Smoke rises from Israeli bombing of Rafah, as internally displaced Palestinians prepare to evacuate Al Mawasi in southern Gaza after army vehicles advanced. EPA
Smoke rises from Israeli bombing of Rafah, as internally displaced Palestinians prepare to evacuate Al Mawasi in southern Gaza after army vehicles advanced. EPA
Smoke rises from Israeli bombing of Rafah, as internally displaced Palestinians prepare to evacuate Al Mawasi in southern Gaza after army vehicles advanced. EPA
Smoke rises from Israeli bombing of Rafah, as internally displaced Palestinians prepare to evacuate Al Mawasi in southern Gaza after army vehicles advanced. EPA

Gaza humanitarian summit to raise pressure on Israel amid US ceasefire drive


Khaled Yacoub Oweis
  • English
  • Arabic

Live updates: Follow the latest news on Israel-Gaza

Senior western officials and Arab leaders will meet in Jordan on Tuesday to discuss the continuing war in Gaza at a large gathering supported by the US.

The meeting is designed to increase pressure on Israel as Washington renews months-long efforts for a prolonged ceasefire. Eight months of talks have been largely unsuccessful, despite a week-long pause in fighting in November.

The conference, entitled Call for Action: Urgent Humanitarian Response for Gaza, is being held "in light of the catastrophic humanitarian situation" in the enclave, a press release on Monday said.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi and UN Secretary General Antonio Gutterres will also be co-hosts.

The summit will be held at a Dead Sea venue a few kilometres from Israel.

"The war in Gaza is now in its eighth month, with massive loss of life among civilians and suffering for the entire population of over 2.3 million Palestinians across the strip," an official press release said.

"Today, famine is imminent in parts of Gaza and people continue fleeing in search of safety.

"Trauma is widespread. Every part of Gaza is in ruins. The situation has been exacerbated by the onset of the Rafah military operations.

"Within two weeks, more than 800,000 people were again forcibly displaced, while no place is safe in Gaza and without any access to food, water, shelter, or medicine," the organisers said.

Other top officials speaking include Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and Martin Griffiths, Undersecretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Co-ordinator.

Egypt, a main player in ceasefire talks, is on guard over concerns the Israeli military will move deeper into the Rafah border area, driving Palestinian refugees into Egyptian territory.

Jordan has warned of a spillover from the war into the neighbouring occupied West Bank.

The kingdom has been acting as a base for western aid drops into Gaza, which has been of limited benefit, with the aerial aid volumes unable to plug daily shortages. Israel stands accused of massively restricting aid through land crossings.

In the past month, Egypt has also allegedly placed its own restrictions on aid convoys, after Israel ignored widespread calls to limit operations in Rafah.

Some diplomats whose presence is expected say Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who is currently on a trip to the region, will represent the US at the gathering.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives in Istanbul on a previous visit to the Middle East focused on the conflict in Gaza. AFP
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives in Istanbul on a previous visit to the Middle East focused on the conflict in Gaza. AFP

Mr Blinken is due to meet Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday to advance ceasefire talks, which also involve Qatar.

“Blinken’s presence gives the conference heft but with Israel not attending, it means little," one diplomat said.

Israel has been widely condemned for ignoring international humanitarian law in its invasion of Gaza, a densely populated territory controlled by Hamas, a militant group supported by Iran.

On October 7, Hamas and its militia allies attacked southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians. More than 37,000 Palestinians, mostly civilians, have been killed in the subsequent Israeli invasion of Gaza, Palestinian health officials say.

It is not known whether there will be any high-level representation from Russian and China, which have been at mostly odds with the US at the UN Security Council on a solution to the war.

European Council President Charles Michel will attend, together with the Spanish and Greek prime ministers, diplomats said.

Senior representatives of international aid organisations will be there, together with the World Bank and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

The two lenders will be involved for a "day after" component of the conference on reconstruction and possible change to the Hamas government of Gaza, the diplomats said.

European Commission Vice President Margaritis Schinas said the conference was in line with the EU's "immediate priority to achieve some sort of stabilisation in Gaza, with an immediate ceasefire, release of all hostages and unimpeded humanitarian access".

"We salute the holding of the humanitarian summit," Mr Schinas said.

"You don't get every day so many top European officials arriving in a third country," he said. "It is just another proof that for us we have a long-standing commitment to this country [Jordan]."

DUBAI CARNIVAL RESULTS

6.30pm Handicap US$135,000 (Turf) 2,410m

Winner Dubai Future, Harry Bentley (jockey), Saeed bin Suroor (trainer).

7.05pm UAE 1000 Guineas Listed $250,000 (Dirt) 1,600m

Winner Dubai Love, Patrick Cosgrave, Saeed bin Suroor.

7.40pm Dubai Dash Listed $175,000 (T) 1,000m

Winner: Equilateral, James Doyle, Charles Hills.

8.15pm Al Bastakiya Trial Conditions $100,000 (D) 1.900m

Winner Laser Show, Kevin Stott, Saeed bin Suroor.

8.50pm Al Fahidi Fort Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,400m

Winner Glorious Journey, James Doyle, Charlie Appleby.

9.25pm Handicap $135,000 (D) 2,000m

Winner George Villiers, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.

In numbers

- Number of children under five will fall from 681 million in 2017 to 401m in 2100

- Over-80s will rise from 141m in 2017 to 866m in 2100

- Nigeria will become the world’s second most populous country with 791m by 2100, behind India

- China will fall dramatically from a peak of 2.4 billion in 2024 to 732 million by 2100

- an average of 2.1 children per woman is required to sustain population growth

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How to protect yourself when air quality drops

Install an air filter in your home.

Close your windows and turn on the AC.

Shower or bath after being outside.

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Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.

If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.

Paatal Lok season two

Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy 

Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong

Rating: 4.5/5

SOUTH%20KOREA%20SQUAD
%3Cp%3E%0D%3Cstrong%3EGoalkeepers%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKim%20Seung-gyu%2C%20Jo%20Hyeon-woo%2C%20Song%20Bum-keun%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EDefenders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKim%20Young-gwon%2C%20Kim%20Min-jae%2C%20Jung%20Seung-hyun%2C%20Kim%20Ju-sung%2C%20Kim%20Ji-soo%2C%20Seol%20Young-woo%2C%20Kim%20Tae-hwan%2C%20Lee%20Ki-je%2C%20Kim%20Jin-su%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EMidfielders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPark%20Yong-woo%2C%20Hwang%20In-beom%2C%20Hong%20Hyun-seok%2C%20Lee%20Soon-min%2C%20Lee%20Jae-sung%2C%20Lee%20Kang-in%2C%20Son%20Heung-min%20(captain)%2C%20Jeong%20Woo-yeong%2C%20Moon%20Seon-min%2C%20Park%20Jin-seob%2C%20Yang%20Hyun-jun%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStrikers%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EHwang%20Hee-chan%2C%20Cho%20Gue-sung%2C%20Oh%20Hyeon-gyu%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The schedule

December 5 - 23: Shooting competition, Al Dhafra Shooting Club

December 9 - 24: Handicrafts competition, from 4pm until 10pm, Heritage Souq

December 11 - 20: Dates competition, from 4pm

December 12 - 20: Sour milk competition

December 13: Falcon beauty competition

December 14 and 20: Saluki races

December 15: Arabian horse races, from 4pm

December 16 - 19: Falconry competition

December 18: Camel milk competition, from 7.30 - 9.30 am

December 20 and 21: Sheep beauty competition, from 10am

December 22: The best herd of 30 camels

Challenge Cup result:

1. UAE 3 faults
2. Ireland 9 faults
3. Brazil 11 faults
4. Spain 15 faults
5. Great Britain 17 faults
6. New Zealand 20 faults
7. Italy 26 faults

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Tell Me Who I Am

Director: Ed Perkins

Stars: Alex and Marcus Lewis

Four stars

Updated: June 11, 2024, 10:23 AM