Israeli Holocaust scholar Raz Segal on Gaza: "a textbook case of genocide."

 

Israeli Holocaust scholar Raz Segal tells Democracy Now! that Israel's war on Gaza constitutes "a textbook case of genocide."

Raz Segal, an Israeli expert in modern genocide, calls Israel's assault on Gaza a textbook case of "intent to commit genocide" and its rationalisation of its violence a "shameful use" of the lessons of the Holocaust.

Israeli state exceptionalism and comparisons of its Palestinians victims to "Nazis" are used to "justify, rationalise, deny, distort, disavow mass violence against Palestinians," says Segal. Democracy Now! is an independent global news hour that airs on over 1,500 TV and radio stations Monday through Friday. Watch our livestream at democracynow.org Mondays to Fridays 8-9 a.m. ET.

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You can read the transcript here.

Read the article here:

A Textbook Case of Genocide

Israel has been explicit about what it’s carrying out in Gaza. Why isn’t the world listening?

Raz Segal

October 13, 2023

 

UN Security Council about to discuss Israel-Hamas war today

 

AFP: 

The UN Security Council said it will discuss the Israel-Hamas war Monday, starting deliberations at 6:00 pm (2200 GMT). 

The crisis deepens with Israel gearing up for a ground offensive in Gaza.

Diplomats say two competing draft resolutions are being discussed:

-one from Russia urging a ceasefire and delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza, but making no mention of Hamas,

 -and one sponsored by Brazil, calling the Hamas attacks on October 7 that triggered the war an act of terrorism.

The UN agency supporting Palestinian refugees has warned that the Gaza Strip faces an "unprecedented human catastrophe" if supply of water and other vital supplies is not restored by the Israeli authorities.

Russia's draft resolution calls for "unimpeded" humanitarian aid and "an immediate" ceasefire.

The Brazilian version differs by stating that it "unequivocally rejects and condemns the heinous terrorist attacks by Hamas" and the taking of hostages by the Palestinian militant group.

However, it also "strongly urges" provision of essential goods to Palestinian civilians and urges "humanitarian pauses" to let in humanitarian aid workers.

The United States is insisting that the council condemn the Hamas attacks as terrorism, diplomats say.

To be adopted, a resolution needs at least nine votes on the 15-member body, and cannot be vetoed by any of the five permanent members -- the United States, Britain, China, France and Russia.

Diplomats said the talks were tough going, as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict regularly divides the council.

Background:

Israel declared war on Hamas a day after waves of its fighters broke through the heavily fortified border, killing more than 1400 people, mostly civilians. 

Israel has responded by sealing off and bombing Gaza, killing at least 2,750 people mainly civilians.

Israeli authorities say they are preparing a ground offensive to root out Hamas leaders and their armed supporters.

Reuters:

• Summary

• LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
• U.S. officials hope the Rafah crossing can be opened later on Monday to allow some people to leave Gaza before an expected Israeli ground offensive, the White House spokesman said.
• U.S. President Joe Biden to stay at the White House for national security meetings, the White House said.
• 'We are continuing our fight against Hamas' -Israeli military

GAZA/JERUSALEM, Oct 16 (Reuters) - Israeli forces kept up their bombardment of Gaza on Monday after diplomatic efforts to arrange a ceasefire to allow foreign citizens to leave and aid to be brought into the besieged Palestinian enclave failed.

Residents of Hamas-ruled Gaza said overnight air strikes were the heaviest yet as the conflict entered its 10th day with an Israeli ground offensive of the densely populated coastal strip believed to be imminent.

Bombing carried on through the day, they said, and many buildings were flattened, trapping yet more people under the rubble. Israeli officials issued multiple warnings of Hamas rocket fire into Israel.

Diplomatic efforts have been underway to get aid into the enclave, which has endured unrelenting Israeli bombing since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas militants that killed 1,300 people - the bloodiest single day in the state's 75-year history.

But Israel's chief military spokesperson, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, said there was no Gaza ceasefire plan.

"We are continuing our fight against Hamas, this murderous organisation that carried this (the assaults) out."

Israel has imposed a full blockade and is preparing a ground invasion to enter Gaza and destroy Hamas, which has continued to fire rockets at Israel since its cross-border assault. On Monday, warning sirens sounded in several towns in southern Israel, the Israeli military said.

Israeli troops and tanks are already massed on the border.

Authorities in Gaza said at least 2,750 people had so far been killed by the Israeli strikes, a quarter of them children, and nearly 10,000 wounded. A further 1,000 people were missing and believed to be under rubble.

With food, fuel and water running short, hundreds of tons of aid from several countries have been held up in Egypt pending a deal for its safe delivery to Gaza and the evacuation of some foreign passport holders through the Rafah border crossing.

Earlier on Monday, Egyptian security sources had said an agreement had been reached to open the crossing to allow aid into the enclave.

But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said: "There is currently no truce and humanitarian aid in Gaza in exchange for getting foreigners out."

Hamas official Izzat El Reshiq told Reuters there was "no truth" to the reports about the crossing opening or a temporary ceasefire.

Egypt has said the crossing was rendered inoperable due to Israeli bombardments on the Palestinian side.

U.S. officials were hoping the Rafah crossing could be opened for a few hours later on Monday to allow some people to leave Gaza before the expected Israeli ground offensive, White House spokesman John Kirby told CNN.

The United States had told its citizens in Gaza to go to the crossing. It estimates the number of dual-citizen Palestinian-Americans in Gaza at 500 to 600.

Gaza/Israel at war: summary of the recent events

 

I'm sharing here this summary written by journalist from The Guardian, before their live feed get updated.

Follow their work here. It's mostly balanced and researched, with reporters on the ground.

If you prefer broadcasters, watch Al Jazeera in English, accessible from Youtube 24/7, they are the ones with a coverage from the ground and the whole region, with informed experts and reporters.

Israeli army armoured vehicles roll towards the border with the Gaza Strip
at an undisclosed location in southern Israel on October 15, 2023.
YURI CORTEZ / AFP

Summary of the day so far …

It has just gone 1pm in Gaza and Tel Aviv. Here are the key points so far today …

• Israel has activated a plan to evacuate residents within 2km (1.2 miles) of Lebanon, the military said on Monday. It follows exchanges of fire with Hezbollah in parallel to the conflict in southern Israel with Hamas. In a statement, the Israel Defence Forces and the ministry of defence said the plan had been approved by the defence secretary, Yoav Gallant, and included the evacuation of 28 settlements. Residents will be moved to state-subsidised guest houses.

• 
  

• The Israeli military has said it has confirmed that Hamas is holding 199 hostages in Gaza. The hostages were seized on Saturday 7 October when Hamas fighters broke through the Israeli border fence in southern Israel, and attacked a music festival and multiple settlements killing more than 1,300 Israelis.

• Israeli military spokesperson Daniel Hagari said “There is a top national priority effort for the issue of the abductees and we are focused on this effort as a national top priority. The IDF is working around the clock to return the abductees”, adding that the IDF had notified the families of all 199. Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Catholic patriarch of Jerusalem, has offered himself in exchange for child hostages.

• 
  

• Gaza’s health ministry says at least 2,750 Palestinians have been killed and 9,700 wounded in Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip since 7 October. The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate has said that Israel has killed 11 Palestinian journalists in its airstrikes on Gaza.

• The UN relief and works agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) has said “there are not enough body bags for the dead in Gaza”. Its latest situational report noted that Gaza had been without electricity for five days, there was limited access to clean drinking water, and more than 1 million people had been displaced.

• 
  

• Egyptian foreign minister Sameh Shoukry said on Monday that the Israeli government had yet to take a stance that allowed the crossing to open. There has been some movement of UN-flagged fuel trucks Monday morning at the border, but despite speculation of a local ceasefire and a limited opening, the crossing between Egypt and Gaza has remained closed.

• 
  

• UN aid chief Martin Griffiths said on Monday he would be travelling to the Middle East on Tuesday to support negotiations on getting aid into the blockaded Gaza Strip. Griffiths said his office was in “deep discussions” with Israel, Egypt and other parties.

• 
  

• US secretary of state Antony Blinken has arrived back in Israel, his second visit since the Hamas attack. US citizens are boarding an evacuation ship at the port of Haifa which will take them today to Limassol in Cyprus.

• 
  

• Leaders of all 27 countries in the EU have called for the “immediate and unconditional” release of all the hostages. The leaders will tomorrow meet over video link at an emergency summit called over the weekend as fears across the EU rise over the volatility of the region. In a strongly worded statement European Council president, Charles Michel, said the EU defended Israel’s right to defend itself but said it must be “in full compliance with international law and international humanitarian law”.

• 
  

• Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani said on Monday in a televised press conference that “Iran considers that the US is already militarily involved in the conflict.”

• 
  

• China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, has called for a ceasefire, saying “The UN security council must take action, and the major powers should play an active role. It is imperative that a ceasefire be put in place, that the two sides be brought back to the negotiating table, and that an emergency humanitarian channel be established to prevent a further humanitarian disaster.”

• Germany’s chancellor, Olaf Scholz, will travel to Israel on Tuesday.

This is Martin Belam with you on the live blog in London, and I will be here for the next few hours. You can contact me at martin.belam@theguardian.com.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2023/oct/16/israel-hamas-war-live-update-news-today-gaza-water-fuel-aid-egypt-border-rafah-crossing-latest-updates#top-of-blog

Gaza: One way to help

 

The poet Mosab Abu Toha lives in Northern Gaza with his family. 

These past few years, during and after Israeli attacks, Mosab has collected donations and gone from family to family in his area, finding out who has been hit hardest, who needs what, and then proceeding to help them with a sum of money or by actually buying what they need. 

This is direct person-to-person help. 

You can donate directly to Mosab and be assured that the donation will be used as well possible. 

The situation is dire... 

Mosab feels like he and his family could be killed at any moment, like so many other friends and neighbours. 

Mosab’s PayPal and Zelle contact is his email address:

 mosababutoha@gmail.com

If someone uses venmo, you can contact him directly via email.

Here is a piece written by Mosab here:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/10/10/gaza-israel-hamas-war/

And here is an extract of an interview with him by Christian Amanpour on CNN:

 https://twitter.com/amanpour/status/1712177983270654401 

And another on Democracy Now: 

Report from Gaza: Two Palestinians describe "horror"
on 6th day of Israel bombing besieged enclave

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How to keep dreaming, my dear?

  A consolation in the middle of insomnia...

For the past five days, I've kept waking up in the middle of the night in panic... Every war, near or far, has this effect on me.

Such a sad world, how do you cope?

Is crying a form of dreaming? 

I find that only music is the antithesis of war... And it's the only form of life that really makes me 'be in the moment'.

And, yes, I like sad music.

The National - 'Dreaming'

Bombino's new album: 'Sahel'

 

Bombino - 'Darfuq'

News from Niger

 

More coverage of the Sahel on RFI English.

Niger military rulers order UN official out within 72 hours, as US cuts aid and France withdraws

 

Niger's post-coup military rulers have demanded that the United Nations coordinator in the West African country leave Niger within 72 hours, accusing them of excluding Niger from the last UN General Assembly. The move comes as the US cuts their aid and French troops accelerate their departure.

 

 

The Niger foreign ministry said in the statement dated Tuesday and seen on Wednesday by the press that the government had ordered the UN's resident and humanitarian coordinator, Louise Aubin, "to take all necessary measures to leave Niamey within 72 hours".

In a statement dated 10 October, Niger's foreign ministry accused the U.N. of using "underhanded manoeuvres" instigated by France to prevent its full participation in the UN General Assembly (UNGA) last month's and in subsequent meetings of UN agencies held in Vienna and in Riyadh.

The ministry pointed to "obstacles" presented by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres " with a view to thwarting the full and complete participation of Niger" at the UNGA.

The military regime in power in Niamey has already criticised "the perfidious actions" of the UN chief, saying that they were "likely to undermine any effort to end the crisis in our country".

Niger's current foreign minister is Bakary Yaou Sangare.

Before the coup, he was Niger's ambassador to the UN.

He was supposed to go to UNGA's gathering, but, according to a diplomatic source, the overthrown government didn't send an application to represent Niger.

The matter was finally deferred and no representative from Niger was added to the speakers' list.

The UN in Niamey said they had no immediate comment.

US reactions

This decision comes as the United States has announced that it has decided to cut aid to Niger.

"Any resumption of US assistance will require action to usher in democratic governance in a quick and credible timeframe," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said.

Washington earlier Tuesday declared that Niger's ousting of a democratic government had been a coup.

The United States, along with some West African nations and the former colonial power France, had been pressing the military to restore President Mohamed Bazoum.

"We're taking this action because over the last two months, we've exhausted all available avenues to preserve the constitutional order in Niger," a senior US official added.

The French military goes, the US stays

Meanwhile, France is continuing the withdrawal of its 1,400-strong contingent in Niger, as ordered by the coup leaders.

Niger military regime has said French forces are leaving "in the direction of Chad".

"The troops based in Ouallam have left their base today. These are the operations for the departure of the first ground convoy in the direction of Chad, escorted by our defence and security forces," new rulers said in a statement on national television.

In addition to the departure by land, "three special flights" have been registered at the airport in Niamey, two for the departure of  97 special forces elements" and one "dedicated to logistics".

• French troops start leaving Niger after coup leaders order them out

French President Emmanuel Macron confirmed in September their departure, expecting to complete the process by the end of the year.

France's ambassador to Niger was also given his marching orders after the coup that toppled President Mohamed Bazoum, an ally of Paris, and left late in September.

• French ambassador to Niger returns to Paris after weeks of tension

Unlike France, the United States is keeping about 1,000 military personnel in Niger, but they are no longer actively training or assisting Niger forces, another US official said. 

They say they will continue to work to monitor threats from jihadists.

 (with newswires)

 

Egypt warned Israel three days before Hamas attack: senior US lawmaker

 

Egypt warned Israel three days before Hamas attack: senior US lawmaker

(AFP) - Israel got a warning from Egypt of potential violence three days before Hamas caught Israeli forces off-guard in a large-scale attack, the chairman of the powerful US House Foreign Affairs Committee said Wednesday.

   "We know that Egypt has warned the Israelis three days prior that an event like this could happen," Republican Michael McCaul told reporters following a closed-door intelligence briefing for lawmakers on the crisis.

   "I don't want to get too much into classified (details), but a warning was given," he said. "I think the question was at what level."

   Israel is reeling from the deadliest attack in its 75-year history, as more than 1,500 militants stormed through the Gaza security barrier in their coordinated land, air and sea attack on the Jewish Sabbath.

   Hamas' ability to remain undetected while preparing and launching such a big, complex assault from the closely monitored and heavily guarded Gaza strip represents an unprecedented intelligence failure for US ally Israel.

   Israeli authorities say Hamas gunmen killed more than 1,200 people and wounded over 2,700 as they swept into small towns and kibbutzim and indiscriminately killed residents who hid in their homes or died defending their communities.

   Israel has been relentlessly pounding Hamas targets in Gaza in response, and the war has already claimed the lives of more than 3,700 lives of Israeli and Palestinian civilians, soldiers and combatants.

Kenzo TRIBOUILLARD / AFP

   In Washington, President Joe Biden has pledged to send more US munitions and military hardware and expressed revulsion at the "sheer evil" of the slaughter of civilians.

   McCaul said the attack may have been planned as long as a year ago.

   "We're not quite sure how we missed it. We're not quite sure how Israel missed it," he told reporters.

   Cairo has not commented officially on suggestions that it may have offered an early warning.

   But Egyptian media with close ties to the country's intelligence services on Wednesday quoted senior security sources denying Israeli press reports that such a warning was issued.

Death toll

 

Palestinian death toll in Gaza rises to 687 

At least 687 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed by Israel since October 7, says the health ministry in the besieged coastal enclave. 

A statement from the ministry posted to Facebook reads: 

The Israeli occupation expands the targeting of medical teams, health facilities and ambulances, causing 5 medical personnel to die and 10 others to be injured with various wounds.

The ministry also said some 3,726 people have been injured.

Israel death toll soars to over 900 - reports 

At least 900 people in Israel have been killed in the attacks launched by Hamas, according to local media reports. 

Meanwhile, more than 100 people have been taken captive by Hamas, Israel’s foreign ministry said.

UN chief says 'deeply distressed' by Israeli siege of Gaza

 

United Nations, United States, Oct 9, 2023 (AFP) - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday condemned the Hamas attack against Israel but said he was "deeply distressed" by the country's subsequent imposition of a total siege on the Gaza Strip.

   "The humanitarian situation in Gaza was extremely dire before these hostilities," Guterres told reporters. "Now it will only deteriorate exponentially."

   Earlier in the day, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said his country would impose a "complete siege" on the long blockaded enclave and stressed what this meant for its 2.3 million people: "No electricity, no food, no water, no gas -- it's all closed."

   Palestinians in the impoverished coastal territory braced for what many feared will be a massive Israeli ground attack aiming to defeat Hamas and liberate hostages.

   "This most recent violence does not come in a vacuum," Guterres stressed. "The reality is that it grows out of a long-standing conflict, with a 56-year long occupation and no political end in sight."

   "While I recognize Israel's legitimate security concerns, I also remind Israel that military operations must be conducted in strict accordance with international humanitarian law," Guterres said.

   Following the Islamist group's unprecedented ground, air and sea attacks, Israel has counted over 700 dead and launched a withering barrage of strikes on Gaza that have raised the death toll there to 560 people.

   Guterres began his speech by expressing "utter condemnation of the abhorrent attacks by Hamas and others against Israeli towns and villages in the Gaza periphery."

   "I recognize the legitimate grievances of the Palestinian people," Guterres said. "But nothing can justify these acts of terror and the killing, maiming and abduction of civilians."

   Israel, which has long prided itself on a high-tech military and intelligence edge in its many conflicts, has been shaken to the core by Hamas' surprise attack.

   The militant group surged into Israeli towns on Saturday, storming military bases, spraying gunfire at civilians and dragging off about 100 hostages.

   The conflict has only escalated since then, prompting Israel's promise Monday to cut off supplies to the region.

   "I am deeply distressed by today's announcement that Israel will initiate a complete siege of the Gaza Strip, nothing allowed in -- no electricity, food, or fuel," Guterres said.

   The UN will continue efforts to provide aid to respond to needs in Gaza, Guterres said.

   "Israel must see its legitimate needs for security materialized -- and Palestinians must see a clear perspective for the establishment of their own state realized," Guterres added.