Shaaban Al Dalu: Burned Alive
CrossFireArabia- February 25, 2025
Have you forgotten him? He is the young man burned alive by Nazi Israel before your very eyes! His name is Shaaban Al-Dalu, we will never forget, and we will never forgive!
Jordan’s Fight Against Displacement
- CrossFireArabia
- February 19, 2025
With the conclusion of the first meeting between President Donald Trump and His Majesty King Abdullah, Jordan finds itself facing a real political test. The strategy of buying time with an administration that has been in office for only a few weeks may not offer much room for maneuvering, making it increasingly difficult to navigate the direction of US policy. Jordan has sought to carve out a space for itself by engaging with the American president and promoting an alternative that has broader Arab support. However, this approach requires swift action and the presentation of practical alternatives that could gradually shape Trump’s perspective.
Jordan now needs to build strong alliances to manage the next phase and counter the looming threat of forced displacement of Gaza’s population—a proposal that Trump has openly suggested as the only solution. Regionally, Jordan finds itself alongside Egypt as both countries face direct pressure from the US displacement plan. This shared challenge has reinforced their cooperation on various regional issues over the years, yet expanding the Arab alliance has now become an urgent necessity. The multiple forms of US pressure on Egypt make it crucial to establish a stronger, more resilient Arab coalition, with Saudi Arabia playing a central role.
Trump views Saudi Arabia as a gateway to regional peace and a key economic partner, not only for the United States, but also for a major strategic project aimed at linking India to Europe through the Arabian Peninsula, the Mediterranean, and Italy. This highlights the importance of Saudi Arabia’s role in Trump’s vision. At the same time, Jordan’s southern geography is closely tied to Saudi Arabia within this ambitious economic corridor, which strengthens shared economic interests between the two countries. This growing economic partnership could lay the groundwork for deeper political coordination, including a potential Jordanian-Saudi understanding regarding the proposed displacement policy.
On the international level, Jordan can work to rally support for its political stance, which enjoys broad consensus among key global actors. However, at this stage, prioritising Arab alliances and maintaining effective communication channels with the US administration is far more critical than merely seeking international backing.
Domestically, Jordan’s internal front remains the most crucial. The current climate presents an opportunity for the state to reinforce national unity, as growing regional instability has heightened public awareness of external threats. This requires decisive steps to foster genuine political participation and address long-standing grievances of exclusion and marginalization. A shift in political discourse, engagement strategies, and governance methods is necessary to strengthen national cohesion. Uniting Jordanians under an inclusive and representative state framework will be vital in shaping a new phase in the country’s history.
What remains striking is how Jordan was suddenly thrust into the equation of resolving the Gaza crisis. From the outset of the war, discussions primarily centered around Egypt due to its direct geographical connection to Gaza. However, Trump’s unexpected move to involve Jordan has now exposed the country to two major risks: the potential displacement of Gaza’s population and, more alarmingly, the forced displacement of West Bank residents. The push to make Jordan part of the US plan for Gaza raises concerns that this could lead to an imposed reality in which Jordan is expected to absorb West Bank residents as well.
Categorically rejecting forced displacement must be Jordan’s top priority. However, achieving this requires a high level of political agility and the ability to engage in direct negotiations with all relevant stakeholders. This approach would strengthen Jordan’s regional role at a time when further Israeli escalation across multiple fronts, including Gaza and the West Bank, seems increasingly likely. Such an escalation could be used by the Israeli government to block political maneuvering and impose new realities on the ground. A military confrontation could shift the issue of displacement from a political debate to an unavoidable reality, forcing all parties to confront its consequences.
The author is an academic writing for The Jordan Times.
Gaza: After 500 Days The Horrors Must Stop
- CrossFireArabia
- February 18, 2025
Palestinians in Gaza are suffering daily new horrors despite the ceasefire, Islamic Relief says as the world marks 500 days of the escalation.
Hundreds of thousands of families remain homeless, forced to live in tents or temporary shelters, as more than 92% of homes have been damaged or destroyed by Israeli attacks and reconstruction has not yet begun. Families are still digging the bodies of loved from beneath 50 million tonnes of rubble that used to be homes, schools and health clinics, and neighbourhoods are now strewn with unexploded ordnance that have blown up and killed young children as they play or walk home.
The scale of destruction is unprecedented. Entire neighbourhoods and public services have been obliterated, and livelihoods shattered, and almost everyone left grieving. Israel’s attacks have systematically targeted every aspect of Gaza’s infrastructure and social fabric in a deliberate campaign to render Gaza unliveable.
Since the ceasefire there has been a big increase in aid allowed into Gaza, but it remains a drop in the ocean compared to the overwhelming needs. Although more food is now entering, there is still a desperate shortage of tents, medicine, fuel and heavy machinery for clearing rubble and repairing the damaged roads. Gaza remains under Israel’s illegal blockade that has been in place for almost 18 years, through which Israel controls the movement of all goods and people in and out of the territory and which has turned Gaza into the world’s largest open-air prison camp.
Islamic Relief has been able to scale up its work in Gaza since the ceasefire, reaching thousands more families all over the Strip. Since October 2023 Islamic Relief and partners have delivered aid including over 67 million hot cooked meals as well as supplying water, psychosocial support and physical rehabilitation for wounded children.
Yet, the ceasefire remains dangerously fragile and is being further undermined by rising Israeli attacks in the West Bank and growing threats to force Palestinians out of Gaza, which would amount to ethnic cleansing and must be opposed. International governments must not allow the ceasefire to collapse and must do all they can to ensure it becomes permanent.
The surge in Israeli attacks in the West Bank have caused the highest levels of displacement there in decades, with 40,000 Palestinians forced from their homes over the last few weeks amid deadly and indiscriminate bombardment, ground offensives and tightening restrictions on civilian movement.
International governments must ensure there is accountability for the horrors and crimes of the past 500 days. As Israel continues to violate international law through its ongoing occupation and attacks on civilians, we continue to call on governments to end the impunity and take concrete action including ending arms sales that continue to fuel further violations of international law.
Islamic Relief believes the ceasefire in Gaza must lead to a lasting peace, where all people can live in safety and dignity, with their fundamental human rights upheld. We believe this will only be possible when there is an end to Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine. International governments must immediately outline how they will abide by the International Court of Justice’s July 2024 ruling that Israel’s illegal occupation must be ended as soon as possible.
Roadmap: Gaza Needs $53 Billion to be Rebuilt
- CrossFireArabia
- February 18, 2025
Reconstruction and recovery needs in Gaza are estimated to require $53 billion, according to the Gaza & West Bank Interim Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (IRDNA) released Tuesday. The report analyzes damages and losses as well as recovery and reconstruction needs across almost all sectors of the Palestinian economy based on data from October 2023-October 2024.
- Rapid Damage and Needs Assessments follow a globally recognized methodology that has been applied in multiple contexts to inform recovery and reconstruction planning.
- With on-ground access restrictions and the rapid pace at which the situation is evolving in Gaza, the IRDNA provides an interim estimate of the impacts and needs.
- Damages to physical structures alone are estimated at about $30 billion.
- Housing was by far the hardest hit sector, accounting for 53% of total damages, followed by commerce and industry at 20%.
- Extensive damage to lifeline infrastructure such as health, water and transport is estimated at over 15% of the total damages.
- Economic losses from reduced productivity, foregone revenues, and operating costs are estimated at $19 billion, with health, education and commerce bearing the biggest toll.
- Some sectors face higher recovery needs than the value of the physical destruction sustained, such as the funding needed for the management of the between 41 to 47 million tons of rubble and debris.
Almost all sectors in Gaza have experienced a total halt in economic production. Prices in Gaza have soared over 300% in one year, with food prices alone up by 450%. Gaza’s economy is projected to have contracted by 83% in 2024, dropping its overall contribution to the economy to 3%, despite being home to 40% of the population in the Palestinian territories. The West Bank’s economy is also struggling and is projected to have shrunk by 16% in 2024.
The report, jointly produced by the World Bank Group, the United Nations and the European Union, puts forward a roadmap for sequencing recovery efforts along with their associated costs in the short and medium term. It underscores the importance of a closely coordinated multisectoral response involving all stakeholders. The report further notes that the speed, scale and scope of recovery and reconstruction will be shaped by factors such as governance arrangements, entry to and mobility within the Gaza Strip for people and goods, law and order, and safety and security.
