Palestinians in Gaza see themselves as ‘zombies’: UN official

Palestinians inspect the damage at the site of Israeli strikes on a makeshift displacement camp in Mawasi Khan Yunis in the Gaza Strip on September 10, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas. (AFP)
Palestinians inspect the damage at the site of Israeli strikes on a makeshift displacement camp in Mawasi Khan Yunis in the Gaza Strip on September 10, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas. (AFP)
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Updated 10 September 2024
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Palestinians in Gaza see themselves as ‘zombies’: UN official

Palestinians in Gaza see themselves as ‘zombies’: UN official
  • He added that “a lot of people have nothing to eat,” noting that many had no access to electricity or even a bed

BRUSSELS, Belgium: Palestinians in Gaza feel they are “zombies” left to fend for themselves, the UN humanitarian coordinator for the Palestinian Territories said on Tuesday.

“’We’re two million zombies living on our own. All the ties are broken.’ This is how the people of Gaza see themselves,” Muhannad Hadi said, citing a Palestinian he met during one of his many trips to the Gaza Strip.

Hadi was in Brussels for a series of meetings with European officials as the EU’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, was on a visit to the region, including Egypt and Lebanon.

“So anything that you take for granted, or anything you took for granted, or you worked for yesterday in your life, it’s not there for the people of Gaza, for the majority of the people of Gaza,” Hadi said during a visit to Brussels.

He added that “a lot of people have nothing to eat,” noting that many had no access to electricity or even a bed.

“No one should suffer because of war. No one should suffer because of the wrong politics. No one should suffer because of the failed politics that we are seeing,” the United Nations special coordinator for the Middle East peace process said.

He accused politicians around the world of “not doing the job they should be doing.”

“That’s why we don’t have a ceasefire, and that’s why we don’t have a solution to their Gaza crisis,” he added.

Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel that sparked the war resulted in the deaths of 1,205 people, mostly civilians, including some hostages killed in captivity, according to Israeli official figures.

Militants seized 251 hostages during the attack, 97 of whom are still held in Gaza, including 33 the Israeli military says are dead.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive in Gaza has killed at least 41,020 people, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.

 


Arab League chief warns of rising religious intolerance in Cairo forum address

Arab League chief warns of rising religious intolerance in Cairo forum address
Updated 20 sec ago
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Arab League chief warns of rising religious intolerance in Cairo forum address

Arab League chief warns of rising religious intolerance in Cairo forum address
  • Ahmed Aboul Gheit says Islamophobia is a growing issue that undermines the values of coexistence
  • Secretary-general highlights Arab League’s earlier resolutions condemning religious hatred

LONDON: Ahmed Aboul Gheit, secretary-general of the Arab League, called for wider efforts to combat Islamophobia during a speech at the International Conference on Combating Hatred against Islam in Cairo on Tuesday.

Aboul Gheit said that Islamophobia is a dangerous and growing issue that undermines the values of coexistence and mutual respect, the Kuwait News Agency reported.

He said that its root causes lie in incitement, a lack of understanding of Islamic values, and the false association of Islam with terrorism.

The Arab League chief also said that biased media coverage, which amplifies errors and promotes negative stereotypes, fuels extremist discourse and divides communities.

Aboul Gheit highlighted the role of traditional and digital media in fostering tolerance and diversity, and called for a comprehensive response involving governments, international organizations, and civil society, the KUNA added.

He highlighted the Arab League’s earlier resolutions condemning religious intolerance.

The conference in Cairo brought together representatives from the Arab League; Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization; Al-Azhar; Christian institutions; and numerous Arab states to discuss strategies for promoting dialogue, understanding, and peaceful coexistence.


Libya’s eastern-based government bars entry of EU migration commissioner, three ministers

Libya’s eastern-based government bars entry of EU migration commissioner, three ministers
Updated 08 July 2025
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Libya’s eastern-based government bars entry of EU migration commissioner, three ministers

Libya’s eastern-based government bars entry of EU migration commissioner, three ministers
  • The ministers represent Italy, Greece and Malta, in addition to a commissioner from the European Union
  • They were declared persona non grata and told to leave Libyan territory immediately

TRIPOLI: The European Union migration commissioner and ministers from Italy, Malta and Greece were denied entry to the eastern part of divided Libya on Tuesday as they had disregarded “Libyan national sovereignty,” the Benghazi-based government said.

The delegation had arrived to attend a meeting with the parallel government of Osama Hamad, allied to military commander Khalifa Haftar who controls the east and large areas of southern Libya, shortly after a meeting with the rival, internationally recognized government that controls the west of Libya.

The delegation included EU Internal Affairs and Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner, Greek Migration and Asylum minister Thanos Plevris, Italian Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi and Maltese Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri.

The Benghazi-based government said the visit was canceled upon the delegation’s arrival at Benghazi airport whereupon the ministers were declared persona non grata and told to leave Libyan territory immediately.

Members of the European delegation did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.

The Hamad government had said on Monday all foreign visitors and diplomatic missions should not come to Libya and move inside the country without its prior permission.

Earlier in the day, the EU delegation had met in Tripoli with the UN-recognized government of Abdulhamid Dbiebah to discuss the migration crisis before flying to Benghazi.

Libya has become a transit route for migrants fleeing conflict and poverty to Europe across the Mediterranean since the fall in 2011 of dictator Muammar Qaddafi to a NATO-backed uprising. Factional conflict has split the country since 2014.

Dbeibah said during the meeting he had tasked his interior ministry with developing a national plan to tackle migration “based on practical cooperation with partners and reflecting a clear political will to build sustainable solutions.”


Over 10,000 Palestinians detained in Israeli jails, excluding Gazans in military confinement

Over 10,000 Palestinians detained in Israeli jails, excluding Gazans in military confinement
Updated 08 July 2025
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Over 10,000 Palestinians detained in Israeli jails, excluding Gazans in military confinement

Over 10,000 Palestinians detained in Israeli jails, excluding Gazans in military confinement
  • 3,629 Palestinians detained under administrative detention, a practice allowing Israeli authorities to hold individuals in prison without trial
  • Since the 1967 occupation, over 800,000 Palestinians have spent time in Israeli jails

LONDON: More than 10,000 Palestinians are currently held in Israeli prisons, the highest prisoner count since the Second Intifada in 2000, Palestinian prisoners’ advocacy groups reported on Tuesday.

As of early July, some 10,800 prisoners are said to be held in Israeli detention centers and prisons, including 50 women — two of whom are from the Gaza Strip — and over 450 children. The figures do not include individuals detained in Israeli military camps such as Sde Teiman, where many people from Gaza are believed to be held and subjected to torture.

A total of 3,629 Palestinians are currently detained under administrative detention, a practice that allows Israeli authorities to hold individuals in prison without trial for six months, which is subject to indefinite renewals.

A further 2,454 detainees are designated as “unlawful combatants,” including Palestinians and Arabs from Lebanon and Syria.

Since the 1967 occupation of the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, over 800,000 Palestinians have spent time in Israeli jails, according to a UN report in 2023.


3 dead in north Lebanon strike that Israel says hit Hamas militant

People gather near a damaged car after the Israeli military said in a statement that it struck a “key” figure from Hamas.
People gather near a damaged car after the Israeli military said in a statement that it struck a “key” figure from Hamas.
Updated 08 July 2025
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3 dead in north Lebanon strike that Israel says hit Hamas militant

People gather near a damaged car after the Israeli military said in a statement that it struck a “key” figure from Hamas.
  • Israel has kept up strikes against Hezbollah despite the ceasefire
  • “A short while ago, the (Israeli military) struck a key Hamas terrorist in the area of Tripoli in Lebanon,” Israeli military said

JERUSALEM: Lebanon said three people were killed Tuesday in a strike near Tripoli that the Israeli military said targeted a Hamas militant, the first on the north since a November ceasefire with Hezbollah.

The strike came amid ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas in Qatar and as five Israeli soldiers were killed in combat in the Gaza Strip, one of the deadliest days for Israeli forces in the Palestinian territory this year.

Israel has kept up its strikes on Lebanon despite the November truce, mainly hitting what it says are Hezbollah targets but also occasionally targeting Hamas.

“A short while ago, the (Israeli military) struck a key Hamas terrorist in the area of Tripoli in Lebanon,” the Israeli army said in a statement, without providing further details.

In an updated toll, Lebanon’s health ministry said the strike on a vehicle “killed three people and wounded 13” in an area that is close to a Palestinian refugee camp.

An AFP photographer saw a burnt out car surrounded by the emergency services and onlookers.

Hamas claimed attacks on Israel from Lebanon during more than a year of cross-border hostilities launched by Hezbollah in October 2023 in support of its Palestinian ally.

Israel has struck Hamas operatives in Lebanon, including since the ceasefire.

In May, Hamas said one of its commanders was killed in a strike on the southern city of Sidon as Israel said it targeted “the head of operations in Hamas’s Western Brigade in Lebanon.”

Israeli strikes on south Lebanon remain common, but raids on the north have been rare.

In October, Hamas said one of its operatives was killed along with his wife and two daughters in a strike on their home in Beddawi, a Palestinian refugee camp near Tripoli. Israel’s military said it targeted “a senior member of Hamas’s military wing in Lebanon.”

In May, Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas visited Beirut for talks on disarming militants in refugee camps across Lebanon as the Beirut government seeks to impose its authority across all its territory.

The Israeli military said earlier that it had killed two militants of the Lebanese armed movement Hezbollah in two separate attacks on southern Lebanon Monday.

It identified one of them as Ali Haidar, a local Hezbollah commander whom it said was involved in restoring militant infrastructure sites in the area.

Hezbollah’s clout has diminished after it emerged bruised from a conflict with Israel last year, fueled by Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza.

Israel, however, has kept up strikes against Hezbollah despite the ceasefire.

Israel said last week that it was “interested” in striking peace agreements with Lebanon and neighboring Syria.

The ceasefire aimed to end hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah after the Lebanese group launched a wave of cross-border attacks on northern Israel in solidarity with its Palestinian ally Hamas following its October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.


Four dead in fire at major Cairo telecoms hub, Internet disrupted

Fire fighters battle flames for the second day after a fire engulfed the main telecom company building in Cairo, Egypt, Tuesday.
Fire fighters battle flames for the second day after a fire engulfed the main telecom company building in Cairo, Egypt, Tuesday.
Updated 08 July 2025
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Four dead in fire at major Cairo telecoms hub, Internet disrupted

Fire fighters battle flames for the second day after a fire engulfed the main telecom company building in Cairo, Egypt, Tuesday.
  • Internet and phone connections were still heavily disrupted in Cairo on Tuesday, with the Egyptian stock exchange suspending operations

CAIRO: At least four people were killed and 27 injured in a fire at a major telecoms center in Egypt’s capital that caused widespread disruptions, the health ministry said on Tuesday.

Internet and phone connections were still heavily disrupted in Cairo on Tuesday, with the Egyptian stock exchange suspending operations.

Flights into and out of the capital had also been affected by the fire, which began on Monday evening, although by the following morning the civil aviation ministry said all flights had resumed following delays caused by the blaze.

Gas and electricity outages were also reported on Monday by Cairo governor Ibrahim Saber.

“Civil defense forces recovered four bodies from the scene of the incident,” the healthy ministry said in a statement.

The authorities are yet to announce a cause for the fire, nor has any information been given about the 27 injured.

Local media reported that the fire at the Ramses Exchange, the former communications ministry headquarters, was extinguished on Monday night.