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Fearing airstrikes and crowded shelters, Palestinians in north Gaza defy Israeli evacuation orders

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:06:21 GMT

DEIR AL BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Mahmoud Shalabi did not evacuate his home in northern Gaza despite the frightful Israeli warnings of a looming, far more brutal assault to come as it presses ahead with its war against the Hamas militant group.The Palestinian aid worker is among hundreds of thousands who have remained. Others who initially heeded the Israeli warnings to head south have returned to the territory’s north, where Israel says it considers all those who stay possible “accomplices” of Hamas.Shalabi said leaving his home in Beit Lahia didn’t make sense considering the relentless bombardment of southern Gaza, where Israel has repeatedly urged the more than 1 million northern residents like him to seek refuge. The overcrowded shelters and shortages of water and food in the south played a part in their decisions, said Shalabi and others who remained.Risk death at home, or elsewhere in Gaza, they said.Leaving would be reasonable only if Israel stopped targeting the south, ...

EU leaders talk Ukraine, Middle East, MFF

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:06:21 GMT

Presented by ASD By LAURA KAYALI with JOSHUA POSANER, CALEB LARSON, ANDREW MCDONALD and PAUL MCLEARY PRESENTED BY View in your browser or listen to audioSNEAK PEEK— European leaders meet today to discuss Ukraine, the Middle East and the EU’s long-term budget. — EU countries account for 11.5 percent of the world’s military spending. — Ukraine announces another partnership with a German defense contractor. Good morning, and welcome to Morning Defense. Tips to [email protected], [email protected] and [email protected] or follow us at @joshposaner, @LauKaya and @calebmlarson.DRIVING THE DAYLEADERS GET TO GRIPS WITH DEFENSE FUNDS: Decisions will come later, but the eruption of two wars on Europe’s doorstep and sustained calls for military support to both Ukraine and Israel have focused minds ahead of today’s summit of EU leaders in Brussels.Missiles, ammo for Ukraine: The European Council will pledge continued military support to ...

1 in 10 San Diegans are living under the poverty line

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:06:21 GMT

SAN DIEGO - New numbers show that nearly 1 in 10 people living in San Diego are living in poverty. This comes as "America's Finest City" tops a list of the most expensive cities in the country. "We get creative with making food, making meals, don’t go out to eat too much and have fun at home...There are people living on the streets and it doesn’t need to be like this," shared one resident who has lived in the area for 50 years. According to a recent report commissioned by the San Diego Foundation, around 335,000 San Diegans throughout the county are living in poverty. That's about 11% of the population. Out of that number, just about 86,000 of them are children. To offer some perspective, that's enough to fill up Petco Park not once, but twice.“San Diego is a beautiful, diverse region, but not all residents experience the same quality of life, and the sobering data revealed in our report confirms that,” said Mark Stuart, President and CEO of San Diego Foundation in a press release. ...

Pakistan sets up deportation centers to hold migrants in the country illegally starting next week

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:06:21 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan is setting up deportation centers for migrants in the country illegally, including an estimated 1.7 million Afghans, officials said Thursday. It’s the latest development in a government crackdown to expel foreigners without registration or documents.Anyone found staying in the country illegally from next Wednesday will be arrested and sent to the deportation centers. Jan Achakzai, a spokesman for the southwestern Baluchistan government, said three deportation centers are being set up. One will be in Quetta, the provincial capital.Azam Khan, the caretaker chief minister for the northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, said the region will have three deportation centers. More than 60,000 Afghans have returned home since the crackdown was announced, he said. He said migrants who are living in the country illegally should leave before the Tuesday deadline to avoid arrest. Pakistan’s caretaker Interior Minister Sarfraz Bugti has said there will be no d...

Many in Niger are suffering under coup-related sanctions. Junta backers call it a worthy sacrifice

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:06:21 GMT

NIAMEY, Niger (AP) — Hamsa Diakite can’t remember the last time her family of eight had a good meal.She once sustained them by selling fried bread until a coup in Niger three months ago resulted in sanctions against the West African nation, squeezing incomes in one of the world’s poorest countries and leaving millions like Hamsa struggling in the absence of aid.“Not only is food very expensive, but school supplies have also doubled in price. I also have to clothe my children and, above all, deal with their illnesses,” the 65-year-old said.After elite soldiers toppled Niger’s democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum on July 26, the country faced economic sanctions from West Africa’s regional bloc, ECOWAS, as well as Western and European countries including the United States that had provided aid for health, security and infrastructure needs.Neighbors shut their borders with Niger and more than 70% of its electricity, supplied by Nigeria, was cut off after fin...

Live updates | Israeli troops briefly enter Gaza as wider ground incursion looms

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:06:21 GMT

The Israeli military said its troops and tanks briefly entered northern Gaza overnight into Thursday, hitting several militant targets as a wider ground incursion loomed after more than two weeks of heavy air raids.Israeli airstrikes have devastated parts of the Gaza Strip, leaving neighborhoods in rubble, and hospitals in Gaza are struggling to treat masses of wounded with diminishing resources.The U.N. warned that it is on the verge of running out of fuel in the Gaza Strip, forcing it to sharply curtail relief efforts in the blockaded territory. And the U.N. Security Council failed again to address the Israeli-Hamas war, rejecting rival resolutions by the United States and Russia. The war is the deadliest of five Gaza wars for both sides. The Hamas-run Health Ministry said Wednesday that at least 6,546 Palestinians have been killed and 17,439 others wounded. In the occupied West Bank, more than 100 Palestinians have been killed and 1,650 wounded in violence and Israeli raids follo...

Europe’s central bank is set to halt rate hikes as the Mideast war casts a shadow over the economy

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:06:21 GMT

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The European Central Bank is ready to leave interest rates unchanged Thursday for the first time in over a year as the Israel-Hamas war spreads even more gloom over already downbeat prospects for Europe’s economy.It would be the bank’s first meeting with no change after a torrid pace of 10 straight increases dating to July 2022 that pushed its key rate to a record-high 4%. The ECB would join the U.S. Federal Reserve, Bank of England and others in holding borrowing costs steady — albeit at the highest levels in years — as inflation has eased.In Europe, inflation peaked at a painful 10.6% in October for the 20 countries that use the euro currency as Russia’s war in Ukraine took a toll. Those high prices have been poison for consumer spending, draining household finances with added costs for necessities such as food, heat and electricity. But with inflation now down to 4.3%, analysts expect the ECB to hold off on more hikes during its meeting...

At least 16 dead in Maine mass killing and police hunt for the shooter as residents take shelter

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:06:21 GMT

LEWISTON, Maine (AP) — A man shot and killed at least 16 people at a restaurant and a bowling alley in Lewiston, Maine, on Wednesday and then fled into the night, sparking a massive search by hundreds of officers while frightened residents stayed locked in their homes.A police bulletin identified Robert Card, 40, as a person of interest in the attack that sent panicked bowlers scrambling behind pins when shots rang out around 7 p.m. Card was described as a firearms instructor believed to be in the Army Reserve and assigned to a training facility in Saco, Maine.The document, circulated to law enforcement officials, said Card had been committed to a mental health facility for two weeks in the summer of 2023. It did not provide details about his treatment or condition but said Card had reported “hearing voices and threats to shoot up” the military base. A telephone number listed for Card in public records was not in service.Lewiston Police said in an earlier Facebook post that they wer...

Delivering today and preparing for tomorrow: The 2024 Commission Work Programme

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:06:21 GMT

The Commission has adopted its 2024 Work Programme, which puts a strong focus on simplifying rules for citizens and businesses across the European Union. This follows up on President von der Leyen's commitment to reduce reporting requirements by 25%, in line with our strategy to boost the EU's long-term competitiveness and to provide relief for SMEs.The Work Programme reflects on the achievements of the past four years, outlines the Commission's new proposals for the months ahead and presents significant initiatives aimed at cutting red tape. Some of these simplifying initiatives have already been put forward (15 proposals and initiatives since March 2023), while others are presented in parallel today (26 rationalisation proposals) or will follow. They are laid out in a dedicated annex together with the evaluations and fitness checks announced today.With over 90% of the commitments made in the 2019 Political Guidelines delivered and just a few months left until the 2024 European ele...

Azerbaijan’s path to full sovereignty

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:06:21 GMT

This year on October 18, the Republic of Azerbaijan celebrated the day of restoration of independence. This year’s celebration day is special as the country restored its territorial integrity and sovereignty. Azerbaijan’s path to this important day was tragic and difficult as the country faced multidimensional and cross-border threats and security challenges in the region. As a result of Armenian aggression against Azerbaijan, twenty percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territories had been occupied, and the whole critic infrastructure in the occupied territories was devastated or destroyed - writes Shahmar Hajiyev, Senior Advisor, Center of Analysis of International RelationsA ceasefire agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan was signed on May 1994 to halt the bloody conflict. However, serious intermittent skirmishes had been continuing since the signing of the ceasefire agreement. To this end, the former “Karabakh conflict” between two South Caucasus countries show...