Six In The Morning Sunday 3 December 2023

UN describes Gaza hospital as ‘warzone’ as Israeli strikes continue in south

Israel says it’s launched 10,000 air strikes during war

Israel says it has carried out “approximately 10,000 air strikes” in Gaza since the beginning of the war.

In a statement, the Israeli military says the cooperation between ground forces and the air force “is one of the most prominent elements in the IDF’s [Israel Defense Forces’] ground operation in the Gaza Strip”.

 

Situation is beyond catastrophic – British-Palestinian in southern Gaza

Hugo Bachega

Reporting from Jerusalem

Khan Younis, in southern Gaza, is one of the main targets of the renewed Israeli offensive against Hamas in territory. Israeli authorities believe members of the Hamas leadership are hiding in the city, where hundreds of thousands of people have been sheltering after fleeing fighting in the north in the early stages of the war.

This morning, the Israeli army issued evacuation orders for several districts of the city, urging people to leave immediately.

Mohammed Ghalayini, a British-Palestinian who has stayed in Gaza, said the situation in the city was “beyond catastrophic”.

 

Cop28 president says there is ‘no science’ behind demands for phase-out of fossil fuels

Exclusive: UAE’s Sultan Al Jaber says phase-out of coal, oil and gas would take world ‘back into caves’

The president of Cop28, Sultan Al Jaber, has claimed there is “no science” indicating that a phase-out of fossil fuels is needed to restrict global heating to 1.5C, the Guardian and the Centre for Climate Reporting can reveal.

Al Jaber also said a phase-out of fossil fuels would not allow sustainable development “unless you want to take the world back into caves”.

The comments were “incredibly concerning” and “verging on climate denial”, scientists said, and they were at odds with the position of the UN secretary general, António Guterres.

Philippines: Blast at Catholic Mass kills several

An explosion during a Catholic Mass in Marawi city killed four people and injured dozens more. Authorities believe it could be the work of militants affiliated with the “Islamic State” (IS) group.

An explosion at a Catholic Mass in a university gymnasium in Marawi city in the Philippines killed four people and injured dozens more on Sunday.

What do we know so far?

The explosion occurred at Mindanao State University in the Lanao del Sur province in the southern part of the country.

The blast happened during a regular service at Mindanao State University’s gymnasium in Marawi, the country’s largest Muslim city, regional police Chief Allan Nobleza said.

“We’re investigating if it’s an IED (improvised explosive device) or grenade throwing,” he said.

Fragments of a 16-mm mortar were recovered at the scene, senior police official Emmanuel Peralta told a news conference later.

Essequibo referendum: Is Venezuela about to seize part of Guyana?

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is organising a referendum on Sunday to decide whether to create a new state in the Essequibo territory, an area currently under the control of neighbouring Guyana. Does Caracas have the means for its territorial ambitions, or is it just political grandstanding?

 

On December 3, Venezuelans vote for or against the creation of a new Venezuelan state in the Essequibo region. In the eyes of Venezuelan authorities, it is a “consultative” referendum designed to put an end to over 200 years of territorial conflict.

However, there is one big problem: the land Venezuela wants to potentially extend control over is recognised by the international community as a part of neighbouring Guyana – a sparsely populated country with some 800,000 inhabitants.

The issue has become an obsession for populist President Nicolas Maduro, who often repeats the phrase “El Essequibo es Nuestro” [The Essequibo is ours] in his speeches.

Among four other questions, the referendum asks citizens whether they favour “the creation of the Essequibo state and the development of an accelerated plan for comprehensive care for the current and future population of that territory”.

 

Piece of Osprey wreckage given to U.S. after crash off Japan

 

A piece of wreckage from a crashed Osprey military aircraft was handed over to U.S. military Sunday, a southwestern Japanese town said, as an around-the-clock search continued for seven crew missing in nearby waters.

The wreckage was collected by local fishermen, according to the town of Yakushima, after the tilt-rotor aircraft went down on Wednesday during a training exercise near the island town.

The only body recovered from the aircraft has been identified as Staff Sgt Jacob Galliher, a 24-year-old direct support operator assigned to the 43rd Intelligence Squadron, the U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command said.

 

Taken by the Mediterranean: A mother’s search for her lost son

A two-year search for refugees disappeared at sea trying to reach Spain is an endless mission, desperate relatives say.

At her home in the Syrian town of Daraa al-Balad, Rania Abu Aoun spends her days waiting anxiously for news about her son, Ramy.

It is agonising, she says.

Ramy’s phone has been off since January 3, 2022, when he left on a boat from Algeria heading towards Spain. He disappeared on that journey.

That day, the 30-year-old departed Algeria from the northwestern city of Oran, hoping to reach Europe and provide a better future for his three children, six-year-old Bayan, five-year-old Layan and two-year-old Hamza, who was born just three days after Ramy reached Turkey, the first stop on his long and arduous journey.