Tag: Gaza

Pentagon chief confirms US pause on weapons shipment to Israel | Israel War on Gaza News

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has confirmed reports that the United States paused a weapons shipment to Israel, as President Joe Biden’s administration faces growing pressure to condition aid to the top US ally amid the war in Gaza.

Testifying before a US congressional subcommittee on Wednesday, Austin said the Biden administration had paused “one shipment of high payload munitions” amid concerns about the Israeli military’s push to invade the southern Gaza city of Rafah.

“We’ve been very clear … from the very beginning that Israel shouldn’t launch a major attack into Rafah without accounting for and protecting the civilians that are in that battlespace,” Austin told US lawmakers.

“We’ve not made a final determination on how to proceed with that shipment [of weapons],” the Pentagon chief added, noting that the transfer is separate from a supplemental aid package for Israel that was passed in late April.

“My final comment is that we are absolutely committed to continuing to support Israel in its right to defend itself.”

Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, responded to the shipment pause by saying the US decision was “very dissapointing”.

“[US President Joe Biden] can’t say he is our partner in the goal to destroy Hamas, while on the other hand delay the means meant to destroy Hamas,” Erdan said.

Al Jazeera’s Kimberly Halkett, reporting from the White House on Wednesday, said the shipment included 1,800 bombs each weighing about 900kg (2,000lbs) and another 1,700 bombs each weighing 226kg (500lbs).

“There has been, leading up to this delay, significant concerns on the part of not only student protesters across the United States but also within the president’s own party … about how these weapons are being used,” Halkett said.

US Senator Bernie Sanders welcomed the Biden administration’s pause on the weapons transfer, but said it “must be a first step”.

“The US must now use ALL its leverage to demand an immediate ceasefire, the end of the attacks on Rafah, and the immediate delivery of massive amounts of humanitarian aid to people living in desperation,” Sanders said in a statement. “Our leverage is clear. Over the years, the United States has provided tens of billions of dollars in military aid to Israel.”

The Biden administration has faced months of criticism over its “iron-clad” support for Israel amid the Gaza war, which has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians and plunged the enclave into a dire humanitarian crisis.

But Washington has largely continued to provide military and diplomatic backing to Israel as the war grinds on.

Israel stepped up its bombardment of Rafah on Monday, killing dozens of people after ordering about 100,000 residents in the city’s eastern areas to evacuate.

Israeli troops also stormed the Palestinian side of the Rafah border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt, which serves as a major gateway for humanitarian aid.

Yet despite continuing to say it has concerns for the fate of the more than 1.5 million Palestinians sheltering in Rafah, the US Department of State this week sought to play down the recent moves by the Israeli army.

“This military operation that they launched last night was targeted just to [the] Rafah gate,” US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said on Tuesday.

“It wasn’t an operation in the civilian areas that they had ordered to be evacuated. So we will continue to make clear that we oppose a major military operation in Rafah.”

Human rights advocates have urged the US to do more to pressure the country to end its war on Gaza, however, and President Biden faces mounting protests — including on US college campuses — over his stance.

A new poll released on Wednesday also suggested a growing disconnect between Biden and his Democratic Party base, which could pose a challenge as he campaigns for re-election in November.

The poll by Data for Progress, in collaboration with news website Zeteo, suggested that 56 percent of Democrats believed Israel was committing “genocide” in the besieged Palestinian territory.

It also found that seven in 10 American voters — and 83 percent of Democrats — also support a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

Hasan Pyarali, the Muslim Caucus chairman for College Democrats of America, the university arm of the Democratic Party, told Al Jazeera last week that many young people have signalled they will not vote for Biden in the upcoming election.

“It’s not just good policy to oppose the genocide; it’s good politics,” he said.

The United Nations defines genocide as “acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group”, including killings and measures to prevent births.

In January, the International Court of Justice — the UN’s top court — acknowledged there was a plausible risk of genocide in Gaza and ordered Israel to take “all measures within its power” to prevent genocidal acts against Palestinians.

Israel has rejected the accusation that it is committing genocide.

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US police break up Gaza protest encampment at George Washington University | Protests News

Police say arrests made in Washington, DC, as US-wide crackdown continues on student-led demonstrations in support of Palestinians in Gaza.

Police in the United States capital have broken up a student protest encampment at George Washington University, one of dozens of tent camps set up on campuses across the country in support of Palestinians in Gaza.

The Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, DC, said in a statement that it “moved to disperse” demonstrators on Wednesday morning after “a gradual escalation in the volatility of the protest”. It did not elaborate on what exactly that means.

“During the course of the operation, arrests were made for Assault on a Police Officer and Unlawful Entry,” the department said, without specifying how many arrests were made.

Citing an unnamed police source, CNN reported that 30 to 40 people were arrested.

The Gaza encampment at George Washington University is one of dozens that have sprung up around the world since late April in protest of Israel’s war on the besieged Palestinian enclave.

Students across the US as well as in Canada, the United Kingdom, France and elsewhere are demanding an end to Israel’s military offensive, which has killed nearly 35,000 Palestinians since early October.

They are also calling on their universities to divest from any companies that are complicit in Israeli human rights abuses, among other demands.

The arrests at George Washington University are part of a wave of similar police crackdowns on US college campuses, including New York’s Columbia University, the University of Chicago and the University of California at Los Angeles.

University administrators have accused pro-Palestinian demonstrators of using anti-Semitic language and creating an unsafe environment on campus.

The students have rejected those claims, which they say aim to distract people from what is happening in the Gaza Strip.

“It’s meant to take the focus away from the genocide in Gaza, and it is meant to take the focus away from our demands,” Mariam, a Jewish student demonstrator at George Washington University, told Al Jazeera late last week.

US politicians – including President Joe Biden, a Democrat and staunch backer of Israel – have criticised the Gaza encampments.

Republican James Comer, chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Accountability in the House of Representatives, will hold a hearing on the response to the George Washington University encampment on Wednesday.

The mayor of Washington, DC, Muriel Bowser, and Police Chief Pamela Smith are to testify.



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Border closure means injured Palestinians can’t leave Gaza | Gaza

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A 13-year-old boy injured in an Israeli air attack is among the Palestinian casualties of war who are appealing for help to leave Gaza for treatment, after Israeli forces closed the only route out.

Published On 8 May 2024

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US plays down Rafah assault, says it will push for Gaza ceasefire deal | Israel War on Gaza News

Washington, DC – The United States has played down the deadly Israeli assault on Rafah, saying the offensive appears to be “limited” despite concerns over the fate of the more than 1.5 million Palestinians sheltering in the southern Gaza city.

State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters on Tuesday that the US still opposes a major Israeli offensive against Rafah.

Israel had stepped up its bombardment of Rafah on Monday, killing dozens of people after ordering about 100,000 residents in its eastern areas to evacuate. Israeli troops also stormed the Palestinian side of the Rafah border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt, which serves as a major gateway for humanitarian aid.

“This military operation that they launched last night was targeted just to Rafah gate,” Miller said on Tuesday.

“It wasn’t an operation in the civilian areas that they had ordered to be evacuated. So we will continue to make clear that we oppose a major military operation in Rafah.”

Still, Miller acknowledged that the attack on the crossing “does look like the prelude” to a larger offensive.

The Israeli attack closed the Rafah crossing, further straining the already inadequate flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza. Since October 9, Israel has intensified its existing blockade on the territory, bringing the Palestinian enclave to the verge of famine.

The Rafah crossing also serves as an entry point for humanitarian workers going into Gaza, and critically sick and injured people use it to leave the territory and receive treatment abroad.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza said 120 patients who were set to cross from Gaza to Egypt for treatment were prevented from leaving on Tuesday.

Shutting down the crossing also has blocked medical supplies and fuel needed to operate the remaining medical centres in the territory, the ministry said.

“The situation of patients in Gaza hospitals has been very difficult since the beginning of the war due to the loss of medical equipment and the total collapse of the health system,” the ministry said in a statement.

“We have travel lists for sick and injured people in the thousands. And now they are prevented from leaving.”

At the US State Department, Miller called for reopening the crossing, but he also appeared to justify the Israeli attack that closed it.

“Hamas did control the Gaza side of Rafah crossing, and Hamas was continuing to collect revenue from that crossing being open,” he told reporters.

“So it is a legitimate goal to try and deprive Hamas from revenue, money that they could use to continue to finance their terrorist activities. That said, we want to see the crossing open, and we’re gonna work to try to get it back open.”

On Saturday, Israel also closed the Karem Abu Salem border crossing, also known as Kerem Shalom, barring aid trucks after Hamas launched a rocket attack on Israeli troops nearby, killing four soldiers.

On Tuesday, Miller falsely said the crossing between Gaza and Israel was “bombed” by Hamas when the crossing itself was not targeted.

When pressed about his assertion, Miller said: “You could make that argument it was that strike at Kerem Shalom that precipitated its closure.”

“But that said, you should be very clear about what our position is: We want to see it open. We want to see it open as soon as possible. They said that they’ll open it tomorrow. We’re going to work to see that that happens.”

Earlier on Tuesday, the United Nations called on Israel to reopen both crossings immediately.

The Israeli seizure of the Rafah gate came hours after Hamas said it had agreed to a ceasefire proposal from Egypt and Qatar that would see the release of Israeli captives in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, as well as an eventual end to the war.

Israel rejected the deal but said it would engage in further negotiations.

The administration of US President Joe Biden has been heavily involved in the talks. On Tuesday, Miller declined to provide many details about where things stand, but he denied that Hamas had actually accepted the agreement.

Instead, he said the Palestinian group responded to the proposal with suggestions as part of the negotiations process.

“We’ve continued to believe that there is space to reach a deal, and we are trying incredibly hard to push one over the line,” he said.

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This is where Israel’s army has told people in Rafah to go | Gaza

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Israel’s army has told Palestinians being forcibly displaced from Rafah where they should go, leaving many to choose between an overcrowded strip of scrubland without amenities or neighbourhoods turned to rubble by Israel’s war.

Published On 7 May 2024

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Belgian and Dutch students protest against Israel’s war on Gaza | Israel War on Gaza News

Students in Belgium and the Netherlands have joined the wave of protests around the world against Israel’s war on Gaza.

The protesters occupied parts of the universities of Ghent and Amsterdam on Monday, joining international student demonstrations that started on US campuses.

At the University of Amsterdam (UvA) in the centre of the city, hundreds of students set up a camp, pitching tents, playing in drum circles, and barricading access with wooden pallets.

The students want UvA and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU) to end their partnerships with Israeli institutions.

A UvA spokesperson said that while it condoned the protest during the day, it will not tolerate students staying the night.

“If students decide to spend the night, we will report it to the police”, he said.

In neighbouring Belgium, some 100 students occupied part of Ghent University (UGent).

Footage shared on social media shows students surrounded by tents chanting “Hey hey, ho ho, the occupation has to go” in one university building.

Several UGent employees and professors have signed an open letter supporting the protest and condemning the university’s decision to continue research collaboration with Israel.

“UGent never gives permission to occupy buildings, but if this happens, a general framework of agreements applies,” rector Rik Van de Walle said in a statement. He added that UGent subjects universities with which it collaborates to a human rights investigation.

The Ghent University students said the protest would last until Wednesday, May 8.

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Text of the Gaza ceasefire proposal approved by Hamas | Israel War on Gaza News

Al Jazeera has obtained a copy of the Gaza ceasefire proposal that Hamas said it accepted on Monday. The deal, which was put forward by Egypt and Qatar, would come in three stages that would see an initial halt in the fighting leading to lasting calm and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Palestinian territory.

The proposed agreement would also ensure the release of Israeli captives in Gaza as well as an unspecified number of Palestinians held in Israeli jails.

Israel has said that it does not agree to the proposal but that it will engage in further talks to secure an agreement – all while pushing on with its assault on Gaza.

Meanwhile, the United States, which is also involved in the negotiations, said it is reviewing the Hamas response.

Here’s the text of the proposed deal:

The basic principles for an agreement between the Israeli side and the Palestinian side in Gaza on the exchange of captives and prisoners between them and the return of sustainable calm.

The framework agreement aims at: The release of all Israeli captives in the Gaza Strip, civilians or military, alive or otherwise, from all periods, in exchange for a number of prisoners held by Israel as agreed upon, and a return to a sustainable calm that leads to a permanent ceasefire and a withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, its reconstruction and the lifting of the siege.

The framework agreement consists of three related and interconnected stages, which are as follows:

The first stage (42 days)

[Herein] a temporary cessation of military operations between the two parties, and the withdrawal of Israeli forces eastward and away from densely populated areas to a defined area along the border all along the Gaza Strip (including Wadi Gaza, known as the Netzarim Corridor, and Kuwait Roundabout, as below).

All aviation (military and reconnaissance) in the Gaza Strip shall cease for 10 hours a day, and for 12 hours on the days when captives and prisoners are being exchanged.

Internally displaced people in Gaza shall return to their areas of residence and Israel shall withdraw from Wadi Gaza, the Netzarim corridor, and the Kuwait Roundabout:

  • On the third day (after the release of three captives), Israeli forces are to withdraw completely from al-Rashid Street in the east to Salah al-Din Street, and dismantle military sites and installations in this area.
  • Displaced persons (unarmed) shall return to their areas of residence and all residents of Gaza shall be allowed freedom of movement in all parts of the Strip.
  • Humanitarian aid shall be allowed in via al-Rashid Street from the first day without any obstacles.
  • On the 22nd day (after the release of half the living civilian captives in Gaza, including female soldiers), Israeli forces are to withdraw from the centre of the Gaza Strip (especially the Netzarim/Martyrs Corridor and the Kuwait Roundabout axis), from the east of Salah al-Din Street to a zone along the border, and all military sites and installations are to be completely dismantled.
  • Displaced people shall be allowed to return to their places of residence in the north of Gaza, and all residents to have freedom of movement in all parts of the Gaza Strip.
  • Humanitarian aid, relief materials and fuel (600 trucks a day, including 50 fuel trucks, and 300 trucks for the north) shall be allowed into Gaza in an intensive manner and in sufficient quantities from the first day. This is to include the fuel needed to operate the power station, restart trade, rehabilitate and operate hospitals, health centres and bakeries in all parts of the Gaza Strip, and operate equipment needed to remove rubble. This shall continue throughout all stages.

Exchange of captives and prisoners between the two sides:

During the first phase, Hamas shall release 33 Israeli captives (alive or dead), including women (civilians and soldiers), children (under the age of 19 who are not soldiers), those over the age of 50, and the sick, in exchange for a number of prisoners in Israeli prisons and detention centres, according to the following [criteria]:

  • Hamas shall release all living Israeli captives, including civilian women and children (under the age of 19 who are not soldiers). In return, Israel shall release 30 children and women for every Israeli detainee released, based on lists provided by Hamas, in order of detention.
  • Hamas shall release all living Israeli captives (over the age of 50), the sick, and wounded civilians. In return, Israel shall release 30 elderly (over 50) and sick prisoners for every Israeli captive, based on lists provided by Hamas, in order of detention.
  • Hamas shall release all living Israeli female soldiers. In return, Israel shall release 50 prisoners for every Israeli female soldier (30 serving life sentences, 20 sentenced) based on lists provided by Hamas.

Scheduling the exchange of captives and prisoners between the parties in the first stage:

  • Hamas shall release three Israeli detainees on the third day of the agreement, after which Hamas shall release three other detainees every seven days, starting with women as much as possible (civilians and female soldiers). In the sixth week, Hamas shall release all remaining civilian detainees included in this phase. In return, Israel shall release the agreed-upon number of Palestinian prisoners, according to lists Hamas will provide.
  • Hamas will provide information about the Israeli detainees who will be released at this stage by the seventh day (if possible).
  • On the 22nd day, the Israeli side shall release all prisoners from the Shalit deal who have been re-arrested.
  • If there are fewer than 33 living Israeli detainees to be released, a number of bodies from the same categories shall be released to complete this stage. In return, Israel will release all women and children who were arrested from the Gaza Strip after October 7, 2023 – provided this is done in the fifth week of this stage.
  • The exchange process is linked to the extent of commitment to the agreement, including the cessation of military operations, the withdrawal of Israeli forces, the return of displaced persons, as well as the entry of humanitarian aid.
  • All necessary legal procedures to ensure that freed Palestinian prisoners are not re-arrested on the same charges are to be completed.
  • The steps of the first stage above do not constitute a basis for negotiating the second stage. Punitive measures and penalties that were taken against prisoners and detainees in Israeli prisons and detention camps after October 7, 2023, are to be lifted and their conditions improved, including individuals who were arrested after this date.
  • No later than the 16th day of the first phase, indirect talks will begin between the parties to agree on the details of the second phase of this agreement, with regard to the exchange of prisoners and captives from both parties (soldiers and remaining men), provided that they are completed and agreed upon before the end of the fifth week of this stage.

The United Nations and its agencies, including UNRWA, and other international organisations, are to continue providing humanitarian services across the Gaza Strip. This shall continue throughout all stages of the agreement.

Infrastructure (electricity, water, sewage, communications and roads) across the Gaza Strip shall be rehabilitated, and the equipment needed for civil defence allowed into Gaza to clear rubble and debris. This shall continue throughout all stages of the agreement.

All necessary supplies and equipment to shelter displaced people who lost their homes during the war (a minimum of 60,000 temporary homes – caravans – and 200,000 tents) shall be allowed into Gaza.

Throughout this phase, an agreed-upon number (not fewer than 50) of wounded military personnel will be allowed to travel through the Rafah crossing to receive medical treatment, and an increased number of travellers, sick and wounded, shall be allowed to leave through the Rafah crossing as restrictions on travellers are lifted. The movement of goods and trade will return without restrictions.

The necessary arrangements and plans shall be put in place for the reconstruction of homes, civilian facilities, and civilian infrastructure that was destroyed due to the war, as well as arrangements to compensate those affected, under the supervision of a number of countries and organisations, including: Egypt, Qatar, and the United Nations.

 

All measures in this stage, including the temporary cessation of military operations, relief and shelter, withdrawal of forces, etc., shall continue in the second stage until a sustainable calm (cessation of military and hostile operations) is declared.

The second stage (42 days):

A return to sustainable calm (a permanent cessation of military and hostile operations) must be announced and take effect before the exchange of captives and prisoners – all remaining living Israeli men (civilians and soldiers) in exchange for an agreed-upon number of prisoners and detainees in Israeli prisons and detention camps.

Israeli forces shall withdraw completely from the Gaza Strip.

The third stage (42 days):

An exchange of the bodies and remains of the dead on both sides after they have been retrieved and identified.

The reconstruction plan for the Gaza Strip over a period of three to five years – including homes, civilian facilities, and infrastructure – and compensating all those affected begins, under the supervision of several countries and organisations, including: Egypt, Qatar and the United Nations.

A complete end to the siege of the Gaza Strip.

Guarantors of the agreement:

Qatar, Egypt, the United States, and the United Nations.

May 5, 2024

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Palestinians evacuate eastern Rafah ahead of expected Israeli assault | Israel War on Gaza News

Israel’s military has ordered tens of thousands of people in the southern Gaza city of Rafah to evacuate, signalling that a long-expected ground invasion could be imminent.

The evacuation order comes as indirect ceasefire talks between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas appeared to stall amid intense disagreements between the warring sides.

The United States and Qatar, which have been mediating the talks along with Egypt, were expected to hold discussions on Monday in Doha, but state-linked media in Egypt said the ceasefire talks had stalled after a rocket attack killed four Israeli soldiers on Sunday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to send ground forces into Rafah to attack Hamas fighters regardless of any truce, despite key ally the US, other countries and aid groups raising concerns over a humanitarian crisis in the city.

The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) has condemned the Israeli army’s “forced, unlawful” evacuation order in Rafah, saying that it could lead to “the deadliest phase of this conflict”.

Jan Egeland, secretary-general of the international non-profit NRC, says there are not enough resources in Israel’s self-declared al-Muwasi humanitarian zone, where the army instructed some 100,000 people in Rafah to relocate.

Israel has described Rafah as the last significant Hamas stronghold after seven months of war, and its leaders have repeatedly said they need to carry out a ground invasion to defeat its fighters.

Hamas called on the international community to move quickly “to stop the crime that is threatening the lives of hundreds of thousands of civilians”. It also called on international agencies, including the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), to stay in Rafah and support the people there.

Israel’s war on Gaza has driven around 80 percent of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million from their homes and caused vast destruction in several towns and cities.

Since October, the death toll in Gaza has surpassed 34,700 people, mostly women and children, according to Palestinian health officials.

Israel launched its assault on Gaza after Hamas fighters led an attack on southern Israel on October 7, killing at least 1,139 people, according to an Al Jazeera tally based on Israeli statistics.

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US campus protests of Israeli ‘genocide’ offer hope to students from Gaza | Gaza News

On April 21, Hala Sharaf’s heart was heavy as she left her family in Gaza to resume her studies in Cairo, Egypt.

After surviving Israel’s devastating war on the besieged enclave, she feared the world had forgotten about the plight of her people.

Gaza has been under a relentless Israeli assault in retaliation for a Hamas-led attack on Israeli communities and military outposts on October 7, in which 1,139 were killed and about 250 taken captive.

In Cairo, Hala saw videos of university students protesting across the United States in the face of threats of suspension and police raids.

The second-year medical student was surprised. She had expected that Western audiences would tire of the news cycle quickly when it covered death and destruction in Palestine, and she had never imagined that her American peers would risk their futures to call for a ceasefire and for an end to Israel’s occupation of Palestine.

“It seems only students support us, but they have made us feel so hopeful for rejecting what America and Israel are doing to us,” Sharaf, 20, told Al Jazeera.

Hala Sharaf wears a black hijab and hugs her friend in the Gaza Strip [Courtesy of Hala Sharaf]

‘Our voice’

Sharaf’s is one of millions of Palestinian lives upended by Israel’s war on Gaza, which has killed some 35,000 Palestinians, uprooted most of its 2.3 million people, and put their families outside Gaza through agonies of uncertainty as they seek information on their loved ones.

“Nobody can imagine what we went through in Gaza. We lost our homes and [everything that underpins] our society.”

Many Palestinians have left for Egypt to escape Israel’s relentless assault and its looming invasion of Rafah on the Egyptian border, where at least 1.5 million Palestinians displaced from all over Gaza are sheltering.

Four Palestinian students who recently came to Cairo spoke to Al Jazeera about the US student protests.

“I feel those students in America are our voice,” said Zahra al-Kurd, 19, a Palestinian medical student in Cairo.

“Even if the protests don’t change the situation for us now, we know that it will help us in the long run.”

Zahra al-Kurd, front, takes a selfie with her classmates at Al-Azhar University [Courtesy of Zahra al-Kurd]

Al-Kurd says she lost 250 members of her family since Israel launched its war on Gaza.

In the first week of the war, al-Kurd and her family fled to southern Gaza seeking safety from Israel’s indiscriminate bombardment.

But after their arrival, a bomb fell on the house next to where they were staying and flattened the neighbourhood.

Al-Kurd lost 17 members of her family in that Israeli attack, but she survived.

“My mother’s face was too disfigured to identify her … and my father passed away in the hospital from his injuries about a week later,” she told Al Jazeera.

Losing futures and mentors

Since October 7, Israel has destroyed or damaged more than 280 schools and all of Gaza’s 12 universities.

Mohamad Abu Ghali, 22, recalls watching from his window as the Israeli army destroyed his college, the Islamic University.

He was supposed to graduate last semester with a physics degree, but the ceremony never happened due to the war.

“I was at home and it was very clear from my window what happened to the Islamic University. When [Israel] does mass bombing – or carpet bombing – it can be seen from everywhere,” he told Al Jazeera.

On April 25, Abu Ghali left Rafah to try and complete his education in Cairo. Since then, he has closely observed the demonstrations unfolding in the US.

Mohamad Abu Ghali in his apartment in Cairo, Egypt [Courtesy of Mohamad Abu Ghali]

He said he was moved by a viral video of Noelle McAfee, chair of the Philosophy Department at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, who was arrested by police and zip-tied for trying to protect the students in the protest encampment.

Hundreds of other university professors across the US have been arrested for standing up to protect student protesters and heavily armed police squads.

At Columbia University in New York, professors even formed a human chain to protect the students, despite the threat of losing their jobs and careers for their actions.

Abu Ghali said the brave professors in the US remind him of his own instructors, many of whom lost their lives in what rights groups describe as an Israeli genocide. He particularly misses Sufyan Tayeh, president of the Islamic University, who was killed along with his family in the Jabalia refugee camp.

Tayeh is one of 95 university professors killed since October 7, according to the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

“[Tayeh] was a really amazing professor,” said Abu Ghali fondly. “He had such an advanced understanding of quantitative mechanics and advanced mathematics … I loved attending his classes.”

Semblance of hope

Israel’s war in Gaza has destroyed an entire society and shattered the dreams of a young generation, according to Tia al-Qudwa, a young medical student who has also sought refuge in Egypt.

She had just started university when the war began, and had hopes of graduating and helping to improve Gaza’s overburdened healthcare system – now lying in ruins after Israel damaged or destroyed dozens of medical facilities, including 24 of Gaza’s 36 hospitals.

“I’ve now changed my preference from wanting to study medicine, to … international law,” al-Qudwa, 18, told Al Jazeera.

“Of course, international law hasn’t changed anything, but what am I going to do? I either have to accept the world as unfair and unjust or be part of the change.”

Tia al-Qudwa gives a speech at her high school graduation [Courtesy of Tia al-Qudwa]

After watching the student protests, al-Qudwa believes there is a generational shift in how Americans view the Palestinian cause and that the protests prove that many young people are committed to ending Israel’s oppression of Palestinians, despite the risks to them.

“I can’t believe the police are attacking peaceful protesters in the US. How is this democratic? It is fascism what’s happening there,” al-Qudwa said.

“I admire the students protesting. They’re risking their lives and futures for us.”

Sharaf, the second-year medical student, said many Palestinians from Gaza appreciate the solidarity from their peers in the US. She prays that the demonstrations will pressure Israel to halt its stated plan to invade Rafah, where her parents and loved ones are.

“The student protests in America make me feel like I’m not alone,” Sharaf told Al Jazeera.

“My message to them is to keep the focus on Gaza.

“Don’t forget about Gaza.”

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Karem Abu Salem crossing closed to aid convoys after attack: Israeli army | Israel War on Gaza News

Hamas says its forces launched rocket attack at a military target near the Karem Abu Salem crossing between Israel and Gaza.

Israel has closed the main crossing point for humanitarian aid to enter into Gaza after a Palestinian armed group fired rockets at a military base in southern Israel near the site.

The Israeli military said on Sunday that it closed the Karem Abu Salem crossing, which Israel calls the Kerem Shalom crossing, to aid convoys after the attack.

The Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s armed wing, said the attack targeted a group of Israeli forces in the area of the crossing and its surroundings.

In a video released later, it said the rockets hit Israeli military “command headquarters and mobilisations” at the crossing, “leaving soldiers dead and wounded”.

The Israeli army said it detected 10 projectiles that were launched from Gaza’s southern city of Rafah towards the area. It added that it detected and struck the source of fire and other Hamas military infrastructure.

Israeli authorities said several people were wounded in the rocket attack. The Eshkol Regional Council, quoted by the Israeli media, said the rockets hit an open area near a military position.

The Israeli president claimed that Hamas “attacked humanitarian aid because they don’t care for humanity”.

“The world must act to release the hostages, and free the people of Gaza from Hamas’s vicious rule,” President Isaac Herzog said in a post on X.

The crossing was one of the key passages for aid entering the besieged Gaza Strip. Israeli authorities announced its reopening in mid-December following mounting pressure from the United States amid a dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Despite its reopening, Israeli authorities have allowed only a trickle of assistance needed to address the dire humanitarian situation inside the Palestinian territory.

Al Jazeera’s Tareq Abu Azzoum, reporting from Rafah in southern Gaza, said the targeted military base has been used as a launching pad for Israeli attacks on targets in Rafah.

He said the attack came as ceasefire negotiations between Hamas and Israel in the Egyptian capital Cairo seemed to have reached an impasse.

The attack “could be a sign that negotiations are really hitting a deadlock,” Abu Azzoum said.

Egyptian and Qatari negotiators were in Egypt following renewed efforts to reach an agreement to halt the fighting and secure the release of more than 100 captives held by Palestinian groups in Gaza since October.

But sticking points have remained. Hamas wants a permanent ceasefire and guarantees that Israel will not launch a ground invasion in Rafah. Israel has long insisted the attack will happen regardless of whether a ceasefire deal is reached.

At least 34,683 people have been killed, mostly women and children, and 78,018 wounded in the Israeli assault on Gaza since October, according to Palestinian authorities.

Israel launched its war on Gaza after Hamas led an attack on southern Israel on October 7, killing at least 1,139 people, mostly civilians, according to an Al Jazeera tally based on Israeli statistics.



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