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☆ U.S. and Europe warn Lebanon’s Hezbollah to ease strikes on Israel and back off from wider Mideast war
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-30 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Iran and Israel traded threats Saturday of what Iran said would be an "obliterating" war over Hezbollah. Attacks intensified this month after Israel killed a top Hezbollah commander and Hezbollah responded with some of its biggest missile barrages. "Such a war would be a catastrophe for Lebanon," Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said as he met recently with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant at the Pentagon. "Another war between Israel and Hezbollah could easily become a regional war, with terrible consequences for the Middle East." Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz responded by pledging his country would move against Hezbollah with "full force" unless it stopped attacks.

Persons: —, Gerald Feierstein, Israel, Martin Griffiths, Lloyd Austin, Yoav Gallant, Gallant, Susan Walsh, Feierstein, Iran's U.N, Israel Katz, CQ Brown Organizations: Marine, Hezbollah, Israeli, Pentagon, Israel, Joint Chiefs, Staff Locations: Khiam, Lebanon, Israel, Lebanon's Iran, Iran, Gaza, United States, Lebanese, U.S, Washington, Israeli

☆ Opinion | U.N. Humanitarian Chief: World Leaders Are Failing Us
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-17 | by ( Martin Griffiths | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

I have spent much of my career in or on the edges of war zones, but nothing quite prepared me for the breadth and depth of human suffering I have witnessed in my three years as the United Nations’ humanitarian chief. The early months of my tenure were consumed with the conflict in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, and the effort to get more than a trickle of food and other aid to some five million people who had been cut off from the outside world by brutal fighting. Tremors were felt around the world as food prices rose and geopolitical tensions deepened. Just over a year later, the atrocious conflict in Sudan broke out. As two generals have battled for power, thousands have been killed, millions displaced, and ethnic-based violence has once again emerged as famine looms.

Organizations: United Nations Locations: Ethiopia’s Tigray, Ukraine, Kyiv, Sudan

☆ 'I was too trusting': Ex-Post Office boss apologizes after widespread miscarriage of justice in Britain
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-22 | by ( Jenni Reid | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Post Office Limited Paula Vennells (C) arrives to give evidence to the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry, in central London, on May 22, 2024. The scandal has been described at an ongoing public inquiry as "the worst miscarriage of justice in recent British legal history". The Post Office took 700 people to court between 1999 and 2015 based on faulty evidence resulting from central I.T. Questions remain over what Vennells and other executives knew, all while the Post Office continued to push for sub-postmaster prosecutions. Vennells joined at a time when the Post Office was losing significant amounts of money and was under pressure to improve its financial performance.

Persons: Paula Vennells, Vennells, Martin Griffiths Organizations: Post, Britain's, Fujitsu, Post Office Locations: London, I.T

☆ 'Mr Bates vs the Post Office' — the TV drama that shook Britain — comes to PBS
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-07 | by ( Chris Johnston | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

"Mr Bates vs the Post Office" had a remarkable impact after airing in Britain and now comes to PBS. Jo Hamilton, who ran the Village Shop and Post Office in South Warnborough, Hampshire, was wrongly convicted of theft in the Post Office Horizon scandal. ITVThe program focused on Alan Bates, who along with his partner invested in a post office store in Wales in 1998. Why did the Post Office — which has been owned by the government since 2012 – continue to prosecute people when there were doubts about the software? Advertisement"Mr Bates vs the Post Office" is being broadcast on PBS weekly from Sunday April 7.

Persons: Mr Bates, —, Rishi Sunak, Seema Misra, Peter Huxham, Martin Griffiths, Julian Wilson, Jo Hamilton, Adrian Dennis, Toby Jones, who's, Harry Potter, Alan Bates, Bates, wasn't, John Beer of, –, Kevin Hollinrake, Gwyneth Hughes, Innocent, Paula Vennells, Vennells, it's, James Strong, we'd, Polly Hill Organizations: PBS, Service, ITV, of, Post, Japan's Fujitsu, Office, Getty, Journalists, Computer, BBC, Post Office, Guardian, Fujitsu, Financial Times, subpostmasters, Channel Locations: Britain, Ellesmere Port, Liverpool, South Warnborough, Hampshire, AFP, Wales, John Beer of Farnham, Surrey

☆ Netanyahu says he’s trying everything to get more aid to Gaza. Aid groups say that’s not true
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-18 | by ( Nadeen Ebrahim | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

In his interview with CNN, Netanyahu made several claims about his country’s aid policy in Gaza. The Israeli leader’s claim contradicts statements he made previously, in which he boasted about permitting “minimal humanitarian aid” to enter Gaza. “We provide minimal humanitarian aid,” Netanyahu said at a press conference in January. The first 15 days of March saw an average of 165 aid trucks per day cross into Gaza, UNRWA reported Sunday. The UN and other aid groups have reported some of their aid trucks had been looted, but haven’t ascribed any blame for it.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, CNN’s Dana Bash, Netanyahu, Israel, ” Netanyahu, ”, Yoav Gallant, “, “ I’ve, Janti Soeripto, – we’ve, Martin Griffiths, Long, haven’t, Sameh Shoukry, Netanyahu lauds, Philippe Lazzarini, Israel hasn’t Organizations: CNN, Israeli, United Nations, European Union, Children, ” Trucks, UN, Food Programme, Palestine, UNRWA, Amnesty International, Aid, Palestinian, CNN Sunday, Israeli Defense Force Locations: Gaza, United States, Territories, Rafah, Israel, Egypt, Arish, airdrops

CNN —The Israeli military launched an operation on Monday against Gaza’s largest hospital facility, Al-Shifa, where thousands of people are sheltering. “Military vehicles are firing at the hospital buildings’ windows, and at anyone who is caught moving between the hallways,” Hamada Abdelhadi, a displaced Palestinian man seeking shelter at Al-Shifa, told CNN. One witness who lives in nearby Gaza City told CNN he had seen “a big invasion of tanks” headed toward Al-Shifa. And dead bodies and those injured were pulled away by Israeli forces,” he told CNN by phone. During the first round of fighting at Al-Shifa in November, Israel urged Gaza’s northern residents to head south to seek refuge.

Persons: “, ”, Israel, ” Hamada Abdelhadi, Al Jazeera, Ismail Al, Abdelhadi, Abdullah Mohammed, ” Mohammed, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Shifa, –, Cindy McCain, Antonio Guterres, ” Guterres, Gazans, Benjamin Netanyahu’s, Martin Griffiths, Daniel Hagari, CNN’s Amir Tal, Mostafa Salem, Joshua Berlinger Organizations: CNN, Gaza’s, Israel Defense Forces, IDF, Health, Al, “, World Health Organization, WHO, United, Food, UN, Israeli Locations: Al, Gaza, –, Gaza City, Israel, United States, Rafah, United Nations

☆ Israeli minister says ground offensive in Rafah will begin by Ramadan if hostages aren’t returned
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-19 | by ( Mohammed Tawfeeq | Lauren Izso | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Israel will expand military operations in the southernmost Gazan city of Rafah if hostages held by Hamas are not returned by the start of Ramadan, war cabinet minister Benny Gantz has warned. Israel believes that 130 hostages remain in Gaza – 101 alive and 29 dead – following Hamas’ October 7 attacks, which killed around 1,200 people in Israel. The comments come amid stuttering talks aimed at securing the release of hostages and a longer-term ceasefire in Gaza. Egypt’s security buildup comes amid fears of the war spilling over into its territory should Israel begin its operation in Rafah. The Israeli military said it had credible evidence that Hamas had previously held hostages at the hospital, and that the bodies of deceased hostages may be at the medical complex.

Persons: CNN —, Benny Gantz, Ramadan, ” Gantz, “, Israel, ’, Israel’s, Israel –, Benjamin Netanyahu, Khan Younis, Mohammed Salem, Martin Griffiths, Sameh Shoukry, ” Shoukry, Abed Rahim Khatib Organizations: CNN, Hamas, United Nations, Sunday, Sky News, Anadolu, Getty, Hospital Locations: CNN — Israel, Gazan, Rafah, Jerusalem, Gaza, Israel, “, Nasser, Khan, United States, ”, Egypt

☆ Middle East Crisis Egypt Is Building a Wall Near Gaza Border But Won’t Say Why
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Nada Rashwan | Christiaan Triebert | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

A wall is going up in the desert of Egypt near the border of the war-torn Gaza Strip, but no one is talking much about it. Image Construction of a wall along the Egyptian border with Rafah is seen in this satellite imagery. Credit... Maxar TechnologiesThe satellite imagery clearly shows newly graded land south of the Rafah border crossing. And many Palestinians suspect that Israel might not allow people who leave Gaza to come back when the war is over. One Gazan official in Rafah, Ahmed al-Soufi, estimated that there were over 100,000 displaced Palestinians in encampments pressed against the border.

Persons: Gazans, Ahmed al, Martin Griffiths, —, Hisham el, Gen Mohamed Shousha, Ahmed Ezzat, Nick Cumming, Bruce, Adam Rasgon Organizations: The New York Times, Maxar, The Times, Egyptian Army, United Locations: Egypt, Gaza, Rafah, Israel, North Sinai —, North Sinai, Maj, Geneva, Jerusalem

☆ Egypt setting up area at Gaza border which could be used to shelter Palestinians, Reuters reports
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Israel has said its army is drawing up a plan to evacuate civilians from Rafah to other parts of the Gaza Strip. Israel has said it will mount an offensive to take out Hamas's "last bastion" in Rafah, where well over 1 million Palestinians have sought sanctuary from its devastating Gaza offensive. Three security sources said Egypt had begun preparing a desert area with some basic facilities which could be used to shelter Palestinians, emphasizing this was a contingency step. The United States has repeatedly said it would oppose any displacement of Palestinians out of Gaza. A U.S. State Department spokesperson said: "The president has been clear that we do not support the forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza.

Persons: Khan, Israel, Martin Griffiths, Joe Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu Organizations: Palestinian Hamas, United, Egypt's, Service, Sinai Foundation, Human Rights, Reuters, Israeli, U.S . State Department Locations: Khan Yunis, Rafah, Gaza, Egypt, Israel, Palestinian, United States, Sinai, Cairo, Jordan, U.S, The U.S

☆ Egypt Setting up Area at Gaza Border Which Could Be Used to Shelter Palestinians-Sources
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +5 min

One of the sources said Egypt was optimistic talks to clinch a ceasefire can avoid any such scenario, but is establishing the area at the border as a temporary and precautionary measure. War in Israel and Gaza View All 209 ImagesThree security sources said Egypt had begun preparing a desert area with some basic facilities which could be used to shelter Palestinians, emphasising this was a contingency step. Israel has said its army is drawing up a plan to evacuate civilians from Rafah to other parts of the Gaza Strip. A U.S. State Department spokesperson said: "The president has been clear that we do not support the forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza. The Gaza war has piled pressure on relations between Egypt and Israel, which signed a peace deal in 1979.

Persons: Jordan, Martin Griffiths, Joe Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel, Netanyahu, Avi Dichter, Dichter, Al Mawasi, General Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Sameh Shoukry, Tom Perry, Edmund Blair, Neil Fullick Organizations: Reuters, United, Egypt's, Service, Sinai Foundation, Human Rights, Israeli, U.S . State Department, ABC News, Israel's Army, Arab League Locations: Egypt, Gaza, Rafah, Cairo, Sinai, United States, Israel, ISRAEL, U.S, The U.S, Jordan

☆ Live updates: Israel-Hamas war, Israel prepares for Rafah offensive despite warnings
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Kathleen Magramo | Helen Regan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

British Foreign Secretary David Cameron on Tuesday urged Israel to ensure that humanitarian aid reaches Gaza, warning that it would be in breach of international law if it doesn't. "As they are the occupying power in Gaza... they have to make sure that humanitarian aid, that food and water and shelter are available to people in Gaza," Cameron said during questions time in the House of Lords. Limited aid: Only a trickle of aid is getting into Gaza since Israel placed the territory under a complete siege after Hamas' October 7 attacks, halting the supply of electricity, food and water to the enclave. Israel has since begun allowing some aid to enter, but aid workers and the UN say it's a long and arduous process. Nowhere to go: Cameron also urged Israel to "stop and think before going ahead with any operations in Rafah," where more than 1.3 million displaced Palestinians are believed to be crammed into makeshift shelters.

Persons: David Cameron, Israel, Cameron, Martin Griffiths Organizations: British, Lords, UN, United Nations, Humanitarian Affairs, Emergency Relief, Palestinian Locations: Gaza, Israel, Rafah

☆ Israeli strikes deepen panic in Rafah as UN aid chief warns a ground offensive could result in ‘slaughter’
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Helen Regan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

It remains unclear how or when a ground offensive would unfold, and that uncertainty is adding to anxiety among Palestinians in Rafah about where to go and what to do. Israeli military action in Rafah “has already led to and will result in further large scale killing, harm and destruction,” the government said in its request to the World Court. “We cannot afford an Israeli attack on Rafah… We cannot stand by and let this continue,” he said. Palestinians inspect damaged buildings after Israeli airstrikes on Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, on February 12, 2024. They told us this area was safe… they told us Rafah was safe.

Persons: Leo Varadkar, Peter Lerner, ”, “ We’re, … We’re, We’ve, Mo’men, Martin Griffiths, Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, “, Lerner, Gaza ”, UN’s Griffiths, Ashraf Amra, Antonio Tajani, King Abdullah II, Israel “, Varadkar, Karim Khan, Daniel Hagari, Abed Rahim Khatib, Khan Younis, We’re, Jarwan, ” Nahla, Netanyahu, ” Netanyahu Organizations: CNN, United Nations, International Court, Reuters, ” United, Israel Defense Forces, Residents, Getty, Criminal, European Union, Foreign Ministry, Criminal Court, ICC, Palestine Red Crescent Society, Israeli Air Force, World Health Organization Locations: Rafah, Gaza, Israel, Gazan, ” Israel, Palestinian, ” United Nations, Hamas’s, South Africa, Rafah “, Deir, Balah, Deir al, Anadolu, European, United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, China, Italian, ”, Palestine, Al

☆ Why only a trickle of aid is getting into Gaza
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-11 | by ( Nadeen Ebrahim | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Getting any form of relief into Gaza is a long and arduous process, aid workers and the UN say. An average of 95 aid trucks per day entered Gaza between October 10 and February 1, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent, down from 500 commercial and aid trucks a day before the war, when Palestinians weren’t facing mass displacement and starvation. Following pressure from the US, Israel began allowing aid trucks to pass through Kerem Shalom in late December. Protesters blocking trucksIsraeli protesters have more than once blocked trucks carrying humanitarian aid for Gaza via Israeli crossings. Risk of bombardmentOnce relief enters Gaza, Israeli bombardment, damage to roads from airstrikes, communications blackouts and mass displacement impede distribution within the enclave.

Persons: Martin Griffiths, Yoav Gallant, Israel, Juliette Touma, Philippe Lazzarini, ”, ” Lazzarini, Kerem Shalom, Sameh Shoukry, Erez, Khan Younis, Belal Al Sabbagh, “, Griffiths, ” Touma, Khan, Abed Zagout, Touma Organizations: CNN, United Nations, Humanitarian Affairs, Emergency Relief, UN, Palestinian, Palestine, UNRWA, Israeli Defense Forces, International Court of Justice, Getty, ” Trucks, Food Programme, IDF, United Nations Children's Fund, UNICEF, Food Locations: Gaza, Israel, United States, Territories, Egypt, Rafah, Khan, AFP, Kerem Shalom, Khan Younis, Anadolu, ”, Gaza City

☆ Sudan: Internet blackout nationwide as UN appeals for $4.1 billion to ease ‘epic suffering’ caused by war
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Nimi Princewill | Ingrid Formanek | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Internet connectivity was shut down in Sudan amid ongoing clashes between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) that have left thousands killed and millions displaced in nearly 10 months of fighting. Internet monitoring firm, Netblocks confirmed the outage Wednesday, saying that all three of the major network operators in the warring North African nation were out of service. The RSF has yet to publicly deny responsibility for the blackout. The UN appealed for $4.1 billion to meet the “most urgent humanitarian needs” amidst “epic suffering” in Sudan, adding that half of its population - some 25 million people need support and protection, with millions hungry and displaced by the war. Some 19 million children not attending school, continued widespread human rights violations, and gender-based violence are among the challenges cited in the UN’s funding appeal.

Persons: Netblocks, ”, Martin Griffiths, RSF Organizations: CNN, Rapid Support Forces, UN, Humanitarian Affairs, UN’s Refugee Agency, UNHCR, Sudan’s Locations: Sudan, “, Sudan’s, Darfur

“I’m still waiting to see when that happens,” Griffiths said. Photos You Should See View All 21 ImagesSudan plunged into chaos last April with street battles between the generals’ rival forces in the capital, Khartoum, that spread to other areas. Western Darfur, which was wracked by bloodshed and atrocities in 2003, has been an epicenter of the current conflict, an arena of ethnic violence where paramilitary troops and allied Arab militias have been attacking African ethnic groups. Secretary-General Guterres urged support for the ICC, saying its role in prosecuting those involved in “atrocities” in Darfur “is absolutely essential.”Humanitarian chief Griffith and U.N. refugee chief Filippo Grandi appealed for $4.1 billion in international support for embattled civilians in Sudan amid signs that some may be dying of starvation after nearly a year of war. The agencies said that half of Sudan’s population, or around 25 million people, requires support and protection, and that the requested funds would go to help millions of civilians in Sudan and others who have fled abroad.

Persons: António Guterres, “, ” Guterres, —, Abdel Fattah Burhan, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo —, Guterres, ”, Martin Griffiths, “ I’m, ” Griffiths, Karim Khan, ” Khan, General Guterres, Griffith, Filippo Grandi Organizations: UNITED NATIONS, United Nations, Rapid Support Forces, African Union, Arab League, International Criminal Court, ICC Locations: Sudan, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Geneva, Switzerland, Khartoum, Darfur, Rome, Chad

☆ UN Appeals for $4.1 Billion to Help War-Torn Sudan, Refugees
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-07 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

GENEVA (Reuters) - The United Nations appealed on Wednesday for $4.1 billion to meet the humanitarian needs of civilians caught up in the war in Sudan, as well as those who have fled to neighbouring countries. A ten-month war in Sudan between its armed forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has devastated the country's infrastructure, prompted warnings of famine and displaced millions of people inside and outside the country. The U.N. refugee agency asked for $1.4 billion to support nearly 2.7 million people in five countries neighbouring Sudan as part of the appeal. War in Israel and Gaza View All 194 Images"Ten months of conflict have robbed the people of Sudan of nearly everything: their safety, their homes and their livelihoods," U.N. aid chief Martin Griffiths said. This year, we must do better and with a heightened sense of urgency."

Persons: Martin Griffiths, Gabrielle Tétrault, Farber, Sharon Singleton Organizations: United Nations, Rapid Support Forces, Central African, UNHCR, United Nations Office, Humanitarian Affairs Locations: GENEVA, Sudan, Central African Republic, Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Israel, Gaza

They said the requested funds would go to help millions of civilians in Sudan and others who have fled abroad. “They have lost so much," said U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, who recently met with displaced families in Sudan and neighboring Ethiopia. "Time after time, we hear the same message from them: We want peace so we can go home, and we need support to rebuild our lives.”“They desperately need help, and they need it now,” Grandi added. UNHCR is seeking $1.4 billion to help nearly 2.7 million people who have fled into five neighboring countries. The United Nations says the war in Sudan has killed at least 12,000 people, although local doctors groups say the true toll is far higher.

Persons: Filippo Grandi, ” “, ” Grandi, Martin Griffiths, Abdel, Fattah Burhan, Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo Organizations: GENEVA, UNHCR, Humanitarian Affairs, United Nations, Rapid Support Forces Locations: Sudan, Ethiopia, Congo, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Ukraine, Gaza, Khartoum

☆ Palestinians are eating grass and drinking polluted water as famine looms across Gaza
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Sana Noor Haq | Rosa Rahimi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

“They are weak now, they always have diarrhea, their faces are yellow,” El Jamara, whose family was displaced from northern Gaza, told CNN on January 9. “Unfortunately, many relatives and friends are still in the northern Gaza Strip, suffering a lot,” Hamouda, a father-of-three, told CNN. The first 1,000 days of a child’s life are “absolutely critical” for physical growth and cognitive development, Inglis told CNN. “It is not enough to meet my family’s needs at all,” the student, who is sheltering in a tent in Rafah, told CNN. “We simply don’t have enough, and we cannot keep up with the overwhelming needs of people on the ground,” she told CNN.

Persons: CNN — Hanadi Gamal Saed El Jamara, El Jamara, Arif Husain, Martin Griffiths, “, ”, El, Mohammed Hamouda, Odeh Al, Haw, Hamouda, Yahya Hassouna, Israel, ” Hamouda, Jabalya, Gihan, Baz, ” El Baz, Hoor, Hazem Saeed Al, Mohammed Hamouda Hamouda, Abu Youssef Al, Rebecca Inglis, Inglis, Shadi Bleha, Khan Younis, OCHA, Mohammed Hamouda Juliette Touma, Naizi Organizations: CNN, Food Programme, Integrated Food Security, UN, of Health, “, Getty, United Nations Relief, Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, UNRWA, Najjar Hospital, UNICEF, World Health Organization, United Nations Population Fund, WFP, OCHA, World, Al Locations: Rafah, Gaza, Israel, Egypt, “, Gaza City, AFP, East, Britain, Al, Territories, Deir al, Balah

☆ Plan for One-Month Gaza Truce Makes Progress as Israel Hits Khan Younis
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-23 | by ( Jan. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +5 min

Meanwhile, in its biggest operation in a month, the Israeli military pressed ahead with encircling Khan Younis where hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians are sheltering. Israeli forces killed more than 100 militants in western Khan Younis in 24 hours, military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said on Tuesday evening. In southern Gaza, Israel has blockaded hospitals, which Palestinian officials say makes it impossible to rescue the wounded. At the European Hospital, reached by Reuters in southern Khan Younis, Ahed Masmah brought in five corpses, piled on a mattress on his donkey cart. At Khan Younis' main Nasser hospital, the biggest still functioning in the Gaza Strip, bodies were being buried on the grounds because it was unsafe to go to the cemetery.

Persons: Andrew Mills, Arafat Barbakh, Emily Rose DOHA, Khan Younis, Daniel Hagari, Benjamin Netanyahu, Eylon Levy, Antonio Guterres, Israel's, John Kirby, Brett McGurk, Kirby, Ahed Masmah, Nasser, Martin Griffiths, U.N, Younis, Nidal al, Mohamed Ahmed Hassan, Dan Williams, Ari Rabinovitch, Maayan Lubell, Kate Holton, Jonathan Landay, Simon Lewis, Jeff Mason, Cynthia Osterman, Stephen Coates Organizations: Hamas, Palestinian, U.S . State Department, White, Service, Reuters, Palestinian Hamas, United Nations, Security, Middle East, European Hospital Locations: GAZA, JERUSALEM, Israel, Gaza, Gaza's, Khan, Qatar, U.S, Egypt, Rafah, Palestinian, Cairo, Mughrabi, Doha, Bassam, Jerusalem, Washington

GENEVA (AP) — The U.N.'s migration agency is launching its first “global appeal,” seeking $7.9 billion to help people on the move and ensure smoother pathways to migration, at a time when the fallout from climate change, conflict and both economic distress and opportunities has caused millions to leave their homes. His agency is seeking $46 billion this year. IOM says it hopes funding for its appeal will come from individual and private-sector donors in addition to governments. Political Cartoons View All 253 Images“Irregular and forced migration have reached unprecedented levels and the challenges we face are increasingly complex,” Pope said. “The evidence is overwhelming that migration, when well-managed, is a major contributor to global prosperity and progress."

Persons: Martin Griffiths, Amy Pope, ” Pope, ”, IOM's Organizations: GENEVA, International Organization for Migration, Humanitarian Affairs, IOM Locations: Geneva, Africa —, Libya, Europe

☆ Medicine for Israeli hostages and Palestinians arrives in Gaza under deal struck by Qatar
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-18 | by ( Helen Regan | Jennifer Hauser | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Medicine for Israeli hostages and Palestinians has entered Gaza, Qatar said Wednesday, after the Gulf nation brokered a deal between Israel and Hamas to provide vital medication to the war-torn enclave. The agreement mediated by Qatar Tuesday will see medication delivered to Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza in exchange for medicine and humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians. Osama Hamdan, a Lebanon-based Hamas official, said the agreement was dependent on there being enough medication for Palestinians in Gaza in addition to the Israeli hostages. Hamas has stipulated that for every box of medication given to the hostages, Palestinians in Gaza must receive 1,000 boxes. However, the Israeli military said it does “not have the ability to guarantee” that medicine will reach the hostages.

Persons: Majed Al, Ansari, Osama Hamdan, Daniel Hagari, ” Hagari, “ There’s, I’ve, Dr, Nick Maynard, Martin Griffiths, “ Organizations: CNN, Medicine, Qatar, Qatari Foreign Ministry, Israel Defense Forces, Ministry, UNICEF, Al, Aqsa, United Nations, UN Locations: Gaza, Qatar, Israel, Doha, Egypt, Lebanon, British

☆ Hundreds of thousands are starving in Gaza as famine arrives at ‘incredible speed,’ UN aid chief says
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-16 | by ( Helen Regan | Chris Lau | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Israel’s war in Gaza has brought famine with “such incredible speed,” the United Nations’ emergency relief chief told CNN on Monday, as he warned that hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are starving in the besieged enclave. Griffiths told CNN Monday that work to provide humanitarian aid to 300,000 Gazans who remain in the north of the strip continues to be a challenge. “People in Gaza risk dying of hunger just miles from trucks filled with food,” said WFP head Cindy McCain. People wait for food relief in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, on December 31, 2023. But the agencies echoed relief chief Griffiths’ warning that humanitarian aid alone cannot reverse the worsening hunger among Gaza’s population.

Persons: CNN —, “, ” Martin Griffiths, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, “ It’s, ”, Israel, Griffiths, Rizek Abdeljawad, Monday, Cindy McCain, Salwa, ” Tibi, Shadi Bleha, Catherine Russell, ” Russell, Phillipe Lazzarini Organizations: CNN, United Nations, UN, Humanitarian Affairs, Emergency, UN Office, Palestinian, Getty, of Health, Food Programme, UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, World Health Organization, “, Food Security, IPC, Palestine Refugee Agency Locations: Gaza, Rafah, Xinhua, Israel, Palestine

☆ UN Appeals for $4.2 Billion to Support War-Ravaged Ukraine, Refugees
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-15 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

GENEVA (Reuters) - The United Nations and its partners on Monday appealed for a combined $4.2 billion from donors to support war-ravaged communities in Ukraine as well as Ukrainian refugees in 2024. "That fact alone should compel us to do everything we can to bring more humanitarian assistance to Ukraine." As part of the appeal, OCHA is asking for $3.1 billion to help 8.5 million people in dire need of humanitarian aid in 2024. The U.N. refugee agency is seeking $1.1 billion to support 2.3 million Ukrainian refugees and their host communities. "Host countries continue to extend protection and include them in society, but many vulnerable refugees still need help," said Filippo Grandi, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.

Persons: Martin Griffiths, OCHA, Filippo Grandi, Gabrielle Tétrault, Farber Organizations: United Nations, United Nations Office, Humanitarian Affairs, Refugees Locations: GENEVA, Ukraine, Russia

☆ Agencies Consider New Aid Route Into Sudan as Humanitarian Crisis Worsens
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-15 | by ( Jan. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

By Aidan Lewis(Reuters) - Aid agencies are looking at delivering aid to Sudan on a new route from South Sudan as they struggle to access much of the country, a senior U.N. official said on Monday, nine months into a war that has caused a major humanitarian crisis. More than 7.5 million people have fled their homes, making Sudan the biggest displacement crisis globally, and hunger is rising. Aid agencies lost access to Wad Madani, a former aid hub in the important El Gezira agricultural region southeast of Khartoum, after the RSF seized it from the army last month. Diplomats and aid workers say that the army and officials aligned with it have hampered humanitarian access as both sides pursue their military campaigns. They say the RSF does little to protect aid supplies and workers, and that its troops have been implicated in cases of looting.

Persons: Aidan Lewis, Rick Brennan, Madani, Brennan, We've, Martin Griffiths, Christina Fincher Organizations: Reuters, Rapid Support Forces, World Health Organization, WHO, ., Diplomats Locations: Sudan, South Sudan, Port Sudan, Cairo, Khartoum, El Gezira, South Kordofan, Chad, Darfur, Kordofan

☆ UK postal scandal: How a software glitch and a centuries-old British company ruined peoples lives
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-13 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The government — which owns the Post Office — has described the scandal as one of the greatest miscarriages of justice in British history. The software regularly showed that money — often many thousands of pounds — had gone missing from Post Office accounts. The Post Office has so far paid more than £138 million ($176 million) in compensation, a company spokesperson told CNN. “The Horizon system was a piece of machinery and software that wasn’t working correctly,” she said. “If the Post Office can do this to you, then God knows what any other brand is capable of,” she said.

Persons: —, Jo Hamilton, Hamilton, ”, Mr Bates, ’, Alan Bates, Rishi Sunak, ‘, Jonathan Wells, Wendy Buffrey’s Horizon, “, I’d, Buffrey, “ I’ve, Neil Hudgell, Martin Griffith, they’ve, Leon Neal, James Hartley, Siema Kamran, Kamran Ashraf, Ashraf, Kamran, ” Siema Kamran Organizations: London CNN, UK Post, Fujitsu, CNN, Post, ITV, Horizon, of Justice, Office, Cheltenham, Metropolitan Police, Getty, Post Office Locations: Britain, England, Hamilton, British, London, Buffrey, Bracknell , England, Freeths, Cheltenham

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