'Whatever happens, whatever it takes': Netanyahu to push ahead with Rafah ground offensive
The Israeli military on Saturday called on people living in the border city of Rafah in Gaza to evacuate as it prepares to expand its military operation closer to the densely populated area. “I think there’s no doubt in the fact and certainly in the mind of Binyamin Netanyahu, whatever happens and whatever it takes, he’s going to push ahead with that ground offensive,” FRANCE 24's International Affairs Editor Philip Turle said. “The problem here is, we don’t really know, and no one really knows where they’re going to go,” Turle added.
From The BBC
Summary
- Israel has ordered thousands more Rafah residents to evacuate the city as it steps up attacks in Gaza, and claims to have had face-to-face battles with Hamas
- The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has been intensifying operations around the southern city, where more than a million displaced people are sheltering
- The latest evacuation order came hours after the US said Israel may have breached international law with US weapons in Gaza
- A US government report says it is "reasonable to assess" that arms have been used in ways "inconsistent" with Israel's obligations - but stopped short of halting shipments
Israel's taking Gaza 'slice by slice' - former BBC Middle East correspondent
We've been hearing from the BBC's former Middle East correspondent Jim Muir, who has been commenting on Israel's intensifying operations in Rafah.
He tells BBC Radio 5 live that: “The Americans do not want to see a big operation" in the city and adds "there will be more arms withheld if it sees that going on".
Muir continues by saying "the writing is on the wall for the Israelis" and says he "never thought they would do one massive push".
"What they are doing is what I'm calling ‘salami tactics’; where they're [taking Gaza] sort of slice-by-slice," he says.
Polls indicate a surge for the right across the continent in next month’s ballots but the centrists are still likely to hold sway in parliament
Far-right gains in next month’s European elections will be hard, if not impossible, to parlay into more power in parliament, experts say, but they could boost nationalist parties in EU capitals – with potentially greater consequences.
Polling suggests far-right and hardline conservative parties could finish first in nine EU states, including Austria, France and the Netherlands, in the polls between 6 and 9 June, and second or third in another nine, including Germany, Spain, Portugal and Sweden.
Brazil floods: More rains expected, as people await rescue
Brazil's Rio Grande do Sul is expecting more rain this weekend, as it grapples with the fallout of last week's fatal floods. At least 126 people have died and many thousands have been displaced from their homes.
People in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul were bracing for more rains this weekend, as efforts to rescue people stranded by last week's flooding in the state continued Saturday.
The state capital, Porto Alegre, was virtually cut off as the worst flooding in 80 years submerged entire neighborhoods. The airport and bus station remain closed.
Foreign minister blasts remarks in U.S. legitimizing atomic bombings
By ANRI TAKAHASHI/ Staff Writer
May 11, 2024 at 18:23 JST
Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa reacted angrily to U.S. congressional testimony that appeared to validate the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Speaking at the May 10 session of the Lower House Foreign Affairs Committee, Kamikawa said, “(The remarks) were inappropriate and totally unacceptable.”
She followed up by arranging for letters to be posted to the U.S. side explaining Japan’s position.
The matter stemmed from a May 8 session of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee, where the topic concerned a possible delay in providing weapons to Israel in its war against Hamas.
Mexico City is sinking, running out of water: How can it be saved?
The city faces ‘Day Zero’ as aquifers drain and pipes break. Meanwhile, costly workarounds don’t fix the real problem.
Walking through Mexico City’s historic Zocalo district, Dario Solano-Rojas points to signs of a subterranean catastrophe that is under way.
The roads are uneven in the city’s central plaza, the streets and walkways are sloped and twisting. Many building foundations have sunk dramatically while others have a visible lean, resulting in cracks in the surrounding pavement. Two of the city’s most iconic structures – The Palacio de Bellas Artes and the Metropolitan Cathedral (built from the stones of the Aztec temple that once stood there) – seem to be disappearing into the earth.
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