an expository essay on kidnapping

Incessant Kidnapping and Killings in Nigeria: Has The Country Returned To The State Of Nature?

Global Journal of Politics and Law Research, Vol.9, No.4, pp.43-50 (2021)

9 Pages Posted: 8 Jun 2021

Omidoyin Taiye Joshua

Achievers university - college of law, awosusi bolade damilola, federal university oye-ekiti.

Date Written: May 30, 2021

The rate of insecurity in Nigeria does not only call for concern but raises a loud alarm that no one is safe. The unending occurrence of killing, banditry and kidnapping affect all regions of the country and fear grips the mind of citizens, both the rich and the poor. The government at various levels have tried making security policies, giving security a primary attention in the national budget, purchasing sophisticated ammunitions, reshuffling the rank and file in the army, creating regional security outfits and other proactive steps, yet insecurity in the country prevails by the day and government appears to be handicapped in taking charge of internal sovereignty of the country. The government has however, often times, being excused of liability, especially when the cause of death is not directly connected with any of the government’s agencies despite the primary purpose of government is the security and welfare of the citizens. It is in the light of this that the research aims at examining the sole responsibility of government in protecting citizens in the country, and the government’s corresponding liability in this regard. Relying on both primary and secondary of information, the article revealed the failure of the government to protect lives and properties within her territory makes the country drift into a state of nature. It is therefore concluded that citizens have entered a social contract for the sake of their safety and security, the government should henceforth be held responsible for further acts of killings and insecurity in the country.

Keywords: incessant kidnapping, killings, Nigeria, country, state of nature

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Omidoyin Taiye Joshua (Contact Author)

Oye-Afao Road Faculty of Agriculture Oye Ekiti, 234 Nigeria

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Home — Essay Samples — History — Exploration — Kidnapping: An Academic Exploration

Kidnapping: an Academic Exploration

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Words: 590 |

Published: Jun 13, 2024

Words: 590 | Page: 1 | 3 min read

Table of contents

Introduction, causes of kidnapping, psychological and societal impacts, preventive measures and solutions.

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Incessant Kidnapping and Killings in Nigeria: Has The Country Returned To The State Of Nature?

() , , (), –

The rate of insecurity in Nigeria does not only call for concern but raises a loud alarm that no one is safe. The unending occurrence of killing, banditry and kidnapping affect all regions of the country and fear grips the mind of citizens, both the rich and the poor. The government at various levels have tried making security policies, giving security a primary attention in the national budget, purchasing sophisticated ammunitions, reshuffling the rank and file in the army, creating regional security outfits and other proactive steps, yet insecurity in the country prevails by the day and government appears to be handicapped in taking charge of internal sovereignty of the country. The government has however, often times, being excused of liability, especially when the cause of death is not directly connected with any of the government’s agencies despite the primary purpose of government is the security and welfare of the citizens. It is in the light of this that the research aims at examining the sole responsibility of government in protecting citizens in the country, and the government’s corresponding liability in this regard. Relying on both primary and secondary of information, the article revealed the failure of the government to protect lives and properties within her territory makes the country drift into a state of nature. It is therefore concluded that citizens have entered a social contract for the sake of their safety and security, the government should henceforth be held responsible for further acts of killings and insecurity in the country.

Keywords: Nigeria , country , incessant kidnapping , killings , state of nature

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KIDNAPPING IN NIGERIA IMPLICATION AND CHALLENGES FOR NATIONAL SECURITY

This research work highlights the result of a research carried out to investigate kidnapping in Nigeria: implication and challenges for national security. A substantial aspect of the study involved collecting data through the instrumentation of questionnaires. The data collected were classified, analyzed and the percentages of the findings presented in a table. The hypothesis was then statistically tested with chi-square in which the calculated value of chi-square equals 119.2 and is greater than the critical value of 5.991. This result showed that religion issues, political instability and unemployment stirs kidnapping in Nigeria. Based on the findings, the study recommends that deliberate employment opportunities have to be created by government in partnership with the private sector to reduce incessant kidnapping and law enforcement agents including the Nigerian Navy should be properly equipped with good firing power and communication gadgets to curb kidnapping in major area.

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Nigeria is a complex society with a rapid growing population of roughly 200 million people. The country has around 500 different languages and 250 distinct ethnic groups. Thus, uniting these complex groups into one unified political entity since the amalgamation of the country in 1914 proved difficult. Comparatively, Nigeria is one of the secured and peaceful nations in the West African sub-region; however, contemporarily, this endowed nation suddenly plunged into waves of kidnapping and other heinous crimes such as armed robbery and banditry. The phenomenon has escalated and led to numerous lives lost, which also crippled socio-economic activities. Generally, as enshrined in chapter 2, section 14(2b) of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria, the security of lives and property is one of the primary responsibility of the state. This study aims to identify the causes of kidnapping in Nigeria and offer some strategic solution to the problem. The study adopted a Qualitative method and also a...

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The incessant incidences of kidnapping in Nigeria have grown into a severe National threat to its society and is ravaging the country’s socioeconomic wellbeing. The study aims to explore the national security and socioeconomic implications of this menace. The study applied the functionalism theoretical assumptions and employed Qualitative Document Analysis (QDA) based on the previous studies review conducted on kidnapping such as current literature, media reports, and newspaper to figure out the gap and come up with new findings on the causes of this menace. The study found that the government's reluctance to address such challenges is the force igniting heinous crimes in the country. It is due to the negligence of the Nigerian government to address the root-causes of the phenomenon such as; youth unemployment, quick-money syndrome, hard-drug influence, and others. The study suggests some measures such as public awareness programs, a synergic approach between the security forces...

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Kidnapping is a serious crime and has potential for transforming into other felonious offenses, such as physical violence, financial victimisation, and murder. This paper did not focus only on the consequences of kidnapping; rather it sought to examine its causes in Nigeria. Thus, the objectives of the study are: to examine the nexus between terrorism and kidnapping; to investigate the mutual reinforcement between corruption and kidnapping; and to find out if kidnapping and poverty are correlated. Using secondary qualitative, the study found that kidnapping has been taking place in Nigeria due to the activities of insurgent groups of the Niger Delta region, but it increased with the emergence of " Boko Haram " terrorism in the Northeastern Nigeria; corruption is not strongly related to kidnapping, but they have indirect connection whereby youth political thugs served corrupt political leaders and turned out to become kidnappers for ransom from political opponents; and pove...

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This paper examines the phenomenon of kidnapping in Nigeria with a view to underscore its implications for national security. This is against the backdrop of the rising incidence and prevalence of the crime in contemporary Nigeria. By way of qualitative analysis, predicated on secondary sources, the paper posits that kidnapping has been motivated and sustained by criminal quest for material accumulation. The paper adds that the situation has been compounded by the growing trend of criminal impunity in Nigeria wherefore the government's capacity to sanction and deter crime is abysmal. The paper observes that kidnapping portends dangerously for Nigeria's national security in view of its untoward impacts and implications. The paper submits that crimes like kidnapping would continue to prevail in Nigeria until pragmatic measures are taken to deter their occurrence as well as penalize their commission.

Erunke Canice

The study examines the relationship that tends to exists between kidnapping and insecurity, not only in Nigeria, but also in other parts of the world. Of particular interest to this paper is the fact that the many cases of kidnapping in Nigeria, especially in some parts of the northeast and south-south region of the country have not only posed dangerous impacts on the Nigerian state, it has also presented the nation in a bad light among the comity of nations. The destructive posture of insecurity occasioned by kidnapping in some of these places is of immense concern to scholars owing to its reoccurrence. Security experts from many quarters have attributed the menace to several factors, one of which is pecuniary gains derived by the perpetrators of this act. This work is theoretical exploration of the winds of kidnapping and insecurity and how these issues have impacted on the Nigerian social system. The paper therefore relies heavily on existing literatures and works of scholars in the area of insecurity studies for investigation through content analysis. The findings have revealed that, kidnapping and insecurity is not just cost consuming but can divert valuable energy required to develop the nation by both the government and the citizens. The paper is summed up with valuable suggestions which include open dialogue and reorganization and reorientation of the state security apparatus via high-tech training and retraining.

Ubong E Abraham

Abstract The main thrust of this study was to investigate the problem of kidnapping and its consequences on Nigerians in general and Uyo dwellers in particular. To achieve this objective, the study elicited data through questionnaire from 260 randomly selected respondents comprising of policemen/women from various departments at the state police headquarters, Ikot Akpan Abia, Uyo, in Akwa Ibom State, lawyers from the state judiciary headquarters as well as clergymen and members of the public in the aforementioned study area. Chi-square analytical tool was used to analyze elicited data at 0.05 level of significance. The result from the test of hypothesis one shows that there is a significant relationship between the recurring rates of kidnapping and the people’s culture. Test of hypothesis two shows that there is no correlation between kidnapping and the disposition of government. Test of hypothesis three shows that kidnapping is significantly dependent on the provisions of the Nigerian constitution; while result from hypothesis four shows that there is no significant relationship between kidnapping and political activities. Findings from the study shows that, the prevalence of kidnapping in Nigeria is as a result of laxity in the law implementation process to prosecute offenders. Consequent upon this findings it is suggested that the issue of ransom payment by victim’s families/relatives to kidnappers should be seriously condemned. Government also should endeavour to create employment for the teaming population of youths as this will assist to check the proliferation of the kidnapping. Keywords: Kidnapping, social problem, socio-economic development, Uyo metropolis

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT, SOCIAL SCIENCES, PEACE AND CONFLICT STUDIES

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This article presents a relatively new dimension of kidnapping, known as ritual kidnapping, which has been battling security and polity in Nigeria. The concepts of ritual and ransom kidnapping are explored and analysed within this text through the adoption of a theoretical framework on security with qualitative methods to explain the causes of kidnapping and ritual kidnapping, an overview of security in Nigeria, and a discussion surrounding the challenges regarding implementation of security within Nigeria. Drawing from results acquired during this study, it can be argued that while the concept of security is yet to be agreed on internationally to suit the needs of different states, Nigeria should adopt a hybrid security in addressing issues such as ritual kidnapping and other crimes in the country.

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Kidnapping and hostage taking activities have geometrically increased across the world, taking different forms. These activities for money and other reasons have contributed immensely to the state of insecurity of average Nigerian from within and outside the territory. It is on this note that this paper addresses the trends of kidnapping and hostage taking in Nigeria, its causes, implications and how best to arrest the worrisome situation. Relevant existing body of knowledge were reviewed according to the objectives of the paper. The research design for the paper was explanatory in nature where rational choice theory, routine activity theory and situational crime prevention were adopted to buttress the understanding of the subject matter. Based on the reviewed literature, it was found that the trend of kidnapping and hostage taking in the 21st century Nigeria is on the "high" side thereby needing urgent attention from all stakeholders; Nigerian government, non-governmental organisations, private bodies and all citizens. It is, therefore, recommended that increased effort to fight kidnapping and hostage taking should be made possible by the Nigerian government. This would make the risk of involving in kidnapping related activities higher than the expected benefit; to deter offenders and potential ones from committing such act. Also, capturing the geographical boundary of Nigeria with sophisticated gadget will help reduce the chances of being a victim of kidnapping. These strategies would make kidnapping unattractive to the motivated offender since the opportunity to commit such crime no longer exists.

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This paper focuses on the socio-economic and financial effects of kidnapping in BirninGwari Local Government Area of Kaduna State, Nigeria. Structured questionnaires were used to collect data from the study area. The data obtained were analyzed using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. Chi-square (χ2) statistic was used to test the hypothesis. This study revealed that kidnapping has a significant effect on the socio-economic activities of the study area (χ2=13.849a, α=3, p-value=0.003). To enhance the reduction in the rate of kidnapping, the government needs to provide job opportunities for the youth, train the security agencies, and provide them with the necessary equipment to fight crime, especially kidnapping, in the country. The individual community should also form an active vigilante group or any other form of informal crime control mechanism to support the effort of the police to improve the level of security in the society. There is need for improved sensitiza...

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How to Write an Expository Essay | Structure, Tips & Examples

Published on July 14, 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on July 23, 2023.

“Expository” means “intended to explain or describe something.” An expository essay provides a clear, focused explanation of a particular topic, process, or set of ideas. It doesn’t set out to prove a point, just to give a balanced view of its subject matter.

Expository essays are usually short assignments intended to test your composition skills or your understanding of a subject. They tend to involve less research and original arguments than argumentative essays .

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When should you write an expository essay, how to approach an expository essay, introducing your essay, writing the body paragraphs, concluding your essay, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about expository essays.

In school and university, you might have to write expository essays as in-class exercises, exam questions, or coursework assignments.

Sometimes it won’t be directly stated that the assignment is an expository essay, but there are certain keywords that imply expository writing is required. Consider the prompts below.

The word “explain” here is the clue: An essay responding to this prompt should provide an explanation of this historical process—not necessarily an original argument about it.

Sometimes you’ll be asked to define a particular term or concept. This means more than just copying down the dictionary definition; you’ll be expected to explore different ideas surrounding the term, as this prompt emphasizes.

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An expository essay should take an objective approach: It isn’t about your personal opinions or experiences. Instead, your goal is to provide an informative and balanced explanation of your topic. Avoid using the first or second person (“I” or “you”).

The structure of your expository essay will vary according to the scope of your assignment and the demands of your topic. It’s worthwhile to plan out your structure before you start, using an essay outline .

A common structure for a short expository essay consists of five paragraphs: An introduction, three body paragraphs, and a conclusion.

Like all essays, an expository essay begins with an introduction . This serves to hook the reader’s interest, briefly introduce your topic, and provide a thesis statement summarizing what you’re going to say about it.

Hover over different parts of the example below to see how a typical introduction works.

In many ways, the invention of the printing press marked the end of the Middle Ages. The medieval period in Europe is often remembered as a time of intellectual and political stagnation. Prior to the Renaissance, the average person had very limited access to books and was unlikely to be literate. The invention of the printing press in the 15th century allowed for much less restricted circulation of information in Europe, paving the way for the Reformation.

The body of your essay is where you cover your topic in depth. It often consists of three paragraphs, but may be more for a longer essay. This is where you present the details of the process, idea or topic you’re explaining.

It’s important to make sure each paragraph covers its own clearly defined topic, introduced with a topic sentence . Different topics (all related to the overall subject matter of the essay) should be presented in a logical order, with clear transitions between paragraphs.

Hover over different parts of the example paragraph below to see how a body paragraph is constructed.

The invention of the printing press in 1440 changed this situation dramatically. Johannes Gutenberg, who had worked as a goldsmith, used his knowledge of metals in the design of the press. He made his type from an alloy of lead, tin, and antimony, whose durability allowed for the reliable production of high-quality books. This new technology allowed texts to be reproduced and disseminated on a much larger scale than was previously possible. The Gutenberg Bible appeared in the 1450s, and a large number of printing presses sprang up across the continent in the following decades. Gutenberg’s invention rapidly transformed cultural production in Europe; among other things, it would lead to the Protestant Reformation.

The conclusion of an expository essay serves to summarize the topic under discussion. It should not present any new information or evidence, but should instead focus on reinforcing the points made so far. Essentially, your conclusion is there to round off the essay in an engaging way.

Hover over different parts of the example below to see how a conclusion works.

The invention of the printing press was important not only in terms of its immediate cultural and economic effects, but also in terms of its major impact on politics and religion across Europe. In the century following the invention of the printing press, the relatively stationary intellectual atmosphere of the Middle Ages gave way to the social upheavals of the Reformation and the Renaissance. A single technological innovation had contributed to the total reshaping of the continent.

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An expository essay is a broad form that varies in length according to the scope of the assignment.

Expository essays are often assigned as a writing exercise or as part of an exam, in which case a five-paragraph essay of around 800 words may be appropriate.

You’ll usually be given guidelines regarding length; if you’re not sure, ask.

An expository essay is a common assignment in high-school and university composition classes. It might be assigned as coursework, in class, or as part of an exam.

Sometimes you might not be told explicitly to write an expository essay. Look out for prompts containing keywords like “explain” and “define.” An expository essay is usually the right response to these prompts.

An argumentative essay tends to be a longer essay involving independent research, and aims to make an original argument about a topic. Its thesis statement makes a contentious claim that must be supported in an objective, evidence-based way.

An expository essay also aims to be objective, but it doesn’t have to make an original argument. Rather, it aims to explain something (e.g., a process or idea) in a clear, concise way. Expository essays are often shorter assignments and rely less on research.

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Kidnapping, Banditry: Security Confidence Building and Nigeria’s Progress

• Published: 21 January 2023

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• Lucky Osaretin Odia   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-4903-4602 1  

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Incidences of insecurity arising from incessant cases of kidnapping, banditry, insurgences, and the attendant consequences such as ransom demand and taking, severe injuries, destructions, and killings of victims in Nigeria appear to have taken a worrisome dimension that even none victims and keen observers are now apprehensive. This paper examined the phenomena of kidnaping, banditry, security threats, associated apprehension, and impact on national progress in Nigeria. Extant recent and relevant pieces of literature were copiously reviewed. Anomie theory by Emile Durkheim and ungoverned space theory were used. Content analysis technique was considered suitable and was used. The paper observed that incidences of banditry have severe socio-psychological and economic consequences on individual lives, business environment, and national progress. It further indicated that though the security situation in Nigeria appeared cumbersome, it is not such that is beyond the surmountable capacity of the state. Flowing from recent experiences, it is obvious that authorities concerned have allowed Nigeria to lag behind scientifically and technologically, owing to the fact that most of the insecurity incidents are such that can be assuaged scientifically—deploying artificial intelligence and robotic devices. This paper submits that prevailing security challenges threatening progress of the nation—kidnapping, banditry, insurgences, etc.—would be neutralized when state authority galvanizes adequate zeal and genuine commitment. It recommended among others that state authority should step up commitments, strategies, resources, technological application, etc., in mitigating the dilemma and create ambience of safety, confidence, and productivity among the people.

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Odia, L.O. Kidnapping, Banditry: Security Confidence Building and Nigeria’s Progress. J Police Crim Psych (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11896-023-09572-8

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Middle East Crisis Biden’s Debate Performance Raises Alarm in Israel

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• Israeli police clash with Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men protesting army recruitment. Ohad Zwigenberg/Associated Press
• Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men clashing with police. Ohad Zwigenberg/Associated Press
• Searching a destroyed building Sunday after an Israeli military strike in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Alaa Badarneh/EPA-EFE, via Shutterstock
• At the funeral of Saeed Jaber, an Islamic Jihad leader killed by Israeli forces in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. REUTERS/Raneen Sawafta
• A Palestinian woman bakes bread in Khan Yunis, in the southern Gaza Strip. Eyad Baba/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
• The funeral of an Israeli soldier Sunday in Jerusalem. Nir Elias/Reuters
• Palestinians navigating a destroyed street in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip. Mohammed Salem/Reuters
• Writing a message of solidarity with Oct. 7th hostages inside a mock tunnel in Tel Aviv. Eloisa Lopez/Reuters
• Palestinian children walking through a displaced persons camp in the city of Khan Yunis. Photo by Eyad BABA/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Israelis fear Iran and its proxies might try to exploit Biden’s apparent weakness.

Israelis expressed growing concern on Sunday that President Biden’s shaky debate performance could spur on the country’s Middle Eastern foes at what many view as a critical time for American leadership in the region.

Israeli commentators from across the political spectrum warned that Iran and its proxies could try to exploit Mr. Biden’s apparent weakness as Israel fights Hamas in Gaza and weighs the prospect of an all-out conflict with the Hezbollah militia in Lebanon.

U.S. officials have been working to broker a diplomatic solution to the tensions between Israel and Hezbollah in an attempt to avert a wider regional war that they fear could draw in both Iran and the United States. The Biden administration is also involved in intense efforts with other mediators to try to advance a truce deal for Gaza that would involve exchanging the remaining hostages there for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

And Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel has publicly pressured the Biden administration to speed up munitions supplies ahead of any conflagration with Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Several of Israel’s Sunday newspapers featured the debate on their front pages in a kind of delayed reaction: The debate took place before dawn on Friday local time, after the weekend papers had gone to press. And Hebrew dailies are not published on Saturday, the Sabbath.

Analysts for Israel Hayom, a right-wing free paper, and the left-leaning Haaretz newspaper differed sharply in tone but both raised the specter of enemies of Israel and the United States testing the administration’s resolve.

“Will Hezbollah and Iran assess that Biden is too busy now to back Israel in case all-out war breaks out in Lebanon this summer?” Amos Harel, Haaretz’s military affairs analyst, wrote on Sunday.

While some on the Israeli right have mocked Mr. Biden’s debate performance, hoping for a Trump victory, Mr. Harel continued, that was a display of ungratefulness after the U.S. president stood by Israel and supplied it with large quantities of weapons. “Moreover,” he added, “Trump is a feeble reed to rely on.”

During the presidential debate on Thursday, Mr. Trump accused Mr. Biden of not wanting Israel to “finish the job” in Gaza — calling him weak and raising eyebrows by using the word “Palestinian” as an insult . Mr. Biden offered little in the way of a response.

Mr. Biden has been a staunch supporter of Israel throughout the war, although he has also been critical, frequently calling on Israel to limit civilian casualties and to work to mitigate the humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave.

He has a long history with Mr. Netanyahu. Mr. Biden flew to Israel in a powerful show of solidarity last fall, soon after the Hamas-led terrorist assault on southern Israel that prompted the war in Gaza. He has since paid a political price for his support, which has infuriated American opponents of the war who want the U.S. government to stop providing Israel with munitions.

But the visions of Mr. Biden and Mr. Netanyahu have diverged in recent months. The U.S. government held up one shipment to Israel of heavy bombs, fearing that they would be used in densely populated areas. And Mr. Biden has dismissed Mr. Netanyahu’s oft-stated goal of “total victory” over Hamas as a vague objective that would mean indefinite war.

Mr. Trump was strongly supportive of Israel as president and largely went along with the agenda of Mr. Netanyahu and his right-wing allies. During his term, Mr. Trump moved the United States Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, fulfilling a longstanding Israeli demand.

But the former president appears to have soured on Mr. Netanyahu. He has said the Hamas-led assault was a result of Mr. Netanyahu’s lack of preparation and praised Hezbollah as “very smart.” In an interview with Israel Hayom in March, Mr. Trump advised Israel to wrap up the war in Gaza, because it was losing much of the world’s support.

“You gotta get it done,” he told the paper, “and we gotta get to peace — we can’t have this going on.”

Israel Hayom’s publisher is Dr. Miriam Adelson, the widow of Sheldon Adelson, and a staunchly pro-Israel megadonor who is now backing Donald Trump’s third White House bid.

Amnon Lord, a columnist for Israel Hayom, asserted on Sunday that Mr. Biden’s performance in the debate proved persistent claims that “an extreme progressive group” of aides was driving U.S. foreign policy.

“In a world rife with aggressive forces,” he wrote , “the unflattering image of an American president — the leader of the free world — appearing weak and incoherent encourages them to exploit opportunities.”

“Biden’s decline mirrors the collapse of his Middle East policy vis-à-vis Iran and its proxies,” Mr. Lord added.

Mr. Lord trod carefully around Mr. Trump’s performance in the debate, saying only that he, too, “didn’t gain supporters.”

Yediot Ahronot, a mainstream Hebrew daily, flagged a column on its front page describing Mr. Biden’s performance as a “catastrophe.” The columnist, Nadav Eyal, wrote that faced with the prospect of another Trump presidency, the Democrats and their allies carried the fate of the free world on their shoulders.

“Weakness is not a characteristic that an American president can broadcast, by any stretch,” he wrote .

Gabby Sobelman and Myra Noveck contributed reporting.

— Isabel Kershner reporting from Jerusalem

key developments

Ultra-Orthodox Jews protesting conscription clash with police, and other news.

Thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews took to the streets of Jerusalem on Sunday to protest conscription, days after a landmark Israeli Supreme Court ruling ordering the military to begin drafting ultra-Orthodox men who have traditionally been exempt. The Israeli police said in a statement that the protesters threw stones and objects, with one officer lightly injured in the clashes. A police video showed the protesters swarming the car of a government minister. Israeli news media reported that the vehicle belonged to Israel’s housing minister, Yitzhak Goldknopf, the leader of the United Torah Judaism party, who has opposed drafting the ultra-Orthodox. The police said five people were arrested.

The Gaza health ministry said on Sunday that the hospitals, health centers and oxygen stations that are still running in the Gaza Strip would stop operating within 48 hours because of a shortage of fuel. In a statement, the ministry appealed to international and humanitarian organizations to “intervene quickly” to bring fuel into the strip, where it says about 70 percent of the health infrastructure has been destroyed. The United Nations humanitarian agency said on Friday that “the inability to bring in sufficient medical supplies and fuel has forced aid organizations to scale back their services.”

An Israeli drone strike in the occupied West Bank killed one Palestinian and wounded five others, according to the Palestinian health ministry in Ramallah. The strike hit the Nour Shams refugee camp east of Tulkarm, the ministry said. The Palestinian Islamic Jihad, an armed group that operates in Gaza and the West Bank, identified Saeed Jaber, 24, as the target of the strike, mourning him in a statement that called him “one of the leaders of the Tulkarm Brigade.” The group said he had survived several previous Israeli attempts to kill him. The Israeli military confirmed Mr. Jaber’s death in a statement, calling him a “terrorist operative” who was involved in multiple attacks on civilians and the Israeli military. Wafa, the Palestinian Authority’s news agency, reported that the strike damaged several homes and that some residents were wounded by shrapnel, including women and children.

The Israeli military’s ground operation in eastern Gaza City continued for a fourth day on Sunday , and the military said its forces had killed “several terrorists” and hit “dozens of terror infrastructure sites” in an area known as Shajaiye. Hamas’s military wing said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app on Sunday that its fighters had shelled two Israeli tanks in Shajaiye. The claims could not be confirmed. As of Friday the raid had driven at least 60,000 people to flee from areas east and northeast of Gaza City, according to the U.N. office of humanitarian affairs . The latest wave of Israeli strikes in Shajaiye began on Thursday, when people described a frantic effort to get out as explosions sounded around them. The Israeli military has said the operation there is targeting Hamas fighters and infrastructure.

The Israeli military said a drone strike Sunday in the northern Golan Heights, along Israel’s border with Lebanon, injured 18 soldiers, one severely. In a statement, the military said that the Israeli Air Force had struck two “Hezbollah terror targets” in southern Lebanon, including an observation post and a launcher from which a projectile was fired toward northern Israel, and that Israeli forces fired artillery into southern Lebanon “to remove threats in multiple areas.” Cross-border exchanges of fire between Israel and Hezbollah, an armed group based in Lebanon that has expressed solidarity with Hamas, has intensified in recent weeks, and world leaders have warned that an escalation could turn into a full-fledged war that could further destabilize the region.

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As the U.N.’s relief chief steps down, Gaza’s aid woes are piling up.

The United Nations’ top relief official, Martin Griffiths, stepped down on Sunday, adding another layer of uncertainty to struggling efforts to get food, fuel and other supplies into Gaza, where almost nine months of war have brought an array of dire threats to the civilian population, including catastrophic hunger.

The U.N. secretary general, António Guterres, has not named a permanent replacement for Mr. Griffiths, whose departure from the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, for health reasons, was announced in March.

“To my fellow humanitarians, it’s been my honor to lead you, represent you and learn from you,” Mr. Griffiths wrote in a post on social media on Sunday. “Yours is one of the most important jobs in the world: bringing hope, compassion, survival and humanity to people in their darkest hour.”

However, the relief efforts in Gaza have fallen far short of the needs of the sealed, densely populated enclave in which the majority of the population of some 2.2 million has been displaced. In May, Israel closed the Kerem Shalom crossing after a Hamas attack killed four soldiers in the area, then mounted an incursion that closed the Rafah crossing along the border with Egypt. U.N. officials said this effectively choked off the two main arteries for aid.

For most of the last month, aid deliveries within Gaza have slowed to a near halt. Hopes to revive them via a temporary pier built by the United States have largely been thwarted, partly by weather conditions that have more than once forced the pier to be moved from Gaza’s coast, and partly by the difficulty of distributing the aid once it arrives.

The U.N.’s main agency for Palestinians, UNRWA, earlier this month said that Gaza had become the deadliest place in the world for aid workers, with at least 250 killed since the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel sparked the war in Gaza and a humanitarian crisis. U.N. aid agencies have demanded that the Israeli authorities do more to protect aid workers in the Gaza Strip and ensure that assistance reaches those who need it, Stéphane Dujarric, a U.N. spokesman, said on Tuesday.

On Friday, a Pentagon spokeswoman, Sabrina Singh, said that the temporary pier had been removed again ahead of sea turbulence, while indicating that the backlog of aid was taking up so much space that re-establishing the pier might not be a top priority.

Days earlier, in a social media post directed at the World Food Program, a U.N. agency that coordinates much of the humanitarian work in the enclave, the Israeli agency overseeing aid in Gaza displayed a photo of supplies that it said were waiting at the pier’s offloading area. “Stop making excuses and start playing your role as a humanitarian food organization and the head of the logistic cluster,” it said.

The World Food Program suspended operations near the pier earlier this month. The program’s officials said some of its facilities were hit during an Israeli mission that rescued four hostages but involved strikes that killed scores of Palestinians, including women and children.

In his last week as U.N. relief chief, Mr. Griffiths addressed concerns that the suspension might forecast the halt of all aid groups’ operations in Gaza. “We’re not running away from Gaza at all,” Mr. Griffiths said in an interview on Wednesday. But he added, “We are particularly concerned about the security situation in Gaza, and it is becoming more and more difficult to operate.”

On Sunday, a World Food Program spokeswoman confirmed that the organization’s suspension of operations at the pier remained in place, pending a security review by the U.N.’s safety and security arm, but said that the aid group had made arrangements to start clearing the backlog of undelivered aid and that it would “be distributed immediately.”

Anjana Sankar contributed reporting.

— Ephrat Livni

As thousands protest in Israel, a former hostage speaks out.

• Tel Aviv Jack Guez/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
• Tel Aviv Eloisa Lopez/Reuters
• Tel Aviv Atef Safadi/EPA, via Shutterstock

Thousands of anti-government protesters gathered on Saturday outside the Israeli Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv, renewing calls for the resignation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a cease-fire in Gaza that would allow the return of hostages taken during the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7.

One protester held up a sign that called Mr. Netanyahu “the enemy of Israel,” while others covered themselves in fake blood and bandages and lay in the street.

Relatives and family members of hostages have held weekly street demonstrations since October to pressure the government to bring their loved ones home. Some hostages were released as part of a temporary cease-fire in November and others have been rescued. But more than 100 remain in Gaza. It is unclear how many are still alive.

Noa Argamani, a hostage who was rescued on June 8, called for the release of the remaining captives in a video by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which represents families of hostages held captive in Gaza.

“We must do everything possible to bring them back home,” Ms. Argamani said in the video. She was kidnapped and taken to Gaza along with her partner, Avinatan Or, on Oct. 7. He is still being held .

Efrat Yahalomi, the sister of Ohad Yahalomi, a French-Israeli hostage who was taken from the Kibbutz Nir Oz, said it was “incredibly painful” to know that Israeli hostages were languishing in captivity.

“Almost nine months have passed, and I’m still standing here with a heavy heart, while you, Ohad, are still not here,” she said in a statement released by the forum.

— Anjana Sankar