Voices: Israel must face sanctions for its appalling campaigns in Gaza – and the killing of journalists like Mariam Abu Dagga

It is impossible to read the chilling reporting of the killing of Mariam Abu Dagga in a double-tap Israeli attack on the Nasser hospital in Gaza without giving in to righteous, visceral rage.
But the systematic mass killings in Gaza, the systematic targeting of medical personnel and journalists and the gigantic civilian death toll require a cold intellectual response.
And that is a demand for sanctions against Israel.
Imposing real and immediate economic costs on Israel for its appalling campaigns in Gaza and the West Bank – where armed ethnic gangs of land thieves are stealing farms and killing Palestinians with impunity under the protection of Israel’s armed forces – is both the right and sensible thing to do.
The regime of Libya’s dictator Muammar Gaddafi was attacked by European Nato forces, including the UK, in 2011 because he and his son Saif had threatened the city of Benghazi with bloody retribution verging on genocide.
Syria’s dictator Bashar al Assad was subjected to intern..

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UN peacekeepers killed in South Sudan ambush as fears grow over full-blown civil war

Two United Nations peacekeepers have been killed following an ambush by unidentified gunmen in a remote region of South Sudan, the UN mission in the country has confirmed.
Seven other individuals sustained injuries during Monday's attack, including three peacekeepers, two members of the South Sudanese police, and two civilian staff attached to the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).
The patrol was travelling towards Pajut, located in Jonglei state, when it was fired upon. UNMISS stated that a “Quick Reaction Force” was subsequently dispatched to secure the surrounding area and assist with emergency measures.
Anita Kiki Gbeho, the head of UNMISS, condemned the assault in a statement, saying: “Such deadly violence targeting UNMISS personnel who are serving to support peace in South Sudan is unacceptable,”
Official details regarding the names and nationalities of the two killed peacekeepers have not yet been made public.
open image in galleryThere are concerns over a retu..

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Good Good apologizes for controversial Callaway Golf video ad depicting violence

YouTube content creator Good Good Golf, set to serve as the title sponsor for an upcoming PGA Tour tournament this fall, faced swift criticism after publishing and then removing a promotional video for a Callaway golf driver that showed a man pushing a woman to the ground as she reached for the club.
“We posted a video to our channels that ultimately depicted actions that are not aligned with our values as a brand,” Good Good said in a statement.
“We have since taken that content down. And sincerely apologize. Good Good has always stood for making the game of golf more inclusive to all, and we will continue to ensure that is our mission moving forward.”
Both Good Good and Callaway erased the advertisement late Friday following outcry over its depiction of violence against women, although clips of the commercial continued to circulate across social media platforms after official accounts removed the post.
The video features two personalities affiliated with Good Good: Garrett Clark is..

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Ukraine-Russia war latest: Zelensky claims Putin is drafting 300,000 troops and gives warning on wartime elections

Dozens killed after Russian drone strike on busy shopping mall in Zelensky's hometownUkraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky has warned that Vladimir Putin intends to draft 300,000 new troops to join the war from next month in a bid to seize territory.
Zelensky said that the Russian leader would start the drive after elections in September, for Moscow’s key goal of capturing the rest of Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region.
In other comments on Sunday, the Ukrainian leader claimed that holding a wartime election would “destroy” the country by splitting its citizens.
He was responding to calls from his former Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov for the country to go to the polls despite the ongoing conflict with Russia.
Meanwhile, Putin has pulled Russia’s ambassador from London, accusing Britain of taking the “path of confrontation”, as relations between the two countries continue to deteriorate.
Andrey Kelin, who served as the Russian ambassador to the UK for over seven years,..

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