More funding extends Wolverhampton and Walsall child protection pilot scheme
Two councils are to continue working with the government on a pilot programme to improve child protection.Walsall and Wolverhampton councils are two of 10 areas in England trialling the Families First for Children (FFC) programme, introduced after a major child care review in 2022 along with reports into the murders of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes and Star Hobson in 2020.The Department for Education (DfE) confirmed extra funding for the £45m programme.The decision means the two authorities can carry on working on the scheme for another year.
The pilot was aimed at making sure targeted early help was available for families experiencing domestic abuse, addiction or poor mental health before issues escalated and children were put at risk of harm, ministers said.The 2022 review found tens of thousands more children could end up in care without radical changes to child protection.The FFC scheme is aiming to keep more children in stable family homes and to try to prevent cases of neglect.The councils have been working with partners, agencies, voluntary and community sector and local communities while evaluating the work as it was carried out.The model would be rolled out nationwide in the future, a DfE spokesperson said.Wolverhampton was selected to pilot the programme in 2023 with Walsall joining through a second wave of funding announced in April 2024, a Walsall Council spokesperson said.Other areas taking part in the programme including Dorset, Lewisham, Lincolnshire, Luton, Redbridge, Warrington, Warwickshire and The Wirral.Councillor Stacie Elson said staff had spent a lot of time listening to families and organisations "to really understand how we can design a better model of family help together".
Arthur Labinjo-Hughes died in Solihull in 2020 after being tortured by Thomas Hughes and Emma Tustin, who were jailed for manslaughter and murder respectively.Star Hobson, from Keighley, died in September 2020 after enduring months of abuse at the hands of her mother, Frankie Smith, and her partner, Savannah Brockhill.
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Daily Mail
3 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Sweden snubs Greta Thunberg's plea for help on board 'freedom flotilla': Country's blunt response as activist says she has been 'kidnapped' by Israel after Gaza-bound vessel was sprayed by 'irritant substance'
Sweden has rejected Greta Thunberg 's plea for help on board the 'freedom flotilla' after Israeli commandos intercepted the vessel on its approach to Gaza. Maria Malmer Stenergard, the Swedish Minister of Foreign Affairs, said on Monday that she believes Thunberg is not in need of support from the ministry after the 22-year-old climate activist called on followers to pressure the government into action. 'A great responsibility rests on those who choose to travel contrary to the advice given to a place,' she said, as protestors gathered in Stockholm to demand an intervention. 'If she needs consular support, we will do everything we can, just as we do with all Swedish citizens,' she said, criticising that as a result of the high volume of calls to the consular hotline, Swedes 'in need' abroad were being held in long queues. Protestors have called on the governments of the 12 Madleen crew members to act after the activists claimed to have been 'intercepted and kidnapped' in international waters some 100 miles from the coast of Gaza. In London, demonstrators gathered outside the FCDO offices in Whitehall to call on the government to protect the crew of the British-flagged ship. One held a sign that read: ' Israel attacks UK boat. UK does nothing.' The Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), which organised the voyage from Italy to raise awareness of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, said last night that the ship had come 'under assault' in the Mediterranean Sea. The Madleen was said to have been shadowed by speedboats and drones before 'quadcopters' surrounded and sprayed the ship with an unidentified 'white irritant substance', shortly before the IDF seized it. Images showed the deck splattered with white liquid. Activist Yasmin Acar, among those on board, said it had been deployed by Israel and was affecting her eyes. 'Communications are jammed, and disturbing sounds are being played over the radio,' the coalition wrote on Telegram. Huwaida Arraf, the co-founder of the International Solidarity Movement, told Al Jazeera that crew members had said their eyes were burning from the substance. 'We don't know what that chemical was. Some people reported that their eyes were burning,' they said. Israel 'forcibly intercepted' the British-flagged vessel at 3.02am local time this morning, some 100 miles from the coast of Gaza, the FFC said in a statement. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz argued the blockade - in place for years - was needed to prevent militants importing weapons into Gaza. He congratulated the military on its 'quick and safe takeover' of the ship this morning after Israeli commandos seized the vessel. After diverting the boat, Israel's foreign ministry posted a picture of the activists all in orange life jackets being offered water and sandwiches. Katz said that the crew were safe and unharmed, and would be taken to the Israeli Port of Ashdod where they would be shown a video of Hamas 's October 7 atrocities. Video shows gunmen storming into southern Israel during Hamas's October 7 massacre, killing some 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostage In comments shared on social media today, Katz said it was 'appropriate' the crew now see 'what atrocities [Hamas] committed against women, the elderly and children, and against whom Israel is fighting to defend itself'. The video of Hamas' attacks reportedly contains 43 minutes of 'uncensored' footage of 'people being massacred and bodies mutilated during the onslaught', according to the Times of Israel. The Israeli foreign ministry also derided what it called the 'selfie yacht' carrying 'celebrity' activists, adding that the aid onboard would be transferred to Gaza through what it called 'real humanitarian channels'. The 12 activists had left Italy on June 1, aiming to bring awareness of food shortages in Gaza, which the UN has called the 'hungriest place on Earth', after 21 months of war. The UN has warned the territory's entire population is at risk of famine. But the Israeli government had vowed to prevent the 'unauthorised' Madleen from breaching the naval blockade of Gaza, urging it to turn back. Protesters take part in a demonstration outside the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Offcie (FCDO) in Whitehall, London on June 9 After losing communication with the vessel, the FFC posted pre-recorded videos from the crew. In her video, Thunberg said: 'If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped in international waters by the Israeli occupational forces, or forces that support Israel.' Why are the activists protesting? The crew on board the Madleen sailed towards Gaza in an effort to raise awareness of the lingering humanitarian crisis. Israel imposed a blockade on supplies - including food and medicine - into the Palestinian enclave on March 2, and limited aid only began to enter again late last month after pressure from allies and warnings of famine. ActionAid had reported in April that the price of flour in Gaza had soared to $300 a bag after more than 50 days without new aid deliveries. More than 3,700 children were newly admitted for treatment for acute malnutrition in March alone, it said, an 80 per cent rise on the previous month, per UNOCHA. Still, most people in Gaza are surviving on just a single meal per day, consisting mostly of pasta, rice or canned food. Humanitarian workers and experts have warned of famine unless the blockade is lifted and Israel ends its military offensive. Israel and Egypt have imposed varying degrees of blockade on Gaza since Hamas seized power from rival Palestinian forces in 2007. Israel says the blockade is needed to prevent Hamas from importing arms, while critics say it amounts to collective punishment of Gaza's Palestinian population. The FFC said that Israel had acted with 'total impunity'. It said that the cargo, containing baby formula, food and medical supplies, had been 'confiscated'. Israel said that the aid on board would be 'transferred to Gaza through real humanitarian channels'. The foreign ministry stressed that all crew members were 'safe and unharmed'. It said that it expected the activists to return to their home countries. Arraf, a human rights attorney and Freedom Flotilla organiser, pushed back: 'Israel has no legal authority to detain international volunteers aboard the Madleen.' 'This seizure blatantly violates international law and defies the (International Court of Justice's) binding orders requiring unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza.' Israel has come under criticism for apprehending the group of activists in international waters. Francesca Albanese, the UN's Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories, said the British government must 'urgently seek full clarification' about the ship's status and work to 'secure the immediate release' of the vessel and crew. 'The Madleen must be allowed to continue its lawful humanitarian mission to Gaza,' she said. MailOnline approached the Foreign Office for comment. Protestors amassed outside the FCDO offices in London today. One held a sign that read: 'Israel attacks UK boat. UK does nothing.' Ellie Chowns, Green Party Foreign Affairs spokeswoman and MP for North Herefordshire, said: 'The UK Government cannot remain silent while international waters are turned into a battleground and humanitarian actors are criminalised. 'The forced interception of the Madleen, a British-flagged vessel, is utterly unacceptable. Unarmed civilian crew were seized by Israeli military forces while sailing in international waters, their life-saving cargo taken, and international law trampled. 'I echo the Freedom Flotilla Coalition's demands: the immediate release of these civilians, unfettered delivery of vital baby formula, food and medical supplies to Gaza, and full accountability for these flagrant violations.' The Gaza-bound aid ship Madleen, organised by the international NGO Freedom Flotilla Coalition, anchored off Catania, Italy, on June 1 Critics have branded the interception 'state piracy' and condemned the lack of action from the crew members' respective governments. Mouin Rabbani, a non-resident fellow at the Qatar-based Center for Conflict and Humanitarian Studies, told Al Jazeera: 'This is not only an act of state piracy. It's in direct violation of the provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice.' Spain summoned Israel's charge d'affaires in protest of the interception, according to El Pais, citing a source at the Spanish Foreign Ministry. French Foreign Minister Jeal-Noel Barrot said France wants to 'facilitate the rapid return' of six French nationals travelling with the group. Turkey slammed Israel for the interception, describing it as a 'heinous attack'. 'The intervention by Israeli forces on the 'Madleen' ship.. while sailing in international waters is a clear violation of international law,' it said, describing it as a 'heinous attack' by the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Turkey's foreign ministry said there were Turkish nationals among those on board, without identifying them. The Freedom Flotilla's website said the boat was carrying 12 people from seven countries, including Turkey. 'The international community's justified reaction to Israel's genocidal policies, which use hunger as a weapon in Gaza and prevent the delivery of humanitarian aid, will continue,' the ministry added, saying Israel would manage to 'silence the voices defending human values'. Eight-year-old Rahab Matar, who was injured during an Israeli airstrike while playing in a park in Gaza, stays at a temporary shelter set up at the Yarmouk Stadium, Gaza City, June 7 Israel is facing mounting international pressure to allow more aid into Gaza to alleviate widespread shortages of food and basic supplies. It recently allowed humanitarian deliveries to resume after barring them for more than two months and began working with the newly formed, US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. But humanitarian agencies have criticised the GHF and the United Nations refuses to work with it, citing concerns over its practices and neutrality. Dozens of people have been killed near GHF distribution points since late May, according to Gaza's civil defence agency.
Daily Mail
4 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Israel used drones to 'spray irritant substance' over Greta Thunberg's 'freedom flotilla' before boarding and detaining the activists - who will be 'made to watch footage of Hamas October 7 atrocities'
Israel used drones to spray an irritant substance on Greta Thunberg's 'freedom flotilla' before boarding and detaining the activists, the organising group has claimed. The Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) said the ship was surrounded and sprayed with a 'white irritant substance' shortly before the IDF descended overnight. 'Communications are jammed, and disturbing sounds are being played over the radio,' the coalition wrote on Telegram, assessing that the Madleen had come 'under assault' in international waters. Images showed the deck splattered with an unidentified white liquid. Activist Yasmin Acar, among the 12 on board, said it had been deployed by Israel and was affecting her eyes. Israel 'forcibly intercepted' the British-flagged vessel at 3.02am local time this morning, some 100 miles from the coast of Gaza, the FFC said in a statement. The crew, including climate activist Thunberg, had spent the night on the Mediterranean Sea, shadowed by speedboats and drones, before being intercepted. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz argued the blockade - in place for years - was needed to prevent militants importing weapons into Gaza. He congratulated the military on its 'quick and safe takeover' of the ship this morning after Israeli commandos seized the vessel. After diverting the boat, Israel's foreign ministry posted a picture of the activists all in orange life jackets being offered water and sandwiches. Katz said that the crew were safe and unharmed, and would be taken to the Israeli Port of Ashdod where they would be shown a video of Hamas 's October 7 atrocities. Activist Yasmin Acar, among the 12 on board, said it had been deployed by Israel and was affecting her eyes In comments shared on social media today, Katz said it was 'appropriate' the crew now see 'what atrocities [Hamas] committed against women, the elderly and children, and against whom Israel is fighting to defend itself'. The video of Hamas' attacks reportedly contains 43 minutes of 'uncensored' footage of 'people being massacred and bodies mutilated during the onslaught', according to the Times of Israel. The Israeli foreign ministry also derided what it called the 'selfie yacht' carrying 'celebrity' activists, adding that the aid onboard would be transferred to Gaza through what it called 'real humanitarian channels'. The 12 activists had left Italy on June 1, aiming to bring awareness of food shortages in Gaza, which the UN has called the 'hungriest place on Earth', after 21 months of war. The UN has warned the territory's entire population is at risk of famine. But the Israeli government had vowed to prevent the 'unauthorised' Madleen from breaching the naval blockade of Gaza, urging it to turn back. The FFC had said earlier that the ship had come 'under assault' miles from Gaza - in international waters - and was being sprayed with an unidentified white substance. 'Quadcopters are surrounding the ship, spraying it with a white paint-like substance,' the coalition wrote on Telegram. 'Communications are jammed, and disturbing sounds are being played over the radio.' Huwaida Arraf, the co-founder of the International Solidarity Movement, told Al Jazeera that crew members had said their eyes were burning from the substance. 'We don't know what that chemical was. Some people reported that their eyes were burning,' they said. After losing communication with the vessel, the FFC posted pre-recorded videos from the crew. In her video, Thunberg said: 'If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped in international waters by the Israeli occupational forces, or forces that support Israel.' The FFC said that Israel had acted with 'total impunity'. It said that the cargo, containing baby formula, food and medical supplies, had been 'confiscated'. Israel said that the aid on board would be 'transferred to Gaza through real humanitarian channels'. The foreign ministry stressed that all crew members were 'safe and unharmed'. It said that it expected the activists to return to their home countries. Arraf, a human rights attorney and Freedom Flotilla organiser, pushed back: 'Israel has no legal authority to detain international volunteers aboard the Madleen.' 'This seizure blatantly violates international law and defies the (International Court of Justice's) binding orders requiring unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza.' Israel has come under criticism for apprehending the group of activists in international waters. Francesca Albanese, the UN's Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories, said the British government must 'urgently seek full clarification' about the ship's status and work to 'secure the immediate release' of the vessel and crew. 'The Madleen must be allowed to continue its lawful humanitarian mission to Gaza,' she said. MailOnline approached the Foreign Office for comment. Protestors amassed outside the FCDO offices in London today. One held a sign that read: 'Israel attacks UK boat. UK does nothing.' Ellie Chowns, Green Party Foreign Affairs spokeswoman and MP for North Herefordshire, said: 'The UK Government cannot remain silent while international waters are turned into a battleground and humanitarian actors are criminalised. 'The forced interception of the Madleen, a British-flagged vessel, is utterly unacceptable. Unarmed civilian crew were seized by Israeli military forces while sailing in international waters, their life-saving cargo taken, and international law trampled. 'I echo the Freedom Flotilla Coalition's demands: the immediate release of these civilians, unfettered delivery of vital baby formula, food and medical supplies to Gaza, and full accountability for these flagrant violations.' An Israeli officer at the Super Nova Festival in Re'im, Israel, after it was attacked by Hamas on October 7, 2023 The Gaza-bound aid ship Madleen, organised by the international NGO Freedom Flotilla Coalition, anchored off Catania, Italy, on June 1 Critics have branded the interception 'state piracy' and condemned the lack of action from the crew members' respective governments. Mouin Rabbani, a non-resident fellow at the Qatar-based Center for Conflict and Humanitarian Studies, told Al Jazeera: 'This is not only an act of state piracy. It's in direct violation of the provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice.' Spain summoned Israel's charge d'affaires in protest of the interception, according to El Pais, citing a source at the Spanish Foreign Ministry. French Foreign Minister Jeal-Noel Barrot said France wants to 'facilitate the rapid return' of six French nationals travelling with the group. Turkey slammed Israel for the interception, describing it as a 'heinous attack'. 'The intervention by Israeli forces on the 'Madleen' ship.. while sailing in international waters is a clear violation of international law,' it said, describing it as a 'heinous attack' by the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Turkey's foreign ministry said there were Turkish nationals among those on board, without identifying them. The Freedom Flotilla's website said the boat was carrying 12 people from seven countries, including Turkey. 'The international community's justified reaction to Israel's genocidal policies, which use hunger as a weapon in Gaza and prevent the delivery of humanitarian aid, will continue,' the ministry added, saying Israel would manage to 'silence the voices defending human values'. Israel is facing mounting international pressure to allow more aid into Gaza to alleviate widespread shortages of food and basic supplies. It recently allowed humanitarian deliveries to resume after barring them for more than two months and began working with the newly formed, US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. But humanitarian agencies have criticised the GHF and the United Nations refuses to work with it, citing concerns over its practices and neutrality. Dozens of people have been killed near GHF distribution points since late May, according to Gaza's civil defence agency. It said Israeli attacks killed at least 10 people on Sunday, including five civilians hit by gunfire near an aid distribution centre.
Daily Mirror
6 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
All we know as Greta Thunberg 'kidnapped' after Israel intercepts aid flotilla
The 22-year-old activist took to social media to state she was 'kidnapped' after the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) said the Madleen vessel was intercepted early today Greta Thunberg's Gaza aid vessel has been stopped before landing in Israel, with the activist claiming she was "kidnapped" and calling on the Swedish government to help. The 22-year-old's Madleen aid flotilla, which was en route to Gaza, had been travelling for several days after departing Sicily on Friday. The Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), the organisation responsible for the yacht, said it was carrying humanitarian aid and said the vessel, which departed Italy on Friday, was "prepared for the possibility of an Israeli attack" before claiming it was "forcibly intercepted" by Israeli officials. Israeli authorities stopped the vessel around 160 nautical miles before it reached the Gaza coast, with defence minister Israel Katz saying the state would "act against any attempt to break the blockade or assist terrorist organisations". Vessel blocked from entering Israel early in the morning Israeli authorities intercepted the Madleen early in the morning at around 5.30am local time as it wound near the Egyptian coast, it has been reported, with the FFC raising the alarm via Telegram. Posting a picture of the crew wearing life jackets and sitting with their arms raised, the group said: "SOS! The volunteers on Madleen have been kidnapped by Israeli forces." Greta's 'kidnap' claims Ms Thunberg has claimed she and her fellow crewmembers were "kidnapped" when they were intercepted at the coast trying to cross an Israeli blockade. The group of 12 had recorded videos ahead of time for their loved ones that would be released in the event something to happened to them. Ms Thunberg said in hers that the team was "intercepted and kidnapped in international waters" by "forces that support Israel" and urged her loved ones to "put pressure on the Swedish government" for a response. She said: "I urge all my friends, family and comrades to put pressure on the Swedish government to release me and the others as soon as possible." Israel has denied this, saying in a post on X that activists aboard the boat were "unharmed" and were now making their way to Israel "safely". Israel's response Israel Katz, Israel's Minister of Defence, has vocally responded to the situation with the boat via social media, in one post saying he instructed the IDF to prevent the boat landing on Gaza, claiming it was a "hate flotilla". The Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), of which the Madleen is part, is a grassroots activist organisation that is working to reach Palestinians through what it claims is a 17-year blockade that is causing an "ongoing humanitarian crisis". He said: "I have instructed the IDF [Israel Defense Forces] to act to prevent the 'Madeleine' [sic] hate flotilla from reaching the shores of Gaza - and to take whatever measures are necessary to that end." He then spoke directly to the crew, members of whom he sensationally claimed were "antisemitic". He said: "To the antisemitic Greta and her fellow Hamas propaganda spokespeople, I say clearly: You should turn back - because you will not reach Gaza. Israel will act against any attempt to break the blockade or assist terrorist organisations – at sea, in the air, and on land." Palestine's response Palestinian authorities have also stepped into the discourse, with West Bank officials calling for activists on board the Madleen to be protected. The Palestinian defence ministry called the activists' actions "noble" and said, also in a post on X, that it "salutes the international solidarity activists aboard the ship attempting to break the siege on the Gaza Strip". UN's calls for aid The incident has also captured the attention of the United Nations, with the UN's special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories urging boats to continue challenging the blockade. Francesca Albanese said: "While Madleen must be released immediately, every Mediterranean port should send boats with aid, solidarity, and humanity to Gaza. They shall sail together - united, they will be unstoppable." Ms Albanese also reached out to the British government, asking ministers to "urgently seek full clarification" and "secure the immediate release of the vessel and its crew".
