Palestinians fight for their lives and their stolen lands

[Anthea]

Century of colonialism crushed

at feet of Resistance

Amid a critical juncture that could sink US influence worldwide, thinktanks look for Arab Peace Initiative II, but the armed Resistance has since October 7 made it clear that its demands are for a free Palestine. But how does this all come together?

Shimon Peres’ "New Middle East" crumbles at the feet of a victorious Arab Resistance. The former Israeli Prime Minister, whose legacy is entrenched in the blood of the murdered children of Qana, wrote a book about a new so-called "peaceful" Middle East back in 1993. At the time, it was rarely ever stated that the word "peace" was code for "subjugated" and "occupied".

However, after "Israel’s" resounding failure in achieving its goals in the Gaza Strip, despite the genocide it has perpetrated, "the world" reared its teeth, defending "Israel's right" to commit genocide after being once hidden in sheep’s clothing, "bringing democracy" to the world for decades, rather for an entire century.

Today, after the purpose of the Camp David agreement has objectively failed due to the sequential victories of the armed Resistance, and to secure "Israel" its much-needed role as a barrier state through the attempted establishment of "Grand Israel" and "Greater Israel", Western thinktanks are suggesting an Arab Peace Initiative II.

Liberation: Resistance does not negotiate with terrorists

These suggestions remind us of Henry Kissinger’s diplomacy in the so-called Middle East [which, if liberated from its colonial position would be referred to as the Arab world] which was based on myth-building that would offer Arab leaders apparent gains, a tiny piece of cake, but would ultimately serve US interests and strengthen the Israeli position in the region.

However, this approach was shattered when the Resistance proclaimed liberation as its ultimate goal, and refused to accept a tiny piece of a cake being presented to it with numerous conditions, from a cake that was entirely its own.

Here we speak of the victory of 2000 in Beirut after the Israeli Occupation Forces were left with no choice but to retreat to the withdrawal line to South Lebanon. We also speak of the Secretary General of Hezbollah Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah announcing the end of "Grand Israel" in a speech following the 2006 victory, which imposed new deterrence equations against the Zionist enemy in occupied Palestine.

Significantly, much of the analysis on the topic has often separated Israeli-led wars from US-led wars across the Arab world while combining Israeli and Arab interests in the region through processes such as the normalization accords.

This analysis will not repeat such a mistake and will include the wars of Syria and Iraq as part of the Resistance’s path toward liberation, as "Israel" and its interests are but a means to secure US influence and interests in the region.

It is worth noting that this region is the US’ most significant sphere of influence, and if lost, the empire’s influence will inevitably be questioned across Asia and Africa, prompting a European call to reassess Europe's positioning and the purpose of NATO amid the emergence of a new world order.

Doublespeak no more: the myths have shattered

Claims of "peace", "non-violence", "democracy", and "human rights", have taken over speeches and campaigns launched by the US, NATO, and their most valuable asset, "Israel", for decades. Just like that, "peace" replaced "occupation" and "subjugation", "intervention" replaced "invasion", and "security operation" replaced "genocide" and "massacres". We saw these same practices in Somalia, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Libya, and even in Kosovo and Rwanda, as well as multiple other countries

The collective West, led by NATO, and including "Israel", have sought after their own interests at the cost of human life in multiple countries across the world, forgetting that just like "a rose by any other name would smell as sweet," it remained that genocide, ethnic cleansing, subjugation, and plunder were colonial and occupation practices, no matter how often they are called "peace".

Today, it is without a doubt that without liberation, there cannot be peace, because there can be no dignity under occupation, no liberty under siege, and no right to life and property under settler-colonialism.

But ever since October 7, the historic policy of the US, which drives both NATO and Israeli decision-making and policy, has been revealed to be what it has always been: a policy built on genocide, plunder, and enslavement.

To this note, Israeli occupation President Isaac Herzog said on MSNBC "This war is not only a war between Israel and Hamas, it's a war that is intended, really, truly, to save Western civilization. To save the values of Western civilization."

What Herzog is saying is not false. The American defeat in Israel and the success of the Resistance will result in the faltering of US influence in the region. This war for liberation in Palestine is also the war for the unmaking of the Sykes-Picot agreement which divided the region and its people in such a way that it established a well-developed system of plunder that has been sustained for a century. This is Western civilization, and the liberation of Palestine will, without a doubt, be another nail in its coffin

The most honest description: Cards on the table

Back in 1999, Samuel Berger, who then served as the US assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, stressed, in an address titled The Middle East On The Eve Of The Millennium: Building Peace, Strengthening America's Security, that "How the Middle East evolves matters," adding that "it matters, of course, most directly, to the people of the Arab world."

However, Berger, in what could have possibly been one of the most straightforward speeches in the history of the US, further explained that the "Middle East" matters not only to the Arab people who live there but also "matters to the American people as well, because of the strategic, political and economic interests that are at stake."

After the US interests in the Arab world, Berger emphasized that the region "also matters - profoundly -- to the people of Israel," justifying that argument by saying, "For them, the difference between a Middle East focused on economic development and looking to the future and a region mired in poverty and in hatreds inherited from the past is the difference between peace and conflict...lasting security and...perpetual threat...a normal life and the lives they have been forced to live."

US foreign policy could not have been any clearer in an era that preceded the "war on terror".

On one condition: Right of Return

The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, in its Arab Peace Initiative II proposal, has set six conditions for success:

Palestinian and Jewish national identities should be recognized as legitimate and in need of institutional expression. Individual human rights in both communities need to be protected.

Antisemitic, Islamophobic, and racist rhetoric and actions must be explicitly and unconditionally repudiated by all actors.

Any targeting of civilians should not be merely rejected but actively combated by all actors.

Settlement activities in the Palestinian territories and forced displacement of Palestinians to Egypt, Jordan, or anywhere else should be considered outlawed actions that all actors commit to fight against.

Full diplomatic, political, and economic relations among participating states should be an outcome of the negotiation process.

No stateless people should be left behind at the conclusion of any set of agreements.

These conditions are inherently flawed and dismiss the Palestinian cause at its core, as they deny Palestinians the Right of Return and liberation from occupation, and force them to accept occupation as an allegedly unchanging 'reality' they have to deal with and can do nothing about.

This is happening at a time when the Axis of Resistance, extending from Tehran to Sanaa, and passing through Damascus, Baghdad, and Beirut, has proven to be stronger than ever and capable of imposing deterrence equations and altering previous colonially imposed realities in favor of liberation.

In other words, occupied al-Quds, the primary concern of the Arab world, and the Arab capital of occupied Palestine, has no business negotiating a piece of the cake when Operation Al-Aqsa Flood has proven that a fully functioning and well-coordinated Axis with a successful strategy could, despite the hefty human cost (noting that the price of surrender would not only exceed the human cost but would also incur the added cost of people losing their dignity) result in liberating the entire cake.

The US policy and approach have historically been grounded in the idea that the US is a supreme nation with unwavering and far-reaching influence. Today, this influence has been brought to a test in Ukraine, Africa, Europe, and today, in the Arab world

The Arab world is the crown jewel of US influence, and losing influence in this geographic location would culminate in the demise of US influence worldwide, and result in significant strategic and geopolitical changes that would directly impact US, and inevitably NATO, interests globally.

An Arab Peace Initiative II that would disregard the right of Palestinians to self-defense and return cannot be put forward at a time when armed Resistance factions have made it clear they would not be held back by another Oslo Agreement, and certainly not when they have proven militarily both willing and capable of achieving gains, despite the hefty price.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... resistance

Israelis MUST be removed from the settlements they have installed on STOLEN Palestinian lands

[Anthea]

Apocalyptic situation in Gaza

During a video conference this week in the presence of journalists, international aid charities and organizations raised concerns about an “apocalyptic” situation in Gaza, after illustrating a picture of the “horrors” there, as depicted by Save The Children

Alexandra Saieh of Save the Children said, “Those who survived the bombardment now face imminent risk of dying of starvation and disease,” adding, “Our teams are telling us of maggots being picked from wounds and children undergoing amputations without anesthetic," waiting by the “hundreds” for a “single toilet” or searching for food.

Bushra Khalidi of UK-headquartered Oxfam charity called the humanitarian situation “apocalyptic” and denied there is any safe zone in the Strip.

“The situation in Gaza is not just a catastrophe, it’s apocalyptic... with potential irreversible consequences on Palestinian people,” Khalidi noted, adding, “Israel safe zones within Gaza are mirage.”

Helpless humanitarian workers

Sandrine Simon of the Medecins du Monde (Doctors of the World) charity spoke of an incident suffered by a colleague wounded in Khan Younis “when a tank attacked a school where he had taken refuge." She stated that after it “took him hours to reach a hospital,” there were “exhausted” nurses trying to care for hundreds of patients lying on the floor.

“Gaza’s hospitals are becoming morgues. That’s unacceptable.”

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) President Isabelle Defourny relayed a similar story, highlighting the urgent matter that fuel and medical supplies are “critically low".

“We are working in Al-Aqsa hospital, receiving an average of 150 to 200 war-wounded patients daily... since the first of December.”

Defourny added that this week, “they received more dead than wounded patients. The hospital is overflowing, the morgue is overflowing, fuel and medical supplies have reached critically low level,” adding that "Israel" has been displaying “a total disregard for the protection of Gaza’s medical facilities."

In the conference, the World Food Program (WFP) stressed that “famine” is soaring in Gaza, while the World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned of the collapse of civilization, since “given the living conditions and lack of health care, more people could die from disease than bombings."

Blinded by greed

Just today, UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said that over 130 confirmed UNRWA staff, predominantly with their families, have been killed by Israeli bombings, adding that this number may increase.

Lazzarini noted that following Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, several thousand civilians in Gaza preemptively sought refuge in UNRWA premises, anticipating unprecedented aggression and seeking safety under the UN flag.

As of Friday, December 8, this number had increased to 1.2 million, approximately half of the Gaza Strip's population, he added.

"UNRWA is, as of today, still operational in the Gaza Strip, though just barely," he said.

This comes after the United States, on Friday, vetoed a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, shielding its ally

The US deputy representative at the UN, Robert Wood, said the resolution was "divorced from reality" and "would have not moved the needle forward on the ground."

Thirteen Security Council members voted in favor of a brief draft resolution, presented through the UAE, and Britain abstained. The vote came after UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres invoked the UN charter’s Article 99 for it on Wednesday.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... --situatio

[Anthea]

Khan Younis battle

While the US hopes the Israeli occupation's operation in the Gaza Strip would end in December, the Israeli official said the operation for 'Tel Aviv' will likely last until the end of January

In Khan Younis, the high-intensity warfare is expected to last another three or four weeks according to Axios, which cited a senior Israeli defense official.

Despite the pressure, the Biden administration is not "pulling the brakes" on the Israeli occupation's operation across the Gaza Strip with the alleged goal of eliminating Hamas.

The Israeli official told Axios that the Israeli Occupation Forces "have made significant progress" in northern Gaza, but that the operation in the southern city of Khan Younis "has just started."

Significantly, the US has also allegedly not given "Israel" a firm deadline to stop the operation, said the Israeli official, while White House Deputy National Security Adviser Jon Finer corroborated that information when he told the Aspen Security Forum in Washington, earlier last week, that "This is their conflict. That said, we do have influence, even if we don't have ultimate control over what happens on the ground in Gaza."

According to the Israeli official, "Israel" is aiming to end the operation by the end of January, however, the US would be satisfied if said operation could be concluded by the end of December.

In other words, said the Israeli official, "The US message is that they would want us to finish faster, with less civilian casualties and more humanitarian aid to Gaza," adding "We want the same thing, but there is another player here and this is the enemy that doesn't agree."

"The US understands this. We are working together. We need them and they need us," said the Israeli official.

Palestinian Resistance fight Israeli forces, inflicts major casualties

This is discussed as the al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas Resistance movement, said there were casualties among Israeli soldiers who had sheltered themselves in a civilian building after they attacked their positions with TBG rockets.

The al-Qassam said its fighters were engaging in numerous confrontations west of the Jabalia refugee camp.

The al-Aqsa Brigades said their fighters attacked an Israeli armored vehicle in the western Jabalia direction, which killed and wounded all the soldiers aboard.

The al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement, said their fighters engaged in fierce urban combat with the invading enemy forces, with two Israeli tanks being partially or completely destroyed west of Jabalia after they were attacked with the tandem RPGs.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... aeli-offic

[Anthea]

Infectious diseases in Gaza

Illnesses and diseases are tearing through the survivors of the aggression

Amid the turmoil Gazans have found themselves in due to "Israel's" genocidal war, with the lack of clean water, food, medicinal aid, overcrowded shelters, and the cold weather of December, illnesses and diseases are tearing through the survivors.

As Gaza remains deprived of aid and with the constant reckless bombardment that destroys hospice facilities and aid coming into the Strip, those who have fallen ill find themselves unable to receive treatment as doctors scurry the limited resources they still have to Palestinians who have been injured by Israeli strikes.

The catastrophic collapse of Gaza's healthcare system has made it unfeasible to collect data on the exact number of people and children consumed by illnesses, but the World Health Organization, with records from the Ministry of Health in Gaza and the UNRWA, reported at least 369,000 cases of infectious diseases.

However, Shannon Barkley, the health systems team lead at the World Health Organization’s offices in Gaza and the West Bank, mentioned that the aforementioned number is restricted to southern Gaza and excludes cases in northern Gaza, leading the organization to predict a much higher number.

According to Barkley, contagious respiratory diseases, like cold or pneumonia are among the most common, but milder diseases are circulating, leaving children, the elderly, and immunodeficient individuals at risk of serious health hazards because of the pre-existing grim living conditions Palestinians are forced under.

In a cry to The New York Times, Samah al-Farra, a 46-year-old mother of 10, said her entire family is sick in the middle of her struggle to keep them safe in a Palestinian camp in Rafah. "All of my kids have a high fever and a stomach virus," she said. As a result of sleeping on the bare floor of the camp, Samah and her children have all experienced burning fevers, chronic diarrhea, and vomiting.

She described the water used for drinking as the same one they use to clean up, which is clearly contaminated, as she said her hands felt dirtier when she washed. She also shared the struggles of her two youngest children, Hala, 6 years old, and Mohammad, 9 years old.

Hala has grown too weak to move or ask for food, even though she had been starving for the past few weeks since they got displaced, developed a rash covering her back, and caught lice that cannot be washed out because her mother cannot afford shampoo, while Mohammad has been seizing due to his chronic fever

Regardless, multiple statements have criticized the rate of aid being allowed into Gaza, saying it is hardly enough, pre and post-ceasefire.
A horror show in Gazan hospitals

A recent report by the WHO dubbed hospitals in Gaza a "horror movie". Richard Peeperkorn, WHO's representative in occupied Palestine, according to an AFP report, said, "We are extremely concerned about the resumption of violence," adding that "the health system in Gaza has been crippled by the ongoing hostilities."

According to Peeperkorn, the health system in Gaza "cannot afford to lose more hospitals," noting that only 18 out of the 36 hospitals in the Strip are currently operating, with only three hospitals in the north that are barely operative.

Marie-Aure Perreaut Revial, an emergency coordinator at Doctors Without Borders, spoke to The New York Times from Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Gaza and said that hospitals have surpassed their capacity at handling new-coming patients.

Doctors have had to make the impossible choice of prioritizing patients with trauma injuries from Israeli strikes, but even they cannot get full and proper medical care due to the very limited resources hospitals have. Marie also said that patients cannot get the post-op care they need resulting in severe infections due to the unsanitary conditions Palestinians are exposed to.

“There’s a very big focus on the wounded and the injured patients, but it’s the entirety of the health care system that is just being brought to the ground,” she added.

Ameera Malkash, a 40-year-old Gazan, described the scene at the hospital when she took her son hoping to treat him as he turned extremely pale. The hospital in Khan Younis was flooded with civilian casualties due to the Israeli bombing, which prompted doctors to turn her down.

The day after, a doctor at the hospital told her that her son was infected with Hepatitis A; a bacterium that has spread rapidly among Palestinians through the water they shared.

Thomas White, the director of UNRWA affairs in Gaza, issued a warning just last week about the escalating Hepatitis A outbreak in the region, emphasizing the overwhelming challenges faced by UNRWA schools-turned-shelters due to the extensive displacement in the southern areas.

"At one of our schools, we've now had an outbreak of Hepatitis A," he said.

In an interview for the BBC, White acknowledged the significant difficulties in maintaining sanitation within the shelters, where people are densely packed into classrooms, with an average of 150 individuals sharing a single bathroom.

Palestinian Health Minister, Mai al-Kaila, said about 1,000 cases of hepatitis A had been recorded in the Gaza Strip last week.

Catastrophe, Disaster, Apocalypse

On Sunday, Dr. Marwan al-Hamase, who serves as the director of Rafah's Abu Yousef al-Najjar Hospital, reported that his modest facility was currently hosting hundreds of displaced individuals who had to sleep on floors where the injured were being treated. Dr. al-Hamase highlighted that these floors had not been cleaned for weeks due to the unavailability of cleaning products.

The situation has escalated to a point where malnutrition is spiraling out of control, according to Dr. al-Hamase. He noted a significant rise in cases of anemia and dehydration among children, with the number nearly tripling.

Displaced Palestinians seeking shelter in UN-managed facilities are having to use communal bathrooms lacking running water. The accumulation of fecal matter on the streets poses a risk of disease spread and further contamination of water sources, warned WHO's Barkley.

Firas al-Darby, a 17-year-old residing in a UN school-turned-shelter in the southern region, shared that he has been grappling with a fungal infection covering his entire body for weeks. He expressed concern about the pervasive presence of bacteria, filth, and the potential for more disease outbreaks throughout the school.

The most recent atrocity involved shocking footage and images of decomposing infants' bodies discovered in Al-Nasr Children's Hospital in the… pic.twitter.com/1glC4wp5se
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) November 29, 2023

The world has run out of words to describe the situation in Gaza. It is a berserk of ailment and death that "Israel" has created.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... -healthcar

[Anthea]

Palestinians Killed Exceeds 18,200

On Tuesday, official sources stated that the Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip has already caused the death of more than 18,200 people, in the midst of enormous efforts by the international community to stop the massacre

According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, the number of fatalities from the war now stands at 18,205, and 49,645 wounded, since October 7; however, “this figure is actually much higher,” it said, due to the number of bodies under the rubble.

The ministry also stated that the health situation in the hospitals in southern Gaza is catastrophic and there are no means to cope with the huge number of wounded with a total lack of therapeutic and clinical capabilities.

Furthermore, the Gaza Ministry of Health denounced that Israeli troops stormed the Kamal Aduan hospital in the north of the Palestinian enclave and called on the United Nations (UN) to take measures to protect those inside.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian resistance reported that it managed to repel the advance of Israeli forces in the Jabalia area, amid heavy fighting that caused casualties among the ranks of the Zionist army, after attacking a special force entrenched in a building.

For their part, Israeli troops intensified their military operations against the south of the Palestinian enclave during the last days, especially against the city of Khan Yunis, in the south of the Strip, where they bombed the surroundings of the Nasser Hospital

The northern town of Jabalia, which hosts the largest refugee camp in Gaza, also came under fire.

Also in the south, in the city of Rafah, 12 people were killed, including six children, when a house in the Zuhur neighborhood was shelled.

In addition, several reports noted that Israel and the United States are increasingly isolated in the face of international pressure for a cease-fire in Gaza, including a non-binding vote expected to go forward at the United Nations on Tuesday afternoon.

Finally, an investigation by the U.S.-based Washington Post confirmed that the Israeli military used white phosphorus in its attacks on southern Lebanon, a substance banned by the Geneva Convention

The source indicate that its reporters found the remains of three 155-millimeter artillery shells fired in Dheira, southern Lebanon, near the Israeli border, which incinerated at least four houses.

https://www.telesurenglish.net/news/Num ... -0013.html

[Anthea]

Israel Is Worse Than ISIS

Even prior to their ground invasion of Gaza, Zionist forces and their settlers, blindfolded, beat, urinated on and sexually assaulted Palestinian activists in the West Bank

Now responsible for the mass murder of around 22,000 Palestinians in Gaza, the Zionist entity has outperformed ISIS in human slaughter. Yes, the Israeli military, which tried to compare Hamas to ISIS, has actually committed an atrocity which makes the ISIS death toll seem tame.

The Zionist entity, within the space of two months, has killed around 22,000 people in the Gaza Strip (this statistic includes those buried under the rubble) and injured at least 41,000. In comparison, according to the United Nations, the ISIS insurgency in Iraq killed some 18,800 civilians in 2 years.

Also pulling from the official UN statistics on the war in Syria, ISIS terrorists killed – between March 2011 and March 2023 - just north of 5,000 civilians. Although the statistics for Syria are questionable and it would appear to be much higher than this, we are still talking about a death toll that was inflicted over 12 years.

Some may argue that the nature of the ISIS terror campaign was somewhat more gruesome, due to the sheer scale of sexual violence, mass executions of ethnic/religious minorities and mutilation of bodies.

Although there have been allegations of Palestinian female prisoners being raped by Israeli guards and there has been along history of sexual violence against Palestinians, it is true that we saw a larger scale of sexual violence when it came to the takfiri terrorists.

However, what we have to keep in mind here is that we are now comparing a non-State actor and an entity which has been accepted as a UN member.

According to the United Nations relief chief, Martin Griffiths, the humanitarian situation in the besieged Gaza Strip is “The. Worst. Ever.” A statement that should make any sane person's skin crawl.

Some 80% of Gaza’s 2.3 million civilian population have been displaced due to the Israeli onslaught, at least 1.1 million of that population are children. Israeli officials made it very clear from the start of their genocidal campaign, they would be switching off the food, water, electricity, fuel and all other aid.

The Zionist entity has systematically targeted hospitals, ambulances, international aid workers, UN workers and facilities, along with mosques, shetlers and schools. The occupation forces have completely destroyed over half of the entire civilian infrastructure in Gaza.

This is a war of extermination, a battle against what the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said was “Amalek”, a clear call to exterminate every man, woman and child in the Israeli army’s way.

On the ground, the Israeli soldiers have behaved like animals, rummaging through women’s underwear, defacing and defecating in civilian homes, also stealing money and personal belongings, all while filming themselves doing it and laughing.

Israeli forces have rounded up hundreds of civilians, stripping them into their underwear at gunpoint and leaving them humiliated and in the cold. Even prior to their ground invasion of Gaza, Zionist forces and their settlers, blindfolded, beat, urinated on and sexually assaulted Palestinian activists in the West Bank

When it comes to the issue of Israeli prisoners of war, the entire world has been in uproar. Yet, there were only around 240 Israelis taken by the Palestinian resistance factions on October 7, while the Zionist regime has taken over 3,000 Palestinians captive since that time.

The Palestinian prisoner issue has received not even a fraction of the attention that a few hundred Israelis received, around half of them soldiers, despite there being over 7,600 Palestinians being held captive by the Zionist regime. Since 1967, over 1 million Palestinians have been held in Israeli detention, this includes tens of thousands of children

When looking to compare what the Zionists are doing to the people of Gaza, it is truly difficult to find a close comparison - in terms of the scale and intensity - in modern history, without going back to World War II.

People have compared the Israeli war on Gaza to the bombing of Dresden, but we have now gotten to a point that has surpassed that level of destruction. Others have sought to compare the number of explosives dropped on Gaza, to the destructive force of the atomic bombs dropped by the United States on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, yet the tonnage of explosives dropped on Gaza has far surpassed this too.

When we turn to look at conflicts like Iraq, Syria and Yemen, we have to keep in mind that Gaza is not like entire countries, it's a tiny strip of land where everyone is completely locked in and never gets a break from the non-stop bombings and atrocities.

There is nothing that can truly compare to the scale of the Zionist entity’s atrocities in Gaza, it is a unique crime committed in all of human history. Attempting to compare it to other crimes against humanity is futile at this point.

The evidence is all there for the world to see, the horrors are never ending and we have run out of accurate comparisons to draw. Even comparing what the Zionist regime is doing, to ISIS, is incorrect, because in terms of the death tolls, the Israelis are inflicting far more murder in a shorter period of time

The Zionist regime constantly talks of its “right to exist”, well, any argument that it could once make as to why they needed to exist is gone.

This racist entity has no right to exist whatsoever, they are an Apartheid regime that are committing the worst crimes against humanity, in terms of scale, that the world has seen in recent memory, all for the sake of quenching a thirst for revenge, so that they continue on their settler colonial projects quest to conquer and ethnically cleanse as much land as possible.

That entire regime is a cancer, it must be dismantled and replaced with a democratic State where all peoples, Muslims, Jews, Christians, and others, can live in peace and enjoy full equality

In a sane world, the Zionist regime would be completely dismantled and this racist tyranny would cease to exist, but instead we live in a world where there is no justice unless it is achieved by force.

The atrocities committed against the people of Gaza have proven that there is no “rules-based order”, no “international community”, no “international law” and no “human rights”, we live in a world that is divided into two groups only, the powerful and the powerless.

This is why the people of Gaza, Lebanon and Yemen, amongst others, have had to form their own indigenous resistance groups, because they have accepted that the only way they can protect their people is through becoming powerful.

When you deal with an enemy who sees you as subhuman, who will not respect peace treaties, and has no limitations to the scale of the atrocities they will commit, you have to fight. The whole world let Gaza down, only the resistance factions are there to protect them, everyone else watched on and refused to take action.

https://english.almayadeen.net/articles ... -than-isis

[Anthea]

Israel dismisses UN ceasefire resolution

"Israel will continue the war against Hamas with or without international support," Cohen said as quoted by Reuters. "A ceasefire at the current stage is a gift to the terrorist organization Hamas, and will allow it to return and threaten the residents of Israel."

The UN General Assembly voted on Tuesday to implement an urgent humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza. US President Joe Biden, the leader of "Israel's" staunchest ally, cautioned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that international support was waning.

"Israel", Biden said, "has the European Union, it has Europe, it has most of the world supporting them, but they’re starting to lose that support by indiscriminate bombing that takes place."

The Israeli aggression on Gaza has resulted in extensive destruction all across the Strip. Gaza authorities report a death toll exceeding 18,000 martyrs, while UN agencies indicate that over 80% of the 2.3 million population have been displaced from their homes.

Cohen further urged the international community to act "effectively and aggressively" to safeguard global shipping lanes. The Yemeni resistance has issued a warning, stating that they view shipping bound for "Israel" or Israeli-linked interests as legitimate targets in the Red Sea.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... s-gaza-war

[Anthea]

Al Mayadeen ban

The Israeli occupation's cabinet approves an extension of its ban on Al Mayadeen for an additional 30 days

Israeli media reported that the ministers in Benjamin Netanyahu's government agreed to extend the restrictions imposed on the Al Mayadeen Media Network for another 30 days.

The Israeli war cabinet approved on November 13 regulations that would allow the occupation government to ban and shut down Al Mayadeen Media Network, which comprises a foreign channel as per the emergency regulations descriptions and broadcasts in "Israel" in three languages: Arabic, English, and Spanish.

According to the decision, Al Mayadeen is said to "harm national security."

In accordance with the emergency regulations enacted by the occupation government to prevent any foreign broadcast corporation from compromising "national security" and after the Minister of Security was convinced of the actual threat to "national security", the war cabinet approved early this morning the proposal by the Minister of Communications to shut down Al Mayadeen Media Network.

The occupation's war cabinet has issued an order to block Al Mayadeen's online operations in occupied Palestine, and an order to seize its broadcasting equipment will be issued later today

Among the decisions taken is issuing an order addressing all Internet service providers to prevent all users of the services from accessing the following websites "that were found, after examination by the Ministry of Information, to be Internet sites through which Al Mayadeen channel broadcasts":

Almayadeen.net
English.almayadeen.net
Espanol.almayadeen.net

According to the Israeli Minister of Communications, the ban on Al Mayadeen is part of the measures taken by the Israeli regime in its "war in the public consciousness."

“Israel is at war. On land, in the air, at sea in cyberspace, in the electromagnetic spectrum, and in [the public] consciousness,” the Israeli Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi said.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... yadeen-ban

[Anthea]

The Planet's Frankenstein

Imperialist demons are joined by a chorus of propagandists masquerading as journalists and experts, creating a monstrous world in the process and a history that will never forgive them

In Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein creates a monster by assembling parts from cadavers. The monster initially sought to fit into society, yet it later transformed into an evil being. In the novel, the creator, Frankenstein, feels immensely guilty for the death and terror that his monster inflicts upon others.

Shelley’s novel was written in 1857. Yet, decades later, Western imperialism would help create a much more sinister, diabolic monster, called "Israel"

The imperial West’s creation would be considerably different from Shelley’s. While Frankenstein began by not harming anyone, "Israel" was founded on killing, oppressing, and displacing hundreds of thousands of innocent people.

Near the end of the 20th century, its founding fathers unapologetically launched Zionism, a genocidal supremacist ideology, leading to the creation of this abomination upon humanity in 1948.

This is what the Palestinians call the Nakba, or ‘catastrophe’ when approximately 750,000 Palestinians were ethnically cleansed from their homes, with over 400 Palestinian villages deliberately destroyed and wiped off the map.

The Nakba itself was preceded by the Balfour Declaration in 1917, in which the British foreign secretary basically promised Palestine, the land of the Palestinians, to the Jews of Europe

For decades following this, British forces in Palestine oppressed, imprisoned, and killed the Palestinians who sought to preserve and maintain their homeland up to the Nakba.

Moreover, unlike the original monster by Frankenstein, "Israel" never even sought to fit into the global community of civilized nations, since that would’ve contradicted the ideology it was premised upon.

The massacres against the Palestinians continued, with dozens more -in 1948 alone- perpetrated by the newly-founded entity, including those in Tantura and Deir Yassin (1948), Gaza (1956), and Al-Aqsa (1990) to name a few

Over the decades, these slaughters were coupled with land thefts, more than 130,000 home demolitions (as of the year 2021 but prior to these war crimes in Gaza), hundreds of thousands of political prisoners, the displacement of another 350,00 Palestinians in 1967, an illegal and brutal military occupation that began in 1967, killing and wounding worshippers in Al-Aqsa Mosque... and the list goes on.

Even the Palestinians who acquired citizenship from the 1948 areas of Palestine were not spared from this supremacist ideology, suffering from more than 65 discriminatory Israeli laws making them second-class citizens.

Fast forward to the latest onslaught against Palestinians in Gaza, who have been subjected to the worst forms of killing and oppression imaginable in the past couple of decades, too extensive to list here and including a 16-year blockade.

History did not begin on October 7 with the attack by the Palestinian armed resistance against the Israeli occupation. As in the past, this Frankenstein-like monster has continued its genocidal path, bombing hospitals and homes and cutting off food, water, electricity, and medicine from 2 million civilians.

Naturally, the majority of the thousands of Palestinians deliberately killed in the past few weeks are children - who constitute more than 50% of Gaza’s population - and women, and nearly all of them are civilians. These lives are not just numbers, but humans with families, loved ones, hopes, dreams, and aspirations, humans who are living through hell and bombardment every day before the world, and then dying.

So, when one hears the ridiculous and despicable claims of those who state that "Israel" has a right to “defend itself”, I say to them stay quiet until you pull your head out of that dark place. Israelis are now openly calling for the genocide of the Palestinian people, reminding us of those Israelis who were cheering the bombs as they were dropped on the heads of Palestinian children in 2014.

So, "Israel" has the right to “defend itself” as much as a pedophile rapist has the right to “defend himself” against his victim child who is trying to fight back. “Defending itself” has become nothing more than a euphemism for it to continue its barbaric acts of genocide. Those who do indeed have the right to defend themselves are the Palestinians

In the original story, Frankenstein felt guilty for what he created. Yet, not only do the bloodthirsty imperialist demons not feel guilty for their concoction, but they have also encouraged it to continue with its crimes.

They are joined by a chorus of propagandists masquerading as journalists and experts, creating a monstrous world in the process and a history that will never forgive them.

https://english.almayadeen.net/articles ... ankenstein

[Anthea]

51% of American youth think

Israel should be ended

A recent poll by Harvard-Harris demonstrates a clear majority among Americans between 18-24 years old, calling for "an end to Israel" and the return of the Palestinian land to the Palestinian people

In a recent poll by Harvard-Harris, a majority of young Americans said they believe that the occupation state of "Israel" should "be ended" and that the Palestinian land should be given back to "Hamas and the Palestinians."

The survey found that 51% of Americans between the ages of 18 and 24 said they believed the solution to the Palestinian issue was for “Israel to be ended and given to Hamas - the Palestinian Resistance movement - and the Palestinians.”

Only 32% said they believed in a "two-state solution", and just 17% said other Arab states should be asked to "absorb Palestinian populations".

Regarding some of the same demographic, 60% said Hamas’ Oct 7 operation could be “justified by the grievance of Palestinians” — a position held by 27% of Americans overall.

At the same time, 58% of 18-24-year-olds agreed that “Hamas would like to commit genocide" against settlers in "Israel.”

When questioned about whether "Israel" is engaged in genocide in Gaza or is merely "defending itself and targeting Hamas", 60% of Americans aged 18-24 expressed the view that "Israel" is committing genocide. Additionally, 53% of young Americans asserted that students should have the freedom to advocate for the "genocide of Jews" without facing consequences.

Moreover, 67% of 18-24-year-olds said they believed settlers “should be treated as oppressors” — a position which 73% of Americans disagreed with and called a “false ideology.”

Nevertheless, these results align with previous research indicating that young Americans tend to hold more pro-Hamas sentiments compared to other demographic groups.

This comes after a recent poll by Pew Research Center, stating that only a third of Americans approve of the Biden administration's reaction to the war on Gaza.

With Republicans, 51% of respondents disapprove while only 28% approve. Democrats, meanwhile, stand further divided: 44% approve, 33% disapprove, and 22% are undecided.

The Israeli bombardment of Gaza and the US backing of such aggression has been the biggest foreign policy challenge for the current administration, followed by the Ukraine war.

In late November, a Quinnipiac survey indicated that younger voters had a much higher pro-Palestine stance than older voters, warning the Democratic Party could lose their support.

Respondents under 30 were the most critical of Biden of all age groups, with only 19% approving of the White House reaction and 46% disapproving. Overall, older generations were less unfavorable in the poll.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... ded---poll

BRILLIANT IDEA:

Give Palestinian land back to the Palestinian people

ANOTHER BRILLIANT IDEA:

Give Kurdish land back to the Kurdish people

[Anthea]

Al-Shifa Hospital ER a bloodbath

The WHO, in a statement on Sunday, described the emergency department at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza as a "bloodbath" as "Israel's" war strategy hits hospitals and medical complexes

Members from the WHO and UN agencies were able to deliver limited medical supplies to the hospital on Saturday, but highlighted the "severe shortage of food and water" on its grounds, as thousands of displaced Palestinians sought shelter in it.

"The team described the emergency department as a 'bloodbath', with hundreds of injured patients inside, and new patients arriving every minute," the WHO said, adding that "patients with trauma injuries were being sutured on the floor... (and) no pain management is available".

It was reported that the hospital is running at maximum capacity but with very limited staff and supplies, and had to transfer critical patients to Al-Ahli Hospital. Operating rooms are reportedly not working due to the lack of oxygen, spiking the need for a hospital "resuscitation". As a result, among thousands of patients, only 30 can be put on dialysis per day.

Al-Shifa to be reinforced soon

The health sector in Gaza is crumbling with every Israeli attack. The Israeli war machine has repeatedly targeted, raided, and bombarded hospitals under the claim of Hamas tunnels being built beneath the grounds, a claim that has been consistently refuted.

The WHO said it would reinforce Al-Shifa soon for it to resume basic services.

"Up to 20 operating theatres in the hospital, as well as post-operative care services, can be activated if provided with regular supplies of fuel, oxygen, medicines, food, and water," the WHO said. Employing relevant staff is also necessary, the WHO added.

All surviving hospitals in Gaza are currently functioning at a minimum, while Al-Ahli is "partially functioning". Before the war, more than 36 medical facilities were operating in Gaza.

The WHO also addressed concerns for Kamal Adwan Hospital, which has seen multiple attacks and raids by the IOF.

"Israel's" most recent massacre transpired as Israeli tanks raided the Kamal Adwan Martyrs Hospital, running down Palestinian refugee tents, and leading to Palestinians being buried alive, Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Gaza reported

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... -bloodbath

[Anthea]

The Nakba did not start or end in 1948

Every year on May 15, Palestinians around the world, numbering about 12.4 million, mark the Nakba, or “catastrophe”, referring to the ethnic cleansing of Palestine and the near-total destruction of Palestinian society in 1948

On that day, the State of Israel came into being. The creation of Israel was a violent process that entailed the forced expulsion of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their homeland to establish a Jewish-majority state, as per the aspirations of the Zionist movement.

Between 1947 and 1949, at least 750,000 Palestinians from a 1.9 million population were made refugees beyond the borders of the state. Zionist forces had taken more than 78 percent of historic Palestine, ethnically cleansed and destroyed about 530 villages and cities, and killed about 15,000 Palestinians in a series of mass atrocities, including more than 70 massacres

Though May 15, 1948, became the official day for commemorating the Nakba, armed Zionist groups had launched the process of displacement of Palestinians much earlier. In fact, by May 15, half of the total number of Palestinian refugees had already been forcefully expelled from their country.

Israel continues to oppress and dispossess Palestinians to this day, albeit in a less explicit way than that during the Nakba.

What caused the Nakba?

The roots of the Nakba stem from the emergence of Zionism as a political ideology in late 19th-century Eastern Europe. The ideology is based on the belief that Jews are a nation or a race that deserve their own state.

From 1882 onwards, thousands of Eastern European and Russian Jews began settling in Palestine; pushed by the anti-Semitic persecution and pogroms they were facing in the Russian Empire, and the appeal of Zionism.

In 1896, Viennese journalist Theodor Herzl published a pamphlet that came to be seen as the ideological basis for political Zionism – Der Judenstaat, or “The Jewish State”. Herzl concluded that the remedy to centuries-old anti-Semitic sentiments and attacks in Europe was the creation of a Jewish state.

Though some of the movement’s pioneers initially supported a Jewish state in places such as Uganda and Argentina, they eventually called for for building a state in Palestine based on the biblical concept that the Holy Land was promised to the Jews by God.

In the 1880s, the community of Palestinian Jews, known as the Yishuv, amounted to three percent of the total population. In contrast to the Zionist Jews who would arrive in Palestine later, the original Yishuv did not aspire to build a modern Jewish state in Palestine.

After the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire (1517-1914), the British occupied Palestine as part of the secret Sykes-Picot treaty of 1916 between Britain and France to divvy up the Middle East for imperial interests.

In 1917, before the start of the British Mandate (1920-1947), the British issued the Balfour Declaration, promising to help the “establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people”, essentially vowing to give away a country that was not theirs to give.

Central to the pledge was Chaim Weizmann, a Britain-based Russian Zionist leader and chemist whose contributions to the British war effort during World War I (1914-1918) made him well-connected to the upper echelons of the British government. Weizmann lobbied hard for more than two years with British former Prime Minister David Lloyd-George and former Foreign Minister Arthur Balfour to publicly commit Britain to building a homeland for the Jews in Palestine.

By giving their support to Zionist goals in Palestine, the British hoped they could shore up support among the significant Jewish populations in the US and Russia for the Allied effort during WWI. They also believed the Balfour Declaration would secure their control over Palestine after the war.

From 1919 onwards, Zionist immigration to Palestine, facilitated by the British, increased dramatically. Weizmann, who later became Israel’s first president, was realising his dream of making Palestine “as Jewish as England is English”.

Between 1922 and 1935, the Jewish population rose from nine percent to nearly 27 percent of the total population, displacing tens of thousands of Palestinian tenants from their lands as Zionists bought land from absentee landlords.

Leading Arab and Palestinian intellectuals openly warned against the motifs of the Zionist movement in the press as early as 1908. With the Nazi seizure of power in Germany between 1933 and 1936, 30,000 to 60,000 European Jews arrived on the shores of Palestine.

In 1936, Palestinian Arabs launched a large-scale uprising against the British and their support for Zionist settler-colonialism, known as the Arab Revolt. The British authorities crushed the revolt, which lasted until 1939, violently; they destroyed at least 2,000 Palestinian homes, put 9,000 Palestinians in concentration camps and subjected them to violent interrogation, including torture, and deported 200 Palestinian nationalist leaders

At least ten percent of the Palestinian male population had been killed, wounded, exiled or imprisoned by the end of the revolt.

The British government, worried about the eruption of violence between the Palestinians and Zionists, tried to curtail at several points immigration of European Jews. Zionist lobbyists in London overturned their efforts.

In 1944, several Zionist armed groups declared war on Britain for trying to put limits on Jewish immigration to Palestine at a time when Jews were fleeing the Holocaust. The Zionist paramilitary organisations launched a number of attacks against the British – the most notable of which was the King David Hotel bombing in 1946 where the British administrative headquarters were housed; 91 people were killed in the attack.

In early 1947, the British government announced it would be handing over the disaster it had created in Palestine to the United Nations and ending its colonial project there. On November 29, 1947, the UN adopted Resolution 181, recommending the partition of Palestine into Jewish and Arab states.

At the time, the Jews in Palestine constituted one third of the population and owned less than six percent of the total land area. Under the UN partition plan, they were allocated 55 percent of the land, encompassing many of the main cities with Palestinian Arab majorities and the important coastline from Haifa to Jaffa. The Arab state would be deprived of key agricultural lands and seaports, which led the Palestinians to reject the proposal

Shortly following the UN Resolution 181, war broke out between the Palestinian Arabs and Zionist armed groups, who, unlike the Palestinians, had gained extensive training and arms from fighting alongside Britain in World War II.

Zionist paramilitary groups launched a vicious process of ethnic cleansing in the form of large-scale attacks aimed at the mass expulsion of Palestinians from their towns and villages to build the Jewish state, which culminated in the Nakba.

While some Zionist thinkers claim there is no proof of a systematic master plan for the expulsion of Palestinians for the creation of the Jewish state, and that their dispossession was an unintended result of war, the presence of a Palestinian Arab majority in what Zionist leaders envisioned as a future state meant the Nakba was inevitable.

Why do Palestinians commemorate the Nakba on May 15?

The British occupation authorities had announced that they would be ending their mandate in Palestine on the eve of May 15, 1948. Eight hours earlier, David Ben-Gurion, who became Israel’s first prime minister, announced what the Zionist leaders called a declaration of independence in Tel Aviv.

Palestinians commemorated their national tragedy of losing a homeland in an unofficial way for decades, but in 1998, the former President of the Palestinian Authority, Yasser Arafat, declared May 15 a national day of remembrance, on the 50th year since the Nakba.

Israel celebrates the day as its day of independence.

When did the process of displacement actually begin?

Though displacement of Palestinians from their lands by the Zionist project was already taking place during the British Mandate, mass displacement started when the UN partition plan was passed.

In less than six months, from December 1947 to mid-May 1948, Zionist armed groups expelled about 440,000 Palestinians from 220 villages.

Before May 15, some of the most infamous massacres had already been committed; the Baldat al-Sheikh massacre on December 31, 1947, killing up to 70 Palestinians; the Sa’sa’ massacre on February 14, 1948, when 16 houses were blown up and 60 people lost their lives; and the Deir Yassin massacre on April 9, 1948, when about 110 Palestinian men, women and children were slaughtered.

How many Palestinians were displaced?

As units of the Egyptian, Lebanese, Syrian, Jordanian and Iraqi armies invaded on May 15, the Arab-Israeli war was launched, and stretched until March 1949.

By the first half of 1949, at least 750,000 Palestinians in total were forcibly expelled or fled outside of their homeland. Zionist forces had committed about 223 atrocities by 1949, including massacres, attacks such as bombings of homes, looting, the destruction of property and entire villages.

Some 150,000 Palestinians remained in the areas of Palestine that became part of the Israeli state. Of the 150,000, some 30,000 to 40,000 were internally displaced.

Like the 750,000 who were displaced beyond the borders of the new state, Israel prohibited internally displaced Palestinians from returning to their homes.

In the years that followed the establishment of Israel, the state extended its systematic ethnic cleansing. Though armistice agreements had been signed with Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon in 1949, the newly founded Israeli army committed a number of additional massacres and campaigns of forced displacement.

For example, in 1950, the remaining 2,500 Palestinian residents of the city of Majdal were forced into the Gaza Strip, about 2,000 inhabitants of Beer el-Sabe were expelled to the West Bank, and some 2,000 residents of two northern villages were driven into Syria.

By the mid-1950s, the Palestinian population inside Israel had become about 195,000. Between 1948 and the mid-1950s, some 30,000, or 15 percent of the population, were expelled outside the borders of the new state, according to the BADIL refugee rights group.

Is the Nakba over?

While the Zionist project fulfilled its dream of creating “a Jewish homeland” in Palestine in 1948, the process of ethnic cleansing and displacement of Palestinians never stopped.

During the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, known as the Naksa, meaning “setback”, Israel occupied the remaining Palestinian territories of East Jerusalem, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and continues to occupy them until today. While under the UN partition plan Israel was allocated 55 percent, today it controls more than 85 percent of historic Palestine

The Naksa led to the displacement of some 430,000 Palestinians, half of which originated from the areas occupied in 1948 and were thus twice refugees. As in the Nakba, Israeli forces used military tactics that violated basic international rights law such as attacks on civilians and expulsion. Most refugees fled into neighbouring Jordan, with others going to Egypt and Syria.

What is the situation today?

The more than three million Palestinians living in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem face home demolitions, arbitrary arrests, and displacement as Israel expands the 100-plus Jewish-only colonies and steals Palestinian land to do so. Palestinian movement is restricted by military checkpoints and the Separation Wall that has obstructed their ability to travel freely.

The Gaza Strip, where some two million Palestinians live, has been under Israeli siege for more than a decade whereby Israel controls the air space, sea and borders; the Strip has also witnessed three Israeli assaults that have made the area close to uninhabitable.

Within Israel, the 1.8 million Palestinians are an involuntary minority in a state for the Jews. Rights groups have recorded some 50 laws that discriminate against them for not being Jewish, such as ones that criminalise the commemoration of the Nakba.

Since the creation of Israel, no new Palestinian towns or cities were built within its borders, in contrast to the 600 Jewish municipalities that have been developed, according to Adalah, the legal centre for Arab Minority Rights in Israel.

Since 1948, some one million Palestinians have been arrested by Israel, according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics. Additionally, some 100,000 Palestinian homes have been demolished (not including the Nakba or the Gaza wars), according to BADIL.

Today, there are about 7.98 million Palestinian refugees and internally displaced persons who have not been able to return to their original homes and villages.

Some 6.14 million of those are refugees and their descendants beyond the borders of the state; many live in some of the worst conditions in more than 50 refugee camps run by the UN in neighbouring countries.

https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2017 ... nd-in-1948

[Anthea]

19,453 dead 52,286 injured

Gaza Strip, with over 100 losing their lives in Jabalia refugee camp

The Media Office in Gaza reported that 7,000 are still missing, either under the rubble or their fate is unknown, and 70% of them are children and women.

Earlier in the day, massacres were reported all over the Gaza Strip, with over 100 losing their lives in the Jabalia refugee camp.

Gaza's Health Ministry said that the strikes in the Jabalia refugee camp killed at least 90 Palestinians, and another missile attack on a house resulted in the killing of 24 people from the Shehab family.

A medical professional stated that numerous individuals were either killed or injured in the Shehab family residence and nearby structures. It is believed that a substantial number of people, mainly women and children, are still trapped under the rubble. Still, due to the intense Israeli bombing, it is impossible to remove the debris and rescue them.

In Deir al-Balah, located in central Gaza, medical professionals reported the killing of 12 Palestinians with dozens more reported wounded. In Rafah, situated in the south, an Israeli airstrike on a house resulted in the martyrdom of at least four. Bystanders hurried to the building to aid those trapped under the debris. Mahmoud Jarbou, a nearby resident, described the explosion "as powerful as an earthquake."

Meanwhile, the intensification of airstrikes in the southern regions has exacerbated the humanitarian crisis, leading to desperate scenes of malnourished families clamoring for food and water.

The Israeli aggression has resulted in the displacement of approximately 1.9 million people, constituting about 80 percent of Gaza's population, according to United Nations estimates.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... ed--gaza-h

[Anthea]

Children in Gaza have had legs amputated

UNICEF's Director says that over 1,000 children in Gaza have had their legs amputated as a result of the intense Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip and its civilian population

James Elder, the Director of UNICEF, stated that over 1,000 children in Gaza underwent amputations of one or both legs as a result of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip.

Relief workers from around the world, who visited the Gaza Strip, highlighted the profound human tragedy faced by over 2.3 million Palestinians who are struggling to fulfill fundamental requirements for survival.

In light of the worsening health crisis attributed to the Israeli siege and the acute scarcity of medical resources, UNICEF clarified that medical professionals in Gaza find themselves compelled to conduct amputations. These procedures are not only carried out without anesthetics but also involve swift operations conducted outside formal health facilities, further exacerbated by the absence of palliative medications

An official from UNICEF emphasized that, despite children recovering from amputations, they still face the constant threat of death due to Israeli bombings.

Conditions within hospitals 'untenable'

Dr. Margaret Harris, the spokesperson for the organization, mentioned that employees of the World Health Organization in Gaza are unable to move between emergency departments in the hospitals of the Strip. This is due to the overcrowding of medical facilities with individuals who are wounded, ill, and displaced as a result of the ongoing aggression.

She characterized the conditions within hospitals as "untenable," expressing disbelief that the world permits such ongoing suffering. She underscored that the sick and wounded are enduring intense pain and are in desperate need of food and water.

The neighborhoods of Gaza City, including al-Daraj, al-Tuffah, and Qizan Rashwan, as well as central areas like the Nuseirat camp and the vicinity of Abu Daoud Mosque, witnessed heightened military actions, leading to an increase in the number of casualties and fatalities.

The toll from the ongoing war surpassed 21,978 martyrs and 57,697 injuries, with the majority being children and women. Additionally, there are thousands of individuals unaccounted for, presumed trapped under the rubble—a toll that seems immeasurable.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/hea ... gs-amputat

[Anthea]

UNICEF says Gaza children at risk

The UN underlines that numerous catastrophes threaten the lives of the children of Gaza amid worsening humanitarian conditions and an increase in Israeli hostilities on the blockaded strip

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) issued a stark warning on Friday, declaring that children in the Gaza Strip are confronted with a "deadly triple threat" consisting of diseases, severe malnutrition, and an alarming surge in violence.

As the Israeli war on Gaza nears its fourteenth week, thousands of children in the blockaded strip have already fallen victim to the devastating impact of bombardments and escalating Israeli aggression, coupled with rapidly deteriorating living conditions, according to a UNICEF press release.

The release highlighted a concerning rise in cases of diarrhea among children under five, with numbers soaring from 48,000 to 71,000 in just one week starting December 17. A primary target for the Israeli occupation has been Gaza's hospitals, with barely any available anymore, making adequate healthcare nearly impossible for the afflicted children.

This translates to approximately 3,200 new cases of diarrhea daily, marking a staggering 2,000% increase within a short timeframe and underscoring the rapid deterioration of child health in the Gaza Strip.

The report also emphasized a growing number of children facing inadequate nutrition, raising fears of acute malnutrition and mortality surpassing famine thresholds, once again not underlining that this is due to the Israeli policy of blockade and besiegement, barring or heavily restricting the entry of any foodstuffs into Gaza.

Israeli blockade, starvation

Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported in December that the Israeli occupation was intentionally hindering the supply of food and water in the Gaza Strip and using starvation of civilians as a method of warfare.

"Israeli forces are deliberately blocking the delivery of water, food, and fuel, while willfully impeding humanitarian assistance, apparently razing agricultural areas, and depriving the civilian population of objects indispensable to their survival … The Israeli government is using starvation of civilians as a method of warfare in the Gaza Strip, which is a war crime," the human rights group said in a statement.

HRW urged the Israeli occupation government to lift a blockade of the Strip, as well as called on the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, and other states to suspend any military aid to "Israel".

UNICEF, moreover, expressed particular concern for the well-being of over 155,000 pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers, as well as more than 135,000 children under the age of two, given their specific nutritional needs and vulnerability.

The release attributed the dire situation to damage inflicted by the Israeli occupation's military aggression on vital water, sanitation, and health systems in Gaza. With only ten medical facilities remaining in operation, they are struggling to cope with disease outbreaks.

"UNICEF is calling for the resumption of commercial traffic so the shelves of shops can be restocked, and for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire to help save civilian lives and alleviate suffering," the release added, highlighting the urgent need for international intervention to address the crisis in Gaza.

It is noteworthy that the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) confirmed in early December that almost 1.9 million people, approximately 80% of Gaza's population, have been internally displaced since the start of the Israeli aggression on the Strip on October 7.
West Bank mirrors Gaza

As the Israeli occupation's aggression on Gaza's children keeps on escalating, the occupation forces' aggression on the occupied West Bank is highly similar to that in Gaza in that one of its primary targets is innocent children.

UNICEF deemed 2023 the deadliest year on record for youths in the occupied West Bank, attributing the surge to heightened Israeli police and military interventions, aggravated by the ongoing situation in Gaza.

In a statement released on Thursday, UNICEF highlighted a surge in "conflict-related violence" in the occupied West Bank this year, revealing that 83 children were killed in the past 12 weeks, surpassing the total for the entire year of 2022 by more than double.

“Children living in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, have been experiencing grinding violence for many years, yet the intensity of that violence has dramatically increased" since October 7, the agency added.

As of Thursday, the ongoing Israeli aggression on Gaza, now on its 91st day, has resulted in the martyrdom of 22,500 Palestinians according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza.

According to the Ministry of Health spokesman Ashraf Al-Qudra, more than 57,600 Palestinians have also been injured as a result of Israeli strikes in the strip, emphasizing that 70% of the victims are women and children.

Al-Qudra added that targetting Gaza's health facilities has led to the martyrdom of 326 healthcare workers and the destruction of 121 ambulances, emphasizing that the Israeli occupation deliberately targeted 150 health institutions and put 30 hospitals and 53 health centers out of service in the Gaza Strip.

The spokesman reported the arrest of 99 health workers by the occupation in inhumane conditions and accused the occupation of using physical and psychological torture against them, stressing that the occupation's actions endanger the Awda Hospital, Nasser Medical Complex, and Al-Amal Hospital which are affiliated with the Red Crescent Society in Khan Younis after repeatedly targeting them.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/pol ... unger--dis