In The Grip of Starvation: Israel Will Not Let Gaza Rest!

CrossFireArabia
Features
June 2, 2026

Gaza Government Media Office Advisor Taysir Muhaysin warned of a gradual return to famine in the Gaza Strip as a result of continued Israeli policies restricting aid entry and other basic necessities.

He told the Sanad News Agency the amount of aid entering Gaza by truck does not exceed 27% of that stipulated in the last ceasefire agreement.

Muhaysin stated the Israeli policy of reducing aid is not limited to food and humanitarian supplies, but extends to fuel, including diesel, gasoline, and cooking gas, which is an essential commodity for Palestinian families to manage their daily lives and prepare whatever food they can find under the difficult living conditions.

Government institutions in the Strip continue to perform their duties at the minimum level possible, given the available resources and the exceptional circumstances Gaza is experiencing, whilst Muhaysin denying an administrative vacuum in the enclave.

He affirmed that Gaza government institutions continue to function and maintain a minimum level of stability and essential services essential to the population.

The Media Office Advisor indicated different government bodies expressed their full readiness to hand over their administrative and executive responsibilities to the “technocratic committee” as soon as it arrives in the Strip to begin its work, in accordance with the ceasefire agreement signed in 10 October, 2025. He stressed however, there are real obstacles as procedure and conditions is imposed by the Israel occupation that prevent this.

A Complex Humanitarian Crisis…

Muhaysin warned the living conditions in Gaza are really a “complex humanitarian crisis” affecting all aspects of life.

“Hundreds of thousands of citizens are still living in tents amidst the spread of epidemics and diseases,” whilst pointing to the decline in the capabilities of the health system and municipal services in addition to the severe shortage of food and essential shelter supplies.

The health sector faces increasing risks due to the ongoing shortage of fuel and medical supplies. Muhaysin noted the administration of the Al-Aqsa Hospital were forced to shutdown about 50% of its power generators, and this threatens the lives of patients, especially kidney patients, premature infants, and those in operating rooms and intensive care units.

“What Gaza is witnessing today represents an ongoing humanitarian catastrophe, caused by the decisions and measures imposed by the Israeli occupation, which has led to an unprecedented deterioration in living, health, and humanitarian conditions.”

He pointed out that the technocratic committee that is yet to enter the Gaza Strip needs to assuming its responsibilities across the entire enclave, and this needs to happen with the concurrent withdrawal of the Israeli occupation forces from the areas they reoccupied in Gaza and the commencement of international forces operations tasked with monitoring and security separation under the terms of the ceasefire.

Muhaysin accuses the Israeli occupation of attempting to impose new realities on the ground through excluding areas east of what is known as the “yellow line” from the committee’s administrative responsibility. He said these go against the principles agreed upon in the proposals put forward to end the ongoing crisis.

He concluded by saying the occupation continues to impose its own vision on the future of the Gaza Strip by repeatedly introducing new conditions and ideas, contradicting the fundamental understandings and initiatives discussed over the past months. This, he asserted, obstructs any genuine efforts to alleviate the suffering of the population and end the escalating humanitarian crisis.

The specter of famine is returning to haunt the Gaza Strip, and is coinciding with the tightening of military measures at the crossings controlled by the Israeli occupation. Such prevents the entry of humanitarian and relief aid, and allows militias affiliated with the occupation to steal the incoming aid.

At the end of May, the Palestinian Council of Ministers warned of the severity of UN reports that indicate that about 1.6 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, nearly 77% of the population, face the immediate threat of famine due to declining humanitarian funding and reduced aid flow.

In a previous statement to Sanad News Agency, Ali al-Hayek, head of the Palestinian Businessmen Association, warned of the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip. He emphasized that famine indicators are becoming increasingly apparent amid the continued decline in humanitarian aid and the curtailment of relief organizations’ operations. He noted the Gaza situation “threatens the onset of an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe.”

This article is based on an extended interview by Advisor Taysir Muhaysin published in Arabic by the Sanad News Agency and republished crossfirearabia.com

CrossFireArabia

Dr. Marwan Asmar holds a PhD from Leeds University and is a freelance writer specializing on the Middle East. He has worked as a journalist since the early 1990s in Jordan and the Gulf countries, and been widely published, including at Albawaba, Gulf News, Al Ghad, World Press Review and others.

Features

Jordan Footballers Delighted For World Cup Matches

CrossFireArabia
June 9, 2026

The qualification of Jordan’s national football team for the FIFA World Cup for the first time has sparked ambitions far beyond mere participation, with many Jordanians expressing confidence that the team can make a deep run in the tournament.

The World Cup will be hosted by the US, Canada and Mexico from June 11 to July 19, with Jordan drawn in Group J alongside Argentina, Algeria and Austria.

In interviews conducted by Anadolu in the Jordanian capital, citizens voiced optimism that the team can achieve unprecedented success on the global stage.

“When I see Jordan’s flag flying among the flags of nations around the world, it fills me with pride to be Jordanian,” said taxi driver Ahmad Al-Khalayleh. “Jordan is strong everywhere and will always remain at the forefront, and its flag will continue to fly high, God willing.”

Al-Khalayleh said the national team had faced unfair treatment in previous tournaments but was ready to meet expectations.

“I promise you that Jordan will leave a distinctive mark in its opening match against Austria, and the players will compete with one spirit and one heart,” he said.

Wadie Al-Qaisi, a young supporter, said he hoped the tournament would showcase Jordan’s growing football stature.

“We want the entire world to recognize Jordan’s value and the strength of its national team, and how capable it is of breaking records and achieving the ambitions of the Jordanian people,” he said. “We hope to reach the highest levels at the World Cup.”

Another fan, Aboud Al-Deek, said Jordanians were celebrating a historic achievement.

“We are very optimistic about the national team players reaching this advanced stage and qualifying for the World Cup finals for the first time,” he said. “The entire Jordanian people are happy about this achievement, and we look forward to seeing an outstanding and impressive performance.”

Haitham Al-Dajaah said the team’s success should encourage greater investment in youth football development.

“As fans and members of the sporting community, we hope to see greater attention given to youth and junior development programs so that we can compete in the advanced stages of future World Cups,” he said. “With ambition, determination and perseverance, we will be a formidable force at the World Cup, God willing.”

Young supporter Hamza Salah expressed the highest hopes of all.

“There is a sense of optimism that the national team will advance to the later stages, such as the quarterfinals or semifinals, and even win the trophy, God willing,” he said. “Jordan is capable of achieving that.” Anadolu

Features

Diving in a War Zone

CrossFireArabia
June 8, 2026

By Jing Zhang

When US and Israeli forces launched strikes on Iran on 28 February, triggering one of the most serious geopolitical crises in years, the Strait of Hormuz – a narrow channel just 34 kilometres wide at its narrowest point – became a global flashpoint overnight.

Iran closed the waterway to foreign shipping, attacking merchant vessels and cutting off around 20 per cent of the world’s seaborne oil trade. Some 20,000 seafarers were stranded in the Persian Gulf. The UN Secretary-General called for an immediate ceasefire.

Beneath all of it, the fish kept swimming.

Back in the water

Three Chinese divers based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) – diving instructor Rui Li, freediver Shanshan Du and technical diver Jie Zhang – had been locked out of the water for weeks by the coastal closure. When a ceasefire allowed limited access in mid-April, they went straight back in.

World Oceans Day, marked each year on 8 June, carries the theme this year of Reimagining the Relationship Between Humans and the Ocean. For these three, that reimagining is anything but abstract.

“We were actually a little worried before setting off,” says Du, who dived the narrowest stretch between the UAE and Oman on 18 April, just days after the UN welcomed Iran’s announcement that the strait would be open to commercial vessels during the ceasefire.

“But after more than two months, we all felt it was fantastic to be able to dive again. We encountered a large group of dolphins. There was none of the war-torn atmosphere I had imagined – only peace and beauty before my eyes.”

Zhang, who dived the area as recently as last week, describes coral diversity she has rarely encountered elsewhere – soft and hard corals varying with the topography, and sea turtles gathered in such numbers they evoked a nature reserve.

A person in a scuba diving suit and mask makes a peace sign against the ocean and blue sky. — Courtesy of Jie Zhang. Jie Zhang is back from the depths, feeling the warmth of the sun.

Troubling signs

She also noticed something more troubling. “I saw more white debris on the seabed than before,” she says, uncertain of its origin. And when she and her companions followed dolphins near the eastern side of the strait, the water around the animals was streaked with green algae, oil fumes and floating rubbish.

“I recalled that when I used to chase dolphins, the water was blue. Seeing this scene with my own eyes is still very heartbreaking.”

Li is careful to hold both realities at once. The strait is not the world’s most biodiverse marine zone, he notes, but its complex topography sustains coral reefs of unusual variety – formations “as white as silver needles” alongside colonies “as purple as pine forests” – as well as seahorses, whale sharks and species rarely seen elsewhere.

He describes witnessing a boat captain who, unable to dive and with no other means of communication, could reliably find a pod of dolphins that seemed to recognise him. “We would greet each other and then go our separate ways,” Li says. “This place is truly magical.”

A wide bay with deep blue water, bordered by arid, rocky mountains and a small coastal settlement on the right. — ©Jie Zhang Overlooking the Strait of Hormuz from the Musandam Peninsula, Oman.

Potential catastrophe

Yet he is also acutely aware of what armed conflict can do to such a place. An attack on oil storage facilities, he points out, could be catastrophic for marine life. “Many marine organisms are small and vulnerable. A single attack could be enough to wipe out some amazing species that have never been seen by humans.”

Zhang frames the underwater world’s vulnerability in blunt terms. “No one can speak for the underwater ecosystem – fish can’t speak, and neither can large animals.

“We dump all the disputes, wars and pollution on land onto the ocean, ignoring the fact that the ocean has no good self-protection capabilities and can only bear all the conflicts and damage caused by human activities.”

Diving has quietly dissolved certain certainties for all three. “Underwater, the ocean has no borders,” says Zhang. “Ocean currents and schools of fish move freely. When whale sharks cruise, they follow fixed routes through different countries – they are free. Humanity should share this blue world instead of tearing it apart with disputes.”

A person in a wetsuit and goggles floats in the ocean, adjusting their mask with both hands. — ©Jie Zhang Rui Li makes a heart gesture to his dive buddy on the water’s surface, which also stands for “OK” in diving hand signal terms.

Mother ocean

Li reaches for a different metaphor – warmer, and perhaps more honest about the limits of human agency. The relationship between people and the sea, he suggests, is something like that between a child and a parent: the ocean sustains us, nurtures us, occasionally punishes us.

“We have grown old enough to want to protect it, he says, yet what we can actually do remains small. “Our parents are still quietly waiting for us, helping us, and continuing to nurture us.”

Du, diving in a country where people of dozens of nationalities converge, has found that underwater, borders feel beside the point. Communication happens through gesture alone. “Because of this hobby, and because of the ocean, it has created a wonderful environment for us.”

The conflicts raging above the surface have not ended. Talks between Washington and Tehran remain fragile, conditions volatile. But 71 per cent of the Earth is ocean – and, as Li says to anyone who has yet to see it: come and touch the refreshing water whenever you can.