Hundreds spoke their truths on impact of colonisation
* Victoria's Indigenous-led truth-telling inquiry, the first of its kind in Australia
* Led by five commissioners, of whom four are Aboriginal
* Established with royal commission powers
* Independent of the Victorian government and the elected First Peoples' Assembly of Victoria, the body tasked with leading statewide treaty talks
* Yoo-rrook means "truth" in the Wemba Wemba/Wamba Wamba language
WHAT WAS ITS PURPOSE?
* Create an official record of the impact of colonisation on Indigenous people in Victoria
* Support the treaty-making process, including through recommendations for reform
HOW DID IT COME ABOUT?
* The Victorian Labor government committed to a truth and justice process in July 2020
* The commission and its mandate was unveiled in March 2021
* It officially launched in March 2022 following COVID-19 lockdown-related delays
* The government granted a 12-month extension for its work to the end of June 2025
WHO APPEARED AT YOORROOK?
* Public hearings began in April 2022 and lasted 67 days in total
* Aboriginal elders such as Uncle Jack Charles, Uncle Johnny Lovett, Aunty Alma Thorpe and Aunty Eva Jo Edwards were among more than 200 witnesses
* Premier Jacinta Allan and other government ministers also gave evidence
* Then Victoria Police chief commissioner Shane Patton apologised for police treatment of Indigenous people
* The commission also received more than 1300 submissions and 10,000 documents from the state
WHAT ARE ITS FINAL REPORTS?
* Yoorrook for Transformation - Yoorrook's third and final report containing 100 recommendations over five volumes
* Yoorrook Truth Be Told - a official public record that includes a detailed account of the history of Victoria since the start of colonisation and story of the commission
WHAT ARE ITS KEY FINAL RECCOMENDATIONS?
* The government must fund the First Peoples' Assembly of Victoria to set up a permanent truth-telling group to keep collecting stories and build a public record
* Decision-making powers, authority, control and resources must be transferred to First Peoples to give full effect to self-determination
* The government must shift prison healthcare from the Department of Justice to the Department of Health
* The government must provide redress for injustices caused by the colonial invasion and occupation of First Peoples' lands, as well as damage and loss
WERE THERE ANY CONTROVERSIES?
* Three commissioners quit within the space of six months in 2022, and another resigned in 2023
* Commission chair Eleanor Bourke slammed the government in 2023 for delays in producing documents
* Only four of Yoorrook's 46 recommendations from an interim report on Victoria's child protection and criminal justice systems were accepted by the government in full. Twenty-four were accepted in principle and three rejected outright
* Yoorrook later said it was "beyond disappointed" with the government's inaction
* Three of the five commissioners did not endorse the inclusion of the key findings in the Truth Be Told report
HOW HAS THE GOVERNMENT RESPONDED TO THE FINAL REPORTS?
* It has acknowledged the final reports and will "carefully consider" its response to the findings and recommendations
WHAT WAS THE YOORROOK JUSTICE COMMISSION?
* Victoria's Indigenous-led truth-telling inquiry, the first of its kind in Australia
* Led by five commissioners, of whom four are Aboriginal
* Established with royal commission powers
* Independent of the Victorian government and the elected First Peoples' Assembly of Victoria, the body tasked with leading statewide treaty talks
* Yoo-rrook means "truth" in the Wemba Wemba/Wamba Wamba language
WHAT WAS ITS PURPOSE?
* Create an official record of the impact of colonisation on Indigenous people in Victoria
* Support the treaty-making process, including through recommendations for reform
HOW DID IT COME ABOUT?
* The Victorian Labor government committed to a truth and justice process in July 2020
* The commission and its mandate was unveiled in March 2021
* It officially launched in March 2022 following COVID-19 lockdown-related delays
* The government granted a 12-month extension for its work to the end of June 2025
WHO APPEARED AT YOORROOK?
* Public hearings began in April 2022 and lasted 67 days in total
* Aboriginal elders such as Uncle Jack Charles, Uncle Johnny Lovett, Aunty Alma Thorpe and Aunty Eva Jo Edwards were among more than 200 witnesses
* Premier Jacinta Allan and other government ministers also gave evidence
* Then Victoria Police chief commissioner Shane Patton apologised for police treatment of Indigenous people
* The commission also received more than 1300 submissions and 10,000 documents from the state
WHAT ARE ITS FINAL REPORTS?
* Yoorrook for Transformation - Yoorrook's third and final report containing 100 recommendations over five volumes
* Yoorrook Truth Be Told - a official public record that includes a detailed account of the history of Victoria since the start of colonisation and story of the commission
WHAT ARE ITS KEY FINAL RECCOMENDATIONS?
* The government must fund the First Peoples' Assembly of Victoria to set up a permanent truth-telling group to keep collecting stories and build a public record
* Decision-making powers, authority, control and resources must be transferred to First Peoples to give full effect to self-determination
* The government must shift prison healthcare from the Department of Justice to the Department of Health
* The government must provide redress for injustices caused by the colonial invasion and occupation of First Peoples' lands, as well as damage and loss
WERE THERE ANY CONTROVERSIES?
* Three commissioners quit within the space of six months in 2022, and another resigned in 2023
* Commission chair Eleanor Bourke slammed the government in 2023 for delays in producing documents
* Only four of Yoorrook's 46 recommendations from an interim report on Victoria's child protection and criminal justice systems were accepted by the government in full. Twenty-four were accepted in principle and three rejected outright
* Yoorrook later said it was "beyond disappointed" with the government's inaction
* Three of the five commissioners did not endorse the inclusion of the key findings in the Truth Be Told report
HOW HAS THE GOVERNMENT RESPONDED TO THE FINAL REPORTS?
* It has acknowledged the final reports and will "carefully consider" its response to the findings and recommendations
WHAT WAS THE YOORROOK JUSTICE COMMISSION?
* Victoria's Indigenous-led truth-telling inquiry, the first of its kind in Australia
* Led by five commissioners, of whom four are Aboriginal
* Established with royal commission powers
* Independent of the Victorian government and the elected First Peoples' Assembly of Victoria, the body tasked with leading statewide treaty talks
* Yoo-rrook means "truth" in the Wemba Wemba/Wamba Wamba language
WHAT WAS ITS PURPOSE?
* Create an official record of the impact of colonisation on Indigenous people in Victoria
* Support the treaty-making process, including through recommendations for reform
HOW DID IT COME ABOUT?
* The Victorian Labor government committed to a truth and justice process in July 2020
* The commission and its mandate was unveiled in March 2021
* It officially launched in March 2022 following COVID-19 lockdown-related delays
* The government granted a 12-month extension for its work to the end of June 2025
WHO APPEARED AT YOORROOK?
* Public hearings began in April 2022 and lasted 67 days in total
* Aboriginal elders such as Uncle Jack Charles, Uncle Johnny Lovett, Aunty Alma Thorpe and Aunty Eva Jo Edwards were among more than 200 witnesses
* Premier Jacinta Allan and other government ministers also gave evidence
* Then Victoria Police chief commissioner Shane Patton apologised for police treatment of Indigenous people
* The commission also received more than 1300 submissions and 10,000 documents from the state
WHAT ARE ITS FINAL REPORTS?
* Yoorrook for Transformation - Yoorrook's third and final report containing 100 recommendations over five volumes
* Yoorrook Truth Be Told - a official public record that includes a detailed account of the history of Victoria since the start of colonisation and story of the commission
WHAT ARE ITS KEY FINAL RECCOMENDATIONS?
* The government must fund the First Peoples' Assembly of Victoria to set up a permanent truth-telling group to keep collecting stories and build a public record
* Decision-making powers, authority, control and resources must be transferred to First Peoples to give full effect to self-determination
* The government must shift prison healthcare from the Department of Justice to the Department of Health
* The government must provide redress for injustices caused by the colonial invasion and occupation of First Peoples' lands, as well as damage and loss
WERE THERE ANY CONTROVERSIES?
* Three commissioners quit within the space of six months in 2022, and another resigned in 2023
* Commission chair Eleanor Bourke slammed the government in 2023 for delays in producing documents
* Only four of Yoorrook's 46 recommendations from an interim report on Victoria's child protection and criminal justice systems were accepted by the government in full. Twenty-four were accepted in principle and three rejected outright
* Yoorrook later said it was "beyond disappointed" with the government's inaction
* Three of the five commissioners did not endorse the inclusion of the key findings in the Truth Be Told report
HOW HAS THE GOVERNMENT RESPONDED TO THE FINAL REPORTS?
* It has acknowledged the final reports and will "carefully consider" its response to the findings and recommendations
WHAT WAS THE YOORROOK JUSTICE COMMISSION?
* Victoria's Indigenous-led truth-telling inquiry, the first of its kind in Australia
* Led by five commissioners, of whom four are Aboriginal
* Established with royal commission powers
* Independent of the Victorian government and the elected First Peoples' Assembly of Victoria, the body tasked with leading statewide treaty talks
* Yoo-rrook means "truth" in the Wemba Wemba/Wamba Wamba language
WHAT WAS ITS PURPOSE?
* Create an official record of the impact of colonisation on Indigenous people in Victoria
* Support the treaty-making process, including through recommendations for reform
HOW DID IT COME ABOUT?
* The Victorian Labor government committed to a truth and justice process in July 2020
* The commission and its mandate was unveiled in March 2021
* It officially launched in March 2022 following COVID-19 lockdown-related delays
* The government granted a 12-month extension for its work to the end of June 2025
WHO APPEARED AT YOORROOK?
* Public hearings began in April 2022 and lasted 67 days in total
* Aboriginal elders such as Uncle Jack Charles, Uncle Johnny Lovett, Aunty Alma Thorpe and Aunty Eva Jo Edwards were among more than 200 witnesses
* Premier Jacinta Allan and other government ministers also gave evidence
* Then Victoria Police chief commissioner Shane Patton apologised for police treatment of Indigenous people
* The commission also received more than 1300 submissions and 10,000 documents from the state
WHAT ARE ITS FINAL REPORTS?
* Yoorrook for Transformation - Yoorrook's third and final report containing 100 recommendations over five volumes
* Yoorrook Truth Be Told - a official public record that includes a detailed account of the history of Victoria since the start of colonisation and story of the commission
WHAT ARE ITS KEY FINAL RECCOMENDATIONS?
* The government must fund the First Peoples' Assembly of Victoria to set up a permanent truth-telling group to keep collecting stories and build a public record
* Decision-making powers, authority, control and resources must be transferred to First Peoples to give full effect to self-determination
* The government must shift prison healthcare from the Department of Justice to the Department of Health
* The government must provide redress for injustices caused by the colonial invasion and occupation of First Peoples' lands, as well as damage and loss
WERE THERE ANY CONTROVERSIES?
* Three commissioners quit within the space of six months in 2022, and another resigned in 2023
* Commission chair Eleanor Bourke slammed the government in 2023 for delays in producing documents
* Only four of Yoorrook's 46 recommendations from an interim report on Victoria's child protection and criminal justice systems were accepted by the government in full. Twenty-four were accepted in principle and three rejected outright
* Yoorrook later said it was "beyond disappointed" with the government's inaction
* Three of the five commissioners did not endorse the inclusion of the key findings in the Truth Be Told report
HOW HAS THE GOVERNMENT RESPONDED TO THE FINAL REPORTS?
* It has acknowledged the final reports and will "carefully consider" its response to the findings and recommendations
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Mali's armed forces earlier on Tuesday reported a series of attacks on multiple military positions in seven towns in the central and western regions of the west African country. They did not provide details about the attacks or say who was responsible, and a spokesperson for Mali's armed forces did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The incidents bore the hallmarks of other recent operations by the militants who have conducted similar assaults on military positions in Mali and Burkina Faso. Mali, governed by a military junta since 2020, has for more than a decade fought Islamist insurgent groups while contending with a longer history of Tuareg-led rebellions in the north. The attacks on Tuesday targeted Diboli in western Mali near the border with Senegal, and the nearby towns of Kayes and Sandere. There were also attacks in Nioro du Sahel and Gogoui, northwest of the capital Bamako near the border with Mauritania, and in Molodo and Niono in central Mali, the army's statement said. A jihadist group has claimed responsibility for a series of co-ordinated attacks against military posts across Mali. Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) said in a statement on social media that it had taken "complete control over three barracks and dozens of military positions in co-ordinated and high-quality attacks". Mali's armed forces earlier on Tuesday reported a series of attacks on multiple military positions in seven towns in the central and western regions of the west African country. They did not provide details about the attacks or say who was responsible, and a spokesperson for Mali's armed forces did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The incidents bore the hallmarks of other recent operations by the militants who have conducted similar assaults on military positions in Mali and Burkina Faso. Mali, governed by a military junta since 2020, has for more than a decade fought Islamist insurgent groups while contending with a longer history of Tuareg-led rebellions in the north. The attacks on Tuesday targeted Diboli in western Mali near the border with Senegal, and the nearby towns of Kayes and Sandere. There were also attacks in Nioro du Sahel and Gogoui, northwest of the capital Bamako near the border with Mauritania, and in Molodo and Niono in central Mali, the army's statement said. A jihadist group has claimed responsibility for a series of co-ordinated attacks against military posts across Mali. Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) said in a statement on social media that it had taken "complete control over three barracks and dozens of military positions in co-ordinated and high-quality attacks". 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A Ukrainian drone has struck a Russian industrial plant some 1300km from Ukraine, a local official says, after Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy prioritised the weapon's development and Russia pounded Ukraine with a monthly record of drones in June. Both sides in the more than three-year war following Russia's February 2022 invasion of its neighbour have raced to improve drone technology and enhance their use on the battlefield. They have deployed increasingly sophisticated and deadlier drones, turning the war into a testing ground for the new weaponry. Ukraine is under severe strain from a Russian push at places on the 1000km front line, but analysts say its defences are largely holding firm. With recent direct peace talks delivering no progress on US-led international efforts to halt the fighting, Russia and Ukraine are bulking up their arsenals. Meanwhile, a Ukrainian drone hit an industrial plant in Izhevsk, about 1000km east of Moscow, injuring several people and starting a fire, Alexander Brechalov, head of the Udmurtia region, said. The plant's workers were evacuated, he said. The drone struck the Kupol Electromechanical Plant, which produces air defence systems and drones for the Russian military, according to an official with Ukraine's Security Service, the SBU. At least two direct hits were recorded on the plant's buildings, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak publicly. Ukraine has for months been using domestically produced long-range drones to strike plants, storage sites and logistical hubs deep inside Russian territory. In May 2024, a Ukrainian drone hit an early-warning radar in the Russian city of Orsk, some 1800km from the Ukrainian border, Kyiv officials claimed. Zelenskiy said Ukraine's domestic production of drones was about to increase in response to Russia's expanded barrages. "The priority is drones, interceptor drones and long-range strike drones," he said on Telegram late on Monday. "This is extremely important," he said. "Russia is investing in its unmanned capabilities, Russia is planning to increase the number of drones used in strikes against our state. We are preparing our countermeasures." Russia's defence ministry said 60 Ukrainian drones were downed overnight over several regions, including 17 over Crimea, 16 over the Rostov region and four over the Saratov region. At the same time, four Russian Shahed drones struck the southern Ukraine city of Zaporizhzia during the night, leaving more than 1600 households without power, according to authorities. US President Donald Trump's special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, retired lieutenant general Keith Kellogg, rebuked Russia for continuing to strike civilian areas of Ukraine while effectively rejecting a ceasefire and dragging its feet on a peace settlement. "We urge an immediate ceasefire and a move to trilateral talks to end the war," Kellogg said on the social platform X late Monday. "Russia cannot continue to stall for time while it bombs civilian targets in Ukraine." Ukraine is developing its own defence industry as uncertainty remains over whether the Trump administration will continue to provide crucial military aid. Between March and April, the United States allocated no new aid to Ukraine, according to Germany's Kiel Institute, which tracks such support. Europe its support and for the first time since June 2022 surpassed the US in total military aid, totalling 72 billion euros ($A129 billion) compared with 65 billion euros from the US, the institute said in June. A Ukrainian drone has struck a Russian industrial plant some 1300km from Ukraine, a local official says, after Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy prioritised the weapon's development and Russia pounded Ukraine with a monthly record of drones in June. Both sides in the more than three-year war following Russia's February 2022 invasion of its neighbour have raced to improve drone technology and enhance their use on the battlefield. They have deployed increasingly sophisticated and deadlier drones, turning the war into a testing ground for the new weaponry. Ukraine is under severe strain from a Russian push at places on the 1000km front line, but analysts say its defences are largely holding firm. With recent direct peace talks delivering no progress on US-led international efforts to halt the fighting, Russia and Ukraine are bulking up their arsenals. Meanwhile, a Ukrainian drone hit an industrial plant in Izhevsk, about 1000km east of Moscow, injuring several people and starting a fire, Alexander Brechalov, head of the Udmurtia region, said. The plant's workers were evacuated, he said. The drone struck the Kupol Electromechanical Plant, which produces air defence systems and drones for the Russian military, according to an official with Ukraine's Security Service, the SBU. At least two direct hits were recorded on the plant's buildings, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak publicly. Ukraine has for months been using domestically produced long-range drones to strike plants, storage sites and logistical hubs deep inside Russian territory. In May 2024, a Ukrainian drone hit an early-warning radar in the Russian city of Orsk, some 1800km from the Ukrainian border, Kyiv officials claimed. Zelenskiy said Ukraine's domestic production of drones was about to increase in response to Russia's expanded barrages. "The priority is drones, interceptor drones and long-range strike drones," he said on Telegram late on Monday. "This is extremely important," he said. "Russia is investing in its unmanned capabilities, Russia is planning to increase the number of drones used in strikes against our state. We are preparing our countermeasures." Russia's defence ministry said 60 Ukrainian drones were downed overnight over several regions, including 17 over Crimea, 16 over the Rostov region and four over the Saratov region. At the same time, four Russian Shahed drones struck the southern Ukraine city of Zaporizhzia during the night, leaving more than 1600 households without power, according to authorities. US President Donald Trump's special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, retired lieutenant general Keith Kellogg, rebuked Russia for continuing to strike civilian areas of Ukraine while effectively rejecting a ceasefire and dragging its feet on a peace settlement. "We urge an immediate ceasefire and a move to trilateral talks to end the war," Kellogg said on the social platform X late Monday. "Russia cannot continue to stall for time while it bombs civilian targets in Ukraine." Ukraine is developing its own defence industry as uncertainty remains over whether the Trump administration will continue to provide crucial military aid. Between March and April, the United States allocated no new aid to Ukraine, according to Germany's Kiel Institute, which tracks such support. Europe its support and for the first time since June 2022 surpassed the US in total military aid, totalling 72 billion euros ($A129 billion) compared with 65 billion euros from the US, the institute said in June. A Ukrainian drone has struck a Russian industrial plant some 1300km from Ukraine, a local official says, after Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy prioritised the weapon's development and Russia pounded Ukraine with a monthly record of drones in June. Both sides in the more than three-year war following Russia's February 2022 invasion of its neighbour have raced to improve drone technology and enhance their use on the battlefield. They have deployed increasingly sophisticated and deadlier drones, turning the war into a testing ground for the new weaponry. Ukraine is under severe strain from a Russian push at places on the 1000km front line, but analysts say its defences are largely holding firm. With recent direct peace talks delivering no progress on US-led international efforts to halt the fighting, Russia and Ukraine are bulking up their arsenals. Meanwhile, a Ukrainian drone hit an industrial plant in Izhevsk, about 1000km east of Moscow, injuring several people and starting a fire, Alexander Brechalov, head of the Udmurtia region, said. The plant's workers were evacuated, he said. The drone struck the Kupol Electromechanical Plant, which produces air defence systems and drones for the Russian military, according to an official with Ukraine's Security Service, the SBU. At least two direct hits were recorded on the plant's buildings, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak publicly. Ukraine has for months been using domestically produced long-range drones to strike plants, storage sites and logistical hubs deep inside Russian territory. In May 2024, a Ukrainian drone hit an early-warning radar in the Russian city of Orsk, some 1800km from the Ukrainian border, Kyiv officials claimed. Zelenskiy said Ukraine's domestic production of drones was about to increase in response to Russia's expanded barrages. "The priority is drones, interceptor drones and long-range strike drones," he said on Telegram late on Monday. "This is extremely important," he said. "Russia is investing in its unmanned capabilities, Russia is planning to increase the number of drones used in strikes against our state. We are preparing our countermeasures." Russia's defence ministry said 60 Ukrainian drones were downed overnight over several regions, including 17 over Crimea, 16 over the Rostov region and four over the Saratov region. At the same time, four Russian Shahed drones struck the southern Ukraine city of Zaporizhzia during the night, leaving more than 1600 households without power, according to authorities. US President Donald Trump's special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, retired lieutenant general Keith Kellogg, rebuked Russia for continuing to strike civilian areas of Ukraine while effectively rejecting a ceasefire and dragging its feet on a peace settlement. "We urge an immediate ceasefire and a move to trilateral talks to end the war," Kellogg said on the social platform X late Monday. "Russia cannot continue to stall for time while it bombs civilian targets in Ukraine." Ukraine is developing its own defence industry as uncertainty remains over whether the Trump administration will continue to provide crucial military aid. Between March and April, the United States allocated no new aid to Ukraine, according to Germany's Kiel Institute, which tracks such support. Europe its support and for the first time since June 2022 surpassed the US in total military aid, totalling 72 billion euros ($A129 billion) compared with 65 billion euros from the US, the institute said in June.
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Charities call for end to deadly new Gaza aid system
More than 170 non-governmental organisations are calling for a US- and Israeli-backed food aid distribution scheme in Gaza to be dismantled over concerns it is putting civilians at risk of death and injury. More than 500 people have been killed in mass shootings near aid distribution centres or transport routes guarded by Israeli forces since the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation started operating in late May, according to medical authorities in Gaza. The GHF uses private US security and logistics companies to get supplies into Gaza, largely bypassing a UN-led system that Israel says had let militants divert aid. The United Nations has called the plan "inherently unsafe" and a violation of humanitarian impartiality rules. As of early afternoon in Geneva on Tuesday, where the joint declaration was released, 171 charities had signed onto the call for countries to press Israel to halt the GHF scheme and reinstate aid co-ordinated through the United Nations. "Palestinians in Gaza face an impossible choice: starve or risk being shot while trying desperately to reach food to feed their families," the statement said. Groups signing it included Oxfam, Doctors Without Borders, Save the Children, the Norwegian Refugee Council and Amnesty International. In a response, the GHF told Reuters it had delivered more than 52 million meals in five weeks and said other humanitarian groups had "nearly all of their aid looted". "Instead of bickering and throwing insults from the sidelines, we would welcome other humanitarian groups to join us and feed the people in Gaza," the GHF told Reuters. The NGOs accused the GHF of forcing hungry and weak people to trek for hours, sometimes through active conflict zones, to receive food aid. The Israeli military acknowledged on Monday that Palestinian civilians have been harmed at aid distribution centres in the Gaza Strip, saying Israeli forces had been issued new instructions following what it called "lessons learned". Israel has repeatedly said its forces operate near the centres in order to prevent the aid from falling into the hands of Palestinian Hamas militants. More than 170 non-governmental organisations are calling for a US- and Israeli-backed food aid distribution scheme in Gaza to be dismantled over concerns it is putting civilians at risk of death and injury. More than 500 people have been killed in mass shootings near aid distribution centres or transport routes guarded by Israeli forces since the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation started operating in late May, according to medical authorities in Gaza. The GHF uses private US security and logistics companies to get supplies into Gaza, largely bypassing a UN-led system that Israel says had let militants divert aid. The United Nations has called the plan "inherently unsafe" and a violation of humanitarian impartiality rules. As of early afternoon in Geneva on Tuesday, where the joint declaration was released, 171 charities had signed onto the call for countries to press Israel to halt the GHF scheme and reinstate aid co-ordinated through the United Nations. "Palestinians in Gaza face an impossible choice: starve or risk being shot while trying desperately to reach food to feed their families," the statement said. Groups signing it included Oxfam, Doctors Without Borders, Save the Children, the Norwegian Refugee Council and Amnesty International. In a response, the GHF told Reuters it had delivered more than 52 million meals in five weeks and said other humanitarian groups had "nearly all of their aid looted". "Instead of bickering and throwing insults from the sidelines, we would welcome other humanitarian groups to join us and feed the people in Gaza," the GHF told Reuters. The NGOs accused the GHF of forcing hungry and weak people to trek for hours, sometimes through active conflict zones, to receive food aid. The Israeli military acknowledged on Monday that Palestinian civilians have been harmed at aid distribution centres in the Gaza Strip, saying Israeli forces had been issued new instructions following what it called "lessons learned". Israel has repeatedly said its forces operate near the centres in order to prevent the aid from falling into the hands of Palestinian Hamas militants. More than 170 non-governmental organisations are calling for a US- and Israeli-backed food aid distribution scheme in Gaza to be dismantled over concerns it is putting civilians at risk of death and injury. More than 500 people have been killed in mass shootings near aid distribution centres or transport routes guarded by Israeli forces since the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation started operating in late May, according to medical authorities in Gaza. The GHF uses private US security and logistics companies to get supplies into Gaza, largely bypassing a UN-led system that Israel says had let militants divert aid. The United Nations has called the plan "inherently unsafe" and a violation of humanitarian impartiality rules. As of early afternoon in Geneva on Tuesday, where the joint declaration was released, 171 charities had signed onto the call for countries to press Israel to halt the GHF scheme and reinstate aid co-ordinated through the United Nations. "Palestinians in Gaza face an impossible choice: starve or risk being shot while trying desperately to reach food to feed their families," the statement said. Groups signing it included Oxfam, Doctors Without Borders, Save the Children, the Norwegian Refugee Council and Amnesty International. In a response, the GHF told Reuters it had delivered more than 52 million meals in five weeks and said other humanitarian groups had "nearly all of their aid looted". "Instead of bickering and throwing insults from the sidelines, we would welcome other humanitarian groups to join us and feed the people in Gaza," the GHF told Reuters. The NGOs accused the GHF of forcing hungry and weak people to trek for hours, sometimes through active conflict zones, to receive food aid. The Israeli military acknowledged on Monday that Palestinian civilians have been harmed at aid distribution centres in the Gaza Strip, saying Israeli forces had been issued new instructions following what it called "lessons learned". Israel has repeatedly said its forces operate near the centres in order to prevent the aid from falling into the hands of Palestinian Hamas militants. More than 170 non-governmental organisations are calling for a US- and Israeli-backed food aid distribution scheme in Gaza to be dismantled over concerns it is putting civilians at risk of death and injury. More than 500 people have been killed in mass shootings near aid distribution centres or transport routes guarded by Israeli forces since the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation started operating in late May, according to medical authorities in Gaza. The GHF uses private US security and logistics companies to get supplies into Gaza, largely bypassing a UN-led system that Israel says had let militants divert aid. The United Nations has called the plan "inherently unsafe" and a violation of humanitarian impartiality rules. As of early afternoon in Geneva on Tuesday, where the joint declaration was released, 171 charities had signed onto the call for countries to press Israel to halt the GHF scheme and reinstate aid co-ordinated through the United Nations. "Palestinians in Gaza face an impossible choice: starve or risk being shot while trying desperately to reach food to feed their families," the statement said. Groups signing it included Oxfam, Doctors Without Borders, Save the Children, the Norwegian Refugee Council and Amnesty International. In a response, the GHF told Reuters it had delivered more than 52 million meals in five weeks and said other humanitarian groups had "nearly all of their aid looted". "Instead of bickering and throwing insults from the sidelines, we would welcome other humanitarian groups to join us and feed the people in Gaza," the GHF told Reuters. The NGOs accused the GHF of forcing hungry and weak people to trek for hours, sometimes through active conflict zones, to receive food aid. The Israeli military acknowledged on Monday that Palestinian civilians have been harmed at aid distribution centres in the Gaza Strip, saying Israeli forces had been issued new instructions following what it called "lessons learned". Israel has repeatedly said its forces operate near the centres in order to prevent the aid from falling into the hands of Palestinian Hamas militants.
