Latest news with #ethnic cleansing
The Guardian
19-07-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
‘The place is empty, a lot have left': Ballymena weighs up impact of anti-migrant riots
Since Ballymena erupted in three nights of anti-migrant riots last month, tranquility has returned to the County Antrim town. The rioters, after all, got what they wanted. They won. Dozens of Roma families that fled have not returned and those that remain keep a low profile – they do not linger on the streets and are scarcely visible. The mobs who smashed windows, burned houses and battled police in order to expel Roma – and some other foreigners – from this corner of Northern Ireland see it as a victory. 'That's them away back home. Everybody is relieved,' said Leanne Williamson, 42, who witnessed, and endorsed, the unrest. 'It was madness but it was long overdue. The Romanians were ignorant and cheeky. Everyone now is at peace.' In the main flashpoint – Clonavon Terrace and adjoining streets – houses that were torched remain gutted and boarded up. Of the Roma families who inhabited them there is no sign. There are no official figures but one informed source with ties to the community estimated that of the approximate pre-riot population of 1,200, two-thirds are gone – or, to use a loaded term, ethnically cleansed. 'The place is empty, a lot have left,' said Kirsty, 35, a Clonavon Road resident who withheld her surname. She did not miss her former neighbours, or what she said had been a transient flux. 'You didn't know who was coming and going. Now it's a lot calmer. You can let your weans [children] out on the street a bit further.' Did the riots achieve their goal? 'Yes.' Another local person, who did not want his name published and did not endorse the riots, said the aftermath was striking. 'Ballymena was like a whole new town, there was an amazing atmosphere. It was like something out of a movie where the bad gang has been kicked out and people come out to celebrate.' The sentiment this week felt closer to quiet satisfaction, not jubilation, but it was still a counterpoint to the condemnation last month – from Keir Starmer and politicians across Northern Ireland – of mayhem that left dozens of police officers injured. The Police Federation likened the outbreak to an attempted pogrom. Violence abated as quickly as it started and apart from reports of prosecutions the story disappeared from headlines. Plenty in Ballymena, a largely working-class Protestant town 25 miles north of Belfast, feel shame at what happened. 'They were wrecking places and causing harm to people,' said Padraig, a teenager. 'It was racist,' said his friend Robert. 'I don't think it was the right thing to do.' Their reluctance to be fully identified reflected the fact that for others in Ballymena, it was mission accomplished. Filipinos and people from central and eastern Europe, drawn by factory work, have increased in number in the past decade, mostly without incident, but the Roma people were singled out for allegations of antisocial behaviour and criminality. An alleged sexual assault on a teenage girl by two 14-year-old boys, who appeared in court with a Romanian interpreter, triggered the riots. A third suspect fled to Romania. 'Where are the foreigners?' the mob shouted during a free-for-all against anyone deemed non-local – a scene that echoed anti-immigrant riots in Belfast and England last summer, and fuelled warnings that the UK is a 'powder keg' of social tension. However, rioters and sympathisers later apologised to non-Roma families who were 'accidentally' targeted. Posters that declared 'Filipino lives here', and loyalist bunting, sprouted on doors and windows to deflect attack. In a sign of reduced tension the stickers have gone and Filipinos said they felt safe. 'We are staying, we are OK. Our dreams will not stop with the trauma,' said Karen Estrella, 35, a care home worker. Posters that declare 'Locals live here' have also dwindled. Fero, a 45-year-old from Slovakia, said he liked Ballymena and blamed the riots on misbehaviour by Roma and Bulgarians. 'I'm happy with what happened. Now they're gone.' Authorities are unable to say how many people fled or have since returned, and appear reluctant to comment on the riots' aftermath. Ballymena's mayor, deputy mayor, constituency MP and several other public representatives declined or did not respond to interview requests. The Department for Communities referred questions about the vanished Roma to the Housing Executive, which said it did not hold such information but that 74 households – not necessarily Roma – sought assistance during the disorder. Of these households, 21 were placed in temporary accommodation and others made their own arrangements, said a spokesperson. Critics have accused unionist parties of turning a blind eye to racism – such as a loyalist bonfire in County Tyrone that burned an effigy of migrants – to avoid losing votes. In Ballymena reticence extends to some civic society organisations that declined to be interviewed or quoted. A paradox underpins the vigilantism. Some local people accuse the Roma of peddling cannabis and vapes, and credit paramilitaries with leading the expulsions, yet they acknowledge that paramilitaries sell drugs. 'Aye,' said one, with a shrug. 'That's it.' During the Guardian's visit this week, the only visible Roma presence was a family at a fast-food restaurant. It was raining yet they sat at an outside bench, getting wet, rather than inside.
Japan Times
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
Amid heated debate, no real plan for Israel's 'humanitarian city' in Gaza
An Israeli scheme to move hundreds of thousands of already uprooted Palestinians to a so-called "humanitarian city" in Gaza has led politicians to spar with the defense establishment, but officials say a practical plan has yet to be crafted. Even without a clear blueprint, opposition critics have denounced the proposal, with some likening the suggested site to a "concentration camp," which could lead to ethnic cleansing in the coastal enclave devastated by 21 months of conflict. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's administration has defended the project, saying it would offer civilians a safe haven while further weakening Hamas militants' grip on Gaza, but it remains unclear whether it is a concrete government policy.
Al Arabiya
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Israel's proposed ‘humanitarian city' in Gaza likened to a concentration camp
An Israeli scheme to move hundreds of thousands of already uprooted Palestinians to a so-called 'humanitarian city' in Gaza has led politicians to spar with the defense establishment, but officials say a practical plan has yet to be crafted. Even without a clear blueprint, opposition critics have denounced the proposal, with some likening the suggested site to a 'concentration camp', which could lead to ethnic cleansing in the coastal enclave devastated by 21 months of conflict. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's administration has defended the project, saying it would offer civilians a safe haven while further weakening Hamas militants' grip on Gaza, but it remains unclear whether it is a concrete government policy. The idea was floated by Defense Minister Israel Katz earlier this month and Netanyahu convened minister and defense officials to discuss it late on Sunday. The military had been asked to put together a detailed proposition, but Netanyahu dismissed it as far too costly and complicated, two Israeli officials who were present said, and ordered them to come up with something cheaper and faster. An Israeli military source said it was a complex initiative that required intricate logistics for infrastructure such as sewage, sanitation, medical services, water and food supplies. Planning was in a very initial phase only, the source said, and the goal was to help Palestinians who do not want to live under Hamas rule. Hamas did not respond to a Reuters request for comment. Some commentators have suggested the real aim of floating the plan was to increase pressure on Hamas during ongoing ceasefire talks, while also appeasing right-wingers in the cabinet who oppose any truce. Netanyahu's office and the Israeli military did not respond to a Reuters request for comment. The plan Katz outlined the plan on July 7 at a briefing with Israeli military correspondents. It followed a proposal by US President Donald Trump, which was publicly embraced by Netanyahu but widely criticized abroad, for Gazans to move to third countries while the battered enclave was rebuilt. Almost all of Gaza's population of more than 2 million people has already been uprooted during the conflict, which was triggered in October 2023 when Hamas launched a deadly surprise attack on Israel. Katz said last week that around 600,000 people would be moved to the new encampment, to be built in southern Gaza abutting the Egyptian border where Israeli forces have gained control and which, like much of Gaza, now lies in ruins. The new zone, in Rafah, would be free of any Hamas presence and run by international forces, not Israeli ones, Katz was quoted by both Israel public broadcaster Kan and Army Radio's military correspondents as saying at the July 7 briefing. He was also quoted as saying that the people who chose to move there would not be free to leave. Katz's spokesman declined to comment. Zeev Elkin, an Israeli minister who sits on Netanyahu's security cabinet, told Kan the plan aimed to weaken Hamas' power in Gaza. 'The more you separate Hamas from the population, the more Hamas will lose. As long as Hamas controls the food, the water and the money, it can go on recruiting militants,' Elkin said. Asked about concerns the relocations there would be forced and whether the new zone was meant to serve as transit camps with the ultimate aim of expelling Palestinians from Gaza, the military official who spoke with Reuters said: 'that is not our policy.' When asked about the plan, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said: 'As we've said multiple times, we firmly stand against any plan that involves forced displacements of civilians in Gaza or forces (them) to make impossible choices.' 'Mainly spin' Since Katz's briefing, Israeli media has been awash with leaks. Left-leaning Haaretz newspaper, on July 9 citing senior military officials, said the plan had met resistance from the military because of its legal and logistical challenges. On Sunday, Israel's N12 News said the military objected to the plan because it could scupper ceasefire talks in Doha, while the Ynet news site cited officials as saying it would cost 10 billion to 15 billion shekels ($3 billion to $4.5 billion). The report drew a rebuke from Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who said that some people in the defense establishment were trying to sabotage the plan by presenting inflated budgets. 'Preparing a protected area for the population,' Smotrich's office said, 'is a simple logistical operation that costs only hundreds of millions – an amount that the Ministry of Finance is willing to transfer.' After Sunday's discussions, hardline national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir dismissed the controversy as a smokescreen to distract from concessions Israel may be willing to make in the ceasefire talks with Hamas. Ben-Gvir, like Smotrich, wants Israel to press on with the war, Palestinians to leave Gaza and Jewish settlements that were dismantled there two decades ago to be rebuilt. 'The debate surrounding the establishment of the humanitarian city is mainly spin aimed at concealing the deal that is brewing,' Ben-Gvir posted on X. He said there was no way it could be built during the proposed 60-day ceasefire. Opposition leader Yair Lapid said on Monday the plan was dangerous and would not materialize. 'Will the residents of this city be allowed to leave it? If not, how will they be prevented? Will it be surrounded by a fence? A regular fence? An electrical fence? How many soldiers will guard it? What will the soldiers do when children want to leave the city?' he said at Israel's parliament.
Yahoo
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Food distribution system for Palestinians ‘like hunger games', says archbishop
The Archbishop of Jerusalem has likened the 'horrifying' food distribution system for Palestinians to 'hunger games' and criticised discussions of 'ethnic cleansing' between the Israeli and US governments. Archbishop Hosam Naoum spoke at the Church of England's General Synod on Tuesday, in which he urged Church leaders to support a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine and call for a permanent ceasefire. The Anglican bishop, who is chief pastor of 28 parishes across Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon, addressed the final day of the latest gathering of the Church's parliament, sitting in York. He said that in Palestine 'medical supplies are in short supply; food distribution system is horrifying, with three sites open one hour a day for two million people – it looks for me like hunger games'. It is not clear if he was referring to the dystopian film series The Hunger Games. The archbishop said it had been reported last month by an Israeli news organisation that 'more than 500 have been killed by (Israel Defence Forces) soldiers'. He called on Israel to urgently adhere to the Geneva Convention 'as its current practices are unacceptable'. The archbishop said there should be: 'No bombing of hospitals, lifting of siege, restoration of humanitarian supplies including food and medicine under UN supervision, no targeting of civilians, especially emergency workers and medical staff. 'Release of all hostages and captives. 'Permanent ceasefire needed… rebuilding of Gaza. 'No ethnic cleansing that is presently being discussed by Israeli and US governments. 'Until all of this is achieved and established, every other part of our lives and our ministries is covered in a shroud of death.' Calling for the recognition of a Palestinian state, the archbishop concluded: 'We are not politicians; however, we need to speak out in the face of injustices and be prophetic for the sake of our people.'
RNZ News
14-07-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Former Israeli leader says planned ‘humanitarian city' in Gaza would be ‘concentration camp'
By Eugenia Yosef and Oren Liebermann , CNN Ehud Olmert said Palestinians were deported into the new 'humanitarian city it would be part of "an ethnic cleansing". Photo: AFP / Stephane de Sakutin A planned "humanitarian city" inside Gaza intended to hold hundreds of thousands of Palestinians would be a "concentration camp," former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has warned. Defense Minister Israel Katz said last week he had told the military to advance plans for the zone , which would eventually contain the entire population of Gaza. The area would be built on the ruins of the city of Rafah in southern Gaza, and once Palestinians enter the zone, they would not be allowed to leave. Katz also vowed to implement a plan for the emigration of Palestinians from Gaza. "It is a concentration camp. I am sorry," Olmert told The Guardian newspaper on Sunday. "If they (Palestinians) will be deported into the new 'humanitarian city', then you can say that this is part of an ethnic cleansing." In response to Olmert's comments, the Prime Minister's Office called him a "convicted felon disgracing Israel on CNN." In a statement, the office said: "We evacuate civilians. Hamas blocks them. He calls that a war crime?" Olmert was freed from prison in 2017 after serving 16 months on corruption charges. Olmert has previously blasted the conduct of the Israeli military in Gaza and the country's political leadership. In May, he said he could no longer defend Israel against accusations of war crimes. "What is it if not a war crime?" he asked rhetorically in an interview with CNN. He said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and far-right members of his government are "committing actions which can't be interpreted any other way." More than 58,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the start of the war, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. The latest comments from Olmert, who served as Israel's prime minister from 2006-2009, go much further in criticizing the country's intentions in Gaza, however, especially since comparisons to Nazi concentration camps in Israel is considered virtually unthinkable. But Olmert said it was the "inevitable interpretation" of the plans. "When they build a camp where they (plan to) 'clean' more than half of Gaza, then the inevitable understanding of the strategy of this (is that) it is not to save (Palestinians). It is to deport them, to push them and to throw them away," Olmert told the Guardian. Katz's plans for what he dubbed the "humanitarian city" were discussed at a meeting with Netanyahu on Sunday evening, according to a source familiar with the matter. But after Israeli news outlets reported that it would take months to build the zone and billions of dollars, the source said Netanyahu asked to make its establishment shorter and less expensive. Yair Lapid, the head of Israel's opposition, blasted the plans as an attempt by Netanyahu to let his far-right government partners "run wild with extreme fantasies just to preserve his coalition." In a statement on social media, Lapid called to "end the war and bring back the hostages." Michael Sfard, an Israeli human rights lawyer, told CNN last week that Katz's plan amounts to the forcible transfer of a population in preparation for deportation. Both of these are war crimes, Sfard said. "If they are done on a massive scale - whole communities - they can amount to crimes against humanity," Sfard added, dismissing the notion that any departure from Gaza could be considered voluntary. - CNN
