[🇧🇩] Israel and Hamas war in Gaza-----Can Bangladesh be a peace broker?

[Saif]

Israeli strikes kill 19 in Gaza

Gaza’s civil defence agency said on Tuesday that Israeli strikes overnight killed at least 19 people across the Palestinian territory, where Israel has resumed its offensive against Hamas...

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Israeli strikes kill 19 in Gaza
Agence France-Presse . Gaza City 09 April, 2025, 00:33

A girl sits by the rubble outside the Sabah family building that was hit by Israeli air strikes in Deir el-Balah in the central Gaza Strip on Tuesday. | AFP photo

Gaza’s civil defence agency said on Tuesday that Israeli strikes overnight killed at least 19 people across the Palestinian territory, where Israel has resumed its offensive against Hamas.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas called on Hamas to stop giving Israel ‘excuses’ to keep up its devastating offensive in Gaza.

In a statement, the Ramallah-based Palestinian presidency called on Hamas to ‘cease making any irresponsible decisions to spare our people the consequences of (the Israeli) aggression’.

The statement pointed to the Israeli hostages still held in Gaza. ‘Stop giving the occupation any excuses to continue its genocide,’ it said.

Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal said that ‘19 civilians including several children were martyred’ and dozens more wounded in the latest Israeli raids.

Five children and four adults were killed in a strike that hit a home in the central city of Deir el-Balah, while two separate pre-dawn attacks on Gaza City and Beit Lahia in the north left a total of 10 people dead, Bassal said.

Separately, a media outlet affiliated with the Islamic Jihad movement, a Hamas ally, announced the death on Monday of an employee named Ahmed Mansur in an Israeli strike on a tent used by journalists in the Khan Yunis area.

The Hamas government media office had on Monday reported the death of journalist Hilmi al-Faqaawi, who worked for a local news agency, in the same strike, which also wounded another nine.

The Israeli military meanwhile said the strike had targeted ‘Hamas terrorist Hassan Abdel Fattah Mohammed Aslih’, claiming that he operated ‘under the guise of a journalist and owns a press company.’

It said Aslih had ‘infiltrated Israeli territory and participated in the murderous massacre carried out by the Hamas terrorist organisation’ on October 7, 2023.

Israel resumed intense strikes on the Gaza Strip on March 18, ending a two-month ceasefire with Hamas. Efforts to restore the truce have so far failed.

According to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory, at least 1,391 Palestinians have been killed in the renewed Israeli operations, taking the overall death toll since the start of the war to 50,752.

Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel that triggered the war resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.​

 

[Saif]

Bangladesh should intervene fast in the Gaza genocide case

Bangladesh made written and/or oral submissions in the four advisory opinions related to Palestine.

www.thedailystar.net

Bangladesh should intervene fast in the Gaza genocide case

Palestinians shop in an open-air market among the ruins of houses and buildings destroyed in Israeli strikes during the conflict, amid a temporary truce between Hamas and Israel, in Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip November 30, 2023. Reuters file photo.

The renewed official condemnation by the Government of Bangladesh on April 7, 2025, of the "mass killing and gross violations of human rights in the Gaza Strip," has brought to light one of its dormant promises regarding international justice. It relates to Bangladesh's pledge to intervene in the Gaza genocide case between South Africa and Israel before the International Court of Justice (ICJ). It is worth mentioning that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh expressed its intention to intervene in the case by issuing a press statement on January 14, 2024, just 16 days after South Africa filed the case against Israel under the Genocide Convention. Though 13 countries have already approached the ICJ with their intervention applications, Bangladesh has yet to make any concrete measures reflecting the prior commitment.

It is worth mentioning that Bangladesh has a constitutional obligation to support the Palestinian cause as per Article 25 of our constitution. As a long-time supporter of the Palestinian cause, Bangladesh has endorsed it at international forums, both individually and collectively with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). Earlier, on November 17, 2023, Bangladesh, along with South Africa, Bolivia, and Djibouti, referred the Palestine situation to the International Criminal Court (ICC). As regards the ICJ, Bangladesh made written and/or oral submissions in the four advisory opinions related to Palestine. Hence, it is incomprehensible why Bangladesh is still silent on its commitment to intervene.

Bangladesh has never intervened in an ICJ contentious case before, even though it had the opportunity to do so in the Rohingya genocide case. This calls for an assessment of its potential intervention within the ICJ's legal framework and relevant practices.

Under the ICJ statute, a state may intervene in two ways. First, under Article 62 of the ICJ statute, a state may intervene if it has an interest of a legal nature that may be affected by the court's decision. Second, under Article 63, a state may intervene when the interpretation of a multilateral treaty is in question, and it is a party to the treaty. From the language of the press statement of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it can be safely presumed that Bangladesh intends to intervene under Article 63. The nature of the Genocide Convention, which is a multilateral treaty, also confirms the nature of Bangladesh's potential intervention. Most of the interventions in the Genocide Convention-related cases are under Article 63.

At this stage, Bangladesh's potential intervention is complicated by its reservation on Article IX of the Genocide Convention, which states "Disputes between the Contracting Parties relating to the interpretation, application or fulfilment of the present Convention, including those relating to the responsibility of a State for genocide or for any of the other acts enumerated in article III, shall be submitted to the International Court of Justice at the request of any of the parties to the dispute." The US faced a similar complication when it sought to intervene in the Ukrainian genocide allegation case. Russia objected to the US intervention, and the ICJ, in its Order of June 5, 2023, declared it inadmissible due to the US reservation to Article IX.

It is important to note that the US intervention was specifically focused on Article IX and was made at the preliminary objections stage. The court's position was based on two key considerations. First, the US reservation to Article IX meant it had excluded the provision from the Convention as it applied to the US. Therefore, the court ruled that "the United States may not intervene in relation to the construction of Article IX of the Convention while it is not bound by that provision" (order of June 5, 2023). Second, at the preliminary objections stage, the ICJ primarily deals with jurisdictional and admissibility issues, so it was logical for the court to limit its ruling to Article IX while leaving open the possibility of a future US intervention at the merits stage (order of June 5, 2023).

The ICJ, in its order of April 5, 2024, set October 28, 2024, as the deadline for South Africa's memorial submission, i.e., a brief outlining their case and legal reasoning in the dispute. The deadline was met. Meanwhile, July 28, 2025, is the deadline for Israel's counter-memorial submission. Additionally, Israel had until January 28, 2025, to file its preliminary objections. While there is no publicly available information about Israel's preliminary objections, it has likely done so.
If Israel has indeed raised such objections, Bangladesh cannot intervene at this stage due to its reservation to Article IX. In that case, the fate of Bangladesh's intervention will depend on the judgment on preliminary objections. However, the ICJ has already found that it has prima facie jurisdiction over this case in its Provisional Measures Orders. Given its similarity to the Rohingya genocide case, it is unlikely that the court will rule otherwise in the preliminary objections judgment. If the case proceeds beyond this stage, Bangladesh will get at least two additional years to submit its intervention. However, given the political implications of the intervention on the case and the dispute, Bangladesh should consider intervening at its earliest opportunity.

At the same time, Bangladesh must carefully determine the scope of its intervention. South Africa's claims in the case are expected to focus on Articles I-VI of the Genocide Convention. Once the memorial and other case documents become available, Bangladesh will gain a clearer understanding of potential areas for intervention. Given that many states are expected to intervene, Bangladesh should strategically determine its scope to maximise the impact of its intervention on the proceedings.

Bangladesh should submit its declaration of intervention at the earliest opportunity, regardless of the preliminary objections issue. Typically, the ICJ scrutinises a state's declaration of intervention, but recent cases indicate that Article 63 interventions are generally permitted. Since 13 states have already submitted their declarations of intervention and/or applications for permission to intervene, Bangladesh should not wait for the preliminary objection's outcome. The interim government of Bangladesh should reaffirm the relevance of the previous government's declaration and set a timeline for submitting its intervention request.

Quazi Omar Foysal is lecturer at American International University-Bangladesh (AIUB) and advocate at the Supreme Court of Bangladesh.​

 

[Saif]

Gaza transformed into killing field: UN

United Nations secretary-general Antonio Guterres said Tuesday that Gaza had become ‘a killing field’ because Israel has continued to block aid, an accusation an Israeli official quickly denied, saying there was ‘no shortage’ of aid...

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Gaza transformed into killing field: UN
Agence France-Presse . United Nations 09 April, 2025, 22:13

Palestinian rescuers work at the site of an Israeli strike on a residential area in Gaza City’s Shujaiyya neighbourhood, on Wednesday. The Israeli military said it targeted a senior Hamas militant, in a strike that Gaza’s civil defence agency said hit a residential building in Gaza City, killing at least 20 people. | AFP photo

United Nations secretary-general Antonio Guterres said Tuesday that Gaza had become ‘a killing field’ because Israel has continued to block aid, an accusation an Israeli official quickly denied, saying there was ‘no shortage’ of aid.

‘More than an entire month has passed without a drop of aid into Gaza. No food. No fuel. No medicine. No commercial supplies. As aid has dried up, the floodgates of horror have re-opened,’ Guterres said in remarks to journalists.

Pointing to the Geneva Conventions governing the treatment of people in war, Guterres emphasised the obligation of the ‘occupying power’ to ensure the provision of food and medical supplies to the population.

‘None of that is happening today. No humanitarian supplies can enter Gaza,’ Guterres said.

Israeli ministry of foreign affairs spokesperson Oren Marmorstein rejected the allegations, saying there was ‘no shortage of humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip.’

Marmorstein further alleged that Hamas has used recent aid to Gaza to ‘rebuild its war machine.’

Guterres also referenced recent Israeli proposals over controlling aid into Gaza, which a UN source said included monitoring calories to prevent misuse by Hamas.

‘The Israeli authorities newly proposed ‘authorisation mechanisms’ for aid delivery risk further controlling and callously limiting aid down to the last calorie and grain of flour,’ he told reporters at UN headquarters in New York.

‘Let me be clear — we will not participate in any arrangement that does not fully respect the humanitarian principles — humanity, impartiality, independence and neutrality,’ Guterres said, demanding guarantees for the unhindered entry of aid to the coastal territory.

Guterres also raised the alarm about the situation in the West Bank.

‘The current path is a dead end — totally intolerable in the eyes of international law and history,’ he said.

‘And the risk of the occupied West Bank transforming into another Gaza makes it even worse.

‘It is time to end the dehumanisation, protect civilians, release the hostages, ensure lifesaving aid, and renew the ceasefire.’​

 

[Saif]

France could recognise Palestinian state 'in June': Macron

France plans to recognise a Palestinian state within months and could make the move at a UN conference in New York in June on settling the Israel-Palestinian conflict, President Emmanuel Macron said in an interview broadcast Wednesday, reports BSS citing AFP. "We must move towards recognitio

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

France could recognise Palestinian state 'in June': Macron
FE ONLINE DESK
Published :
Apr 10, 2025 13:00
Updated :
Apr 10, 2025 13:00

France plans to recognise a Palestinian state within months and could make the move at a UN conference in New York in June on settling the Israel-Palestinian conflict, President Emmanuel Macron said in an interview broadcast Wednesday, reports BSS citing AFP.

"We must move towards recognition, and we will do so in the coming months," Macron, who this week visited Egypt, told France 5 television.

"Our aim is to chair this conference with Saudi Arabia in June, where we could finalise this movement of mutual recognition by several parties," he added.

"I will do it because I believe that at some point it will be right and because I also want to participate in a collective dynamic, which must also allow all those who defend Palestine to recognise Israel in turn, which many of them do not do," he added.

Such recognition would allow France "to be clear in our fight against those who deny Israel's right to exist -- which is the case with Iran -- and to commit ourselves to collective security in the region," he added.

France has long championed a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict, including after the October 7, 2023 attack by Palestinian Hamas on Israel.

But formal recognition by Paris of a Palestinian state would mark a major policy switch and risk antagonising Israel which insists such moves by foreign states are premature.

- 'No one will invest a cent' -

France's recognition of Palestinian statehood "would be a step in the right direction in line with safeguarding the rights of the Palestinian people and the two state solution," Palestinian minister of state for foreign affairs Varsen Aghabekian Shahin told AFP.

Nearly 150 countries recognise a Palestinian state. In May 2024, Ireland, Norway and Spain announced recognition, followed by Slovenia in June, in moves partly fuelled by condemnation of Israel's bombing of Gaza that followed the October 7 attacks.

But France would be the most significant European power to recognise a Palestinian state, a move the United States has also long resisted.

In Egypt, Macron held summit talks with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Jordan's King Abdullah II and also made clear he was strongly opposed to any displacement or annexation in Gaza and the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

US President Donald Trump has suggested turning Gaza into the "Riviera of the Middle East" with the Palestinians moving elsewhere -- a suggestion that has sparked bitter condemnation.

Macron responded that the Gaza Strip was "not a real estate project."

"Simplistic thinking sometimes doesn't help," he added, and, in a message to Trump said: "Perhaps it would be wonderful if one day it developed in an extraordinary way, but our responsibility is to save lives, restore peace, and negotiate a political framework."

"If all this doesn't exist, no one will invest. Today, no one will invest a cent in Gaza," he said.​

 

[Saif]

BNP takes out massive rally against Gaza massacre

The programme condemned the mass killings, atrocities, and persecution inflicted upon the Palestinians by Israeli occupation forces.

en.prothomalo.com

BNP takes out massive rally against Gaza massacre
UNB
Published: 10 Apr 2025, 18: 26

BNP leaders at a rally in the capital's Naya Paltan area on 10 April, 2025. UNB

BNP brought out a massive rally in the capital today, Thursday, expressing solidarity with the persecuted people of Gaza and Rafah in Palestine.

The programme also condemned the mass killings, atrocities, and persecution inflicted upon the Palestinians by Israeli occupation forces.

The activities of the rally formally began at 4:00 pm with a recitation from the verses of the Holy Quran.

Following brief addresses by senior leaders, BNP standing committee member Mirza Abbas inaugurated the rally around 5pm.

In his speech, Abbas said the gathering was unusual due to the large participation of ordinary people as their sentiments were hurt by the Israeli brutality.

He condemned the mass killings and repression of innocent Palestinians, including women and children, by Israeli forces amid the silence of global Muslim leaders.

The BNP leader said had Muslim countries remained united and raised their voices collectively against the ongoing barbarism and genocide, Israel would not have dared to continue its actions.

BNP standing committee members Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, Nazrul Islam Khan, and Salahuddin Ahmed also spoke at the event, strongly denouncing the mass killings and brutality inflicted on the people of Palestine by Israeli occupation forces.

Later, thousands of leaders and activists of the BNP and its associate bodies took out the rally.

Amid the scorching heat, party leaders and followers from different parts of the city had been arriving in Nayapaltan in processions since early afternoon noon.

Streets and alleys from Kakrail crossing to Fakirerpool and adjoining areas were packed with BNP supporters, causing traffic disruptions in the area.

Carrying national flags, as well as the flags of the BNP and Palestine, along with banners, festoons, and placards inscribed with slogans against Israeli mass killings and oppression, they also chanted anti-Israeli slogans.

From Nayapaltan, the rally proceeded through Kakrail, Shantinagar, Malibagh and Moghbazar, before concluding at Bangla Motor.

Earlier on Wednesday, the party announced plans to hold protest and solidarity rallies in the capital Dhaka and all major cities on Thursday.

Similar rallies were also held in major cities across the country on the day.​