WORLD - The African Mirror

Apr

07

2023

Israel blames Hamas for multiple rockets launched from Lebanon

WORLD

HENRIETTE CHACAR and MAYA GEBEILY ISRAEL blamed the Islamist group Hamas for a volley of more than 30 rockets fired from Lebanon, following escalating tensions after Israeli police raids on the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem this week. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was set to hold a meeting of the security cabinet to decide a response to the attack, the biggest rocket attack from Lebanon since 2006, when Israel fought a war with the heavily armed Hezbollah movement. "No one should test us, we will take all necessary measures to defend our country and people," Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said on…

Apr

03

2023

By The African Mirror

Only verified accounts can vote in Twitter polls from April 15, says Musk

WORLD

ELON Musk said only verified Twitter accounts would be eligible to vote in polls starting April 15, a move that the social media company's CEO believes will address advanced AI bot swarms. Starting April 15th, only verified accounts will be eligible to be in For You recommendations.The is the only realistic way to address advanced AI bot swarms taking over. It is otherwise a hopeless losing battle.Voting in polls will require verification for same reason.— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 27, 2023 Musk also said only verified accounts will be eligible to be in Twitter's For You recommendations, which displays a…

Mar

27

2023

By The African Mirror

Cubans head to the polls, all eyes on voter turnout

WORLD

CUBANS headed to the polls to vote for the 470 lawmakers who will represent them in the country´s National Assembly in a closely watched election seen as a referendum on the communist-run government at a time of deep economic crisis. Voting centres in the capital Havana opened at 7 a.m. ET and bustled with activity through mid-day as citizens arrived to cast ballots at the city's share of more than 23,000 official ballot sites throughout the country. By 11 a.m. ET, nearly 42% of the country had voted, according to Cuba's National Electoral Council (CEN). Cuba´s government, saddled by shortages,…

Apr

03

2023

By The African Mirror

Israeli protests over judicial overhaul continue despite Netanyahu’s pause

WORLD

MAYTAAL ANGEL Protests against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's judicial overhaul showed no sign of abating, despite its suspension by the embattled premier this week, as tens of thousands took to the streets to demand it be scrapped entirely. Beset by the domestic upheaval and expressions of concern and disapproval in Washington, Netanyahu on Monday paused the overhaul to allow negotiations on a compromise between his religious-nationalist coalition and opposition parties. "We don’t believe anything that comes out of Bibi's (Netanyahu) mouth. We believe it’s just a political stunt aimed at stopping the protest," said Emanuel Keller, 30, at a protest outside…

Mar

27

2023

By The African Mirror

Gwyneth Paltrow testifies she was struck from behind in ski collision

WORLD

TYLER CLIFFORD OSCAR-winning actor Gwyneth Paltrow took the stand to testify that she was not at fault for a 2016 ski slope collision in Utah that left a man with a concussion and broken ribs, contradicting testimony from the lone witness to the incident. Paltrow, 50, said during cross-examination that she was skiing with her two children. She was struck by Terry Sanderson, a 76-year-old retired optometrist who filed a lawsuit seeking more than $300,000 in damages over the incident at the Deer Valley Resort in Utah. In court papers, Sanderson said he suffered "permanent traumatic brain injury" due to…

Apr

06

2023

By The African Mirror

Analysis: Trump indictment on hush money charges brings few new facts

WORLD

JACK QUEEN, LUC COHEN and JACQUELINE THOMSEN THE long-awaited charges against Donald Trump centring on hush money payments to suppress damaging news stories ahead of the 2016 election revealed few new details about a case that prosecutors have probed on and off for five years. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said on Tuesday that Trump made false records in his family real estate company's books to conceal that he reimbursed his personal lawyer Michael Cohen for a $130,000 hush money payment before the 2016 election to a woman who says she had an affair with him. The case marks the first time…

Apr

06

2023

By The African Mirror

Israeli police raid Al-Aqsa mosque, rockets fired from Gaza

WORLD

NIDAL AL-MUGHRABI and SINAN ABU MAYZER ISRAELI police raided Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque before dawn to try to clear groups it said were barricaded inside, leading to clashes with worshippers and triggering an exchange of cross-border fire with Gaza. The incident came during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and on the eve of the Jewish Passover, stoking fears of further violence at the mosque compound, a flashpoint in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Palestinian militants fired at least nine rockets from Gaza into Israel, prompting air strikes from Israel which hit what it said were weapon production sites for the Islamist group…

Apr

06

2023

By The African Mirror

Deadly chaos as Pakistanis scramble for scarce donations

WORLD

ARIBA SHAHID SEVEN-year-old Saad Umer joined a crowd in a poor neighbourhood in the Pakistani city of Karachi rushing to get a handout of flour and a little cash from a charity trying to help the most vulnerable cope with runaway prices. But in the surge, a melee broke out and some people fell. Saad and 10 others, all women and children, were killed in the latest in a series of deadly scrambles for food as Pakistan struggles with its most serious economic crisis in years. "He was a beautiful kid. I'll never get over his death as long as I live,"…

Apr

02

2023

By The African Mirror

Boy Scouts insurers seek to delay $2.5 bln abuse deal, bankruptcy exit

WORLD

DIETRICH KNAUTH A group of Boy Scouts' insurers asked a judge to delay the youth group's exit from bankruptcy to allow them more time to appeal a record-setting $2.46 billion settlement of sexual abuse claims. More than a dozen insurers, including Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, have said the Boy Scouts' bankruptcy settlement puts them on the hook for paying "thousands of invalid and questionable claims." U.S. District Judge Richard Andrews in Wilmington, Delaware, rejected the insurers' initial appeal on Tuesday, finding the settlement was a good faith effort to resolve claims by more than 80,000 men who say they were…

Apr

02

2023

By The African Mirror

Taiwan says 10 Chinese aircraft crossed Taiwan Strait median line

WORLD

TEN Chinese aircraft crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait, normally an unofficial barrier between the two sides, Taiwan's defence ministry said, as Beijing continues its military activities near the island. Nine Chinese fighter jets and one military drone crossed the median line in the 24 hours to 6 a.m. on Saturday (2000 GMT on Friday), the ministry said in its daily report on Chinese military activities. Taiwan sent aircraft to warn away the Chinese aircraft, while missile systems monitored them, the ministry said, using standard wording for its response. Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory despite…