Skip next section UN aid coordinator wants IDF hotline
04/12/2024April 12, 2024
UN aid coordinator wants IDF hotline
The United Nations’ outgoing humanitarian coordinator for the has called for the establishment of a direct hotline to Israeli forces fighting in Gaza.
“We’ve been asking for a couple of things since day one,” Jamie McGoldrick told reporters on Friday.
“We don’t deal directly with the IDF. We need to be speaking to people who are firing guns and controlling weaponry and we have to build up an understanding.”
McGoldrick said there was a “a degree of mistrust and misunderstanding” that needs to be addressed.
“The IDF have never worked with humanitarian organizers before in this type of environment. They don’t understand how we function, they don’t understand our language and what our purpose is. And we don’t understand their expectations,” he said.
McGoldrick’s comments come almost two weeks after an Israeli airstrike in a clearly-marked vehicle.
“I don’t think there’s been any notable improvement in terms of our ability to move around” since the incident, McGoldrick said, adding that humanitarian workers “fear for their own safety.”
https://p.dw.com/p/4ehkp
Skip next section Lufthansa extends suspension of Iran service
04/12/2024April 12, 2024
Lufthansa extends suspension of Iran service
Germany’s flag carrier airline has extended for a third time.
“Due to the current situation, Lufthansa is suspending its flights to and from Tehran up to and including Thursday, April 18, after careful evaluation,” a company spokesperson said on Friday afternoon.
The move follows Iran’s threats against Israel after an airstrike on an Iranian consular building in Syria that killed a number of Iranian generals.
https://p.dw.com/p/4ehj5
Skip next section France advises against Middle East travel amid heightened tensions
04/12/2024April 12, 2024
France advises against Middle East travel amid heightened tensions
The French Foreign Ministry has warned its citizens to “imperatively refrain from travel” to Israel, Lebanon, Iran and the Palestinian territories.
Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne made the recommendation in a crisis meeting, the ministry said on Friday.
The new travel advisory comes in the wake of , which were prompted by an airstrike earlier this month that killed several Iranian generals in a consular building in Damascus, Syria.
https://p.dw.com/p/4ehSN
Skip next section Scholz concerned over Iranian threats against Israel
04/12/2024April 12, 2024
Scholz concerned over Iranian threats against Israel
German Chancellor expressed his concern on Friday over in the wake of an airstrike that killed Iranian generals at a consular building in Damascus, Syria earlier this month.
“We are taking very seriously the dangers that are emerging with regard to possible actions by Iran,” Scholz told a press briefing in Berlin.
The German chancellor will depart for an official visit to China on Saturday.
When asked whether he would , Scholz said the German government is talking broadly “and in all directions.”
https://p.dw.com/p/4ehgN
Skip next section First aid reaches Gaza via new border crossing
04/12/2024April 12, 2024
First aid reaches Gaza via new border crossing
The first convoy of aid trucks to use a new border crossing in has entered the territory, the Israeli army announced on Friday.
The Israeli army released photos dated April 9 that it said showed the aid trucks undergoing preparations.
The trucks first underwent security checks at , near Egypt, before heading to the newly opened crossing in the north of the Gaza Strip on Thursday.
On board the trucks was food aid for Palestinians .
On Wednesday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the new border crossing “will provide a route to bring aid directly to northern Gaza and reduce pressure on Kerem Shalom.”
He announced the move alongside several other measures that included increasing the flow of aid through the Ashdod Port and boosting aid through .
“These breakthroughs have a direct impact on the flow of aid — we plan to flood Gaza with aid and we are expecting to reach 500 trucks per day. It will also streamline security checks and strengthen our work with international partners,” Gallant added.
https://p.dw.com/p/4ehMF
Skip next section Rights groups seek to block German arms export to Israel
04/12/2024April 12, 2024
Rights groups seek to block German arms export to Israel
Human rights lawyers have filed a lawsuit against the German government for approving the export of 3,000 anti-tank weapons to Israel.
The case was brought by five Palestinians from Gaza, supported by lawyers from the (ECCHR) as well as Palestinian rights groups.
ECCHR said the German government had granted export clearance for 3,000 anti-tank weapons to Israel after the Hamas terror attack on October 7.
Meanwhile, an export permit application for 10,000 rounds of ammunition to Israel had yet to be approved. The lawyers called on the Berlin administrative court to as a provisional measure.
“Germany cannot remain true to its values if it exports weapons to a war in which serious violations of international humanitarian law are obvious,” ECCHR Secretary General Wolfgang Kaleck said in a statement.
The German government did not immediately comment on the lawsuit, but previously said it examines each arms export permit individually and takes a number of factors into account, including human rights and humanitarian law.
zc/wmr (AP, AFP, dpa, Reuters)
https://p.dw.com/p/4ehMW
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