Latest news with #Hamas-affiliated
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
High court blocks Hamas victims' try to reopen case against Lebanese bank
WASHINGTON, June 5 (UPI) -- The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled unanimously that it would not allow relatives of victims and survivors of Hamas attacks from 2001 to 2003 to reopen a case in which they accused a Lebanese bank of providing financial services to Hamas-affiliated clients. The court ruled in BLOM Bank SAL vs. Michal Honickman, in an opinion delivered by Justice Clarence Thomas, that the plaintiffs did not meet the requirements of extraordinary circumstances for reopening the case. When the case was originally tried in 2019, the relatives and victims lost because they failed to prove the bank knowingly took on clients affiliated with Hamas. The victims and relatives then wanted to offer evidence to which they claimed they had access later. They cited as precedent Rule 60(b), which outlines the reasons why a case could be reopened after a judgement has been issued, such as a mistake in the judgement or evidence unavailable to the plaintiffs during their original case. "It is Rule 60(b)'s standard -- and only Rule 60(b0's standard -- that applies when a party seeks relief from final judgement. A party seeking Rule 60(b) relief must always demonstrate 'extraordinary circumstances' justifying relief," the court wrote. Justice Kentanji Brown Jackson delivered a concurring opinion in which she parted from her colleagues, warning that courts should not deny requests to reopen cases simply because the requesting party was given a chance to amend a case while it was ongoing. "In particular, I think the district court was wrong to fault plaintiffs for making a 'deliberate choice' to appeal the dismissal of their complaint in lieu of accepting various pre-dismissal opportunities to cure purported pleading deficiencies." Brown wrote. The victims and families accused the Lebanese bank of aiding and abetting attacks from 2001 to 2003 by providing financial services to Hamas-affiliated clients. In 2019, the families attempted to sue the bank, but the judge dismissed the suit for not providing evidence that the bank knowingly provided financial services to Hamas-affiliated clients. The court even asked the survivors and families' lawyer if they wanted to amend the case, but they declined. They later found evidence they said proves that the bank knowingly engaged with Hamas affiliates, so they went back to court to reopen their case. Their lawyer, Michael Radine, criticized the Supreme Court's decision. Radine said in a statement to UPI that the district court would not allow his clients to retry the case unless they could meet "the erroneous and essentially unmeetable pleading standards raised by the defendant and adopted by the district court." He added that the district court required evidence such as acts or statements from bank employees proving affiliations with Hamas before discovery. "Few plaintiffs will have access to a defendant's internal communications before discovery, which is why the [2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals] tossed that pleading standard as 'too exacting,'" Radine said in the statement. During the original case, the families appealed to the 2nd Circuit and were turned down again, so they returned to the lower courts and asked to retry the case and submit evidence proving that the bank knowingly provided financial services to Hamas-affiliated individuals. They were told their case did not meet the requirement to be reopened, so the plaintiffs appealed that decision to the 2nd Circuit again. "Indeed, today's decision could empower district courts to prevent plaintiffs from amending their complaints whenever the state of the applicable law is unclear," Radine said. BLOM Bank SAL's lawyer Michael Hugh McGinley didn't respond to a request for comment.
UPI
9 hours ago
- Politics
- UPI
High court blocks Hamas victims' try to reopen case against Lebanese bank
WASHINGTON, June 5 (UPI) -- The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled unanimously that it would not allow relatives of victims and survivors of Hamas attacks from 2001 to 2003 to reopen a case in which they accused a Lebanese bank of providing financial services to Hamas-affiliated clients. The court ruled in BLOM Bank SAL vs. Michal Honickman, in an opinion delivered by Justice Clarence Thomas, that the plaintiffs did not meet the requirements of extraordinary circumstances for reopening the case. When the case was originally tried in 2019, the relatives and victims lost because they failed to prove the bank knowingly took on clients affiliated with Hamas. The victims and relatives then wanted to offer evidence to which they claimed they had access later. They cited as precedent Rule 60(b), which outlines the reasons why a case could be reopened after a judgement has been issued, such as a mistake in the judgement or evidence unavailable to the plaintiffs during their original case. "It is Rule 60(b)'s standard -- and only Rule 60(b0's standard -- that applies when a party seeks relief from final judgement. A party seeking Rule 60(b) relief must always demonstrate 'extraordinary circumstances' justifying relief," the court wrote. Justice Kentanji Brown Jackson delivered a concurring opinion in which she parted from her colleagues, warning that courts should not deny requests to reopen cases simply because the requesting party was given a chance to amend a case while it was ongoing. "In particular, I think the district court was wrong to fault plaintiffs for making a 'deliberate choice' to appeal the dismissal of their complaint in lieu of accepting various pre-dismissal opportunities to cure purported pleading deficiencies." Brown wrote. The victims and families accused the Lebanese bank of aiding and abetting attacks from 2001 to 2003 by providing financial services to Hamas-affiliated clients. In 2019, the families attempted to sue the bank, but the judge dismissed the suit for not providing evidence that the bank knowingly provided financial services to Hamas-affiliated clients. The court even asked the survivors and families' lawyer if they wanted to amend the case, but they declined. They later found evidence they said proves that the bank knowingly engaged with Hamas affiliates, so they went back to court to reopen their case. Their lawyer, Michael Radine, criticized the Supreme Court's decision. Radine said in a statement to UPI that the district court would not allow his clients to retry the case unless they could meet "the erroneous and essentially unmeetable pleading standards raised by the defendant and adopted by the district court." He added that the district court required evidence such as acts or statements from bank employees proving affiliations with Hamas before discovery. "Few plaintiffs will have access to a defendant's internal communications before discovery, which is why the [2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals] tossed that pleading standard as 'too exacting,'" Radine said in the statement. During the original case, the families appealed to the 2nd Circuit and were turned down again, so they returned to the lower courts and asked to retry the case and submit evidence proving that the bank knowingly provided financial services to Hamas-affiliated individuals. They were told their case did not meet the requirement to be reopened, so the plaintiffs appealed that decision to the 2nd Circuit again. "Indeed, today's decision could empower district courts to prevent plaintiffs from amending their complaints whenever the state of the applicable law is unclear," Radine said. BLOM Bank SAL's lawyer Michael Hugh McGinley didn't respond to a request for comment.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Health
- Yahoo
At least 27 Palestinians killed by Israeli fire at food point, Gaza officials say
At least 27 people were killed by Israeli fire as they waited for food at a distribution point set up by an Israeli-backed foundation in Gaza, according to health officials in the strip. It is the third such incident in three days, with Israel admitting on Tuesday for the first time that its forces shot at individuals who were moving towards them. The Gaza civil defence spokesperson Mahmoud Bassal told Agence France-Presse: 'Israeli forces opened fire with tanks and drones on thousands of civilians who had gathered since dawn near the al-Alam roundabout in the al-Mawasi area, north-west of Rafah.' It is the same site where on Sunday more than 30 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire while they were heading to the distribution hub. Gaza's health ministry said 27 people were killed early on Tuesday. Hamas-affiliated media also carried the reports. The United Nations' human rights chief, Volker Türk, described the 'deadly attacks' on civilians around food distribution as a war crime. 'Deadly attacks on distraught civilians trying to access the paltry amounts of food aid in Gaza are unconscionable,' Türk said. 'Attacks directed against civilians constitute a grave breach of international law and a war crime.' 'There were three children and two women among the dead,' Mohammed Saqr, the head of nursing at Nasser hospital, which received the 27 bodies, told the Guardian. 'Most of the patients had gunshot wounds, others had shrapnel all over the bodies, which means they were targeted with tanks or artillery munitions.' Doctors at Nasser hospital said the Israeli forces had mostly targeted the heads, the chest and the upper parts of the bodies of the victims, and that the health facility was running out of blood units and medical supplies. Hisham Mhanna, a spokesperson for the International Committee of the Red Cross, confirmed its field hospital in Rafah had received 184 wounded people, 19 of whom were declared dead on arrival. Eight more later died from their wounds. A video circulating on social media documented the arrival of injured people at the Red Cross hospital from a food distribution point in Gaza's Rafah governorate. It showed dead bodies and the injured being dragged by people inside the health facility. In a statement, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said troops fired shots near a food distribution complex after noticing 'a number of suspects moving towards them'. 'The forces fired evasive shots, and after they did not move away, additional shots were fired near the individual suspects who were advancing towards the forces. 'The individuals were moving towards forces in a way that posed a threat to them,' the military said, without specifying who the suspects were. A spokesperson for the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), an Israeli-backed organisation that has taken over the distribution of food in Gaza, told the Associated Press the group ''was saddened to learn that a number of civilians were injured and killed after moving beyond the designated safe corridor'. Witnesses told the Guardian the shooting started in the city's Flag Roundabout area, about 1km (0.6 miles) away from the food distribution hub. Fadi Abu Mohammad, 43, said his relative Mohammad Abu Shamala, 22, was killed near the aid site. ''When gunfire opened on the civilians, he was struck by a bullet in the back and died instantly,'' he said. ''He was supposed to get married next month.'' ''Going back to the aid distribution is a huge risk and a potential death sentence, but everyone who went had no other choice. If they aren't killed by bullets or shelling, they will die of hunger,'' said Fadi. Ahmad al-Shaer, 22, who went to the aid distribution point with his friend Hasni Abu Shanab, 35, said the gunfire started at about 5am. 'When the shooting began, Hasni lay flat on the ground to avoid the bullets, but even then a bullet hit him, it pierced one of his legs, exited, and then penetrated the other leg, where it lodged. The gunfire was coming from all directions and bullets were falling everywhere around him,' he said. Shaer said Abu Shanab was moved to Nasser hospital and that the facility was 'full of people in critical condition. There aren't enough beds, rooms or medical equipment for all the cases.' He added: 'Hasni went to the aid site because he had no other choice. He was desperate to feed his three children. He had nothing to offer them and couldn't meet their basic needs.' Tamer Nassar, 33, from Beit Hanoun, who has been displaced to al-Mawasi in Khan Younis said: 'I went at dawn to the American food aid distribution point in Rafah. The gunfire suddenly and deliberately erupted at everyone present in the distribution area. Bullets were raining down on us from everywhere: from the sea, from the air, from the hills, from all directions. I was a victim, along with many others around me; some were injured, others were killed. 'I raised my shoulder while trying to lie on my stomach, and that's when the first bullet struck my shoulder,' he said. 'Anyone who tried to help the wounded was also shot at. We decided to go there today despite the extreme danger. If we had food at home to silence our children's hunger, we wouldn't have gone and risked our lives. They took images of my injuries and found that the first bullet had entered and exited, but the second one remained lodged in the bone and shattered it.' Related: Public support for Israel in western Europe at lowest ever recorded by YouGov The shootings follow other similar incidents recently in which Palestinians have been killed and injured by Israeli fire as they sought food at newly established distribution points. Last Wednesday, Hamas accused Israel of killing at least three Palestinians and wounding 46 others near one of the GHF distribution sites. The Israeli military said its troops fired warning shots in the area outside the compound to re-establish control as thousands of Palestinians rushed to the site. More than 30 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire on Sunday as they went to receive food at a GHF distribution point, according to witnesses. A hospital run by the Red Cross confirmed it treated many wounded. The Israeli forces denied 'firing at civilians' in Sunday's incident. However, an IDF official admitted that Israeli soldiers fired 'warning shots toward several suspects who advanced toward the troops', near the food distribution site, without specifying who the suspects were. Gaza's Government Media Office said Israel had killed more than 102 civilians since the opening of the of aid centres run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Israel imposed a blockade on all supplies in March, saying Hamas was seizing deliveries for its fighters, which the group denies. Earlier this month, a global hunger monitor said half a million people in the strip faced starvation. The GHF took over the handling of aid despite objections from the UN and other humanitarian organisations, who criticised the new system for food distribution, saying it would not be able to meet the needs of Gaza's 2.3 million people, and it allowed Israel to use food as a weapon to control the population. The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse contributed to this report.
Hindustan Times
3 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
20 Palestinians waiting for aid distribution killed by Israel fire: Hamas affiliated media
At least 20 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire as they waited for aid distribution in the Rafah area, Hamas-affiliated media said on Tuesday.
ARN News Center
3 days ago
- Health
- ARN News Center
Israeli attack near aid delivery point kills 31 in Gaza, truce talks falter
An Israeli attack near an aid distribution point run by a private US-based group killed at least 31 people in Gaza on Sunday, local health authorities said, as Hamas and Israel exchanged blame over a faltering effort to secure a ceasefire. The incident in Rafah in the south of the enclave was the latest in a series underscoring the volatile security situation that has complicated aid delivery to Gaza, following the easing of an almost three-month Israeli blockade last month. "There are martyrs and injuries. Many injuries. It is a tragic situation in this place. I advise them that nobody goes to aid delivery points. Enough,' paramedic Abu Tareq said at Nasser Hospital in nearby Khan Younis city. The Palestinian Red Crescent, affiliated with the international Red Cross, said its medical teams had recovered bodies of 23 Palestinians and treated another 23 injured near an aid collection site in Rafah. The US-based Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) operates the aid distribution sites in Rafah. The Red Crescent also reported that 14 more Palestinians were injured near a separate site in central Gaza. GHF also operates the aid distribution site in central Gaza. Earlier, the Palestinian news agency WAFA and Hamas-affiliated media put the number of deaths at 30. Local health authorities said at least 31 bodies had so far arrived at Nasser Hospital. Israel's military said in a statement it was looking into reports that Palestinians had been shot at an aid distribution site but it was unaware of injuries caused by military fire. GHF denied anyone was killed or injured near their site in Rafah and that all of its distribution had taken place without incident. The US company accused Hamas of fabricating "fake reports". Residents and medics said Israeli soldiers fired from the ground at a crane nearby that overlooks the area, and a tank opened fire at thousands of people who were en route to get aid from the site in Rafah. Reuters footage showed ambulance vehicles carrying injured people to Nasser Hospital. The Hamas-run Gaza government media office said Israel has turned the distribution sites into "death traps" for people seeking aid. "We affirm to the world that what is taking place is a deliberate and malicious use of aid as a 'weapon of war', employed to exploit starving civilians and forcibly gather them at exposed killing zones, which are managed and monitored by the Israeli military," it said. Reda Abu Jazar said her brother was killed as he waited to collect food at an aid distribution centre in Rafah. "Let them stop these massacres, stop this genocide. They are killing us," she said, as Palestinian men gathered for funeral prayers. Arafat Siyam said that his brother had left at 11:00 p.m. the previous evening to collect food for his wife and eight children from the same distribution site in Rafah, south Gaza. Siyam accused the Israeli military of killing his brother. "This is unfair. What they are doing is unfair," he said. GHF is backed by the US and Israeli governments that provides humanitarian aid in Gaza, bypassing traditional relief groups. It began work in Gaza last month and has three sites from where thousands have collected aid. GHF has been widely criticised by the international community, with UN officials saying its aid plans would only foment forced relocation of Palestinians and more violence. The group's executive director resigned in May, citing what he said was the entity's lack of independence and neutrality. It is not clear who is funding the company. Israeli officials have said that Palestinians collecting aid would be screened to exclude anyone linked to Hamas. CEASEFIRE TALKS FALTER Sunday's incident happened as Israel and Hamas traded blame for the faltering of a new Arab and US mediation bid to secure a temporary ceasefire and the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza by Hamas, in exchange for Palestinians in Israeli jails. Hamas said on Saturday it was seeking amendments to a US-backed ceasefire proposal, but President Donald Trump's envoy rejected the group's response as "totally unacceptable". Hamas said it was willing to release 10 living hostages and hand over the bodies of 18 dead in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons. But Hamas reiterated demands for an end to the war and withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, conditions Israel has rejected. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that his government had agreed to Witkoff's outline. Israel began its offensive in Gaza in response to the Hamas-led attack on communities in southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli tallies, and saw 251 taken as hostages into Gaza. Israel's campaign has devastated much of Gaza, killing over 54,000 Palestinians and destroying most buildings. Much of the population now live in shelters in makeshift camps. Gaza health officials report that most of the dead are civilians, though the number of militants killed remains unclear.
