Balochistan vs Pakistan: Activists Demand India's Help Vantage with Palki Sharma
Balochistan vs Pakistan: Activists Demand India's Help | Vantage with Palki Sharma | N18G
Balochistan vs Pakistan: Activists Demand India's Help | Vantage with Palki Sharma | N18G
The 'Republic of Balochistan' is trending online, and the call for independence is louder than ever. Amid a surge in separatist attacks, the Baloch Liberation Army has launched Operation Herof 2.0—targeting military convoys and outposts across Pakistan. Baloch activists are now asking India and the UN for diplomatic recognition. Their demand: an independent Baloch state. The hashtag 'Republic of Balochistan' is gaining global traction. Is this Pakistan's next internal crisis?
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Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Israel backs anti-Hamas armed group known for looting aid in Gaza. Here's what we know
Israel is supporting armed groups of Palestinians in Gaza in what it says is a move to counter Hamas . But officials from the UN and aid organisations say the military is allowing them to loot food and other supplies from their trucks. One self-styled militia, which calls itself the Popular Forces , led by Yasser Abu Shabab , says it is guarding newly created, Israeli-backed food distribution centres in southern Gaza. Aid workers say it has a long history of looting UN trucks. Gaza's armed groups have ties to powerful clans or extended families and often operate as criminal gangs. Aid workers allege Israel's backing of the groups is part of a wider effort to control all aid operations in the strip. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Chuck Norris Begs Seniors: Avoid These 3 Foods Like The Plague Roundhouse Provisions Learn More Undo Israel denies allowing looters to operate in areas it controls. Here's what we know about anti-Hamas armed groups in Gaza: Live Events Who are these groups? Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a social media video Thursday that Israel had "activated" clans in Gaza to oppose Hamas. He didn't elaborate how Israel is supporting them or what role Israel wants them to play. Netanyahu's comments were in response to a political opponent accusing him of arming "crime families" in Gaza. Clans, tribes and extended families have strong influence in Gaza, where their leaders often help mediate disputes. Some have long been armed to protect their group's interests, and some have morphed into gangs involved in smuggling drugs or running protection rackets. After seizing power in 2007, Hamas clamped down on Gaza's gangs -- sometimes with brute force and sometimes by steering perks their way. But with Hamas' weakening power after 20 months of war with Israel, gangs have regained freedom to act. The leadership of a number of clans - including the clan from which the Abu Shabab group's members hail - have issued statements denouncing looting and cooperation with Israel. A self-proclaimed nationalist force' Besides the Abu Shabab group, it is not known how many armed groups Israel is supporting. The Abu Shabab group went public in early May, declaring itself a "nationalist force." It said it was protecting aid, including around the food distribution hubs run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation ( GHF ), a mainly American private contractor that Israel intends to replace the UN-led aid network. Aid workers and Palestinians who know the group estimate it has several hundred fighters. The Abu Shabab group's media office told The Associated Press it was collaborating with GHF "to ensure that the food and medicine reaches its beneficiaries." It said it was not involved in distribution, but that its fighters secured the surroundings of distribution centres run by GHF inside military-controlled zones in the Rafah area. A spokesperson with GHF said it had "no collaboration" with Abu Shabab. "We do have local Palestinian workers we are very proud of, but none is armed, and they do not belong to Abu Shabab's organisation," the spokesperson said, speaking on condition of anonymity in accordance with the group's rules. Before the war, Yasser Abu Shabab was involved in smuggling cigarettes and drugs from Egypt and Israel into Gaza through crossings and tunnels, according to two members of his extended family, one of whom was once part of his group. Hamas arrested Abu Shabab but freed him from prison along with most other inmates when the war began in October 2023, they said, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals. Abu Shabab's media office said he was summoned by police before the war but wasn't officially accused or tried. It also claims the group was involved in attacking aid trucks were "exaggerated," saying its fighters "took the minimum amount of food and water necessary." Aid workers say it is notorious for looting The head of the association in Gaza that provides trucks and drivers for aid groups said their members' vehicles have been attacked many times by Abu Shabab's fighters. Nahed Sheheiber said the group has been active in Israeli-controlled eastern parts of Rafah and Khan Younis, targeting trucks as they enter Gaza from the Kerem Shalom crossing with Israel. Troops nearby "did nothing" to stop attacks, he said. Sheheiber said that when Hamas policemen have tried to confront gangs or guard truck convoys, they were attacked by Israeli troops. One driver, Issam Abu Awda, told the AP he was attacked by Abu Shabab fighters last July. The fighters stopped his truck, blindfolded and handcuffed him and his assistant, then loaded the supplies off the vehicle, he said. Abu Awda said nearby Israeli troops didn't intervene. These kinds of attacks are still happening and highlight "a disturbing pattern," according to Jonathan Whittall, from the UN humanitarian coordinator, OCHA. "Those who have blocked and violently ransacked aid trucks seem to have been protected" by Israeli forces, said Whittall, head of OCHA's office for the occupied Palestinian territories. And, he added, they have now become the "protectors of the goods being distributed through Israel's new militarised hubs," referring to the GHF-run sites. The Israeli military did not reply when asked for comment on allegations it has allowed armed groups to loot trucks. But the Israeli prime minister's office called the accusations "fake news," saying, "Israel didn't allow looters to operate in Israeli controlled areas." Israel often accuses Hamas of stealing from trucks. What does all this have to do with aid? Muhammad Shehada, a political analyst from Gaza who is a visiting fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations , said he doesn't believe Israel's support for armed groups is aimed at directly fighting Hamas. So far there has been no attempt to deploy the groups against the militants. Instead, he said, Israel is using the gangs and the looting to present GHF "as the only alternative to provide food to Palestinians," since its supplies get in while the UN's don't. Israel wants the GHF to replace the UN-led aid system because it claims Hamas has been siphoning off large amounts of supplies. The UN denies that significant amounts have been taken by Hamas. Israel has also said it aims to move all Palestinians in Gaza to a "sterile zone" in the south, around the food hubs, while it fights Hamas elsewhere. The UN and aid groups have rejected that as using food as a tool for forced displacement. The Abu Shabab group has issued videos online urging Palestinians to move to tent camps in Rafah. Israel barred all food and other supplies from entering Gaza for 2 ½ months , pending the start of GHF - a blockade that has brought the population to the brink of famine. GHF started distributing food boxes on May 26 at three hubs guarded by private contractors inside Israeli military zones. Israel has let in some trucks of aid for the UN to distribute. But the UN says it has been able to get little of it into the hands of Palestinians because of Israeli military restrictions, including requiring its trucks to use roads where looters are known to operate. "It's Israel's way of telling the UN, if you want to try to bring aid into Gaza, good luck with this," said Shehada. "We will force you to go through a road where everything you bring will be looted."
India Today
2 hours ago
- India Today
Global leaders convene in France to boost coastal disaster resilience
The seventh International Conference on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (ICDRI) opened in France's Nice on Saturday, gathering over 350 delegates from governments, UN agencies and development banks to focus on building disaster-resilient infrastructure for coastal regions and Small Island Developing States (SIDS).With 37 per cent of the world's population living within 100 km of the coast and 90 per cent of global goods transported by sea, the stakes are high. Coastal economies contribute USD 1.5 trillion annually to global GDP, a figure expected to double by year's ICDRI, themed 'shaping a resilient future for coastal regions', is the first to be held in Europe and is co-hosted by the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) and the French government. The conference zeroes in on three pillars: improving access to finance, leveraging data and technology for early warning systems, and strengthening codes and standards for infrastructure resilience. In his virtual address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi stressed the urgency of global action, noting the heightened risks faced by coastal and island communities due to disasters and climate change. "Let us build infrastructure that stands firm against time and tide, creating a stronger, more resilient future for all," he Modi also outlined five global priorities, including workforce skills, innovative financing and a digital repository for best from SIDS echoed the call for urgent support. Guyana's President Mohamed Irfaan Ali described climate-resilient infrastructure as "a question of survival", while Nauru's President David Adeang called for moving "from dialogue to delivery" to ensure no nation is left and Barbuda's Prime Minister Gaston Browne and Haiti's Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aime both emphasised that resilience is a necessity, not a luxury and a moral imperative for global Director General Amit Prothi highlighted the IRIS programme, which is supporting 24 projects across 25 SIDS, and announced new research grants for 53 projects in 21 countries. The conference also reaffirmed the coalition's commitment to advancing climate and disaster resilience across Africa and issued a call to action for accelerating investment in small island climate risks intensify, ICDRI 2025 aims to transform global dialogue into concrete action, ensuring that vulnerable coastal communities are equipped for a safer and more sustainable future. IN THIS STORY#Narendra Modi
Indian Express
4 hours ago
- Indian Express
Explained: International efforts to end Israel's war in Gaza
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Wednesday (June 4) failed to pass a resolution calling for 'an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire in Gaza', after a veto by the United States, with all other members voting in favour. The death toll in Gaza has reached almost 55,000 as Israel has continued its renewed ground offensive, launched on May 17, in the Palestinian enclave. Also, the distribution of humanitarian aid, by a US- and Israel-backed NGO, in the Strip has been marred with chaos, confusion, and numerous shooting deaths. How have past international efforts to end Israel's war in Gaza fared? How have international views on Gaza changed over time? What explains Israel's actions? Between October 2023 (when the war began) and June 2025, international efforts to end Israel's war in Gaza focused on three principal fronts – a ceasefire, rebuilding Gaza, and the delivery of humanitarian aid. The objectives of diverse stakeholders across these efforts have all effectively failed. Efforts towards a ceasefire have been made both within and outside of the UN framework. At least seven UNSC Resolutions calling for a ceasefire in Gaza have failed, with Russia and China vetoing two, and the US vetoing five. The UNSC's March 2024 resolution calling for a ceasefire also failed due to Israeli rejections, despite Hamas acceptance. Hamas agreed to release hostages in exchange for Israel releasing Palestinian prisoners. Israel called the UN 'shameless', and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cancelled a then-scheduled trip to the Biden White House. The Trump White House, which prefers to work outside the UN framework, focused on implementing a three-phased ceasefire by January 2025. This too broke down by March, with Phase I only partially complete and Israel violating the agreement to resume operations in Gaza. Amidst ceasefire efforts, both the US and Arab stakeholders have also proposed long-term visions for rebuilding Gaza. For instance, President Donald Trump proposed a plan to forcefully displace Palestinians from Gaza to build a 'riviera'. The Arab League endorsed an Egyptian initiative to rebuild Gaza for Palestinians. While Israel and the US maintain maximalist positions, calling for a complete elimination of Hamas from Gaza, Arab states sidestep the long-term question, restricting their efforts to mediating a ceasefire. The 'Hamas question' has also become complicated, given its continued potency in Gaza, despite significant losses to Israeli action. Even before the October 2023 attack, the international community struggled to reconcile its acceptance of Hamas' position in Palestine as a legitimate actor with the condemnation of its use of terrorism. The effort to ensure humanitarian aid to Gaza's 2.1 million civilians — 100% of whom are on the brink of starvation according to the UN — has fallen disastrously short. Israel's complete rejection of the UN as a legitimate avenue has disabled aid delivery, especially since March. Israel banned the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine (UNRWA) last October, and both the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Israeli settlers actively prevented most aid trucks from reaching designated destinations in Gaza, citing security risks vis-à-vis Hamas. Even when Israel did allow limited aid delivery in May, the UN deemed it insufficient for the scale of Gaza's humanitarian crisis. Rather, Israel prefers aid delivery with a heavily militarised approach, through the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which the UN Secretary General has deemed incompatible with international law. First, the Trump administration's policy in the broader Middle East has been detrimental to Israel's stated interests. In the last three months, Washington has engaged with and legitimised Syria's Ahmed Al-Sharaa (who Israel opposes) and concluded a ceasefire with the Houthis in exchange for a cessation of attacks on international shipping (attacks on Israel and Israel-linked shipping have continued). The US also circumvented Israel entirely to negotiate directly with Hamas (in Qatar) for the release of an Israeli American hostage in May. The Trump administration has continued negotiations with Iran to potentially reach a nuclear deal — another policy anathema to Israel. Second, the critical position of Arab states (including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco which recognised Israel with the signing of the 2020 Abraham Accords) has hardened further as Israel expands its war. Israel also drew the ire of Arab states after it 'banned' a five-country Arab delegation (including Saudi Arabia and UAE) from visiting the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank in early June. Internationally, the Arab effort has focused on garnering greater recognition for the Palestinian state. Saudi Arabia, along with France, is set to jointly host a UN conference on the two-state solution later this month. Third, European states have grown increasingly critical of Israel, primarily due to Israel's blocking of aid delivery. In May, Canada, France, and the United Kingdom issued a rare and categorical rebuke of Israel's actions and committed to 'recognizing a Palestinian state as a contribution to achieving a two-state solution'. Both Israel and the US have warned European states against recognising Palestine, even as Spain, Norway, and Ireland formally recognised the State of Palestine on May 28. The evolution of the United Kingdom's position is a case in point. Compared to the UNSC's failed October 2023 resolution calling for a ceasefire, where the UK abstained, it now consistently votes in favour of such resolutions even without condemnations of Hamas. Explaining its June 2025 vote in favour, the UK deemed Israel's new operation 'unjustifiable, disproportionate and counterproductive'. The growing international (non-American) pressure has led Israel to expand and intensify its operations in Gaza (and settlement activity in the West Bank), rather than disabling them. For instance, a week prior to Trump's Middle East tour in May, the Israeli cabinet officially approved a plan to 'capture' Gaza and hold territory through an expanded operation (Op Gideon's Chariot). This operation in turn has cemented the failure of international efforts towards a ceasefire and aid delivery, and has been the key trigger for adverse international reactions towards Israel, and greater recognition of Palestinian sovereignty. Note that while US policy towards the Middle East has pushed against Israel's interests, Washington has compensated by backing Israeli actions in Palestine through continuing diplomatic and military support. 'Trump restrains Netanyahu's regional ambitions but gives him a free hand with the Palestinians,' Aluff Benn, the Editor in Chief of Israel's Haaretz newspaper recently said. Effectively, this has emboldened Netanyahu to push for Israel's indefinite occupation of Gaza. For Netanyahu, occupying Gaza is not a new objective to push back against mounting international pressure, but is rather a historic endeavour. In 2005, when Prime Minister Ariel Sharon withdrew Israel's illegal settlements from the Strip, Netanyahu had resigned from Sharon's government to oppose the move. That Israel has now been further emboldened was evident in Netanyahu declaring on Thursday (June 5) that Israel was arming a number of criminal gangs in Gaza to fight Hamas. This was the first such confirmation from the Israeli government and a tactic similar to Netanyahu's preference of tacitly 'partnering' with Hamas in past decades to undercut the possibility of a unified Palestinian leadership. As the IDF's recent call for over 400,000 reservists to active duty shows, Israel is gearing up towards a large-scale occupation of Gaza. For the current Israeli Prime Minister, the overt American support and the unwillingness of Arab and European states to sanction Israel or undertake substantial punitive measures are sufficient to press forward with occupation, and further disable the possibility of a Palestinian state. As is a recurring theme in Palestine, global support for Palestinian statehood occurs alongside Israel's physical erosion of its possibility.
