Israel says West Bank operation will last for a year as it sends tanks to Jenin

Continued operation in Palestinian territory will leave 40,000 displaced people unable to return home

Israel has sent tanks to the West Bank city of Jenin, in the first deployment of its kind in the area in more than two decades, as troops intensify operations in the territory that officials said will last at least a year.

The Israeli defence minister, Israel Katz, said on Sunday that the latest operation across the West Bank was expanding, and that troops would remain in the area’s urban hotspots “for the coming year”, meaning approximately 40,000 people displaced by the fighting will not be able to return to their homes.

Continue reading...

British couple in their 70s arrested by the Taliban in Afghanistan

Peter and Barbie Reynolds were detained in Bamiyan provice for ‘teaching mothers parenting with children’

The Taliban have arrested a British couple in their 70s for “teaching mothers parenting with children”.

Peter Reynolds, 79, and his wife, Barbie, 75, were detained when returning to their home in Bamiyan province on 1 February.

Continue reading...

MSNBC reportedly cancels Joy Reid show in reshuffle at liberal network

ReidOut is being cancelled as part of a lineup shuffle being helmed by the network’s new president, Rebecca Kutler

MSNBC has reportedly canceled longtime anchor Joy Reid’s show in what is evidently a major programming restructure at the liberal network.

Speaking to the New York Times, two people familiar with the reshuffling told the outlet that Reid’s 7pm show, The ReidOut, is being cancelled as part of a lineup shuffle being helmed by the network’s new president, Rebecca Kutler.

Continue reading...

Scotland ‘likely to miss net zero climate target by up to 20m tonnes’

Exclusive: Top officials and climate policy experts believe delays in cutting emissions make it improbable 2045 target will be met

Scotland is likely to miss its legally binding climate target by up to 20m tonnes, according to official data seen by the Guardian.

The Scottish government set itself the world-leading target of reaching net zero – the point where any excess carbon emissions are soaked up by trees, peat or carbon capture – by 2045.

Continue reading...

Israel won’t allow HTS forces in southern Syria, Netanyahu says – Reuters.com

  1. Israel won't allow HTS forces in southern Syria, Netanyahu says  Reuters.com
  2. Israel challenges Syria's new leaders with demand for demilitarisation of south  BBC.com
  3. Netanyahu remarks over Druze in southern Syria spark online upheaval  The Jerusalem Post
  4. In Syria, Joy at a Dictator’s Demise Turns Into Fear of Israeli Raids  The New York Times
  5. Netanyahu demands Syrian army stay away from Israel's borders and area south of Damascus  Haaretz
Posted in Uncategorized

‘People are so polite’: the Ukrainian refugee bonding with the British over borscht and chips

First Ukrainian refugee to arrive in UK after Russia invasion says even the British dogs are better behaved, but that ‘the weather is sad’

Sharing a bowl of homemade Ukrainian borscht with your neighbours is one way to make friends in a new country, according to the first refugee to arrive in the UK after Russia invaded her country three years ago.

Ukrainian refugee Valentyna Klymova, 72, now settled in Erith in Kent, has done just that, lovingly preparing the traditional soup containing beetroot, other vegetables and meat stock, served with a dollop of sour cream and rye bread. She offers it to English people she knows and says it has had a positive reception. In turn, she has embraced quintessentially British fish and chips, although she has not yet tried to cook it at home.

Continue reading...

Massive crowds attend funeral of late Hezbollah leader Nasrallah

Hasan Nasrallah, one of the founding members of Hezbollah, was killed during Israeli bombing in September

Tens of thousands of people have attended a funeral in Beirut for Hassan Nasrallah, who led the Iran-backed, Lebanese militia and political party Hezbollah for three decades before being killed in an Israeli bombing last September.

The ceremony was held in a sports stadium in the southern suburbs of Beirut, which had extra seats installed prior to the ceremony in anticipation of the massive crowds.

Continue reading...

Trump halts medical research funding in apparent violation of judge’s order

Health department orders NIH to hold Federal Register submissions – critical step in process for funding studies

The Trump administration has blocked a crucial step in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) process for funding medical research, likely in violation of a federal judge’s temporary restraining order on federal funding freezes.

The NIH has stopped submitting study sections – meetings in which scientists peer review NIH grant funding proposals – to the Federal Register after the Trump administration paused health agency communications. By law, study sections must appear on the register 15 days in advance of meetings.

Continue reading...