Monthly Archives: April 2026

Israeli restrictions push Gaza medical supplies to critical shortage: Doctors Without Borders

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A Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) doctor takes care of patients at Nasser Hospital as patients face difficulties accessing care due to inadequate health services in Khan Yunis, Gaza on January 15, 2026. [Abed Rahim Khatib – Anadolu Agency]

Restrictions imposed by Israeli authorities on the entry of medical supplies into Gaza have led to critical shortages, severely impacting health care services, according to a statement released on Friday by Doctors Without Borders (MSF), Anadolu reports.

Dr. Randa Abu El-Khair Masoud, a medical adviser with MSF, said the organization has been unable to bring any medical supplies into Gaza since Jan. 1, despite significant humanitarian needs in the enclave.

“Every day, in our hospitals and clinics, we see the impacts of the restrictions on the entry of medical supplies into Gaza, Palestine. The needs in Gaza are massive, yet not enough aid is entering because Israeli authorities are blocking it,” Masoud said.

She warned that nearly 50% of essential medications for non-communicable diseases, including diabetes, hypertension, thyroid disorders, and respiratory illnesses, are at critically low levels.

Due to the shortages, MSF has stopped admitting new patients to its non-communicable diseases programs, limiting treatment to existing patients only.

READ: Palestinian man with special needs killed by Israeli occupation fire in Gaza

“This shortage in proper care will inevitably lead to preventable deaths among patients suffering from chronic diseases,” she said.

The organization is also facing a lack of basic medical supplies such as gauze and compresses, affecting wound care services, particularly for postoperative patients and burn victims.

During a previous blockade between August and Sept. 2025, MSF teams were forced to use non-sterile gauze sterilized in batches, a measure considered a last resort due to infection risks.

“Now, we are close to this point again,” she warned.

Medical equipment shortages are further straining health care services. Masoud said no new equipment or spare parts have entered Gaza this year, leading to frequent malfunctions.

“Our teams are working hard to continue providing care, but they are under immense strain,” she said, stressing that emergency measures cannot substitute for consistent access to medical supplies.

READ: PLO calls on UNRWA to reverse dismissal of Gaza health workers

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Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza's hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Palestinians barred from entering Al-Aqsa Mosque due to restrictions imposed by Israeli forces citing Iran’s retaliatory attacks perform Friday prayers on the streets surrounding the mosque in Jerusalem on April 03, 2026. [Mostafa Alkharouf – Anadolu Agency]
Orcas discuss rotting brain. Front Orca says "Wish someone would lock him up".
Orcas discuss rotting brain. Front Orca says “Wish someone would lock him up”.

Continue ReadingIsraeli restrictions push Gaza medical supplies to critical shortage: Doctors Without Borders

US proposed 48-hour ceasefire with Tehran on April 2, reports Iranian media

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The flags of United States and Iran displayed together. [Photo by AA]

The US proposed a 48-hour ceasefire with Iran on April 2 through a third country, the semi-official Fars News Agency reported Friday, citing an informed source.

“The US, on April 2, proposed a 48-hour ceasefire through one of the friendly countries,” the source told Fars.

The proposal came after “escalating tensions and challenges faced by US forces in the region,” the source added.

According to the news agency, Iran did not respond in writing but instead replied “on the ground” by continuing heavy attacks.

READ: 2nd US Air Force combat plane crashes in Persian Gulf region: Report

The source also said that “US diplomatic efforts to halt the fighting have intensified, particularly after a reported strike on a US military depot on Bubiyan Island in Kuwait.”

The US and Israel on Feb. 28 launched an air offensive on Iran, killing over 1,340 people so far, including then-Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Iran has retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel, along with Jordan, Iraq, and Gulf countries hosting US military assets, causing casualties and damage to infrastructure while disrupting global markets and aviation.

READ: Top US military archbishop says Iran war fails Catholic church’s moral standard: Report

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Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Straight of Hormuz despite saying on 7 March 2026 that they don't need people to join wars after they've already won. He's challenged with the claim that he lies as much as the IDF.
Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Straight of Hormuz despite saying on 7 March 2026 that they don’t need people to join wars after they’ve already won. He’s challenged with the claim that he lies as much as the IDF.
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Palestinians barred from entering Al-Aqsa Mosque due to restrictions imposed by Israeli forces citing Iran’s retaliatory attacks perform Friday prayers on the streets surrounding the mosque in Jerusalem on April 03, 2026. [Mostafa Alkharouf – Anadolu Agency]
Orcas discuss rotting brain. Front Orca says "Wish someone would lock him up".
Orcas discuss rotting brain. Front Orca says “Wish someone would lock him up”.
Continue ReadingUS proposed 48-hour ceasefire with Tehran on April 2, reports Iranian media

Analysis: Record wind and solar saved UK from gas imports worth £1bn in March 2026

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Original article by Simon Evans and Ho Woo Nam republished from Carbon Brief under a CC license. 

Aerial view of a solar farm and wind turbines, in the East Midlands, UK. Credit: Paul White – UK Industries / Alamy Stock Photo

The UK avoided the need for gas imports worth £1bn in March 2026 thanks to record electricity generation from wind and solar, reveals Carbon Brief analysis.

Wind generation hit a new record for the month of March on the island of Great Britain, up 38% year-on-year, while solar nearly matched the output of last year’s exceptionally sunny spring.

Together, wind and solar generated 11 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity in March 2026, up a combined 28% and setting a new record for the month, as shown in the figure below.

Chart showing that record wind and solar saved UK from gas imports worth £1bn in March 2026
Monthly generation from wind and solar in terawatt hours on the island of Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales), which has a separate electricity system from the island of Ireland, which includes Northern Ireland. Source: National Energy System Operator (NESO) and Carbon Brief analysis.

This record wind and solar output avoided the need to import 21TWh of gas – roughly 18 fully loaded tankers of liquified natural gas (LNG) – which would have cost around £1bn at current high prices due to the Iran war.

(This is based on gas costing 130p per therm, or £44 per megawatt hour, compared with the range of 120-170p per therm seen over the past month.)

At the same time, the record output from wind and solar saw electricity generation from gas falling 25% year-on-year in March 2026 to the lowest level ever recorded for the month.

This meant that gas was setting the price of electricity roughly 25% less often in March 2026 than in the same month in 2022, when fossil-fuel prices spiked after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Original article by Simon Evans and Ho Woo Nam republished from Carbon Brief under a CC license. 

Nigel Farage urges you to ignore facts and reality and be a climate science denier like him and his Deputy Richard Tice. He says that Reform UK has received £Millions and £Millions from the fossil fuel industry to promote climate denial and destroy the planet.
Nigel Farage urges you to ignore facts and reality and be a climate science denier like him and his Deputy Richard Tice. He says that Reform UK has received £Millions and £Millions from the fossil fuel industry to promote climate denial and destroy the planet.
Donald Trump urges you to be a Climate Science denier like him. He says that he makes millions and millions for destroying the planet, Burn, Baby, Burn and Flood, Baby, Flood.
Donald Trump urges you to be a Climate Science denier like him. He says that he makes millions and millions for destroying the planet, Burn, Baby, Burn and Flood, Baby, Flood.
Elon Musk urges you to be a Fascist like him, says that you can ignore facts and reality then.
Elon Musk urges you to be a Fascist like him, says that you can ignore facts and reality then.
Continue ReadingAnalysis: Record wind and solar saved UK from gas imports worth £1bn in March 2026

Closing air spaces and cracking alliances: Trump’s growing problem with allies

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A view of the NATO Defence Ministers Meeting held at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium on February 12, 2026. [Dursun Aydemir – Anadolu Agency]

by Dr Binoy Kampmark

With the Iran War groaning along, the Trump administration is getting increasingly indignant.  Plumes of childish anger can be seen coming out of the White House and Pentagon.  Having joined an illegal, joint enterprise with Israel in attacking Iran, allies are proving increasingly unwilling to play along.  

That unwillingness gurgled to the top with Spain’s announcement on March 30 that it had closed its airspace to US aircraft participating in strikes on Iran.  This added to Madrid’s decision earlier in the month to deny the US military access to its bases for military operations against Tehran.  “We don’t authorise either the use of military bases or the use of airspace for actions related to the war in Iran,” Defence Minister Margarita Robles told reporters.  Spain’s Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo, in an interview with radio Cadena SER, called the move consistent and “part of the decision already made by the Spanish government not to participate in or contribute to a war which was initiated unilaterally and against international law.” 

The government of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has been singularly pertinacious in its characterisation of the Iran War, and more broadly illustrative of the current bad blood in transatlantic relations. 

In a piece for The Economist, Sánchez wrote of his country’s misplaced support for Washington in February 2003 when the then US Secretary of State, Colin Powell, told the UN Security Council most gravely that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction, and needed to be attacked. 

The foolishly credulous Spanish Prime Minister at the time, José María Aznar, was convinced that the regime of Saddam Hussein had such weapons.  “Today we face a similar situation, and my government’s position is the same as that voiced by Spanish society two decades ago: NO TO WAR.  No to the unilateral violation of international law.  No to repeating the mistakes of the past.  No to the idea that the world’s problems can be solved with bombs.”

READ: Spain closes airspace to US planes involved in Iran war, defence minister says

Italian authorities have also expressed displeasure at the presumptuousness of their US allies in taking liberties with their military facilities.  In a March 31 report by Corriere della Sera, “several US bombers” that had intended to land at Sigonella air base on route to the Middle East were refused as they had not properly requested authorisation or consulted with the Italian military.  A statement from Palazzo Chigi, the office of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, reiterated that Italy “acts in full compliance with existing international agreements and with the policy guidelines expressed by the Government to Parliament”.

Other allies are openly rebuffing requests by US officials to secure additional military equipment to the Gulf.  Critical here are air-defence systems such as the Patriot batteries that have been dramatically depleted since the outbreak of hostilities.  In the first 16 days of the war, some 1,285 PAC-3 Patriot missiles were used by the US military and Gulf states.  

The Polish Defence Minister, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz could not have been clearer in his statement on whether Poland’s complement of Patriot air defence systems would make their way to the Middle East.  “Our Patriot batteries and their armaments are used to protect Polish airspace and NATO’s eastern flank.  Nothing is changing in this regard, and we have no plans to move them anywhere!”  Fellow allies understood “the importance of our tasks here.  Poland’s security is an absolute priority.”

As has become customary, US President Donald Trump has led the growls of grievance, billowing with anger on Truth Social about the reluctance of European partners to throw in their lot in what is, at best, a criminal enterprise. 

On the issue of depleted jet fuel supplies restricted by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, he brusquely suggested to his allies that they could purchase supplies from the US (“we have plenty”) and “build up some delayed courage, go to the Strait, and just TAKE IT.”  With a demented paternalism, he went on to declare that “You’ll have to start learning how to fight for yourself, the USA won’t be there to help you anymore, just like you weren’t there for us.”  With typically strained logic, he went on to suggest that any assistance would be minor, in any case, as Iran had been “decimated”. “The hard part is done.  Go get your own oil!”

READ: Iran launches missile attack on Israel moments after Trump threat

Special mention was made of mulishness on the part of the UK (“which refused to get involved in the decapitation of Iran”) and France.  France, for instance, had refused to permit planes carrying military supplies destined for Israel to fly over French territory.  “France has been VERY UNHELPFUL with respect to the ‘Butcher of Iran’, who has been successfully eliminated.  The U.S.A. will REMEMBER!!!”.

Soon afterwards, a comically crazed and increasingly God loving Pete Hegseth struck a similar note in the Pentagon.  “A lot has been laid bare, a lot has been shown to the world about what our allies would be willing to do for the United States of America,” grumbled the Secretary of Defense (he prefers War) to reporters.  “When we undertake an effort of this scope on behalf of the free world, these are missiles that don’t even range the United States of America, they range allies and others and yet, when we ask for additional assistance or simple access… we get questions or roadblocks or hesitation.”

In his March 30 interview with Al Jazeera, Secretary of State Marco Rubio was also brimming with complaints.  “If NATO is just about us defending Europe if they’re attacked but then denying us basic rights when we need them, that’s not a very good arrangement.  That’s a hard one to stay engaged in and say this is good for the United States.”  All this called for a reassessment.  “All of it’s going to have to be re-examined.”  The re-examination, notably judging from the temper of European states, is proving increasingly reciprocal and, in some circles, even welcome.

OPINION: The Iran War: A Great Carbon Emitter

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.

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Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Straight of Hormuz despite saying on 7 March 2026 that they don't need people to join wars after they've already won. He's challenged with the claim that he lies as much as the IDF.
Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Straight of Hormuz despite saying on 7 March 2026 that they don’t need people to join wars after they’ve already won. He’s challenged with the claim that he lies as much as the IDF.
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Climate science denier Donald Trump confirms that he knows nothing about democracy and that more liquid gold is being secured according to his policy of global privateering.
Climate science denier Donald Trump confirms that he knows nothing about democracy and that more liquid gold is being secured according to his policy of global privateering.

Continue ReadingClosing air spaces and cracking alliances: Trump’s growing problem with allies

Iran claims strike on Israeli-linked oil tanker in Gulf waters

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Commercial ships anchor off the coast of the United Arab Emirates due to navigation disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, Dubai on March 2, 2026. [Stringer – Anadolu Agency]

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard announced on Wednesday that it had targeted an oil tanker in the Gulf, claiming the vessel was linked to Israel.

In a statement carried by Iranian state television, the Guard said that an oil tanker named “Aqua 1”, which it described as belonging to the Israeli entity, was struck in what it called a “precise missile operation” carried out by its naval forces, adding that the vessel was set ablaze.

Qatar had earlier stated that the tanker was hit within its territorial waters, raising concerns over the expansion of hostilities into sensitive maritime zones in the Gulf.

Meanwhile, the United States has intensified its military posture, deploying 12 A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft to Britain and increasing aerial refuelling operations across Europe.

According to open-source intelligence tracking, multiple Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft conducted coordinated flights from bases in the United Kingdom and Romania on 31st March. Additional refuelling aircraft departed from RAF Mildenhall, carrying out missions over southwest England before returning to base.

READ: Iran rejects Trump’s claim of ceasefire request as “baseless”

Aircraft movements also included a KC-135 Stratotanker (registration 60-0333) and a Lockheed Martin MC-130J Commando II (09-6207), which were observed operating from the same base.

In Romania, several refuelling aircraft were seen departing from Henri Coandă International Airport near Bucharest and heading toward southern Greece.

Further movements included multiple US refuelling aircraft traveling from the United States toward the Middle East, with some reportedly landing in Israel and others continuing toward the region.

The developments come amid escalating tensions following the ongoing war between Israel, the United States, and Iran, with military activity increasingly extending across regional and international theatres.

READ: Iran launches missile attack on Israel moments after Trump threat

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Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Straight of Hormuz despite saying on 7 March 2026 that they don't need people to join wars after they've already won. He's challenged with the claim that he lies as much as the IDF.
Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Straight of Hormuz despite saying on 7 March 2026 that they don’t need people to join wars after they’ve already won. He’s challenged with the claim that he lies as much as the IDF.
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Climate science denier Donald Trump confirms that he knows nothing about democracy and that more liquid gold is being secured according to his policy of global privateering.
Climate science denier Donald Trump confirms that he knows nothing about democracy and that more liquid gold is being secured according to his policy of global privateering.

Continue ReadingIran claims strike on Israeli-linked oil tanker in Gulf waters