05/06/2025

THURSDAY | JUNE 5, 2025

9

Aid group halts distribution

o UN to vote on ceasefire demand

CAIRO: The US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation stopped distributing aid yesterday as it presses Israel to boost civilian safety beyond the perimeter of its distribution sites, a day after dozens of Palestinians seeking aid were killed. The GHF said it has asked the Israeli military to “guide foot traffic in a way that minimises confusion or escalation risks” near military perimeters, develop clearer guidance for civilians and enhance training to support civilian safety. “Our top priority remains ensuring the safety and dignity of civilians receiving aid,” said a GHF spokesperson. An Israeli military spokesperson warned civilians against moving in areas leading to GHF sites yesterday, deeming them “combat zones”. The new aid distribution process for Gaza’s two million-plus population from just three sites was launched in the midst of a fierce new offensive by Israel since late last month. The UN and other aid groups say the model, which uses private US security and logistics workers, militarises aid. An Israeli airstrike killed at least 18 Palestinians yesterday morning, including women and children, at a

school housing displaced families west of the southern city of Khan Younis, taking the day’s toll to 21 at press time. There was no immediate response from Israel, which says it is fighting to free remaining hostages held in Gaza and eliminate Hamas. The Israeli military said on Tuesday that it opened fire on a group of people it viewed as a threat near a GHF food aid distribution site. The International Committee of the Red Cross said at least 27 people were killed and dozens injured. The GHF said the incident was “well beyond” its site. Palestinians who collected food GHF boxes on Tuesday described scenes of pandemonium, with nobody overseeing the handover of supplies or checking IDs, as crowds jostled for aid. The UN Security Council is set to vote today on a demand for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and humanitarian access across Gaza, where malnutrition is widespread and aid has only trickled in since Israel lifted an 11-week blockade in late May. “It is unacceptable. Civilians are risking – and in several instances losing – their lives just trying to get

A man pulls as another pushes a cart loaded with belongings as displaced people flee from Khan Younis. – AFPPIC

food,” UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Tuesday, adding that the aid distribution model backed by the US and Israel was “all a recipe for disaster, which is exactly what is going on.” The newly created GHF said on Tuesday that it has given out more than seven million meals since it started operations a week ago. GHF Interim Executive Director John Acree urged humanitarians in Gaza: “Work with us and we will get your aid delivered to those who are depending on it.” Experts say Gaza’s entire population of some 2.1 million people is at risk of famine despite successive efforts to boost aid. Jordan last year spearheaded humanitarian air drops, while the US briefly

including by the UN, throughout Gaza. “The time to act has already passed. It is our historical responsibility not to remain silent,” said Slovenia’s UN Ambassador Samuel Zbogar. As President Donald Trump’s administration tries to broker a ceasefire in Gaza, it was not immediately clear if Washington would veto the draft text. A spokesperson for the US mission to the UN said: “We cannot preview our actions currently under consideration.” A resolution needs nine votes in favour and no vetoes by the permanent members comprising the United States, Russia, China, Britain or France to pass. – Reuters

installed a floating aid pier, but it was beset by challenges. The UN has long-blamed Israel and lawlessness in the enclave for hindering the delivery of aid into Gaza and its distribution throughout the war zone. Israel accuses Hamas of stealing aid, which the group denies. The 10 elected members of the UN Security Council have asked for the 15-member body to vote on a draft resolution that demands “an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire in Gaza respected by all parties.” The draft text, seen by Reuters, also demands the release of all hostages held by Hamas and others, and the immediate lifting of all restrictions on the entry of aid and its safe and unhindered distribution,

Russia says no quick breakthrough in ‘complex’ talks MOSCOW: Russia has said it was wrong to expect a quick breakthrough in Ukraine talks, after Moscow rejected Kyiv’s call for an unconditional ceasefire at negotiations in Istanbul. reporters on Tuesday. “It would be wrong to expect immediate solutions and breakthroughs.” peace” and for having “so far rejected any meaningful formats for a ceasefire”. Peskov earlier also dismissed the idea of a summit between the presidents of Russia, Ukraine and the United States. Russian border, that killed four people. Russian troops have accelerated their advance, seeking to establish what Putin called a “buffer zone” inside Ukraine’s northeastern Sumy region. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s SBU

U.S. RESCINDS GUIDE ON EMERGENCY ABORTIONS WASHINGTON: The Trump administration has revoked a Biden-era health guideline that protected emergency abortions when medically required, even in states that ban the procedure. The memo was issued in July 2022, weeks after the US Supreme Court struck down the right to abortion. As health providers suddenly found themselves embroiled in legal uncertainty over abortion, the memo provided an interpretation of the 1986 Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (Emtala), arguing it supersedes state abortion laws when needed to stabilise a pregnant patient. In a letter on Tuesday, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said the Emtala guidance did not reflect the current administration’s policy. “CMS is rescinding this memo effective May 29, 2025, consistent with Administration policy,” it said. – AFP ISTANBUL: Turkish police arrested five opposition mayors yesterday alongside 17 others as part of a graft probe. The latest arrests targeted a former lawmaker and three CHP mayors in Istanbul, and two more in the province of Adana, a party spokesman said. The latest arrests bring to nine the total number of jailed CHP mayors, including Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu – the main political rival to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The latest investigation began at the weekend when a court issued arrest orders for 47 officials in connection with four corruption probes centred on Istanbul. The March 19 arrest and jailing of Imamoglu sparked the biggest street protests Turkiye had seen in more than a decade. – AFP TURKIYE ARRESTS FIVE OPPOSITION MAYORS

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Moscow demanded Ukraine pull its troops out of four eastern and southern regions that Moscow claims to have annexed as a precondition to pausing its offensive, according to the document handed to the Ukrainians that was published by Russian state media. Kyiv had pressed for a full and unconditional ceasefire. Russia instead offered a partial truce of two to three days in some areas of the frontline, its top negotiator said after the talks. Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha on Tuesday denounced Russia for presenting “old ultimatums that do not move the situation any closer to true

The sides agreed on a large-scale swap of captured soldiers and exchanged their roadmaps to peace, or so-called “memorandums”, at the discussions, which lasted less than two hours. More than three years into Russia’s offensive, which has killed tens of thousands on both sides and forced millions from their homes in eastern Ukraine, the two sides appear as irreconcilable as ever. “The settlement issue is extremely complex and involves a large number of nuances,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told

“In the near future, it is unlikely,” Peskov told reporters when asked about the chances of the leaders meeting, adding that such a summit could only happen after Russian and Ukrainian negotiators reach an “agreement”. The White House had said on Monday that US President Donald Trump was “open” to the idea, which is also backed by Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky and Turkiye’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Zelensky on Tuesday accused Russia of “deliberately” targeting civilians in a rocket attack on the city of Sumy, some 30km from the

security service claimed it had hit a pillar of the Crimean bridge linking the annexed peninsula to Russia with an underwater explosive device. The extent of the damage was unclear following a temporary closure of the bridge after the attack. A delegation of top Ukrainian officials also landed in Washington for talks with US officials on defence and economic issues, including the possibility of new sanctions, Zelensky’s office said. – AFP and that the United States “cannot have a say” on the issue. On Monday, Iran’s lead negotiator Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held talks in Cairo with Rafael Grossi, head of the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency. In its latest quarterly report last week, the IAEA said Iran had further stepped up its production of highly enriched uranium. – AFP

Uranium enrichment key point in Iran nuclear agreement TEHRAN: Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said yesterday a US proposal for a nuclear agreement was against national interest, amid sharp differences over whether Tehran can continue to enrich uranium. The longtime foes have held five rounds of talks since April to thrash out a new accord to replace the deal with major powers that US President Donald Trump abandoned during his first term in 2018. On Saturday, Iran said it had received “elements” of the US proposal through Omani mediators, the details of which have not been publicly disclosed. “The (nuclear) proposal presented by the Americans is 100% against” the ideals of the 1979 Islamic revolution, Khamenei said in a televised speech. “Independence means not waiting for the green light from America and the likes of America.” Iran’s enrichment of uranium has emerged as a major point of contention. Trump said on Monday his administration would not allow “any” enrichment, despite Tehran’s insistence it is its right under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Khamenei said enrichment is “key” to Iran’s nuclear programme