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Indian share market opens lower, Nifty below 23,800NEW YORK (AP) — Aaron Judge won't be bothered if free agent Juan Soto gets a bigger deal from the New York Yankees than the captain's $360 million , nine-year contract. “It ain’t my money. I really don’t care as long as we get the best players, we get the most that we can, I’m happy with whatever,” Judge said Friday, a day after he was a unanimous winner of his second AL MVP award. “That's never been something on my mind about who gets paid the most.” Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings. Get any of our free email newsletters — news headlines, obituaries, sports, and more.
Corporate sector investments drive agricultural growth in Pakistan: report The representational image shows a farmer harvesting wheat at a field in the outskirts of Lahore, in Punjab province, May 16, 2013. — Reuters KARACHI: The corporate and financial sectors are increasingly investing in the agriculture sector, aiming to boost its growth and development. This insight was shared during the launch of The State of Pakistan’s Agriculture 2024 report by the Pakistan Business Council (PBC) and the Pakistan Agricultural Coalition (PAC), held at the National Foods Limited (NFL) Corporate Head Office. googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1700472799616-0'); }); In his opening remarks, Ehsan Malik, CEO of the PBC, highlighted the agriculture sector’s immense potential to contribute to economic stability, food security and rural development. “This report shows how the corporate sector is playing a key role in advancing the agriculture industry,” Ehsan stated. Kazim Saeed, CEO of PAC, said that where international-level agriculture is found in Pakistan, there is often a leading corporate entity working directly with farmers. “This report documents how corporate and financial players are contributing capital, technology and expertise to the agricultural sector for its growth and prosperity,” Kazim explained. He added that many companies are adopting sustainable practices, such as regenerative agriculture, eco-friendly production methods and efficient resource usage. The event included presentations by companies whose initiatives were featured as case studies in the report. Global CEO of National Foods Limited (NFL) Abrar Hasan praised the efforts of the PBC, PAC and other corporate players driving growth in the agriculture sector. Speaking about NFL’s case study, he noted that the company is focused on self-sufficiency, increasing exports and digitising farming in Pakistan to maintain a strong value chain. “Our products and partnerships demonstrate the positive impact of technology. The ‘Seed to Table’ initiative reflects our commitment to growth beyond borders, expanding into international markets while supporting the national economy through exports,” said Abrar. He highlighted NFL’s success in developing the tomato value chain, which helped create import substitution for tomato paste, benefitting both the company and the country. “We can unlock export potential by developing the tomato paste value chain, as tomatoes have higher export potential compared to other crops,” he added, noting that NFL’s approach serves as an example of how to respond to the recent sharp depreciation of the rupee. Adil Sattar of K&N’s spoke about the company’s six-decade-long leadership in poultry breeding, introducing new technologies in poultry farming, processing and retailing for both domestic and international markets. He also mentioned their commitment to food safety and Halal certification, maintaining hand slaughtering methods instead of stunning, despite the additional cost and effort. Faraz Zafar, Investment Director at AlKaram, discussed plans for Pakistan’s largest shrimp farm, Al-Karam’s Dhabeji Aqua Foods. The farm, located in Sindh’s Thatta, will cover 400 acres and feature 300 half-acre ponds. AlKaram has also invested in companies focused on cultivation and drone-based services. Faisal Iftikhar, CEO of AquaHatch, shared the vision of Garibsons and Jaffer Group, who are investing in fish and shrimp seed businesses to support farmers across Pakistan. Taimur Malik from Drawdown Farm by Thal Industries highlighted the importance of regenerative agriculture in protecting Pakistan’s soil, water and biodiversity. Amer Aziz, CEO of HBL Zarai Services, discussed how the corporate sector can better serve farmers, while M Aminuddin, CEO of TPL Insurance, spoke about the role of crop insurance in safeguarding farmers’ livelihoods.
Jason Kelce Spreads Holiday Magic: Philly kids get gifts, thanks to "Operation Snowball"Move over Mercedes: Chinese cars grab Mexican market shareArkansas receiver Andrew Armstrong said Tuesday that he is entering the NFL Draft. Later in the day, a school spokesman told reporters that Armstrong will skip the Razorbacks' bowl game. The destination isn't yet known. Armstrong led the Southeastern Conference in both receptions (78) and receiving yards (1,140) but caught just one touchdown in 11 games this season. His catches and yardage were both second-most in Arkansas history behind Cobi Hamilton, who had 90 receptions for 1,335 yards in 2012. "It's been a journey for the books and I wouldn't trade it for anything because it has made me into the man I am today," Armstrong said of his Razorbacks tenure in a social media post. "... I will never forget all the moments that were shared here in Fayetteville." Armstrong played two seasons at Texas A&M-Commerce before transferring to Arkansas ahead of the 2023 season. In two seasons with the Razorbacks, he caught 134 passes for 1,904 yards and six scores. --Field Level Media2024’s Major Social Media Updates And Why 2025 Could Change Everything
REDMOND, Wash. , Dec. 3, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Microsoft Corp. on Tuesday announced that its board of directors declared a quarterly dividend of $0.83 per share. The dividend is payable March 13, 2025 , to shareholders of record on Feb. 20, 2025 . The ex-dividend date will be Feb. 20, 2025 . Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT" @microsoft) creates platforms and tools powered by AI to deliver innovative solutions that meet the evolving needs of our customers. The technology company is committed to making AI available broadly and doing so responsibly, with a mission to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/microsoft-announces-quarterly-dividend-302321718.html SOURCE Microsoft Corp. © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Forget Canada becoming the 51st state. Michigan, by all rights, should be our 11th province. Here’s whyOutlander has done some gross things in its time, medically speaking. Just a few episodes ago, Claire (Caitriona Balfe) thumbed through a guy’s intestines looking for a bullet. In season four, she performed hernia surgery on a crown official in the lobby of a theater in front of an audience of horrified spectators. She’s healed hands, delivered babies, set broken bones, performed a tracheotomy in the field on her son-in-law, and treated patients for countless viral illnesses. You would think viewers are finally desensitized to whatever she finds her hands in next, and yet this week proved the squeamish still have plenty of reasons to turn their heads. Though, as the episode’s title suggests, “Ye Dinna Get Used To It” because war is hell, as they say, and there are bound to be plenty of battle wounds ahead as Jamie (Sam Heughan) assumes his new post as Brigadier General under the command of George Washington. But before the bombs start bursting in air, the most dire injury that needs Claire’s attention is one of Jamie’s own making : his battered best friend, Lord John (David Berry). When Jamie found out Claire and Lord John slept together as a means of mourning his “death,” Jamie punched him repeatedly in the left eye before handing him over to the Patriots. When Lord John arrives in Jamie’s camp this week, Claire immediately recognizes the damage done since she last saw the man she was temporarily married to. Upon inspection, she reveals Jamie fractured the orbit around Lord John’s eye, and he can’t move it because the inner textual muscle is trapped in the crack of that fracture. I will take her word for it as long as she doesn’t show us proof. But it gets worse! Back at Lord John’s home, Claire directs Jamie to hold him down while she grabs his eyeball and twists it to free the nerve. The look of horror on his face matched the chill sent down my spine as she moved in for the painful procedure, becoming the second Fraser to assault his eyeball in a matter of days. Mercifully, the scene cuts away before any finger-to-eye contact can be seen. But the only thing more painful for Lord John than the world’s worst eye exam might be the sight of the Betsy Ross-sewn stars and stripes that’s now hung over his mantle. Since his absence, there’s been a changing of the guard and the times. As Claire states when she is given the flag by George Washington earlier in the episode, “A nation without a flag is like a furnace without a fire.” America is finding its footing, and the British and its supporters are faltering. The reality of how quickly things can change is not lost on Lord Grey, but the sight of it under his roof probably doesn’t make it any easier to stomach either. Outlander spent seasons ramping up to the American Revolution and now it has to navigate the reality that as the war went on, loyalties changed. Allegiance is a living, breathing thing that evolves with the tides of war. The series dispensed rather quickly with its melodrama earlier this season (weddings, funeral sex, kidnappings, oh my!), and now, it wisely has to take a beat and find where its characters stand several years into this struggle. Lord John, for instance, swore allegiance to the Continental Army to keep himself alive this week, a decision that breaks the vow he swore to his brother Harold in the flashback cold open to the episode. As Lord John’s stock falls exponentially, the Frasers’ has risen. Start to finish, the episode name drops more historical figures than a high-school history book, starting with the return of last week’s surprise guest George Washington, who commandeers the Frasers residence (a.k.a. Lord John’s residence) for a dinner as he moves through the newly captured Philadelphia. Also in attendance is the Marquis de Lafayette, the Frenchman who becomes a formidable force in Washington’s army; and General Charles Lee, Washington’s second in command, who believed he was better suited to lead the Patriot forces. Also among the dinner guests is Percy Wainwright, who introduces himself to Claire and Jamie as Percy Beauchamp, which just so happens to be Claire’s maiden name. Percy returns later while Claire is doctoring Lord John’s eye and she immediately recognizes there are more than busted blood vessels between them. Percy and Lord John were lovers, and the latter sprung him from an English prison after he was caught with another man. In return, Wainwright has come to tell Lord John that William (Charles Vandervaart) is being set up by Loyalist officer/Patriot spy Captain Richardson (Ben Lambert) as leverage to force Lord John and his brother to fall back in line behind the British. Jamie would normally spring into action in a situation like this, but he has 300 soldiers at the ready for the impending Battle of Monmouth. So he sends Ian (John Bell) to escort Lord John to find and save William before he falls into Richardson’s trap. Like last week’s lackluster outing , this episode plays out as a standard midseason installment meant to get you from point A to point B–with slightly more optical horrors than usual. The real value here is watching Lord John’s drastically deteriorating circumstances. What started as a kind gesture to save the wife of his best friend and life-long crush has nearly cost him his eye, his loyalty to his king, his freedom as an aristocrat, and, possibly now, his son. Few can charge Outlander with not moving the needle on its story, even if its obstacles and traumas can get repetitive. But the focus on Lord John this season has given the series a new perspective when it counts. Claire and Jamie’s story needs new voices, and the price being paid by Lord John right now affords him a loud one. Stray observations
ADRE, Chad — For months, Aziza Abrahim fled from one village in Sudan to the next as people were slaughtered. Yet the killing of relatives and her husband’s disappearance aren’t what forced the 23-year-old to leave the country for good. It was hunger, she said. “We don’t have anything to eat because of the war,” Abrahim said, cradling her 1-year-old daughter under the sheet where she now shelters, days after crossing into Chad. The war in Sudan has created vast hunger, including famine. It has pushed people off their farms. Food in the markets is sparse, prices have spiked and aid groups say they’re struggling to reach the most vulnerable as warring parties limit access. Ousmane Taher and his family cross from Sudan into Chad near Acre on Oct 6. Sam Mednick/Associated Press About 24,000 people have been killed and millions displaced during the war that erupted in April 2023, sparked by tensions between the military and a powerful paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Forces. Global experts confirmed famine in the Zamzam displacement camp in July. They warn that some 25 million people – more than half of Sudan’s population – are expected to face acute hunger this year. “People are starving to death at the moment ... It’s man-made. It’s these men with guns and power who deny women and children food,” Jan Egeland, head of the Norwegian Refugee Council, told The Associated Press. Warring parties on both sides are blocking assistance and delaying authorization for aid groups, he said. Between May and September, there were seven malnutrition-related deaths among children in one hospital at a displacement site in Chad run by Doctors Without Borders, known by its French acronym MSF. Such deaths can be from disease in hunger-weakened bodies. In September, MSF was forced to stop caring for 5,000 malnourished children in North Darfur for several weeks, citing repeated, deliberate obstructions and blockades. President Biden has called on both sides to allow unhindered access and stop killing civilians. But the fighting shows no signs of slowing. More than 2,600 people were killed across the country in October, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, which called it the bloodiest month of the war. Violence is intensifying around North Darfur’s capital, El Fasher, the only capital in the vast western Darfur region that the RSF doesn’t hold. Darfur has experienced some of the war’s worst atrocities, and the International Criminal Court prosecutor has said there are grounds to believe both sides may be committing war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide. Abrahim escaped her village in West Darfur and sought refuge for more than a year in nearby towns with friends and relatives. Her husband had left home to find work before the war, and she hasn’t heard from him since. She struggled to eat and feed their daughter. Unable to farm, she cut wood and sold it in Chad, traveling eight hours by donkey there and back every few days, earning enough to buy grain. But after a few months the wood ran out, forcing her to leave for good. Others who have fled to Chad described food prices spiking three-fold and stocks dwindling in the market. There were no vegetables, just grains and nuts. Awatif Adam came to Chad in October. Her husband wasn’t making enough transporting people with his donkey cart, and it was too risky to farm, she said. Her 6-year-old twin girls and 3-year-old son lost weight and were always hungry. “My children were saying all the time, ‘Mom, give us food’,” she said. Their cries drove her to leave. As more people stream into Chad, aid groups worry about supporting them. About 700,000 Sudanese have entered since the war began. Many live in squalid refugee camps or shelter at the border in makeshift displacement sites. And the number of arrivals at the Adre crossing between August and October jumped from 6,100 to 14,800, according to government and U.N. data., though it was not clear whether some people entered multiple times. Earlier this year, the World Food Program cut rations by roughly half in Chad, citing a lack of funding. While there’s now enough money to return to full rations until the start of next year, more arrivals will strain the system and more hunger will result if funding doesn’t keep pace, said Ramazani Karabaye, head of the World Food Program’s operations in Adre. During an AP visit to Adre in October, some people who fled Sudan at the start of the war said they were still struggling. Khadiga Omer Adam said she doesn’t have enough aid or money to eat regularly, which has complicated breastfeeding her already malnourished daughter, Salma Issa. The 35-year-old gave birth during the war’s initial days, delivering alone in West Darfur. It was too dangerous for a midwife to reach her. Adam had clutched the baby as she fled through villages, begging for food. More than a year later, she sat on a hospital bed holding a bag of fluid above her daughter, who was fed through a tube in her nose. “I have confidence in the doctors ... I believe she’ll improve, I don’t think she’ll die,” she said. The MSF-run clinic in the Aboutengue camp admitted more than 340 cases of severely malnourished children in August and September. Staff fear that number could rise. The arid climate in Chad south of the Sahara Desert means it’s hard to farm, and there’s little food variety, health workers said. People are fleeing Sudan into difficult conditions, said Dr. Oula Dramane Ouattara, head of MSF’s medical activities in the camp. ”If things go on like this, I’m afraid the situation will get out of control,” he said. Comments are not available on this story. 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Middle East latest: Israeli raid and airstrikes in West Bank kill at least 8 PalestiniansAt least eight people were killed by Israeli military operations in the northern West Bank around the city of Tulkarem on Tuesday, the Palestinian Health Ministry said, including three people it said were killed by Israeli airstrikes. The Israeli military said it opened fire after militants attacked soldiers, and it was aware of some uninvolved civilians who were harmed in the raid. Elsewhere in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian city of Bethlehem was marking a second somber Christmas Eve under the shadow of the war in Gaza, with most festivities cancelled and crowds of tourists absent. Israel's bombardment and ground invasion in Gaza has killed over 45,000 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between fighters and civilians in its count. Winter is hitting the Gaza Strip and many of the nearly 2 million Palestinians displaced by the devastating 15-month war with Israel are struggling to protect themselves from the wind, cold and rain. The war in Gaza was sparked by Hamas’s attack on southern Israel in October 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and 250 taken hostage by Palestinian militants. Around 100 hostages are still being held in Gaza , although only two thirds are believed to still be alive. Here’s the latest: NUR SHAMS REFUGEE CAMP, West Bank — The Palestinian Health Ministry said at least eight people were killed by Israeli military operations in and around the city of Tulkarem in the northern West Bank on Tuesday. The ministry reported three of the dead were killed by airstrikes. The Israeli military said it opened fire after militants attacked soldiers, and it was aware of some uninvolved civilians who were harmed in the raid. An Associated Press photojournalist captured images of Israeli forces detonating an explosive device planted by Palestinian militants during a raid in the Nur Shams refugee camp. Israel has carried out several large-scale raids in the West Bank since the start of the war in Gaza, ignited by Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel. While airstrikes were once rare in the West Bank, they have grown more common since the outbreak of war as Israeli forces clamp down, saying they aim to prevent attacks on their citizens. Israeli fire has killed at least 800 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank since October 2023, Palestinian health officials say. In that time, Palestinian militants have launched a number of attacks on soldiers at checkpoints and within Israel. SAYDNAYA, Syria — A large crowd of Syrians gathered near a historic monastery in Saydnaya on Christmas Eve to witness the lighting of a towering tree adorned with glowing green lights. Tuesday's celebration offered a rare moment of joy in a city scarred by over a decade of war and an infamous prison , where tens of thousands were held. Families and friends stood beneath the illuminated tree — some wearing Santa hats, others watching from rooftops — while a band played festive music and fireworks lit up the sky “This year is different, there’s happiness, victory and a new birth for Syria and a new birth for Christ,” said Houssam Saadeh, one attendee. Another, Joseph Khabbaz, expressed hope for unity across all sects and religions in Syria, dismissing recent Christmas tree vandalism as “isolated incidents.” Earlier in the afternoon, pilgrims visited the historic Our Lady of Saydnaya Monastery, one of the world’s oldest Christian monasteries, believed to be built in the sixth century. In Homs, a similarly grand Christmas tree was illuminated as security officers patrolled the area to ensure a safe and peaceful gathering, according to Syria’s state media. UNITED NATIONS -- Recent attacks on hospitals in North Gaza, where Israel is carrying out an offensive, are having a devastating impact on Palestinian civilians still in the area, the U.N. humanitarian office says. The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs expressed deep concern at reports that the Israeli military entered the Indonesian Hospital on Tuesday, forcing its evacuation. The humanitarian office, known as OCHA, also expressed deep concern at attacks reported in recent days in and around the two other hospitals in North Gaza that are minimally functioning – Al Awda and Kamal Adwan. OCHA said the Israeli siege on Beit Hanoun, Beit Lahia and parts of Jaballiya in North Gaza continued for a 79th day on Tuesday, and while the U.N. and its partners have made 52 attempts to coordinate humanitarian access to besieged areas in December 48 were rejected by Israel. While four missions were approved, OCHA said the U.N. and its partners faced impediments as a result of Israeli military operations and “none of the U.N.-coordinated attempts to access the area have been fully facilitated.” Throughout the Gaza Strip, OCHA said that Israeli authorities facilitated just 40% of requests for humanitarian movements requiring their approval in December. WASHINGTON — A leading global food crisis monitor says deaths from starvation will likely pass famine levels in north Gaza as soon as next month. The U.S.-created Famine Early Warning System Network says that’s because of a near-total Israeli blockade of food and other aid in that part of Gaza. The finding, however, appears to have exposed a rift within the Biden administration over the extent of starvation in northern Gaza. The U.S. ambassador to Israel, Jacob Lew, disputes part of the data used in reaching the conclusion and calls the intensified famine warning “irresponsible.” Northern Gaza has been one of the areas hardest-hit by fighting and Israel’s restrictions on aid throughout its 14-month war with Hamas militants. UNITED NATIONS — Israel’s foreign minister has requested an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council to condemn recent missile and drone attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, and to condemn the group's Iranian allies for allegedly providing the group with weapons. Gideon Saar said in a letter Tuesday to Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield of the United States, which holds the council presidency this month, that the Houthis are violating international law and council resolutions. “This Iranian-backed terrorist group continues to endanger Israel’s and other nations’ security, as well as the freedom of maritime navigation, in flagrant violation of international law,” Saar said. “All of this malign activity is done as part of a broader strategy to destabilize the region.” The U.S. Mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to an email asking when the council meeting will be held. The Houthis have said they launched attacks on shipping in the Red Sea – and on Israel -- with the aim of ending Israel’s devastating air and ground offensive in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli war in Gaza followed Hamas’ deadly October 2023 attacks in southern Israel. TEL AVIV, Israel — An Israeli military investigation has concluded that the presence of troops inadvertently contributed to the deaths of six hostages killed by their Hamas captors in Gaza. The hostages' bodies were discovered in a tunnel in late August, an event that shook Israel and sparked some of the largest anti-war protests since the war began. The investigation found that the six hostages were killed by multiple gunshots from their captors after surviving for nearly 330 days. The Israeli military’s “ground activities in the area, although gradual and cautious, had a circumstantial influence on the terrorists’ decision to murder the six hostages,” the report found. According to the investigation, the Israeli military began operating in the area where the hostages were being held in southern Gaza about two weeks before their discovery, under the assumption that the chances of hostages in the area was medium to low. On August 27, hostage Qaid Farhan Alkadi was found alone in a tunnel , causing the Israeli military to halt operations for 24 hours to determine if there could be other hostages in the area. The military discovered the opening leading to the tunnel where the bodies of the six hostages were located on August 30. A pathological report estimated the six hostages were killed on August 29. The six hostages killed were Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi, Ori Danino, and Hersh Goldberg-Polin , whose American-Israeli parents became some of the most recognized spokespeople pleading for the hostages’ release, including addressing the Democratic National Convention days before their son’s killing. “The investigation published tonight proves once again that the return of all hostages will only be possible through a deal,” the Hostages Families Forum said in response to the investigation. “Every passing moment puts the hostages’ lives in immediate danger.” JERUSALEM — The Israeli negotiating team working on a ceasefire returned from Qatar to Israel on Tuesday, the prime minister’s office said, after what it called “a significant week” of talks. After months of deadlock, the U.S., Qatar and Egypt resumed their mediation efforts in recent weeks and reported greater willingness by the warring sides to reach a deal. According to Egyptian and Hamas officials, the proposed agreement would take place in phases and include a halt in fighting, an exchange of captive Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners, and a surge in aid to the besieged Gaza Strip. Israel says Hamas is holding 100 hostages, over one-third of whom are believed to be dead. On Monday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there was “some progress” in efforts to reach a deal, but added he did not know how long it would take. CAIRO — Israeli soldiers took control of a hospital in isolated northern Gaza after forcing all the patients and most of the doctors to leave, the Palestinian Health Ministry said Tuesday. Some of the patients had to walk to another hospital while others were driven by paramedics, according to Health Ministry spokesperson Zaher al-Wahidi. He did not specify how many patients had evacuated. The Israeli military confirmed its troops had entered the Indonesian Hospital in the town of Jabaliya as part of an operation searching for Hamas fighters. The army later said its soldiers had left the hospital. The military said it had assisted with evacuating the patients and had not ordered the hospital closed. However, al-Wahidi said only one doctor and maintenance person were left behind. The Indonesian Hospital is one of three hospitals left largely inaccessible in the northernmost part of Gaza because Israel has imposed a tight siege there since launching an offensive in early October. The Israeli army said Tuesday’s operation at the Indonesian Hospital came after militants carried out attacks from the hospital for the past month, including launching anti-tank missiles and planting explosive devices in the surrounding area. The Health Ministry accused Israel of “besieging and directly targeting” the three hospitals in northern Gaza. Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, said Israeli drones detonated explosives near the hospital and that 20 people were wounded, including five medical staff. The Israeli military declined to comment on the operation around the hospital. DAMASCUS — Scores of Syrian Christians protested in the capital Damascus on Tuesday, demanding greater protections for their religious minority after a Christmas tree was set on fire in the city of Hama a day earlier. Many of the insurgents who now rule Syria are jihadis, although Ahmad al-Sharaa, the leader of the main rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, has renounced longtime ties to al-Qaida and spent years depicting himself as a champion of pluralism and tolerance. It remains unclear who set the Christmas tree on fire Monday, which was condemned by a representative of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham who visited the town and addressed the community. “This act was committed by people who are not Syrian, and they will be punished beyond your expectations," the HTS representative said in a video widely shared on social media. "The Christmas tree will be fully restored by this evening.” On Tuesday, protesters marched through the streets of Bab Touma in Damascus, shouting slogans against foreign fighters and carrying large wooden crosses. “We demand that Syria be for all Syrians. We want a voice in the future of our country,” said Patriarch Ignatius Aphrem II of the Syriac Orthodox Church as he addressed the crowd in a church courtyard, assuring them of Christians’ rights in Syria. Since HTS led a swift offensive that overthrew President Bashar Assad earlier this month, Syria’s minority communities have been on edge, uncertain of how they will be treated under the emerging rebel-led government. “We are here to demand a democratic and free government for one people and one nation,” another protester said. “We stand united — Muslims and Christians. No to sectarianism.” DOHA — Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said that ceasefire negotiations to end the war in Gaza were ongoing in Doha in cooperation with Egyptian, Qatari, and American mediators. “We will not leave any door unopened in pursuit of reaching an agreement,” said Majid al-Ansari, Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson on Tuesday. Al Ansari added that rumors the ceasefire would be reached before Christmas are “speculation.” The ceasefire negotiations come at a time when winter is hitting the Gaza Strip and many of the nearly 2 million Palestinians displaced by the devastating 15-month war with Israel are struggling to protect themselves from the wind, cold and rain. Families of the approximately 100 hostages who have been held for 445 days in Gaza are also worried their loved ones will not survive another winter. In a press conference, al-Ansari also called on the international community to lift sanctions on Syria as quickly as possible on Tuesday. “The reason was the crimes of the previous regime, and that regime, with all of its authority, is no longer in place, therefor the causes for these sanctions no longer exist today,” he said. DAMASCUS, Syria — American journalist Austin Tice is believed to be still alive, according to the head of an international aid group. Nizar Zakka, who runs the Hostage Aid Worldwide organization, said there has never been any proof that Tice, who has been missing since 2012, is dead. Zakka told reporters in Damascus on Tuesday that Tice was alive in January and being held by the authorities of ousted Syrian President Bashar Assad. He added that U.S. President Joe Biden said in August that Tice was alive. Zakka said he believes Tice was transferred between security agencies over the past 12 years, including in an area where Iranian-backed fighters were operating. Asked if it was possible Tice had been taken out of the country, Zakka said Assad most likely kept him in Syria as a potential bargaining chip. Biden said Dec. 8 that his administration believed Tice was alive and was committed to bringing him home, although he also acknowledged that “we have no direct evidence” of his status. TEL AVIV, Israel — Hannah Katzir, an Israeli woman who was taken hostage on Oct. 7, 2023, and freed in a brief ceasefire last year, has died. She was 78. The Hostages Families Forum, a group representing the families of people taken captive, confirmed the death Tuesday but did not disclose the cause. Her daughter, Carmit Palty Katzir, said in a statement that her mother’s “heart could not withstand the terrible suffering since Oct. 7.” Katzir’s husband, Rami, was killed during the attack by militants who raided their home in Kibbutz Nir Oz. Her son Elad was also kidnapped and his body was recovered in April by the Israeli military, who said he had been killed in captivity. She spent 49 days in captivity and was freed in late November 2023. Shortly after Katzir was freed, her daughter told Israeli media that she had been hospitalized with heart issues attributed to “difficult conditions and starvation” while she was held captive. TEL AVIV, Israel — Israel's military said the projectile was intercepted before crossing into Israeli territory, but it set off air raid sirens overnight in the country's populous central area, sending residents looking for cover. Israel’s rescue service Magen David Adom said a 60-year-old woman was seriously wounded after being hurt on her way to a protected space. There was no immediate comment from Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels. It was the third time in a week that fire from Yemen set off sirens in Israel. On Saturday, a missile slammed into a playground in Tel Aviv, injuring 16, after Israel’s air defense system failed to intercept it. Earlier last week, Israeli jets struck Yemen’s rebel-held capital and a port city, killing nine. Israel said the strikes were in response to previous Houthi attacks.
PM vows to overrule local authority heads who resist housing revolution amid concerns from wildlife groups and Labour-run administrationsNEW YORK , Dec. 27, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Pomerantz LLP is investigating claims on behalf of investors of HelloFresh SE ("HelloFresh" or the "Company") HLFFF . Such investors are advised to contact Danielle Peyton at newaction@pomlaw.com or 646-581-9980, ext. 7980. The investigation concerns whether HelloFresh and certain of its officers and/or directors have engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful business practices. [Click here for information about joining the class action] On December 6, 2024 , ABC News published a report entitled "Labor Department investigating migrant child labor claims at HelloFresh." According to the report, "[t]he U.S. Department of Labor is investigating HelloFresh, the popular meal kit service company, over allegations that migrant children were working at its cooking and packaging facility in Illinois as recently as this summer[.]" The report quoted the executive director of an immigrant rights advocacy group as stating that "[a]t least six teenagers, at least some of whom migrated from Guatemala , were found working night shifts at the facility[.]" On this news, HelloFresh's stock price fell $1.83 per share, or 13.27%, over the following two trading sessions, to close at $11.96 per share on December 9, 2024 . Pomerantz LLP, with offices in New York , Chicago , Los Angeles , London , Paris , and Tel Aviv , is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz , known as the dean of the class action bar, Pomerantz pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 85 years later, Pomerantz continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud , breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomlaw.com . Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes. CONTACT: Danielle Peyton Pomerantz LLP dpeyton@pomlaw.com 646-581-9980 ext. 7980 View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/shareholder-alert-pomerantz-law-firm-investigates-claims-on-behalf-of-investors-of-hellofresh-se---hlfff-302339744.html SOURCE Pomerantz LLP © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Farage factor could spark Unionist headache in ScotlandSamsung Unaffected By US Curbs On Chip Exports
Wind power is the leading technology of the energy transition in the UK. It is the basis for the transition shift championed by the Starmer government—and it is failing because the grid operator is having to pay hundreds of millions to wind turbine operators to turn them off. The reason: there is no way to transport the electricity to where it can be consumed. The UK is not a country known for its many days of sunshine. What it is known for is the fact it is an island, and islands are windy places. Wind power was supposed to be perfect for the UK. It was the main tool that would, according to the new government, turn it into a global leader in the energy transition. Instead, it has cost Britons 1.3 billion to compensate wind turbine operators for lost profits—this year alone. if(window.innerWidthADVERTISEMENTfreestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: "oilprice_medrec_atf", slotId: "oilprice_medrec_atf" });';document.write(write_html);} Curtailment is the curse of wind and solar businesses. Curtailment is a euphemism for waste because this is exactly what these businesses are forced to do when there is too much generation and not enough demand. Wind turbines get turned off, and operators lose money they would have otherwise made—and get paid by the government for their troubles. For these operators, the compensation is a good thing. It keeps them going instead of sinking under the weight of wind power intermittency and inflexibility with regard to demand. For taxpayers, however, the situation is quite far from ideal. They get expensive—instead of cheap—energy despite the Starmer government’s promise of the former. Related: Why No One Wants California’s Orphaned Oil Wells According to the industry and the grid operator, the solution to the curtailment problem is simple enough. All they need to do is build more transmission lines. Unfortunately, this costs money as well, and it’s not a few pounds. The cure, in other words, is about as expensive as the disease. “The outdated rules of our energy system mean vast amounts of cheap green power go to waste,” Clem Cowton, Octopus Energy's director of external affairs, told Bloomberg. “It’s absurd that Britain pays Scottish wind farms to turn off when it’s windy, while simultaneously paying gas-power stations in the south to turn on.” Indeed, the situation is quite absurd. However, it is not because the rules of the energy system have changed. At the most basic level, these rules are hard and fast: supply should be available upon demand in sufficient volumes as to be relatively affordable for the majority. The fast pace of the energy transition in the UK, however, has led to what increasingly looks like excess wind power capacity, whose output the grid cannot handle. if(window.innerWidth ADVERTISEMENTfreestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: "oilprice_medrec_btf", slotId: "oilprice_medrec_btf" });`;document.write(write_html);} The argument of companies such as Octopus Energy is that a new kind of grid is needed to ensure that all wind power gets consumed and theoretically, it is a good argument. Practically, as noted, it is a very expensive one. According to the new state-owned grid operator, the National Energy System Operator, grid expansion is going to cost some 40 billion pounds annually if the UK is to hit the Starmer government net-zero goals for 2030. This is because the amount of new transmission lines that would need to be built is “more than double over five years what has been built in total in the last ten,” according to NESO , as quoted by Proactive Investors. This sort of undertaking would take years, and during that time, electricity is not going to get cheaper for the British. On the contrary, it is going to get even more expensive because the government recently approved new interconnectors with Europe in order to secure supply during windless periods. With the electricity supply tight as it is in most of Europe, chances are these imports will not be cut-price, adding to electricity bills in addition to what the industry calls “congestion costs” or curtailment compensation. By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com