Latest news with #Protocols
The Citizen
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Citizen
SA calls for probe after Israel kills Palestinians waiting for food
Israeli tanks opened fire on thousands of civilians gathered at a distribution site in southern Gaza's Rafah on Sunday morning. South Africa has joined the global call for an immediate, impartial international investigation after Israel killed at least 32 Palestinians waiting to get food at two aid distribution sites in Gaza. The attack left more than 200 others injured. Attack Israeli tanks opened fire on thousands of civilians gathered at a distribution site in southern Gaza's Rafah on Sunday morning, Gaza's Government Media Office said in a statement on Telegram. A short while later, another person was killed in a shooting at a similar distribution point south of the Netzarim Corridor in Gaza City. South Africa's International Relations Department (Dirco) said it is 'gravely alarmed' by the attack on the Palestinians. 'This atrocity is a stark reminder of the catastrophic and dire conditions under bombardment and siege in Gaza, where access to food and essential aid remains perilous and has become a matter of life and death. 'South Africa joins the global call for an immediate, impartial international investigation and reiterates that Israel, as the occupying power, bears legal responsibility under international humanitarian law for the protection of civilians and to ensure safe access to aid,' Dirco said. ALSO READ: Israel accused of starving Gaza 'by design' — South Africa addresses ICJ Geneva convention Dirco said the 'targeting, killing and injuring of vulnerable civilians are in grave breach of the Geneva Conventions and incompatible with the principles of international humanitarian law and, accordingly, demand urgent scrutiny.' 'This tragedy has further intensified scrutiny of the 'Gaza Humanitarian Foundation' (GHF) and South Africa further joins calls against the GHF, a private initiative that entrusts the distribution of aid to military personnel rather than impartial humanitarian actors. 'This scheme is fundamentally at odds with the core principles of international humanitarian law, particularly the Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols, which mandate that humanitarian relief operations must observe the principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence,' Dirco said. ALSO READ: SA condemns Israel's bombing of hospitals in Gaza ICJ case Dirco has also reminded Israel about the International Court of Justice's (ICJ) crime of genocide against Israel and the three rounds of binding provisional measures the UN's top court has issued against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government's 'irreparable harm to the Palestinian population.' 'These have included specific instructions for the unhindered provision of humanitarian aid, all of which have been flagrantly defied by Israeli authorities,' Dirco said. 'South Africa calls on all states, institutions and civil society across the globe to demand immediate, unconditional and sustained humanitarian access to Gaza; reinforce the mandate and funding of UNRWA and other neutral aid organisations; 'Hold Israel legally accountable for its violations of international law, including through the ICJ, ICC, and domestic jurisdictions exercising universal jurisdiction; and take concrete steps to end the blockade, protect civilians and restore the rule of international law in Gaza,' Dirco said. UN Special Rapporteur The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, Francesca Albanese, stated, 'All camouflaged behind the language of aid, to divert international attention from legal accountability, in Israel's attempt to dismantle the very principles upon which humanitarian law was built.' 'South Africa aligns itself with the comments above of the UN Special Rapporteur. What transpired in Gaza today is not a tragic anomaly – it is a direct consequence of the ongoing bombardment, siege, occupation and collective punishment of Gaza's people. 'We further concur with the UN Special Rapporteur that 'Accountability can no longer be deferred. The UN and States need urgently to establish an independent protection mechanism that Israel shall not stop – it has no sovereignty over the occupied territory, and it is about time States implement it,' Dirco said. 'Cycle of violence Dirco has called on the international community to 'amplify calls on ending the cycle of violence and the dehumanisation of a population.' 'The time for moral and legal clarity is now, Dirco said, adding that the international community 'must act decisively to prevent further loss of life and uphold the protections due to civilians under the Geneva Conventions and international law'. WATCH: ICJ rules Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories 'violates international law'
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
California avocados at risk due to lack of USDA inspectors, report says
The California Avocado Commission (CAC) released a report Tuesday that indicates state-grown avocados may be severely at risk due to a 2024 Biden administration move that withdrew U.S. Department of Agriculture inspectors from Mexican orchards. 'This move, made in response to cartel violence, shifted critical U.S. agricultural oversight to foreign control, undermining decades of bipartisan efforts to protect U.S. agriculture,' the CAC said in a press release. The report, titled 'The Growing Threat to California Avocados: Why USDA Must Reinstate Inspection Protocols in Mexico,' states that in 1997, CAC officials and their federal counterparts negotiated an agreement with the Mexican government that allowed the importation of fresh Hass avocados into the United States. The agreement lifted a ban that had been in place since 1914 to prevent a range of pests from entering American orchards. LADWP says substance causing 'earthy odor' in drinking water is not harmful According to the report, the choice to remove USDA's physical presence from Mexican avocado orchards in 2024 was made without public announcement, congressional notification or input from American avocado growers. In fact, the CAC claimed that they themselves learned of the decision, which they say is 'a breach of [the 1997] agreement,' through foreign media outlets. 'This system worked for nearly three decades…[and] functioned with exceptional effectiveness, keeping invasive pests like seed weevils and fruit-boring moths out of California [while] maintaining the state's pristine pest-free certification,' the report reads. 'With no need for chemical interventions against these exotic pests, growers benefited from lower production costs, clean environmental compliance and the ability to export to countries with strict phytosanitary barriers.' 'Mexican inspections alone cannot be trusted to meet the phytosanitary standards the U.S. has long required,' the report continues. 'As a result, fruit carrying dangerous pests is now being certified and shipped with reduced oversight, increasing the probability of pest introduction into California's avocado-growing regions.' Since the pests have never established themselves in California (which CAC says is thanks to nearly three decades of strict pre-export enforcement by the USDA), the state's avocado industry, which is a '$1.5 billion economic engine' that supports more than 3,000 family-owned farms, is 'fundamentally different' from global competitors because of its cleanliness standards. California itself is one of the last remaining major avocado-producing regions in the world that remains free of the crop's main pests — avocado seed weevils and fruit-feeding moths – which allows local growers to thrive with 'minimal chemical intervention, high export viability and strong consumer confidence,' according to the report. Unhealthy air quality predicted for parts of SoCal 'If [these pests] gain a foothold in California orchards, the result would be devastating – biologically, economically and environmentally,' the report says. According to agriculture officials, the pests may have already started making their way into California; since inspectors were withdrawn, more than 150 pest interceptions were reported between Oct. 30, 2024, and Mar. 11, 2025, the CAC report states. USDA data cited in the report indicates that between Jan. 1 and Oct. 17, 2024, there were no pest interceptions in Mexican warehouses. Overall, the CAC says that the main solution to the problem is to reinstate inspection protocols in Mexico as per the 1997 agreement. Keeping in mind inspector safety, CAC recommends that security personnel be deployed and inspectors stationed in secure convoys, especially in high-risk regions like the Mexican state of Michoacán, where most avocados are grown. Additionally, CAC wants direct engagement from the Trump administration to ensure that 'criminal cartels [don't] dictate the terms of our food safety' and the ability to suspend Mexican imports if conditions are not met. According to the report, 80% of Mexico's avocado imports come to the U.S. Hannah Kobayashi breaks silence on disappearance, father's death Lastly, the CAC wants to spread public awareness of the issue as not just an agricultural problem, but a national security concern. 'The threat facing California's avocado industry is not theoretical, it is happening now. Since the withdrawal of USDA inspectors from Mexico in late 2024, dangerous avocado seed pests have been repeatedly detected in Mexican orchards and packinghouses,' the report concludes. 'These pests, long excluded by strict inspection protocols, now pose a growing risk of crossing into California's pest-free growing regions…Once established, they cannot be eradicated, [and] the consequences would be severe: billions in economic losses, the collapse of generational family farms, and the loss of one of America's most successful, clean, and sustainable agricultural commodities.' 'This crisis was preventable,' the report's conclusion adds. 'It is still reversible.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Maroc
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Maroc
Colombian Parliament Reiterates Support for Morocco's Territorial Integrity
Morocco's Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Omar Hilale, sent a response letter to the President and members of the Security Council on Monday, debunking the Algerian ambassador's fallacious allegations regarding the Moroccan Sahara issue during a Council briefing. He emphasized that the Algerian representative had, as usual, engaged in his favorite exercise of distorting realities and misrepresenting evidence regarding the populations in the Tindouf camps. In this letter, Hilale first expressed Morocco's deep regret at the biased statement made by Algeria's Permanent Representative, Amar Bendjama, during the Security Council meeting held this Monday on "The Challenges of Forced Displacement around the World." In his remarks, the Algerian ambassador took advantage of the presence of the High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, to peddle lies, distort realities, and misrepresent the facts regarding the populations in the Tindouf camps in Algeria. In this regard, Ambassador Hilale provided elements to debunk the fallacious statements made by the Algerian representative, who was the only one to address the issue of the Moroccan Sahara during this briefing. The Moroccan diplomat affirmed that the populations of the Tindouf camps are in no way "forcibly displaced persons," as claimed by the Algerian representative, but rather populations held against their will for half a century, noting that Algeria deprives them of their most basic rights, including the choice to return to their motherland, Morocco, or to settle in a third country, or even to integrate into the host country, Algeria, as advocated by the durable solutions of the High Commissioner for Refugees. He pointed out that Algeria is also violating the rights granted to them by the legal instruments of international humanitarian law, the Geneva Convention and its Additional Protocols, including the rights to freedom of expression, movement, and demonstration. He added that these populations are living in camps whose jurisdiction, control, and management have been entrusted by Algeria to the armed separatist group "polisario," in violation of international law and contrary to its obligations as a host country, as denounced by the Human Rights Committee in its report CCPR/C/DZA/CO/4 of August 17, 2018, paragraph 9. In response to the Algerian ambassador's allusion to a so-called "occupation" of the Sahara by Morocco, Hilale recalled, to the Algerian representative's great displeasure, that the occupation of the Sahara ended with the return of these provinces to their motherland, Morocco, under the Madrid Accords of November 1975, of which the General Assembly took note in its resolution 34/58 B of December 1975. "The Algerian representative pretends to ignore that the Security Council is considering the question of the Moroccan Sahara under Chapter VI of the United Nations Charter, for the peaceful settlement of this regional dispute, wholly created and maintained for half a century by his country, with incalculable consequences for the peace, security, and stability of the Maghreb and the African continent," the Moroccan diplomat emphasized. Hilale further noted that Algeria is not cooperating with United Nations agencies or humanitarian partners to ensure access to basic services for the populations of the Tindouf camps. He added that Algeria has refused to allow the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to conduct a census and registration of the populations held captive in the Tindouf camps for over 50 years, despite clear instructions from the Security Council in successive resolutions since 2011. "The lack of a census encourages the misappropriation of humanitarian assistance, which has forced agencies and NGOs to reduce the volume of their aid," he continued. In this response letter to the Security Council, Morocco's Permanent Representative to the UN also pointed out that the misappropriation of humanitarian aid by the "polisario" and Algerian officials has been proven and noted in the reports of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), the Office of the Inspector General of the UNHCR, the World Food Programme, as well as several NGOs and international organisations. Reacting to Algeria's so-called call for "a lasting solution" to the Moroccan Sahara issue, Hilale denounced this action as nothing more than window dressing, explaining that a lasting solution "requires compliance with Security Council resolutions, which call for the resumption of the political process and roundtable discussions. Algeria has refused to do this since the appointment of the Secretary-General's Personal Envoy to the Moroccan Sahara, Staffan de Mistura, in October 2021." Such a behavior condemns this process to immobility and stalemate, with its attendant humanitarian consequences for the populations held captive in the Tindouf camps, the ambassador lamented. He also affirmed that the lasting solution lies in the implementation of the Moroccan Autonomy Initiative, which the Security Council has described as serious and credible for 18 years. He emphasized that this Initiative is widely considered by the international community as the sole basis for resolving this dispute, while respecting the Kingdom's national sovereignty and territorial integrity. He added that "Algeria's blindness prevents it from realizing that this Initiative is supported by more than 100 United Nations Member States, including two permanent members of the Security Council, the former occupying power of the Moroccan Sahara, and 23 Member States of the European Union." In this context, he recalled the latest Security Council Resolution 2756 (2024), which welcomed the international momentum in favor of the Moroccan Autonomy Initiative and urged that it be used to its full potential in the search for a definitive political solution to this dispute. This, he said, demonstrates the Autonomy Initiative's compliance with the right to self-determination. Regarding the Algerian ambassador's mention of holding a referendum, Hilale denounced Algeria's "obsessive fixation," noting that the Algerian Permanent Representative is well aware that the Security Council and the General Assembly have definitively shelved the referendum, in 2002 and 2003 respectively. In conclusion, Hilale emphasized that "the Algerian ambassador also forgets that the resolutions his country supported during his previous term on the Security Council, as well as those he submits annually to the Fourth Committee of the General Assembly, no longer make any reference to the referendum." Ambassador Hilale's letter to the President and members of the UN Security Council will be published as an official document of the UN body. It should be noted that the Algerian diplomat's fallacious and mendacious allegations were completely ignored in the response presented to members by the High Commissioner for Refugees during this briefing. MAP: 29 avril 2025
Yahoo
01-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Conference to tackle protecting civilians in Palestinian Territories
The protection of civilians in the occupied Palestinian Territories will be the focus of an international conference in Geneva next week, the Swiss Foreign Ministry said on Saturday. The 196 signatories of the Geneva Conventions have been invited to the meeting on March 7 at a technical level, with UN ambassadors present, the ministry said. A declaration, particularly concerning the Fourth Geneva Convention, which protects civilians who "find themselves, in case of a conflict or occupation, in the hands of a party to the conflict or occupying power of which they are not nationals," is planned, according to the ministry. Similar meetings to reaffirm the Geneva Conventions were held in 1999, 2001 and 2014. The last of these saw participation from approximately 120 countries. "The four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and the two Additional Protocols of 1977 as well as the Additional Protocol of 2005 form the core of humanitarian international law," the Swiss Foreign Ministry stated. "They protect persons who are not, or are no longer, taking part in hostilities." The conventions originated from an initiative by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) based in Geneva, which monitors their compliance. All states worldwide, including non-state actors, are bound by the conventions. The ICRC describes its role as follows: "We take action to assist the victims of armed conflict and other violence, and at the same time promote respect for international humanitarian law and its implementation in domestic law."
