In the midst of all of the horrifying news from the Middle East and the accompanying surge in hate crimes here in the US, it was weirdly charming to get a public safety alert email warning us that a bear had been sighted near campus.
WaPo: 1.4 million civilians displaced in Gaza, air strikes everywhere, 30% of housing destroyed, 4000 dead, 1000 more likely under rubble, food and water running out, and the ground invasion hasn’t even begun. www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/1...
United Nations chief António Guterres visited the Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza Friday, saying aid trucks were still blocked from reaching Palestinians.
Oh no.
Breaking news: An attack on the al-Ahli Hospital in the middle of Gaza City is believed to have killed hundreds of people, a spokesman for the Palestinian Civil Defense told The Washington Post. Live updates here:
President Biden will visit Israel on Wednesday to show solidarity and address the growing humanitarian needs of civilians in Gaza. A trip to Jordan will follow.
Reminder: If you’re looking to help those being impacted in Gaza right now, please consider Anera: www.anera.orgwww.charitynavigator.org/ein/520882226
Support humanitarian response in Gaza DONATE NOW FAQs about our Gaza response. Sign up for news from the Middle East! The latest URGENT STATEMENT Statement on the Evacuation and its Humanitarian Conse...
1. There is nowhere to go. Gaza is 139 sq mi/365 sq km (DC is 177) 2. There is no way to get there. Spoke to a humanitarian friend. Many of Gaza's roads not usable 3. There is no out. Rafah crossing was bombed this week. Egypt won't host millions of refugees www.theguardian.com/world/2023/o...
UN says Israeli military has given 1.1 million Gaza residents 24 hours to move amid warnings it could cause ‘devastating humanitarian consequences’
Amen. But also: Mostly, the kids are alright. I teach a class on the Arab-Israeli conflict, and reading my students' final papers (the assignment for which is "Please solve the Arab-Israeli conflict") is one of the few things that has given me any optimism over the past decade.
@sheeraf.bsky.social reports that Hamas "wanted to establish its own narratives and seek support from allies through social media". The parallels with social media use in the war in Syria are really striking; the difference is, Twitter used to have functional moderation.
Many of the violent videos and images posted to social media since Hamas attacked Israel have been seeded by Hamas to terrorize civilians and take advantage of the lack of content moderation on some sites, including X and Telegram, a Hamas official and social media experts said.
The strategy mirrors efforts by extremist groups like the Islamic State and Al Qaeda in years past.
PIJ claims responsibility for Lebanon incursion. Lebanese sources tell Reuters Hezbollah operative killed in Israeli retaliation strike. That’s not good in case you’re wondering since Hezbollah has a strict policy of blood for blood.
