Israel and Palestine agree to a ceasefire
Israel and Hamas finally agreed to a ceasefire that came into effect at 2 AM local time on Friday, May 21 after 11 days of relentless violent clashes between the age-old adversaries. This ‘war’ has claimed the lives of at least 230 Palestinians and 12 Israelis.
You can check out our IGTV and the post on the history and recent developments of these clashes.
What is a ceasefire anyway?
A ceasefire is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions.
Is this ceasefire a sustainable solution?
This truce was mediated by Egypt and unanimously approved by the Israeli cabinet. Two Egyptian delegations have reached Tel Aviv & Palestinian territories to ensure the deal’s implementation.
Historically, such truces & ceasefires have proved fragile. While the ceasefire provides much-needed relief, it doesn’t come with any conclusive solutions to the Israel-Palestine conflict.
International pressure
This ceasefire has come on the back of intense international pressure. The UN Security Council has met several times already on the Israel-Gaza conflict.
The US, Israel’s strongest supporter, has been criticized for blocking at least four UNSC attempts to issue a press statement to end the violence. The reason cited by the US was that this could have interfered with the Biden administration’s efforts to de-escalate the hostilities.
Victory claims
Both sides are claiming ‘victory’ in the aftermath.
The Israeli military claimed that they have inflicted unprecedented, heavy damage on Hamas (the militant group ruling in Gaza) even while PM Netanyahu faces criticism from the Israeli right-wing base on accepting the truce too soon.
Meanwhile, Hamas claimed that the Israeli military has agreed to retract from Al-Aqsa Mosque and Sheikh Jarrah which was their paramount requirement.
Truce put to early test
Thousands of Palestinians took to the streets to celebrate. They gathered at Damascus Gate & Al-Aqsa Mosque for weekly prayers, both of which were locations of the original clashes that ultimately led to the war.
Celebratory protests could spark confrontations again, setting in motion another cycle of escalations especially since both sides have already issued veiled threats that the attacks could be resumed in the face of provocation.
Nepal’s struggle with the second wave of Coronavirus
As India suffers through the second wave of Coronavirus, its neighbor Nepal seems to be going through just the same. As of May 20, 2021- the total covid cases stood at 4.8L. There have been 3.6L recoveries, 5657 deaths and 114,529 active cases. The country is reporting more than ~8000 new cases daily.
On 19 May, Nepal’s Ministry of Health and Population confirmed the presence of the third variant, B.1.617.2, the variant seen in India. Mirroring India’s struggle with the second wave, hospitals are reporting shortages of beds, oxygen and ventilators. The country has been reporting a positivity rate of around 50%- meaning 1 in 2 tested return a positive result. The high rate is due to limited testing, said Nepal’s health secretary, Laxam Aryal.
As the struggle continues, India is the only country providing liquid oxygen to Nepal. Two tankers of 15-tonne capacity are being sent from India to Nepal and three more might be added soon. Help from China has also come in the form of 400 oxygen cylinders, 160 oxygen concentrators, 20,000 cylinders and ten ventilators. China had promised medical equipment and supplies worth USD 780,000 to Nepal last month.
Nepal has also received assistance worth $36.8 million in the form of 100 ventilators, 10,000 PPEs, and life-saving drugs through USAID so far since the beginning of the pandemic and $3.1 million from the US Department of Defence through medical equipment and supplies. Nepal was also amongst the first countries in Asia to receive COVAX donations. US is the largest donor to COVAX and has committed $2 billion to the program, with an additional $2 billion in the pipeline.
The crisis in Nepal is a warning signal for other smaller developing countries with low vaccination rates and weak healthcare systems. The country has 11000 covid beds, 700 ventilators, and only 1600 ICU beds as per the data released by the health ministry in May. Nepal has a population of 30 million and as per officials, only 2.4 million people have been vaccinated, with only 400,000 of them having received both shots.
One of the worst-hit areas is Nepalgunj, which lies close to the Indian border, as migrant workers return from India and hide in their villages, afraid of being carriers and quarantine. However, officials claim that the rise in the second wave is a mix of all three factors- migrant workers, political rallies held by the government and opposition and social events- religious festivals and organized marriages.
As the country struggles with this humanitarian crisis, it was also hit by a political one. Facing rebellion from his own party, KP Sharma Oli, the prime minister of Nepal, called for a snap election and dissolved the parliament in December 2020. However, the Supreme Court reinstated the parliament earlier in February this year.
There have been both pro and anti–Oli protests all over the country, as he faced criticism from both the opposition and society for mishandling the pandemic. Last week, on 10 May 2021, Mr. Oli lost the vote of confidence in parliament and since no party has a clear majority, who will form the next government is not clear.
We wish everyone in Nepal a speedy recovery! Wear a mask.
India stands in solidarity.
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