The rest of the world struggles to restrain Israel
His entreaties, for now, amount to more hope and prayers. The conflict and misery in Gaza shows little sign of abating, while Israel keeps pounding targets across a wide swath of the region. That includes a bombing campaign this week in Syria, which Israel says is aimed at defending minority Druze from sectarian attacks but analysts also believe is part of a deeper strategy to maintain influence over the country's fragile post-dictatorship transition.
Away from the warzones of the Middle East, Israel finds itself fighting other battles. Judges at the International Criminal Court in The Hague rejected Israel's request to withdraw arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant, who are both wanted for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity carried out under their watch in the aftermath of Hamas's Oct. 7, 2023, strike on southern Israel. In a bid to pressure the international court, the United States has placed sanctions on some ICC judges and prosecutors.
Earlier this week, Israeli foreign minister Gideon Saar went to Brussels for meetings with European counterparts. He emerged, in his words, victorious, having achieved 'an important diplomatic feat' of persuading the European Union to avoid adopting punitive measures against Israel. Kaja Kallas, the E.U.'s top diplomat, said the bloc was keeping 'options on the table' but would not pursue mooted sanctions that it was considering after an earlier E.U. assessment found Israel possibly in breach of human rights commitments.
Saar cast the developments as a vindication of Israel's efforts to defeat terrorists and defend its citizens. 'The mere attempt to impose sanctions on a democratic state that is defending itself against attempts to destroy it is outrageous,' he wrote on X. 'I thank our friends in the European Union and their foreign ministers, who supported us and prevented an attack on Israel that would also have been an attack on the European Union itself.'
But rights advocates were frustrated, given the scale of the humanitarian disaster in Gaza and Israel's documented stifling of aid into the flattened territory. The E.U.'s acquiescence, suggested Amnesty International's Agnès Callamard, would be 'remembered as one of the most disgraceful moments in the EU's history' and was 'a cruel and unlawful betrayal of the European project and vision.'
The governments of Ireland, Spain and Slovenia are the three European nations that have been outspoken in their criticism of Israel and spearheaded the attempted reckoning in Brussels. They are pressing ahead with their own measures to show their disapproval of Israel's conduct of the war, which has severely depleted Hamas but also destroyed Gaza and killed tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians, including many children.
Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez accused Israel of carrying out a 'genocide' earlier this month. Irish lawmakers are advancing legislation banning trade with Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, much to the anger of some U.S. officials. And Slovenia declared two far-right Israeli cabinet ministers as personae non gratae, banning them from the country. 'This kind of measure is the first of its kind in the European Union,' Slovenian foreign minister Tanja Fajon said. 'We are breaking new ground.'
There's reason to be cynical about the efficacy of such attempts by small countries. In Europe, the governments of Britain, France and Germany remain far more reluctant to confront Israel in similar fashion, while French President Emmanuel Macron's efforts to revive international momentum toward the creation of a Palestinian state seem to be fizzling out.
Israel's boosters in the U.S. can shrug and smirk. 'An unstated reason for Europe's particular animus toward Israel over the decades is that the continent's leaders secretly resent Israel's willingness and ability to regularly defend itself through tough military action,' mused veteran Washington wonk Robert D. Kaplan, 'something Europe's elites never had even to countenance, and arguably couldn't manage.'
Kaplan and his ilk were unlikely to be impressed by a summit that took place earlier this week in Bogotá, where delegations from thirty countries convened to pressure Israel to end its war in Gaza, as well as its occupation of the West Bank. The session of The Hague Group was co-hosted by South Africa, which is leading a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice, and the left-wing government of Colombia. It concluded Wednesday with 12 countries agreeing to implement a set of measures to 'restrain' Israel. These include a denial of arms to Israel, banning of ships transporting such arms and reviews of public contracts with companies linked to Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories.
A scan of the list of the countries that immediately signed on may suggest Israel's leadership isn't quite shaking in its boots: Bolivia, Colombia, Cuba, Indonesia, Iraq, Libya, Malaysia, Namibia, Nicaragua, Oman, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and South Africa. But the conference's backers argued that it's a first step in a global shift.
'For too long, governments have been too afraid of the consequences of angering the United States to risk taking action to uphold international law,' Annelle Sheline, a former State Department official who attended the proceedings in the Colombian capital, told me. 'This is about more than Israel and Palestine, this is about a new multilateralism taking shape to replace the old system.'
You're reading an excerpt from the WorldView newsletter. Sign up to get the rest, including news from around the globe and interesting ideas and opinions to know, sent to your inbox on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Los Angeles Times
15 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
More than 100 aid groups warn of starvation in Gaza as Israeli strikes kill 21 overnight
DEIR A -BALAH, Gaza Strip — More than 100 charity and human rights groups said Wednesday that Israel's blockade and ongoing military offensive are pushing Palestinians in the Gaza Strip toward starvation, as Israeli strikes killed another 21 people overnight, according to local health officials. The Trump administration's Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff was meanwhile set to meet with a senior Israeli official about ceasefire talks, a sign that lower-level negotiations that have dragged on for weeks could be approaching a breakthrough. Experts say Gaza is at risk of famine because of Israel's blockade and offensive, launched in response to Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack. Israel says it allows enough aid into the territory and faults delivery efforts by U.N. agencies, which say they are hindered by Israeli restrictions and the breakdown of security. Hamas has said it will only release the remaining 50 hostages it holds, around 20 of them believed to be alive, in exchange for a lasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal, while Israel has vowed to recover all the captives and continue the war until Hamas has been defeated or disarmed. In an open letter, 115 organizations, including major international aid groups like Doctors Without Borders, Mercy Corps and Save the Children, said they were watching their own colleagues, as well as the Palestinians they serve, 'waste away.' It blamed Israeli restrictions and 'massacres' at aid distribution points. Witnesses, health officials and the U.N. human rights office say Israeli forces have repeatedly fired on crowds seeking aid, killing more than 1,000 people. Israel says its forces have only fired warning shots and that the death toll is exaggerated. 'The government of Israel's restrictions, delays, and fragmentation under its total siege have created chaos, starvation, and death,' the letter said. Israel's Foreign Ministry rejected the criticism and accused the groups of 'echoing Hamas' propaganda.' It said it has allowed around 4,500 aid trucks to enter Gaza since lifting a complete blockade in May, and that more than 700 are waiting to be picked up and distributed by the United Nations. That's an average of around 70 trucks a day, the lowest rate of the war and far below the 500-600 trucks a day the U.N. says are needed, and which entered during a six-week ceasefire earlier this year. The U.N. says it has struggled to deliver aid inside Gaza because of Israeli military restrictions, ongoing fighting, and a breakdown of law and order. An alternative system established by Israel and an American contractor has been marred by violence and controversy. An official familiar with ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas said Ron Dermer, a top adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, was travelling to Rome to meet Witkoff on Thursday to discuss the state of the talks. The official spoke Wednesday on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the sensitive negotiations. U.S. officials said Witkoff planned to head to Europe this week. The State Department spokesperson said he was headed to the Middle East in a sign that momentum may be building toward a deal. The evolving deal, which is still being hammered out, is expected to include a 60-day ceasefire in which Hamas would release 10 living hostages and the remains of 18 others in phases in exchange for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. Aid supplies would be ramped up and the two sides would hold negotiations on a lasting truce. Israel has continued to carry out waves of daily airstrikes against what it says are militant targets but which often kill women and children. Israel blames civilian deaths on Hamas because the militants operate in densely populated areas. Strikes overnight and into Wednesday killed at least 21 people, more than half of them women and children, according to local health officials. One of the strikes hit a house in Gaza City, killing at least 12 people, according to Shifa Hospital, which received the casualties. The dead included six children and two women, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The Israeli military said it struck an Islamic Jihad militant, and that the incident was under review because of reports of civilian casualties. Another strike hit an apartment in northern Gaza, killing at least six people. Among the dead were three children and two women, including one who was pregnant. Eight others were wounded, the ministry said. A third strike hit a tent in Gaza City late Tuesday and killed three children, Shifa Hospital said. There was no immediate comment from the military on those strikes. Hamas-led militants abducted 251 people in the Oct. 7 attack, and killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians. More than 59,000 Palestinians have been killed during the war, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Its count doesn't distinguish between militants and civilians, but the ministry says that more than half of the dead are women and children. The U.N. and other international organizations see it as the most reliable source of data on casualties. Shurafa and Goldenberg write for the Associated Press. Goldenberg reported from Tel Aviv.
Fox News
16 minutes ago
- Fox News
Iran doubles down on refusal to end nuclear program, ready for war with Israel
Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday doubled down on Tehran's refusal to abandon its nuclear program and said Iran is "fully prepared" for a renewed fight with Israel. The Iranian president's comments came just two days after Tehran's foreign minister confirmed to Fox News that Iran will not give up its enrichment program, but continues to claim Tehran is not interested in developing a nuclear weapon. "[US President Donald] Trump says that Iran should not have a nuclear weapon and we accept this because we reject nuclear weapons and this is our political, religious, humanitarian and strategic position," Pezeshkian said in an interview with Al Jazeera. "We believe in diplomacy, so any future negotiations must be according to a win-win logic, and we will not accept threats and dictates," he added. Pezeshkian also said Trump's repeated claims that the U.S. "obliterated" Iran's nuclear program is "just an illusion." "Our nuclear capabilities are in the minds of our scientists and not in the facilities," he said. The U.S. strikes – which came just days after Israel targeted top military figures and nuclear scientists – are believed to have set back Iran's nuclear program by up to two years. But security experts have told Fox News Digital that Iran continues to possess significant military strike capabilities, and questions remain over whether Iran was able to successfully move any enriched uranium off site prior to Washington's strikes. Pezeshkian acknowledged the blow that Israel levied against its top officials, but said it "completely failed" to "eliminate" the hierarchy of Iran's nuclear program. He further warned that Iran is ready to take on Jerusalem should another conflict break out. "We are fully prepared for any new Israeli military move, and our armed forces are ready to strike deep inside Israel again," Pezeshkian said. Iran and Israel are still operating under a ceasefire brokered by the U.S. and Qatar following last month's 12-Day War, but the Iranian president said he is not confident this truce will hold. "We are not very optimistic about it," Pezeshkian said. "That is why we have prepared ourselves for any possible scenario and any potential response. Israel has harmed us, and we have also harmed it," he added. "It has dealt us powerful blows, and we have struck it hard in its depths, but it is concealing its losses." Delegations from France, Germany and the U.K. (E3) are set to travel to Tehran on Friday to discuss nuclear negotiations. The E3 visit will come just three days after officials from Russia and China, who are also signatories of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPAO), visited on Tuesday to discuss negotiations and how Iran can avoid sanctions, though details of the talks remain unknown. Iran began initiating international talks after the E3 last week threatened to employ snapback sanctions – which would see the entire 15-member U.N. Security Council enforce strict economic ramifications – should Iran not enter into a nuclear agreement by the end of August. The timeframe is consistent with the time needed for the JCPOA signatories to recall snapback sanctions prior to the Oct. 18 expiration date when the economic tool can no longer be employed en masse per the 2015 terms of the agreement.
CNN
16 minutes ago
- CNN
Gaza aid crisis: Why Gazans are dying of hunger or being killed by Israel on a near daily basis
Twenty-one months into Israel's war in Gaza, the enclave is gripped by escalating scenes of death and hunger, with some killed while trying to reach aid, others dying of starvation and growing condemnation of Israel's conduct even among many of its closest allies. The United Nations says more than a thousand people have been killed by Israeli forces while seeking food since late May, when a controversial new Israel- and US-backed aid group, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, began operating. Of those, hundreds have died near GHF sites, according to the UN. The GHF was created to replace the UN's aid role in Gaza and has been widely criticized for failing to improve conditions. All 2.1 million people in Gaza are now food insecure. On Tuesday, Gaza's health ministry said 900,000 children are going hungry, and 70,000 already show signs of malnutrition. But how did it come to this? Before the war, Gaza was already one of the most isolated and densely populated places on earth, with around two million people packed into an area of 140 square miles. Israel has maintained tight control over the territory through a yearslong land, air and sea blockade, with severe restrictions on the movement of goods and people. More than half of its residents were food insecure and under the poverty line, according to the UN. Between 500 and 600 truckloads of aid entered Gaza daily before the conflict. That number has since plummeted to an average of just 28 trucks per day, a group of humanitarian organizations said Wednesday. It's unclear if the figure includes trucks used in GHF's operations. Following Hamas' October 7, 2023 attack, which left 1,200 people dead and more than 250 taken hostage, Israel ordered a 'complete siege' of Gaza, halting the supply of electricity, food, water and fuel. A humanitarian crisis swiftly unfolded, as trapped residents faced both hunger and a devastating Israeli military campaign in response. Human rights groups have repeatedly criticized Israel's use of food as a 'weapon of war' and accused it of imposing 'collective punishment.' Following international pressure, the first trucks carrying aid entered Gaza in late October. A temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hamas began on November 24, 2023, slightly increasing aid flow. But the truce collapsed a week later. Aid deliveries subsequently dwindled again, and stringent Israeli inspections further delayed shipments. Israeli authorities said screening was necessary to prevent Hamas from diverting supplies but humanitarian officials accused Israel of deliberately throttling aid. Further compounding the crisis was the Israeli campaign against the UN and its aid delivery system, which Israel said was ineffective and allowed aid to fall Hamas' hands. The UN denies this. Among the agencies targeted was the UN's Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which Israel accused of having staff involved in the October 7 attack. A UN investigation found that nine of UNWRA's 13,000 Gaza-based employees 'may have' participated and no longer worked at the agency. In January this year, Israel banned UNRWA from operating in Gaza, cutting off viral services like food, health care and education to hundreds of thousands of people. As Israel's campaign leveled much of Gaza, displacing most of its residents and weakening Hamas' grip on the territory, lawlessness began to spread. Looting became a new hurdle for UN trucks, and casualties mounted at aid delivery points. Israel has repeatedly blamed Hamas and armed gangs for the chaos. The UN warned just weeks into the war that civil order was beginning to collapse, with desperate Palestinians taking flour and hygiene supplies from warehouses. By November 2024, the UN again raised the alarm, saying the capacity to deliver aid was 'completely gone.' In 'one of the worst' looting incident, over 100 trucks were lost, it said. Drivers were forced to unload trucks at gunpoint, aid workers were injured, and vehicles were damaged extensively. As Hamas' grip on Gaza waned and the territory's police force was hollowed out, gangs emerged to steal aid and resell it. Israel has also armed local militias to counter Hamas – a controversial move that opposition politicians have warned will endanger Israeli national security. The arming of militias appears to be the closest that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has come to empowering any form of alternate rule in the strip. Since the start of the war, the Israeli leader has refused to lay out a plan for Gaza's governance once the conflict ends. On January 19, another temporary ceasefire was reached. Aid resumed, but remained well short of what was needed. Israel reinstated a total blockade of Gaza on March 2 after the truce expired. Two weeks later, it resumed fighting, with officials saying the goal was to force Hamas to accept new ceasefire terms and release hostages. By July, the World Food Programme (WFP) assessed that a quarter of Gaza's population was facing famine-like conditions. At least 80 children have died of malnutrition since the conflict began, the Palestinian health ministry says. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), most of these occurred after the March blockade. In May, GHF, the controversial new Israeli- and American-backed organization, announced it would begin delivering with Israel's approval. Just days before GHF began operating, its director Jake Wood resigned, saying it was impossible to do his work 'while also strictly adhering to the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence.' The foundation was created to replace the UN's role in Gaza, while complying with Israeli demands that the aid not reach Hamas. The GHF said it would coordinate with the Israeli military, but that security would be provided by private military contractors. The UN has refused to participate, saying the GHF model violates some basic humanitarian principles. Critics have noted that there are only a small number of GHF distribution sites, in southern and central Gaza – far fewer than hundreds under the UN's previous model. This has forced massive crowds to gather at limited locations. The GHF has defended its system, saying it is a 'secure model (that) blocks the looting.' But soon after it began operating on May 27, the plan turned deadly as those seeking aid increasingly came under fire near GHF aid sites. Palestinian officials and witnesses have said Israeli troops are responsible for most of the deaths. The Israeli military acknowledged firing warning shots toward crowds in some instances, but denied responsibility for other incidents. And the deaths aren't limited to the vicinity of GHF aid sites. On Sunday, Israeli forces killed dozens waiting for aid in northern Gaza, according to the Palestinian health ministry. Israel said troops fired warning shots after sensing an 'immediate threat' The ministry of health recorded 10 deaths due to famine and malnutrition in 24 hours from Tuesday, bringing the total of Palestinians who died of starvation to 111. On Wednesday, 111 international humanitarian organizations called on Israel to end its blockade and agree to a ceasefire, warning that supplies in the enclave are now 'totally depleted' and that humanitarian groups are 'witnessing their own colleagues and partners waste away before their eyes.' An Israeli official said at a press briefing on Wednesday that they expect more aid to enter the enclave in the future. 'We would like to see more and more trucks entering Gaza and distributing the aid as long as Hamas is not involved,' the official said. 'As we see for now, Hamas has an interest: First, to put pressure on the State of Israel through the international community in order to (have) an effect in the (ceasefire) negotiation process; and second, to collapse the new mechanism that we have established that is making sure that they are not involved in the aid delivery inside Gaza.' International pressure continues to mount on Israel, including from the United States. And on Monday, the foreign ministers of 25 Western nations slammed Israel for 'drip feeding' aid into the Gaza Strip. Israel's foreign ministry said it 'rejects' the statement, calling it 'disconnected from reality.' CNN's Tim Lister, Mostafa Salem, Catherine Nicholls, Oren Liebermann, Eugenia Yosef, Dana Karni, Mike Schwartz, Mick Krever, Eugenia Yosef and Jeremy Diamond contributed reporting.
