Vatican Rejects Donation from ‘Leonardo’ over Gaza – Did Italy Impose Arms Sale Boycott on Israel?

January 20, 2024 Articles, Features

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani. (Photo: Olaf Kosinsky, via Wikimedia Commons)

By Romana Rubeo  

The Israeli news website Walla reported on Saturday that Italy, which is responsible for nearly 5 percent of Israel’s military procurement, has decided to impose an arms sales boycott on Tel Aviv. 

Walla has cited Italy’s Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani as saying, on Friday, that Rome has “decided to halt the shipments of the (weapons) systems (to Israel) since October 7.”

Walla’s report was confirmed in other news agencies as well, including Agenzia Nova, also on Saturday. 

The Italian news agency’s translation of Tajani’s comments was that Italy has stopped “all forms of sending any type of weapons to Israel since October 7,” the day of Hamas’ military operation and the first day of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.

Tajani’s comment was a direct response to earlier remarks by Secretary of the Italian Democratic Party Elly Schlein, who has called for an arms boycott.

Schlein “is misinformed,” the Italian Foreign Minister said, in an interview with “La Nazione”, “Il Giorno” and “Il Resto del Carlino” newspapers.

“The period when more weapons were sent to Israel was during the (Antonio) Conte government,” Tajani said.

According to Walla, citing estimates by the Swedish SIPRI Institute, Italy is responsible for 5 percent of all of Israel’s weapons over the past decade. 

Such procurement, according to the Israeli Ministry of Defense, includes “30 Alania Irmaki M-346 jet trainers .. (and) seven AW119 helicopters from the Italian company Leonardo,” in addition to the “training of the IAF’s new helicopter pilots”.

‘Peacekeeping Force’ 

Tajani also spoke about his country’s willingness to participate in any future peacekeeping force in the Strip, though he emphasized that the war must stop first. 

“If the UN requests it .. Italy could deploy the military to Gaza as part of a peacekeeping force in the Strip, led by an Arab country,” Agenzia Nova cited Tajani as saying. 

“In the meantime, we need to end the war and create a temporary administration in Gaza under the auspices of the United Nations, a mission that in my opinion should be led by an Arab country. In this context, if we are asked, we are ready to deploy our military for a peacekeeping mission.”

Despite this position, Italy has been one of the strongest European supporters of Israel since the start of the war, sharing military intelligence and directly participating in the intelligence headquarters, which involve other Western governments, in the so-called Gaza envelope region. 

Vatican Says ‘No’

Israeli media has also reported that the Italian chief of staff was one of several chiefs of staff hosted by the Israeli military in recent days to assess the war on Gaza after 100 days since its launch. 

The discussion regarding the arms boycott of Israel comes within the context of the Vatican’s rejection of a 1.5 million euro donation from the Italian weapons giant Leonardo to the Bambin Gesù Pediatric Hospital. 

According to Italian media, the hospital administrators refused the donation because it was “inappropriate in this period of wars”.

Though Leonardo has denied it is sending arms to Israel, Italian newspaper L’Unità has confirmed that Italian weapons, specifically through Leonardo, continue to find their way to the Israeli army in Gaza.  

(The Palestine Chronicle) 

– Romana Rubeo is an Italian writer and the managing editor of The Palestine Chronicle. Her articles appeared in many online newspapers and academic journals. She holds a Master’s Degree in Foreign Languages and Literature and specializes in audio-visual and journalism translation.

THE GAZA GENOCIDE

25,295

Killed

63,000

Wounded

7,000

Missing

 Red Sea unrest is bad news for World’s food supply

Shipping disruption risks higher prices and food spoiling. That’s threatening to halt a slowdown in global food inflation.

NEWSROOM

JANUARY 20, 2024

photo: Unsplash

Shipping disruption risks higher prices and food spoiling. That’s threatening to halt a slowdown in global food inflation, notes Bloomberg.

Chaos in the Red Sea is starting to disrupt shipments of produce from coffee to fruit — and threatening to halt a slowdown in food inflation that brought some relief to strained consumers.

Vessels loaded with foodstuffs are among those avoiding Houthi attacks in the key waterway by sailing around Africa, a longer and costlier route. But unlike gas, oil and consumer goods cargoes that have also been affected, lengthier shipping times risk making perishable foods unsellable.

That’s spooking the industry. Italian exporters fear kiwi and citrus fruits will spoil on the way, Chinese ginger is getting pricier and some African coffee cargoes were briefly delayed. Grain is being diverted from the Suez Canal and a livestock carrier bound for the Middle East has changed course.

While the impact is so far limited, it’s a reminder of how fragile food supply chains can be. If disruptions worsen, they could stall the slump in food-commodity costs that had started to filter through to cheaper grocery bills.

“Everyone is a loser here,” said Nitin Agrawal, managing director of Euro Fruits, a major Indian grape exporter. The company usually ships to Europe via the Red Sea, but now uses the longer route that’s more than quadrupling freight costs and doubling transit times.

Italian exporters, which sell about $4.4 billion of agricultural produce to Asia, are worried that going around Africa will hurt freshness and add to costs for fruit like apples, kiwi and citrus, said Massimiliano Giansanti, president of farm group Confagricoltura. Meat faces similar concerns, and India’s buffalo-meat shipments bound for regions like North Africa are grappling with delays, said Fauzan Alavi, spokesperson of All India Buffalo and Sheep Meat Exporters Association.

It’s also a headache for farmers who could have to cut their prices to make up for higher shipping costs.

“We have to sell even if prices fall as we can’t prolong the harvesting period,” said Sandeep Dagu Sandhan, a grape grower in India’s state of Maharashtra, where harvesting has started in some areas. “Exporters always manage to cover their costs. It will be our losses if prices crash.”

The shipping issues are also a concern for Europe’s exports of products like pork, dairy and wine, as well as imports of tea, spices and poultry — though it’s unclear the extent of any impact — according to CELCAA, which represents agri-food traders. And ships carrying about 1.6 million tons of grain and headed for the Suez Canal were diverted to other routes in recent weeks, intelligence firm Kpler said. Most of that will be crops going to China and Southeast Asia.

Fresh ginger prices have jumped more than a third since December at East London’s New Spitalfields Market. Muhammed Patel of wholesaler Amer Superfresh Ltd., which usually sources from China, said suppliers are raising costs to account for longer journeys. “Every now and then we have delays, but nothing like this,” Patel said.

Some traders have even delayed cargoes. UK-based coffee importer Mercanta briefly halted loading in East Africa while it awaited clarification of the route carriers will take. While it has decided to load again, any delays will slow sales to Europe at a time when shipments in the Americas also face constraints, including at the Panama Canal.

Some ship insurers are starting to avoid covering US and UK merchant ships against war risks when they navigate the southern Red Sea, another sign of blowback since the two nations’ airstrikes on Yemen, notes Bloomberg.

As a result, underwriters are seeking exclusions for vessels with links to the US, UK and Israel when issuing cover for trips through the area, according to Marcus Baker, global head of marine and cargo at Marsh. It essentially means they won’t provide insurance.

“Underwriters are adding clauses saying no US, UK or Israeli involvement,” he said. “Just about everybody is putting something like that in, and many include the words ‘ownership’ or ‘interest’.”

Yemen’s Houthis said that US and UK ships were legitimate targets for attack, after the two nations launched their barrage of airstrikes.

British oil major Shell Plc halted tanker transits through the region, according to the Wall Street Journal. Japanese shipping giant Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd., with a fleet of about 800 vessels, also halted transits, a spokesperson said Tuesday. Nikkei reported that two other Japanese shippers, Nippon Yusen KK and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd., are also suspending all routes going through the area.

War risk rates have gone into a frenzy in recent days following the US and UK strikes, with cover surging to 1% of a ship’s value from about a tenth of that a few weeks earlier. That would mean it costs about $1 million to cover a vessel worth $100 million.

Western corporate media whiteout on hearing of Israeli genocide

By Otis Grotewohl posted on January 20, 2024

The South African government defended its powerful charges against the genocidal actions of Israel during their initial presentation in front of the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands, Jan. 11. 

Palestinians in Nelson Mandela Square, in occupied Ramallah on the West Bank, Jan. 10, 2024. Credit: @sumayamamdoo

South Africa’s legal team consists of a multinational and multigenerational group of advocates, including Tembeka Ngcukaitobi, Adila Hassim, John Dugard and Max du Plessis, plus other junior and external counsel members. Many members of the legal team staff wore Palestinian keffiyehs along with scarves featuring the colors of the South African flag.

Prominent South African lawyer Adila Hassim passionately told the court, “Israel has subjected Gaza to what has been described as one of the heaviest conventional bombing campaigns in the history of modern warfare.” (BBC, Jan. 11)  

In his closing remarks, South African counsel Tembeka Ngcukaitobi stated, “The evidence of genocidal intent is not only chilling, it is also overwhelming and incontrovertible.” (Timeslive, Jan. 11) 

South Africa is a country that legally defeated a white-supremacist, apartheid system in 1994. It is also the first country to courageously bring charges of genocide against Israel before a world court. 

More than 20 countries are publicly endorsing South Africa’s case, including socialist Cuba and the pro-worker governments of Brazil, Bolivia, Nicaragua and Venezuela. Despite the strong global showing of solidarity, the Western corporate press has egregiously censored the proceedings as a strategic attempt to discredit South Africa’s claims and to undermine the justified grievances of the people of Palestine.

Corporate press displays empathy towards Israel

Much of the corporate media downplayed the arguments made by the South African attorneys, while at the same time presenting Israel as a “victim” simply “defending itself.”  Take for example the first sentence of a Reuters article: “Israel on Friday rejected as false and ‘grossly distorted’ accusations brought by South Africa at the U.N.’s top court that its military operation in Gaza is a state-led genocide campaign against Palestinians.” (Jan. 12) The author legitimizes Israel’s deceitful response to the charges of genocide at the very beginning of the article, setting its tone.

Unlike South Africa’s diverse legal team, the Israeli respondents are predominately white. In a sick twist of irony, Germany has decided to testify on Israel’s behalf, which the bourgeois press has been happy to report. Numerous U.S. media headlines, have highlighted how Germany is calling South Africa’s charges “baseless.”

Israeli representatives peddled false claims about the Hamas Islamic Resistance Movement of Gaza and demonized its supporters. The U.S. corporate media has also been pushing misinformation about the Palestinian resistance movement in recent months. Neither the Israeli legal team nor the bourgeois press willingly admit that the people of Gaza overwhelmingly voted for Hamas as their legitimate representative during the 2006 legislative elections. 

The Palestinian people should be the only ones able to determine their own destiny — not the racist leaders of the U.S., Germany or Israel. The South African government, led by the African National Congress, is going out of its way to do what it can to show solidarity with its Palestinian siblings who are experiencing similar apartheid conditions. Their efforts must be defended and honorably recognized by those who support a “Free Palestine!”

What can be done to eradicate period poverty?


BY DR ZAREEN ROOHI AHMED
21ST JAN 2024

LIFE


Dr Zareen Roohi Ahmed is on a mission to eradicate period poverty all over the world and, with a cost of living crisis and global unrest, it’s time to finally move together to a period poverty-free future

In a world progressively vocal about equality and empowerment, a shadowed issue persists, often deemed the final taboo: period poverty.

Period poverty is a widespread yet concealed affliction that touches millions of women and girls, yet it lingers at the periphery of global discourse. The stigma enveloping menstruation remains the most formidable barrier. This article is a personal testament to my accidental discovery of this crisis, the journey to confront it, and the community-driven solutions promising a dawn free from period poverty.

My awakening to the issue: an article in Lahore

My voyage against period poverty commenced unexpectedly—in the lounge of Lahore’s airport in Pakistan. There, in the wake of launching a school dedicated to my late daughter Halimah for underprivileged girls, I grappled with my grief and a longing to uphold our shared vision for philanthropy. It was amid this introspection that an article about Syrian women in the Zatari refugee camp caught my attention. Their stories of hardship and the dire lack of sanitary products, which forced them to repurpose strips of fabric from the clothing they wore into makeshift pads, moved me profoundly. Their indomitable spirit amidst such adversity ignited a resolve within me: I was determined to bring about change. In that moment I envisioned myself handing menstrual pads to these women and this marked the genesis of my crusade against period poverty.

"Syrian women in the Zatari refugee camp forced to repurpose strips of clothing into makeshift pads moved me profoundly"

Period poverty is an issue often overlooked when considering the difficulties that refugees face, however it is not just women in such extreme situations that encounter this problem, but also those living what we would consider to be ordinary lives. With the cost of living on the rise, more and more people are struggling to afford period products, often having to choose between food, heating or sanitary products.

Turning inspiration into action

Zareen distributing hygiene kits in Lebanon in August 2022

I started Gift Wellness, an award-winning social enterprise after the spark I felt in Lahore airport. It is devoted to eradicating period poverty through the sale of eco-conscious, plastic-free menstrual products and cleansing bars. Our efforts have seen the distribution of over 6.5 million period products to homeless and refugee women, food banks and schools—extending from the UK to global reaches.

Fighting period poverty is about turning awareness of the issue into creative and practical ways to solve the problem. For example, Gift Wellness has also evolved into the launch of an app, Period Angels, designed to revolutionise how menstrual products are distributed to those in need. It bridges the gap between those who need menstrual products, volunteers who respond and coordinate their distribution, organisations that need the products or would like to stock them and people who want to make donations.

"Gift Wellness has distributed over 6.5 million period products to homeless and refugee women, food banks and schools "

Using schemes like this to provide free period products to the community, through volunteers and donations, will help make products more accessible for those struggling to afford them. Corporations and charities alike need to come together to tackle this issue as a united front.

The potential of technology to help fight period poverty

Period poverty and menstrual health in general is often shrouded in a layer of controversy and taboo. However, it should not be a topic that should be discussed with shame. Instead, we should be striving to increase people’s awareness of the topic and the needs of women and girls.

Technology can be essential for this. The Period Angels App also acts as an educational resource, providing vital menstrual health information. Encouraging people to understand menstruation as a topic of health is essential in the journey to preventing period poverty, and utilising technology and the connectivity of the internet is just one other way that organisations can help people in need access menstrual products and normalise talking about it.

Shifting the stigma around women's health

Zareen with her book The Gift about her journey from tragedy to activism
The eradication of period poverty demands more than activism; it calls for a cultural paradigm shift. We must realign our societal structures, historically synced to men's rhythms, to acknowledge and fit around women's health cycles. This recalibration should begin in the privacy of our homes and proliferate through the halls of education and the corridors of the workplace.

"The eradication of period poverty demands more than activism; it calls for a cultural paradigm shift"

It's a matter of recognising that the needs of menstruating individuals are not ancillary but fundamental. For organisations, this translates to instituting supportive mechanisms, ensuring ready access to menstrual products, and nurturing a culture that dispels the shame around menstruation.

Marching towards a period poverty-free future



Gift Wellness period products are helping millions of women struggling with period poverty

The battle against period poverty is a multifaceted struggle—it's not only about securing product accessibility; it's about dismantling deep-seated stigmas and inequities. My own journey, which began with a stirring article in Lahore, led to the founding of Gift Wellness and the creation of the Period Angels app, illustrating that transformative change is within our reach.

"Together, we can transcend the last taboo and craft a future where period poverty is relegated to history"
It's a path paved with vision, tenacity and collective effort. Together, we can transcend the last taboo, align our societal ethos with the reality of women's bodies, and craft a future where period poverty is relegated to history. Let's stride forward in unity.

About the author:




Dr Zareen Roohi Ahmed is a philanthropist and the founder and CEO of Gift Wellness, a social enterprise which produces a range of sustainable, natural, high-quality sanitary products and is an ongoing support to women in crisis. She is also the founder and Chair of The Halimah Trust, a charity, founded in honour of her daughter, that works to improve the lives of orphaned and needy children through education and responding to the needs of people in crisis.

Zareen’s book, The Gift, tells the remarkable story of how, after the tragic loss of her daughter Halimah, Zareen channelled her grief into real action and purpose, all in the name of improving the lives of women and girls across the globe.

Banner photo credit: Dr Zaheen Roohi Adhmed

Across the aisle by P Chidambaram: The dazzle of affluent India

While celebrating the 7 crore people who will be Affluent India, we should also reflect on the pitiable status of three times more Indians (22.8 crore) who are in poverty.

Written by P Chidambaram

FINANCIAL EXPRESS, INDIA
January 21, 2024


The 21-50 per cent of the people who earn below the median income are only slightly better off than the bottom 20 per cent.


The media has gone to town on Affluent India. Affluent India is our AI — persons having an annual income of USD 10,000 or about Rs 8,40,000. The media is gushing over the claims that AI is growing at a mind-boggling CAGR, AI is driving consumption, and AI will make India a USD 5 trillion economy by the year (yet undetermined because the goalpost is constantly shifting!).

I am happy for AI. Here comes the rider: according to the Goldman Sachs’ report, the size of AI by the year 2026 will be 100 million (10 crore) or roughly 7 per cent of India’s population. Why is Goldman Sachs concerned about AI and not the rest (93 per cent) of the Indian people? Because Goldman Sachs is a rich persons bank and, if AI were a separate country, AI would be a middle-income country and the 15th largest of the world. It is Affluent Indians (with honourable exceptions) who save, spend,

invest, splurge, squander and shout about their income, wealth and everything else. When AI buys and consumes, it creates an illusion that all Indians buy and consume. AI has become the proxy for all India. The remaining 93 per cent earn modest incomes and some lead a satisfying life while the majority makes an effort to make both ends meet.

Upper Half, Bottom Half

Let’s stack the three customary numbers denoting income:

Affluent India: Rs 8,40,000 per year

Median income: Rs 3,87,000

Per capita NNI: Rs 1,70,000

It is a tiny slice that is Affluent India. The per capita net national income (NNI) is meaningless because AI pulls the average upwards. The more relevant statistic is the median income. One-half of the Indian people (71 crore) have an income of Rs 3,87,000 per year or less, or about 32,000 a month or less. The lower you go down on the economic ladder, the income will be lesser. What does the bottom 10 per cent or 20 per cent of the population earn in a month?My generous estimate is that the per capita monthly income of the bottom 10 per cent will be Rs 6,000 and of the bottom 11-20 per cent Rs 12,000. We should worry about the conditions in which they live, the kind of food they eat, the healthcare they get, and so on. According to the UNDP’s multi-dimensional poverty index, 22.8 crore people or about 16 per cent of the population are below the poverty line. (According to NITI Aayog, it is 11.28 per cent or 16.8 crore.)

Forgotten Poor

While celebrating the 7 crore people who will be Affluent India, we should also reflect on the pitiable status of three times more Indians (22.8 crore) who are in poverty. It is not difficult to identify the poor: The 15.4 crore active registered workers under MGNREGS who were promised 100 days of work in a year but were allotted in the last five years, on average, only 49-51 days;
Most of the beneficiaries who were given an LPG connection but could afford, on average, only 3.7 cylinders in a year;
Those who own or cultivate less than 1-2 acres of land among the 10.47 crore farmers (the number dropped to 8.12 crore as on November 15, 2023) who received the kissan samman of Rs 6,000 per year;
Most daily wage workers who are engaged as agricultural labourers;
The ‘street people’ who live and sleep on pavements or under bridges;
Most single women old-age pensioners; and
Most persons who do so-called ‘unclean’ jobs like cleaning sewers, drains and public toilets; skin animals, make or repair footwear, etc.

The 21-50 per cent of the people who earn below the median income are only slightly better off than the bottom 20 per cent. They don’t go hungry or without shelter but they live on the edge of uncertainty. Most private jobs have no job security or social security benefits. For example, the 2.8 crore domestic help registered on the government’s e-SHRAM portal work at below-the-minimum wage (the actual number is many times more). Except government and public sector employees, the others live in fear of losing their jobs. In 2023, the tech companies alone laid off or retrenched 2,60,000 highly qualified employees. 100 start-ups axed 24,000 jobs.

Blinded by Dazzle

The five-star hotels, resorts, glitzy malls, luxury brand stores, multiplex cinemas, private jets, destination weddings, Lamborghinis (priced in the range Rs 3.22 to 8.89 crore, the company sold a record 103 cars in 2023), etc. have enough patrons among AI. AI is able to sustain this high standard of living because AI owns 60 per cent of the nation’s wealth and earns 57 per cent of the national income.

The dazzle of AI has blinded the BJP government to the state of the bottom 20 per cent because it has the unflinching support of a steel frame called RSS; its coffers are brimming with money thanks to the rich corporates and electoral bonds; and it knows how to make a potent mixture of religion and hyper-nationalism. It is a government verily for Affluent India.

India is being pulled away from the idea of a social and economic democracy. The Opposition parties and the media may not be vigilant but the poor and middle classes — the 93 per cent — are watching and waiting.

Deprived UK town where foodbanks stand next to celebrity 'Millionaire’s Row'

A small Lancashire town is split between pockets of wealth and deprivation as residents are 'crying their hearts out' as local councillor says they have never had an increase in funding

Danny Gutmann
21 JAN 2024

A small UK town has been ravaged by drugs and is home to some of the UK's most financially deprived areas, where gangs burn rivals to death.

Skelmersdale, which is near Wigan, has seen some residents 'crying their hearts out' as they seek help getting basic items such as food and nappies for children. Meanwhile, despite the desperate conditions in the city centre, Tanhouse and Digmoor areas close by such as Upholland and parts of Ashurst are thriving.

It's also become a drugs market, where violent gangs from Liverpool and Manchester lay down the law with brutal precision. In 2019, in his home by a gang who were trying to stamp their control on the town.

For more of the latest news from the Daily Star, click here.

He had died during a turf war for control of lucrative drug markets, Preston Crown Court heard.

Margaret Highton who runs a Foodbank said Skelmersdale is a 'beautiful place' 

(Image: James Maloney/Lancs Live)

Amanda-Jane Hardwick, a volunteer at the Evermoor Hub in Digmoor, told The Sun gangs recruit kids in the area to sell drugs for them. She said: "We see big cars coming and going. We know what is going on. They use the motorway network to get in and out very quickly."

Just last year, she claimed a local man approached the centre with a replica firearm and machete making threats.
Margaret Highton, director of Evermoor Hub in Digmoor runs a community shop and foodbank in Skelmersdale - often referred to by locals as Skem - told LancsLive about the dire situation.

Robert Beattie was burned alive amid a drugs turf war (Image: SUPPLIED)

She said: "There are new houses but no amenities, like a sports centre or a place for kids to go. Skem is a beautiful place - we have got the Beacon - but there's nothing to do. Bus services are not good and come the winter, that's it - there's nothing down for you in Skem."

The torched home of Robert Beattie (Image: SWNS)

Over the Christmas period alone she helped provide toys and food to 650 people, but said three cases in particular that were especially 'desperate'.

Margaret said: "People have been crying their hearts out. A young woman has just been crying as she had no nappies for her baby. She came in for a food parcel and was stuffing the food into her mouth.

"The baby was about six months old; it's a common scene. We had three desperate cases in the last week, including a young man who had not eaten for two days."

A run-down home in Skelmersdale (stock image) (Image: GETTY)

Mum of two and a Digmoor resident Sam Rimmer said: "I avoid going out - there's too many kids hanging around smoking weed. Give the kids somewhere to go; invest in their education and in something outside school."

Meanwhile, Dasa Sajgalova, who is also a local resident and mum works at Cappy, an eastern European food store in Digmoor Shopping Parade.

Poverty is rife in the area, statistics show (Image: GETTY)

Saying that she didn't agree with the survey Dasa said: "People think this is a bad area but I have never had any problems with anybody. It's a nice community, I have a lot of friends and I walk home at night by myself.

"A few times, we have had to call police because kids were throwing fireworks, but they stopped after that."