Gaza | Pakistan

Aid vessel Madleen, carrying 12 members — 11 activists and one journalist — on their way to break the Gaza siege, was intercepted by Israeli forces early on Monday morning and towed to Israel. The Israeli foreign ministry, in a statement on X, said that the vessel “is safely making its way to the shores of Israel. The passengers are expected to return to their home countries”. The British-flagged yacht Madleen, operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, had departed from Sicily on June 1 and had hoped to reach Gaza later in the day, when the interception occurred, the group said on its Telegram account. On board the Madleen — named after Palestine’s only fisherwoman — are 12 activists from around the world, who had set out in response to Israel’s total aid blockade in the besieged enclave, according to a report by Al Jazeera. Greta Thunberg Activist Greta Thunberg sits aboard the aid ship Madleen, which left the Italian port of Catania on June 1 to travel to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid, in this picture ...

Israeli forces have boarded a charity vessel attempting to reach the Gaza Strip in defiance of an Israeli naval blockade, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) said early on Monday. The British-flagged yacht Madleen, operated by the pro-Palestinian FFC, had departed from Sicily on June 6 and had hoped to reach Gaza later in the day, when the interception occurred, the group said on its Telegram account. Among those on board the boat are Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament. The Israeli military had no immediate comment. Shortly before the FFC statement, the Israeli Foreign Ministry posted a video on X showing the Israeli Navy communicating with the Madleen over a loudspeaker, urging it to change course. “The maritime zone off the coast of Gaza is closed to naval traffic as part of a legal naval blockade,” a soldier said. “If you wish to deliver humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, you are able to do so through the (Israeli) port of Ashdod.” The orga...

GAZA: Gaza’s civil defence agency said Israeli forces killed at least 36 Palestinians on Saturday, six of them in a shooting near a US-backed aid distribution centre. The Israeli military told AFP that troops had fired “warning shots” at individuals that it said were “advancing in a way that endangered the troops”. The shooting deaths […]

JERUSALEM: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu admitted that Israel is supporting an armed group in Gaza that opposes Hamas, following comments by a former minister that Israel had transferred weapons to it. Israeli and Palestinian media have reported that the group Israel has been working with is part of a local Bedouin tribe led by Yasser Abu Shabab. The European Council on Foreign Relations (EFCR) think tank describes Abu Shabab as the leader of a “criminal gang operating in the Rafah area that is widely accused of looting aid trucks”. Knesset member and former defence minister Avigdor Liberman had told the Kan public broadcaster that the government, at Netanyahu’s direction, was “giving weapons to a group of criminals and felons”. Popular Forces outfit denies being ‘a tool of the occupation’ “What did Liberman leak? That security sources activated a clan in Gaza that opposes Hamas? What is bad about that?” Netanyahu said in a video posted to social media on Thursday. Michael Milshtein, an expert on Palestin...

After a slow and chaotic start to the new US-backed aid system in Gaza, thousands of Palestinians have been arriving at distribution points, seeking desperately needed food despite scenes of disorder and fears of violence. The two hubs run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a private group sponsored by the United States and endorsed by Israel, have been running since Tuesday, but the launch was marred by tumultuous scenes when thousands rushed the fences and forced private contractors providing security to retreat. An Israeli military official told Reuters that the GHF was now operating four aid distribution sites, three in the Rafah area in the south and one in the Netzarim area in central Gaza. GHF did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on whether it was now distributing aid in Netzarim. Displaced Palestinians carrying relief supplies return from an aid distribution centre in the central Gaza Strip on May 29. — AFP The new system has been heavily criticised by the United Nation...

Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar, has called on the international community to take urgent action in response to the dire humanitarian crisis unfolding in Gaza, declaring it a war zone where civilian life has become unsustainable.

New York: Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Asim Iftikhar, has said that Gaza has effectively become a military zone where civilians can no longer survive, ARY News reported. While addressing the United Nations Security Council, Asim Iftikhar spoke strongly about the “heart-wrenching brutality” being carried out by Israeli forces in Gaza, saying that […]

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif has reiterated the call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

GAZA CITY: Gaza’s civil defence agency said on Saturday that an Israeli strike in the southern city of Khan Yunis at least nine children from the same family, with the Israeli army saying it was reviewing the reports. Agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal said civil defence crews retrieved “the bodies of nine child martyrs, some of them charred, from the home of Dr Hamdi al-Najjar and his wife, Dr Alaa al-Najjar, all of whom were their children”. He added that Hamdi al-Najjar and another son, Adam, were also seriously wounded in the strike on Friday. A medical source at Nasser Hospital, where Alaa al-Najjar works, gave Adam’s age as 10 years old. Footage of the aftermath released by the civil defence agency showed rescuers recovering badly burned remains from the damaged home. Asked about the incident, the Israeli military said it had “struck a number of suspects who were identified operating from a structure” near its troops. “The Khan Yunis area is a dangerous warzone,” it added. “The claim regarding harm to uninv...

CANNES: An astonishing appearance of WikiLeaks’ founder Julian Assange at the Cannes Film Festival has drawn worldwide attention after he put on a shirt having the list of names of 4,986 Palestinian children who were killed in Gaza. His appearance caught the eyes at the significant event, where he was promoting ‘The Six Billion Dollar […]

Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday called on the global community to ensure prompt and steady delivery of urgently needed humanitarian aid to Gaza’s residents. The prime minister passed these remarks during a phone call with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi. Addressing the Middle East situation, particularly the dire circumstances in Gaza, the prime […]

LONDON: The United Kingdom has halted new free trade negotiations with Israel, expressing serious concerns over the continuing Gaza aid blockade and humanitarian crisis. The UK’s Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, directly communicated the decision to the Israeli ambassador, stating that the alarming situation of hunger for millions of citizens in Gaza is an “appalling act.” […]

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday urged the international community to ensure consistent and timely delivery of badly needed humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza.

Pakistan has condemned in the strongest possible terms the continued Israeli aggression in Gaza.

Pakistan on Tuesday said that the expansion of Israeli ground operations in Gaza, as well as its announcement to “take control of all” of Gaza, posed a grave threat to efforts aimed towards achieving peace and stability in the region.

Rescuers said Israeli strikes on Gaza killed 100 people on Friday, as Hamas demanded the United States press Israel to lift a sweeping aid blockade in return for a US-Israeli hostage released by the group. In early March, shortly before the collapse of a two-month ceasefire in its war against Hamas, Israel reimposed a total […]

French President Emmanuel Macron reaffirmed on Friday that the humanitarian crisis in Gaza was unacceptable, and said he hoped to discuss the matter soon with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump. “The humanitarian situation in Gaza is intolerable,” Macron told reporters, as he attended a meeting of European leaders in Albania. “We […]

Gaza rescuers said at least 80 people were killed in Israeli bombardment across the Palestinian territory on Wednesday, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to US envoy Steve Witkoff about the release of hostages. Negotiations for the release of the captives held in Gaza have been ongoing, with the latest talks taking place in […]

• Netanyahu says ceasefire is possible, but vows not to stop war • Israeli strike kills another journalist CAIRO: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said the military would enter the besieged enclave “with full force” in the coming days, vowing not to stop the war. A statement from the office of Israeli PM Netanyahu on Tuesday said, “In the very coming days, we are going in with full force to complete the operation.” “Completing the operation means defeating Hamas. It means destroying Hamas,” Netanyahu said during a meeting with injured reserve soldiers in his office late Monday. “There will be no situation where we stop the war. A temporary ceasefire might happen, but we are going all the way,” he added. Israel resumed major operations across Gaza on March 18 amid a deadlock over how to proceed with a January 19 ceasefire that had largely halted the war with Hamas. Earlier this month, Israel’s government approved plans to expand its Gaza offensive, with officials talking of retaining a long-term p...

BEIRUT: Half a million people in the Gaza Strip face starvation, a global hunger monitor said on Monday, warning the Israeli-blockaded enclave faces a high risk of famine by the end of September. The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report cited a significant deterioration since October. It forecast that 2.1 million people across Gaza — roughly the entire population — will likely experience high levels of acute food insecurity, with 469,500 projected at “catastrophic” levels — the most severe stage. The previous IPC analysis in October found 133,000 people in that category. Israel sealed off Gaza in early March when it resumed military action against Hamas after a ceasefire collapsed. Israeli government spokesperson David Mencer said the IPC had “constantly talked about famine; famine has never happened because of Israel’s efforts to get more aid in.” He blamed Hamas for causing hunger by allegedly stealing aid. Hamas denies this, accusing Israel of using starvation as a weapon. Warns half ...