cross-posted from: https://sopuli.xyz/post/44003824

“The first thing we saw was the town square being blown up. I have a shop there. A person’s whole life is in that place, their work, their memories, everything. Suddenly you see it exploding in front of you,” said Ahmad Abu Taam, a 56-year-old construction supply shop owner from Taybeh. “From that moment, I felt that I had become a refugee. I feel like I have no home.”

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.bestiver.se/post/1044171

Comments

They must not have worn suits or thanked him enough but the dealbreaker was that the selection of couches was abysmal.

This is the article about Amanda Ungaro, the reason behind Melania’s statement.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/45812221

11 April 2026

Over 200 people have been arrested central London on Saturday at a mass demonstration opposing the UK government’s proscription of the direct action group Palestine Action.

Some 500 protesters set up camping chairs at the foot of the steps of Trafalgar Square, displaying handmade cardboard signs reading: “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action.”

The demonstrators were met with a heavy police presence, with vans lining the square hours before the vigil began.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/45812287

April 11, 2026

U.S. Navy ships sent an unmistakable signal Saturday as they crossed the Strait of Hormuz, challenging Iran’s control over the narrow waterway that will likely determine the outcome of the Middle East war.

The USS Michael Murphy turned on its automatic identification system as it and another destroyer, the USS Frank E. Peterson, transited the strait, breaking the typical protocol of Navy ships sailing with their AIS turned off.

“You just don’t throw AIS on by accident on a Navy ship,” Campbell University professor Salvatore Mercogliano, who specializes in military and maritime history, said on his podcast. “This is purposeful. They wanted to turn this on on the far side of the Strait of Hormuz to demonstrate that they have sailed through.”

2049 is serious business.

Prostitution of minors in France has risen by up 43 percent over the last four years, according to official figures published Friday. The government insists it remains committed to cracking down on exploitation networks, a decade after a landmark law made paying for sexual services a crime.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is recovering from severe injuries after an airstrike killed his father, as questions grow over his ability to lead.

https://youtu.be/po1cBvMRy_Y

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/45772217

According to the European Commission, the State of Israel is responsible for an unprecedented level of killing and injury of civilians, a large-scale displacement of population and the systematic destruction of hospitals and medical facilities in Gaza. [1] Israel also implemented a blockade of humanitarian aid that could amount to starvation as a method of war. Israel is in breach of multiple rules and obligations under international law and fails to prevent the crime of genocide as ordered by the International Court of Justice.[2]

Yet the European Union has still not suspended its association agreement with Israel, which is the cornerstone of EU-Israel bilateral trade, economic, and political cooperation.

EU citizens cannot tolerate that the EU maintains an agreement that contributes to legitimize and finance a State that commits crimes against humanity and war crimes.

Therefore, we call on the Commission to put forward the proposal to the Council for the full suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement.

[1] European External Action Service, note of the Office of the EU Special Representative on Human Rights, 20 June 2025 https://euobserver.com/eu-and-the-world/ar0246a0da

[2] International Court of Justice, Order of 26 January 2024 https://www.icj-cij.org/node/203447

Annex In 1995, the EU has concluded an Association agreement with the State of Israel, aiming at facilitating and increasing trade, providing a framework for bilateral political dialogue, and fostering scientific, technologic and cultural cooperation.

With more than 34% of Israel's imports originating from the EU, and 28.8% of Israeli exports flowing to the EU, the EU is Israel’s first trade partner. Total trade in goods between the EU and Israel in 2024 amounted to €42.6 billion.[3]

In 2021, Israel joined Horizon Europe, the EU’s main funding programme for research and innovation.1.11 billion euros from the EU’s Horizon Europe fund goes to Israeli companies, universities and public bodies. Among the 921 projects with 231 Israeli recipients are companies that are closely involved with the Israeli military.[4]

Article 2 of the EU-Israel association agreement provides that “Relations between the Parties, as well as all the provisions of the Agreement itself, shall be based on respect for human rights and democratic principles, which guides their internal and international policy and constitutes an essential element of this Agreement”

A breach of Article 2 gives the right to the other Party to unilaterally suspend the Agreement. Several international institutions have given evidence that Israel is in breach of Article 2 :

The European External Action Service (EEAS) report, [5] communicated to the Council on 20 June 2025 gives a detailed account of the rules and obligations of international law breached by the State of Israel in the Gaza Strip and in the West bank; particularly with regard to the blockade of humanitarian aid, indiscriminate attacks on civilians, the systematic targeting of hospitals and medical facilities, and forced displacement of populations.

In its Order of 26 January 2024,[6] the International Court of Justice (ICJ) orders the State of Israel to do all in its power to prevent genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.

ICJ Order of 28 March2024 [7] orders the State of Israel to “Take all necessary and effective measures to ensure, without delay, in full co-operation with the United Nations, the unhindered provision at scale by all concerned of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance, including food, water, electricity, fuel, shelter, clothing, hygiene and sanitation requirements, as well as medical supplies and medical care to Palestinians throughout Gaza [...].

By the ICJ Order of May 2024 [8] “The Court considers that, in conformity with its obligations under the Genocide Convention, Israel must immediately halt its military offensive, and any other action in the Rafah Governorate, which may inflict on the Palestinian group in Gaza conditions of life that could bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part”.

ICJ Advisory Opinion of 22 October 2025 provides that Israel must “ensure that the population of the Occupied Palestinian Territory has the essential supplies of daily life, including food, water, clothing, bedding, shelter, fuel, medical supplies and services” and “facilitate by all means at its disposal relief schemes on behalf of the population of the Occupied Palestinian Territory so long as that population is inadequately supplied, as has been the case in the Gaza Strip”.[9]

Despite the evidence of multiple violations of human rights and international law brought up by the abovementioned institutions, the European Union has still to this date not taken any meaningful action to condemn or to sanction the State of Israel, like, for instance, the suspension of its association agreement with Israel.

Such failure to act is not in line with the EU Treaties themselves : it is clear from the Treaties that all actions and policies of the EU, including international agreements, must contribute to and ensure respect of human rights and international law.

According to Article 3 (5) of the Treaty on the European Union (TEU), “In its relations with the wider world, the Union shall uphold and promote its values” [...] and “shall contribute to peace, security, the sustainable development of the Earth, solidarity and mutual respect among peoples [....] and the protection of human rights, in particular the rights of the child, as well as to the strict observance and the development of international law, including respect for the principles of the United Nations Charter.”

In addition, article 21 TEU states that “The Union's action on the international scene shall be guided by the principles which have inspired its own creation, development and enlargement, and which it seeks to advance in the wider world: democracy, the rule of law, the universality and indivisibility of human rights and fundamental freedoms, respect for human dignity, the principles of equality and solidarity, and respect for the principles of the United Nations Charter and international law.”

Article 205 TFEU states that “The Union's action on the international scene, pursuant to this Part, shall be guided by the principles, pursue the objectives and be conducted in accordance with” the provisions laid down in article 21 TEU mentioned above.

Lastly, article 207 TFEU provides that “The common commercial policy shall be conducted in the context of the principles and objectives of the Union's external action”

The EU’s obligation to act does not stem only from its founding treaties but also from UN treaties and customary international law and the International Court of Justice Orders.

The EU must immediately utilise all available legal, diplomatic and economic means - among which the suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement - to force the Israeli government to cease its human rights violations, uphold international law and to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians.

[3] https://policy.trade.ec.europa.eu/eu-trade-relationships-country-and-region/countries-and-regions/israel_en

[4] https://www.ftm.eu/newsletters/bureau-brussels-eu-funds-israel-defense-sector

[5] European External Action Service, note of the Office of the EU Special Representative on Human Rights, 20 June 2025 https://euobserver.com/eu-and-the-world/ar0246a0da

[6] International Court of Justice, Order of 26 January 2024 https://www.icj-cij.org/node/203447

[7] International Court of Justice, Order of 28 March 2024 https://www.icj-cij.org/node/203847

[8] International Court of Justice, Summary of the Order of 24 may 2024 https://www.icj-cij.org/node/204100#%3A%7E%3Atext=The+Court+considers+that%2C+in%2Cits+physical+destr uction%20in%20whole

[9] ICJ Advisory Opinion– Obligations of Israel in relation to the Presence and Activities of the United Nations, Other International Organizations and Third States in and in relation to the Occupied Palestinian Territory, 22 October 2025 https://www.un.org/unispal/document/icj-advisory-opinion-22oct2025/

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq’s parliament voted Saturday to elect Nizar Amidi, a political official with one of the country’s two main Kurdish parties, as president, five months after a parliamentary election that didn’t produce a bloc with a decisive majority.

His election comes as Iraq is reeling from the fallout of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. Iraq became caught in the middle of the conflict, with Iran-backed militias launching attacks on U.S. bases and diplomatic facilities as well as on critical energy infrastructure. Meanwhile, the U.S. and Israel carried out airstrikes targeting the militias, some of which killed members of the Iraqi military.

The war and Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz also largely halted the oil exports upon which Iraq’s economy depends.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/45460134

Extreme heat is already creating “nonsurvivable” conditions for humans in heatwaves that have killed thousands and likely many more, according to new research that warns people are more susceptible to rising temperatures than first thought.

Scientists re-examined six extreme heatwaves between 2003 and 2024 and found that when temperature, humidity, and the body’s ability to stay cool were accounted for, all were potentially deadly for older people.

The absolute limit for humans to survive had been assumed to be a six-hour exposure to a wet bulb temperature of 35C (95F)—a measure that accounts for temperature and humidity but has rarely been observed on the planet at that level.

Heatwaves in Mecca (Saudi Arabia, 2024), Bangkok (Thailand, 2024), Phoenix (United States, 2023), Mount Isa (Australia, 2019), Larkana (Pakistan, 2015) and Seville (Spain, 2003) saw thousands of deaths, despite none approaching that wet bulb limit, the research found.

But when scientists applied a new model of human survivability that takes into account the body’s ability to function and stay cool depending on age, they found all six events had seen nonsurvivable periods for older people who could not find shade.

A couple of thousand ravers were given the secret location for one of the annual highlights of the free party scene – the Easter bank holiday weekend Eggtek event.

The sun was shining and they arrived at a field on Ministry of Defence land in Lulworth, Dorset in a state of high excitement about a weekend of dancing to techno music playing from a variety of different stages and sound systems in the heart of the countryside.

They knew that police were likely to arrive and intervene at some point because raves are illegal under the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act, which prohibits gatherings of more than 20 people on open land where the music played consists wholly or predominantly of “a succession of repetitive beats”. But they hoped to get a day or two of partying in before being moved on.

What happened next is disputed by police and ravers.

Police say the ravers threw plastic bottles and drink cans at them and that their response to being assailed by these “missiles” using officers with batons, riot shields, dogs and pepper spray was proportionate.

The report, seen exclusively by Middle East Eye, is based on testimonies from Palestinian former prisoners gathered by the rights watchdog Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor.

It reveals how the scope of sexual violence of Palestinian prisoners, including rape using objects and trained military dogs, constitutes an "organised state policy", aided and abetted by Israeli institutions and leadership.

One former detainee, a 42-year-old woman from north Gaza who was held in the notorious Sde Teiman detention centre, said she was bound naked to a metal table and repeatedly raped by two masked soldiers over the course of two days.

She recalled that she was left shackled, naked and bleeding throughout the night before the soldiers returned the next day to continue raping her.

cross-posted from: https://reddthat.com/post/63528654

The digital directorate in France will switch from Windows to Linux and the state is embarking on a major project to reduce the “outer European digital dependency”

The subject of digital sovereignty has been imposed in the public debate since the beginning of 2026 in the face of a hypothesis: and if the United States cut off access to some of its technologies in Europe.

In France, the Prime Minister commissioned the Inter-Ministerial Directorate of Digital Affairs (DINUM) to “reduce the state’s extra-European digital dependencies”. It is this body that supervises the computer equipment and the deployment of services to the various government administrations.

The first target is now known: it is Windows.

President Trump on Wednesday said he is considering the formation of a “joint venture” with Iran to set up tolls in the Strait of Hormuz after the Trump administration and Tehran agreed to a two-week ceasefire deal.

[...]

The president also suggested Monday that the U.S. could impose its own tolls on vessels trying to transit through the channel. Leaders in Tehran signaled last week it would install a “toll booth” system to exert a price on ships seeking safe passage through the strait.