Paris urges Israel to resume aid access to Gaza 'immediately, extensively, and without obstacles'
In a post on X, Barrot wrote: 'After three months of diplomatic efforts, the Israeli government has finally announced the reopening of access for humanitarian aid to Gaza.'
He stressed that this must be done 'immediately, extensively, and without obstacles.'
AFP
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Nahar Net
4 hours ago
- Nahar Net
Israel is in talks to possibly resettle Palestinians from Gaza in South Sudan
by Naharnet Newsdesk 13 August 2025, 17:31 Israel is in discussions with South Sudan about the possibility of resettling Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to the war-torn East African country, part of a wider effort by Israel to facilitate mass emigration from the territory left in ruins by its 22-month offensive against Hamas. Six people familiar with the matter confirmed the talks to The Associated Press. It's unclear how far the talks have advanced, but if implemented, the plans would amount to transferring people from one war-ravaged land at risk of famine to another, and raise human rights concerns. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he wants to realize U.S. President Donald Trump's vision of relocating much of Gaza's population through what Netanyahu refers to as "voluntary migration." Israel has floated similar resettlement proposals with other African nations. "I think that the right thing to do, even according to the laws of war as I know them, is to allow the population to leave, and then you go in with all your might against the enemy who remains there," Netanyahu said Tuesday in an interview with i24, and Israeli TV station. He did not make reference to South Sudan. Palestinians, rights groups, and much of the international community have rejected the proposals as a blueprint for forcible expulsion in violation of international law. For South Sudan, such a deal could help it build closer ties to Israel, now the almost unchallenged military power in the Middle East. It is also a potential inroad to Trump, who broached the idea of resettling Gaza's population in February but appears to have backed away in recent months. Israel's Foreign Ministry declined to comment and South Sudan's foreign minister did not respond to questions about the talks. A U.S. State Department spokesperson said it doesn't comment on private diplomatic conversations. Egypt opposes proposals to resettle Palestinians out of Gaza Joe Szlavik, the founder of a U.S. lobbying firm working with South Sudan, said he was briefed by South Sudanese officials on the talks. He said an Israeli delegation plans to visit the country to look into the possibility of setting up camps for Palestinians there. No known date has been set for the visit. Israel did not immediately respond to a request for confirmation of the visit. Szlavik said Israel would likely pay for makeshift camps. Edmund Yakani, who heads a South Sudanese civil society group, said he had also spoken to South Sudanese officials about the talks. Four additional officials with knowledge of the discussions confirmed talks were taking place on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss them publicly. Two of the officials, both from Egypt, told AP they've known for months about Israel's efforts to find a country to accept Palestinians, including its contact with South Sudan. They said they've been lobbying South Sudan against taking the Palestinians. Egypt is deeply opposed to plans to transfer Palestinians out of Gaza, with which it shares a border, fearing an influx of refugees into its own territory. The AP previously reported on similar talks initiated by Israel and the U.S. with Sudan and Somalia, countries that are also grappling with war and hunger, and the breakaway region of Somalia known as Somaliland. The status of those discussions is not known. 'Cash-strapped South Sudan needs any ally' Szlavik, who's been hired by South Sudan to improve its relations with the United States, said the U.S. is aware of the discussions with Israel but is not directly involved. South Sudan wants the Trump administration to lift a travel ban on the country and remove sanctions from some South Sudanese elites, said Szlavik. It has already accepted eight individuals swept up in the administration's mass deportations, in what may have been an effort to curry favor. The Trump administration has pressured a number of countries to help facilitate deportations. "Cash-strapped South Sudan needs any ally, financial gain and diplomatic security it can get," said Peter Martell, a journalist and author of a book about the country, "First Raise a Flag." Israel's Mossad spy agency provided aid to the South Sudanese during their decades-long civil war against the Arab-dominated government in Khartoum ahead of independence in 2011, according to the book. The State Department, asked if there was any quid pro quo with South Sudan, said decisions on the issuing of visas are made "in a way that prioritizes upholding the highest standards for U.S. national security, public safety, and the enforcement of our immigration laws." From one hunger-stricken conflict zone to another Many Palestinians might want to leave Gaza, at least temporarily, to escape the war and a hunger crisis bordering on famine. But they have roundly rejected any permanent resettlement from what they see as an integral part of their national homeland. They fear that Israel will never allow them to return, and that a mass departure would allow it to annex Gaza and reestablish Jewish settlements there, as called for by far-right ministers in the Israeli government. Still, even those Palestinians who want to leave are unlikely to take their chances in South Sudan, among the world's most unstable and conflict-ridden countries. South Sudan has struggled to recover from a civil war that broke out after independence, and which killed nearly 400,000 people and plunged pockets of the country into famine. The oil-rich country is plagued by corruption and relies on international aid to help feed its 11 million people – a challenge that has only grown since the Trump administration made sweeping cuts to foreign assistance. A peace deal reached seven years ago has been fragile and incomplete, and the threat of war returned when the main opposition leader was placed under house arrest this year. Palestinians in particular could find themselves unwelcome. The long war for independence from Sudan pitted the mostly Christian and animist south against the predominantly Arab and Muslim north. Yakani, of the civil society group, said South Sudanese would need to know who is coming and how long they plan to stay, or there could be hostilities due to the "historical issues with Muslims and Arabs." "South Sudan should not become a dumping ground for people," he said. "And it should not accept to take people as negotiating chips to improve relations."
Nahar Net
4 hours ago
- Nahar Net
Israel army says approved plan for new Gaza offensive
by Naharnet Newsdesk 13 August 2025, 12:21 The Israeli military said Wednesday it had approved the "framework" for a new offensive in the Gaza Strip, days after the security cabinet called for the seizure of Gaza City. Armed forces chief Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir "approved the main framework for the IDF's operational plan in the Gaza Strip," a statement released by the army said. Prime Benjamin Minister Netanyahu's government has not provided a precise timetable for when Israeli troops will enter the territory's largest city, where thousands have taken refuge after fleeing previous offensives. Gaza's civil defense agency said Israeli air strikes on Gaza City have intensified in recent days, with the residential neighborhoods of Zeitoun and Sabra hit "with very heavy air strikes targeting civilian homes, possibly including high-rise buildings". News of the military's approval of the plan comes hours after Hamas said a senior delegation had arrived in Cairo for "preliminary talks" with Egyptian officials on a temporary truce. The Netanyahu government's plans to expand the Gaza war after more than 22 months of fighting have sparked an international outcry as well as domestic opposition. UN-backed experts have warned of widespread famine unfolding in the territory, where Israel has drastically curtailed the amount of humanitarian aid it allows in. Hamas' October 2023 attack which triggered the war resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. Israel's offensive has killed at least 61,599 Palestinians, according to figures from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza which the United Nations considers reliable.
Nahar Net
4 hours ago
- Nahar Net
Netanyahu hints that Gaza ceasefire talks now focus on release of all hostages at once
by Naharnet Newsdesk 13 August 2025, 17:25 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday hinted that ceasefire efforts in Gaza are now focused on a comprehensive deal that would release the remaining hostages all at once, rather than in phases. Arab officials told The Associated Press last week that mediators Egypt and Qatar were preparing a new framework for a deal that would include the release of all remaining hostages in one go in return for a lasting ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces. The long-running indirect talks appeared to break down last month. But a Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo for ceasefire talks on Tuesday, Egypt's state-run Qahera news channel reported, a sign that efforts have not been abandoned after 22 months of war. Israel has threatened to widen its military offensive against Hamas to the areas of Gaza that it does not yet control, and where most of the territory's 2 million residents have sought refuge. Those plans have sparked international condemnation and criticism within Israel, and could be intended to raise pressure on Hamas to reach a ceasefire. The militants still hold 50 hostages taken in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that sparked the war. Israel believes around 20 of them are alive. 'I want all of them' In an interview with Israel's i24 News network broadcast Tuesday, Netanyahu was asked if the window had closed on a partial ceasefire deal. Egyptian Foreign Ministry Badr Abdelatty told reporters that Cairo is still trying to advance an earlier proposal for an initial 60-day ceasefire, the release of some hostages and an influx of humanitarian aid before further talks on a lasting truce. "I think it's behind us," Netanyahu replied. "We tried, we made all kinds of attempts, we went through a lot, but it turned out that they were just misleading us." "I want all of them," he said of the hostages. "The release of all the hostages, both alive and dead — that's the stage we're at." He added, however, that Israel's demands haven't changed, and that the war will end only when all hostages are returned and Hamas has surrendered. He has said that even then, Israel will maintain open-ended security control over the territory. Hamas has long called for a comprehensive deal but says it will only release the remaining hostages in return for the release of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel, a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. The militant group has refused to lay down its arms, as Israel has demanded. UN warns about starvation, malnutrition The United Nations on Tuesday warned that starvation and malnutrition in Gaza are at the highest levels since the war began. U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric reported the warning from the World Food Program and said Gaza's Health Ministry told U.N. staff in Gaza that five people died over the last 24 hours from malnutrition and starvation. The ministry says 121 adults and 101 children have died of malnutrition-related causes during the war. "Against this backdrop, humanitarian supplies entering Gaza remain far below the minimum required to meet people's immense needs," Dujarric said. The U.N. and its humanitarian partners are doing everything possible to bring aid into Gaza, he said, but still face significant delays and impediments from Israeli authorities that prevent the delivery of food and other essentials at the scale needed. Hamas-led militants abducted 251 people and killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in that 2023 attack. Most of the hostages have been released in ceasefires or other deals. Israel's air and ground offensive has since displaced most of Gaza's population, destroyed vast areas and pushed the territory toward famine. It has killed more than 61,400 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not say how many were fighters or civilians but says around half were women and children. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals. The U.N. and independent experts consider it the most reliable source on war casualties. Israel disputes its figures but has not provided its own. Israel says it struck militants disguised as aid workers In a separate development, the Israeli military said it recently struck a group of militants in Gaza who were disguised as aid workers and using a car with the logo of international charity World Central Kitchen. The army said it carried out an airstrike on the men after confirming with the charity that they were not affiliated with it and that the car did not belong to it. World Central Kitchen confirmed that the men and the vehicle were not affiliated with it. "We strongly condemn anyone posing as World Central Kitchen or other humanitarians, as this endangers civilians and aid workers," it said in a statement. The military shared video footage showing several men in yellow vests standing around a vehicle with the charity's logo on its roof. The military said five of the men were armed. The charity, founded in 2010, dispatches teams that can quickly provide meals on a mass scale in conflict zones and after natural disasters. In April, an Israeli strike killed seven World Central Kitchen workers in Gaza. Israel quickly admitted it had mistakenly killed the aid workers and launched an investigation. In November, an Israeli strike killed five people, including a World Central Kitchen worker who Israel said was part of the Hamas attack that sparked the war. The charity said at the time that it was unaware the employee had any connection to the attack.
