Israel kills at least 67 Palestinians waiting for UN aid trucks in Gaza, medics say
Israel's military said its troops had fired warning shots towards a crowd of thousands of people in northern Gaza to remove what it said was "an immediate threat".
It did not immediately comment on the incident in the south. The UN World Food Programme (WFP) said that shortly after entering Gaza, a WFP convoy of 25 trucks carrying food aid encountered "massive crowds of hungry civilians" who then came under gunfire. "WFP reiterates that any violence involving civilians seeking humanitarian aid is completely unacceptable," it said in a statement.
In total, health authorities said 90 people had been killed by Israeli gunfire and airstrikes across the enclave on Sunday.
Israel expands displacement orders After Israel's military dropped leaflets urging people to evacuate from neighbourhoods in central Gaza's Deir al-Balah, residents said Israeli planes struck three houses in the area. Dozens of families began leaving their homes, carrying some of their belongings. Hundreds of thousands of displaced Gazans have been sheltering in the Deir al-Balah area. Israel's military said it had not entered the districts subject to the evacuation order during the current conflict and that it was continuing "to operate with great force to destroy the enemy's capabilities and terrorist infrastructure in the area".
Israeli sources have said the reason the army has so far stayed out is because they suspect Hamas might be holding hostages there.
Israeli air strikes continue across Gaza as residents struggle to find food and water. Source: AP / Abdel Kareem Hana At least 20 of the remaining 50 hostages in captivity in Gaza are believed to still be alive. Hostage families demanded an explanation from the army.
"Can anyone (promise) to us that this decision will not come at the cost of losing our loved ones?" the families said in a statement.
Accelerating mass starvation Much of Gaza has been reduced to a wasteland during more than 21 months of Israeli bombardment, and there are fears of accelerating starvation. Palestinian health officials said hundreds of people could soon die as hospitals were inundated with patients suffering from dizziness and exhaustion due to the scarcity of food and a collapse in aid deliveries. "We warn that hundreds of people whose bodies have wasted away are at risk of imminent death due to hunger," said the health ministry. The United Nations also said on Sunday that civilians were starving and needed an urgent influx of aid.
Pope Leo called for an end to the "barbarity of war" as he spoke of his profound pain over an Israeli strike on the sole Catholic church in Gaza that killed three people on Thursday.
Palestinians in Gaza said it was becoming impossible to find essential food such as flour. The health ministry said at least 71 children had died of malnutrition during the war, and 60,000 others were suffering from symptoms of malnutrition. Later on Sunday, it said 18 people have died of hunger in the past 24 hours. Food prices have increased well beyond what most of the population of more than two million can afford. Several people who spoke to Reuters news agencyvia chat apps said they either had one meal or no meal in the past 24 hours. "As a father, I wake up in the early morning to look for food, for even a loaf of bread for my five children, but all in vain," said Ziad, a nurse. Others said they felt dizzy walking in the streets and that many fainted as they walked. Fathers leave tents to avoid questions by their children about what to eat. UNRWA, the UN refugee agency dedicated to Palestinians, demanded Israel allow more aid trucks into Gaza, saying it had enough food for the entire population for over three months which was not allowed in.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News.com.au
2 hours ago
- News.com.au
World's major courts take growing role in climate fight
The world's top court is poised to tell governments what their legal obligations are to tackle global warming, and possibly outline consequences for polluters that cause climate harm to vulnerable countries. Wednesday's highly anticipated advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice comes in the wake of landmark international decisions that experts say together have the potential to significantly shape climate action. - How has climate litigation evolved? - Andrew Raine, deputy director of the UN Environment Programme's law division, said frustration over the pace of climate action had spurred people, organisations and countries to turn to the courts. "When political systems fall short, the law is increasingly seen as a tool for driving ambition and enforcing commitments that have been made," he told AFP. These have been bolstered by increasingly precise and detailed climate science, including from the UN's IPCC climate expert panel. Almost 3,000 climate cases have been filed up to the end of 2024, in nearly 60 countries, according to the Grantham Research Institute, using data compiled by the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law. While not all have been successful -- and some have tried to slow climate progress -- there have been notable cases in recent years that have pushed states to do more. Urgenda, an environmental organisation in the Netherlands, notched a win at the Dutch Supreme Court in 2019, with justices ordering the government to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent by the end of the following year. And in 2021, the German Constitutional Court found that the government's failure to sufficiently cut planet-heating pollution placed an unacceptable burden on future generations. Raine said that litigation was increasingly crossing borders, with 24 cases brought before international or regional courts, tribunals or other bodies. "This marks a turning point and it reflects the transboundary and shared nature of the climate crisis," he said. - Why have recent cases been deemed historic? - Two in particular have been hailed as watershed moments that will help shape how courts, governments and businesses understand and act on their climate responsibilities. Last year, an advisory opinion by the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea said carbon emissions can be considered a marine pollutant and that countries have a legal duty to take measures to reduce their effects on oceans. The tribunal made clear that the work of defining countries' obligations is not limited to the Paris climate agreement or the UN body that runs climate change negotiations. Major polluters have argued that the UN framework is sufficient and against courts taking climate decisions. Another major advisory opinion was issued this month, with the Inter-American Court of Human Rights reaffirming the right to a healthy climate system and acknowledging the rights of nature. But perhaps the court's most profound statement was to place protection against irreversible climate harms on the same level as international prohibitions on genocide and torture, said Cesar Rodriguez-Garavito, Professor of Law and Director of the Climate Law Accelerator at New York University. The court said "massive and serious harm to the climate system through emissions, through deforestation and so on, is absolutely forbidden by international law," he said. In his view this made it the strongest statement yet by any international court on states' duty to avoid causing severe ecological destruction. All eyes are now on the ICJ. - What could be the impact? - Vanuatu, one of many low-lying islands threatened by sea level rise, has asked the ICJ to give its opinion on states' obligations to reduce emissions. But the potentially more controversial request is what -- if any -- legal consequences there might be for major polluters who cause severe climate damages. "These are questions of global justice," said Rodriguez-Garavito, potentially touching on contentious issues of "reparations for climate harms" to those least responsible for emissions. While advisory opinions like the ICJ are not legally enforceable, Raine said they carry significant weight. "They clarify how international law applies to the climate crisis, and that has ripple effects across national courts, legislative processes and public debates," he said. klm/np/djt/tc
SBS Australia
2 hours ago
- SBS Australia
Trump vowed to save Afghans. But UAE already sent some evacuees back, cable shows
Days before United States President Donald Trump pledged to help Afghan evacuees stuck in the United Arab Emirates, the Emirati government had already started returning them to Afghanistan and informed the US, according to a US state department cable seen by Reuters. The UAE, a close security partner of the US, agreed in 2021 to temporarily house several thousand Afghans evacuated from Kabul as the Taliban ousted the US-backed government during the final stages of the US-led withdrawal. Throughout the years, about 17,000 Afghan evacuees have been processed through the Abu Dhabi facility, known as Emirates Humanitarian City. But more than 30 remaining Afghans have been stuck, with their fate in limbo. News outlet Just the News reported UAE officials were preparing to hand over some Afghan refugees to the Taliban. "I will try to save them, starting right now," Trump said in a post on Truth Social on the weekend that linked to an article on the Afghans held in limbo there. However, it may already be too late for some. Families sent back to Afghanistan In a 10 July meeting with US officials in Abu Dhabi, Salem al-Zaabi, UAE special adviser to the foreign minister, told the Americans two families had been "successfully and safely" sent back to Afghanistan in early July, the cable, which had the same date as the meeting, said. Donald Trump, based on his Truth Social post, appeared to be out of the loop on the UAE's plans. Source: AAP / Alex Brandon/AP Al-Zaabi told US officials that while the UAE understood the US policy, it intended to "close this chapter for good" and would therefore return the remaining 25 Afghans by 20 July, according to the cable. He said the Emirati government would seek assurances from the Taliban that their safety is guaranteed. It was not immediately clear whether the remaining persons had been sent back or the circumstances of the two families who were returned to Afghanistan. Afghans in Qatar also stuck Al-Zaabi told the US officials that the two families were returned to Afghanistan in early July "at their request, since they were tired of waiting", the cable said. But two sources familiar with the matter disputed that account, saying the UAE government and the Taliban's ambassador to the UAE were making Afghan families at the Emirates Humanitarian City choose between signing a 'voluntary' deportation letter to Afghanistan or being arrested to be forcefully deported to the country. The cable also said al-Zaabi asked the US to coordinate "perception management" to ensure the US and Abu Dhabi were aligned on their messaging on the topic, as the UAE did not want criticism from the NGOs, "due to the inability of the United States to resettle the population in the United States or elsewhere". The fate of more than 30 Afghan evacuees and how the administration handles their cases is crucial for the future of another 1,500 Afghan men, women and children who have been stuck in a similar facility in Camp As Sayliyah in Qatar. Former US president Joe Biden's administration, since its chaotic US troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, has brought nearly 200,000 Afghans to the US. Trump, a Republican who promised a far-reaching immigration crackdown, suspended refugee resettlement after he took office in January. In April, the Trump administration terminated temporary deportation protections for thousands of Afghans in the US. Democrats have urged Trump to restore temporary protected status for Afghans, saying women and children could face particular harm under the Taliban-led government. Since seizing power, Afghanistan's Taliban administration has rolled back hard-fought rights won by Afghan women and girls during two decades of rule by US-backed governments. They have imposed limits on schooling, work and general independence in daily life. Refugees include family members of Afghan-American US military personnel, children cleared to reunite with their parents, relatives of Afghans already admitted and tens of thousands of Afghans who worked for the US government during the 20-year war. Shawn VanDiver, president of the #AfghanEvac advocacy group, urged Trump to follow up on his post with action. "President Trump has the authority to do the right thing. He should instruct DHS [Department of Homeland Security] and the Department of State to expedite processing, push for third-country partnerships, and ensure that we never again leave our wartime allies behind."
SBS Australia
2 hours ago
- SBS Australia
Save the Children in Gaza: 'The situation here is absolutely dire'
"You know, this is another mass casualty incident that is being reported in the vicinity of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation for Food Distribution. The situation here is absolutely dire. And my team said to me today, the situation in Gaza has never been this bad. They are desperately hungry." That was Rachael Cummings, Save The Children's Humanitarian Director in Gaza. "Children are crying all the time for food. And my teams who are employed, they have money in their bank accounts, they're unable to find food in Gaza to buy. So the situation is absolutely terrible and people are making impossible choices to risk their lives to try and find food." On Sunday, Gaza's civil defence organisation says the Israeli army killed 93 people and wounded dozens more as they were lining up for humanitarian aid. According to witnesses and officials, 80 people were killed as truckloads of aid arrived in the north. Ehab Al-Zein was a witness to the attack and says those killed were starving and trying to feed their families. "We were waiting for flour because of hunger. We wanted to eat and drink. Suddenly the tanks came out, surrounding us. They started shooting at us and we were unable to move. We could not get the flour and we remained surrounded for about an hour and a half to two hours. Some escaped, some were killed and others were injured. As you can see, this is our situation." The Civil Defence Agency says Israeli troops shot and killed nine others near an aid point close to Rafah, where dozens of people were killed just 24 hours earlier. The Israeli military says it contests the death toll and claims IDF soldiers do not target civilians. Health authorities in Gaza say on Sunday, 18 people died of starvation. In a post on social media, the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees condemned ongoing aid restrictions and said: 'This is a manmade and politically motivated starvation of a people'. Um Mahmoud Abu Tarboosh says all she wants is to feed her son. "Certainly, it feels like weakness and sadness because I can't even provide my son with just bread. We don't want meat, chicken, or poultry, just flour and bread to eat and hopefully stave off hunger. Of course, I will remain very upset. I tell you, I prioritise my son over myself, giving him my portion and saying that I will endure." As the Gaza Health Ministry's recorded death toll nears 60,000, Israeli forces are launching a new ground offensive in the central Gaza area of Deir al-Balah. The Israeli military issued displacement orders for the area, which Save The Children estimates is sheltering between 50,000 and 80,000 displaced Palestinians. Most Palestinians in Gaza have been displaced multiple times since 2023, and the United Nations says over 86 per cent of Gaza is now controlled by the IDF. Rachael Cummings says the people in Gaza have nowhere to "We're in Deir al-Balah, and today there was evacuation notices across Deir al-Balah affecting between 50 and 80,000 people who are now being forcibly displaced from Deir al-Balah into Al-Muwasi in Khan Younis, and some of my team are living in these areas, and they literally have nowhere to go. There is nowhere for people to go, there is nowhere safe in Gaza for people to move to. So the situation for my team and other humanitarian workers here is absolutely desperate." The expanding ground invasion of Deir al-Balah has prompted outcry from hostage families in Israel. While the Israeli military statement says the IDF has not operated in Deir al-Balah before, Israel has conducted air strikes there, and ground forces have previously operated on the outskirts of the city. However, with 20 of the 50 remaining Israeli hostages believed to be alive in Gaza, some Israelis fear they are being held in Deir al-Balah and are at imminent risk if IDF forces invade. Ruhama Bohbot is the mother of Israeli hostage Elkana Bohbot. She says she is very worried about the new orders. "I am indeed worried because I didn't understand why they arrived there today just as the negotiations are starting to progress and the deal is likely to go through. I am very optimistic, which is why I speak cautiously. It didn't sit well with me because people forget that what's happening is that the hostages are forty metres underground, which endangers them and also endangers our IDF soldiers, as well as our security forces." Israel's army chief, Eyal Zamir, says he believes a ceasefire and hostage release deal is increasingly possible. During indirect negotiations in Qatar, Israel and Hamas have been struggling for months to reach a deal enabling a 60-day ceasefire and the release of hostages. If a temporary ceasefire deal is reached, the parties will then negotiate an end to Israel's war on Gaza and the release of the last Israeli hostages. Ruby Chen, the father of US-Israeli IDF soldier Itay Chen, says a deal must be done. "We know the outlines of the deal exists. What's missing is the final push. The kind of resolve that only President Trump can bring. The voice that says, enough waiting, enough bullshitting - now is the time to end the suffering and bring a deal that all the hostages, all the 50 hostages are able to come back. And there will be consequences for those responsible for the collapse of the deal." Meanwhile, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar says he has ordered the withdrawal of a senior UN humanitarian official's residency permit, accusing him of spreading lies about Israel. Jonathan Whittall, who lives in Jerusalem and frequently visits the Gaza Strip, has repeatedly condemned the conditions imposed by Israel on the more than two million people living in Gaza. Since October 2023, Israel has made it harder to get visas for those working for OCHA, the UN human rights office, and the UN agency for Palestinian refugees. Save The Children's Rachael Cummings says aid workers in Gaza must be allowed to do their job. "There's two million people in Gaza on the brink of famine. We need safe and dignified distributions. We need the humanitarian community to be allowed to do our jobs. We know how to deliver food and services to children and their families across Gaza. We just need to be able to do that."
