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☆ 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

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel has imposed financial restrictions on the main U.N. agency providing aid in the Gaza Strip, a measure which prevented a shipment of food for 1.1 million Palestinians from reaching the war-battered enclave, the agency's director said Friday. The U.N. food agency defines a famine as when 30% of children are malnourished, one-fifth of households face acute food shortages and two of every 10,000 people are dying from hunger or malnutrition. UNRWA, which serves about 6 million Palestinians whose families were displaced during the war surrounding Israel's creation in 1948, denies the charges. UNWRA is the main provider of aid to Palestinians in Gaza, but Israeli bombardment and combat between Israel and Hamas has made much of the territory too dangerous for aid convoys to cross. Israel alleged last month that 12 employees of the aid agency participated in the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks in southern Israel.

Persons: — Israel, Philippe Lazzarini, Israel, Juliette Touma, Touma, Bezalel Smotrich, ”, Benjamin Netanyahu, didn't, Lazzarini, “ Organizations: JERUSALEM, UNRWA, Food, Israel, Bank Leumi, Hamas, Food Program Locations: Gaza, Israel, U.S, Turkey, Ashdod, Port Said, Egypt, Rafah

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

ISTANBUL (AP) — A year ago, a devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck southern Turkey and northwestern Syria, causing widespread destruction and the loss of over 59,000 lives. Photos You Should See View All 45 ImagesThe disaster led to a massive international rescue and aid operation involving dozens of countries and organizations. The World Bank estimated the damage caused at $34.2 billion in Turkey and $5.1 billion in Syria. The East Anatolian fault system, where the disaster occurred, is near where the Anatolian, Arabian and African tectonic plates come together. The East Anatolian fault had last seen a quake of magnitude 7 or greater in 1822, when at least 10,000 were killed in Syria’s Aleppo.

Persons: Mehmet Ozhaseki, February’s, transgressors, Abby Sewell, Suzan Fraser Organizations: —, Turkey's, Interior Ministry, United Nations, World Bank, Food Program, WFP, Associated Press Locations: ISTANBUL, Turkey, Syria, Turkey’s Kahramanmaras, Idlib, Aleppo, Istanbul, Elazig, Hatay, SYRIA, Brussels, Beirut, Ankara

Tennessee is among 35 states, all five U.S. territories and four tribes that have opted into the Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer program, or Summer EBT, for this summer. "Established during the pandemic, Summer EBT was intended to supplement existing food assistance programs in extraordinary circumstances. “I think it is a mistake to not continue with Summer EBT in 2025 and beyond,” Anderson said in an interview. Under the federal program, some 644,000 Tennessee children can receive $77.3 million more in aid this summer, creating a multiplied economic impact, according to the USDA Food and Nutrition Service. All 50 states administer the existing Summer Food Service Program, which provides sites where kids can eat for free.

Persons: won’t, Joe Biden's, Bill Lee's, ”, Elizabeth Johnson, Lee, EBT, Signe Anderson, she's, ” Anderson, Jim Pillen, Tom Vilsack, he’s Organizations: —, . Tennessee, Republican, Republican Gov, “ Tennessee, Tennessee Justice Center, U.S . Department of Agriculture, USDA, Assistance, Nebraska Gov, USDA Food, Nutrition Service, Food Service Program, Associated Locations: Tenn, — Tennessee, ., Tennessee, “, Nebraska, ” Tennessee

CAIRO (AP) — The U.N. food agency said Friday it has received reports of people dying from starvation in Sudan, where raging fighting between rival generals is hampering the distribution of aid and food supplies to those most hungry. The conflict erupted last April in the capital, Khartoum, and quickly spread to other areas of the country, after months of simmering tensions between the two forces. World Food Program said that some 18 million people across Sudan currently face acute hunger, with the most desperate trapped behind the front lines of the conflict. Photos You Should See View All 45 Images"Life-saving assistance is not reaching those who need it the most, and we are already receiving reports of people dying of starvation,” said Eddie Rowe, WFP's director for Sudan. Burhan and Dagalo are yet to meet in person since the conflict began.

Persons: Abdel Fattah Burhan, Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, ”, Eddie Rowe, Burhan Organizations: Sudanese, Rapid Support Forces, Food Program, The United Nations Locations: CAIRO, Sudan, Africa, Khartoum, Darfur, Kordofan, Gezira, Sudan’s, Saudi Arabia, United States

☆ Sierra Leone is losing its forests. This sanctuary is trying to save chimpanzees and their vital habitat
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( David Mckenzie | Sarah Dean | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Freetown, Sierra Leone CNN —When it comes to chimpanzee toddlers, girls rule. They are all orphans, rescued from across Sierra Leone and raised at the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary. Tacugama Chimpanzee SanctuaryHe has become something of a legend in Sierra Leone. The canopy decimation is replicated throughout Sierra Leone and much of West Africa. In the center of the mountains of the Western Area Forest, a verdant valley drops into the Guma Dam reservoir.

Persons: Mamma Posseh, Mamma P, ”, Bala Amarasekaran, Amarasekaran, Bruno, “, It’s, ” Amarasekaran, Pataya, David McKenzie, Sonkita Conteh, CNN Parks, Conteh, Alejandro Striediger, Zoe MacIntyre, Siama, Veternarian Zoe MacIntyre, Macintyre, Sierra Leone Organizations: Sierra Leone CNN, World Food Program, Sierra, CNN, Western, Technologies, Area, Maxar Locations: Freetown, Sierra Leone, Sierra, Sri Lanka, West Africa, “, Conteh, Siama's, West Africa’s

Nebraska is among more than a dozen states — all with Republican governors — that have opted out of receiving the funding. Kim Reynolds criticized the federal food program as doing “nothing to promote nutrition at a time when childhood obesity has become an epidemic. Statistics from the U.S. Department of Agriculture showing a steady increase in food insecurity among Nebraska families could help explain that flood of calls, Day said. “This places Nebraska above the national average and gives us the 11th highest food insecurity in the nation,” she said. “As many of you know, food is more expensive than ever, and it’s squeezing low-income Nebraska residents hardest."

Persons: Weeks, Jim Pillen, “, Omaha Sen, Jen Day, —, Kim Reynolds, Sen, Ray Aguilar, Aguilar, Day, Pillen Organizations: Republican Gov, Legislature's, Human Services Committee, SNAP, Democrat, Nebraska Legislature, Republican, Statistics, U.S . Department, Agriculture, Summer Food Service Program, U.S . Department of Agriculture Locations: Nebraska, Omaha, Iowa, Grand, U.S

GENEVA (AP) — An array of U.N. organizations have united to warn of “catastrophic consequences for the people of Gaza ” if key donor countries don't resume funding for the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, the main lifeline for people in the besieged territory. U.N. officials fired most of the workers and vowed an investigation. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appealed to 35 donor nations in a closed-door meeting on Tuesday and sought new support as well. On these mere allegations, they've initiated an independent investigation of everything surrounding that potential betrayal of all of our ideals by a small group of employees in the organization,” he said. ___Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.

Persons: “, Antonio Guterres, Linda Thomas, Jens Laerke, ” Jan Egeland, Egeland, they've, ”, ___ Edith M, Lederer Organizations: GENEVA, Israel, World Health Organization, Food Program, UNICEF, International Organization for Migration, United Nations, UNRWA, Norwegian Refugee Council Locations: Gaza, United States, Israel, U.N, Congo, Greenfield , U.S, New York, Geneva, israel

Israel's military said Wednesday that its forces killed more than 15 Hamas militants in northern Gaza over the past day and targeted militant infrastructure in a school. The latest deaths bring the Palestinian death toll from Israel’s offensive to 26,900, according to the Hamas-controlled Health Ministry. Here's the latest:150 PEOPLE WERE KILLED IN GAZA IN THE PAST 24 HOURS, HEALTH MINISTRY SAYSRAFAH, Gaza Strip — Gaza’s Health Ministry says 150 people have been killed in the last 24 hours and another 313 were wounded. The nearly four-month war began with Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack in Israel, in which Palestinian militants killed about 1,200 people and abducted another 250. The military said Wednesday that its forces killed more than 15 Hamas militants in northern Gaza over the past day and targeted militant infrastructure in a school.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, ‘, Biden, Jordan, — Biden, he’s, —, Khan Younis, “, Joe Biden’s, Jordan that’s, Yemen’s Houthi, U.N, Israel ”, Antonio Guterres, Houthi, Josep Borrell, Borrell, Arleigh Burke, Yahya Saree, ” Saree Organizations: Gaza’s Health Ministry, Gaza, Health Ministry, West Bank, MINISTRY, AS BIDEN, U.S . Navy, UN, GENEVA, UNRWA, Israel, World Health Organization, UNICEF, International Organization for Migration, Food, U.S . State Department, EU AIMS, The European Union, ’, SEA, U.S . military’s, Command Locations: Gaza, Israel, Iran, EU, Jordan, israel, GAZA, RAFAH, Hama, Gaza City, Khan, IRAN, JERUSALEM, Islamic Republic, Tehran, The U.S, Syria, Red, U.S, United States, ”, U.N, BRUSSELS, Yemen, Belgium, Germany, Iranian, British

☆ 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

Local officials have previously reported starvation deaths in their districts, but Ethiopia’s federal government has insisted these reports are “completely wrong”. Only a small fraction of needy people in Tigray are receiving food aid, according to an aid memo seen by The Associated Press, more than one month after aid agencies resumed deliveries of grain following a lengthy pause over theft. Just 14% of 3.2 million people targeted for food aid by humanitarian agencies in Tigray this month had received it by Jan. 21, according to the memo by the Tigray Food Cluster, a group of aid agencies co-chaired by the U.N.’s World Food Program and Ethiopian officials. Aid agencies are also struggling with a lack of funds. A third aid worker said the food aid pause and the slow resumption meant some people in Tigray have not received food aid for over a year.

Persons: Jan, “, ”, Ethiopia’s, Getachew Reda Organizations: Associated Press, Food Program, Ethiopian, AP, WFP, Children's Locations: KAMPALA, Uganda, Tigray, Amhara, U.S, Ethiopia, Ethiopia’s Afar, Oromia

☆ Opinion | Abolish the U.N.’s Palestinian Refugee Agency
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Bret Stephens | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

United Nations agencies and officials are no strangers to scandal and infamy. In the 1980s, Kurt Waldheim, a former U.N. secretary general, was unmasked as a former Nazi. He was the same secretary general who denounced Israel’s 1976 rescue of Jewish hostages in Entebbe as “a serious violation” of Uganda’s national sovereignty. Now comes the latest scandal of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees, better known as UNRWA. Last Friday, Israeli officials presented the U.S. government with an intelligence dossier detailing the involvement of 12 UNRWA employees, seven of them schoolteachers, in the massacre of Oct. 7.

Persons: Saddam Hussein, Kurt Waldheim, Ronen Bergman, Patrick Kingsley Organizations: Nations, Democratic, Iraq, Nazi, United Nations Relief, Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees, “ Intelligence, Street Locations: Haiti, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Entebbe, Gaza

On December 22, the UN Security Council passed a resolution calling for further extended humanitarian pauses to allow more aid into Gaza. People carry some of their belongings as they walk to Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on January 4, fleeing central Gaza. But even as foreign aid to Gaza rose in the wake of the Hamas takeover, the amount of aid fluctuates annually, OECD data shows. In 2018, the Trump administration cut about $200 million in Palestinian aid and halted contributions to UNRWA. Medicine for Israeli hostages and Palestinians entered Gaza last Wednesday after Qatar brokered a deal with Israel and Hamas.

Persons: Khan Younis, —, Majdi, Fatah, Mohammed Abed, ”, Yara Asi, Israel, René Wildangel, Wildangel, ” Asi, Trump, Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu, “, Netanyahu Organizations: CNN, United Nations, West Bank, UN Office, Humanitarian Affairs, Service, Aid, World Health Organization, UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees, Israel, Israel Defense Forces, UN, Assembly, UNRWA, IDF, UN Security, World Food, Palestinian, Statistics, World Bank, Palestine Liberation Organization, PLO, Palestinian Authority, Hamas, West Bank ., Getty, University of Central, “, International Hellenic University, Amnesty, Palestinian Central Bureau, European Union, Organization for Economic Co, Development, Obama, Qatar Locations: Israel, Gaza, East Jerusalem, UN, Rafah, South Africa, Oslo Accords, AFP, Palestine, University of Central Florida, Oslo, Thessaloniki, Greece, United States, Europe, Qatar

☆ Jordan Says Its Gaza Hospital Damaged by Israeli Shelling
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

AMMAN (Reuters) - The Jordanian army's military field hospital in Khan Younis in Gaza was badly damaged on Wednesday by Israeli shelling in the vicinity of the building, and the army said it held Israel "fully responsible for a "flagrant breach of international law." A hospital staff member was injured and would be flown back to Jordan for treatment while a patient was hit with shrapnel, the army said in a statement. The government will take all the measures necessary as a result of the aggression," the statement said, without elaborating. The Israeli military could not immediately be reached for comment. The kingdom, which has been among Arab neighbours pushing Israel to allow more aid, is the only country that airdrops aid to Gaza, channelling it through these two medical facilities.

Persons: Jordan, Suleiman Al, Khalidi, Andrew Cawthorne, Bernadette Baum Organizations: Hamas, Food Programme Locations: AMMAN, Jordanian, Khan Younis, Gaza, Israel, Jordan, channelling

☆ 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

Video posted Monday to X by Al Jazeera showed hundreds of people rushing toward what appeared to be an aid truck in what the news outlet said was Gaza City. The Associated Press could not immediately independently verify the video and it was not clear when the video was filmed. Political Cartoons View All 253 Images“People in Gaza risk dying of hunger just miles from trucks filled with food,” said WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain. Israel blames Hamas for the high death toll, saying its fighters make use of civilian buildings and launch attacks from densely populated urban areas. The U.S., as well as the U.N., have continued to push Israel to ease the flow of aid.

Persons: Israel, Al Jazeera, ”, Cindy McCain, “, Khan Younis, Moshe Tetro, John Kirby, Israel “, “ We’re, Benjamin Netanyahu, ___ Magdy, ___ Organizations: Associated Press, Food Program, UNICEF, World Health Organization, Ministry, Hamas, White, National Security, CBS, ” Locations: RAFAH, Gaza, Israel, Gaza City, Egypt, Ashdod, Rafah, U.S, Cairo, Goldenberg, Tel Aviv, israel

“It’s not really a typical caucus because you do have a former president running,” Mr. Shaw said. “He does have the ability to come in and draw big crowds,” he said, adding that “that is not your typical Iowa caucus style.”Still, as Mr. Trump has sought to shore up support in the state, he, too, has made last-minute local pitches. In a video posted by Mr. Trump’s super PAC one day before the caucuses, Mr. Trump said he would “endorse ethanol” because “ethanol endorsed me”— though presented no specifics about what that would entail in terms of policy. The heightened attention on national priorities may not make much of a difference to Iowa in the long term. Iowa has influenced policy by forcing candidates to study up on the Farm Bill, a legislative package that oversees agricultural and food programs nationwide.

Persons: “ It’s, Mr, Shaw, “, ”, Trump, Barack Obama’s, Tom Vilsack, Obama, Biden, Terry Branstad, George W, Bush, — Organizations: Trump’s, Republican Locations: Iowa

The warning came as Yemen’s Houthis vowed retaliation, further raising the prospect of a wider conflict in a region already beset by Israel's war in Gaza. The U.S.-led bombardment came in response to a recent campaign of drone and missile attacks on commercial ships in the vital Red Sea. Since November, the rebels have repeatedly targeted ships in the Red Sea, saying they were avenging Israel's offensive in Gaza against Hamas. The Houthis’ military spokesman, Brig. Tesla, meanwhile, said it would temporarily halt most production at its German factory because of attacks in the Red Sea.

Persons: Joe Biden, Biden, ”, Yemen’s Houthis, “, " Biden, Lloyd Austin, Donald Trump Lt, Douglas Sims, Yahya Saree, Nikolas, Iran’s, Hussein, George W, Bush, Friday's, Nasser Kanaani, Vassily Nebenzia, Linda Thomas, Ambassador Barbara Woodward, Thomas, Greenfield, ” ___ Gambrell, Ahmed Al, Haj, Bassem, Jill Lawless, Nasser Karimi, Fatima Hussein, Ellen Knickmeyer, Chris Megerian, Seung Min Kim, Edith M, Lederer Organizations: WASHINGTON, Britain, Associated Press, U.S . Central Command, Navy, White, Camp, U.S . Navy, Republicans, Pentagon, Joint Chiefs of Staff, . Air Forces Central Command, Tomahawk, Foreign Ministry, Brent, Food, U.S, U.S ., United Arab Emirates, . Security, Ambassador, United Nations Locations: Yemen, U.S, Sanaa, Iran, Aden, Gaza . U.S, Houthi, Gen, Red, Gaza, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Saudi, United Kingdom, Bani, Abbs, Gulf of Oman, Tehran, Washington, Suez, America, Britain, Houthis, Greenfield, U.K, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Beirut, London, Emmaus , Pennsylvania

☆ UN again delays vote on watered-down Gaza aid resolution. The U.S. backs it, others want stronger text
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-22 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

The revised draft resolution was discussed behind closed doors for over an hour by council members not long after it was circulated. Because there were significant changes, many said they needed to consult their capitals before a vote, which is now expected Friday. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield told reporters after the consultations that the United States backs the new text, and if it is put to a vote the U.S. will support it. The U.S. ambassador said the revised resolution "will support the priority that Egypt has in ensuring that we put a mechanism on the ground that will support humanitarian assistance." During the Oct. 7 attack, Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people in Israel and took about 240 hostages back to Gaza.

Persons: General Patrick Gauchat, Charly Triballeau, Linda Thomas, Greenfield, Antony Blinken, Joe Biden, —, Antonio Guterres, Thomas, António Guterres, Biden, Israel, Lloyd Austin Organizations: Mission, Staff, United Nations Truce, UN Security, UN, Afp, Getty, . Security, Hamas, U.S, United States, United Arab Emirates, Food, Gaza Health Ministry, Health Ministry Locations: Jerusalem, New York City, Gaza, United States, Israel, United, U.S, Egypt, Hamas

☆ Red Sea crisis: Who are the Houthis and why are they attacking ships?
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-19 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

CNN —Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels are stepping up their strikes on ships in the Red Sea, which they say are revenge against Israel for its military campaign in Gaza. While the Houthis may not be able to pose a serious threat to Israel, their technology can wreak havoc in the Red Sea. Video Ad Feedback Video shows moment Houthi rebels storm cargo ship in the Red Sea 02:30 - Source: CNNWhy are the Houthis attacking ships in the Red Sea? A number of countries have taken steps to try and push back Houthi aggression in the Red Sea region. The United Nations Security Council has meanwhile approved a resolution calling on Yemen’s Houthi rebel group to “cease its brazen” attacks in the Red Sea.

Persons: CNN —, Israel, Biden, Allah, Hussein, ”, Zaidis, Khaled Abdullah, aren’t, Israel –, Carney, Yemen’s, Joe Biden, ” Biden, “, Houthis “, ” Sare’e, Mohammed al, Al Jazeera Organizations: CNN, CNN — Yemen’s, United, Hamas, Reuters, UN, United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Office, Humanitarian Affairs, Center for Strategic, International Studies, US, Maersk, Lloyd, CMA CGM, Evergreen, United Arab Emirates, Prosperity, United Nations Security Locations: CNN — Yemen’s Iran, Red, Gaza, United States, United Kingdom, Yemen, Iran, Islam, Saudi Arabia, Saudi, Sanaa, Iran’s, Israel, Islamic Republic, Hezbollah, Lebanon, Tehran, Eilat, Suez, Egypt, Hapag, Africa, Russia, China, Britain, Palestine

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations food agency said Tuesday it is stopping food distribution in areas of war-torn Yemen controlled by the Houthi rebels, a move that will impact millions of people. The World Food Program said the “pause” was driven by limited funding and the lack of agreement with the rebel authorities on downscaling the program to match the agency’s resources. The war in Yemen has raged for eight years between the Iran-backed Houthis and pro-government forces, backed by a coalition of Gulf Arab states. At the end of October, WFP and the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization warned that acute food insecurity is likely to deteriorate further in Yemen through April 2024. It called for urgent and scaled-up assistance to Yemen and 17 other “hunger hotspots” to protect livelihoods and increase access to food.

Persons: U.N, Stephane Dujarric, “, ” Organizations: UNITED NATIONS, United, Food Program, Hamas, Agriculture Organization Locations: United Nations, Yemen, ”, Iran, Gulf Arab, Sanaa, Saudi Arabia, Red, Rome, Food

☆ World Food Programme Pauses Distribution in North Yemen as Funds Limited
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( Dec. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

RIYADH (Reuters) - The World Food Programme (WFP) said on Tuesday it had paused general food distribution in north Yemen due to limited funding and disagreement with local authorities over how to focus on the poorest there. The fighting has abated over the last two years, easing what the United Nations has described as the world's worst humanitarian crisis. The WFP had already reduced rations in Yemen since 2022 due to critical funding gaps and global inflation that followed Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The agency said it would continue other programmes, including nutrition and school feeding programmes to limit the impact of the decision. General food distribution would continue with a focus on the neediest in the areas controlled by the Saudi-backed government, it said.

Persons: Aziz El Yaakoubi, Bernadette Baum Organizations: Reuters, Food Programme, United Nations, WFP Locations: RIYADH, Yemen, Iran, Saudi, Aden, Ukraine

☆ ‘It’s chaos:’ Starving Gazans dig for food, supplies under the rubble
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( Nadeen Ebrahim | Abeer Salman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Jerusalem and Abu Dhabi CNN —One man carries six jars of cooking oil as he struggles to walk across the rubble. Since October 9, Israel has blocked access to water, food and electricity in the Strip that is home to more than 2 million Palestinians. “It’s chaos,” one resident told CNN Monday, standing behind a crowd of people scavenging for supplies under the damage. Displaced Palestinians queue for food donations in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah on November 30. A day after the IDF said it was expanding its ground operation, it said it struck about 200 Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip.

Persons: Baraka, Dier, Gazans, ” Thomas White, Kamil Al, ”, Mohammed Abed, Ibrahim Dabbour, ” Dabbour, Israel, Israel’s, Khan Younis, Bani Suheila, Abed Zagout, Critics, ” Sari Bashi, ” Bashi, Khalil Abu Marahil, “ It’s, “ We’ve, Sally Essam, Deir Organizations: Abu Dhabi CNN, CNN, Israeli Defense Forces, IDF, of Health, United Nations, UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, Food Programme, Getty, UN, Hamas, Human Rights Locations: Jerusalem, Abu Dhabi, Gazan, Deir, Israel, Gaza, Dier, East, Rafah, AFP, Beit Hanoun, United States, Khan, Southern Gaza, Khuza'a, Maan, Anadolu, Gaza City, “, Palestinian, Deir al

☆ Live updates: Israel-Hamas war, Gaza airstrikes, IDF offensive
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-02 | by ( Chris Lau | Andrew Raine | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

Samir Hussein/WireImage/Getty ImagesAcclaimed artist Abel "The Weeknd" Tesfaye is providing four million meals to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) to help people in Gaza, the UN's body has said. Tesfaye, who is a UN Goodwill Ambassador, has directed $2.5 million from his XO Humanitarian Fund towards WFP humanitarian efforts in Gaza, according to WFP's statement Friday. The WFP didn't indicate when the aid could reach Gaza. His XO Humanitarian Fund, which was established in partnership with WFP USA in 2022, has raised $5 million to date. The first $2.5 million of the fund went to support emergency food assistance to women and children in Ethiopia, and the rest will be allocated to the Gaza response, according to the statement.

Persons: Samir Hussein, Abel, Tesfaye, Corrine Fleisher, ” Organizations: United Nations, Food Programme, UN Goodwill, Fund, USA Locations: London, Gaza, Ethiopia

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