Features Archives - CrossFireArarbia

Israel’s Gaza Bombing Surpasses ISIS Days

CrossFireArabia
April 4, 2025

The nature of Israel’s crimes in the Gaza Strip must be denounced, particularly the crimes’ horrifying scope, methodical execution, and wide-ranging effects, which surpass those of armed groups like ISIS. While the crimes committed by ISIS have been widely denounced by the international community, the same community is now mostly silent—and therefore complicit—as Israel pursues a campaign of declared genocide that aims to exterminate the Palestinian people from their homeland.

For almost 18 months, this campaign has been running continuously.

Israeli occupation forces detonated a robot today (Thursday 3 April 2025) rigged with tonnes of explosives in the heart of the densely-populated Shuja’iyya neighbourhood in eastern Gaza City. The explosion occurred in an area packed with displaced civilians, though there was no military necessity and no combat activity in the vicinity. This act embodies the conduct of existing terrorist organizations, even surpassing them in brutality and disregard for human life, and bears no resemblance to the conduct of a state bound by international law, regardless of any attempts to distort or evade it.

21 killed

The explosion killed 21 Palestinians and injured around 100 others, the majority of them women and children. A full residential block was obliterated with its residents still inside, and this is not an isolated incident. Over recent months—particularly in the northern Gaza Strip—Israel has increasingly used explosive-laden robots in residential neighbourhoods during its ground incursions. At least 150 such detonations have resulted in the deaths of hundreds of civilians, mostly women and children, and caused wide-scale destruction to homes and other essential infrastructure.

A separate atrocity was committed on 23 March, when Israeli forces detained 15 Palestinian rescue workers from the Palestinian Red Crescent and Civil Defence, along with a United Nations staff member, before executing them extrajudicially—some while their hands were bound. Their bodies were dumped into a pit, and the ambulances they had been traveling in were destroyed. This incident is another blatant example of an intentional Israeli crime mirroring—and exceeding—the brutality of groups like ISIS, as it reveals a clear and deliberate intent to annihilate Palestinians both physically and through psychologically terrorizing residents across the Strip.

Euro-Med Monitor field teams have documented thousands of crimes committed by Israeli forces, constituting overwhelming evidence of mass atrocities. These crimes include an unprecedented pattern of violence in recent history, in terms of scale, deliberate targeting, and genocidal intent. A minimum of 58,000 Palestinians have been killed, the majority of them women and children, and most have been buried beneath the rubble of homes deliberately destroyed over their heads, while many were killed by sniper fire with clear intent. Over 120,000 individuals have been injured, and at least 39,000 children have been orphaned. The Gaza Strip’s infrastructure, including homes, hospitals, and schools, has been virtually obliterated.

Extermination Campaigns

These acts amount to one of the most extensive and systematic campaigns of extermination in contemporary history, underscoring the urgent need for international accountability, an end to Israeli impunity, and concrete action to halt further atrocities.

Israel’s methods in the Gaza Strip—particularly its mass killing of civilians—bear a striking resemblance to the tactics used by groups the international community has widely condemned as terrorist. However, the atrocities unfolding in the Strip are far more dangerous in terms of scale, brutality, and systematic intent, and cannot be understood merely as a function of violent methods or tools.

What is occurring in the Gaza Strip constitutes a full-scale genocide carried out by a state actor with international legal personality and obligations under international law to protect civilians. Instead, Israel is deploying its military, legal, judicial, and media apparatuses, and benefiting from broad international political protection, to carry out a systematic campaign of destruction against a defenceless population subjected to its settler-colonial and apartheid regime. Palestinians living under this regime are no longer subjected to exclusion, oppression, and intermittent bombardment, as in past years. Rather, Israel is now granted open legitimacy to pursue the extermination of Palestinians in the enclave—unchecked and without accountability.

These actions cannot be dismissed as random or extreme policies, but rather represent a fully-fledged model of organised state terrorism, driven by a comprehensive blueprint for annihilation and implemented in full view of the international community. These crimes are being committed with clear, declared intent to eliminate the Palestinian people as a national and collective entity, uproot those who remain on their land, erase their identity, and ultimately end their collective existence.

The shocking paradox is that these crimes—greater in scope, structure, and severity than those committed by proscribed armed groups—are not met with proportionate condemnation. On the contrary, Israel commits them under the very banner of international legitimacy. While quick to criminalise the actions of non-state terror groups, the international community has extended a false veneer of legality to Israel’s genocide, enabling its prolongation and offering total immunity to the perpetrators.

Ending this double standard is no longer a matter of choice, as it represents a direct assault on the foundations of international law and reveals a racist hypocrisy in the collective protection framework that must be addressed. Treating Israel’s crimes as exceptional and beyond accountability undermines the core principles of the global legal order and entrenches one of the most dangerous forms of impunity.

Stop the Israeli genocide

All states, both individually and collectively, must fulfil their legal obligations and take urgent action to stop Israel’s genocide in the Gaza Strip in all its forms. This includes implementing concrete measures to protect Palestinian civilians, ensuring Israel’s compliance with international legal norms and the rulings of the International Court of Justice, and guaranteeing full accountability for perpetrators of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

It is important to implement the arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court against the Israeli Prime Minister and Defence Minister at the earliest opportunity and ensurethese individuals’ transfer to international justice.

Furthermore, the international community must impose comprehensive economic, diplomatic, and military sanctions on Israel in response to its grave and systematic violations of international law. This includes an arms embargo; the cessation of all political, financial, and military cooperation; asset freezes of implicated officials; travel bans; and the suspension of trade privileges and bilateral agreements that provide Israel with economic benefits, enabling its continued crimes.

Finally, all relevant states and entities must hold complicit governments accountable, foremost among them the United States, along with other nations that provide Israel with direct or indirect support in executing its crimes. Any assistance or engagement in the Israeli military, intelligence, political, legal, or financial sectors, and/or cooperation with Israel’s media, contributes to the continuation of atrocities against the Palestinian people.

Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor

Features

‘In Gaza We Die a 1000 Deaths a Day’

CrossFireArabia
April 3, 2025

For over a year and five months, the people of Gaza have endured an unrelenting war of extermination—one that has robbed them not only of life’s comforts but of its very essence. Eighteen months of ceaseless suffering, where mere survival has become an act of defiance. The Israeli genocide in Gaza has drained every ounce of their strength—physically, mentally, and emotionally. And for those not granted the mercy of a single, swift death, every moment is a slow, agonizing descent into an unspeakable catastrophe. A never-ending cycle of death inflicted upon them by Israel—where one does not simply perish once, but dies a thousand deaths every day.

Under the relentless barrage of missiles raining down upon us, every passing moment is a gamble with fate. If we escape death today, there is no certainty that it will not claim us tomorrow—for in Israel’s eyes, we are all targets. As if the ceaseless bombardment were not enough, we are also stripped of life’s most basic essentials: food, water, electricity. Existence itself has been reduced to an endless procession of lines—one for a sip of clean water, another for a brief charge of a phone, yet another for a meager ration of humanitarian aid.

But among all these hardships, one of the most crushing has been the loss of cooking gas. With the suffocating blockade and the total closure of border crossings, the last fragile thread connecting us to a semblance of normalcy has been severed. Preparing a meal has become an ordeal, an insurmountable task that drapes every household in Gaza with the weight of exhaustion and despair.

The Cooking Gas Crisis: How It Began

Even before the total closure of Gaza’s crossings during Israel’s war of extermination, access to cooking gas was already scarce, failing to meet the population’s basic needs. Nowhere was this crisis felt more acutely than in the north, where gas barely trickled in—even during the rare moments when Israel allowed limited supplies into the south.

When a brief ceasefire was brokered—only to be swiftly shattered by Israel—residents of northern Gaza were once again left without their share. And the moment the ceasefire ended, the crossings were slammed shut once more, plunging people back into uncertainty, forcing them to navigate survival in the face of the unknown.

Malak Radwan, a resident of northern Gaza, recalls: “The first time we managed to get any cooking gas was after the ceasefire in February, 2025. But it didn’t come from our area—we had to depend on our relatives in the south to share what little they had.”

In southern Gaza, gas distribution operated through a system known as “Gas Lists,” where families were registered in a turn-based queue to receive their cylinders. Even then, the allocated amounts were woefully insufficient to meet the needs of the population. Yet, despite its scarcity and inflated cost, gas was still seen as a rare privilege—one that people clung to with gratitude.

But as the siege tightened and Israel’s total closure of the crossings dragged on, these lists became little more than illusions of hope—long, stagnant lines that might never move. According to the Government Media Office in Gaza, the Israeli occupation has prevented the entry of 18,600 aid trucks and 1,550 fuel trucks, including those carrying cooking gas, further exacerbating the suffering of the Palestinian people. Left stranded in uncertainty, families were forced to seek out alternative ways to cook, even as every other resource around them faded into oblivion.

Alternative Cooking Methods Amidst Catastrophe

They say necessity is the mother of invention, but what happens when all means of invention have vanished? Can the resort to primitive methods still be considered innovation in the face of such overwhelming disaster?

In Gaza, residents have been driven to rely on primitive cooking methods—each effort a dangerous gamble that weighs heavily on their bodies, their souls, and their fragile mental state.

Once, gathering around a coal fire to brew tea on a cold winter’s night was a beloved family ritual, a moment unmatched in its warmth. But now, that same fire has been forced upon us as a way of life—one that ignites not only our stoves but also the anguish in our hearts.

Yet, even firewood has become a distant luxury. Its price has soared, driven by the scarcity of trees, forcing some to scavenge shattered wood from the ruins of bombed homes or burn whatever fragments of furniture they have left. Never did we envision a day when we would be compelled to set our own belongings aflame just to prepare a meal.

“My fingers seem to melt with the fire every time I light it,” my mother sighs.

With firewood becoming prohibitively expensive, many have resorted to standing in yet another queue—this time in front of makeshift clay ovens, hoping to cook whatever food they have left. Umm Mohammad, a displaced woman from northern Gaza, has started her own small business: operating a clay oven where she bakes bread and prepares meals in exchange for a few Shekels.
“I began this work to support myself after losing everything during my displacement to the south. At the same time, I wanted to help those who have no means of cooking in their homes or tents,” she says.

For many families, even a few shekels are out of reach. The only remaining option is to rely on community kitchens—yet another queue to stand in, another obstacle in the endless struggle for survival. These kitchens provide just one meal a day, forcing many to subsist on cold canned food for the rest of their meals. Even the single meal was denied to them by the Israeli occupation. According to a report issued by the Government Media Office in Gaza, the Israeli occupation has directly targeted 60 charity kitchens and aid centers in a ruthless campaign aimed at starving the Palestinian people in Gaza. This has resulted in 80% of Gazan citizens losing their source of food.

The impact has been especially harsh on children and the elderly, who desperately need warm, nutritious food to sustain them.

And this is yet another burden we set aside amid the bleakness of our lives. Here in Gaza, the closure of border crossings is not the only barrier worsening the disaster of cooking gas shortages. As Gazans, we do not have the luxury of choosing our daily meals, nor do we have the privilege of enjoying a well-balanced diet. Every day, we are forced to go to the market, only to face the recurring frustration of missing food supplies. We are compelled to prepare meals we do not desire because no alternatives exist, and to eat unbalanced meals because we cannot afford anything better. Here, every moment we endure is a catastrophe in itself.

The Health and Social Consequences of the Gas Shortage

The crisis extends far beyond the inability to cook—it has dire implications for both health and society. Malnutrition has become rampant due to the lack of proper food preparation, leading to widespread cases of general weakness and anemia, especially among children.

Respiratory illnesses have also surged, as people are forced to burn wood and coal inside their homes, inhaling thick smoke with every breath. This has exacerbated the suffering of the sick and elderly.

Amani Al-Ghefari, a resident of northern Gaza, recounts her ordeal: “As someone with nearsightedness who wears corrective glasses, the smoke from burning wood has not only worsened my vision but has also caused a constant burning in my eyes, accompanied by migraines and relentless coughing. The most harrowing consequence, however, has been the physical strain—splitting firewood has taken a severe toll on my joints, leading to months of painful physical therapy.”

But the catastrophe is not limited to physical health—it has deeply scarred the psyche of every Gazan. Food is no longer just a means of sustenance; it has become a haunting memory of life before the genocide. The warmth of family gatherings around a meal has been replaced by a daily struggle for mere survival.
One mother confesses in anguish:
“I can no longer cook a warm meal for my children. I feel helpless, unable to provide for their most basic needs.”

Gaza’s Plea for Its Most Basic Rights

Amidst this suffering, numerous humanitarian organizations have made urgent appeals for aid to enter Gaza. The World Food Programme has expressed concern over the closure of 25 bakeries it supports in Gaza, due to a lack of fuel and flour. Yet, Israel continues its punitive policies, blocking fuel and essential supplies. Human rights advocates persist in calling for the immediate reopening of crossings and the unrestricted flow of aid to all areas of the Strip.

What is happening in Gaza is not merely a humanitarian crisis—it is an orchestrated catastrophe. Life as we knew it has been obliterated, and the suffering has surpassed all conceivable limits. Now more than ever, there is an urgent need for decisive international intervention to save the people of Gaza and to lift the inhumane siege that deprives them of even the most basic right—to cook their own food.

Silence is no longer an option. Every passing moment means more hunger, more pain, more devastation. Supporting Gaza is not just a humanitarian duty—it is a moral imperative that the world can no longer afford to ignore.

Quds News Network

Features

15 Martyred: Why Does Israel Kill Ambulance Men?

CrossFireArabia
April 2, 2025

The international community must hold Israeli officials and responsible individuals accountable for the deliberate killing of 15 paramedics and first responders from the Palestinian Red Crescent and Civil Defense. The victims—killed by the Israeli military in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip—also include an employee of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA). This killing is part of Israel’s widespread and systematic attacks on humanitarian, medical, and UN workers, all of whom are protected by international law.

According to field evidence, Israeli forces killed eight Palestinian Red Crescent paramedics, five Civil Defence personnel, and one UNRWA employee; all were on duty at the time of their targeting. The crime has been referred to as “the largest mass execution of humanitarian workers in the history of modern warfare”. Following the total destruction of the workers’ vehicles, the majority of their bodies were subsequently interred in a deep pit that was then filled with sand. This horrifying scene serves as further evidence of Israel’s ongoing genocide in the Gaza Strip, and is a major crime that is a serious breach of international humanitarian law.

Israel’s execution of 15 medical personnel is unprecedented in recent history; crime demands immediate accountability https://t.co/dlc4i9z3Nb
— Euro-Med Monitor (@EuroMedHR) April 1, 2025

The crime is just one of a string of intentional assaults that have been directed at humanitarian and medical workers since 7 October 2023. Since then, Israel has killed over 1,400 medical personnel, 27 Red Crescent paramedics, and 111 Civil Defense personnel as part of a systematic campaign to destroy the Gaza Strip’s health and relief infrastructure to kill Palestinians, while simultaneously aiming to destroy their means of subsistence as well.

A Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance left Rafah’s Hashash neighbourhood early on Sunday (23 March 2025) to evacuate injured individuals who had been hit by Israeli attacks. However, the medical staff inside the ambulance suffered injuries themselves as a result of the Israeli occupation forces’ intense fire. Three more ambulances were sent to evacuate the injured, including the crew members hurt in the initial attack, as the situation worsened. The area was then abruptly surrounded by a strict security cordon by the occupation forces, which has since cut off all communication with medical personnel.

That same day, a Civil Defense rescue team in Rafah’s Tal al-Sultan neighbourhood received urgent calls to travel to al-Hashash area. The calls stated that Israeli occupation forces had unexpectedly invaded the area, killing and injuring dozens of people and trapping medical personnel. Though the call was answered by a team of six Civil Defense personnel, communication with the team was lost shortly after they left to do their job.

One of the crew members was severely beaten by the Israeli occupation forces and then released that evening. The rest—the UNRWA employee, five Civil Defense personnel, and eight Red Crescent paramedics—were killed.

Additional ambulance and Civil Defense crews were able to reach the scene on Friday 28 March, following international coordination, and discovered the mission leader, Civil Defense officer Anwar Abdul Hamid al-Attar, dead, with his body shredded. The rescue crews that arrived Friday also found all of the Red Crescent vehicles, fire trucks, and ambulances completely reduced to charred metal.

Despite being protected by international humanitarian law, the paramedics were directly targeted, as evidenced by the ripped remains of the safety gear discovered at the crime scene. Additionally, evidence shows that the Israeli occupying forces not only killed the victims, but also covered up their crime by using bulldozers and other large equipment to bury the bodies in a mass grave.

The bodies of the eight Red Crescent paramedics were recovered by rescue crews on Sunday 30 March 2025, the first day of Eid al-Fitr. One crew member is still missing, and is thought to be being held by the Israeli military. The bodies of the UNRWA employee and five Civil Defense personnel were also discovered on 30 March.

The Palestinian Red Crescent has identified the following victims: Mohammed Bahloul, Ashraf Abu Labda, Mohammed Al-Hila, Raed Al-Sharif, Mustafa Khafaja, Ezz El-Din Shaat, Saleh Muammar, and Refaat Radwan. The victims from the Civil Defense are Yousef Rasem Khalifa (ambulance officer), Fouad Ibrahim Al-Jamal (ambulance driver), Ibrahim Nabil Al-Maghari (firefighter officer), Samir Yahya Al-Bahabsa (firefighter officer), and Zuhair Abdul Hamid Al-Farra (firefighter driver). The victim who worked for UNRWA is Kamal Mohammed Shahtout.

“As soon as the incident occurred, we entered the site west of Rafah with OCHA crews, “Sufyan Ahmed, a member of the Civil Defense team involved in the effort to recover the victims’ bodies, said in a statement to Euro-Med Monitor. “The Israeli army told OCHA that the bodies of the victims were found next to a fire truck and an electrical pole. Using a small bulldozer, we started our excavation at the spot the army had designated. One body was discovered. After examining it, it was determined to be the body of the mission leader, Anwar Abdel Hamid al-Attar.”

He continued: “We used OCHA to get in touch with the army and enquire about the whereabouts of the other bodies. They replied that the bodies were in the same hole from which we had taken al-Attar’s body, next to the electrical pole. We dug deeper into the hole and kept looking, but we could not find anything. We then had to leave the site because the army had given us a limited amount of time.

“We went to the site the following day and waited at a nearby location, awaiting the army’s approval to enter,” he added. “After roughly five hours, we were told that entry was refused, so we departed. The following day, we anticipated being granted access to the site, but were still denied permission. After a few days of waiting, we received approval yesterday, Sunday, and were able to access the site. We were told that the army would stay with us until they told us where the bodies were interred so that we could start the excavation process.”

Explained Ahmed: “When we got to the site, a quadcopter was flying overhead, showing us where the bodies were buried. We received a sign pointing to the graveyard from the drone. We were shocked to learn that the designated site was far from the one where we had previously been informed the bodies were interred. At that moment, we recognized that they had been attempting to delay, procrastinate, and waste our time the first [few days]. We, the Civil Defense staff (two paramedics and two drivers), convened briefly after the new location was determined to devise a strategy for safely retrieving the bodies. We had prior experience on similar missions and had the required equipment.

“We started digging right away, discovered a body, and recovered it. We dug out another body that we found underneath. We then found a third body underneath. We dug further until all of the Red Crescent and Civil Defense personnel’s bodies were found in the same hole. The body of an UNRWA employee was the only one still missing. We asked OCHA about its location, and they told us that it was close to the ‘barracks’ area, west of Rafah.

The bodies had distinct features, but they were in the early stages of decomposition. When they were examined, it was evident that a barrage of bullets had struck them. Based on my observations, the injuries were located in the chest region. A closer look revealed that some of the victims had still been alive despite their injuries—they were apparently buried alive with their feet bound.

“Among the bodies we looked at was Ibrahim al-Maghari’s. His body was covered in severe bruises and showed evidence of torture, and his legs seemed bound. After being shot in the back of the head, his face was completely ripped apart. Regarding Fouad al-Jamal’s body, he was shot in the head from a very close distance, causing his skull to shatter, [giving the appearance of] crushed bones. We discovered that every employee of the Palestinian Red Crescent had been shot in the left and right sides of the head.

After getting permission from the Israeli army, we removed the bodies with immense grief and suffering, moved them to ambulances, and left the site for the hospital.”

Ahmed went on, “We saw bags, blankets, clothing, and other items belonging to thousands of citizens who had been displaced that day, when we first arrived at the scene of the incident and collected the body of Anwar al-Attar. However, these items were absent when we returned to the site a few days later, indicating that the incident site had been altered and tampered with.”

He affirmed: “We were joined by a Red Cross delegation and a forensic physician with expertise in autopsies when the bodies were recovered. Along with documentation experts, we were joined by a delegation from UNRWA and OCHA. All of them observed the process of recovery.”

Another Civil Defense crew’s testimony, which was obtained by Euro-Med Monitor, claims that the victims were cruelly tortured and killed by the occupation forces. The body of one Civil Defense member was wearing handcuffs, while others were discovered in a state of partial undress, and additional victims were found to have suffered from extreme torture that led to their deaths, such as having more than 20 bullets fired into their chest. Most of the victims’ bodies were discovered in a mass grave that was two to three metres deep, this testimony confirms, suggesting that Israeli soldiers forced the victims out of their cars, killed them in cold blood, and then buried them to hide any evidence of the crime.

The Geneva Conventions, which provide protection for medical personnel, relief and humanitarian workers, and United Nations personnel, are gravely violated by this heinous crime, which also blatantly violates international humanitarian law. This is one of many full-fledged war crimes committed by Israel as part of its genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. The international community must take prompt legal action and hold Israel and its allies accountable, as Israel is clearly attempting to eradicate the Strip’s Palestinian population, either by killing them directly or by destroying the institutions that support their existence—the gravest possible crimes.

All states must swiftly launch international criminal investigations to bring every perpetrator to justice. This includes using national courts to hold their own citizens accountable for any crimes related to Israel’s genocide, as well as supporting the International Criminal Court’s work and assisting the Court in any way possible, such as by issuing arrest warrants and turning over any criminals to the appropriate authorities. In order for states to fulfill their responsibilities under international law, Israeli citizens or dual citizens who have committed crimes against the Palestinian people must be prosecuted under the principle of universal jurisdiction.

Every state, both individually and collectively, must fulfill their binding legal obligations and act quickly to end the genocide in the Gaza Strip. Since this is a fundamental, non-negotiable right of a population under international law, states should take all reasonable steps to protect Palestinian civilians in the Strip; protect medical, humanitarian, and UN personnel there; lift the blockade on the enclave; and permit the immediate and unhindered entry of humanitarian aid. There is no legal exception that would permit Israel to deny this aid to the Palestinian people.

The international community must impose economic, diplomatic, and military sanctions on Israel due to its egregious and ongoing violations of international law. These sanctions should include a travel ban; a freeze on the financial assets of officials linked to crimes against Palestinians; a suspension of military cooperation; and a ban on arms sales to—and purchases from—Israel. In addition, trade privileges and bilateral agreements that give Israel economic advantages and allow it to carry out crimes against Palestinians must besuspended as part of these sanctions.

The United States and other nations that give Israel any kind of support or assistance in connection with the commission of its egregious crimes, including aid and contractual relationships in the military, intelligence, political, legal, financial, media, and other areas that contribute to the persistence of such crimes, should be held accountable and prosecuted.

Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor

Features

Trump: Arrest of Mahmoud Khalil is The First of Many’

CrossFireArabia
March 13, 2025

Mahmoud Khalil, an Algerian citizen of Palestinian descent and a US green card holder, is facing deportation after being arrested by federal immigration officials on March 8.

A leader of student protests at Columbia University, Khalil’s arrest has been described by US President Donald Trump as the “first of many” as his administration ramps up its crackdown on campus opposition to the Gaza war. But a federal judge has temporarily halted the 30-year-old’s expulsion from the US.

As a legal permanent resident, Khalil was detained without a warrant by the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials as he and his wife were returning to their Columbia University-owned apartment in upper Manhattan.

SHALOM, MAHMOUD.

"ICE proudly apprehended and detained Mahmoud Khalil, a Radical Foreign Pro-Hamas Student on the campus of @Columbia University. This is the first arrest of many to come." –President Donald J. Trump pic.twitter.com/gfuPd0tskf
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) March 10, 2025

The agents initially claimed his student visa had been revoked, but after Khalil’s wife provided proof of his green card status, they stated that his green card was also being revoked and took him into custody.

DHS justified Khalil’s arrest by citing his involvement in “activities aligned to Hamas, a designated terrorist organisation,” under the framework of Trump’s executive orders aimed at “prohibiting anti-Semitism.”

“Khalil’s case has been the most publicly known case of an arrest by DHS officials of a pro-Palestine protester from a college campus or a university campus” said Meghnad Bose, a Delacorte Fellow at the Columbia Journalism Review, and one of the journalists who broke the news of the arrest.

A recent graduate from the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), Khalil was a prominent figure during the 2024 Columbia University pro-Palestinian campus occupations.

He acted as a spokesperson and negotiator for demonstrators who condemned Israel’s military actions in Gaza and advocated for the institution to sever financial ties with Israel and companies supporting the genocide.

Mahmoud Khalil is a Palestinian graduate student at Columbia University.

He’s a Green Card holder and his wife is eight months pregnant.

His Green Card’s been revoked and he’s been told that he’s getting deported.

He’s currently being detained at an unknown location by U.S.… pic.twitter.com/hzEO0WSmjz
— Dilly Hussain (@DillyHussain88) March 10, 2025

Recently, Khalil was among the pro-Palestinian activists investigated by a new disciplinary body at Columbia University established to address harassment and discrimination complaints.

Days before his arrest, an online campaign targeting Khalil was launched by pro-Israeli groups and individuals, including Columbia Business School professor Shai Davidai, who called for his arrest and deportation.

These posts tagged U.S. officials such as President Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Attorney General Pam Bondi.

“That is definitely a suspicious turn of events. Was the DHS conducting its own investigation into Khalil prior to all of this? Or were they just acting on cue based on what these pro-Israel groups and individuals posted online?” Bose said.

Initially believed to be in a New Jersey facility, Khalil was confirmed to be at LaSalle Detention Centre in Louisiana on March 10. On the same day, Judge Jesse M. Furman ruled that Khalil cannot be removed from the US without court approval.

The actions against Khalil coincided with the Trump administration’s decision to cancel around $400 million in federal grants to Columbia University, citing the “failure to protect Jewish students from anti-Semitic harassment.”

The university’s response to Khalil’s arrest has been criticised for its lack of transparency and action.

The day before the arrest, Khalil emailed Columbia interim president Katrina Armstrong: “Since yesterday, I have been subjected to a vicious, coordinated, and dehumanising doxxing campaign led by Columbia affiliates Shai Davidai and David Lederer who, among others, have labelled me a security threat and called for my deportation.”

He continued, “I have not been able to sleep, fearing that ICE or a dangerous individual might come to my home. I urgently need legal support, and I urge you to intervene and provide the necessary protections to prevent further harm.”

Reports surfaced of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents being spotted on campus throughout the week of the arrest. In response, Columbia University issued a memo over the weekend advising faculty and staff not to interfere in “exigent circumstances” when ICE agents seek access to university buildings or individuals without a warrant.

Khalil’s arrest has sparked a wave of protests on campus, with students, including Jewish ones, rallying in opposition to DHS’s actions, demanding that ICE be removed from university premises.

“Especially vulnerable are the international students, because many of them feel that if they post on social media now, if they attend a protest, they might end up being deported,” Bose said, raising concerns about the right to protest within university communities.

Khalil’s arrest also seems to be part of a broader political strategy targeting universities.

“This is happening specifically to someone who is Palestinian and who stood up for the rights of Palestinians in Gaza. So this is not just a cause agnostic free speech issue,” he added.

Donald Trump has frequently targeted Columbia University for its students’ advocacy for Palestinian rights in Gaza, including during his electoral campaign.

“The Gaza Solidarity encampment at Columbia inspired similar encampments not just across the United States, but across the world,” he said.

“It seems rather clear that they [the Trump administration] want to make Columbia [an] example for communities of students and faculty around the country, that even an Ivy League University in New York City will not be spared the wrath of the American government for having protested against the policies of the American government as it relates to Israel.”

This report is written by Francesca Maria Lorenzini for the Jordan Times

Features

Bahrain Revives Its Pearling Legacy

CrossFireArabia
March 4, 2025

Bahrain, with its shallow waters and rich oyster beds, has long been synonymous with pearls, which formed the backbone of the island nation’s economy for thousands of years. Diving for pearls, otherwise known as pearling, remains part of the country’s cultural DNA.

“I always say that all Bahrainis have pearl diving in their blood,” Mohamed Alslaise, a pearl diver and field researcher for the Bahrain Institute for Pearls and Gemstones (DANAT) tells UN News. “Almost all the families that moved from the Arabian Gulf or Iranian coast to Bahrain were divers.”

Mr. Alslaise is passionate about preserving and reviving this age-old tradition, notes that many families in the Gulf nation have a member who was either a pearl diver or contributed in some way to the pearl diving industry.

Pearling in the Persian Gulf shaped Bahrain’s economy for thousands of years but, following a peak around the turn of the 20th century, the perfection of cultured pearls by Japan in the 1930s caused a sharp and devastating decline in the industry.

Khaled Salman, a diver since the 1970s, explains that while diving continues, it’s no longer done in the old way.

UN Video/Hisae Kawamori

Bahraini diver, Mohamed Alslaise extracting pearls from oysters.

“Nowadays, larger quantities are extracted due to advancements in technology, allowing divers to stay underwater for longer periods. In the past, a diver would stay underwater for four minutes, but now scuba divers can remain underwater for an hour or more.”

Due to lower pearl prices, Salman notes, “Many people don’t sell the pearls they extract; they store them until prices rise and then sell them to traders in Bahrain.”

Some pearls are used in local industries, while others are marketed outside Bahrain. He also highlights three types of pearls: synthetic, cultured, and natural, adding that “distinguishing between these types requires experience and modern equipment.”

The decline in pearling also affected Bahrain’s shipbuilding industry. Abdulla, a designer of wooden ships and boats for over 35 years, shares his perspective: “Bahrain is famous for its shipbuilding industry, which was integral to pearling. There are several types of ships, varying by design, but now smaller ships are used for pearling due to decreased demand.”

The wood for shipbuilding is imported from Africa and Singapore, and, says Abdulla, the lifespan of a ship can extends beyond 100 years.

UN Video/Hisae Kawamori

Abdulla, a designer of wooden ships and boats for over 35 years.

Folklore, songs and tradition

“Most Bahraini traditions are connected to the pearl diving industry. For instance, the pearl diving songs,” says Mr. Alslaise. “The folklore of pearl diving has been passed down for generations. We still sing the same songs, which were originally sung to boost morale on the boats.”

Bahrain’s historic pearling site, known as the Pearling Path, has been inscribed as a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The site testifies to the pearling tradition and the wealth it generated in the Gulf region for millennia.

According to UNESCO, the area consists of 17 buildings in Murharraq city, three offshore oyster beds, part of the seashore and the Qal’at Bu Mahir fortress on the southern tip of Muharraq Island, from where boats used to set off for the oyster beds.

There are shops, storehouses, a mosque, and the homes of wealthy merchants in the area. According to UNESCO, the location is the only complete example of the pearling cultural tradition and the wealth it produced during the period when the Gulf economy was dominated by trade from the second century until Japan developed cultured pearls.

It also constitutes an outstanding example of traditional utilization of the sea’s resources and human interaction with the environment, which shaped both the economy and cultural identity of the island’s society.

UN News/ Abdelmonem Makki

A band performing a pearl diving song in Bahrain. The folklore of pearl diving has been passed down for generations.

Pearling is back

“I am one of the people who fell in love with pearl diving without any guidance from my parents or family,” Mr. Alslaise. “The generation before us was not allowed to dive when they were young because, after oil was discovered, all the jobs shifted to the oil industry.”

According to Mr. Alslaise, since 2017, when Bahraini authorities introduced pearl diving licenses, many people who signed up had no prior knowledge of pearl diving.

“Now, seven years down the line, many Bahrainis have reconnected with this heritage. Over 1,000 divers are now registered and dive regularly to create an income for themselves.”