melissa hall

"It's important to speak out now, not when this is over. Right now, while it's happening."

Our Gaza reporter @declassifiedUK for this article has to remain anonymous. Because the genocidal forces being militarily backed by Starmer's government might kill them. This is where we're at.

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Had to check the date on this! Without a hint of irony, Tourism New Zealand launches new Pure New Zealand campaign in 2025. But sure, 60% of rivers too polluted to swim in and 40% may be ok = 100%! #purenz rnz.co.nz/news/political…

The situation for Palestinians in Gaza is beyond description, beyond atrocious & beyond inhumane. A policy of siege & starvation makes a mockery of international law. The blockade against humanitarian aid must end immediately. This is a moment for moral clarity & action.

@nztaaklnth someone’s lost a waste bag heading north on the Waikato Expressway, just before the Rangiriri Pub - partly in the LH in case no one’s called in yet … txs

Plenty of people alive today will be around to see it get much worse.

Reminder: We're only at the start of the climate crisis.

One more time: Women aren't too emotional to lead. Data: When men are anxious and stressed, they're more likely to be rude, hostile, and abusive. Women show respect regardless of their feelings. The test of emotional intelligence is not how you feel. It's how you respond.

From Hollywood #MeToo to South Korea’s spycams, to France’s mass rape to British gangs, our world is rife with brutal violence. Women’s safety crucially depends on state capacity & feminist activism to create accountability. Silence, as we have seen, is what enables impunity.

“The cost of living in harm’s way has gone up disproportionately,” said Keys. “We are seeing the first broad-based direct cost of climate change for homeowners because of these insurance increases.” We're still in the early days of this crisis. theguardian.com/environment/20…

65 doctors, nurses, and paramedics told the New York Times what they saw in Gaza. What they saw was a pattern of children being shot in the head.

🚨Urgent Statement from ActionAid on the Forced Evacuation of Hospitals in Northern Gaza We are gravely alarmed by the latest directive from the Israeli Army, which, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, orders the full evacuation of Awda, Indonesian, and Kamal Adwan hospitals in northern Gaza. This impacts all patients, medical staff, critically ill individuals in intensive care, pregnant women, and newborns in incubators. The Al-Awda Hospital, one of ActionAid’s valued partners, is a vital healthcare facility serving the most vulnerable in Gaza, and one of the only remaining hospitals providing maternity services across the Strip. Forcing its evacuation under such perilous conditions is not only unconscionable but also a violation of international humanitarian law. At the same press conference, it was reported that Kamal Adwan Hospital is currently under siege, with certain buildings under fire. One paramedic was even detained while accompanying an evacuated patient, despite coordination efforts. These incidents mark a dangerous escalation and place further lives at risk. This is the latest in a series of continuous attacks on healthcare workers and facilities across Palestine and Lebanon. Medical professionals, who risk their lives daily to provide essential care are being deliberately targeted, exacerbating an already dire humanitarian crisis. These attacks are a direct assault on the right to health and safety of civilians. ActionAid urgently calls for the immediate cessation of these actions and for the protection of all medical facilities, healthcare workers, and civilians. The international community must intervene now, ensuring that healthcare systems are protected and that humanitarian aid can be delivered to those in desperate need. We stand in solidarity with the people of Gaza, healthcare workers and with our partner, Al-Awda Hospital, demanding immediate action to prevent further loss of life and uphold the fundamental right to healthcare in times of conflict.

So get this: the world's coral reefs disappear at 1.5C. We are past 1.5C now and heading for 2C. THEY ARE DONE. The point is not  "OMG, all those lovely colourful things we see on David Attenborough are going to go." No. The point is 25% of the world's fish will disappear as well. No. The point is 1-2 billion people depend on those fish. 100s of millions of people will starve. You're right, it could 'just' be only 10s of millions. So that's okay then. No problem.

2.5/3°C global warming 1.  species extinct: 30-60% 2. fully expected by majority of scientists in 34-68 years without economic system change 3. scientists say there's no evidence humans can survive 2.5°C 4. many scientists say humans won't survive 3°C Mass media? SILENT 🧵

The news that six employees of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) have been killed in an airstrike by Israeli forces is harrowing. The strikes were on one of the schools it runs in central Gaza that had been turned into a shelter for thousands of displaced Palestinians. Aid workers are not targets. Shelters are not targets. These horrors can't continue. We stand in solidarity with UNRWA staff and all charity workers in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

Update: This summer was the hottest summer since 1880 when modern recordkeeping began. August 2024 is the 15th month in a row of record-breaking monthly temperatures. More: nasa.gov/earth/nasa-fin…

"I just want to tell you that we feel shame. The whole country should feel shame that we put damaged children in a place where they were damaged further."

Sanitation workers and rag pickers, despite being vital to our cities’ cleanliness, face immense challenges. Caste prejudices force Dalit sanitation workers into dangerous jobs like cleaning sewers, while rag pickers endure unfair treatment and health risks sorting waste. ActionAid Association’s “A People’s Agenda for Just Futures” demands change. We fight for sanitation workers’ rights and dignified working conditions. We advocate for rag pickers’ formalization and social security. Together, let’s dismantle social stigma and build a future where sanitation workers and rag pickers are recognized as sanitation heroes, not outcasts. #AdivasiRights #SanitationWorkers #RagPickers #ActionAidassociation