Gaza’s only power plant runs out of fuel during Israeli siege
Israel prepares to invade Gaza
Paul Adams
Diplomatic correspondent
One thing seems certain: Israel will soon invade the densely populated Gaza Strip.
Vast numbers of troops have already assembled in southern Israel. Along with huge numbers of tanks and other armoured vehicles.
Less clear is when the order will be given, or what the Israeli government’s ultimate objectives are.
With Israeli officials talking about creating a new Middle East reality – essentially a Gaza without Hamas – there’s every indication that this operation will exceed all its predecessors in scale and scope.
Fears of more casualties as further earthquakes hit Afghanistan
Hospitals are at capacity since the quakes occurred around the city of Herat, and the Taliban are ill-equipped to respond effectively
Another powerful earthquake struck western Afghanistan on Wednesday morning, days after a series of quakes in the same region killed thousands of people.
The 6.3 magnitude earthquake hit an area 28km (17 miles) south of Herat’s regional capital at 5.11am local time, killing one person and injuring at least 150 people.
Several additional aftershocks were reported in Herat city. Medics at the regional hospital said that “injured people keep arriving”. The 600-bed facility reached full capacity on Saturday afternoon after the earlier quakes.
German anti-racism body leaves X over ‘rise in hate speech’
A German agency that tackles discrimination and racism says it is quitting the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. It cited a rise in hate speech since owner Elon Musk took over last year.
Germany’s Federal Anti-Discrimination Agency (FADA) on Wednesday said it was leaving X because of “an enormous rise” in hate speech.
FADA said hateful comments and disinformation had “increased particularly” since Tesla tycoon Elon Musk took over the platform formerly known as Twitter last year.
What the agency said
In a statement, FADA said there had been an “enormous increase” in anti-trans and homophobic hostility, racism, misogyny, anti-semitism and other misanthropic content. “In our opinion, X is no longer an acceptable environment” for a public body, it said.
From 1947 to 2023: Retracing the complex, tragic Israeli-Palestinian conflict
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict was reignited once again on October 7 after a surprise offensive launched by Hamas against Israel. In retaliation, Israel ordered air strikes and a “complete siege” of the Gaza Strip, the Hamas-run Palestinian enclave. This is a new deadly episode in a conflict that has its roots deep in the mid-20th century. FRANCE 24 traces its history.
1947: Thousands of European Jewish emigrants, many of them Holocaust survivors, board a ship – which came to be called Exodus 1947 – bound for then British-controlled Palestine. Heading for the “promised land”, they are intercepted by British naval ships and sent back to Europe. Widely covered by the media, the incident sparks international outrage and plays a critical role in convincing the UK that a UN-brokered solution is necessary to solve the Palestine crisis.
A UN special committee proposes a partition plan giving 56.47 percent of Palestine for a Jewish state and 44.53 percent for an Arab state. Palestinian representatives reject the plan, but their Jewish counterparts accept it.
On November 29, the UN General Assembly approves the plan, with 33 countries voting for partition, 13 voting against it and 10 abstentions.
Nearly a quarter of a million former paramilitaries on Iraqi government payroll
In Iraq, the Hashd calls the shots
The Hashd began as paramilitaries fighting ISIS, but the organisation’s influence and interests now extend far beyond the politics.
by Adel Bakawan
When ISIS fighters took Mosul, Iraq’s second city, on 10 June 2014, the nation suffered a collective shock. The army, anti-terrorism forces, police and other national security bodies had proved unable to defeat a few hundred jihadists and, as state forces retreated, they left behind tonnes of military equipment that was picked up by the Sunni-affiliated Daesh (ISIS) fighters. It was experienced as a national disaster, creating a widespread sense of panic and humiliation.
Three days after Mosul fell, Ali al-Sistani, the highest religious authority in Najaf — the heart of Iraqi Shiism — issued a fatwa calling for a popular military mobilisation against ISIS.
‘We live in different worlds’: Poland’s toxic politics is splitting the country in two, one family at a time
The front door to the Martynowska residence is a point of no return. Every week, as Karolina prepares to cross it, she steels herself.
“Sometimes it’s exciting,” she says. “It’s a mind-bending exercise. But I always have to equip myself. With patience.”
The Martynowskas – Stella, 69, and her two children Patrycja and Karolina, both in their 40s – are the quintessential Polish family unit. They gather at least once a week for pierogi or chicken soup. Patrycja lives in the same building as her mother, and Karolina is just a few doors down.
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