Latest news with #foodshortages
RNZ News
6 hours ago
- Politics
- RNZ News
Gaza-bound aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg reaches Israeli port
By Jack Guez with Benoit Finck in Jerusalem, AFP The aid sailboat Madleen at the southern port of Ashdod after being intercepted by Israeli forces on June 9, 2025. Photo: AFP / Jack Guez A Gaza-bound aid boat reached Israel's Ashdod port on Monday (local time) after being intercepted by Israeli forces, preventing the dozen activists on board including Swedish campaigner Greta Thunberg from reaching the blockaded Palestinian territory. An AFP photographer said that the Madleen , which organisers said was intercepted in international waters overnight, reached the port north of Gaza at around 8:45pm (1745 GMT), escorted by the Israeli navy. The Madleen set sail from Italy on 1 June to raise awareness of food shortages in the Gaza Strip, which the United Nations has called the "hungriest place on Earth". After more than 20 months of war, triggered by Palestinian militant group Hamas's 7 October, 2023 attack on Israel, the UN has warned that Gaza's entire population is at risk of famine. At around 4:02am (0102 GMT) on Monday, Israeli troops "forcibly intercepted" the vessel as it approached Gaza, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition said. "If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped," Thunberg said in pre-recorded footage shared by the coalition. Greta Thunberg on board the Madleen, on her way to Gaza. Photo: Greta Thunberg / supplied Video from the group shows the activists with their hands up as Israeli forces boarded the vessel, with one of them saying nobody was injured prior to the interception. Israel's foreign ministry, in a post on social media, said "all the passengers of the 'selfie yacht' are safe and unharmed", adding it expected the activists to return to their home countries. Turkey condemned the interception as a "heinous attack" and Iran denounced it as "a form of piracy" in international waters. In May, another Freedom Flotilla ship, the Conscience , reported it was struck by drones in an attack the group blamed on Israel. In 2010, an Israeli commando raid on the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara, which was part of a similar attempt to breach the naval blockade, left 10 civilians dead. On Sunday, Defence Minister Israel Katz said the blockade, in place for years before the Israel-Hamas war, was needed to prevent Palestinian militants from importing weapons. The Madleen was intercepted about 185 kilometres west of the coast of Gaza, according to coordinates from the coalition. President Emmanuel Macron requested that the six French nationals aboard the boat "be allowed to return to France as soon as possible", a presidential official said. Two of them are journalists, Omar Fayyad of Qatar-based Al Jazeera and Yanis Mhamdi who works for online publication Blast, according to media rights group Reporters Without Borders, which condemned their detention and called for their "immediate release". Al Jazeera "categorically denounces the Israeli incursion", the network said in a statement, demanding the reporter's release. Adalah, an Israeli NGO offering legal support for the country's Arab minority, said the activists on board the Madleen had requested its services, and that the group was likely to be taken to a detention centre before being deported. Israel is facing mounting pressure to allow more aid into Gaza to alleviate widespread shortages of food and basic supplies. In what organisers called a "symbolic act", hundreds of people launched a land convoy on Monday from Tunisia with the aim of reaching Gaza. Israel recently allowed some deliveries to resume after barring them for more than two months and began working with the newly formed, US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. But humanitarian agencies have criticised the GHF and the United Nations refuses to work with it, citing concerns over its practices and neutrality. Dozens of people have been killed near GHF distribution points since late May, according to Gaza's civil defence agency. In Gaza City on Monday, displaced Palestinian Umm Mohammed Abu Namous told AFP that she hopes "that all nations stand with us and help us, and that we receive 10 boats instead of one". "We are innocent people," she said. "Our children are dying of hunger... We do not want to lose more children because of hunger." The Hamas attack that triggered the war resulted in the deaths of 1219 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official figures. The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza says at least 54,880 people, the majority civilians, have been killed in the territory since the start of the war. The UN considers these figures reliable. Out of 251 taken hostage during the Hamas attack, 54 are still held in Gaza including 32 the Israeli military says are dead. -AFP
Khaleej Times
7 hours ago
- Politics
- Khaleej Times
Seized Gaza aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg reaches Israeli port
A Gaza-bound aid boat reached Israel's Ashdod port on Monday after being intercepted by Israeli forces, preventing the dozen activists on board including Swedish campaigner Greta Thunberg from reaching the blockaded Palestinian territory. An AFP photographer said that the Madleen, which organisers said was intercepted in international waters overnight, reached the port north of Gaza at around 8:45 pm (1745 GMT), escorted by the Israeli navy. The Madleen set sail from Italy on June 1 to raise awareness of food shortages in the Gaza Strip, which the United Nations has called the "hungriest place on Earth". After more than 20 months of war, triggered by Palestinian militant group Hamas's October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, the UN has warned that Gaza's entire population is at risk of famine. At around 4:02 am (0102 GMT) on Monday, Israeli troops "forcibly intercepted" the vessel as it approached Gaza, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition said. "If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped," Thunberg said in pre-recorded footage shared by the coalition. Video from the group shows the activists with their hands up as Israeli forces boarded the vessel, with one of them saying nobody was injured prior to the interception. Israel's foreign ministry, in a post on social media, said "all the passengers of the 'selfie yacht' are safe and unharmed", adding it expected the activists to return to their home countries. Turkey condemned the interception as a "heinous attack" and Iran denounced it as "a form of piracy" in international waters. In May, another Freedom Flotilla ship, the Conscience, reported it was struck by drones in an attack the group blamed on Israel. In 2010, an Israeli commando raid on the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara, which was part of a similar attempt to breach the naval blockade, left 10 civilians dead. On Sunday, Defence Minister Israel Katz said the blockade, in place for years before the Israel-Hamas war, was needed to prevent Palestinian militants from importing weapons. Mounting pressure The Madleen was intercepted about 185 kilometres (115 miles) west of the coast of Gaza, according to coordinates from the coalition. President Emmanuel Macron requested that the six French nationals aboard the boat "be allowed to return to France as soon as possible", a presidential official said. Two of them are journalists, Omar Fayyad of Qatar-based Al Jazeera and Yanis Mhamdi, who works for online publication Blast, according to media rights group Reporters Without Borders, which condemned their detention and called for their "immediate release". Al Jazeera "categorically denounces the Israeli incursion", the network said in a statement, demanding the reporter's release. Adalah, an Israeli NGO offering legal support for the country's Arab minority, said the activists on board the Madleen had requested its services, and that the group was likely to be taken to a detention centre before being deported. Israel is facing mounting pressure to allow more aid into Gaza to alleviate widespread shortages of food and basic supplies. In what organisers called a "symbolic act", hundreds of people launched a land convoy on Monday from Tunisia with the aim of reaching Gaza.
News.com.au
17 hours ago
- Politics
- News.com.au
Israel diverts Gaza-bound aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg
Israeli forces intercepted a Gaza-bound aid boat on Monday, preventing the activists on board -- including Swedish campaigner Greta Thunberg -- from reaching the blockaded Palestinian territory. The Madleen set sail from Italy on June 1 to raise awareness of food shortages in Gaza, which the United Nations has called the "hungriest place on Earth". After 21 months of war, the UN warns the entire population is at risk of famine. At around 4:02 am (0102 GMT), Israeli forces "forcibly intercepted" the vessel in international waters as it was approaching Gaza, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition said. "If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped in international waters," Thunberg said in a pre-recorded video shared by the coalition. Footage from the group shows the activists with their hands up as Israeli forces boarded the vessel, with one of them saying nobody was injured prior to the interception. Israel's foreign ministry wrote on social media, "all the passengers of the 'selfie yacht' are safe and unharmed," adding that it expected the activists to return to their home countries. Turkey condemned the interception of the Madleen as a "heinous attack" in international waters. Iran also denounced it as "a form of piracy", citing the same grounds. In May, another Freedom Flotilla ship, the Conscience, reported it was struck by drones in an attack the group blamed on Israel. In 2010, a commando raid on the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara, which was part of a similar attempt to breach Israel's naval blockade, left 10 civilians dead. On Sunday, Defence Minister Israel Katz said the blockade, in place since years before the Israel-Hamas war, was needed to prevent Palestinian militants from importing weapons. - 'Risked their lives' for food - The boat was intercepted about 185 kilometres (115 miles) west of the coast of Gaza, according to coordinates provided by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition. Israel is facing mounting international pressure to allow more aid into Gaza to alleviate widespread shortages of food and basic supplies. It recently allowed some humanitarian deliveries to resume after barring them for more than two months and began working with the newly formed, US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. But humanitarian agencies have criticised the GHF and the United Nations refuses to work with it, citing concerns over its practices and neutrality. Dozens of people have been killed near GHF distribution points since late May, according to Gaza's civil defence agency. It said Israeli attacks killed at least 10 people on Sunday, including five civilians hit by gunfire near an aid distribution centre. Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal and witnesses said the civilians had been heading to a GHF-run site west of Rafah, in southern Gaza. Abdallah Nour al-Din, a witness, said "the Israeli army opened fire" on people who had started gathering at the site in the early morning. The Israeli military said it fired on people who "continued advancing in a way that endangered the soldiers" despite warnings. - Sinwar - The GHF said there had been no incidents "at any of our three sites" on Sunday. Outside Nasser Hospital, where the emergency workers brought the casualties, AFPTV footage showed mourners crying over blood-stained body bags. "I can't see you like this," said Lin al-Daghma by her father's body. She spoke of the struggle to access food aid after the two-months Israeli blockade, despite the recent easing. At a charity kitchen in Gaza City, displaced Palestinian Umm Ghassan told AFP she had been unable to collect aid from a GHF site "because there were so many people, and there was a lot of shooting. I was afraid to go in, but there were people who risked their lives for their children and families". Also on Sunday, the Israeli military said it had located and identified the body of Mohammed Sinwar, presumed Hamas leader in Gaza, in an "underground tunnel route beneath the European Hospital in Khan Yunis", in southern Gaza. The military, which until Sunday had not confirmed his death, said Israeli forces killed Sinwar on May 13. Sinwar was the younger brother of slain Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, accused by Israel of masterminding the 2023 attack that triggered the war. The Hamas attack resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official figures. The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza says at least 54,880 people, the majority civilians, have been killed in the territory since the start of the war. The UN considers these figures reliable. After the deaths of several Hamas leaders, Mohammed Sinwar was thought to be at the heart of decisions on indirect negotiations with Israel. The military said that alongside Sinwar's body, forces had found "additional intelligence" at the Khan Yunis site "underneath the hospital, right under the emergency room".
Sky News
14-05-2025
- Business
- Sky News
Co-op updates on recovery after cyber attack forced empty shelves
The Co-op has said food stocks will start to recover from the weekend as it battles back from a cyber attack that forced it to take key systems offline. The member-owned group's grocery stores, along with those of regional Co-operatives, Nisa and Costcutter - have been increasingly suffering shortages since the attack on the group was declared on 30 April. Co-op customers found last week that while stores remained open, the number of empty shelves was expanding by the day as the mutual stopped taking many orders and sought to prioritise deliveries to remote, rural shops. Co-op said it had fully restored its stock ordering systems to allow for a resumption of activity within its supply chain, but admitted that it amounted to a "recovery phase" as getting back to normal would take time. It is widely believed the group fell victim to the same hackers that targeted Marks & Spencer and Harrods towards the end of April. Both M&S and the Co-op have admitted that personal customer data was snatched but say the thefts were limited to names and contact details, with payment details safe. Each was unable to accept several forms of payment as they grappled to secure their respective IT systems in the immediate aftermath of the attacks, believed to be the work of a group known as Scattered Spider. Experts say both are set to face financial hits worth many millions of pounds. Lost sales, the cost of clearing up the attacks and investment in new IT infrastructure to make their systems safer are among the headwinds. M&S has been unable to accept any online business since 25 April. A Co-op spokesperson said: "Following the malicious third-party cyber attack, we took early and decisive action to restrict access to our systems in order to protect our Co-op. "We are now in the recovery phase and are taking steps to bring our systems gradually back online in a safe and controlled manner."
Sky News
14-05-2025
- Business
- Sky News
Co-op updates on recovery after cyberattack forced empty shelves
The Co-op has said food stocks will start to recover from the weekend as it battles back from a cyberattack that forced it to take key systems offline. The member-owned group's grocery stores, along with those of regional Co-operatives, Nisa and Costcutter - have been increasingly suffering shortages since the attack on the group was declared on 30 April. Co-op customers found last week that while stores remained open, the number of empty shelves was expanding by the day as the mutual stopped taking many orders and sought to prioritise deliveries to remote, rural shops. Co-op said it had fully restored its stock ordering systems, to allow for a resumption of activity within its supply chain, but admitted that it amounted to a "recovery phase" as getting back to normal would take time. It is widely believed that the group fell victim to the same hackers that targeted Marks & Spencer and Harrods towards the end of April. Both M&S and the Co-op have admitted that personal customer data was snatched but say the thefts were limited to names and contact details, with payment details safe. Each was unable to accept several forms of payment as they grappled to secure their respective IT systems in the immediate aftermath of the attacks, believed to be the work of a group known as Scattered Spider. Experts say both are set to face financial hits worth many millions of pounds. Lost sales, the cost of clearing up the attacks and investment in new IT infrastructure to make their systems safer are among the headwinds. M&S has been unable to accept any online business since 25 April. A Co-op spokesperson said: ""Following the malicious third-party cyber attack, we took early and decisive action to restrict access to our systems in order to protect our Co-op. "We are now in the recovery phase and are taking steps to bring our systems gradually back online in a safe and controlled manner."
