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archived: http://archive.today/2025.10.25-13035

By MEE staff
Published date: 24 October 2025 21:22 BST

Scottish firefighters sourced, refitted and kitted out a fire engine with medical supplies and firefighting gear for their peers in Nablus last year.

The fire engine was sent to the Palestinian territory last summer, and firefighters in Nablus have been waiting to receive it and protective equipment for the last 15 months.

However, despite the fire engine having documented clearance, Israeli officials refused to let it through customs, impounded it at the Port of Ashdod in July 2024, and have now slapped the Nablus governorate with $21,271 in accrued fees.[!]

By MEE staff Published date: 24 October 2025 20:45 BST

"We emphasise that the current phase requires a unified national position and a national political vision based on unity of voice and destiny, and the rejection of all forms of annexation and displacement in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and Jerusalem," the statement said.

The factions urged an end to "all forms of torture and violations against prisoners in Israeli prisons", and "the need to take all necessary measures to maintain security and stability throughout the Gaza Strip".

There was no mention of disarmament - a thorny issue that is unlikely to come to fruition in its absolute form as the US and Israel have demanded.

By Katherine Hearst
Published date: 25 October 2025 11:59 BST

Aid groups have warned that the medical situation in Gaza remains unchanged, as Israeli restrictions continue to bar the entry of almost all medical supplies and equipment amid a fragile ceasefire.

Lena Dajani, a mutual aid volunteer who coordinates medical aid in Gaza, reported that “almost every doctor I’ve spoken to has said that nothing has changed in the healthcare sector” since the ceasefire came into effect on 10 October.

The World Health Organization announced on Thursday that only 10 percent of the requested medical supplies have entered Gaza since the ceasefire came into effect.

In December 2024, the UN General Assembly adopted the United Nations Convention against Cybercrime — the first international treaty on criminal justice in more than two decades.

The adoption of the document was the result of five years of negotiations among UN Member States, with the participation of experts, civil society, academia, and the private sector.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres called the adoption of the Convention “a decisive step” in global efforts to ensure safety online.

On 25 October, the Convention will be opened for signature at an official ceremony in Hanoi, Viet Nam. It will enter into force 90 days after ratification by 40 States.

Global response to global threat

The new document establishes a common international framework for combating cybercrime. It introduces unified definitions, investigation standards, and mechanisms for assisting victims — including compensation, restitution, and removal of illegal content.

States will implement these measures in accordance with their national legislation but within agreed international principles. And perhaps, with this Convention, a new era will begin — one in which a single wrong letter in a website address will no longer cost you everything.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) leads the UN response to cybercrime with training and support to countries across the world.

The Vienna-based agency draws upon its specialized expertise on criminal justice systems to provide technical assistance in prevention and awareness-raising, legislative reform, revamping of law enforcement capabilities, international cooperation, forensic support as well as in data collection, research and analysis on cybercrime.

Two decades ago, Sara Carlson, then a mother of three, was newly single because of a traumatic event, and the US’s food stamp program, now called the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Snap), helped her feed her children with free food supplies.

“I wouldn’t have been able to afford to live,” said Carlson, 45, who lives in Rochester, Minnesota, and now works as an operations manager for a wealth-management firm and serves on the board of Channel One Regional Food Bank, which works to increase food access.

While the food stamps helped her, the government cut her off after a couple years because she started making too much money, which meant she again had to worry about having enough food.

Now, nearly 42 million people around the country could face the same fate if the federal government shutdown continues and funding for Snap is cut off on 1 November.