Skip to main content

French government faces fresh test as Yellow Vests mobilise

France's Yellow Vest movement filed plans for a major ​march through Paris on Saturday, presenting the government with its next major test after riots and looting last weekend shook confidence ‌in its ability to maintain order. Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu was due to meet union leaders on Wednesday, seeking ways to defuse one of the worst crises France has faced in recent years and avoid a repeat of the violence that swept French cities on October 17. A representative of the "Gilets Jaunes" (Yellow Vests) movement, which is a grassroots ​group not tied to the unions, presented plans for a march across the heart of Paris, including areas that were ransacked just ​days ago. Student groups have also called for protests the same day to push their demands for more investment ⁠in education. Yellow Vest activists are seeking to revive their campaign, which emerged in 2018, against rising living costs and declining public services. Investors fret, French borrowin...

Israeli military instructed to demolish Lebanese homes in 'frontline villages', minister says

Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz ​said on Sunday that he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had instructed the military to accelerate the demolition of Lebanese homes in "frontline villages" to end threats to Israeli communities. The military was instructed to immediately destroy all bridges over Lebanon's Litani River, which he said were used for "terrorist activity", Katz said in a statement released by his office. The Israeli military said early on Saturday it was striking Hezbollah targets in Beirut after issuing an evacuation warning for seven neighbourhoods in the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital. There were no immediate reports of casualties. Israel has been stepping up airstrikes against Lebanon in the third week of its war with Iran-backed Hezbollah. The Hezbollah-Israel conflict has become the deadliest spillover of the US-Israeli war on Iran since the Lebanese fighter groups fired at Israel in support of Tehran on March 2, with more than 1,000 people killed in Lebanon and over one million displaced. Read: Energy infrastructure in crosshairs as Trump-Iran threats intensify Earlier, the United Arab Emirates authorities said on Friday they had dismantled a “terrorist network” funded and operated by Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Iran, and arrested its members. According to the UN, more than one million people have been displaced in Lebanon as Israeli strikes escalated across the country, with nearly one-third of those uprooted being children. "Overnight and into the early morning, Israeli strikes on central Beirut reportedly caused additional casualties," UN spokesperson Farhan Haq said during a news conference, adding that residential areas were struck, causing a multi-story building to collapse. Pointing to Israeli attacks on health care facilities, Haq said: "Earlier today, authorities reported significant damage sustained by three government hospitals following Israeli strikes, injuring health care workers." He added that "more than one million people are now displaced, including 367,000 children — that's nearly one third of the displaced," as fighting between Israeli forces and armed groups in Lebanon showed no signs of slowing.

from Latest World News, International News | Breaking World News https://ift.tt/HZnbdNS

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

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

A bridge collapsed at a cobalt mine in southeast Democratic Republic of Congo killing at least 32 wildcat miners, a regional government official said Sunday. The bridge came down Saturday onto a flooded zone at the mine in Lualaba province, Roy Kaumba Mayonde, the provincial interior minister, told reporters. He said 32 bodies had been recovered and more were being searched for. The DRC produces more than 70 percent of the world supply of cobalt, which is essential for batteries used in electric cars, many laptop computers and mobile phones. More than 200,000 people are estimated to be working in giant illegal cobalt mines in the giant central African country. Local authorities said the bridge collapsed at the Kalando mine, about 42 kilometres (26 miles) southeast of the Lualaba provincial capital, Kolwezi. "Despite a formal ban on access to the site because of the heavy rain and the risk of a landslide, wildcat miners forced their way into the quarry," said Mayonde. He said ...

Arab countries, Pakistan likely to observe Eid on same day

The International Astronomy Centre confirmed on Wednesday that the crescent moon of Shawwal will be impossible to sight on Saturday, March 29, across all regions of the Arab and Islamic world. This is due to the moon setting before the sun, with the conjunction occurring after sunset. As a result, observing the crescent moon, whether by the naked eye, telescopes, or other means, will be unfeasible on March 29. For countries requiring an actual sighting to mark the start of Shawwal, Ramadan will likely extend to 30 days, with Eid Al Fitr falling on Monday, March 31. However, in some regions where the conjunction occurs before sunset, allowing the moon to set after sunset, some countries may choose to declare Eid on Sunday, March 30, following traditional moon-sighting practices. Notably, a partial solar eclipse will be visible at noon on Saturday in parts of the western Arab world, including Mauritania, Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. This event serves as definitive proof that the cresce...

Climate damage fund hailed, but 'needs billions rather than millions'

The launch of a climate "loss and damage" fund drew praise and hundreds of millions of dollars in pledges at the UN's COP28 talks on Thursday but also warnings that much more is needed to help vulnerable nations. "We have delivered history today," the UAE's COP28 president Sultan Al Jaber told delegates who stood and applauded after the decision's adoption in Dubai. The announcement was followed immediately by financial pledges, including 225 million euros ($246 million) from the European Union, $100 million from the United Arab Emirates, another $100 million from Germany, $40 million from Britain, $17.5 million from the United States and $10 million from Japan. After years of dragging their feet on the issue, wealthy nations backed the fund in a landmark agreement at the COP27 summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, last year. Its launch on the first day of COP28 follows fraught negotiations on the mechanics of the fund, which will be housed at the World Bank...