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Protesters demanding Gaza ceasefire block terminal at San Francisco airport

Protesters demanding Gaza ceasefire block terminal at San Francisco airport
Hundreds of anti-war protesters demanding a ceasefire in Gaza and calling for an end to U.S. military assistance for Israel blocked the international terminal at the San Francisco International Airport on Wednesday. (X/nbcbayarea)
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Updated 13 March 2024
Reuters
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Protesters demanding Gaza ceasefire block terminal at San Francisco airport

Protesters demanding Gaza ceasefire block terminal at San Francisco airport
  • Footage from the scene showed protesters carrying banners with messages such as “Permanent Ceasefire Now” and “Stop Arming Israel”
  • Airport officials said the international terminal remained open but passengers were re-routed around the activity
Updated 13 March 2024
Reuters
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SAN FRANCISCO: Hundreds of anti-war protesters demanding a ceasefire in Gaza and calling for an end to US military assistance for Israel blocked the international terminal at the San Francisco International Airport on Wednesday.
Footage from the scene showed protesters carrying banners with messages such as “Permanent Ceasefire Now,” “Stop the World for Gaza” and “Stop Arming Israel.” An ABC News affiliate put the number of demonstrators at over 300.
Protests demanding a ceasefire in Gaza have occurred in many US cities in recent months, including near airports and bridges in New York City and Los Angeles, vigils outside the White House and marches in Washington.
This month, large protests were seen ahead of US President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address and the Oscars. Demonstrators have regularly interrupted Biden’s campaign events and speeches.
Airport officials said the international terminal remained open but passengers were re-routed around the activity. Activists blocked the roadway outside the airport, marched in circles and chanted slogans.
Passengers planning to reach the terminal were told to get dropped off at the rental car center and take an air train to the terminal. There were no known flight delays.
Most of Gaza has been flattened in Israel’s offensive that the health ministry says has killed over 31,000 people, displaced nearly all its 2.3 million population and led to a starvation crisis in the narrow coastal enclave. Israel’s assault on Hamas-governed Gaza followed an Oct. 7 attack on Israel by the Palestinian Islamist group that killed about 1,200 people.
While the United States has called for a temporary ceasefire to send more aid to Gaza and get hostages taken by Hamas on Oct. 7 released, it has rejected calls for a permanent ceasefire, saying such a step would let Hamas regroup.

Topics: San Francisco anti-war protesters Ceasefire War on Gaza Israel

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Macron seeks remedy to France’s political crisis

Macron seeks remedy to France’s political crisis
Updated 6 sec ago
AFP
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Macron seeks remedy to France’s political crisis

Macron seeks remedy to France’s political crisis
Updated 6 sec ago
AFP

PARIS: French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday will seek ways out of France’s political crisis, after Michel Barnier became the first prime minister to be ousted by parliament in over six decades.
Lawmakers voted on Wednesday to oust Barnier’s government after just three months in office, approving a no-confidence motion proposed by the hard left but which crucially was backed by the far right headed by Marine Le Pen.
Barnier’s record-quick ejection comes after snap parliamentary elections this summer, which resulted in a hung parliament with no party having an overall majority and the far right holding the key to the government’s survival.
Macron now has the unenviable task of picking a viable successor with over two years of his presidential term left, with some — though not all — opponents calling on him to resign.
Barnier is due to present Macron his government’s resignation on Thursday morning.
The president will then address the nation at 1900 GMT, the Elysee said.
The no-confidence motion, brought by the hard left in the National Assembly, came amid a standoff over next year’s austerity budget, after the prime minister on Monday forced through a social security financing bill without a vote.
With the support of the far right, a majority of 331 MPs in the 577-member chamber voted to oust the government.
It was the first successful no-confidence vote since a defeat for Georges Pompidou’s government in 1962, when Charles de Gaulle was president.
“We are now calling on Macron to go,” Mathilde Panot, head of the parliamentary faction of the hard-left France Unbowed (LFI) party, told reporters, urging “early presidential elections” to solve the deepening political crisis.
But taking care not to crow over the government’s fall, Le Pen said in a television interview that her party — once a new premier is appointed — “would let them work” and help create a “budget that is acceptable for everyone.”
Laurent Wauquiez, the head of right-wing deputies in parliament, said the far right and hard left bore the responsibility for a no-confidence vote that will “plunge the country into instability.”
Candidates for the post of premier are few, but loyalist Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu and Macron’s centrist ally Francois Bayrou are possible contenders.
On the left, Macron could turn to former Socialist premier and interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve, a contender in September.
Barnier was the fifth prime minister to serve under Macron since he came to power in 2017, with every premier serving a successively shorter period.
Given the turbulence, the new nominee now risks serving an even shorter term than Barnier, whose tenure was the shortest of any administration since the Fifth Republic began in 1958.
Macron is minded to appoint the new premier rapidly, several sources told AFP.
A source close to Macron said the president, who has taken time with appointments in the past, has “no choice” but to name the new premier within 24 hours.
Macron has rejected calls to resign.
With markets nervous and France bracing for public-sector strikes against the threat of cutbacks, action that will shut schools and hit air and rail traffic, there is a growing sense of crisis.
The unions have called for civil servants, including teachers and air-traffic controllers, to strike on Thursday over separate cost-cutting measures.
Meanwhile, Macron is due to host a major international event Saturday, with the reopening of the Notre-Dame cathedral after the 2019 fire, with guests including Donald Trump on his first foreign trip since he was elected to be the next US president.
“His failure,” was left-wing daily Liberation’s front-page headline, with a picture of Macron, whose term runs until 2027.
In an editorial, Le Monde said Le Pen’s move risked upsetting her own supporters, such as retirees and business leaders, by toppling the government.
“In the space of a few minutes, she shattered the strategy of normalization she had consistently pursued,” the daily said.

Topics: France French President Emmanuel Macron

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Top US, Russian generals spoke by phone amid tensions

Top US, Russian generals spoke by phone amid tensions
Updated 50 min 5 sec ago
Reuters
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Top US, Russian generals spoke by phone amid tensions

Top US, Russian generals spoke by phone amid tensions
Updated 50 min 5 sec ago
Reuters
WASHINGTON: The top US military officer, Air Force General C.Q. Brown, spoke by phone with Russia’s Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov last week, the US military said on Wednesday, the first time Brown spoke with his Russian counterpart.
“The leaders discussed a number of global and regional security issues to include the ongoing conflict in Ukraine,” a spokesperson for Brown said in a statement.
The rare call took place on Nov. 27, but “at the request of Gen. Gerasimov, Gen. Brown agreed to not proactively announce the call.” The request for the call was made by the Russian ministry of defense, the spokesperson said.
Brown became the top US general last year, and Gerasimov last spoke with Brown’s predecessor, Mark Milley.
Tensions have spiked in recent weeks. Ukraine fired US and British missiles at targets inside Russia despite Moscow’s warnings that it would see such action as a major escalation.
Earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a televised address, said Moscow struck a Ukrainian military facility with a new medium-range, hypersonic ballistic missile known as “Oreshnik” (the hazel) and warned that more could follow.
US officials had said Russia notified Washington shortly before its strike.

UN children’s agency sets $9.9 bn fundraising goal for 2025

UN children’s agency sets $9.9 bn fundraising goal for 2025
Updated 05 December 2024
AFP
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UN children’s agency sets $9.9 bn fundraising goal for 2025

UN children’s agency sets $9.9 bn fundraising goal for 2025
Updated 05 December 2024
AFP

UNITED NATIONS: The UN children’s agency on Wednesday launched a $9.9 billion fundraising appeal to provide aid next year for millions of young people impacted by wars and other crises across the globe.
“The scale of children’s humanitarian needs is at a historically high level, with more children impacted every day,” Catherine Russell, UNICEF executive director, said in a statement.
The money will target 109 million children and will support access to primary health care facilities, mental health services, drinking water and education, malnutrition screening and gender-based violence mitigation.
“Looking ahead to 2025, we estimate that 213 million children in 146 countries and territories will need humanitarian assistance over the course of the year — a staggeringly high number,” Russell added.
UNICEF’s appeal comes at a time when humanitarian operations face a chronic funding crisis.
Last year, the agency appealed for $9.3 billion in its fundraising call.
The largest appeal for funds — at over $1 billion — is for Afghanistan, followed by Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Palestinian territories, and Lebanon.

Topics: United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)

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Afghan economy faces ‘uncertain’ future despite modest growth: World Bank

Afghan economy faces ‘uncertain’ future despite modest growth: World Bank
Updated 05 December 2024
AFP
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Afghan economy faces ‘uncertain’ future despite modest growth: World Bank

Afghan economy faces ‘uncertain’ future despite modest growth: World Bank
  • The economy’s challenges include “fiscal constraints, trade imbalances, and a limited capacity for public investment,” the bank said in its Afghanistan Development Update
Updated 05 December 2024
AFP

WASHINGTON: Afghanistan’s economy continues to face significant challenges despite showing signs of modest growth, the World Bank warned on Wednesday, with the future “uncertain.”
The economy’s challenges include “fiscal constraints, trade imbalances, and a limited capacity for public investment,” the bank said in its Afghanistan Development Update.
Critical factors for long-term recovery include enabling women’s participation in the economy, maintaining price stability and dealing with key deficits in human capital — such as education and health care, the multilateral development lender said.
While Afghanistan has seen GDP growth of 2.7 percent, driven by private consumption, this has “recouped only about 10 percent of past economic losses,” the World Bank said.
Afghanistan has been ruled by the Taliban since 2021, when their forces capitalized on the withdrawal of the US military under a peace deal to overthrow the country’s government.
The Taliban’s government has not been officially recognized by any country, and the economy remains largely isolated, with many Afghans living under the poverty line.
“Afghanistan’s long-term growth prospects depend on tapping into the substantial potential of the domestic private sector and improving the overall business environment,” said World Bank country director for Afghanistan Faris Hadad-Zervos.
The economy requires more investment, access to finance for small businesses, and support for skilled women entrepreneurs, Hadad-Zervos added.
Women and girls have been barred from secondary school and university as part of restrictions imposed by the Taliban that the UN has dubbed “gender apartheid.”
The World Bank noted that partial economic recovery, alongside falling food prices, has contributed to a gradual improvement in household welfare.
But it said many Afghan households still struggle to meet basic needs and that “poverty remains widespread.”
Trade is another challenge with a widening deficit due to surging imports on the back of greater demand for foreign goods and a revival of domestic industry.
“The trade deficit, exacerbated by Afghanistan’s reliance on imports for essential goods like fuel, food, and machinery, might pose a risk to the country’s economic stability,” the World Bank said.

Topics: Afghan economy World Bank Afghanistan Taliban

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Under pressure, UK’s Starmer sets out plans to deliver on election pledges

Under pressure, UK’s Starmer sets out plans to deliver on election pledges
Updated 05 December 2024
Reuters
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Under pressure, UK’s Starmer sets out plans to deliver on election pledges

Under pressure, UK’s Starmer sets out plans to deliver on election pledges
Updated 05 December 2024
Reuters

LONDON: Prime Minister Keir Starmer will set out plans on Thursday to deliver on his priorities to raise living standards and rebuild Britain in a speech he hopes will draw a line under what even some of his supporters say has been a bumpy start to government.
Five months since his Labour Party swept back to power with a landslide win, Starmer wants to turn the page on criticism of his government on everything from its use of campaign donations to a tax-raising budget which prompted an outcry from businesses and farmers.
He will use Thursday’s speech to plot out when Britain can expect to start seeing progress his government has promised in a range of areas, including hospital backlogs, increasing police numbers, improving education and securing home-grown energy.
Called the government’s ‘plan for change’, he is expected to set out a reform program for Britain’s overly stretched public services to try to restore trust in politics, eroded by years of chaos and scandal under the Conservatives and further deepened by Labour’s missteps in its first few months in power.
“My government was elected to deliver change, and today marks the next step. People are tired of being promised the world, but short-term sticking plaster politics letting them down,” Starmer will say, according to excerpts of his speech provided by his office.
“My mission-led government will deliver.”
Labour campaigned before the July 4 election on five missions — boosting economic growth, accelerating steps toward reaching net zero, reducing waiting times in the state-run health service, tackling crime and improving education.
His first measures on Thursday will include a move to give communities a named, contactable police officer to deal with local issues, his office said, part of a pledge to add a further 13,000 police in neighborhood roles.
“This marks a return to the founding principles of British policing — where officers are part of the communities they serve,” interior minister Yvette Cooper said in a statement.
“Through this visible, responsive police presence in every neighborhood, we will restore the trust and partnership that lies at the heart of keeping our communities safe.”

Topics: keir starmer Britain UK Labour Party

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