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Geopolitics
South Africa

Mandela Memorial, Kiev Cleared, China Hackers

In Soweto's FNB Stadium
In Soweto's FNB Stadium
Zhang Chen/Xinhua/ZUMA
GeopoliticsSourcesWHILE YOU SLEPTSouth AfricaCountries
Worldcrunch

MANDELA MEMORIAL TODAY
• Mourners gathered for former South African leader Nelson Mandela's memorial service in rainy Soweto today.
• In his remarks at the memorial, President Barack Obama characterized Mandela as “a giant of history, who moved a nation toward justice, and in the process moved billions around the world.”
• Notably, and in keeping with Mandela's legacy of reconciliation, Obama shook hands with Cuban President Raul Castro at the memorial, AP reports.
• Click here to see who is attending the historic event and to see which dignitaries were also on hand for the last comparable event, the funeral of Pope John Paul II.
• Reuters has a live feed of the event that is being attended by more than 100 world leaders and other notables.

[rebelmouse-image 27087630 alt="""" original_size="610x450" expand=1]
Photo: Meng Chenguang/Xinhua/ZUMA

POLICE CLEAR KIEV PROTESTERS
The Ukrainian police cleared out barricades to government buildings installed by Kiev protesters early this morning, ousting hundreds of demonstrators in the process. No arrests were made, but reports from news agency Ria Novosti say that 10 people were injured in the clashes, including two policemen. According to the Financial Times, EU Foreign Affairs representative Catherine Ashton is traveling to Kiev today to meet with President Viktor Yanukovych.

TWO FRENCH SOLDIERS KILLED
Two French soldiers were killed in the Central African Republic capital of Bangui, five days after the beginning of their crackdown on armed groups in the city, Le Monde reports. French journalist Nicolas Bertrand reported looting and violent clashes this morning between Christians and Muslims in Bangui, as the city falls deeper into chaos.

CANADA TO CLAIM NORTH POLE
Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird announced that the country intends to include the North Pole in its territorial claims in the Arctic seabed, extending Canadian ownership of natural resources in the region as a result, CBC reports.

CHINA HACKED FOREIGN MINISTRIES
A report by a California computer security company suggests that Chinese hackers with links to government authorities hacked into the computers of five European foreign ministries and repeatedly spied on them. The ministries of Czech Republic, Portugal, Bulgaria, Latvia and Hungary were infiltrated thanks to an email inviting the targets to click on a link for naked pictures of Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, The New York Times reports.

VERBATIM
South Korean President Park Geun-hye has warned of further divisions with North Korea, as she criticized Kim Jong-un’s “reign of terror.”

Brrrrrrr
NASA has detected the coldest temperature ever recorded on Earth. Guess just how cold it is in East Antarctica?

A NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS
A Chinese man was so tired of shopping with his girlfriend that he jumped from a balcony to his death after she insisted they go to one more store.

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FOCUS: Israel-Palestine War
Diplomacy

Bibi Blinked: How The Ceasefire Deal Could Flip Israel's Whole Gaza War Logic

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pushed ahead a deal negotiated via Qatar, for a four-day truce and an exchange of 50 hostages for 150 Palestinian prisoners. Though the humanitarian and political pressure was mounting, Israel's all-out assault is suddenly halted, with unforeseen consequences for the future.

photo of someone holding a poster of a hostage

Families of Israeli hostages rally in Jerusalem

Nir Alon/ZUMA
FOCUS: Israel-Palestine WarIsraelGeopoliticsSourcesFRANCE INTERPalestinian TerritoryCountries
Pierre Haski

Updated Nov. 22, 2023 at 8:55 p.m.

-Analysis-

PARIS — It's the first piece of good news in 46 days of war. In the early hours of Wednesday, Israel agreed to a deal that included a four-day ceasefire and the release of some of the hostages held by Hamas — 30 children and 20 women — in exchange for 150 Palestinian prisoners, again women and children. The real question is what happens next.

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But first, this agreement, negotiated through the intermediary of Qatar, whose role is essential in this phase, must be implemented right away. This is a complex negotiation, because unlike the previous hostage-for-prisoner exchanges, it is taking place in the midst of a major war.

On the Palestinian side, although Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh is present in Doha, he does not make the decision alone — he must have the agreement of the leaders of the military wing, who are hiding somewhere in Gaza. It takes 24 hours to send a message back and forth. As you can imagine, it's not as simple as a phone call.

And on the Israeli side, a consensus had to be built around the agreement. Benjamin Netanyahu's far-right allies were opposed to the deal — in line with their eradication logic — even at the cost of Israeli lives. But the opposition of these discredited parties was ignored, and that will leave its mark.

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