Latest news with #AmichayEliyahu
Irish Times
5 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Times
The Irish Times view on starvation in Gaza: the world cannot look away
After 21 months of harrowing images from Gaza, photographs this week of emaciated children still have the power to shock. More than 100 international aid organisations and human rights groups have issued urgent warnings of mass starvation and called on governments worldwide to intervene. The United Nations and humanitarian agencies have warned that Gaza is on the brink of running out of specialised therapeutic food needed to save the lives of severely malnourished children. Meanwhile, Israeli forces continue to fire on Palestinian civilians who are desperately seeking food, killing hundreds. A fresh incursion by the Israel Defense Forces into central Gaza has wrought yet more destruction and death. Any prospect of an end to the violence remains elusive. Early hopes of a breakthrough in ceasefire talks, sparked by an initially positive Israeli response to the latest proposals from Hamas, were extinguished within hours when the US and Israel withdrew their negotiating teams from Qatar, saying Hamas was not acting in good faith. With reports of rising starvation in Gaza growing ever more urgent, a far-right minister in the Israeli government made a deeply disturbing statement on Thursday. Amichay Eliyahu declared that Israel had no duty to alleviate hunger in the territory and was actively seeking to expel its population. His chilling comparison that 'there is no nation that feeds its enemies' – adding that 'the British didn't feed the Nazis, nor did the Americans feed the Japanese' – displays a disregard for Palestinian lives as well as being a gross misrepresentation of the nature of the current conflict. READ MORE As an occupying power with total control over Gaza's entry points and overwhelming military dominance over its civilian population, Israel bears clear responsibility for what is happening there. Although Israeli military officials denied that Eliyahu's statements reflected their strategy in Gaza, Binyamin Netanyahu's government declined to rebut them. The contempt for human rights expressed by the minister lends credence to accusations that Israel is engaged in systematic war crimes and crimes against humanity. In a notable development on Friday, French president Emmanuel Macron announced that France would recognise the state of Palestine at the United Nations General Assembly in September. The decision was predictably condemned by the American and Israeli governments. But, coming from a major power, it marks a significant shift. Taoiseach Micheál Martin was correct, however, when he said last month that the inability of EU member states to come to a unified position on the issue was a 'stain' on the union. The humanitarian crisis in Gaza demands immediate action. The silence of some world leaders is dangerously close to complicity. It is no longer sustainable.
Irish Times
6 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Times
No obligation on Israel to remedy starvation in Gaza Strip, says minister
Amid rising starvation in the Gaza Strip , an Israeli government minister said on Thursday that Israel had no duty to alleviate hunger in the territory and was seeking to expel its population. Far-right politician Amichay Eliyahu, who leads Israel's heritage ministry, said in a radio interview that 'there is no nation that feeds its enemies,' adding that 'the British didn't feed the Nazis, nor did the Americans feed the Japanese, nor do the Russians feed the Ukrainians now'. He concluded that the government was 'rushing toward Gaza being wiped out,' while also 'driving out the population that educated its people on the ideas of 'Mein Kampf'', an anti-Semitic text written by Adolf Hitler. Life in the West Bank Listen | 26:12 The office of Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu declined to comment on whether Mr Eliyahu's remarks had represented the government's position. An Israeli military official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said Mr Eliyahu's comments did not reflect military policy. Mr Eliyahu oversees historical and archaeological sites and institutions in Israel and has no authority over the military. He does not participate in meetings of a small group of ministers who oversee security decisions. His office did not reply to requests for clarification. Mr Eliyahu's comments were swiftly condemned by Israeli opposition politicians, who said the minister did not represent the Israeli mainstream. Polling suggests a majority of Israelis favour reaching a ceasefire to release hostages held by Islamist group Hamas. The interview came amid increasing cases of starvation in Gaza. Israel has blocked all food deliveries to the enclave between early March and late May. While Israel allows some food into Gaza, it has drastically reduced the number of places from which food is distributed, forcing Palestinians to receive food aid from a handful of sites that are hard to access. The UN's Palestinian refugee agency (Unrwa) said that one in five children in Gaza City is malnourished and cases are increasing daily. Unrwa commissioner-general Philippe Lazzarini cited a colleague telling him: 'People in Gaza are neither dead nor alive, they are walking corpses.' More than 100 international aid organisations and human rights groups have also warned of mass starvation and pressed for governments to take action. Israel says there is no siege and blames Hamas for the widespread malnutrition. Israel and the United States, meanwhile, have recalled their delegations from ceasefire talks for consultations. US envoy Steve Witkoff accused Hamas of failing to act in good faith in the talks. 'While the mediators have made a great effort, Hamas does not appear to be co-ordinated or acting in good faith. We will now consider alternative options to bring the hostages home and try to create a more stable environment for the people of Gaza,' said Mr Witkoff on X. . — Department of State (@StateDept) An Israeli official with knowledge of the talks said the answer presented by Hamas to the most recent ceasefire proposal 'does not allow for progress without a concession' by the group, but that Israel intended to continue discussions. Mediators have been seeking to clinch an agreement that would secure a ceasefire and the release of hostages still held in the Gaza Strip. Israel and Hamas are facing pressure at home and abroad to reach a deal after almost two years of war. The humanitarian situation inside the war-torn enclave is deteriorating sharply and Israelis are worried about the conditions in which remaining hostages are being held. Elsewhere, a senior German government official said Israel was violating the law of war in Gaza , but insisted that Berlin will not be the 29th signatory to a letter demanding Israel 'end now' its military action. [ Germany says Israel 'violating law of war' in Gaza but refuses to sign ceasefire letter Opens in new window ] Jürgen Hardt , foreign policy spokesman for the ruling Christian Democratic Union (CDU), argued the letter was already being used by Hamas and other parts of the Arab world for propaganda purposes. 'That doesn't need to happen with German assistance,' he said. However, Mr Hardt admitted German officials no longer believe Israel is doing everything it can to allow enough humanitarian aid into Gaza. – New York Times/Reuters
New York Times
6 days ago
- Politics
- New York Times
As Starvation Rises, Israeli Minister Says Israel Is ‘Driving Out' Gazans
Amid rising starvation in the Gaza Strip, an Israeli government minister said on Thursday that Israel had no duty to alleviate hunger in the territory and was seeking to expel its population. Amichay Eliyahu, a far-right lawmaker who leads Israel's Heritage Ministry, said in a radio interview that 'there is no nation that feeds its enemies,' adding that 'the British didn't feed the Nazis, nor did the Americans feed the Japanese, nor do the Russians feed the Ukrainians now.' He concluded that the government was 'rushing toward Gaza being wiped out,' while also 'driving out the population that educated its people on the ideas of 'Mein Kampf,'' an antisemitic text written by Adolf Hitler. The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declined to comment on whether Mr. Eliyahu's remarks had represented the government's official position. An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity to comment on Israel's political leadership, said Mr. Eliyahu's comments did not reflect military policy. Mr. Eliyahu oversees historical and archaeological sites and institutions in Israel and has no authority over the Israeli military. He does not participate in meetings of a small group of ministers who oversee security decisions. His office did not reply to requests for clarification. Mr. Eliyahu's comments were swiftly condemned by Israeli opposition politicians, who said the minister did not represent the Israeli mainstream. Polling suggests a majority of Israelis favor reaching a cease-fire to release hostages held by Hamas. Mr. Eliyahu's interview came amid increasing cases of starvation in Gaza. Israel — which controls all access to Gaza — blocked all food deliveries to the enclave between early March and late May. While Israel now allows some food into Gaza, it has drastically reduced the number of places from which food is distributed, forcing Palestinians to receive food aid from a handful of sites that are hard to access. In a crude form of crowd control, Israeli soldiers have repeatedly shot and killed scores of Palestinians along routes leading to the new food distribution sites, forcing civilians to choose between the risk of gunfire and the risk of starvation. After initially dismissing the reports of starvation, Mr. Eliyahu appeared to recognize its occurrence by blaming Hamas for it. 'We are starving them? They are starving them!' Mr. Eliyahu said in an interview with Kol Barama, a radio station popular among ultra-Orthodox Jewish Israelis. 'The day they return the hostages, there will be no hunger there,' he said. While Mr. Eliyahu's comments echo some made by other members of Mr. Netanyahu's ruling coalition, they were criticized by politicians outside the government. Yair Lapid, the centrist leader of Israel's political opposition, said in a public statement that Mr. Eliyahu's comments were 'a moral stain and a public diplomacy disaster. Israel will never convince the world of the justness of our war against terror as long as we are led by an extremist minority government with ministers who glorify blood and death.' Mr. Lapid added that Israeli soldiers 'do not fight, die, and get injured to erase a civilian population. They fight to return the hostages and ensure Israel's security.' A large majority of Israelis support a diplomatic deal to free the hostages held in Gaza, instead of continued military efforts to defeat Hamas, according to recent polling. Protesters were expected to gather in Tel Aviv on Thursday night to call for an immediate cease-fire and hostage release deal. Early in the war, Mr. Eliyahu attracted global attention for suggesting that Israel might drop a nuclear bomb on Gaza. Mr. Netanyahu condemned those comments and suspended him from the cabinet, before swiftly reinstating him. Myra Noveck contributed reporting.
