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Daily Maverick
5 hours ago
- General
- Daily Maverick
No aid supplies left, staff starves in Gaza, Norwegian Refugee Council says
By Olivia Le Poidevin 'Our last tent, our last food parcel, our last relief items have been distributed. There is nothing left,' Jan Egeland, the secretary general of the council, told Reuters in an interview via video link from Oslo. The council, which has 64 Palestinian and two international staff on the ground in Gaza, echoed comments on Tuesday by the head of the Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA who said its staff were fainting on the job from hunger and exhaustion. The NRC said that for the last 145 days, it has not been able to get tents, water, sanitation supplies, food and education materials into Gaza, where Israel has been at war against Palestinian group Hamas since October 2023 and the United Nations has warned of a worsening hunger crisis. 'Hundreds of truckloads have been sitting in warehouses or in Egypt or elsewhere, and costing our Western European donors a lot of money, but they are blocked from coming in… That's why we are so angry. Because our job is to help,' Egeland said. 'Israel is not yielding. They just want to paralyse our work,' he added. COGAT, the Israeli military aid coordination agency, said in a statement that Israel does not restrict aid trucks entering Gaza, but international organisations face challenges in collecting the trucks on the Gaza side of border crossings. Israel is working with the groups to improve the system, COGAT said, adding that more than 4,500 aid trucks carrying food for the U.N. and international organizations have entered the enclave in the last two months. Many truckloads were still waiting to be picked up. COGAT said 950 shipments were on the Gaza sides of 'the Kerem Shalom Crossing in the southern side of the Strip, and the Zikim Crossing in the northern part, pending collection and distribution.' COGAT has accused Hamas of stealing food, which Hamas denies. The NRC said its supplies of safe drinking water were running out due to dwindling fuel to run desalination plants. The water has reached 100,000 people in central and northern parts of Gaza in recent weeks An Israeli official told Reuters that the U.N. has been given approval to bring in half a million liters of fuel. 'They're bringing in fuel and collecting, but they can bring in and they can collect more, and we are having discussions with them,' the official said.
AsiaOne
7 hours ago
- General
- AsiaOne
No aid supplies left, staff starves in Gaza, Norwegian Refugee Council says, World News
GENEVA — The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), one of the largest independent aid organisations in Gaza, told Reuters on Tuesday (July 22) its supplies were exhausted and some of its staff starving, and the group accused Israel of paralysing its work. "Our last tent, our last food parcel, our last relief items have been distributed. There is nothing left," Jan Egeland, the secretary general of the council, told Reuters in an interview via video link from Oslo. The council, which has 64 Palestinian and two international staff on the ground in Gaza, echoed comments on Tuesday by the head of the Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA who said its staff were fainting on the job from hunger and exhaustion. The NRC said that for the last 145 days, it has not been able to get tents, water, sanitation supplies, food and education materials into Gaza, where Israel has been at war against Palestinian group Hamas since October 2023 and the United Nations has warned of a worsening hunger crisis. "Hundreds of truckloads have been sitting in warehouses or in Egypt or elsewhere, and costing our Western European donors a lot of money, but they are blocked from coming in… That's why we are so angry. Because our job is to help," Egeland said. "Israel is not yielding. They just want to paralyse our work," he added. Cogat, the Israeli military aid coordination agency, said in a statement that Israel does not restrict aid trucks entering Gaza, but international organisations face challenges in collecting the trucks on the Gaza side of border crossings. Israel is working with the groups to improve the system, Cogat said, adding that more than 4,500 aid trucks carrying food for the UN and international organisations have entered the enclave in the last two months. Many truckloads were still waiting to be picked up. Cogat said 950 shipments were on the Gaza sides of "the Kerem Shalom Crossing in the southern side of the Strip, and the Zikim Crossing in the northern part, pending collection and distribution". Cogat has accused Hamas of stealing food, which Hamas denies. The NRC said its supplies of safe drinking water were running out due to dwindling fuel to run desalination plants. The water has reached 100,000 people in central and northern parts of Gaza in recent weeks An Israeli official told Reuters that the UN has been given approval to bring in half a million liters of fuel. "They're bringing in fuel and collecting, but they can bring in and they can collect more, and we are having discussions with them," the official said. [[nid:719739]]
Straits Times
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
No aid supplies left, staff starves in Gaza, Norwegian Refugee Council says
FILE PHOTO: Palestinians carry aid supplies which they received from the U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, in the central Gaza Strip, May 29, 2025. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed/File Photo GENEVA - The Norwegian Refugee Council, one of the largest independent aid organisations in Gaza, told Reuters on Tuesday its supplies were exhausted and some of its staff starving, and the group accused Israel of paralysing its work. "Our last tent, our last food parcel, our last relief items have been distributed. There is nothing left," Jan Egeland, the secretary general of the council, told Reuters in an interview via video link from Oslo. The council, which has 64 Palestinian and two international staff on the ground in Gaza, echoed comments on Tuesday by the head of the Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA who said its staff were fainting on the job from hunger and exhaustion. The NRC said that for the last 145 days, it has not been able to get tents, water, sanitation supplies, food and education materials into Gaza, where Israel has been at war against Palestinian group Hamas since October 2023 and the United Nations has warned of a worsening hunger crisis. "Hundreds of truckloads have been sitting in warehouses or in Egypt or elsewhere, and costing our Western European donors a lot of money, but they are blocked from coming in… That's why we are so angry. Because our job is to help," Egeland said. "Israel is not yielding. They just want to paralyse our work," he added. COGAT, the Israeli military aid coordination agency, said in a statement that Israel does not restrict aid trucks entering Gaza, but international organisations face challenges in collecting the trucks on the Gaza side of border crossings. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Two found dead after fire in Toa Payoh flat Singapore Singaporeans aged 21 to 59 can claim $600 SG60 vouchers from July 22 Singapore Singaporeans continue to hold world's most powerful passport in latest ranking Singapore Singapore, Vietnam agree to step up defence ties, dialogue between leaders Asia Malaysia govt's reform pledge tested as DAP chief bows over unresolved 2009 death of political aide Tech Singapore to increase pool of early adopters in AI to complement data scientists, engineers Singapore Prosecution says judge who acquitted duo of bribing ex-LTA official had copied defence arguments Singapore Ports and planes: The 2 Singapore firms helping to keep the world moving Israel is working with the groups to improve the system, COGAT said, adding that more than 4,500 aid trucks carrying food for the U.N. and international organizations have entered the enclave in the last two months. Many truckloads were still waiting to be picked up. COGAT said 950 shipments were on the Gaza sides of "the Kerem Shalom Crossing in the southern side of the Strip, and the Zikim Crossing in the northern part, pending collection and distribution." COGAT has accused Hamas of stealing food, which Hamas denies. The NRC said its supplies of safe drinking water were running out due to dwindling fuel to run desalination plants. The water has reached 100,000 people in central and northern parts of Gaza in recent weeks An Israeli official told Reuters that the U.N. has been given approval to bring in half a million liters of fuel. "They're bringing in fuel and collecting, but they can bring in and they can collect more, and we are having discussions with them," the official said. REUTERS
The Print
17 hours ago
- Politics
- The Print
India warns of ‘impact' to ‘social cohesion' by Sikh separatists as PM Modi set to depart to UK
'This is a matter of concern not only to us, but it should be a matter of concern to our partners as well, because this impacts social cohesion and social order in these other countries as well,' added Misri. Speaking at a special briefing on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's two-nation visit to the UK and Maldives from 23 July till 26 July, Misri pointed out that the issue of Sikh separatists existing within the Western European nation is 'something' that India has brought 'to the attention of our partners' and that it will continue to do so. New Delhi: Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri Tuesday warned that Sikh separatists are a 'matter of concern' for countries like the UK, as the space given to them 'impacts social cohesion and social order' in these countries. In recent years, Sikh separatists have posed a security challenge for the Indian mission in the United Kingdom. In March, India had issued a stern warning to London, demanding 'action' not 'words' after Sikh separatists broke a security cordon and tore an Indian flag in front of External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar's vehicle as he was exiting an event in the country. India lodged a strong protest, summoning the British charge d'affaires Christina Scott and handing over a demarche, as reported by ThePrint earlier. In March 2023, Sikh extremists breached India's High Commission in London and detached the tricolour in retaliation to the Punjab Police's attempt to arrest Amritpal Singh, the Sikh separatist turned Member of Parliament. Later that year, Vikram Doraiswami, India's High Commissioner to the UK was prevented from entering a gurdwara in the city of Glasgow by protesters linked to the Sikh separatist movement. PM Modi is set to hold bilateral meetings with his British counterpart Keir Starmer, and is also expected to call on King Charles III. It would be his third meeting with Starmer, following their meeting last month in Canada on the margins of the G7 and the meeting on the margins of the G20 last year. Also read: India-UK relaunch negotiations for free trade agreement. What threatens it Security, FTA on the cards The Indian Foreign Secretary further highlighted that New Delhi has been in discussion with the UK on the extradition of fugitives living in the United Kingdom, while the visit by PM Modi would be an opportunity to discuss important security matters, including the cross border terrorism emanating from Pakistan. 'You are aware of recent developments, also in that regard, the United States State Department has recently designated the TRF [The Resistance Front] as a foreign terrorist organisation, and especially designated global terrorists and a proxy of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba. I'm sure our UK colleagues are updated on this development, but this will give us the opportunity to share further views on issues such as cross border terrorism and the need to respond in fashion to such challenges,' Misri said on the potential discussion on the role of the Resistance Front and the terrorist attack in Pahalgam that left 26 people dead. The visit will also likely see the free trade agreement signed between both countries. India and the UK had announced the conclusion of the negotiations for the FTA on 6 May. The agreement is currently going through the required legal scrubbing and processes to allow for its signing during the visit. The FTA is India's first bilateral agreement with a European nation. Its other agreement is with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), which is a regional grouping that includes Iceland, Liechtenstein, Switzerland and Norway. It will see the elimination of nearly 99 percent of tariff lines for India covering almost 100 percent of its total trade value with the UK. India will give the UK access to a number of sectors including leather, textiles, footwear, gems and jewellery, along with other areas such as auto parts and engineering goods. (Edited by Viny Mishra) Also read: UK FTA is good news for India amid global turbulence. Domestic reforms must follow market access
Straits Times
17 hours ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
No aid supplies left and staff starving in Gaza, says Norwegian Refugee Council
FILE PHOTO: Palestinians carry aid supplies which they received from the U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, in the central Gaza Strip, May 29, 2025. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed/File Photo GENEVA - The Norwegian Refugee Council told Reuters on Tuesday its aid stocks are completely depleted in Gaza, with some of its staff now starving, and the organization accused Israel of paralysing its work. "Our last tent, our last food parcel, our last relief items have been distributed. There is nothing left," Jan Egeland, the secretary general of the council told Reuters in an interview via video link from Oslo. The council's comments echo those made earlier on Tuesday by the head of the Palestinian refugee agency, who said UNRWA's staff were fainting on the job from hunger and exhaustion. The NRC says that for the last 145 days, it has not been able to get hundreds of truckloads of tents, water, sanitation, food and education materials into Gaza. COGAT, the Israeli military aid coordination agency, and Israeli authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It has denied accusations that it is preventing aid from reaching Gaza, and has accused Palestinian militant group Hamas of stealing food, which Hamas denies. "Hundreds of truckloads have been sitting in warehouses or in Egypt or elsewhere, and costing our Western European donors a lot of money, but they are blocked from coming in… That's why we are so angry. Because our job is to help," Egeland said. "Israel is not yielding. They just want to paralyse our work," he added. The NRC has 64 Palestinian and two international staff on the ground in Gaza. On Sunday the NRC had to move 33 of its staff out of Deir al Balah following Israeli evacuation warnings. The NRC said its supplies of safe drinking water are also running out, due to dwindling supplies of fuel to run desalination plants. The water has reached 100,000 people in central and northern parts of Gaza in recent weeks An Israeli official told Reuters there is about a half a million liters of fuel that the U.N. has been given approval to bring in. "They're bringing in fuel and collecting, but they can bring in and they can collect more, and we are having discussions with them," the official said. The official also said that there are about 700 trucks of unpacked aid on the Gaza side of the Kerem Shalom crossing which have not been distributed. REUTERS
