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• Hamas claims Jerusalem attack: Hamas has claimed responsibility for the shooting in Jerusalem that left three dead, saying in a statement that “the operation came as a natural response to unprecedented crimes conducted by the occupation,” referring to Israel's military campaign in Gaza. This comes as Israel and Hamas struck a last-minute deal on Thursday to extend their ceasefire for a seventh day. Stay up to date with the latest on the war between Israel and Hamas here.
• Henry Kissinger dies at 100: Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who became one of the most influential and controversial foreign policy figures in American history, has died at the age of 100 at his home in Connecticut. Look at how the world is reacting.
• COP28 opens in Dubai as 2023 set to become hottest year: The COP28 climate change summit has opened in Dubai, gathering about 70,000 delegates and world leaders who will negotiate on whether to agree, for the first time, to phase out the world's use of CO2-emitting coal, oil and gas. UN secretary-general António Guterres said at the start of the summit that 2023 will be the hottest year in human history, a warning that should “trigger world leaders to act.”
• Russian strikes kill one in eastern Ukraine: Russian missile attacks in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region killed at least one and injured 10 overnight. Meanwhile, the Kremlin announced Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold his annual press conference and field questions from the public on Dec. 14, stoking speculation that he will use the occasion to announce that he is running for president again in the 2024 election.
• LGBTQ+ news, good and bad: Nepal has registered its first same-sex marriage in the western Lumjung district, five months after the Supreme Court issued an interim order clearing the way for such marriages. This makes Nepal the second place in Asia, after Taiwan, to legalize same-sex marriage. Meanwhile, Russia's Supreme Court has ruled that LGBTQ+ organizations should be labeled “extremists”, in a move that could enable Moscow to target activists within Russia. Follow Worldcrunch’s LGBTQ+ coverage and subscribe to our LGBTQ+ International newsletter here.
• Singapore & Zurich tied for world's most expensive city: Singapore and Zurich came on top of the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU)’s list of most expensive cities, followed by Geneva, New York and Hong Kong. This is the ninth time in 11 years that the Singaporean city-state, which has the world's highest transport prices, tops the rankings.
• Britain bids farewell to its only pandas: Visitors of the Edinburgh Zoo will be able to say goodbye to giant pandas Tian Tian and Yang Guang on Thursday on their last day in the spotlight before they are sent back to China. The pair had come to Scotland in 2011 as part of a ten-year agreement between the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland and the China Wildlife Conservation Association, which was extended for two years due to the pandemic. Read more about China’s giant panda diplomacy here.
€240 billion
According to a report by the European Defense Agency, the EU bloc’s military spending was up 6% in 2022 as compared to the previous year, reaching a record €240 billion ($260 billion) in 2022. Although this is the eighth year in a row that the European Union increases its military budget, this is a major uptick, notably caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
What's left of Gaza: scenes of destruction, pangs of desperation
The information coming out of the Palestinian enclave is scarce but undoubtedly grim. For Turin-based daily La Stampa, an Italian reporter from across the border gathers information from inside Gaza amid a fragile and inevitably temporary ceasefire.
🇵🇸 When we ask Sister Nabila Saleh to describe the situation in Gaza, she responds by sending ten photos: images of rubble, destruction, and desolation. They suggest that the point of no return has long been surpassed. Communication is challenging; on WhatsApp, conversations are impossible, only snippets of written sentences arrive on each side. Still, they suffice in describing the hellish conditions they've been facing for the past seven weeks.
⚠️ "We are witnessing an unbearable human tragedy. Despite the pausing of hostilities, humanitarian needs persist," an official of the International Committee of the Red Cross explains to La Stampa. "People lack basic necessities, the bare minimum for survival. The aid distributed is not sufficient to meet the needs of hundreds of thousands of people in desperate need of assistance." The official notes that colder weather is coming, with masses of people living in tents without beds, pillows, or blankets.
🚚 The only flicker of hope has been the somewhat shaky ceasefire between Israel and Hamas since Friday that has allowed a wave of aid to reach the Strip, with 200 trucks coming in each day, although humanitarian organizations consider the convoys far from sufficient for meeting the needs of the two million people still in Gaza. The resources include deliveries of fuel to power generators in facilities, including hospitals. Gaza has not had a regular supply of electricity since its only power plant was shut down on October 11.
➡️ Read more onWorldcrunch.com“I have serious doubt it is complying with international humanitarian law.”
— Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has expressed skepticism toward Israel and its respect for international law as part of its actions in Gaza. “With the footage we are seeing and the growing numbers of children dying, I have serious doubt [Israel] is complying with international humanitarian law,” Sanchez said in an interview with Spanish state-owned broadcaster TVE. “What we are seeing in Gaza is not acceptable,” he added.
✍️ Newsletter by Anne-Sophie Goninet and Bertrand Hauger
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