Gaza war

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Watermelon at Center Stage of Pro-Palestinian Protests

Fruit has become symbol of resistance, solidarity against Israel-Hamas war in Gaza

(Newser) - Over the past three months, on banners and T-shirts and balloons and social media posts, one piece of imagery has emerged around the world in protests against the Israel-Hamas war: the watermelon. The colors of sliced watermelon—with red pulp, green-white rind, and black seeds—are the same as those...

Israel Is Tracking Those Fleeing Gaza

As it prepares to invade Gaza in attempt to drive Hamas out

(Newser) - As Israel prepares for a ground invasion of Gaza amid its war with Hamas, the Israeli military is using cellphone data to track those who are fleeing the area. The Israeli Defense Force allowed the New York Times to observe the system in what the paper paints as an attempt...

US Shoots Down UN Statement Condemning Violence in Gaza

The only country on the Security Council to do so

(Newser) - The UN Security Council was considering a statement condemning the violence in Gaza, which has left hundreds of Palestinians dead including dozens of women and children, and calling for a ceasefire—but the US blocked it Monday, the Wall Street Journal reports. According to Al Jazeera , that's the third...

UN Investigator Backtracks: Israel Didn't Target Civilians

Head of UN Panel retracts controversial conclusion

(Newser) - The author of a UN report on Israel's 2008 Gaza invasion has retracted the explosive accusation that Israel deliberately targeted citizens, reports the New York Times , sending shockwaves through Israel. "Everything we said has proven to be true,” says PM Benjamin Netanyahu, calling for the report to be...

Israel Threatens New Gaza Offensive Over Rockets

Flare-up threatens relative calm

(Newser) - Israel has threatened to launch a new ground attack against the Gaza Strip after a barrage of light fire hit southern Israel. Fifteen rockets and mortars were fired from Gaza yesterday and Monday, lightly injuring one Israeli teenager. Though Hamas was apparently not behind the rocket fire, Israel is holding...

Photos Show Alleged Israeli Troop Misconduct

Former soldiers release photos

(Newser) - A group of former soldiers has released three pictures that it says show Israeli soldiers committing misdeeds during Israel’s 2008-2009 Gaza offensive . One image show soldiers pointing a rifle at a man who could be a Palestinian detainee; another shows a man with a rifle in what appears to...

UK Issues War Crimes Warrant for Israeli...

...but takes it back when it turns out that Tzipi Livni isn't visiting

(Newser) - A British court issued an arrest warrant against former Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni Sunday, at the behest of victims of Israel’s Gaza attack. But the warrant was quickly rescinded when the court realized Livni had abandoned plans to visit the UK to attend a conference that day, the...

Israel, Hamas Near Deal for Soldier's Release

Israel agrees to free 70 prisoners for Gilad Shalit

(Newser) - Israeli and Hamas officials have confirmed that substantial progress has been made in negotiations for the release of an Israeli soldier captured during the 2006 Gaza war. Israel reportedly approved the release of at least 70 prisoners among the 450 Hamas is seeking for the return of the young staff-sergeant...

Israel Committed War Crimes in Gaza: UN Report

Fact-finding mission recommends world court prosecutor take action

(Newser) - Israel committed "actions amounting to war crimes, possibly crimes against humanity" during the three-week Gaza war, according to a UN special report that will be released today. The fact-finding mission, headed by the Jewish South African judge Richard Goldstone, also determined that Palestinian militants committed war crimes, but reserved...

Gaza War Was Genocide: Chavez

Israel started war to 'exterminate the Palestinians'

(Newser) - The Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip earlier this year was perpetrated for the express purpose of killing Palestinians, says Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, the Guardian reports. “The question is not whether the Israelis want to exterminate the Palestinians. They're doing it openly. What was it, if not genocide?”...

Majority of Gaza Victims Were Civilians: Rights Group

252 children among casualties of Israeli operation, group concludes

(Newser) - The majority of casualties in Israel's operation in Gaza last winter were civilians, a human rights group has concluded, contradicting the official stance of the Israel Defense Forces. According to the NGO B'Tselem, which conducted extensive interviews and has compiled a list of victims' names, 1,387 Palestinians died in...

UN Begins Gaza War Crimes Probe

Israel alleges bias, but Jewish rapporteur draws wide praise

(Newser) - A UN team investigating possible war crimes by the Israeli army and Hamas has arrived in the Gaza Strip for a weeklong fact-finding mission. Israel is refusing to cooperate with what it calls a "masquerade," alleging that the UN Human Rights Council is unfairly biased. But the selection...

Prof's Nazi-Israeli Comparison Stirs Uproar

Students, faculty defend instructor amid anti-Semitism charges

(Newser) - A UC Santa Barbara professor's decision to send his students an email comparing graphic photographs of the Holocaust's Jewish victims to similar shots taken of Palestinians during the recent offensive in Gaza has caused an uproar. Many students and faculty members have expressed support for the professor, who is Jewish,...

Israel Used Heavy Force, Expecting Bigger Fight

(Newser) - Israel used overwhelming force in its recent fight with Hamas because it feared a repeat of the heavy losses sustained in its 2006 war against Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Washington Post reports. Israeli military planners expected Palestinians in Gaza to put up a stronger fight, but it never materialized. The...

14 Stories