#humanitarian-crisis

#humanitarian-crisis

What you need to know Swedish activist Greta Thunberg and many others are expected to embark on an aid flotilla to Gaza that will first disembark from Spain. It comes as a global hunger monitor has declared parts of Gaza to be in a famine. Meanwhile, Israel claimed to have struck infrastructure belonging to Iran-backed political party and militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon.

"United with Haiti"

Hundreds of Palestinians have fled Gaza City, piling their few remaining possessions onto pick-up trucks and donkey carts as Israel's deadly bombings and forced displacement campaign intensifies in the area. People fleeing the Israeli military's relentless bombardment have begun setting up makeshift tents amid miserable conditions in an area west of central Gaza's Nuseirat refugee camp, to the south of Gaza City near Deir el-Balah.

Israel announced on Friday that it has begun the "initial stages" of its siege on Gaza City, declaring the capital city a "dangerous combat zone" and ending its daytime pauses for the supposed purpose of allowing the passage of humanitarian aid, despite a famine declaration across the area last week. "We have begun the preliminary operations and the first stages of the attack on Gaza City, and already now IDF forces are holding the outskirts of Gaza City," Israel's military spokesperson told reporters.

We demand from our politicians more than just talk. We are long past this, Remah Naji, one of the organisers of the protest in the eastern city of Brisbane, told Al Jazeera. Now, we demand actions in the same way we acted in times of genocide. We are signatories to the Genocide Convention, which means that we have an obligation to prevent and punish genocide when it occurs.

"Rebels backed by ISIL (ISIS) have killed at least 52 civilians in the Democratic Republic of the Congo this month, according to the United Nations peacekeeping mission (MONUSCO)."

Democratic Whip Katherine Clark labeled Israel's offensive in Gaza as a genocide during a forum, urging action to address humanitarian crises occurring in the region.