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☆ Morocco’s quake survivors must rebuild their homes and lives. But decimated communities can do little to help
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-16 | by ( Ivana Kottasová | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Atlas Mountains, Morocco CNN —Khadija Ait Si Ali was just starting to rebuild her life when the earthquake struck. He told CNN he was determined to rebuild a home for his family. He told CNN the financial assistance would be a significant help for people living in the mountains. Back in Tinzert, Khadija Ait Si Ali said that for now, she was just trying to focus on her baby and get through each day. Ait Si Ali said she felt lost with nobody to turn to.

Persons: Morocco CNN —, Ait Si Ali, “, ”, Amal Zniber, Amis Des Écoles, ” Zniber, Abdu Brahim, Hanan Ait Brahim, Ivana Kottasová, ” Hanan Ait, Hanan Ait, Abdelkarim Ait, Adil Akanour, ” Akanour, Akia, Akia Nayet, Fatme, CNN Mariam Maroi, Mariam Maroi, Brahim Organizations: Morocco CNN, CNN, Amis, Moroccan, United Nations Locations: Morocco, Tinzert, Tafeghaghte, Marrakech, Abdelkarim Ait Amkhaine’s, Ouirgane, Akanour, Asni, Turkey, Syria

☆ Survivors frustrated and volunteers pour in as Morocco accepts limited foreign aid following deadly quake
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( Ivana Kottasová | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

“It’s not the holiday I planned,” the 26-year old French woman told CNN on Tuesday. These people have nothing.”Halimi was vacationing in Morocco when the earthquake hit last week. The government has been there from day one,” she told CNN. Morocco accepts help from a handful of countriesWhen the devastation of the earthquake became clear, several countries offered to send help. “All the neighbors brought something,” he told CNN in the village of Ouirgane, where 600 people lost their homes and were camping in a nearby grove.

Persons: Atlas Mountains CNN —, Halimi, It’s, ” Halimi, ” Sami Sensis, Moulay Brahim, Ibrahim Goodman, AbdelHaq Edabdelah, Amal Zniber, Amis Des Écoles, Ivana Kottasova, CNN AbdelHaq Edabdelah, CNN “, hasn’t, ”, “, Antony Blinken, Emmanuel Macron, Macron, Morocco hadn’t, Abdelali Amzil, Zniber, We’ve Organizations: Atlas Mountains CNN, CNN, El, Amis, Morocco’s, Ministry, United, Interior Ministry Locations: Atlas, Tafeghaghte, Moroccan, Morocco, Moulay, Asni, Ifghan, Spain, Qatar, United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates, Paris, France, Government, Casablanca, Ouirgane

Little Amal, a 12-Foot Puppet of a Syrian Refugee, Began Its Journey Across the US in BostonLittle Amal, a 12-foot puppet of a Syrian refugee, begins its journey across the United States in Boston

Persons: Amal, Boston Little Amal Organizations: Boston Little Locations: Syrian, Boston, United States

☆ Two dead in clashes between Lebanon's Hezbollah, residents of Christian town -sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Lebanese army members gather near the area where a lorry was overturned in the town of Kahaleh, Lebanon August 9, 2023. REUTERS/Mohamed AzakirBEIRUT, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Two people were killed on Wednesday in clashes between members of Shi'ite armed group Hezbollah and residents of a Christian town after residents surrounded an overturned lorry, two security sources told Reuters. The truck overturned on a downhill turn near the mountain town of Kahaleh on Wednesday evening and residents swiftly shut down the road around it, the sources said. One of the security sources said the truck belonged to Hezbollah and that one of the dead was a member of the group while the second was a Christian resident of the town. Hezbollah is a powerful party that retained its weapons following Lebanon's civil war and has deployed in neighbouring Syria.

Persons: Mohamed Azakir, Amal, Maya Gebeily, Laila Bassam, Chris Reese, Leslie Adler Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Al, MTV Lebanon, Hezbollah, Thomson Locations: Kahaleh, Lebanon, Mohamed Azakir BEIRUT, Syria, Beirut

☆ Witches, Robots and Martial Artists, Ready for Battle
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-09 | by ( Amal El-Mohtar | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

“The Shadow Cabinet” explores the consequences. Unfortunately, “The Shadow Cabinet” suffers by comparison. Whereas “Her Majesty’s Royal Coven” balances four points of view in a story that is more than the sum of its parts, its sequel is mostly consumed by Ciara’s. Whereas the first book sets up conventions and rules for magic, the second breaks them, but haphazardly, messily, in the service of chaotic plot engineering. The Britishness of “Her Majesty’s Royal Coven” was rooted in West Yorkshire and was part of the novel’s confident charm; “The Shadow Cabinet” has the more imperial cast of shallow tourism.

Persons: ”, Ciara, she’s, —, It’s Organizations: Ciara’s Locations: West Yorkshire

☆ Deadly clashes in Palestinian camp in Lebanon rage for third day
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

AMMAN, July 31 (Reuters) - Hundreds of residents of a main Palestinian camp in Lebanon fled on Monday as fighting between mainstream faction Fatah and radical Islamists raged for a third day, residents and security sources said. At least 11 people have been kllled and 40 wounded in the clashes that broke out in Ain el-Hilweh camp, near the southern coastal city of Sidon, over the weekend, security and Palestinian sources said. On Monday, the warring groups fired rocket-propelled grenades at each other in the crowded alleys of the camp. More than 2,000 people were forced to flee, seeking safety, said Dorothee Klaus, head of UNRWA, the U.N.agency responsible for the welfare of Palestinian refugees, which runs basic services in the camp with over 50,000 inhabitants. Shrapnel injured several Lebanese soldiers outside the walled camp were the army control access for people in checkpoints outside.

Persons: Fatah, Dorothee Klaus, Klaus, Shrapnel, Suleiman Al, Khalidi, Nidal Al Mughrabi, Ali Sawafta, Angus MacSwan Organizations: Fatah, Iranian Hezbollah, UNRWA, Thomson Locations: AMMAN, Lebanon, Ain el, Sidon, Israel, Gaza, Ramallah

☆ At least six die in Palestinian faction clashes in Lebanon
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIRUT, July 30 (Reuters) - At least six people were killed in two days of clashes in a Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon, where the mainstream faction Fatah fought against rival groups that support Islamists, security sources said. Four of the aides later died of their injuries, a security source said, adding that sporadic clashes in the camp intensified later on Sunday. Fighting subsided but did not completely stop after a ceasefire was reached at a meeting between rival Palestinian factions that included representatives of pro-Iranian Hezbollah group and its ally Shi'ite Amal movement that hold sway in southern Lebanon. Shops had earlier closed their doors and some people fled the camp, the largest refugee camp in Lebanon, as tensions between the rival groups mounted on Sunday, a witness said. The U.N. agency responsible for the welfare of Palestinian refugees that provides basic services to nearly 50,000 people living in Ain el-Hilweh said it was suspending all operations in the camp.

Persons: Fatah, Hilweh, Dorothee Klaus, Najib Mikati, Suleiman Al, Khalidi, Nidal al Mughrabi, Frances Kerry Organizations: Fatah, Iranian Hezbollah, Caretaker, Thomson Locations: BEIRUT, Lebanon, Ain, Sidon, Ain el, Israel, Gaza

☆ Lebanon’s top Christian cleric slams failed attempt to elect a president
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIRUT, June 18 (Reuters) - Lebanon’s top Christian cleric said on Sunday the constitution and democratic system had been violated in "cold blood" during a failed attempt to elect a new president last week, and warned that divisions in the nation had widened. Patriarch Bechara Boutros al-Rai spoke in his first sermon since the Iran-backed Shi'ite group Hezbollah and its closest allies thwarted an attempt by factions including the main Christian parties to elect an IMF official as president. Wednesday's events marked the 12th time parliament failed to elect someone to the post - reserved for a Maronite Christian in Lebanon's sectarian system and vacant since the term of the Hezbollah-allied Michel Aoun ended in October. The Hezbollah-allied Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri ended the session when Hezbollah and its allies withdrew, denying a quorum for a second round when 65 votes are needed to win. Without naming him, Lebanon's Shi'ite mufti accused him of being backed by Israel.

Persons: Bechara Boutros, Rai, Michel Aoun, Jihad Azour, Amal, Azour, Suleiman Frangieh, Nabih Berri, Elias Audi, Berri, Maya Gebeily, Tom Perry, Hugh Lawson, Frances Kerry Organizations: Hezbollah, Maronite, Israel, Thomson Locations: BEIRUT, Iran, Israel, Lebanon

☆ Clooney Foundation sues Venezuela over alleged human rights abuses
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-14 | by ( Nicolás Misculin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BUENOS AIRES, June 14 (Reuters) - The Clooney Foundation for Justice has accused Venezuelan security forces of crimes against humanity against government opponents since 2014 in a lawsuit filed in Argentina on Wednesday. "We are talking about arbitrary detentions, torture, extrajudicial executions," said Ignacio Jovtis, a lawyer for the Clooney Foundation. The Clooney Foundation for Justice was founded by actor George Clooney and his wife, human rights lawyer Amal Clooney. The International Criminal Court in The Hague is investigating alleged Venezuelan human rights violations. The Argentine justice system has previously agreed to investigate alleged crimes against humanity carried out in Spain and Myanmar in the past, which prompted the Clooney Foundation to file the complaint in Buenos Aires.

Persons: Nicolas Maduro, Ignacio Jovtis, George Clooney, Amal Clooney, Jovtis, Clooney, Nicolas Misculin, Steven Grattan, Howard Goller Organizations: Clooney Foundation, Justice, Wednesday, Foundation, Criminal, United Nations, Thomson Locations: BUENOS AIRES, Venezuelan, Argentina, Venezuela, The Hague, Argentine, Spain, Myanmar, Buenos Aires

☆ Lebanese Christian and opposition coalition nominate IMF's Azour for president
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIRUT, June 4 (Reuters) - Lebanon's disparate opposition, independent and main Christian parties said on Sunday they had nominated IMF official Jihad Azour for the presidency in a challenge to Hezbollah-backed candidate Suleiman Franjieh. A meeting of the parties endorsed the nomination of Azour, currently director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund and also a former Lebanese finance minister. Pro-Iranian Hezbollah, the country's main armed political force, and its Shi'ite ally Amal, had backed Franjieh, 56, heir of an old Lebanese Christian political dynasty and an ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad with strong ties to the ruling political establishment in Damascus. "This new candidate that was announced is for us a candidate for confrontation," Hezbollah deputy Hassan Fadlallah said on Sunday, without naming Azour. Washington has warned that the administration was considering sanctions on Lebanese officials for their continued obstruction of the election of a new president and warned the paralysis could only worsen the country's crisis.

Persons: Azour, Suleiman Franjieh, Michel Aoun's, Amal, Bashar al, Assad, Michel Mouawad, Lebanon's, Beshara al, Rai, “, Hassan Fadlallah, Suleiman Al, Khalidi, Maya Geibeily, David Holmes Organizations: Central Asia Department, International Monetary Fund, Hezbollah, Lebanese Christian, Maronite, Thomson Locations: BEIRUT, East, Lebanese, Lebanon, Damascus, Azour, Syria, Iran, Arab, Washington

Card 5 of 9New mysteries offer plenty of suspense. Background Image: In this illustration, a figure lies on a beach on a striped towel, a book over their eyes. On the left is a figure who recalls Sherlock Holmes. He is wearing a hat and smoking a pipe, and bending down to peer at the sand through a magnifying glass.

☆ Her Novel Became a Best Seller. The Trouble: The Manuscript Was Stolen.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Amal El-Mohtar | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

If this reads as a quite on-the-nose critique of contemporary conversations about race and appropriation, that’s because it is. It is in fact so obvious that it makes one wonder why Kuang uses the device of an unreliable narrator at all. Instead, June’s methodology is consistently to tell the reader her trespasses and offer flimsy justifications for them. These moments suggest the kinds of layers and intrigue the book could have maintained if it weren’t so committed to showing its hand. “Yellowface” is a kind of Art Monster story, but one that can’t allow room for ambiguity or revelation without rushing in to fill that space.

☆ Up-close photos of the Martian moon, Deimos, are forcing scientists to rethink how it formed in the first place
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Marcia Dunn | Associated Press | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The United Arab Emirates' Amal spacecraft recently flew within 62 miles (100 kilometers) of Deimos. Deimos is a tiny Martian moon that was thought to be a captured asteroid from space. But new close-up photos from the Amal spacecraft suggest its origins are closer to home. The United Arab Emirates' Amal spacecraft flew within 62 miles (100 kilometers) of Deimos last month and the close-up shots were released Monday. Instead, they say the moon appears to be of Martian origin — perhaps from the bigger Martian moon or from Mars itself.

☆ Your Guides to the World of Fairies and to the Multiverse
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Amal El-Mohtar | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

But though many have left, none have returned — until a boy named Tutu sets out to find water to help his ailing mother. While on his quest through the desert, Tutu meets many strange people with many strange stories and, through them, uncovers dangerous truths. Invaders stealing the literal tongues of the invaded is such a powerful, resonant premise, one that accrues more layers as Tutu navigates the desert. In keeping with the contradictions at the book’s heart, it left me perfectly sated and hungry for more. A question recurs throughout the book, an attempt to explain the concept of a multiverse: How many numbers are there between 1 and 2?

☆ Analysis: US Republicans aim to stymie gun sale codes at state level
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Ross Kerber | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

"I don't want card companies to raise interest rates or fees on merchants as a way to dissuade them" from selling guns and ammunition, Owen told Reuters. Visa Inc (V.N) declined to comment on the state bills. Other payment card companies Discover, Mastercard Inc and (MA.N) American Express Co (AXP.N) did not respond to requests for comment. Owen, the Mississippi state legislator, said he expects that payment companies could address any technical issues the bills could create. "I think the credit card companies are going to have to adapt on a state-by-state basis," Owen said.

[1/3] George Bezdjian, whose daughter Jessica died in 2020 port explosion, holds her picture during a protest against steps taken this week to hamstring a probe into the 2020 port blast, in Beirut, Lebanon January 26, 2023. With friends and allies of Lebanon's most powerful factions, including Hezbollah, among those charged, the establishment struck back swiftly on Wednesday, when the prosecutor general charged Bitar with usurping powers. With deep fissures in the judiciary exposed, the tussle adds to the unravelling of a state accelerated by a three-year-long financial crisis, left to fester by the ruling elite. Attempts by a Lebanese judge to investigate Salameh have hit obstacles in Lebanon, where politicians have big sway over the judiciary. In opposing Bitar, Hezbollah has accused the United States of meddling in the investigation and Bitar of political bias.

☆ Traffic in Suez Canal normal after ship breakdown dealt with- SCA
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] An aerial view of the Gulf of Suez and the Suez Canal are pictured through the window of an airplane on a flight between Cairo and Doha, Egypt, November 27, 2021. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah DalshCAIRO, Jan 9 (Reuters) - Shipping traffic in the Suez Canal was proceeding normally on Monday after tugs towed a cargo vessel that broke down during its passage through the waterway, the Canal Authority said. The M/V Glory, which was sailing to China, suffered a technical fault when it was 38km into its passage southward through the canal, before being towed by four tugs to a repair area, the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) said in a statement. The Suez Canal is one of the world's busiest waterways and the shortest shipping route between Europe and Asia. In 2021, a huge container ship, the Ever Given, became stuck in high winds across a southern section of the canal, blocking traffic for six days before it could be dislodged.

☆ Gladys Knight, George Clooney, Amy Grant feted at Kennedy Center Honors
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

WASHINGTON — A heartfelt Patti LaBelle praised her lifelong friend Gladys Knight. Matt Damon playfully teased his friend George Clooney — a lot — while Sheryl Crow gave thanks and a heartfelt rendition of “Baby Baby” to her fellow singer Amy Grant during Sunday’s Kennedy Center Honors. Every year the Kennedy Center honors a select group of people for their artistic influences on American culture. 2022 Kennedy Center Honorees, front row from left, Amy Grant, Gladys Knight, George Clooney, Tania León, join, back row from left, Adam Clayton, Larry Mullen Jr., The Edge, and Bono for a group photo at the State Department following the Kennedy Center Honors gala dinner, Saturday, Dec. 3, 2022, in Washington. León said during an interview when the honorees were announced that she wasn’t expecting “anything spectacular” when the Kennedy Center initially reached out to her.

☆ George Clooney, Gladys Knight among Kennedy Center honorees
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-04 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Secretary of State Antony Blinken, second from left, and his wife, Evan Ryan, left, join 2022 Kennedy Center Honorees, front row from left, Amy Grant, Gladys Knight, George Clooney, Tania León, and Kennedy Center President Deborah Rutter, back row from left, Kennedy Center Chairman David Rubenstein, along with fellow 2022 Honorees Adam Clayton, Larry Mullen Jr., The Edge, and Bono for a group photo at the State Department following the Kennedy Center Honors gala dinner, Saturday, Dec. 3, 2022, in Washington. Sometimes the Kennedy Center honors not just individuals but groups; "Sesame Street" once got the nod. Composer and conductor León said during an interview when the honorees were announced that she wasn't expecting "anything spectacular" when the Kennedy Center initially reached out to her. After all, she's worked with the Kennedy Center numerous times over the years going back to 1980, when she was commissioned to compose music for a play. León left Cuba as a refugee in 1967 and eventually settled in New York City.

☆ George Clooney has a simple strategy for staying out of trouble as a public figure
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-04 | by ( Dan Heching | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —George Clooney has a surefire way for staying out of trouble as a public figure in the age of social media: stay off of it. Ethan Hawke, who directed Clooney in a voice role as Newman in this year’s HBO documentary “The Last Movie Stars,” observed that it’s no surprise he’s getting such a prestigious honor. “It’s interesting that he’s getting the Kennedy Center Honors this year because Newman got it too. “The default mode really doesn’t lead you to a place of thinking about fairness, or defending people who can’t defend themselves. That’s rare.”Clooney will be featured as part of the Kennedy Center Honors on December 28 at 8 p.m. on CBS.

☆ Nobel Prize Winner Maria Ressa Is Fighting for Press Freedom
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( Emily Bobrow | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

When the Philippine investigative journalist Maria Ressa won the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize, the committee called her “a fearless defender of freedom of expression” who “exposed the abuse of power, use of violence and increasing authoritarianism” of Rodrigo Duterte , the president of the Philippines who left office this year. Ms. Ressa notes that before she and Russian journalist Dmitri Muratov shared the prize, the last journalist to win it was Carl von Ossietzky, a German who received the honor in 1935 while languishing in a Nazi concentration camp. “The Norwegian Nobel Committee signaled that the world was at a similar historical moment, another existential point for democracy,” Ms. Ressa writes in her new book, “How to Stand Up to a Dictator.” Since 2017, she has been battling charges brought against her by the Philippine government, including tax evasion and three cyber libel cases. “My freedom’s at stake, and my reputation,” says Ms. Ressa, 59, on a video call from Los Angeles, where she is visiting family and her lawyer, the human-rights advocate Amal Clooney .

☆ Goldman Sachs just dropped the names of its biggest partner class since David Solomon took over as CEO. See the full list here.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Emmalyse Brownstein | Dakin Campbell | Alex Morrell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

David Solomon had been shrinking the size of Goldman's partner ranks to make it more exclusive. On Wednesday, the firm named 80 new partners, its largest class since Solomon became CEO in 2018. Goldman Sachs promoted 80 people to partner status on Wednesday, marking the largest class since David Solomon took over as CEO in 2018. Goldman's partner class has been steadily shrinking since David Solomon took over as CEO in 2018. Last year, Goldman gave its roughly 400 partners special one-time payments that added millions of dollars to their already generous year-end bonuses.

☆ Cholera outbreak hits Syrian refugees sheltering in camps in Lebanon
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Maya Gebeily | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Syrian refugee children stand near water way at an informal camp in Qab Elias, in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley October 18, 2022. REUTERS/Mohamed AzakirQUB ELIAS, Lebanon, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Syrian refugees in displacement camps are falling victim to a cholera outbreak in Lebanon, already suffering from an economic meltdown that has slashed access to clean water and strained hospitals. Lebanon recorded its first cholera case in early October -- signalling the return of the bacteria for the first time in 30 years. WHO country director Abdinasir Abubakar told Reuters cholera posed a "very high risk" for Lebanon – and that transmission to other countries was likely. "Now it's affecting more Syrian refugees, but sooner or later we will see more cases for Lebanese,” Abubakar said.

☆ George Clooney chose his latest upbeat rom-com role because there's 'a lot of dark things going on in the world'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Marianne Garvey | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —George Clooney needed a rom-com just as badly as the rest of us. “I got sent the script and you know, we’ve had a lot of dark things going on in the world. “I think people needed a break,” Clooney said. “I’m worried about it. I’m worried about the coarsening of America.

☆ Giant refugee puppet joins 'huddled masses' in New York
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-16 | by ( Andrew Hofstetter | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, Sept 16 (Reuters) - A giant refugee girl puppet, known as "Little Amal," walked around New York City's Times Square on Friday, raising awareness of the plight of displaced children seeking safety across borders. Amal represents a 10-year-old looking for her mother who set out in search of food and never returned, said Peter Avery, director of theater for the New York City Department of Education and producer of Little Amal Walks New York. Broadway performers and about 200 New York City students serenaded Amal to calm her in bustling Times Square. "Little Amal's message to the world is, 'Don't forget us,'" Avery said. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Andrew Hofstetter in New York Writing by Roselle Chen Editing by Richard Chang and Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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