![Amjad Al-Kanoo, who suffers from malnutrition, is held by his mother, Nada, as they wait to be transferred for treatment outside Gaza [File: Mohamed Salem/Reuters]](/Uploads/Images/News/2024/7/Image-2514-20240703120527.jpeg)
Genocide, urbicide, domicide – how to talk about Israel’s war on Gaza
Officials, experts and activists have used various terms to describe Israel’s destruction of Gaza. But what do they mean?
South Africa has taken Israel to the International Court of Justice, accusing it of committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza – and 12 other countries have backed the case.
“Genocide” is a legal term that has been increasingly used to describe what Israel is doing in Gaza as it kills more people, a figure nearing 40,000.
What other terms have been used to describe what’s happening in Gaza?
Genocide, killing a people
Genocide is the “deliberate killing of a large number of people from a particular nation or ethnic group with the aim of destroying that nation or group”.
It was coined by Polish-Jewish lawyer Raphael Lemkin – “geno”, the Greek word for race or tribe, and “-cide”, Latin for killing – to describe the Nazi murder of Jews and other groups during the Holocaust.
The term “genocide” appeared early on in this war – in October, more than 800 scholars signed a letter warning of “potential genocide in Gaza”.
In a March report, the United Nations special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territory, Francesca Albanese, said there were “grounds to believe that the threshold indicating the commission of the crime of genocide… has been met”.
Analysts and rights monitors point to statements from senior Israeli officials, as well as soldiers fighting in Gaza, advocating for the destruction of Gaza and displacement of its population.
India targets net-zero carbon emissions by 2070, says Modi
India’s economy will become carbon neutral by the year 2070, the country’s prime minster has announced at the COP26 climate crisis summit in Glasgow. The target date is two decades beyond what scientists say is needed to avert catastrophic climate impacts. India is the last of the world’s major carbon polluters to announce a net-zero target, with China saying it would reach that goal in 2060, and the United States and the European Union aiming for 2050.
COP26: What climate summit means for one woman in Bangladesh
China's carbon emissions are vast and growing, dwarfing those of other countries. Experts agree that without big reductions in China's emissions, the world cannot win the fight against climate change. In 2020, China's President Xi Jinping said his country would aim for its emissions to reach their highest point before 2030 and for carbon neutrality before 2060. His statement has now been confirmed as China's official position ahead of the COP26 global climate summit in Glasgow. But China has not said exactly how these goals will be achieved.
Why China's climate policy matters to us all
China's carbon emissions are vast and growing, dwarfing those of other countries. Experts agree that without big reductions in China's emissions, the world cannot win the fight against climate change. In 2020, China's President Xi Jinping said his country would aim for its emissions to reach their highest point before 2030 and for carbon neutrality before 2060. His statement has now been confirmed as China's official position ahead of the COP26 global climate summit in Glasgow. But China has not said exactly how these goals will be achieved.
Deliver on promises, developing world tells rich at climate talks
A crucial U.N. conference heard calls on its first day for the world's major economies to keep their promises of financial help to address the climate crisis, while big polluters India and Brazil made new commitments to cut emissions. World leaders, environmental experts and activists all pleaded for decisive action to halt the global warming which threatens the future of the planet at the start of the two-week COP26 summit in the Scottish city of Glasgow on Monday. The task facing negotiators was made even more daunting by the failure of the Group of 20 major industrial nations to agree ambitious new commitments at the weekend.