As Americans, it is valuable to stay up to date with conflicts happening outside of our border that our country is involved in. Just because the fighting is not in our town does not mean that we are separated from the events. 

VP Harris calls for ceasefire in Gaza; UN cites war crimes on all sides

This past Sunday, Vice President Kamala Harris called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, pressing Israel to allow for an easier flow of aide among the Palestinian people. Harris cited the conditions as “inhumane” and a “humanitarian catastrophe,” according to Reuters. 

Israel’s failure to do so is a violation of the order instated by the United Nations top court in January. Said order required Israel to take “immediate and effective measures” to allow aid into the Gaza Strip, along with four other requests to stop enforcing unlivable conditions on Palestinians. The final element of this order was to submit a report on how Israel addressed all measures a month from the date the order was instated, which was done on Jan. 26. 

Israel has failed to comply with these requirements by not submitting a report on Feb. 26, according to the Public Broadcasting System. 

Harris also implored Hamas to accept a deal that entailed releasing hostages to begin a six-week ceasefire. At the same time in Cairo, Egypt, representatives of Hamas were scheduled to meet with representatives of Israel to discuss once again an agreement to pause the fighting. However, it is unclear if progress was made, as Israel declined to comment publicly.  

The Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth’s online version claimed that Israel boycotted the discussion of a ceasefire on Sunday after Hamas denied their demand to provide a list of hostages still alive. This is the only source on the matter, hence the ambiguity on how successful these talks have been. 

The Gaza health ministry released a statement on Monday stating that 30,534 Palestinians have been killed and 71,920 injured since the beginning of Israel’s military offensive in October. 

United Nations human rights chief Volker Turk stated that the violence in Gaza is spreading to neighboring countries, citing the military escalation in southern Lebanon and Israel by Hezbollah and other armed groups. Turk stated that war crimes have been committed by all parties involved in the conflict, and that they should be investigated and held accountable, according to Reuters. 

This war is approaching five months of open violence, having started on Oct. 7, 2023, as an escalation of decades of conflicts. 

Drones crash in Russia and Ukraine; Nuclear safety talks continue for Ukraine

Russia continues its invasion of Ukraine. On March 2, a Russian drone struck down by Ukrainian forces hit an apartment complex in Odesa, a southern Ukrainian port city. The falling debris killed seven people, including a 3-month-old baby, and injured an additional eight people, according to the Associated Press. 

Eight drones attacked the Odesa region that night, according to Ukraine’s Armed Forces, seven of which were shot down by Ukrainian air defenses. 

In Russia, a drone crashed into a St. Petersburg apartment building, with several people receiving medical assistance, according to the Russian state news agency RIA Novosti. Russia’s Defense Ministry has not commented on the incident, according to the Associated Press. 

The United Nation’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director Rafael Mariano Grossi was scheduled to meet in Moscow with Russian officials to discuss nuclear safety in the Ukraine amidst the on-going war, according to the Associated Press. The Kremlin did not immediately confirm the trip. 

Grossi addressed that the safety of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, located in southeastern Ukraine, is of “tremendous importance in terms of international peace and security.” Grossi visited the plant in February as a part of the IAEA’s efforts to prevent nuclear disaster during the continued fighting. In Vienna, Austria, Grossi stressed that in this situation it is important to keep contact with both sides, according to the Associated Press. 

The meeting in Moscow is intended to cover the topic of technical issues surrounding the future operations of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which is currently in cold shutdown. The plant has been caught in the crossfire multiple times since Russia invaded in Feb. 2022, according to the Associated Press. 

This war has just reached two years of fighting, having started on Feb. 24, 2022, as an escalation of a decade of conflicts sparked by the Russian annexation of Crimea.  

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