标签： Asia

Despite the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas last month, thousands of families in Gaza continue to live without electricity, facing dire living conditions. Hanan Al Joujou, a 31-year-old Palestinian mother, describes the daily struggle of feeding her three children in the dark, relying on a flashlight when possible. When the flashlight cannot be charged, the family goes without food or light, often sleeping without dinner. The Al Joujou family has been without electricity since the war began over two years ago, initially relying on candles after being displaced to Rafah in southern Gaza. However, even this became untenable due to fire hazards in their tent. Before the conflict, Gaza received 120 megawatts of electricity from Israel, supplemented by 60 megawatts from its lone power plant. However, after Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023, Israel imposed a ‘total siege,’ cutting off all electricity when Gaza’s power station ran out of fuel. The Israeli military stated that civilian infrastructure, including electricity facilities, were not military targets but acknowledged that Hamas operated within civilian areas. Today, Gaza’s electrical grid is in ruins, with over 80% of its distribution networks destroyed. Initial estimates place infrastructure losses at $728 million. Some residents have turned to solar-powered charging points or private generators, but these are scarce and often targeted. Mohammed Al Hor, 32, lost his brother and charging business in an Israeli strike. Israeli Minister Eli Cohen stated in March that electricity sales to Gaza were halted as a punitive measure against Hamas. Even after the ceasefire, restoring power to Gaza would require a massive infrastructure rebuild. COGAT, the Israeli military body overseeing aid to Gaza, claims Israel is committed to facilitating humanitarian aid, including fuel for electricity, under the ceasefire agreement. In July 2024, Israel connected a power line to a U.N.-managed desalination plant in Khan Younis to provide drinking water. However, for families like the Al Joujous, the darkness persists, symbolizing the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

In Nepal, the families of victims from the decade-long civil war are watching the country’s recent political upheaval with a fragile sense of hope. The conflict, which ended in 2006, left over 16,000 dead and 1,400 missing, with abuses committed by both Maoist rebels and state forces. Despite a peace agreement, justice has been painfully slow. Transitional justice commissions established in 2015 have yet to resolve any of the 65,000 complaints of rape, murder, and enforced disappearances. Sunamati Chaudhari, whose husband was taken by security forces 22 years ago, exemplifies the struggle for closure. ‘We left no stone unturned,’ she said, recounting her efforts to seek justice through courts, organizations, and even the United Nations. ‘But nothing happened.’ The recent youth-led protests against economic woes, corruption, and a social media ban, which led to the government’s collapse in September, have added to the uncertainty. Former chief justice Sushila Karki, now interim prime minister, has been a rare advocate for war victims, but the political situation remains volatile. Families like Chaudhari’s, who recently performed her husband’s death rites, feel time has run out. ‘Many prime ministers have come and gone,’ she lamented, ‘but nobody addressed our problem.’

In a tragic maritime incident off the coast of Malaysia, an 18-year-old Rohingya migrant, Iman Shorif, was rescued after enduring days stranded on Langkawi Island. The boat he was on, carrying approximately 70 undocumented migrants from Myanmar, capsized near the Thai-Malaysian maritime border, claiming at least 26 lives. Iman, visibly weak and shaken, recounted witnessing the drowning of a child during the disaster. The journey had begun in Buthidaung, a township in Myanmar’s Rakhine state, and lasted five to six days before the vessel sank. Iman was spotted by Malaysian rescuers waving a polystyrene board and was found near a waterfall, which provided him with fresh water. The migrants were part of a larger group of around 300 people who had left Myanmar two weeks prior, split between at least two boats. The second vessel remains missing, and its fate is unknown. Malaysian authorities have recovered 20 bodies, while Thai officials reported finding six, including two with UNHCR identification cards. Fourteen survivors, mainly Rohingya and Bangladeshi citizens, have been rescued since search operations began on Sunday. The Rohingya, persecuted in Myanmar for decades, often risk their lives on perilous sea journeys facilitated by human trafficking syndicates. In 2024, 657 Rohingya died in the region’s waters, according to UNHCR. Medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) highlighted the urgent humanitarian concerns raised by the latest shipwreck, emphasizing that such dangerous journeys are undertaken out of fear for their lives.