logo
Israel condemned by 25 nations over "inhumane killing" of Gaza civilians and "drip feeding of aid" as war expands

Israel condemned by 25 nations over "inhumane killing" of Gaza civilians and "drip feeding of aid" as war expands

CBS News21-07-2025
Twenty-five nations, including Britain, Canada and Japan, issued a joint statement on Monday with "a simple, urgent message: the war in Gaza must end now."
The statement by the U.S. allies and partners across the globe and published online by the U.K. government condemns Israel's tightly-controlled aid distribution method, accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's U.S.-backed government of the "drip feeding of aid and the inhumane killing of civilians, including children."
"It is horrifying that over 800 Palestinians have been killed while seeking aid," said the statement, which was published after one of the deadliest days for aid seekers during the 21-month war in Gaza. Health officials in the Hamas-run enclave said more than 80 people were killed trying to access emergency food supplies on Sunday alone.
In addition to the U.K., the nations that signed the joint statement were Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
"The suffering of civilians in Gaza has reached new depths. The Israeli government's aid delivery model is dangerous, fuels instability and deprives Gazans of human dignity," the statement says. "The Israeli Government's denial of essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population is unacceptable. Israel must comply with its obligations under international humanitarian law."
The war in Gaza was sparked by the Hamas-orchestrated terrorist attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, during which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 others taken as hostages. Most of those captives have since been released, but Netanyahu said earlier this month that 50 remain in Gaza, including 20 he said were still alive.
"The hostages cruelly held captive by Hamas since 7 October 2023 continue to suffer terribly," the 25 nations said in the statement. "We condemn their continued detention and call for their immediate and unconditional release. A negotiated ceasefire offers the best hope of bringing them home and ending the agony of their families."
Israel does not allow foreign journalists into Gaza to report on the war, making it impossible to independently verify figures provided by the Palestinian enclave's Hamas-run health ministry and other agencies. The Israeli government rejects these numbers as falsely inflated, but the United Nations says the ministry's figure of more than 59,000 people being killed in total since the war started is the most credible information available.
CBS News' own team inside Gaza has spoken with medical workers and family members of aid seekers who say Israeli forces have routinely opened fire on people near food distribution sites since at least the end of May, when a new, controversial, U.S.- and Israeli-backed organization started operating a handful of "humanitarian hubs" in the enclave.
The deaths reported on Sunday, near a convoy of aid trucks operated by the U.N.'s World Food Program, were not linked to the U.S.-based Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which is run by an evangelical preacher who worked previously as an adviser to President Trump. But Palestinian authorities say most of the aid seekers killed by Israeli forces over the last month and a half were trying to access GHF hubs.
GHF director Rev. Johnnie Moore told CBS News earlier this month that while he didn't "want to diminish these reports" about killings near GHF hubs, "we can't control what happens outside our distribution sites."
He repeated his previous calls — which have been echoed by the White House — for the United Nations and its humanitarian agencies to join the GHF's efforts to feed people in Gaza.
None of the established humanitarian agencies that have worked for decades in Gaza have agreed to work with the GHF, saying it forces already-displaced Palestinians to trek for miles to reach its hubs and that it violates basic humanitarian principles.
The Trump administration announced its first public support for the GHF in early July: $30 million in funding.
In a statement on Monday, COGAT, the Israeli military agency in charge of affairs in the Palestinian territories, said: "Israel acts in accordance with international law and is leading efforts to facilitate the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza in coordination with the international organizations."
Israel has blamed Hamas for all deaths in Gaza since the war began, accusing it of using civilians as human shields and of seizing aid materials for its own use, both of which the group — long designated a terrorist organization by the U.S., Israel and the European Union — denies doing.
Pope Leo XIV also renewed his call over the weekend for "an immediate end to the barbarity of this war and for a peaceful resolution to the conflict" in Gaza.
Netanyahu has said repeatedly that the war will continue until Hamas is rendered impotent militarily and politically, and all the hostages are returned.
The international outcry and mounting demands for an immediate ceasefire come at a time when there's little to suggest any imminent breakthrough in ongoing negotiations for a truce. They come instead as Israel says it is again expanding its ground war in Gaza, forcing thousands of Palestinians to once again flee for safety.
On Sunday, Israel widened its evacuation orders for Gaza to include an area that has been somewhat less hard-hit than others, indicating a new battleground may be opening up and squeezing Palestinians into ever tinier areas.
In an Arabic language social media post published Sunday, the Israel Defense Forces warned that it was operating "with great force to destroy the enemy's capabilities and terrorist infrastructure" in the central city of Deir al-Balah, "as it expands its activities in this region to operate in an area it has not operated in before."
"For your safety, evacuate the area immediately and move south," the IDF said.
The U.N.'s humanitarian agency OCHA estimated that between 50,000 and 80,000 people were in the area under the new evacuation order, and families were seen carrying what few items they could on donkey carts, bicycles and even dragging sleds behind them as they headed south.
Deir el-Balah resident Abdullah Abu Saleem, 48, told the French news agency AFP that "during the night, we heard huge and powerful explosions shaking the area as if it were an earthquake," which he attributed to "artillery shelling in the south-central part of Deir el-Balah and the southeastern area."
"We are extremely worried and fearful that the army is planning a ground operation in Deir el-Balah, and the central camps where hundreds of thousands of displaced people are sheltering," he told AFP.
The Israeli military did not provide immediate comment on the operations, but the GLZ Radio network, which is funded by the Israeli government and affiliated directly with the IDF, reported Monday that soldiers had, "for the first time since the start of the war," entered Deir al-Balah on the ground.
GLZ said a single combat brigade, "including engineering and armor forces, have recently entered a maneuver in the southern Deir al-Balah area in the central camps in the Gaza Strip. The attacks were preceded by air and artillery strikes during the night and morning, and in the afternoon the forces went into action."
The announced expansion of ground operations drew a quick statement of concern from the group that represents the remaining Israeli hostages in Gaza – the precise whereabouts of whom remain unknown.
"The families demand that the Prime Minister, Defense Minister, Chief of Staff, and IDF Spokesperson appear before them and the Israeli public this evening to clearly explain why the offensive in the Deir al-Balah area does not put the hostages at serious risk," the Hostages Families Forum Headquarters said in a statement. "As of this moment, we have received no official, organized updates or satisfactory answers on this matter. The people of Israel will not forgive anyone who knowingly endangered the hostages — both the living and the deceased. No one will be able to claim they didn't know what was at stake."
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Canada will recognize a Palestinian state in September, the prime minister says
Canada will recognize a Palestinian state in September, the prime minister says

Yahoo

time9 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Canada will recognize a Palestinian state in September, the prime minister says

TORONTO (AP) — Canada will recognize a Palestinian state in September, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced on Wednesday, the latest in a series of symbolic announcements that are part of a broader global shift against Israel's policies in Gaza. Carney convened a Cabinet meeting to discuss the situation in the battered Palestinian territory. He said it came after he discussed the crisis with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer who announced a similar move on Tuesday. Leaders are under mounting pressure over the issue as scenes of hunger in Gaza have horrified so many across the world. 'The level of human suffering in Gaza is intolerable,' Carney said. 'Canada intends to recognize the State of Palestine at the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in September 2025.' Carney said the intention is predicated on the Palestinian Authority 'holding general elections in 2026 in which Hamas can play no part, and to demilitarize the Palestinian state.' It wasn't immediately clear how much of a condition Carney's caveat represented — an election in the wrecked strip is not likely anytime soon. Pressure to formally recognize Palestinian statehood has mounted since French President Emmanuel Macron announced that his country will become the first major Western power to recognize a Palestinian state in September. As with France and the U.K., Canadian recognition would be largely symbolic, but it's part of a broader global shift against Israel and could increase diplomatic pressure for an end to the conflict. More than 140 countries recognize a Palestinian state, including a dozen in Europe. Macron's announcement last week made France the first Group of Seven country — and the largest in Europe — to take that step. Canada has long supported the idea of an independent Palestinian state existing alongside Israel, but has said recognition should come as part of a negotiated two-state solution to the conflict. Solve the daily Crossword

Top lawyers warn Starmer recognising Palestine could breach international law
Top lawyers warn Starmer recognising Palestine could breach international law

Yahoo

time9 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Top lawyers warn Starmer recognising Palestine could breach international law

Sir Keir Starmer's pledge to recognise a Palestinian state could break international law, an influential group of peers has warned. Some 38 members of the House of Lords, including some of the UK's most eminent lawyers, have written to Attorney General Lord Hermer about the Prime Minister's announcement. As first reported by the Times newspaper, the peers warned that Sir Keir's pledge to recognise Palestine may breach international law as the territory may not meet the criteria for statehood under the Montevideo Convention, a treaty signed in 1933. On Tuesday, Sir Keir announced the UK could take the step of recognising statehood in September, ahead of a major UN gathering. The UK will only refrain from doing so if Israel allows more aid into Gaza, stops annexing land in the West Bank, agrees to a ceasefire, and signs up to a long-term peace process over the next two months. Hamas must immediately release all remaining Israeli hostages, sign up to a ceasefire, disarm and 'accept that they will play no part in the government of Gaza', Sir Keir also said. In their letter to Lord Hermer, the peers said Palestine 'does not meet the international law criteria for recognition of a state, namely, defined territory, a permanent population, an effective government and the capacity to enter into relations with other states'. There is no certainty over the borders of Palestine they said, and no single government, as Hamas and Fatah are enemies. Lord Hermer has previously insisted that a commitment to international law 'goes absolutely to the heart' of the Government's approach to foreign policy. In their letter seen by the PA news agency, the peers added: 'You have said that a selective, 'pick and mix' approach to international law will lead to its disintegration, and that the criteria set out in international law should not be manipulated for reasons of political expedience. 'Accordingly, we expect you to demonstrate this commitment by explaining to the public and to the Government that recognition of Palestine would be contrary to the principles governing recognition of states in international law.' Among the respected lawyers to have signed the letter are Lord Pannick – who represented the previous government at the Supreme Court over its Rwanda scheme – as well as KCs Lord Verdirame and Lord Faulks. Some of Parliament's most prominent Jewish voices, including crossbench peer Baroness Deech, Labour's Lord Winston and the Conservatives' Baroness Altmann, have also put their name to the letter. Former Conservative cabinet ministers Lord Pickles and Lord Lansley have also supported it, as has Sir Michael Ellis KC, a former Conservative attorney general and the only non-peer whose name appears on the letter as seen by PA. The peers' intervention follows condemnation of Sir Keir's announcement by Emily Damari, a British-Israeli women who was held captive by Hamas for more than a year. The PM is 'not standing on the right side of history' after his pledge to recognise a Palestinian state, she said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meanwhile claimed it 'rewards Hamas's monstrous terrorism'. But ministers have insisted the step is important and is not an example of gesture politics. 'This is about the Palestinian people. It's about getting aid in to those starving children,' Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said on Wednesday morning. Asked directly whether the release of hostages by Hamas is an explicit condition of Palestinian recognition, Ms Alexander told BBC Radio 4: 'We will be making an assessment in September and we expect Hamas to act in the same way as we expect Israel to act.' She later added: 'We're giving Israel eight weeks to act. If they want to be sat at the table to shape that enduring peace in the region, they must act.' Sir Keir had been coming under pressure from MPs to recognise statehood, and last week more than 250 cross-party members signed a letter calling on him to act. Elsewhere on Wednesday, Palestine Action's co-founder won a bid to bring a High Court challenge over the group's ban as a terror organisation. Huda Ammori is challenging Home Secretary Yvette Cooper's decision to proscribe the group under anti-terror laws, announced after the group claimed responsibility for action in which two Voyager planes were damaged at RAF Brize Norton on June 20.

Alberta government to learn from ruling on Ontario bike lane law: minister
Alberta government to learn from ruling on Ontario bike lane law: minister

Yahoo

time9 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Alberta government to learn from ruling on Ontario bike lane law: minister

AIRDRIE — Alberta's transportation minister says the province plans to learn from an Ontario court ruling that found a law seeking to remove some Toronto bike lanes unconstitutional. Devin Dreeshen says Alberta will be watching the case with interest, especially since Ontario's government plans to appeal the ruling. Dreeshen says being the second province to go down the same path is helpful, as it gives Alberta the opportunity to analyze the "good and bad" parts of Ontario's legislation. The minister met earlier in the day with Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek to discuss bike infrastructure in her city. Dreeshen and Gondek say the meeting was collaborative and they agreed bike lanes are temporary. Gondek says Calgary is open to making changes if a bike lane creates congestion issues. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 30, 2025. The Canadian Press

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store