Some 110,000 people have left Rafah in the south of the Gaza Strip since the Israeli army started advancing on the city, the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) says. “@UNRWA estimates around 110,000 people have now fled Rafah looking for safety,” the UN agency for Palestinian refugees […]
Read MoreIsrael-Hamas war: UN’s grim Gaza forecast as aid halted
UN chief Antonio Guterres has warned that Gaza risked an “epic humanitarian disaster” as Israeli military operations around its far-southern city of Rafah effectively halted aid operations. Earlier this week, Israeli ground troops seized eastern areas of the city, including the Palestinian side of the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza, but they have […]
Read MoreAustralia votes ‘yes’ at United Nations as Palestinian push for full membership gathers momentum
In short: A Palestinian bid for full membership of the United Nations gathered momentum on Friday, after a resolution passed through the organisation’s General Assembly recognising it was qualified to join. A total of 143 nations — including Australia — voted in favour, while nine were against and 25 abstained. What’s next: The vote doesn’t […]
Read MoreUniversities told to stamp out anti-Semitism
Police have downplayed the smashing of a window at a university rally as a “peaceful protest’’, despite federal Education Minister Jason Clare demanding universities stamp out anti-Semitism and prioritise student safety. At the University of Queensland, vice-chancellor Deborah Terry told staff on Friday that the university was sending police CCTV footage of an unknown protester […]
Read MoreAustralia backs UN resolution to grant Palestine full member status
Australia has backed a United Nations General Assembly resolution that would grant Palestine full member status, breaking with the US in a move that is likely to infuriate the Jewish community. In a sign of Israel’s growing isolation internationally as the war in Gaza approaches its eighth month, the UN General Assembly voted by 143 […]
Read MoreOfficers sacked, drone strike findings revealed
The Israeli military has dismissed two of its officers over drone strikes that killed Australian Zomi Frankcom and six colleagues while they were delivering aid in Gaza. In a report released on Friday (local time), the military said they had mishandled critical information and violated the army’s rules of engagement. The inquiry found Israeli forces […]
Read MoreUN human rights body calls for halt to weapons shipments to Israel due to Gaza war concerns
In short: The UN Human Rights Council voted 28-6 on Friday to adopt a resolution calling on countries not to sell or ship arms to Israel. Israel’s ambassador criticised the resolution, calling it a “stain on the Human Rights Council and the United Nations as a whole”. What’s next? While non-binding, the resolution is bound […]
Read MoreIsrael-Hamas war: Gaza truce plan fails at UN, Israel detains 500 terrorists at hospital
Washington has failed to pass a UN resolution on an “immediate” ceasefire as Israeli forces detained “hundreds” of Hamas fighters during a raid into Gaza’s main hospital. Israel plans to send troops into Gaza’s Rafah even without US support, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday local time, as […]
Read MoreYou couldn’t get away from Gaza at Adelaide Writers’ Week
It was a balmy afternoon at Adelaide Writers’ Week and hundreds of us were sitting in the sun under the trees, listening to the writers. And then journalist John Lyons plunged us into a different world. “By the time this session ends,” he said, “three or four Palestinian children will have been killed. Five bombs […]
Read MoreAustralia to resume funding for UN aid agency
Australia will restore a $6 million funding pledge to the peak United Nations body that helps the Palestinian people in Gaza after a seven-week suspension due to claims that some of the agency’s staff took part in the Hamas terrorist attack on Israeli civilians last October. Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the funding would be […]
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