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Live updates | Israeli troops surround Gaza City ahead of expected advance into Hamas-ruled enclave

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:42 GMT

Israeli troops divided the northern and southern parts of Gaza ahead of an expected advance into the Hamas-ruled coastal enclave, as communications across the territory were temporarily cut Monday for a third time since the war started. The troops are expected to enter Gaza City on Monday or Tuesday, Israeli media reported.The developments came after Israeli airstrikes hit two refugee camps in the central Gaza Strip on Sunday, killing scores of people, health officials said. Israel has so far rejected U.S. suggestions that it take a humanitarian pause from its relentless bombardment of Gaza amid rising civilian deaths. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to Ramallah in the West Bank on Sunday for a previously unannounced meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Blinken later flew to Baghdad for talks with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani.The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war surpassed 9,700 with more than 4,000 of them children and minor...

South Korea plans to launch its first military spy satellite on Nov. 30

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:42 GMT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea said Monday it plans to launch its first domestically built spy satellite at the end of this month to better monitor rival North Korea as it expands its arsenal of nuclear weapons.The plan was unveiled days after North Korea failed to follow through on a vow to make a third attempt to launch its own reconnaissance satellite in October, likely because of technical issues.Jeon Ha Gyu, a spokesperson for the South Korean Defense Ministry, told reporters Monday that the country’s first military spy satellite will be launched from California’s Vandenberg Air Force Base on Nov. 30.The satellite will be carried by SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket. Under a contract with SpaceX, South Korea plans to launch four more spy satellites by 2025, according to South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration.South Korea currently has no military reconnaissance satellites of its own and relies on U.S. spy satellites to monitor moves by North Korea. The possession...

Inconsistent Bills have already surpassed last season’s loss total

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:42 GMT

CINCINNATI (AP) — The Buffalo Bills entered their prime-time matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals holding an early playoff spot in the AFC. Another inconsistent offensive performance in a 24-18 loss Sunday night dropped the Bills (5-4) out of postseason position — and gave them more regular-season losses already than they had all last year. Still, Sean McDermott isn’t concerned about the confidence level of his team.“These guys are invested,” the Bills coach said. “It’s tough to win in the NFL. When you go up against a good football team, you have to do things right. We didn’t do enough things right tonight to win.” And it cost the Bills a chance to tie the Dolphins for first place in the AFC East after Miami lost to Kansas City earlier Sunday. It was a rematch of last season’s AFC divisional playoff round when the Bills, who went 13-3 in the regular season, lost 27-10 to the Bengals. This one got off to an encouraging for the Bills, who drove 85 yards in seven plays on their f...

Matan a tiros a un locutor de radio filipino mientras transmitía en vivo en su casa

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:42 GMT

(CNN) —  Matan a tiros a un locutor de radio mientras transmitía en vivo su programa en Facebook desde su casa en el sur de Filipinas el domingo, lo que provocó una búsqueda de sus asesinos y la condena del presidente del país.El locutor Juan Jumalon, también conocido como “DJ Johnny Walker”, fue baleado por asaltantes no identificados en un “asesinato descarado”, dijo el Sindicato Nacional de Periodistas de Filipinas (NUJP) en un comunicado en X, antes Twitter .The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines condemns the brazen killing of Juan Jumalon, also known as DJ Johnny Walker, of 94.7 Calamba Gold FM in Calamba, Misamis Occidental this morning.> pic.twitter.com/Dg1eYNT3Dx— NUJP (@nujp) November 5, 2023“El ataque es aún más condenable ya que ocurrió en la propia casa de Jumalon, que también servía como estación de radio”, dijo, y agregó que Jumalon es el cuarto trabajador de los medios asesinado desde que el presidente Ferdinand Marcos Jr. llegó al p...

Israeli troops surround Gaza City and cut off northern part of the besieged Hamas-ruled territory

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:42 GMT

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli troops early Monday had surrounded Gaza City and cut off the northern part of the besieged Hamas-ruled territory as communications lost for several hours across Gaza overnight were being restored.Troops are expected to enter the city Monday or Tuesday, Israeli media reported, and militants who have prepared for years are expected to fight street by street using a vast network of tunnels. Casualties will likely rise on both sides in the month-old war, which has already killed more than 9,700 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.Some 1.5 million Palestinians, or around 70% of the population, have fled their homes since the war began with a bloody Hamas incursion into Israel that killed more than 1,400 people, mostly civilians. Food, medicine, fuel and water are running low, and U.N.-run schools-turned-shelters are beyond capacity, with many sleeping on the streets outside.Israel has so far rejected U.S. suggestions for a pause in f...

Live updates | Israeli troops surround Gaza City. Communications being restored to territory

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:42 GMT

Israeli troops divided the northern and southern parts of Gaza, as communications across the besieged territory were temporarily cut Monday for a third time since the war started. The troops are expected to enter Gaza City on Monday or Tuesday, Israeli media reported.The developments came after Israeli airstrikes hit two refugee camps in the central Gaza Strip on Sunday, killing scores of people, health officials said. Israel has so far rejected U.S. suggestions that it take a humanitarian pause from its relentless bombardment of Gaza amid rising civilian deaths. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to Ramallah in the West Bank on Sunday for a previously unannounced meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Blinken later flew to Baghdad for talks with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani.The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war surpassed 9,700 with more than 4,000 of them children and minors, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza. In...

EU allocates more than €26 million in additional humanitarian aid to East Africa

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:42 GMT

The Horn of Africa and the Great Lakes regions continue to face multiple and overlapping humanitarian crises, aggravated by conflict and climate-related disasters. To help mitigate the consequences, the Commission has allocated additional humanitarian funding of €26.7 million to South Sudan, Uganda, Somalia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, primarily to support newly displaced people fleeing conflicts and climatic events.In South Sudan, where around 2,000 people arrive daily from neighbouring Sudan, the additional funding of €6.4m will support humanitarian response in the border areas. Out of the new arrivals – refugees and South Sudanese returnees – 70% are women and children, and 1 in 5 are malnourished.In Somalia, around 2 million people will require emergency humanitarian assistance as a result of conflict, floods and cholera outbreak before the end of 2023. The additional €5.5m will support the overall humanitarian response in the country.€1.5m will strengthen food sec...

Dear Abby: The rest of the book club is appalled by the woman I invited

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:42 GMT

DEAR ABBY: I’m in a book club I started with friends 13 years ago. The 12 of us have grown close, and we value, appreciate and respect each other.Related ArticlesAdvice | Dear Abby: My sister-in-law always has ‘other plans.’ Should I stop asking? Advice | Dear Abby: I haven’t told my wife what I know. Should I stick around? Advice | Dear Abby: I just wanted to sit in their house for a few hours, and they wouldn’t let me in Advice | Dear Abby: I just learned my brother knew a secret that would have changed my life Advice | Dear Abby: My sister says this skeevy man needs to be part of our family I recently invited a childhood friend to join. She’s an avid reader.Abby, although she’s a nice person, she simply does not fit in with the group.She talks too much, tends to brag a lot and makes insensitive comments. An example: Two of us are leaving on a cruise soon, and ...

This Week in Business: Consumer borrowing, consumer sentiment, small business update

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:42 GMT

Borrowing barometer The Federal Reserve delivers its monthly snapshot of U.S. consumer borrowing on Tuesday.The tally, which excludes mortgages and other loans secured by real estate, is expected to show consumer borrowing rose by $7.5 billion in September. Consumer borrowing is being watched closely by economists and investors as interest rates have risen to their highest level in more than two decades.Consumer credit, monthly change, seasonally adjusted, billions of dollars:April: 14.4May: 0June: 13.8July: 11.0Aug.: -15.6Sept. (est.) 7.5Source: FactSetSmall business checkupA monthly index that tracks small firms’ view of the U.S. economy and their business prospects is due out Thursday.The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index slipped in September, the 21st straight reading below the index’s 49-year average. The index is based on data from surveys of firms in the National Federation of Independent Business.NFIB small business index, by month:April: 89May: 89.4June: 91July: 91.9...

Polish President Duda set to nominate prime minister Monday

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:42 GMT

President Andrzej Duda will nominate a candidate for prime minister who will get the first shot at forming a Polish government in a speech on Monday evening, his head of Cabinet said.Duda’s decision, made after “consultation and deep consideration,” is “final,” Marcin Mastalerek, the head of Duda’s office, wrote on social media.Poland’s three largest opposition parties said after the October 15 election that they were ready to build a coalition led by Donald Tusk, a former PM and European Council president, to replace the incumbent Law and Justice (PiS) party and asked Duda to allow them the first opportunity to form a government. Tusk’s Civic Coalition, together with the center-right Third Way and the Left, have 248 seats in the 460-member lower house of parliament.PiS came in first in the election, winning 194 seats, but is unlikely to be able to find partners to bring it to the needed parliamentary majority of 231. However, Duda — wh...