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‘He was trying to escape the heat’: One more casualty in Gaza’s incurable conflict
Ibrahim Abu Salah was brought into Al Shifa, Gaza's central hospital, in the middle of the afternoon.Neighbours said he had been hit by an Israeli rocket on the first of three days of violence in the territory. The doctors said he was unlikely to survive. One more casualty from an incurable conflict that nobody seems able to solve.We ran into his funeral procession shortly after our arrival in Gaza. The 44-year old had died from extensive shrapnel wounds the previous night.The mourners praised God and called for revenge as they flew the flags of rival political factions, Hamas and Fatah, in the air. Advertisement Image: The flags of both Fatah and Hamas were evident at the funeral of Ibrahim Abu Salah The funeral also presented them with an opportunity to express their frustration and their rage on a compact strip of land that has been blockaded by the Israelis for 15 years Gaza's an open-air prison they say - and it has suffered the loss of another inmate. More on Gaza Related Topics: At least 49 were killed in fighting between Israel and militant group Islamic Jihad. It began with a series of "pre-emptive" Israeli airstrikes, which were supposed to destroy the militants' ability to mount attacks. Islamic Jihad fired some 1,100 rockets in response.Israel reported no deaths or serious injuries. Image: Ibrahim Abu Salah's wife Lobna said he was not interested in the conflict We went to meet members of Abu Salah's family on the day of his funeral and they told us he was not interested in the conflict.His wife, Lobna, looked bewildered, telling us her husband had just gone to get some air in the afternoon heat."It's hot and there's no electricity," she said. "He was trying to escape the heat, sitting under a tree for some air. A rocket from a drone struck him and our neighbour. (They're) martyrs." Image: The scene where Ibrahim Abu Salah was hit was littered with sharpnel, say his neighbours The family's battered-looking home stands just a few metres from the 'no go' buffer zone which Israel has imposed on Gaza's frontier.The Israelis may have mistaken her husband for a militia member, said Lobna, as she sat under a collection of lebbeck trees.In an aerial video of the strike posted by the Israeli military, an official said militants were using the location to set up rocket launchers. Image: Israeli footage shows the spot where the blast happened Abu Salah leaves four children who will be forced to fend for themselves. Their father was jobless when he died, like more than half of Gaza's population.This is the story of Gaza, said neighbour, Am Ahad Hamed."If you see (Abu Salah's) kids, it will break your heart and make a stone cry," he said. "We live a life that's not worth living. We need someone to solve the Palestinian crisis so we can live like the people of other nations. Other nationalities have a good life, they enjoy their childhood. Our kids have no life." Image: Emotion ran high at the funeral of Ibrahim Abu Salah During a three-day commemoration for Ibrahim Abu Salah, mourners said that a seat in paradise awaited him.In Gaza, residents know the violence will return.
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‘He was trying to escape the heat’: One more casualty in Gaza’s incurable conflict
Ibrahim Abu Salah was brought into Al Shifa, Gaza's central hospital, in the middle of the afternoon.Neighbours said he had been hit by an Israeli rocket on the first of three days of violence in the territory. The doctors said he was unlikely to survive. One more casualty from an incurable conflict that nobody seems able to solve.We ran into his funeral procession shortly after our arrival in Gaza. The 44-year old had died from extensive shrapnel wounds the previous night.The mourners praised God and called for revenge as they flew the flags of rival political factions, Hamas and Fatah, in the air. Advertisement Image: The flags of both Fatah and Hamas were evident at the funeral of Ibrahim Abu Salah The funeral also presented them with an opportunity to express their frustration and their rage on a compact strip of land that has been blockaded by the Israelis for 15 years Gaza's an open-air prison they say - and it has suffered the loss of another inmate. More on Gaza Related Topics: At least 49 were killed in fighting between Israel and militant group Islamic Jihad. It began with a series of "pre-emptive" Israeli airstrikes, which were supposed to destroy the militants' ability to mount attacks. Islamic Jihad fired some 1,100 rockets in response.Israel reported no deaths or serious injuries. Image: Ibrahim Abu Salah's wife Lobna said he was not interested in the conflict We went to meet members of Abu Salah's family on the day of his funeral and they told us he was not interested in the conflict.His wife, Lobna, looked bewildered, telling us her husband had just gone to get some air in the afternoon heat."It's hot and there's no electricity," she said. "He was trying to escape the heat, sitting under a tree for some air. A rocket from a drone struck him and our neighbour. (They're) martyrs." Image: The scene where Ibrahim Abu Salah was hit was littered with sharpnel, say his neighbours The family's battered-looking home stands just a few metres from the 'no go' buffer zone which Israel has imposed on Gaza's frontier.The Israelis may have mistaken her husband for a militia member, said Lobna, as she sat under a collection of lebbeck trees.In an aerial video of the strike posted by the Israeli military, an official said militants were using the location to set up rocket launchers. Image: Israeli footage shows the spot where the blast happened Abu Salah leaves four children who will be forced to fend for themselves. Their father was jobless when he died, like more than half of Gaza's population.This is the story of Gaza, said neighbour, Am Ahad Hamed."If you see (Abu Salah's) kids, it will break your heart and make a stone cry," he said. "We live a life that's not worth living. We need someone to solve the Palestinian crisis so we can live like the people of other nations. Other nationalities have a good life, they enjoy their childhood. Our kids have no life." Image: Emotion ran high at the funeral of Ibrahim Abu Salah During a three-day commemoration for Ibrahim Abu Salah, mourners said that a seat in paradise awaited him.In Gaza, residents know the violence will return.
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Police investigate 26,000 war crimes in Ukraine, with officials ‘convinced’ more to be uncovered
Police in Ukraine are investigating 26,000 war crimes committed by Russian soldiers and expect to uncover thousands more as land is retaken and towns and villages liberated, Sky News has been told.Gathering evidence to prosecute Russian forces has become one of the biggest tasks for the Ukrainian police since the start of the invasion on 24 February, but international support is helping efforts. "Everyday we record the death of many civilians," Ukraine's interior minister told Sky News."These are the crimes committed and committed by them [Russia] in the occupied territories."Russian troops 'blocking access to medicines' - live updates Advertisement Referring to the war crimes uncovered when Russian forces retreated from the towns of Bucha and Hostomel near Kyiv, Denys Monastyrsky said he is bracing for more horror as the war continues. "I am convinced that even more crimes await us in Mariupol, Volnovakha and Severodonetsk, those cities that are currently under occupation and will be de-occupied later. More on Russia Related Topics: "We are also investigating those crimes committed by the political establishment of the Russian Federation, directing the troops and allowing them to commit war crimes, such as rape, killing of children, and killing civilians in general. They let their commanders do it," he added. Image: Ukraine's Interior Minister Denys Denys Monastyrsky Teams of national police, security service officers and prosecutors, collect evidence from the sites of airstrikes and liberated areas.They often work under fire or with the threat of secondary airstrikes.The United States has recently donated a mobile DNA collection unit to help investigators process DNA from bodies found at the scene.Experts from France, Lithuania and Slovakia are also in Ukraine providing support - in total more than 40 countries have offered assistance and $20m has been pledged to help fund the office of Ukrainian prosecutor-general. Image: A war crimes prosecutor examines damage in Mykolaiv in July. Pic: Mykolaiv Regional Prosecutor's Office/Reuters. "Statements are gradually coming from those who have lost their loved ones, who have gone missing. There are usually dozens of statements after each shelling," said Mr Monastyrsky."War crimes have become one of the biggest burdens for the national police of Ukraine."Russia is not a member of the International Criminal Court - it withdrew its recognition of the ICC after the annexation of Crimea in 2014 - and Ukraine is yet to ratify its membership, and so a special international tribunal is being considered by The Netherlands.Read more:More than 15,000 suspected war crimes reported Satellite images show Russian warplanes destroyed in Crimea airbase attackRussian journalist who protested Ukraine war live on TV has home raidedEvidence gathered now will help in potential prosecutions in the coming years.Fighting continues and civilians are dying daily in eastern and southern Ukraine as Russian shelling targets apartment blocks, schools, shopping centres and train stations.A Ukrainian counter-offensive in the south is expected to start within days, to push Russian forces out of the Kherson region.If successful, it could be a turning point in the war.
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