World

16 Palestinians die in Israeli attacks as the conflict escalates

16 were killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza, where a war is still going on. This has raised concerns about the pain of civilians and the lack of aid.

17 people were killed overnight in Gaza by Israeli bombs.

45,000 Palestinians were killed; 90% of the people were forced to leave their homes.

The most recent changes

Health officials in the Gaza Strip say that Israel killed at least 16 people in bombings that happened overnight on Sunday.

Women and children were among the dead. Six people, including four children, were killed in a strike on a school in Gaza City that held displaced civilians.

Eight people were killed in a strike in Deir al-Balah. In Khan Younis, two more people were killed.

Israel’s military says its attacks are only going after Hamas terrorists because they are hiding among citizens, the military says.

But the number of civilian deaths, including women and children who have been forced to leave their homes, keeps going up, showing how badly the war is hurting the people of Gaza.

A Quick Look at the Battle

On October 7, 2023, terrorists under the leadership of Hamas launched a surprise attack that resulted in the deaths of 1,200 Israelis.

The Gaza Health Ministry says that since then, more than 45,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza.

Because of the constant bombings and evacuations, about 90% of Gaza’s 2.3 million people have had to leave their homes.

What are the situations for people who need help in Gaza?

90% of Gaza’s people have been forced to move, some more than once.

Hundreds of thousands of people are living in crowded tent camps because of the damage.

Not having enough relief help makes everyday pain worse.

The cold winter makes life harder for families who are already struggling.

Help and a religious visit during a crisis

Over 100 hospital patients in northern Gaza were able to leave because of Israel’s COGAT, which also helped hospitals that were having a hard time by delivering food and fuel.

The head of the Catholic Church in the Holy Land, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, went to Gaza to celebrate a pre-Christmas Mass with the Christians there. This brought some short-term comfort in the midst of the destruction.

U.S. Military Aid to Taiwan Draws Strong Criticism from China

There are problems in the Taiwan Strait because China doesn’t like the idea of the US giving Taiwan military help.

Biden agreed to give Taiwan millions of dollars in help and arms.

China says that U.S. actions are risking the security of the area.

What We Know So Far

China has been very angry about the latest U.S. weapons sales and help to Taiwan, which shows that tensions are still high in the Taiwan Strait.

U.S. President Joe Biden gave Taiwan $571 million for goods, services, and military training from the Defense Department on Saturday.

This comes after a different deal of military sales worth $295 million was announced on Friday.

China’s Foreign Ministry immediately criticized the action and urged the US to stop “arming Taiwan,” as well as cautioned against taking any actions that might endanger regional peace and security.

China says that Taiwan, an island with 23 million people and a democracy, is part of its property. The United States, on the other hand, backs Taiwan’s right to protect itself.

Putting the Deals Together

A deal of $571 million in aid comes just a few weeks after Biden approved another $567 million in aid in late September. These are the military sales:

$265 million for 300 radios for military use.

16 gun racks for $30 million.

The Foreign Ministry of Taiwan praised the move and said that the U.S. would continue to support Taiwan’s security.

Why does this matter?

Tensions over Taiwan keep rising as the U.S. provides more help, even though China doesn’t like it. This brings up an important question:

What effect will these acts have on the relationship between the US and China?

It signals to the US that it is risking its reputation when dealing with Taiwan.

Taiwan thinks the help is very important for its safety and independence.

An ongoing act of balancing

The Taiwan Strait is still one of the most tense parts of diplomatic relations between the US and China.

Even though the U.S. doesn’t officially recognize Taiwan as a different country, it continues to put defense first as a way to keep Beijing from attacking.

With China’s armed threats against Taiwan getting stronger, the world is closely watching for any changes in policy or action.

In this very important strategic area, both sides seem to be constantly pushing each other to their limits.

Gaza Families Face Winter Struggles Amid War Destroying

Displaced Palestinians in Gaza have a hard time in the winter because they can’t get much help, and things are getting worse after the war.

More than 945,000 Palestinians need winter goods right away.

Blockades, damage, and problems with setting priorities make it harder to help.

Winter has made things even worse in the Gaza Strip, where nearly 2 million Palestinians who have been forced to leave their homes because of the 14-month war with Israel are struggling to stay alive in tough conditions.

As the temperature drops into the 40s (mid- to high single digits Celsius), tents and other homemade shelters aren’t very good at keeping out the rain and cold winds.

Some families, like Shadia Aiyada’s, are afraid that their tents will fall apart. She left Rafah with her eight children and said, “Strong winds could knock them over while we’re inside.”

Many parents worry about their kids’ health when they don’t have enough blankets or warm clothes.

The UN says that at least 945,000 people in Gaza need winterization goods like blankets, clothes, and heating tools right away, but they are hard to find and too expensive for most people.

Aid groups have a hard time getting goods to people in need because of problems with logistics, limits by Israel, and the fact that food aid is given more attention than other necessities.

Rats and bad weather in nearby nations have stolen or destroyed a large number of blankets, tents, and beds.

Why is there so little cold help in Gaza?

Delays: Shipping help is held up because it needs permission from several officials.

Blockades: Israeli limits make it hard for goods to get to where they need to go.

Setting priorities: food is more important than other supplies.

Destruction: Rodents and bad weather hurt things that are piled up.

UNRWA says it has sent 6,000 tents to northern Gaza, but many places are still hard to get to. It’s hard for the International Rescue Committee to bring in clothes for kids.

Israel says it has made it easier for aid to get to the area, but aid workers say the goods aren’t enough to meet everyone’s needs.

During the war, more than 45,000 Palestinians have died. More than half of those killed were women and children.

The war began when Hamas attacked southern Israel in October 2023. It has destroyed Gaza’s economy and infrastructure, making winter clothes too expensive for most families to buy.

Reda Abu Zarada, who had to leave northern Gaza, said, “We can feel frost coming out of the ground.” She sleeps with her kids in her arms, who are cold and struggling to stay warm.

Some parents, like Omar Shabet, are afraid that light fires to stay warm will make their bunkers easy targets for attacks.

As talks between Hamas and Israel to end the fighting move forward, people are hoping that more relief help will be sent.

Families who have been forced to leave Gaza must now face the hard winter with few resources and growing despair.

Assad Dynasty Falls; Qardaha Grapples With New Reality

Syria’s Assad government falls; people in Qardaha are having a hard time with money and want justice in Syria after the war.

The Assad family’s past wealth is different from Qardaha’s poverty.

In Syria after Assad, calls for justice and peace are growing.

After more than 50 years of Assad family rule in Syria ended with a rebel attack, people in Qardaha, which is where the Assad family grew up, think back on the hard times and confusion they faced during that time.

Once a sign of power, former President Hafez Assad’s tomb is now a mess. The grave has been set on fire, and the grounds have been robbed. The end of a family has been marked by the destruction of Bashar Assad’s home.

People from the Alawite group, like the Assad family, lived in Qardaha, which was poor even though it was seen as a wealthy haven.

A lot of people in the area had to rely on low-paying work and joining the military to make ends meet, while the Assad family lived in luxury.

An ex-soldier named Ali Youssef said, “We lived on bread, oil, and salt.” “The old regime didn’t help many people.”

How are the people in Qardaha doing now that Assad is gone?

Economy: Government workers continue to receive unpaid salaries, and the cost of gas has skyrocketed.

Missing Soldiers: Thousands of young soldiers from Qardaha have not been seen or heard from, and many have been found mentioned as prisoners.

Security: People who live there say that things are “acceptable” right now, but they are worried about religious strife.

Hope : People in the new Syria want “equal rights and duties” for everyone, no matter what group they belong to.

As for Syria after Assad, many people are cautiously hopeful. Lawyer and graduate student Jaafar Ahmed said, “We don’t want special treatment; we just want equal rights.”

But fears still exist. Families of soldiers who served in Assad’s army are worried about their loved ones who are now in different places or being held.

Soldiers who give up their guns can now get “reconciliation IDs” from the new government, but there is still not enough security and economic peace.

Locals are hopeful about togetherness, but they stress how important it is to be accountable. Ahmed wants either full unity or transitional justice to be used to deal with the crimes committed by all sides in Syria’s bloody civil war.

Ahmed said, “We can’t hold one group responsible and not care about another.” “Everyone should be treated fairly.”

As the Assad family falls apart, places like Qardaha look to the future with mixed feelings of hope and fear, eager to rebuild after decades of damage.

Flooding in South Sudan Displaces Thousands, Crisis Deepens

In South Sudan, devastating rains force thousands to leave their homes, leaving communities to deal with lack of food and abuse.

In 2023, terrible storms forced over 379 thousand people to leave their homes.

Communities need help because they’ve lost farms and houses.

Over 379 thousand people have been forced to leave their homes in South Sudan this year because of flooding. They had to go to higher places like the Jonglei Canal to find safety.

It has flooded villages, destroyed farms, and killed animals, making things even harder for a country that was already having a hard time with climate change and other problems.

In Jonglei State’s Pajiek, a makeshift community of relocated families is fighting to stay alive. They live in homes made of mud and grass.

Long-horned cattle walk through their flooded fields as people like Bichiok Hoth Chuiny, 70, talk about leaving their town when the water level rose and turned it into a swamp.

The World Bank says that South Sudan is the “most vulnerable country to climate change in the world.”

Ugandan dams upstream have been blamed for letting water out, which has made this year’s storms even worse.

Seasonal floods used to be doable for herding groups like the Dinka and Nuer, but now it happens at levels that have never been seen before, killing incomes and causing people to leave their homes.

How are families who have been moved coping?

Dependence on help: People there depend a lot on food help from groups like the World Food Program (WFP).

Problems with health care: clinics don’t have enough materials, and doctors haven’t been paid since June.

Education Crisis: There are no schools in the new towns, so kids can’t learn simple things.

Daily Struggles: Food amounts aren’t enough, so many people eat wild plants and water lilies to stay alive.

Families have to walk for hours through waist-high water to get to nearby towns, which is a very bad form of displacement.

People who live in the area, like Pajiek’s paramount chief Peter Kuach Gatchang, say it’s been ignored because there is no cell service, no schools, and no government presence.

South Sudan is having a hard time dealing with the crisis because its economy is weak, its government is unstable, and there is still fighting going on.

After Sudan’s civil war, oil exports were stopped, which used up even more resources.

The rising refugee situation shows how much help and attention the whole world needs right now. If something isn’t done, fragile areas will have even less food, more health risks, and more people having to move because of floods caused by climate change.

Ten people die in a terrible stampede in Abuja

Ten people, including children, are killed in a stampede in Abuja at a Christmas event.

Ten people died in an Abuja stampede.

Another terrible event this week

Ten people, four of them children, died in a terrible rush in Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, on Saturday.

Police say the tragedy happened when a lot of people met at the Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Maitama to get food that the church was giving out at a Christmas event.

The event happened early in the morning, and more than 1,000 people had to leave the stylish Maitama area because of it.

Police spokeswoman Josephine Adeh confirmed the deaths and stressed how important it was to act quickly.

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of lives and are working tirelessly to assist those affected,” he said.

What caused the crowd to rush?

Big Crowd: More than 1,000 people showed up for the release.

Fewer Exits: Too many people were squished because there weren’t enough exits.

Fear: People pushed forward when they felt sudden fear.

Emergency Response: The problem got worse when emergency services were late.

This terrible event is the second panic in Nigeria in a week. Nigeria is the most crowded country in Africa.

The country’s serious cost-of-living problem has led many local groups, schools, and people to plan a lot of handouts before Christmas.

This has led to a rise in charity events. The more meetings are meant to provide much-needed relief, but they have also caused worries about how to handle the crowds and keep everyone safe.

The authorities are looking into what caused the rush so that it doesn’t happen again. At the same time, leaders in the community are asking for better planning and infrastructure to keep big groups safe, especially during busy times like the holidays.

Families who were affected by the rush are getting help from a number of charitable organizations, and the government has promised to make future events safer.

People all over the country are talking about how to balance pressing humanitarian needs with good crowd control so that tragedies like this don’t happen again.

When drones attack Russian airports, flights are limited

Russian airports in Kazan and Saratov were closed after what were thought to be Ukrainian drone strikes.

Eight drones struck Kazan, but no one was hurt.

Both Russia and Ukraine say that drones have intercepted important messages.

State-run news sources said that two major Russian airports were closed early Saturday morning because of claimed drone attacks from Ukraine.

The Federal Air Transport Agency of Russia temporarily stopped planes from landing and taking off at Kazan International Airport and Gagarin Airport in Saratov, both in the southwest of Russia.

Unexpectedly, Kazan, which is more than 600 miles from places held by Ukraine, and Saratov, which is more than 350 miles away, were both attacked.

The news office for Tatarstan said that eight drones attacked Kazan, but no one was hurt. According to Tass, “one was at an industrial enterprise, one was over a river, and six were aimed at residential areas.”

Kazan’s mayor, Ilsur Metshin, admitted that fires broke out in homes in three city areas, which is why some schools had to be evacuated.

The leader of Tatarstan, Rustam Minnikhanov, called what happened on Telegram a “massive UAV attack.”

He gave people peace of mind by saying, “All forces have been deployed.” Do not worry. That is the most important thing. Our instructions to the government are to quickly let people know about escape spots.

What did Russia do about the drone attacks?

Six Ukrainian drones were shot down over Kazan, according to the Defense Ministry.

Three drones were hit and killed.

Electronic warfare was used to stop three of them.

In total, 19 Ukrainian drones have been caught flying over Russian airspace.

Russia said it had shot down 19 Ukrainian drones inside its own borders. On the other hand, Ukraine’s air force said that Russia sent 113 drones into Ukraine overnight. 57 drones were shot down by Ukrainian air defenses, and 56 were lost to active defenders.

On Saturday morning, air raid sirens could be heard all over Ukraine, and officials warned that nuclear weapons could be used across the country.

Presidential spokesman Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that recent attacks destroyed a cancer center in Kherson and hurt buildings in Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia.

Attacks with ballistic missiles happened in Kyiv, and areas like Sumy, Kryvyi Rih, Dnipropetrovsk, and Donetsk were shelled. Seven people were hurt in Zaporizhzhia and six were hurt in Kharkiv.

Zelenskyy called the strikes “Russian terror” and thanked Britain, France, and other countries that helped Ukraine. He told us, “Together, through our collective strength, we will secure a lasting peace.”

These attacks come after a missile and drone attack on Kyiv last Friday, which killed at least one person and did a lot of damage to the city center.

Damage was also done to foreign missions. Ukrainian officials called the attack “barbaric.”

Identifying the Magdeburg attacker shakes Germany

A terrible attack in Magdeburg by Taleb A. kills five and hurts 200 at a Christmas market.

Suspect driven by views against Islam

A planned attack on BMW hurt more than 200 people.

Germany is still in shock after a terrible attack in Magdeburg on Friday night, when a 50-year-old man drove a black BMW into a busy Christmas market.

At least five people died in the terrible event, and about 200 others were hurt. The suspect, Taleb A., was quickly caught. He is a psychiatrist and psychotherapist who has lived in Germany for twenty years.

Local media said that Taleb A. used to be a Muslim but now hates Islam and has written anti-Islamic things on his X (formerly Twitter) account.

He tweeted and retweeted things that were negative about religion and positive about Muslims who gave up their faith.

Also, Taleb has spoken out against how the German government is treating what he calls the “Islamism of Europe.”

After 25 years in this “game,” you might think nothing could surprise you anymore, but Peter Neumann, a well-known German expert on terrorism, expressed shock at what had occurred.

It wasn’t on my mind, though, that a 50-year-old Saudi ex-Muslim living in East Germany loves the AfD and wants to punish Germany for being tolerant of Islamists.

How did Taleb A. decide to carry out the attack?

Saying bad things about Islam and criticizing it

Support for the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which is very far to the right

The idea that German officials target Saudis looking for shelter

A desire to punish Germany for what people see as its acceptance of Islamists

Taleb’s reasons for writing seem to be linked to his strong resistance to Islam and his support for extreme political groups.

The police are looking into his past, including whether he backed the AfD and whether he helped Saudi women flee their home country in the past.

Recent attention on his idea that German officials treat Saudi refugee seekers unfairly may have made him act even more radically.

The attack has made people in Magdeburg sad and has stoked arguments about immigration, integration, and radical ideas in Germany.

Security forces are going over procedures to make sure that tragedies like these don’t happen again, and officials are trying to deal with the problems that may cause people to act violently in the first place.

The families of the dead want the government to help them in every way and get justice quickly. Meanwhile, the event has sparked discussions about the potential for social media to radicalize individuals and the importance of monitoring extreme content on the internet.

While Germany tries to get over this pointless violence, it stays alert to the dangers posed by radical ideas and works to make society safer and more open to everyone.

Cyclone Chido left thousands in desperation in Mayotte

Cyclone Chido destroys Mayotte, leaving thousands of people without homes and health services overloaded.

Hospitals are too full of people

Infrastructure makes it harder to help in an emergency.

A week after Cyclone Chido hit, France’s poor Indian Ocean region of Mayotte is still dealing with broad damage.

There are more than 320,000 people living on the island, and another 100,000 have moved there.

It is now very hard to figure out how many people have died, get basic services back up and running, and help a population that is struggling.

The main hospital in Mamoudzou, the city of Mayotte, is under a lot of stress. The head of the obstetrics and gynecology department, Dr. Roger Serhal, said that 40 to 60 beds and 40 to 40 patient rooms had been lost. Serhal said, “We have no room for all the patients who are coming in.”

In 220 kph winds, his team delivered three babies, including one by C-section, which showed how badly the hospital was doing.

The damage goes beyond hospitals and clinics. Whole areas were destroyed, and many people didn’t leave even though they were told to because they thought the storm wouldn’t be that bad.

France’s Health Minister Geneviève Darrieussecq, says that the 35 reported deaths are probably a lot less than the real number.

A lot more people may have died, especially refugees who didn’t go to shelters because they were afraid of being sent back to their home countries.

Due to a lack of clean water and power, doctors are worried that a health crisis is about to happen.

Living conditions that are too crowded make it easier for diseases to spread. Patients aren’t getting care because there is no water or power.

“We worry about epidemics like the cholera outbreak that we just stopped,” said Dr. Vincent Gilles, who is in charge of the hospital’s emergency room.

Why do you think Mayotte is having so much trouble?

Hospitals are overcrowded and don’t have enough beds.

Not having enough power or clean water

The chance of disease outbreaks

Emergency help is being sent out slowly.

As hospital resources run out, the situation stays very bad. As Serhal says, “If it rains, it will be terrible.”

People who live there, like 54-year-old Saindou Mohamadi, who was hurt in the storm, are very sad. He said, “My family needs food and a place to live, but we don’t have anything.”

With six kids to take care of, Mohamadi is like many other Mayotte locals who have lost their homes and are without money.

About 75% of the people in Mayotte live in poverty because the country has long been neglected and underinvested in.

The infrastructure of the island wasn’t ready for Cyclone Chido’s destruction, which made people less confident in the government’s ability to help quickly.

Emergency relief attempts are still going on, including airlifts of food and water, but they are slowed down because Mayotte’s airport is closed to passenger planes because of damage.

During his visit on Friday, French President Emmanuel Macron admitted how bad things were and promised to rebuild. But locals are still angry about how slowly help is being sent to them.

According to France’s Interior Ministry, 70% of Mayotte’s people have been severely affected, and many have been left homeless and defenseless.

A rocket attack hits Tel Aviv as the conflict in Yemen gets worse

As the war between Israel and the Houthis gets worse, a rocket from Yemen hits Tel Aviv, hurting people.

30 people are hurt in a rocket attack in Tel Aviv.

Houthis fire more than 200 rockets into Gaza during a war.

Overnight, rockets fired from Yemen hit Tel Aviv, hurting 16 people with broken glass. The Israeli military says that 14 more people were slightly hurt as they ran for cover when air raid sirens went off just before 4 a.m. Saturday.

The latest incident in a string of ones between Israeli troops and the Houthi rebels in Yemen is this one.

In the capital, Sanaa, which the Houthis control, and the port city, Hodeida, Israeli bombs killed at least nine people less than two days ago.

These attacks came right after a Houthi attack in which a long-range missile hit an Israeli school building.

The Houthis also said that a drone attack happened on Thursday in central Israel on an unknown military target.

Why do the Houthis want to attack Israel?

A: In reaction to the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, to put pressure on both sides to end the fighting.

How many times have the Houthis attacked?

A: More than 200 rockets and drones since the fighting got worse.

What parts of the world are these acts hitting?

A: Tel Aviv and important sea paths in the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea.

What is the reaction around the world to these events?

A: The UN warns of a possible worsening of the situation in the region and asks for help.

Because Iran backs the Houthi movement, its operation has grown, making it harder for ships to travel through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

According to Stephane Dujarric, a spokesman for the UN, Israeli attacks on Hodeida’s port have done a lot of damage, making it much harder for Yemen to get food supplies during its 10-year civil war.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed concern over the escalating tensions, emphasizing that attacks from both sides could thwart peace efforts.

Guterres emphasized the need for international action to stop the area from becoming even less stable.

The latest rocket attack in Tel Aviv shows how the conflict between Israel and Hamas affects nearby countries and threatens the safety of everyone in the world.

As both sides keep attacking, people around the world are paying close attention and asking for caution and peaceful ways to stop a bigger humanitarian disaster.