Author: MEE staff

The State Department has released a report stating that the Syrian Democratic Forces, a US-backed militia in Syria, are recruiting and using child soldiers. This report also listed other armed groups, including the Syrian government forces, Turkish-backed forces, Islamic State, and Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, that are engaging in the same practice. This revelation marks a significant criticism of the US’s main ally in Syria, the Syrian Democratic Forces. Despite the defeat of the Islamic State in 2019, the US continues to support the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in targeting IS operatives and maintaining security in the region. The SDF, comprising…

The University of Waterloo in Canada has recently filed a lawsuit against its students for their pro-Palestine encampment, demanding disclosure and divestment from Israel. The lawsuit is seeking damages of $1.5 million for alleged trespassing, property damage, intimidation, and ejectment. Despite the university’s efforts to disband the encampment, students are refusing to vacate until divestment from companies profiting from Israel’s occupation occurs. The university President, Vivek Goel, stated that the encampment’s behavior crossed the line to intimidation and harassment, making their presence unsustainable. The move has sparked widespread backlash from scholars and academics, with many expressing disbelief at the university’s…

Norway’s largest pension fund, KLP, recently announced the divestment of its stake in Caterpillar Inc. due to the company’s involvement in rights abuses in the occupied Palestinian territories. The Oslo-based firm sold its shares and bonds worth $69 million, citing Caterpillar’s equipment being used to demolish Palestinian homes and infrastructure for Israeli settlements. Kiran Aziz, head of responsible investment at KLP, stated that despite attempts at dialogue, Caterpillar’s responses did not assure the reduction of human rights violations. The United Nations also flagged Caterpillar as potentially complicit in serious violations of international law. In March, the Norwegian government advised against…

Germany Introduces New Citizenship Law Requiring Affirmation of Israel’s Right to Exist Germany implemented a new citizenship law, reducing the residency requirement for obtaining German citizenship to five years. The law also permits first-generation migrants to hold dual citizenship. Applicants must now also affirm Israel’s right to exist, alongside new test questions on Judaism and anti-Semitism. Interior Minister Nancy Faeser emphasized the importance of shared values for acquiring German citizenship. The law includes questions on Germany’s historical responsibility to Jewish people and the founding of Israel. This development follows revelations of the education ministry targeting professors who support Palestine. Germany’s…

Doctors Without Borders, also known as MSF, tragically lost their sixth staff member in Gaza. Physiotherapist Fadi al-Wadiya, 33, was killed in an Israeli drone attack near an MSF clinic in Gaza City along with five others, including children. Al-Wadiya was on his way to work when the strike occurred. MSF condemned the attack, stating that nowhere in Gaza is safe due to repeated attacks on health workers and facilities by Israeli forces. On a related note, in the US, progressive congressman Jamaal Bowman lost his Democratic primary race to George Latimer, backed by pro-Israel lobby groups. AIPAC spent $14m…

Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, has been released from prison in the UK after agreeing to plead guilty to violating US espionage law. After a 14-year legal saga, including seven years in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, Assange is now a free man, flying to Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands for sentencing. The US territory was chosen for its proximity to Australia, where he will soon return. Assange fought extradition to the US for releasing classified documents, including a video showing US helicopters killing civilians in Baghdad. The US government saw him as an enemy, but to free…

An Egyptian man, Islam Osama Sobhi, was detained by Saudi authorities after posting a video criticizing the neglect that led to the deaths of hundreds of Egyptian pilgrims during the Hajj. Sobhi, who is battling cancer, expressed shock at the lack of ambulance services and bus transfers for pilgrims in extreme heat. Sobhi, who performed Hajj on a non-Hajj visa, surrendered himself to security services in Taif. He highlighted the deaths of many Egyptians during the pilgrimage and the inadequate facilities that both registered and unregistered pilgrims faced. Concerns have been raised about the official death toll during Hajj, with…

Pro-Palestine activists criticized the Biden administration for misrepresenting a protest outside a California synagogue against real estate firms advertising properties in the occupied West Bank. The demonstration outside Adas Torah temple in Los Angeles sparked controversy after Biden condemned the protesters for intimidating Jewish congregants, calling it antisemitic. However, critics pointed out Biden’s contrasting response to other incidents affecting Palestinians. CodePink, the anti-war group organizing pro-Palestine protests, contested Biden’s claims and clarified that the protest focused on the illegal sale of Palestinian land, not on religious practices. The group highlighted the real estate firms involved in marketing properties in Israel…

Recent events in Euless, Texas have brought attention to the rise in anti-Palestinian racism and Islamophobia in the United States. A Palestinian-American mother, accompanied by her children, was subjected to a violent altercation at her apartment complex’s pool, where a drunk woman made racist remarks and attempted to drown her three-year-old daughter. The incident, now being treated as a hate crime, highlights broader issues of bigotry and discrimination targeting Palestinians, Arabs, and Muslims. US President Joe Biden condemned the attack, but Palestinian rights groups argue that his support for Israel’s actions in Gaza contributes to this climate of violence. Nowhere…

Gaza is facing a heartbreaking tragedy as Azzam al-Shaer, a young Palestinian child, became the fifth victim of hunger-related deaths in just one week due to Israel’s offensive on the besieged enclave. The devastating impact of the ongoing siege is evident as hospitals struggle to obtain necessary medicine for children like Azzam. A heart-wrenching video shows the emaciated body of Azzam, highlighting the dire situation in Gaza. The UN report paints a grim picture, indicating that almost the entire Gaza population is facing acute food insecurity, with half a million people suffering from starvation. Israel’s restrictions on food deliveries have…