Israel's conflict with its neighbours

[Time_Traveller]

Three British aid workers killed in Gaza, World Central Kitchen says

3 minutes ago

Three British aid workers have been killed in Gaza by an Israeli air strike, their charity World Central Kitchen (WCK) told BBC News.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called on Israel to "urgently" investigate the strike, which killed seven aid workers in total.

Other victims were Australian, Polish, Palestinian and a US-Canadian citizen, the charity said.

Israel said the aid workers were killed by an "unintended strike".

WCK has now paused its operations in Gaza.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-68711832

[Time_Traveller]

‘The machine did it coldly’: Israel used AI to identify 37,000 Hamas targets

Wed 3 Apr 2024 14.53 BST

The Israeli military’s bombing campaign in Gaza used a previously undisclosed AI-powered database that at one stage identified 37,000 potential targets based on their apparent links to Hamas, according to intelligence sources involved in the war.

In addition to talking about their use of the AI system, called Lavender, the intelligence sources claim that Israeli military officials permitted large numbers of Palestinian civilians to be killed, particularly during the early weeks and months of the conflict.

Their unusually candid testimony provides a rare glimpse into the first-hand experiences of Israeli intelligence officials who have been using machine-learning systems to help identify targets during the six-month war.

Israel’s use of powerful AI systems in its war on Hamas has entered uncharted territory for advanced warfare, raising a host of legal and moral questions, and transforming the relationship between military personnel and machines.

“This is unparalleled, in my memory,” said one intelligence officer who used Lavender, adding that they had more faith in a “statistical mechanism” than a grieving soldier. “Everyone there, including me, lost people on October 7. The machine did it coldly. And that made it easier.”

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/ ... airstrikes

[firestar464]

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/world/is ... r-BB1l7lEj

Israel dismisses 2 officers over deadly drone strikes on aid workers in Gaza

[caltrek]

I know that a lot of folks are upset with Biden concerning his support for Israel in its conflict with Hamas and military actions in Gaza. Still, they should be concerned with the alternative offered by Republicans:

GOP Plan Vote to Blast Biden Over Gaza
by Andrew Solender
April 12, 2024

Introduction:

(Axios) House Democrats are fuming over their Republican colleagues' plans to hold a vote denouncing what they say is President Biden's "one-sided pressure" on Israel.

Why it matters: Many pro-Israel Democrats, particularly Jewish lawmakers, are struggling to balance their affinity for Israel with their support of the president — while accusing Republicans of playing politics with a war.

• "There's the work that all of the serious adults are trying to work on [to address] an incredibly complicated and gut-wrenching situation, and then there is this nonsense," Rep. Greg Landsman (D-Ohio) told Axios.

Zoom in: The three-page, non-binding resolution introduced by Rep. Maria Salazar (R-Fla.) opposes "efforts to place one-sided pressure on Israel with respect to Gaza."

• It cites Biden's call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier this month in which the president urged an "immediate ceasefire" and a major shift in Israeli conduct in Gaza.

Read more here: https://www.axios.com/2024/04/12/democ ... el-house

Text of planned GOP resolution: https://rules.house.gov/sites/republic ... S_xml.pdf

[Time_Traveller]

US vetoes Palestinian bid for full UN membership

Friday 19 April 2024 08:38, UK



The US has blocked a Palestinian bid to be recognised as a full member state at the United Nations.

Twelve of the 15-member Security Council were in favour, Britain and Switzerland abstained, but America vetoed the motion.

The US said it still strongly supported a two-state solution, but its vote was "acknowledgment that it will only come from direct negotiations between the parties".

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called it "unfair, unethical, and unjustified".

However, Israel's foreign minister Israel Katz praised the US for blocking the move.

https://news.sky.com/story/us-vetoes-pa ... p-13118257

This shows which side the West is on and as always there will not be a two-state solution under Netanyatu and his corrupt government.

[firestar464]

U.S. aid to Ukraine, Israel set to pass. But bills differ in one key area

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/politics ... r-AA1njxVk

Wait, so arms deliveries to Israel may be illegal per the Leahy Laws? Gazans should sue the US already

[firestar464]

And a unit just got sanctioned

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/world/th ... r-AA1nmyWl

[weatheriscool]

Biden and 17 other world leaders issue call for Hamas to release remaining hostages in Gaza

President Biden and 17 other world leaders issued a statement Thursday calling on Hamas to release the remaining hostages taken during the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks in Israel, arguing that doing so would bring about a prolonged cease-fire in the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

“We call for the immediate release of all hostages held by Hamas in Gaza now for over 200 days. They include our own citizens,” the leaders wrote. “The fate of the hostages and the civilian population in Gaza, who are protected under international law, is of international concern.”

“We emphasize that the deal on the table to release the hostages would bring an immediate and prolonged ceasefire in Gaza, that would facilitate a surge of additional necessary humanitarian assistance to be delivered throughout Gaza, and lead to the credible end of hostilities,” they continued. “Gazans would be able to return to their homes and their lands with preparations beforehand to ensure shelter and humanitarian provisions.”

The statement was signed by Biden, as well as the leaders of Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Columbia, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Spain, Thailand and the United Kingdom. The countries all have citizens who are being held or are missing in Gaza following Hamas’ terrorist attacks in Israel last October, a senior administration official said.

https://thehill.com/homenews/administra ... -hostages/

[wjfox]

UN rights chief 'horrified' by mass grave reports at Gaza hospitals

1 day ago

The UN's human rights chief has said he is "horrified" by the destruction of Gaza's Nasser and al-Shifa hospitals and the reports of "mass graves" being found at the sites after Israeli raids.

Volker Türk called for independent investigations into the deaths.

Palestinian officials said they had exhumed 283 bodies at Nasser, some with their hands tied. It is not clear how they died or when they were buried.

Israel's military said claims that it buried bodies there were "baseless".

But it did say that during a two-week operation at the hospital in the city of Khan Younis in February, troops "examined" bodies buried by Palestinians "in places where intelligence indicated the possible presence of hostages".

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-68881325



Reuters

[firestar464]

Message From a Gazan to Campus Protesters: You're Hurting the Palestinian Cause | Opinion

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/me ... r-AA1nFvT7

Amazing op-ed