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Record-breaking heat wave grips western United States

A record early heat wave striking the western United States on Friday is a one-in-500-year event and almost certainly the result of human-caused climate change, experts say. The heat has been toppling records this week and is set to continue into the weekend across western cities while expanding eastward. Four locations in the desert area near the California-Arizona border registered 44.4 degrees Celsius on Friday, a US national record for March. The readings were recorded near Yuma and Martinez Lake in Arizona, and around Winterhaven and Ogilby in California. Read: Intense heatwave grips US, triggering record-breaking temperatures Already, 65 cities have recorded new March highs, ranging from Arizona and California to Idaho, Weather.com reported. Death Valley reached 40°C on Thursday, while typically cool and foggy San Francisco tied its historic March record at 29°C. In Colorado, skiers were seen hitting the slopes shirtless. The National Weather Service issued extreme heat warni...
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Israeli defence minister vows military to remain in Gaza

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday that Israel’s military would never fully withdraw from the Gaza Strip for security reasons and that a civilian-military army unit would be established in the Palestinian enclave. Under a US-backed peace plan signed by both Israel and Hamas in October, the Israeli military is meant to gradually withdraw completely from the coastal enclave, and Israel would not re-establish civilian settlements there. “We are located deep inside Gaza and we will never leave all of Gaza. There will never be such a thing. We are there to protect, to prevent what happened,” Katz said in a speech, referring to Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 raid on Israel. The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declined to comment. Read More: Dozens mourn six killed in Israeli shelling of Gaza shelter Referring to units of the Israeli military, Katz said: “When the time comes, in northern Gaza ... we will build Nahal units instead of the (Israeli) communities that were displaced. We will do so in the right way at the right time.” “We don’t trust anybody else to protect our citizens,” he added, pointing to what he said was also a need to be present in Lebanon and Syria. Katz’s mention of displaced communities appeared to refer to Israel’s withdrawal of all Jewish settlements from Gaza in 2005. Netanyahu has repeatedly ruled out the possibility of re-establishing settlements in Gaza throughout the two-year war, although some ultra-nationalist members of his coalition have called for reoccupation. Also Read: Israel’s security cabinet approves 19 new settlements in West Bank Nahal units in Israel’s armed forces are for civilians interested in enlisting in the military and include a year of pre-military preparatory and volunteer programmes. These units have historically played a role in establishing Israeli communities. Israel is heading into an election year in 2026, and the issue of settlements is expected to be a key topic. Katz was speaking at a ceremony in the Israeli-occupied West Bank announcing the establishment of 1,200 housing units in the Israeli settlement of Beit El. The units are being built on the site of an Israeli military base that is being shut down. Speaking about the West Bank, Katz said: “Netanyahu’s government is a settlements government... it strives for action. If we can get sovereignty, we will bring about sovereignty... We are in the practical sovereignty era.”

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At least 32 miners dead after bridge fails at cobalt site in southeast DR Congo

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US, Philippines kick off joint military drills in South China Sea with 16,000 troops

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Indian devotees splurge on jets, gold idols as Hindu temple opens

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