War declared, Israel v Palestine...

[gavreid]

Norway will recognise Palestinian statehood on May 28​

More from the Norwegian prime minister.
Store, speaking in Oslo, said Norway’s recognition of Palestine as a state will take place on May 28. “There cannot be peace in the Middle East if there is no recognition,” he said.

Ireland to recognise a Palestinian state, confirms PM​

Ireland’s taoiseach Simon Harris has confirmed that Ireland will recognise a Palestinian state. He is speaking at a press conference now.

So far, 143 of the 193 UN member states have recognised Palestine.
Currently, just eight of the 27 EU members – Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Sweden, and Cyprus – recognise Palestine as a state. Of those, only Sweden recognised Palestine as a sovereign state in 2014.

It [Norway] said that the World Bank determined that Palestine had met key criteria to function as a state in 2011, that national institutions have been built up to provide the population with important services.

“The war in Gaza and the constant expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank still mean that the situation in Palestine is more difficult than it has been in decades,” the Norwegian government said, according to the AP.

Israel-Gaza war live: Israel recalls ambassadors as Norway, Ireland and Spain say they will recognise Palestinian state

Norwegian PM Jonas Gahr Støre said ‘there cannot be peace in the Middle East if there is no recognition’

www.theguardian.com

Israeli attacks on Gaza kill 62 as Palestinians hail state recognition move

Gaza’s Health Ministry says 62 people were killed and 138 injured in the latest 24-hour reporting period.

www.aljazeera.com

 

[gavreid]

More than 1,400 Israeli academics sign petition calling for end to Gaza war​

Academics and administrators from higher education institutions across Israel have signed a petition calling on the Israeli government to end its war on Gaza and secure the return of captives held in the Palestinian enclave.
The petition, titled “A Call on the Israeli Government to End the War and Ensure the Return of the Hostages”, states that the end of the war and the return of captives are “moral imperatives that align with Israel’s interests”.
The signatories add that while it supports Israel’s right to self-defence, “this initial purpose has been exhausted” and the government does not have the right to “wage a war without a realistic end or one aimed at the political survival of the leadership”.

Israeli attacks on Gaza kill 62 as Palestinians hail state recognition move

Gaza’s Health Ministry says 62 people were killed and 138 injured in the latest 24-hour reporting period.

www.aljazeera.com

 

[gavreid]

Israel announces 'immediate recall' of its ambassadors to Ireland and Norway​

Israel have “instructed for the immediate recall” of Israel’s ambassadors to Ireland and Norway.

Israel-Gaza war live: Israel recalls ambassadors as Norway, Ireland and Spain say they will recognise Palestinian state

Norwegian PM Jonas Gahr Støre said ‘there cannot be peace in the Middle East if there is no recognition’

www.theguardian.com

 

[ff1d1l]

Israel announces 'immediate recall' of its ambassadors to Ireland and Norway​

Israel have “instructed for the immediate recall” of Israel’s ambassadors to Ireland and Norway.

Israel-Gaza war live: Israel recalls ambassadors as Norway, Ireland and Spain say they will recognise Palestinian state

Norwegian PM Jonas Gahr Støre said ‘there cannot be peace in the Middle East if there is no recognition’

www.theguardian.com

Don't let the door bang your arse on the way out, boys..
.

 

[Tony L]

Israel is well on the way to becoming a pariah state, and very deservedly so. A full boycott is needed IMHO. Remove all trade until there is meaningful regime change.

Netanyahu and all his radicalised IDF war criminals must be held to international account. I’m delighted to see the ICC act, albeit belatedly. The reaction of our far-right ghouls both here and in the USA speaks very poorly of all us.

 

[gavreid]

More from Spain’s Sanchez​

Speaking in the Spanish parliament, Pedro Sanchez has said that his Israeli counterpart, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is putting the two-state solution in “danger” with his policy of “pain and destruction” in Gaza.
“Next Tuesday, May 28, Spain’s cabinet will approve the recognition of the Palestinian state,” the Spanish prime minister said.

Israeli attacks on Gaza kill 62 as Palestinians hail state recognition move

Gaza’s Health Ministry says 62 people were killed and 138 injured in the latest 24-hour reporting period.

www.aljazeera.com

 

[ks.234]

True. Just thinking a little further on Beau's analysis above - if he is correct that it's primarily about the principle at this stage, that would surely mean that the US would have to similarly condemn the ICC's issue of an arrest warrant for Putin relating to his action in Ukraine - no ?

Or, the US should recognise the arrest warrant for Netanyahu on precisely the same grounds as it recognised the arrest warrant for Putin.

Owen Jones on the same issue

 

[gavreid]

Only 30-35% of Hamas fighters killed since October 7: Report​

US government intelligence indicates that only 30-35 percent of Hamas fighters have been killed in Israel’s assault on Gaza since October 7, while 65 percent of the group’s tunnels remain intact, news outlet Politico reports.
Citing a person familiar with US intelligence, the outlet says Biden officials have also expressed concern that Hamas has been able to recruit thousands of new fighters over the last several months.
Last week, US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said Joe Biden’s administration does not believe that Israel’s stated strategy of pursuing “total victory” over Hamas in Gaza is feasible.

Israeli attacks on Gaza kill 62 as Palestinians hail state recognition move

Gaza’s Health Ministry says 62 people were killed and 138 injured in the latest 24-hour reporting period.

www.aljazeera.com

 

[Tony L]

Excellent speech from Bernie Sanders. Flawless logic. Unlike the hypocritical ghouls on the far-right he fully understands what the ICC is and what international law was created to achieve.

 

[ks.234]

Only 30-35% of Hamas fighters killed since October 7: Report​

US government intelligence indicates that only 30-35 percent of Hamas fighters have been killed in Israel’s assault on Gaza since October 7, while 65 percent of the group’s tunnels remain intact, news outlet Politico reports.
Citing a person familiar with US intelligence, the outlet says Biden officials have also expressed concern that Hamas has been able to recruit thousands of new fighters over the last several months.
Last week, US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said Joe Biden’s administration does not believe that Israel’s stated strategy of pursuing “total victory” over Hamas in Gaza is feasible.

Israeli attacks on Gaza kill 62 as Palestinians hail state recognition move

Gaza’s Health Ministry says 62 people were killed and 138 injured in the latest 24-hour reporting period.

www.aljazeera.com

Gosh! Who’da thought?

It’s almost as if Hamas isn’t the real target!

 

[gavreid]

Gosh! Who’da thought?

It’s almost as if Hamas isn’t the real target!

How many 'hostages' have been freed? 4? 5? No wonder the families are protesting - 10 times more have been killed as a result of the war...

 

[ks.234]

How many 'hostages' have been freed? 4? 5? No wonder the families are protesting - 10 times more have been killed as a result of the war...

Yes, Hamas, hostages, human rights are all irrelevant to the real war aim, which must by now be obvious to any reasonable person, to extend the programme of colonial settler occupation.

This is above all, the latest stage in a long running war of occupation that is contrary even to the Balfour Declaration.

 

[gavreid]

Netanyahu will use Norway, Ireland, Spain’s decisions to push ‘victimhood’ narrative

Akiva Eldar, a political columnist at Israeli publication Haaretz, has told Al Jazeera that the recognition of the Palestinian state by Norway, Spain and Ireland goes against “Netanyahu and the majority of the Israeli Knesset’s philosophy never to agree to a Palestinian state, especially not unilaterally”.
“Just a few months ago, the majority of the Knesset passed a very weird resolution against any unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state,” he said.
Eldar added that he believes that Netanyahu will frame the recognition “as another demonstration of anti-Semitism, victimhood” and use it in his narrative “that the world is against us”.

Israeli attacks on Gaza kill 62 as Palestinians hail state recognition move

Gaza’s Health Ministry says 62 people were killed and 138 injured in the latest 24-hour reporting period.

www.aljazeera.com

 

[Tony L]

PMQs live: two genocide/apartheid apologists not talking about the ICC.

 

[gez]

The obvious solution is not to do war crimes.

Personally I find the entire concept of war crimes abhorent. War itself is a crime as far as I'm concerned, the idea that it can in some way be "legal" is just ludicrous.

 

[Tony L]

Personally I find the entire concept of war crimes abhorent. War itself is a crime as far as I'm concerned, the idea that it can in some way be "legal" is just ludicrous.

I don’t agree. If a nation invades or occupies another armed resistance is perfectly legitimate.

The situation in Palestine is even more stacked by Israel (and much the wider international community) being an illegal invading force and the population being held captive, stateless and denied basic human rights.

PS Israel/Palestine should never be defined as a ‘war’. It is more accurately a genocide or collective punishment beating by an apartheid oppressor on a displaced population.

 

[gavreid]

PMQs live: two genocide/apartheid apologists not talking about the ICC.

Zarah Sultana (Lab) asks if the PM will uphold international law and end arms sales to Israel. And, if the ICC does issue an arrest warrant for the Israeli PM, will the UK enforce it if he comes to the UK.

Sunak jokes it is “always nice to see the changed Labour party”. He says the actions of the ICC will do nothing to get hostages out, or the aid in.

[It's all a joke to these clowns]

Rishi Sunak says there ‘will be general election in second half of this year’ – UK politics live

Prime minister responds to question from SNP leader at Westminster; Keir Starmer calls for duty of candour for public officials

www.theguardian.com

 

[Seanm]

Professional clowns. Fundamentally unserious people. Neither side can even acknowledge any of the real problems, domestic or geopolitical, because they have no intention of dealing with them and in many cases are directly responsible for them, sometimes criminally so. So we get this panto. Ugh.

 

[Tony L]

Owen Jones highlighting Biden’s truly repugnant behaviour.

In the 21st century we are the Nazis. The gaslighting is complete. Our leaders are arguing black is white and expecting us to underwrite their crimes.

 

[MartinC]

On X while looking at a thread someone had posted a video showing two young boys in a Gaza refugee camp lying on the street dead in pools of blood, shot by an IDF drone. Any sympathy I had for Israel is completely gone, I have seen no evidence that the Israelis consider Palestinians as anything other than vermin who's lives are totally worthless. There is unfortunately little that citizens of the UK and US can do, with both our governments pandering to these murdering bastards and with a press that is for whatever reason unable to provide unbiased coverage.