Should US, Trump recognize a Palestinian state? Tell us
But outspoken allies of Israel, from the president to the creator of a culture-defining comedy, say we should remember the horrific surprise attack by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, that kicked off the war and killed 1,200 Israelis, a majority of them civilians. Of the 251 hostages taken on that day, there are 50 still in captivity.
Actor and comedian Jerry Seinfeld has made a statement about living briefly in the Jewish state and the heartbreak he felt over the Oct. 7 atrocities, saying, "I will stand with Israel." President Donald Trump, meanwhile, recently said recognizing Palestine as a nation and similar pressure on Israel amount to "rewarding Hamas."
'Every ounce of food': Trump presses Israel on starvation in Gaza; 'children look very hungry'
What is the US doing in Israel, Gaza?
In terms of actions to stop the humanitarian crisis, the United States pressured Israel to allow aid after it cut off deliveries in March by the United Nations and other groups for 11 weeks because Israeli officials said Hamas was seizing food. The U.N. said those renewed deliveries were a "drop in the ocean" of what was urgently needed.
Now $30 million in U.S. aid is to be delivered through a controversial private, for-profit U.S. and Israel-backed contractor, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Critics say GHF is not getting enough food to people, who are being killed as they try to get help from the aid sites.
People are starving in Gaza. Why are we so comfortable just letting that happen? | Opinion
Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, is set to travel to Israel on July 31, Thursday, to address the humanitarian crisis. Witkoff called off the most recent efforts to broker a ceasefire deal on July 24, saying Hamas showed "a lack of desire."
Should the US do more to help Palestinians? Should celebrities be weighing in?
Now we're asking you, our readers, if you think the U.S. government is taking the right actions in terms of Israel and Gaza. And who do you think should be weighing in on the argument? Fill out our form below or send us an email to forum@usatoday.com with the subject line "Forum Gaza." We'll pick a collection of responses to share in a follow-up post.
Here are some questions to help you respond:
Does the U.S. have a responsibility to do more to end the hunger crisis in Gaza? Why or why not?
Is it helpful to have celebrities and other people not involved with foreign policy weigh in? Or does it distract? Why or why not?
How would the recognition of a Palestinian state change the situation?
What factors about the war in Gaza are not being covered enough in the news?
Joel Burgess is a Voices editor for the USA TODAY Network.
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Reuters
25 minutes ago
- Reuters
Hamas says it will allow aid for hostages if Israel halts airstrikes, opens permanent humanitarian corridors
CAIRO, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Hamas said on Sunday it was prepared to coordinate with the Red Cross to deliver aid to hostages it holds in Gaza, if Israel meets certain conditions, after a video it released showing an emaciated captive drew sharp criticism from Western powers. Hamas said any coordination with the Red Cross is contingent upon Israel permanently opening humanitarian corridors and halting airstrikes during the distribution of aid. According to Israeli officials, 50 hostages now remain in Gaza, only 20 of whom are believed to be alive. Hamas, thus far, has barred humanitarian organizations from having any kind of access to the hostages and families have little or no details of their conditions. On Saturday, Hamas released its second video in two days of Israeli hostage Evyatar David. In it, David, skeletally thin, is shown digging a hole that, he says in the video, is for his own grave. The arm of the individual holding the camera, which can be seen in the frame, is a regular width. The video of David drew criticism from Western powers and horrified Israelis. France, Germany, the UK and the U.S. were among countries to express outrage and Israel's foreign ministry announced that the UN Security Council will hold a special session on Tuesday morning on the issue of the situation of the hostages in Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday he had asked the Red Cross to give humanitarian assistance to the hostages during a conversation with the head of the Swiss-based ICRC's local delegation. A statement from The Hostages Families Forum, which represents relatives of those being held in Gaza, said Hamas' comments about the hostages cannot hide that it "has been holding innocent people in impossible conditions for over 660 days," and demanded their immediate release. "Until their release," said the statement, "Hamas has the obligation to provide them with everything they need. Hamas kidnapped them and they must care for them. Every hostage who dies will be on Hamas's hands." Six more people died of starvation or malnutrition in Gaza over the past 24 hours, its health ministry said on Sunday as Israel said it allowed a delivery of fuel to the enclave, in the throes of a humanitarian disaster after almost two years of war. The new deaths raised the toll of those dying from what international humanitarian agencies say may be an unfolding famine to 175, including 93 children, since the war began, the ministry said. Egypt's state-affiliated Al Qahera News TV said two trucks carrying 107 tons of diesel were set to enter Gaza, months after Israel severely restricted aid access to the enclave before easing it somewhat as starvation began to spread. COGAT, the Israeli military agency that coordinates aid, said later in the day that four tankers of U.N. fuel had entered to help in operations of hospitals, bakeries, public kitchens and other essential services. There was no immediate confirmation whether the two diesel fuel trucks had entered Gaza from Egypt. Gaza's health ministry has said fuel shortages have severely impaired hospital services, forcing doctors to focus on treating only critically ill or injured patients. Fuel shipments have been rare since March, when Israel restricted the flow of aid into the enclave in what it said was pressure on Hamas militants to free the remaining hostages they took in their October 2023 attack on Israel. Israel blames Hamas for the suffering in Gaza but, in response to a rising international uproar, it announced steps last week to let more aid reach the population, including pausing fighting for part of the day in some areas, approving air drops and announcing protected routes for aid convoys. U.N. agencies say airdrops are insufficient and that Israel must let in far more aid by land and open up access to the territory to prevent starvation among its 2.2 million people, most of whom are displaced amidst vast swathes of rubble. COGAT said that during the past week over 23,000 tons of humanitarian aid in 1,200 trucks had entered Gaza but that hundreds of the trucks had yet to be driven to aid distribution hubs by U.N. and other international organisations. Meanwhile, Belgium's air force dropped the first in a series of its aid packages into Gaza on Sunday in a joint operation with Jordan, the Belgian defence ministry said. France on Friday started to air-drop 40 tons of humanitarian aid. The Hamas-run Gaza government media office said on Sunday that nearly 1,600 aid trucks had arrived since Israel eased restrictions late in July. However, witnesses and Hamas sources said many of those trucks have been looted by desperate displaced people and armed gangs. More than 700 trucks of fuel entered the Gaza Strip in January and February during a ceasefire before Israel broke it in March in a dispute over terms for extending it and resumed its major offensive. Palestinian local health authorities said at least 80 people had been killed by Israeli gunfire and airstrikes across the coastal enclave on Sunday. Deaths included persons trying to make their way to aid distribution points in southern and central areas of Gaza, Palestinian medics said. Among those killed was a staff member of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, which said an Israeli strike at its headquarters in Khan Younis in southern Gaza ignited a fire on the first floor of the building. The Gaza war began when Hamas killed more than 1,200 people and took 251 hostage in a cross-border attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, according to Israeli figures. Israel's air and ground war in densely populated Gaza has since killed more than 60,000 Palestinians, according to enclave health officials.
The Guardian
27 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Trump administration denies daily quota for immigration arrests
In a new court filing, attorneys for the Trump administration denied the existence of a daily quota for immigration arrests, despite reports and prior statements from White House officials about pursuing a goal of at least 3,000 deportations or deportation arrests per day. In May, reports from both the Guardian and Axios revealed that during a meeting with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) leaders on 21 May, the White House adviser Stephen Miller and the Department of Homeland Security secretary, Kristi Noem, demanded that immigration agents seek to arrest 3,000 people per day. Following that report, Miller appeared on Fox News in late May and stated that 'under President Trump's leadership, we are looking to set a goal of a minimum of 3,000 arrests for Ice every day.' He added that Trump 'is going to keep pushing to get that number up higher each and every day'. However, in a court filing on Friday, lawyers representing the US justice department said that the Department of Homeland Security had confirmed that 'neither Ice leadership nor its field offices have been directed to meet any numerical quota or target for arrests, detentions, removals, field encounters, or any other operational activities that Ice or its components undertake in the course of enforcing federal immigration law.' The filing is part of an ongoing lawsuit in southern California, where immigrant advocacy groups have sued the Trump administration, accusing it of conducting unconstitutional immigration sweeps in the Los Angeles area. In mid-July a judge issued a temporary restraining order barring immigration agents from detaining individuals based on factors such as race, occupation or speaking Spanish anywhere in the central district of California, which includes Los Angeles. On Friday, an appeals court upheld that order. Politico reported that during a hearing earlier this week in the case, the justice department lawyers were pressed on the reports regarding the alleged arrest quota, and a judge reportedly asked whether it was a 'policy of the administration at this time to deport 3,000 persons per day?'. An attorney for the justice department, Yaakov Roth, reportedly responded 'Not to my knowledge, your honor' per Politico. And in the government's filing on Friday, the attorneys for the government said that the allegations of that the 'government maintains a policy mandating 3,000 arrests per day appears to originate from media reports quoting a White House advisor who described that figure as a 'goal' that the Administration was 'looking to set''. 'That quotation may have been accurate, but no such goal has been set as a matter of policy and no such directive has been issued to or by DHS or ICE' the attorneys added. The discrepancy was first reported by the Los Angeles Daily News and Politico. Neither DHS or Ice immediately responded to a request fro comment from the Guardian. In a statement to Politico, a White House spokesperson did not directly respond to questions about the discrepancy, but said that 'the Trump Administration is committed to carrying out the largest mass deportation operation in history by enforcing federal immigration law and removing the countless violent, criminal illegal aliens that Joe Biden let flood into American communities.' A justice department spokesperson told the outlet that there is no disconnect between the DoJ's court filings and the White House's public statements. The spokesperson added that 'the entire Trump administration is united in fully enforcing our nation's immigration laws and the DoJ continues to play an important role in vigorously defending the president's deportation agenda in court.' At various points during his 2024 election campaign, Trump claimed that he would target between 15 and 20 million people who are undocumented in the US for deportation. As of 2022, there were 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the US.
Glasgow Times
33 minutes ago
- Glasgow Times
Swinney welcomes bringing Gaza children to UK but ‘regrets' it wasn't sooner
Mr Swinney welcomed reported plans that up to 300 children could be flown from Gaza to be treated on the NHS. But he said he regretted the action did not come sooner. The SNP leader said he had written to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer on July 9 urging such action to be taken. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer (Anthony Upton/PA) He said: 'We have been consistently clear that the suffering being inflicted on the people of Gaza is beyond any justification. 'People in Gaza are being bombed and left to starve by Israel on a massive scale. 'I wrote to the Prime Minister on 9 July to request support from the UK Government in meeting the call from Unicef to provide medical care for children from Gaza. 'If the UK Government is prepared to evacuate Palestinians for medical treatment it would be entirely welcome. 'My only regret is the UK Government has taken this long to act. 'I urge the UK Government to do everything in its power to move swiftly so that lives can be saved. And Scotland will play our part.' The evacuation plans are reportedly set to be announced within weeks. A parent or guardian will accompany each child, as well as siblings if necessary, and the Home Office will carry out biometric and security checks before travel, the Sunday Times reported. This will happen 'in parallel' with an initiative by Project Pure Hope, a group set up to bring sick and injured Gazan children to the UK privately for treatment. More than 50,000 children are estimated to have been killed or injured in Gaza since October 2023, according to Unicef. Sir Keir said last week that the UK was 'urgently accelerating' efforts to bring children over for treatment. A UK Government spokesperson said: 'We are taking forward plans to evacuate more children from Gaza who require urgent medical care, including bringing them to the UK for specialist treatment where that is the best option for their care. 'We are working at pace to do so as quickly as possible, with further details to be set out in due course.'
