Israeli ground operation in Rafah would be ‘tragedy beyond words’: UN

Israeli ground operation in Rafah would be ‘tragedy beyond words’: UN
A youth drives a donkey-drawn cart along a busy road at a camp housing displaced Palestinians in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on April 30, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict in the Palestinian territory between Israel and the militant group Hamas. (AFP)
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Updated 01 May 2024
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Israeli ground operation in Rafah would be ‘tragedy beyond words’: UN

Israeli ground operation in Rafah would be ‘tragedy beyond words’: UN
  • “The world has been appealing to the Israeli authorities for weeks to spare Rafah, but a ground operation there is on the immediate horizon,” said Griffiths

UNITED NATIONS, United States: A ground operation by Israeli troops in the southern Gaza city of Rafah would be a “tragedy beyond words,” the UN’s humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths said in a statement on Tuesday.
“The simplest truth is that a ground operation in Rafah will be nothing short of a tragedy beyond words. No humanitarian plan can counter that,” Griffiths said, after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to launch an offensive on Rafah, which has become a refuge to some 1.5 million Palestinians.
With Hamas weighing a truce plan proposed in Cairo talks with the US, Egyptian and Qatari mediators, Netanyahu vowed to launch the assault on Rafah “with or without a deal.”
Washington has joined calls on Israel from other countries and humanitarian organizations to spare the city for fear an army incursion would lead to massive civilian casualties.
“The world has been appealing to the Israeli authorities for weeks to spare Rafah, but a ground operation there is on the immediate horizon,” said Griffiths.
“For the hundreds of thousands of people who have fled to Gaza’s southernmost point to escape disease, famine, mass graves and direct fighting, a ground invasion would spell even more trauma and death.
“For agencies struggling to provide humanitarian aid despite the active hostilities, impassable roads, unexploded ordnance, fuel shortages, delays at checkpoints, and Israeli restrictions, a ground invasion would strike a disastrous blow.
“We are in a race to stave off hunger and death, and we are losing.”
The war in Gaza started after Hamas’s October 7 attack on southern Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 34,535 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.
Palestinian militants also took some 250 hostages on October 7. Israel estimates 129 remain in Gaza, including 34 believed to be dead.


Spanish king during Jordan trip says conflict in Gaza has brought unspeakable destruction, must end

Spanish king during Jordan trip says conflict in Gaza has brought unspeakable destruction, must end
Updated 52 sec ago
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Spanish king during Jordan trip says conflict in Gaza has brought unspeakable destruction, must end

Spanish king during Jordan trip says conflict in Gaza has brought unspeakable destruction, must end
  • In address at Spanish ambassador’s residence in Amman, monarch condemned humanitarian crisis in the enclave

LONDON: King Felipe VI of Spain on Saturday urged for an immediate cessation of hostilities in Gaza on the first day of his trip to Jordan.

In an address at the Spanish ambassador’s residence in Amman the monarch condemned the humanitarian crisis that has emerged from the conflict in the enclave, which began a year ago, and lamented the suffering and destruction it has wrought, adding: “The conflict must end as soon as possible.”

He also emphasized the deep historical ties between Spain and Jordan, and highlighted the strong political, economic, and cultural interests shared by both countries.

The meeting with the Spanish community in Jordan was a platform for the king to express solidarity and a collective desire for peace amid ongoing regional tensions in the Middle East, he said.

“In these moments, we are also united by a deep desire for peace and dialogue,” King Felipe said. 

He called for a return to diplomatic efforts to resolve the Gaza crisis, advocating for the resumption of intensive negotiations aimed at achieving a two-state solution.

“We want to see an end to the humanitarian drama and the silence of weapons, to return to the path of politics and diplomacy,” he said, underscoring the need for a solid and lasting peace for both the Palestinians and Israelis.

King Felipe also expressed optimism about the increasing presence of Spanish companies in Jordan, which he said would play a vital role in promoting growth, prosperity, and employment within the kingdom.

He voiced hopes for an upcoming business forum that would showcase this economic collaboration.

The king also recognized the significant contributions of Spanish cooperation programs in Jordan, praising the efforts of staff working through NGOs and the Spanish embassy’s cooperation office.

“Their work is particularly important in light of the circumstances and challenges the Jordanian society is facing,” he said, referring to Jordan’s longstanding role as a host for refugees fleeing conflict.


As more young Tunisians look away from politics, many wish to live abroad

Election officials prepare a polling station near Tunis on Saturday. (AFP)
Election officials prepare a polling station near Tunis on Saturday. (AFP)
Updated 4 min 6 sec ago
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As more young Tunisians look away from politics, many wish to live abroad

Election officials prepare a polling station near Tunis on Saturday. (AFP)
  • The Arab Barometer said the new figures contrasted with the 22-percent rate it had recorded in Tunisia in 2011

TUNIS: At a cafe in Tunis’s bustling Bab Souika, young men lean over sports betting slips. With presidential elections just days ahead, they are instead focused on Champions League scores — a sign of common indifference in a country many wish to leave.
Mohamed, a 22-year-old who chose not to give his full name for fear of “imprisonment,” said he and his friends would not vote because it was “useless.”
“We have nothing to do with politics,” he said.
“We try to live our lives day by day. It doesn’t concern us.”
About a third of the nearly 10 million Tunisians set to cast their ballots on Sunday are under 35, according to official figures.
Yet the election appears to have created a mood of resignation among young people, most of whom would rather leave the country, according to a recent study.
Published by the Arab Barometer in August, the study found that seven out of 10 Tunisians aged between 18 and 29 wished to emigrate.
Tunisia now leads Arab nations measured by the desire to migrate, with an estimated 46 percent of the population wanting to live abroad.
“If you provide three boats right now, no one here will stay,” Mohamed added, looking around at the busy cafe.
Each year, thousands of Tunisians, mainly young men, attempt to make the dangerous sea crossing to Europe in search of a better life.
Others try to do it by overstaying tourist visas or through study-abroad programs.
The Arab Barometer said the new figures contrasted with the 22-percent rate it had recorded in Tunisia in 2011.
But over a decade later, they face dimmed prospects, grappling with a stagnant economy, soaring unemployment, and dwindling rights.
Official figures show that 41 percent of young Tunisians are unemployed — even as 23 percent hold university degrees.
Ghaith, a high-schooler who also chose not to provide his last name for fear of retribution, said he was thinking about leaving too.
“I’m only 17, and when I see older people who haven’t done anything with their lives, I ask myself: What will I do?” he said.
Next to him, his 19-year-old friend, also named Mohamed, said he wanted to learn German and move to Berlin, but that it was too expensive.
“This country has let us down,” he said. “It’s become hard to consider a future.”
If none of the youngsters interviewed by AFP wished to disclose their last names, it was because authorities have stepped up cracking down on dissent.
New York-based Human Rights Watch recently said that more than “170 people are detained in Tunisia on political grounds or for exercising their fundamental rights.”
A number of his critics have been prosecuted under Decree 54, a law he enacted in 2022 to combat “false news.”

Slim, a 31-year-old gig worker who also chose not to give his full name out of fear, said he hasn’t “gained anything” under Saied.
“I like him,” he said. “He fought corruption, but I didn’t benefit personally.”
“What’s in it for me if I still can’t find eggs, milk, coffee, and other necessities?” he added.
“We’re tired, seriously,” he pleaded. “Why do you think people keep leaving the country? They take to the sea knowing they might die.”
This week, 15 Tunisians were found dead after their boat capsized as two boats bearing dozens were intercepted.
Some, however, choose to stay.
At a recent protest near the parliament in Tunis, Souhaieb Ferchichi, a 30-year-old activist, called for boycotting the election, which rights groups have said wasn’t fair.
Many of Saied’s challengers have been barred from running, some even jailed.
Salma Ezzine, a 25-year-old protester and doctor, said Tunisia was “noticing patterns from the past.”
“This is how dictatorships are born,” she said.
Unlike more than 1,000 doctors who left Tunisia last year, according to labor figures, Ezzine said she has to stay and chip into bettering the country.
“Leaving the country can be a short-term solution,” she said. “But people need to realize that it adds to the problem. If no one stays, who is going to make the change?“

 


Hezbollah source says contact ‘lost’ with top figure Safieddine

Hezbollah source says contact ‘lost’ with top figure Safieddine
Updated 16 min 13 sec ago
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Hezbollah source says contact ‘lost’ with top figure Safieddine

Hezbollah source says contact ‘lost’ with top figure Safieddine
  • “Contact with Sayyed Safieddine has been lost since the violent strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs” early on Friday, the official told AFP
  • “We don’t know if he was at the targeted site, or who may have been there with him“

BEIRUT: A high-level Hezbollah source said on Saturday that contact with Hashem Safieddine, widely touted as potentially the group’s next leader, had been lost following Israeli strikes this week.
Responding to the AFP report, the group said in a statement that there were “no Hezbollah sources and our viewpoint is issued in official statements.” It did not confirm or deny whether contact with Safieddine was lost.
“Contact with Sayyed Safieddine has been lost since the violent strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs” early on Friday, the official told AFP.
“We don’t know if he was at the targeted site, or who may have been there with him,” he added.
A second source close to Hezbollah also confirmed that communication had been cut off with Safieddine and that his whereabouts were unknown.
Hezbollah “is trying to reach the underground headquarters that were targeted, but every single time Israel starts striking again to impede rescue efforts,” he said.
Safieddine “was with Hezbollah’s head of intelligence,” known as Hajj Murtada, when the strikes took place, he said.
Both sources requested anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.
Early on Friday, a source close to Hezbollah said Israel had conducted 11 consecutive strikes on the group’s south Beirut stronghold, in one of the most powerful raids since Israel intensified its campaign of bombardment last week.
AFP footage showed giant balls of flame and thick smoke rising from the site that was attacked.
Israel’s military said it had hit “targets belonging to Hezbollah’s intelligence headquarters in Beirut.”
The attack came a week after the Israeli military said it killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in air strikes on the group’s headquarters in south Beirut.


Netanyahu says Israel army destroyed ‘large part’ of Hezbollah arsenal

Netanyahu says Israel army destroyed ‘large part’ of Hezbollah arsenal
Updated 05 October 2024
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Netanyahu says Israel army destroyed ‘large part’ of Hezbollah arsenal

Netanyahu says Israel army destroyed ‘large part’ of Hezbollah arsenal
  • “We destroyed a large part of the array of missiles and rockets that Hezbollah built over the years,” said Netanyahu

JERUSALEM: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday said the Israeli military had succeeded in destroying much of Hezbollah’s arsenal and altered the course of the war against the Iran-backed group.
“We destroyed a large part of the array of missiles and rockets that Hezbollah built over the years,” said Netanyahu in a televised address, adding: “We have changed the course of the war and the balance of the war.”
He also said ‘shame’ on Macron for urging halt to arms supply to Israel.


France to host Lebanon aid conference, Macron says

France to host Lebanon aid conference, Macron says
Updated 05 October 2024
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France to host Lebanon aid conference, Macron says

France to host Lebanon aid conference, Macron says
  • “We will hold in the next few weeks a conference to provide humanitarian aid,” Macron said

PARIS: France will host an international conference this month to help drum up humanitarian aid for Lebanon and strengthen security in the southern part of the country, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Saturday.
“We will hold in the next few weeks a conference to provide humanitarian aid, support the international community and support the Lebanese armed forces boost security, especially in southern Lebanon,” Macron said after a meeting of French speaking countries in Paris.
Israel has begun an intense bombing campaign in Lebanon and sent troops across the border in recent weeks after nearly a year of exchanging fire with Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.
Fighting had previously been mostly limited to the Israel-Lebanon border area, taking place in parallel to Israel’s year-old war in Gaza against Palestinian group Hamas.