Gaza-bound aid flotilla to set sail again after previous ship seized by Israeli forces
The group confirmed that its next boat, named 'Handala' will depart from the Italian port of Siracusa on July 13 as part of a renewed effort to break Israel's blockade on the besieged Gaza Strip.
'This mission is for the children of Gaza,' the coalition said in a post on X.
It said the vessel is named after the Palestinian cartoon figure 'Handala' – a 10-year-old refugee boy who has come to symbolize Palestinian struggle.
'The children of Gaza – who make half of the population – have been living under a brutal blockade and siege for their entire lives,' the group said in a statement.
'All now face famine, disease, and trauma few of us can imagine.'
According to a report by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), one in five Palestinians in Gaza is facing starvation because of Israel's three-month long total blockade of the Strip. Israel eased the blockade partially in May, allowing some aid to go through.
Some 1.95 million people, or 93 percent of the beseiged enclave's population, are facing acute food shortages.
Volunteer medics, lawyers, social justice activists, journalists and community organizers are expected to be on board the vessel.
Flotillas have in the past tried to break the blockade on Gaza.
Israeli forces previously intercepted the aid ship 'Madleen' about 185 kilometers off the coast of Gaza and detained 12 activists on board, including Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg. They were all later deported.
Another aid ship while preparing to set sail to Gaza on May 2 was struck twice by armed drones, 25 kilometers off the Malta coast. The vessel called the 'Conscience' was significantly damaged in the attack, forcing the 30 activists to desperately throw out water to prevent the ship from sinking. Four people were injured.
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Arab News
an hour ago
- Arab News
Israeli forces push into parts of a central Gaza city that the war had largely spared
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip: Israeli ground troops for the first time Monday pushed into areas of a central Gaza city where several aid groups are based, in what appeared to be the latest effort to carve up the Palestinian territory with military corridors. Deir Al-Balah is the only Gaza city that has not seen major ground operations or suffered widespread devastation in 21 months of war, leading to speculation that the Hamas militant group holds large numbers of hostages there. The main group representing hostages' families said it was 'shocked and alarmed' by the incursion and demanded answers from Israeli leaders. Israel says the seizure of territory in Gaza is aimed at pressuring Hamas to release hostages, but it is a major point of contention in ongoing ceasefire talks. The UN food agency, meanwhile, accused Israeli forces of firing on a crowd of Palestinians seeking humanitarian aid over the weekend. Gaza's Health Ministry called it one of the deadliest attacks on aid-seekers in the war that has driven the territory to the brink of famine. In the latest sign of international frustration, the United Kingdom, France and 23 other Western-aligned countries issued a statement saying 'the war in Gaza must end now.' They harshly criticized Israel's restrictions on humanitarian aid and called for the release of the 50 hostages remaining in Gaza. Evacuation orders dropped at dawn Associated Press reporters heard explosions and saw smoke rising from parts of the city that were ordered evacuated on Sunday. The Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations, said it was the first time ground troops had operated in the area. A man living in the evacuation zone, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution, said Israel dropped pamphlets at dawn ordering people to evacuate. Two hours later, tanks rolled into the area. He said his 62-year-old father, who had spent the night elsewhere, fled from house to house as Israeli forces moved in and saw them flattening structures with bulldozers and tanks. Both men managed to leave the evacuation zone. United Nations spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said two UN guesthouses in Deir Al-Balah were damaged by shrapnel. He said the cause was still being investigated but that heavy Israeli airstrikes had been reported in the area. Local and international staff will continue to work there, he said. The military declined to say if it had ordered the evacuation of aid groups based in the city, saying only that it maintains continuous contact with them and facilitates their relocation when necessary. UN says nearly 90 percent of Gaza is now off limits Tens of thousands of people have sought refuge in Deir Al-Balah during repeated waves of mass displacement in Gaza. The UN humanitarian coordinator says 87.8 percent of Gaza is now under evacuation orders or inside Israeli military zones, 'leaving 2.1 million civilians squeezed into a fragmented 12 percent of the Strip, where essential services have collapsed.' Israel has taken over large areas of Gaza and split the territory with corridors stretching from the border to the sea as it seeks to pressure Hamas to release more hostages. In response to the Deir Al-Balah incursion, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum warned in its statement that '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.' Hamas-led militants abducted 251 people in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that triggered the war and killed around 1,200 people. Fewer than half of the 50 hostages still in Gaza are believed to be alive. Israel blames the deaths of Palestinian civilians on Hamas because the militants operate in densely populated areas, and it accuses the group of prolonging the war because Hamas has not accepted Israel's terms for a ceasefire. Rare condemnation from UN food agency The World Food Program, in a rare condemnation, said the crowd surrounding its convoy in northern Gaza on Sunday 'came under fire from Israeli tanks, snipers and other gunfire.' It said 'countless lives' were lost. A photographer working with the AP counted 51 bodies at two hospitals. The Gaza Health Ministry said at least 80 people were killed. Israel's military said it fired warning shots 'to remove an immediate threat' and questioned the death toll reported by the Palestinians. It declined to comment on the WFP statement. Hundreds of people have been killed while seeking food in recent weeks, both from UN convoys and separate aid sites run by an Israeli-backed group that has been mired in controversy. The Palestinian death toll from the war has climbed to more than 59,000, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Its count does not distinguish between militants and civilians, but the ministry says more than half of the dead are women and children. The ministry is part of the Hamas government, but the UN and other international organizations see it as the most reliable source of data on casualties. Israel detains Gaza Health Ministry spokesperson Gaza health officials said at least 18 people, including three women and five children, were killed in Israeli strikes overnight and into Monday. The Israeli military had no immediate comment. At least three people were killed when crowds of Palestinians waiting for aid trucks were shot at in the area of the Netzarim corridor in central Gaza, according to two hospitals that received the bodies. The Gaza Health Ministry said Israeli forces detained Dr. Marwan Al-Hams, acting director of the strip's field hospitals and the ministry's spokesman. Israeli troops killed a local journalist, Tamer Al-Zaanein, who was accompanying Al-Hams, and wounded two other people when they detained him near a Red Cross field hospital in southern Gaza, according to the Health Ministry and the journalist's family. The International Committee of the Red Cross declined to provide details but said it was 'very concerned' about safety and security around the hospital 'and the impact this can have on patients and staff.' The Israeli military had no immediate comment. Israel again strikes rebel-held port in Yemen The fighting in Gaza has triggered conflicts elsewhere in region, including between Israel and the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, who have fired missiles and drones at Israel in what they say is in solidarity with Palestinians. The Israeli military said it struck the Hodeidah port in Yemen early Monday. Israel has struck the port before, including two weeks ago, accusing the Houthis of using it to import arms from Iran. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said the targets included areas of the port that Israel had destroyed in previous strikes. 'The Houthis will pay heavy prices for launching missiles toward the state of Israel,' Katz said.
Arab News
2 hours ago
- Arab News
Watchdog finds hundreds of Instagram, Facebook ads crowdfunding for Israeli military
LONDON: Consumer watchdog Eko has uncovered hundreds of ads on Meta platforms — including Instagram and Facebook — that promote crowdfunding campaigns for the Israel Defense Forces, in apparent violation of the company's own advertising policies. The ads, run by pro-Israel groups, aim to raise funds for military equipment such as drones and tactical gear, despite Meta's rules prohibiting the promotion of firearms and weapons-related content. According to Eko's research, at least 117 ads have been published since March 2025 explicitly soliciting donations for equipment used by the IDF. The ads, launched by two groups, targeted users in the US, UK and EU, and generated at least 76,000 impressions — the number of times an ad is displayed to users. Combined, the campaigns raised more than $2.4 million through landing pages linked to the ads. 'We are the sniper team of Unit Shaked, stationed in Gaza, and we urgently need shooting tripods to complete our mission in Jabalia,' one Facebook ad read. Eko said most of the ads raised funds for Autel EVO drones, the model that Israeli soldiers have reportedly retrofitted with grenades and used in deadly attacks in Gaza, including against children. An investigation by Israeli outlet +972 Magazine recently revealed that Israel has acquired large numbers of Chinese-made Autel quadcopters — drones typically used for photography and available for purchase on Amazon — and adapted them to carry explosives. 'Most of our drones are broken and falling apart— and we don't have any replacements,' another ad said. 'Donate now — every second counts, every drone saves lives.' While Eko noted it is unclear whether funds raised through the ads were directly used to purchase drones, IDF soldiers told +972 that they had received Autel drones through donations, fundraisers and Facebook groups. One of the groups identified by Eko is the nonprofit Vaad Hatzedaka, which linked to a donation page listing equipment it was seeking to fund, including two Autel drones. As of this month, the campaign had raised more than $250,000 of its $300,000 goal. Another campaign, launched by Israeli singer-songwriter Mayer Malik, claimed to have collected more than $2.2 million for the IDF. Meta's advertising policies explicitly ban content that promotes the sale or use of restricted goods such as weapons, ammunition and explosives. 'Meta is profiting from genocide — approving ads that help funnel millions of dollars toward killer drones and military gear likely used to murder Palestinians,' Vicky Wyatt, campaign director, said. 'This isn't just a moderation failure — it's a business model built to reward whoever pays, no matter the harm.' While Meta has removed some of the ads flagged in Eko's latest report, the watchdog said the company has done little to address broader concerns raised during a previous investigation in December 2024. At the time, Eko flagged 98 similar ads, prompting takedowns, but Meta allowed the advertisers to return with near-identical campaigns. The IDF itself is not directly running the fundraising campaigns. The new findings come just days after a separate investigation by the Tech Transparency Project revealed that platforms including X and WhatsApp were being used as storefronts for weapons sales by arms dealers linked to Houthi militants in Yemen. Eko warned that Meta's approval of the IDF-linked ads may also breach the EU's Digital Services Act, which requires platforms to remove content that violates national or EU laws.
Al Arabiya
2 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
‘Last lifelines' are collapsing in Gaza, UN chief says
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday condemned the 'accelerating breakdown of humanitarian conditions' in Gaza after more than 21 months of Israel's war with Hamas. 'The last lifelines keeping people alive are collapsing,' his spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement. The United Nations chief 'deplores the growing reports of children and adults suffering from malnutrition.' More than two dozen Western countries Monday also called for an immediate end to the war, saying that suffering had 'reached new depths' as Israel's military expanded its operations to Gaza's central city of Deir al-Balah. 'The Secretary-General notes that the intensification of hostilities in recent days comes as the humanitarian system is being impeded, undermined and endangered,' Dujarric said. 'A new evacuation order in parts of Deir al-Balah – home to tens of thousands – pushes people into more desperate conditions and further displacement and restricts the United Nations' ability to deliver life-saving aid.'
