Israel vows to prevent aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg, other activists from reaching Gaza
Tel Aviv, Jun 8 (AP): Israel's government on Sunday vowed to prevent an aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists from reaching the Gaza Strip.
Defence Minister Israel Katz said that Israel wouldn't allow anyone to break its naval blockade of the Palestinian territory, which he said was aimed at preventing Hamas from importing arms.
“To the antisemitic Greta and her fellow Hamas propagandists — I will say this clearly: You should turn back, because you will not make it to Gaza,” he said in a statement.
Thunberg, a climate campaigner, is among 12 activists aboard the Madleen, which is operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition. The vessel departed Sicily last Sunday on a mission that aims to break the sea blockade of Gaza and deliver humanitarian aid, while raising awareness over the growing humanitarian crisis 20 months into the Israel-Hamas war.
The activists had said they planned to reach Gaza's territorial waters as early as Sunday.
Thiago Ávila, a Brazilian activist on board the boat, posted a video on social media Sunday afternoon saying someone appeared to be jamming their tracking and communication devices about 160 nautical miles from Gaza.
Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament who is of Palestinian descent, is among the others onboard. She has been barred from entering Israel because of her opposition to Israeli policies toward the Palestinians.
After a 2½-month total blockade aimed at pressuring Hamas, Israel started allowing some basic aid into Gaza last month, but humanitarian workers have warned of famine unless the blockade is lifted and Israel ends its military offensive.
An attempt last month by Freedom Flotilla to reach Gaza by sea failed after another of the group's vessels was attacked by two drones while sailing in international waters off Malta. The group blamed Israel for the attack, which damaged the front section of the ship.
Israel and Egypt have imposed varying degrees of blockade on Gaza since Hamas seized power from rival Palestinian forces in 2007. Critics of the blockade say it amounts to collective punishment of Gaza's roughly 2 million Palestinians.
Israel sealed Gaza off from all aid in the early days of the war ignited by the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, but later relented under US pressure.
In early March, shortly before Israel ended a ceasefire with Hamas, the country again blocked all imports, including food, fuel and medicine.
Hamas-led group killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the October 7 attack and abducted 251 hostages, more than half of whom have since been released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Hamas is still holding 55 hostages, more than half of them believed to be dead.
Israel's military campaign has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which has said women and children make up most of the dead. It doesn't say whether those killed are civilians or combatants.
The war has destroyed vast areas of Gaza and displaced around 90 per cent of the territory's population, leaving people there almost completely dependent on international aid.
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Defamation case: Rahul alleges political malice; UP court sets March 9 hearing
Sultanpur (UP) (PTI): Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Friday appeared before an MP-MLA court in Uttar Pradesh's Sultanpur and recorded his statement in a 2018 defamation case related to his remarks against Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Gandhi told the court of Special Judge Shubham Verma that the allegations against him were made out of political malice and with an aim of destroying his image and that of his party, the Congress leader's advocate Kashi Prasad Shukla told PTI.
The court fixed March 9 as the next date of hearing on which the Lok Sabha MP from Raebareli has been asked to furnish evidence in his defence, the lawyer said.
Elaborating about the statement given by the Congress leader in the court, his lawyer said Gandhi denied all allegations levelled against him.
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"The allegations are baseless and unfounded. I have never used derogatory words against anyone, nor have I used such language with the intention of defaming anyone. A false complaint has been filed by distorting my statement," Shukla quoted Gandhi as saying.
"The allegations have been made against me out of political malice with the aim of destroying my image and that of my party. I have never used derogatory words against anyone, nor have I used such language with the intention of defaming anyone," Gandhi told the court
As the Congress leader emerged from the court after recording his statement, party supporters raised slogans hailing him. Gandhi smiled and waved at the crowd before leaving.
Gandhi entered the Sultanpur court around 10.40 am and left after recording statements around 11.15 am.
Ahead of the court hearing, some local Congress leaders had put up posters in Sultanpur that read 'Satyamev Jayate' (truth always triumphs).
The case dates back to 2018 when local BJP leader and former chairman of the District Cooperative Bank Vijay Mishra had filed a defamation complaint against Gandhi, alleging that during the Karnataka elections in 2018, the Congress leader made derogatory remarks against the then BJP president and current Union Home Minister Shah.
Santosh Kumar Pandey, the lawyer representing Mishra, said the cross-examination of the plaintiff and two witnesses has been completed.
The trial has been underway for the past five years. In December 2023, a warrant was issued against Gandhi for non-appearance before the court. He surrendered in February 2024, following which a special magistrate granted him bail on two sureties of Rs 25,000 each.
On July 26, 2024, Gandhi recorded his statement before the court, claiming innocence and terming the case a political conspiracy. Thereafter, the court directed the complainant to produce evidence in the case.
