Children are dying of starvation in northern Gaza, the World Health Organization (WHO) chief says. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the agency's visits over the weekend to the Al-Awda and Kamal Adwan hospitals were the first since early October. In a post on social media, he spoke of "grim findings". A lack of food resulted in the deaths of 10 children and "severe levels of malnutrition", while hospital buildings have been destroyed, he wrote. The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza reported on Sunday that at least 15 children had died from malnutrition and dehydration at the Kamal Adwan hospital. A sixteenth child died on Sunday at a hospital in the southern city of Rafah, the Palestinian official news agency Wafa reported on Monday. Dr Tedros reported "severe levels of malnutrition, children dying of starvation, serious shortages of fuel, food and medical supplies, hospital buildings destroyed" in northern Gaza, where an estimated 300,000 people are living with little food or clean water. "The lack of food resulted in the deaths of 10 children," he posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. The visits were the WHO's first in months "despite our efforts to gain more regular access to the north of Gaza", he wrote. "The situation at Al-Awda Hospital is particularly appalling, as one of the buildings is destroyed," he added. The UN warned last week that famine in Gaza was "almost inevitable". A senior UN aid official warned that at least 576,000 people across the Gaza Strip - one quarter of the population - faced catastrophic levels of food insecurity and one in six children under the age of two in the north were suffering from acute malnutrition. And the regional director of the UN's children's agency, Unicef, said "the child deaths we feared are here, as malnutrition ravages the Gaza Strip". "These tragic and horrific deaths are man-made, predictable and entirely preventable," Adele Khodr said in a statement on Sunday. On Saturday, the US a launched its first airdrop of humanitarian aid into Gaza - including more than 38,000 meals. However, aid agencies have said these drops - which have also previously been carried out by the UK, France, Egypt and Jordan - are an inefficient way of getting supplies to people. The deliveries themselves have sometimes turned deadly. Last week, at least 112 Palestinians were reportedly killed when large crowds descended on lorries carrying aid while Israeli tanks were present. Israel said the tanks fired warning shots but did not strike the lorries and that many of the dead were trampled or run over. But this has been disputed by Hamas, which said there was "undeniable" evidence of "direct firing at citizens". Some aid agencies have been facing difficulties with the authorities. Philippe Lazzarini, the head of the UN's main human rights agency in the Gaza Strip, UNRWA, on Monday accused the Israeli government of trying to "eliminate" its presence in Gaza. Israel has long accused different branches of the United Nations, including Unrwa, of bias and even of antisemitism. Several western countries, including the UK, have paused funding to UNRWA after Israel accused some staff of roles in the 7 October attacks. Mr Lazzarini said that this was not just in response to "neutrality breaches of some of the staff" but had a wider political motive, which included plans to "eliminate the status of refugees and make sure that this is not part of a final political settlement". He added that dismantling his organisation would lead to the collapse of the entire humanitarian response on Gaza. The Israeli military launched a large-scale air and ground campaign to destroy Hamas - which is proscribed as a terrorist organisation by Israel, the UK, US and others - after the group's gunmen killed about 1,200 people in southern Israel on 7 October and took 253 back to Gaza as hostages. More than 30,500 people, mostly women and children, have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory's health ministry.   Source: BBC

Northern Ireland is to swear in Michelle O'Neill as the first Irish nationalist leader in its history after an agreement with pro-UK unionists. The development is seen by many as a milestone on the path to reunification. Northern Ireland lawmakers were set to elect Irish nationalist Michelle O'Neill as first minister on Saturday — a landmark event in a province established more than a century ago to ensure that pro-British unionists would never lose their grip on power. O'Neill's ascent to the role is the latest sign that her Sinn Fein party's ultimate goal of achieving a united Ireland may be within touching distance.   What is the importance of this? The 1998 Good Friday Agreement, also known as the Belfast Agreement, brought with it the end of three decades of sectarian violence over UK rule in Northern Ireland. Under its terms, intended to maintain a delicate balance between the province's largely Catholic nationalist and mainly Protestant unionist communities, the first minister and deputy first minister essentially share power. The only real difference in the first-among-equals arrangement is that the first minister greets official visitors to Northern Ireland before the deputy first minister. The 47-year-old O'Neill has been first minister-designate since May 2022, when Sinn Fein emerged as the largest party in elections for the 90-seat Northern Ireland Assembly. She will share power with a deputy first minister from the pro-UK Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). That development reflects the shifting demographics of the province since the island of Ireland was divided into two states in 1921. "This is an historic day. It is about the future," O'Neill said on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, ahead of her swearing-in. "As a First Minister for All, I am determined to lead positive change for everyone, and to work together with others to progress our society in a spirit of respect, cooperation, and equality."   Why is it happening now? O'Neill had not been able to take up the role of first minister because of a boycott of the assembly by Sinn Fein's arch-rival, the DUP. The DUP said it was unhappy about post-Brexit trading rules for Northern Ireland, which shares the only border that the UK has with the European Union. Under the 1998 peace deal, signed when the UK was a member of the EU, the land border needs to be kept open with no customs checks and infrastructure. As a result, checks had to be introduced on goods arriving in Northern Ireland from mainland Britain.   The arrangement — keeping only Northern Ireland in the EU single market— upset unionists who feared it risked cutting the province adrift from the rest of the UK. In turn, there were fears that this would make a united Ireland more likely.   The DUP finally agreed to a deal this week after the UK government eased customs checks and other constraints on goods crossing the Irish Sea. That followed the agreement of the so-called Windsor Framework with the EU to make the changes possible.   There were also small legal changes to assure unionists that Northern Ireland's position in the UK is secure, at least for the time being. A referendum on Irish unity is at the discretion of the British government, which would come under pressure to approve such a vote if it appears likely a majority would seek to join a united Ireland.   When Northern Ireland was formed, the population split was roughly two-thirds Protestant to one-third Catholic. A 2021 census showed Catholics outnumbering Protestants for the first time.

Turkey launched air strikes in Syria’s north, hitting Kurdish posts and Syrian army positions, a war monitor said. Turkish air raids hit several towns across northern Syria late Saturday, US-backed Kurdish-led forces and a war monitor said. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that 25 air strikes had struck areas under the control of the Kurdish-led  Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the countryside of Kobane and Aleppo. The Britain-based monitor said that Syrian army positions were also targeted and the air strikes left at least 12 people dead, including both SDF and Syrian army troops. Turkey's Defense Ministry later issued a statement that its air strikes targeted bases from where militants stage attacks on Turkey.  Turkey says strikes in response to Istanbul bombing Saturday's attacks come just days after a deadly bombing in central Istanbul last week, which Ankara has blamed on the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) . "The hour of reckoning has come," the Turkish Defense Ministry said in a tweet early on Sunday. The tweet was accompanied by a picture of a plane taking off for a night operation, but no location was specified. Turkey considers the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) — the main component of the SDF — an extension of the PKK. Mazloum Abdi, the head of SDF, said on Twitter that the air strikes threatened the whole region. "This bombing is not in favor of any party. We are making every effort to avoid a major catastrophe. If war erupts, all will be affected," he said. SDF spokesperson Farhad Shami added in a tweet that two villages densely populated with displaced people were among the areas targeted. He said the bombardment  had resulted in "deaths and injuries.'' "Kobane, the city that defeated ISIS, is subjected to bombardment by the aircraft of the Turkish occupation," Shami wrote. Since 2016, Turkey has launched three major cross-border operations into Syria.

German rail operator Deutsche Bahn said on Saturday that intentional interference was the cause of disruptions in the train network in northern Germany. "Sabotage to cables that were vital for train traffic meant Deutsche Bahn had to stop trains running in the north this morning for nearly three hours," Deutsche Bahn said. The German rail operator said security authorities had taken over the investigation. There was no immediate information on potential suspects. Investigators, however, said the communications cables were cut at one location outside Berlin and another in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia.  German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said authorities "have to assume intentional acts" were behind the rail disruption as cables were severed at two locations.  Transport Minister Volker Wissing added, "It is clear that this was a targeted and malicious action." What do we know about the rail disruptions? Earlier on Saturday, Deutsche Bahn reported a "technical fault on the line" after trains in large parts of northern Germany were stopped. "The reason for that is the failure of the digital train radio communication system," the company said. Hours later, the Deutsche Bahn reported that the issue had been addressed, but further service cancelations and disruptions were still possible. Cables for DB's communication network had been severed in two locations, unnamed security sources told Der Spiegel magazine. The magazine initially noted that it wasn’t clear whether the cut was at the hands of a saboteur or if it was accidental damage due to construction work. How was the rail service impacted? The problem has affected trains in large parts of northern Germany as well as some international routes, DB said.  Travel to and from Hamburg, Schleswig-Holstein and Lower Saxony in the direction of Kassel- Wilhelmshöhe, Berlin and North Rhine Westphalia had been suspended.  The high-speed ICE trains between Berlin, Hanover and NRW were also impacted by the outage. Some international routes were affected as well. Round trains from and to Berlin via Amsterdam are completely canceled. Meanwhile, trains from and to the Danish cities of Copenhagen and Aarhus would end/start in Padborg, southern Denmark. Train delays and cancellations have become a more common occurrence with DB services in recent years. However, the latest disruption comes after reported acts of sabotage targeting the vital Nord Stream gas pipeline last month, which prompted NATO and the European Union to sound the alarm on protecting critical infrastructure.

Monsoon rains and gushing waters from upstream India overnight worsened Bangladesh flood situation with experts calling it the worst since 2004 while officials estimated the flooding to have marooned at least 6 million people.   "Water now continued to surpass much above the danger lines in two of the country's four major river basins . . . the situation is worst since the 2004 flooding," a Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC) spokesman Md Arifuzzaman Bhuyan said.   Bhuiyan, an FFWC executive engineer, said "heavy downpours worsened the flood situation which is gradually worsening in northern and north-eastern parts of Bangladesh".   He said the trend was worsening as the forecasts suggested the heavy rainfall to continue for the next couple of days both in the upstream Meghalaya Assam and western Himalayan regions of India alongside Bangladesh. Officials and reports suggest nearly six million people were marooned at their nearly inundated homes or were forced to take makeshift refuge elsewhere as water level in rivers in northeastern and northern regions continued to rise. Many people were forced to initially take refuge on their rooftops amid gushing rising waters until rescue boats came at many places in Sunamganj.    The incessant downpours aggravated affected peoples miseries while the deluge by now severed entirely road links of northeastern Sunamganj district from rest of the country and forced authorities to shutdown the Osmani International Airport in neighbouring Sylhet after water submerged its runway. Flood waters engulfed several power stations forcing authorities to shut down the facilities, subsequently affecting internet and mobile phone communications as well and due to the shutdowns the entire Sunamganj district remained beyond power supplies for the last two days. The reports said the power outage forced people to depend on candles and kerosene-lit lamps a situation that soared up their prices at many places. Bangladesh authorities earlier called out army troops in aide of civil administration in evacuating people or reaching succours to marooned people while navy and air force units subsequently were called out particularly in northestern Sylhet region as it now appeared as a sea. According to district administration officials, a 35-member naval team began rescue operations with one Coast Guard cruise and two Air Force helicopters this afternoon. "A 60-member navy contingent and two more cruises are expected to join the rescue operations in Sylhet and Sunamganj," deputy commissioner of the Sylhet district Md Mojibor Rahman said. Reports said all the upazilas and half of Sylhet city, and all upazilas and municipalities of Sunamganj district, the Sylhet-Sunamganj highway and the Sylhet-Bholaganj Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman highway are already submerged. Deltaic Bangladesh is crisscrossed by 56 major rivers and several hundred tributaries with hydrologists dividing the country in four major basins, with current flooding first exposed to its wraths the northwesternn region covered under the Meghna Basin. "The situation in Brahmaputra Basis aggravated overnight" as the waters surpassed the danger marks at many places in northern and some northwestern districts,' a FFWC official said. The disaster management ministry officials said the flood hit 17 of the country's 64 administrative districts under the purview of the two basins. BSS correspondents reported nearly 90 percent of homes in Sunamganj is now under water while in Sylhet the figure is estimated to be 80.  Bangladesh saw four major prolonged deluges since 1987 with the last one being in 2004. Experts, however, said unlike their previous major floods since 1987, the water level in all four basins might not surpass their danger levels simultaneously. "So far there is no indication that the four basins will see the simultaneous rise of waters," Bangladesh's leading water expert Professor Ainun Nishat told BSS. But, he said, the flood this time caused by heavy continued rains in upstream in India "which appears a bit extreme". FFWC reports suggest all major rivers of the country are in rising trend, except the Surma but forecasted "medium to heavy rainfall (somewhere very heavy) at some places" in northern and north-eastern regions in next 72 hours or more. The FFWC, which shares data with Indian authorities, said the states of Assam, Meghalaya and Sub-Himalayan West Bengal of India would experience an identical situation. The centre said as the fallout of the downpour, the Brahmaputra-Jamuna, the Ganges-Padma, the Surma, the Kushiyara, the Teesta, the Dharla, the Dudkumar and all other major rivers may continue rising in the next 48 hours.  "Flood situation in the Sylhet, Sunamganj and Netrokona districts may further deteriorate in next 24 hours while the flood condition may deteriorate in the low lying areas of Kurigram, Gaibandha, Bogra, Serajganj, Jamalpur, Lalmonirhat, Nilphamari and Rangpur districts," a FFWC statement said. Source: BSS AH

Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC) today (July 5) forecast that the water levels of the Teesta, Dharla, Dudhkumar Rivers of the country’s northern region may rise rapidly in the next 72 hours creating flash flood situation at some places there. “According to the numerical weather models of Bangladesh Meteorological Department and India Meteorological Department, there is chance of heavy rainfall in the Northern, North-Eastern regions of the country along with places of adjoining Sub-Himalayan West Bangal, Assam and Meghalaya states of India in next 72 hours,” said a FFWC flood bulletin in the morning today. The water levels of the Teesta, Dharla, Dudhkumar rivers of Northern Bangladesh may rise rapidly at times during this period creating flash flood situation at some places, it added. The bulletin also said the Brahmaputra-Jamuna Rivers are in rising trend which may continue in the next 72 hours. Besides, the Ganges River is also in rising trend while the Padma river is in steady state. Both the rivers may rise for the next 24 hours. The major rivers of the Upper Meghna basin in the North-Eastern region of the country are in falling trend which may continue in the next 24 hours. All major rivers, however, are flowing below their respective danger levels, the forecast said, adding that among the monitored 101 stations water level of 60 have marked increase while 39 recorded fall. One river station has been registered steady while gauge reading remained missing as data collection of the station has not started. The significant 147mm rainfall was recorded at Dalia, 80mm at Barguna, 74mm at Dhaka and 64mm at Cox’s Bazar stations in Bangladesh while 66mm at Cherrapunji and 29mm at Jalpaiguri stations in India in the last 24 hours ending at 9 am today. Source: BSS AH