FM reaffirms Egypt's commitment to supporting peace, stability worldwide
The foreign minister said that the current moment requires the Global South to unite in defense of shared rights and interests, and to build a global order that respects national sovereignty and is based on justice, equality, and cooperation.
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Egypt Independent
5 hours ago
- Egypt Independent
French president calls for UN mission into Gaza, slams Israel's plan to expand war
French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday called for a United Nations 'stabilization' mission to protect the civilian population in Gaza and disarm Hamas, as international outrage grows around Israel's planned military takeover of Gaza City. Israel's announced expansion of the conflict constitutes 'a disaster of unprecedented gravity and a headlong rush into permanent war. The Israeli hostages and the people of Gaza will continue to be the first victims of this strategy,' Macron said in a statement. The French leader's appeal echoes a document signed by 17 countries, the European Union and the Arab League in July that called for such a mission, if requested by the Palestinian Authority. The temporary force, for which some signatories were ready to provide troops, would protect the civilian population, monitor any future peace agreement and oversee the transfer of security responsibilities to the PA in Gaza. 'This war must end now with a permanent ceasefire,' the French president said, calling on the UN Security Council, of which France is a permanent member, to establish such a peacekeeping force. 'It is the only credible way to begin to emerge from the permanent war and rebuild peace and security for all,' Macron said. Other European leaders call for peace: Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof said Monday that the war in Gaza 'must stop,' adding that 'journalists must be allowed to do their work safely and without interference' and calling for a ceasefire. Tanja Fajon, Slovenia's foreign minister, spoke out about the killings of several Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza Monday. The killings are 'unacceptable and shameful,' she said on social media, adding that 'attacking journalists is attacking freedom of the press. Attacking the truth.'
Al-Ahram Weekly
8 hours ago
- Al-Ahram Weekly
NGOs warn Israeli restrictions choke Gaza aid
More than 100 international aid groups have warned that new Israeli restrictions are increasingly being used to block their requests to deliver supplies into Gaza, risking the shutdown of most humanitarian operations in the territory within weeks, according to a joint letter published Thursday. "Israeli authorities have rejected requests from dozens of NGOs to bring in lifesaving goods, citing that these organisations are 'not authorised to deliver aid'," the joint statement reads, as reported by AFP. According to the letter, whose signatories include Oxfam and Doctors Without Borders (MSF), at least 60 requests to bring aid into Gaza were rejected in July alone. In March, Israel's government approved a new set of restrictions for foreign non-governmental organisations (NGOs) working with Palestinians. The law updates the framework for how aid groups must register to maintain their status within Israel, along with provisions that outline how their applications can be denied or registration revoked. Registration can be rejected if Israeli occupation authorities deem that a group denies the allegedly "democratic character" of Israel or "promotes delegitimisation campaigns" against the country. Aid groups say that the new rules are leaving Gazans without help. "Our mandate is to save lives, but due to the registration restrictions civilians are being left without the food, medicine and protection they urgently need," said Jolien Veldwijk, director of the charity CARE in the Palestinian territories. Veldwijk said that CARE has not been able to deliver any aid to Gaza since Israel imposed a full blockade on the Palestinian territory in March, despite partially easing it in May. Last week, the UN called for the Israeli authorities to rescind its requirement introduced on 9 March obliging NGOs to share 'sensitive personal information about their Palestinian employees or face termination of their humanitarian operations in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem,' In a joint statement, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the Humanitarian Country Team — a coordination body of UN entities and over 200 international and local NGOs —warned against Israeli plans to de-register many international NGO partners working in the occupied Palestinian territories in the coming weeks for refusing to provide personal information about their Palestinian employees. 'Unless urgent action is taken, humanitarian organisations warn that most international NGO partners could be de-registered by 9 September or sooner, forcing them to withdraw all international staff and preventing them from providing critical, life-saving humanitarian assistance to Palestinians,' the statement read. Since May, the Israeli government has relied on the US-Israeli so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) to manage food distribution centres. However, the GHF operations have been frequently marred by chaos and bloodshed as thousands of Gazans have scrambled each day to approach its hubs, where at least 1,700 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli soldiers. The United Nations and international aid organisations have warned that famine was unfolding in Gaza as more than 193 Palestinians, including more than 100 children, died of hunger because of a five-month-old Israeli blockade on the strip. Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
Al-Ahram Weekly
8 hours ago
- Al-Ahram Weekly
UN commission finds violence against Syria Alawites likely included 'war crimes' - Region
A UN commission investigating sectarian bloodshed in Syria's Alawite heartland documented systematic violence at the hands of government forces and allied groups, warning Thursday that some of the acts could constitute war crimes. The violence in March unfolded along Syria's predominantly Alawite Mediterranean coast, where security personnel and their allies were accused of carrying out summary executions, mostly targeting civilians from the religious minority, with a war monitor saying more than 1,700 people were killed. The UN commission said in its report Thursday that the violence committed by "members of the interim government forces and private individuals operating alongside or in proximity to them... followed a systematic pattern across multiple, widespread locations". "The violations included acts that likely amount to war crimes," it said. The commission documented cases of "murder, torture and inhumane acts related to the treatment of the dead, widespread looting and burning of homes all of which displaced tens of thousands of civilians". Syria's new authorities have accused gunmen loyal to ousted ruler Bashar al-Assad of instigating the violence by launching deadly attacks that killed dozens of security personnel. The UN commission also found that pro-Assad forces were implicated in the violence. Around 200,000 pro-government military reinforcements converged on the area, according to Damascus. Human rights groups and international organisations have said entire families were killed, including women, children and the elderly. Gunmen stormed homes and asked residents whether they were Alawite or Sunni before killing or sparing them, they said. The UN commission documented similar cases in which men were "identified as belonging to the Alawi sect and then separated from the women and children before being led outside to be shot". 'Deeply disturbing' During his rule, Assad -- who is himself an Alawite -- had cultivated an image as a defender of minorities, even as his authoritarian tendencies plunged the country into civil war. Since his December ouster at the hands of Islamist-led rebels, violations like those on the coast have raised questions about the new authorities' ability to provide security and manage sectarian tensions. The UN commission -- which said it had been granted "unfettered access" to the area by the post-Assad government -- based its findings on more than 200 interviews with victims and witnesses. It said there were "reasonable grounds to believe" that members of the security forces and other private individuals engaged in "serious violations of international human rights law". "The scale and brutality of the violence documented in our report is deeply disturbing," said commission chair Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, urging the government to hold those responsible to account. "While dozens of alleged perpetrators of violations have reportedly since been arrested, the scale of the violence documented in our report warrants expanding such efforts." The commission said it "continues to receive information about ongoing violations in many of the affected areas, including abductions of women, arbitrary arrests and enforced disappearances". It said it had "found no evidence of a governmental policy or plan to carry out such attacks", though their systematic nature "in certain locations may be indicative of an organisational policy within certain factions or groups". Commissioner Lynn Welchman called for greater protections for affected communities, as well as screening processes to keep perpetrators out of the ranks of the security forces. In its own inquiry, a Syrian committee formed by the authorities documented "serious violations against civilians on March 7, 8 and 9, including murder, premeditated murder, looting, destruction and burning of homes, torture and sectarian insults", according to a report released last month. The committee confirmed "the names of 1,426 dead, including 90 women", and identified "298 individuals by name" who were suspected of involvement in the violations. Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
