Our website use cookies to improve and personalize your experience and to display advertisements (if any). Our website may also include cookies from third parties like Google Adsense, Google Analytics, and Youtube. By using the website, you consent to the use of cookies.

October 7 two years on: Israelis and Palestinians caught between two conflicting ideas of peace

October 7 two years on: Israelis and Palestinians caught between two conflicting ideas of peace

WHEN US President Donald Trump recently announced his 20-point peace plan for Israel and Hamas, he claimed the moment was: “Potentially, one of the great days ever in civilisation … and I’m not just talking about Gaza … the whole deal, everything getting solved. It’s called peace in the Middle East.” But there’s a massive gap between the diplomatic stage and the harsh reality faced by ordinary people in both Israel and Gaza. Two years after October 7, one Israeli wrote on X about the shock he experienced when the war began: “When the first reports started rolling in that…
Read More
“Return, or prison”: Inside IOM and Greece’s failing migrant return scheme

“Return, or prison”: Inside IOM and Greece’s failing migrant return scheme

GREECE’S new Minister of Migration, Thanos Plevris, has given a blunt ultimatum to those he calls “illegal migrants” in the country: “return, or prison”. A bill presented to Greece’s parliament in July proposes to reform the country’s procedures for removing third-country nationals. It would make rejected asylum seekers liable to a criminal sentence of two to five years if they remain undocumented. This story was originally published by The New Humanitarian.By Phevos Simeonidis, Hope Barker and Anas Ambri “Our goal is to expedite returns, even before the asylum process is completed,” Plevris said in early August, while touring reception camps…
Read More
Hamas and Israel are on the verge of a ceasefire. What’s being left unsaid, though, could scupper the deal

Hamas and Israel are on the verge of a ceasefire. What’s being left unsaid, though, could scupper the deal

HAMAS announced that it has accepted several parts of the peace plan put forth by US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to finally end Israel’s war on Gaza. Hamas has agreed to release the remaining Israeli captives it holds and is willing to hand over administration of Gaza to a technocratic committee proposed by the plan. However, Hamas did not say it would disarm. Nor did it agree to withdraw from Palestinian politics fully. Instead, it said the future of the Gaza Strip and the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people should be decided on the…
Read More
Top UN official in Gaza accused of “serving Israeli interests”

Top UN official in Gaza accused of “serving Israeli interests”

THE UN’s top representative in Gaza has enabled Israel’s weaponisation of aid, alienated Palestinian and international colleagues, and contributed to Israeli efforts to sow division among humanitarians, aid workers involved in the response told The New Humanitarian. Suzanna Tkalec was appointed in early 2025 as the UN’s Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory – the UN’s most senior Gaza-based role, which involves negotiating access with Israeli authorities on behalf of UN agencies and the wider humanitarian community. Eleven aid workers currently or recently involved in the Gaza response – five of them in senior roles – spoke to…
Read More
ICE fears put pregnant immigrants and their babies at risk

ICE fears put pregnant immigrants and their babies at risk

IN the lead up to her son’s birth, Jacqueline made plans to call 911 for an ambulance to pick her up from her North Florida home and transport her to a hospital about an hour away. The second-time mom and Guatemalan immigrant, who has lived in the country for a decade, would have relied on her husband to drive her to the hospital. But a few months ago, he was deported, leaving Jacqueline and her daughter without the family’s primary source of income, transportation and support.   This story was originally reported by Mel Leonor Barclay and Shefali Luthra of The…
Read More
African countries gear up for major push on climate innovation, climate financing and climate change laws

African countries gear up for major push on climate innovation, climate financing and climate change laws

THE Second Africa Climate Summit, held in Ethiopia in September 2025, drew more than 25,000 people – from presidents and ministers to farmers, activists, business leaders and students. They came to talk about how Africa can source finance to grow in greener ways and cope with worsening climate disasters. Africa has barely contributed to greenhouse gas emissions, but is highly exposed to climate-caused disasters. At the same time, the continent is not funded enough to adapt to the warming planet. Legal scholar Pedi Obani looks at the three biggest plans unveiled at the summit – and what it will take…
Read More
On a grim anniversary, an end to Gaza’s violence is suddenly clear – if both sides can make sacrifices

On a grim anniversary, an end to Gaza’s violence is suddenly clear – if both sides can make sacrifices

TWO years into the most horrific chapter in the history of Israel and Palestine, a glimmer of hope has been offered to both sides by US President Donald Trump’s plan for a permanent ceasefire and initial steps towards a faraway peace, or at least coexistence. The plan at this stage is extremely vague, full of holes and strongly biased toward the Israeli side. However, it currently enjoys robust international support and legitimacy – arguably, stronger than any peace plan in the past two years. It demands significant concessions from both sides, though much more so for Hamas, with punitive measures…
Read More
Ten humanitarian crises that demand your attention now

Ten humanitarian crises that demand your attention now

EVERY year, our team of specialist editors draws up a list of humanitarian crises to watch. In 2026, as ever, there are strong cases for including several more dynamic settings, from the Sahel to Iran, from Yemen to Myanmar. This is just a selection: Venezuela: Between a rock and a hard place The US military assault inside Venezuela and the kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro on 3 January came as a shock and a disturbing reminder of the kind of US interventionism in Latin America most hoped had been consigned to history. Even if millions of Venezuelans initially celebrated the…
Read More
‘We heard you’: Judge addresses victims after handing Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs a 4-year sentence

‘We heard you’: Judge addresses victims after handing Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs a 4-year sentence

CONTENT WARNING: This story depicts details of physical and psychological abuse. A federal judge sentenced music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs on Friday to 50 months in prison — just over four years — marking an end to a trial against one of the most influential names in entertainment. Combs must also pay a $500,000 fine. “To Ms Ventura and the other brave survivors that came forward, I want to say first: We heard you,” Judge Arun Subramanian said after he pronounced the sentence. Prosecutors with the Manhattan U.S. attorney's office sought an 11-year sentence for Combs to “reflect the substantial…
Read More
“We live as if we are in a barren desert”: Rasha Abou Jalal’s Gaza City diary, part 3

“We live as if we are in a barren desert”: Rasha Abou Jalal’s Gaza City diary, part 3

RASHA Abou Jalal, her husband, and their five children were forced out of Gaza City by Israel’s ongoing invasion in mid-September. After an exhausting, dangerous, and demoralising journey south, they have been trying to figure out how to navigate life in the Nuseirat area of the central Gaza Strip. This story was originally published by The New Humanitarian.By Rasha Abou Jalal In addition to the violent assault on Gaza City, Israel tried to persuade Palestinians to leave for the south by promising that there would be more food and services available. But with 82% of the enclave designated as military…
Read More