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Qatar Tribune
27-05-2025
- Politics
- Qatar Tribune
US-Israel scheme dispenses Gaza aid; 180,000 displaced in 10 days
Agencies Gaza A controversial aid group engaged by Israel and backed by the United States says it has started operations in southern Gaza as the Israeli military continues its attacks across the enclave with the stated aim of taking over all of Gaza. This comes as more than 180,000 people were displaced in Gaza in just 10 days between May 15 and May 25, according to the United Nations International Organization for Migration (IOM). The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which bypasses aid distribution networks established by the UN and charities, said it distributed boxes of food to Palestinians on Tuesday after announcing it had opened its first distribution hubs in southern Gaza. The UN and international aid agencies have said they will not cooperate with the Switzerland-registered company, which is distributing aid under the protection of armed security contractors, amid concerns that the scheme could be used to 'weaponise' aid, causing further displacement of Palestinians. Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the UN humanitarian office, said the deliveries were a 'distraction from what is actually needed', instead calling for the reopening of all crossings into Gaza and more Israeli approvals for emergency supplies that are just outside Gaza's borders waiting to be let in. The GHF has gone ahead with its mission despite the resignation of executive director Jake Wood on Sunday, who said it could not adhere to 'humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence'. The new operation will rely on four main distribution centres in southern Gaza that will screen families for involvement with the Palestinian group Hamas, potentially using facial recognition or biometric technology, according to aid officials cited by the Reuters news agency. But many details of how the operation will work remain unexplained, not least the question of how Palestinians scattered across central and northern Gaza, many of them sick and weakened by a lack of food, will be expected to cover long distances to receive the aid. 'Only those who move southwards will get aid,' said Al Jazeera's Tareq Abu Azzoum, reporting from Deir el-Balah in central Gaza. 'People will be forced to travel long distances under very dangerous security circumstances in order to get parcels that will be enough for a few days; and, later on, they will need to travel again.'
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
US-Israel scheme dispenses Gaza aid as UN says 180,000 displaced in 10 days
A controversial aid group engaged by Israel and backed by the United States says it has started operations in southern Gaza as the Israeli military continues its attacks across the enclave with the stated aim of taking over all of Gaza. This comes as more than 180,000 people were displaced in Gaza in just 10 days between May 15 and May 25, according to the United Nations International Organization for Migration (IOM). The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which bypasses aid distribution networks established by the UN and charities, said it distributed boxes of food to Palestinians on Tuesday after announcing it had opened its first distribution hubs in southern Gaza. The UN and international aid agencies have said they will not cooperate with the Switzerland-registered company, which is distributing aid under the protection of armed security contractors, amid concerns that the scheme could be used to 'weaponise' aid, causing further displacement of Palestinians. Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the UN humanitarian office, said the deliveries were a 'distraction from what is actually needed', instead calling for the reopening of all crossings into Gaza and more Israeli approvals for emergency supplies that are just outside Gaza's borders waiting to be let in. The GHF has gone ahead with its mission despite the resignation of executive director Jake Wood on Sunday, who said it could not adhere to 'humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence'.The new operation will rely on four main distribution centres in southern Gaza that will screen families for involvement with the Palestinian group Hamas, potentially using facial recognition or biometric technology, according to aid officials cited by the Reuters news agency. But many details of how the operation will work remain unexplained, not least the question of how Palestinians scattered across central and northern Gaza, many of them sick and weakened by a lack of food, will be expected to cover long distances to receive the aid. 'Only those who move southwards will get aid,' said Al Jazeera's Tareq Abu Azzoum, reporting from Deir el-Balah in central Gaza. 'People will be forced to travel long distances under very dangerous security circumstances in order to get parcels that will be enough for a few days; and, later on, they will need to travel again.' Abu Azzoum said many Palestinians were concerned about GHF's ties to the Israeli government, 'raising massive concerns regarding the use of aid as a political tool … to control the movement of Gaza's population'. As the GHF operation began on Tuesday, Gaza's Ministry of Health said the death toll from the conflict had surpassed 54,000. European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen denounced Israel's deadly wave strikes on civilian facilities during its expanded military offensive as 'abhorrent'. Her comments followed Israel's bombing of a Gaza City school the previous day, which killed 36 people – mostly women and children. The GHF announcement came as Israel faced global condemnation over conditions in Gaza, its population of 2.1 million subjected to constant attack amid a looming famine. Former UNRWA spokesperson Chris Gunness blasted the new scheme as 'aid washing'. 'It's quite simply the use of humanitarian aid to justify the weaponisation of humanitarian assistance, but also to justify ethnic cleansing and genocide,' Gunness told Al Jazeera. He also raised concerns about the use of security contractors to monitor the operation, saying the 'subcontracting of aid to mercenaries' could lead to a similar disaster as last year's 'flour massacre', in which at least 112 people were killed while waiting for food southwest of Gaza the United Kingdom and Canada have said they will take 'concrete actions' if Israel does not 'cease the renewed military offensive and lift its restrictions on humanitarian aid'. They were joined by Germany this week, which said the humanitarian toll of Israel's offensive 'can no longer be justified as a fight against terrorism'. On Tuesday, Germany and Finland called for nations to 'put pressure' on Israel to allow urgently needed humanitarian aid into Gaza. Earlier, Sweden's Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said the European Union should impose sanctions on Israel. Defying international critics, Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel's far-right national security minister, said on Tuesday that Gaza should be denied aid. 'I say to the prime minister: 'Dear prime minister, we must not give them humanitarian aid. We must not give them fuel …' Our enemies deserve only a bullet to the head,' he told a large crowd participating in the controversial 'Jerusalem Day' march on occupied East Jerusalem. On Tuesday, the Israeli military said it had intercepted a missile and another projectile fired from Yemen, where Houthi rebels have regularly launched attacks in self-proclaimed solidarity with Palestinians under attack in Gaza. The Houthis have fired missiles and drones at Israel since the start of the war in October 2023. They paused their attacks during a two-month Gaza ceasefire that ended in March, but resumed them after Israel restarted its campaign in the territory. While most of the projectiles have been intercepted, a missile fired by the group in early May hit the perimeter of Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv for the first time. Israel has also carried out several attacks on Yemen in recent months, including on ports and the airport in Sanaa.
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Pakistan accelerates deportation of Afghans: UN
Pakistan has ramped up the forced mass deportation of Afghan refugees and migrants, with nearly 60,000 having crossed the border since the start of April, the United Nations International Organization for Migration (IOM) said. Nearly three million Afghans in Pakistan are facing deportation after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced in October a three-phase plan to send them back to their home country. The IOM said in a statement on Tuesday that it has assisted more than one million people returning from Pakistan and Iran. Amid the second phase of the plan, the IOM said it had registered a sharp rise in forced returns. Between April 1 and April 13, nearly 60,000 individuals crossed into Afghanistan through the Torkham and Spin Boldak border points, it noted. 'With a new wave of large-scale returns now underway from Pakistan, needs on the ground are rising rapidly – both at the border and in areas of return that are struggling to absorb large numbers of returnees,' said Mihyung Park, head of the agency's Afghanistan mission. In March, Islamabad set an early April deadline for some 800,000 people carrying Afghan Citizen Cards (ACC) issued by Pakistani authorities to leave the country. Families with their belongings in tow have crowded key border crossings of Torkham in the north and Spin Boldak in the south, recalling scenes in 2023 when tens of thousands of Afghans fled deportation threats in of the Afghans have been living in Pakistan for decades after fleeing successive conflicts in their country and following the Taliban's return to power in 2021. The deportation order came amid a dramatic increase in armed attacks across Pakistan, with the government blaming groups and nationals based in Afghanistan, an allegation the Taliban government in Kabul has rejected. Among those facing deportation is Afghan journalist Freshta Sadid, who holds a valid exit permit, according to the Joint Action Committee for Refugees. The group is calling for 'urgent action' to protect Sadid, warning that she is on the Taliban 'hit list'. Pakistan is not a signatory to the UN's 1951 Refugee Convention that protects the rights of refugees. The country also lacks domestic laws to protect refugees, as well as procedures to determine the status of individuals seeking international protection within its borders.
Al Jazeera
16-04-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Photos: Afghan refugees remain rooted in Pakistan's northwest
Akber Khan is seeing a brisk trade at his restaurant in the northwest Pakistani city of Peshawar. Staff fan skewers of grilled meats and dole out rice and salad. As an Afghan, Khan ought to be leaving as part of a nationwide crackdown on foreigners the Pakistani government says are living in the country illegally. But the only heat he feels is from the kitchen. 'I have been here for almost 50 years. I got married here, so did my children, and 10 of my family members are buried here. That's why we have no desire to leave,' he said. Khan is one of more than three million Afghans Pakistan wants to expel this year. At least a third live in the northwest province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and that's just those with documents like an Afghan Citizen Card or proof of registration. It is not clear how many undocumented Afghans are in the country. The provincial government appears reluctant to repatriate Afghans. Mountainous terrain, sectarian violence and an array of armed groups have also challenged the central government's expulsion ambitions. 'Afghans can never be completely repatriated, especially from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, as they return using illegal channels or exploiting loopholes in the system despite fencing at the border,' said Abdullah Khan, managing director of the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies. 'Many villages along the border are divided between Pakistan and Afghanistan, and people in the past three or four decades were never stopped from visiting either side.' Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's proximity to Afghanistan, together with shared ethnic, cultural and linguistic ties, make it a natural destination for Afghans. The province has hosted significant numbers since the 1980s. Many Afghans have integrated, even marrying locals. The region feels familiar and it's easier to access through legal and illegal routes than other parts of Pakistan. While the provincial government was cooperating with federal counterparts, policy implementation remained slow, said Abdullah Khan. 'The (local) government is sympathetic to Afghans for multiple reasons,' he said. 'They share the same traditions and culture as the province, and former Prime Minister Imran Khan during his days in power consistently opposed coercive measures toward Afghan refugees.' Authorities are also wary about unrest, with Afghans living in almost all of the province's cities, towns and villages. Although police were raiding homes in Islamabad, Rawalpindi and other cities in Punjab and Sindh province farther from the border, the 'lack of aggressive enforcement' was the main reason for the slow repatriation rate, analyst Khan said. Pressure on Pakistan to have a change of heart – from rights groups, aid agencies and Afghanistan's Taliban government – could also be a factor. Nearly 60,000 people have crossed back into Afghanistan since the start of April through the Torkham and Spin Boldak border points, the United Nations International Organization for Migration (IOM) said. Many recent deportations have been from eastern Punjab, which is hundreds of kilometres from the border and home to some 200,000 Afghans with documents.
Al Jazeera
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Pakistan accelerates deportation of Afghans: UN
Pakistan has ramped up the forced mass deportation of Afghan refugees and migrants, with nearly 60,000 having crossed the border since the start of April, the United Nations International Organization for Migration (IOM) said. Nearly three million Afghans in Pakistan are facing deportation after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced in October a three-phase plan to send them back to their home country. The IOM said in a statement on Tuesday that it has assisted more than one million people returning from Pakistan and Iran. Amid the second phase of the plan, the IOM said it had registered a sharp rise in forced returns. Between April 1 and April 13, nearly 60,000 individuals crossed into Afghanistan through the Torkham and Spin Boldak border points, it noted. 'With a new wave of large-scale returns now underway from Pakistan, needs on the ground are rising rapidly – both at the border and in areas of return that are struggling to absorb large numbers of returnees,' said Mihyung Park, head of the agency's Afghanistan mission. In March, Islamabad set an early April deadline for some 800,000 people carrying Afghan Citizen Cards (ACC) issued by Pakistani authorities to leave the country. Families with their belongings in tow have crowded key border crossings of Torkham in the north and Spin Boldak in the south, recalling scenes in 2023 when tens of thousands of Afghans fled deportation threats in Pakistan. Many of the Afghans have been living in Pakistan for decades after fleeing successive conflicts in their country and following the Taliban's return to power in 2021. The deportation order came amid a dramatic increase in armed attacks across Pakistan, with the government blaming groups and nationals based in Afghanistan, an allegation the Taliban government in Kabul has rejected. Among those facing deportation is Afghan journalist Freshta Sadid, who holds a valid exit permit, according to the Joint Action Committee for Refugees. The group is calling for 'urgent action' to protect Sadid, warning that she is on the Taliban 'hit list'. Pakistan is not a signatory to the UN's 1951 Refugee Convention that protects the rights of refugees. The country also lacks domestic laws to protect refugees, as well as procedures to determine the status of individuals seeking international protection within its borders.
