Category Archives: World News

Thursday briefing: With a new wave of violence, the West Bank is on edge

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In today’s newsletter: As Israeli security forces launch an operation in the city of Jenin and violence by settlers escalates, Emma Graham-Harrison explains what happens next

Good morning.

A few days after a ceasefire brought at least temporary relief to Gaza, violence erupted in the occupied West Bank. On Tuesday, the Israeli military launched what was described as an extensive raid in the city of Jenin, a day after Israeli settlers attacked Palestinians, setting vehicles and property ablaze in a violent rampage. Two Israeli were arrested even though dozens of armed settlers were involved in the rioting. The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, condemned the attacks, but it is evident that extremist settlers feel emboldened by government policies and ministers who back their agenda.

Media | The Duke of Sussex has settled his high court legal action against the publisher of the Sun, News Group Newspapers. NGN offered “a full and unequivocal apology” to Prince Harry “for the phone hacking, surveillance and misuse of private information by journalists and private investigators instructed by them” at the News of the World. It will also pay “substantial damages”.

US politics | Donald Trump has threatened Russia with taxes, tariffs and sanctions if a deal to end the war in Ukraine is not struck soon, as the new US president tries to increase pressure on Moscow to start negotiations with Kyiv.

Social media | TikTok’s power to deliver “exhilaration” and the UK’s relationship with China are shaping the UK government’s acceptance of the short video app despite “genuine concerns” about how the data of millions of Britons may be used, the technology secretary has said.

Politics | Campaigners will be blocked from “excessive” legal challenges to planning decisions for major infrastructure projects including airports, railways and nuclear power stations as part of the government’s drive for economic growth.

UK news | A former soldier has pleaded guilty to murdering three women with a crossbow at their home in Hertfordshire last year. Kyle Clifford admitted killing Carol Hunt and her daughters Hannah and Louise in Bushey on 9 July.

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Trump threatens Putin with taxes, tariffs and sanctions over Ukraine war

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US president tells his Russian counterpart to ‘settle now and stop this ridiculous war’ or face repercussions

Donald Trump has threatened Russia with taxes, tariffs and sanctions if a deal to end the war in Ukraine is not struck soon, as the new US president tries to increase pressure on Moscow to start negotiations with Kyiv.

Writing in a post on Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump said Russia’s economy was failing and urged Vladimir Putin to “settle now and stop this ridiculous war”.

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One of France’s most wanted alleged drug lords extradited from Morocco

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Félix ‘the Cat’ Bingui due to appear in Marseille court on multiple charges including money laundering

One of France’s most wanted suspected drug traffickers was due in court in Marseille after his extradition from Morocco.

Félix Bingui, known as “the Cat” and reportedly head of the notorious Yoda clan, was arrested in Casablanca last March.

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Micheál Martin furious at ‘subversion of Irish constitution’ amid chaos in Dáil

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Martin’s formal appointment as taoiseach blocked after day of ‘utter disgrace’ in Irish parliament

Ireland’s incoming prime minister, Micheál Martin, has accused opponents of a “subversion of the Irish constitution” after formal election to the role was cancelled amid chaotic scenes in the Irish parliament.

The outgoing taoiseach, Martin’s coalition partner, Simon Harris, called Wednesday’s events in Dáil an “utter disgrace [with] so many pressing issues” facing the country, as a spiralling row over the speaking rights of independent TDs torpedoed the first day of Martin’s new term in office.

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Afghan man arrested after deadly knife attack in German park

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Chancellor Olaf Scholz condemns ‘act of terror’ in Aschaffenburg that killed two people including toddler

A 28-year-old Afghan man has been arrested after a knife attack in a park in the German city of Aschaffenburg that killed two people, including a toddler, in what the country’s chancellor, Olaf Scholz, condemned as an “act of terror”.

With a month left in a campaign for snap elections dominated by debate on immigration and asylum policy, Scholz demanded authorities “explain immediately why the assailant was even still in Germany”.

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Meloni faces questions after Italy frees Libyan general accused of war crimes

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Case of Osama Najim puts spotlight on controversial migration pact between Italy and Libya

Giorgia Meloni’s government is under pressure to clarify why a Rome court refused to approve the arrest of a Libyan general accused of war crimes, allowing him to return home to a hero’s welcome on an Italian secret services flight in what critics believe was a tactic to shield alleged abuses committed in the north African country as a result of a migrant pact with Italy.

Osama Najim, also known as Almasri, was detained in Turin on Sunday on a warrant issued by the international criminal court (ICC) before being freed on Tuesday owing to a procedural technicality.

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Top Iranian politician appeals to Trump to restart nuclear deal negotiations

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Mohammad Javad Zarif says he hopes new Trump administration will be more serious, focused and realistic

A senior Iranian politician has appealed to Donald Trump to begin new negotiations with Tehran over its civil nuclear programme, saying: “I hope that this time around, [Trump 2.0] will be more serious, more focused, more realistic.”

Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran’s vice-president for strategic affairs, pointed out that the returning US president had not reappointed figures from his first term such as the former secretary of state Mike Pompeo and national security adviser John Bolton, who persuaded him in 2018 to quit the nuclear deal on the basis that withdrawal would lead to the regime’s collapse.

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Trump threatens 10% tariff on China and considers EU levy

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Yuan and Chinese stocks fall despite suggestion of lower tariff than president mentioned during campaign

Donald Trump has threatened to impose a 10% tariff on Chinese-made goods arriving in the US from as early as 1 February, adding that he was also considering levies on imports from the EU.

Ordering an investigation into US-China trade on his second day in office, Trump said any penalties on Chinese goods would be “based on the fact that they’re sending fentanyl to Mexico and Canada”.

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Colombia scrambles to cope as refugees flee deadly battles between rebel groups

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Officials describe ‘tsunami of people’ in city of Cúcuta escaping one of worst outbreaks of violence in recent years

Authorities in the Colombian border city of Cúcuta are scrambling to cope with an influx of internal refugees, as thousands of civilians flee an outbreak of fighting between rival rebel factions.

Buses, trailers and dump trucks packed with disoriented mothers and children have been streaming into the border city since Friday when the bloody conflict began engulfing north-eastern Colombia.

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US homeowners in disaster-prone states face soaring insurance costs

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Climate crisis is making it harder for insurance companies to operate, with many pausing or withdrawing policies

Homeowners in the United States are facing an enormous financial crunch due to the climate crisis, with many struggling to find insurance or even dropping premiums that are soaring due to a mounting toll of wildfires, hurricanes and other disasters, new federal government data shows.

The figures, the most comprehensive numbers ever released by the US treasury department on the issue, show insurance premiums are increasing quickly across the country, with people living amid the greatest climate-driven risks experiencing the steepest rises of all. In the four years to 2022, people living in the top 20% riskiest places for such perils paid, on average, 82% more than those in the 20% lowest climate risk zip codes.

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‘When I’m not Trump, I’m just Mike’: UK impersonator enjoys re-election boom

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Mike Osman, aka ‘Donald Trumped’, from Southampton, says he is expecting busiest year of career

A British Donald Trump impersonator is looking forward to an “unstoppable” four years, thanking the American president for providing him with a pension pot for his retirement.

Southampton-based Mike Osman, a 65-year-old comedian, said his income had increased by between 30 and 40% since Trump was re-elected and he was expecting to have the busiest year of his career.

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Families fear for Cuban prisoners after Trump reneges on release deal

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US president reinstates Cuba on terror list despite Biden deal to release prisoners jailed over demonstrations

The families of Cuban protesters jailed in anti-government demonstrations are waiting anxiously to see if the government will continue with a planned prisoner release after Donald Trump reneged on a deal made last week by Joe Biden.

Activists from the human rights group Justicia 11J believe around 150 prisoners have been released so far of the 553 agreed with the Catholic church.

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Cat becomes accidental frequent flyer after being left on a plane by mistake

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Mittens made three trips in 24 hours between New Zealand and Australia after she was not spotted in cargo hold

A Maine Coon cat named Mittens became an accidental jetsetter this month when her cage was overlooked in a plane cargo hold and she made three trips in 24 hours between New Zealand and Australia.

Mittens, eight, was booked for one-way travel with her family from Christchurch, New Zealand to their new home in Melbourne, Australia on 13 January. Her owner, Margo Neas, said on Wednesday that she waited for Mittens to be unloaded from the plane’s freight area, but three hours passed with no sign of the cat.

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Nepal increases permit fee for Mount Everest climbers by 36%

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Cost of scaling world’s tallest peak rises for first time in nearly a decade to $15,000

Nepal will increase the permit fees for climbing Mount Everest by 36%, making the world’s tallest peak more expensive for mountaineers for the first time in nearly a decade, officials have said.

Income from permit fees and other spending by foreign climbers is a key source of revenue and employment for the poor country, which is home to eight of the world’s 14 highest mountains.

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Wall Street shrugs off Trump after he vows Mexico and Canada tariffs

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S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite largely unmoved as it opened for trading for first time after inauguration

Financial markets largely shrugged after Donald Trump outlined plans to impose punitive tariffs on Mexico and Canada as soon as next month while signing scores of executive orders on his first day in office.

The US president told reporters in the White House Oval Office he was thinking about introducing 25% US tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada as soon as 1 February.

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Qatari, US and Egyptian negotiators set up Cairo hub to shore up Gaza ceasefire

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Communication lines open 24 hours intended to avoid breakdown over reported violations and other issues

Qatari, US and Egyptian negotiators are running a communications hub in Cairo to protect the ceasefire in Gaza, as Donald Trump said he was not confident the break in fighting would hold.

Violations have already been reported. Medics in Gaza said on Monday that eight people had been hit by Israeli fire. The start of the ceasefire was also delayed when Hamas did not provide the names of hostages to be released.

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Dozens dead as people jump from windows to escape fire at Turkish ski resort hotel

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Witnesses say people used bed sheets or jumped to try to get out of the 12-storey Grand Kartal hotel after fire broke out early in the morning

Seventy-six people died and 51 others were injured when a fire engulfed a popular ski resort hotel in Turkey’s Bolu mountains, forcing guests to jump out of windows or attempt to use bed sheets to flee the building.

The fire broke out at about 3.30am on Tuesday in the restaurant of the 12-storey Grand Kartal hotel in the resort of Kartalkaya in Bolu province, north-west Turkey.

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Did Elon Musk give a Nazi or Roman salute, and what’s the difference?

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Historians say Musk clearly made Nazi salute – but supporter claims he was inspired by Roman greeting adopted by Benito Mussolini

The back-to-back gestures were swift and enthusiastic, and they elicited huge cheers from the crowd. After Elon Musk ignited controversy with two fascist-style salutes during Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration, critics accused him of giving the Nazi salute.

Some of Musk’s supporters rushed to defend him, claiming that he had instead been giving the Roman salute. “The Roman empire is back, starting with the Roman salute,” Andrea Stroppa, a Rome-based adviser to Musk, wrote on in a post that he later deleted.

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Zelenskyy says Russia-Ukraine peace deal would require 200,000 allied troops

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Ukrainian president tells Davos that Europe must establish itself as an ‘indispensable’ player on the global stage

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that “at least 200,000” allied troops would be needed to enforce any peace deal in Ukraine as he urged Europe to “take care of itself” as Donald Trump returns to power in the US.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Zelenskyy said European leaders should not ask themselves what Trump would do next, and said that they instead needed to take collective steps to defend their continent at a time when it was under aggressive attack by Russia.

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France needs ‘clearer’ rape laws that include consent, report finds

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MPs say the need for consent-based law was highlighted again by trial of 51 men over abuse of Gisèle Pelicot

France should update its rape law to add a clear reference to consent, a parliamentary report has found, months after French society was shaken by the trial of 51 men over the repeated drugging and rape of Gisèle Pelicot.

The report, to be presented on Tuesday, said action must be taken urgently to update the law. “Almost 10 years after the start of the #MeToo movement, and as the [Pelicot] trial showed once again, the fight against rape culture must be a priority: the fight against rape culture needs a law that is clearer,” it found.

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