Latest news with #Herzberg
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
UK humanitarian aid to Gaza scrutinized after document allegedly warns of links to Hamas-controlled ministry
A newly surfaced U.K. government document has raised fresh concerns over British-funded humanitarian aid to Gaza, suggesting officials were aware of the risk funds might indirectly support Hamas. the terrorist group that governs the Gaza Strip. While U.K. officials strongly deny the claim, critics say key questions remain unanswered. The document, dated November 2022 and obtained by NGO Monitor, outlines the U.K.'s humanitarian strategy in the occupied Palestinian territories. One section references a UNICEF-administered cash assistance program in Gaza coordinated with the Ministry of Social Development (MoSD). The NGO Monitor report claims, "The MoSD in Gaza is affiliated with the de facto authorities and thus U.K. Aid can be linked directly or indirectly with supporting the de facto authority in Gaza (Hamas), which is part of a proscribed group." Un Cash App For Gazans Exploited By Hamas As Terror Group Steals Aid Money Meant For Civilians The group's report also claimed the British consulate-general in Jerusalem, which reportedly authored the document, assessed this as a "reputational" risk, raising concerns not of legality, but of public perception if the arrangement were to be revealed. Read On The Fox News App Anne Herzberg, legal advisor at NGO Monitor, told Fox News Digital the phrasing is significant. "This is what was most shocking to us," she told Fox News Digital. "The government clearly acknowledged the risk that U.K. taxpayer funds could reach Hamas, but they were more concerned about how it might look than the real danger of supporting terrorism." Herzberg explained NGO Monitor uncovered the Foreign Office document, originally published in November 2022, during an extensive investigation into humanitarian aid flows in Gaza. In a statement to Fox News Digital, the U.K.'s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) categorically denied any funding reached Hamas-controlled bodies. "We categorically reject these allegations. The U.K. does not fund Hamas-run agencies in Gaza," an FCDO spokesperson stated. "The UNICEF program is coordinated with the Ministry of Social Development in Ramallah, which is run by the Palestinian Authority. U.K. funding was provided through UNICEF directly to vulnerable households in Gaza." The FCDO stressed that Hamas is a proscribed terrorist organization under U.K. law, "and funding or supporting it is a crime." It further noted that the U.K. conducted a due-diligence assessment of UNICEF and tracks the path of funding to its final civilian recipients. Israel Fires Back At Uk Over Suspended Trade Talks, Rejects 'External Pressure' But Herzberg said the November 2022 document — alongside UNICEF's own March 2024 update celebrating its "strengthened partnership with the Ministry of Social Development" in Gaza — points to deeper inconsistencies. Yona Schiffmiller, the director of research at NGO Monitor, told Fox News digital, "The U.K. document clearly refers to the Gaza-based MoSD. If the program was only coordinated with Ramallah, it's unclear why Gaza-specific risks were flagged." UNICEF's March 2024 report states that over 540,000 Gazans received support after the Oct. 7 attacks, adding the partnership with the MoSD "helped ensure access to the social registry and resulted in targeting the most vulnerable families." NGO Monitor points out that the MoSD in Gaza is led by Ghazi Hamad, a Hamas politburo member sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury in 2024. Herzberg said the report claims "this aid diversion was central in Hamas' preparations for the October 7th massacre, including the construction of tunnels and other military installations, and stockpiling supplies and resources. After thousands of terrorists invaded Israel and committed mass atrocities, Hamas continued to commandeer aid, creating and taking advantage of a black market." Israeli Ambassador Lashes Out At Un Official, Condemns Uk, France, Canada Statement On Aid "Even after Oct. 7 and all we've been seeing ... they still refuse to deal with this question of diversion," Herzberg claimed. "There's no transparency, no oversight, and the U.N. is actively trying to thwart Israeli, U.S. and other allied efforts in trying to improve the humanitarian aid situation." She was referring to the recent U.S.-backed initiative to establish a new aid distribution system in Gaza that started operating Monday. The NGO Monitor report further details how the MoSD is run by senior Hamas officials, including Ghazi Hamad, who publicly praised the Oct. 7 massacre and was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury in November 2024. Another top MoSD figure, Mohammed Al-Araeer, has repeatedly glorified terrorist attacks on social media and praised Hamas commanders. A recent investigation by Israel's website, "Shomrim," and Israel's Channel 12 revealed that Hamas has built an extensive fundraising network inside the U.K. Senior Hamas operatives with British citizenship have established charitable foundations that raise millions of pounds annually, some of which ends up in the hands of the group's military wing. Udi Levi, formerly head of the Counter-Terror Financing Division in the Mossad, told Israel's Channel 12, "Britain is becoming the central country transferring funds to Hamas, including after Oct. 7." The watchdog also raised broader concerns about the role of other U.N. agencies in Gaza, noting at least 12 are active in the Strip. Herzberg said it remains unclear whether similar diversion risks exist across those agencies. "We all know how UNRWA has been taken over by Hamas, but what about the others? Is the same thing happening there? These are the types of questions no one is willing to answer," she said. The controversy unfolds against the backdrop of heightened diplomatic tensions. Last month, the U.K. suspended trade negotiations with Israel, citing humanitarian concerns. Foreign Secretary David Lammy criticized the Israeli government's actions in Gaza and called for restored aid and electricity. NGO Monitor says the debate highlights the urgent need for a new international mechanism to oversee aid delivery in Gaza, one that bypasses Hamas-controlled institutions and ensures civilian aid is protected from exploitation. "The issue isn't just legal compliance — it's moral responsibility," Herzberg said. "Western donors should be taking every precaution possible. So far, that hasn't been the case."Original article source: UK humanitarian aid to Gaza scrutinized after document allegedly warns of links to Hamas-controlled ministry
Ottawa Citizen
6 days ago
- Politics
- Ottawa Citizen
'I guess they made a mistake': Israelis returning to north after Hezbollah demolished
Article content Mount Tsifya, Israel — From an observation post overlooking the breathtakingly beautiful mountains on Israel's border with Lebanon, Lt.-Col Jordan Herzberg points to a scarred hillside where a town used to be. Article content Article content Lebanon's Kfar Kila was badly thumped during an Israeli offensive against Hezbollah, and further reduced to rubble by construction contractors engaged by Israel to largely wipe it from the Earth; it is now essentially a few roads with intermittent piles of rocks and vague outlines of what used to be houses. Article content Article content Herzberg said the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) found what were essentially 'fake homes' there, filled with missiles and soldiers' rations and uniforms. It was the same story in settlements all along the Lebanese border, including in Christian towns that were essentially occupied by Hezbollah. Article content Article content The destruction done to southern Lebanon by the IDF's assault on Hezbollah last fall is devastatingly clear, but Herzberg wants a group of visiting Canadian journalists to understand the Israeli message: the war was not with Lebanon but with the terror group that had effectively colonized Kfar Kila and much of southern Lebanon. Article content The Montreal-born Herzberg has the unique seriousness of purpose of an Israeli soldier proud of the Jewish state army's capacity for killing its enemies. He looks like an accountant who runs marathons but speaks with the swagger of a warrior, sometimes against his country's own leadership. The army was embarrassed by October 7, and is determined not to be caught flat-footed again. Article content Article content Article content Israel learned quickly from its inattention early on October 7, taking no chances in the north; two hours after Hamas invaded the south, the army sent troops to the north to counter any threat from the better-armed Hezbollah. Israel has since spent the last 19 months ensuring it is defanged. Article content Herzberg said Hamas are bunch of pikers who got lucky — he calls them 'a junior varsity team' while Hezbollah is 'a professional sports team.' But by hesitating when Hamas acted, Hezbollah lost the opportunity to seize an advantage. They sent their first rockets into northern Israel on Oct. 8, 2023, sparking a back-and-forth and a full-scale Israeli invasion of southern Lebanon.
Calgary Herald
6 days ago
- Politics
- Calgary Herald
'I guess they made a mistake': Israelis returning to north after Hezbollah demolished
Article content Mount Tsifya, Israel — From an observation post overlooking the breathtakingly beautiful mountains on Israel's border with Lebanon, Lt.-Col Jordan Herzberg points to a scarred hillside where a town used to be. Article content Article content Lebanon's Kfar Kila was badly thumped during an Israeli offensive against Hezbollah, and further reduced to rubble by construction contractors engaged by Israel to largely wipe it from the Earth; it is now essentially a few roads with intermittent piles of rocks and vague outlines of what used to be houses. Article content Article content Herzberg said the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) found what were essentially 'fake homes' there, filled with missiles and soldiers' rations and uniforms. It was the same story in settlements all along the Lebanese border, including in Christian towns that were essentially occupied by Hezbollah. Article content Article content The destruction done to southern Lebanon by the IDF's assault on Hezbollah last fall is devastatingly clear, but Herzberg wants a group of visiting Canadian journalists to understand the Israeli message: the war was not with Lebanon but with the terror group that had effectively colonized Kfar Kila and much of southern Lebanon. Article content The Montreal-born Herzberg has the unique seriousness of purpose of an Israeli soldier proud of the Jewish state army's capacity for killing its enemies. He looks like an accountant who runs marathons but speaks with the swagger of a warrior, sometimes against his country's own leadership. The army was embarrassed by October 7, and is determined not to be caught flat-footed again. Article content Article content Article content Israel learned quickly from its inattention early on October 7, taking no chances in the north; two hours after Hamas invaded the south, the army sent troops to the north to counter any threat from the better-armed Hezbollah. Israel has since spent the last 19 months ensuring it is defanged. Article content Herzberg said Hamas are bunch of pikers who got lucky — he calls them 'a junior varsity team' while Hezbollah is 'a professional sports team.' But by hesitating when Hamas acted, Hezbollah lost the opportunity to seize an advantage. They sent their first rockets into northern Israel on Oct. 8, 2023, sparking a back-and-forth and a full-scale Israeli invasion of southern Lebanon.
Trade Arabia
05-05-2025
- Business
- Trade Arabia
Digitalisation will help attract talent: AVEVA CEO
Will Artificial Intelligence (AI) and digital technologies reduce job opportunities in the industrial and energy sectors, even as these industries are seen as vital job providers–particularly in developing economies? OGN raised this pressing question with the CEO of AVEVA, a leading global industrial software company, during a media roundtable at the AVEVA World conference in San Francisco. Caspar Herzberg, highlighting the importance of the question, said he doesn't see a contradiction in adoption of technology. "There's a real shortage of engineers, particularly in hard-to-abate sectors," he noted. "Far from reducing roles, digitalisation helps industrial employers attract talent by making operations more efficient, safer, and more appealing." Referencing a recent visit to a copper mine in Arizona, he recounted the challenges faced in staffing remote and hazardous sites. "They struggle to find enough staff. Remote monitoring, AI, and predictive analytics aren't replacing people – they're enabling operations to continue when people simply aren't available." Herzberg echoed a powerful quote from the event's keynote speaker: "It's not that managers will disappear. It's that those who don't use AI will." Innovation isn't an option – it's an imperative, he said. AVEVA World, a three-day a global conference which brought together technology leaders, customers, and partners, served as a powerful platform for demonstrating AVEVA's impact on the future of industrial operations and sustainability. OGN was only invited publication at the conference from the region. In an engaging and candid exchange with journalists, Herzberg shared insights into the company's global momentum, strategic focus, and commitment to empowering industries through cutting-edge digital solutions. A GLOBAL GROWTH TRAJECTORY AVEVA's current trajectory is one of robust growth, underpinned by surging global demand for digital transformation across sectors. "We're doing very well," Herzberg noted. "Irrespective of the tectonic shifts we're seeing in global trade and supply chains, it's clear that businesses – both large and small – recognise the power of technology to drive efficiency. In sectors like energy, the gains in productivity are substantial enough to justify strong investments in digital tools. "What companies around the world are realising is that by investing in digitalisation - by truly understanding their data, production, supply chains, and key metrics - they can dramatically improve performance. "Digitalisation is good for the planet also," Herzberg asserted. "Greater efficiency means more sustainability. That understanding is now global, and it powers our growth." AVEVA has achieved nearly 15% growth in Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR), with over 80% of its revenue now recurring – a testament to the stickiness and value of its offerings. "We've grown organically by nearly half over the past three years," Herzberg added, citing strong uptake across engineering, operational intelligence, and data management solutions. UNLOCKING THE POWER OF INDUSTRIAL DATA AVEVA's growth is rooted in three core technology pillars: unified engineering, real-time operations management through PI System, and scalable analytics powered by cloud and AI. "We offer more than three million data points through our digital twin technology – an unmatched ability to connect engineering and operations," he said. He dismissed concerns that hyperscalers or cloud-native competitors could disrupt AVEVA's industrial data dominance. "On the contrary, we are disrupting cloud," he remarked confidently. "Our hybrid approach – keeping data on-prem while analysing it in the cloud – is unique. That's why we're partnering with Databricks, Microsoft, and others." AVEVA's competitive edge lies in its ability to handle time-series data at scale and enable intelligent, bidirectional data flow between the edge and the cloud. "That's what powers our radical collaboration," Herzberg explained. "Even if you're a rival, we make it easy to integrate. Because customers want everything to work together seamlessly." AVEVA CONNECT AND THE FUTURE OF AI The future lies in Connect, AVEVA's unified platform designed to facilitate seamless data flow across applications and partners. "We're investing heavily in Connect and data services, and directing more than half of our R&D spend to new technologies," Herzberg said. Artificial Intelligence plays a pivotal role in this vision. "We now have 19 AI-infused offerings across our portfolio," he revealed. "That's a significant shift and a market-leading position." SUPPORTING THE GULF'S DUAL ENERGY MANDATE Asked by OGN specifically about the Gulf region – where traditional hydrocarbons are being balanced with energy transition strategies – Herzberg acknowledged the region's leadership. "Actually, several factors made oil and gas companies early adopters of digital technology. For one, they've always had a strong focus on both efficiency and, crucially, safety. This meant they recognised the value of digital tools quite early on. "Because of this early adoption, they already had a head start compared to many other industries in terms of digitising their operations and assets. Furthermore, the nature of their work, with many remote assets like offshore platforms, made digitalisation even more appealing. It's simply more practical and safer to monitor and manage these distant locations digitally, as fewer people want to spend extended periods in such environments. "This early investment in digitalisation has provided them with a solid foundation to effectively integrate their various assets. They can then leverage this integrated data to run sophisticated analytics and significantly boost efficiency. Interestingly, this increased efficiency can also lead to a reduction in carbon emissions per barrel of oil produced – a seemingly counterintuitive but very real outcome," he said. "When you see how companies like ADNOC or Aramco utilise technology to manage and visualise their numerous and diverse assets simultaneously, it's truly impressive. Now, they're building on this foundation by integrating renewable energy assets, monitoring them, and applying predictive analytics and prescriptive maintenance. ADNOC, in particular, is making significant investments in these areas," he noted. These companies will continue to be leaders in technology adoption and many of them are not just maintaining but actually increasing their use of solutions like AVEVA's across their operations. For instance, Aramco has now adopted Unified Engineering as a standard for many of its assets, highlighting their commitment to these advanced digital approaches, said Herzberg. AVEVA's regional footprint is well established, with offices in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Dammam. "We have about 150 to 200 employees in the Gulf, and that number is set to grow," Herzberg said. "Our customers here go beyond oil – they include mining, chemicals, and manufacturing giants like SABIC." NAVIGATING GLOBAL DISRUPTION Asked about the fluctuating tariffs, geopolitical instability and their impact on industrial customers and AVEVA, he said: "We're very focused on helping our customers make sense of whatever issue they're dealing with. The reconfiguration of global supply chains has been underway for some time. This represents a major opportunity for us, because when new assets are built – often in entirely new locations – they need technology to function. And that's where we come in." While acknowledging that the short-term impact of geopolitical events is hard to predict, Herzberg sees long-term growth in the form of large trade blocs restructuring and investing in resilient infrastructure. "Ultimately, as they build, we grow with them," he said. This theme of adaptability and foresight flows naturally into AVEVA's ethos of radical collaboration, particularly in data sharing – a once-taboo topic in many industrial sectors. "Just a few years ago, manufacturers were hesitant even about cloud adoption. That's changed. And now we're seeing increased willingness to share data – not just externally within the supply chain, but internally across siloed departments within companies," he noted. A core differentiator for AVEVA is its commitment to openness. Rather than lock users into a proprietary loop, the company's Connect platform is designed for interoperability – even with competitors. "We even collaborate with companies whose solutions overlap with ours. But by having them on the platform, we drive more value for customers, and in turn, encourage deeper investments in our infrastructure. Everybody wins when we collaborate," Herzberg emphasized. Addressing questions on the ethical deployment of AI and the concrete steps AVEVA is taking toward sustainable industry practices, he said: "Our use of AI is energy-efficient and designed with sustainability in mind. Unlike many consumer AI models, our applications are lean, focused on optimising industrial operations rather than generating intensive computations." Beyond technology, AVEVA is actively helping shape standards with customers, ensuring AI is deployed ethically and transparently across sectors. "In practice, AI helps drive efficiency and reduce wasteful energy consumption – which directly supports sustainability goals," he added. The company's impact can be measured through what it calls its "software handprint" – the positive environmental footprint enabled by its solutions. "In fully digitised factories, we typically reduce energy consumption by 10 to 30 percent. In utilities, we help manage grid loads and optimise electricity delivery. And in shipbuilding, AI and cloud collaboration have accelerated sustainable ship design by up to 50 percent," Herzberg said.
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Strategy Behind Google's $32B Wiz Deal
Raaz Herzberg, Wiz VP of product strategy and chief marketing officer, discusses the strategy behind Google's purchase and why the company plans to offer services to multiple cloud providers. Herzberg speaks about cloud security concerns as the RSA conference gets underway. She joins Caroline Hyde and Ed Ludlow on "Bloomberg Technology."
