Mauritania: Islamist Party Calls for Peaceful Struggle Against Regime

Men run from tear gas during a protest in Nouakchott, Mauritania (Reuters)
Men run from tear gas during a protest in Nouakchott, Mauritania (Reuters)
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Mauritania: Islamist Party Calls for Peaceful Struggle Against Regime

Men run from tear gas during a protest in Nouakchott, Mauritania (Reuters)
Men run from tear gas during a protest in Nouakchott, Mauritania (Reuters)

The Islamist National Rally for Reform and Development (Tawasul) called for pursuing a peaceful struggle to hold the regime responsible for the challenging situation the country is going through.

In statements received by the German Press Agency, the party said that after an emergency meeting of its executive office, it decided to adopt a peaceful program and call for a comprehensive dialogue.

It renewed its call for a comprehensive national dialogue that leads to a transformation that lays solid foundations for resolving the country's core problems.

Tawasul is the largest opposition party in the Mauritanian parliament. It granted the regime of President Mohamed Ould Cheikh el-Ghazouani, who took power in August 2019, a deadline to normalize the political atmosphere.

The party's position comes while growing public discontent over the country’s lack of security, which led to the death of dozens of innocent citizens killed by gangs in Nouakchott.

After series of incidents, the president toured a number of the capital's neighborhoods, during which he visited security units.

Meanwhile, four opposition parties called on the government to put an end to the chaos and ensure the security and safety of citizens, in light of the unprecedented wave of disorder in the capital.

The opposition parties Ettakatol, the Union of Progress Forces, Sawab, and Democratic Forces signed a statement, warning that the current lack of security in the country undermines the prestige of the state and threatens a real catastrophe that may affect the citizens' lives.

They stated that this may constitute a serious threat to civil harmony and social peace, especially in poor and remote neighborhoods, without security or safety.

The parties expressed their strong dissatisfaction with the authorities’ indifference in the face of the seriousness of the drug scourge, noting that an increasing number of children and youth are turning to drugs and criminality.

During the past weeks, several citizens were stabbed to death by organized crime gangs under the influence of drugs.



UN Says It's Ready to Ramp Up Delivery of Desperately Needed Aid to Gaza

A Palestinian man rides a donkey-pulled cart along a street on a misty morning in Khan Yunis in the northern Gaza Strip on January 17, 2025, as Israel's security cabinet is expected to approve a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. (Photo by Bashar TALEB / AFP)
A Palestinian man rides a donkey-pulled cart along a street on a misty morning in Khan Yunis in the northern Gaza Strip on January 17, 2025, as Israel's security cabinet is expected to approve a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. (Photo by Bashar TALEB / AFP)
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UN Says It's Ready to Ramp Up Delivery of Desperately Needed Aid to Gaza

A Palestinian man rides a donkey-pulled cart along a street on a misty morning in Khan Yunis in the northern Gaza Strip on January 17, 2025, as Israel's security cabinet is expected to approve a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. (Photo by Bashar TALEB / AFP)
A Palestinian man rides a donkey-pulled cart along a street on a misty morning in Khan Yunis in the northern Gaza Strip on January 17, 2025, as Israel's security cabinet is expected to approve a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. (Photo by Bashar TALEB / AFP)

The United Nations said Wednesday that it’s ready to ramp up the delivery of desperately needed humanitarian aid to Gaza following a ceasefire agreement and urged the removal of major security and political obstacles so supplies can reach all Palestinians in need.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the announcement of a deal to pause the fighting “a critical first step” and told reporters that the UN’s top priority must be to ease the tremendous suffering caused by the conflict triggered by Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attacks in southern Israel, The Associated Press said.
“The humanitarian situation is at catastrophic levels,” he said. “From our side, we will do whatever is humanly possible, aware of the serious challenges and serious constraints that we will be facing.”
UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said aid agencies have been mobilizing supplies in preparation for a ceasefire to scale up deliveries of food, medical supplies and other key items.
Less than half of Gaza’s 36 hospitals are functional, water production is at a quarter of capacity, 95% of school buildings have been damaged or destroyed and nearly all of Gaza’s 2.1 million people are facing high levels of food insecurity, said Catherine Russell, executive director of the UN children’s agency UNICEF.
The top UN humanitarian official for Gaza, Sigrid Kaag, met with senior Israeli and Palestinian officials in recent days to discuss how to increase aid after a ceasefire agreement, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Tuesday.
Kaag’s meetings focused on trying to overcome challenges to deliveries that could remain even after the deal, including gunmen stripping convoys of aid, Israeli restrictions on access to Gaza, road damage, unexplored ordnance, fuel shortages and a lack of telecommunications equipment, he said.
The UN humanitarian office reported Tuesday that “Israeli authorities continue to deny UN-led efforts to reach people with vital assistance,” Dujarric said. In northern Gaza, where Israel launched its latest offensive, the UN has been denied access to deliver food supplies since Dec. 20, he said.
In addition to the lawlessness, the United Nations faces a major political obstacle. Its humanitarian operation in Gaza depends on the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA, which Israel’s parliament voted to ban from operating in the Palestinian territories. That legislation takes effect on Jan. 28.
Guterres has said there is no UN agency that can replace UNRWA, and if it is banned from operating, Israel as the occupying power in the Palestinian territories must take responsibility for providing aid.
UN officials said it’s imperative that the ceasefire deal is fully implemented and aid is allowed to flow freely.
“With the collapse of essential services across Gaza, we must act urgently to save lives and help children recover,” Russell of UNICEF said in a statement.
Guterres said the United Nations expects its efforts to be matched by other humanitarian organizations, the private sector and government initiatives.
David Miliband, head of the International Rescue Committee, said aid groups must be given full access and adequate funding to rush aid to Gaza’s people after 15 months with limited food, clean water and medical care. He said his organization would quickly ramp up efforts: “The needs are immense and need urgent attention.”
Jan Egeland, a former UN humanitarian chief who heads the Norwegian Refugee Council, said, “Israel must immediately lift all restrictions on aid and humanitarian agencies to avert famine-like conditions and ensure access to shelter, food, and medical care for all in need.”
He called on the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom and other nations “to make sure Israel does keep all crossings open, enabling a sustained flow of aid that can alleviate further suffering.”
US President Joe Biden, speaking in Washington, said, “The surge of humanitarian assistance into Gaza will begin. And the innocent people can have a greater access to these vital supplies.