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Activist arrested after going on hunger strike in protest of UK support for Israel

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https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20241211-activist-arrested-after-going-on-hunger-strike-in-protest-of-uk-support-for-israel

Demonstration held in support of Palestinians and Lebanese, in London, United Kingdom on November 30, 2024 [Raşid Necati Aslım – Anadolu Agency]

Lizzie Greenwood, a Manchester activist and former Workers’ Party candidate, has been arrested by Greater Manchester Police (GMP) as she recovers from a 35-day hunger strike protesting the UK government’s funding and arming of Israel.

The arrest follows a reported forced entry into a prior residence and harassment of her father at his home.

According to a post on Instagram, GMP also detained five other activists in recent days, who were later released without charge. Despite the absence of evidence, those arrested have had personal belongings, including phones and vehicles, confiscated indefinitely, and face restrictive police curfews.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DDWWQUHNGJ1/?utm_source=ig_embed&ig_rid=b5bdaa27-51e6-48d1-bee3-67928a408840

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Activists of Central Manchester for Palestine said these measures are part of an escalating campaign to intimidate and isolate supporters of Palestinian rights.

Greenwood, who began her hunger strike on 27 October and ended it after 35 days, described the protest as a moral obligation. In a previous video posted to her social media, she stated: “This is a cause that I feel willing and obligated to die for.”

She said her strike was driven by a commitment to prevent atrocities similar to the Holocaust. “I will not be made complicit. I object with every fibre of my being. And if it takes my health and my life to make that known, so be it,” stated Greenwood.

Since 5 October, Israel has launched a large-scale ground operation in northern Gaza allegedly to prevent the Palestinian resistance from regrouping. Palestinians, however, accuse Israel of seeking to occupy the area and forcibly displace its residents.

Since then, almost no humanitarian aid, including food, medicine and fuel, has been allowed into the area, leaving most of the population there – currently estimated at 80,000 – on the verge of famine.

Greenwood has accused the UK government of prioritising funding Israel while neglecting British citizens enduring cost of living crises, mental health struggles and housing shortages.

Israel has launched a genocidal war on the Gaza Strip killing more than 44,800 Palestinians, most of them women and children, and injuring over 106,000.

The second year of the genocide in Gaza has drawn growing international condemnation, with officials and institutions labelling the attacks and blocking of aid deliveries as a deliberate attempt to destroy a population.

On 21 November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and former Defence Minister, Yoav Gallant, for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its deadly war on Gaza.

READ: Israel Prime Minister takes stand for 2nd day in his corruption trial

This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. 

UK Foreign Minister David Lammy confirms that UK government and military are active participants in Israel’s genocides and that the F-35 parts that they suspended from supplying to Israel are instead simply diverted via the United States. He says see https://youtu.be/QILgUHrdWRE
UK Foreign Minister David Lammy confirms that UK government and military are active participants in Israel’s genocides and that the F-35 parts that they suspended from supplying to Israel are instead simply diverted via the United States. He says see https://youtu.be/QILgUHrdWRE
Experiencing issues with this image not appearing. I suspect because it's so critical of Zionist Keir Starmer's support of and complicity in Israel's genocides.
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/O74hZCKKdpA
Continue ReadingActivist arrested after going on hunger strike in protest of UK support for Israel

Gaza protesters disrupt Blinken’s testimony in Congress

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Pro-Palestinian demonstrators with their hands painted the colour of blood hold a demonstration to call for a ceasefire in Gaza as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken testifies before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on the U.S. Withdrawal from Afghanistan on Capitol Hill in Washington DC, United States on December 11, 2024 [Celal Güneş/Anadolu Agency]

A group of pro-Palestinian protestors repeatedly disrupted Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s testimony, Wednesday, before a House of Representatives panel on the chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan, Anadolu Agency reports.

One protester shouted: “Bloody Blinken” and “Butcher of Gaza” as Blinken began his remarks.

A second demonstrator, holding a sign that read: “Stop Bombing Kids”, yelled: “Stop killing kids in Gaza” and “I don’t know how you can sleep at night when you’re killing so many kids in tents.” The protester was arrested and removed from the chamber.

Blinken continued his testimony, despite the disruptions.

The US, Israel’s primary supporter, provides nearly 70 per cent of its weapons, along with significant diplomatic backing. The support has drawn growing criticism amid the escalating civilian death toll in the Gaza Strip from Israel’s ongoing military onslaught.

Israel’s offensive has killed more than 44,800 people, mostly women and children, since a 7 October, 2023 attack by the Palestinian Resistance group, Hamas.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last month for Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and his former Defence chief, Yoav Gallant, for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on Gaza.

READ: Ireland to join genocide case against Israel, ask Court to ‘broaden its interpretation’

This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Continue ReadingGaza protesters disrupt Blinken’s testimony in Congress

Gaza Ministry Says 50 Killed in a Day as Israel Bombs Flour Line, Hospital, and Refugee Camps

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Original article by Jessica Corbett republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0)

Relatives mourn at al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital after Israel forces attacked the al-Maghazi refugee camp in Deir al-Balah, Gaza on December 9, 2024.  (Photo: Ashraf Amra/Anadolu via Getty Images)

“We demand international protection for hospitals, patients, and medical staff,” said the Gaza Ministry of Health.

The death toll from Israel’s 14-month assault on the Gaza Strip hit at least 44,758 on Monday, with 50 people killed in the past 24 hours alone, as Israeli forces bombed refugee camps, a flour distribution line, and a hospital, according to reporters and officials in the Palestinian enclave.

The Gaza Ministry of Health said a bombing at the Indonesian Hospital north of Gaza City wounded six patients—who are now among more than 106,000 Palestinians injured since Israel began its retaliation for last year’s Hamas-led attack.

“We demand international protection for hospitals, patients, and medical staff,” the ministry said in a statement reported by The Associated Press—which noted that Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed Sunday evening it was unaware of any attack on the hospital “in the last three to four hours.”

A nurse shared footage from the hospital with Drop Site News, which circulated the material on social media:

https://twitter.com/DropSiteNews/status/1865814030159581679?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1865814030159581679%7Ctwgr%5E84a730719f4662a2094a959dc40ca8d6e29891ba%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.commondreams.org%2Fnews%2Fdeath-toll-in-gaza

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According to Al Jazeera, “Overnight, an Israeli attack in the southern city of Rafah also killed 10 people while they had lined up to buy flour.”

Israel, which faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice, has been accused of starving Gaza’s 2.3 million residents by refusing to allow enough humanitarian aid into the besieged enclave.

Reporting from central Deir al-Balah, Al Jazeera‘s Hani Mahmoud said that at least three people were killed in a Monday morning attack on the Jabalia refugee camp in the north that Israeli bombing and the ongoing blockade have “turned into a graveyard.”

The victims “were trying to leave their home in search of food in the vicinity of their neighborhood when they were targeted by a drone,” the journalist said. “They were killed right away. Their bodies are still in the street and nobody has the ability to get to the bombed site and remove the bodies from the street.”

The IDF announced that three soldiers were killed and 12 others were wounded Monday in fighting in Jabalia.

Mahmoud, the journalist, also said Monday that bodies were piling up outside al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital after an Israeli bombing at the Bureij refugee camp.

“The agony keeps on unfolding here at al-Aqsa Hospital, where survivors and relatives showed up early this morning to collect the bodies from the morgue of the hospital,” he said. “At some point, the morgue of the hospital was packed with the bodies and there was not enough room for more bodies.”

https://twitter.com/QudsNen/status/1866158144662978826?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1866158144662978826%7Ctwgr%5E84a730719f4662a2094a959dc40ca8d6e29891ba%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.commondreams.org%2Fnews%2Fdeath-toll-in-gaza

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Citing the Palestinian news agency Wafa, Middle East Eye reported that “two children lost their lives, and others were injured on Monday, during Israeli shelling of al-Maghazi camp in the central Gaza Strip.”

The updates followed a Hamas delegation led by Khalil al-Hayya leaving Cairo Sunday evening after meeting with Egypt’s general intelligence chief, Maj. Gen. Hassan Rashad, to discuss a potential cease-fire in Gaza.

Israeli media reported Sunday that unnamed political sources claimed Hamas and Israel are close to reaching a “small” deal that would involve a two-month cease-fire; the release of prisoners who are elderly, women, wounded, and sick; and the IDF’s withdrawal from parts of Gaza.

Neither Hamas nor mediators Egypt and Qatar have commented on the reporting—which came over a week into an Israeli cease-fire with the Lebanese group Hezbollah that Israel has repeatedly violated since it took effect late last month.

In neighboring Syria, the government of President Bashar al-Assad collapsed over the weekend as he fled and rebels took control of the capital. Israel seized more of the country’s Golan Heights, which it has illegally occupied for decades, and the United States—which arms the IDF—launched airstrikes on over 75 Islamic State targets in Syria.

Original article by Jessica Corbett republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0)

Continue ReadingGaza Ministry Says 50 Killed in a Day as Israel Bombs Flour Line, Hospital, and Refugee Camps

‘A Critical Situation’: Gaza Doctor Warns of Catastrophe as Israel Assails Hospital

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Original article by Jake Johnson republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

A victim of an Israeli attack receives treatment inside Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza on December 6, 2024. (Photo: AFP via Getty Images)

“We have called on the world to protect both the healthcare system and its workers, yet we have not received any response from anyone globally,” said the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital.

The director of one of the few partially functioning hospitals in northern Gaza said Sunday that Israeli attacks have put the facility’s remaining patients—including more than a dozen children—in grave danger and pleaded with the international community to intervene.

“Following the recent attack on Kamal Adwan Hospital, which involved over 100 shells and bombs indiscriminately targeting the facility, the damage has been severe,” Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, the hospital’s director, said in a statement. “As of now, one of the hospital buildings remains without electricity, oxygen, or water. The shelling continues to occur randomly in the vicinity, preventing us from conducting repairs on the oxygen, electricity, and water networks.”

Abu Safiya said the overwhelmed and under-resourced hospital is currently treating 112 wounded patients, including six people in intensive care and 14 children.

“This is a critical situation,” he said Sunday morning. “The bombardment and gunfire have not ceased; planes are dropping bombs around the clock. We are uncertain of what lies ahead and what the army wants from the hospital.”

“We have called on the world to protect both the healthcare system and its workers, yet we have not received any response from anyone globally,” Abu Safiya added. “This represents a humanitarian catastrophe unfolding against the healthcare workers and patients. Unfortunately, there seems to be no effort to halt this relentless assault on Kamal Adwan Hospital and the broader health system.”

The hospital director’s statement came after Israeli attacks near the facility killed scores of people on Friday. Photos taken from the scene showed bodies on the ground amid building ruins.

(Photo: AFP via Getty Images)

A day earlier, an Israeli airstrike on the Kamal Adwan Hospital compound killed a 16-year-old boy in a wheelchair and wounded a dozen others, The Associated Press reported.

According to Drop Site, the boy “was struck as he entered the X-ray department.”

https://twitter.com/MiddleEastEye/status/1865299454271889830?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1865299454271889830%7Ctwgr%5E08ef4081f5d259b4ddb713ce7acb5b6ac05e2b0b%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.commondreams.org%2Fnews%2Fkamal-adwan-hospital

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Northern Gaza has been under intense Israeli assault for two months, and the humanitarian situation there and across the Palestinian enclave is worse than ever, according to U.N. agencies and aid organizations.

“The catastrophe in Gaza is nothing short of a complete breakdown of our common humanity,” said U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres. “The nightmare must stop. We cannot continue to look away.”

Abu Safiya said Sunday that his hospital is facing outages of electricity and water amid Israel’s incessant attacks.

“We urgently appeal to the international community for assistance,” he said. “The situation is extremely dangerous.”

Original article by Jake Johnson republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

Continue Reading‘A Critical Situation’: Gaza Doctor Warns of Catastrophe as Israel Assails Hospital