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Category: israel

  • Israel’s seizure of Gaza Freedom Flotilla called a ‘blatant act of international piracy’

    Common Dreams Logo

    This story originally appeared in Common Dreams on June 9, 2025. It is shared here with permission under a Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0) license.

    Israeli forces early Monday boarded the Madleen, a United Kingdom-flagged vessel carrying humanitarian aid, and detained its crew members as they sought to deliver food, children’s prosthetics, and other supplies to Gaza’s besieged and starving population.

    The Freedom Flotilla Coalition said in a statement that the Madleen was “unlawfully boarded, its unarmed civilian crew abducted, and its life-saving cargo—including baby formula, food, and medical supplies—confiscated.”

    Huwaida Arraf, a human rights attorney and Freedom Flotilla organizer, said that “Israel has no legal authority to detain international volunteers aboard the Madleen” and argued that Israel’s naval blockade violates the International Court of Justice’s “binding orders requiring unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza.”

    “These volunteers are not subject to Israeli jurisdiction and cannot be criminalized for delivering aid or challenging an illegal blockade—their detention is arbitrary, unlawful, and must end immediately,” said Arraf.

    Heidi Matthews, an assistant professor of law at Osgoode Hall Law School at York University in Canada, echoed Arraf, writing on social media that “the world is watching Israel attack a civilian boat carrying no weapons—only humanitarian aid—flying a U.K. flag in international waters and carrying humanitarians of many nationalities.”

    “Israel has precisely zero authority to do so under any law,” Matthews added.

    “If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped in international waters by the Israeli occupational forces, or forces that support Israel.”

    The Israeli Foreign Ministry on Monday derided the Madleen as a “selfie yacht” and said the vessel is “safely making its way to the shores of Israel” after the country’s forces boarded the boat, which set sail from Sicily on June 1. The foreign ministry added that there are other “ways to deliver aid to the Gaza Strip”—but Israel’s military has been tightly restricting the flow of food and other assistance, pushing the enclave toward famine.

    Among the vessel’s dozen passengers are Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and Rima Hassan, a member of the European Parliament.

    “If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped in international waters by the Israeli occupational forces, or forces that support Israel,” Thunberg said in a video posted online by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition. “I urge all my friends, family, and comrades to put pressure on the Swedish government to release me and the others as soon as possible.”

    Zeteo‘s Prem Thakker reported that “before connection was lost, video from the vessel showed some form of white substance sprayed upon the vessel.”

    “Passengers reported the unknown liquid came from drones flying overhead, while the ship’s radios began being jammed,” Thakker wrote.

    Nihad Awad, national executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, called Israel’s seizure of the Madleen “a blatant act of international piracy and state terrorism.”

    “We call on governments—especially western governments funding Israel’s genocide and Arab Muslim governments watching it happen—to show an iota of the courage demonstrated by those on the Madleen by using every tool at their disposal to force an end to the genocide,” said Awad.

    Francesca Albanese, the United Nations special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, wrote that “while Madleen must be released immediately, every Mediterranean port should send boats with aid, solidarity, and humanity to Gaza.”

    “Breaking the siege is a legal duty for states, and a moral imperative for all of us,” Albanese added.

    This post was originally published on The Real News Network.

  • LA police shoot at journalist as Trump wages war on California

    US president Donald Trump has essentially waged a war of revenge on California after mass protests against illegal state abductions. And it true authoritarian style, one police officer even turned his gun on a nearby journalist in broad daylight.

    LA protests: cops turn violent

    Protests in LA began on Friday 6 June after a series of violent immigration enforcement (ICE) raids in Los Angeles.

    One saw the highly provocative abduction and injury of union leader David Huerta, which added further momentum to the demonstrations at the weekend. Although the LAPD called the protests peaceful, the Trump regime decided on 7 June to send 2,000 “civilian soldiers” of the National Guard.

    Cops and the National Guard have caused an escalation since:

    Academic Steve Vladeck called this “a significant (and, in my view, unnecessary) escalation of events in a context in which no local or state authorities have requested such federal assistance”. A legal officer for the ACLU civil rights group, meanwhile, said:

    The Trump administration’s baseless deployment of the National Guard is plainly retaliation against California, a stronghold for immigrant communities, and is akin to a declaration of war on all Californians…

    There is no rational reason to deploy the National Guard on Angelenos, who are rightfully outraged by the federal government’s attack on our communities

    And as Australian journalist Lauren Tomasi filmed the LA protests, one LAPD officer surprised her with an unprovoked act of aggression:

    Australia’s Green Party called for action over the clearly “deliberate shooting“.

    Tomasi’s own outlet, however, faced criticism for framing the incident as her being “caught in the crossfire”. Satirical website The Chaser reacted by posting:

    How settler-colonial nations share their worst practices

    Drop Site News, meanwhile, highlighted that, in the context of the current LA protests:

    The LAPD has a history of training with Israeli forces, whose units systematically target and kill journalists.

    Israel has killed hundreds of media workers during its ongoing genocide in occupied Gaza.

    As the Real News Network has documented:

    Between 2002 to 2009, the Los Angeles Police Department’s chief and deputy chief traveled to Israel for training multiple times.

    This is common throughout the US, with “police exchange programs” sending officers to Israel “for training that advocates say further militarizes the police and exacerbates harm to marginalized communities”. And it goes both ways, with Israeli occupation forces learning techniques from US ‘enforcement’ officers too.

    The US has a long record of settler-colonial genocide at home and abroad, including the current US-Israeli genocide in Gaza. And as journalist Kyle Kulinski has pointed out:

    California governor Gavin Newsom and other politicians have insisted that Trump’s actions over the LA protests have been dictatorial:

    – Inciting and provoking violence

    – Creating mass chaos

    – Militarizing cities

    – Arresting opponents

    In reality, it’s very much in keeping with a long tradition of racist settler governments using such tactics to exert control over the territory they occupy.

    Featured image via the Canary

    By Ed Sykes

    This post was originally published on Canary.

  • Palestine Action shut down Elbit insurer Allianz in Bristol – for the second time this year

    Palestine Action has blockaded the Bristol head office of Alliance Insurance, to call out the company’s continued complicity in Israel’s genocide in Gaza.

    Palestine Action blockade Alliance Insurance head office

    From 6.15am on Monday 9 June, activists began the successful blockade to demand the firm stop investing in, and providing insurance for Israel’s biggest weapons producer, Elbit Systems:

    Th activists blocked each entrance to the premises at 10 Victoria Street, Bristol. Each attached themselves to a lock-on contraption within suitcases, in order to maximise disruption of the office building:

    Palestine Action activist in a red boilersuit lies on the pavement lock-on to a red suitcase, with a fire extinguisher, Palestinian flag, and red paint splatters across the flagstones in front of her. She raises her fist in the air.

    Palestine Action activist lies on the pavement attacked to a black and white striped suitcase, with a solidarity fist in the air, a keffiyeh round her neck, and red paint splatters across the pavement and wall surrounding her.

    Using repurposed fire extinguishers, they doused the building in red paint to symbolise the bloodshed of the Palestinian people:

    Silver suitcase with Palestine Action spraypainted on it in white and red. Red paint splatters cover the pavement and walls, next to a fire extinguisher.

    In tandem with this, in London, activists put up posters with the image of Allianz Insurance’s CEO Colm Holmes. They read:

    WANTED: For complicity in war crimes and genocide… If seen please report to the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

    Poster of Allianz CEO Colm Holmes, which reads: "WANTED: For complicity in war crimes and genocide... If seen please report to the International Court of Justice (ICJ)".

    Sustained action will continue until Allianz cuts all ties with Elbit

    The action comes as part of a sustained direct action campaign against Allianz. Palestine Action says it will only cease targeting Allianz, when the company end all ties with Elbit Systems.

    Palestine Action also shut down the same office in April. Two protestors also blockaded the entrance and sprayed the building in paint. This followed a series of hits since October 2024 when activists launched actions against 10 Allianz sites. This included a canopy occupation of the Guildford headquarters. Following this, activists mounted a co-ordinated wave of actions in January 2025 at 15 sites across Europe where they smashed windows at multiple branches causing them to close for subsequent weeks.

    Additional actions have taken place in Rotterdam and Berlin, as well as the London branch in March. Activists in Twickenham also flew a drone carrying a Palestine flag to disrupt a Six Nations game in the Allianz-sponsored stadium.

    In addition to targeting of Allianz, Palestine Action has made repeated interventions in Bristol to their primary target, Elbit. After sustained actions forced Elbit to close its London offices, the company relocated its headquarters to Bristol. They also host the Elbit’s new research and development facility in Filton, which activists have targeted for repeated actions. Most notably, in August 2024, six activists broke into the factory and dismantled quadcopter drones. The action cost Elbit £2m in damages and has seen 18 people subsequently remanded to prison.

    Allianz ‘business as usual’: profiting from genocide

    In January this year it was confirmed that Elbit had been continuing to ship weapons to Israel during the 15 months of genocide, including from the Filton facility. Today’s action in Bristol comes as Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 44 people in Gaza. Moreover, it follows the Israeli military intercepting the Madleen Freedom Flotilla overnight, which was carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza.

    A spokesperson from Palestine Action said:

    By insuring Elbit, Allianz enable the production of Israeli weapons on British soil. We will not allow Allianz to continue with ‘business as usual’, which involves profiting from the most depraved and severe crimes being enacted against the Palestinian people.

    Palestine Action will continue to take direct action against the insurance firm, until they cease all ties with Israel’s biggest weapons producer.

    Featured image and additional images supplied

    By The Canary

    This post was originally published on Canary.

  • Gaza Freedom Flotilla Sailboat Madleen Intercepted By Israelis

    The Freedom Flotilla Coalition’s (FFC) sailboat, Madleen was intercepted in international waters by the Israeli military at 3:02 am CEST at 31.95236° N, 32.38880° E.

    The ship was unlawfully boarded, its 12 unarmed civilian crew and participants abducted, and its life-saving cargo—including baby formula, food and medical supplies—confiscated, as well as personal possessions taken.

    To our knowledge, no one from the Madleen was injured during the interception.

    Immediately after the interception, the crew and participants were moved immediately from the Madleen and taken to an Israeli ship. That is only the second time that crew/participants have been taken off the flotilla ship.

    The post Gaza Freedom Flotilla Sailboat Madleen Intercepted By Israelis appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

    This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.

  • What MSM won’t tell you as Israel illegally attacks the Freedom Flotilla

    Israeli occupation forces have illegally abducted civilians from international waters. They were taking aid on the ‘Madleen’ Freedom Flotilla boat to break Israel’s starvation stranglehold on occupied Gaza during the ongoing genocide. But you won’t get headlines like that from the “sinister and complicit” Western media.

    Illegally abduction on the Freedom Flotilla in international waters

    Israeli pirates “attacked/forcibly intercepted” the the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) civilian ship “at 3:02 am CET in international waters”, according to the FFC. It asserted:

    The ship was unlawfully boarded, its unarmed civilian crew abducted, and its life-saving cargo—including baby formula, food and medical supplies—confiscated.

    It quoted lawyer Huwaida Arraf saying:

    Israel has no legal authority to detain international volunteers aboard the Madleen… This seizure blatantly violates international law and defies the ICJ’s binding orders requiring unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza. These volunteers are not subject to Israeli jurisdiction and cannot be criminalized for delivering aid or challenging an illegal blockade—their detention is arbitrary, unlawful, and must end immediately.

    The Israeli kidnappers reportedly jammed the boat’s radio signal to stop it calling for help, surrounded it with drones which ‘dropped a white substance’ onto it, and ordered the civilians on board to throw their phones into the water. Among the Freedom Flotilla abductees were prize-winning climate campaigner Greta Thunberg and European Parliament member Rima Hassan.

    Actor Liam Cunningham, who has been supporting the Madleen’s efforts, responded by calling people to pay attention to the media reaction:

    If you want to know how sinister and complicit the western press is. Read and listen carefully to the reporting of the illegal ramming, boarding and kidnapping of the volunteers onboard the #FreedomFlotilla near #Gaza they were carrying humanitarian aid.

    In particular, he highlighted how LBC immediately platformed Israeli propaganda:

    Other outlets simply said Israel ‘took control‘ of the Madleen, ‘diverted‘ it, ‘seized‘ it, or ‘intercepted‘ it and ‘detained’ those aboard. Sky News, meanwhile, focused on platforming the vile smears of war-criminal Israeli minister Israel Katz.

    Israeli pirates flout international law yet again

    Back in 2010, long before the current genocide, Israeli occupation forces murdered 10 people in a similar freedom flotilla that was trying to break Israel’s siege of Gaza. Israel’s brutal blockade created “the world’s largest open-air prison” for the territory’s highly concentrated population .

    15 years later, Israel is once again flouting its duty as an occupying power to provide sufficient aid to the occupied Palestinian territory or to allow others to do so. And weeks after attacking another civilian aid boat in international waters, Israel has now torpedoed another attempt to bring relief to the starving people of Gaza.

    As Amnesty International boss Agnes Callamard responded:

    Israel interception of Madleen violates international law.

    As the occupying power (as recognised by the ICJ), Israel has a legal obligation to ensure civilians in Gaza have sufficient food and medicine.

    The Madleen Freedom Flotilla carries the UK’s shipping flag. The British government, however, has not only been quiet so far about Israel’s hijacking of the ship. It actually sent another plane to Gaza from RAF Akrotiri on Cyprus – which has been “a foundational asset” for Israel’s genocide.

    Keep resisting the selfie genocide

    Journalists and others have been carefully documenting Israeli war crimes in Gaza. And because Israeli soldiers have been flaunting their crimes on social media (and even dating apps), there is a massive video database. This is on top of crimes like bombing hospitals, cutting electricity, or assassinating media workers.

    The video footage of Israeli crimes isn’t just in occupied Gaza either. It’s in the occupied West Bank too. It’s a clear pattern of proud self-documentation from the occupying power.

    This context is why Israel’s attempts to call the Madleen Freedom Flotilla a ‘selfie stunt’ are all the more ridiculous.

    There have now been calls for more boats to sail towards Gaza in solidarity, for people to call on their governments to secure the Madleen Freedom Flotilla crew’s release, and for the intensification of the land caravan of aid that is already on the way to Gaza.

    In Britain, meanwhile, emergency protests will take place today in London and elsewhere:

    Featured image via the Canary

    By Ed Sykes

    This post was originally published on Canary.

  • Biden’s Matt Miller says Israel committed war crimes he denied


    This content originally appeared on The Grayzone and was authored by The Grayzone.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Israel arms ISIS-tied gang member in Gaza


    This content originally appeared on The Grayzone and was authored by The Grayzone.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Israeli War Minister Threatens Gaza Freedom Flotilla

    Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on 8 June that he has instructed the army to prevent the Gaza Freedom Flotilla vessel from reaching the besieged strip. “I have instructed the Israeli army to act to prevent the Madleen flotilla from reaching Gaza. To the anti-Semitic Greta and her friends, I say clearly: You’d better turn back – because you won’t reach Gaza,” Katz said. 

    “Israel will not allow anyone to break the naval blockade on Gaza, which aims to prevent Hamas from supplying weapons,” the defense minister added. 

    According to reports from Israel’s Broadcasting Corporation (KAN) and Channel 12, the Israeli navy is preparing to intercept the vessel, seize it, and tow it to Ashdod port. 

    The post Israeli War Minister Threatens Gaza Freedom Flotilla appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

    This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.

  • The ELSC is taking legal action to stop drone exports to genocidal Israel

    The European Legal Support Centre (ELSC) has pursued legal action in an attempt to halt the scheduled transfer of Skylark drone parts from Germany to Israel this coming week.

    According to open-source intelligence and export documentation, the flight is expected to carry components of Skylark, a miniature unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), manufactured by Elbit Systems, one of Israel’s main military suppliers.

    The plane shipment will be arriving from Budapest and is then due to travel from Frankfurt on an El Al passenger flight to Tel Aviv on Tuesday June 10.

    German authorities urged to prevent plane carrying Skylark drone parts from flying to Israel

    The ELSC, acting on behalf of a Palestinian plaintiff from Gaza, has filed two emergency motions with the Administration Courts of Frankfurt and Berlin last Friday, to urge German authorities to block the transit of these drone components through Frankfurt Airport.

    Partner lawyer with the ELSC Ahmed Abed said his client has lost more than 60 family members, including his father and sister whom he had to leave bleeding with serious head wounds, to rescue the rest of his family from bombing. The two of them could not be saved, and both died. Five more of his siblings all under the age of 18 were also killed.

    Released data by the German Ministry for Economic Affairs reveals Germany has exported weapons to Israel worth more than €485 million between October 2023 and May 2025. Germany is the second largest exporter of arms to Israel, amounting to 30% of Israel’s arms, following the U.S. at 69%.

    This is a continuation in Germany’s pattern of allowing transit of weapon parts to Israel as reported over the past year, by Irish publication The Ditch, which found Lufthansa, Germany’s national airline, to be heavily involved in the transportation of weapons to the IDF through Irish airspace.

    ELSC: “one day accountability will come”

    A ELSC spokesperson told the Canary:

    We are discussing arms deliveries that persisted even after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s assault on Gaza constitutes a plausible case of genocide. These deliveries continued long after numerous UN bodies and international human rights organizations—entities that Europe and Germany routinely rely on in other contexts—raised numerous alarms.

    Germany knowingly and willfully continued to supply weapons to Israel in violation of international law. Beyond providing military support, it has publicly defended and justified Israel’s crimes, systematically silenced critics of its complicity, and remained in blatant denial of the atrocities broadcast to the world in real time.

    This is complicity with full awareness. And one day, accountability will come.

    In addition to the ICJ ruling, in June 2024 UN experts called on states and arms manufacturers supplying weapons, parts, and ammunition to Israeli forces, to end their arms transfers to Israel, or risk being complicit in serious violations of international human rights and international humanitarian laws, and possibly genocide.

    Since then, leading Palestinian and international human rights organisations, the world’s top genocide scholars, and Francesca Albanese, the United Nations special rapporteur on the situation in Palestine, have all reached the same conclusion – Israel is committing a genocide.

    By filing this urgent motion, ELSC is looking to prevent further irreparable harm to civilians in Gaza and to hold the German state accountable for its legal obligations under international humanitarian and criminal law and The Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.

    It’s time to hold politicians and weapon companies to account

    Lawyer Ahmed Abed told us that:

    Words of sorrow by the German government are worthless for the Palestinians in Gaza as long as it lets arms be used to kill them. It is time to bring accountability against the politicians and manufacturers who support the weapon export for the genocide.

    The Skylark drones are being used by the Israeli military to identify and surveil targets in Gaza, relaying real-time coordinates for artillery strikes. These strikes have resulted in the large-scale killing of civilians and the destruction of critical infrastructure.

    On Elbit’s website, Skylark is described as a ‘battle-proven, high­ performance’ system, which has been delivered to over 30 different users worldwide, and has ‘outstanding capabilities based on operational experience gained through tens of thousands of operational sorties by the IDF and various NATO and other international users’.

    The drone was first used in large quantities during Operation Protective Edge, in which Israel killed more than 2200 Palestinians in Gaza, including at least 500 children, in the Summer of 2014.

    El-Al is Israel’s national airline, and although privately owned, is known for its close relationship with the Israeli government, regarding security and for performing military operations, with the airline not only handling civilian air travel but also supporting national security initiatives, including logistics for the military.

    Featured image via the Canary

    By Charlie Jaay

    This post was originally published on Canary.

  • Rashida Tlaib Pens Plea to Trump Admin to Protect Gaza Freedom Flotilla

    As the Madleen drew closer to Gaza on its mission to deliver desperately needed humanitarian aid to the besieged enclave, Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib led a letter on Friday calling on the Trump administration to protect the Gaza Freedom Flotilla vessel and its 12 crew members. “We write to urge you to do everything in your power to ensure the safety of the ship and its unarmed…

    Source

    This post was originally published on Latest – Truthout.

  • Israel is now jamming the Freedom Flotilla’s communications – ‘preparing for an attack’

    The Freedom Flotilla Coalition is “a grassroots people-to-people solidarity movement composed of campaigns and initiatives from different parts of the world, working together to end the illegal Israeli blockade of Gaza”. It has been making the headlines recently as it heads to Gaza. But now, one of the on-board crew has warned that they believe Israel is preparing to attack it – again.

    The Freedom Flotilla

    The Freedom Flotilla re-set sail on 1 June. This was after Israel previously attacked the vessel. As the Canary reported at the time, armed Israeli drones attacked the front of the Freedom Flotilla, causing a fire and a substantial breach in the hull. The drone strike appears to have deliberately targeted the ship’s generator, leaving the crew without power and placing the vessel at great risk of sinking.

    Undeterred the group continued their voyage. The Freedom Flotilla is aiming to take aid to help the Palestinian people that Israel has been starving since as part of its ongoing genocide.

    However, now it seems Israel is preparing to attack the Freedom Flotilla again.

    Israel preparing to attack?

    Brazilian activist Thiago Avila is part of the Freedom Flotilla Madleen steering committee. This is a message he sent out on social media on Sunday 8 June:

    We are here on board the Madleen, to break the siege of Gaza and to create a people’s humanitarian corridor, and we just received some really weird news, that according to our tracker we are no longer 162 nautical miles from Gaza, which is where we are, but according to the tracker we are at Jordan airport.

    We know what that means, when they start jamming our communication, when they start messing with our devices, it means they are preparing for an interception, or an attack, and we all heard the Israeli media saying they deployed three special forces units (S13, S6 and S3) with 80 commandos each, and sea and air support with helicopter.

    They are all used to commit war crimes, and S13 is the same unit that massacred 10 of our Freedom Flotilla participants 15 years ago.

    They’re preparing to commit a war crime, and we need to stop that. We can stop that.

    This is highly likely. As the Times of Israel reported, defense minister Israel Katz has told the IDF to prepare to “prevent’ the boat from reaching Gaza. He said that “I have instructed the IDF to act so that the Madleen does not reach Gaza. To the antisemitic Greta [Thunberg] and her friends, I say clearly: You should turn back, because you will not reach Gaza”.

    Make some noise

    Avila continued:

    I’m convinced that if we mobilise enough, if we pressure enough the nation states, the governments, we can make such a pressure on the Zionist entity that they cannot afford to attack us, to intercept us.

    We still have a chance to save this humanitarian aid, to preserve this boat, this mission and ourselves. We count on you right now.

    Please share this news with everybody. There’s a lot at stake right now. We know this mission has been very successful in raising awareness and hope, but we still really need to guarantee the mission that we bring food to people who are being starved to death.

    We will see you soon. Big hug, let’s transform this world!

    Featured image via the Canary

    By Steve Topple

    This post was originally published on Canary.

  • Gaza plea: RSF, CPJ and 150+ media outlets call on Israel to open Strip to foreign journalists, protect Palestinian reporters

    Pacific Media Watch

    More than 150 press freedom advocacy groups and international newsrooms have joined Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) in issuing a public appeal demanding that Israel grant foreign journalists immediate, independent and unrestricted access to the Gaza Strip.

    The organisations are also calling for the full protection of Palestinian journalists, nearly 200 — the Gaza Media Office says more than 230 — of whom have been killed by the Israeli military over the past 20 months.

    For more than 20 months, Israeli authorities have barred foreign journalists from entering the Gaza Strip, says RSF in a media release.

    During the same period, the Israeli army killed nearly 200 Palestinian journalists in the blockaded territory, including at least 45 slain for their work.

    Palestinian journalists who continue reporting — the only witnesses on the ground — are facing unbearable conditions, including forced displacement, famine, and constant threats to their lives.

    This collective appeal, launched by RSF and CPJ, brings together prominent news outlets from every continent demanding the right to send correspondents into Gaza to report alongside Palestinian journalists.

    The signatories include Asia Pacific Report from Aotearoa New Zealand.

    “The media blockade imposed on Gaza, combined with the massacre of nearly 200 journalists by the Israeli army, is enabling the total destruction and erasure of the blockaded territory,” said RSF director-general Thibaut Bruttin.

    “Israeli authorities are banning foreign journalists from entering and ruthlessly asserting their control over information.

    “This is a methodical attempt to silence the facts, suppress the truth, and isolate the Palestinian press and population.

    Asia Pacific Report . . . one of the signatories
    Asia Pacific Report . . . one of the signatories to the Gaza plea. Image: APR

    “We call on governments, international institutions and heads of state to end their complicit silence, enforce the immediate opening of Gaza to foreign media, and uphold a principle that is frequently trampled — under international humanitarian law, killing a journalist is a war crime.

    “This principle has been violated far too often and must now be enforced.”

    RSF director-general Thibaut Bruttin speaking at the reception celebrating seven years of Taipei's Asia Pacific office
    RSF director-general Thibaut Bruttin speaking at the reception celebrating seven years of Taipei’s Asia Pacific office in October 2024. Image: Pacific Media Watch

    The media blockade on Gaza persists despite repeated calls from RSF to guarantee foreign journalists independent access to the Strip, and legal actions such as the Foreign Press Association’s (FPA) petition to the Israeli Supreme Court.

    Palestinian journalists, meanwhile, are trapped, displaced, starved, defamed and targeted due to their work.

    Those who have survived this unprecedented massacre of journalists now find themselves without shelter, equipment, medical care or even food, according to a CPJ report. They face the risk of being killed at any moment.

    To end the enduring impunity that allows these crimes to continue, RSF has repeatedly referred cases to the International Criminal Court (ICC), urging it to investigate alleged war crimes committed against journalists in Gaza by the Israeli army.

    RSF also provides aid to Palestinian journalists on the ground — particularly in Gaza — through partnerships with local organisations such as ARIJ (Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism).

    This partnership provides Palestinian journalists with psychological and professional support, ensuring the continued publication of high-quality reporting despite the blockade and the risks.

    Through this cooperation, RSF reaffirms its commitment to defending independent, rigorous journalism — even under the most extreme conditions.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Inside The Hamas Unit Fighting Israeli-Armed Gangs That Loot Aid

    The Israeli military is arming gangs to combat Hamas in Gaza, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed on Thursday. The revelation comes to light after right-wing Israeli lawmaker Avigdor Lieberman accused Netanyahu on Israeli public broadcaster Kan yesterday of arming a gang of hundreds of men in Rafah as a counterweight to Hamas influence in the Strip. The Prime Minister’s office responded by saying that it was combating the Palestinian resistance group “in various ways, on the recommendation of all heads of the security establishment.”

    Later, Netanyahu officially confirmed the reports in a video posted on X.

    The post Inside The Hamas Unit Fighting Israeli-Armed Gangs That Loot Aid appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

    This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.

  • The French Resistance To Israel’s Genocide In Palestine

    French dock workers in Fos-sur-Mer, near Marseille, are blocking the shipment of military equipment bound for Israel, protesting the Israeli military’s ongoing genocide of Palestinians in Gaza, France 24 reported on 6 June.

    The action, led by members of the CGT trade union, halted the loading of 19 pallets of bullet links—metal components used to enable rapid machine gun fire—onto a cargo vessel on Thursday.

    Christophe Claret, a union representative, confirmed that the shipment was identified and set aside after workers were notified of its contents.

    “Once dockers refuse to load a shipment, no one else can do it for them,” Claret told AFP. The remaining cargo for the vessel was loaded as scheduled.

    The post The French Resistance To Israel’s Genocide In Palestine appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

    This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.

  • The Canary speaks to Gazans about why a ‘Diplomatic Humanitarian Convoy’ is desperately needed

    The international community has failed Palestinians, who have suffered violence, oppression, and domination at the hands of Israel since 1948. In Gaza, a blockade which started in 2007 has prevented many essential items from entering the strip, including medical and educational supplies, while ensuring that Israel can limit the calorific intake of Gazans, mandating that they should only receive just the amount of food to avoid malnutrition, and nothing more.

    Gaza: a man-made starvation campaign

    Fast-forward to the last 20 months, and Israel has now manufactured a campaign of deliberate starvation in Gaza, which is not only a war crime, but is being used as a genocidal tool and a mechanism to forcibly displace the population, not only from the North of the Strip but, eventually, out of Gaza altogether. To facilitate this plan, Israel’s Security Cabinet recently approved the establishment of a ‘Voluntary Emigration Bureau for Gaza residents interested in relocating to third countries’.

    Rana Yassin, 27, lives in Tel al-Hawa in Northern Gaza, and is the mother of a two and a half year-old child. She has lost 10kg since the start of the genocide.

    Yassin confided:

    We used to be able to buy most things, when the borders were open, as Gaza’s products are normally cheap, but now people can’t get even the simplest things. If you have some money you can sometimes buy fish, but it is expensive because fishing is very risky. Fishermen are forbidden, by Israel, to enter the sea, but they risk their lives and go in anyway, so they can have something to eat and also get some income.

    Most people here suffer from malnutrition, including me, my son and my husband. There is really no food, but the rare times when you find any it is so expensive. We have some money, and went looking for food today but found nothing. My family are hungry all the time, and low glucose levels means it’s really difficult to do normal everyday tasks, and we feel fatigued most of the time.

    I am a person that normally remembers details, concentrates and am very good at studying, but now I have a lack of concentration and forget everything!

    The flour that is available in the markets, costing US $35 for 1kg, is now rotten. There are parasites in it, and it smells, so we shouldn’t use it, but we have to. Most of us have bad stomachs and diarrhea all the time because of rotten flour and food. We depend on canned food, but it is so expensive and very difficult to find now. Those who have no money are really truly starving in these days in Gaza, and some have become criminals just to be able to get food for their children.

    The number of crimes has increased a lot and now we have a curfew- after 7pm we cannot go to the streets because there are people that will kill you, if you have flour or any type of food. They are only aggressive because they have no other choices. They are just watching their children dying in front of their eyes and they cannot even provide them with bread. Before the war, even the people who had no money could eat well, because food was cheap and people helped each other. But now, even the rich can’t help the poor people, because they don’t have food either. It’s so difficult to stay OK in these conditions.

    18.5kg: the average weight loss during the first seven months of the genocide

    A study explored food insecurity and weight loss during the first seven months of the genocide among almost 500 residents of the Northern part of the Gaza Strip, aged between 13 and 83 years old. It found that the average weight loss was more than 18.5kg.

    According to the study, not only was there a near-total lack of vegetable, fruit, and protein intake, which accelerates muscle-wasting, and may also cause deficiencies in vital minerals and vitamins, but the reduced quantity and quality of food will:

    present a risk for a host of potentially serious and irreversible future complications.

    More than a year since this study took place, the situation has become so much worse, with the UN now calling Gaza the “hungriest place on Earth”, and warning that the entire population is at risk of famine. Yet, waiting at the Rafah border there is enough food to feed one million people for up to four months. However, Israel has not allowed its entry into Gaza. The slow deaths of starving Palestinians is entirely intentional.

    Dr Abed El Harazin says there are currently not enough medical staff in Gaza. He did what he could, working in both Al-Awda Hospital in the North, and Al-Aqsa Hospital in the South, for about 48 hours in each at a time when they were open.

    El Harazin explained that:

    Malnutrition rates are rising in Gaza, and emergency treatments to counter it are running out. Hunger could have a lasting impact on an entire generation, with more than one in five children malnourished at some sites.

    The deliberate obstruction of food and relief aid to civilians in Gaza has been condemned by the United Nations human rights office, stating that such actions could amount to a war crime. As a physician witnessing these conditions firsthand, I can attest that the long-term effects of malnutrition are profound. Children are particularly vulnerable, facing risks of stunted growth, cognitive impairments, and increased susceptibility to diseases.

    The blockade and ongoing conflict are not only causing immediate suffering, but are also jeopardising the future health and development of Gaza’s population. Immediate and unimpeded access to food, water and medical supplies is essential to prevent further loss of life, and to mitigate the long-term health consequences of this crisis.

    Failing to actively prevent and punish genocide is complicity

    Although in January 2024 the International Court of Justice (ICJ) found it “plausible that Israel’s actions in Gaza amount to genocide” and, in July of that year, that its “illegal occupation amounts to apartheid”, Western governments are silent over Israel’s genocide in Gaza, its military control of the West Bank, and its systematic violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law. They not only allow the illegal occupier to act with complete impunity, but also provide military and financial assistance.

    The UK also fly spy planes over Gaza, from its air base in Cyprus, Akrotiri. But even those who are not actively supporting Israel are violating their legal obligations if they are signatories to the Genocide Convention – which the UK, Germany, the US, and others are – but fail to take all measures within their power to actively prevent and punish acts of genocide.

    An initiative, collectively led by Palestinian civil society, and joined by almost 900 humanitarian and human rights organisations worldwide, has called for the immediate deployment of a Diplomatic Humanitarian Convoy through the Rafah Crossing, so states can adhere to their international legal obligations, and try and break the inhumane illegal siege of Gaza.

    International ‘inaction will lead to mass death in Gaza by starvation’

    It urges the international community to halt Israel’s manufactured famine in Gaza, by sending official diplomatic missions to accompany the aid trucks which are waiting at the crossing, and to enter into Gaza with them.

    Backed by a coalition of European and Arab states, with full UN support, and an international media presence to bear witness, the Diplomatic Humanitarian Convoy could deliver urgent assistance where needed, while offering a workable, peaceful way to break the siege, end the starvation, and affirm the world’s rejection of hunger as a weapon of war”, since:

    inaction will lead to mass death by starvation, enable further grave illegalities, and undermine the international legal system.

    Individual diplomats, ministers, and MPs of complicit states are urged to come forward and participate in a personal capacity. The proposed date range for the convoy is June 10-15, but this has not yet been confirmed, as state approvals are still pending, and consultations with the UN are still ongoing.

    States legally obliged to not only stop Israel’s war crimes, but to end its illegal occupation

    Law for Palestine and other organizations took up the task of organising and coordinating the call for this Convoy.

    Nourhan Fahmy is coordinator for the Convoy and also the Jurists for Palestine Forum at Law for Palestine, and says states bear the primary responsibility for taking action to stop Israel’s crimes, and confront the ongoing famine in Gaza.

    She said:

    Legally, according to the 2024 ICJ Advisory Opinion, which concluded that the Israeli presence in the oPt is in itself unlawful and it must end as soon as possible, states bear obligations to bring this occupation to an end in addition to their obligation to stop the ongoing violations of international law, including genocidal acts.

    In December 2024, a UN General Assembly Resolution called on Israel to comply with the Court’s Opinion and all other states to comply with their respective legal obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law.

    Morally speaking, states must not remain bystanders to a deliberate, man-made starvation inflicted upon the people of Gaza by deliberately preventing thousands of tonnes of humanitarian aid from entering the Strip & devising an alternative scheme that has failed to deliver aid in a dignified and protective manner to the Palestinians.

    Diplomatic Humanitarian Convoy: a direct challenge to the unlawful blockade on Gaza

    Other signatories of the Diplomatic Humanitarian Convoy Now Initiative include:

    Al-Haq is a Palestinian human rights NGO, based in the West Bank.

    The organisation’s spokesperson told the Canary:

    As Israel continues to weaponise food and aid distribution, subjecting Palestinians in Gaza to death by forced starvation and disease, it is long past time for states to fulfil their legal obligations: to end Israel’s siege, ensure unimpeded humanitarian access, and prevent this genocide from continuing.

    Participating in this convoy is one concrete step they can take towards upholding these binding obligations. This convoy is not only a response to the mass starvation in Gaza – it symbolises a collective assertion of international law, a rejection of impunity, and a direct challenge to the unlawful blockade imposed on an entire vulnerable and occupied population. Sending senior diplomatic delegations signals that states will not remain silent in the face of such grave violations.

    It confronts the use of starvation as a method of warfare and a genocidal act intended to create conditions of life calculated to destroy Palestinians in Gaza. As we are likely witnessing the final stages of Israel’s genocidal campaign in Gaza, it represents action before it is too late.

    Global Legal Action Network (GLAN) is an independent organisation which uses lawyers and investigators to help communities fight for justice across borders.

    Gearóid Ó Cuinn, founding director of GLAN, highlighted the importance of states taking action against Israel. He said that:

    For over 18 months, international law and the standards supposed to protect us all, have been steadily and recklessly dismantled with each atrocity committed in Gaza by Israel – in full view of world leaders. As the entire population is starved – it cannot be down to courageous individuals to break the siege.

    Israel’s weaponisation of aid delivery is undermining the very foundations of humanitarianism. States around the world must stop preparing statements of outrage and finally take meaningful action to save lives. They must uphold their obligation to prevent genocide and deliver urgent, coordinated humanitarian assistance now.

    An immediate humanitarian response needed by all governments

    The Peace Cycle advocates for peace and justice in Palestine through cycling, and aims to raise awareness of the illegal occupation of Palestine.

    Laura Abraham, founder of the Peace Cycle said:

    The suffering in Gaza is horrific beyond anything I can imagine. After almost 18 months of incessant bombing and destruction of life and the means of life, the Gazan people are now being deliberately and systematically starved.

    It is the responsibility of all people, of all nations, to respond with urgent aid and the demand for an immediate ceasefire. This is a man-made humanitarian catastrophe and the governments of the world must provide an immediate humanitarian response.

    If governments do not respond, what are they for? What is the point of having leadership if it doesn’t protect people, if it allows people to be maimed and starved by the hundreds of thousands? To save our own humanity, we have to act now! I salute and support all those involved in the humanitarian diplomatic convoy to Gaza.

    Defence for Children International (DCI) is also a signatory, supporting the calls for an immediate Diplomatic Humanitarian Convoy. Khaled Quzmar is the director of the organisation’s Palestine branch, Defence for Children International-Palestine (DCIP), and said:

    The crime of genocide has continued for more than 600 days in the Gaza Strip, and has spread to the West Bank. Israel’s ban on the entry of food and medicine, the closure of all crossings, and the continued international silence have made a catastrophic situation for civilians under siege in Gaza.

    It means a death sentence by starvation for more than one million Palestinian children in the Gaza Strip, in addition to more than 1.3 million Palestinian adults.

    Israel has not complied with the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice, or the appeals of international institutions and the United Nations operating in Palestine, while killing hundreds of humanitarian workers, doctors, and journalists without deterrence.

    So Palestinian human rights organisations, and those around the world, have called for international intervention to force the state of Israel to respect international law and stop its mass killing of Palestinians. This is why the Diplomatic Humanitarian Convoy is so important.

    It’s all about destroying the Palestinians

    Shahd Hammouri is an academic and international lawyer, and acted as a legal consultant on the ICJ Advisory Opinion on the Legality of the Israeli Occupation of Palestine. Hammouri is one of hundreds of international lawyers and legal experts who endorse the urgent and unified demand for a convoy.

    She said:

    Palestinian officials have declared Gaza’s man-made mass starvation to be a famine. Mothers cradle skeletal infants, scouring rubble for scraps. Fishermen shot dead for casting nets, chronically ill patients left without access to medication, aid trucks looted under the watch of Israeli drones. This is not collateral damage—it is a deliberate strategy to create conditions of life calculated to bring about the physical destruction of Palestinians in Gaza in whole or in part.

    Currently, the only aid distributed throughout Gaza is by the US-Israel backed Global Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a shady organisation of US mercenaries which has been accused, by the UN and other humanitarian organisations, of weaponising and politicising aid, of ‘drip-feeding food into an area on the verge of catastrophic hunger’, while Israel continues intensifying its airstrikes and ground operations.

    The GHF is failing to meet even the most basic humanitarian standards, and is forcing desperately hungry Palestinians to endure interrogation and bullets at its chaotic distribution sites.

    According to the Gaza government media office on Tuesday morning, 102 starving Palestinians accessing the GHF aid distribution sites have been killed, and 490 injured in just the first eight days of operation. It said that:

    These so called ‘aid distribution centres’, established in exposed, dangerous red zones under full Israeli military control, have turned into ‘mass-death traps’. Starving civilians, driven by suffocating famine and a severe blockade, are lured into these locations only to be deliberately shot at in cold blood – a scene that epitomises the malice of this project, and exposes its true objectives.

    The media office called on the United Nations, the Security Council, and all human rights organisations to:

    act immediately and exert all available pressure to open official crossings unconditionally, without Israeli interference, and to ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid through UN agencies and neutral international organisations- far from this deadly American-Israeli model.

    It warned that the continued international silence is:

    a stain on the conscience of humanity’ and ‘grants a green light for further atrocities.

    Netanyahu: without international support ‘we won’t be able to complete the mission of victory’

    The sole purpose of GHF is not to provide life-saving food for the malnourished and starving population of Gaza, but to quieten the growing international concerns, and ultimately to keep the war going until Gaza’s ethnic cleansing has been completed. Last month, Netanyahu explained his decision to allow ‘minimal humanitarian aid’ into Gaza by saying:

    We must not reach a state of hunger – not for practical reasons, and not for political ones. They simply won’t support us, and we won’t be able to complete the mission of victory.

    Hammouri said that:

    This is not just about Gaza. It is about to what extent nations care about international law. Participation in the diplomatic convoy fulfils the bare minimum of state responsibility in the face of an illegal occupation and an ongoing genocide. If the world accepts Israel’s blockade—if we outsource morality to algorithms and private military contractors—we greenlight a future where might makes right. A humanitarian diplomatic convoy is not just about delivering food. It is about reclaiming the principle that no government has the right to decide who eats and who starves. The time for handwringing is over. The time for action is now.

    The more states that join this initiative, the greater the likelihood this tactic of diplomatic pressure will succeed. So we need to show our support not only by raising awareness using social media, but also bringing up the call for the convoy to our representatives in parliament. In addition to the participation of states in a diplomatic humanitarian convoy, Palestinians are also demanding a complete embargo of the buying, selling, and transfer of arms and energy to Israel, suspension of all trade agreements and the sanctioning of Israeli officials.

    Other international solidarity initiatives also aiming to break the seige in Gaza

    Two civilian-led initiatives will also aim to break the illegal siege in Gaza this month.

    The Freedom Flotilla’s Madleen is sailing from Sicily, towards Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid and raise international awareness about the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza, while the Global March to Gaza will see activists and health care professionals from more than 30 countries put pressure on international bodies to take action.

    Participants will gather in Egypt on 12 June, and march to the Rafah border, where they will be as part of a week-long protest. The aim of the march is to negotiate the opening of the Rafah crossing with the Egyptian authorities, in collaboration with NGOs, diplomats, and humanitarian institutions.

    Featured image via the Canary

    By Charlie Jaay

    This post was originally published on Canary.

  • EU Nations Condemning Gaza Genocide Secretly Ink Arms Deals With Israel

    NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and European Commissioner for Defence and Space Andrius Kubilius believe Russia could launch a full-scale attack on Europe by 2030, a fear that has prompted governments across the continent to prepare for war. As European citizens stockpile food and governments ramp up military readiness, one country sees opportunity in that fear: Israel.

    The European Union is planning to increase its military budget by €800 billion ($900 billion) over the next four years. With the United States pulling back military support for NATO, EU member states are seeking new defense partners, and Israel is stepping in, offering weapons tested on occupied and besieged populations.

    The post EU Nations Condemning Gaza Genocide Secretly Ink Arms Deals With Israel appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

    This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.

  • Progressives Introduce “Block the Bombs Act” as Israel Escalates Gaza Genocide

    With over 54,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip killed by the Israeli assault and the 2 million survivors suffering from the ongoing bombings and blockade on essentials, nearly two dozens progressives in the U.S. Congress came together Thursday to call for passage of a bill that would withhold offensive weapons from Israel. Like former Democratic U.S. President Joe Biden…

    Source

    This post was originally published on Latest – Truthout.

  • Israel is funding ISIS-backed terrorists in Gaza to further the genocide – and they’ve admitted it

    A week ago, MintPress News reported that Israel had been supporting extremist criminal militias in Gaza, with links to Daesh (Isis), as they looted humanitarian aid. And now, Israeli politicians – including war criminal prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu himself – are essentially confirming that. This comes amid a genocidal starvation campaign aiming to push Palestinians into despair and out of Gaza.

    Netanyahu: ‘We did that. So what?’

    Images have shown the Daesh-linked extremists, which oppose Hamas in Gaza, “brandishing automatic weapons” and “wearing Israeli military tactical vests”. MintPress described them as “an infamous criminal network responsible for looting humanitarian aid”, further worsening the already dire situation for people in Gaza. Even the UN has previously suggested Israeli involvement in supporting these criminals’ actions, especially since May 2024.

    Yesterday (5 June), meanwhile, Israeli politician Avigdor Lieberman claimed Netanyahu had arranged arms transfers to “clans associated with ISIS“. Netanyahu’s office stressed that his regime was trying to undermine Hamas in “diverse ways”. The Diplomatic-Security Cabinet added that “Israel does act to create conflict between Hamas and other forces”. Later, Netanyahu said:

    we activated clans in Gaza that oppose Hamas. What’s wrong with that?

    There have been dozens of deaths as Israel has reluctantly allowed small amounts of aid into Gaza in recent days. And some of those may have links to the extremists Israel has supported. As a senior humanitarian official told MintPress:

    Anyone telling you the gangs are helping the people is a liar

    Israel’s relative comfort with Daesh

    The Israeli colonial project long saw “Islamists as a useful ally against communism”, fostering religious ideology to undermine secular Palestinian resistance. But while Hamas aren’t progressive champions, they’re more about national liberation, and they’re certainly not the same as Al-Qaeda or Daesh. Because these groups “label other Muslims heretics [or] apostates” and have strong links to Saudi Arabia‘s state ideology of Wahhabism (which is not representative of the world’s Muslim community).

    Daesh hates the coalition of Iran, Hezbollah, and Hamas. And because Israel does too, it always considered Daesh less of a threat. For that reason, there have been many moments where Israel and Daesh strategically coexisted or avoided conflict. Some high-profile figures in the region even hinted at links between them.

    But now, amid the global scholarly consensus that Israel has been committing genocide in Gaza since October 2023, it seems Netanyahu doesn’t care what the world thinks anymore. So he’s essentially happy to admit backing Daesh fanboys in Gaza.

    Featured image via the Canary

    By Ed Sykes

    This post was originally published on Canary.

  • Gaza on Eid al-Adha: The sound of hunger deepens the silence of the takbirs

    On a holiday that reminds the world of faith, sacrifice, and joy, Gaza enters the holiday as if it were straight out of a book about forgotten famines and long wars. No meat is bought, no animals are slaughtered, and no children are dressed in new clothes. In Gaza, there is no sound of takbir, because the only sound is the groaning of empty stomachs, the silence of abandoned homes, and the crying of mothers in displacement tents. Talk of the decline of Eid rituals in Gaza is no longer a matter of poverty or temporary economic decline, but rather an accurate description of the total collapse of life under siege, bombardment, and organised famine.

    Here, rituals are not performed because human beings themselves are no longer able to survive, and all that concerns the people of Gaza today is physical survival… even if only for another day.

    In a sector that has been besieged for years, starved for months and targeted for decades, Eid is no longer a time for joy, but rather a time for disappointment and a stark reminder that Gaza is not only a besieged city, but also a people deprived of the bare minimum of existence.

    Eid without sacrifices – just relentless hunger

    In other parts of the world, Eid al-Adha is an occasion for loved ones to gather, to draw closer to God by slaughtering sacrifices, for markets to bustle with the smell of fresh meat, and for children to rejoice in the joy of the holiday. But in Gaza, no sacrifices will be slaughtered this year. There will be no markets teeming with livestock, no meat to cook, and no joy to speak of.

    The Israeli blockade and the ongoing war since October 2023 have destroyed all components of economic life. Livestock farms have been burned or rendered unusable, and commercial and community infrastructure has been completely destroyed. Purchasing power no longer exists, and prices have risen dramatically, exceeding 50 times their previous levels, making meat and basic goods affordable to only a very small percentage of the population.

    Total economic collapse

    During last year’s Eid al-Adha (2024), less than 1% of Gaza’s population was able to secure a sacrifice through hard-to-reach external donations. This year, the situation is even more dire. Thousands of families are searching for their daily bread amid severe food shortages and an almost complete loss of electricity and clean water.

    The talk is no longer about religious rituals, but about physical survival in the face of the worst conditions in the history of the Strip. With no effective humanitarian aid coming in since March 2025, hunger is spreading to infants and children, and Gaza is turning into an open prison where there is no difference between the cruelty of occupation and the cruelty of slow death.

    Children without joy and mothers without hope this Eid

    In displacement camps and mud huts, stories abound of mothers forced to tell their children that Eid has been postponed. No games, no laughter, just pale faces and lost eyes searching for a moment of safety in the darkness.

    A mother from Rafah said in a broken voice to me:

    How can I explain to them that this year’s Eid is waiting for bread that will never come? And that the lamb has become a dream we cannot afford?

    These words represent the real tragedy that cannot be conveyed through pictures or reports, but is engraved in the hearts of those who have nothing but memories that fade with each difficult day.

    International silence… and the ongoing Israeli siege

    Despite appeals from international organisations and statements of condemnation, Israel has continued to refuse to open the crossings to allow food and medical aid to enter since March 2025. Even frozen meat, which used to arrive through the limited efforts of international organisations, no longer arrives.

    The international community is moving very slowly, and aid is beset by complex political conditions, while the people of Gaza are being slaughtered by hunger and disease, and their holidays are buried under the rubble.

    Gaza without a holiday, and a world without conscience

    In a city where sacrifice was an act of devotion to God and a source of joy for its people, the people themselves have become the real sacrifices. The siege, the bombing, the hunger, and all forms of systematic violence have killed joy and turned the holiday into another day of pain and fear.

    Gaza is not only a besieged city, but also a people deprived of their right to life, whose holidays have been stolen from them long ago. And the global conscience, despite all the cries, remains silent.

    Featured image via the Canary

    By Alaa Shamali

  • Experts just declared that the US is a “perpetrator of genocide” in Gaza

    After the US vetoed yet another UN call for an Israel ceasefire in Gaza, the Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention has insisted that:

    There can be no doubt now that the #UnitedStates is a perpetrator of genocide in Palestine.

    This isn’t just Israel’s genocide

    The US has a long record of settler-colonial genocide at home and abroad. But both the blue and red wings of the country’s establishment – with the support of the mainstream media – have perhaps outdone even their own country’s awful record since October 2023 by fuelling Israel’s genocide in Gaza, which has killed at least one Palestinian child every hour for 20 months. Even Israel knows US support is essential for its crimes to continue.

    As the Lemkin Institute insisted:

    It is not surprising that many Americans would embrace genocide. The country was founded on genocide and institutionalized a genocidal form of slavery… The enduring mainstream institutions of the state and society remain comfortable with the genocide of non-white people.

    However, it noted that “the majority of the ordinary people of the United States… are not comfortable with genocide”, stressing:

    We hope Americans will pull together to eventually hold their leadership – in both parties – accountable for the PERPETRATION of genocide in Palestine.

    The United States was the only country on the UN Security Council to vote against the new draft resolution on 4 June, and there were no abstentions. The resolution sought “an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire, the unconditional release of hostages held by Hamas and others and the immediate lifting of all aid restrictions”.

    Polish-Jewish lawyer Raphael Lemkin proposed condemning the crime of genocide back in 1944. And eight decades later, the institute carrying his name asserted in 2024 that:

    One might even say that Lemkin’s definition fits the situation in Palestine for the past 76 years.

    Academics from Israel itself, meanwhile, have joined the global scholarly consensus that the apartheid state has been committing genocide since October 2023.

    The world wants the US-Israeli genocide to stop

    As peace group Code Pink has insisted:

    Regardless of how many times the US vetoes a ceasefire resolution, one thing will always be true:

    Virtually the entire world opposes the US-Israeli genocide in Gaza.

    Indeed, YouGov has just revealed that, even in Western Europe (which usually backs the US and its Israeli outpost):

    public support and sympathy for Israel have reached their lowest ebb

    The British state, itself a junior partner of US global plunder, has come under constantly increasing pressure in the streets, in court, and in parliament to end its political and material support for Israel’s genocide. But as author Michael Rosen has pointed out:

    Most of the world wants it to stop.

    The US doesn’t want it to stop.

    So it doesn’t stop.

    Featured image via the Canary

    By Ed Sykes

    This post was originally published on Canary.

  • Flotilla: If We Don’t Act Now, We’ll Be Complicit In Annihilation Of Palestinians

    I was privileged to be in Catania over the past week to see the Madleen embark on its mission to deliver vital humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.

    The Madleen is one of the boats of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, which hopes to bring about an end to Israel’s blockade of Gaza. The boat departed Sicily on Sunday carrying a dozen activists along with food, medicine and other supplies.

    Two million Gazans have suffered under siege by Israel for many months now. I arrived at the port and was met with a feeling of hope, care and bravery. There is no freedom without solidarity, and the Freedom Flotilla is solidarity.

    The post Flotilla: If We Don’t Act Now, We’ll Be Complicit In Annihilation Of Palestinians appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

    This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.

  • Hamas Slams Fifth US Veto Of United Nations Gaza Ceasefire Resolution

    Hamas condemned the US decision to veto a UN Security Council (UNSC) Resolution for a ceasefire in Gaza on 4 June, labeling it a “green light” for Israel to continue its genocidal war against the strip.

    “The US veto embodies the US administration’s blind bias towards the fascist occupation government and supports its crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip,” the Palestinian resistance movement said in a statement on Wednesday evening.

    The decision is “a green light for the war criminal Netanyahu, wanted by the International Criminal Court, to continue his brutal war of extermination against innocent civilians, including children, women, and the elderly,” the statement added, stressing that it confirms Washington’s “full complicity in this ongoing crime.”

    The post Hamas Slams Fifth US Veto Of United Nations Gaza Ceasefire Resolution appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

    This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.

  • Revulsion For Israel Surges Worldwide, New Survey Finds

    Twenty months into its livestreamed and accelerating genocide in Gaza, it would hardly be controversial to conclude that Israel is one of the world’s most hated countries.

    But a new global survey from the US-based Pew Research Center indicates just how unpopular it has become, especially in the North American and European states where Tel Aviv has always drawn its main sources of financial, military and political support.

    “In 20 of the 24 countries surveyed, around half of adults or more have an unfavorable view of Israel,” Pew reported on 3 June. “Around three-quarters or more hold this view in Australia, Greece, Indonesia, Japan, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Turkey.”

    The post Revulsion For Israel Surges Worldwide, New Survey Finds appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

    This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.

  • Zen And The Art Of New York Times Headline Writing

    The New York Times has just published one of the most insane headlines I have ever seen it publish, which is really saying something.

    “Gaza’s Deadly Aid Deliveries,” the title blares.

    If you were among the majority of people who only skim the headline without reading the rest of the article, you would have no idea that Israel has spent the last few days massacring starving civilians at aid sites and lying about it. You would also have no idea that it is Israel who’s been starving them in the first place.

    https://x.com/AssalRad/status/1930322086767276353

    The headline is written in such a passive, amorphous way that it sounds like the aid deliveries themselves are deadly. Like the bags of flour are picking up assault rifles and firing on desperate Palestinians queuing for food or something.

    The sub-headline is no better: “Israel’s troops have repeatedly shot near food distribution sites.”

    Oh? They’ve shot “near” food distribution sites, have they? Could their discharging their weapons in close proximity to the aid sites possibly have something to do with the aforementioned deadliness of the aid deliveries? Are we the readers supposed to connect these two pieces of information for ourselves, or are we meant to view them as two separate data points which may or may not have anything to do with one another?

    The article itself makes it clear that Israel has admitted that IDF troops fired their weapons “near” people waiting for aid after they failed to respond to “warning shots”, so you don’t have to be Sherlock Holmes to figure out what happened here. But in mainstream publications, the headlines are written by editors, not by the journalists who write the articles. So, they get to frame the story in whatever way suits their propaganda agenda for the majority who never read past the headline.

    https://x.com/AssalRad/status/1925342359912685809

    We saw another amazingly manipulative New York Times headline last month, “Israeli Soldiers Fire in Air to Disperse Western Diplomats in West Bank,” about the IDF firing “warning shots” at a delegation of foreign officials attempting to visit Jenin.

    This was a story that provoked outcry and condemnation throughout the Western world, but look at the lengths the New York Times editor went to in order to frame the IDF’s actions in the most innocent way possible. They were firing into the air. They were firing “to disperse western diplomats”—like that’s a thing. Like diplomats are crows on a cornfield or something. Oh yeah, ya know ya get too many diplomats flockin’ around and ya gotta fire a few rounds to disperse ’em. Just normal stuff.

    It’s amazing how creative these freaks get when they need to exonerate Israel and its Western allies of their crimes publicly. The IDF commits a war crime, and suddenly these stuffy mass media editors who’ve never created any art in their lives transform into poets, bending and twisting the English language to come up with lines that read more like Zen koans than reporting on an important news event.

    It’s impossible to have too much disdain for these people.

    The post Zen And The Art Of New York Times Headline Writing first appeared on Dissident Voice.

    This post was originally published on Dissident Voice.

  • Actor Liam Cunningham says BBC’s pro-Israel bias is like ‘contacting Himmler for his take’ on the Holocaust

    Game of Thrones star Liam Cunningham has criticised the BBC‘s “jaw-dropping” bias towards Israel during its genocide in Gaza as akin to asking a Nazi official to comment on the Holocaust.

    Liam Cunningham pulls no punches

    Speaking to journalist Mehdi Hasan, Liam Cunningham stressed that BBC News has approached him but that “there is not a hope in hell of me going on the BBC at the moment”. The reason is that BBC coverage of Israel’s genocide is “like watching a movie”, due to its apparent attempts at ‘evenhandedness’ and ‘impartiality’. And he asked the question:

    Are we saying, due to impartiality, that if this was 1944 or 1945 when we discovered the horrors of Auschwitz, would we be contacting Heinrich Himmler for his take on the genocide? Because that’s what’s going on now. I find it astonishing.

    Hasan agreed, saying:

    It’s a tragic scene that we’re in where, as you say, people want to be evenhanded in a genocide.

    And it’s not just the BBC. Because most mainstream media outlets continue to provide a platform for genocide-supporters or genocide apologists to spout propaganda even as the settler-colonial state they’re defending is starving children to death to get what it wants.

    This behaviour is all the more disgusting, Hasan pointed out, because of the hypocrisy mainstream outlets display on Israel. As he said:

    I don’t think the BBC wait for the Russian military response every time they report on a missile attack on Kyiv.

    Things only change when people stand up and resist

    In recent days, Liam Cunningham has shown his support for the Freedom Flotilla campaigners currently seeking to take aid to Gaza by boat. And in one video, he criticised governments for failing to stand up for international law, adding:

    The only things that have changed the world radically have not come from the seats of government. it’s come from people standing up and saying ‘we’ve had enough’.

    Referencing the global scholarly consensus that Israel is committing genocide, he said:

    We’re sick of weasel words. We’re sick of appeasement with people saying ‘oh, we’re going to think about sanctioning, we’re gonna think about this, we’re gonna stop a trade deal’. Not enough! The words are not enough. Action is required.

    Featured image via screengrab

    By Ed Sykes

    This post was originally published on Canary.

  • Israeli Academics Call for Boycott of Israel’s Medical Institutions

    We speak to political scientist Neve Gordon and medical anthropologist Guy Shalev about their new article, “The Shame of Israeli Medicine,” which looks at the “complicity of the Israeli medical establishment with Israel’s egregious violations of international law.” The article’s third author, Osama Tanous, is a Palestinian citizen of Israel and has not been able to make media appearances for fear…

    Source

  • Performers pull out of Grampian Pride in boycott against fossil fuel industry sponsorship

    Campaigners are taking Grampian Pride to task over its sponsorship by oil majors, including BP and Shell.

    The Aberdeen-based Pride is the last in the UK to accept money from fossil fuel companies. Over 45 Prides across the country have stated they will never accept money from the industry on climate grounds.

    Grampian Pride sponsorship: oil money out

    Campaigners have directed particular criticism towards BP due to its role as a major supplier of fuel to Israel. The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline supplies almost one third of Israel’s fuel and BP is the operator and largest shareholder. The Israeli Ministry of Energy has also granted gas exploration licenses to BP. Campaigners claim that these are in “occupied Palestinian waters” during a period that has been described as “genocide” by international diplomats.

    Eight artists, around one-third of the original Grampian Pride lineup, have withdrawn from performing. This was after Queers for Palestine, Fossil Free Pride and Energy Embargo For Palestine called for a boycott over BP’s sponsorship of the event. Several performers gave statements explaining their withdrawal.

    Catriona Molver Entertainment said that:

    I knew I couldn’t in good faith put my face and name to something that associates with industries that fund this genocide. I haven’t taken any of this lightly but ultimately this feels like the correct decision for me.

    Nushka stated:

    I really, really wanted to play Grampian Pride. They were the first pride parade I’d ever been to. It meant the world to me. But it’s 2025. BP and Shell are comfortably complicit in the genocide in Gaza. Their sponsorship of Pride is deeply saddening, and I just can’t do this.

    Erin Main said:

    Grampian Pride being funded by zionist oil and gas companies has always rubbed me the wrong way but I hoped they would eventually come to their senses, which it seems like won’t be happening until there are consequences for their actions.

    Pinkwashing fossil fuel companies

    In the run up to Grampian Pride, a ‘Queers Against BP Pride Protest Bloc‘ has been organised as part of the march. An organiser from Fossil Free Pride commented:

    BP’s cynical use of Grampian Pride as a pinkwashing opportunity cannot go unchallenged. If the sponsorship will not be dropped, we must oppose their image-cleansing moment loudly. There is no flag big enough to hide the blood on BP’s hands.

    An Energy Embargo For Palestine organiser commented:

    While BP and Shell executives attempt to launder their images by sponsoring a community event celebrating queer joy and resistance, they continue to fuel and profit from the ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people. We are taking a stand against BP and Shell’s sponsorship of Grampian Pride because these sponsorships legitimise BP and Shell’s destructive operations against our communities, under the guise of ‘corporate responsibility’. Grampian Pride must drop BP and Shell as sponsors going forward.

    Featured image via screengrab

    By The Canary

    This post was originally published on Canary.

  • Israel’s Rockets Make the Joy of Eid Impossible in Gaza for a Second Year

    In Islamic culture, Eid al-Adha carries deep meanings of compassion and solidarity. This celebration, which begins this year on June 6 and lasts four days, commemorates Prophet Ibrahim’s willingness to sacrifice his son Ismail in obedience to a divine vision, before God intervened and provided a ram instead. When we distribute the meat of the sacrificed animals, a share must go to the poor and the…

    Source

    This post was originally published on Latest – Truthout.

  • Red Line for Palestine: UK Protest Demands Arms Embargo on Israel

    This content originally appeared on Human Rights Watch and was authored by Human Rights Watch.

  • Enfield Council drags its feet as thousands push for divestment from genocide-complicit companies

    Campaigners in Enfield worked hard for months to collect and submit over three thousand signatures calling for the local council to divest from companies complicit in Israel’s genocide against Palestinians. The council, however, has so far failed to commit to voting on the matter. But pressure is building in the London borough, as campaigners refuse to back down.

    Enfield: thousands back the petition, but the council drags its feet

    At least 81 local government pension funds invest in complicit companies. And a Freedom of Information request revealed in 2024 that Enfield Council “invests more than £53 million of workers’ pension funds in companies complicit in human rights violations, apartheid and genocide in Palestine”. Subsequently, a grassroots effort from Enfield Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Enfield Solidarity with Palestine, and Enfield Stop the War Coalition managed to collect over 3,500 signatures for a petition calling on the Enfield Council Pension Fund committee to “divest all Local Government Pension Scheme funds from companies complicit in Israel’s violations of human rights and International Law”.

    Enfield4Palestine told the Canary that campaigners haven’t yet received a response to the petition from the council, saying:

    Despite the submission on the 7th April we are disappointed to be still waiting for confirmation of presenting the petition at the June 24th council meeting.

    They had previously asked for a rough timeline of what to expect and received a response asserting that, upon receiving the petition:

    We will then need to verify the signatures – this normally takes about 2 weeks. If the verification process confirms that you have triggered a debate at either OSC or Council, we will place the item on the next meeting date that suits all parties.

    Although they expected an update after “about 2 weeks”, two months have now passed. And they’re calling on Enfield residents:

    to contact their local councillor to make their views known about the situation in Gaza and for the councillors to fulfill their fiduciary duty and vote to divest pension funds from unethical companies complicit in the atrocities that we see.

    This is the link for residents to contact the council.

    Grassroots power is growing

    The council recently refused to let campaigners use a local council hall for educational meetings on Palestine, claiming this “had the potential to raise community tension with the event dealing with a delicate and emotional topic”. This was the topic in question:

    This obstacle hasn’t stopped campaigners from organising, however. And they will host an event on 5 June:

    The context surrounding the campaigning is one of increasing community engagement in Enfield.

    In 2024, Khalid Sadur ran as an anti-war, anti-austerity independent to challenge Labour in the general election. Later in the year, in an Enfield Council by-election race for which he received Jeremy Corbyn’s endorsement, his low-budget community movement became the main opposition to Labour-Tory domination in the area.

    Sadur has been supporting the calls for divestment. And he told the Canary:

    Since the Independent challenge at the General Election last year, we have seen a growing number of people becoming more involved in local activism.

    From by-elections to divestment, library closures to the felling of the 500 year old oak tree in Whitewebbs park, Enfield residents are coming out and making their voice heard.

    He added:

    There is a growing understanding that campaigning and protest is necessary to hold elected officials to account, especially when these same represenatatives fail to reply to emails or attend local surgeries.

    The local elections in May 2026 will certainly provide a real alternative to the mainstream parties.

    Why won’t Enfield council respond?

    Councillors’ silence has so far disappointed campaigners, in an area that is increasingly standing up for what it believes is right.

    With thousands of local residents asking the council to divest from unethical companies, holding a vote at the meeting on 24 June would seem like the most appropriate course of action. The question for the council to answer, then, is ‘why won’t you commit to a vote?’

    Enfield

    Enfield

    Featured image and additional images supplied

    By Ed Sykes

    This post was originally published on Canary.