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Tag: Palestine

  • Israeli strikes kill 29 Palestinians, including children, one of highest tolls since ceasefire

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    Hospitals in Gaza said Israeli strikes killed at least 29 Palestinians Saturday, one of the highest tolls since the October ceasefire aimed at stopping the war.Israeli strikes hit locations throughout Gaza, including lethal ones on an apartment building in Gaza City and a tent camp in Khan Younis, officials at hospitals that received the bodies said. The casualties included two women and six children from two different families. An airstrike also hit a police station in Gaza City, killing at least 14 and wounding others, Shifa Hospital director Mohamed Abu Selmiya said.Related video above: The last family in a West Bank Bedouin community is forced out after years of Israeli settler intimidationThe series of strikes came a day before the Rafah crossing along the border with Egypt is set to open in Gaza’s southernmost city. All of the territory’s border crossings have been closed throughout almost the entire war. Palestinians see Rafah as a lifeline for the tens of thousands who need treatment outside the territory, where the majority of medical infrastructure has been destroyed.The crossing’s opening, limited at first, marks the first major step in the second phase of the U.S.-brokered ceasefire. Reopening borders is among the challenging issues on the agenda for the phase now underway, which also include demilitarizing the strip after nearly two decades of Hamas rule and installing a new government to oversee reconstruction. Still, Saturday’s strikes are a reminder that the death toll in Gaza is still rising even as the ceasefire agreement inches forward. Nasser Hospital said the strike on the tent camp caused a fire to break out, killing seven, including a father, his three children and three grandchildren. Meanwhile, Shifa Hospital said the Gaza City apartment building strike killed three children, their aunt and grandmother on Saturday morning, while the strike on the police station killed at least 14 — officers, including four policewomen, and inmates held at the station. The Gazan Interior Ministry said Palestinian civilians were also killed in the strike.Hamas called Saturday’s strikes “a renewed flagrant violation” and urged the United States and other mediating countries to push Israel to stop strikes.Israel’s military, which has struck targets on both sides of the ceasefire’s dividing line, said its attacks since October have been responses to violations of the agreement. It said in a statement that Saturday’s strikes followed what it described as ceasefire violations a day earlier, when the army killed at least four militants emerging from a tunnel in an Israeli-controlled area of Rafah.Gaza’s Health Ministry has recorded 509 Palestinians killed by Israeli fire since the start of the ceasefire on Oct. 10. The ministry maintains detailed casualty records that are seen as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and independent experts.___Magdy reported from Cairo and Metz from Jerusalem.

    DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip —

    Hospitals in Gaza said Israeli strikes killed at least 29 Palestinians Saturday, one of the highest tolls since the October ceasefire aimed at stopping the war.

    Israeli strikes hit locations throughout Gaza, including lethal ones on an apartment building in Gaza City and a tent camp in Khan Younis, officials at hospitals that received the bodies said. The casualties included two women and six children from two different families. An airstrike also hit a police station in Gaza City, killing at least 14 and wounding others, Shifa Hospital director Mohamed Abu Selmiya said.

    Related video above: The last family in a West Bank Bedouin community is forced out after years of Israeli settler intimidation

    The series of strikes came a day before the Rafah crossing along the border with Egypt is set to open in Gaza’s southernmost city. All of the territory’s border crossings have been closed throughout almost the entire war. Palestinians see Rafah as a lifeline for the tens of thousands who need treatment outside the territory, where the majority of medical infrastructure has been destroyed.

    Anadolu

    Smoke rises after an airstrike hit a building in the al-Mawasi area of Khan Yunis, Gaza, despite the ceasefire on January 31, 2026. The Israeli army has carried out intense attacks on various areas of the Gaza Strip since the morning.

    The crossing’s opening, limited at first, marks the first major step in the second phase of the U.S.-brokered ceasefire. Reopening borders is among the challenging issues on the agenda for the phase now underway, which also include demilitarizing the strip after nearly two decades of Hamas rule and installing a new government to oversee reconstruction.

    Still, Saturday’s strikes are a reminder that the death toll in Gaza is still rising even as the ceasefire agreement inches forward.

    Nasser Hospital said the strike on the tent camp caused a fire to break out, killing seven, including a father, his three children and three grandchildren. Meanwhile, Shifa Hospital said the Gaza City apartment building strike killed three children, their aunt and grandmother on Saturday morning, while the strike on the police station killed at least 14 — officers, including four policewomen, and inmates held at the station. The Gazan Interior Ministry said Palestinian civilians were also killed in the strike.

    Hamas called Saturday’s strikes “a renewed flagrant violation” and urged the United States and other mediating countries to push Israel to stop strikes.

    Israel’s military, which has struck targets on both sides of the ceasefire’s dividing line, said its attacks since October have been responses to violations of the agreement. It said in a statement that Saturday’s strikes followed what it described as ceasefire violations a day earlier, when the army killed at least four militants emerging from a tunnel in an Israeli-controlled area of Rafah.

    Gaza’s Health Ministry has recorded 509 Palestinians killed by Israeli fire since the start of the ceasefire on Oct. 10. The ministry maintains detailed casualty records that are seen as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and independent experts.

    ___

    Magdy reported from Cairo and Metz from Jerusalem.

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  • Bollywood Stars Who Spoke Up for Palestine Amid Gaza Crisis | Filmfare.com

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    From Alia Bhatt to Sonam Kapoor, several Indian film personalities used their platforms to call for peace and protection of civilians amid humanitarian crisis in Gaza, Palestine.

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    Filmfare

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  • Israeli troops kill Palestinians for crossing a vague ceasefire line

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    A dividing line, at times invisible, can mean life or death for Palestinians in Gaza.Those sheltering near the territory’s “yellow line” that the Israeli military withdrew to as part of the October ceasefire say they live in fear as Israeli soldiers direct near-daily fire at anyone who crosses or even lingers near it.Video above: Palestinians struggle for food amid floodingOf the 447 Palestinians killed between the ceasefire taking effect and Tuesday, at least 77 were killed by Israeli gunfire near the line, including 62 who crossed it, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Among them were teenagers and young children, The Associated Press found.And although the military has placed some yellow barrels and concrete barriers delineating the limits of the Palestinian zone, the line is still unmarked in certain places and in others was laid nearly half a kilometer (0.3 miles) deeper than what was agreed to in the ceasefire deal, expanding the part of Gaza that Israel controls, according to Palestinians and mapping experts.“We stay away from the barrels. No one dares to get close” said Gaza City resident Ahmed Abu Jahal, noting that the markers are less than 100 meters (110 yards) from his house — instead of the roughly 500 meters (546 yards) outlined in a map put out by the Israeli military.As of Tuesday, the military had acknowledged killing 57 people around the yellow line, saying most were militants. It said its troops are complying with the rules of engagement in order to counter militant groups, and are informing Palestinians of the line’s location and marking it on the ground to “reduce friction and prevent misunderstandings.”Easy to get lostUnder the ceasefire, Israel withdrew its troops to a buffer zone that is up to 7 kilometers (4 miles) deep and includes most of Gaza’s arable land, its elevated points and all of its border crossings. That hems more than 2 million Palestinians into a strip along the coastline and central Gaza.People of all ages, some already dead, have been showing up almost daily at the emergency room of Gaza City’s Al-Ahli hospital with bullet wounds from straying near the line, said hospital director Fadel Naeem.Amid the vast destruction in Gaza, the demarcation line often isn’t easy to detect, Naeem said. He recounted picking his way through undamaged paths during a recent visit to the southern city of Khan Younis. He didn’t notice he was almost across the line until locals shouted at him to turn back, he said.The Israeli military said most of the people it has killed crossing the line posed a threat to its troops. According to a military official who spoke on the condition of anonymity in line with military rules, troops issue audible warnings and then fire warning shots whenever someone crosses the line. Many civilians retreat when warning shots are fired, though some have been killed, the official acknowledged.Killed while playing near the lineZaher Shamia, 17, lived with his grandfather in a tent 300 meters (330 yards) from the line in northern Gaza’s Jabaliya refugee camp. On Dec. 10, he was playing with his cousin and some friends near the line, according to video he took before his death.Suddenly, shots rang out and the video stopped. Soldiers approaching the line with an armored bulldozer had fired on the teens, hitting Zaher, said a witness.A neighbor eventually found Zaher’s body, which had been crushed by the bulldozer, said Zaher’s grandfather, Kamal al-Beih: “We only recognized him from his head.”Two doctors, Mohamed Abu Selmiya and Rami Mhanna, confirmed that the teen had been killed by gunshots and then run over by a bulldozer. The military official said he was aware that Shamia was a civilian and that the military was looking into it.Maram Atta said that on Dec. 7, her 3-year-old daughter, Ahed al-Bayouk, was playing with siblings outside of their tent, which was near the yellow line along Gaza’s southern coast. Atta was preparing lentils when she heard aircraft overhead, then shots.A stray projectile whizzed close to her and struck Ahed, who was dead before they reached the clinic.“I lost my daughter to what they keep calling a ‘ceasefire’” said Atta, crying. “What ceasefire are they talking about?”A military official denied the killing.Deadly ambiguityThe line’s exact location is ambiguous, differing on maps put out by the Israeli military and the White House.Neither matches the line troops appear to be marking on the ground, according to Palestinians and geolocation specialists.Video below: Palestinians react to UN plan for Gaza futureChris Osiek, an open source intelligence analyst and consultant, has geolocated a number of yellow blocks based on social media videos. He found at least four urban areas where troops set the blocks several hundred meters deeper into Gaza than the military map-specified yellow line.“This is basically what you get when you simply let Trump make an image and post it on Truth Social and let the IDF make their own,” he said, using the acronym for the military. “If it’s not a proper system, with coordinates that make it easy for people to navigate where it is, then you leave the ambiguity free for the IDF to interpret the yellow line how they basically want.”The military official dismissed such criticism, saying any deviations from the map amount to just a few meters. But to Palestinians hemmed in by widespread destruction and displacement, every few meters lost is another house that can’t be sheltered in — another they doubt will ever be returned.‘The line is getting very close’Under the ceasefire, Israeli forces are only supposed to remain at the yellow line until a fuller withdrawal, though the agreement doesn’t give a timeline for that. With the next steps in the deal lagging and troops digging into positions on the Israeli side, though, Palestinians wonder if they are witnessing a permanent land takeover.In December, Israel’s defense minister described the yellow line as “a new border line — serving as a forward defensive line for our communities and a line of operational activity.”The military has continued leveling buildings inside the Israeli-held zone, turning already damaged neighborhoods to moonscapes. Almost all of the city of Rafah, on Gaza’s border with Egypt, has been razed over the past year. The army says this is necessary to destroy tunnels and prepare the area for reconstruction.In some places, demolitions since the ceasefire have encroached beyond the official yellow line. Since November, troops have leveled a swath of Gaza City’s Tuffah neighborhood extending some 300 meters (330 yards) outside the Israeli-held zone, according to Oct. 14 and Dec. 18 satellite photos provided by Planet Labs.Video below: Israeli settlers forcibly enter Palestinian home, kill sheep in latest West Bank attackAbu Jahal moved back to his damaged house in Tuffah at the ceasefire’s start. He said he frequently saw new yellow barrels appear and the military forcing out anyone living on its side of the markers.On Jan. 7, Israeli fire hit a house near him, and the residents had to evacuate, he said. Abu Jahal said his family — including his wife, their child, and seven other relatives — may also have to leave soon.“The line is getting very close,” he said.

    CAIRO, Cairo Governorate —

    A dividing line, at times invisible, can mean life or death for Palestinians in Gaza.

    Those sheltering near the territory’s “yellow line” that the Israeli military withdrew to as part of the October ceasefire say they live in fear as Israeli soldiers direct near-daily fire at anyone who crosses or even lingers near it.

    Video above: Palestinians struggle for food amid flooding

    Of the 447 Palestinians killed between the ceasefire taking effect and Tuesday, at least 77 were killed by Israeli gunfire near the line, including 62 who crossed it, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Among them were teenagers and young children, The Associated Press found.

    And although the military has placed some yellow barrels and concrete barriers delineating the limits of the Palestinian zone, the line is still unmarked in certain places and in others was laid nearly half a kilometer (0.3 miles) deeper than what was agreed to in the ceasefire deal, expanding the part of Gaza that Israel controls, according to Palestinians and mapping experts.

    “We stay away from the barrels. No one dares to get close” said Gaza City resident Ahmed Abu Jahal, noting that the markers are less than 100 meters (110 yards) from his house — instead of the roughly 500 meters (546 yards) outlined in a map put out by the Israeli military.

    As of Tuesday, the military had acknowledged killing 57 people around the yellow line, saying most were militants. It said its troops are complying with the rules of engagement in order to counter militant groups, and are informing Palestinians of the line’s location and marking it on the ground to “reduce friction and prevent misunderstandings.”

    Easy to get lost

    Under the ceasefire, Israel withdrew its troops to a buffer zone that is up to 7 kilometers (4 miles) deep and includes most of Gaza’s arable land, its elevated points and all of its border crossings. That hems more than 2 million Palestinians into a strip along the coastline and central Gaza.

    People of all ages, some already dead, have been showing up almost daily at the emergency room of Gaza City’s Al-Ahli hospital with bullet wounds from straying near the line, said hospital director Fadel Naeem.

    Amid the vast destruction in Gaza, the demarcation line often isn’t easy to detect, Naeem said. He recounted picking his way through undamaged paths during a recent visit to the southern city of Khan Younis. He didn’t notice he was almost across the line until locals shouted at him to turn back, he said.

    The Israeli military said most of the people it has killed crossing the line posed a threat to its troops. According to a military official who spoke on the condition of anonymity in line with military rules, troops issue audible warnings and then fire warning shots whenever someone crosses the line. Many civilians retreat when warning shots are fired, though some have been killed, the official acknowledged.

    Killed while playing near the line

    Zaher Shamia, 17, lived with his grandfather in a tent 300 meters (330 yards) from the line in northern Gaza’s Jabaliya refugee camp. On Dec. 10, he was playing with his cousin and some friends near the line, according to video he took before his death.

    Suddenly, shots rang out and the video stopped. Soldiers approaching the line with an armored bulldozer had fired on the teens, hitting Zaher, said a witness.

    Jehad Alshrafi

    FILE – The body of 11-year-old Palestinian girl Hamsa Hosou, killed by Israeli fire in Jabalia, is brought to Shifa Hospital in Gaza City Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026.

    A neighbor eventually found Zaher’s body, which had been crushed by the bulldozer, said Zaher’s grandfather, Kamal al-Beih: “We only recognized him from his head.”

    Two doctors, Mohamed Abu Selmiya and Rami Mhanna, confirmed that the teen had been killed by gunshots and then run over by a bulldozer. The military official said he was aware that Shamia was a civilian and that the military was looking into it.

    Maram Atta said that on Dec. 7, her 3-year-old daughter, Ahed al-Bayouk, was playing with siblings outside of their tent, which was near the yellow line along Gaza’s southern coast. Atta was preparing lentils when she heard aircraft overhead, then shots.

    A stray projectile whizzed close to her and struck Ahed, who was dead before they reached the clinic.

    “I lost my daughter to what they keep calling a ‘ceasefire’” said Atta, crying. “What ceasefire are they talking about?”

    A military official denied the killing.

    Deadly ambiguity

    The line’s exact location is ambiguous, differing on maps put out by the Israeli military and the White House.

    Neither matches the line troops appear to be marking on the ground, according to Palestinians and geolocation specialists.

    Video below: Palestinians react to UN plan for Gaza future

    Chris Osiek, an open source intelligence analyst and consultant, has geolocated a number of yellow blocks based on social media videos. He found at least four urban areas where troops set the blocks several hundred meters deeper into Gaza than the military map-specified yellow line.

    “This is basically what you get when you simply let Trump make an image and post it on Truth Social and let the IDF make their own,” he said, using the acronym for the military. “If it’s not a proper system, with coordinates that make it easy for people to navigate where it is, then you leave the ambiguity free for the IDF to interpret the yellow line how they basically want.”

    The military official dismissed such criticism, saying any deviations from the map amount to just a few meters. But to Palestinians hemmed in by widespread destruction and displacement, every few meters lost is another house that can’t be sheltered in — another they doubt will ever be returned.

    ‘The line is getting very close’

    Under the ceasefire, Israeli forces are only supposed to remain at the yellow line until a fuller withdrawal, though the agreement doesn’t give a timeline for that. With the next steps in the deal lagging and troops digging into positions on the Israeli side, though, Palestinians wonder if they are witnessing a permanent land takeover.

    In December, Israel’s defense minister described the yellow line as “a new border line — serving as a forward defensive line for our communities and a line of operational activity.”

    The military has continued leveling buildings inside the Israeli-held zone, turning already damaged neighborhoods to moonscapes. Almost all of the city of Rafah, on Gaza’s border with Egypt, has been razed over the past year. The army says this is necessary to destroy tunnels and prepare the area for reconstruction.

    In some places, demolitions since the ceasefire have encroached beyond the official yellow line. Since November, troops have leveled a swath of Gaza City’s Tuffah neighborhood extending some 300 meters (330 yards) outside the Israeli-held zone, according to Oct. 14 and Dec. 18 satellite photos provided by Planet Labs.

    Video below: Israeli settlers forcibly enter Palestinian home, kill sheep in latest West Bank attack

    Abu Jahal moved back to his damaged house in Tuffah at the ceasefire’s start. He said he frequently saw new yellow barrels appear and the military forcing out anyone living on its side of the markers.

    On Jan. 7, Israeli fire hit a house near him, and the residents had to evacuate, he said. Abu Jahal said his family — including his wife, their child, and seven other relatives — may also have to leave soon.

    “The line is getting very close,” he said.

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  • Gaza After the Ceasefire

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    The Gaza Strip is more or less divided between the half controlled by Hamas and the half that is controlled by the Israelis. How has this changed what life is like for Gazans?

    In terms of the half of the Strip that is controlled by Israel, they’re not allowing anybody in, and anybody who comes close to what they call the yellow line may get shot or killed. So all Gazans are living inside the Hamas-controlled side, and that’s not enabling us to access our farmland, for example, or garbage-dump sites. There are also cities on the other side, even though they have been largely demolished. Factories and industrial areas are also on that side. There were several wastewater-treatment plants, too. It’s an essential part of Gaza, which is so small. It’s really causing a difficult situation.

    Is one of your concerns that this is going to become a long-term border, and that the Gaza Strip and the people who live in it are going to be permanently stuck in the part of Gaza that they’re in now?

    No. I think that we have a ceasefire agreement. We have a Trump plan, and we are sure, or hopeful, that the Trump plan will work and President Trump will be able to, if not convince, then force the Israelis to stick to the plan and withdraw from the Gaza Strip.

    This is your hope, you’re saying?

    It’s hope, and really we believe that it will most likely happen.

    Is there a reason that you’re more hopeful about this than I am?

    [Laughs.] Because I want to believe it. It’s our only hope. The situation cannot really continue like this.

    How would you describe the attitude toward Hamas in the Gaza Strip now?

    In what sense? They are controlling everything in Gaza. They are trying to help the situation in Gaza. They are providing security for us, which is most important. You cannot leave things in a vacuum. If you leave New York in a vacuum, without security, without police, what will happen? Same thing in Gaza. So we’re very comfortable with their keeping the security in Gaza. For instance, before the signing of the ceasefire agreement, there was lots of looting of humanitarian aid, and these looters were backed up. They were militias backed up by Israel and protected by Israel. The main one was the Abu Shabab group. They used to loot trucks, and then take refuge in Israeli-controlled areas. That has stopped. It stopped because the de-facto government is preventing them from doing it.

    I know that a lot of prominent businesspeople, including you, decided to write a letter to Trump urging an end to the war, right before the ceasefire came into effect. Some of the people who signed that letter were very critical of Hamas in other venues. Was there a division about how much to be critical in the letter?

    Anybody in Gaza can be critical of Hamas. It’s O.K. We have freedom to talk about Hamas or anybody else. [Palestinians in Gaza, including journalists, have been physically assaulted for criticizing or reporting negatively on Hamas. Since the ceasefire went into effect, Hamas has also carried out executions of people whom it claims were political rivals or collaborators with Israel.] I mean, it’s a personal opinion, so there’s no problem with that. Is that your question? Maybe I did not understand your question.

    Well, I know you’ve said that you think the Palestinian Authority will be better able to bring about a long-term solution and a two-state solution, which you advocate.

    Well, it’s our only hope, actually. We want to be united with the West Bank, and the Palestinian Authority is the best scenario for this. We hope we will have elections. I mean, Palestinians deserve to decide, and to have elections—they deserve to select their representatives and to have an exchange of authority.

    Right, because the last elections in Gaza were a couple of decades ago, correct?

    Exactly. Yes.

    Can you talk a little bit about what your job is?

    I’m the chairman of the Gaza Chamber of Commerce, Industry, and Agriculture. We are trying here to help our members get their papers for reactivating bank accounts, or to start businesses both outside and within Gaza. We’re trying to help them organize local markets, and coördinate or actually do some networking for them with humanitarian actors. And we do trainings. But there isn’t much we can do, because of Israeli restrictions. They are even preventing some fuel for the private sector. They are preventing the entry of agricultural seeds like tomato, cucumber, whatever, with the intention to keep all people dependent on humanitarian aid and not to be productive. So my job is really difficult, because there isn’t much I can do, but we’re trying to promote, for example, electronic payments, because all the banknotes in Gaza, the cash, is getting worn out and Israel won’t allow us to replace these banknotes.

    So we do lots of advocacy work. We collect information about local markets, about some economic indicators. We produce reports in that regard. We make the international community and humanitarian actors aware of the situation, so they can be informed when making plans. We are also doing some really small projects, trying to help people in the food-production sector start or improve their businesses, but we are making very limited interventions because of the lack of finance and production-input materials.

    A lot of people in your position or somewhat similar positions managed to leave Gaza during the war. You did not. Can you talk about why you stayed?

    Yes. When the war started, I was new in my position: I was elected at the beginning of 2023, and nine months later the war broke out. I felt that I was obliged to stay with the people who elected me in Gaza. I really like Gaza so much, and I don’t think I can stay out of Gaza for long. And what am I going to do outside? Being a Palestinian, it is very difficult to be somewhere outside. And I know many people are in Egypt now, but they are in difficult situations economically. I didn’t think that it would go on this long, of course. But I’m very happy that I did not leave because being outside Gaza for such a long time is not an easy thing.

    I know that the humanitarian situation is still not great. I know that people are still dying. I’m just curious what it feels like in the Strip, and if people have become more hopeful or not in the last couple of months since the ceasefire.

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    Isaac Chotiner

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  • State leaders pledge to root out antisemitism

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    BOSTON — Gov. Maura Healey is vowing that her administration will move quickly to implement recommendations in a new report on antisemitism in Massachusetts, which found an “alarming” increase in hate crimes and discrimination targeting Jewish people over the past year.

    The report by the Special Commission on Combatting Antisemitism, released earlier this month, said hate crimes against Jewish students in the state have risen dramatically while gaps in anti-bias training and a lack of centralized reporting in public schools mean many incidents of antisemitism go unaddressed.

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    By Christian M. Wade | Statehouse Reporter

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  • Video released of dead Israeli hostages marking Hanukkah in captivity

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    Haley Ott reports on a newly released video showing six Israeli hostages, months before their deaths in Gaza, marking Hanukkah in captivity.

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  • What courts rule on genocide?

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    Email interview with Shannon Fyfe, a law professor and international criminal law expert at Washington and Lee University’s School of Law, Oct. 7, 2025

    Email interview with Laura Rusu, national director of marketing and communications for Amnesty International USA, Oct. 6, 2025

    Email interview with Yair Dvir, a spokesperson for B’Tselem, Oct. 4, 2025 and Nov. 4, 2025

    Interview with Michael Lynk, law professor at Western University, in London, Ontario, Oct. 8, 2025

    Interview with A. Dirk Moses, professor of international relations at the City University of New York, Oct. 9, 2025

    Interview with Sara E. Brown, genocide scholar and regional director at the American Jewish Committee, Oct. 13, 2025

    Email interview with Omer Bartov, Brown University Holocaust and genocide studies professor, Oct. 7, 2025

    Email interview William Schabas, professor of international law at Middlesex University, Oct. 9, 2025

    ABC News, As Israel warned Gaza civilians to evacuate, IDF bombs struck city described as sanctuary, Jan. 25, 2024

    Al Jazeera, Foreign doctors say Israel systematically targeting Gaza’s children: Report, Sept. 14, 2025

    Al Jazeera, Israel still blocking most Gaza aid as military carries out more attacks, Nov. 1, 2025

    Al Jazeera, Israel’s genocide in Gaza has not stopped, despite the ceasefire: Analysts, Dec. 2, 2025 

    Al Jazeera, The last 30 minutes inside a Gaza City tower before it is bombed by Israel, Sept. 11, 2025

    Al Jazeera, Trump ally Marjorie Taylor Greene decries ‘genocide’ in Gaza, July 29, 2025

    Al Jazeera, Trump announces Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal: What we know and what’s next, Oct. 13, 2025

    American Jewish Committee, 5 Reasons Why the Events in Gaza Are Not “Genocide,” Sept. 16, 2025

    American Jewish Committee, AJC Statement on Outrageous ICJ Order on Provisional Measures, May 24, 2024

    American Jewish Committee, What You Need to Know About the Latest International Court of Justice Action in the Case Against Israel, accessed Dec. 8, 2025

    American Society of International Law, World Court finds Serbia Responsible for Breaches of Genocide Convention, but Not Liable for Committing Genocide, April 3, 2007

    American University, What Do ICC Arrest Warrants Mean for Israel and the War in Gaza? Nov. 25, 2024

    Amnesty International, Amnesty International investigation concludes Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, Dec. 5, 2024

    Amnesty International, Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in Gaza continues unabated despite ceasefire, Nov. 27, 2025

    Amnesty International Israel, Amnesty Israel Does not Accept the Main Findings of the Report by Amnesty International Global Movement which Accuses Israel of Genocide, May 12, 2024

    Amnesty International Israel, The alternative hypothesis to Israeli intent to commit genocide, Aug. 12, 2024

    Anadolu Ajansı, OPINION – Trump’s Gaza plan through the lens of international law, Feb. 19, 2025

    Associated Press, Live updates: Hamas frees living hostages and Israel releases prisoners as Trump visits the region, Oct. 13, 2024

    Associated Press, Photos show Palestinians enduring war and hunger in Gaza, July 22, 2025

    Associated Press, Top genocide scholars accuse Israel of genocide as strikes across Gaza kill at least 31 Palestinians, Sept. 1, 2025 

    Associated Press, UN assembly votes overwhelmingly to back two-state solution to Israel-Palestinian conflict, Sept. 12, 2025

    Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, Half believe Israel’s military response in the Gaza Strip has gone too far, Sept. 18, 2025

    Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, Public opinion of the Israel and Hamas conflict nearly a year after the October 7th attacks, October 2024

    Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, The November 2023 AP-NORC Center Poll, November 2023

    Axios, No. 2 House Democrat Katherine Clark calls Gaza war a ‘genocide’, Aug. 15, 2025

    BBC, ‘I’m calling from Israeli intelligence. We have the order to bomb. You have two hours,’ Nov. 8, 2023

    BBC, Five killed in Israeli air strikes on tents near Khan Younis, medics say, Dec. 3, 2025 

    BBC, Gaza: Israel allows aid in after 11-week blockade but UN calls it ‘drop in ocean,’ May 19, 2025

    BBC, Gaza evacuation warnings from IDF contain many errors, BBC finds, April 5, 2024 

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    BBC, What does ICJ ruling on Israel’s Rafah offensive mean?, May 28, 2024

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    CNN, They followed evacuation orders. An Israeli airstrike killed them the next day, Oct. 17, 2023

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    Just Security, Mapping State Reactions to the ICC Arrest Warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant, March 6, 2025

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    Médecins Sans Frontières, or Doctors Without Borders, Gaza genocide, Sept. 3, 2025

    Michigan Advance, McMorrow clarifies stance on Gaza, joins Michigan Democrats calling situation a genocide, Oct. 7, 2025

    Middle East Eye, Israel’s genocide in Gaza: Whatever happened to South Africa’s case at the ICJ? Sept. 23, 2025

    MSN.com, Israeli Amb. To United Nations: ‘There is no genocide in Gaza,’ Aug. 4, 2025

    NBC News, Rep. Rashida Tlaib accuses Biden of supporting ‘genocide’ of Palestinian people, Nov. 3, 2023

    NPR, A fragile Gaza ceasefire is tested after Israel and Hamas swap detainees and hostages, Oct. 14, 2025

    NPR, A question of intent: Is what’s happening in Gaza genocide?, Sept. 25, 2025

    NPR, The Geneva Conventions protect hospitals during war. But the safeguard isn’t absolute, Nov. 10, 2023 

    NPR, U.K., Canada and Australia recognize a Palestinian state, despite U.S. opposition, Sept. 21, 2025

    NPR, War scholar discusses why he does not think there is a genocide in Gaza, July 29, 2025

    PBS, Israel says Rafah crossing will stay closed ‘until further notice’ as it pushes Hamas for hostages’ remains, Oct. 18, 2025

    PBS, More Americans feel Israel has ‘gone too far’ in Gaza, AP-NORC poll shows, Sept. 18, 2025

    PBS, U.S. again vetoes UN Security Council resolution demanding Gaza ceasefire, hostage release, Sept. 18, 2025

    PBS News, Israel rejects genocide charges, claims ‘legitimate’ self defense at United Nations’ top court, Jan. 12, 2024 

    PBS News, Israel says its strikes on a Gaza hospital were targeting what it called a Hamas surveillance camera, Aug. 26, 2025

    Physicians for Human Rights-Israel, Destruction of Conditions of Life: A Health Analysis of the Gaza Genocide, July 2025

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    Politico, MAGA is turning on Israel over Gaza, but Trump is unmoved – POLITICO, July 29, 2025

    PolitiFact, Netanyahu’s ‘no starvation in Gaza’ statement contradicts extensive evidence of hunger crisis, July 29, 2025 

    PolitiFact, One year after Oct. 7, 2023, attack: The evolution of misinformation about Israel and Gaza, Oct. 4, 2024

    Quinnipiac University Poll, Support Drops For U.S. Military Aid To Israel As 50% Think Israel Is Committing Genocide In Gaza, Aug. 27, 2025

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    The BMJ, ​​Gaza “genocide has not stopped,” charities warn, as Israel continue to block aid, Oct. 24, 2025 

    The Chicago Council on Global Affairs, South Africa’s Case Against Israel is the Fifth Time UN Genocide Law has Been Used this Way, Jan. 17, 2024

    The Conversation, With 83% of its buildings destroyed, Gaza needs more than money to rebuild, Oct. 16, 2025

    The Ezra Klein Show’s YouTube channel, Is Israel Committing Genocide in Gaza? Aug. 13, 2025

    The Guardian, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez calls Israeli Gaza campaign an ‘unfolding genocide’, March 23, 2024

    The Guardian, Israel never targets innocents intentionally, July 4, 2024

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    The Guardian, ‘No place is safe’: families flee Gaza City as Israel vows to press on with offensive, Aug. 24, 2025 

    The Jerusalem Post, IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari publishes op-ed in Wall Street Journal, Feb. 26, 2024

    The New York Times, How Can the I.C.C. Prosecute Leaders of Israel, Which Is Not a Member? Nov. 22, 2024

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  • Opinion | Another Week in the Wild West Bank

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    Adding up Palestinian terrorism and Israeli settler violence.

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    The Editorial Board

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  • Opinion | Israel Proves the Danger of an ‘Independent’ Justice System

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    The Supreme Court could be enabling a criminal conspiracy to prosecute IDF reservists unjustly.

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    Avi Bell

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  • Weekend event roundup: Sacramento-area things to do for Nov. 21-23

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    Looking for things to do this weekend? Here’s a list of events happening in Northern California from Friday, Nov. 21, through Sunday, Nov. 23.Before you head out the door, check the latest forecast here.Sacramento-area eventsImaginarium The Imaginarium, billed as the state’s largest holiday light festival, returns to Cal Expo through Jan. 4. It features 15 million LED lights, daily circus performances and more. Tickets start at $16 for children and seniors. General admission starts at $21. UPDATE: Opening day was called off on Friday. It’s not clear if this will be open this weekend. Learn more. Donut Half MarathonA “Donut” half marathon where the course includes stops at various cafes and doughnut shops takes place Saturday, starting at Tupi Coffee. Registration is free but people are encouraged to donate to Girls on the Run of Greater Sacramento. Learn more. 100 Years of Palestine “100 Years of Palestine” is an immersive cultural exhibition taking place at Tarbiya House Roseville on Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. There is also a community bazaar featuring vendors and artists. Learn more. Ballroom BoxingA 6-bout professional boxing card is set for Friday night at the DoubleTree Hotel in Sacramento. One of the bouts will feature a Sacramento native making his pro-boxing debut. Find more information here. Sacramento Annual Fall Vendor and Craft Fair A fall marketplace featuring vendors takes place Saturday at the Pat O’Brien Community Center, located at 8025 Waterman Road, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Learn more. Causeway Boxing Classic The second annual Causeway Boxing Classic takes place at The Nest on the Sacramento State campus Friday starting at 7 p.m. Learn more. Mountain Mandarin Festival The 32nd Mountain Mandarin Festival takes place through Sunday in Roseville @ the Grounds. The event runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Kids ages 10 and under are free. Friday general admission costs $8 and weekend general admission tickets cost $14. Seniors can get in for $10. Learn more. Causeway Classic The Sacramento State Hornets will take on the UC Davis Aggies in a high-stakes football matchup Saturday at 1 p.m. in Davis. You can also watch the game on My58. Learn more. Stockton-area events209 Beatdown XXVI Experience a live MMA cage fight at Stockton Civic Auditorium Saturday from 4 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. Ticket prices start at $45. Learn more. Venetians Gardens Holiday Boutique Check out holiday gift ideas at this event Saturday and Sunday located at the Venetian Gardens Association Clubhouse, at 1555 Mosaic Way. Learn more. San Joaquin Potters Guild Fine Arts Festival Check out art and live demonstrations for free at the 2025 Fine Arts Festival on Saturday and Sunday at Central United Methodist Church, located at 3700 Pacific Avenue in Stockton. Learn more. Jiu Jitsu World League Finals The Jiu Jitsu World League Finals takes place at Adventist Health Arena on Saturday at 7:30 a.m. Learn more. Modesto-area eventsHoliday Craft Show Thirty-five vendors are appearing at a Holiday Craft Show at 505 West Granger Avenue Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Learn more. Holiday Night Market A Holiday Night Market kicks off Saturday from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. at 711 I Street in Modesto to kick off the holiday shopping season. Learn more. Scavenger HuntA Junior Rangers “Wildlife Gratitude Scavenger Hunt” takes place Saturday at Dos Rios State Park near Modesto from 11 a.m. to noon. Learn more. More sports, concerts & showsBig Bad Voodoo Daddy performs at the Grand Theatre Center for the Arts in Tracy on Friday at 8 p.m. Tickets. Heart performs at Hard Rock Live Sacramento in Wheatland Friday at 8 p.m. Tickets. The Beach Boys with Herman’s Hermits starring Peter Noone performs at The Venue at Thunder Valley Casino on Friday at 7:30 p.m. Tickets. Built to Spill performs with Larry Yes and Braided Waves at Harlow’s in Sacramento Friday at 7:30 p.m., but the event is sold out. Yolanda del Río performs at Stockton’s Bob Hope Theatre Friday at 8 p.m. Tickets. John Legend performs at The Venue at Thunder Valley Casino Saturday at 8 p.m. in Lincoln. Tickets. Tyler Rich performs at Ace of Spades in Sacramento Saturday at 8 p.m. Tickets. Manheim Steamroller Christmas by Chip Davis performs at the Gallo Center Sunday in Modesto at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. Tickets. Know of more events to include? Email us at web@kcra.com.See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel

    Looking for things to do this weekend? Here’s a list of events happening in Northern California from Friday, Nov. 21, through Sunday, Nov. 23.

    Before you head out the door, check the latest forecast here.

    Sacramento-area events

    Imaginarium

    The Imaginarium, billed as the state’s largest holiday light festival, returns to Cal Expo through Jan. 4. It features 15 million LED lights, daily circus performances and more. Tickets start at $16 for children and seniors. General admission starts at $21. UPDATE: Opening day was called off on Friday. It’s not clear if this will be open this weekend. Learn more.

    Donut Half Marathon

    A “Donut” half marathon where the course includes stops at various cafes and doughnut shops takes place Saturday, starting at Tupi Coffee. Registration is free but people are encouraged to donate to Girls on the Run of Greater Sacramento. Learn more.

    100 Years of Palestine

    “100 Years of Palestine” is an immersive cultural exhibition taking place at Tarbiya House Roseville on Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. There is also a community bazaar featuring vendors and artists. Learn more.

    Ballroom Boxing

    A 6-bout professional boxing card is set for Friday night at the DoubleTree Hotel in Sacramento. One of the bouts will feature a Sacramento native making his pro-boxing debut. Find more information here.

    Sacramento Annual Fall Vendor and Craft Fair

    A fall marketplace featuring vendors takes place Saturday at the Pat O’Brien Community Center, located at 8025 Waterman Road, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Learn more.

    Causeway Boxing Classic

    The second annual Causeway Boxing Classic takes place at The Nest on the Sacramento State campus Friday starting at 7 p.m. Learn more.

    Mountain Mandarin Festival

    The 32nd Mountain Mandarin Festival takes place through Sunday in Roseville @ the Grounds. The event runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Kids ages 10 and under are free. Friday general admission costs $8 and weekend general admission tickets cost $14. Seniors can get in for $10. Learn more.

    Causeway Classic

    The Sacramento State Hornets will take on the UC Davis Aggies in a high-stakes football matchup Saturday at 1 p.m. in Davis. You can also watch the game on My58. Learn more.

    Stockton-area events

    209 Beatdown XXVI

    Experience a live MMA cage fight at Stockton Civic Auditorium Saturday from 4 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. Ticket prices start at $45. Learn more.

    Venetians Gardens Holiday Boutique

    Check out holiday gift ideas at this event Saturday and Sunday located at the Venetian Gardens Association Clubhouse, at 1555 Mosaic Way. Learn more.

    San Joaquin Potters Guild Fine Arts Festival

    Check out art and live demonstrations for free at the 2025 Fine Arts Festival on Saturday and Sunday at Central United Methodist Church, located at 3700 Pacific Avenue in Stockton. Learn more.

    Jiu Jitsu World League Finals

    The Jiu Jitsu World League Finals takes place at Adventist Health Arena on Saturday at 7:30 a.m. Learn more.

    Modesto-area events

    Holiday Craft Show

    Thirty-five vendors are appearing at a Holiday Craft Show at 505 West Granger Avenue Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Learn more.

    Holiday Night Market

    A Holiday Night Market kicks off Saturday from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. at 711 I Street in Modesto to kick off the holiday shopping season. Learn more.

    Scavenger Hunt

    A Junior Rangers “Wildlife Gratitude Scavenger Hunt” takes place Saturday at Dos Rios State Park near Modesto from 11 a.m. to noon. Learn more.

    More sports, concerts & shows

    Big Bad Voodoo Daddy performs at the Grand Theatre Center for the Arts in Tracy on Friday at 8 p.m. Tickets.

    Heart performs at Hard Rock Live Sacramento in Wheatland Friday at 8 p.m. Tickets.

    The Beach Boys with Herman’s Hermits starring Peter Noone performs at The Venue at Thunder Valley Casino on Friday at 7:30 p.m. Tickets.

    Built to Spill performs with Larry Yes and Braided Waves at Harlow’s in Sacramento Friday at 7:30 p.m., but the event is sold out.

    Yolanda del Río performs at Stockton’s Bob Hope Theatre Friday at 8 p.m. Tickets.

    John Legend performs at The Venue at Thunder Valley Casino Saturday at 8 p.m. in Lincoln. Tickets.

    Tyler Rich performs at Ace of Spades in Sacramento Saturday at 8 p.m. Tickets.

    Manheim Steamroller Christmas by Chip Davis performs at the Gallo Center Sunday in Modesto at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. Tickets.

    Know of more events to include? Email us at web@kcra.com.

    See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel

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  • Trump Uses Gaza Peace Playbook in Ukraine

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    The White House is giving Ukraine less than a week to sign on to a plan requiring major concessions.

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    Michael R. Gordon

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  • Hamas’s Popularity Rises in Gaza, Complicating Trump Plan to Disarm Militants

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    Hamas’s popularity has edged up among Palestinians in Gaza since the cease-fire, ending a slide during the war and posing a challenge to President Trump’s plan to bring peace to the enclave by disarming the militant group.

    A major reason is security. Last month, as a cease-fire took root and Israeli forces pulled back, Hamas fighters re-emerged on the streets as police and internal-security forces, patrolling and targeting criminals along with rivals and critics. While many Gazans have a dim view of the U.S.-designated terrorist group and don’t like seeing the group reassert itself, Palestinians have welcomed a reduction in crime and looting.

    Copyright ©2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

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    Sudarsan Raghavan

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  • South Africa investigates mystery of a plane that arrived with more than 150 Palestinians from Gaza

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    South Africa’s intelligence services are investigating who was behind a chartered plane that landed in Johannesburg with more than 150 Palestinians from war-ravaged Gaza who did not have proper travel documents and were held onboard on the tarmac for around 12 hours as a result, the country’s president said Friday.The plane landed Thursday morning at O.R. Tambo International Airport, but passengers were not allowed to disembark until late that night after immigration interviews with the Palestinians found they could not say where or how long they were staying in South Africa, South Africa’s border agency said.It said the Palestinians also did not have exit stamps or slips that would normally be issued by Israeli authorities to people leaving Gaza.The actions of South African authorities in initially refusing to allow the passengers off the plane provoked fierce criticism from non-governmental organizations, who said the 153 Palestinians — who included families with children and one woman who is nine months pregnant — were kept in dire conditions on the plane, which was extremely hot and had no food or water.South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said there was an investigation to uncover how the Palestinians came to South Africa via a stopover in Nairobi, Kenya.“These are people from Gaza who somehow mysteriously were put on a plane that passed by Nairobi and came here,” Ramaphosa said.Palestinians being ‘exploited’The Palestinian Embassy in South Africa said in a statement the flight was arranged by “an unregistered and misleading organization that exploited the tragic humanitarian conditions of our people in Gaza, deceived families, collected money from them, and facilitated their travel in an irregular and irresponsible manner. This entity later attempted to disown any responsibility once complications arose.”It didn’t name who chartered the flight, but an Israeli military official, speaking anonymously to discuss confidential information, said an organization called Al-Majd arranged the transport of about 150 Palestinians from Gaza to South Africa.The official said that Israel escorted buses organized by Al-Majd that brought Palestinians from a meeting point in the Gaza Strip to the Kerem Shalom crossing. Then buses from Al-Majd picked the Palestinians up and brought them to Ramon airport in Israel, where they were flown out of the country.South African authorities said 23 of the Palestinians had traveled onward to other countries, without naming those countries, but 130 remained and were allowed in after intervention from South Africa’s Ministry of Home Affairs and an offer by an NGO called Gift of the Givers to accommodate them.“Even though they do not have the necessary documents and papers, these are people from a strife-torn, a war-torn country, and out of compassion, out of empathy, we must receive them and be able to deal with the situation that they are facing,” Ramaphosa said.Shadowy operationThe secretive nature of the flight raised fears among rights groups that it marked an attempt by the Israeli government to push Palestinians from Gaza.Israel’s foreign ministry referred questions to the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), the Israeli authority responsible for implementing civilian policies in the Palestinian territories. It said the Palestinians on the charter plane left the Gaza Strip after it received approval from a third country to receive them as part of an Israeli government policy allowing Gaza residents to leave. It didn’t name the third country.Around 40,000 people have left Gaza since the start of the war under the policy.Israel’s government had embraced a pledge by U.S. President Donald Trump to empty Gaza permanently of its more than 2 million Palestinians — a plan rights groups said would amount to ethnic cleansing. At the time, Trump said they would not be allowed to return.Trump has since backed away from this plan and brokered a ceasefire between Israel and the militant group Hamas that allows Palestinians to remain in Gaza.South African leader Ramaphosa said that it appeared the Palestinians who arrived in Johannesburg were being “flushed out” of Gaza, without elaborating. The comment followed allegations by two South African NGO representatives who claimed that Al-Majd was affiliated with Israel and working to remove Palestinians from Gaza.They offered no evidence for the claims and COGAT didn’t respond to a request for comment on those allegations.Gift of the Givers founder Imtiaz Sooliman, one of those to allege involvement by what he called “Israel’s front organizations,” said this was the second plane to arrive in South Africa in mysterious circumstances after one that landed with more than 170 Palestinians onboard on Oct. 28. The arrival of that flight was not announced by authorities.Sooliman said the passengers on the latest plane did not initially know where they were going and were given no food for the two days it took to travel to Johannesburg.“They were given nothing on the plane itself and this must be challenged and investigated,” Sooliman said.South Africa has long been a supporter of the Palestinian cause and a critic of Israel and has led the international pro-Palestinian movement by accusing Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza in a highly contentious case at the United Nations’ top court. Israel denies committing genocide and has denounced South Africa as the “legal arm” of Hamas.The people that ended up in South Africa underlined the desperation of Palestinians following a two-year war that has killed more than 69,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, and reduced the territory to rubble. The ministry’s death toll does not distinguish between militants and civilians, but it says more than half of those killed were women and children. A fragile ceasefire is in place.Jerusalem-based organizationAn organization called Al-Majd Europe has previously been linked to facilitating travel for Palestinians out of Gaza. It describes itself on its website as a humanitarian organization founded in 2010 in Germany and based in Jerusalem that provides aid and rescue efforts to Muslim communities in conflict zones.The website does not list office phone numbers or its exact address. It states that Al-Majd Europe works with a variety of organizations including 15 international agencies, but no organizations are listed and a “will be announced soon” message was displayed in that section on Friday.Another message that appeared Friday on the website said people were impersonating it to request money or cryptocurrency “under the pretext of facilitating travel or humanitarian aid.” Al-Majd Europe didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment sent to an email address given on its site. Imray reported from Cape Town, South Africa, and Frankel reported from Jerusalem. Michelle Gumede and Mogomotsi Magome contributed to this report.

    South Africa’s intelligence services are investigating who was behind a chartered plane that landed in Johannesburg with more than 150 Palestinians from war-ravaged Gaza who did not have proper travel documents and were held onboard on the tarmac for around 12 hours as a result, the country’s president said Friday.

    The plane landed Thursday morning at O.R. Tambo International Airport, but passengers were not allowed to disembark until late that night after immigration interviews with the Palestinians found they could not say where or how long they were staying in South Africa, South Africa’s border agency said.

    It said the Palestinians also did not have exit stamps or slips that would normally be issued by Israeli authorities to people leaving Gaza.

    The actions of South African authorities in initially refusing to allow the passengers off the plane provoked fierce criticism from non-governmental organizations, who said the 153 Palestinians — who included families with children and one woman who is nine months pregnant — were kept in dire conditions on the plane, which was extremely hot and had no food or water.

    South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said there was an investigation to uncover how the Palestinians came to South Africa via a stopover in Nairobi, Kenya.

    “These are people from Gaza who somehow mysteriously were put on a plane that passed by Nairobi and came here,” Ramaphosa said.

    Palestinians being ‘exploited’

    The Palestinian Embassy in South Africa said in a statement the flight was arranged by “an unregistered and misleading organization that exploited the tragic humanitarian conditions of our people in Gaza, deceived families, collected money from them, and facilitated their travel in an irregular and irresponsible manner. This entity later attempted to disown any responsibility once complications arose.”

    It didn’t name who chartered the flight, but an Israeli military official, speaking anonymously to discuss confidential information, said an organization called Al-Majd arranged the transport of about 150 Palestinians from Gaza to South Africa.

    The official said that Israel escorted buses organized by Al-Majd that brought Palestinians from a meeting point in the Gaza Strip to the Kerem Shalom crossing. Then buses from Al-Majd picked the Palestinians up and brought them to Ramon airport in Israel, where they were flown out of the country.

    South African authorities said 23 of the Palestinians had traveled onward to other countries, without naming those countries, but 130 remained and were allowed in after intervention from South Africa’s Ministry of Home Affairs and an offer by an NGO called Gift of the Givers to accommodate them.

    “Even though they do not have the necessary documents and papers, these are people from a strife-torn, a war-torn country, and out of compassion, out of empathy, we must receive them and be able to deal with the situation that they are facing,” Ramaphosa said.

    Shadowy operation

    The secretive nature of the flight raised fears among rights groups that it marked an attempt by the Israeli government to push Palestinians from Gaza.

    Israel’s foreign ministry referred questions to the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), the Israeli authority responsible for implementing civilian policies in the Palestinian territories. It said the Palestinians on the charter plane left the Gaza Strip after it received approval from a third country to receive them as part of an Israeli government policy allowing Gaza residents to leave. It didn’t name the third country.

    Around 40,000 people have left Gaza since the start of the war under the policy.

    Israel’s government had embraced a pledge by U.S. President Donald Trump to empty Gaza permanently of its more than 2 million Palestinians — a plan rights groups said would amount to ethnic cleansing. At the time, Trump said they would not be allowed to return.

    Trump has since backed away from this plan and brokered a ceasefire between Israel and the militant group Hamas that allows Palestinians to remain in Gaza.

    South African leader Ramaphosa said that it appeared the Palestinians who arrived in Johannesburg were being “flushed out” of Gaza, without elaborating. The comment followed allegations by two South African NGO representatives who claimed that Al-Majd was affiliated with Israel and working to remove Palestinians from Gaza.

    They offered no evidence for the claims and COGAT didn’t respond to a request for comment on those allegations.

    Gift of the Givers founder Imtiaz Sooliman, one of those to allege involvement by what he called “Israel’s front organizations,” said this was the second plane to arrive in South Africa in mysterious circumstances after one that landed with more than 170 Palestinians onboard on Oct. 28. The arrival of that flight was not announced by authorities.

    Sooliman said the passengers on the latest plane did not initially know where they were going and were given no food for the two days it took to travel to Johannesburg.

    “They were given nothing on the plane itself and this must be challenged and investigated,” Sooliman said.

    South Africa has long been a supporter of the Palestinian cause and a critic of Israel and has led the international pro-Palestinian movement by accusing Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza in a highly contentious case at the United Nations’ top court. Israel denies committing genocide and has denounced South Africa as the “legal arm” of Hamas.

    The people that ended up in South Africa underlined the desperation of Palestinians following a two-year war that has killed more than 69,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, and reduced the territory to rubble. The ministry’s death toll does not distinguish between militants and civilians, but it says more than half of those killed were women and children. A fragile ceasefire is in place.

    Jerusalem-based organization

    An organization called Al-Majd Europe has previously been linked to facilitating travel for Palestinians out of Gaza. It describes itself on its website as a humanitarian organization founded in 2010 in Germany and based in Jerusalem that provides aid and rescue efforts to Muslim communities in conflict zones.

    The website does not list office phone numbers or its exact address. It states that Al-Majd Europe works with a variety of organizations including 15 international agencies, but no organizations are listed and a “will be announced soon” message was displayed in that section on Friday.

    Another message that appeared Friday on the website said people were impersonating it to request money or cryptocurrency “under the pretext of facilitating travel or humanitarian aid.” Al-Majd Europe didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment sent to an email address given on its site.

    Imray reported from Cape Town, South Africa, and Frankel reported from Jerusalem. Michelle Gumede and Mogomotsi Magome contributed to this report.

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  • South Africa investigates mystery of a plane that arrived with more than 150 Palestinians from Gaza

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    South Africa’s intelligence services are investigating who was behind a chartered plane that landed in Johannesburg with more than 150 Palestinians from war-ravaged Gaza who did not have proper travel documents and were held onboard on the tarmac for around 12 hours as a result, the country’s president said Friday.The plane landed Thursday morning at O.R. Tambo International Airport, but passengers were not allowed to disembark until late that night after immigration interviews with the Palestinians found they could not say where or how long they were staying in South Africa, South Africa’s border agency said.It said the Palestinians also did not have exit stamps or slips that would normally be issued by Israeli authorities to people leaving Gaza.The actions of South African authorities in initially refusing to allow the passengers off the plane provoked fierce criticism from non-governmental organizations, who said the 153 Palestinians — who included families with children and one woman who is nine months pregnant — were kept in dire conditions on the plane, which was extremely hot and had no food or water.South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said there was an investigation to uncover how the Palestinians came to South Africa via a stopover in Nairobi, Kenya.“These are people from Gaza who somehow mysteriously were put on a plane that passed by Nairobi and came here,” Ramaphosa said.Palestinians being ‘exploited’The Palestinian Embassy in South Africa said in a statement the flight was arranged by “an unregistered and misleading organization that exploited the tragic humanitarian conditions of our people in Gaza, deceived families, collected money from them, and facilitated their travel in an irregular and irresponsible manner. This entity later attempted to disown any responsibility once complications arose.”It didn’t name who chartered the flight, but an Israeli military official, speaking anonymously to discuss confidential information, said an organization called Al-Majd arranged the transport of about 150 Palestinians from Gaza to South Africa.The official said that Israel escorted buses organized by Al-Majd that brought Palestinians from a meeting point in the Gaza Strip to the Kerem Shalom crossing. Then buses from Al-Majd picked the Palestinians up and brought them to Ramon airport in Israel, where they were flown out of the country.South African authorities said 23 of the Palestinians had traveled onward to other countries, without naming those countries, but 130 remained and were allowed in after intervention from South Africa’s Ministry of Home Affairs and an offer by an NGO called Gift of the Givers to accommodate them.“Even though they do not have the necessary documents and papers, these are people from a strife-torn, a war-torn country, and out of compassion, out of empathy, we must receive them and be able to deal with the situation that they are facing,” Ramaphosa said.Shadowy operationThe secretive nature of the flight raised fears among rights groups that it marked an attempt by the Israeli government to push Palestinians from Gaza.Israel’s foreign ministry referred questions to the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), the Israeli authority responsible for implementing civilian policies in the Palestinian territories. It said the Palestinians on the charter plane left the Gaza Strip after it received approval from a third country to receive them as part of an Israeli government policy allowing Gaza residents to leave. It didn’t name the third country.Around 40,000 people have left Gaza since the start of the war under the policy.Israel’s government had embraced a pledge by U.S. President Donald Trump to empty Gaza permanently of its more than 2 million Palestinians — a plan rights groups said would amount to ethnic cleansing. At the time, Trump said they would not be allowed to return.Trump has since backed away from this plan and brokered a ceasefire between Israel and the militant group Hamas that allows Palestinians to remain in Gaza.South African leader Ramaphosa said that it appeared the Palestinians who arrived in Johannesburg were being “flushed out” of Gaza, without elaborating. The comment followed allegations by two South African NGO representatives who claimed that Al-Majd was affiliated with Israel and working to remove Palestinians from Gaza.They offered no evidence for the claims and COGAT didn’t respond to a request for comment on those allegations.Gift of the Givers founder Imtiaz Sooliman, one of those to allege involvement by what he called “Israel’s front organizations,” said this was the second plane to arrive in South Africa in mysterious circumstances after one that landed with more than 170 Palestinians onboard on Oct. 28. The arrival of that flight was not announced by authorities.Sooliman said the passengers on the latest plane did not initially know where they were going and were given no food for the two days it took to travel to Johannesburg.“They were given nothing on the plane itself and this must be challenged and investigated,” Sooliman said.South Africa has long been a supporter of the Palestinian cause and a critic of Israel and has led the international pro-Palestinian movement by accusing Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza in a highly contentious case at the United Nations’ top court. Israel denies committing genocide and has denounced South Africa as the “legal arm” of Hamas.The people that ended up in South Africa underlined the desperation of Palestinians following a two-year war that has killed more than 69,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, and reduced the territory to rubble. The ministry’s death toll does not distinguish between militants and civilians, but it says more than half of those killed were women and children. A fragile ceasefire is in place.Jerusalem-based organizationAn organization called Al-Majd Europe has previously been linked to facilitating travel for Palestinians out of Gaza. It describes itself on its website as a humanitarian organization founded in 2010 in Germany and based in Jerusalem that provides aid and rescue efforts to Muslim communities in conflict zones.The website does not list office phone numbers or its exact address. It states that Al-Majd Europe works with a variety of organizations including 15 international agencies, but no organizations are listed and a “will be announced soon” message was displayed in that section on Friday.Another message that appeared Friday on the website said people were impersonating it to request money or cryptocurrency “under the pretext of facilitating travel or humanitarian aid.” Al-Majd Europe didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment sent to an email address given on its site. Imray reported from Cape Town, South Africa, and Frankel reported from Jerusalem. Michelle Gumede and Mogomotsi Magome contributed to this report.

    South Africa’s intelligence services are investigating who was behind a chartered plane that landed in Johannesburg with more than 150 Palestinians from war-ravaged Gaza who did not have proper travel documents and were held onboard on the tarmac for around 12 hours as a result, the country’s president said Friday.

    The plane landed Thursday morning at O.R. Tambo International Airport, but passengers were not allowed to disembark until late that night after immigration interviews with the Palestinians found they could not say where or how long they were staying in South Africa, South Africa’s border agency said.

    It said the Palestinians also did not have exit stamps or slips that would normally be issued by Israeli authorities to people leaving Gaza.

    The actions of South African authorities in initially refusing to allow the passengers off the plane provoked fierce criticism from non-governmental organizations, who said the 153 Palestinians — who included families with children and one woman who is nine months pregnant — were kept in dire conditions on the plane, which was extremely hot and had no food or water.

    South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said there was an investigation to uncover how the Palestinians came to South Africa via a stopover in Nairobi, Kenya.

    “These are people from Gaza who somehow mysteriously were put on a plane that passed by Nairobi and came here,” Ramaphosa said.

    Palestinians being ‘exploited’

    The Palestinian Embassy in South Africa said in a statement the flight was arranged by “an unregistered and misleading organization that exploited the tragic humanitarian conditions of our people in Gaza, deceived families, collected money from them, and facilitated their travel in an irregular and irresponsible manner. This entity later attempted to disown any responsibility once complications arose.”

    It didn’t name who chartered the flight, but an Israeli military official, speaking anonymously to discuss confidential information, said an organization called Al-Majd arranged the transport of about 150 Palestinians from Gaza to South Africa.

    The official said that Israel escorted buses organized by Al-Majd that brought Palestinians from a meeting point in the Gaza Strip to the Kerem Shalom crossing. Then buses from Al-Majd picked the Palestinians up and brought them to Ramon airport in Israel, where they were flown out of the country.

    South African authorities said 23 of the Palestinians had traveled onward to other countries, without naming those countries, but 130 remained and were allowed in after intervention from South Africa’s Ministry of Home Affairs and an offer by an NGO called Gift of the Givers to accommodate them.

    “Even though they do not have the necessary documents and papers, these are people from a strife-torn, a war-torn country, and out of compassion, out of empathy, we must receive them and be able to deal with the situation that they are facing,” Ramaphosa said.

    Shadowy operation

    The secretive nature of the flight raised fears among rights groups that it marked an attempt by the Israeli government to push Palestinians from Gaza.

    Israel’s foreign ministry referred questions to the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), the Israeli authority responsible for implementing civilian policies in the Palestinian territories. It said the Palestinians on the charter plane left the Gaza Strip after it received approval from a third country to receive them as part of an Israeli government policy allowing Gaza residents to leave. It didn’t name the third country.

    Around 40,000 people have left Gaza since the start of the war under the policy.

    Israel’s government had embraced a pledge by U.S. President Donald Trump to empty Gaza permanently of its more than 2 million Palestinians — a plan rights groups said would amount to ethnic cleansing. At the time, Trump said they would not be allowed to return.

    Trump has since backed away from this plan and brokered a ceasefire between Israel and the militant group Hamas that allows Palestinians to remain in Gaza.

    South African leader Ramaphosa said that it appeared the Palestinians who arrived in Johannesburg were being “flushed out” of Gaza, without elaborating. The comment followed allegations by two South African NGO representatives who claimed that Al-Majd was affiliated with Israel and working to remove Palestinians from Gaza.

    They offered no evidence for the claims and COGAT didn’t respond to a request for comment on those allegations.

    Gift of the Givers founder Imtiaz Sooliman, one of those to allege involvement by what he called “Israel’s front organizations,” said this was the second plane to arrive in South Africa in mysterious circumstances after one that landed with more than 170 Palestinians onboard on Oct. 28. The arrival of that flight was not announced by authorities.

    Sooliman said the passengers on the latest plane did not initially know where they were going and were given no food for the two days it took to travel to Johannesburg.

    “They were given nothing on the plane itself and this must be challenged and investigated,” Sooliman said.

    South Africa has long been a supporter of the Palestinian cause and a critic of Israel and has led the international pro-Palestinian movement by accusing Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza in a highly contentious case at the United Nations’ top court. Israel denies committing genocide and has denounced South Africa as the “legal arm” of Hamas.

    The people that ended up in South Africa underlined the desperation of Palestinians following a two-year war that has killed more than 69,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, and reduced the territory to rubble. The ministry’s death toll does not distinguish between militants and civilians, but it says more than half of those killed were women and children. A fragile ceasefire is in place.

    Jerusalem-based organization

    An organization called Al-Majd Europe has previously been linked to facilitating travel for Palestinians out of Gaza. It describes itself on its website as a humanitarian organization founded in 2010 in Germany and based in Jerusalem that provides aid and rescue efforts to Muslim communities in conflict zones.

    The website does not list office phone numbers or its exact address. It states that Al-Majd Europe works with a variety of organizations including 15 international agencies, but no organizations are listed and a “will be announced soon” message was displayed in that section on Friday.

    Another message that appeared Friday on the website said people were impersonating it to request money or cryptocurrency “under the pretext of facilitating travel or humanitarian aid.” Al-Majd Europe didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment sent to an email address given on its site.

    Imray reported from Cape Town, South Africa, and Frankel reported from Jerusalem. Michelle Gumede and Mogomotsi Magome contributed to this report.

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  • Michigan lawmakers introduce resolutions urging Congress to block arms to Israel and aid Gaza – Detroit Metro Times

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    Michigan House Democrats are calling on Congress to halt weapons transfers to Israel and increase humanitarian aid to Gaza, pointing to the increasing civilian death toll and the impact the war has had on Palestinian families in the state.

    Reps. Dylan Wegela of Garden City, Alabas Farhat of Dearborn, and Erin Byrnes of Dearborn on Wednesday introduced House Resolution 223, which urges Michigan’s congressional delegation to stop sending U.S. arms to Israel, restore revoked visas for Palestinians seeking medical travel, and support an emergency surge of humanitarian assistance.

    “For more than two years, the world has watched a livestreamed genocide,” Wegela said. “Even after repeated ceasefire deals, Israel continues their escalation of their campaign to eliminate the Palestinian people. What makes that possible is American-supplied weapons.”

    The resolution was co-sponsored by 10 other Democrats: Emily Dievendorf of Lansing, Mike McFall of Hazel Park, Jimmie Wilson Jr. of Ypsilanti, Donavan McKinney of Detroit, Reggie Miller of Van Buren Township, Laurie Pohutsky of Livonia, Tonya Myers-Phillips of Detroit, Tyrone Carter of Detroit, Betsy Coffia of Traverse City, Carrie Rheingans of Ann Arbor, and Tullio Liberati of Allen Park. 

    The resolution comes after more than two years of Israeli airstrikes, ground operations, and a blockade that international aid groups say has created one of the worst humanitarian crises in decades. More than 69,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since 2023, according to Gaza health officials, and most of the dead are women and children. UNICEF, Doctors Without Borders, and the United Nations have warned that widespread hunger, medical shortages, and the destruction of hospitals have left the population facing mass starvation. 

    Michigan’s large Arab American population, including the country’s highest concentration of residents with Lebanese and Palestinian heritage, has watched the war with grief and panic as relatives in Gaza and southern Lebanon have been killed or displaced. Dearborn, where Farhat and Byrnes represent major sections of the city, has held regular demonstrations calling for a ceasefire and an end to U.S. military support.

    “For many families in my district, this is not abstract, people are losing loved ones in Gaza and in South Lebanon, and they’re watching it happen with their own taxpayer dollars,” Farhat said. “Imagine knowing that your hard earned money is being used to kill your relatives. This resolution reflects our community’s moral and democratic mandate: stop funding weapons that are killing civilians. Our communities want peace, accountability, and policy that values human life and this resolution moves us in that direction.”

    Farhat also pointed to polls that have “clearly shown that most Americans want our government to stop fueling the suffering in Gaza and to take real steps toward ending this war.”

    U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib delivered a speech in Dearborn in February, 2024, urging Democrats to vote “uncommitted” in the presidential primary election to protest President Joe Biden’s support of Israel. Credit: Shutterstock

    Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, who was born in Detroit to Palestinian immigrants and is the only Palestinian American member of Congress, introduced a resolution Friday that “officially recognizes that the Israeli government has committed the crime of genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza.” The resolution also urges the U.S. to fulfill its obligations under the Genocide Convention to intervene and seek accountability.  

    “The Israeli government’s genocide in Gaza has not ended, and it will not end until we act,” Tlaib, D-Detroit, said. “Since the so-called ‘ceasefire’ was announced, Israeli forces haven’t stopped killing Palestinians. Impunity only enables more atrocity. As our government continues to send a blank check for war crimes and ethnic cleansing, Palestinian children’s smiles are extinguished by bombs and bullets that say made in the U.S.A. To end this horror, we must reject genocide denial and follow our binding legal obligations under the Genocide Convention to take immediate action to pursue justice and accountability to prevent and punish the crime of genocide.”

    Michigan taxpayers have contributed more than $420 million toward U.S. military aid to Israel since 2023, Wegela said, noting the money could instead fund rent assistance, groceries for low-income households, teacher salaries, children’s health care, or student loan relief. 

    “Instead of using tax dollars to help improve lives here, our federal government is funding a Genocide on the other side of the world. It is our moral obligation to oppose funding the mass murder of civilians,” Wegela said.

    Byrnes condemned the high civilian casualty rate in Gaza, which is estimated to be roughly 83% of those killed, and criticized Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s move to suspend medical visas for Palestinians injured in the conflict. 

    “Michigan cannot remain silent while our tax dollars are used to fund genocide,” Byrnes said.

    The resolution also points to growing documentation from humanitarian groups and international law experts alleging that Israel’s blockade, bombing campaign, and forced displacement of civilians may violate the Genocide Convention. 

    Michigan organizers praised the lawmakers’ resolution. Layla Elabed, a well-known community organizer from Dearborn and sister of Tlaib, said the resolution represents “a multifaith, multicultural, multigenerational coalition refusing to let Michigan be complicit in genocide.”

    Barbara Weinberg Barefield of Jewish Voice for Peace–Detroit said the suffering in Gaza contradicts the core Jewish teaching that “whoever saves a single life is considered to have saved the whole world.”

    “The fact that a genocide is being perpetrated by the government of Israel on the Palestinian people is horrifying to me as a human being and as a Jew who was taught the intrinsic value of every life,” she said. “I will not stand by and let thousands of lives extinguished in my name go unchallenged.”

    The resolution is nonbinding but adds pressure to Michigan members of Congress, several of whom have faced protests over U.S. military aid. It cites longstanding federal laws prohibiting arms transfers to countries committing human rights violations and calls on Washington to “use every tool available” to stop the killing and ensure aid reaches civilians.

    Wegela, Farhat, and Byrnes said they plan to continue working with local advocacy groups, including those representing Palestinian, Arab American, Jewish, and peace coalitions, as the measure moves through the House.


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    Steve Neavling

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  • Israeli Settlers Burn Mosque as West Bank Violence Escalates

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    Israeli settlers extended a wave of attacks in the West Bank, drawing rare condemnation from authorities and concern from the U.S. over the escalating violence.

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    Feliz Solomon

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  • British journalist returns to U.K. after being detained by ICE

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    SAN FRANCISCO – British journalist and political commentator Sami Hamdi is returning to the United Kingdom after spending half a month in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody, advocates said.

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    Jason Green

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  • The Gaza War Has Been Big Business for U.S. Companies

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    Two years on, Israel’s war in Gaza might be finally drawing to a close. The conflict built an unprecedented arms pipeline from the U.S. to Israel that continues to flow, generating substantial business for big U.S. companies—including Boeing, Northrop Grumman and Caterpillar.

    Sales of U.S. weapons to Israel have surged since October 2023, with Washington approving more than $32 billion in armaments, ammunition and other equipment to the Israeli military over that time, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of State Department disclosures.

    Copyright ©2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

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    Benoit Faucon

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  • Opinion | Evangelical Support for Israel Is About More Than Theology

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    Tucker Carlson calls it a ‘heresy,’ but it’s rooted in a belief that freedom and faith are inseparable.

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    Ralph Reed

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  • Hundreds of Hamas Fighters Are Stuck in Tunnels in Israeli-Controlled Gaza

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    A detachment of Israeli engineering troops was demolishing tunnels behind the withdrawal line in Gaza last month when Hamas militants sprang from a hidden shaft, fired an antitank missile toward their excavator and killed two soldiers.

    A little over a week earlier, Israel and Hamas had agreed to a cease-fire. Israel responded to the deadly encounter with a round of airstrikes on Gaza that killed dozens of people.

    Copyright ©2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

    [ad_2] Dov Lieber
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