Category: News

(The Age, 13/12/2023) ( https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/albanese-calls-for-gaza-ceasefire-in-statement-with-nz-canadian-leaders-20231213-p5er29.html ) Australia, New Zealand and Canada support a pause in fighting in Gaza and efforts towards a sustainable ceasefire, their leaders said in a joint statement released on Wednesday. The statement, which quickly condemned Hamas’ October 7 attacks and recognised Israel’s right to defend itself, went on to ask that… Continue reading Albanese joins NZ, Canadian PMs to push for ‘sustainable ceasefire’ in Gaza

(The Age, 13/12/2023) ( https://www.theage.com.au/world/middle-east/palestinians-killed-in-west-bank-s-jenin-un-to-vote-on-ceasefire-20231213-p5er2a.html ) Ramallah: Seven Palestinians were killed in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin overnight, including five in a drone strike during an Israeli raid, the Palestinian health ministry and the Palestinian official news agency WAFA said. They said the dead included a 13-year-old who died after Israeli forces prevented an… Continue reading Palestinians killed in West Bank raid, Biden and Netanyahu clash over Gaza’s future

The Australian / AFP | 12.12.23 Gaza City: Hundreds of makeshift tents stand in a desolate landscape at the foot of Gaza City’s ruined al-Shifa hospital. At least 30,000 people have taken refuge in its grounds ­between piles of rubble and waste after Israeli forces raided the medical centre last month. Its medical equipment was… Continue reading ‘Living Hell’ For Homeless in The Ruins of Gaza’s Largest Hospital

Second pause may rely upon Israel proving it has captured or killed some of Hamas’s senior operatives The Guardian | Patrick Wintour | Tue 12 Dec 2023 Diplomats at the annual Doha Forum conference in Qatar have said they are not expecting any reopening of Gaza ceasefire talks for some weeks and say their resumption… Continue reading Gaza ceasefire negotiations unlikely to restart for weeks, diplomats say

Canberra Times / Australian Associated Press | 12.12.23 Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant says Israel has no intention of staying permanently in the Gaza Strip and that it is open to discussing alternatives about who would control the territory, as long as it was not a group hostile to Israel. “Israel will take any measures… Continue reading Israel ‘does not intend to stay permanently in Gaza’

Heavy fighting across Gaza amid renewed US military and diplomatic support Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip: Heavy fighting raged across Gaza overnight, including in the devastated north, as Israel pressed ahead with its offensive after the US blocked the latest international push for a ceasefire and rushed more munitions to its close ally. Israel has faced… Continue reading The Age/ Wafaa Shurafa and Najib Jobain

Jordan’s foreign minister, Ayman Safadi, says Israel is implementing a policy of pushing Palestinians out of Gaza through a war that he said meets the “legal definition of genocide”, allegations that Israel rejected as “outrageous”. Safadi, whose country borders the West Bank and absorbed the bulk of Palestinians after the creation of Israel in 1948,… Continue reading Israel denies Jordan claim it’s expelling Palestinians

As the Israel-Hamas war continues, there’s been a lot of discussion around Zionism. Put simply, Zionism is a nationalist movement that advocates for a homeland for the Jewish people in the Biblical Land of Israel. It is the organisation of ideas that actively sought and achieved the existence of the Israeli state in 1948. Basically,… Continue reading The Conversation/Andrew Thomas

The Age/Tony Wright The morning brought the first hint of summer. The sea, flattened beneath a breezeless sky, was translucent. There seemed no horizon. My granddaughter padded into my room, sat on my bed and solemnly studied the view beyond the window. “Pa,” she said in the voice that tells me she is about to… Continue reading There are worse things stolen from children than the colour of the sea.