on Facebook and found that several users had posted the video stating that these were visuals from a fire that broke out in the Khidradhama village in Bogura. One such user was Bogura-based individual Mohammed Mozaffor who provided additional details in his caption. According to Mozaffor, the fire broke out around 5 pm on December 7 in the Khidradhamachama village of Bogura Sadar. An electrical short-circuit was initially thought to be the reason behind the fire. The blaze caused an estimated loss of approximately 15 lakh Taka. Mozaffor also named the affected homeowners in his caption: Fazlul, Joni, Sagar, Siddiq, and Sohel. This post was made on the same day as the fire, at 6:03 pm, approximately an hour after the incident occurred.

    বগুড়া সদরের সাবগ্রাম ইউনিয়নের ক্ষীদ্রধামা গ্রামে আগুন লেগে ৫ টি পরিবার একদম নিঃস্ব।

    মোজাফফর রহমান বগুড়া সিনিয়র…

    Posted by Md Mozaffor on Saturday 7 December 2024

    Additionally, a report by The Daily Inquilab on December 9, two days after the incident, stated that several Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leaders had extended financial assistance to the affected families. On the Monday following the fire, Bogra Sadar Upazila BNP President Maftun Ahmed Khan Rubel, along with other BNP leaders, visited the site, met the families, inquired about their situation, and provided financial aid of 25,000 Taka to each family.

    In a statement to The Daily Inquilab, one of the affected homeowners, Abu Siddique, reported that five houses were destroyed in the fire. Fortunately, no injuries were reported. The fire caused an estimated loss of 20 lakh Taka, including 4 lakh Taka in cash that had been sent by his son who had recently returned from abroad. Another homeowner, Sohel, told local media outlet Alokito Bogura, “Everything I owned was burnt in the fire. Nothing was left”. Both the reports named Fazlur, Sagar, and Joni as the other homeowners affected by the fire. These names match those mentioned in Mozaffur’s Facebook post cited earlier.

    It is worth noting that, in the viral video, the videographer can be heard in the background saying, “Oh Allah, what wrong have they done (to deserve this)?” as the houses burn. Additionally, at the 0:40-second mark, a woman is heard repeating the Arabic phrase “La ilaha illallah” (Translation: “There is no God but Allah”) in prayer. This suggests that the individuals involved may belong to the Muslim community, casting doubt on the claim that the video depicts Hindu people being targeted in a communal attack.

    To sum up, a video of several houses burning down is viral with a false communal spin. Users claim that Hindus are being locked in their houses which are then burnt down in targeted attacks against the minorities. In reality, the fire seen in the video was the likely result of a short circuit in the Khidradhama village in Bogura. The affected families included Muslims.

     

    The post Bangladesh village fire video peddled with false communal spin appeared first on Alt News.

    This content originally appeared on Alt News and was authored by Shinjinee Majumder.

  • Moana Maniapoto on the sound of the 80s to world-class journalism

    By Emma Andrews, Henare te Ua Māori journalism intern at RNZ News

    From being the headline to creating them, Moana Maniapoto has walked a rather rocky road of swinging between both sides of the media.

    Known for her award-winning current affairs show Te Ao with Moana on Whakaata Māori, and the 1990s cover of Black Pearl, the lawyer-by-trade doesn’t keep her advocacy a secret.

    Her first introduction to news was at the tail end of the 1980s when she was relaxed in the guest seat at Aotearoa Radio — Auckland’s first Māori radio station — but her kōrero hit a nerve.

    “I said something the host considered radical,” she said.

    “He quickly distanced the station from my remarks and that got the phones ringing.”

    It became a race for listeners to punch numbers into the telephone, the first person to get through was New Zealand filmmaker, producer and writer Merata Mita, who ripped into the host.

    “How dare you talk down to her like that,” Maniapoto recalled. The very next day she answered the call to host that show from then on.

    No training, no worries
    Aotearoa Radio was her first real job working four hours per day, spinning yarns five days a week — no training, no worries.

    “Oh, they tried to get us to speak a bit flasher, but no one could be bothered. It was such a lot of fun, a great bunch of people working there. It was also nerve-wracking interviewing people like Erima Henare (NZ politician Peeni Henare’s father), but the one I still chuckle about the most was Winston Peters.”

    She remembers challenging Peters over a comment he made about Māori in the media: “You’re going to have to apologise to your listeners, Moana. I never said that,” Peters pointed out.

    They bickered in true journalist versus politician fashion — neither refused to budge, until Maniapoto revealed she had a word-for-word copy of his speech.

    All Peters could do was watch Maniapoto attempt to hold in her laughter. A prompt ad break was only appropriate.

    But the Winston-win wasn’t enough to stay in the gig.

    “After two years, I was over it. It was tiring. Someone rang up live on air and threatened to kill me. It was a good excuse to resign.”

    Although it wasn’t the end of the candlewick for Maniapoto, it took 30 years to string up an interview with Peters again.

    Short-lived telly stints
    In-between times she had short-lived telly stints including a year playing Dr Te Aniwa Ryan on Shortland Street, but it wasn’t for her. The singer-songwriter has also created documentaries with her partner Toby Mills, their daughter Manawanui Maniapoto-Mills a gunning young actress.

    Moana Maniapoto
    Moana Maniapoto has featured on the cover of magazines. Image: RNZ

    Maniapoto has featured on the cover of magazines, one in particular she remembers was Mana magazine in 1993.

    “Sally Tagg photographed me in the shallow end of a Parnell Baths pool, wrapped in metres of blue curtain net, trying to act like it was completely normal,” she said.

    Just 10 years ago she joined Mana Trust which runs the online Sunday mag E-Tangata, mentored by Gary Wilson (co-founder and co-editor) and print journalist Tapu Misa who taught her how to transfer her voice through computer keys.

    “Whakaata Māori approached me in 2019, I was flattered, but music was my life and I felt wholly unequipped for journalism. Then again, I always love a challenge.”

    Since jumping on board, Te Ao with Moana has completed six seasons and will “keep calm and carry on” for a seventh season come 17 February, 2025 — her son Kimiora Hikurangi Jackson the producer and “boss”.

    It will be the last current affairs show to air on Whakaata Māori before moving the TV channel to web next year.

    Advocating social justice
    Her road of journalism and music is winding. Her music is the vehicle to advocating social justice which often landed her in the news rather than telling it.

    “To me songwriting, documentaries, and current affairs are all about finding ways to convey a story or explore an issue or share insights. I think a strength I have are the relationships I’ve built through music — countless networks both here and overseas. Perfect for when we are wanting to deep dive into issues.”

    Her inspiration for music grew from her dad, Nepia Tauri Maniapoto and his brothers. Maniapoto said it was “their thing” to entertain guests from the moment they walked into the dining room at Waitetoko Marae until kai was finished.

    “It was Prince Tui Teka and the Platters. Great vocal harmonies. My father always had a uke, gat, and sax in the house,” she said.

    Born in Invercargill and raised in Rotorua by her māmā Bernadette and pāpā Nepia, she was surrounded by her five siblings who some had a keen interest in kapa haka, although, the kapa-life was “too tough” for Maniapoto. Instead, nieces Puna Whakaata, Mourei, and Tiaria inheriting the “kapa” gene. Maniapoto said they’re exceptional and highly-competitive performers.

    ONO songwriters - Te Manahau Scotty Morrison, Moana Maniapoto and Paddy Free
    ONO songwriters Te Manahau Scotty Morrison, Moana Maniapoto and Paddy Free. Image: Black Pearl/RNZ

    Blending her Ngāti Pikiao, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, and Tūhourangi whakapapa into song was no struggle.

    The 1990s was filled with soul, R’n’B, and reggae, she said, singing in te reo was met with indifference if not hostility.

    ‘Labelled a radical’
    “If you mixed in lyrics that were political in nature, you were labelled a ‘radical.’ I wasn’t the only one, but probably the ‘radical’ with the highest profile at the time.”

    After her “rare” single Kua Makona in 1987, Moana & the Moahunters formed in the early 1990s, followed by Moana and the Tribe which is still going strong. Her sister Trina has a lovely singing voice and has been in Moana & The Tribe since it was formed, she said.

    And just like her sixth television season, Maniapoto has just churned out her sixth album, Ono.

    “I’m incredibly proud of it. So grateful to Paddy Free and Scotty Morrison for their skills. Looks pretty too on vinyl and CD, as well as digital. A cool Xmas present. Just saying.”

    The microphone doesn’t seem to be losing power anytime soon. All albums adequately named one-to-six in te reo Māori, one can only punt on the next album name.

    “It’s kinda weird now morphing back into the interviewee to promote my album release. I’m used to asking all the questions.”

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Rabuka reveals details of 1987 coup navy ‘secret weapons mission’

    By Litia Cava, FBC News multimedia journalist

    Fiji Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has revealed how arms and ammunition used to conduct the 1987 military coup were secretly brought into Fiji on board a naval survey ship.

    Speaking at the commissioning of a new research vessel for the Lands and Mineral Resources Ministry on Friday, Rabuka described the strategic measures taken to ensure the weapons reached Fiji undetected.

    He recounted that during preparations for his coup against Dr Timoçi Bavadra’s Labour government of 1987, Fiji lacked sufficient arms and ammunition.

    “I realised that we didn’t have enough weapons and ammunition in Fiji to do what I wanted to do. So I sent a very quick message to the captain who was there to pick up the ship and surprised him by asking that, get that ship commissioned in Singapore before you sail back to Fiji.”

    Rabuka explained the decision, saying the commissioning had allowed the ship to fly a naval flag, ensuring it would avoid inspection at international ports.

    He said the ship’s captain was instructed to load arms and ammunition en route which were successfully brought back to Fiji.

    The Prime Minister said the measures were necessary at the time to achieve what needed to be done.

    Rare glimpse of tactics
    His remarks offered a rare glimpse into the behind-the-scenes tactics of 1987, highlighting the extent of planning and resourcefulness involved.

    Rabuka’s comments were made during the launch of a state-of-the-art research vessel which will serve as a floating laboratory for marine geological studies and coastal surveys.

    The vessel is equipped with advanced tools to map the ocean floor, study tectonic activity and support communities affected by climate change.

    The Prime Minister said the new vessel marked a significant step in understanding Fiji’s marine ecosystem.

    He also spoke about the importance of integrating scientific research with traditional knowledge to address critical issues such as climate change and sustainable resource management.

    The PM said there was a need for informed planning to prevent disasters, referencing the recent earthquake in Vanuatu.

    Rabuka said early geological surveys could have guided city planners and engineers in designing structures that mitigate damage from such events.

    The new vessel is expected to provide critical insights into the ocean’s mysteries while contributing to Fiji’s resilience against climate-related challenges.

    Fiji’s President celebrates birthday with military
    Meanwhile, earlier today members of the Republic of Fiji Military Forces (RFMF) gathered at State House to celebrate the 71st birthday of Fiji’s President and Commander-in-Chief, Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu.

    The celebration was led by the Commander of the Fiji Navy, Humphrey Tawake, with senior officers. It was marked by a march by officers and the RFMF band. adding a ceremonial and heartfelt touch to the happy occasion.

    On behalf of the commander of the RFMF who is away on official leave, Commander Tawake extended birthday wishes to the Head of State.

    President Lalabalavu praised the dedication of the RFMF in upholding law and order.

    “The strength of our nation lies in our collective efforts, and since assuming office, I have witnessed the vital role you play in ensuring peace and stability,” he said.


    This content originally appeared on Asia Pacific Report and was authored by Pacific Media Watch.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • NZ’s Z Energy renames stations with ‘correct’ kupu

    By Emma Andrews, Henare te Ua Māori Journalism Intern at RNZ News

    The New Zealand fuel company Z Energy is swapping out street names for “correct” kupu on service stops around the country, with the help of local hapū.

    When Z took over 226 fuel sites from Shell in 2010, the easy solution was to name the respective stations after the streets they were on, or near.

    But when it named the Kahikatea Drive station in Kirikiriroa Z — K Drive, the company’s Māori advisor questioned the abbreviation.

    “Kahikatea is the correct name. That led to a bigger conversation about where are we with our knowledge as we start to learn a bit more about te reo Māori and acknowledging interconnected-ness of all things, like, where else are there opportunities to do it,” Z Energy customer general manager Andy Baird said.

    After 12 months of whakawhanaungatanga (relationship building), the company was guided by Te Hā o te Whenua o Kirikiriroa on changing the name of Z Dinsdale to Z Tuhikaramea.

    That led to two other stations being renamed — New Plymouth’s Z Courtenay Street became Z Huatoki, while Hamilton’s Five Cross Roads station became Z Te Papanui.

    “This is not about ticking a box per se, this is about a bigger sort of commitment that we have to te reo Māori and obviously to the communities that we operate in, so it’s a much bigger broader long-term programme,” Baird said.

    Z Energy
    Z Energy . . . an internal drive to incorporate more use of te reo Māori. Image: RNZ

    Internal te reo drive
    There had also been an internal drive to incorporate more use of te reo, kicking off each day with karakia, Baird said.

    It added more of a connection between the company and Māori traditions.

    “We’ve been adding bilingual language inside the sites but we have equally taken the time to make sure that we’re getting the right dialects as the regions as we go through it.

    “Part of the project this year was to sort of understand the process that we go through in terms of engagement with mana whenua and how they want things to happen and occur, and how we can come together to make that really a great outcome for local communities we operate in.”

    The company could have changed the station names off the bat, but Baird said consulting with local hapū and iwi was the right thing to do.

    “The opportunity to meet them, to start to engage with mana whenua and to build a relationship with them and to do something that they’re just as proud of as we are, was just as important as the actual name.”

    Each site’s name was gifted by the hapū, with careful consideration of the history of the whenua.

    Facebook community included
    Ngāti Te Whiti hapū in Ngāmotu was thrilled to play a big part in renaming the Courtenay Street petrol station and included its Facebook community in making the decision.

    It had a kete of three names that went to a vote — the name Huatoki was favoured.

    Julie Healey of Ngāti Te Whiti said it was only fitting to have the name Huatoki, as the awa flowed just around the corner from the petrol station.

    “Huatoki is probably all the life essence of New Plymouth at the beginning. We have the pā Puke Ariki at the front and then we have the other pā around, I think there’s about five or six different pā in that area.”

    The hapū was in its rebuilding phase and was working towards a Huatoki restoration plan with the New Plymouth District Council, so when Z approached it at the start of the year, the timing could not have been better, she said.

    “When we were approached, I just thought straight away ‘this is going to work brilliantly with our Huātoki’, and I was hoping whānau would vote that way, and they did. It just made sense, it was consistent.”

    A plaque on the left-hand side of entrance has a brief mihi and the meaning of the word
    A plaque on the left-hand side of entrance has a brief mihi and the meaning of the word. Image: RNZ/Emma Andrews

    She praised Z for taking the right steps to engage with locals.

    “One of our whānau, Damon Ritai, met the people outside Puke Ariki Museum, talked to them about the museum, the designs, the cultural expression on the museum, the meaning of the different things of whakapapa on the ceremonial doors, all the names that were in the foyer, and explained everything about those.”

    Cultural induction hīkoi
    The cultural induction hīkoi ended at Te Whare Honanga (Taranaki Cathedral) where they had refreshments.

    Then, the hapū worked on the dialect, something Healey triple-checked before giving the nod of approval.

    “This is about reclaiming our language and culture, not as a political act, but as a celebration.

    “It’s always a good opportunity for hapū to try and get those names, you know, renaming before the colonial names, taking things back to language and culture.”

    Z Energy aimed to rename more petrol stations but first, more whakawhanaungatanga, Baird said.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Vanuatu quake: Warnings as bad weather threat looms for Port Vila

    By Koroi Hawkins, RNZ Pacific editor

    New Zealand’s Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) says impending bad weather for Port Vila is now the most significant post-quake hazard.

    A tropical low in the Coral Sea is expected to move into Vanuatu waters, bringing heavy rainfall.

    Authorities have issued warnings to people living near landslide-prone areas around the Vanuatu capital.

    People living near low lying areas or rivers have also been told to move, should water levels rise.

    The heavy rain may also cause flash flooding.

    USAR team leader Ken Cooper said last Tuesday’s 7.3 earthquake caused significant landslides.

    “With the weather system that’s coming in, there is a high likelihood that the landslides continue and we need to ensure that there’s no life risks if those landslides should move further,” Cooper said.

    Death toll now 12
    Aftershocks have continued, and early this morning, the US Geological Survey recorded a magnitude 6.1 quake, at a depth of 40km west of Port Vila.

    New Zealand and Vanuatu engineers were assessing prioritised areas in the capital, and a decision would then be made as to whether a community needed to be evacuated, Cooper said.

    Since the team had been in Vanuatu, it had taken damage assessments of buildings and infrastructure, with the Vanuatu government, allowing them to prioritise the biggest risks and to assist the community in recovering more quickly, he said.

    The official death toll from Vanuatu’s 7.3 magnitude quake is now 12 according to the Vanuatu Disaster Management office.

    This has been confirmed by the Vila Central Hospital.

    USAR and Vanuatu locals after the Vanuatu quake.
    The deployment lead for New Zealand in Vanuatu praised the resilience of the ni-Vanuatu people following the 7.3 earthquake. Image: MFAT/RNZ Pacific

    Earlier unofficial reports had placed the death toll at 16.

    The team had completed almost 1000 assessments, alongside the Australia USAR team, which was a significant task, Cooper said.

    Both teams shared common tools and practices, which had allowed them to work simultaneously and helped the teams to quickly carry out the assessments, he said.

    “When we undertake the assessments that really gives us a clear picture of what should be prioritised and we work with the [Vanuatu] government and their infrastructure cluster, and some of the priorities we have looked at are bridges, [the] airport, the port, and also landslides,” he said.

    Resilience shown by locals
    The deployment lead for New Zealand in Vanuatu praised the resilience of the Ni-Vanuatu people following the 7.3 earthquake.

    Thousands of people had been affected by the disaster but the response effort was being hampered by damage to core infrastructure including the country’s telecommunications network.

    Emma Dunlop-Bennett said the New Zealand teams on the ground were working in partnership with the Vanuatu government.

    She said she was in awe of the strength of locals after the disaster.

    “As we go out into communities, working . . .  with the government, people are out there, getting up and doing what they can to get themselves into business as usual, life as usual. I am really in awe and humbled.

    The purpose of the New Zealand team being in Vanuatu was three-fold: To provide urgent and critical humanitarian assistance, a response for consular need to New Zealanders, and to support a smooth transition from relief, response to recovery, Dunlop-Bennett said.

    Then to business as usual, working along side the priority need identified by the Vanuatu government, she added.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • The closest thing Australian cartooning had to a prophet: the sometimes celebrated, sometimes controversial Michael Leunig

    ANALYSIS: By Richard Scully, University of New England; Robert Phiddian, Flinders University, and Stephanie Brookes, Monash University

    Michael Leunig — who died in the early hours of Thursday December 19, surrounded by “his children, loved ones, and sunflowers” — was the closest thing Australian cartooning had to a prophet. By turns over his long career, he was a poet, a prophet and a provocateur.

    The challenge comes in attempting to understand Leunig’s significance: for Australian cartooning; for readers of The Age and other newspapers past; and for the nation’s idea of itself.

    On this day, do you remember the gently philosophical Leunig, or the savagely satirical one? Do you remember a cartoon that you thought absolutely nailed the problems of the world, or one you thought was terribly wrong-headed?

    Leunig’s greatness lay in how intensely he made his audiences think and feel.

    There is no one straightforward story to tell here. With six decades of cartooning at least weekly in newspapers and 25 book-length collections of his work, how could there be?

    The light and the dark
    One thread is an abiding fondness for the whimsical Leunig. Mr Curly and Vasco Pyjama live on in the imaginations of so many readers.

    Particularly in the 1980s and 1990s, Leunig’s work seemed to hold a moral and ethical mirror up to Australian society — sometimes gently, but not without controversy, such as his 1995 “Thoughts of a baby lying in a childcare centre”.

    Feed the Inner Duck
    Feed the Inner Duck. Image: Michael Leunig, CC BY-NC-ND

    Another thread is the dark satirist.

    In the 1960s and 1970s, he broke onto the scene as a wild man in Oz, the Sunday Observer and the Nation Review who deplored Vietnam and only escaped the draft owing to deafness in one ear.

    Then he apparently mellowed to become the guru of The Age, still with a capacity to launch the occasional satirical thunderbolt. Decidedly countercultural, together with Patrick Cook and Peter Nicholson, Leunig brought what historian Tony Moore has called “existential and non-materialist themes to the Australian black-and-white tradition”.

    The difference between a 'just war' and 'just a war'
    Just War. Image: Michael Leunig, CC BY-NC-ND

    By 1999, he was declared a “national living treasure” by the National Trust, and was being lauded by universities for his unique contributions to the national culture.

    But to tell the story of Leunig’s significance from the mid 90s on is to go beyond the dreamer and the duck. In later decades you could see a clear distinction between some cartoons that continued to console in a bewildering world, and others that sparked controversy.

    Politics and controversy
    Leunig saw 9/11 and the ensuing “War on Terror” as the great turning point in his career. He fearlessly returned to the themes of the Vietnam years, only to receive caution, rebuke and rejection from editors and readers.

    He stopped drawing Mr Curly and Vasco Pyjama. The world was no longer safe for the likes of them.

    Then there was a cartoon refused by The Age in 2002, deemed by editor Michael Gawenda to be inappropriate: in the first frame, a Jew is confronted by the gates of the death camp: “Work Brings Freedom [Arbeit Macht Frei]”; in the second frame an Israeli viewing a similar slogan “War Brings Peace”.

    Rejected, it was never meant to see the light of day, but ABC’s Media Watch and Crikey outed it because of the constraint its spiking represented to fair media comment on the Middle East.

    That the cartoon was later entered, without Leunig’s knowledge, in the infamous Iranian “Holocaust Cartoon” competition of 2006, has only added to its infamy and presaged the internet’s era of the uncontrollable circulation of images.

    A decade later, from 2012, he reworked Martin Niemöller’s poetic statement of guilt over the Holocaust. The result was outrage, but also acute division within the Australian Jewish community.

    A cartoon about Palestine.
    First They Came. Image: Michael Leunig, CC BY-NC-ND

    Dvir Abramovich (chairperson of the Anti-Defamation Commission) made a distinction between something challenging, and something racist, believing it was the latter.

    Harold Zwier (of the Australian Jewish Democratic Society) welcomed the chance for his community to think critically about Israel’s policies in Gaza and the West Bank.

    From 2019 — a mother, distracted, looking at her phone rather than her baby. Cries of “misogyny”, including from Leunig’s very talented cartoonist sister, Mary.

    Mummy was Busy
    Mummy was Busy. Image: Michael Leunig, CC BY-NC-ND

    Then from 2021 — a covid-19 vaccination needle atop an armoured tank, rolling towards a helpless citizen.

    Leunig’s enforced retirement (it is still debated whether he walked or was pushed) was long and drawn-out. He filed his last cartoon for The Age this August. By then, he had alienated more than a few of his colleagues in the press and the cartooning profession.

    Support of the downtrodden
    Do we speak ill of the dead? We hope not. Instead, we hope we are paying respect to a great and often angry artist who wanted always to challenge the consumer society with its dark cultural and geopolitical secrets.

    Leunig’s response was a single line of argument: he was “Just a cartoonist with a moral duty to speak”.

    You don’t have to agree with every provocation, but his purpose is always to take up the cause of the weak, and deploy all the weaponry at his disposal to support the downtrodden in their fight.

    “The role of the cartoonist is not to be balanced”, said Leunig, but rather to “give balance”.

    Mr Curly's car pulled by a goat, he is breathalysed.
    Motoring News. Image: Michael Leunig, CC BY-NC-ND

    For Leunig, the weak were the Palestinian civilians, the babies of the post-iPhone generation, and those forced to be vaccinated by a powerful state; just as they were the Vietnamese civilians, the children forced to serve their rulers through state-sanctioned violence, the citizens whose democracy was undercut by stooges of the establishment.

    That deserves to be his legacy, regardless of whether you agree or not about his stance.

    The coming year will give a great many people pause to reflect on the life and work of Leunig. Indeed, he has provided us with a monthly schedule for doing just that: Leunig may be gone, but 2025 is already provided for, via his last calendar.The Conversation

    Dr Richard Scully, professor in modern history, University of New England; Dr Robert Phiddian, professor of English, Flinders University, and Dr Stephanie Brookes, senior lecturer, School of Media, Film and Journalism, Monash University. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons licence. Read the original article.


    This content originally appeared on Asia Pacific Report and was authored by Pacific Media Watch.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Quake-shocked New Caledonian children repatriated from Vanuatu

    By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk

    Twenty New Caledonian children who suffered the shock of Port Vila’s 7.3 magnitude earthquake have been repatriated from Vanuatu on board a French military CASA aircraft.

    The special operation was conducted on Thursday, as part of relief operations conducted by the Nouméa-based French Armed Forces in New Caledonia in response to the destructive quake that shook the Vanuatu capital, where several buildings have collapsed.

    The group of children, from northern New Caledonia (Népoui, Koné, Pouembout, and Poia), are aged between 8 and 14.

    They were visiting Vanuatu as part of a holiday camp organised by their sports association.

    They were supervised by four adults.

    One of them, Melissa Rangassamy, told local Radio Rythme Bleu upon arrival in Nouméa that the group was having a picnic on a Port Vila beach when the ground started to shake violently.

    “Children were falling to the ground, everyone was falling all around, it was panic. We told the children not to move. At the time, they were in shock.

    “We gathered them all, put them on the buses, and went straight up to a higher place,” she said.

    “It’s so good to come back home.”

    More evacuation flights
    The French High Commission in New Caledonia said a special psychological assistance unit was available to anyone who should need help.

    More flights to evacuate French nationals would be carried out of Port Vila to New Caledonia, French Ambassador to Vanuatu Jean-Baptiste Jeangène Vilmer said.

    Vanuatu hosts a significant French community, estimated at more than 3300 French citizens, including from New Caledonia.

    New Caledonia is also home to a strong ni-Vanuatu community of about 5000.

    French forces deliver hygiene kits at the Port Vila airport after a massive quake in Vanuatu.
    French forces deliver hygiene kits at the Port Vila airport after last week’s massive earthquake in Vanuatu. Image: French Embassy in Vanuatu/RNZ Pacific

    One French national confirmed among fatalities
    A Vanuatu-born French citizen has been confirmed dead.

    He was found under the rubble of one of the hardest-hit buildings in central Port Vila.

    He has been identified as Vincent Goiset, who belongs to a long-established, affluent Vanuatu family of Vietnamese origin.

    The total death toll from the December 17 earthquake stood at 15 on Friday, but was still likely to rise.

    France, Australia and New Zealand: 100 percent ‘FRANZ’
    Both Australia and New Zealand, through their armed forces, have deployed relief — including urban search and rescue teams — in a bid to find survivors under the collapsed buildings.

    The two countries are part of a tripartite set-up called “FRANZ” (France, Australia, New Zealand).

    Signed in 1992, the agreement enforces a policy of systematic coordination between the three armed forces when they operate to bring assistance to Pacific island countries affected by a natural disaster.

    As part of the FRANZ set-up, the French contribution included an initial reconnaissance flight from its Nouméa-based Falcon-200 jet (known as the Gardian) at daybreak on Wednesday, mostly to assess the Bauerfield airport.

    Port Vila is only 500km away from Nouméa.

    Later that day, a French PUMA helicopter transported emergency relief and personnel (including experts in buildings structural assessment, telecom and essential supplies such as water and electricity) to Port Vila to further assess the situation.

    The small military CASA aircraft also operated a number of rotations between Nouméa and Port Vila, bringing more relief supplies (including food rations, water, and IT equipment) and returning with evacuees.

    The French High Commission also said if needed, a Nouméa-based surveillance frigate Vendémiaire and the overseas assistance vessel d’Entrecasteaux were placed on stand-by mode “ready to set sail from Nouméa to Vanuatu within 72 and 96 hours, respectively”.

    Embassies ‘flattened’
    Following the Tuesday quake, four embassies in Port Vila (New Zealand, United Kingdom, the United States and France), all under the same roof, had been temporarily relocated to their respective chiefs of mission.

    Their offices, once located in a three-storey building, collapsed and were “flattened”, the French ambassador said.

    Vanuatu’s caretaker Prime Minister Charlot Salwaï has announced a state of emergency at least until Christmas and the Vanuatu snap election has been postponed from January 14 to 16.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Israeli-American historian describes attacks on Gaza as ‘war of annihilation’

    Asia Pacific Report

    “It looks like Hiroshima. It looks like Germany at the end of World War Two,” says an Israeli-American historian and professor of holocaust and genocide studies at Brown University about the horrifying reality of Gaza.

    Professor Omer Bartov, has described Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza as an “act of annihilation” of the Palestinian people, reports Middle East Eye.

    Dr Bartov said that not only had Israeli forces been moving displaced Palestinians around the Gaza Strip but they had also been strategically bombing mosques, museums, hospitals, and anything that served the health or culture of a people — in an attempt to cleanse the entire area of Palestinians.

    Al Jazeera reports that an Israeli drone attack on the Shati refugee camp in northern Gaza targeted a group of people gathered at a phone charging and internet distribution point, killing three people.

    According to a witness, this was the only point in the refugee camp where people trapped in the area charge their phones and connect to the internet to be in touch with family members who are displaced in the central and southern parts of the Gaza Strip.

    This was not the first time that the Israeli military has carried out deliberate attacks on such connectivity points.

    Houthis ballistic missile wounds 14
    Meanwhile, a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis from Yemen has broken through Israeli defences above and below the Earth’s atmosphere before slamming into Tel Aviv, reports Israel’s public broadcaster Kan.

    It said interceptors from the Arrow missile defence system were launched into the upper atmosphere after detecting the missile, but missed the target and failed to stop it before it entered Israeli territory.

    As captured in numerous videos, two more interceptors were then fired in the lower atmosphere, also failing to shoot down the missile.

    At least 14 people were wounded after a failed interception of the ballistic missile.

    This was the third incident of its kind just this week. The Israeli army says it was now investigating why it was not intercepted and why this was such a significant failure.

    Since the start of the war, the Houthis have launched more than 200 missiles, and more than 170 drones in support of the Palestinians in Gaza. The Houthis have said they would continue the attacks until Israel ends its war in the besieged enclave.

    In July, there was a drone that evaded all Israeli air defences, no siren sounded, and it was able to detonate in the middle of Tel Aviv and kill one person.

    This time, it was just one minute from the time the sirens rang until the moment of impact.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • NZ govt plans to make ‘heavy handed’ change to free speech rules for universities

    By John Gerritsen, RNZ News education correspondent

    The New Zealand government coalition is tweaking university regulations to curb what it says is an increasingly “risk-averse approach” to free speech.

    The proposed changes will set clear expectations on how universities should approach freedom of speech issues.

    Each university will then have to adopt a “freedom of speech statement” consistent with the central government’s expectations.

    The changes will also prohibit tertiary institutions from adopting positions on issues that do not relate to their core functions.

    Associate Education Minister David Seymour said fostering students’ ability to debate ideas is an essential part of universities’ educational mission.

    “Despite being required by the Education Act and the Bill of Rights Act to uphold academic freedom and freedom of expression, there is a growing trend of universities deplatforming speakers and cancelling events where they might be perceived as controversial or offensive,” he said.

    “That’s why the National/ACT coalition agreement committed to introduce protections for academic freedom and freedom of speech to ensure universities perform their role as the critic and conscience of society.”

    Minister for Tertiary Education and Skills Penny Simmonds said freedom of speech was fundamental to the concept of academic freedom.

    “Universities should promote diversity of opinion and encourage students to explore new ideas and perspectives. This includes enabling them to hear from invited speakers with a range of viewpoints.”

    It is expected the changes will take effect by the end of next year, after which universities will have six months to develop a statement and get it approved.

    Te Herenga Waka-Victoria University of Wellington said the important issue of free speech had been a dominant topic throughout the year.

    It believed a policy it had come up with would align with the intent of the criteria laid out by the government today.

    However, the Greens are among critics, saying the government’s changes will add fuel to the political fires of disinformation, and put teachers and students in the firing line.

    Labour says universities should be left to make decisions on free speech themselves.

    ‘A heavy-handed approach’
    The Tertiary Education Union (TEU) said proposed rules could do more harm than good.

    They have been been welcomed by the Free Speech Union, which said academic freedom was “under threat”, but the TEU said there was no problem to solve.

    TEU president Sandra Grey said the move seemed to be aimed at ensuring people could spread disinformation on university campuses.

    “I think one of the major concerns is that you might get universities opening up the space that is for academic and rigorous debate and saying it’s okay we can have climate deniers, we can have people who believe in creationism coming into our campuses and speaking about it as though it were scientific, as though it was rigorously defendable when in fact we know some of these questions . . .  have been settled,” she said.

    Grey said academics who expressed views on campus could expect them to be debated, but that was part and parcel of working at a university and not an attack on their freedom of speech.

    “There isn’t actually a problem. I do think universities, all the staff who work there, the students, understand that they’re covered by all of their requirements for freedom of speech that other citizens are.

    “So it feels like we’ve got a heavy-handed approach from a government that apparently is anti-regulation but is now going to put in place the whole lot of requirements on a community that just doesn’t need it.”

    Some topics ‘suppressed’

    Jonathan Ayling of the Free Speech Union submits to Parliament's Economic Development, Science and Innovation select committee regarding the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill, 15 February 2024.
    Free Speech Union chief executive Jonathan Ayling . . . some academics are afraid to express their views and there is also a problem with “compelled speech”. Image: VNP/Phil Smith/RNZ News

    Free Speech Union chief executive Jonathan Ayling said freedom of speech was under threat in universities.

    “We’ve supported academics . . .  where they feel that they have been unfairly disadvantaged simply for holding a different opinion to some of their peers. Of course, that is also an addition to the explicit calls for people to be cancelled, to be unemployed,” he said.

    Ayling said some academics were afraid to express their views and there was also a problem with “compelled speech”.

    “Forcing certain references on particularly ideological issues. There’s questions around race, gender, international conflicts, covid-19, these are all questions that we’ve found have been suppressed and also there’s the aspect of self-censorship,” he said.

    “As we have and alongside partners looked into this more and more, it seems that many people in the academy exist in a culture of fear.”

    University committed to differing viewpoints
    Te Herenga Waka-Victoria University of Wellington is committed to hearing a range of different viewpoints on its campuses, vice-chancellor Professor Nic Smith says.

    Free speech had been an important issue during 2024, and the university had arrived at a policy that covered both freedom of speech and academic freedom.

    By consulting widely, there was now a shared understanding of “foundational principles”, and its policy would be in place early in the new year.

    “We believe this policy aligns with the intent of the criteria [from the government] as we understand them. It recognises the strength of our diverse university community and affirms that this diversity makes us stronger,” Professor Smith said.

    “At the same time, it acknowledges that within any diverse community, individuals will inevitably encounter ideas they disagree with-sometimes strongly.

    “Finding value in these disagreements is something universities are very good at: listening to different points of view in the spirit of advancing understanding and learning that can ultimately help us live and work better together.”

    The university believed in hearing a range of views from staff, rather than adopting a single institutional position.

    “The only exception to this principle is on matters that directly affect our core functions as a university.”

    ‘Stoking fear and division’

    Francisco Hernandez delivers his maiden statement.
    The Green Party’s spokesperson for Tertiary Education, Francisco Hernadez . . . this new policy has nothing to do with free speech. Image: VNP/Phil Smith/RNZ News

    Green Party’s spokesperson for Tertiary Education, Francisco Hernadez, said the new policy had nothing to do with free speech.

    “This is about polluting our public discourse for political gain.”

    Universities played a critical role, providing a platform for informed and reasoned debate.

    “Our universities should be able to decide who is given a platform on their campuses, not David Seymour. These changes risk turning our universities into hostile environments unsafe for marginalised communities.

    “Misinformation, disinformation, and rhetoric that inflames hatred towards certain groups has no place in our society, let alone our universities. Freedom of speech is fundamental, but it is not a licence to harm.”

    Hernandez said universities should be trusted to ensure the balance was struck between academic freedom and a duty of care.

    “Today’s announcement has also come with a high dose of unintended irony.

    “David Seymour is speaking out of both sides of his mouth by on the one hand claiming to support freedom of speech, but on the other looking to limit the ability universities have to take stances on issues, like the war in Gaza for example.

    “This is an Orwellian attempt to limit discourse to the confines of the government’s agenda. This is about stoking fear and division for political gain.”

    Labour’s Associate Education (Tertiary) spokesperson Deborah Russell responded: “One of the core legislated functions of universities in this country is to be a critic and conscience of society. That means continuing to speak truth to power, even if those in power don’t like it.”

    “Nowhere should be a platform for hate speech. I am certain universities can make these decisions themselves.”

    ‘Expectations clarified’ – university
    The University of Auckland said in a statement the announcement of planned legislation changes would help “to clarify government expectations in this area”.

    “The university has a longstanding commitment to maintaining freedom of expression and academic freedom on our campuses, and in recent years has worked closely with [the university’s] senate and council to review, revise and consult on an updated Freedom of Expression and Academic Freedom Policy.

    “This is expected to return to senate and council for further discussion in early 2025 and will take into account the proposed new legislation.”

    The university described the nature of the work as “complex”.

    “While New Zealand universities have obligations under law to protect freedom of expression, academic freedom and their role as ‘critic and conscience of society’, as the proposed legislation appreciates, this is balanced against other important policies and codes.”

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Threats, conspiracy claims, closure orders: How Delhi BJP neta Ravinder Negi tyrannizes Muslim vendors

    Since the Narendra Modi-led NDA government assumed power, India has witnessed a noticeable rise in Hindutva-driven forces. Hindutva as an ideology advocates for India to be defined primarily as a Hindu nation. This has coincided with an increase in hate crimes and hostility toward the country’s minority Muslim community. Reports frequently emerge of Hindu organisations targeting Muslims, economically boycotting them, and engaging in acts of harassment. The ruling BJP has been often criticized for fostering an environment that enables an anti-Muslim sentiment to proliferate.

    In recent days, a series of videos featuring Ravinder Singh Negi, a BJP corporator from Vinod Nagar, Delhi, have drawn significant attention and criticism on social media platforms. These videos depict Negi harassing and threatening Muslim shopkeepers, forcing them to disclose their religious identities publicly. On one hand, Muslim shopkeepers are coerced to display their full names and religious affiliations on shop boards. On the other hand, Hindu shopkeepers are pressured to display saffron flags or other religious markers on their establishments. This identification, according to Negi, would allow customers to recognise the religious identity of shopkeepers. Negi is seen in multiple videos promoting conspiracy theories, such as Muslims allegedly spitting in food, referred to as ‘spit jihad.’ By perpetuating such narratives, Negi contributes to creating distrust, suspicion, and communal rifts between Hindus and Muslims. Such generalisations not only fuel hatred but also promote the economic marginalisation of Muslim shopkeepers.

    Case 1

    In one widely circulated video, Ravinder Singh Negi asks a street vendor his name. Initially, the vendor identifies himself as Guddu, a name common across both Hindu and Muslim communities. However, Negi insists on having the vendor’s full name and religion. The vendor reveals that he is a Muslim and confirms that his Aadhaar card also lists his name as Guddu. Negi then threatens the vendor, stating that he must put up a board with his full name in front of his cart or risk having the cart confiscated. During the exchange, Negi makes unsubstantiated claims, alleging that members of “other communities” spit in food products such as paneer and milk and wash items with contaminated drain water. He also instructs nearby shopkeepers to display saffron flags on their shops to identify them as Hindu-owned establishments. 

    There have been many cases where Hindu organisations and people associated with the BJP have pressured Muslim shopkeepers and vendors to write their names outside their shops and threatened them with dire consequences. There are deep implications behind the pressure put by Hindu organisations on shopkeepers, street vendors, etc. to place name plates on their shops, as it acts as a tool for social and economic exclusion. The ability to identify a shopkeeper’s religion through his name can lead to economic boycotting on the basis of religious affiliation. Its effects can be so dangerous that in many parts of India, names are often associated with caste-based surnames, the policy of displaying names is also capable of promoting caste-based discrimination and the evil practice of untouchability, which can lead to customers making shopping decisions based on the caste of the shopkeeper, which is contrary to the values ​​of the Indian constitution. 

    Case 2

    In another incident that took place in Chander Vihar, Delhi, Negi approached the owner of a shop named ‘Tomar Dairy’ and demanded to know his name and religion. The shopkeeper introduced himself as Altamash Tomar and confirmed that he was a Muslim. Negi then questioned why the shop bore the name ‘Tomar’, a surname often associated with Hindu communities. He pressured the shopkeeper to replace the name with one that would clearly indicate his Muslim identity. Negi went on to threaten that failure to follow this would result in the shop being forcibly shut down.

    Case 3

    In a similar incident in Patparganj, Delhi, Negi targeted a shop called “Rawal Paneer Bhandar.” Upon questioning, the shopkeeper revealed his name as Mohammad Ayaan. Negi then ordered the shopkeeper to remove the existing shop banner and replace it with a name that explicitly identified him as a Muslim. 

    There are numerous such videos in which Negi is forcing Muslim shopkeepers to write their names outside their shops and Hindu shopkeepers are being asked to put religious flags on their shops, so that people can identify that these are Hindu shops and receive more visitors.

    Case 4

    In this video, Negi is seen questioning vegetable vendors, asking them their names and religious affiliations. Hindu vendors are told to display saffron flags on their carts as a marker of their religious identity. Once again, Negi repeats the conspiracy theory about spitting in food items like cheese and milk.

    Case 5

    In another case, Negi checked the name of a juice shop owner through a digital payment app. Upon confirming that the owner was a Muslim, Negi demanded that the shopkeeper displayed a board with his name in front of the shop. Negi argued that this was necessary for “people who observe fasts” to know the identity of the shop owner before purchasing food or drinks.

    Case 6

    Similar to the previous incident, Negi visited a paneer shop, checked the owner’s name through a payment app, and confirmed that the shopkeeper was a Muslim. He then ordered the shopkeeper to put up a sign explicitly identifying himself as a Muslim so that Hindu customers could identify him as one.

    Case 7

    In another incident, Negi approached Rizwan, the Muslim owner of a shop named ‘New Haryana Paneer Bhandar’. He demanded that Rizwan put up a board displaying his name to ensure customers were aware of his religious identity. 

    Negi’s harassment of Muslim shopkeepers continued during Hindu religious festivals and periods, like the month of Sawan, Chhatth Puja and Navratri. He also has videos featuring him doing so on his social media. 

    Case 8

    A day before Chhath Puja, Negi visited a Muslim-run meat shop and demanded that it remain closed due to the festival happening the next day, citing the religious sensitivities of Hindus passing in processions through the area.

    Case 9

    During the Kanwar Yatra, Negi approached another Muslim meat shop owner and ordered that the shop remained closed the following day as Hindu devotees would be performing rituals.

    Case 10

    During Navratri, Negi pressured fish and meat shopkeepers to shut their shops. In a video, he is heard threatening the vendors, saying, “I have to stay here for five years. If you obey me, you will be able to work peacefully.”

    In July 2024, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath ordered all hotels located along the Kanwar Yatra route to display boards with the owners’ names. Likewise, BJP-ruled Ujjain Municipal Corporation and officials in Uttarakhand issued orders requiring shop owners to display nameplates in Ujjain. Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami defended this, citing instances of shop owners using fake names.

    However, the Supreme Court intervened taking a strong stance against such measures. The court ruled that while shop owners can be instructed to provide information about the type of food they sold, they could not be compelled to disclose their names or religious identities.

    Many street vendors and shopkeepers across India are already marginalised, migrating from rural areas to urban centers in search of livelihood. Forcing them to disclose their religious or caste identities exposes them to the risk of economic boycott and social discrimination, which could have severe consequences on their livelihoods and the overall social fabric of a local community. 

    The post Threats, conspiracy claims, closure orders: How Delhi BJP neta Ravinder Negi tyrannizes Muslim vendors appeared first on Alt News.


    This content originally appeared on Alt News and was authored by Abhishek Kumar.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • MEAA welcomes News MAP funding ‘leg up’ for Australian journalism

    Pacific Media Watch

    The union for Australian journalists has welcomed the delivery by the federal government of more than $150 million to support the sustainability of public interest journalism over the next four years.

    Combined with the announcement of the revamped News Bargaining Initiative, this could result in up to $400 million in additional funding for the sector over the coming years.

    The Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance says the new funding under the News Media Assistance Program (News MAP) will boost journalism and media diversity but must be tied to the enforcement of minimum employment standards for all media workers, including freelancers, says the MEAA website.

    The acting director of MEAA media, Michelle Rae, said the Albanese government had picked up on recommendations from the union during consultation over the News MAP earlier this year.

    “We are pleased that the government has adopted a holistic and structured approach to support for the news media industry, rather than the patchwork of band aid solutions that have been implemented in the past,” she said.

    “MEAA has long argued that commercially produced public interest journalism requires systematic, long-term support beyond a three-year time frame to ensure its viability and to promote a diverse media landscape.

    “The longer-term approach confirmed by the government will allow media outlets to plan for their future sustainability with additional certainty about their income over the next four years.”

    Importantly, the new funding was primarily directed at local and community news, the sector that had been most impacted by the decline of advertising revenue over the past two decades.

    “The $116.7 million to support this sector will go a long way towards helping communities in regional Australia and the suburbs of our main cities to rebuild local journalism in areas that have become or are in danger of becoming news deserts,” Rae said.

    “The unique role of Australian Associated Press as an independent and accessible news service has been recognised with $33 million in new funding.

    “MEAA also welcomes the government’s commitment to mandate at least $6 million of its advertising budget is spent in regional newspapers.”

    Rae said that while it was worthwhile to explore measures to attract philanthropic funding of the news media industry, any solutions to the decline of public interest journalism must not be reliant on sponsorships or donations that undermine the independence of media outlets.

    “There is a place for demand-side incentives to subscribe and pay for quality news media through the use of subsidies, vouchers or tax deductibility,” she said.

    “But care must be taken to ensure that philanthropic funding does not allow donors to dictate the editorial policies of media outlets.”

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.