Italian MPs Protest at Egypt's Gaza Border Against War
Italian parliamentarians protested on Sunday in front of Egypt's Rafah border crossing with Gaza, calling for aid access and an end to the war in the devastated Palestinian territory.
"Europe is not doing enough, nothing to stop the massacre," Cecilia Strada, an Italian member of the European parliament, told AFP.
The group, including 11 members of the Italian parliament, three MEPs and representatives of NGOs, held signs reading "Stop genocide now", "End illegal occupation" and "Stop arming Israel".
"There should be a complete embargo on weapons to and from Israel and a stop to trade with illegal settlements," Strada said.
The protesters laid toys on the ground in solidarity with Gaza's children, who the UN warns face "a growing risk of starvation, illness and death" more than two months into a total Israeli aid blockade.
At least 15,000 children have been killed in Gaza since the Israel-Hamas war began in October 2023, according to the United Nations.
Israel has faced mounting pressure to lift its aid blockade, as UN agencies warn of critical shortages of food, clean water, fuel and medicines.
It resumed its offensive on March 18, ending a two-month truce in its war against Hamas triggered by the Palestinian group's October 2023 attack on Israel.
On Saturday Israel announced an expanded military campaign, killing dozens of people in new strikes.
"We hear the bombs right now," Walter Massa, president of Italian non-profit organization Associazione Ricreativa Culturale Italiana, told AFP near the crossing.
"The Israeli army continues to do what it believes is right in the face of an international community that does not intervene, and in Gaza, beyond the Rafah crossing border, people continue to die," he said.
UN chief Antonio Guterres said Saturday said he was "alarmed" at the escalation and called for "a permanent ceasefire, now".
Italy's government on Saturday reiterated its calls to Israel to stop attacking Gaza, with Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani saying: "Enough with the attacks."
"We no longer want to see the Palestinian people suffer," Tajani said.
Gaza's health ministry said Sunday 3,193 people have been killed since Israel resumed its strikes on March 18, taking the war's overall toll to 53,339.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
12 minutes ago
- Arab News
BBC's biased coverage of Israel's war on Gaza
Israel's war on Palestinians from the outset has been fought in the media, and even at a more aggressive level since October 2023. Israel has poured huge resources into its propaganda drive, to persuade particularly Western powers that its war and actions were justified. It has denied journalists access to Gaza, and killed over 185 Palestinian media workers in the enclave in this period. Few media networks have been under more sustained Israeli assault than the BBC. Its global reach of 450 million people puts it in the front line of Israeli government efforts. It parades its reputation for impartiality, but as a new data-driven report published last week highlights, when it comes to Palestinians this is far from the case. Some argue the BBC has become complicit in Israel's war crimes. The Gaza coverage has been like walking on eggshells, the BBC refusing to call out what is going on. The abundant use of the passive voice where the party committing the crime is not identified is a notable feature. The report from the Center for Media Monitoring, a Muslim Council of Britain project, examined the BBC's coverage of Israel's war on Gaza primarily between 7 Oct. 7, 2023 and Oct. 6, 2024. For this 12-month window, a total of 3,873 articles and 32,092 broadcast segments were analyzed using AI and human verification. Some of the findings are jaw dropping. BBC presenters shared the Israeli perspective 11 times more frequently than the Palestinian perspective (2,340 vs. 217), even when interviewing neutral third parties, such as humanitarian organizations. That is not even close. BBC article headlines referred to Palestinian casualties just two times more than Israeli casualties, despite there having been 34 times more deaths in Gaza. Some of the findings are jaw dropping Chris Doyle Statistics do not tell the whole story, as BBC editors are quick to point out, but this report highlights alarming patterns of coverage. The absence of proper context is stark. Previous Israeli wars and atrocities in Gaza get scant reference. That 70 percent of the population are 1948 refugees is not there. Even with the Israeli war on Iran, no mention is made of Israel's nuclear arsenal and its refusal to sign up to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The BBC's coverage of international legal issues is incredibly poor, and again favorable to Israel. The BBC rarely used occupation to describe the legal status of Gaza. Only recently did it finally get its international editor to pen a still timid piece on whether Israel had committed war crimes in Gaza. Since the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the fact that he is wanted for war crimes and crimes against humanity is rarely mentioned. Worse, BBC presenters have actively shut down the widespread debate on whether Israel has been committing genocide in over 100 documented cases according to the report. This is extraordinary since the International Court of Justice determined that the situation in Gaza was so serious it had to order provisional measures against Israel to prevent genocide. That was in January 2024 and the situation is considerably worse now. Most human rights groups have determined Israel is committing genocide. The widespread use of genocidal comments from Israeli leaders from the president down is also downplayed. This is extraordinary given that this constitutes a stated intent to annihilate Gaza, vital context when Israel obliterates civilian infrastructure, including the healthcare system. The absence of proper context is stark Chris Doyle Remarkably, according to the report, the BBC never once referred to the Hannibal Directive and the Dahiya doctrine. The former, which we now know was invoked on Oct. 7, allows Israeli forces to launch attacks even if they might endanger hostages' lives, while the latter, certainly deployed in Gaza and Lebanon, permits the widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure. These protocols highlight the mentality of the Israeli armed forces. The report also demonstrated how the BBC's coverage of Russia's crimes in Ukraine was so different to Israeli crimes in Gaza. Israel's attempts to justify its actions were included in 75 percent of articles in that year, but only 17 when it came to Russian actions. Take the killing of journalists. The research found that 62 percent of journalists' deaths in Ukraine were reported, but only 6 percent of Palestinian journalists' killings by Israelis. The BBC's handling of documentaries echoes the above failures. It already withdrew the documentary 'Gaza: How To Survive a War Zone,' which had rave reviews, even in the right-wing media. It then opted not to show a further documentary, 'Gaza: Doctors Under Attack,' on the way in which Israel has targeted the Gaza healthcare system. Just as Western political leaders have given a green light to Israeli crimes and facilitated a climate of impunity that Israel still enjoys in its attacks on Iran, the BBC and other outlets help to create this permissive environment. In fairness, the BBC has many excellent reporters who have succeeded at times in breaching the managerial and editorial firewall against criticism of Israel with compelling storytelling. But in the overall picture, as this report highlights, the BBC simply continues to give this extremist Israeli government an easy ride.
Arab News
an hour ago
- Arab News
KSrelief extends support to 4 nations in need
Arab News Riyadh The Saudi aid agency KSrelief continues to make a significant global impact by providing critical assistance to some of the world's most vulnerable communities. The agency recently distributed 1,600 food baskets to displaced people in the South Jazirah district of Sudan's Al-Jazirah State, benefiting 9,709 families. KSrelief also distributed 1,250 food baskets to displaced families in the Shikan locality, North Kordofan State, benefiting 8,092 individuals. In Chad, the agency delivered 125 tonnes of dates as a gift from Saudi Arabia, in the presence of Chad's Minister of Social Action, Solidarity and Humanitarian Affairs Zara Issa, in N'Djamena. Acting Charge d'Affaires at the Saudi Embassy in Chad Mohammed Al-Salem praised KSrelief's humanitarian and relief efforts around the world, highlighting the Kingdom's commitment to supporting vulnerable communities. In the Syrian Arab Republic, KSrelief distributed 10,382 cartons of dates in the Rif Dimashq Governorate, benefiting thousands of families. Recently, KSrelief signed a cooperation agreement with the Saudi Center for Culture and Heritage to establish four water desalination stations in Khan Younis and the Central Governorate of the Gaza Strip. The project includes four desalination stations with a production capacity of 10–12 cubic meters per day, installation works, and four solar power systems with 7 kilowatt capacity each. It is expected to benefit 300,500 individuals. The agreement is part of the Kingdom's ongoing efforts to support the water and sanitation sector and ease the suffering of the Palestinian people amid the humanitarian crisis.
Al Arabiya
3 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
UK police ban Palestine Action protest outside parliament
British police have banned campaign group Palestine Action from protesting outside parliament on Monday, a rare move that comes after two of its members broke into a military base last week and as the government considers banning the organization. The group said in response that it had changed the location of its protest on Monday to Trafalgar Square, which lies just outside a police exclusion zone. The pro-Palestinian organization is among groups that have regularly targeted defense firms and other companies in Britain linked to Israel since the start of the conflict in Gaza. British media have reported that the government is considering proscribing, or effectively banning, Palestine Action, as a terrorist organization, putting it on a par with al-Qaeda or ISIS. London's Metropolitan Police said late on Sunday that it would impose an exclusion zone for a protest planned by Palestine Action outside the Houses of Parliament - a popular location for demonstrations in support of a range of causes. 'The right to protest is essential and we will always defend it, but actions in support of such a group go beyond what most would see as legitimate protest,' Met Police Commissioner Mark Rowley said. 'We have laid out to Government the operational basis on which to consider proscribing this group.' Interior minister Yvette Cooper will make a statement to parliament later on Monday, finance minister Rachel Reeves told reporters on Monday, when asked about the group. Palestine Action's members are alleged to have caused millions of pounds of criminal damage, assaulted a police officer with a sledgehammer and, in the incident last week, damaged two military aircraft, Rowley added.
