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Israels ongoing blockade of humanitarian assistance for Gaza forced a leading aid group to shut its community soup kitchens Thursday as it faced empty warehouses and no replenishment of supplies in the war-battered enclave. World Central Kitchen was serving 133,000 meals per day and baking 80,000 loaves of bread over the past weeks, but said it was forced to suspend operations since there is almost no food left in Gaza for the organization to cook. The lack of food is threatening Gaza’s population, already battered by 19 months of war. In April, the World Food Program said its food stocks in Gaza had run out under Israel’s blockade, ending a main source of sustenance for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in the territory. Shortages due to blockade drive hunger, malnutrition Malnutrition and hunger are becoming increasingly prevalent in the Gaza Strip as Israels total blockade enters its third month, and aid agencies say supplies to treat and prevent malnutrition are depleted and quickly running out. Israel imposed the blockade on March 2, then shattered a two-month ceasefire by resuming military operations in the territory on March 18. It said both steps aim to pressure the militant Hamas group to release hostages the extremists still hold. Rights groups call the blockade a starvation tactic that endangers the entire population and say it is a potential war crime. Community kitchens such as the ones run by World Central Kitchen are often the only way for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza to eat a daily meal. But a third of the communal kitchens supported by the U.N. have closed in the past 10 days for lack of food or fuel, the U.N. humanitarian office, or OCHA, said. It warned that number will plunge further in the coming days because of more imminent closures. The hot meals provided by these kitchens constitute one of the last remaining lifelines for Palestinians, OCHA said. At those still open, chaotic scenes of desperate men, women and children fighting to get meager rations are common. Bakeries have closed, while water distribution is grinding to a halt due to lack of fuel. Aid is waiting on the borders Since the start of the war, World Central Kitchen said it has served more than 130 million meals and baked 80 million loaves of bread. The organization also said on Thursday there was no flour left in their mobile bakery. Our trucksloaded with food and suppliesare waiting in Egypt, Jordan, and Israel, ready to enter Gaza, said José Andrés, the celebrity chef who founded the organization. But they cannot move without permission. Humanitarian aid must be allowed to flow. COGAT, the Israeli defense body overseeing aid to Gaza, said the blockade would continue unless the Israeli government changed its policy. Hamas is engineering hunger Israeli government spokesperson David Mencer said the government was concerned that Hamas has control of humanitarian aid, and that Israeli officials are actively exploring mechanisms” to get aid only to those in need and not Hamas. Its very, very important to remember that it is hunger which is engineered by Hamas, Mencer said. Israel will remove the blockade when Hamas lays down its weapons, he said. Aid workers deny there is a significant diversion of aid to militants, saying the U.N. strictly monitors distribution. Since the start of the year, more than 10,000 children have been admitted or treated for acute malnutrition, according to the World Health Organization. The increase was particularly dramatic in March, with 3,600 casesan 80% increase, compared to the 2,000 children in February, UNICEF reported. Nearly half the 200 nutrition centers around Gaza have shut down because of displacement and bombardment. World Central Kitchen had previously suspended operations in April of last year after seven aid workers were killed in Israeli strikes on their convoy, before resuming weeks later. Toll in Gaza continues to rise The Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza said Thursday the bodies of 106 people killed by Israeli strikes have been brought to hospitals over the past 24 hours. Hospitals also received 367 wounded, the ministry said in its daily report. The overall Palestinian death toll from the Israel-Hamas war rose to at least 52,760 since Oct. 7, 2023, the ministry said. Another 119,264 have been wounded, it said. It said the tally includes 2,651 dead and 7,223 wounded since Israel resumed the war on March 18, shattering the ceasefire after nearly two-month hiatus. The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants, but says more than half of the dead were women and children. The Israeli military said they are targeting Hamas infrastructure in Gaza. On Wednesday, chief of staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir told commanders Israel was about to enter phase 2 of operations in Gaza, where Israel plans to “expand and intensify our operations. 1 killed, 8 injured in Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon Also on Thursday, a series of Israeli airstrikes hit hilltops in the vicinity of the southern Lebanese city of Nabatieh, killing at least one person and wounding eight others, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. The Israeli military said it bombed infrastructure that belonged to the Hezbollah militant group and included weapons and tunnels. Israel said that Hezbollah’s activities at the site violated a November ceasefire. Hezbollah did not immediately comment on the strikes. Lebanons state-run National News Agency said public institutions in the area were closed after the attacks as families rushed to schools to take their children home. Since the U.S.-brokered ceasefire in November stopped the war between Israel and Hezbollah, Israeli strikes on souther Lebanon have continued. Hezbollah says its has largely disarmed south of the Litani River, while Israel insists the militants are rearming themselves. Some 4,000 people in Lebanon were killed during the war, including many civilians. Journalist from Jenin detained for six months A renowned Palestinian journalist arrested by the Israeli military and suffering from multiple chronic illnesses has been placed on six months of administrative detention, the Israeli military said. Ali Samoudi, who has worked for international news outlets including CNN and Al Jazeera, was detained late last month by the Israeli military from his family home in the city of Jenin in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, and has spent part of the time in the hospital due to chronic health issues. The Israeli military said Samoudi was detained based on involvement in actions endangering regional security” but that a police investigation did not find sufficient evidence against him to issue an arrest. However, on Thursday, a military court decided to place him under administrative detention for six months. Israeli authorities can renew administrative detentions indefinitely. Detainees are held without charge or trial. Israel says the controversial tactic is necessary to contain dangerous militants and avoid divulging incriminating material for security reasons. But Palestinians and rights groups say the system denies due process and is widely abused. Wafaa Shurafa and Kareem Chehayeb, Associated Press Associated Press writer Melanie Lidman contributed to this report.
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Once a year, a crowd of thousands of runners fill Central Park as they look up at the sky with joy, relief, exhaustion, and tears, knowing they just completed the iconic TCS New York City Marathon. Recognizing the endless storytelling opportunities that come from the event, New York Road Runners (NYRR), the nonprofit behind the marathon, is launching its own production studio, East 89th St Productions. It was clear to me that this was a huge opportunity for the organization from the first day that I went to the finish line of the marathon, NYRR CEO Rob Simmelkjaer says. It’s rare that you can look and see total strangers by the hundreds, having a moment that you know they’re never going to forget. Named after NYRRs early headquarters on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, East 89th St Productions partnered with Tribeca Studios to produce Final Finishers, a short documentary film showcasing the last tens of thousands of runners crossing the finish line in the final hours of the NYC Marathon. The film is set to premiere at the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival on June 12. ‘A very significant next step’ The launch of NYRRs production studio is a continuation of a larger effort to reach and connect with wider audiences through content creation. Prior to assuming his leadership position in December 2022, Simmelkjaer spent almost 10 years at ESPN and eight years at NBC Sports. At the start of his tenure at NYRR, he set out long-term plans, including broadening awareness of NYRRs initiatives beyond organizing over 60 local races. Due to his background in media, Simmelkjaer saw content creation and storytelling as the logical next step towards building awareness and community. I had to sell both internally and externally the idea that this was an essential part of what we do, because we needed to be talking to our existing audience of runners and members and stakeholders in a new way, he says. In addition to expanding its existing content creation team, which focused on broadcasting the races and managing the organizations social media, Simmelkjaer branched into podcasting. With over 100 episodes, Set the Pace” features stories from runners, as well as running tips, every Thursday, in partnership with Peloton. The podcast was like a beachhead for us. It kind of planted our flag on the beach in terms of content, Simmelkjaer says. The studio is a very significant next step in the evolution of this vision. Take the money and run In addition to building community engagement, content creation is also driving the nonprofit toward another goal: diversifying revenue streams. While NYRR relies primarily on race entry fees and philanthropic donations, content creation opens the door for monetization, new partnerships, and the creation of a deeper connection between donors and the nonprofit’s mission. At the heart of every nonprofit is a mission and that mission can always be told as a story or a set of stories, Simmelkjaer says. The expansion to content creation as a broader strategy can also be adopted by other mission-based nonprofits, visually showcasing the impact of an organization. When donors support a cause, there is something that is moving them to support that cause,” Simmelkjaer says. “There’s something the nonprofit is bringing about a world that the donor wants to see. When you can see in really human and understandable terms what impact that an organization is having, I think that’s going to be more powerful than any PowerPoint presentation can ever be.
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The social media platform X said Thursday it has blocked access to jailed Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu s account in Turkey, complying with a Turkish court order the latest measure targeting a key rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. However, Elon Musk‘s X said that while the company abided by the order, it disagrees with it and is legally challenging it. It said X complied to avoid severe punishments, such as the throttling of the whole platform in Turkey. X has been and will continue to object to removal orders including government requests in courts to protect users when those requests do not align with principles of free expression, due process, or other local laws, the company said on its Global Government Affairs account. The statement said X maintains that “keeping the platform accessible in (Turkey) is vital to supporting freedom of expression and access to information. Imamoglu, seen as the main opposition challenger to Erdogans 22-year rule, was arrested on March 19 and jailed on corruption charges. He was nominated as his Republican Peoples Party, or CHPs presidential candidate while in custody. His arrest has been widely viewed as politically motivated although the government insists Turkeys judiciary is independent and free of political influence. It triggered widespread demonstrations calling for his release and an end to Turkeys democratic backsliding under Erdogan. According to Engelli Web, a website that that tracks and reports internet censorship in Turkey, X restricted Imamoglus account in Turkey complying with a legal request by Turkish authorities who cited national security and public order concerns. A notice that appears on Imamoglu’s account, which has 9.7 million followers, says it has been “withheld in TR in response to a legal demand. The account remains accessible outside of Turkey. Gonenc Gurkaynak, a lawyer representing X in Turkey, said he had filed an appeal on behalf of the platform against the decision blocking the account. He said he had submitted a 27-page petition and hundreds of pages of supporting documents to the court. The Turkish presidency’s Center for Countering Disinformation said the court decision followed an investigation into a post by Imamoglu on X, which prosecutors assessed to be an incitement to commit a crime. Authorities also ruled that because Imamoglu is currently detained, his account is not directly managed by him and therefore poses a threat to public order. On Thursday, CHP’s leader Ozgur Ozel welcomed X’s decision to challenge the court order but said the platform should have resisted complying with it. X should not impose this restriction, which contradicts universal freedoms and the companys own principles, he said and urged Imamoglu’s supporters to follow the mayor’s international account and re-share his posts. Ozel also criticized Erdogan’s administration saying that there probably is no other government that uses its judicial power so unfairly against its opponent. Despite his detention, Imamoglu had remained active on social media. Supporters criticized the restriction as an assault on free speech in Turkey. They showed solidarity with the mayor by replacing their profile pictures with Imamoglu’s image. Suzan Fraser, Associated Press
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