It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Thursday, November 16, 2023
A small group of farms in California use more water than entire cities, and it's mostly going to a single crop, according to a new report Maiya Focht Wed, November 15, 2023 Hay is a water-intensive crop to grow.\Rafael Elias / Getty Images
The Colorado River flows into Lake Mead.George Rose/Contributor/Getty Images
The Southwest United States is slowly losing access to its foremost source of water — the Colorado River, which provides over 40 million people across seven states access to water for drinking, irrigation, hydropower, and more.
Warmer temperatures due to human-driven climate change reduced the river's flow by more than 10% from 2000 to 2021, according to a study from the University of California.
Other estimates predict that if greenhouse gas emissions are not quickly curbed, there won't be enough snow to melt and contribute to the river, which could lead to the flow dropping more than 20% by 2050.
As the Colorado River dries up, scrutiny about its use has increased. This has left governments, activists, and locals searching for ways to cut water use and save what's left of this critical resource
According to an investigation from ProPublica and The Desert Sun, one farming region in southern California, the Imperial Valley, uses more water than the rest of the entire state. Most of the water in the valley is used by just 20 farming families, the investigation found.
And most of those farms use that water to grow just one crop — hay.
A small group in Imperial Valley soaks up billions of gallons
The winter growing season in Imperial Valley.halbergman/Getty Images
Hay is an especially water-thirsty crop because of its deep roots, long growing season, and dense vegetation.
In Utah, its 9,300 hay operations devour most of the state's water resources, The Salt Lake Tribune reported.
For their investigation, reporters at ProPublica and The Desert Sun estimated the water consumption of farming families in the Imperial Valley by combining satellite data with records of who owned and farmed each field.
The reporters calculated that the family with the thirstiest farm used over 84 billion gallons in 2022, which is more than the city of Las Vegas, and about 3% of the Colorado River's entire flow to this region.
Aside from using exorbitant amounts of water compared to the rest of California, the families export a significant portion of the hay outside the valley, according to the report. Critics told outlets that exporting that hay is basically the same as exporting billions of gallons of valuable water away from drought-ridden regions that need it most.
Where the hay goes
Hay is used to feed livestock.John Harper/Getty Images
Hay is mainly used to feed livestock, which contributes between 11% to 20% of greenhouse gas emissions, according to The Breakthrough Institute.
Yet, the incentive to keep growing water-thirsty hay to continue supporting greenhouse-gas-emitting livestock will likely continue if changes aren't made to the cost of water.
The Imperial Valley district gets its water for free from the US Bureau of Reclamation, ProPublica reported. The bureau then sells that water to farmers for cheap.
"Cheap water helps make growing hay in the Imperial Valley profitable," ProPublica and The Desert Sun wrote.
In an effort to reduce farms' water use, the Biden administration earlier this year allocated $125 million to help pay Colorado River farmers to stop farming and let their crops go dry.
But farmers previously told Business Insider it wasn't enough money to stop them from growing.
The federal government has created initiatives to assist farmers who are willing to curb their water use by using new irrigation techniques, like using sprinklers instead of flooding fields.
Other states have begun dealing with this reckoning too. Troy Waters, a fifth-generation Coloradan farmer, previously told BI that he's doing his best to conserve water to save the river, but wished he saw similar efforts in California.
"Gosh damn, independent farmers now are having to start thinking politically," he said.
Cornell University graduate student's union overwhelmingly votes to join union with
UNFAIR AND UNBALANCED Tue, November 14, 2023 Cornell University graduate student's union overwhelmingly votes to join union with strong anti-Israel ties
Cornell University graduate students recently voted to become members of a union well-known for their anti-Israel stance. On November 9, in a vote of 1,873 to 80, Cornell University Graduate Students United (CGSU) overwhelmingly voted to federate as Cornell Graduate Students United, a chapter of the United Electrical Workers union (UE).
UE has a long history of not supporting Israel, including opposing U.S. military aid to Israel, calling for an immediate cease-fire in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war and the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.
BDS is a pro-Palestinian movement that promotes boycotts, divestments, and economic sanctions against Israel.
William Jacobson, founder of EqualProtect.org and a Cornell University Law Professor, told Fox News Digital that BDS is a plays a large role in antisemitism's recent rise.
"The BDS movement's gross dehumanization of Israeli Jews is a prime vehicle giving rise to antisemitism. The reclaiming of the land of Israel by the indigenous Jewish people is the greatest decolonization story of modern times, and had it been any other people, Israel would be celebrated," Jacobson said. "We cannot allow the union to bring these noxious BDS policies onto campus."
Jacobson noted that Cornell University's administration had previously "steadfastly" rejected calls to boycott Israel and has partnered with The Technion of Israel, a top research university in both Israel and the Middle East.
"The Cornell Graduate Student bargaining unit's affiliation with the United Electrical workers union creates grave concerns because the UE has endorsed the boycott of Israel," Jacobson said. "Cornell University steadfastly has rejected boycott calls, and even has a partnership with The Technion of Israel at the Cornell Tech campus in NYC. The anti-Israel activists should not be permitted to get in through the union back door what they have been unable to get in through the front door."
Jacobson said that this is not the first attempt to oppose the university's partnership with the Israel-based university, but that it is paramount that the Ivy League university's graduate student union does not "interfere" with Cornell's relationship with the Technion of Israel.
"The attempts to disrupt the Cornell-Technion Tech Campus relationship have been ongoing for many years, and continue with an event scheduled later this month. Since the Tech Campus is a shining star on Cornell's horizon, it is critical that the union's political objectives not interfere with the university's educational mission," Jacobson said.
The Cornell Law Professor called on the administration to publicly oppose BDS and oppose "any union effort to inject BDS" into campus life.
"The Cornell administration needs to publicly reiterate its opposition to BDS, and commit to opposing any union effort to inject BDS into the Cornell system either openly or surreptitiously," Jacobson said.
The university has "left itself open" to BDS-influence by providing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programming on campus in student groups, Jacobson said.
"Cornell has left itself open to BDS agitation by pushing group-identity DEI programming using a racial lens, leaving Jews on the sideline," Jacobson said. "Student groups are promoting anti-Israel activism around race. Cornell should refocus the campus on the inherent dignity and rights of each individual, rather than identity groups."
The United Electrical Workers Union and Cornell University did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
State Farm's Attempt To Deny A Grieving Family's Payout After Fatal Car Crash Will Cost It $36 Million
US LIBERTARIANS WANTS INSURANCE COMPANY TO REPLACE THE STATE
Lawrence Hodge Wed, November 15, 2023 Screenshot: JHVEPhoto
State Farm will pay out millions to a family after it tried to lowball an insurance settlement after a woman’s death.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports everything started with the tragic death of Andrea Lovato. Lovato died in a 2017 car accident after she swerved to avoid a minivan that was going 70 in 35 zone. The head on collision killed her while her four-year-old nephew who was in the car with her survived. A week before her death, lawyers for the family say that Lovato had taken steps to upgrade her State Farm Insurance policy after her car had been stolen.
State Farm wanted to play dirty though. After the family found the paperwork proving the policy had higher limits, they tried attacking Lovato’s character and, according to Maier, claiming things like Lovato had actually committed suicide by causing the crash. The family ended up filing suit against State Farm in 2020.
Following a trial in late October, a jury issued a special verdict Oct. 31 awarding $36 million — $12 million in damages to family members and to Lovato’s estate, as well as $24 million for bad-faith practices and breach of contract; $20 million of the amount was assessed as punitive damages.
The jury found State Farm had breached its contract with Lovato by offering her family a settlement that was significantly lower than the amount her policy guaranteed.
Jurors also found the company had willfully violated New Mexico’s Unfair Practices Act and Insurance Practices Act and acted in bad faith in its dealings with Lovato’s family.
A final order on the verdict is expected soon. In a statement, State Farm says it’s disappointed in the verdict and believes the company didn’t act in bad faith. “...respectfully disagree with it and will explore all available legal options, including appealing the verdict,” a spokesperson for the company said. Maier said the family is satisfied with the verdict, but said what State Farm did was “the most egregious conduct I’ve ever seen by an insurance carrier.”
Jalopnik
Pro-Palestine Voices Face Threats, Harassment As Gaza Death Toll Grows
Rowaida Abdelaziz, Matt Shuham Updated Wed, November 15, 2023
On the day of Hamas’ Oct. 7attack and the beginning of Israel’s ongoingretaliation, Reema Wahdan, a cancer researcher who for decades has advocated for the humanity of Palestinians, including as director of the Colorado Palestine Club, attended an emergency rally at the Colorado state Capitol, calling for de-escalation and “advocating peaceful security for both sides,” she told HuffPost.
A few days later, on Oct. 11, an unidentified person or persons called her family’s business several times, saying some variation of, “Death to Arabs, all Palestinians are going to die,” she said.
Two days later, Wahdan found a bullet lodged in her living room wall.
Wahdan said she’s been frustrated with the police response to the bullet; the Greenwood Village and Denver police departments, she said, have told her their investigation is inactive and that they believe the 9mm bullet lodged in her wall was actually fired 3 miles away from her house. The Denver Police Department referred HuffPost’s questions to the Greenwood Village Police Department, saying they were the lead investigating agency. A spokesperson for that department didn’t respond to emails.
Wahdan, whose parents were both born in Al-Bireh, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, told HuffPost she believes she was targeted because of her activism. Now, she’s taking unnerving security steps that are brand new to her ― planning routes ahead of time, ensuring she isn’t being followed to her car, and planning to check in with friends after arriving at each destination. “In all my 40 years of advocacy, I’ve never had to look over my shoulder,” she said.
Wahdan is one of the many Americans who’ve said they have been threatened, intimidated or doxxed over their pro-Palestinian activism since the the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas and the retaliation campaign initiated by Israeli forces that has killed more than 11,000 Gazans, according to Palestinian authorities.
Activists, students and regular people said they are paying the price for their advocacy. College students, particularly Arabs and Muslims, said they felt unsafe and unsupported by their universities. Some said they have lost their jobs for their social media posts.
“We’ve been extremely overwhelmed and are understaffed in just trying to support everyone from students to professionals of all ages, who are facing backlash and feel unsafe in their workplaces and or being fired for speaking out for Palestinian human rights,” said Jasmine Hawamdeh, the communications manager at the Arab American Discrimination Committee, a civil rights organization based in Washington, D.C.
Despite her sense of unease, Wahdan is stillspeaking up for what she believes is right.
“If someone was intentionally targeting me so I cannot speak up to what’s going on, then they failed,” she said. “I’m going to keep on doing it. If I have to die for that work, that’s fine too. But I’m not going to be silent.”
Across the country, people standing up for Palestinian rights have faced similar attempts at silencing and intimidation.
Last month, a Hilton hotel in Houston, Texas, canceled a conference set to be hosted by the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR), citing “escalating security concerns.” Right after the cancellation, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) falsely referred to the group as “Hamas supporters.” An Islamic Center in Rochester, New York, also pulled out of an event that was set to feature USCPR’s executive director as keynote speaker because of threats it received, Jewish Currents reported.
Such venue issues have become commonplace: The Council on American-Islamic Relations moved its annual banquet from a Marriott in Arlington, Virginia, to an undisclosed location because anonymous callers “threatened to plant bombs in the hotel’s parking garage, kill specific hotel staff in their homes, and storm the hotel in a repeat of the Jan. 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol if the events moved forward,” the group said. Another event, hosted by the Palestine Literary Festival at Union Theological Seminary and featuring well-known speakers such as Ta-Nehisi Coates and Mohammed El-Kurd, struggled to find a space in New York City.
“This is the fifth space we approached to host us this evening,” co-producer Yasmin El-Rifae said on stage. “The difficulty is not because of availability.”
Demonstrators hold Palestinian flags as they march through Brooklyn Bridge during a rally supporting Palestinians in New York City on Nov. 7.
Demonstrators hold Palestinian flags as they march through Brooklyn Bridge during a rally supporting Palestinians in New York City on Nov. 7.
Several people told HuffPost that they had been kicked out of Facebook groups and threatened to have their social media posts sent to their employers; one person told HuffPost that someone called their employer after they’d posted online about the conflict ― to ask what their work schedule was. A Muslim woman told HuffPost that after she posted “I stand with Palestine,” the pharmacy that she owns was inundated with negative reviews and harassment. One imam, after sharing activists’ videos on the conflict, received a slew of negative and abusive comments ― including two messages from an unknown sender that included his home address and a photo of his 12-year-old daughter.
Ayat, a Palestinian restaurant in New York, criticized Israeli “apartheid” on Instagram and was soon flooded with one-star reviews and “nonstop” threatening voicemails, forcing it to disconnect its phone, its co-owner Abdul Elenani told The Associated Press.
Among Jews, the backlash to pro-Palestinian activism can be especially harsh.
A dispute recently broke out on a large email listserv of U.S. Jewish leaders concerning the now-ubiquitous posters showing photos of Hamas’ Israeli hostages. Rafael Shimunov, a longtime activist and an American Jewish critic of Israel’s military retaliation in Gaza, had published a video highlighting a cluster of the posters next to a Palestinian restaurant in Brooklyn, suggesting an alternative poster that “shows everyone, or calls for a cease-fire and says ‘missing: peace.’” That led others on the listserv to falsely claim he’d endorsed tearing down the posters.
The argument escalated to the point that someone messaged Shimunov a screenshot of a Google Street View image of his home. “I wish no harm on your family, even though you address is publicly available maybe you should have thought of that before siding with Hamas,” another message said. Shimunov said he is concerned the tenor of the broader debate is discouraging fellow Jews from calling for a cease-fire in Gaza.
“What we need right now is radical solidarity with each other,” Shimunov said. “The [right’s] goal is to break this coalition, and our goal must be to radically maintain it.” The Truck
Across college campuses, students said they have experienced first-hand the impact of advocating for the Palestinian cause.
At Harvard University, the conservative group Accuracy In Media has targeted pro-Palestinian activists by featuring their names and faces on a digital mobile billboard truck under the banner “Harvard’s Leading Anti-Semites.” Similar trucks have visited other colleges around the country ― including Columbia University, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of California at Berkeley ― as well as students’ parents’ homes as far away as Texas.
“There were points where, from my own bedroom window, I could see the truck and my face on it,” said Sara, a Harvard student who is being identified by a pseudonym because she’s concerned for her safety. “It was Orwellian to look out my window and see my headshot under the title ‘leading antisemite.’ It was just so jarring because, obviously, none of us are antisemitic. It was crazy to have my own face looking into my room with this claim under it.” On the day HuffPost interviewed her, Sara said she’d been called a terrorist twice while grocery shopping.
Another student, Diya, who is identified by a pseudonym, first saw her face on the truck as she walked to class. “You suddenly feel so hypervisible, so vulnerable,” she said. “A lot of us were skipping classes, not wanting to eat meals in the dining hall, because you feel so perceived in a really negative light, and you feel as if everyone’s eyes are on you,” Diya said she’d received online threats that included specific information about her.
Accuracy in Media says the students it’s targeting “issued a statement in support of Hamas.” However, the Oct. 7 statement from several student groups just said its signatories “hold the Israeli regime entirely responsible for all unfolding violence,” and an Instagram post from Harvard’s Palestine solidarity groups stated, “We lament the devastating and rising civilian toll.” Sara and Diya told HuffPost that “unfolding violence” referred to Israel’s retaliatory attack, which began the same dayHamas attacked Israel, well before the full death toll in Israel ― now at around 1,200 people, in addition to over 200 hostages held in Gaza, according to Israeli authorities ― was known.
“We do not refer to the ‘right to resist,’ and that’s not language that has shown up in [Palestine Solidarity Committee] statements or will show up in PSC statements,” Sara said, referring to the concept that the use of violence against Israel is justified.
Sara and Diya also said they knew of students featured on the truck who weren’t involved in crafting or signing onto the statement, as well as students who’d already graduated.
The targeting of students critical of Israel has happened for years, though the past month has seen an explosion of such activity. Canary Mission, a website that compiles digital dossiers of students it believes hold anti-Israel or antisemitic views ― including many who’ve simply been involved in pro-Palestinian activism ― told HuffPost, “Outing Hamas supporters and apologists at Harvard is just the beginning. When we say Never Again, we mean it.” Sara and Diya said individuals who were featured on the truck and Canary Mission appeared to be disproportionately Muslim, Arab, South Asian, brown and Black students.
The students, who’ve faulted Harvard for not condemning Accuracy in Media more forcefully, wondered why a similar statement hadn’t received the same backlash: An Oct. 8 Haaretz editorial proclaimed, “The disaster that befell Israel on the holiday of Simchat Torah is the clear responsibility of one person: Benjamin Netanyahu.”
Diya said, “I think the fact that we’re being put in an environment where people are afraid to speak out about things that they believe strongly in ― for fear of violence against their person, their communities, their families ― is definitely a threat to free speech, and it happens specifically when you’re speaking about Palestine.”
ANTISEMITE SUPPORTS ISRAEL
Divisive megachurch pastor draws criticism for role at March for Israel
ERIK ORTIZ November 15, 2023
WASHINGTON — A controversial televangelist's role as a guest speaker at a large-scale rally Tuesday in support of Israel and against Jewish hate drew mounting criticism as his past remarks about Jews — widely denounced as antisemitic — resurfaced.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations said in a statement Wednesday that Pastor John Hagee’s history of "Islamophobia and antisemitism" should have prevented him from speaking at the March for Israel on the National Mall in Washington.
"Hypocrisy does not begin to describe the decision by pro-Israel groups to invite an antisemite to speak at a rally against antisemitism after they spent weeks falsely accusing every pro-Palestine march of being antisemitic," said Edward Ahmed Mitchell, the council's national deputy director.
Mitchell also called on the bipartisan delegation of political leaders who spoke at the rally, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., to "renounce his bigotry."
"Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian racism are unacceptable. Period," Mitchell said. "So is antisemitism, regardless of whether an antisemite like John Hagee supports the Israeli government."
Spokespeople for Schumer, Johnson and Jeffries did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
'History of hateful comments'
Hagee, 83, also could not immediately be reached for comment through Christians United for Israel, which he founded in 2006 and which bills itself as "the largest pro-Israel organization in the United States." He has courted controversy over the decades, having received fallout following a 2005 sermon posted online in which he suggested God allowed Adolf Hitler to carry out the Holocaust to allow Jews to ultimately return to Israel. Hagee later denied that he condoned Hitler or the Holocaust.
Pastor John Hagee during 'March For Israel' (Noam Galai / Getty Images)
The response from CAIR, the country's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization, follows remarks from Jewish leaders who spoke in support of the rally but sought to distance themselves from Hagee even before he took the stage Tuesday afternoon.
"Contrary to what I was told, Pastor John Hagee will be speaking at today's rally," Hadar Susskind, the president of Americans for Peace Now, a nonprofit peace advocacy group, posted on social media. "I am horrified that he was given this platform. His history of hateful comments should disqualify him from decent company, much less from speaking on stage. He is not welcome and should not speak."
Rabbi Jill Jacobs, the CEO of T'ruah, a rabbinic human rights organization based in New York City, wrote on social media that progressive groups that support Israel "knew this rally wouldn't represent our values," in part because Hagee was included.
The Jewish Federations of North America, an event organizer, declined to comment Wednesday.
Organizers had seen the March for Israel as a way to show unity among Jewish Americans after the Oct. 7 ambush by Hamas in Israel, which killed 1,200 people and led to about 240 being taken hostage. The conflict overseas has also prompted a surge in antisemitism and bias incidents in the U.S., according to the Anti-Defamation League, with CAIR finding a similar uptick of threats reported by Palestinian Americans and Muslims.
The Washington rally attracted a wide variety of viewpoints among participants about Israel's actions in Gaza after the attack, with some in staunch support of the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and others questioning his policies while also arguing Israel must defend itself against terrorism.
Hagee was invited to speak under a section of the program called "Voices of Allies," which included Anila Ali, a Pakistani American Muslim and women's rights activist.
Hagee, who founded the nondenominational evangelical Cornerstone Church and a television ministry in San Antonio, has regularly used world events to link his claims of biblical prophecy. In 2008, he gained attention for endorsing Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona for president.
The move drew criticism from the Catholic League, a Catholic civil rights group, which has described Hagee as an "anti-Catholic bigot."
Hagee later said he regretted comments he made about the Catholic church, and he also walked back previous remarks in which he said Hurricane Katrina was punishment for the LGBTQ community, PolitiFact reported.
A Huffington Post report examining Hagee's comments about Hitler and Jews brought further criticism; Hagee had said in a sermon that "God sent a hunter" and that Jews were killed "because God said my top priority for the Jewish people is to get them to come back to the land of Israel."
Hagee faced controversy again in 2014, when the ADL called on him to apologize after he said Barack Obama was "one of the most antisemitic presidents in the history of the United States of America." Over the years, he has remained a prominent figure among conservative Republicans, becoming an outspoken supporter of Donald Trump and recently hosting Republican presidential candidates loyal to Israel at his organization's annual summit.
At the March for Israel, Hagee was pointed about his continuing support for the Jewish people and Israel's resilience.
"Israel," he said, "you are not alone today, tomorrow or forever."
Florida Walks Back Order to Shut Down College Pro-Palestinian Groups
The change came after concerns were raised about "potential personal liability for university actors who deactivate the student registered organization," according to state officials.
EMMA CAMP | 11.14.2023 REASON (Paul Weaver/Sipa USA/Newscom)
Last month, Florida Governor and 2024 Presidential candidate Ron DeSantis ordered the derecognition of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) chapters at public universities in Florida.
The announcement followed the release of a "toolkit" from the National SJP, which characterized Hamas' October 7th attack against Israel as "resistance," and stated that Palestinian students are "PART of this movement, not in solidarity with this movement."
While the state claimed the shutdown was justified by a Florida law barring "material support" for terrorist organizations, First Amendment groups were quick to point out that cracking down on pro-Palestine campus activity is illegal, even when student organizations express support for the actions of terrorist organizations like Hamas.
"The government cannot force public colleges to derecognize Students for Justice in Palestine chapters," wrote the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), a First Amendment nonprofit in an October press release. "This directive is a dangerous — and unconstitutional — threat to free speech. If it goes unchallenged, no one's political beliefs will be safe from government suppression."
Now it seems that Florida is thinking twice before cracking down on campus pro-Palestine activism.
Last Thursday, Ray Rodrigues, the Chancellor of the State University System of Florida announced that the system is holding off plans to forcibly shut down SJP chapters at the University of Florida and the University of South Florida, where the student group is active.
However, it doesn't seem like Florida is pausing attempts to crack down on First Amendment-protected speech because of a change of heart. Instead, Rodrigues said last week that he would hold off attempts to kick SJP chapters off-campus out of the concerns "about potential personal liability for university actors who deactivate the student registered organization," seemingly a reference to university officials who might end up facing civil rights lawsuits from SJP chapters.
Further, Rodrigues announced that he would attempt to compel an "affirmation" from the targeted SJP chapters, confirming that "they reject violence. That they reject they are a part of the Hamas movement. And that they will follow the law."
"While universities can ask all student groups to commit to following the law, they cannot force them to expressly renounce a particular ideology or otherwise express views they don't actually hold," wrote FIRE in a Friday press release. "Students shouldn't be compelled to disavow certain disfavored views in exchange for funding and recognition. Compelling speech violates the First Amendment."
These two Florida SJP chapters aren't the only pro-Palestine activist groups that have recently faced suppression. Last week, Columbia University suspended its SJP chapter, along with Jewish Voice for Peace, another pro-Palestine student group. A statement from the university cited the groups' repeated violations of "university policies related to holding campus events, culminating in an unauthorized event Thursday afternoon that proceeded despite warnings and included threatening rhetoric and intimidation."
GW suspends pro-Palestine group over anti-Israel messaging
Tara Suter Tue, November 14, 2023
George Washington (GW) University has temporarily suspended a pro-Palestine group over its anti-Israel messaging on campus.
Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) projected anti-Israel messages on a campus library last month, amid the current conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas. In a Tuesday statement emailed to The Hill, the university said it “determined that SJP’s actions violated university policies.”
“As a result, effective immediately, the university has prohibited SJP from participating in activities on campus,” the statement continued.
“SJP cannot sponsor or organize on-campus activities on university property or use university facilities, including indoor and outdoor spaces available for reservation through the university; this prohibition is in effect for the next 90 days,” the statement said. “Also effective immediately, SJP is prohibited from posting communications on university property through May 20, 2024.”
Last month’s projections, which garnered national attention and backlash, included messages such as “Divestment from Zionist genocide now” and “Free Palestine From the River to the Sea.” Politicians including Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) condemned the projections.
“As an alumni of @GWtweets they should launch an investigation. I look forward to seeing the University statement on this,” Moskowitz said on X, formerly known as Twitter.
A representative for the SJP told the student newspaper The GW Hatchet that GW’s decision to bar the group from campus organizing was not a surprise.
“We see this very clearly as being a political response to a growing wave of backlash and repression towards Palestinian organizing, but specifically the Palestinian student movement that’s been happening the past few weeks,” the representative said, according to the Hatchet.
The suspension of the SJP at GW also follows a similar decision by Columbia University, which last Friday suspended its SJP chapter through the fall semester.
The Hill has reached out to the student-run SJP group for comment. George Washington University suspends SJP chapter after group projected 'Glory to our martyrs' onto building
Adam Sabes
FOX NEWS Tue, November 14, 2023
George Washington University suspended its Students for Justice in Palestine chapter after the group projected "Glory to Our Martyrs" on the side of a campus building.
The university's SJP chapter projected a series of pro-Palestinian phrases onto the school's Gelman Library on Oct. 24, including "GW the Blood of Palestine is on your Hands" and "Your Tuition is Funding Genocide in Gaza."
In a statement at the time, George Washington University said the messages were "unauthorized" and violated university policy, adding "leadership intervened to ensure that these projections were removed."
The university shared a statement with Fox News Digital, which effectively suspends SJP for three months.
One sign read, "Glory to our martyrs" in support of Palestinians.
"After an investigation, the university determined that SJP’s actions violated university policies, including the Gelman Building Use Guidelines and the university’s policy against non-compliance, as SJP initially refused to comply with university officials’ directives to end the projections," reads the statement. "As a result, effective immediately, the university has prohibited SJP from participating in activities on campus.
"SJP cannot sponsor or organize on-campus activities on university property or use university facilities, including indoor and outdoor spaces available for reservation through the university; this prohibition is in effect for the next 90 days. Also effective immediately, SJP is prohibited from posting communications on university property through May 20, 2024," the university added. "After 90 days, there will be continued restrictions around SJP’s use of university facilities and hosted activities through the end of the academic year."
The decision by George Washington University was made after an investigation "determined that SJP’s actions violated university policies, including the Gelman Building Use Guidelines and the university’s policy against non-compliance, as SJP initially refused to comply with university officials’ directives to end the projections."
In a statement to the university's student newspaper, the GW Hatchet, a representative for the SJP chapter said the group is disappointed but not surprised by the decision, stating the school has "unwavering support" towards Zionist students.
"Your Tuition is Funding Genocide in Gaza."
"We see this very clearly as being a political response to a growing wave of backlash and repression towards Palestinian organizing, but specifically the Palestinian student movement that’s been happening the past few weeks," the SJP representative said. "GW is continuously proving, as they have proven time and time again for many, many years, that they will always align with the Zionist lobby and against the right to free speech and the right to assembly of their own students."
NYC Columbia University faculty and students protest suspension of 2 far-left groups
Greg Wehner, Teny Sahakian
FOX NEWS Wed, November 15, 2023
Hundreds of pro-Palestinian protesters stood outside of Columbia University in New York City on Wednesday, holding signs while chanting and demanding the removal of Jewish people from Gaza, while others boycotted the suspension of two far-left student-led groups by the school's administration.
The "emergency protest" was shared on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, by groups such as WOLPalestine (Within Our Lifetime) and CUNYPalestine, noting the event was scheduled for Wednesday at 2 p.m.
"All Out for Gaza at Columbia University," the post read. "In solidarity with Columbia SJP (Students for Justice in Palestine) and JVP (Jewish Voices for Peace) who were recently unjustly suspended by the university administration.
Last week, Columbia University suspended the far-left groups as official student groups through the end of the fall term, saying they had violated university policies.
Specifically, the university said the groups "repeatedly violated university policies related to holding campus events, culminating in an unauthorized event Thursday afternoon that proceeded despite warnings and included threatening rhetoric and intimidation."
It marked the second university at the time to act against SJP in recent days, with Brandeis University in Massachusetts banning the group earlier in the week for statements supporting Hamas. On Tuesday night, George Washington University also sanctioned SJP.
Columbia University students and faculty protest the removal of two pro-Palestinian groups.
During Wednesday’s protest at 116th Street and Broadway near Columbia, people were heard chanting, "One, Two, Three, Four, Occupation No More. Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Israel is a terrorist state. Israel, you can’t hide."
Other chants shouted on the street included, "Israel Bombs. USA Paid. How many kids did you kill today?," and "Free, Free Palestine."
Protesters also held banners and signs that read, "Within our lifetime, United for Palestine," "Cease Genocide" and "Resistance until return, within our lifetime."
Columbia University students and faculty protest the removal of two pro-Palestinian groups.
Members of the faculty also protested the student groups getting kicked off campus.
The faculty was seen standing together with a list of demands from Columbia, including affirming their commitment to the First Amendment, overturning the suspension of the student groups and recognizing publicly that academic freedom protects all forms of political speech.
Like many other elite institutions, Columbia's response to the Oct. 7 terrorist attack by Hamas has been under the microscope. One professor went viral for decrying the response by the school to instances of campus antisemitism. A Jewish student was also attacked with a stick after objecting to a woman tearing down posters of Hamas hostages.
The New York Post reported last month more than 100 Columbia professors signed a letter defending pro-Palestinian students who had defended the Hamas attack on Israel and asked administrators to stop making statements "that favor the suffering and death of Israelis or Jews over the suffering and deaths of Palestinians." Fox News Digital's David Rutz contributed to this report. Demonstrators Rally at Columbia in Solidarity With Suspended Pro-Palestinian Groups
Storyful Wed, November 15, 2023
A crowd of people rallied outside Columbia University in New York City on Wednesday, November 15, in a show of support for two political organizations that were recently suspended by the school.
Footage captured by Eric Blanc shows a crowd of protesters marching in the street, some of them holding a large banner that says “Free Palestine.”
The university temporarily suspended Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace last week, saying that the groups “violated University policies related to holding campus events” when they held an “unauthorized” event that “proceeded despite warnings and included threatening rhetoric and intimidation.” The groups are suspended through the end of the fall term, the university said.
“Suspension means the two groups will not be eligible to hold events on campus or receive university funding,” Columbia said in a statement.
The groups released a joint response on Instagram on Monday, calling the suspension “an attack on free speech to distract from and enable Israel’s genocidal campaign against the Palestinian people.”
Credit: Eric Blanc via Storyful
Hundreds of Brown U faculty call on university to drop charges against student protesters Amy Russo, Providence Journal Tue, November 14, 2023 ]
Nearly 200 Brown University faculty members are calling for charges to be dropped against 20 students who were arrested for trespassing during a pro-Palestine protest last week. Yet, as of Monday afternoon, the charges had not been dropped.
The letter, published Monday in the Brown Daily Herald and first reported by The Public's Radio, demanded the university "insist that all legal charges against the students be dropped immediately" and that they be exempt from any school discipline. The letter also asks that the school consider the students' demands that it divest from weapons manufacturers amid the Israel-Hamas war. (A 2020 report from the school's Advisory Committee on Corporate Responsibility in Investment Policies, which was made up of faculty, students and alums, identified multiple companies from which it wanted the school to divest. Those included Boeing, Northrop Grumman and Raytheon, among others.)
The students, who were arrested the night of Nov. 8 during a peaceful sit-in at University Hall, were part of a group called BrownU Jews for Ceasefire Now, and called not only for the divestments but for their school to promote an end to the war.
University spokesman Brian Clark said "Brown issued multiple trespass warnings and ultimately moved forward in arresting" the students, as they were in a non-residential school building past operating hours. Brown declines to respond to letter via media
What does Brown have to say about the letter? Not much, at least to the media.
"In general, as it relates to letters and petitions, I can share that the university remains committed to engaging directly with students, faculty and staff who are in touch with the university to share their ideas or concerns, and we do so routinely," said university spokeswoman Amanda McGregor. "But we do not have a practice of responding through news media to such concerns – rather, we value direct dialogue and engagement with students, alumni, faculty and staff on matters of interest to the community."
McGregor confirmed that the charges against the students remained in place. She said she would not speculate on whether they might be dropped.
It was not immediately clear who would have the decision-making power to drop the charges.
Hundreds Stage Anti-War Sit-In at Oakland Federal Building
Storyful Tue, November 14, 2023
A number of protesters were arrested after hundreds of people occupied the Oakland Federal Building Conference Center on November 13, and called for a ceasefire in Gaza, local media reported.
Video posted to Facebook by the Center for Jewish Nonviolence shows protesters gathered inside the rotunda and chanting “Let Gaza live”.
The Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) Bay Area said in a post to X “We are not leaving, we demand an end to this bloodshed, we will not see Jewish grief used to perpetuate genocide.” Credit: Center for Jewish Nonviolence via Storyful Video Transcript
[CLAPPING]
- Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live.
Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live.
Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live.
Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live.
Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza live. Let Gaza--
Violent incidents over Israel-Hamas war at top Canadian college leads to arrest, police investigation
Peter Aitken
FOX NEWS Tue, November 14, 2023 Dueling protests in support of the Palestinian and Israeli peoples at Concordia University in Montreal last week resulted in multiple injuries and an arrest after a student assaulted a security guard amid a violent clash.
Student group Jews on Campus told CBC that it tried to hold a peaceful demonstration in support of the hostages taken by Hamas, but then a crowd "chanting pro-Palestinian slogans" surrounded the demonstration. The "productive" effort "started to turn," according to one witness.
The pro-Palestinian crowd allegedly called the Jewish students "murderers" and a fight broke out, although it was not clear who threw the first punch. The witness described the situation as "very scary as a Jewish person on campus."
Pro-Palestinian students claimed that they submitted evidence to the police that pro-Israel protesters "attacked" them while they sold the keffiyeh - or head scarf - as a fundraiser for Palestinian people in Gaza.
The incident prompted alumnus Lawrence Muscat, a senior vice president at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, to demand the university scratch his name from their list, blasting the school for having "failed to protect Jewish students."
"No, I don’t want to meet with your President and fundraisers in D.C.," he wrote on social media platform X, stressing that the school "will not get a penny from me."
Concordia University is seen on a nearly empty St-Catherine Street in Montreal on Friday, March 27, 2020.
"At the same time, I am more than happy to support any Canadian charitable organization that holds Concordia accountable and works to protect Jewish students," he continued. "Hit me up, I’m ready."
Montreal police deployed to the school around 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday last week, leading to the arrest of a 22-year-old student who had allegedly assaulted a 54-year-old security guard during a violent clash between the opposing protests, CBC reported.
Police released the student on condition that they promise to appear in court. Officers remained on the scene until 4:15 p.m.
A second security guard and student were injured by assaults during the violence, but neither the guards nor the student sustained life-threatening injuries. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators attend a protest at Columbia University in New York City on Thursday, Oct. 12, 2023. Dueling demonstrations for both pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli student groups were hosted on the campus amid calls for global protests regarding the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.
"I believe that the overwhelming majority of our community shares my complete abhorrence of these incidents and is appalled by them," Concordia President and Vice Chancellor Graham Carr wrote in an email to the student body and wider university community.
"A university, including ours, is a place where academic freedom, and the respectful, civil exchange of thoughts and ideas is valued above all else," Carr wrote. "One source of pride for Concordia’s community is our cultural diversity and our desire and willingness to learn from others whose experiences and knowledge differ from our own."
"But under no circumstances can we, as a community, tolerate the reprehensible acts of hate and violence that occurred today," he added.
Carr stressed that the university body must "be accountable for our actions and our words whether in the classroom, in meetings or in other university spaces."
"I am deeply saddened and disgusted that the actions of a few individuals have now brought us to the point that we arrived at today," he lamented. "The vast majority of Concordians, irrespective of their political and ideological views, have worked diligently to maintain calm and to uphold the integrity of university life even at a moment when events elsewhere are creating extreme levels of anxiety and tension."
However, the altercation was just one of three separate incidents reported at the university on Wednesday in which "violence or incitement to violence" took place, Carr admitted, including a social media post that could "reasonably be construed as inciting violence" and the discovery of swastikas in a university building. An anti-Israel protester in Cambridge on Monday shouted slurs at the pro-Israel counter-protesters, calling them "pigs" and "Nazis."
University campuses across both the U.S. and Canada have grown increasingly tense as students remain divided over the current war in Gaza, where the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) press on toward the Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza - the largest hospital in the strip. The IDF and Israeli officials have repeatedly claimed that the hospital sits atop a Hamas terrorist command center. Israeli forces have exposed several weapons and supplies deployed at schools or stored under hospitals as they enclosed on Al-Shifa.
Younger generations, particularly Gen Z, have shown significantly greater support for the Palestinians leading to a headache for university leadership on any given campus as they find themselves under pressure to address antisemitism on campuses, particularly by rich donors who have either threatened to pull funding or have already declared they will not be giving any money going forward.
Columbia University in New York City announced last week that it would suspend two student groups - Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace - from the campus until the end of term for alleged violations of school policies following intense backlash from some faculty members and donors over the handling of protests on campus.
Harvard President Claudine Gay released a statement Thursday condemning antisemitism and called out the pro-Palestinian rallying cry "from the river to the sea" as crossing the line.
"Our community must understand that phrases such as ‘from the river to the sea’ bear specific historical meanings that to a great many people imply the eradication of Jews from Israel and engender both pain and existential fears within our Jewish community. I condemn this phrase and any similarly hurtful phrases," Gay wrote.
The international community has heavily polarized over Israel's operations in the strip, which the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry claimed has led to the deaths of over 11,000 people. The Biden administration has repeatedly cast doubts on the accuracy or veracity of the numbers, with critics noting that the ministry does not distinguish between civilian and combatant deaths in its count.
Fox News Digital's Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report.
University of Pennsylvania students gather for pro-Palestine demonstration
WTXF
FOX NEWS Tue, November 14, 2023
PHILADELPHIA - Students at the University of Pennsylvania came together Tuesday to voice their support for Palestine amid the ongoing conflict between Hamas and Israel.
The rally comes days after UPenn officials addressed antiemetic messages that were projected against a campus building, and hateful emails that targeted members of the school's Jewish community.
The statement signed by UPenn President Mary Elizabeth Magill, condemned the antisemitic acts and words and acknowledged the amount of hurt and fear it is causing for their Jewish students, staff and faculty.
"At a time when campuses across the country are being targeted with these types of threats, my first and highest priority is the safety and security of our community," said President Magill. "Threats of violence are not tolerated at Penn and will be met with swift and forceful action."
Miranda Sklaroff, a UPenn Graduate student, is a Jewish community member who voiced her support Tuesday for Palestine and called for peace. Sklaroff said it was her "Jewish principals" that motivated her to "side with the oppressed."
"To me, my Jewish principals have always made me want to side with the oppressed, want peace, and want to see the divine in everyone," Sklaroff said.
Supporters of Palestine at UPenn believe the school is minimizing their efforts, so they've started a coalition called "Freedom School of Palestine." The group, according to a student who did not want to be identified, is designed to be a "platform where we can elevate Palestinian voices."
FOX 29 reached out to UPenn about Tuesday's demonstration and the school reiterated its past remarks about supporting "the exchange of ideas" on campus.
NAKBA TOO
Israel calls it a humanitarian corridor, but for fleeing Palestinians, it’s forced displacement
RAF SANCHEZ AND CHANTAL DA SILVA Updated November 15, 2023
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — On the eastern edge of Gaza City, hundreds of families march down Salah al-Din road as the sun begins to set Wednesday afternoon. Many carry babies and small children, while others push the elderly in wheelchairs. Some wave large white flags, while all carry what few possessions they can on a journey with no clear end in sight.
“There’s tens of thousands of people leaving their neighborhoods in Gaza coming through here going south,” said Maj. Shraga of the Jerusalem Brigade, whose last name the Israel Defense Forces asked to be withheld for security reasons.
NBC News was given access to Gaza City on Wednesday to see the main evacuation route that thousands of Palestinians have taken to move south amid Israel’s offensive in the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack. For operational security reasons required to accompany the Israeli troops into Gaza, NBC News agreed to share raw video with the IDF and blur the faces of junior soldiers. It did not allow the IDF to view any completed articles. Israeli soldier Maj. Shraga Stern of the Jerusalem Brigade in Gaza on Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023. (NBC News)
Israel has said its evacuation routes from northern Gaza are designed to get Palestinian civilians to safety, which it says is proof of its commitment to protect innocents even as it targets Hamas. More than 11,200 people have been killed during Israel’s offensive in Gaza since Hamas’ attack on Israel, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which is controlled by Hamas.
But for many of the more than 1.6 million people who the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, says have already been displaced in Gaza since the conflict began, the route feels like a forced exodus.
Some who have journeyed north to south have described horrors along the way, including walking past corpses and dismembered body parts, and hearing the sounds of intense warfare nearby. UNRWA has said many are “exhausted and dehydrated” after having made the trek “amid unusually high temperatures.”
Tarik Yaghi, who said he was studying IT at the Islamic University of Gaza before the conflict began, recently told NBC News about his trek fleeing from northern Gaza to the south.
"The journey was not even a journey," said Yaghi, 23. "It was basically torture.” He said he saw tanks and "bodies thrown left and right," including "dead children."
Palestinians on the edge of Gaza City on Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023. (NBC News)
Asked how he feels seeing children among those fleeing, Maj. Shraga said he does “think about that sometimes.”
“But I’m also very proud of what we’re doing. I’m very proud these innocent children, instead of being in their homes, without any protection, without safe homes, then they have access to leave the town,” he said.
“I know that when you look around, it looks like there was a lot of fighting — there was — but the responsibility for that is on Hamas that brought hell into our homes and brought us in full force down over here,” he said, referring to Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, which, according to Israeli officials, killed 1,200 people and left dozens as hostages.
As masses of people flee northern Gaza, Israeli troops from the Jerusalem Brigade have been trying to spot any of Hamas’ hostages.
Shouting into megaphones in Hebrew, soldiers call out to the crowd, asking whether there are any Israeli hostages among them and telling them to wave their arms and shout if they are being smuggled into the south.
“We haven’t seen any of the hostages yet, but I’m really hoping that any time we’ll pull out hostages,” Maj. Shraga said, adding that it was “heartbreaking” to hear soldiers call out for any signs of them.
He also said the military was screening people as they walked along the evacuation route, but he would not expand on what technologies were being used. “We’re looking for specific people,” he said.
Maj. Shraga said he understood that for many Palestinians in Gaza who have lost their loved ones, their homes and the lives they once knew, Israeli forces will be seen as the reason for their suffering.
“Hopefully, with a different leadership other than Hamas, these Palestinians here could have a much better life, which is what we’re hoping for,” he said.
“I’m pretty sure that once we’re finished with our job of totally eliminating Hamas, then these people here, the ones who want to live peaceful, productive lives, will be able to come here and prosper beside us,” he said.
Asked whether Israel could guarantee that displaced Palestinians will be able to return to their homes one day, IDF Maj. Doron Spielman said: “I think that will really be in the hands of many different players, and one of the main ones is going to be Hamas.”
Raf Sanchez reported from Gaza City and Chantal Da Silva from Tel Aviv.
Israel signals wider operations in southern Gaza as search of hospital has yet to reveal Hamas base
NAJIB JOBAIN AND KAREEM CHEHAYEB November 16, 2023
KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli forces dropped leaflets warning Palestinians to flee parts of southern Gaza, residents said Thursday, signaling a possible expansion of operations to areas where hundreds of thousands of people who heeded earlier evacuation orders are crowded into U.N.-run shelters and family homes.
Meanwhile, soldiers continued searching Shifa Hospital in the north, in a raid that began early Wednesday but has yet to uncover evidence of the central Hamas command center that Israel has said is concealed beneath the complex. Hamas and staff at the hospital, Gaza's largest, deny the allegations.
Broadening the offensive to the south — where Israel already carries out daily air raids — threatens to worsen an already severe humanitarian crisis in the besieged territory. Over 1.5 million people have been internally displaced in Gaza, with most having fled to the south, where food, water and electricity are increasingly scarce.
The war, now in its sixth week, was triggered by a wide-ranging Hamas attack into southern Israel on Oct. 7 in which the militants killed over 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and captured some 240 men, women and children. Israel responded with a weekslong air campaign and a ground invasion of northern Gaza, vowing to remove Hamas from power and crush its military capabilities.
More than 11,200 Palestinians have been killed, two-thirds of them women and minors, according to Palestinian health authorities. Another 2,700 have been reported missing, with most believed to be buried under the rubble. The official count does not differentiate between civilian and militant deaths.
SOME GUNS, BUT SO FAR NO TUNNELS
Israeli troops on Wednesday stormed into Gaza’s largest hospital, searching for traces of Hamas inside and beneath the facility, where newborns and hundreds of other patients have suffered for days without electricity and other basic necessities.
Troops were searching the underground levels of the hospital on Thursday and detained technicians responsible for running its equipment, the Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said in a statement.
After encircling Shifa for days, Israel faced pressure to prove its claim that Hamas was using the patients, staff and civilians sheltering there to provide cover for its fighters. The allegation is part of Israel's broader accusation that Hamas uses Palestinians as human shields.
The military released video from inside Shifa showed three duffel bags it said it found hidden around an MRI lab, each containing an assault rifle, grenades and Hamas uniforms, as well as a closet that contained a number of assault rifles without ammunition clips. The Associated Press could not independently verify the Israeli claims that the weapons were found inside the hospital.
Hamas and Gaza health officials deny militants operate in Shifa — a hospital that employs some 1,500 people and has more than 500 beds. The Palestinians and rights groups accuse Israel of recklessly endangering civilians.
Munir al-Boursh, a senior official with Gaza’s Health Ministry inside the hospital, said that for hours, the troops ransacked the basement and other buildings, including those housing the emergency and surgery departments, and searched the grounds for tunnels. Troops questioned and face-screened patients, staff and people sheltering in the facility, he said, adding that he did not know if any were detained.
“Patients, women and children are terrified,” he told the AP by phone Wednesday.
The military said its troops killed four militants outside the hospital at the start of the operation, but through days of fighting there were no reports of militants firing from inside Shifa. There were also no reports of any fighting within the hospital after Israeli troops entered.
The military said it was carrying out a “precise and targeted operation" in a specific area of the hospital, and that its soldiers were accompanied by medical teams bringing in incubators and other supplies.
At one point, tens of thousands of Palestinians fleeing Israeli bombardment were sheltering at Shifa, but most left in recent days as the fighting drew closer. The fate of premature babies at the hospital has drawn particular concern.
The Health Ministry said 40 patients, including three babies, have died since Shifa’s emergency generator ran out of fuel Saturday. There was no immediate word on the condition of another 36 babies, who the ministry said earlier were at risk of dying because there is no power for incubators.
LOOKING SOUTH
The leaflets, dropped in areas east of the southern town of Khan Younis, warned civilians to evacuate the area and saying anyone in the vicinity of militants or their positions “is putting his life in danger.” Similar leaflets were dropped over northern Gaza for weeks ahead of the ground invasion.
Two local reporters who live east of Khan Younis confirmed seeing the leaflets. Others shared images of the leaflets on social media.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Wednesday the ground operation will eventually “include both the north and south. We will strike Hamas wherever it is.”
The military says it has largely consolidated its control of the north, including seizing and demolishing government buildings. Video released by the army Thursday showed soldiers moving between heavily damaged buildings through holes blown in their walls.
On Thursday, the military said it had blown up a residence belonging to Ismail Haniyeh, a senior Hamas leader based abroad. It was unclear if anyone was inside the building.
Most of Gaza’s 2.3 million people have already crowded into the territory’s south, where a worsening fuel shortage threatens to paralyze the delivery of humanitarian services and shut down mobile phone and internet service.
Conditions in southern Gaza have been deteriorating as bombardment continues to level buildings. Residents say bread is scarce and supermarket shelves are bare. Families cook on wood fires for lack of fuel. Central electricity and running water have been out for weeks across Gaza.
Israel allowed a small amount of fuel to enter Gaza for on Wednesday, for the first time since the war began, so that the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, which is providing basic services to hundreds of thousands of people, could continue bringing limited supplies of aid through the Rafah crossing with Egypt.
The fuel cannot be used for hospitals or to desalinate water, and covers less than 10% of what the agency needs to sustain "lifesaving activities,” said Thomas White, the agency’s Gaza director.
The Palestinian telecom company Paltel, meanwhile, said it expected services to halt later Wednesday because of the lack of fuel or electricity. Gaza has experienced three previous mass communication outages since the ground invasion.
If Israeli troops move south, it is not clear where Gaza’s population can flee, as Egypt refuses to allow a mass transfer onto its soil.
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Chehayeb reported from Beirut. Associated Press writer Amy Teibel in Jerusalem contributed to this report.
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