DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ 460 Years Ago, Shakespeare Was Born Here. Or Somewhere.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( Elizabeth Winkler | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Sometime in the late 18th century, a sign appeared outside a shambly butcher’s hut in the English town of Stratford-upon-Avon: “The Immortal Shakspeare was born in this house,” it announced, using a then common spelling of his name. Devotees began making pilgrimages — dropping to their knees, weeping, singing odes: “Untouched and sacred be thy shrine, Avonian Willy, bard Divine!”A tradesman grew rich selling carvings from a local mulberry tree, like pieces of the true cross. Some skeptics suspected that the sign was part of a scheme to bring visitors to Stratford; others wondered if it had been hung by the property’s occupant. About 250 years after its break from the Catholic Church, England had its own Bethlehem and manger. The problem: No one really knows where Shakespeare was born.

Persons: Shakspeare, Avonian Willy, Shakespeare Organizations: Avon, Catholic Church Locations: Stratford, ”, England, Bethlehem

☆ Dali container removal will take weeks, a key to Port of Baltimore reopening
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-08 | by ( Lori Ann Larocco | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

A Key Bridge Response 2024 Unified Command image of response crews remove shipping containers using a floating crane barge after the cargo ship Dali struck and collapsed the Francis Scott Key Bridge, on April 7, 2024 in Baltimore, Maryland. CSX was the first rail to start a rail service for diverted containers resulting from the accident and closure of the Port of Baltimore. Once the Dali is refloated and no longer listing, tugs will move the vessel to the CSX terminal at the Port of Baltimore. "Once you see plans of moving the Dali away from the port, that's when you know the channel is ready to be open," Roth said. The size of vessels the Coast Guard is allowing is 96 feet in length, compared to the 984-foot-long Dali, the vessel that struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge after losing navigational control and destroyed the key piece of infrastructure.

Persons: Dali, Francis Scott Key, JIC, Aaron Roth, Roth Organizations: Bethlehem Steel, Unified Command, Synergy Marine, U.S . Coast Guard, U.S . Army Corps of Engineers, Maryland Department of, Environment, Maryland Transportation Authority, Maryland State Police, Center, CNBC, Port, CSX, Coast Guard, Chertoff Group, Guard, Francis Scott Key Bridge, Department of Defense, Dover Air Force Base Locations: Baltimore , Maryland, Baltimore Harbor, Baltimore, Port of Baltimore

☆ Americans are expected to spend $3.1 billion on Easter candy this year. These 10 shocking stats reveal the cost of the holiday.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-30 | by ( Mykenna Maniece | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Over 1.5 billion Marshmallow Peeps are consumed every Easter holiday. Marshmallow Easter Peeps. In April 2023, BI reported that a consumer group was warning the public about the presence of red dye No. Just Born told BI at the time that they comply with FDA regulations and that their packaging and websites help customers make informed decisions. In October 2023, the Los Angeles Times reported that two colors of Peeps will contain red dye No.

Persons: LI Cook, Shutterstock Organizations: Business, FDA, Los Angeles Times Locations: Bethlehem , Pennsylvania, California

☆ Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse reverberates around the world
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-29 | by ( Ray Sanchez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +16 min

StreamTimeLive StreamTimeLive StreamTimeLiveAround the same time, numerous audible alarms were recorded on the ship’s bridge audio. The Dali container vessel after striking the Francis Scott Key Bridge. “Once you get here, I’ll go grab the workers on the Key Bridge and then stop the outer loop,” an officer said. When the Key Bridge was built decades ago, container ships were a fraction of the size and weight they are today. Miguel Luna, a native of El Salvador, was also working on the Key Bridge.

Persons: Francis Scott Key, ”, Jayme Krause, Nick Mosby, “ I’ve, Andy Middleton, Middleton, Dali, Marcel Muise, Scott Cowan, Baltimore –, Clay Diamond, Muise, Wes Moore, Diamond, ” Diamond, Al Drago, we’ve, “, Cowan, Jim Watson, Starr Smith, ’ ” Smith, Smith, ” Smith, ” John Zimmerman, They’re ‘, Maynor Yassir Suazo Sandoval, Miguel Luna, Dorlian Castillo Cabrera, Pima Castillo, Alejandro Hernandez Fuentes, Castillo, Alejandro Hernandez, Carlos Hernandez, Carlos Hernandez’s, Jazmin Alvarez, Hernández, Isabel Franco, Jose Mynor Lopez, Franco, Lilly Ordonez, Lopez, ” Rafael Laveaga, Holly Yan, Maria Santana, Melissa Alonso, Allison Gordon, Emma Tucker, Tina Burnside, Alex Stambaugh, Abel Alvarado, Aditi Sangal, Danny Freeman, Caroll Alvarado, Amy Simonson, Mary Kay Mallonee, Yahya Abou, Sabrina Souza, AnneClaire Stapleton, Antoinette Radford, Dakin Andone, Curt Devine, Casey Tolan, Isabelle Chapman, Elizabeth Wolfe, Lauren Mascarenhas, Elise Hammond, Gloria Pazmino, Alex Medeiros Organizations: CNN, Evening Sun, Bethlehem Steel, Eiffel, American, Maryland State Police, Sea Catholic, Walmart, National Transportation Safety, Chesapeake Bay, Longshoremen’s Association, Maryland Transportation Authority, American Pilots Association, ”, ” Maryland Gov, Bloomberg, Getty Images Transportation Authority, US Coast Guard, “ Dispatch, Police, Getty, Maryland, CASA, Brawner Builders, Univision, Authorities, Mexican Embassy Locations: Maryland, Fort McHenry, Sparrows Point, Baltimore, Patapsco, Port of Baltimore, India, Singapore, Baltimoreans, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Yemen, Red, Dali, MarineTraffic, ” Maryland, There’s, AFP, Middleton, Honduras, El Salvador, Mexico, Guatemala, Santa Bárbara, America, Dundalk, he’s, Mexican, Michoacan, Washington’s

☆ Like My Book Title? Thanks, I Borrowed It.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-28 | by ( A.O. Scott | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Which two big novels of the past two years borrowed their titles from “Macbeth”? Nailing the answer — “Birnam Wood” and “Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow” — might make you feel a little smug. ), is enough to spur you to buy a book, the way a search-optimized headline compels you to click a link. The name of a book becomes more memorable when it echoes something you might have heard — or think you should have heard — before. Before the turn of the 20th century titles were more descriptive than allusive.

Persons: don’t, “, Pamela, ” “ Robinson, ”, Marcel Proust, Shakespeare Locations: Wuthering, Bethlehem

☆ Opinion: Why ‘black swans’ are behind the Key Bridge and other shipping disasters
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-28 | by ( Opinion Salvatore R. Mercogliano | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —The allision between the container ship MV Dali and the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore on Tuesday has prompted numerous questions — not only about how this tragedy occurred, but also about our global shipping processes. This marked the start of a campaign by the Houthis, in support of Hamas in their attack on Israel, against global shipping transiting the Red Sea, Bab-el-Mandeb and the Gulf of Aden. Now, two years later, Baltimore is closed with remains of the Key Bridge athwart the main shipping channel. No one agency has oversight of or coordinates global shipping or ports in the US. There is also no overall maritime strategy for the nation, although the US Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration has been tasked to develop one.

Persons: Salvatore R, Mercogliano, Francis Scott Key, —, Sal Mercogliano Bennett Scarborough, Dali, ”, Jennifer Homendy, Transportation Pete Buttigieg, John Garamendi of, Dusty Johnson of Organizations: Campbell University, Shipping, YouTube, CNN, MV Galaxy Leader, Baltimore, Federal Highway Administration, Transportation, Bethlehem Steel, Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration, US Coast Guard, Army Corps of Engineers, Maryland Department of Transportation, US Department of Transportation, Federal Maritime Commission, Democratic, Republican, Dusty Johnson of South Dakota, Ocean Shipping Reform Locations: Baltimore, Asia, Suez, Los Angeles, Long, Yemen, Israel, Bab, Aden, China, Argentina, Largo, Dali, Sparrows, United States, John Garamendi of California, Dusty Johnson of South

There are more heavily trafficked routes across the Baltimore Harbor than the Francis Scott Key Bridge. The Harbor Tunnel carries double the daily traffic of the Key Bridge and the Fort McHenry Tunnel much more than that. The six men who are missing were part of this tradition of working Baltimore: members of a construction crew, working overnight hours filling potholes on the bridge. One day in 1977, Mr. Metzger said, his father, a truck driver, was coming back home from his route and happened upon the bridge’s ribbon cutting. And the Key Bridge is gone.”

Persons: Francis Scott Key, “, ”, Kurt L, Mr, Schmoke, Rafael Alvarez, Dali, Jim Lo Scalzo, Curtis Bay, Alvarez, Baltimoreans, James Metzger, Metzger, Metzger’s Organizations: Fort, University of Baltimore, Chesapeake, Washington , D.C, Bethlehem Steel Plant, Amazon Locations: Baltimore, Fort McHenry, Baltimore’s, Maryland, Washington ,, New York City, Shutterstock

☆ This Ramadan, American Muslims say they feel urgent need to send aid to Gaza as threat of mass starvation looms
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( Monica Haider | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

On Friday, the European Union announced it’s opening an emergency maritime aid corridor from Cyprus to Gaza with allies including the US. The day prior, President Joe Biden announced the US Military is planning to build a temporary port along the Gaza coast to try to deliver much-needed humanitarian relief. In 2023, the nonprofit Islamic Relief raised more than $30 million in online donations during Ramadan, according to a spokesman for the organization. The charity, Human Appeal, has provided humanitarian relief in Gaza since 1991, according to Samina Taj, the organization’s associate director of communications. Since the start of the war in Gaza, Taj said their teams have mobilized to try to meet the desperate need for aid.

Persons: Nadia Duwaik, Duwaik, Joe Biden, Israel, Rashid, Dawoud Abo, Jad Shaheen, they’re, ”, ” Duwaik, she’s, Awrad Saleh, “, ” Saleh, Khan, It’s, it’s, Allah, Nasma, Shehadeh, ” Shehadeh, Ashraf Amra, Taj, Ramadan, Noor Traina, Traina Organizations: CNN, Ministry of Health, United Nations, European Union, Military, Dawoud Abo Alkas, Anadolu Agency, Getty, West Bank, Palestinian Children’s Relief, United Nations Agency, Islamic Relief, Islamic, The United Nations Relief, Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees Locations: Israel, Gaza, United, Cyprus, al, Gaza City, Palestinian American, West, Palestine, Khan Yunis, Rafah, Bethlehem, New York, East, Egypt, Washington , DC, Libya

☆ Left-wing AOC was with her fiancé at a Brooklyn cinema when pro-Palestine supporters accosted her, demanding she say the word 'genocide'
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-09 | by ( Cameron Manley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Read previewRep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez had just left the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in Brooklyn with her fiancé earlier this week when she was accosted by a group of Pro-Palestinian protesters. Just say the word. I need you to understand that this is not OK."She responded that she had said that it was a genocide. AdvertisementIn a virtual town hall around the same time, AOC responded to a constituent who said the US was "funding a genocide." A Jew and a liberal Zionist, Sanders was asked by Novara Media in February if he would call what is happening in Gaza a genocide.

Persons: —, Alexandria Ocasio, Cortez, Ocasio, Brad Schneider, Yitzhak Rabin, Israel, Jesus, Christ, King Herod, Sen, Bernie Sanders, Sanders, Barack Obama, Court's Dobbs, Trump, Brett Kavanaugh, Kavanaugh Organizations: Service, Alamo, Business, Ministry, Gaza, New, Global, Movement, Israel, International, NBC News, Novara Media, Twitter, Washington DC Locations: Alexandria, Brooklyn, Israel, Palestine, Ocasio, Gaza, Bethlehem, Washington

☆ These voter reactions to Biden’s State of the Union fall largely along partisan lines
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-08 | by ( John King | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

The biggest takeaway came from the reviews of voters like Lang: loyal Democrats who have raised important policy and performance issues about the president. On Thursday, these voters saw a president who was listening to their concerns, but they also said that steps in the right direction did not mean the problem was solved. In Biden’s speech, Lang saw some proof that his team is listening. She is more conservative than Biden but saw things to like in his speech, including his “commitment to democracy.”Two topics hit home. “Striking to hear President Biden call for free preschool, but not support the right of families like mine to use our own tax dollars for K-12 education,” Gurr said.

Persons: Angela Lang, Joe Biden’s, ”, Lang, ” Priscilla Forsyth, ” Forsyth, Nikki Haley, ” Lang, Forsyth, Donald Trump, Darrell Ann Murphy, “, Trump, Mickey Brown, Jade Gray, Michiganders, Wisconsin Lang, Biden, ” Davette Baker, ” Baker, . Nevada Zoila Sanchez, ” Antonio Munoz, ” Munoz, Laken Riley, ” Riley, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Valeria Gurr, ” Gurr, Murphy, “ Strong, –, ” Murphy, Larry Malinconico, ” Malinconico, Malinconico, ” Brown, Pat Levin, Brown, ” New Hampshire Pete Burdett, Haley, ” Burdett, “ Don’t, ” Trump, Debbie Katsanos, “ I’ve, ” Katsanos, Iowa Forsyth, Shannen Ebersole, ” Ebersole, South Carolina Billy Pierce, Republican badgering, Pierce, Michigan Gray, “ Biden, ” Gray Organizations: CNN, Trump, Biden, University of Michigan, school’s College Democrats, Black, Communities, African, Reagan Republican, Alabama, Las, Republican, Lafayette College, South Carolina, Navy Locations: Joe Biden’s State, Milwaukee, Iowa, Easton , Pennsylvania, Bethlehem , Pennsylvania, Gaza, Wisconsin, . Nevada, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Northampton County, Easton, Bethlehem, ” New Hampshire, New, Sioux City, Forsyth, Ringgold County, South, Hartsville , South Carolina, Israel

☆ Several killed in Chad after attack on intelligence agency foiled, government says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Niamh Kennedy | Bethlehem Feleke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Nairobi CNN —Tensions were high in the Central African country of Chad on Wednesday after several people were killed following an alleged attack on the country’s intelligence services was foiled overnight, the government said. CNN has reached out to the leader of the party, Yaya Dillo, about the accusations. Dillo said in a Facebook post on Wednesday morning that the military had surrounded him and others at the party’s headquarters. It’s not clear if it was a separate incident or the court president was in the security agency’s office during the attack. “It is important to highlight that every person searching to disrupt the democratic process underway in the country will be taken to court,” the government warned.

Persons: ”, Yaya Dillo, Dillo, It’s, General Mahamat Idriss Deby, Netblocks Organizations: Nairobi CNN —, Socialist, National State Security Agency, CNN Locations: Nairobi, Central, Chad

Over the course of several days, The Associated Press interviewed a cross section of voters in Northampton County to ask whether Biden's messaging around the fate of democracy was resonating. These voters represented parts of the very coalition Biden will need to win Pennsylvania again — Black voters, Latinos, independents and moderates from both parties. A Biden campaign spokesperson said the democracy message is central to the campaign but it is not the only one the campaign will use to reach voters. Getting Black voters engaged is going to take more from Biden, she believes, because so far his campaign messages have not resonated. But Lopez thinks messages of fear and Trump imperiling American democracy are essentially meaningless for many of the county's working class voters.

Persons: Raymond Santiago, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Biden, Santiago isn't, ”, Trump, ” Biden, Evelyn Fermin, “, Curt Balch, Balch, ’ ” Balch, Christian Miller, That's, Miller, ” Miller, Christopher Borick, Harry Truman, Republican Thomas Dewey, ” Borick, Hillary Clinton, Anna Kodama, Kodama, “ That’s, Esther Lee, Lee, Guillermo Lopez Jr, Lopez Organizations: Bethlehem Steel, Hispanic, GOP, Northampton County, Trump, Independence Hall, Associated Press, Biden, Pennsylvania, —, Lehigh Hispanic, U.S, Capitol, Biden’s, Republican, Republican Party, Institute of Public, Muhlenberg University, Democrats, NAACP, Lehigh, AP Locations: BETHLEHEM, Pa, Lehigh, Northampton County, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Valley Forge , Pennsylvania, America, Philadelphia, New Jersey, Dominican Republic, Hellertown, Nazareth, Northampton, Allentown, Ohio, Europe, Emmaus

“This thing is not appropriate in the community we live in,” said Aya Sbeih, a Palestinian member of the group that was meeting in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Combatants for Peace. “So I keep it a secret.”Many peace groups have been struggling since Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack and Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, which have hardened the positions of many Israelis and Palestinians. But some activists, including those in Combatants for Peace, have quietly started to resume their work. Ms. Sbeih, a member of the group for seven years, said she had come to several recent meetings with newfound doubts about peace activism, at least in the current climate. Some said they were fed up with despair and wanted to latch onto a glimmer of hope.

Persons: ”, Aya Sbeih, Sbeih, “ Organizations: West Bank, Peace Locations: Bethlehem, Gaza

☆ Kenyan cult leader charged with murder of 191 children
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-06 | by ( Bethlehem Feleke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

Nairobi, Kenya CNN —Kenyan Christian cult leader Paul Nthenge Mackenzie and 29 other suspects were charged with the murder of 191 children on Tuesday morning by the Malindi High Court. The children’s bodies were exhumed from Shakahola forest in eastern Kenya last year where Mackenzie and his associates are accused of running a death cult. Authorities exhumed over 400 bodies from the sprawling forest after months of search efforts. Mackenzie and the 29 others pleaded not guilty to the charges. One suspect was found mentally unfit to stand trial.

Persons: Paul Nthenge Mackenzie, Mackenzie Organizations: Kenya CNN — Kenyan Christian, Authorities Locations: Nairobi, Kenya

☆ Paul Mackenzie: Alleged Kenyan cult leader and suspects to face charges, prosecutor says
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-16 | by ( Bethlehem Feleke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

Nairobi, Kenya CNN —Alleged Kenyan Christian cult leader Paul Mackenzie and 94 other suspects will face 10 charges for their involvement in a deadly cult, according to a statement from the office of the director of public prosecutions on Tuesday. The suspects will be charged with murder, manslaughter, and assault causing bodily harm, the statement listed. At least 429 bodies were recovered from the forest in eastern Kenya where Mackenzie and his followers were living. The suspects will face charges of subjecting a child to torture, cruelty to a child, and infringing a child’s right to education. All 95 suspects will be formally charged in court in the town of Malindi on Wednesday.

Persons: Kenya CNN —, Paul Mackenzie, Mackenzie Organizations: Kenya CNN, Kenyan Christian Locations: Nairobi, Kenya, Malindi

☆ East Africa floods: More than 300 killed as heavy rains wreak havoc
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-04 | by ( Bethlehem Feleke | Nimi Princewill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The unusually heavy rains are largely caused by the El Niño weather phenomenon and are forecast to continue into the new year by the Kenya Meteorological Department. This phenomenon has been associated with severe flooding in eastern Africa, resulting in landslides, elevated waterborne diseases, and food shortages. Meanwhile, the northern and southern regions of the continent often endure prolonged periods of severe drought during El Niño events. That means the Horn of Africa may experience more drought as well as floods from heavy rain. In northern Tanzania, authorities said 49 people were killed by floods accompanied by mudslides following heavy rains in the country’s Manyara province.

Persons: William Ruto, Niño, Ruto, ”, Queen Sendiga, Samia Suluhu Hassan Organizations: CNN, Interior Ministry, Kenya Meteorological Department, Disaster, Communication, Somali, Afi, United, International Rescue Locations: East Africa, Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Mombasa, El, Africa, COP28, Dubai, Horn of Africa, Manyara, Hagadera

As of Wednesday, Israel had released 180 Palestinian prisoners and detainees and Hamas had released 81 hostages. Under Israeli law, children as young as 12 can be imprisoned for up to six months. Salman was one of the prisoners released on Friday, after serving almost eight of those nine years. Israeli military police guard the entrance to Ofer Israeli military prison, as Palestinian prisoners arrive from another Israeli prison, as part of an agreement between Israel and Hamas, on November 24. According to a report by Save the Children earlier this year, between an estimated 500 and 1,000 children are held in Israeli military detention each year.

Persons: CNN — Fatima Shahin, Israel, Shahin, hadn’t, ” Shahin, “, It’s, ”, isn’t, Ofer, Ammar Awad, B’Tselem, Khader Adnan, ” Adnan, Malak Salman, Salman, ” Fatima Salman, Malak’s, Itamar Ben Gvir, Ben Gvir, Ilia Yefimovich Organizations: CNN, West Bank, Israel Defense Forces ’ International Law Department, Israeli Information Center, Human Rights, Israel Prison Service, Israeli Ministry of Justice, Reuters, Geneva Convention, Islamic Jihad, UN, Palestinian, Israel Prison, Israeli National Security, Israel Police Locations: Bethlehem, Israel, Territories, Ramallah, Israeli, Jerusalem, Gaza

☆ Relief and sadness for Palestinian prisoners freed in Gaza hostage deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( Ali Sawafta | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/4] People gather as released Palestinian prisoners leave the Israeli military prison, Ofer, after hostages-prisoners swap deal between Hamas and Israel near Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank November 24, 2023. Israeli police were seen raiding her Jerusalem home before her daughter was released. More than 100 more Palestinian prisoners are due to be released over the coming four days and more may be freed if the truce is extended. In Beitunia, a city near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, a large crowd, mostly of young men, greeted freed prisoners by cheering, honking car horns and marching in the street carrying Palestinian flags. Additional reporting by Yosri AlJamal; Writing by James Mackenzie; Editing by Daniel WallisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Ofer, Ammar Awad, Sawsan Bkeer, Marah Bkeer, Abu Ubaida, Laith Othman, Ismail Shaheen, Fatima, Shaheen, Yosri AlJamal, James Mackenzie, Daniel Wallis Organizations: West Bank, REUTERS, Hamas, Thomson Locations: Israel, Ramallah, West, Gaza, Qatar, Jerusalem, Bethlehem

☆ Relief, sadness for Palestinian prisoners freed in hostage deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( Ali Sawafta | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BEITUNIA, West Bank, Nov 24 (Reuters) - For the families of Palestinian detainees freed by Israel under a hostage deal agreed with the Islamist group Hamas, Friday brought relief tinged with sadness at the fighting that is set to continue in Gaza after the expiry of a four-day truce. Israeli police were seen raiding her Jerusalem home before her daughter was released. More than 100 more Palestinian prisoners are due to be released over the coming four days and more may be freed if the truce is extended. In Beitunia, a city near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, a large crowd, mostly of young men, greeted freed prisoners by cheering, honking car horns and marching in the street carrying Palestinian flags. [1/7]Released Palestinian prisoner Fatima Amarneh is received by her family, amid a hostages-prisoners swap deal between Hamas and Israel, near Jenin in the Israeli-occupied West Bank November 25, 2023.

Persons: Sawsan Bkeer, Marah Bkeer, Fatima Amarneh, Raneen, Abu Ubaida, Laith Othman, Ismail Shaheen, Fatima, Shaheen, Yosri AlJamal, James Mackenzie, Daniel Wallis Organizations: West Bank, Hamas, REUTERS, Thomson Locations: West, Israel, Gaza, Qatar, Jerusalem, Ramallah, Jenin, Bethlehem

☆ Relief and Sadness for Palestinian Prisoners Freed in Gaza Hostage Deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( Nov. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

By Ali SawaftaBEITUNIA, West Bank (Reuters) - For the families of Palestinian detainees freed by Israel under a hostage deal agreed with the Islamist group Hamas, Friday brought relief tinged with sadness at the fighting that is set to continue in Gaza after the expiry of a four-day truce. Israeli police were seen raiding her Jerusalem home before her daughter was released. "We are still afraid to feel happy and at the same time, we do not have it in us to be happy due to what is happening in Gaza," she said. More than 100 more Palestinian prisoners are due to be released over the coming four days and more may be freed if the truce is extended. In Beitunia, a city near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, a large crowd, mostly of young men, greeted freed prisoners by cheering, honking car horns and marching in the street carrying Palestinian flags.

Persons: Ali Sawafta BEITUNIA, Sawsan Bkeer, Marah Bkeer, Abu Ubaida, Laith Othman, Ismail Shaheen, Fatima, Shaheen, Yosri AlJamal, James Mackenzie, Daniel Wallis Organizations: West Bank, Reuters, Hamas Locations: Israel, Gaza, Qatar, Jerusalem, Ramallah, Bethlehem

☆ Dispute erupts over whether pope called Gaza situation a 'genocide'
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Philip Pullella | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

VATICAN CITY, Nov 22 (Reuters) - A messy dispute broke out on Wednesday over whether Pope Francis used the word "genocide" to describe events in Gaza, with Palestinians who met with him insisting that he did and the Vatican saying he did not. The opposing versions emerged at an afternoon press conference with 10 Palestinians who met the pope on Wednesday morning at his Vatican residence. It came from His Holiness, Pope Francis," she said. Other participants at the Palestinian news conference concurred that they had heard the pope use the word genocide. The participants said the pope was very informed about the situation in Gaza and the lack of water, medicine and basic necessities.

Persons: Pope Francis, Shireen Awwad Hilal, Matteo Bruni, Hilal, Israel, Francis, Raphael Schutz, Schutz, Guglielmo Mangiapane, Janet Lawrence, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: CITY, Bethlehem Bible College, Vatican, Hamas, Handout, REUTERS Acquire, United Nations, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: Gaza, Israel, Palestinian, Israel's

☆ Climate: The UAE is hosting the world’s biggest annual summit. It’s also planning a massive fossil fuel expansion
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Angela Dewan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

The flurry of forest conservation deals with Zimbabwe, Zambia, Kenya, Liberia and Tanzania were announced in the months ahead of the annual United Nations’ COP28 climate summit, being hosted this year in December by the United Arab Emirates. The annual climate summit is where global leaders and negotiators from nearly 200 countries will convene to decide how and when to ramp down fossil fuel use. Its parent company, Global Carbon Investments, has already agreed to transfer $1.5 billion to Zimbabwe in “pre-financing for carbon credits.” That’s more than the country spends on education and childcare, which combined are Zimbabwe’s biggest national expense. Minimum Emissions” slogan is a viable climate solution, even as global temperatures soar and scientists press for rapid fossil fuel cuts. Ironically, COP28 could be the arena that transforms ADNOC into a global oil major.

Persons: CNN —, Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook Al Maktoum, —, Sultan Al Jaber —, Al Jaber, ”, Sultan Al Jaber, Callaghan O'Hare, Reuters Al Jaber, ADNOC, Jamie Henn, It’s, Henn, “, Philip Morris, ” Henn, Renat Heuberger, Zinyange Auntony, Julia Jones, ’ ” Justin Kenrick, ” Patrick Galey, “ ADNOC, COP28, Bethlehem Feleke Organizations: CNN, Carbon, United Nations, United, Blue, US Department of Commerce, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, US, Reuters, Free Media, Climate Watch, UN, COP28, Global Carbon Investments, Mucheni conservancy, Getty, “, Bangor University, Peoples, Forest Peoples Programme, Shell, BP, Global, Energy Locations: Dubai, United Kingdom, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Kenya, Liberia, Tanzania, United Arab Emirates, UAE, Abu Dhabi, Houston, UN, COP28, Africa, “, Swiss, Mucheni, Binga, AFP, Wales, Azerbaijan, Nairobi

☆ Six Hurt in Suspected Palestinian Shooting Attack in W.Bank -Medics
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: 1 min

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Three suspected Palestinian assailants opened fire at a checkpoint on a main road between Jerusalem and the West Bank city of Bethlehem wounding six people, Israeli emergency services said on Thursday. Security forces opened fire at the assailants, police said. "Three terrorists were neutralized by security forces stationed at the crossing. This occurred after they arrived in a suspicious vehicle and opened fire towards our forces," Israel police said. There was no immediate comment from Palestinian officials.

Persons: Maayan Lubell, Bernadette Baum, Crispian Balmer Organizations: West Bank, . Security Locations: JERUSALEM, Jerusalem, Bethlehem

☆ Funeral directors share 7 rules of etiquette and their biggest pet peeves they wish everyone knew
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( Jen Glantz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Insider asked funeral directors to share their top etiquette rules and common pet peeves that they wish more people knew. Keep the family room private before the funeralOftentimes, the close family will wait in a private room together before the funeral. Casey said guests should assume it isn't appropriate to visit the private family room before the funeral unless the family has said otherwise. Respect the funeral and the funeral homeDino Cantelmi , the owner and director of Cantelmi Funeral Home in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, says there are a few rules to keep in mind if you've never been to a funeral. Leave your phone in the car or in your pocketBefore entering a funeral, Cantelmi said, one thing people can do is be aware of their cellphone.

Persons: —, you've, Randi Goldstein, Casey, Goldsteins, Raphael, Sacks, Dino Cantelmi, Cantelmi, Lean, Elizabeth Fournier, Fournier Organizations: Service, Social, Cornerstone Funeral Services Locations: Philadelphia, Bethlehem , Pennsylvania, Boring , Oregon

The superhero factory hit a new low with the weekend launch of “The Marvels,” which opened with just $47 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. It was also the rare Marvel movie led by three women — Larson, Teyonah Parris and Iman Vellani. After numerous strike-related delays, the only Marvel movie currently on the studio’s 2024 calendar is “Deadpool 3,” opening July 26. While quite low for a $200 million movie, “Killers of the Flower Moon” is primarily an awards-season statement by Apple of its growing moviemaking ambitions. "The Marvels,” $47 million.

Persons: Brie Larson, Captain Marvel, ”, aren’t, Marvel ”, David A, Gross, Sony’s, Morbius, Nia DaCosta, — Larson, Teyonah Parris, Iman Vellani, Bob Iger, ” Gross, “ Barbie, Larson, Taylor Swift’s, Swift, Sofia Coppola's “ Priscilla, Cailee Spaeny, Priscilla Presley, Jacob Elordi, Martin Scorsese's, Alexander Payne's, Paul Giamatti, Comscore, “ Taylor Swift, “ Priscilla, Jake Coyle Organizations: Marvel, Research Entertainment, Walt Disney Co, Disney, Rotten, Warner Bros, “, Universal Pictures, AMC Theatres, Apple Studios, Paramount Pictures, Apple, Sony's Locations: Bethlehem

Search resuls for: "Bethlehem"

25 mentions found