Global Events & Politics Überthread
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nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
The U.S. plan envisions European countries sending weaponry, including the Patriot systems, to Ukraine out of their current stocks so the weapons could be used immediately, Trump said. Those countries would then purchase replacements from the U.S. military industry.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, visiting the White House on Monday, told reporters that the deal also involved “missiles and ammunition,” without specifying what else would be purchased and supplied. Ukraine’s U.S. and European backers have rushed to bolster their production capacity of air defense interceptors and 155mm artillery shells.
“There’s a very big deal we’ve made. This is billions of dollars worth of military equipment [which] is going to be purchased from the United States, going to NATO, etcetera, and that’s going to be quickly distributed to the battlefield,” Trump said Monday in the Oval Office, speaking alongside Rutte, who will help oversee a NATO-wide purchasing effort of U.S.-made weaponry for Ukraine.
In his remarks, Trump offered far more sympathy toward Ukrainians than he has at other moments of his presidency.
“Say what you want about Ukraine. When the war started, they had no chance,” Trump said. “They fought with tremendous courage, and they continue to fight with tremendous courage.”
And he had harsh words for Putin, saying at one point, “I don’t want to say he’s an assassin, but he’s a tough guy.”
The decision came just weeks after the Pentagon briefly paused military aid for Ukraine, continuing an approach to the conflict that has blown hot and cold toward Kyiv since Trump came into office in January vowing to end the war in a day.
The fresh approach was met with relief in Kyiv, which has been buffeted by the back and forth from Washington in recent weeks as Russia has increased deadly aerial attacks.
Trump’s Ukraine envoy, retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, visited Ukraine on Monday for meetings with top leaders there, giving a bear hug to Zelensky’s chief of staff upon arriving in the capital’s central train station.
Makes me cautiously optimistic!
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, visiting the White House on Monday, told reporters that the deal also involved “missiles and ammunition,” without specifying what else would be purchased and supplied. Ukraine’s U.S. and European backers have rushed to bolster their production capacity of air defense interceptors and 155mm artillery shells.
“There’s a very big deal we’ve made. This is billions of dollars worth of military equipment [which] is going to be purchased from the United States, going to NATO, etcetera, and that’s going to be quickly distributed to the battlefield,” Trump said Monday in the Oval Office, speaking alongside Rutte, who will help oversee a NATO-wide purchasing effort of U.S.-made weaponry for Ukraine.
In his remarks, Trump offered far more sympathy toward Ukrainians than he has at other moments of his presidency.
“Say what you want about Ukraine. When the war started, they had no chance,” Trump said. “They fought with tremendous courage, and they continue to fight with tremendous courage.”
And he had harsh words for Putin, saying at one point, “I don’t want to say he’s an assassin, but he’s a tough guy.”
The decision came just weeks after the Pentagon briefly paused military aid for Ukraine, continuing an approach to the conflict that has blown hot and cold toward Kyiv since Trump came into office in January vowing to end the war in a day.
The fresh approach was met with relief in Kyiv, which has been buffeted by the back and forth from Washington in recent weeks as Russia has increased deadly aerial attacks.
Trump’s Ukraine envoy, retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, visited Ukraine on Monday for meetings with top leaders there, giving a bear hug to Zelensky’s chief of staff upon arriving in the capital’s central train station.
Makes me cautiously optimistic!
Tapate50
Well-known member
Yeah, this feels silly.
nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
Interesting op-ed about China Shock II.
nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
For nearly two years, Israel has accused Hamas of stealing aid provided by the United Nations and other international organizations. The government has used that claim as its main rationale for restricting food from entering Gaza.
But the Israeli military never found proof that the Palestinian militant group had systematically stolen aid from the United Nations, the biggest supplier of emergency assistance to Gaza for most of the war, according to two senior Israeli military officials and two other Israelis involved in the matter.
In fact, the Israeli military officials said, the U.N. aid delivery system, which Israel derided and undermined, was largely effective in providing food to Gaza’s desperate and hungry population.
Now, with hunger at crisis levels in the territory, Israel is coming under increased international pressure over its conduct of the war in Gaza and the humanitarian suffering it has brought. Doctors in the territory say that an increasing number of their patients are suffering from — and dying of — starvation.
More than 100 aid agencies and rights groups warned this past week of “mass starvation” and implored Israel to lift restrictions on humanitarian assistance. The European Union and at least 28 governments, including Israeli allies like Britain, France and Canada, issued a joint statement condemning Israel’s “drip-feeding of aid” to Gaza’s two million Palestinian residents.
Israel has largely brushed off the criticism.
David Mencer, a government spokesman, said this week that there was “no famine caused by Israel.” Instead, he blamed Hamas and poor coordination by the United Nations for any food shortages.
Israel moved in May toward replacing the U.N.-led aid system that had been in place for most of the 21-month Gaza war, opting instead to back a private, American-run operation guarded by armed U.S. contractors in areas controlled by Israeli military forces. Some aid still comes into Gaza through the United Nations and other organizations.
The new system has proved to be much deadlier for Palestinians trying to obtain food handouts. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, almost 1,100 people have been killed by gunfire on their way to get food handouts under the new system, in many cases by Israeli soldiers who opened fired on hungry crowds. Israeli officials have said they fired shots in the air in some instances because the crowds came too close or endangered their forces.
The military officials who spoke to The New York Times said that the original U.N. aid operation was relatively reliable and less vulnerable to Hamas interference than the operations of many of the other groups bringing aid into Gaza. That’s largely because the United Nations managed its own supply chain and handled distribution directly inside Gaza.
Hamas did steal from some of the smaller organizations that donated aid, as those groups were not always on the ground to oversee distribution, according to the senior Israeli officials and others involved in the matter. But, they say, there was no evidence that Hamas regularly stole from the United Nations, which provided the largest chunk of the aid.
A Hamas representative did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
An internal U.S. government analysis came to a similar conclusion, Reuters reported on Friday. It found no evidence of systematic Hamas theft of U.S.-funded humanitarian supplies, the report said.
“For months, we and other organizations were dragged through the mud by accusations that Hamas steals from us,” said Georgios Petropoulos, a former U.N. official in Gaza who oversaw aid coordination with Israel for nearly 13 months of war.
The senior military officials and others interviewed by The Times spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on behalf of the military or government. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
In a statement, the military said that it has been “well documented” that Hamas has routinely “exploited humanitarian aid to fund terrorist activities.” But the military did not dispute the assessment that there was no evidence that Hamas regularly stole aid from the United Nations.
The Israeli government and military have often clashed over how to conduct the war in Gaza. Early last year, top commanders urged a cease-fire with Hamas to secure the release of hostages. Mr. Netanyahu’s government instead expanded the ground operation in southern Gaza.
Israel used the rationale that Hamas steals aid when it cut off all food and other supplies to Gaza between March and May. In March, after a cease-fire between Hamas and Israel collapsed, Mr. Netanyahu said: “Hamas is currently taking control of all supplies and goods entering Gaza,” and he declared that Israel would prevent anything from entering the territory.
But the Israeli military never found proof that the Palestinian militant group had systematically stolen aid from the United Nations, the biggest supplier of emergency assistance to Gaza for most of the war, according to two senior Israeli military officials and two other Israelis involved in the matter.
In fact, the Israeli military officials said, the U.N. aid delivery system, which Israel derided and undermined, was largely effective in providing food to Gaza’s desperate and hungry population.
Now, with hunger at crisis levels in the territory, Israel is coming under increased international pressure over its conduct of the war in Gaza and the humanitarian suffering it has brought. Doctors in the territory say that an increasing number of their patients are suffering from — and dying of — starvation.
More than 100 aid agencies and rights groups warned this past week of “mass starvation” and implored Israel to lift restrictions on humanitarian assistance. The European Union and at least 28 governments, including Israeli allies like Britain, France and Canada, issued a joint statement condemning Israel’s “drip-feeding of aid” to Gaza’s two million Palestinian residents.
Israel has largely brushed off the criticism.
David Mencer, a government spokesman, said this week that there was “no famine caused by Israel.” Instead, he blamed Hamas and poor coordination by the United Nations for any food shortages.
Israel moved in May toward replacing the U.N.-led aid system that had been in place for most of the 21-month Gaza war, opting instead to back a private, American-run operation guarded by armed U.S. contractors in areas controlled by Israeli military forces. Some aid still comes into Gaza through the United Nations and other organizations.
The new system has proved to be much deadlier for Palestinians trying to obtain food handouts. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, almost 1,100 people have been killed by gunfire on their way to get food handouts under the new system, in many cases by Israeli soldiers who opened fired on hungry crowds. Israeli officials have said they fired shots in the air in some instances because the crowds came too close or endangered their forces.
The military officials who spoke to The New York Times said that the original U.N. aid operation was relatively reliable and less vulnerable to Hamas interference than the operations of many of the other groups bringing aid into Gaza. That’s largely because the United Nations managed its own supply chain and handled distribution directly inside Gaza.
Hamas did steal from some of the smaller organizations that donated aid, as those groups were not always on the ground to oversee distribution, according to the senior Israeli officials and others involved in the matter. But, they say, there was no evidence that Hamas regularly stole from the United Nations, which provided the largest chunk of the aid.
A Hamas representative did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
An internal U.S. government analysis came to a similar conclusion, Reuters reported on Friday. It found no evidence of systematic Hamas theft of U.S.-funded humanitarian supplies, the report said.
“For months, we and other organizations were dragged through the mud by accusations that Hamas steals from us,” said Georgios Petropoulos, a former U.N. official in Gaza who oversaw aid coordination with Israel for nearly 13 months of war.
The senior military officials and others interviewed by The Times spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on behalf of the military or government. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
In a statement, the military said that it has been “well documented” that Hamas has routinely “exploited humanitarian aid to fund terrorist activities.” But the military did not dispute the assessment that there was no evidence that Hamas regularly stole aid from the United Nations.
The Israeli government and military have often clashed over how to conduct the war in Gaza. Early last year, top commanders urged a cease-fire with Hamas to secure the release of hostages. Mr. Netanyahu’s government instead expanded the ground operation in southern Gaza.
Israel used the rationale that Hamas steals aid when it cut off all food and other supplies to Gaza between March and May. In March, after a cease-fire between Hamas and Israel collapsed, Mr. Netanyahu said: “Hamas is currently taking control of all supplies and goods entering Gaza,” and he declared that Israel would prevent anything from entering the territory.
nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
Two of Israel’s best-known human rights groups said Monday that Israel was committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, adding fuel to a passionately fought international debate over whether the death and destruction there have crossed a moral red line.
The two groups were B’Tselem, a rights monitor that documents the effects of Israeli policies on Palestinians, and Physicians for Human Rights — Israel. Their announcement was the first time major Israeli rights groups have publicly concluded that the Gaza war is a genocide, an assessment previously reached by some organizations like Amnesty International.
In a report titled “Our Genocide,” B’Tselem cited the devastating effects of Israel’s war on ordinary Palestinians to support their claim: the killing of tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza; the razing of huge areas of Palestinian cities; the forced displacement of nearly all of Gaza’s two million people; the restriction of food and other vital supplies.
All together, the Israeli campaign has amounted to “coordinated action to intentionally destroy Palestinian society in the Gaza Strip,” the organization wrote. “In other words: Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.”
The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not immediately comment. Speaking at the International Court of Justice in January 2024, Tal Becker, a member of Israel’s legal defense, said that Israel was fighting Hamas, not targeting Palestinians wholesale.
“What Israel seeks by operating in Gaza is not to destroy a people, but to protect a people, its people, who are under attack on multiple fronts, and to do so in accordance with the law,” Mr. Becker told the court.
Genocide has a specific definition in international law: particular acts carried out with intent to destroy a group in whole or in part. The accusation hits a painful nerve for Israel, a state founded after Nazi Germany’s attempt to exterminate European Jewry.
Israel vigorously denies that its war against Hamas in Gaza amounts to genocide, countering that Hamas seeks to destroy the Jewish state. Israeli officials have also pointed to the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, in which 1,200 people were killed, mostly civilians, which prompted the devastating Israeli response.
The subsequent Israeli bombing campaign and ground offensive in Gaza have killed more than 59,000 people, including thousands of children, according to the Gazan health ministry. That toll does not distinguish between civilians and combatants; at one point, the Israeli military chief said nearly 20,000 Hamas fighters had been killed in the conflict, without providing evidence.
Yuli Novak, the director of B’Tselem, said that she was not seeking to minimize the “horrific attack” that Hamas had perpetrated on Oct. 7. But the assault had prompted an Israeli assault on Palestinian life in Gaza that had spiraled into genocide, she said.
“The report we are publishing today is one we never imagined we would have to write,” Ms. Novak said at a news conference in Jerusalem. “But in recent months, we have been witnessing a reality that has left us no choice but to acknowledge the truth.”
As part of the case for genocide, international law requires that there be proof of intent. In the report on Monday, B’Tselem cited a string of dehumanizing remarks by Israeli government officials, such as a statement by Yoav Gallant, a former defense minister, that Israel was fighting “human animals” in Gaza. Some Israeli politicians have also said that their goal is to drive the remaining Palestinians out of Gaza.
Israeli leaders argue that the country has adhered to humanitarian law, that generals work closely with legal advisers who ensure compliance with standards, and that Israel has gone above and beyond what other Western countries have done in similar situations. Mr. Netanyahu has at times distanced himself from the most extreme statements made by his political allies.
The two groups were B’Tselem, a rights monitor that documents the effects of Israeli policies on Palestinians, and Physicians for Human Rights — Israel. Their announcement was the first time major Israeli rights groups have publicly concluded that the Gaza war is a genocide, an assessment previously reached by some organizations like Amnesty International.
In a report titled “Our Genocide,” B’Tselem cited the devastating effects of Israel’s war on ordinary Palestinians to support their claim: the killing of tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza; the razing of huge areas of Palestinian cities; the forced displacement of nearly all of Gaza’s two million people; the restriction of food and other vital supplies.
All together, the Israeli campaign has amounted to “coordinated action to intentionally destroy Palestinian society in the Gaza Strip,” the organization wrote. “In other words: Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.”
The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not immediately comment. Speaking at the International Court of Justice in January 2024, Tal Becker, a member of Israel’s legal defense, said that Israel was fighting Hamas, not targeting Palestinians wholesale.
“What Israel seeks by operating in Gaza is not to destroy a people, but to protect a people, its people, who are under attack on multiple fronts, and to do so in accordance with the law,” Mr. Becker told the court.
Genocide has a specific definition in international law: particular acts carried out with intent to destroy a group in whole or in part. The accusation hits a painful nerve for Israel, a state founded after Nazi Germany’s attempt to exterminate European Jewry.
Israel vigorously denies that its war against Hamas in Gaza amounts to genocide, countering that Hamas seeks to destroy the Jewish state. Israeli officials have also pointed to the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, in which 1,200 people were killed, mostly civilians, which prompted the devastating Israeli response.
The subsequent Israeli bombing campaign and ground offensive in Gaza have killed more than 59,000 people, including thousands of children, according to the Gazan health ministry. That toll does not distinguish between civilians and combatants; at one point, the Israeli military chief said nearly 20,000 Hamas fighters had been killed in the conflict, without providing evidence.
Yuli Novak, the director of B’Tselem, said that she was not seeking to minimize the “horrific attack” that Hamas had perpetrated on Oct. 7. But the assault had prompted an Israeli assault on Palestinian life in Gaza that had spiraled into genocide, she said.
“The report we are publishing today is one we never imagined we would have to write,” Ms. Novak said at a news conference in Jerusalem. “But in recent months, we have been witnessing a reality that has left us no choice but to acknowledge the truth.”
As part of the case for genocide, international law requires that there be proof of intent. In the report on Monday, B’Tselem cited a string of dehumanizing remarks by Israeli government officials, such as a statement by Yoav Gallant, a former defense minister, that Israel was fighting “human animals” in Gaza. Some Israeli politicians have also said that their goal is to drive the remaining Palestinians out of Gaza.
Israeli leaders argue that the country has adhered to humanitarian law, that generals work closely with legal advisers who ensure compliance with standards, and that Israel has gone above and beyond what other Western countries have done in similar situations. Mr. Netanyahu has at times distanced himself from the most extreme statements made by his political allies.
It’s beginning to feel inevitable that the world is going to just suddenly accept that the Israeli government was in the wrong here, but we’re going to learn nothing from the venture and the next time an extremist group/government attacks a powerful country we’ll be treated to the next round of justifying any and all civilian casualties in the name of that powerful country protecting itself.
nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
The point that I think will be litigated is whether Netanyahu and others in his government used the pretext that Hamas was stealing food and other aid to enact a policy that ended up starving non-combatants.
I'm sure there were cases of Hamas stealing aid. Was it significant enough to justify such a policy. Or did Netanyahu use scattered incidents of theft by Hamas to justify something horrendous.
He and his colleagues need to get lawyered up if they haven't done so already.
I'm sure there were cases of Hamas stealing aid. Was it significant enough to justify such a policy. Or did Netanyahu use scattered incidents of theft by Hamas to justify something horrendous.
He and his colleagues need to get lawyered up if they haven't done so already.
chop2chip
Well-known member
I wouldn’t want Netanyahu’s job but seems likely he’s remembered as the villain from this saga
Tapate50
Well-known member
The New York Times appears to have spread propaganda meant to raise fears of famine in Gaza.¹
In an astonishing correction tonight, the Times said a Gaza toddler whom it had said last week suffered from malnutrition in fact had other “pre-existing health problems.”
But the vaguely worded correction does not explain a far more serious problem. As part of the article, the paper ran a huge photo that seems to show the boy is dying of malnutrition — but excluded his brother, who is clearly of normal weight.
—
(Two pictures are worth a million words.)
—
The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs publishedthe second photo on its Instagram account on Tuesday morning. Its authenticity has not been questioned. Israel also reported the boy has cerebral palsy. Children with cerebral palsy frequently have difficulty feeding themselves and appear malnourished.
In its correction, the Times neither apologized for nor explained how its reporters had failed to determine that the boy, Mohammed Zakaria al-Mutawaq, was obviously sick. Nor did it explain why the paper had chosen to run a photo that excluded his brother.
In an astonishing correction tonight, the Times said a Gaza toddler whom it had said last week suffered from malnutrition in fact had other “pre-existing health problems.”
But the vaguely worded correction does not explain a far more serious problem. As part of the article, the paper ran a huge photo that seems to show the boy is dying of malnutrition — but excluded his brother, who is clearly of normal weight.
—
(Two pictures are worth a million words.)
[td]
[/td]
The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs publishedthe second photo on its Instagram account on Tuesday morning. Its authenticity has not been questioned. Israel also reported the boy has cerebral palsy. Children with cerebral palsy frequently have difficulty feeding themselves and appear malnourished.
In its correction, the Times neither apologized for nor explained how its reporters had failed to determine that the boy, Mohammed Zakaria al-Mutawaq, was obviously sick. Nor did it explain why the paper had chosen to run a photo that excluded his brother.