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US sent $21.7 billion to Israel to back Gaza genocide: Study

Press TV – October 7, 2025

An academic study has revealed that the United States has funneled $21.7 billion in financial and military assistance to Israel since the onset of the Gaza genocide on October 7, 2023.

The report released on Tuesday by the Costs of War Project at Brown University’s Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs details how the US State Department and the newly renamed Department of War, under both Joe Biden and Donald Trump administrations, have collectively transferred at least $21.7 billion to support Israel’s genocide in Gaza.

According to the study, the United States supplied $17.9 billion to Israel in the first year of the genocide, during former US president Joe Biden’s tenure, and $3.8 billion in the second year.

A large portion of the assistance has already been delivered, while the remainder will be distributed in the coming years, the report added.

The study notes that Washington is expected to allocate tens of billions of dollars in future funding to Israel through various bilateral deals.

Another analysis, also published by the Costs of War Project, states that the United States has spent approximately $9.65 – $12.07 billion on military operations in West Asia over the past two years.

US spending in the region, such as strikes on Yemen in March and May 2025 and attacks on Iranian nuclear sites on June 22, estimates total costs between $9.65 billion and $12 billion since October 7, 2023, including $2 billion to $2.25 billion for operations against Iran.

Although both reports rely on open-source data, they present detailed assessments of US military support for Israel and estimates of the cost of direct American involvement in the region.

Meanwhile, the State Department has not commented on the amount of military assistance given to Israel since October 2023. The White House referred inquiries to the Pentagon, which oversees only a part of the aid that is given to the Zionist entity.

The studies argue that without US backing, the regime would have been unable to maintain its genocidal campaign in Gaza for two years.

The principal study was produced in collaboration with the Washington-based Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft.

Pro-Israel groups have accused the institute of isolationism and anti-Israel bias, allegations the organization firmly denies.

Meanwhile, Israel’s war machine continues its campaign of destruction, claiming countless civilian lives across Gaza and the wider region.

Since October 7, 2023, when Israel launched its genocidal war on the besieged Gaza Strip, more than 76,000 Palestinians, including over 20,000 children and 12,500 women, have been killed or gone missing, while in its 12-day war with Iran last June, the regime killed at least 1,604 people.

October 7, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Militarism, Wars for Israel | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Why did over 2,000 Yemenite babies disappear in 1950s Israel?

Al Jazeera | October 22, 2024

The disappearance of more than 2,000 babies – suspected victims of irregular adoption – who arrived in Israel in 1949.

How can more than 2,000 babies simply disappear? It’s a question being asked in Israel, as the mystery of the Yemenite Children Affair nudges ever closer to the truth.

This film tells the remarkable story of the aftermath of “Operation Magic Carpet” – the 1949 relocation of almost 50,000 Jews from Yemen to the newly created state of Israel. Most settled in Israel but it is alleged several thousand babies were separated from their parents while staying in transit camps. Did these infants succumb to deadly childhood illnesses or is there a darker truth?

Evidence now suggests that many were given up for adoption without their parents’ knowledge and were raised by wealthy childless Israeli and American couples. Israel has finally acknowledged the state’s role in the Yemenite Children Affair and launched a redress scheme, but many questions remain unanswered.

October 6, 2025 Posted by | Corruption, Deception, Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Timeless or most popular, Video | , , | Leave a comment

Al-Azhar University levelled in Gaza amid intensified Israeli strikes

MEMO | October 6, 2025

Israeli airstrikes on Sunday levelled Al-Azhar University in Gaza City as part of a wave of attacks across the besieged enclave, according to Palestinian sources. The strikes left several civilians injured and caused extensive damage to homes and infrastructure.

The Palestinian News Agency, citing local sources, reported that Israeli aircraft also targeted tents sheltering displaced people near Asdaa city, north of Khan Yunis, wounding multiple civilians.

Elsewhere, Israeli artillery shelled crowds waiting for humanitarian aid east of Wadi Gaza, while air raids pounded the Al-Sabra, Al-Jalaa, and Al-Thalathini neighbourhoods around Tayaran Junction, striking residential buildings and damaging nearby homes.

In central Gaza, Israeli aircraft hit the Maghazi refugee camp, leaving injuries and further destruction to civilian property.

The bombing of Al-Azhar University marked the most significant strike of the day, with the landmark institution reduced to rubble. It comes amid a broader campaign targeting Gaza’s infrastructure and civilian facilities.

October 6, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism | , , , | 1 Comment

Hamas official welcomes Arab-Islamic support for movement’s response to Trump plan

MEMO | October 6, 2025

Izzat al-Rishq, a member of Hamas’s Political Bureau, on Monday welcomed a joint statement issued by the foreign ministers of several Arab and Islamic countries, describing it as “important support” for efforts to end Israeli military operations in Gaza and advance negotiations toward a ceasefire.

Speaking to Quds Press, al-Rishq said the ministers’ declaration reinforced the Palestinian position in ongoing talks and could help secure a permanent ceasefire, the withdrawal of Israeli forces, and the entry of humanitarian aid, paving the way for reconstruction under a Palestinian administration backed by Arab and Islamic states.

“We look forward to further Arab and Islamic support to stop the aggression and genocide against our people in Gaza, to end the occupation, and to achieve the aspirations of our people for an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital,” he added.

In their joint statement, the foreign ministers of Jordan, the UAE, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Egypt welcomed Hamas’s steps in response to US President Donald Trump’s proposal. The plan calls for ending the war in Gaza, releasing detainees on both sides, and launching immediate negotiations on implementation mechanisms.

The ministers also praised Hamas’s announcement that it is ready to hand over the administration of Gaza to a transitional Palestinian committee of independent technocrats. They stressed the urgency of moving forward on all elements of the proposal to end the humanitarian and political crisis in the enclave.

October 6, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism | , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Oracle execs: Love Israel or maybe this isn’t the job for you

Employees who disagreed were reportedly referred to company mental health services

By Eli Clifton | Responsible Statecraft | October 3, 2025

TikTok’s impending sale to a group of U.S. investors led by Oracle was supposed to alleviate concerns about foreign influence over the popular social media platform. But a series of statements in Israeli media outlets by company executives including Executive Vice Board Chair and former CEO Safra Catz, reveal the company’s commitment to Israel is “unequivocal” and is not shy about squelching criticism of Israel internally.

These statements raise questions about how Oracle might exercise its impending ownership role at TikTok, a platform popular with young adults who are often critical of U.S. support for Israel’s war in Gaza and Israel’s killing of Palestinian civilians, which a U.N. commission recently characterized as a “genocide.”

In 2021, Catz visited Israel as her first trip outside the U.S. after the COVID-19 pandemic. Calcalist, an Israeli publication, reported on remarks by the Oracle CEO:

When asked about the protests against Israel organized by employees at Google and Apple, Catz said that “when you connect with Oracle you understand that we are committed to the U.S. and Israel. We are not flexible regarding our mission, and our commitment to Israel is second to none. This is a free world and I love my employees, and if they don’t agree with our mission to support the State of Israel then maybe we aren’t the right company for them. Larry (Ellison, co-founder of Oracle) and I are publicly committed to Israel and devote personal time to the country and no one should be surprised by that.”

In a 2024 interview with Calcalist, Catz emphasized that one of her first actions after the October 7th 2023 Hamas attack was to send the message to Oracle’s clients around the world – including, presumably, in many countries where Oracle holds government contracts – that the technology company prioritizes Israel. She said:

“So what we did was first sort of hug our employees, hug my Oracle employees by doing everything we could think of and put on our website ‘We stand with Israel’, not only on our Israeli website or even on our American website, but on our websites around the world in the local language. And as you know, we operate in a lot of countries. And it was very important for us to make sure we made a powerful message about how important Israel is and what the difference is between good and evil.”

Head of Oracle Israel Eran Feigenbaum reinforced the messages delivered by Catz in a 2023 interview with the Israeli publication Ynet. Feigenbaum said:

“I couldn’t fathom a global company offering more support to Israel than Oracle. It’s an incredible opportunity to lead the Israeli branch with the backing of a global powerhouse. Oracle’s leadership, including the fact that Larry himself has an Israeli origin, has consistently demonstrated unequivocal support for Israel. So much so, that employees not aligning with support for Israel may find Oracle isn’t the right fit.”

The message from higher ups at Oracle that anything less than total prioritization of Israeli interests is unwelcome behavior appears to be reinforced through the company’s human resources department. An anonymous Substack, Oracle For Palestine, written by a group of Oracle employees, claims that “our leadership’s unquestioning public support for Israel” has led to a failure of the company to address the one-sided political positions taken by top management and the discrimination faced by employees who don’t share the political views of management.

“In response to legitimate concerns, many of us have been referred to internal mental health resources rather than having those concerns addressed appropriately,” said the group in a post last year.

Catz’s comments as well as the anecdote about Oracle staff being referred to mental health resources were all celebrated in a Times of Israel blog post by Oracle employee Ivan Bassov.

“Oracle has been refreshingly clear and consistent under the leadership of our CEO, Safra Catz,” wrote Bassov. “She has repeatedly articulated both her personal commitment and Oracle’s commitment to Israel.”

Bassov appeared to corroborate the anonymous Substack’s claims and endorsed Oracle’s treatment of his “anti-Israel” colleagues, writing, “Well, if sending these ‘activists’ to therapy instead of resetting the company’s moral compass counts as ‘repression,’ then maybe the company’s judgment was sounder than they think.”

Earlier this week, Responsible Statecraft reported on a leaked email from the hacked email account of former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak. “We have all been horrified by the growth of the BDS movement in college campuses and have concluded that we have to fight this battle before the kids even get to college,” said an email appearing to originate from Catz to Barak in 2015. “We believe that we have to embed the love and respect for Israel in the American culture.”

Sources familiar with the matter “could not confirm the authenticity of the email” and Oracle declined to comment about Catz’s statements. However, review of Catz’s public statements, as well as those from another executive at Oracle, reveal similar biases in favor of Israel and even clearer expressions of Oracle’s prioritization of Israel over any other countries or corporate interests.The track record of Oracle executives demanding commitment to Israel from staff around the world raises a number of questions:

How does Oracle address situations in which U.S. interests, or the interests of any other country in which the company operates, are in conflict with Israel’s interests?

Will these statements of unequivocal support for Israel translate into restrictions on speech critical of Israel on TikTok under Oracle’s ownership?

An Oracle spokesperson did not respond to these questions.

Eli Clifton is a senior advisor at the Quincy Institute and Investigative Journalist at Large at Responsible Statecraft. He reports on money in politics and U.S. foreign policy.

October 6, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Full Spectrum Dominance | , , | Leave a comment

Trump, Hamas, and the future of Palestine

By Lorenzo Maria Pacini | Strategic Culture Foundation | October 6, 2025

The unprecedented statement

It is October 4, 2025: a few days before the second anniversary of the new war for the liberation of Palestine occupied by the Zionist entity Israel, the Hamas leadership has released a decisive statement regarding U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan for peace in the region.

Here is the full text:

In order to stop the aggression and war of extermination to which our steadfast people in the Gaza Strip are subjected, and in accordance with national responsibility, and to preserve the principles, rights, and supreme interests of our people, the Islamic Resistance Movement “Hamas” has conducted in-depth consultations with its leadership institutions, extensive consultations with Palestinian forces and factions, and consultations with mediators and fraternal friends, in order to arrive at a responsible position in dealing with the plan of U.S. President Donald Trump.

After thorough study, the movement has made its decision and delivered its response to the mediators as follows:

  • The Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas appreciates the Arab, Islamic, and international efforts, as well as those of U.S. President Donald Trump, calling for an end to the war on Gaza, the exchange of prisoners, the immediate entry of aid, the rejection of occupation, and the rejection of the displacement of our Palestinian people.
  • In this context, and in order to achieve a ceasefire and complete withdrawal from Gaza, the movement announces its approval for the release of all Israeli prisoners, dead or alive, according to the exchange formula included in President Trump’s proposal, provided that conditions on the ground allow for the exchange process.
  • In this context, the movement confirms its readiness to immediately enter into negotiations through mediators to discuss the details.
  • The movement also renews its approval of the handover of the administration of Gaza to a Palestinian body of independents (technocrats) based on Palestinian national consensus and with Arab and Islamic support.
  • As for the other issues mentioned in President Trump’s proposal relating to the future of Gaza and the inherent rights of the Palestinian people, these are linked to an overall national position based on relevant international laws and decisions. They will be discussed within an overall Palestinian national framework, of which Hamas will be a part and to which it will contribute responsibly.

These words have shaken all those who support the struggle for the liberation of Palestine and the Axis of Resistance, but what exactly do they mean?

Behind the words

Hamas’ statement is very cleverly worded. At first glance, it may seem that the organization accepts Trump’s plan, but in essence this is not the case.

First, we must note that the wording of Hamas’ statement was chosen very carefully, with every word weighed. Thanking Trump, accepting the release of prisoners, even of bodies, accepting an independent technocratic government in Gaza, all seem at first glance to be a retreat on the part of Hamas; but if we look deeper, we see that all this is bound and conditioned by “conditions on the ground,” meaning that until Israel is ready to withdraw completely, there will in fact be no exchange.

Secondly, accepting the administration of Gaza by a technocratic government also seems like a retreat by Hamas, but if we pay attention, Hamas is talking about a collective Palestinian administration and, considering the predominantly Islamic and religious community in Gaza, a government of technocrats will not make sense and cannot really exist.

Third, Hamas has said it is ready and willing to accept the agreement, but issues relating to the future of Gaza, Palestinian rights, and the national framework must be examined at the national level, which means that even if Trump wanted to impose his totalitarian project, Hamas would oppose it as it would go against the terms of the agreement and jurisdiction, as these issues require general consensus.

Fourth, Hamas has not said it will leave, so its presence in Gaza’s political future is confirmed, and there is no mention of disarmament.

In fact, Hamas has very cleverly reformulated all its previous conditions on the negotiating table but, to use Trump’s own words, has returned the ball to Trump and left it in the American camp without giving any grounds for accusing Hamas of sabotaging the ceasefire, either in the media or in public opinion in Gaza.

Hamas responded to Trump’s plan with a response that is actually a conditional consent to put everything back in the blood-stained hands of the American Potus.

Looking at Trump’s plan

To better understand, let’s look at Trump’s plan. The national plan was to transfer the population of Gaza and transform the territory into a tourist area, a proposal clearly supported by the Zionist regime. However, in the new 20-point plan, Trump backtracked and accepted some decisive issues, such as those concerning the rights of the Palestinian population, reconstruction, the formation of a transitional government, a plan that even the American and Israeli media criticized as “difficult to sustain” even for Bibi Netanyahu.

The most important flaw in this plan, however, was that it completely ignored the key role of Hamas. Trump was trying to launch a “simulated peace” to save Netanyahu with the support of the collective West and even some compromised Arab countries, under strong public pressure, but the Sumud Flotilla incident exposed his plan and once again placed the regime at the center of global hatred. Therefore, Hamas’ response is also of great importance in terms of timing, as it demonstrates its political and media intelligence.

It should be reiterated that the statement issued by Hamas contains some key points:

  1. Accepting the ceasefire to demonstrate its opposition to war;
  2. Postponing the details to negotiations, thus leaving the final decision to Trump, which also means responsibility before the whole world;
  3. The absolute refusal to disarm;
  4. The future role in the Palestinian state.

An action that is perhaps the pinnacle of Hamas’ intelligence.

Hamas’ reaction explained by Hamas

Some senior Hamas leaders explained the response to the peace plan.

Musa Abu Marzouk explained the movement’s position on the proposed plan to end the Gaza war in an interview with Al Jazeera Qatar and outlined Hamas’ priorities in these negotiations, the first of which is to stop the massacre, stating: “Our priority is to stop the war and the massacre, and from this perspective, we have approached the plan in question with a positive attitude. We have examined the points of Trump’s plan directly related to the Hamas movement with a positive approach,“ adding that ”The implementation of the plan’s provisions requires details and understanding, and this plan cannot be implemented without negotiations. We will begin negotiations on all issues related to the movement and weapons.”

Describing part of the proposed plan as unrealistic, Abu Marzouk said, “The issue of handing over prisoners and bodies within 72 hours is theoretical and unrealistic in the current circumstances. The United States of America should look optimistically to the future of the Palestinian people.” Regarding the national agreement for the administration of Gaza, he said, “We have reached a national agreement on handing over the administration of Gaza to independent individuals (technocrats), and the authority for this administration will be the Palestinian National Authority. Outlining the future of the Palestinian people is a national issue that Hamas cannot decide on its own. We have agreed to the regional and international plan presented by Egypt, which includes answers regarding peace and the future.“

Marzouk also strongly reiterated that Hamas is a national liberation movement and that the definition of ”terrorism” contained in this plan cannot be applied to this movement under any circumstances: “We have agreed in principle and in general with the main points of the plan, but its implementation requires negotiations.”

This also has to do with the future of the weapons of resistance. The Hamas official specified that “We will hand over the weapons to the future Palestinian government, and whoever governs Gaza will have the weapons in their hands.” This line is consistent with what the Movement has always maintained.

Osama Hamdan, another senior official, told Al Arabi Channel that the Hamas movement is ready to immediately begin talks on the prisoner exchange operation, stressing that Hamas will not accept under any circumstances that a party outside Palestine take over the management of the Gaza Strip. The official also noted that the situation and facts on the ground regarding Israeli prisoners (both living and dead) must be taken into account in future negotiations. Hamdan added that the prisoner exchange process will take more than 72 hours and that this issue can only be resolved by reaching an agreement between the parties, reiterating that the entry of any foreign administration or force into Gaza is unacceptable under any circumstances.

Taher al-Nunu, media advisor to the head of Hamas’ political office, emphasized the movement’s full readiness to start immediate negotiations: “We are ready for immediate negotiations on prisoner exchange, ceasefire, and Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.”

These statements were made in the hours immediately following the official announcement.

This has nothing to do with “taking a step back” or, worse still, abandonment: we are witnessing a strategic move that forces the Zionist regime and the corrupt West to show their cards by making the first move.

Game. Set.

October 6, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism | , , , , | Leave a comment

International Committee for Breaking the Siege on Gaza chair responds to Israel defamation campaign

MEMO | October 4, 2025

Zahir Birawi, chair of the International Committee for Breaking the Siege on Gaza has today issued a press statement in response to an Israeli defamation campaign against international activists, solidarity organisations, and particularly those of us working to end the criminal siege of Gaza through the Freedom and Sumud flotillas.

Birawi says that his name has been cited in defamatory reports issued by Israeli ministries, notably on 30 September. “I state unequivocally: the allegations of terrorism levelled against me are false, fabricated, and politically motivated. They form part of a systematic strategy to criminalise peaceful solidarity work, intimidate international activists, and manufacture consent for Israel’s ongoing acts of piracy, including the kidnapping of hundreds of human rights defenders sailing to Gaza with humanitarian aid.”

The statement read: “Israel’s actions are not isolated but part of a state doctrine of defamation against those who challenge its apartheid and colonial rule. By branding activists as extremists, Israel attempts to neutralise opposition to its crimes, delegitimise solidarity networks, and shift attention away from its violations of international law.”

In light of the gravity of the allegations Birawi has asserted his right to pursue legal action against those responsible for the smear campaign. He wrote:

“I reserve my full right to pursue legal remedies against those who propagate these defamatory claims. This is not an empty threat. In 2021, I successfully sued World-Check, compelling the company to remove my name from its terrorism list and compensate me for the damage caused by its false classification. This legal precedent demonstrates both the falsity of these accusations and the accountability that can be demanded from those who spread them.”

October 5, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism | , , , , | Leave a comment

Seyed M. Marandi: Peace Deal & Another War Against Iran

Glenn Diesen | October 5, 2025

I spoke with Seyed Mohammad Marandi in Sochi about the peace deal being imposed on Gaza, and the US/Israeli preparations for another war with Iran. Marandi is a professor at Tehran University and a former advisor to Iran’s Nuclear Negotiation Team.

Rumble

October 5, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Video | , , , , , | Leave a comment

The pirates of Israeli supremacy: The West’s favorite rogue state has done it again

By Tarik Cyril Amar | RT | October 2, 2025

The long-expected if perfectly criminal has happened again: Israel’s navy has intercepted the Gaza-bound Sumud Flotilla by force, stopping almost 50 boats and, in effect, kidnapping hundreds of their crews and passengers.

In terms of law – which, of course, are never really applied in practice to Israel – everything is exceedingly clear: The Sumud Flotilla was a volunteer operation to bring humanitarian aid to Gaza which has been subjected to Israeli genocide for now almost two years. Israel had a clear obligation to let that aid pass.

But then what to expect from the world’s most aggressive rogue state that is not “only” committing genocide, but also waging regional wars of aggression and running terrorist assassination campaigns in the face of the global public? And Israel has a well-established track-record of this kind of piracy, of course, having stopped several attempts to bring aid by sea since 2010, sometimes with casualties among the humanitarian activists.

Stopping the Sumud Flotilla wasn’t merely criminal but criminal in every regard lawyers can imagine, a typical Israeli super-whopper of legal nihilism: Israel attacked the flotilla ships in international waters where it has no jurisdiction. Even if the ships had gotten closer to the Gaza coast, they would, by the way, still not have been inside any Israeli territorial waters because there are no such waters off Gaza, over which Israel has no sovereignty as clearly confirmed by the International Court of Justice last year. What you find off the coast of Gaza, as a matter of fact, are Palestinian territorial waters.

The blockade of Gaza, which has lasted not “merely” for the duration of the current high-intensity genocide-ethnic cleansing campaign but for close to two decades now, is illegal. Because the blockade has been in place for so long, Israel is simply lying – surprise, surprise – when arguing it is a short-term measure covered by the San Remo rules, which summarize “International Law Applicable to Armed Conflicts at Sea.” And even if those rules applied, under them as well Israel would have to let humanitarian aid through.

Finally, as Israel has attacked ships and citizens belonging to over 40 countries, Israel has committed aggression under international law against all of them and, less obvious but a fact, also crimes under each of these countries’ domestic laws, because they apply on those ships.

So far for the law, but then again, Israel is de facto outside and above the law. That much we have known for a long time. Indeed, Israel could not exist without constantly breaking international law and getting away with it. For Israel, lawlessness and impunity are not luxuries but vital necessities.

The reason why it has been able to exist in this manner is well-known, too: It is protected by the West and, in particular, the US. The latter is Israel’s single worst co-perpetrator, facilitating its crimes like no other state on Earth. Soon, for instance, the recent war of aggression waged by America and Israel together against Iran will probably be followed by a second, even worse assault.

In this regard, what has happened to the Sumud Flotilla has been a test: Clearly, recent moves by various Western governments, including the UK, France, and Australia to “recognize” – in an extremely dishonest manner – a Palestinian state and add some cautious rhetorical criticism of Israel make no difference to their absolute deference in practice to both Israel and its backers in the US.

What seemed like a glimmer of hope for a moment, the appearance of warships from various nations to apparently escort the humanitarian flotilla, has turned into just another humiliation: the escort abandoned their charges well in time to allow Israel a free hand.

The same Western leaders responsible for this cowardly retreat cannot stop waffling about the need not to “reward the aggressor,” when dialing up the war hysteria against Russia, as they have been doing mightily again recently, from mystery drones to declaring unconstitutional states of “not-peace” to chatter of states of emergency.

What about, for once, not rewarding the genocider for a change? But that’s hard, isn’t it? Once all Western governments are accomplices of Israel.

The Sumud Flotilla will not have been the last attempt to break both Israel’s genocidal blockade and its aura of impunity. There is hope, because even in NATO-EU Europe and the US ever more people understand what Israel really is and what it really does: a settler-colonial apartheid state that won’t stop committing genocide and ethnic cleansing. Israel’s systematic campaigns of propaganda and information war are escalating in response, as the case of TikTok has just demonstrated. But even Israel and its American friends cannot reverse history and an experience that the whole world has made. The Gaza Genocide is a fact already. It will not be forgotten. The resistance to Israel will never end.

Tarik Cyril Amar is a historian from Germany working at Koç University, Istanbul, on Russia, Ukraine, and Eastern Europe, the history of World War II, the cultural Cold War, and the politics of memory.

October 5, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Illegal Occupation, Progressive Hypocrite, Solidarity and Activism, War Crimes | , , , | Leave a comment

Starmer government ‘not doing anything’ to help UK citizens kidnapped in international waters

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the ACC Liverpool Convention Centre in Liverpool, UK, on September 29, 2025. [Raşid Necati Aslım – Anadolu Agency]
MEMO | October 4, 2025

The families of the British citizens kidnapped by Israel in international waters this week as they sought to take humanitarian aid to Gaza as part of the Sumud Flotilla have drawn a blank in trying to get government assistance for their release. The Starmer government is “not doing anything” to help, it is alleged.

“Despite official statements claiming that families are being kept informed,” said Samir Asli, “it has now been more than 48 hours and we have still not received any substantial updates from the UK Foreign Office.” Asli’s wife is well-known journalist and activist Yvonne Ridley, a frequent contributor here at Middle East Monitor.

Yvonne was aboard the Omar Al Mokhtar, a humanitarian vessel participating in the peaceful mission to challenge the illegal blockade of Gaza and deliver symbolic aid to a population facing starvation, explained her husband. “On or around 2 October, the boat was intercepted by Israeli forces approximately 70 nautical miles off the coast of Gaza, in international waters, where Israel has no jurisdiction.”

Legal experts have confirmed that such an action constitutes a violation of international law. Indeed, former UK ambassador Craig Murray, who is also a former Head of the Maritime Section of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Alternate Head of the UK Delegation to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, has pointed out on social media that the flotilla was intercepted well beyond Israel’s 12-mile territorial waters.

“Moreover,” said Murray, “the Israeli maritime blockade has been in place for 17 years and is an intrinsic part of the long-term occupation found illegal in the International Court of Justice advisory opinion. It is, therefore, not a short-term measure in time of armed conflict as specified in the San Remo manual.” In any event, he added, the San Remo rules explicitly state that humanitarian supplies may not be blockaded. “The UN Commission of Inquiry has already determined that Israel is committing genocide, and the blockade is plainly a part of the machinery of such genocide. As such, the Israeli attack on the flotilla is plainly illegal.”

And yet, according to Samir Asli, a Foreign Office official told him that Yvonne’s actions were “illegal”. He obviously disputes this line. “This official’s job is to keep families informed and supported, not to judge Yvonne’s humanitarian work. Yvonne has always acted from a place of conscience, compassion and international law.”

The only response to their request for help from the family’s local Conservative MP, John Lamont, was a short message suggesting that the government might argue that, “Yvonne was travelling against current UK advice.”

At a time when a number of British citizens have been kidnapped in international waters, local MPs need to demand answers and action, not offer excuses, insisted Asli. “Yvonne and the other humanitarians on the flotilla were on a mission of conscience — to help starving children — and deserve the full support of their government.”

Such an inadequate response from the UK government appears to ignore the fact that, as Craig Murray noted, “On the High Seas, the law applying on each ship is the law of its flag state. An attack by a state military warship on a vessel on the High Seas is an attack on the flag state of the vessel attacked.” In other words, Israel has basically attacked the sovereignty of the states under whose flags the vessels were sailing. “Acts of illegal possession of vessels or abduction of crew on the High Seas should be pursued by each flag state as crimes within their domestic jurisdiction, not only in international law. As such, the Metropolitan Police and Director of Public Prosecutions have an obligation to investigate and act over the abduction of persons from UK-flagged vessels on the High Seas.”

The families of Yvonne Ridley and other British citizens being held unlawfully by Israel are calling upon friends, colleagues and supporters to contact their local MPs to insist that the Starmer government fulfils its responsibilities under British and international law to ensure the swift and safe return of their loved ones.

October 4, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, War Crimes | , , , , | Leave a comment

CANADIAN BILL EXPOSES DARK EUGENICS HISTORY

The HighWire with Del Bigtree | October 2, 2025

Canada’s new bill banning forced sterilization of First Nations women shines a light on a chilling global pattern of modern-day eugenics, from Kenya’s tetanus vaccines to Colombia’s HPV programs.

 

October 3, 2025 Posted by | Deception, Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Video, War Crimes | , | Leave a comment

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