Fuel shortages ‘catastrophic’ for devastated health services in Gaza: WHO

Fuel shortages ‘catastrophic’ for devastated health services in Gaza: WHO
Palestinian medics and civilians stand at Nasser hospital after patients were transferred from the European Gaza Hospital following evacuation orders by the Israeli army, in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on July 3, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas militant group. (AFP)
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Updated 05 July 2024
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Fuel shortages ‘catastrophic’ for devastated health services in Gaza: WHO

Fuel shortages ‘catastrophic’ for devastated health services in Gaza: WHO
  • Desperate fuel shortages have been a constant problem in the besieged Palestinian territory
  • Gaza is completely sealed off and everything that enters it is controlled by the Israelis

Geneva: The World Health Organization chief has warned that a dire lack of fuel in the Gaza Strip could have a “catastrophic” impact on already devastated health services in the war-ravaged Palestinian territory.
Desperate fuel shortages have been a constant problem in the besieged Palestinian territory, facing intense Israeli bombardment since Hamas’s deadly October 7 attack inside Israel sparked the ongoing war.
“Further disruption to health services is imminent in Gaza due to a severe lack of fuel,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said late Thursday on X, formerly Twitter.
The UN health agency cautioned that only 90,000 liters of fuel entered Gaza on Wednesday — even as the health sector alone needs 80,000 liters daily.
This is forcing WHO and its partners working in Gaza “to make impossible choices,” Tedros said.
Gaza is completely sealed off and everything that enters it is controlled by the Israelis.
Fuel, which has been particularly difficult to get in amid Israeli fears it could benefit Hamas fighters, is vital to keep hospital generators running, as well as humanitarian and emergency vehicles.
WHO said that its partners were currently directing limited fuel supplies to “key hospitals,” including the Nasser Medical Complex and Al Amal Hospital in Khan Yunis and the Kuwaiti hospital in Rafah.
Fuel was also going to 21 ambulances run by the Palestinian Red Crescent “to prevent services from grinding to a halt,” Tedros said.
He pointed out that the European Gaza Hospital in Khan Yunis had been out of service since Tuesday, and warned that “losing more hospitals in the Strip would be catastrophic.”
Hamas’s October 7 attack that sparked Gaza’s deadliest war resulted in the deaths of 1,195 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.
Hamas militants also seized 251 hostages, 116 of whom remain in Gaza including 42 the army says are dead.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 38,011 people, also mostly civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.


Lebanon refuses Israeli demand to stay in five southern locations after February 18

Lebanon refuses Israeli demand to stay in five southern locations after February 18
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Lebanon refuses Israeli demand to stay in five southern locations after February 18

Lebanon refuses Israeli demand to stay in five southern locations after February 18
  • Nabih Berri: ‘I informed them in my name and on behalf of President General Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Judge Nawaf Salam of our absolute rejection’

BEIRUT: Lebanon’s powerful parliament speaker Nabih Berri said on Thursday that Beirut rejected Israel’s demand to remain in five locations in the south after the deadline for fully implementing a fragile ceasefire deal next week.
The United States, a key mediator, “informed me that the Israeli occupation will withdraw from villages it still occupies on February 18, but it will remain in five points,” Hezbollah-ally Berri said in a statement, adding: “I informed them in my name and on behalf of President General Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Judge Nawaf Salam of our absolute rejection” of this proposal.


Abbas thanks China over support for two-state solution, rejection of Gaza displacement

Abbas thanks China over support for two-state solution, rejection of Gaza displacement
Updated 13 February 2025
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Abbas thanks China over support for two-state solution, rejection of Gaza displacement

Abbas thanks China over support for two-state solution, rejection of Gaza displacement
  • Palestinian Authority leader sends letter to Chinese President Xi Jinping
  • He commends Beijing’s call for international community to reach just resolution to Palestinian issue

LONDON: Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has thanked Chinese President Xi Jinping for his country’s rejection of plans to displace Palestinians from the Gaza Strip.

In a letter to the Chinese leader on Thursday, Abbas commended Beijing’s call for the international community to stop the violence in the Middle East and reach a just resolution to the Palestinian issue.

Abbas said that the PA is confident in China’s support for Palestinian and Arab “efforts to consolidate the ceasefire in Gaza, stop the current Israeli aggression on the cities and camps of the West Bank, accelerate the reconstruction of Gaza, reconnect it to the West Bank, move toward implementing the two-state solution, end the Israeli occupation and embody the independent, geographically integrated state, with East Jerusalem as its capital, so that we can live with all the peoples of the region in security, peace and stability,” according to Wafa agency.

Since early February, US President Donald Trump has repeatedly insisted that the US will take over Gaza and that its Palestinian inhabitants should be relocated from the enclave to other countries, including Egypt and Jordan, which have both rejected the proposal.

The PA labeled Trump’s plan — which was welcomed by the Israeli government and settler leaders — as ethnic cleansing. Arab and some European countries, including France, also denounced the US idea and called for reconstruction in Gaza without displacing its residents.


Kuwait’s PM affirms country’s diplomatic neutrality, leads delegation to Munich Security Conference

Kuwait’s PM affirms country’s diplomatic neutrality, leads delegation to Munich Security Conference
Updated 13 February 2025
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Kuwait’s PM affirms country’s diplomatic neutrality, leads delegation to Munich Security Conference

Kuwait’s PM affirms country’s diplomatic neutrality, leads delegation to Munich Security Conference
  • Kuwait committed to leading humanitarian efforts in disaster-hit countries

LONDON: Kuwait’s Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmad Abdullah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah arrived in Germany on Thursday to participate in the 61st session of the Munich Security Conference, which is being held from Feb. 14 to 16.

Sheikh Ahmad is leading the Kuwaiti delegation at a conference that brings together hundreds of decision-makers and opinion leaders to discuss global security.

The prime minister reaffirmed Kuwait’s commitment to building strong connections with the international community while advocating for the resolution of conflicts through dialogue and supporting efforts for peace and security.

Sheikh Ahmad said Kuwait had maintained its diplomatic ties by upholding neutrality and remaining at an equal distance from conflicting parties, the Kuwait Press Agency reported.

He added that Kuwait was committed to leading humanitarian efforts in disaster-stricken countries, and actively mediating to resolve regional and international crises.

Reem Mohammed Al-Khaled, Kuwait’s ambassador to Germany, along with embassy staff, received the prime minister on his arrival.


Houthis threaten new attacks if Gazans displaced

Demonstrators, one with a portrait of Houthi leader Abdul Malik Al-Houthi, shout slogans during a march in solidarity with Gaza.
Demonstrators, one with a portrait of Houthi leader Abdul Malik Al-Houthi, shout slogans during a march in solidarity with Gaza.
Updated 13 February 2025
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Houthis threaten new attacks if Gazans displaced

Demonstrators, one with a portrait of Houthi leader Abdul Malik Al-Houthi, shout slogans during a march in solidarity with Gaza.
  • US President Donald Trump’s plan to move Gaza’s inhabitants and redevelop the territory has been widely condemned in the Arab world

SANAA: The Houthis on Thursday threatened to launch new attacks if the United States and Israel go ahead with plans to displace Palestinians from Gaza.
“We will take action by firing missiles and drones and launching maritime attacks if the United States and Israel implement their plan to displace” Palestinians from Gaza, Houthi leader Abdul Malik Al-Houthi said in a televised speech.
US President Donald Trump’s plan to move Gaza’s inhabitants and redevelop the territory has been widely condemned in the Arab world.
The Houthis have launched scores of attacks on Israeli targets and Red Sea shipping during the Israel-Hamas war.
“I call on the armed forces to be ready to take military action in the event that the criminal Trump carries out his threat,” Houthi said on the militia’s Al-Masirah TV station.


Construction equipment awaiting Gaza entry from Egypt: report

Bulldozers and trucks carrying caravans wait to enter Gaza at the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip.
Bulldozers and trucks carrying caravans wait to enter Gaza at the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip.
Updated 13 February 2025
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Construction equipment awaiting Gaza entry from Egypt: report

Bulldozers and trucks carrying caravans wait to enter Gaza at the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip.
  • Israeli government spokesman said heavy machinery would not be allowed to enter the Gaza Strip via the Rafah crossing with Egypt

RAFAH: Dozens of bulldozers, construction vehicles and trucks carrying mobile homes lined up on Egypt’s side of the Rafah border crossing on Thursday, awaiting to enter Gaza, state-linked Egyptian media reported.
Al-Qahera News, with close ties to Egyptian intelligence services, said the equipment was positioned at the crossing in preparation for entry into the war-ravaged Palestinian territory.
An AFP photographer also confirmed seeing the vehicles, including trucks carrying caravans, waiting at the border.
However, an Israeli government spokesman said heavy machinery would not be allowed to enter the Gaza Strip via the Rafah crossing with Egypt.
“There is no entry of caravans (mobile homes) or heavy equipment into the Gaza Strip, and there is no coordination for this,” Omer Dostri, a spokesman for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, wrote on X.
“According to the agreement, no goods are allowed to enter the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing,” he added.
Under an ongoing truce agreement, Rafah has been opened for evacuation of the wounded and sick. Other aid is also allowed to enter the territory via the Kerem Shalom crossing.
“We stand behind them (Palestinians) and hopefully better days are ahead,” Ahmed Abdel Dayem, a driver at the border, told AFP.
The situation unfolds amid growing tensions over a US President Donald Trump plan to relocate Palestinians from Gaza to Egypt and Jordan, a move that has faced staunch opposition from both countries.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi called such displacement an “injustice” that Egypt “cannot take part in,” while Jordan’s King Abdullah said his country remains “steadfast” in its position against forced displacement of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.
Egypt is set to host a summit of Arab nations later this month and announced this week that it would present a “comprehensive vision” for Gaza’s reconstruction in a way that ensures Palestinians remain on their land.
Egypt and Jordan, both key US allies, are heavily reliant on foreign aid and the US is considered one of their top donors.