More than 100 aid, rights groups call for action as hunger spreads in Gaza
In a statement signed by 111 organizations, including Mercy Corps, the Norwegian Refugee Council and Refugees International, the groups warned that mass starvation was spreading across the enclave even as tons of food, clean water, medical supplies and other items sit untouched just outside Gaza as humanitarian organizations are blocked from accessing or delivering them.
"As the Israeli government's siege starves the people of Gaza, aid workers are now joining the same food lines, risking being shot just to feed their families. With supplies now totally depleted, humanitarian organisations are witnessing their own colleagues and partners waste away before their eyes," the organizations said.
"The Government of Israel's restrictions, delays, and fragmentation under its total siege have created chaos, starvation, and death."
The organizations called for governments to demand that all bureaucratic and administrative restrictions be lifted, all land crossings be opened, access to everyone across Gaza to be ensured and for the rejection of military-controlled distribution and a restoration of a "principled, UN-led humanitarian response."
"States must pursue concrete measures to end the siege, such as halting the transfer of weapons and ammunition."
Israel, which controls all supplies entering Gaza, denies it is responsible for shortages of food.
More than 800 people have been killed in recent weeks trying to reach food, mostly in mass shootings by Israeli soldiers posted near Gaza Humanitarian Foundation distribution centers. The foundation, backed by the United States, has been fiercely criticized by humanitarian organizations, including the United Nations, for an alleged lack of neutrality.
Israeli forces have killed nearly 60,000 Palestinians in airstrikes, shelling and shooting since launching their assault on Gaza in response to attacks on Israel by the Hamas group that killed 1,200 people and captured 251 hostages in October 2023.
For the first time since the war began, Palestinian officials say dozens are now also dying of hunger.
Gaza has seen its food stocks run out since Israel cut off all supplies to the territory in March and then lifted that blockade in May with new measures it says are needed to prevent aid from being diverted to militant groups.
The Norwegian Refugee Council told Reuters on Tuesday its aid stocks were completely depleted in Gaza, with some of its staff now starving, and the organization accused Israel of paralysing its work.
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The Guardian
13 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Monday briefing: Why opponents of the Online Safety Act aren't ‘on Jimmy Savile's side'
Good morning. Any readers who have tried to visit a pornography site in the past week (don't worry, I won't tell anyone) will have come into contact with the Online Safety Act. One of the most controversial elements is that there are now firm checks to ensure those who access these sites from the UK are over 18. But it goes much further than regulating porn. This legislation is an overhaul of how we live online in the UK, and a growing list of sites – including gaming platforms and social networks – will verify people's ages before letting them through the digital gates. For years people have been raising alarms about the damage the online world does to our kids. The act beefs up hate speech laws and gives regulators greater powers to hold tech platforms accountable for failing to act on abusive or threatening content. It seems like an obvious win. Peter Kyle, the science and technology secretary, said anyone who wants to overturn the act is on the side of predators. 'It's as simple as that', he wrote on X. But is it? On Saturday human rights organisations warned about censorship of Gaza-related content. Smearing all critics is shortsighted, and legitimate criticisms from human rights groups should be taken seriously, says Madeleine Stone, senior advocacy officer at Big Brother Watch, which campaigns for civil liberties and privacy. I spoke to her about concerns around data collection and free speech. That's after the headlines. Israel-Gaza war | At least 27 people were killed by Israeli forces while trying to get food and six others died from starvation or malnutrition in Gaza on Sunday, Palestinian officials said. UK news | Millions of drivers could be handed a share of up to £18bn in compensation, after the Financial Conduct Authority said it would open a redress scheme for consumers affected by the car finance scandal. Gaza | The government has announced it will evacuate seriously ill and injured children from Gaza to the UK for NHS treatment under a scheme to be announced within weeks. Immigration | Ministers will spend an extra £100m on measures to deter Channel crossings, including on the planned 'one in, one out' returns agreement with France, the Home Office has said. Plastics | Plastics are a 'grave, growing and under-recognised danger' to human and planetary health, a new expert review has warned. The world is in a 'plastics crisis', it concluded, which is causing disease and death from infancy to old age and is responsible for at least $1.5tn (£1.1tn) a year in health-related damages. As of 25 July, websites and apps are required to protect children by filtering out harmful content and verifying ages. Failing to regulate content could lead to hefty fines, criminal charges or even being entirely blocked in the UK. In case you missed it, Aamna did a great explainer about this last week. Kyle said it was 'the biggest step forward for a young person's experience online since the internet was created' and that a whole generation of children had been exposed to 'torrid toxic material' because of the failure of politicians. He took aim at politicians like Reform leader, Nigel Farage, who oppose the law: 'Make no mistake if people like Jimmy Savile were alive today he would be perpetrating his crimes online - and Nigel Farage is saying he is on their side.' Inevitably, there was a backlash to Kyle's comments. 'I don't want it to be framed like we're in opposition to the children's rights group, or that we don't think that there are risks to children online. Of course, there are,' says Stone. 'I don't think anyone would deny that there are good intentions behind this bill.' However, Stone believes that there are ways to keep children safe online that don't require uploading scans of our faces or IDs to potentially porous tech companies, thus triggering legitimate privacy concerns. She said it was disappointing the main calls from Labour and the opposition have been for it to be as comprehensive as possible – and that there wasn't much discussion about civil liberties. Meanwhile, Reform UK has promised to repeal the act if it gets into office, describing it as 'borderline dystopian', as it becomes a rallying point for the right in both Britain and the US. What are the data concerns with the act? Much of the focus has been on porn sites but social media, forums, gaming platforms and other sites that could show content considered harmful for children are also now required to verify that users are aged 18 or older. Using methods such as photo-ID matching, AI facial age estimation, credit and debit card checks, mobile operator verification, open banking and digital ID wallets, this is a massive undertaking. Already 5m extra online age checks a day (yes, every day) are being carried out in the UK since the introduction of age-gating for pornography sites alone, according to new data from the Age Verification Providers Association (AVPA). This legislation, which applies to more than 100,000 companies, includes major platforms like Facebook, Google, X, Reddit, OnlyFans (and other less established sites that you might not wish to trust with your personal data). The public is having to choose between 'not being able to freely access the internet, or handing over huge troves of personal data to a series of third party companies, which is open to hacking, to data breaches and data theft,' says Stone. What are the risks of companies having this data? Big Brother Watch is concerned that taking this additional data from people creates databases of sensitive information that would be devastating for individuals if it was hacked, leaked or stolen. Stone says: 'This broad spectrum of third party companies will be holding some of the most personal data about you, and then that will be linked to your internet browsing. And that can be very dangerous.' She highlights particular concerns for LGBTQ+ people – with commonly used dating sites like Grindr and Scruff requiring checks – people who are victims of domestic violence or stalking, whistleblowers, and journalists. There is an ecosystem of companies involved in getting access to people's data – companies that are being forced to undertake the checks, and then the companies that are providing the technology to do those checks. 'It only takes one dodgy age verification website to leak someone's data,' says Stone. Some have suggested that the government could regulate age, instead of outsourcing this regulation to third-party companies. 'I think the flip side of that is, do you want the government to have a record of who's using porn sites … As we know the government is not great with data leaks and breaches. I think there's not really a good option here if you're thinking about collecting that deeply personal data.' What are key concerns about free speech? Human rights organisations have warned that the Online Safety Act together with the proscription of Palestine Action could result in platforms censoring Palestinian-related content. Open Rights Group, Index on Censorship and others wrote to Ofcom calling on it to provide clear guidance to platforms on distinguishing lawful expression from content deemed to be in support of terrorism. Their concern is that crucial public debate is threatened by vague laws that could lead to content about Palestine being removed or hidden online. Stone argues that the act has been drafted in an 'overly broad way' which means that legitimate political, cultural and societal discussions could be restricted. 'We're seeing political speech being taken down, as with content related to Gaza. We're seeing support groups, sites for people with alcohol problems or people who've been sexually assaulted being blocked as well,' she says. Blocking children from accessing support groups like this is a major unintended consequence, and the very opposite of the Jimmy Savile comparisons that Peter Kyle leveled at opponents of the act. 'It's so important that we're able to have those discussions,' Stone says. 'You know, the internet has become our new kind of town square,' describing attempts to control these discussions as a 'dark place for a democracy to be in'. She adds: 'That content might not always be super pleasant, but it is still legally protected free speech. There is real importance in being able to have those discussions and change people's minds.' What alternatives are there? Stone describes the Online Safety Act as a 'failure of imagination', saying that it fails to 'properly get to grips with the problems at the heart of social media companies'. She says a big part of the problem is children spending hours online looking at content that is not healthy for them. By taking data, social media platforms can create more highly personalised predictions about what we're interested in. 'You're sucked into dangerous loopholes. And that is a big part of the problem here - spending hours and hours and hours online,' says Stone. Earlier this year a study found almost half of young people would rather live in a world where the internet does not exist. The research found nearly 70% of 16- to 21-year-olds feel worse about themselves after spending time on social media. A quarter of respondents spent four or more hours a day on social media. 'At Big Brother Watch, we've called for a ban on micro targeted advertising and the proper enforcement of data protection law that would really cut off at the knees some of these really intrusive business models,' says Stone. 'If we're not paying for something, then we are the product.' Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion This Today In Focus episode features Pulitzer-winning Caroline Fraser, who discusses her investigation into whether lead-polluted air triggered a surge in male serial killers in the US. Anandita Abraham, newsletters team Fascinating Sunday read by Robyn Vinter on the men who received prison sentences for their role in last summer's riots after the Southport murders. Many talk about mistrust in authority and the media, but each has their own story to tell. Phoebe Simon Jenkins thinks that Trump's soft spot for beauty and classical architecture is worth appreciating. The argument that 'aesthetic sensitivity' in politicians should be welcomed was an enjoyable take. Anandita A heartwarming read about a mountaineering project in Switzerland that brings refugees together to climb 4,000-metre peaks. It started with just a handful of people and now 200 are involved. Phoebe Dr Lina Qasem-Hassan, a Palestinian doctor and protagonist of the latest Guardian documentary film The Oath, writes in this powerful opinion piece, 'the situation in Gaza, and the position we are in as doctors, has only worsened – day by day, hour by hour'. Katy Vans, newsletters team Cricket | The fifth test heads into the fifth day, after rain brought the proceedings to a halt on day four, with England still needing 35 runs to claim the series. Formula One | Lando Norris won the Hungarian Grand Prix after a strategic battle to beat his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri into second. Golf | The final round of the Women's Open at Royal Porthcawl has delivered one of the most extraordinary moments in modern major history after the English golfer Mimi Rhodes produced a hole-in-one. 'Millions in line for payouts over car finance mis-selling scandal,' is the splash on the Guardian today, while the Times has similar with: 'Millions of drivers in line for £950 payout over car finance scandal.' 'Asbestos kills more troops than Taliban,' writes the Mail, while the Telegraph leads with, 'Palestine Action plot to swamp police.' ''An extra £100m will NOT stop the boats'' is the focus over at the Express. At the FT, the splash is 'US data row builds as poorest workers take hardest hit from wages slowdown.' 'Charge VAT on private health schemes to fund NHS, Kinnock tells Reeves,' says the i, while the Mirror runs with: 'You are all heroes,' in reference to the end of a blood donor crisis. The Tesla whistleblower and the cost of taking on Elon Musk Investigative journalist Sönke Iwersen describes his years-long investigation into Tesla, aided by a whistleblower, exposing serious safety concerns over the company's cars. Cartoon of the day | Edith Pritchett A bit of good news to remind you that the world's not all bad A new UK civil service internship is open only to working-class students, which is about time for the enormous bureaucratic industry, in which only one in ten successful applicants come from the lowest income backgrounds. Hopefully the program will go some way to fix this disparity, with 200 undergraduates being offered the opportunity to work in a civil service department. Applications open this October. Sign up here for a weekly roundup of The Upside, sent to you every Sunday And finally, the Guardian's puzzles are here to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow. Quick crossword Cryptic crossword Wordiply
The Guardian
13 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Chris Minns faces angry backlash from caucus over ‘risible' Sydney Harbour Bridge protest stance
The New South Wales premier, Chris Minns faces an angry backlash from within his Labor caucus when it meets on Tuesday over his stance on the pro-Palestine march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Members of caucus are planning to move a motion in caucus condemning the conditions in Gaza and endorsing the right to protest. The march for Palestine went ahead on Sunday after the NSW supreme court overturned a decision by NSW police to refuse a permit to march on the bridge on public safety grounds. NSW police said initial estimates put the crowd at 90,000, while rally organisers Palestine Action Group estimated the figure was closer to 300,000. Several NSW state MPs, including the deputy premier, Penny Sharpe, and frontbencher, Jihad Dib, joined the protest. Several other state MPs, including Stephen Lawrence, Lynda Voltz, and Sarah Kaine were at the front of the march, along with the former NSW premier Bob Carr. Minns' stance on protests has drawn sharp criticism from members of his own right faction as well as from the soft left, who are increasingly dismayed that Minns appears to be more attuned to the News Corp media and talkback radio than his own party. Sign up: AU Breaking News email 'There's a sense that our policy positions are at the most conservative end of the spectrum. The audience of 2GB are never, ever going to vote for us,' a member of the right faction told Guardian Australia, on the condition anonymity. 'I would just like a bit more Labor in my life,' they said. Until now, parliamentary MPs from the hard left faction who backed Minns into the leadership have been largely silent over his clamp-down on protests and other law and order issues, such as changes to bail laws and children. The divergent approaches within the factions are causing tensions within Minns' team. 'They've been completely missing in action,' said one right faction member of the left. 'They haven't come out on any progressive issues. It's been us, the right and some of the soft left that have been raising it, and now the base is really unhappy,' said another right faction MP. Mark Morey, the Secretary of Unions NSW, said: 'When there's a strong public hunger to protest against violence and humanitarian crises, the government's role should be to facilitate peaceful expression, not obstruct it.' 'Yesterday's massive turnout shows that working people across Sydney are deeply concerned about Gaza, and political leaders should listen rather than look for ways to silence them,' he said. 'The premier's attempt to block this peaceful demonstration was a concerning overreach that the supreme court rightly rejected.' Speaking on Monday, Minns said he did not regret his opposition to the protest march and it was his job to 'be on the side of public safety'. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion 'I accept that there's a huge groundswell … It's a difficult one for the government. We have to balance public safety and the public's right to protest … alongside running a big city like Sydney. Ultimately, my job is to be on the side of public safety,' he said. The characterisation of his role drew a sharp response from NSW Labor's Lawrence. 'This protest was inevitable. The only way to protect public safety was to accept that and facilitate it,' he said. 'The idea of suppressing a mass protest in the name of public safety is just risible,' he said. Lawrence said the protest organisers had offered to delay it until 24 August, but this had been rejected by a political-level refusal to accept the offer, which forced the NSW police into last-minute organisation to manage the huge crowd. Minns also foreshadowed that the government may still appeal against the ruling by Justice Belinda Rigg on Saturday morning allowing the protest to proceed. He did not rule out legislation to restrict future protests on the bridge, although he said he would not rush any legislation. 'No one should believe that it's open season on the bridge,' he said. Minns pointed out that in the past two years, the police had facilitated a hundred protests with the Palestinian Action Group, as well as scores of other demonstrations. Greens MLC Sue Higginson said Minns was facing strong internal dissent over his stance and should start listening. 'Labor premier Chris Minns is acting strangely and is not listening. He has lost authority over his own caucus and on matters too significant to ignore,' she said. 'There are no current plans to march across the Harbour Bridge again, the moment has happened, it was yesterday, and the question now really has to be: where was the premier? What was more important for the premier, that he could not attend the march for humanity? There may be good reasons he did not attend, but the people do deserve to know,' she said. 'The premier also needs to understand that he has absolutely no legal power to block protests, as the courts have confirmed and nor should he.'
The Herald Scotland
41 minutes ago
- The Herald Scotland
Scots activists speak out as Palestine Action ban reviewed
Davidson, who is a senior figure in the Scottish [[Palestine]] Solidarity Campaign (SPSC), said: 'There is a very clear approach that has been taken by police up and down the UK. People have been arrested for wearing t-shirts and others have been challenged by police over [[Palestine]] flags and anti-Israel placards. 'Some of our members are more at risk when it comes to anti-terror legislation, and we've informed them of this. Of course, any risk we might take is nothing in comparison to what Palestinians are going through.' Protestors gathered in London ahead of the ban. (Image: Lucy North / PA) Davidson was one of several high-profile activists who were surveilled by police during US President Donald Trump's visit to Scotland last week. According to video evidence viewed by The National the force carried out daily bail checks at Davidson's address, as well as those of others. She told The Herald: 'It was a bit scary. I have a young daughter at home. I feel like I've disassociated at times, this isn't the country and the values people say they hold.' Davidson also hit out at Keir Starmer's plan to recognise the State of [[Palestine]] in September if [[Israel]] does not take steps to provide humanitarian aid and end the war in Gaza. She said: 'It's consistent with Keir Starmer's approach to this. He seems to believe that the inalienable rights of Palestinians, such as food, water, and self-determination, are dependent on Israel. That is not the case. 'An entire classroom of Palestinian children have been killed every day since the start of the war. If a classroom of Israeli children were being killed every day, there's no way Starmer would have given Israel a month's notice. 'The two-state solution only maintains the status quo. Meanwhile, Israel is taking more land and killing more people. Palestinians need the killing to stop.' Keir Starmer has said the UK will recognise a Palestinian state if Israel does not end the war in Gaza by September. (Image: Toby Melville/PA Wire) Last month, Palestine Action was proscribed under the Terrorism Act 2000 after causing £7m of damage to two jet planes at RAF Brize Norton. This means that expressing support for or being a member of the group is a criminal offence, punishable by up to 14 years in prison. During the TRSNMT festival last month, a 55-year-old man was charged under anti-terror legislation for allegedly wearing a t-shirt bearing the message "Genocide in Palestine Time to Take Action,' which had been produced by the SPSC. According to reports, the words 'Palestine' and 'Action' were in a larger font than the other text. SPSC spokesperson Mick Napier said: 'We put this T-shirt out because we wanted to use the furore around the ban to draw attention to the genocide. The T-shirt is not about Palestine Action, it's about genocide.' 'We're getting a substantially different response from the public even than two months ago. The atrocious actions in Gaza are burning deep into the national and international psyche.' On July 18, a 64-year-old man was arrested in Glasgow under the legislation for allegedly holding a sign bearing the same words. Police officers had asked the man to put the sign away, but he is alleged to have refused. And three men were arrested in Edinburgh for 'showing support for a proscribed organisation' in two separate incidents on July 19 and July 21. Leading charities have raised the alarm over the risk of famine in Gaza. (Image: AP) More than 200 people have been arrested across the UK on suspicion of expressing support for Palestine Action since the ban came into force. Davidson told The Herald: '[The proscription] is having a knock-on effect. It doesn't happen in a vacuum. 'The Scottish Government needs to do more. They released a statement calling for a ceasefire very early on, but have yet to call the conflict a genocide. Not to mention, they continue to fund arms companies through Scottish Enterprise.' Meanwhile, a High Court judge has ruled that [[Palestine]] Action will be allowed to challenge their proscription at a full judicial review of the Home Office's decision in November. Mr Justice Chamberlain rejected calls by the group to lift the proscription order ahead of the review, which means Palestine Action remains a banned organisation. Read more: Court bid to block Palestine Action being designated as terror group fails Glasgow man arrested over 'Palestine Action poster in window' Home Office welcomes Palestine Action ban as it comes into force A Police Scotland spokesperson said: 'We have a legal duty to protect the rights of people who wish to peacefully protest or counter-protest. 'It is an offence under the Terrorism Act 2000 to be a member of a proscribed organisation or to invite or express support for them. 'This includes wearing clothing or carrying any item in public in such a way as to arouse suspicion that they are a member of, or a supporter of a proscribed organisation. 'We are working closely with the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service. Where police consider there is a sufficiency of evidence, they submit reports to the Procurator Fiscal. 'The fiscal will then consider whether there is enough evidence in law and decides what action, if any, to take in the public interest.'
