Video. Crowds risk death for food in Gaza as famine warnings intensify
Witnesses say that at least 48 people were killed on Wednesday as people crowded around aid trucks entering through the Zikim crossing. Israel has eased some restrictions, but chaos and violence continue to hamper deliveries.
Meanwhile, Israeli right-wing activists rallied near the Gaza border, calling for the construction of settlements inside the territory.
More than 60,000 Palestinians have been killed since the war began, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.
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LeMonde
10 hours ago
- LeMonde
US envoy meets with the families of Israeli hostages in Tel Aviv
US envoy Steve Witkoff met anguished relatives of Israeli hostages still held in Gaza on Saturday, August 2, as fears for the captives' survival mounted almost 22 months into the war sparked by Hamas's October 2023 attack. Witkoff was greeted with some applause and pleas for assistance from hundreds of protesters gathered in Tel Aviv, before going into a closed meeting with the families. Videos shared online showed Witkoff arriving to meet the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, as families chanted "Bring them home!" and "We need your help." The meeting came one day after Witkoff visited a US-backed aid station in Gaza to inspect efforts to get food into the devastated Palestinian territory. Of the 251 hostages taken during the Hamas attack, 49 are still being held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead. After the meeting, the Forum released a statement saying Witkoff had given them a personal commitment that he and US President Donald Trump would work to return the remaining hostages. 'Horrifying acts' Hamas has attempted to maintain pressure on the families, on Friday releasing a video of one of the hostages − 24-year-old Evyatar David − for the second time in two days, showing him looking emaciated in a tunnel. The video called for a ceasefire and warned that time was running out for the hostages. David's family said their son was the victim of a "vile" propaganda campaign and accused Hamas of deliberately starving their son. "The deliberate starvation of our son as part of a propaganda campaign is one of the most horrifying acts the world has seen. He is being starved purely to serve Hamas's propaganda," the family said. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot on Saturday also denounced the video, and one released a day earlier by another Palestinian Islamist group, as "despicable." "They must be freed, without conditions," he posted on X. "Hamas must be disarmed and excluded from ruling Gaza." Help us improve Le Monde in English Dear reader, We'd love to hear your thoughts on Le Monde in English! Take this quick survey to help us improve it for you. Take the survey The United States, along with Egypt and Qatar, had been mediating ceasefire talks between Hamas and Israel that would allow the hostages to be released and humanitarian aid to flow more freely. But talks broke down last month and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government is under increasing domestic pressure to come up with another way to secure the missing hostages, alive and dead. He is also facing international calls to open Gaza's borders to more food aid, after UN and humanitarian agencies warned that more than two million Palestinian civilians are facing starvation. 'Without rest' But Israel's top general warned that there would be no respite in fighting if the hostages were not released. "I estimate that in the coming days we will know whether we can reach an agreement for the release of our hostages," armed forces chief of staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir said in a statement. "If not, the combat will continue without rest." Zamir denied that there was widespread starvation in Gaza. "The current campaign of false accusations of intentional starvation is a deliberate, timed and deceitful attempt to accuse the IDF (Israeli military), a moral army, of war crimes," he said.
Euronews
14 hours ago
- Euronews
Voluntary migration or displacement? Gazans face catastrophic reality
How do Palestinians see their future in Gaza and how do they view calls for voluntary migration or displacement from the Strip? In a move that sparked widespread controversy at the time, the Israeli government announced months ago that it had approved a plan to establish a special department to organise what it described as "safe, voluntary migration" of Gaza residents to foreign countries. This was done in the context of the more than 20-month war in Gaza following Hamas's attack on southern Israel that killed around 1,200 Israelis and captured 251 hostages. The decision was based on a proposal submitted by Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz, which was then approved by the Israeli cabinet. According to a statement issued by his office, the new department will be tasked with coordinating transfers in cooperation with international organisations and stakeholders. Its tasks will include supervising the organisation of departures from the Gaza Strip crossings, conducting the necessary security checks and developing an infrastructure that allows land, sea and air travel to third countries. The plan's announcement coincided with an increasingly worsening internal displacement crisis in Gaza due to the ongoing war. Human rights groups and humanitarian organisations have warned of the political and social repercussions of these policies. They say they are seen as a prelude to a forced displacement scheme under the guise of being "voluntary." An old policy renewed: From Dayan to Netanyahu The intention to depopulate Gaza was not new or linked only to the recent war. In fact, it goes back decades. On 12 June 1967, after the capture of Gaza, then Israeli Security Minister Moshe Dayan described the strip as a "complex problem", signalling Israel's negative perception of the region. During the signing of the Oslo Accords in the 1990s, the late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin expressed his wish to "go to the sea or drown in it," expressing his wish to completely separate the Gaza Strip from Israel. In the recent war, diplomatic leaks revealed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu proposed, during a meeting with former US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken on 12 October 2023, the establishment of a humanitarian corridor to "transfer Gaza residents to Egypt." This proposal was met with initial reservations by the US. It was followed by a more strident statement from Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, who said: "There will be no humanitarian crisis in Gaza if there are no civilians." Initial displacement and increasing talk of migration as the war intensifies After the war in Gaza broke out following Hamas' October 7 attack, more than 120,000 Palestinians - mostly dual nationals - were able to leave the Strip through the Rafah land crossing toward Egypt and other countries. It is estimated that the number of dual nationals in Gaza is around 300,000. This reflects a sizeable base in the population which theoretically has the option to leave. As Israel's military operations intensified, the scope of destruction expanded and famine reached catastrophic levels. There was increasing talk among Gazans about migration as a way to escape the war. On the other hand, voices have emerged which categorically reject the idea and insist on staying in the Strip despite heavy deaths and deteriorating humanitarian conditions. This reflects a deep social division over the future of Gaza and its residents under the ongoing war. Palestinians refuse to migrate despite the bombardment: 'It's easier to die here than to leave' In a simple tent in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, Mohsen al-Ghazi, 34, displaced from the Juhr al-Dik area, sits and recounts his story. It's similar to that of thousands of Palestinians whose lives have been destroyed under Israeli bombardment. Al-Ghazi lost his home, his eldest son was killed and his parents died under the rubble of the house, yet he insists on staying in Gaza and categorically rejects the idea of emigration. "I will not leave this land," he says. "It is easier to die here than to give the occupation an opportunity to fulfil its lies." He emphasises that his position does not stem from emotion, but from religious, patriotic and moral conviction. He even rejects the idea of a mass exodus, which some are hinting at.** "Even if the occupation sends ships to transport us, I will not leave." Al-Ghazi expressed his regret for some young people who are considering emigration under the weight of suffering, stressing that "individual salvation means abandoning our responsibility to defend this land." "How can we repeat the mistake of the Nakba and voluntarily leave our homes?" In Nuseirat camp, Sami al-Dali, 45, echoes the same attitude despite losing half of his home to shelling. "Displacement is a failed Israeli project, and I will not be a stone in its wall." He believes that the suffering of the residents does not justify abandonment, but he does not condemn those who decide to leave, adding: "To each his own, and those who leave may return or serve the cause from abroad." Al-Ghazi and al-Dali agree that the displacement projects that the Israeli government has tried to impose have failed in the face of the Palestinians' attachment to their land. "Tell the world that we are a people who choose to die on our land and not sell it," al-Ghazi said, while al-Dali emphasised that "every stone here testifies that Palestine is not for sale." Displaced people in Gaza: 'We can't take it anymore' In light of the ongoing war and deteriorating humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip, Bilal Hassanin believes that the option of emigration has become an "urgent necessity" despite its difficulty. Hassanin, who lost his family home and has been displaced several times, is now on crutches after being injured near Netzarim. He says: "I lost everything. I can no longer complete my university studies, no food, no water, no electricity." "The Gaza Strip has been destroyed, and the chances of building a future here are diminishing day by day." Hassanin adds that his dream is to find a safe environment outside Gaza that will enable him to regain his life and fulfil his dreams, at a time when life in the Strip has become almost impossible. The same vision is shared by Zakaria Farajallah, who has been injured three times, causing issues with foot tendons, brain and digestive disorders. "Through my medical file, I am trying to get an opportunity for treatment abroad, and I will take advantage of this exit to seek asylum, because the Gaza Strip has become a terrifying and unliveable place." Farajallah's wife, Hanin Akl, also emphasises that staying is next to impossible, especially as she is pregnant and caring for two other children. She says: "We lost our home and have been travelling from one displacement camp to another, and my husband's injury has added to our suffering." "We urgently need to travel for a safe environment for us and our children. Hanin, who holds a bachelor's degree in laboratory medicine, said that she hopes that leaving Gaza will give her an opportunity to build a more stable future for her family. Official and international warnings The Israeli plan for the voluntary migration of Gazans has been met with widespread Palestinian rejection and international warnings. Hamas described what is being promoted under the name of "voluntary migration" as a forced displacement scheme aimed at "liquidating the Palestinian cause" and emptying Gaza of its inhabitants. In the same context, the United Nations confirmed that "voluntary migration" has no legitimacy in the context of war, siege and noted that forced displacement is a crime under international law. Human rights organisations, including Human Rights Watch and UNRWA, have also warned that the Israeli plan threatens to reproduce the Nakba. They called for the right of Palestinians to remain on their land to be respected rather than forcing them to leave under pressure and hunger.
LeMonde
18 hours ago
- LeMonde
Recognizing Palestine: Diplomatic momentum builds one week after France's announcement
At the presidential summer holiday residence, the Fort de Brégançon on France's Mediterranean coast, where the presidential couple has been enjoying their vacation since Friday, August 1, Emmanuel Macron savored his diplomatic victory. Though he had struggled with doubt and worried about the possible reprisals Israel might foment behind the scenes, had he not ultimately been right to take the plunge? On July 24, the French president announced that he would recognize the State of Palestine in September, during the United Nations General Assembly in New York. Macron described his promise, which he set out in a letter to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, as a "moral duty," at a time when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government has been orchestrating famine in the Gaza Strip and accelerating the annexation of the West Bank. France, powerless to stop the conflict in Gaza, which began after Hamas committed massacres on October 7, 2023, presented its political initiative as a path to peace, intended to revive the two-state solution that Netanyahu and his far-right ministers have rejected. Unsurprisingly, the decision angered Israel and displeased the United States, its closest ally. France had good reason to fear becoming isolated on the international stage.
