IRBIL: Waiting at home in Iraqi Kurdistan, Khadija Hussein holds faint hope of hearing word of further survivors from the shipwrecked vessel that carried 11 of her family members from neighboring Turkiye.
Khadija’s nephew Rebwar, his sister-in-law Mojdeh and both their families were aboard a sailing boat that sank overnight between Sunday and Monday off the Italian coast.
Twelve people were plucked from the water after the boat sank around 120 nautical miles off Calabria, one of whom died after disembarking. More than 60 remain unaccounted for after six bodies were retrieved on Wednesday from the sea by the Italian coast guard.
“What’s clear is that Mojdeh survived. We spoke to her on the phone,” the 54-year-old housewife told AFP.
Mojdeh’s son and another child from the family are also known to have survived — the eight other relatives of Khadija who were onboard are still unaccounted for.
“We have no further details,” Khadija said, a black veil draped over her hair.
On a moldering wall at the entrance to the family home in Irbil, the capital of the autonomous Kurdistan region in northern Iraq, a poster announces a vigil organized on Wednesday to receive condolences.
Two family photos on display showed the victims, parents and children smiling broadly and dressed in their best clothes. Mojdeh is with her husband Abdel Qader, a cab driver. Her sister Hiro is pictured with her husband Rebwar, a blacksmith.
The two couples had almost changed their minds and decided not to depart.
“They had informed the parents, and everyone was relieved,” Khadija explained, but after an insistent intervention by a people smuggler, the group had a change of heart.
They were supposed to make contact with the family in Irbil when they arrived in Europe to start their new life.
“Hours went by, and we heard nothing more,” Khadija said.
The smuggler, meanwhile, had switched off their phone
News of deaths like these on Europe’s migrant routes has become all too common in the autonomous Kurdish region. The area has been touched by other tragedies, whether on the English Channel or in the frozen forests of Belarus.
In the Irbil schoolyard requisitioned for the vigil, dozens of women huddle together, seated under a tent, all dressed in black, their features drawn, in a silence broken by the cries of children.
At the mosque, the men of the family welcomed dozens of visitors who had come to pay their respects in a reception room, listening to verses from the Qur'an.
Kamal Hamad, Rebwar’s father, explained that he spoke to his son on Wednesday, 12 June, when he was already on the boat. His grief is compounded by incomprehension.
“They knew full well that traveling by sea in this way meant certain death,” the 60-year-old said. “Why leave? In our country it’s better than elsewhere.”
In an unstable Iraq, the Kurdish region has always presented an image of relative prosperity and stability. Property developments, highways, universities and private schools are all under construction.
But the autonomous region, like the rest of the resource-rich country, also suffers from endemic corruption, the cronyism of the ruling clans and an economic stasis that has left its young people disillusioned.
A Gallup poll from 2022 showed two out of every three Kurdish residents thought it would be difficult to find a job.
According to the International Organization for Migration, some 3,155 migrants died or disappeared in the Mediterranean last year.
The president of the Association of Migrants Returned from Europe, Bakr Ali, told AFP that the sailing boat was carrying a “majority of Kurds from Iraq and Iran.”
“There were also a number of Afghans,” he said, adding that the boat had set sail from Bodrum in Turkiye.
Bakhtiar Qader, Rebwar’s cousin, said some 30 people from autonomous Kurdistan were among those traveling on the vessel.
He also doesn’t understand the stubbornness of the two couples. Especially as they “had their own house, car, children and jobs.”
“I, like their parents and friends, tried to talk them out of it,” he said.
“But they wouldn’t listen,” the 40-year-old, wearing a black shirt and a salt-and-pepper beard explained.
“They didn’t know that death was waiting for them.”
Iraqi Kurds mourn loved ones lost on Mediterranean migrant route
https://arab.news/zvkzf
Iraqi Kurds mourn loved ones lost on Mediterranean migrant route
- In unstable Iraq, Kurdish region has always presented image of relative prosperity and stability
- But autonomous region, like rest of the resource-rich country, also suffers from endemic corruption
Far-right Israeli minister’s visits to Al-Aqsa Mosque compound condemned
- The Jordanian foreign ministry described Ben Gvir’s visit to the site
- Hamas also condemned the Israeli minister's visit
JERUSALEM: Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir visited the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem’s Old City on Wednesday, his spokesperson said.
The firebrand politician was visiting the disputed site, which is sacred to Jews and Muslims, in occupied east Jerusalem after returning to the Israeli government last month following the resumption of the war in Gaza.
Jordan condemned the visit by Gvir, calling it a “dangerous escalation.”
In a statement, the Jordanian foreign ministry described Ben Gvir’s visit to the site, which is sacred to both Jews and Muslims, as a “storming” and “an unacceptable provocation.”
Hamas also condemned the Israeli minister's visit, calling it a “provocative and dangerous escalation.”
In a statement, the Palestinian militant group called for Palestinians “and our youth in the West Bank to escalate their confrontation... in defense of our land and our sanctities, foremost among them the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque.” The disputed site is sacred to both Jews and Muslims.
Hunger returns to Gaza as Israeli blockade forces bakeries shut
- UN agency: All 25 WFP-supported bakeries in Gaza have shut down due to lack of fuel and flour
- International charities working in Gaza warn that its 2.4 million people cannot endure more shortages
GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories: At an industrial bakery in war-ravaged Gaza City, a conveyor belt that once churned out thousands of pitta breads every day has come to a standstill.
The Families Bakery is one of about two dozen supported by the World Food Programme (WFP) that have halted production in recent days due to flour and fuel shortages resulting from an Israeli blockade.
“All 25 WFP-supported bakeries in Gaza have shut down due to lack of fuel and flour,” the UN agency said in a statement on Tuesday, adding that it would “distribute its last food parcels in the next two days.”
Abed Al-Ajrami, chairman of the Bakery Owners Association in Gaza and owner of the Families Bakery, said that the WFP was the only sponsor of Gaza bakeries and provided them with “all their needs.”
“The repercussions from the closure of the bakeries will be very hard on citizens because they have no alternative to resort to,” he said.
Speaking in front of a large industrial oven that had not been fired up, he said that bakeries were central to the UN agency’s food distribution program, which delivered the bread to refugee camps across Gaza.
Despite a six-week truce that allowed displaced Gazans to return to what remained of their homes, negotiations for a lasting end to the fighting have stalled.
On March 2, Israel imposed a full blockade on the Palestinian territory, and cut off power to Gaza’s main water desalination plant.
On March 18, Israel resumed its strikes on Gaza. Days later, Hamas again began firing rockets at Israel.
The Palestinian militant group has accused Israel of using starvation as “a direct weapon in this brutal war,” pointing to the bakeries’ closure as an example.
It called on Arab and Muslim countries to “act urgently to save Gaza from famine and destruction.”
Residents of Gaza City were wary of the future.
“I got up in the morning to buy bread for my children but I found all the bakeries closed,” Mahmud Khalil said.
Fellow resident Amina Al-Sayed echoed his comments.
“I’ve been going from bakery to bakery all morning, but none of them are operating, they’re all closed,” she said, adding that she feared the threat of famine would soon stalk Gaza once again.
“The price of flour has risen... and we can’t afford it. We’re afraid of reliving the famine that we experienced in the south” of the territory.
International charities working in Gaza warn that its 2.4 million people cannot endure more shortages after many of them were displaced multiple times during the devastating military campaign Israel launched in response to Hamas’s October 2023 attack.
Those who took advantage of the six-week truce to return to bombed out homes have been “arriving in utter destitution,” said Gavin Kelleher of the Norwegian Refugee Council.
“We’ve been set up to fail as a humanitarian response. We’re not allowed to bring in supplies, we’re not able to meet needs,” he lamented.
Alexandra Saieh, of British charity Save The Children, echoed Kelleher’s remarks.
“When Save The Children does distribute food in Gaza, we see massive crowds because every single person in Gaza is relying on aid,” she said.
“That lifeline has been cut.”
Israel expands military effort in Gaza, 15 killed since morning
- Israeli defense minister says large areas in Gaza would be seized and added to Israel's security zones
- Israel resumed air strikes on Gaza and sent ground troops back this month after fragile truce collapsed
JERUSALEM: Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced a major expansion of the military operation in Gaza on Wednesday, saying large areas of the enclave would be seized and added to the security zones of Israel.
In a statement, Katz said there would be large-scale evacuation of population from areas where there is fighting, and urged Gazans to eliminate Hamas and return Israeli hostages as the only way to end the war.
He did not make clear how much land Israel intends to seize, however.
Gaza rescuers say 15 killed in Israeli strikes on two houses
Gaza’s civil defense agency said Israeli air strikes on two houses in the war-ravaged Palestinian territory on Wednesday killed at least 15 people, including children.
“Thirteen martyrs, including children, were killed at dawn when occupation forces (the Israeli army) bombed a house sheltering displaced people in central Khan Yunis, in southern Gaza,” civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP, adding two other people were kiled in an Israeli strike on a house in the Nuseirat camp, in central Gaza.
Israel has already set up a significant buffer zone within Gaza, expanding an area that existed around the edges of the enclave before the war and adding a large security area in the so-called Netzarim corridor through the middle of Gaza.
At the same time, Israeli leaders have said they plan to facilitate voluntary departure of Palestinians from the enclave, after US President Donald Trump called for it to be permanently evacuated and redeveloped as a coastal resort under US control.
Israel resumed air strikes on Gaza and sent ground troops back in this month, after two months of relative calm following the conclusion of a US-backed truce to allow the exchange of hostages held by Hamas for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
Efforts led by Qatari and Egyptian mediators to get back on tracks talks aimed at ending the war have failed to make progress yet.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said the application of military pressure is the best way to get the remaining 59 hostages back.
Young Turks drive protests against Erdogan as new generation seeks change
- Hundreds of thousands of Turks nationwide have heeded opposition calls to protest since Imamoglu was detained last week
- As protests continue, young Turks insist their demands are simple: democracy, accountability, and a future worth staying for
ANKARA: A new generation of young Turks is at the forefront of mass protests against President Tayyip Erdogan’s government, demanding change in a country they see as increasingly authoritarian. Demonstrations erupted after Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, a popular opposition figure, was jailed pending trial on corruption charges. Unlike older generations who remember the heavy crackdown on the 2013 anti-government Gezi Park protests, today’s young protesters say they are undeterred by the risks.
“I think growing up under just one regime makes us a generation looking for change, looking for proof we live in a democracy,” said Yezan Atesyan, a 20-year-old student at Middle East Technical University (METU).
“The idea of a power that lasts forever scares us.”
Hundreds of thousands of Turks nationwide have heeded opposition calls to protest since Imamoglu was detained last week.
Protests have been mostly peaceful, but more than 2,000 people have been detained.
The main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), other opposition parties, rights groups and some Western powers have all said the case against Imamoglu is a politicised effort to eliminate a potential electoral threat to Erdogan.
The government denies any influence over the judiciary and says the courts are independent.
Students from across Turkey have mobilized, facing police blockades and water cannon trucks. Drone footage from METU captured clashes between protesters and state security forces.
Atesyan said all were targetted in the crackdown: "Not just minorities, not just women, not just the LGBT community — it is against all of us."
A GENERATION ON EDGE
Beyond political frustration, economic hardship has fueled the unrest. High inflation and unemployment have made young people feel their future is slipping away.
“I graduated in 2024, but I can’t find a job, and my family struggles financially,” said 25-year-old protester Duygu at an opposition rally in Istanbul.
She fears for her safety but also worries about her friends. “Some of them have already been detained.”
Concerns over the state's response are growing. “I don’t want to show my face because the police could come for me,” said Duygu, who wears a mask at protests. “If that happens, it would devastate my family.”
Despite the risks, demonstrators remain resolute.
“This feels like our last chance,” Atesyan said.
“If we don’t succeed, many of us will have to leave Turkey.”
The government dismisses the protests as politically motivated, but the youth-driven unrest signals a growing divide.
“Imamoglu represents hope,” Atesyan said. “The possibility of real change.”
As protests continue, young Turks insist their demands are simple: democracy, accountability, and a future worth staying for.
Israel to seize parts of Gaza as military operation expands
- Katz said there would be large-scale evacuation of population from areas where there is fighting
Jerusalem: Israel announced a major expansion of military operations in Gaza on Wednesday, saying large areas of the enclave would be seized and added to its security zones, accompanied by large-scale evacuations of the population.
In a statement, Defense Minister Israel Katz said evacuations would take place from areas where there was fighting, while urging Gazans to eliminate Hamas and return Israeli hostages as the only way to end the war.
He said the operation would clear out militants and infrastructure “and seize large areas that will be added to the security zones of the State of Israel.”
The Israeli military had already issued evacuation warnings to Gazans living around the southern city of Rafah and toward the city of Khan Younis, telling them to move to the Al-Mawasi area on the shore, previously designated a humanitarian zone.
The Palestinian civil defense agency said at least 12 bodies had been recovered by its teams in Khan Younis after a wave of airstrikes was reported overnight, and Palestinian radio reported that the area around Rafah was almost completely empty following the evacuation orders.
At the site of a strike in Khan Younis, Rida Al-Jabbour held up a tiny shoe and pointed at a blood-spattered wall as she related how a neighbor had been killed along with her three-month-old baby, their bodies dismembered by the blast.
“From the moment the strike occurred we have not been able to sit or sleep or anything,” she said, describing how rescue workers were unable to separate the remains of those killed.
16 killed in Israel strike on Jabalia UN clinic
Also on Wednesday, Gaza’s civil defense agency said nine children were among 16 people killed in an Israeli strike on what it called a UN clinic in Jabalia Wednesday, which the army did not immediately confirm.
Civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal said there were also dozens of people wounded in the strike which “targeted an UNRWA building housing a medical clinic in Jabalia refugee camp.” The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) was not immediately able to confirm the strike.
Buffer zone
Katz’s statement did not make clear how much land Israel intended to seize or whether the move represented a permanent annexation of territory, which would add further pressure on a population in Gaza already living in one of the most crowded areas in the world.
According to the Israeli rights group Gisha, Israel has already taken control of some 62 square kilometers or around 17 percent of the total area of Gaza, as part of a buffer zone around the edges of the enclave.
Seizing the buffer zone, which contains infrastructure including wells, sewage pumping stations, and wastewater treatment facilities as well as a significant part of Gaza’s agricultural land, would also increase pressure on the enclave’s ability to sustain itself.
At the same time, Israeli leaders have said they plan to facilitate voluntary departure of Palestinians from the enclave, after US President Donald Trump called for it to be permanently evacuated and redeveloped as a coastal resort under US control.
Katz’s remarks came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeated calls for Hamas to disarm and said the application of military pressure was the best way to get back the remaining 59 hostages.
Israeli leaders have been encouraged by signs of protest in Gaza against Hamas, the militant group which has controlled the enclave since 2007, and the expanded operation appeared at least partly aimed at increasing civilian pressure on its leaders.
“I call on the residents of Gaza to act now to eliminate Hamas and return all the kidnapped,” Katz said in his statement. “This is the only way to end the war.”
War expands
Israel resumed airstrikes on Gaza last month and sent ground troops back in, after two months of relative calm following the conclusion of a US-backed truce to allow the exchange of hostages held by Hamas for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed since the resumption of the strikes and Israel has also cut off aid to the enclave, saying much of it was taken by Hamas.
Efforts led by Qatari and Egyptian mediators to get talks aimed at ending the war back on track have so far failed to make progress and the military’s return to Gaza has fueled protests in Israel by families and supporters of some of the hostages.
On Wednesday, the Hostage Families’ Forum said it was “horrified” to wake up to news of the expanded operation.
As the operation in Gaza has escalated, Israel has also hit targets in southern Lebanon and Syria, with a strike on a Hezbollah commander in the southern suburbs of Beirut on Tuesday that further strained fraying ceasefire agreements which largely halted fighting in January.
In addition, Israeli troops are still carrying out a major operation in the occupied West Bank.
Israel invaded Gaza following the devastating attack on communities in southern Israel by thousands of Hamas-led gunmen that killed 1,200 people according to Israeli tallies, and saw 251 taken as hostages into Gaza.
The Israeli campaign has killed more than 50,000 Palestinians, according to Palestinian health officials, and ravaged the Gaza Strip, forcing almost the entire population of 2.3 million from their homes, leaving hundreds of thousands in tents and improvised shelters.
