May 15, marks the 77th anniversary of the Nakba -- the Catastrophe -- the mass dispossession and displacement of the Palestinian people in 1948 by the Zionists with the backing of the Anglo-American imperialists. Since then, for 77 years, brutal attempts continue to remove the Palestinians from the homeland in which they have lived since time immemorial.

This year's Nakba commemoration is taking place as the U.S. administration of Donald Trump intervenes in the U.S./Zionist genocideto entrench the U.S. in Palestine and the Middle East by imposing the U.S. claim to be the world's "indispensable nation." In the face of the brutal U.S. moves, along with those of its collaborators, the Resistance stands defiant and undaunted. The world's people continue to stand as one with the Resistance to demand an end to the U.S./Zionist genocide that is taking place and the right of the Palestinians to determine their own future themselves.

Canadians and Quebeckers continue to demand that Canada stop supporting genocide in the name of Israel having the right to self-defence despite the fact that it is an occupying power and it is the Palestinians who have the right to oppose the occupation. They demand that Canada stop criminalizing those who support the Palestinian people and their Resistance under the hoax that they are anti-Semites promoting hatred against Jews, and that Canada stop acting as a shield so U.S./Zionist forces can commit crimes with impunity.

The stated U.S./Israeli aim today of ethnically cleansing Gaza of its 2.3 million people, and expanding illegal settlements in the West Bank and slaughtering the people there as well, is intended to complete the Nakba started in 1948. Then Israel, supported by the British and U.S. governments, expelled some 750,000 Palestinians from their homes. The Israeli Zionist forces attacked 774 cities and villages, and occupied 80 per cent of the Palestinian soil after killing nearly 15,000 Muslim and Christian civilians. Those who survived were forcibly expelled to the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and neighbouring countries, such as Syria, Jordan and Lebanon. United Nations General Assembly Resolution 194 obligated Israel, as a condition of its founding, to guarantee the right of return for Palestinian refugees.

Israel has never abided by any of the UN resolutions meant to hold it to account. Today, the U.S. with its veto in the Security Council, along with other countries that make up the Genocide 7 (G7) cartel, including Canada, play a key role in shielding Israel from being held to account by the UN.

In this situation, the steadfast role of the Palestinian Resistance Movements and the sustained actions of the peoples of the world to block Israel's genocide put all manner of pressure on Israel and complicit governments.

In Canada, the new Carney Liberal government continues the Canadian government's complicity in the genocide. For 586 days, Canadians and Quebeckers have made clear that Canada's conniving in support of the U.S./Zionist genocide is shameful and unacceptable, and must be ended. Canada is being held to account for refusing to hold Israel to account.

On this occasion of the 77th anniversary of the Nakba and the May 15 and 17 days of action, Canadians and Quebeckers will continue to stand as one with the Palestinian people who are fighting to the death for their right to be. They stand too with the peoples of the world who condemn the U.S./Israeli Zionist genocide as well as the relentless expansion of illegal settlements, both of which continue the dispossession of the Palestinians begun in 1948.

The Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist) salutes the Palestinian people and their unrelenting resistance and stands with them and all the Resistance Movements as the struggle for liberation continues with renewed urgency.

CPC(M-L) condemns Canada's shameful role in supporting the U.S./Zionist genocide against the Palestinians by providing tens of millions of dollars' worth of weapons and funds.

All out to join the actions across Canada for the 77th anniversary of the Nakba! No! to Canada's cowardly and criminal support of the U.S./Zionist crimes against the Palestinian people! Not in our name! Arms embargo now!

Long Live the Palestinian Resistance!
Uphold the Palestinian People's Right of Return!

Resistance Movements Stand Steadfast in Face of Stepped-Up Crimes

Palestinian Resistance Organizations Affirm National Unity and Steadfastness Will Overcome New Nakba

On the 77th anniversary of the Nakba carried out in 1948, Palestinian resistance organizations declared that the Palestinian people are facing a new Nakba amid the genocidal war waged by the Israeli occupation against the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. They emphasized that national unity and steadfast resistance remain the only path to thwart displacement and liquidation plans.

Hamas

In a statement, the Resistance Movement Hamas affirmed that the unity between the Palestinian people and their resistance has already derailed numerous Israeli projects. "No new Nakba will be imposed, and Gaza's steadfastness will not be broken," Hamas said.

The movement reiterated that "the occupation has no legitimacy over any part of Palestine." It pledged that resistance "will continue until liberation and return."

Hamas also called for unified Palestinian ranks and a shared national strategy of struggle. It rejected any efforts to dismantle the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) or to extinguish the rights of refugees. It reaffirmed its commitment to the right of return and condemned all projects which seek to normalize the occupation.

Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement

The Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement (PIJ) described the ongoing massacres in Gaza and the West Bank as "a continuation of the 1948 Nakba." The Resistance "remains unbroken" and continues to inflict losses on the occupation, it asserted.

"The Palestinian people will emerge from this battle stronger," PIJ emphasized. It underscored that the occupation's continued crimes, carried out with the backing of the U.S. and Western powers, "will only accelerate the collapse of the Zionist project." It also called for the international community to hold Israeli leaders accountable and praised the growing support from the axis of resistance, particularly Yemen, Lebanon, and Iran.

Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) described the situation in Gaza as a "bloody catastrophe." The PFLP stressed that the appropriate response must be the establishment of a unified resistance front and the reconstruction of the Palestine Liberation Organization based on partnership and democracy.

The PFLP warned against "liquidation plots," including the agreements which try to normalize the genocide and broader U.S.-backed regional initiatives. It called for freeing Palestinian national decision-making from the constraints of the Oslo Accords and ending all forms of security coordination with the Israeli occupation.

Palestinian National Council

Ali Faisal, Deputy Speaker of the Palestinian National Council, said the 77th anniversary of the Nakba "must be accompanied by an international awakening of conscience." He called for an immediate end to the war on Gaza and the implementation of international resolutions that guarantee the Palestinian people's right to return and to establish an independent state.

Faisal added that the U.S.-backed Israeli occupation has failed to impose a second Nakba, urging that Israeli leaders be held accountable before international courts, emphasizing the importance of strengthening global popular movements to halt the aggression and support Gaza's reconstruction.

Severe Damage Inflicted on Zionist Occupier

Despite intensified U.S./Zionist aggression to try and force the Palestinian Resistance to capitulate, the Resistance continues to inflict serious damage on the Zionist occupation forces. On Saturday May 10, Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement, carried out a sophisticated military operation targeting a group of Israeli officers and soldiers in the eastern part of Gaza City's Shujaiya neighbourhood. A field commander in Al-Quds Brigades reported that the operation began with a calculated ambush, luring the Israeli forces into a trap by striking an armoured vehicle with a projectile, resulting in confirmed injuries among its crew, which included both officers and soldiers.

This development follows the recent announcement by Al-Quds Brigades that its fighters had downed and seized control of an Israeli reconnaissance drone as it was carrying out an intelligence-gathering mission in eastern Gaza. The operation is part of the ongoing campaign by Palestinian Resistance organizations in Gaza to repel the Israeli occupation's ground incursions, which have been met with increasing intensity and effectiveness. Resistance fighters have been inflicting notable losses on Israeli forces in both personnel and military equipment in fierce urban combat.

On May 9, Rami Abu Zubaydah, a Palestinian military analyst, stated Resistance forces in the Gaza Strip are "switching from a defensive phase to tactical attack mode." He said, "This strategic shift is evident in the escalating pattern of resistance operations, which include detonating planted explosive devices against Israeli armoured vehicles, targeting elite units such as the Golani Brigade inside buildings, and staging multiple ambushes." He also noted that "these operations were carried out deep within Rafah, not on its outskirts, which refutes the Israeli narrative about control of the southern Gaza Strip." The remarks were made hours after Hamas said its fighters ambushed an Israeli 12-man force inside a house in the Tanur neighbourhood in the eastern Rafah area with two anti-personnel and anti-armour rockets, killing and wounding several Israeli Occupation Forces soldiers. Israeli armed forces confirmed the death of two occupation soldiers and wounding of several others in the operation.

On May 7, Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, announced the successful execution of a deadly ambush targeting Israeli forces east of Khan Yunis. The operation involved a preset minefield, mortar shelling, and anti-tank missile strikes. According to a statement released by Al-Qassam Brigades, fighters detonated a pre-planted minefield that targeted a mechanized Israeli force killing and wounding several occupation soldiers. Following the initial explosion, the Resistance fighters also launched mortar shells at the targeted location. Al-Qassam reported observing a destroyed occupation vehicle being retrieved from the scene, as well as a helicopter landing to evacuate casualties. Al-Qassam Brigades had executed an ambush of an Israeli infantry engineering force just days earlier in the same area. The fighters struck the unit with an anti-personnel missile and engaged from close range using machine guns. The confrontation led to the confirmed death and injury of several members of the Israeli force.

After the confrontation, Al-Qassam fighters also targeted two occupation tanks and a military bulldozer positioned near the separation fence using Al-Yassin 105 charges.

As well, investigations by the IOF have revealed that the Palestinian Resistance groups such as Al-Qassam Brigades are re-purposing 20 per cent of un-detonated U.S./Zionist bombs dropped in Gaza, worth tens of millions of dollars, to make explosive devices that are being used against the armoured cars and tanks of the Zionist occupiers. According to a report in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, investigations by the Israeli army revealed that many of the massive explosions targeting its vehicles in Gaza originated from air force bombs that had failed to detonate and were recycled by Al-Qassam Brigades. According to the report, as of early 2025 the Israeli forces had conducted more than 40,000 air strikes on Gaza, during which some 3,000 of the bombs dropped failed to explode. This is corroborated by the UN Mine Action Service, which estimates that five to 10 per cent of munitions have not exploded. The Israeli investigation notes, "These unexploded bombs can be described as a channel through which Israel -- unintentionally -- transferred thousands of tons of explosive materials to Hamas, worth tens of millions of dollars over the past year and a half. In some cases, they cut open the bomb, extract the explosive material, and transfer it to a large metal container to be used as an improvised explosive device. In other cases, they use the bomb as is, connecting it to a metal trigger wire."

(With files from Al Mayadeen, Haaretz)

Yemeni Resistance Continues Without Let Up

On May 14, the Yemeni Armed Forces carried out a missile attack against the Israeli regime. It was the third such attack in less than 24 hours targeting the Israeli regime's busiest and most important airport, Ben Gurion. Military spokesman Yahya Saree said that the actions are carried out in solidarity with Gazans amidst Israel's onslaught on the besieged territory. The missile hit its target "successfully," forcing millions of Israelis to flee to shelters and halting air traffic at the airport for nearly an hour, he added.

"The Yemeni Armed Forces' operations aim to end the aggression against our steadfast and patient people in the Gaza Strip, to end the war of extermination, and to end the ongoing massacres against them, which continue up to this moment, in full sight of the entire world," Saree said. "The Yemeni Armed Forces reiterate their affirmation that these operations are ongoing and will not be ceased until the aggression against Gaza stops and the blockade is lifted," he added. The Yemeni official further called upon "all members of the nation to stand up honourably in rejection of the genocide against their people and in rejection of starvation and blockade."

Further confirmation of the effectiveness of Yemen's strikes on Ben Gurion airport comes in the form of an Air Canada announcement on May 14. The airline announced that its suspension of flights to Israel, in place since last year, is being extended until September 8. Flights were to resume on June 8.

Other major international airlines suspended flights to and from Israel in the wake of air strikes carried out by Yemen's Ansarallah resistance organization targeting Ben Gurion airport on May 4, including Polish airline LOT, Germany's Lufthansa, Air France and Italy's ITA, as well as the U.S. airlines Delta and United, and British Airways. They have all suspended flights to and from Israel for varying periods, some extending until mid-June.

Since October 2023, Israel has had an "unprecedented" loss in tourism revenues of $3.4 billion, Anadolu Agency reported on May 14, citing figures released by the Israeli Tourism Ministry. The ministry figures showed that tourist arrivals have dropped by more than 90 per cent in that period.

(MEMO, Press TV, Anadolu Agency)

Hamas Approach to Direct Negotiations with
U.S. for Release of U.S./Israeli Soldier

Amid renewed calls for a Gaza ceasefire, Hamas released U.S./Israeli soldier Edan Alexander on May 12 in Khan Yunis following direct negotiations with the U.S. His release was confirmed by Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, as part of broader ceasefire efforts that include mediation and negotiations in Qatar, reopening border crossings and allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza.

Hamas described its approach to the negotiations as constructive and flexible, emphasizing that meaningful talks could lead to further prisoner releases. However, it warned that continued Israeli aggression would only increase the suffering of detainees in the hands of the Resistance Movements and risk their lives.

Hamas reiterated its readiness to enter immediate negotiations toward a comprehensive agreement, including a permanent ceasefire, withdrawal of Israeli forces, lifting of the blockade, a prisoner exchange, and Gaza's reconstruction.

Hamas also called on the Trump administration to intensify its efforts to end what it described as a "brutal war led by Netanyahu against civilians in Gaza."

News agencies report that Israel's role in Alexander's release was to pause fighting in Gaza to facilitate his handover. Netanyahu's office stated that Israel remains uncommitted to any formal ceasefire or prisoner exchange agreement with Hamas. The government had only agreed to secure safe passage for Alexander, Netanyahu's office said. Negotiations to free additional captives would continue, the statement added, while preparations for intensified combat operations in Gaza are underway.

Netanyahu is quoted as saying that Alexander's release was secured without Israeli concessions and claiming it is the result of combined U.S. backing and Israeli military pressure.

Alexander is from Tenafly, New Jersey. He moved to Israel in 2022 after signing up with a program that supports Jewish volunteers from around the world, including Canada, who join the Israeli Occupation Forces.

(Agencies)

Crimes of U.S./Israeli Zionists Condemn Them to Eternal Damnation

U.S. Directs Israeli Policy of Starvation
Against Palestinians

Due to Israel's complete shutdown of all aid into Gaza since March 2, the United Nations on May 12 estimated that the entire current population of 2.1 million people in Gaza are experiencing acute food insecurity, with 500,000 of them facing starvation.

The use of starvation as a weapon of war is prohibited. This is well established in international humanitarian law but Israel has been carrying out this war crime and getting away with it as part of its genocidal war on Gaza since October 2023. Recent developments now confirm what everyone has long suspected that it is doing so with the full involvement of the U.S.

Speaking in Jerusalem on May 9, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee announced a plan which involves a private U.S.-backed foundation which he said will distribute aid from a set number of distribution sites which do not even cover the entire Gaza Strip. To divert attention from what the U.S. is really up to, Huckabee said the idea is to create a system that prevents Hamas from obtaining the aid.

On May 13, most UN Security Council member states and UN aid teams rejected the unacceptable U.S./Israeli Zionist plan for aid delivery to Gaza that would control it through third-party contractors. China, Russia, Britain, France, Denmark and Slovenia called on the Israeli regime to allow unfettered aid delivery into Gaza.

Tom Fletcher, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, said that an aid alternative proposed by Israel and backed by the United States is a "cynical sideshow" to turn starvation in the Gaza Strip into a "bargaining chip" and a "fig leaf for further violence and displacement."

UN Secretary-General Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric added: "Today, out of 11 UN requests for coordinated humanitarian movements, five were denied outright, including one planned mission to retrieve fuel from Rafah to supply hospitals, ambulances, and water, sanitation and hygiene facilities. The other six missions, which included the rotation of staff, were facilitated."

Emphasizing that "both supplies and time are running out," Dujarric noted, "principled humanitarian assistance and other essential supplies must be allowed into Gaza to save lives." "Israel, as the occupying power, must abide by international humanitarian law and facilitate aid for people in need, wherever they are," he added.

Dujarric also rejected Israel's most recent authorizing of settlement expansion and annexation. He said Israel's approval of a land registration process in the occupied West Bank risks further "legitimizing" its occupation of Palestinian territory. "We think it's a dangerous move in terms of legitimizing the occupation. We believe that the West Bank is part of the occupied Palestinian territory," he said at a news conference, adding, "I think anything that would move towards annexation would be -- to put it mildly -- counter to international law and counter to our efforts in the peace process."

Nefarious Aim of Gaza Humanitarian Foundation Exposed Before
It Even Got Off the Ground

The private entity the U.S. promoted, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), would administer a determined number of distribution sites using private U.S. military contractors and aid workers, CNN reported. A document from the GHF states that there would initially be four distribution sites aimed at providing aid to 1.2 million Palestinians in its first phase, or 60 per cent of Gaza's population.

The plan would only allow 60 aid trucks a day to enter the enclave, a sliver of what was allowed during the two-month ceasefire that Israel ended in March. Prior to October 2023, some 500 trucks a day provided the people of Gaza with the necessities of life.

GHF is a phony humanitarian agency set up just this year to put a human face on what is a crime against humanity various newspapers and media outlets have written. Media outlet The New Arab reported that GHF involves contracting private U.S. corporations as "partners," tasked with securing checkpoints and inspecting vehicles heading into northern Gaza. Supplies distributed from these zones would be vetted by Israeli forces and the contractors. Despite Israel's deliberate policy to deny aid that has already been causing widespread starvation, the Israeli army recently claimed that "each representative of a Gaza family will receive exactly the amount that is sufficient for his family to prevent a situation of starvation."

According to the Times of Israel, the U.S. wanted its bogus scheme for resuming humanitarian aid to enter Gaza and the Occupied Territories in place before Trump began his Middle East tour on May 13. However, the wheels came off that scheme before the cart got rolling because the plan calls for forcing Palestinians into "designated sites" and for Israel to allow some 60 trucks a day of aid to enter and for food aid to be distributed by U.S. contractors.

Even U.S. ally the United Arab Emirates rejected the plan and an Israeli request to bankroll it, the Times of Israel reported, citing "a senior official familiar with the matter." An Emirati official said this stance could change if the initiative was amended to meet dire needs. Nonetheless, the rejection dealt a major blow to the initiative as Israel hoped that Emirati support would help convince other countries and international organizations to follow suit.

An internal memo sent to potential donor states revealed that the initiative would only feed about 60 per cent of Gaza's population in an unspecified initial phase. Despite the refusal of the UAE to fund the plan, the Times of Israel reported that, according to three sources familiar with the matter, the Trump administration is pressuring international humanitarian organizations to cooperate with its new scheme.

UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) spokesperson James Elder denounced the scheme, telling journalists in Geneva that the plan "contravenes basic humanitarian principles" and appears designed to "reinforce control over life-sustaining items as a pressure tactic. ... It's dangerous to ask civilians to go into militarized zones to collect rations ... humanitarian aid should never be used as a bargaining chip."

The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), the largest aid provider in the Strip, said it has "over 3,000 trucks of aid" that are stuck outside Gaza. Juliette Touma, Director of Communications, deplored the fact that it was going to waste, when the food could be reaching hungry children and when medicine could be used to treat people with chronic diseases. "The gates must reopen," she said, and "the siege must be lifted as soon as possible."

UNRWA also said that Israel has been preventing the entry of all supplies into Gaza for more than nine weeks.

Likewise, Jens Laerke, a spokesperson for the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), warned on May 9 that the agency "will not participate" in this scheme. "There is no reason to put in place a system that is at odds with the DNA of any principled humanitarian organization," Laerke told the BBC.

Craig Mokhiber, international human rights lawyer and activist and a former senior United Nations human rights official, said, "The Israeli regime had set up a fake humanitarian organization, perfidiously called 'Gaza Humanitarian Foundation,' registering it in Switzerland, as part of its propaganda efforts to distract attention from its genocide in Palestine and as a vehicle for blocking actual aid organizations. The 'foundation' is set to collaborate with the regime's occupation forces and U.S. mercenaries to further tighten the occupation of Gaza."

In a press statement released on Telegram on May 12, Hamas emphasized that the only entities authorized to manage and distribute aid are the relevant UN and government agencies, not Israel or its agents. The Palestinian Resistance Movement called for breaking the Israeli blockade and opening the crossings to allow aid to flow in under UN supervision and without any interference from Israel.

Israel's continued prevention of aid entry "confirms its deliberate intention to create famine and a worsening humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip," Hamas concluded.

(CNN, UN News Centre, IRNA, New Arab, BBC)

More Israeli Attacks on Hospitals and
Other War Crimes

Israeli attack on Gaza's European Hospital, May 14, 2025

Israel has put its criminality in Gaza, and the urgent need for it to be stopped, front and centre on the 77th anniversary of the Nakba.

Entire families have been killed in their homes and makeshift tents as Israeli airstrikes and artillery shelling swept through northern and southern Gaza. As of May 16, more than 370 Palestinians had been killed since midnight on May 11 as Israeli forces intensified their bombardment of residential areas in both the northern and southern Gaza Strip, according to medical sources cited by Al-Jazeera, many of them women and children. The death toll in Gaza has now reached over 53,000.

Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported that the Israeli army dropped 40 bunker-buster bombs in the south on Khan Yunis on May 13, which included strikes on the courtyard and surroundings of the Gaza European Hospital in southern Gaza. A medical source told Anadolu Agency that six people were killed and many more injured in the initial aftermath of the hospital strike, adding that the hospital itself sustained significant structural damage. The Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) shamelessly admitted to the bombing, claiming it was carrying out an attempted assassination of Hamas members.

This marked the second Israeli assault on a medical facility in Khan Yunis within 24 hours. On May 12 at dawn, the Nasser Medical Complex was targeted by the IOF. World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus condemned the attack, calling it "a huge blow to the already overwhelmed health system." He said that "the attack killed two and injured 12. One of the injured is in critical condition and is undergoing multiple surgical procedures." He added, "We repeat our call: attacks on hospitals must stop."

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on May 13, "In the very coming days, we are going in with full force to complete the operation. Completing the operation means defeating Hamas. It means destroying Hamas." He added, "There will be no situation where we stop the war. A temporary ceasefire might happen, but we are going all the way."

As of May 17, the death toll in Gaza since the beginning of the Israeli aggression on October 7, 2023, is 53,272, with 120,673 people wounded. Since March 18 alone, when the IOF resumed all-out operations in Gaza, Israel has killed 2,876 and injured nearly 8,000 people in Gaza, underscoring the sharp escalation in violence in recent weeks, in addition to creating starvation conditions. For the last two months, the U.S./Zionists have imposed a complete blockade, preventing deliveries of food, fuel, medicines and other supplies to the population, 90 per cent of whom have been forced to move multiple times within Gaza.

More than 95 per cent of all schools, and all universities in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed. Since October 7, 2023 more than 11,000 students and hundreds of educational staff have been killed. The U.S./Zionist indiscriminate bombings and assaults have left more than 85 per cent of Gaza's health facilities destroyed and all of them damaged, denying health care to the people. Israel has deliberately destroyed farms and infrastructure and residential buildings. Besides Israel's blocking of aid and use of starvation as a weapon of war against the people, Israel has destroyed most of Gaza's groundwater wells and water pipelines and all six major wastewater treatment plants have been partially or entirely destroyed.

Israeli airstrike, May 15, 2025 on Jabalia refugee camp

Gaza Death Toll Significantly
Underestimated Study Finds

The true Gaza death toll since the start of Israel's onslaught against Gaza in October 2023 may be significantly higher than current official estimates, a new analysis published in the British medical journal The Lancet found.

The study suggests that between 77,000 and 109,000 people may have been killed, far exceeding the figures the Gaza Health Ministry was able to confirm in the conditions of mass burials and missing persons. The U.S. and Israeli governments, monopoly media and others regularly sow doubt about the figures the Ministry confirmed. This is done to condone the heinous crimes Israel has committed so as to minimize the magnitude of its war crimes in Gaza.

The Ministry's data are compiled from two primary sources: hospitals across Gaza and an online form that allows families to report killings, often in areas inaccessible due to continued attacks.

The Lancet study reviewed three separate datasets: hospital records, online civilian death submissions, and a third, independently compiled list based on social media obituaries and death announcements. Researchers then analyzed the degree of overlap between the lists to determine whether deaths were being fully captured. They found that limited overlap among the datasets suggested substantial underreporting. In some demographic categories, each list contained different names, implying that even combined, they might not fully reflect the real war casualties in Gaza.

The study also highlights methodological limitations. Some names were later removed from Ministry lists, 3,952 in total, raising questions about the verification process.

Additionally, deaths caused indirectly by the war, such as from the collapse of medical services, may not be fully represented.

"A definitive count of how many have died in this war will be difficult, even after it ends," the researchers concluded. "And that may still be a long way off."

Nonetheless, by comparing the three lists, researchers concluded that the actual death toll is likely 46 to 107 per cent higher than the official count the Gaza Health Ministry was able to produce. The researchers project that the rate of undercounting has likely remained consistent since the end of their initial dataset, which covered up to June 30, 2024. Extending their findings forward, they estimate that the true Gaza death toll lies between 77,000 and 109,000 as of spring 2025. This is equivalent to roughly four to five per cent of Gaza's pre-war population.

These findings cast new light on the underreported deaths in Gaza, especially amid ongoing Israeli destruction of health infrastructure and communication networks that further hinder accurate documentation.

(Al Mayadeen)

Trump's Four-Day Middle East Tour

Attempts to Establish U.S. as Indispensable Nation Elude U.S. President

U.S. President Donald Trump set out to accomplish many feats when he undertook a four-day tour of several Arab countries from May 13 to 16, namely Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. This was his first trip abroad since he became U.S. president for the second time with the exception of his attendance at the funeral of Pope Francis in Rome on April 26. This alone indicates the store he put on his visit aimed at getting several peace agreements with the U.S. as king-maker.

Revealing his aim to have the Arab countries rescue the U.S. economy, during his trip Trump cut billion-dollar deals in everything from defence and aviation to energy and AI. These deals were made in the service of Trump's own business interests, as well as those of various billionaires and oligarchs in the high tech and financial sectors. In the weeks prior to his trip, the Trump Organization revealed plans to build luxury properties in both Dubai, United Arab Emirates and Doha, Qatar. The Trump family's crypto currency venture also announced that an Emirati-backed investment firm would use its new "stablecoin" to complete a $2 billion transaction.

As for U.S. attempts to impose settlements dictated by him on major regional issues, the results did not materialize.

Visit to Saudi Arabia

Notably, on his visit to Saudi Arabia, Trump was accompanied by Tesla CEO and "presidential advisor" Elon Musk; BlackRock CEO Larry Fink; Blackstone CEO Stephen A. Schwartzman; OpenAI's Sam Altman and Palantir's Alex Karp. All of them attended the U.S.-Saudi Investment Forum in Riyadh on May 13, where Trump spoke. Organizers said 145 deals worth more than $300 billion were signed, including a deal for Nvidia to sell 18,000 AI chips to the new Saudi-backed AI company Humain, and a deal with Musk's Starlink satellite-based internet provider.

Remarks made by Trump at the U.S.-Saudi Investment Forum bore little resemblance to reality but were clearly intended to suggest the United States comes in peace and is not an interventionist force.

"The birth of a modern Middle East has been brought by the people of the region themselves, the people that are right here, the people that have lived here all their lives, developing your own sovereign countries, pursuing your own unique visions and charting your own destinies in your own way," Trump said. He used the occasion to criticize previous U.S. administrations calling them "interventionists." According to Trump, these administrations "wrecked far more nations than they built, and the interventionists were intervening in complex societies that they did not even understand themselves."

Trump claimed that his administration will be the one to permit all those countries to flourish. He ended his speech by announcing that he would be lifting all U.S. sanctions on Syria.

During Trump's visit to Saudi Arabia, an arms deal worth U.S.$142 billion was announced, which he said was the "largest defence sales agreement in history." The deal includes exports of GE gas turbines and energy solutions and Boeing 737-8 passenger aircraft.

The sale of F-35 fighter jets and nuclear reactors to Saudi Arabia was also discussed, although no new announcements were made. Trump referred to the sale of nuclear reactors as strictly a business transaction that could give U.S. companies a slice of the U.S.$80 billion that experts say the kingdom's nuclear program would cost. The same goes for the sale of F-35s. But sales on both of those fronts did not materialize because the U.S. made them contingent on Saudi Arabia normalizing relations with Israel which it did not agree to do.

From the Saudi side, in addition to the U.S.$142 billion in arms agreements, the Kingdom pledged $600 billion in investments in U.S. companies. The state-owned oil company said it has signed a total of 34 preliminary agreements valued at U.S.$90 billion with major U.S. companies. The deals span liquid natural gas, fuels, chemicals, emission-reduction technologies and artificial intelligence, its announcement said. Another Saudi company announced plans to invest $20 billion in AI-related enterprises in the United States. Trump has hosted several of the Saudi-sponsored LIV professional golf tournaments at his properties and is seeking deals for more. Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner's private equity firm also received $2 billion from the kingdom's Public Investment Fund.

Gulf-U.S. Summit

Saudi Arabia hosted the Gulf-U.S. Summit in Riyadh on May 14 with the aim of ending the war in Gaza and de-escalating conflict in the Middle East. All Gulf states were present. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman representing Saudi Arabia was present with Trump along with Qatar's Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Kuwait's Emir Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, the UAE's Crown Prince Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and Oman's Deputy Prime Minister Asaad bin Tariq Al Said.

In his opening remarks, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said that Saudi Arabia is seeking to work with the U.S. and other Gulf states to "de-escalate" the situation in the Middle East and "end the war in Gaza." "We are aware of the magnitude of the challenges facing our region, and we seek with you President [Trump] and in cooperation with our counterparts in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries to de-escalate the situation in the region, end the war in Gaza, and find a permanent and comprehensive solution to the Palestinian issue."

"We reaffirm our respect for Syria's sovereignty and support the efforts of the government to achieve security. We commend President Trump's decision to remove sanctions on Syria, which will ease the suffering of the Syrian people," Bin Salman added.

Remarks from participants were aimed at showing their willingness to cut deals with the U.S. for their own advantage by promoting the U.S. as decisive deal-maker in conflicts in the region as well as beyond. In this vein Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa praised Trump, saying the U.S. "wise policy" in the Middle East "represents a unique opportunity to move forward together toward establishing a just and lasting peace, ensuring the rights of the Palestinian people through a two-state solution, preserving regional security and stability, and contributing to a weapons of mass destruction-free region, preventing an arms race."

No mention was made of the U.S. incitement and full support for the genocide being carried out by Israel with arms from the U.S., EU, Canada and others, and the plans to ethnically cleanse Gaza and turn it into a resort for the wealthy.

No concrete peace could come out of the meetings because any overt support the Gulf States give to plans inimical to the striving of the Palestinian people to be masters of their own state will be virulently opposed by the peoples of the region.

Trump Meeting with Syrian President

While in Saudi Arabia, Trump also hosted an impromptu meeting with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa (also known as Abu Mohammad al-Julani, founder of the terrorist Nusra Front and member of the ISIS and al-Qaeda terrorist organizations) and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan participating via phone.

Trump announced his intention to ease sanctions on Syria, and to set out a "Five-point U.S. proposal to Syria": 1) Join the normalization accords and normalize ties with Israel; 2) Expel all "foreign terrorist elements" from Syrian territory; 3) Deport Palestinian militants residing in Syria; 4) Cooperate with the U.S. in countering a potential ISIS resurgence; 5) Assume full control of ISIS detention centres in northeastern Syria.

Reports on the side pointed out that the lifting of sanctions followed a recent announcement by the Syrian government that it wants to build a Trump Tower in Damascus.

Once again, the aim of Trump's "peace initiatives" was evident for the entire world to see.

Visit to Qatar

Qatar and the U.S. signed $243.5 billion in economic deals during Trump's visit to that country on May 14. They include Qatar Airways buying 160 Boeing planes (the company's largest ever order), weapons acquisitions and deals related to natural gas and quantum technologies.

In a statement, the White House said the agreements signed between Trump and Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani will "generate an economic exchange worth at least $1.2 trillion." It also said the U.S. and Qatar signed a statement of intent outlining over $38 billion in potential investments including "support for burden-sharing" at Al Udeid Air Base, as well as future defence capabilities related to air defence and maritime security.

Al Udeid Air Base, also known as Abu Nakhlah Airport, is a major military base southwest of Doha, Qatar. A key hub for the Qatar Emiri Air Force, U.S. Air Force and Royal Air Force, the airbase hosts personnel and assets of these armed forces and is key to safeguarding the apartheid state of Israel and the crimes it is committing against all countries in the region. Far from furthering the cause of peace in the region, Trump's deals with Qatar show the kind of partner Qatar is in peace negotiations.

Trump's visit coincided with the latest round of Gaza ceasefire negotiations in Doha, Qatar on May 14 in the wake of the release of U.S./Israeli soldier Edan Alexander by Hamas on May 12. The U.S. is represented at those talks by Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, a billionaire New York real estate developer.

An Israeli and an Arab official told the Times of Israel that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's refusal to accept proposals that commit Israel to permanently ending the war in Gaza significantly limit the chances of success in these negotiations. Blaming Israel for the lack of success, rather than Hamas, is a new feature of the western media reports on the negotiations.

The only commitment made by Israel at this point is from Netanyahu on May 13, that Israel would launch a new massive military operation to reoccupy the entire Gaza Strip indefinitely if Hamas does not agree to what it has called the "Witkoff proposal" by the end of Trump's four-day trip to the Middle East. This proposal only provides guarantees for Israel. The Times of Israel reports, "This proposal envisions the release of as many as half of the remaining living hostages in exchange for a weeks-long ceasefire, during which Israel would agree to hold talks regarding the terms of an end to the war without committing up front to such a result."

The Palestinian Resistance remains firm in its position that the release of further captives will only be possible if guarantees are made that Israel's war will be ended.

Ynet News described the situation as "deadlocked," because of Israel's insistence that "there will be no end to the war without the return of all hostages and the dismantling and exile of Hamas leadership." As a result, Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff is said to be "exploring alternative proposals." Ynet News added that "Netanyahu agreed to dispatch a delegation to Doha under U.S. pressure, but he also made clear that 'negotiations will only be held under fire.'"

While he was in Qatar, the Emir of Qatar also gifted Trump a Boeing 747-8 worth some $440 million which Trump claims he will use as the new Air Force One to be subsequently turned over to a future presidential library. Not only is it constitutionally illegal for a president to accept gifts but the plane would have to be completely overhauled to meet U.S. presidential communications and security standards which would cost more than the plane itself. Furthermore, presidential transportation always comes in two's due to security concerns.

Qatar's emphasis on building up AI infrastructure is said to be part of its National Vision 2030 development plan. A report in Data Centre Review from October 1, 2024, states, "This vision, which aims to transform Qatar into an advanced society capable of sustaining its development and providing a high standard of living for its people, places significant emphasis on information and communication technology infrastructure. Data centres are at the heart of this transformation, driving digital innovation, economic diversification, and enhancing Qatar's global competitiveness."

Negotiations with Iran

Before leaving Qatar, on May 15, Trump told reporters at a business roundtable in Doha that the U.S. and Iran have "sort of" agreed to terms on a nuclear deal, according to CBS. He described continuing talks between U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi as "very serious" for "long term peace."

Trump's Visit to United Arab Emirates

Trump wrapped up his trip to the Middle East with a visit to the United Arab Emirates where he "hailed deepening ties between the United States and the United Arab Emirates and said that the latter will invest $1.4 trillion in the former's artificial intelligence sector over the next decade," Al Jazeera reported. "I have absolutely no doubt that the relationship will only get bigger and better," Trump said at a meeting with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

The deal with the UAE is expected to enable the Gulf country to build data centres vital to developing artificial intelligence models. The AI agreement includes the UAE committing to invest in, build, or finance data centres that are at least as large and as powerful as those in the U.S., the White House said. The statement added that the agreement "also contains historic commitments by the UAE to further align their national security regulations with the United States, including strong protections to prevent the diversion of U.S.-origin technology."

Failed Attempts to Get Peace Agreement to End U.S./NATO
Proxy War in Ukraine

While Trump was in the Middle East rumours circulated that he might attend peace talks held in Istanbul between Russia and Ukraine to end the U.S./NATO proxy war in that country. Trump has taken great pains to portray himself as a president who is opposed to war and wants peace in Ukraine as well as in the Middle East but so long as he tries to dictate the terms of peace agreements, his claim not only reveals his self-serving aims but also that making the U.S. the "indispensable nation" eludes him.

At the Russia-Ukraine meeting held in Istanbul on May 15, attended by representatives from host country Türkiye, the U.S., Russia and Ukraine to negotiate a ceasefire, no headway was made except to agree to a prisoner exchange involving 1,000 prisoners on both sides. This prisoner exchange is to take place over the next few days. The meeting lasted about an hour, the first time both sides had met face to face since March 2022. Both sides also agreed to present proposals for a detailed ceasefire before more negotiations. In his own arrogant way, Donald Trump, speaking to media on his way home following his Middle East visit, said "Nothing is going to happen until Putin and I get together."