Latest news with #Halawa
RTÉ News
5 days ago
- Politics
- RTÉ News
Imam refused court order to be restored to aspects of his role
Imam Sheikh Hussein Halawa, who has, among others, been locked out of the Islamic Cultural Centre in Clonskeagh, Dublin, since April, has been refused a High Court order requiring the Islamic Cultural Foundation of Ireland to restore him to those aspects of his position and duties that do not require the chained-up Mosque to be reopened. Ms Justice Leonie Reynolds instead made directions regarding the exchange of written evidence in the proceedings and put the matter back to mid-September. She also directed that the Foundation addresses the health and safety concerns that had given rise to the closure of the Mosque. Judge Reynolds told Mr Halawa's legal team he had seriously delayed in bringing the proceedings since the closure in April whenever mediation talks had terminated only yesterday morning and his application was being brought without proper notice to the Foundation. The court also held that the request allowing Mr Halawa, 69, and approaching retirement, perform duties outside the Mosque had not been made through correspondence and the Foundation had not had an opportunity to set out the reasons for the closure because it had not been served with papers backing up his application. Barrister Niall Ó hUiginn, counsel for the Islamic Foundation, told Judge Reynolds that Mr Halawa's application was not an appropriate one to have been brought to court. He said he had not been involved in the mediation which had failed to deliver a successful outcome. He said there had been no evidence of urgency to have brought such an application during the legal vacation and Mr Halawa was continuing to be paid even though the Mosque had been closed due to unfortunate circumstances. Cliona Kimber SC, for Mr Halawa, said her client was unable to minister to his parishioners and his reputation was being very publicly damaged. He had been left sitting at home without invitation to public ceremonies that included the President of Ireland, the Taoiseach and Government Ministers. Judge Reynolds said there was no reason why the parties could not decide to return to mediation to resolve the issues and she was concerned there may be an ongoing garda investigation. Mr Ó hUiginn said certain incidents had certainly been reported to the gardaí. She said she was not disposed to granting interim injunctions to Mr Halawa and there were other avenues available to him such as defamation proceedings. She would afford the Foundation to put in a replying affidavit to that of the plaintiff and a number of weeks and days for a further exchange of documents. Outside of any mediation and legal proceedings there have been reports of rows and an alleged heave to displace Mr Halawa as Imam as well as governance issues and calls for a change in leadership of the Islamic Cultural Centre. Mr Halawa is father of Irish citizen Ibrahim Halawa who was released in 2017 after having spent four years in an Egyptian prison. An attack on the Mosque and Centre, which have been chained up, have been publicly reported and the attendances at the premises by gardaí. It is claimed a decision to lock up the premises had been made because of concern for the safety of schoolchildren at the centre.
Ammon
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Ammon
Israeli bombing kills three civilians, injures others in Khan Younes
Ammon News - Israeli bombing on Wednesday evening killed three Palestinian civilians and injured others in Khan Younes in the southern Gaza Strip. He said that the occupation forces opened fire at a group of civilians in the Al-Amal neighborhood, west of the city, claiming the lives of three and injuring others. The occupying forces ordered civilians in the northern Gaza Strip, namely the neighborhoods of Ghaban, Ash-Shaymaa, Fad'us, al-Manshiyya, Sheikh Zayed, as-Salatin, al-Karama, Mashru Beit Lahia, Az-Zuhur, Tal Az-Zaatar, An-Nur, Abdul-Rahman, An-Nahda, and Jabalia refugee camp, to forcefully leave the areas. Meanwhile, later on Wednesday night, a combat drone targeted civilians in Jabalia town in the northern Strip, killing five, all identified as members of the Halawa family. Israel unilaterally ended the Gaza ceasefire agreement and resumed its aggression on the Strip on Tuesday, March 18, carrying out a wave of bloody airstrikes across the Strip and killing hundreds of Palestinians, including over 100 children. The death toll reached at least 3,509 with 9,909 others wounded, according to medical sources. In the last 24 hours, the bodies of 82 slain Palestinians and 262 casualties were admitted to Gaza hospitals. The aggression was resumed amidst concerns over the deterioration of the humanitarian situation in the Strip given the ongoing siege and ban on the entry of medical and humanitarian aid. Israel has waged a military onslaught on the Strip since October 2023, killing 53,655 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injuring 121,950 others. Moreover, at least 10,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip. The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt, in what has become Palestine's largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba. WAFA
Middle East Eye
22-05-2025
- Middle East Eye
Israeli attack on Jabalia kills five Palestinians: Report
At least five Palestinians were killed by an Israeli strike on Jabalia in northern Gaza, according to Wafa news agency. The five Palestinians were from the Halawa family, Wafa reported.
Saba Yemen
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Saba Yemen
Five Palestinians Martyred in Zionist Enemy Airstrike on Jabalia
Gaza – SABA: Five Palestinian civilians were martyred late Wednesday night in a Zionist enemy airstrike targeting northern Gaza. The Palestinian News Agency (WAFA) reported that the five martyrs from the Halawa family were killed when an enemy drone bombarded civilians in Jabalia town, north of the Strip. With unconditional U.S. backing, the Zionist forces continue their genocidal war on Gaza, which has so far resulted in: - Over 175,000 martyrs and wounded (mostly women and children) - More than 11,000 still missing under rubble Whatsapp Telegram Email Print
Middle East Eye
19-05-2025
- Middle East Eye
Hundreds of thousands flee 'horrific' Israeli bombing in north Gaza
Youssef Halawa, 38, tried to calm his 66-year-old mother, Sawsan, as she grew increasingly anxious about the unusual drone activity and the rumble of tanks in northern Gaza - signs she feared pointed to an imminent Israeli ground invasion. At 11pm that day, on 14 May, he went to bed. At 1:30am, a series of intense Israeli air strikes targeted a cluster of homes in their neighbourhood. 'The door next to my room blew off and collapsed on me,' he recalled. 'I thought we had been directly hit, until we heard the screams outside - people calling for help. Dozens of our neighbours from the Khalil and Abo Aisha families were killed. Many are still trapped under the rubble of their homes. 'My relatives and many neighbours, including myself, rushed to help, but most of the people were already dead.' Two hours later, back at the house, Halawa and his neighbours heard a faint whimpering from a nearby air shaft. At first, they thought it was an animal. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters 'It was Siwar Khalil, a two-year-old baby from one of the destroyed houses. She had flown over 20 metres,' Halawa said. 'We checked her pulse, gave her first aid. Her grandfather carried her and rushed to the hospital, but she succumbed to her wounds the next morning.' 'I will never forget' Despite the horrific night, Halawa and his extended family refused to leave the area. They had nowhere to go. Halawa's house in al-Sheikh Zayed neighbourhood was destroyed by Israeli attacks in 2023. He, with over 20 relatives, had evacuated to his brother Mohammed's tiny 60-metre flat in the same area. 'They turn your house into your grave in the blink of an eye' - Youssef Halawa, northern Gaza The following night, at almost the same hour, another Israeli air strike hit the home of the al-Tatri family nearby. 'The sound of the air strikes wasn't like before. It was the most violent and deafening bombing I've heard since the beginning of the war,' Halawa said. 'I'm afraid of blood and usually avoid it, but when it's my neighbours being bombed, I rush out without thinking to help. 'I will never forget the scenes, the beheaded bodies, the carnage. At least 24 people from the same family were killed. Many remain buried under the rubble. "We had to carry the wounded for kilometers so ambulances could reach them, because they wouldn't come any closer due to the risk of further air strikes. 'They turn your house into your grave in the blink of an eye.' 'But first, let us live' Halawa and his family didn't believe they would survive that night. They prayed constantly, expecting to be bombed themselves at any moment. Top genocide scholars unanimous that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza: Dutch investigation Read More » What he feared most wasn't death, but that if something happened, no one would be there to help. The medical system has collapsed, as have the civil defence and municipal services. Halawa used to comply with Israeli expulsion orders, hoping it would protect his family. But as the bombings in his area came without warning, he no longer believes there is safety anywhere in Gaza. On Friday morning, under intense artillery shelling, Halawa and his relatives divided themselves into groups and fled the house, without knowing where to go. He first took shelter for a day in a crowded tent belonging to a relative in the al-Naser neighbourhood, then moved to another family tent on al-Sarya Street in central Gaza City. 'We've been slaughtered live for 18 months, and the world still hasn't acted. No one truly feels our pain. I'm angry. I'm disappointed,' he said. 'We don't need food parcels or humanitarian aid after the destruction. We just want this war to stop. We want someone, anyone, to stop this genocide. We've lost enough. We'll rebuild Gaza ourselves, stone by stone - but first, let us live.' 'Why do they want to kill us?' On Sunday, Israeli forces announced a new military operation in northern Gaza via social media and by dropping leaflets from the air. In response, hundreds of thousands fled south to central Gaza City, while renewed bombardment left hundreds dead, wounded, or trapped beneath the rubble. What is 'Gideon's Chariots', Israel's latest plan for Gaza? Read More » Nisreen Abu Libda, 49, had been sheltering with her family of 11 in a classroom at Abu Zaytoun School in the Jabalia refugee camp after their three homes in different areas of northern Gaza were destroyed and bulldozed in 2024. But since 14 May, she has been suffering panic attacks due to the intensifying bombardment and loud repetitive explosions, especially at night. Her children and husband try to reassure her, telling her that a ceasefire deal may be on the horizon between Hamas and Israel. Still, she remains terrified of another Israeli incursion, having stayed in northern Gaza throughout the war and witnessed last year's brutal offensive. Abu Libda packed the few clothes she had salvaged from the rubble and told her family to be ready to flee the school at any moment. 'How can I believe in a ceasefire when Apaches are hovering overhead and the shelling never stops?' she said. 'We live in constant fear. Every night, I wonder whether we'll survive until the morning.' Her four-year-old granddaughter, also named Nisreen, clings to her throughout the day. 'She keeps asking, 'Why do they want to kill us? When will they stop bombing?' She wants to know if we'll evacuate.' Nisreen and her 55-year-old husband, Hassan, both suffer from chronic illnesses including hypertension and diabetes - but there's no longer access to proper medicine. The constant fear only worsens their health conditions. She said her heart races from fear and sometimes she feels like she's going to collapse. To her, each new ground invasion seems worse and more violent than the one before. 'Every night, I wonder whether we'll survive until the morning' - Nisreen Abu Libda, Gaza City The family stayed in the school until heavy bombardment forced most people to flee. On Thursday, 15 May, they decided to leave. They feared being surrounded or killed without anyone knowing they were there. 'Some people are still sheltering at the school,' Abu Libda said. 'They're ready to flee at any moment, but still hoping for news of a troop withdrawal or a ceasefire.' To avoid burdening anyone, she and her family split up, scattering across several relatives' tents throughout Gaza. 'We are lost,' she said. 'We don't understand what's happening, or if it will ever end. My greatest fear is that they'll force us to leave Gaza. I won't. I love Gaza. I'd rather die than leave it.' 'Many homes were burning' Dima Adssi, 28, and her family of seven had been living in a tent over the rubble of their destroyed home in Jabalia camp. They had refused to leave northern Gaza, until artillery shells began landing nearby and shrapnel tore through their tent. Like Adssi, many in northern Gaza had resisted leaving the area for a long time. But with intensifying bombings, nighttime massacres, and the constant sound of tanks and quadcopters, they felt they had no choice but to flee. 'Every night, the sound of Israeli drones hovering and tank movements is terrifying,' she said. 'The explosions were getting closer and closer to our neighbourhood. We couldn't even step out of the tent to see what was happening. Israel is starving Gaza to death, and still the world does nothing Read More » "I feared we were already surrounded by Israeli forces - but luckily, when we fled, they were still a few kilometres away.' Before leaving early on Saturday morning, Adssi and her siblings planned their evacuation: who would carry documents, medicine for their sick mother, some canned food, a few items of clothes, and who would guide the children. But their plans vanished when they saw flames a few kilometres away, toward eastern Jabalia. 'Many homes were burning. The shelling was closing in. We had to flee on foot, along with many of our wounded neighbours,' Adssi said. 'We left in fear, taking nothing with us, after our neighbours were hit. Others carried them to the hospital on a horse cart.' It took three hours before they reached a relative's crowded home in al-Naser Street, in western Gaza City, where they now wait, unsure of what to do next.
