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Media affiliated to Hamas said explosions and gunfire could be head in the northern part of the Gaza Strip ahead of the truce deadline. Reuters could not immediately confirm the report and there was no immediate comment from Israel or Hamas. Mark Regev, an adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said Israel was open to continuing the ceasefire if Hamas committed to further hostage releases. Israel had previously set the release of 10 hostages a day as the minimum it would accept to pause its assault. [1/5]A helicopter carrying hostages released amid a hostages-prisoners swap deal between Hamas and Israel arrives at Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan, Tel Aviv district, Israel, December 1, 2023.

Persons: Israel's Kan, Israel, Mark Regev, Benjamin Netanyahu, we're, Athit, Qatar's, Abdullah Al Sulaiti, I've, Mia Schem, Schem, Aisha al, BLINKEN, Jordan's King Abdullah, U.N, Antony Blinken, Blinken, Netanyahu, Nidal al, Mohammed Salem, Humeyra Pamuk, Ari Rabinovich, Emily Rose, Andrew Mills, Cynthia Osterman, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Gaza Hamas, Hamas, Media, Street, CNN, United Nations, Sheba Medical, REUTERS, Reuters, Palestinian Red Crescent Society, U.S, Thomson Locations: Israel, Gaza, Gaza GAZA, TEL AVIV, Qatari, Palestinian, Ramat Gan, Tel Aviv district, ISRAEL, Amman, United States, Tel Aviv, Cairo, Jerusalem, Doha

[1/2] Natthawaree Mulkan, embraces her family as she arrived back home after losing touch for nearly two months when she was taken hostage by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Khon Kaen, Thailand November 30, 2023 . Let’s go back home," she told her mother at an airport in Khon Kaen province in northeastern Thailand. A relative tied holy threads on Natthawaree's wrist and on the wrist of her partner Boonthoom Phankhongwas in a Thai homecoming ritual. The two were among the first 10 Thai hostages freed by Hamas during the first truce of the war in Gaza. Natthawaree, 35 and a mother of two, was seen hugging her daughter before the family got into a van to go home.

Persons: Napat, Natthawaree Mulkan, we're, ” Natthawaree, clasped, Let’s, Boonthoom Phankhongwas, Thais, Chayut Setboonsarng, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Hamas, REUTERS, Thomson Locations: Palestinian, Khon Kaen, Thailand, Gaza

☆ Workers rescued from collapsed Indian tunnel are well, set to return home
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Pushkar Singh Dhami, Chief Minister of the northern state of Uttarakhand, greets a worker after he was rescued from the collapsed tunnel site in Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand, India, November 28, 2023. The men, all construction workers hailing from some of India's poorest states, were trapped in the under-construction tunnel in Uttarakhand state for 17 days before they were pulled out on Tuesday. The hospital is coordinating with officials from their home states to facilitate their return, they said. The tunnel is part of the $1.5 billion Char Dham highway, one of the government's most ambitious projects, which seeks to connect four Hindu pilgrimage sites. Authorities have not said what caused the tunnel to collapse but the region is prone to landslides, earthquakes and floods.

Persons: Pushkar Singh Dhami, Narendra Kumar, Sakshi Dayal, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: REUTERS, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Authorities, Thomson Locations: Pushkar, Uttarakhand, Uttarkashi, India, DELHI, Rishikesh, Jharkhand, Odisha

☆ Russian missile strikes kills one, wounds 10 in east Ukraine, Kyiv says
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/5] Rescuers work at a site of a residential building heavily damaged by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in the town of Novohrodivka, Donetsk region, Ukraine November 30, 2023. Russia fired six missiles at three settlements in the region, most of which is occupied by Russian forces, Klymenko said on Telegram messaging app. Later, Donetsk authorities said rescuers found one body while four others, including one child, were still under the rubble. Invading Russian forces have occupied much of Donetsk and Russia has said it intends to take over the whole region. The Ukrainian military said earlier on Thursday its air defence shot down 14 out of 20 drones in a Russian overnight strike.

Persons: Ihor, Klymenko, Myrnohrad, Pavel Polityuk, Raju Gopalakrishnan, Alex Richardson Organizations: Press, State Emergency Service of, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Thomson Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Novohrodivka, Donetsk region, State Emergency Service of Ukraine, Donetsk, Ukraine's, Russia

[1/9] A vehicle carrying hostages released as part of a deal between Israel and Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, drives by, in Ofakim, Israel, November 30, 2023. Israel, according to the reports, is demanding at least 10 hostages be released on Thursday, with women and children prioritised. Fighters should "remain on such footing unless an official statement is issued confirming the extension of the truce," the statement added. Two Palestinian officials earlier told Reuters that talks were continuing over a possible extension of the truce, but no agreement had yet been reached. Hamas released 16 more hostages on Wednesday, the final day of a two-day extension to the truce.

Persons: Alexander Ermochenko, Antony Blinken, we'll, Blinken, prioritised, Joe Biden, Beinin, Majed Al, Ansari, Jordan, U.N, Antonio Guterres, Nidal al, Mohammed Salem, Emily Rose, Grant McCool, Lincoln, Cynthia Osterman, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Hamas, REUTERS, U.S, Brigades, Reuters, Health, Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, . Security Council, Security, Thomson Locations: Israel, Palestinian, Ofakim, GAZA, JERUSALEM, Gaza, Tel Aviv, Brussels, Hamas, U.S, Dutch, Qatar, China, Cairo, Jerusalem

☆ Chechen leader's 16-year-old son named to post in rifle battalion
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Ramzan Kadyrov, head of Russia's Chechnya, waits before an annual state of the nation address attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, December 1, 2016. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 29 (Reuters) - Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov's teenage son, who was shown beating a prisoner in custody this year, has been named as an observer in a new battalion that is part of Russia's defence ministry forces, a senior Chechen official said late on Tuesday. On Tuesday, Adam Delimkhanov, who heads the Chechen division of the Russian national guard and is also a member of Russia's parliament, said the young Kadyrov was named a curator, or observer, of a rifle battalion. The Chechen rifle battalion was created earlier this month, according to Russia's state media. Reporting by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne; Editing by Raju GopalakrishnanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Ramzan Kadyrov, Vladimir Putin, Maxim, Ramzan Kadyrov's, Adam Kadyrov, Adam, Adam Delimkhanov, Kadyrov, Delimkhanov, Lidia Kelly, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Kremlin, REUTERS, Chechen, Russian, Thomson Locations: Chechnya, Russian, Moscow, Russia, Ukraine, Melbourne

☆ Bangladesh opposition vows to continue protests despite 'autocratic' crackdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Supporters of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) join in a rally at Naya Paltan area in Dhaka, Bangladesh, October 28, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammad Ponir Hossain/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsDHAKA, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Bangladesh’s main opposition party said on Wednesday it would continue its anti-government protests despite what a rights group called an "autocratic crackdown" ahead of a general election in January. At least four people, including a policeman, have been killed and hundreds injured in violent protests across the country in the past few weeks, police said. In order to end this misrule and lawlessness, the ongoing movement must be accelerated and the victory of the people must be ensured,” senior BNP official Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said. “Diplomatic partners should make clear that the government’s autocratic crackdown will jeopardise future economic cooperation,” the rights group said in a statement quoting Bleckner.

Persons: Mohammad Ponir Hossain, Sheikh Hasina, ” Abdul Moyeen Khan, ”, Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, Hasina, “, League’s, Julia Bleckner, Khaleda Zia, Ruma Paul, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Bangladesh Nationalist Party, BNP, REUTERS, Rights DHAKA, Reuters, Police, Rights Watch, Human Rights Watch, “, Thomson Locations: Naya Paltan, Dhaka, Bangladesh, Asia

☆ Russia says frigate hits Ukraine's military infrastructure with cruise missiles
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A frigate of the Russian Black Sea Fleet launches a Kalibr cruise missile at Ukraine's military infrastructure, according to Russian Defence Ministry, in the Black Sea, in this still image taken from video released November 29. Russian Defence Ministry/Handout via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsNov 29 (Reuters) - A frigate of the Russian Black Sea Fleet launched an attack with four cruise missiles on Ukraine's military infrastructure, Russia's defence ministry said early on Wednesday. "The crew of a frigate of the Black Sea Fleet received a task of launching a strike with Kalibr cruise missiles in the shortest possible time against enemy military infrastructure," the ministry said on its Telegram messaging app. The Black Sea has become a crucial theatre in the 21-month-long war. Ukraine's increased air and sea drone attacks on Russian military targets there have damaged ship and naval repair yards in the port of Sevastopol, and struck other targets.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Lidia Kelly, Jacqueline Wong, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Sea Fleet, Russian Defence Ministry, REUTERS Acquire, Black Sea Fleet, Reuters, Russian, Thomson Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Sevastopol, East, Europe, Melbourne

[1/3] Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan pauses as he speaks with Reuters during an interview, in Lahore, Pakistan March 17, 2023. It has been conducting the trial in prison since Khan was indicted on the charges last month. The Islamabad High Court had ruled last week that holding Khan's trial inside jail premises on security concerns was illegal, and ordered it restarted in an open court. The 71-year-old former cricket star has been embroiled in a tangle of political and legal battles since he was ousted as prime minister. The election is shaping as a fight between Khan's party and that of another ousted former prime minister, Nawaz Sharif.

Persons: Imran Khan, Akhtar Soomro, Khan, Naeem Panjutha, Nawaz Sharif, Asif Shahzad, Kim Coghill, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Pakistani, Reuters, REUTERS, Court, Twitter, Thomson Locations: Lahore, Pakistan, ISLAMABAD, Islamabad, United States

☆ Russia Says Frigate Hits Ukraine's Military Infrastructure With Cruise Missiles
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Nov. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

(Reuters) - A frigate of the Russian Black Sea Fleet launched an attack with four cruise missiles on Ukraine's military infrastructure, Russia's defence ministry said early on Wednesday. "The crew of a frigate of the Black Sea Fleet received a task of launching a strike with Kalibr cruise missiles in the shortest possible time against enemy military infrastructure," the ministry said on its Telegram messaging app. "The missile threat level is high," Ukraine's navy said on its Telegram messaging app. The Black Sea has become a crucial theatre in the 21-month-long war. Ukraine's increased air and sea drone attacks on Russian military targets there have damaged ship and naval repair yards in the port of Sevastopol, and struck other targets.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Lidia Kelly, Jacqueline Wong, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Reuters, Sea Fleet, Black Sea Fleet, Russian Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Sevastopol, East, Europe, Melbourne

☆ North Korea cites rare dissent in elections even as 99% back candidates
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Soo-Hyang Choi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/6] North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un casts his ballot during a local election, in South Hamgyong Province, North Korea, in this picture released on November 27, 2023. The North's parliament and regional councils serve as a rubber stamp to the ruling Workers' Party, with their elections usually registering over 99% voter turnout. This month's election marks the first time North Korea has referred to dissenting votes in local polls since the 1960s, an official at South Korea's unification ministry handling relations with the North said. Held every four years, the latest regional election was also the first polls since North Korea revised its election law in August to allow multiple candidates. "The portrayal of a more democratic society, particularly in comparison to South Korea and the U.S., is aimed at reinforcing the regime's legitimacy and authenticity on the world stage," think tank, the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, said in a report.

Persons: Kim Jong, Kim Jong Un, KCNA, Soo, hyang Choi, Josh Smith, Ed Davies, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: KCNA, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Workers ' Party, Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, Thomson Locations: South Hamgyong Province, North Korea, Rights SEOUL, North, Korea, South Korea, U.S, Pyongyang

☆ Biden hopes for extension of Israel-Hamas truce as more hostages released
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( James Mackenzie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Thirty-nine teenage Palestinian prisoners were released by Israel on Sunday, taking the total since the truce began to 117. The four-day truce agreed last week is the first halt in fighting in the seven weeks since Hamas killed 1,200 people and took about 240 hostages back into Gaza. Some 14,800 Palestinians have been killed, Gaza health authorities say, and hundreds of thousands displaced. The latest three Thai hostages released were in good health, Thailand's prime minister said. Hamas released 24 hostages on Friday, the first day of the truce.

Persons: Joe Biden, Biden, Abigail Edan, Abigail, Carmel Edan, he's, Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu, Omar Abdullah Al Hajj, he'd, Thais, Sunday's, Israel, gaunt, children's agency's James Elder, Elder, Raphael Satter, Diane Craft, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Sunday, International Committee, Red Cross, Reuters, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Saturday, Palestinian, West Bank, Thomson Locations: Israel, Gaza, U.S, Ramallah, Qatar, Egypt, United States, Palestinian, Gaza's, Qatari, Gaza City

☆ Biden Hopes for Extension as Israel-Hamas Truce Enters Final Day
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-26 | by ( Nov. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +5 min

Thirty-nine teenage Palestinian prisoners were released by Israel on Sunday, taking the total since the truce began to 117. Her grandfather, Carmel Edan, told Reuters he "simply could not believe" she had been returned, thanking Biden "for all the help he's offered us." The four-day truce agreed last week is the first halt in fighting in the seven weeks since Hamas killed 1,200 people and took about 240 hostages back into Gaza. Some 14,800 Palestinians have been killed, Gaza health authorities say, and hundreds of thousands displaced. Hamas released 24 hostages on Friday, the first day of the truce.

Persons: James Mackenzie JERUSALEM, Joe Biden, Biden, Abigail Edan, Abigail, Carmel Edan, he's, Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu, Omar Abdullah Al Hajj, he'd, Israel, gaunt, children's agency's James Elder, Elder, Raphael Satter, Diane Craft, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Sunday, International Committee, Red Cross, Reuters, Palestinian, West Bank Locations: Israel, Gaza, U.S, Ramallah, Qatar, Egypt, United States, Palestinian, Gaza's, Qatari, Gaza City

[1/3] Chinese Premier Li Qiang (R) and French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna shake hands at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China on November 24, 2023. Jade Gao/Pool via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsBEIJING/PARIS, Nov 24 (Reuters) - French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna is set to meet the Chinese leadership in Beijing on Friday as she seeks to soothe ties after the launch of a European Union anti-subsidy probe backed by Paris into Chinese-made electric vehicles. France is also concerned about Chinese attempts to force French cosmetics companies to share manufacturing secrets with Chinese parties. Xi insisted that China welcomes investment from French firms in a telephone call on Monday with Macron, who urged fair treatment for foreign companies in China. Macron visited China in April with great fanfare, in an attempt to demonstrate France's strategic autonomy from the United States.

Persons: Li Qiang, Catherine Colonna, Jade Gao, Wang Yi, Ursula von der Leyen, Charles Michel, Xi Jinping, Emmanuel Macron, Xi, Macron, Colonna, Laurie Chen, John Irish, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: French, of, People, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, European, European Commission, EU, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, Rights BEIJING, PARIS, European Union, Paris, France, Ukraine, Iran, Gaza, North Korea, United States

☆ Foreign ministers of S.Korea, China, Japan to discuss trilateral summit
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Issei Kato/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSEOUL, Nov 24 (Reuters) - The foreign ministers of South Korea, China and Japan will meet for talks in South Korea on Sunday, South Korea's foreign ministry said on Friday, as the three countries seek to hold their first leaders' summit in four years. The meeting of foreign ministers, which will take place in the South Korean port city of Busan, is also the first such meeting since 2019. "The foreign ministers plan to exchange views extensively on the direction of development of trilateral cooperation including preparations for a ninth trilateral summit, and regional and global issues," the South Korean foreign ministry said in a statement. The talks come as South Korea and Japan have seen improving ties and also deepening security cooperation with the United States amid concerns over China's growing regional influence. Beijing has previously warned that U.S. efforts to strengthen ties with South Korea and Japan could increase tension and confrontation in the region.

Persons: Yoon Suk Yeol, Kim Keon, Issei Kato, Hyonhee, Ed Davies, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Tokyo International, REUTERS, Rights, Sunday, South Korean, South, Thomson Locations: Korean, Tokyo, Japan, Rights SEOUL, South Korea, China, Busan, United States, Beijing, North Korea

[1/5] Israeli tanks operate in Gaza City, amid the ongoing ground operation of the Israeli army against Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in the Gaza Strip, November 22, 2023. The starting time of the truce and release of hostages captured by Hamas during its Oct. 7 attack on Israel has yet to be officially announced. Israel's Ynet news website reported that Israel had not yet received the names of the hostages slated for release by Hamas. Israel says 1,200 people were killed, mostly civilians and about 240 hostages of different nationalities taken hostage by Islamist gunmen. In retaliation, Israel has subjected Hamas-ruled Gaza to a siege and relentless bombardment.

Persons: Ronen, Tzachi Hanegbi, Kan, Benjamin Netanyahu's, Israel, Khan Younis, Netanyahu, Gilad Korngold, Seven, John Kirby, Catherine Russell, Russell, Grant McCool, Raju Gopalakrishnan, Cynthia Osterman, Simon Cameron, Moore Organizations: Palestinian, Hamas, REUTERS, Palestinian Hamas, National Security, Qatar, White House, United Nations, UNICEF, . Security, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Gaza City, Gaza, Israel, Gaza GAZA, JERUSALEM, Palestinian, Khan, U.S, Israel ., Qatar

China, the world's second-largest economy, is already a major investor in South America and has offered tariff-free access to its huge consumer market to four countries. But Uruguay faces opposition from other members of the Mercosur bloc who want to settle an FTA with Europe instead. By comparison, other major beef exporters Australia and New Zealand, which have FTAs with China, pay tariffs at 3.3% and 0%. The elevation of ties with Uruguay to the level of Brazil and Argentina also pushes the remaining Mercosur member Paraguay further outside China's global trade and investment network. Agriculture-dependent Paraguay, whose main exports include beef and soybeans, is the last South American nation that has ties with democratically governed Taiwan, which China claims as part of its territory, and not with Beijing.

Persons: Xi Jinping, Luis Lacalle Pou, Florence Lo, Lacalle Pou, Xi, Joe Cash, Ryan Woo, Ella Cao, Toby Chopra, Raju Gopalakrishnan, Chizu Nomiyama, Alexander Smith Organizations: Uruguayan, of, People, REUTERS, New Development Bank BEIJING, Mercosur, South, Nations, New Development Bank, China, United, Mercosur CET, National Meat Institute of, China's National Bureau of Statistics, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil Mercosur, American, Brazil, South America, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Peru, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Shanghai, United States, MERCOSUR Uruguay, Brussels, Montevideo, Mercosur, National Meat Institute of Uruguay, Paraguay, Taiwan

☆ Taiwan ruling party powers ahead as chaos engulfs opposition campaign
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Taiwan's Vice President Lai Ching-te and his running mate Hsiao Bi-Khim arrive to register for the upcoming presidential election for the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) at the Central Election Commission in Taipei, Taiwan November 21, 2023. Vice President Lai Ching-te of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), who China views as a separatist, leads opinion polls to be Taiwan's next president. Talks between the two main opposition parties to team up and take him on have floundered and are in deadlock. Lai told reporters he and Hsiao were "confident and determined to lead Taiwan steadily in the chaotic situation". Taiwan's main opposition party the Kuomintang (KMT), which traditional favours close ties with Beijing, had agreed with the much smaller Taiwan People's Party (TPP) last week to offer a joint ticket to take on Lai.

Persons: Lai Ching, Hsiao Bi, Ann Wang, Lai, Taiwan's, Hsiao, Hou Yu, Ko, Hou, Huang Shan, Huang, Terry Gou, Tammy Lai, Gou, Huang Shih, Ben Blanchard, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Democratic Progressive Party, Central, Commission, REUTERS, Rights, Kuomintang, KMT, Taiwan People's Party, ih, Apple, Thomson Locations: Taipei, Taiwan, Rights TAIPEI, Beijing, China, Taiwan's, Lai

☆ Israel-Hamas war: Four-day truce agreed, 50 hostages to go free
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

Hamas and allied groups captured around 240 hostages when Islamist gunmen rampaged through southern Israeli towns on Oct. 7. Beyond that, the truce could be extended day by day as long as an additional 10 hostages were freed per day. Hamas said the initial 50 hostages would be released in exchange for 150 Palestinian women and children imprisoned in Israel. The truce deal is a first small step towards peace in the most violent ruction of the 75-year-old Palestinian-Israeli conflict. To destroy Hamas, return all our hostages and ensure that no entity in Gaza can threaten Israel," Netanyahu said in a recorded message.

Persons: Guterres, Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu's, Foreign Ministry Mohammed Al, Alexander Ermochenko, Mona, Joe Biden, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Antonio Guterres, Netanyahu, James Mackenzie, Dan Williams, Emily Rose, Henriette Chacar, Andrew Mills, Steve Holland, Jonathan Landay, Ahmed Mohamed Hassan, Lincoln, Raju Gopalakrishnan, Peter Graff, Mark Heinrich, Cynthia Osterman, Stephen Coates, Simon Cameron, Moore, Nick Macfie Organizations: Hamas, Israeli, State, Foreign Ministry, Reuters, REUTERS, Palestinian Authority, West Bank, Israel’s Defence Ministry, Saudi Foreign, Thomson Locations: GAZA, JERUSALEM, Israel, Gaza, Qatar, Israel ., Jabalia, U.S, Jerusalem, Doha, Washington, Cairo

☆ Rescuers drill to send more food to trapped workers in Indian tunnel
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Saurabh Sharma | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Rescuers move machines past a tunnel where workers are trapped after a portion of the tunnel collapsed in Uttarkashi in the northern state of Uttarakhand, India, November 19, 2023. REUTERS/Saurabh Sharma Acquire Licensing RightsSILKYARA, India, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Rescuers are trying to send cooked food and set up a phone connection to 41 workers trapped for eight days in a collapsed tunnel in the Indian Himalayas as they explore fresh rescue plans after previous attempts stalled, officials said on Monday. The men have been stuck in the highway tunnel in Uttarakhand state since it caved in early on Nov. 12 and are safe, authorities said. They have access to light and supplies of oxygen, dry food, water and medicines are being sent via a pipe. "Our priority is to save 41 lives who are trapped inside the tunnel.

Persons: Saurabh Sharma, Bhaskar Khulbe, Nitin Gadkari, Gadkari, R.C.S, Panwar, Jasvant Kapoor, Shivam Patel, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: REUTERS, Transport, Authorities, Thomson Locations: Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand, India

[1/6] Smoke rises after Israeli air strikes in Gaza, as seen from southern Israel, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, November 20, 2023. Like many other health facilities in embattled Gaza, the Indonesian Hospital, set up in 2016 with funding from Indonesian organisations, has ceased operations. At the other end of the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, at least 14 Palestinians were killed in two Israeli air strikes on houses in the town of Rafah, near the border with Egypt, health officials said. Israeli tanks and troops stormed into Gaza late last month and have since seized wide areas of the north and northwest and east around Gaza City, the Israeli military says. Palestinians say Israel's repeated bombardment of southern Gaza renders Israeli promises of safety absurd.

Persons: Alexander Ermochenko, WAFA, Ashraf Al, Qidra, Gaza's, Beit Lahia, Israel, Yemen's, Houthis, Michael Herzog, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman, Thani, General Antonio Guterres, Clauda Tanios, James Mackenzie, Raju Gopalakrishnan, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Palestinian, Hamas, REUTERS, Indonesian, Indonesian Hospital, Gaza's General Authority, Gaza's Hamas, Islamic, Sunday, Qatari, White, Israel, Thomson Locations: Gaza, Israel, Rafah, Egyptian, GAZA, JERUSALEM, Palestinian, Egypt, Gaza City, Beach, Beit Hanoun, Jabalia, Beijing, Yemen's Iran, British, United States, Doha, States

☆ Israeli Tanks Reported Near Hospital in Embattled North Gaza
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +6 min

There was no immediate confirmation from the Israeli military of the reports from the Indonesian Hospital but the Palestinian news agency WAFA said the facility had been hit by artillery fire. Like many other health facilities in embattled Gaza, the Indonesian Hospital, set up in 2016 with funding from Indonesian organisations, has ceased operations. At the other end of the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, at least 14 Palestinians were killed in two Israeli air strikes on houses in the town of Rafah, near the border with Egypt, health officials said. Israeli tanks and troops stormed into Gaza late last month and have since seized wide areas of the north and northwest and east around Gaza City, the Israeli military says. Palestinians say Israel's repeated bombardment of southern Gaza renders Israeli promises of safety absurd.

Persons: Clauda Tanios, James Mackenzie, WAFA, Ashraf Al, Qidra, Gaza's, Beit Lahia, Israel, Yemen's, Houthis, Michael Herzog, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman, Thani, General Antonio Guterres, Raju Gopalakrishnan, Mark Heinrich Organizations: Indonesian, Indonesian Hospital, Palestinian, Gaza's General Authority, Gaza's Hamas, Islamic, Sunday, Qatari, White, Hamas, Israel Locations: James Mackenzie GAZA, JERUSALEM, Gaza, Palestinian, Rafah, Egypt, Israel, Gaza City, Beach, Beit Hanoun, Jabalia, Beijing, Yemen's Iran, British, United States, Doha, States

☆ Indian capital resumes some activities despite hazardous air, river foam
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Kanjyik Ghosh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis Acquire Licensing RightsNEW DELHI, Nov 20 (Reuters) - India's capital Delhi re-opened schools and some building sites on Monday amid signs of receding air pollution, although it remained classified as hazardous, while a toxic foam besmirched stretches of the Yamuna river flowing through the city. The world's most polluted capital resumed its annual battle on pollution this month, despite government pledges to improve. Monday's air quality index (AQI) of 336 was down from Thursday's level of 509, but still "hazardous", Swiss group IQAir said. Delhi's air pollution gets worse in winter, when wind speeds drop and cooling air traps pollutants spewed by vehicles, industry and farmers burning agricultural waste in surrounding states to prepare for new planting. PM2.5 levels remained above 128 micrograms per cubic meter of air since Sunday in the National Capital Region, according to the federal pollution control board.

Persons: Anushree, IQAir, Ankit Srivastava, Gopal Rai, Kanjyik Ghosh, Shivam Patel, Clarence Fernandez, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: REUTERS, Delhi's, Vehicles, National Capital, World Health Organization, Thomson Locations: New Delhi, India, DELHI, Delhi, Mumbai

☆ US, Indo-Pacific partners need to 'recalibrate' trade talks -USTR's Bianchi
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( David Lawder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"We’ve got to recalibrate in the new year with our partners," Bianchi said in an interview on the sidelines of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco. USTR said later in a statement that it was seeing progress in the trade negotiations on trade facilitation, agriculture, technical assistance and economic cooperation. Senator Sherrod Brown, a Democrat facing a tough re-election fight in the industrial state of Ohio, last week demanded that Biden drop the trade pillar from the Indo-Pacific initiative. Brown on Wednesday claimed responsibility for the stalling IPEF trade pillar by insisting on enforceable labor provisions. Bianchi said some of the other 12 IPEF countries in the trade talks "prefer a different approach" on labor and environment chapters, but they support continued negotiations on trade.

Persons: Carlos Barria, Sarah Bianchi, We’ve, Bianchi, USTR, Joe Biden, Sherrod Brown, Biden, Brown, David Lawder, David Gregorio, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: APEC, Economic Cooperation, REUTERS, FRANCISCO, Economic, U.S . Trade, Reuters, Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation, Pacific Partnership, Democrat, U.S ., Partners, Thomson Locations: Asia, Pacific, San Francisco , California, U.S, San Francisco, Ohio, Vietnam, Indonesia, Canada, Mexico

All three Aframax-sized tankers discharged Russian Sokol crude in India in September while two of them made the trip in October, the data showed. One trader also said India may seek supply from the Mediterranean and North Sea to replace Russian Sokol. A spike in global prices led to Russian oil being sold at above the price caps imposed by western nations of $60 a barrel. The three vessels last year obtained safety certification from the Indian Register of Shipping (IRClass), according to its website. Sokol crude is produced at the Sakhalin-1 project, managed by a Rosneft subsidiary after the exit of ExxonMobil (XOM.N).

Persons: Dado Ruvic, IRClass, Sokol, India's ONGC Videsh, Florence Tan, Muyu Xu, Nidhi Verma, Jacqueline Wong, Raju Gopalakrishnan, Sharon Singleton Organizations: REUTERS, Sokol, Washington, Indian Oil Corp, Liberian, Ligovsky, Treasury Department, Russian Sokol, IOC, Indian Register of Shipping, Oil Tanker, Sun Ship, American Bureau of Shipping, ExxonMobil, Natural Gas Corp, Sakhalin Oil, Gas Development, Thomson Locations: SINGAPORE, DELHI, LSEG, U.S, Washington, Moscow, Ukraine, Kazan, India, North, Gujarat, Dubai, London, Sakhalin, Singapore, New Delhi

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