Latest news with #HumanitarianFoundation
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Pope calls for Gaza ceasefire, hostages' release
Pope Leo XIV reiterated his call for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, the release of all hostages and for leaders on both sides of the war to 'fully' respect international humanitarian law. 'From #Gaza, the cries of parents rise to heaven ever more intensely as they clutch the lifeless bodies of their children, searching for food and shelter from bombs,' the pontiff said in a Wednesday morning post on social platform X. 'I renew my appeal to leaders: cease fire, release all hostages, and fully respect international humanitarian law!' Leo — who was elected as pope on May 8, becoming the first American pontiff — has appealed for conflicts in the Middle East and eastern Europe to end. 'I, too, address the world's great powers by repeating the ever-present call 'never again war,'' Leo said May 11, calling for peace in Gaza and in the ongoing three-year war between Russia and Ukraine. Leo denounced recent Russian drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure. Leo's calls for peace come as thousands of Palestinians rushed into a new aid distribution center in the south of the war-torn enclave Tuesday. The center, which began its work this week, is operated by the U.S. backed-Gaza Humanitarian Foundation and is set up to distribute food packages. So far, Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has dished out around 8,000 food boxes, a senior U.S. administration official said Tuesday. 'Each box feeds 5.5 people for 3.5 days, totaling 462,000 meals,' the official said. Israel previously had an 11-week aid blockade in place. The United Nations said it would not be involved in the work of the organization, arguing it does not adhere to its principles of independence and neutrality. The foundation's executive director, Jake Wood, resigned from his post Sunday, pointing to a lack of independence. 'It is clear that it is not possible to implement this plan while also strictly adhering to the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence, which I will not abandon,' Wood said in a statement to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
3 days ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Pope calls for Gaza ceasefire, hostages' release
Pope Leo XIV reiterated his call for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, the release of all hostages and for leaders on both sides of the war to 'fully' respect international humanitarian law. 'From #Gaza, the cries of parents rise to heaven ever more intensely as they clutch the lifeless bodies of their children, searching for food and shelter from bombs,' the pontiff said in a Wednesday morning post on social media platform X. 'I renew my appeal to leaders: cease fire, release all hostages, and fully respect international humanitarian law!' Leo XIV, who was elected as pope on May 8, becoming the first American pontiff, has appealed for conflicts in the Middle and Eastern Europe to end. 'I, too, address the world's great powers by repeating the ever-present call 'never again war,'' Leo said on May 11, calling for peace in Gaza and in the ongoing three-year war between Russia and Ukraine. Leo denounced recent Russian drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure. Leo's calls for peace come as thousands of Palestinians rushed into a new aid distribution center in the south of the war-torn enclave on Tuesday. The center, which began its work this week, is operated by the U.S. backed-Gaza Humanitarian Foundation and is set up to distribute food packages. So far, Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has dished out around 8,000 food boxes, a senior U.S. administration official said on Tuesday. 'Each box feeds 5.5 people for 3.5 days, totaling 462,000 meals,' the official said. Israel previously had an 11-week aid blockade in place. The United Nations said it would not be involved in the work of the organization, arguing it does not adhere to its principles of independence and neutrality. The group's executive director, Jake Wood, resigned from his post on Sunday, pointing to a lack of independence. 'It is clear that it is not possible to implement this plan while also strictly adhering to the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence, which I will not abandon,' Wood said in a statement to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.
The Independent
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Live updates: Israeli strikes pound Gaza as a US-backed group plans to start aid operations
Israeli strikes pounded the Gaza Strip early on Monday, killing dozens, including people sleeping in a school-turned-shelter, local health officials said. The Israeli military said it targeted militants operating from the school. Israel has vowed to seize control of Gaza and keep fighting until Hamas is destroyed or disarmed and exiled, and until the militant group returns the remaining 58 hostages, a third of them believed to be alive, from the Oct. 7, 2023 attack that ignited the war. Israel had blocked all food, medicine and fuel from entering Gaza for 2 1/2 months before letting a trickle of aid enter last week, after experts' warnings of famine and pressure from some of Israel's top allies. A new aid system, with a group called the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation that's supported by Israel and the United States but rejected by U.N. agencies and aid groups, is expected to begin operations as early as Monday, despite the resignation of the American leading the effort, who said it would not be able to operate independently. Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251 people in the October 2023 attack. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed around 54,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count. Here's the latest: The Israeli military says 3 projectiles have been fired from Gaza The military says the projectiles were fired toward southern Israel. Two landed inside Gaza and one was intercepted by Israel's missile defense system. Militants in Gaza still occasionally fire rockets toward Israel, a sign of their tenacity even after more than 19 months of grueling war in the territory and an intensifying Israeli offensive. A US-backed group still plans to begin aid distribution in Gaza after its director resigns The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation says it's still going ahead with its launch on Monday despite the unexpected resignation of its American executive director over the weekend. Jake Wood said he was resigning because the organization would not be allowed to operate independently. The foundation — made up of former humanitarian, government and military officials — is the linchpin of a new aid system for Gaza that would wrest aid distribution away from aid groups who have traditionally carried out the task. 'We will not be deterred. Our trucks are loaded and ready to go,' GHF said in a statement. The group said it planned to reach more than 1 million Palestinians by the end of the week. The U.N. has rejected the new aid mechanism, saying it allows Israel to use food as a weapon, violates human humanitarian principles and won't be effective. Australia's prime minister calls Israel's blockade of Gaza aid 'outrageous' It was the strongest language to date from Anthony Albanese on the Gaza humanitarian crisis. 'It is outrageous that there be a blockade of food and supplies to people who are in need in Gaza,' Albanese told reporters in the Australian capital Canberra on Monday. Israel has blocked all food, medicine and fuel from entering Gaza for 2 1/2 months before letting a trickle of aid enter last week. It says the militant Hamas group has been siphoning off aid. U.N. aid groups say there is no significant divergence of aid. Albanese said he had recently told Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Rome that Australia finds 'Israel's excuses and explanations completely untenable and without credibility.' "People are starving, and the idea that a democratic state withholds supply is an outrage,' he added. More on a Gaza tragedy: A mother and doctor loses 9 of her 10 children Pediatrician Alaa al-Najjar lost nine of her 10 children in an Israeli strike on Friday at their home near the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, according to her colleagues and the enclave's Health Ministry. Only one child, an 11-year-old, and al-Najjar's husband, also a doctor, survived but were badly hurt. Al-Najjar, a pediatrician at Nasser Hospital, was on duty at the time and ran home to find her family's house on fire, said Ahmad al-Farra, head of the hospital's pediatric department. The dead children ranged in age from 7 months to 12 years old. Israel has said 'the claim regarding harm to uninvolved civilians is under review.' It blames Hamas for civilian deaths because it operates in densely populated areas.
Associated Press
5 days ago
- Politics
- Associated Press
Live updates: Israeli strikes pound Gaza as a US-backed group plans to start aid operations
Israeli strikes pounded the Gaza Strip early on Monday, killing dozens, including people sleeping in a school-turned-shelter, local health officials said. The Israeli military said it targeted militants operating from the school. Israel has vowed to seize control of Gaza and keep fighting until Hamas is destroyed or disarmed and exiled, and until the militant group returns the remaining 58 hostages, a third of them believed to be alive, from the Oct. 7, 2023 attack that ignited the war. Israel had blocked all food, medicine and fuel from entering Gaza for 2 1/2 months before letting a trickle of aid enter last week, after experts' warnings of famine and pressure from some of Israel's top allies. A new aid system, with a group called the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation that's supported by Israel and the United States but rejected by U.N. agencies and aid groups, is expected to begin operations as early as Monday, despite the resignation of the American leading the effort, who said it would not be able to operate independently. Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251 people in the October 2023 attack. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed around 54,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count. Here's the latest: The Israeli military says 3 projectiles have been fired from Gaza The military says the projectiles were fired toward southern Israel. Two landed inside Gaza and one was intercepted by Israel's missile defense system. Militants in Gaza still occasionally fire rockets toward Israel, a sign of their tenacity even after more than 19 months of grueling war in the territory and an intensifying Israeli offensive. A US-backed group still plans to begin aid distribution in Gaza after its director resigns The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation says it's still going ahead with its launch on Monday despite the unexpected resignation of its American executive director over the weekend. Jake Wood said he was resigning because the organization would not be allowed to operate independently. The foundation — made up of former humanitarian, government and military officials — is the linchpin of a new aid system for Gaza that would wrest aid distribution away from aid groups who have traditionally carried out the task. 'We will not be deterred. Our trucks are loaded and ready to go,' GHF said in a statement. The group said it planned to reach more than 1 million Palestinians by the end of the week. The U.N. has rejected the new aid mechanism, saying it allows Israel to use food as a weapon, violates human humanitarian principles and won't be effective. Australia's prime minister calls Israel's blockade of Gaza aid 'outrageous' It was the strongest language to date from Anthony Albanese on the Gaza humanitarian crisis. 'It is outrageous that there be a blockade of food and supplies to people who are in need in Gaza,' Albanese told reporters in the Australian capital Canberra on Monday. Israel has blocked all food, medicine and fuel from entering Gaza for 2 1/2 months before letting a trickle of aid enter last week. It says the militant Hamas group has been siphoning off aid. U.N. aid groups say there is no significant divergence of aid. Albanese said he had recently told Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Rome that Australia finds 'Israel's excuses and explanations completely untenable and without credibility.' 'People are starving, and the idea that a democratic state withholds supply is an outrage,' he added. More on a Gaza tragedy: A mother and doctor loses 9 of her 10 children Pediatrician Alaa al-Najjar lost nine of her 10 children in an Israeli strike on Friday at their home near the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, according to her colleagues and the enclave's Health Ministry. Only one child, an 11-year-old, and al-Najjar's husband, also a doctor, survived but were badly hurt. Al-Najjar, a pediatrician at Nasser Hospital, was on duty at the time and ran home to find her family's house on fire, said Ahmad al-Farra, head of the hospital's pediatric department. The dead children ranged in age from 7 months to 12 years old. Israel has said 'the claim regarding harm to uninvolved civilians is under review.' It blames Hamas for civilian deaths because it operates in densely populated areas.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
New Gaza aid plans would increase children's suffering, UNICEF says
GENEVA (Reuters) - The United Nations Children's Fund on Friday criticized emerging plans to take over distribution of humanitarian aid in Gaza on Thursday floated by both Israel and the United States, saying that they would increase suffering for children and families. The U.S. State Department earlier floated a solution that would allow delivery of food aid to Gaza was "steps away" and an announcement was coming shortly. A proposal is circulating among the aid community for a Gaza Humanitarian Foundation that would distribute food from four "Secure Distribution Sites", resembling plans announced by Israel earlier this week, which drew criticism that it would effectively worsen displacement among the Gaza population. "It appears the design of a plan presented by Israel to the humanitarian community will increase ongoing suffering of children and families in the Gaza Strip," said UNICEF spokesperson James Elder. Elder said his remarks also applied to the new foundation which he understood to be part of the same broad plan. The aid community has already rejected any plans that would give occupying power Israel a role in distributing aid in Gaza. However, the Foundation document said the sites would be "neutral" and U.S. ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said on Friday that Israel would not be involved in handing out aid. Still, Elder said that the use of such hubs, which the foundation says will initially serve 300,000 people each, would create risks for children and families as they go to retrieve aid and would drive further displacement. "The use of humanitarian aid as a bait to force displacement, especially from the north to the south will create this impossible choice: a choice between displacement and death," said Elder, who has been on several missions to Gaza since the Israel-Hamas war began 19 months ago. "It appears designed to reinforce control over life-sustaining items as a pressure tactic." He called instead for Israel to lift a more than two-month-long blockade on aid entries into the enclave, which is stoking widespread hunger and raising concerns about a spike in malnutrition-related deaths. "There is a simple alternative, lift the blockade, let humanitarian aid in to save lives," he said.
