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☆ Brazil proposes global forest conservation fund at COP28
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Smoke from a fire rises into the air as trees burn amongst vegetation in Brazil's Amazon rainforest near Humaita, Amazonas state, Brazil, August 3, 2023. REUTERS/Leonardo Benassatto/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsDUBAI, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Brazil on Friday unveiled a proposal at the COP28 climate summit to set up a global fund to finance forest conservation that it hopes can raise $250 billion from sovereign wealth funds and other investors, including the oil industry. The plan unveiled by Brazilian Environment Minister Marina Silva and Finance Minister Fernando Haddad calls for the creation of an innovative global instrument to remunerate the maintenance and restoration of tropical forests. Brazil is asking other countries to contribute to the final design of the fund. The funds would be deposited at a global organization, which could raise further resources by issuing low-risk bonds.

Persons: Leonardo Benassatto, Brazilian Environment Minister Marina Silva, Fernando Haddad, Andre Correa, Lago, deforest, Lisandra Paraguassu, William Maclean Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Brazilian Environment Minister, Finance, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Humaita, Amazonas, Brazil, Dubai

☆ Kenya Doomsday Cult Leader Jailed for Unlicensed Film Production
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Dec. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

NAIROBI (Reuters) - The leader of a Kenyan doomsday cult, in which authorities believe more than 400 members may have died, was jailed on Friday for 12 months for producing and distributing films without a licence. Police have exhumed hundreds of bodies from mass graves in Shakahola forest in the country's southeast. Mackenzie handed himself in to police in April and has repeatedly been denied bail while investigations continue into the mass deaths. He has not yet been charged for his alleged role in the deaths or entered a plea. On Friday Magistrate Olga Onalo found the self-styled pastor guilty of operating a film studio, producing films and showing them to members of the public without a valid licence.

Persons: Paul Mackenzie, Mackenzie, Olga Onalo, James Mouko, Humphrey Malalo, Hereward Holland, William Maclean Organizations: Good News International Church, . Police, Local Locations: NAIROBI, Kenyan

Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni addresses her speech during the question time at the upper house of parliament in Rome, Italy November 23, 2023. REUTERS/Remo Casilli Acquire Licensing RightsROME, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Italy will provide 100 million euros ($108.91 million) to a new fund to help poor countries cope with "loss and damage" due to climate change, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Friday, adding she would invest 70% of her 4.2-billion euro Climate Fund in Africa. "We are contributing to the loss and damage fund with 100 million euros to help achieve the goals of this COP28," she told an event at the COP28 climate conference in Dubai. Italy's Climate Fund is part of a commitment by rich countries to funnel at least $100 billion a year in developing economies through green transition projects under the form of state guarantees, loans and equity investments. In late 2021, under Meloni's predecessor Mario Draghi, Italy set aside 840 million euros per year between 2022 and 2026 for the programme plus an additional annual endowment of 40 million euros starting from 2027.

Persons: Giorgia Meloni, Remo Casilli, Rome, Mario Draghi, Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, William Maclean Organizations: Italy's, REUTERS, Rights, Fund, Energy, Reuters, Treasury, Thomson Locations: Rome, Italy, Africa, Dubai

☆ At climate summit, Turkey, South Africa hit out at Israel over Gaza war
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Alexander Cornwell | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan delivers a national statement at the World Climate Action Summit during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, December 1, 2023. "The current situation in Gaza constitutes a war crime and a crime against humanity; those responsible must be held accountable under international law," he said. The war against the innocent people of Palestine is a war crime that must be ended now," he said in his address. The "international youth delegate" said he would try to raise awareness at the COP28 conference of the Palestinian cause. The assault sparked outrage in the Arab world, though most Western leaders have supported what they say is Israel's right to defend itself.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, Al Sudani, Israel, Cyril Ramaphosa, Jordan's King Abdullah, Mohammed Ursof, Antony Blinken, Blinken, Rishi Sunak, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Isaac Herzog, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Herzog, Oded Joseph, Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Abdul Latif Rashid, Gustavo Petro, Alexander Cornwell, Nadine Awadalla, Jana Choukeir, Huseyin Hayatsever, Mai Shams El, Richard Valdmanis, William Maclean Organizations: United Nations, Change, United Arab Emirates, REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Hamas, United, U.S, State Department, Palestinian Authority, Dubai, UAE, Foreign Ministry, Reuters COP28, Thomson Locations: Dubai, United Arab, Israel, Gaza, Palestinian, Africa, Palestine, UAE, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, Bahrain, COP28

☆ Support among Israelis for resumption of Gaza campaign
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Nathan Frandino | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsTEL AVIV, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Israelis interviewed on Tel Aviv's streets backed their army's resumption of fighting in the Gaza Strip on Friday, acknowledging the dangers but blaming Hamas for the collapse of a week-long truce. "We still have 156 hostages in Gaza, still have babies there ... We don't want this war, but we have to," he said. "I hope Hamas will be clever enough to keep the hostages safe and also the innocent citizens of Gaza, that they will be safe also," she said. And I don't believe Hamas will give up all the hostages because they use it as a human shield. "So if they give up all of them, they won't have anything to stand up against Israel because Israel has a much stronger army than Hamas does.

Persons: Abu Mustafa, it's, Dvir Feller, Yael Segal, I'm, doesn't, Segal, Lior Feuer, Tania Rubinshtein, Nathan Frandino, Howard Goller, William Maclean Organizations: REUTERS, Thomson Locations: Israel, Gaza, TEL AVIV, Tel

☆ Slovak truckers to start Ukraine border crossing blockade, joining Polish protests
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Jan Lopatka | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The Slovak hauliers are joining Polish truckers who have been blocking several crossings to Ukraine since Nov. 6. Polish and Slovak truckers complain that Ukrainian truckers offer cheaper prices for their services and also transport goods within the EU, rather than just between the bloc and Ukraine. The next decision would come after Monday's EU transport ministers meeting in Brussels, where Polish, Slovak and Hungarian delegations were expected to raise the topic. The Slovak Transport Ministry said after meeting the hauliers on Wednesday it would relay their demands in Brussels. European transport commissioner Adina Valean said on Nov. 29 that Ukraine and the EU cannot be "taken hostage" by the Polish truckers blockading the border.

Persons: Stanislav Skala, Skala, Nemecke, Adina Valean, Jan Lopatka, William Maclean Organizations: European Union, EU, Truckers, Military, Slovak Transport Ministry, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Slovakia, Brussels, Slovak, Kyiv, Prague

☆ Ukraine's SBU targets rail line deep inside Russian Siberia - source
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KYIV, Nov 30 (Reuters) - An operation conducted by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) detonated explosives on a railway line in Siberia that Russia uses for military supplies, a Ukrainian source told Reuters on Thursday. Such an attack, more than 4,000 km (2,480 miles) from Ukraine, would be a striking demonstration of Kyiv's ability to conduct operations deep inside Russia. Reuters could not independently verify the account or whether the rail route is used for military supplies. Russian sources acknowledged that a train had caught fire in the area, but made no mention of explosives. In a statement online, it said rail traffic had been rerouted, slightly increasing journey time, but that transport had not been interrupted.

Persons: Tom Balmforth, Gleb Stolyarov, William Maclean Organizations: Security Service of Ukraine, Reuters, Russia's, Russian Railways, Thomson Locations: Siberia, Russia, Ukrainian, Buryatia, Mongolia, Ukraine, Russian

[1/4] Jordan's King Abdullah II hosts an international conference attended by the main U.N. bodies and regional and international relief agencies to coordinate humanitarian aid to war-devastated Gaza, in Amman, Jordan November 30, 2023. With Israel refusing to allow any aid in through its borders, supplies have been flown and driven into Egypt's Sinai Peninsula for delivery to Gaza through the Rafah crossing. Israel has bombarded Gaza in response to an Oct. 7 rampage into southern Israel by Hamas militants who killed some 1,200 people and took more than 200 hostage. Israel had previously called for increasing the amount of aid taken into Gaza from Egypt, including shipments provided by Jordan, said the official, who requested anonymity. Bottlenecks and capacity limitations at the Rafah crossing mean it cannot handle more than 200 trucks a day.

Persons: King Abdullah II, King Abdullah, U.N, Israel, Gazans, confidentially, Christos Christou, Jordan, Martin Griffiths, Juliette Touma, Suleiman Al, Sarah El Safty, William Maclean, Grant McCool Organizations: Royal Hashemite, Reuters Acquire, Red Crescent, Reuters, Trucks, United Nations, Thomson Locations: Gaza, Amman, Jordan, Israel, AMMAN, RAFAH, Egypt, U.N, Rafah, Al Arish, Sinai, Nitzana, Awja, Gaza's, United, Khalidi

In the latest incident, a UNIFIL patrol was hit by Israeli gunfire in the vicinity of Aytaroun of southern Lebanon, although there were no casualties. The force is deployed in southern Lebanon with the primary role of helping maintain international peace and security. Last December, an Irish soldier serving in UNIFIL was killed after the UNIFIL vehicle he was travelling in was fired on as it travelled in southern Lebanon. Seven people were charged by a Lebanese military tribunal in January for his death, the first fatal attack on U.N. peacekeepers in Lebanon since 2015. Calm had prevailed on the border since Hamas and Israel agreed a temporary truce that began on Nov. 24.

Persons: I've, Stephen MacEoin, Shamrock, MacEoin, Andrea Tenenti, Tenenti, We’ve, Aziz Taher, Hussein Al Waille, Maggie Fick, William Maclean Organizations: Camp Shamrock, United Nations Interim Force, UNIFIL, Reuters, United, Security Council, Thomson Locations: Lebanon, UNIFIL, Maroun, Ras, Lebanese, Israel, Gaza, Tiri, Lebanon's, Iran, United Nations, Aytaroun, Irish, Seven, U.N

☆ Israeli ex-hostage says she confronted Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar in Gaza tunnel
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Yocheved Lifshitz, 85, an Israeli grandmother who was held hostage in Gaza looks on after being released by Hamas militants, at Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv, Israel October 24, 2023. Yocheved Lifshitz, 85, was taken from her Kibbutz Nir Oz home in Israel to Gaza. She told the Israeli newspaper Davar she confronted Sinwar when he visited the hostages in an underground tunnel where Hamas was holding them captive. "Sinwar was with us three to four days after we arrived," Lifshitz told the Hebrew-language Davar newspaper. Speaking with reporters following her release from Hamas captivity last month, Lifshitz said that she "went through hell" during her two weeks as a hostage in the Gaza Strip.

Persons: Yocheved Lifshitz, Janis Laizans, Yahya Sinwar, Nir Oz, Sinwar, Lifshitz, Oded, Howard Goller, William Maclean Organizations: Hamas, Ichilov, REUTERS, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Gaza, Tel Aviv, Israel

☆ OSCE Meeting Causes Rift Over Whether to Share Stage With Russia's Lavrov
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +4 min

The United States and its allies are seeking to simultaneously keep the OSCE alive and hold Russia to account over its invasion of Ukraine. Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna told reporters at a meeting with his counterparts from other NATO member states. Estonia had been due to take over the annually rotating OSCE chairmanship but Russia spent months blocking it. A last-minute deal for neutral Malta to take over the chairmanship must also be formally approved at Thursday and Friday's OSCE meeting in Skopje, hosted by the current chair North Macedonia. I think that is simply wrong," Latvian Foreign Minister Krisjanis Karins told reporters at the NATO meeting.

Persons: Andrew Gray, Francois Murphy, Ingrid Melander, Russia's Sergei Lavrov, Margus Tsahkna, Lavrov, Tsahkna, OSCE Michael Carpenter, Antony Blinken, Vladimir Putin, Helga Schmid, Krisjanis Karins, Humeyra Pamuk, William Maclean Organizations: Organization, Security, Cooperation, OSCE, Central Asia, Ukrainian Foreign, AS, United, U.S, Macedonian, United Nations General Assembly, NATO Locations: Ingrid Melander BRUSSELS, VIENNA, Baltic, Ukraine, Russia, Balkans, Central, United States, Estonian, Estonia, Malta, Skopje, Macedonia, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, Moscow, West, New York, Latvian

☆ UN calls for 'irreversible' move toward two-state solution to Israel crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The comments coincide with the United Nations' International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, which it observes annually. Calls for a two-state solution have grown in the wake of attacks on Israel on Oct. 7 in which Hamas gunmen killed 1,200 people and took 240 hostages. A two-state agreement would create a state for the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip alongside Israel. Israel has said a Palestinian state must be demilitarized so as not to threaten its security. "The two-state solution is difficult after the (Israeli) settlement and shrinking (of territory), but still possible if there is a will," he said.

Persons: Mohammed Salem, Tatiana Valovaya, U.N, General Antonio Guterres, Assembly's, Ibrahim Khraishi, Gabrielle Tétrault, Farber, Cécile, William Maclean Organizations: Hamas, REUTERS, Rights, United Nations, of Solidarity, Palestinian, West Bank, Israel, Thomson Locations: Israel, Palestinian, Khan, Gaza, Jerusalem, Geneva, Palestine, East Jerusalem

[1/3] Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov disembarks from a plane upon his arrival at an airport ahead of a meeting of foreign ministers of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in Skopje, North Macedonia, November 30, 2023. Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna told reporters on Wednesday in Brussels where he attended a NATO meeting. The European Union's foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said he understood unease about Lavrov attending the meeting in Skopje, North Macedonia. But he said it was a chance for Lavrov to hear broad condemnation of Russia's war in Ukraine. I think that is simply wrong," said Latvian Foreign Minister Krisjanis Karins.

Persons: Sergei Lavrov disembarks, Russia's Sergei Lavrov, Margus Tsahkna, Lavrov, Josep Borrell, Borrell, Dimitar Kovacevski, OSCE Michael Carpenter, Antony Blinken, Helga Schmid, Krisjanis Karins, Humeyra Pamuk, Aleksandar Vasovic, Ronald Popeski, Francois Murphy, William Maclean, Cynthia Osterman Organizations: Organisation for Security, Cooperation, Russian Foreign Ministry, REUTERS Acquire, Organization for Security, Baltic, OSCE, Soviet, NATO, Tass, Russian, North Macedonia's, Kremlin, AS, Ukraine, United, U.S, United Nations General Assembly, Thomson Locations: Europe, Skopje, North Macedonia, BRUSSELS, VIENNA, Ukraine, U.S, Russia, Estonian, Brussels, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Malta, Belarus, United States, Moscow, West, New York, Latvian

☆ Israel seeks recognition of Hamas sexual violence at UN meeting
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Emma Farge | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Israeli authorities have opened an investigation into sexual violence during the most deadly attack on Israel in its history, including rape, after evidence emerged pointing to sexual crimes, such as victims found disrobed and mutilated. The private event, attended by diplomats, rights groups and U.N. agencies, is the first Israel-organised event outside the country to address acts of sexual violence by Hamas, which Israel's diplomatic mission described as "widespread". U.N. rights bodies "downplayed" and "minimised" the sexual violence, said Ruth Halperin-Kaddari, an Associate Professor at the Bar-Ilan University, who spoke at the event. "The Office is attempting to carry out remote monitoring of these and other human rights violations reported in Israel and the OPT (Occupied Palestinian Territories). Lack of direct access to Israel and the OPT has hampered the work," said Ravina Shamdasani in response to emailed questions.

Persons: Evelyn Hockstein, Ruth Halperin, Kaddari, " Halperin, Volker Turk, Ravina, Halperin, Emma Farge, Maayan Lubell, Ari Rabinovitch, William Maclean Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Ilan University, Reuters, Women, Human, Human Rights, Thomson Locations: Gaza, Kibbutz Kfar Aza, Israel, Geneva, Palestinian Territories, Jerusalem

REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsPARIS, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Night-time protests across France over the past few days by ultra-right militants chanting "Islam out of Europe" have been fanned by last week's rioting in Dublin, a French intelligence source and far-right Telegram communications indicate. In messages sent on French far-right Telegram groups, seen by Reuters, videos of the Dublin riots were shared, highlighting what they said was the assailant's Algerian origin and hailing the reaction of the Irish far-right. CALMING TENSIONSOn a visit to Crepol on Monday, government spokesperson Olivier Veran urged calm, saying "we don't respond to violence with violence, we respond with justice. There are about 3,000 violent ultra-right militants identified by the French intelligence services. That number has been stable for the last few years but the national coordination by demonstrators as seen on Saturday is a new phenomenon, the intelligence source said.

Persons: Sarah Meyssonnier, Jean, Yves Camus, Thomas, Bravo, Camus, Olivier Veran, Gerald Darmanin, Martel, Darmanin, Laurent de Caigny, Layli Foroudi, Juliette Jabkhiro, William Maclean Organizations: French Municipal Police, REUTERS, Rights, Rennes, Grenoble, Telegram, Reuters, France Inter, Thomson Locations: Paris, Villepinte, France, Europe, Dublin, Crepol, Lyon, Ireland

☆ EU court says public employees may be barred from wearing head scarf
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The case came to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) after an employee of the eastern Belgian municipality of Ans was told she could not wear an Islamic head scarf at work. The municipality subsequently changed its terms of employment to require its employees to observe strict neutrality by not wearing overt signs of religious or ideological belief. The hijab, the traditional head scarf worn around the head and shoulders, has been a divisive issue across Europe for years. The CJEU said a policy of strict neutrality that was intended to establish a neutral administrative environment may be regarded as being objectively justified by a legitimate aim. The court said authorities in member states had a margin of discretion in designing the neutrality of public service they intended to promote.

Persons: Lim Huey Teng, Philip Blenkinsop, William Maclean Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, European Union, Justice, Thomson Locations: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Rights BRUSSELS, Europe, Belgian

☆ Snowstorm kills eight in Ukraine and Moldova, hundreds of towns lose power
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, speaking in his nightly video address, said five people had died in southern Odesa region and suggested there might be others elsewhere. Schools were closed in both southern Ukraine and in Moldova. [1/5]Emergency workers release a van which is stuck in snow during a heavy snow storm in Odesa region, Ukraine in this handout picture released November 27, 2023. Central Kyiv and southern Odesa and Mykolaiv regions were the hardest hit by the power cuts, with 40,000 homes initially affected in Kyiv region, authorities said. Eight people suffered hypothermia and five were injured by falling trees in Odesa region, the emergency service said.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Ihor Klymenko, Dan Peleschuk, Dysa, Alexander Tanas, Tom Balmforth, Bernadette Baum, William Maclean, Tomasz Janowski, Ron Popeski Organizations: Schools, Press, State Emergency Service of Ukraine, REUTERS Acquire, Sunday, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Moldova, Russia, Moscow, Odesa, Odesa region, Central Kyiv, Mykolaiv, Kyiv, Ukraine's, Odessa, Chisinau

☆ Uganda to borrow $150 mln from China's Exim after World Bank halts funding
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A worker is seen near a sign of the Export-Import Bank of China at the venue for the second China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai, China October 31, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsKAMPALA, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Uganda is preparing to borrow $150 million from China's Export Import Bank (Exim) to help expand its internet infrastructure, the finance ministry on Monday. A junior finance minister and the minister for information asked lawmakers on Monday to authorise the debt, the finance ministry wrote on X, the social media platform. Uganda is in negotiations with Chinese export credit agency SINOSURE and Exim Bank for a loan to finance the construction of a pipeline to help Uganda export its crude oil to international markets. The World Bank, traditionally Uganda's biggest development lender, halted loans to Uganda after President Yoweri Museveni signed the Anti-Homosexuality Act which hands out tough sentences including death for a range homosexual activities.

Persons: Stringer, SINOSURE, Yoweri Museveni, Elias Biryabarema, Hereward Holland, William Maclean Organizations: Export, Import Bank of China, China, REUTERS, Rights, China's Export Import Bank, World Bank, Exim Bank, Bank, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, China, Rights KAMPALA, Uganda

☆ Spain denounces 'indiscriminate' Gaza deaths, angering Israel
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Secretary-General of the Arab League Ahmed Aboul Gheit meets with Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Belgium's Prime Minister Alexander De Croo to discuss the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Cairo, Egypt November 24, 2023. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also weighed in, saying the two European leaders had failed to spotlight what he called crimes against humanity committed by Palestinian militants of Hamas. Hamas fighters burst into Israel from Gaza on Oct. 7 in an attack Israel says killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians. Israel has bombarded Gaza and sent in troops and tanks in retaliation, killing about 14,000 Gazans, around 40% of them children, according to Palestinian health authorities. On Thursday, Sanchez met Netanyahu and Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Israel Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.

Persons: Arab League Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Pedro Sanchez, Alexander De Croo, Mohamed Abdel, Sanchez, Eli Cohen, De, Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu, Netanyahu's, Jose Manuel Albares, Albares, Isaac Herzog, Mahmoud Abbas, Inti Landauro, Ari Rabinovitch, Andrew Gray, Emma Pinedo, Charlie Devereux, William Maclean, Grant McCool Organizations: Arab League, Spain's, Belgium's, Hamas, REUTERS, Spanish, Belgian, Israel's, Palestinian, West Bank, Thomson Locations: Israel, Cairo, Egypt, Gaza, Rafah, Spain, Belgium, Spanish, Hamas, Ramallah, Belgian, Madrid, Jerusalem, Brussels

☆ EU's von der Leyen says extremist violence in West Bank settlements must stop
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Raneen Sawafta/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsBRUSSELS, Nov 24 (Reuters) - European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Friday that rising violence by extremists in the Israeli-occupied West Bank had to stop. Violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank has increased since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel. And to this end, unacceptable violence by extremists in the West Bank has to stop," she added. Britain's Foreign Secretary David Cameron also urged Israel to crack down on what he called "completely unacceptable" violence by West Bank settlers. Israel occupied the West Bank, which Palestinians want as the core of an independent state, in a 1967 Middle East war.

Persons: Raneen, Ursula von der Leyen, Von der Leyen, Justin Trudeau, Charles Michel, Joe Biden, David Cameron, it's, Sudip Kar, William Maclean Organizations: West Bank, REUTERS, Rights, Canadian, European, Britain's, BBC, Thomson Locations: Huwara, Rights BRUSSELS, Israel, Canada, Gaza, –, United States

[1/2] A satellite imagery of the world's largest iceberg, named A23a, seen in Antarctica, November 15, 2023. Courtesy of European Union/Copernicus Sentinel-3/Handout via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsNov 24 - The world's largest iceberg is on the move for the first time in more than three decades, scientists said on Friday. At almost 4,000 square km (1,500 square miles), the Antarctic iceberg called A23a is roughly three times the size of New York City. This will funnel it toward the Southern Ocean on a path known as "iceberg alley" where others of its kind can be found bobbing in dark waters. "Over time it's probably just thinned slightly and got that little bit of extra buoyancy that's allowed it to lift off the ocean floor and get pushed by ocean currents," said Marsh.

Persons: berg, Oliver Marsh, it's, Gloria Dickie, Olga Vyshnevska, William Maclean Organizations: European, Copernicus, REUTERS Acquire, Antarctica's, Ronne Ice Shelf, British Antarctic Survey, Antarctic, Thomson Locations: Antarctica, New York City, Soviet, Weddell, A23a, South Georgia, South Africa, London

☆ Indonesia Says 'Positive' Signs From Myanmar's Warring Camps on Dialogue Effort
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesia said on Friday it had hosted a meeting of some of the key stakeholders in the conflict in military-ruled Myanmar at which each gave a "positive indication" about holding inclusive dialogue soon. As outgoing chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Indonesia is pushing for dialogue between rival camps in a bloody crisis triggered by the military's coup against Myanmar's elected government in 2021. The objective of the meeting, Indonesia said, was to enable inclusive talks, reduce violence, and support humanitarian efforts, in line with a "five-point consensus" agreed to by Myanmar's military soon after the coup. "Upon receiving the respective messages, stakeholders indicated positive indication on the possibility of convening dialogues in an inclusive and genuine manner soon." Indonesia has been quietly engaging various parties but has said progress has been impaired by some insisting on preconditions for talks.

Persons: Myanmar's, Stanley Widianto, Martin Petty, William Maclean Organizations: National Unity Government, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN, United Nations Locations: JAKARTA, Indonesia, Myanmar, Jakarta, ASEAN

☆ Bahrain seeks to balance anger over Gaza with ties to Israel, US
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( Alexander Cornwell | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

The deal to normalise ties with Israel, signed in 2020 by Bahrain when Donald Trump was president, brought few business benefits to Bahrain, unlike those it offered United Arab Emirates, a regional commercial hub which signed at the same time. Six sources familiar with the matter told Reuters Bahrain would not abandon its ties with Israel, even though parliament - a body that remains subservient to the monarchy - has made a strident statement suggesting Israel relations were in the freezer. Bahrain is trying to preserve the relationship with Israel while also managing public opinion, one of the sources said. "They can't abandon normalisation with Israel without endangering this whole strategic framework," said Kristin Smith Diwan, a researcher at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. The sources said the public confusion over relations with Israel appeared to have eased pressure on the government in its efforts to balance domestic outrage and ties with Israel.

Persons: Hamad I Mohammed, Donald Trump, Kristin Smith Diwan, Abraham, Israel, Mamdooh Al Saleh, Smith, Tobias Lindner, Alexander Cornwell, Maha El, Ari Rabinovitch, Dan Williams, Michael Georgy, William Maclean Organizations: Hamas, REUTERS, Rare, U.S . Navy Fifth Fleet, United, Reuters, Gulf States Institute, Bahraini, Abraham, Islamic, Abraham Accords, Thomson Locations: Israel, Palestinian, Muharraq, Bahrain, MANAMA, Gaza, Gulf, United States, Iran, Manama, United Arab Emirates, Reuters Bahrain, Washington, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahraini, Jerusalem, Bahrainis, Tehran, Islamic Republic, East, U.S, Kingdom of Bahrain, Maha El Dahan, Dubai

☆ Somalia joins east Africa trade bloc as it eyes new opportunities
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( Abdi Sheikh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MOGADISHU, Nov 24 (Reuters) - The East African Community trade bloc admitted Somalia as its eighth member on Friday, a move Somali authorities and businesses hope will boost the country's war-ravaged economy. "Somalia officially joins the East African Community, reinforcing ties and opening new doors for progress and partnership," Daud Aweis, Somalia's minister for information, culture and tourism said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. In turn the bloc's large population and existing customs union and common market are a draw for investors that Somalia can now tap into. Somali businesses said the country's vibrant private sector, which has overcome long odds to stay afloat, would bring a fresh injection of risk-tolerant entrepreneurs into the trade bloc and boost exchanges across the large Somali Diaspora. "It will be simpler for the large Somali Diaspora living across East Africa to access financial services and products," said Shuayb Haji Nur Mohamed, managing director of Salaam Somali Bank, one of Somalia's major banks.

Persons: Daud Aweis, al, Shuayb Haji Nur Mohamed, Hereward Holland, Elias Biryabarema, William Maclean Organizations: East African Community, EAC, Democratic, East African, Salaam Somali Bank, Thomson Locations: MOGADISHU, Somalia, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Al Qaeda, Shabaab, Mogadishu, al Shabaab, Somali, East Africa

Defence Minister Yasar Guler said last week that Turkey was in talks with Britain and Spain to buy Eurofighter Typhoon jets, though Germany objected to the idea. Guler was holding talks on the issue with his British counterpart Grant Shapps in Ankara on Thursday, the source said. Turkey wants to buy the most advanced, newly built version of the Eurofighter, he added. NATO member Turkey requested in October 2021 to buy 40 Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) F-16 fighters and 79 modernisation kits for its existing warplanes. The Eurofighter Typhoon jets are built by a consortium of Germany, Britain, Italy and Spain, represented by Airbus (AIR.PA), BAE Systems (BAES.L) and Leonardo (LDOF.MI).

Persons: Yasar Guler, Guler, Grant Shapps, Joe Biden's, Leonardo, Tayfun Ozberk, Serhat, Huseyin Hayatsever, Jonathan Spicer, William Maclean Organizations: Eurofighter, . Defence, Eurofighter Typhoon, British, NATO, Turkey, Lockheed Martin Corp, U.S . Congress, Airbus, BAE Systems, Biden Administration, Eurofighter Typhoons, Kadir Has University, Turkish Air Force, Thomson Locations: ANKARA, Turkey, United States, Turkish, Britain, Spain, Germany, Ankara, Italy

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