JERUSALEM: Throughout its grinding seven-month war against Hamas, Israel has pledged to investigate a series of deadly events in which its military forces are suspected of wrongdoing. The commitment comes in the face of mounting claims — from human rights groups and the International Criminal Court ‘s chief prosecutor — that the country’s leaders are committing war crimes in Hamas-ruled Gaza.
In one of the highest-profile cases, an attack on a World Central Kitchen convoy that killed five foreign aid workers, the Israeli army promptly published its findings, acknowledged misconduct by its forces and dismissed two soldiers. But other investigations remain open, and admissions of guilt are rare.
Israel’s Military Advocate General, Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, said this week that the military is investigating about 70 cases of alleged wrongdoing. She gave few details. The military refused to disclose the full list of investigations and told the AP it could only respond to queries about specific probes.
A look at some of the investigations that have been publicly announced:
A DEADLY STRIKE ON A TENT CAMP KILLS DISPLACED FAMILIES
On Tuesday, Israel revealed the preliminary results of an investigation into a deadly strike on a tent camp sheltering displaced families in the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
Sunday’s strike killed at least 45 people and caused widespread destruction. Most of the victims were women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between the deaths of civilians and Hamas militants.
The military’s chief spokesman, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, said a preliminary investigation found that the Israeli munitions used that day in efforts to eliminate two Hamas militants were too small to be the source of a fire that broke out.
Hagari said the destruction may have been caused by secondary explosions, possibly from Palestinian militants’ weapons in the area. Hamas did not respond to that explanation, but a member of the militants’ political bureau remarked Tuesday that Israel “believes that it is deceiving the world, with its false claim that it did not intend to kill and burn children and women, and its claim to investigate its crimes.”
The Israeli military said in a statement that the investigation had been turned over to a fact-finding group that operates independently outside the army’s chain of command. Those findings are then handed to the military advocate general, who decides if there should be disciplinary measures. It’s not clear how long the probe will last.
SCORES OF CIVILIANS ARE SHOT DEAD AROUND A FLOUR CONVOY
In March, witnesses said Israeli troops fired on a crowd of Palestinians waiting for aid in Gaza City. At least 104 people were killed and 760 were wounded, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which described it as a massacre.
Israel’s military swiftly released preliminary investigation results, saying huge crowds tried to grab supplies off of a pre-dawn convoy of 30 army trucks carrying flour toward hard-hit northern Gaza. The army said dozens of Palestinians were killed in a stampede, with some run over by the trucks as the drivers tried to get away. It said its troops only fired when they felt endangered by the crowd.
The military said the case is also being investigated by the fact-finding group.
AL-AHLI HOSPITAL EXPLOSION SETS OFF DEADLY INFERNO
An explosion in October in the courtyard of the Al-Ahli hospital, where thousands of Palestinians had sought shelter or medical treatment, set off an inferno that burned men, women and children alive.
There are still conflicting claims over what happened.
Officials in Gaza quickly said an Israeli airstrike had hit the hospital, killing at least 500 people. Images of the aftermath ignited protests across the region.
Within hours, Israeli officials said they had conducted an investigation and determined that they had not been involved. They released live video, audio and other evidence that it said showed the blast was caused by a rocket misfired by Islamic Jihad, another Palestinian militant group.
Islamic Jihad denied responsibility.
An AP investigation, along with US and French intelligence assessments, concluded a misfired rocket likely caused the explosion.
A PALESTINIAN MAN IS SHOT WHILE WALKING WITH OTHERS
In January, the Israeli government announced it was investigating the death of a Palestinian man who was fatally shot while walking with four others.
Video footage shows one of the men holding a white flag — the international symbol of surrender — and the others behind him holding their hands in the air. They then scramble backward as several shots ring out.
In a second clip, one of the men is lying on the ground. The shooter is not visible in the video but before the shots are fired, the camera pans, showing what looks to be an Israeli tank positioned nearby. Ahmed Hijazi, a citizen journalist who filmed the episode, told The Associated Press that an Israeli tank fired on the group.
The army said it conducted an in-depth investigation and found the tank did not fire at the men. It also said it was “not possible to determine with certainty” whether the man was killed by Israeli fire.
FOUR PALESTINIANS ARE SHOT ON A DIRT ROAD
On March 22, Israel’s military launched an investigation after footage emerged appearing to show the bombing of five Palestinians near the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis.
Aerial footage circulating on social media shows four men walking along a dirt road before a strike hits them, killing all four instantly. Another man farther along the road tries to run away before he is hit and killed. The origin of the footage remains unclear.
The military said the investigation had been turned over to the independent fact-finding group.
A GAZA SURGEON DIES IN AN ISRAELI PRISON
Famed Gaza surgeon Adnan Al-Bursh died in an Israeli prison after he was rounded up in an arrest raid on Al Awda hospital in mid-April, according to the United Nations.
Bursh led the orthopedic department at Al-Shifa Hospital. At the time of his arrest in December, he was reportedly in good health and operating on patients, the UN said.
But those who saw Bursh in detention reported that he looked depleted and bore signs of violence, according to Physicians for Human Rights-Israel. Israel’s military and police did not respond to requests for comment.
Palestinian detainees who have returned from Israeli detention have reported beatings, harsh interrogations and neglect while in Israeli custody. Israel has denied the reports. Bursh was transferred to Israel’s Ofer military prison in the West Bank, where he died.
Israeli police will conduct an autopsy of Bursh’s body with a doctor from Physicians for Human Rights-Israel present, the group said, noting it had filed a petition on behalf of Bursh’s family. It’s unclear when the autopsy will be conducted and authorities have released no information on the cause of death.
The Israeli army says it investigates itself. Where do those investigations stand?
https://arab.news/mdf32
The Israeli army says it investigates itself. Where do those investigations stand?
Sudan’s Zamzam camp faces severe food shortage, Medecins Sans Frontieres says
More than 15 months of war in Sudan between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have created the world’s biggest internal displacement crisis and left 25 million people — or half the population — in urgent need of humanitarian aid.
“Our teams only have enough therapeutic food to treat malnourished children in Zamzam camp, Sudan, for another two weeks,” MSF posted on X. It also said they had to limit treatment due to supply trucks being blocked by the RSF.
The RSF has said that it provides protection for aid convoys and that it is ready to cooperate with any aid agencies.
MSF said: “Without treatment, children with severe malnutrition are at risk of dying within three to six weeks.”
“Our three trucks bringing life-saving medical supplies — including therapeutic food — to Zamzam and El Fasher have been blocked in Kabkabiya for over a month by the RSF,” MSF said.
“The bed occupancy rate of our malnutrition ward is at 126 percent, indicating that many children are already in a critical condition,” the MSF said.
A global food monitor concluded in early August that war in Sudan had caused famine at Zamzam, adding that similar conditions may exist elsewhere in the region.
Macron, Jordan’s King Abdullah urge avoiding Mideast escalation ‘at all costs’
- Fears that the almost 10-month-old Gaza war could become a regional conflict have spiked
PARIS: France’s Emmanuel Macron and Jordan’s King Abdullah II on Sunday said a military escalation in the Middle East must be avoided “at all costs” during a telephone call, the French presidency said.
Fears that the almost 10-month-old Gaza war could become a regional conflict have spiked as Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah have vowed to avenge deadly strikes on Beirut and Tehran blamed on Israel.
Macron and King Abdullah “expressed their utmost concern” and “underlined the need to avoid a regional military escalation at all costs,” according to the Elysee’s readout of their call.
“They called on all the parties to end the cycle of reprisals, exercise the utmost restraint and responsibility to guarantee the security of the populations.”
Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh died in a strike on Tehran on Wednesday that Iran blamed on Israel, hours after the Israeli assassination of Hezbollah’s military chief Fuad Shukr in Beirut.
Iran and Hezbollah have vowed revenge for the killings. The Lebanese group has been trading near-daily cross-border fire with Israel since war erupted in Gaza on October 7 following Hamas’s unprecedented attack on Israel.
G7 foreign ministers met by videoconference over Mideast: Italy
- Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said they expressed “strong concern” over the threat of escalation
ROME: G7 foreign ministers met by videoconference Sunday to discuss the Middle East and expressed “strong concern” over the threat of escalation, Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said.
“Together with our partners, we have expressed strong concern about recent events that threaten to determine a regionalization of the crisis, starting from Lebanon,” said Tajani in a statement.
“We call on the parties involved to desist from any initiative that could hinder the path of dialogue and moderation and favor a new escalation,” said the statement issued by the foreign ministry of Italy, which holds the G7 presidency this year.
The foreign ministers, it said, “reiterated the priority of a favorable conclusion of the negotiations on the ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages” while stepping up humanitarian assistance.
US moves in Middle East are defensive, aimed at reducing tensions — White House
- US is telling citizens to leave Lebanon and deploying more military might in the Middle East as “preventative and defensive” measures
- Jonathan Finer, White House National Security Council deputy adviser, says US goal is “de-escalation, deterrence, defense of Israel”
WASHINGTON: The United States is telling its citizens to leave Lebanon and is deploying more military might in the Middle East as preventative and defensive measures, Jonathan Finer, White House National Security Council deputy adviser, said on Sunday.
“Our goal is de-escalation, our goal is deterrence, our goal is defense of Israel,” Finer said in an interview with CBS’ “Face the Nation.”
Regional tensions have soared following the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas’ top leader, in Tehran on Wednesday, a day after an Israeli strike in Beirut killed Fuad Shukr, a senior military commander from the Lebanese group Hezbollah, which like Hamas is backed by Iran.
UAE launches program to make agricultural advisory services more efficient
- Program aims to improve the skills and professional capacities of agricultural agents
DUBAI: The UAE Ministry of Climate Change and Environment announced a new initiative to boost the efficiency of agricultural advisory services, state news agency WAM reported on Sunday.
The program is part of the UAE’s broader efforts to enhance agricultural production and strengthen national food security.
It aims to improve the skills and professional capacities of agricultural agents, equipping them with the tools to effectively transfer technology and share modern farming techniques, thereby increasing productivity.
The program includes special training in areas such as soil and irrigation, crop and vegetable production, fruit production, pest prevention and control, and beekeeping and honey production, WAM added.
It also features lectures and workshops to enhance the skills of agricultural agents, alongside field courses that provide practical application of theoretical knowledge, improve communication skills, and boost confidence.
“The agricultural extension efficiency improvement program comes as part of our ongoing commitment to support the sustainability of national farms in the UAE aimed at reinforcing and growing the sector in the future,” said Mohammed Salman Al-Hammadi, assistant undersecretary of the food diversity sector at the ministry.
He added: “The program aims to develop a specialised path for all agricultural extension agents covering the main fields in the sector. Through this, we seek to build capacity and competency of agricultural extension, which in turn, would contribute to enhancing local agricultural production and support the transformation of national food systems into more sustainable systems.”
The program also involves developing an annual plan for agricultural guidance, which will monitor and support farmers in improving crop production and protecting crops from pests.
It will include a timetable for service operations related to trees and cultivation seasons for each crop, focusing on date palms, fruit, vegetables, fodder and honey production. Operations will also cover irrigation, fertilization, and land reclamation.
The program will also prepare technical reports and advisory visit reports to farms, including data analysis, recommendations and documentation of results to ensure continuous improvement and address farmers’ needs.
Al-Hammadi highlighted the importance of enhanced communication between agricultural agents and farmers, with plans for regular farm visits and meetings to discuss challenges. The initiative aims to improve crop yields, set clear standards and objectives for agricultural guidance programs, and ultimately enhance farmers’ satisfaction.
