World

Israeli Military Forced Journalists And Health Workers To Strip In Gaza Hospital Raid, Eyewitnesses Say

Published

8 months ago

2024-03-25

Kiara Grace

GAZA – According to eyewitness accounts given by CNN, Israeli forces seized Palestinian journalists and health workers at Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza, blindfolded them, and stripped them down to their underwear.

Palestinian reporters and medical workers described humiliating interrogations in which colleagues were stripped and put outside in the cold after the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) laid siege to the enclave’s major hospital in the early hours of Monday. One of the detainees told CNN that Israeli authorities released him without his ID or phone.

The Israeli military invaded Al-Shifa, claiming that “senior Hamas terrorists” were using the building to “conduct and promote terrorist activity.” It claimed to have apprehended a senior Hamas member during the operation.

Israeli Military Forced Journalists And Health Workers To Strip In Gaza Hospital Raid, Eyewitnesses Say

Ismail Al-Ghoul, an Al Jazeera journalist, told CNN that he and his team were detained for 12 hours, stripped to their underwear and blindfolded despite the rain and cold. Another team member, Ahmad al-Harazin, stated that “while we were sitting [there], the [Israeli] army suddenly raided and arrested us.” God Almighty kept us safe. And we were released.”

Samer Tarazi, a member of Al Ghoul’s crew at Al-Shifa, told CNN that he had just finished work at 2 a.m. local time on Monday when the Israeli military attacked the complex and detained them.

“We were blindfolded and tied while we waited to be released. We were waiting, not knowing where we were or where we were going,” he explained. Following his imprisonment, the IDF instructed Tarazi and his associates to retreat south down the coastal Al Rashid Street. “We were released without getting our IDs or mobile phones back,” he said.

Al Jazeera claimed in a statement on Monday that Al-Ghoul and his colleagues were detained and “severely beaten” before being transferred to an unidentified location for interrogation. The IDF informed CNN that they had no record of capturing Al Ghoul or his associates.

Dr. Marwan Abu Saada, Al-Shifa’s chief of surgery, also provided his account to CNN. Abu Saada was not in the hospital when the Israeli raid started on Monday. He stated on Tuesday that colleagues who had been allowed to leave the hospital reported Israeli military breaking into the majority of the hospital buildings.

He claimed that male medical personnel were forced to strip and left “for hours in the cold,” a claim shared by several males who have been released from the scene. “They scanned their faces with a camera and took them one by one for humiliating investigation,” he stated in the testimony, which was provided with CNN by a colleague.

“Many were arrested and were taken to an unknown place, some were forced to leave the hospital and displaced to the south half naked, and others were ordered to go back to the hospital,” he said.

“Soldiers assaulted and violated our medical staff and workers in Al-Shifa Hospital, left them without food or water for two days, taking into consideration that this is the month of Ramadan and they are fasting.”

CNN has asked the IDF for a reaction to Saada’s allegations. The IDF still needs to answer.

The IDF announced in a statement Thursday that “over 140 terrorists have been eliminated” during the assault. On Wednesday, the IDF stated its officers interrogated “over 300 suspects” and sent at least 160 others to Israeli territory “for further questioning.” CNN cannot independently verify the IDF’s assertions.

CNN has contacted the IDF for further information about the people it claims it killed or detained during the operation on Al-Shifa and the surrounding area.

Israel initiated its military offensive in Gaza after the Islamist group Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, killing at least 1,200 people, including 36 children, and capturing more than 250 more.

According to the Ministry of Health in Gaza, Israeli assaults have killed at least 31,988 Palestinians and injured an additional 74,188.

Israeli Military Forced Journalists And Health Workers To Strip In Gaza Hospital Raid, Eyewitnesses Say

Israel transformed Al-Shifa Hospital into a battleground in November, conducting a “precise and targeted” strike on the hospital. Doctors were compelled to work by candlelight and wrap preterm babies in foil to save their lives. A report released in November stated that dozens of people died as a result of a shortage of electricity.

Health workers have previously told CNN that they are unable to provide life-saving treatment to Palestinians injured in the war, especially children and newborns, because Israel’s bombardment and siege of Gazan hospitals have destroyed the medical infrastructure. The IDF alleges Hamas conducts military operations in hospitals. Hamas denies exploiting hospitals for cover. CNN cannot independently corroborate either claim.

International law makes targeting hospitals during warfare illegal; however, the standards vary if hostile combatants use the facility to strike an opponent. Nonetheless, the idea of proportionality protects both patients and doctors. Before launching an attack, a warning must be issued, as well as a period for safe evacuation.

Claims of interrogation, death, and torture
Footage emerged earlier this week showing piles of debris and plumes of smoke covering the neighborhood surrounding Al-Shifa as civilians fled in horror following a loud missile hit near the hospital. Unaccompanied youngsters climbed over slabs of collapsed concrete to escape the tragedy.

Israeli Military Forced Journalists And Health Workers To Strip In Gaza Hospital Raid, Eyewitnesses Say

According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, at least 3,000 displaced individuals, patients, and staff attempted to seek refuge behind the facility’s walls before the tragic raid. Israeli snipers and helicopter fire targeted those attempting to flee, the ministry reported on Monday.

Mahmoud Basal, Gaza’s civil defense spokesman, claimed on Thursday that displaced Palestinians from Al-Shifa Hospital told “many stories about humiliation and beatings there after they had left and walked long distances.”

He told CNN that Israeli soldiers had destroyed and bombed houses in the region, leaving dead and injured Palestinians on the streets. Gaza Civil Defense personnel could still not approach the hospital location due to the hazard.

It came when Basal claimed that citizens inside the hospital had spoken about interrogations, killings, and torture. The Israeli army was evacuating wounded people from inside the hospital “even when they cannot walk or move,” he claimed on Wednesday, adding that these people were reaching the Baptist Hospital three kilometers away “in a very difficult condition.”

SOURCE – (CNN)

World

Biden Escalates Ukraine War With Long-Range Missiles

Published

7 days ago

2024-11-18

Geoff Brown

The Kremlin announced on Monday that President Joe Biden’s decision to allow Ukraine to hit targets inside Russia with US military long-range missiles is “fuel to the fire” and will exacerbate international tensions.

Biden’s decision to allow Ukraine to employ US military long-range missiles to strike deep within Russia has raised concerns about growing tensions, with many fearing that this decision could lead to world conflict.

On Monday, with less than two months remaining in office, President Joe Biden authorized American-provided Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) to strike deep within Russia.

“It is obvious that the outgoing administration in Washington intends to take steps and they have been talking about this, to continue adding fuel to the fire and provoking further escalation of tensions around this conflict,” said Peskov, the spokesman for the president.

Peskov reminded journalists of a September statement by President Vladimir Putin, who stated that enabling Ukraine to target Russia would dramatically raise the stakes.

It would alter “the very nature of the conflict dramatically,” Putin stated. This would mean that NATO countries, the United States, and European countries would be at war with Russia.”

Peskov asserted that Western countries that deliver longer-range weaponry also provide targeting services to Kyiv. “This fundamentally changes the modality of their involvement in the conflict,” he said.

Ukraine War Escalation

In June, Putin threatened that if NATO permitted Ukraine to utilize the arsenal of its partners to attack Russian territory, Moscow would send longer-range weapons to others to strike Western targets.

“The Westerners supply weapons to Ukraine and say: ‘We do not control anything here anymore and it does not matter how they are used.'” Putin had said. “We can also say, ‘We supplied something to someone — and now we have no control over anything.'” “And let them think about it.”

Putin again emphasized Moscow’s willingness to deploy nuclear weapons if it perceived a threat to its sovereignty.

Biden’s decision will “mean the direct involvement of the United States and its satellites in military action against Russia, as well as a radical change in the essence and nature of the conflict,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry stated.

The new policy has unpredictable consequences. ATACMS, with a range of roughly 300 kilometers (190 miles), can travel deep behind Ukraine’s 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line, although their range is modest compared to other types of ballistic and cruise missiles.

President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office on January 20, has not responded, but he won the election on promises to stop the conflict, and some people close to him have decried the action as a hazardous escalation.

Missile Decision Sparks Anger

The Military Industrial Complex appears to want to start World War III before my father has a chance to restore peace and rescue lives. We need to lock in those $Trillions. Life be damned!! Imbeciles!” Donald Trump Jr., the President-elect’s son, posted on X

“On his way out of office, Joe Biden is dangerously trying to start WWIII by authorizing Ukraine to use U.S. long-range missiles against Russia,” said Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., on X. “The American people gave a mandate on November 5 against these exact American last decisions.”

Rebekah Koffler, a former Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) officer and author of “Putin’s Playbook,” speculated that the stories were a “trial balloon to disrupt Trump” and that Biden may not have authorized the ATACMS strikes yet.

According to Dani Belo, PhD, Director of Security and International Relations at Global Policy Horizons Research Lab, Ukraine’s ability to currently hit Russian territory has the potential to escalate the war with Russia.

However, Donald Trump’s victory is likely to moderate the escalation.

There is speculation that Donald Trump’s administration would restrict military hardware deliveries to Ukraine, putting political pressure on Kyiv to resolve the crisis. This implies Ukraine has no motivation to escalate now and lose its fighting capability in a matter of months.

Russia sees no reason to escalate the situation at this time. Moscow expects that Trump’s administration will try to finish the war soon, so the Kremlin will likely take a wait-and-see approach until the new presidential administration takes office without significantly escalating the conflict. As a result, any escalation is unlikely.

Source: AP

Trump Shakes Up Pentagon Names Pete Hegseth Defence Secretary

Trump Shakes Up Pentagon Names Pete Hegseth Defence Secretary

World

A Court Filing Reveals Elon Musk Flatly Rejected OpenAI’s ICO in 2018.

Published

1 week ago

2024-11-15

Salman Ahmad

(VOR News) – Elon Musk, the billionaire and CEO of Tesla, claims in a subsequent court filing that was submitted on November 14 that he was successful in stopping OpenAI from doing an initial coin offering (ICO) in 2018.

According to the filing requirements, this information was disclosed.

Musk and his legal team have claimed that two of OpenAI’s founders, Greg Brockman and Sam Altman, tried unsuccessfully to create a token in early 2018 to help the company grow. To the best of our knowledge, this was the founders’ intention.

Elon Musk accurately described the scenario.

Elon Musk made the remark during the pertinent time period, according to the lawsuit’s accusations.

This, in his opinion, would lead to a significant decline in trust in OpenAI and everyone involved in the initial coin offering (ICO). These statements are extracted from his initial declaration.

A unique project backed by Altman, Worldcoin launched a token twenty-three years ago with the goal of creating digital identification for verified individuals.

Furthermore, the company in charge of token distribution was Worldcoin. Through the use of the token, Worldcoin was able to authenticate individual identities.

When OpenAI was first founded, it was a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating safe artificial general intelligence (AGI).

In this context, the acronym AGI stands for artificial global intelligence. “Musk has continuously voiced concern about the grave threat that these sophisticated systems pose to humanity,” his attorney wrote in the complaint. These sophisticated technologies represent a serious threat to humankind.

“Musk remains apprehensive regarding this threat.” “Musk regards these threats with the utmost seriousness.” “Elon Musk has harbored these concerns for an extended period.”

This led to Musk joining OpenAI’s board of directors and continuing to serve as co-chair of the board. Furthermore, he was appointed to that board of directors post.

Elon Musk contributed $44 million to the enterprise.

OpenAI declared in a March 5th news release that it was imperative that the company adopt a profit-making structure in order to obtain the necessary funding to achieve its objectives. In order to enable OpenAI to fulfill its objectives, this transition was necessary.

According to both the OpenAI statement and the amended filing, Elon Musk advocated for the combination of OpenAI and Tesla to help the artificial intelligence startup with its financial issues.

The aforementioned measures were implemented to mitigate the challenges that the organization was facing at that specific moment. Musk submitted his resignation as an OpenAI employee in February 2018.

He founded his own artificial intelligence company, which he named XAI, in the ensuing years. His efforts directly led to the achievement he achieved.

We are deeply disappointed that our friendship with someone we have always held in the highest respect has deteriorated.

As we started to make significant strides toward OpenAI’s goal on our own, this person, who had previously motivated us to achieve greater heights, abruptly predicted that we would fail, established a rival company, and filed a lawsuit against us, according to the group’s press release.

In August of this year, Musk filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and its CEOs, Altman and Brockman, claiming that they had violated federal RICO statutes, engaged in unfair competition, and committed fraud. OpenAI is the target of legal action taken by Elon Musk.

According to Elon Musk, they have engaged in additional illegal activity. Microsoft was named as one of the defendants in the dispute in the updated complaint, which was submitted on November 14.

It’s being presented as a case at the moment. Microsoft and OpenAI started working together in 2019, and Microsoft committed $1 billion in the partnership.

In July 2023, OpenAI’s native cryptocurrency, Worldcoin (WLD), was made available to the general public. Not too long ago, an article published by The Block disclosed this knowledge. When the market closed on November 15 at 11:36 p.m. Eastern Time (16:36 UTC), the price of a share of WLD was $2.21.

SOURCE: TB

World

Trump Appoints Robert F. Kennedy Jr to Head HHS

Published

2 weeks ago

2024-11-15

Geoff Brown

Trump Appoints Robert F. Kennedy Jr to Head HHS

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to run the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)

President-elect Trump appointed Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK Jr) to run the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), sending Democrats and Big Pharma allies into a tailspin.

“I am delighted to announce Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS). For too long, Americans have been crushed by the industrial food complex and medicine firms, which have engaged in deception, misinformation, and disinformation regarding public health,” Trump stated in his announcement.

“The safety and health of all Americans is the most important role of any administration, and HHS will play an important role in ensuring that everyone is safe from harmful chemicals, pollutants, pesticides, pharmaceutical products, and food additives that have contributed to this country’s overwhelming health crisis.

Mr. Kennedy will restore these agencies to gold-standard scientific Research and Transparency traditions, stopping the Chronic Disease Epidemic and making America Great and Healthy Again!” Trump added.

Reactions to RFK Jr HHS Appointment

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) oversees the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Medicare, Medicaid, and the National Institutes of Health.

Kennedy is a former environmental justice lawyer who has recently started an anti-vaccine nonprofit. He ran for president as an independent candidate in 2024 but dropped out to join Trump’s closest circle.

House Republicans have reacted to Donald Trump’s nomination of former presidential contender Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as health secretary.

Chip Roy, a Texas congressman, calls it “great news”. He tells me, “We need disruption throughout the federal government.” He’ll be fantastic at HHS [the Department of Health and Human Services] to do that.”

Roy adds that he expects Kennedy’s candidacy will clear the Senate.

“There’s been a few Kennedy’s in the Senate in the past so maybe there’ll be some legacy there that they will want to move him through,” he speculates.

South Carolina Congressman Ralph Norman concurs with Roy on Kennedy’s confirmation in the Senate: “I believe he was an excellent choice by the president, as have all of them. Kennedy is interested in, and passionate about, the medical industry. He will do a terrific job with it.”

According to Public Citizen, a progressive nonprofit group focused on consumer protection, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “is a clear and present danger to the nation’s health.”

He should not be allowed to enter the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), let alone be appointed director of the nation’s public health agency.”

“Donald Trump’s mishandling of public health policies during the Covid outbreak resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths. “By appointing Kennedy as secretary of HHS, Trump is courting another policy-driven public health disaster,” the organization continued.

Apu Akkad, an infectious disease physician at the University of Southern California, described the statement as a “scary day for public health”.

Meanwhile, pharmaceutical stocks such as Pfizer and Moderna plummeted following news of Kennedy’s nomination for HHS Secretary, as investors considered his potential impact on vaccine sales.

Novavax and BioNTech finished down more than 7%, with almost all losses occurring when word of the selection broke—Novavax shares fell to $7.22, and BioNTech shares fell to $103.56.

Moderna’s stock closed 5.6% at $39.77, reaching its lowest point of the year.

Sanofi’s stock fell 3.4% to $47.82, continuing a weeks-long share price decline that began after the company’s latest earnings report last month.

Pfizer lost less than its competitors on Thursday, closing down 2.6% at $26.02, despite having its sharpest drop of the day immediately following the RFK Jr. announcement.