Three released hostages back in Israel after being freed in Gaza ceasefire
Summary
Israel says three hostages - who had been held by Hamas in Gaza for 15 months - are back in Israeli territory
The hostages were released by Hamas to the Red Cross in Gaza City hours after a ceasefire began, before being handed to the Israeli military
They have been confirmed as 31-year-old Doron Steinbrecher, dual British-Israeli Emily Damari, 28, and 24-year-old Romi Gonen
Hamas says for every hostage released, 30 Palestinian prisoners will be released from Israeli jails
The long-awaited ceasefire in Gaza came into force after a last-minute delay, with displaced Palestinians beginning to return to the cities they fled
In the hours the ceasefire was delayed, Israel continued hitting Gaza, killing 19 more people, according to the Hamas-run civil defence agency
Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 back to Gaza as hostages
The attack triggered a massive Israeli offensive on Gaza, during which more than 46,900 Palestinians have been killed, according to the Hamas-run health ministry
Nato flotilla assembles off Estonia to protect undersea cables in Baltic Sea
Taskforce to act as ‘security camera of the Baltic’ after string of suspected sabotage incidents on critical infrastructure
Sun 19 Jan 2025 13.42 GMT
A Nato flotilla likened to “the security camera of the Baltic” has assembled off the coast of Estonia as the military alliance seeks to protect European undersea cables and pipelines from sabotage.
In a move that ratchets up a struggle with Russia over the seabed that has remained largely covert until now, a Dutch frigate and naval research ship, as well as a German minesweeper have all arrived in Tallinn under a thick January sea fog.
A French minesweeper is expected and more Nato vessels are on the way in support of a joint effort, called Baltic Sentry, that was agreed in Helsinki last week.
Chancellor Kickl?The Right-Wing FPÖ Reaches for Power in Austria
A middle-aged man in a dark suit walks into the hotel bar of the five-star Park Hyatt in Vienna and orders a fruit tea. Some of the guests recognize him, greeting him discreetly: "My compliments, Mr. Vice-Chancellor.”
Heinz-Christian Strache smiles and returns the greeting. The position of vice-chancellor is one he held until 2019 – in addition to having been the head of the right-wing populist Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ) for 14 years. Then came the infamous Ibiza video, published by DER SPIEGEL and others – footage of Strache falling into a trap on the vacation island, blabbering without stop, and clearly demonstrating that he could be bought. It was the end of his political career.
South Korean court extends detention of impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol
A South Korean court extended the detention of impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol early Sunday, giving prosecutors time to formalise a criminal indictment for insurrection. If found guilty, Yoon could be jailed for life or executed.
A South Korean court issued a warrant early Sunday allowing for the extended detention of the country’s impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol, as investigators probe his failed martial law bid.
Tens of thousands of Yoon’s backers had rallied outside the court on Saturday and scuffled with police as they chanted support for the suspended leader, who plunged South Korea into its worst political chaos in decades with his bid to suspend civilian rule.
The president’s December 3 martial law declaration lasted just six hours, with lawmakers voting it down despite him ordering soldiers to storm parliament to stop them. He was impeached soon after.
Across Africa, Russia is growing in influence. What might Moscow want?
While Russian ally Bashar al-Assad was being toppled by rebels in Syria, another friend of Moscow, President Faustin-Archange Touadéra, was being chaperoned by Kremlin-backed mercenaries in the conflict-ridden Central African Republic (CAR), where armed groups are yearning to oust him.
“Without the protection of Wagner (a private Russian military force), he (Touadéra) could not be president at this time,” Aboubakar Siddick, spokesperson for an alliance of rebel groups in CAR, known as the Coalition of Patriots for Change (CPC-F), told CNN.
‘I want to preserve our legacy’: Black families in Altadena fear displacement after fire
Sun 19 Jan 2025 11.00 GMT
There was too much for Donny Kincey to save. Flames were barreling into Altadena, where Kincey’s relatives had lived for four generations, toward the homes his family had purchased after they escaped the Tulsa race massacre.
The 46-year-old second-grade teacher and artist had stayed behind even as he saw fire raging across the hillside last Tuesday night. He was determined to protect his parents’ home and his own. But hours on, embers began to set Poppyfields Drive aflame and a powerful gust, the same winds bringing destruction into his beloved neighborhood, knocked him to the ground.
No comments:
Post a Comment