US Ambassador to Israel calls latest UK sanctions 'outrageous'
US Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, condemned the UK decision to impose sanctions on two Israeli government ministers, calling the move 'outrageous'
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South Wales Guardian
2 hours ago
- South Wales Guardian
Dispute over identity of 12 reported killed by Hamas police force in Gaza
It was not immediately possible to verify the competing claims or confirm the identities of those killed on Thursday. The militia, led by Yasser Abu Shabab, said its fighters had attacked Hamas and killed five militants but made no mention of its own casualties. It also accused Hamas of detaining and killing aid workers. The deaths were the latest sign of turmoil surrounding the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a private contractor that Israel says will replace the UN in distributing food to Gaza's more than two million people. Over the past two weeks, dozens of Palestinians have been killed and hundreds wounded in near daily shootings as they try to reach GHF centres, with witnesses saying Israeli troops have repeatedly opened fire. On Wednesday, at least 13 people were killed and 170 wounded when Israeli forces fired towards a crowd of Palestinians near a GHF centre in central Gaza, according to the al-Awda Hospital, which received the casualties. The military said it fired warning shots overnight at a gathering that posed a threat, hundreds of metres from the aid site. Meanwhile, internet and phone lines were down across Gaza, according to telecom provider Paltel and the Palestinian telecoms authority. They said a key line had been severed during an Israeli operation and that the military would not allow technicians into the area to repair it. The Israeli military said it was looking into the reports. The UN humanitarian office, known as OCHA, said emergency services were cut off because of the outage, and civilians could not call ambulances. It said most UN agencies and aid groups could not reach their staff on the ground. Israel has barred international journalists from entering Gaza, making it difficult to confirm what happened in the killings early on Wednesday near the southern city of Khan Younis. The GHF said Hamas attacked a bus carrying more than two dozen of its Palestinian aid workers on Thursday, killing at least eight and wounding others. It said it feared some had been abducted. 'We condemn this heinous and deliberate attack in the strongest possible terms,' it said. 'These were aid workers. Humanitarians. Fathers, brothers, sons and friends who were risking their lives every day to help others.' The Israeli military circulated the GHF statement but declined to provide its own account of what happened. OCHA said it could not confirm the circumstances of the killings but added: 'Civilians must never be attacked, let alone those trying to access or provide food amid mass starvation.' The GHF said its staff at the centres include unarmed Palestinian employees. Many are armed international contractors, mainly Americans, guarding the centres. Fighters with the Abu Shabab group are deployed inside the Israeli military zones that surround the GHF centres, according to witnesses. Earlier this week, witnesses said Abu Shabab militiamen had opened fire on people en route to a GHF aid hub, killing and wounding many. GHF says it does not work with the Abu Shabab group. Last week, Israel acknowledged it is supporting armed groups of Palestinians opposed to Hamas. Hamas has rejected the GHF system and threatened to kill any Palestinians who co-operate with the Israeli military. The Sahm police unit, which Hamas says it established to combat looting, released video footage showing several dead men lying in the street, saying they were Abu Shabab fighters who had been detained and killed for collaborating with Israel. It was not possible to verify the images or the claims around them. Ghassan Duhine, who identifies himself as deputy commander of the Abu Shabab group and a major in the Palestinian Authority's security forces, issued a statement saying Abu Shabab fighters had clashed with Sahm and killed five. He denied that the bodies in Sahm's images were the group's fighters. The Palestinian Authority, led by rivals of Hamas and based in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, has denied any connection to the Abu Shabab group, but many of the militiamen identify themselves as PA officers.
Powys County Times
2 hours ago
- Powys County Times
Dispute over identity of 12 reported killed by Hamas police force in Gaza
A unit of Gaza's Hamas-run police force says it has killed 12 members of an Israeli-backed Palestinian militia after detaining them, but an Israel-supported aid group said the dead were its workers. It was not immediately possible to verify the competing claims or confirm the identities of those killed on Thursday. The militia, led by Yasser Abu Shabab, said its fighters had attacked Hamas and killed five militants but made no mention of its own casualties. It also accused Hamas of detaining and killing aid workers. The deaths were the latest sign of turmoil surrounding the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a private contractor that Israel says will replace the UN in distributing food to Gaza's more than two million people. Over the past two weeks, dozens of Palestinians have been killed and hundreds wounded in near daily shootings as they try to reach GHF centres, with witnesses saying Israeli troops have repeatedly opened fire. On Wednesday, at least 13 people were killed and 170 wounded when Israeli forces fired towards a crowd of Palestinians near a GHF centre in central Gaza, according to the al-Awda Hospital, which received the casualties. The military said it fired warning shots overnight at a gathering that posed a threat, hundreds of metres from the aid site. Meanwhile, internet and phone lines were down across Gaza, according to telecom provider Paltel and the Palestinian telecoms authority. They said a key line had been severed during an Israeli operation and that the military would not allow technicians into the area to repair it. The Israeli military said it was looking into the reports. The UN humanitarian office, known as OCHA, said emergency services were cut off because of the outage, and civilians could not call ambulances. It said most UN agencies and aid groups could not reach their staff on the ground. Israel has barred international journalists from entering Gaza, making it difficult to confirm what happened in the killings early on Wednesday near the southern city of Khan Younis. The GHF said Hamas attacked a bus carrying more than two dozen of its Palestinian aid workers on Thursday, killing at least eight and wounding others. It said it feared some had been abducted. 'We condemn this heinous and deliberate attack in the strongest possible terms,' it said. 'These were aid workers. Humanitarians. Fathers, brothers, sons and friends who were risking their lives every day to help others.' The Israeli military circulated the GHF statement but declined to provide its own account of what happened. OCHA said it could not confirm the circumstances of the killings but added: 'Civilians must never be attacked, let alone those trying to access or provide food amid mass starvation.' The GHF said its staff at the centres include unarmed Palestinian employees. Many are armed international contractors, mainly Americans, guarding the centres. Fighters with the Abu Shabab group are deployed inside the Israeli military zones that surround the GHF centres, according to witnesses. Earlier this week, witnesses said Abu Shabab militiamen had opened fire on people en route to a GHF aid hub, killing and wounding many. GHF says it does not work with the Abu Shabab group. Last week, Israel acknowledged it is supporting armed groups of Palestinians opposed to Hamas. Hamas has rejected the GHF system and threatened to kill any Palestinians who co-operate with the Israeli military. The Sahm police unit, which Hamas says it established to combat looting, released video footage showing several dead men lying in the street, saying they were Abu Shabab fighters who had been detained and killed for collaborating with Israel. It was not possible to verify the images or the claims around them. Ghassan Duhine, who identifies himself as deputy commander of the Abu Shabab group and a major in the Palestinian Authority's security forces, issued a statement saying Abu Shabab fighters had clashed with Sahm and killed five. He denied that the bodies in Sahm's images were the group's fighters. The Palestinian Authority, led by rivals of Hamas and based in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, has denied any connection to the Abu Shabab group, but many of the militiamen identify themselves as PA officers.
South Wales Guardian
2 hours ago
- South Wales Guardian
Family pleads for the release of a Nepali student abducted by Hamas
Bipin Joshi, now 25, was among 17 Nepali students studying agriculture in southern Israel during the October 7 2023 Hamas attack that ignited the war in Gaza. Mr Joshi had worked hard in a government competition to earn a spot to study in Israel, his 17-year-old sister, Pushpa Joshi, said from Kathmandu. He arrived in southern Israel just three weeks before the attack. It was his first time out of Nepal. 'Bipin Joshi is an innocent agriculture student,' Pushpa said. 'He is a student who has a long life ahead of him, who is just 25 years old now.' Militants killed 10 of the Nepali students in the attack and injured six others. Mr Joshi saved multiple lives by tossing a live grenade out of the bomb shelter where they were hiding, his sister said, before he was abducted and taken to Gaza. His family has not had a sign of life from him since Israel obtained security footage from a hospital in Gaza showing Mr Joshi, so they know he was taken alive to Gaza, but have no information about him since then. Pushpa, who was 15 when her brother was kidnapped, lives with their parents in a town in western Nepal. She travels eight hours each way on buses to Kathmandu regularly to lobby officials to secure her brother's release. She has met the country's prime minister and president several times. Nepal's government says it has repeatedly sought help from Qatari and Egyptian officials to get Mr Joshi freed. 'He is alive and we believe from the bottom of our hearts that he for sure is going to come back all safe and sound,' Pushpa said. 'We have big hopes that he will be back.' Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took 251 hostages in the October 7 attack. They are still holding 53 hostages, around 20 of them believed to be alive. The majority of the others were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Israeli forces have rescued eight living hostages from Gaza and recovered dozens of bodies, including five over the past week. In the ensuing conflict, more than 55,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expressed 'doubts' about whether several hostages are still alive. None of the previously released hostages have seen Mr Joshi recently during their captivity. His parents are constantly monitoring news about the Gaza conflict, and get their hopes up whenever they see signs of a hostage release. 'News is always on, all day from morning to night, at our house,' Pushpa said. They are also in contact with families of other Nepalis who were killed or injured in the attack, though Mr Joshi is the only Nepali hostage. Pushpa said her brother is her best friend, and that they would often learn, sing and dance together while their parents were at work. 'In rainy season like now, we used to get wet in the rain and dance,' she said. He studied diligently to earn the scholarship to study agriculture in Israel, she said. The exchange program at Kibbutz Alumim was close to the Gaza border in a major agricultural area. Nepali citizens go to Israel for both education and employment, to learn the country's advanced agricultural techniques. Agriculture is the backbone of Nepal's economy, and the primary source of income for more than 60% of the population.
