Open Arms members carry humanitarian aid for Gaza in a joint mission between NGOs Open Arms and World Central Kitchen at a port of Larnaca, Cyprus, March 9. Santi Palacios/Open Arms-World Central Kitchen/Handout via Reuters hide caption

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Santi Palacios/Open Arms-World Central Kitchen/Handout via Reuters

An aid ship is en route to Gaza, in a test of a sea corridor for the war-torn enclave

A humanitarian ship is piloting a new sea route to bring food to Gaza to help avert famine after five months of war and Israeli restrictions on aid.

A large sign calling for a cease-fire in Gaza hangs from a building in Dublin on Feb. 12. Paulo Nunes dos Santos for NPR hide caption

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Paulo Nunes dos Santos for NPR

Why Ireland is one of the most pro-Palestinian nations in the world

One of the most pro-Palestinian nations in the world is not an Arab or Muslim country. It's not even in the Middle East. Polls show Ireland has some of the highest support for the Palestinians.

Why Ireland is one of the most pro-Palestinian nations in the world

Displaced Palestinians gather to receive food donated by a charity before an iftar meal, the breaking of fast, on the second day of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Tuesday, amid ongoing battles between Israel and the militant group Hamas. Majdi Fathi/NurPhoto via Getty Images hide caption

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Majdi Fathi/NurPhoto via Getty Images

With aid headed to Gaza, hurdles remain to getting food to its starving population

U.N. food agency finally was able to deliver aid to northern Gaza, and efforts are afoot to bring relief by sea. But the challenges are many.

With aid headed to Gaza, hurdles remain to getting food to its starving population

Chaim Otmazgin, 50, poses for a portrait in his home in Petah Tikvah, Israel on Jan. 21. Otmazgin is a reserve soldier and a Zaka volunteer that was on scene of the attacks on October 7th and the following days. Maya Levin for NPR hide caption

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Maya Levin for NPR

State of the World from NPR

Examining Evidence of Sexual Violence During the October 7th Attacks

Israel says more than 1,200 Israelis were killed during the Hamas led assault on October 7th. Israel also says there were numerous instances of sexual violence perpetrated that day. This is a charge Hamas denies. To understand the difficulties in investigating the allegation, we hear about the experience of a first responder on October 7th.

Examining Evidence of Sexual Violence During the October 7th Attacks

Children react during the funeral of the Faojo family, killed in an Israel strike on Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Nov. 11, 2023. Roughly 600,000 children are sheltering in Rafah, where a spiraling humanitarian crisis is playing out due to the war between Israel and Hamas. Said Khatib/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Said Khatib/AFP via Getty Images

68 orphans were evacuated from Gaza to the West Bank, enraging Israel's far right

The children were moved out of Rafah by the charity SOS Children's Villages International with the help of the German government. But the transfer has sparked anger among some hardliners in Israel.

U.S. President Bill Clinton presides over the 1993 peace accords signed at the White House by Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin (left) and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. The aim was a negotiated deal ending decades of conflict between the two sides. But no agreement was reached. Today there's talk about recognizing a Palestinian state first and then negotiating the details afterward. Ron Edmonds/AP hide caption

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Ron Edmonds/AP

A radical Mideast proposal: What if the U.S. recognized a Palestinian state now?

The formula for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has long called for negotiating a Palestinian state. What if that were reversed and a state were declared first and then negotiated later?

A radical Mideast proposal: What if the U.S. recognized a Palestinian state now?

Ibrahim Abu Hani, head baker and co-owner of Batool Cakes, a family business in Rafah, in the Gaza Strip. Anas Baba for NPR hide caption

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Anas Baba for NPR

State of the World from NPR

A Surprising Sight in War: A Bakery

Even in the face of food shortages a bakery in Gaza is making cakes for people living in tents. NPR's producer in Gaza takes us to the bakery and introduces the baker.

A Surprising Sight in War: A Bakery

Demonstrators near Beit Shemesh, Israel, carry stretchers representing each of the 134 Israelis still being held by Hamas on March 1. Amid fraught negotiations over conditions for a cease-fire, the families of the hostages held a four-day march from areas attacked on Oct. 7 in southern Israel to Jerusalem. Tamir Kalifa for NPR hide caption

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Tamir Kalifa for NPR

As they wait for a truce, Palestinians and Israeli hostage families voice their agony

The prospect of a cease-fire in Gaza offers hope, but as talks drag on, Palestinians and the families of Israeli hostages say the wait for a breakthrough is bringing frustration and pain.

Palestinian children carry banners during a march demanding an end to the war and an end to the famine that citizens suffer from due to the war on Wednesday, March 6, in Rafah, Gaza. Ahmad Hasaballah/Getty Images hide caption

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Ahmad Hasaballah/Getty Images

The Picture Show

Photos: The 5-month mark passes as the humanitarian crisis grows in Gaza

Ramadan begins as five months of war passes in Gaza. Countries including Jordan, Sweden, Canada and the U.S. continue to contribute aid to help with the growing humanitarian crisis.

Muslim men listen to Imam Omar Suleiman speak at the Islamic Center of Detroit in Detroit. Paul Sancya/AP hide caption

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Paul Sancya/AP

Muslims prepare for a more somber Ramadan due to the Israel-Hamas war

As the holy month of Ramadan begins, Muslims are preparing for a less joyful observance this year. Fasting and charity take on a different meaning when many in Gaza are suffering.

Muslims prepare for a more somber Ramadan due to the Israel-Hamas war

The U.S. Army Vessel General Frank S. Besson has departed Joint Base Langley-Eustis on its way to the eastern Mediterranean to help build a temporary aid port in Gaza, the U.S. military said. U.S. Central Command hide caption

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U.S. Central Command

As a U.S. aid ship heads to Gaza, Biden again warns Netanyahu on civilian deaths

The U.S. ship left Virginia this weekend as part of an emergency mission to build a temporary pier in Gaza to facilitate aid. Biden criticized the Israeli prime minister over civilian deaths in Gaza.

Pro-Palestinian supporters wave flags and carry placards during a march in central Stockholm last month in which demonstrators demanded Israel be excluded from the Eurovision Song Contest. Fredrik Persson/TT News Agency/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Fredrik Persson/TT News Agency/AFP via Getty Images

After facing criticism, Israel has revised its entry for the Eurovision Song Contest

Eden Golan's original song, titled "October Rain," has been renamed "Hurricane" after objections that it was not politically neutral. Israel's public broadcaster will reveal the amended song Sunday.

President Joe Biden speaks at a campaign rally Saturday, March 9, 2024, at Pullman Yards in Atlanta. Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP hide caption

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Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP

Biden: Netanyahu 'hurting Israel' by not preventing more civilian deaths in Gaza

President Joe Biden said Saturday that he believes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is "hurting Israel more than helping Israel" in how he is approaching its war against Hamas in Gaza.

Carmit Palty Katzir prepares to speak at a weekly rally in Tel Aviv, Israel, calling for the immediate release of the hostages being held in Gaza, Feb. 17. Tamir Kalifa for NPR hide caption

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Tamir Kalifa for NPR

The long, lonely fight of an Israeli hostage's sister, who fears time is running out

On Oct. 7, Gaza militants killed Carmit Palty Katzir's father and took her mother and brother hostage. Her mother was released, but Katzir fears time is running out to get her brother back alive.

The U.S. airdrops humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza City, Gaza Strip, on Saturday. Mahmoud Essa/AP hide caption

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Mahmoud Essa/AP

Sweden and Canada resume funding the U.N. aid agency for Palestinians

Many countries halted funding after Israel accused 12 of UNRWA's thousands of employees of participating in the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks.

Ibrahim Abu Hani, head baker and co-owner of Batool Cakes, a family business in Rafah, in the Gaza Strip. Anas Baba for NPR hide caption

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Anas Baba for NPR

Cake in the time of war, in Gaza

Batool Cakes, a professional bakery in Rafah, has reopened to meet the demand of displaced Palestinians seeking cakes to celebrate life even amid war.

Cake in the time of war, in Gaza

A tattered Israeli flag waves on Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip on Thursday. Maya Levin for NPR hide caption

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Maya Levin for NPR

Five ways Israelis have changed, after 5 months of war

The state of Israeli society, five months after the Oct. 7 attack, is crucial to understanding where the Israel-Hamas conflict might lead. Here are five ways Israel has been transformed.

Five ways Israelis have changed, after 5 months of war

Left: NPR producer Anas Baba reports in Rafah, southern Gaza, after an Israeli strike hit the area on Oct. 17, 2023. Right: NPR's Jerusalem correspondent Daniel Estrin reports in Sderot, Israel on Oct. 11, 2023. Anas Baba/NPR and Tanya Habjouqa for NPR hide caption

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Anas Baba/NPR and Tanya Habjouqa for NPR

State of the World from NPR

What It's Like to Cover the War Between Israel and Hamas

In this longer episode we go deep on what it's like to cover both sides of the war between Israel and Hamas. Our friends at the Embedded podcast talk to NPR's Daniel Estrin about some of the people he's reported on and how he approaches covering this difficult and divisive story.

What It's Like to Cover the War Between Israel and Hamas

Chaim Otmazgin, 50, poses for a portrait in his home in Petah Tikva, Israel. Maya Levin for NPR hide caption

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Maya Levin for NPR

Goats and Soda

An Israeli responder's work on Oct. 7 shows the challenges of investigating atrocities

Israel says Palestinian attackers committed sexual violence on Oct. 7. Some accounts of rape were substantiated by a U.N. report, but the allegations continue to face intense scrutiny.

An Israeli responder's work on Oct. 7 shows the challenges of investigating atrocities

A woman walks out of an art piece outside the Tel Aviv museum made to simulate a Hamas tunnel in Gaza, in Tel Aviv Israel, March 05, 2024. Maya Levin for NPR hide caption

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Maya Levin for NPR

State of the World from NPR

How Israelis Have Changed in Five Months of War

It has been five months since the October 7th Hamas attack that was the single deadliest day for Israelis in history, prompting the deadly Israeli assault on Gaza. Our reporter in Israel brings us five ways Israelis have been changed through five months of war.

How Israelis Have Changed in Five Months of War

In this image grab from an AFPTV video, people carry food parcels that were airdropped March 2 from U.S. aircraft above a beach in the Gaza Strip. President Biden is set to announce the setting up of another avenue for aid to Gaza. AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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AFP via Getty Images

Biden to announce the setting up of a temporary Mediterranean port to deliver Gaza aid

The temporary pier will not require U.S. troops to land in Gaza to build the pier or causeway. United Nations workers and other aid groups will distribute the aid.

Meirav Leshem Gonen (left), whose daughter Romi is being held hostage in Gaza, embraces Sharon Alony Cunio, who was kidnapped and released from captivity along with her two children and whose husband, David, remains hostage, as the march to Jerusalem passes Kibbutz Sa'ad in southern Israel on Feb. 28. Tamir Kalifa for NPR hide caption

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Tamir Kalifa for NPR

The Picture Show

A march on Jerusalem, with freed hostages and families demanding a deal

Families of the dozens of hostages still being held by Hamas in Gaza and their supporters embarked on a four-day march to Jerusalem to push officials to secure a deal for their loved ones' release.

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