Six In The Morning Saturday 23 November 2024

 

Walkout by the AOSIS and LDC groups

Patrick Greenfield and Fiona Harvey report:

Two groups – the Alliance of Small Island States and the Least Developed Countries – have thrown down the gauntlet at a meeting. They’ve now said they want a guaranteed 30% of climate finance, and then walked out of meeting room three.

Speaking with journalists after walking out, representatives from Sierra Leone and Samoa expressed their frustrations with talks. “We have just walked out. We came to this Cop for a fair deal. We feel that we haven’t been heard and there is a deal to be made. We are not being consulted. That’s why we are here but we are here to negotiate. We walked out because at the moment, we don’t feel that we are being heard,” said the representative from Samoa.

South Korea to shun Sado mine memorial in Japan

South Korea says it will not attend a ceremony in Japan to commemorate victims of forced labor in the Sado Island Gold Mines. This comes as the two nations seek to draw together amid regional threats.

South Korea will not be attending a November memorial ceremony in Japan to honor people subjected to wartime forced labor in the Sado Island Gold Mines, the South Korean Foreign Ministry said on Saturday, citing differences with Tokyo.

Japan agreed to host a memorial event each year to commemorate the forced labor victims in exchange for Seoul's consent to having the network of mines on Sado added to UNESCO's World Heritage register.

Hundreds of organisations protest violence against women across France

More than 400 French organisations have called for demonstrations across France on Saturday to protest violence against women. The mass mobilisation comes amid the widespread shock caused by the Pelicot mass rape trial, in which some 50 men are accused of raping Gisèle Pelicot at the behest of her husband while she was unconscious. 

Demonstrations are planned in dozens of cities, including Paris, Bordeaux, Marseille and Lille, two days before the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women on Monday.

In Paris, the procession is due to leave at 2pm local time from Gare du Nord in the direction of Place de la Bastille.

The protest against all forms of violence – including sexual, physical, psychological and economic – takes place amid the Pelicot mass rape trial, in which some 50 men are accused of raping Gisèle Pelicot while she was unconscious, having been drugged by her husband.

Israeli strikes kill dozens in Gaza over 48 hours, damage hospital in north, Palestinian medics say

By Nidal Al-Mughrabi

November 23, 2024

Israeli military strikes across the Gaza Strip have killed at least 120 Palestinians over the last 48 hours and hit a hospital on the northern edge of the enclave, wounding medical staff and damaging equipment, Palestinian medics said on Saturday.

Among the dead were seven members of one family whose house was hit overnight in the Zeitoun suburb of Gaza City, the health officials said. The rest were killed in separate Israeli strikes in central and southern Gaza.

At the same time, Israeli forces deepened their incursion and bombardment of the northern edge of the enclave, their main offensive since early last month.

Laos pledges justice after suspected tainted alcohol kills tourists

Australia presses Laotian authorities for a full and transparent probe after the deaths of two 19-year-old backpackers.

The Laos government has pledged to bring the perpetrators to justice following the deaths of several foreign tourists from consuming tainted alcohol.

An investigation was under way into the suspected methanol poisoning, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Saturday, expressing its condolences to the families.

No 'red lines' in Ukraine support, French foreign minister tells BBC

Laura Kuenssberg

Presenter, Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg•@bbclaurak

There are no "red lines" when it comes to support for Ukraine, the French Foreign Minister has told the BBC.

Jean-Noël Barrot said that Ukraine could fire French long-range missiles into Russia "in the logics of self defence", but would not confirm if French weapons had already been used.

"The principle has been set... our messages to President Zelensky have been well received," he said in an exclusive interview for Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg.