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Violinist Michael Barenboim (L), concertmaster of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, performs with other musicians during a classical concert in support of the children in Gaza, at the Gendarmenmarkt square outside the Konzerthaus concert hall in Berlin on September 20, 2025. [Photo by TOBIAS SCHWARZ/AFP via Getty Images]
A group of German and international musicians on Saturday performed a classical concert in Berlin on the occasion of World Children’s Day, aimed at drawing attention to the plight of children killed in the Gaza Strip under the Gaza genocide, Anadolu reports.
According to the organizer, the Music for Humanity initiative, the charity concert transformed Berlin into “a place of solidarity, humanity, and music.”
The concert featured professional and amateur musicians playing classical and traditional Arabic music.
Meanwhile, the Music for Humanity initiative called for an immediate ceasefire, the protection of children and civilians in Gaza, and a halt to German arms deliveries to Israel.
The event also included an exhibition of portraits of children in Gaza.
According to UNICEF, more than 50,000 children have reportedly been killed or injured since Oct. 7, 2023 as Israel has carried out a genocidal assault on Gaza, killing over 65,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children.
Furthermore, hundreds of thousands of Palestinian children are suffering from malnutrition in Gaza, according to local health authorities, as Israel continues to block food and other humanitarian aid from entering the bombarded enclave.
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that his active support and that of UK’s air force has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide.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.Vote Labour for Genocide.
Palestinians walk through a makeshift tent camp for displaced people near the Gaza City port, September 1, 2025
A SPOTLIGHT will be shone on British state complicity in the Gaza genocide tomorrow [today] as Jeremy Corbyn’s Peace and Justice Project launches an independent probe into the government’s role in the crisis.
It comes after ministers blocked a widely supported Bill presented by the former Labour leader for an official inquiry into Britian’s involvement in Israel’s war crimes.
The tribunal, to be held at Church House in Westminster, will hear from United Nations special rapporteur Francesca Albanese among other witnesses over the next two days.
Writing in the Star, Mr Corbyn outlined the tribunal’s plans, which, he stressed, are not a substitute for an official probe, which would have more powers.
He said: “Earlier this year, I presented a private member’s Bill to Parliament, calling for an independent, public inquiry into Britain’s involvement in Gaza.
“I wanted to know: Why does our government continue to provide military support for Israel? What weapons have been supplied? Which of those weapons have been used in Gaza? Why does our government permit the supply of components for F-35 jets?”
Yet the government blocked the Bill. Mr Corbyn writes: “If the government had nothing to hide, it would stop blocking our efforts to expose the truth.”
The tribunal will issue a public report, focused on whether Britain has upheld its legal obligations to prevent genocide, which all scholars now concur is under way in Gaza.
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.
Over 300 Foreign Office officials who collectively raised concerns about the government’s handling of the Gaza genocide have been slapped down by their Whitehall superiors in a letter described by a former senior diplomat as “shameful”.
Sir Oliver Robbins and Nick Dyer, the two most senior civil servants in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), reminded a group of officials that while they welcomed “healthy challenge”, there were other “mechanisms available to those who are uncomfortable” with policy besides applying collective pressure – including resignation.
In mid-May, officials wrote to foreign secretary David Lammy urging the government to end its collaboration with Israel and comply with international law.
In their response, seen exclusively by Novara Media and published in full below, Robbins and Dyer suggested that employees worried that the government may be enabling war crimes speak to their line managers, vent to a staff counsellor or resign, the last of which they described as “an honourable course”.
A former senior British diplomat described Robbins and Dyer’s letter to Novara Media as “shameful” and “a sneering fob off” to staff acting on “deep personal conscience”. They called on the House of Commons foreign affairs committee to investigate the exchange.
Zarah Sultana, an MP currently suspended from the Labour whip for opposing the two-child benefit cap, told Novara Media: “This is what happens when a government enables genocide: it silences its own workers, censors questions and dares them to quit rather than change course.”
Genocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpAUK Labour Party government ministers Keir Starmer, Angela Rayner and Rachel Reeves explain that they are partners complicit in Israel’s Gaza genocide. The UK has provided Israel with arms, military and air force support. They explain that they don’t do gas chambers but do do forced marches, starvation, destroy hospitals, mass-murders of journalists and healthcare workers.Vote Labour for Genocide.
Isaac Herzog (centre) with LFI chair Jon Pearce to his left (Image: LFI/Twitter)
LABOUR MPs have visited Israel on a lobbying trip amid the country’s brutal assault on Gaza.
The party’s most prominent pro-Israel group, Labour Friends of Israel (LFI), sent a delegation of parliamentarians including chair Jon Pearce, as well as fellow Labour MPs Cat Eccles, Kevin McKenna, Peter Prinsley and Mark Sewards.
Former Labour MP and House of Lords member Luciana Berger also joined.
They were pictured with a host of Israeli politicians over the course of the four-day delegation, which appears to have taken place last week, including president Isaac Herzog.
Herzog has previously been criticised after photographs showed him signing Israeli bombs set to be dropped on Gaza.
Vote Labour for Genocide.Genocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpAUK Labour Party government ministers Keir Starmer, Angela Rayner and Rachel Reeves explain that they are partners complicit in Israel’s Gaza genocide. The UK has provided Israel with arms, military and air force support. They explain that they don’t do gas chambers but do do forced marches, starvation, destroy hospitals, mass-murders of journalists and healthcare workers.
The deal stipulated that negotiations on the second phase should have begun on day 16 of the first phase. However, Israel has deliberately obstructed second phase negotiations for about four weeks.
As the first phase of the deal was approaching its end, Netanyahu suspended the release of the seventh batch of Palestinian prisoners on February 23 for multiple days.
The head of the Israeli government used what he called “Hamas’s humiliating ceremonies” while releasing Israeli captives in the Gaza strip as a pretext for the suspension.
However, analysts suggested that Netanyahu only resorted to that claim in order to extend the first phase of the deal and therefore secure the release of more Israel captives before moving to the next phases.
After the intervention of mediators and guarantors of the deal, namely Qatar and Egypt, Hamas did consider the cancellation of the ceremonies, in order to undermine Netanyahu’s plans to sabotage the deal. As a result, the seventh and final batch of Palestinian prisoners was released late Thursday, February 27.
Backed by the US, Netanyahu bans humanitarian aid as a tool of war
Left in the lurch by Hamas’ flexibility, Netanyahu ordered the closure of all crossings into Gaza, blocking the entry of humanitarian aid and supplies into the war-torn besieged enclave on Sunday, March 2. His order came one day after the first phase of the deal had elapsed.
On Monday, March 3, Netanyahu warned that Israel might return to war with Gaza if Hamas did not return Israeli captives held in the Gaza strip.
Addressing Hamas, while speaking to the Israeli Parliament, Netanyahu said: “there will be consequences that you cannot imagine” if Israeli captives were not released.
The threats from the head of the Israeli government came days after a proposal was put forward by Trump’s “Middle East” envoy Steve Witkoff, for a temporary ceasefire during the Muslim’s holy month of Ramadan and the Jewish Passover.
Witkoff represented the proposal as an in-between phase, which stipulated that half of the remaining Israeli captives in Gaza, both living and deceased, would be freed on the first day of the proposed phase.
Netanyahu agreed to the proposal as it appeared to align with his plans, but Hamas categorically rejected it, saying it bypasses previously signed agreements.
The Israeli Prime Minister threatened to resume the war and banned humanitarian aid into Gaza just before the Emergency Arab Summit on Gaza was held in Egypt on Tuesday, March 4. The summit aims to put forward a unanimous proposal for ruling and reconstructing post-war Gaza, without displacing Palestinians.
Analysts suggest that Netanyahu has recently increased pressure on Hamas in an attempt to force concessions, such as accepting demilitarization and Trump’s reconstruction plan for Gaza, which primarily aims to displace Palestinians.
Trump’s administration has been fueling Netanyahu’s bravado while sabotaging the ceasefire deal, not only by providing diplomatic cover but also by sending further military aid to Israel.
The US announced on Saturday that it will expedite the delivery of approximately USD 4 billion in military assistance to Israel. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has stated that nearly USD 12 billion in major foreign military sales to Israel were approved since Trump took over in January.
Rubio reaffirmed that the US “will continue to use all available tools to fulfill America’s long-standing commitment to Israel’s security, including means to counter security threats.”
Hamas documents 962 Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreement
In a televised speech, Senior Hamas leader Osama Hamdan described Netanyahu’s ban of humanitarian aid into Gaza and threats to return to war as “cheap blackmail” which aims to avoid starting negotiations for the second phase.
“Israel is pushing to return matters to ‘square one’ by proposing alternatives to the Gaza ceasefire agreement such as extending the first phase of the deal,” Hamdan stated.
The senior official listed 962 violations of the Gaza ceasefire and captives-for-prisoners swap deal committed by Israel during the first phase of the deal.
Military advances
According to Hamdan, the violations included almost daily advances beyond agreed-upon withdrawal lines, gunfire, killings of civilians, home demolitions, land bulldozing, and preventing displaced persons from returning for two full days. These violations resulted in killing 116 Palestinians and injuring 490 others.
Blocking humanitarian relief
Israel has resumed its wartime policy of blocking crucial humanitarian aid and relief trucks. While the agreement stipulated the entry of 50 fuel trucks daily, instead, an average of 23 trucks per day were allowed to enter throughout 42 days.
Obstructing infrastructure recovery and reconstruction
Palestinians in Gaza are in urgent need of dwelling amidst the mass destruction inflicted by Israel across the besieged strip. Yet only 15 mobile homes “out of the 60,000 agreed upon, were allowed to enter in addition to a limited number of tents.”
Israel has also prevented the entry of heavy machinery necessary “for clearing rubble and recovering bodies. While at least 500 machines are needed to accomplish the mission, only nine machines were allowed in.
The senior Palestinian official added that Israel banned the commercial sector from importing fuel of all types, “despite an explicit provision in the agreement permitting this.”
Construction materials needed for infrastructure rehabilitation and hospital restoration and essential medical equipment to rehabilitate hospitals, were blocked from entering Gaza. Moreover, civil defense equipment has been among the banned items.
Operation of the power plant and the entry of necessary supplies for its rehabilitation, were also prevented. Even the entry of cash liquidity into banks has been blocked, and the exchange of damaged currency notes has been refused.
Targeting fishermen and airspace violations
The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) prevented Palestinian fishermen from returning to the sea, shooting at them, and arresting some. The IOF’s aircrafts and drones operated during prohibited hours (10–12 hours daily), with 210 violations recorded.
Delaying prisoner releases
The deliberate delay in releasing Palestinian prisoners in the first phase, along with their humiliation and mistreatment, was also included in the list of violations.
Stalling negotiations
Hamdan emphasized that the deliberate delay in starting the negotiations of phase two, is a major political violation of the deal. He blamed the mediators and guarantors of the deal for the delay, saying that they “bear full responsibility for preventing Netanyahu from sabotaging all the efforts made to reach the agreement and for protecting the agreement from collapse.”
Regional and global implications
The senior Hamas leader pointed out that “international security and stability are now at risk in light of absolute US support for the Zionist entity and the international silence that remains unmoved” by Israel’s “lawlessness”.
“Israel threatens to resume the genocidal war against our people, escalates its aggression in the West Bank, continues its aggression on Lebanon, and wages a brutal attack on Syria as well. The consequences of this will not be limited to our people and our nation,” Hamdan warned.
In a message to Netanyahu that the movement will never accept his demilitarization plans, Hamdan concluded his speech using a phrase usually used by Abu Obaida, the military spokesperson of Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas. Hamdan declared: “It is jihad of victory or martyrdom.”
Palestinians walk through a makeshift tent camp for displaced people near the Gaza City port, September 1, 2025
