First responders in Gaza run out of supplies
Israel denies a humanitarian crisis is unfolding in the Gaza Strip, where it plans to expand military operations to force Hamas to free hostages held there since the Iran-backed group's unprecedented October 2023 attack.
"Seventy-five percent of our vehicles have stopped operating due to a lack of diesel fuel," the civil defence agency's spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP.
He added that its teams, who play a critical role as first responders in the Gaza Strip, were also facing a "severe shortage of electricity generators and oxygen devices".
For weeks, UN agencies and other humanitarian organisations have warned of dwindling supplies of everything from fuel and medicine to food and clean water in the coastal territory that is home to 2.4 million Palestinians.
The UN's agency for children, UNICEF, warned that Gaza's children face "a growing risk of starvation, illness and death" after UN-supported kitchens shut down due to lack of food supplies.
Over 20 independent experts mandated by the UN's Human Rights Council demanded action on Wednesday to avert the "annihilation" of Palestinians in Gaza.
On Thursday, Palestinians waited in line to donate blood at a field hospital in Gaza's southern city of Khan Yunis, an AFP journalist reported.
"In these difficult circumstances, we have come to support the injured and sick, amid severe food shortages and a lack of proteins, by donating blood", Moamen al-Eid, a Palestinian waiting in the line, told AFP.
'No food or drink'
Hind Joba, the hospital's laboratory head, said that "there is no food or drink, the crossings are closed, and there is no access to nutritious or protein-rich food".
"Still, people responded to the call, fulfilling their humanitarian duty by donating blood" despite the toll on their own bodies, she added.
"But this blood is vital, and they know that every drop helps save the life of an injured."
Israel returned to military operations in Gaza on March 18 after talks to prolong a six-week ceasefire stalled.
On Monday, the country's security cabinet approved a new roadmap for military operations in Gaza, aiming for the "conquest" of the territory while displacing its people en masse, drawing international condemnation.
An Israeli security official stated that a "window" remained for negotiations on the release of hostages until the end of US President Donald Trump's visit to the Gulf, scheduled from May 13 to 16.
Hamas, which is demanding a "comprehensive and complete agreement" to end the war, on Wednesday denounced what it called Israel's attempt to impose a "partial" deal.
According to the civil defence agency, air strikes at dawn killed at least eight people.
The war was sparked by Hamas's unprecedented attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official data.
Of the 251 people abducted in Israel that day, 58 are still being held in Gaza, including 34 declared dead by the Israeli army. Hamas is also holding the body of an Israeli soldier killed during a previous war in Gaza, in 2014.
The Israeli offensive launched in retaliation for the October 7 attack has killed at least 52,653 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to data from the Hamas-run Health Ministry, which is considered reliable by the UN.
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AFP
8 hours ago
- AFP
Video misleads about safety of 6-in-1 vaccine Vaxelis
"A new vaccine is on the market for your 6 week old baby! It's never been tested against a placebo or for carcinogenic effects," claims a May 19, 2025 Instagram post from a Canadian content creator who regularly posts against vaccination. She is one of several creators who stitched their reactions next to a video with thousands of interactions from Jeffrey Barke, a founding member of America's Frontline Doctors -- a group AFP has repeatedly fact-checked. In the video, Barke reads from the package insert for Vaxelis, a shot given to simultaneously prevent infections caused by pertussis, diphtheria, tetanus, poliomyelitis, Haemophilus influenzae type b, and hepatitis B (archived here). "Studies that brought this product to market -- there is not a single randomized controlled study with an inert placebo. It's only tested against other vaccinations," he says, implying this is cause for concern. Image Screenshot of Instagram reels taken on June 3, 2025 Similar claims also appeared on X in French, German, Spanish and Croatian, spreading as officials with the US Department of Health and Human Services under Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. aim to shift the way vaccines are tested and approved. The posts also come as experts say vaccine misinformation is rampant online and may be contributing to falling vaccination rates across the United States and Canada (archived here and here). Vaxelis is not new, however. The US Food and Drug Administration first approved the joint venture of pharmaceutical companies Sanofi Pasteur and Merck for children six weeks through four years of age in December 2018 (archived here and here). It is also administered in Europe (archived here). Kelly Moore, president and CEO of the nonprofit co-authored the policy statement for Vaxelis from the US Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), a panel of experts that makes recommendations about the childhood vaccinations schedule (archived here). "It's an excellent vaccine," she told AFP in a June 2 email. In February 2019, the ACIP reported that Vaxelis was subjected to six clinical studies involving more than 5,000 infants six to 12 weeks of age (archived here). It said the studies showed Vaxelis "had an acceptable safety profile that is consistent with its component vaccines." Placebo testing Barke is correct that Vaxelis was not tested against an inert placebo. But experts said there is reason for that: it would have been unethical to do so. Clinical trial participants must be offered the existing standard of care, Moore said. It would be "entirely unethical" to withhold existing vaccines while testing a combination product that contains components already routinely given in those separate shots, she said. The World Health Organization has also pushed back against calls for changes to vaccination testing. "The safety of vaccines is held to an extremely high standard," WHO vaccine chief Kate O'Brien said May 1, 2025 (archived here). O'Brien stressed that the "gold standard" process calls for placebo testing when developing vaccines against diseases for which no immunization options exist. But when vaccines are developed to cover new strains or to offer a combination shot against multiple viruses, they are generally tested to see if they are as or more effective than the existing shots. O'Brien said it would also be unethical to give test subjects a placebo in place of "vaccines that are life-saving that are already licensed." Combination vaccines Barke further misleads by misinterpreting section 13.1 of the package insert, which says that Vaxelis was not evaluated for "carcinogenic or mutagenic potential or impairment of fertility." The language appears in documents for many routine vaccines, US health care group Novant Health explains on its website (archived here). "This merely means that there was no need for further testing because toxicology studies conducted at the preclinical phase showed no signs of adverse effects from the vaccine or its individual components," it says. There are also specific guidelines and rules for when a manufacturer needs to perform fertility studies. With a shot approved for use only in populations under five years old, studies in pregnant animals would not take place, said Kathryn Edwards, an expert in vaccinology at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center (archived here). "These vaccines have been used individually for decades in millions of people that there has not been a signal for infertility and no biologic reason why you would be concerned," she said in a June 4 email. Six-in-one shots, including Vaxelis, were developed to lower the number of injections for children, "reduce the burden of handling multiple different separate vaccines and to ensure timely administration of all the needed vaccines," Edwards said. The Canadian Paediatric Society and the Canadian National Advisory Committee on Immunization currently recommend children receive 5-in-1 or 6-in-1 vaccines (archived here and here). After a vaccine is approved, its safety continues to be monitored. "Combination vaccines have been shown to be no more reactive than separate vaccines, and no long term complications have been seen with combination vaccines," Edwards said. Such products have several advantages, including increased coverage rates, reduced need for additional health care visits and lower costs for distributing the product, according to the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (archived here). Adverse effects Barke's video highlights the potential risk of Guillain-Barré syndrome -- a condition in which the body's immune system attacks the nerves, sometimes causing temporary paralysis. He also points to apnea, which is a pause in breathing, as a risk. But Edwards said Guillain-Barré syndrome is "very rare in children." Cedars Sinai Hospital says on its website that most children diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome "recover fully with no complications" (archived here). Rachel Greenberg, associate professor of pediatrics at Duke University School of Medicine, researched apnea risks when vaccinating premature infants (archived here). "While there is a temporary increased risk of apnea after vaccination, the risk posed by vaccine-preventable respiratory and other infections to unvaccinated infants is far higher," she said in a press release about her January 2025 study (archived here). The most common side effects reported following a shot of Vaxelis are pain or swelling at the injection site and fever (archived here). Melody Butler, founding executive director of Nurses Who Vaccinate, said parents weighing the risk of rare, serious adverse events should remember how many children still die from vaccine-preventable diseases (archived here). "We've become so spoiled that we don't even know what these diseases do to the human body," she told AFP June 4. "We're very fortunate that we don't see these diseases firsthand." Ingredients Barke's video also targets the vaccine's ingredients, a tactic regularly deployed by activists who claim, without evidence, that immunizations are dangerous. In particular, he questions aluminum and formaldehyde. Aluminum is naturally found in the environment, and humans ingest it through drinking water and some foods, including breast milk and infant formula. Aluminum boosts immune response, reducing the amount of vaccine required to provide immunity (archived here). Aluminum-containing vaccines have been used for decades and have been administered to more than one billion people without problem, the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) says on its website (archived here). Formaldehyde, meanwhile, is "essential in human metabolism" and can be found in all humans, according to CHOP (archived here). It is used in vaccines to help prevent bacterial contamination during manufacturing (archived here). "There's more formaldehyde in a single apple or pear than in a vaccine," Butler said, dismissing the residual amounts passed to the body during vaccination as "negligible." Read more of AFP's reporting on vaccine misinformation here.
Euronews
a day ago
- Euronews
US health secretary ousts entire CDC vaccine advisory committee
US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr has fired every member of a vital scientific committee, that advises the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), on how to use vaccines, pledging to replace them with his own staff. His actions have come under the radar with various groups having criticised his decision, which they feel may endanger the future use of vaccines in the US. Major physicians in the country have slammed the decision to oust all 17 members of the panel. Tom Frieden, president and CEO of Resolve to Save Lives and former director of the CDC, accused Kennedy of 'politicising' the Advisory Committee on Immunisation Practices (ACIP), warning that it could undermine public trust established through years of commitment and hard work. 'We'll look back at this as a grave mistake that sacrificed decades of scientific rigour, undermined public trust, and opened the door for fringe theories rather than facts,' he added. But Kennedy insists the decision was taken on merit since several members had many conflicts of interest while they were holding a position on the board. Members are currently required to declare any potential such conflicts, as well as business interests, that arise during their tenure. They also must disclose any possible conflicts at the start of each public meeting. Although it's typically not viewed as a partisan board, the entire current roster of committee members were Biden appointees. The health secretary said in an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal that the Trump administration would not have been able to appoint new members until 2028 without removing the current roster. 'A clean sweep is needed to re-establish public confidence in vaccine science,' said Kennedy Jr. Frieden says the health secretary's actions were based on false conflict of interest claims and sets 'a dangerous and unprecedented action that makes our families less safe' by potentially reducing vaccine access for millions of people. Georges Benjamin of the American Public Health Association (APHA) called the ouster 'a coup.' Bruce Scott of the American Medical Association (AMA) warned the decision could lead to lower vaccination rates and more disease outbreaks. Scott also called the ACIP a trusted source of science- and data-driven advice and said Kennedy's move, coupled with declining vaccination rates across the country, will help drive an increase in vaccine-preventable diseases. Kennedy has long been a staunch critic of vaccination programmes, gaining popularity as one of the nation's leading anti-vaccine activists, prior to his appointment as top US health official. Last month, he changed the CDC's COVID-19 guidelines – without first consulting the committee – removing it as a recommended vaccination for children and pregnant women, leaving that decision in the hands of patients. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will hold a security meeting on Wednesday following his phone call with US President Donald Trump. Israeli media says the call between Trump and Netanyahu lasted around 40 minutes, with the pair discussing a wide range of topics, from the war on Gaza to developments in the Iran nuclear deal. Asked about his call with Netanyahu, Trump didn't offer much detail, but insisted that the call with the Israeli premier went well. "Very well. Yeah, we discussed a lot of things, and it went very well. Very smooth. We'll see what happens. You know, we're trying to do something with a country we just spoke about, Iran,' said Trump. Trump however revealed that negotiations appear to be stagnant due to the Iranians being 'good negotiators'. He also again warned that a violent US approach to Tehran is not off the table. 'Sometimes they can be too tough. That's the problem. So, we are trying to make a deal so that there's no destruction and death. And we've told them that, and I've told them that, and I hope that's the way it works out. But it might not work out that way." Joining the security meeting with Netanyahu – according to Israeli media – are Defence Minister Israel Katz, Shas party chairperson Aryeh Deri and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer. Far-right figures who will also reportedly be taking part in the meeting include National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. Ben Gvir and Smotrich are not typically included in such high-level meetings. The meeting comes as Tehran is expected to respond to Washington's proposal for a nuclear deal. The Iranian response is expected to arrive in the form of a counter to the US proposal. Washington has reportedly proposed to allow Tehran to continue enriching uranium, but at low levels and for a limited time period. This will then be halted when a consortium is established for the enrichment of uranium for Iran and other countries outside of Iranian territory. Tehran is expected to reject this proposal, with rumours emerging that Iranian officials will not accept a deal in which they're told what to do on their own territory.
France 24
a day ago
- France 24
Looser gun laws tied to thousands more US child shooting deaths
Jeremy Faust, an emergency physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and lead author of the paper in JAMA Pediatrics, told AFP he was drawn to the topic as a father wondering whether today's world is safer for children than when he was growing up. "Mortality from car accidents has fallen dramatically, but at the same time, firearm mortality rose and replaced car accidents as the leading cause of death in children over the age of one," he said -- a trend unique among peer nations. To probe this shift, Faust and his colleagues analyzed state-level data before and after McDonald v Chicago, the 2010 Supreme Court decision that extended the Second Amendment to state and local governments. The ruling sparked a wave of legislation, some tightening gun laws but much of it loosening them. The team grouped states into three categories -- most permissive, permissive, and strict -- and used Centers for Disease Control data on firearm deaths among children aged 0–17. They ran an "excess mortality analysis," comparing actual deaths from 2011 to 2023 against projections based on prior trends from 1999 to 2010 and population growth. The results were stark: more than 7,400 excess pediatric firearm deaths in states that loosened gun laws -- including over 6,000 in the most permissive group of states. By contrast, the eight strictest states overall saw no excess deaths. The model predicted 4,267 fatalities, while 4,212 were recorded -- a near-match that bolstered confidence in the analysis. "The biggest thing people always want to know is, what's the intent behind these?" said Faust. "And I think what surprises most people is that accidents are a very small number of these deaths -- it's mostly homicide and suicide." While the study showed strong associations, it cannot prove causation -- a key limitation. But in a test of whether broader increases in violence might explain the trend, rather than changes to the law, the team analyzed non-firearm homicides and suicides and found no similar rise, a result that makes the findings "pretty compelling," said Faust. Black children saw the steepest increases. While the reasons are unclear, the authors speculated that disparities in safe firearm storage could play a role. There were some exceptions. Deaths rose in Illinois and Connecticut despite tighter laws -- though in the latter case, the spike was entirely attributable to the 2012 Sandy Hook mass shooting at an elementary school. "Big picture, we have a major problem in this country," said Faust. "But we also have a handful of states that are resisting these increases and, in fact, turning the other direction."
