World Headlines
Palestinian brothers freed under Israel-Hamas temporary truce agreement thrilled to be home, but wary about ongoing practice of detentions
pawel.gaul/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Palestinian teenage brothers Nasrallah, 17, and Qassam Al-Awar, 18, still can't believe they're home after being imprisoned by the Israeli government for 17 months. "I didn't know my name was on the list until 30 minutes before I was released," Qassam Al-Awar told ABC News Tuesday. "I still couldn't believe it until I arrived here and saw my house." The two brothers were released on Sunday as part of the recent humanitarian pause agreement struck between Israel and Hamas. So far, 210 Palestinian prisoners and detainees have been released. Meanwhile, Hamas has released 102 hostages, according to Israeli officials. "We were thrilled to see our families and friends again, but we're torn because of what's happening ... Read More
Death of world’s ‘saddest’ elephant shines light on zoo animal welfare
Josefiel Rivera/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images(LONDON) -- Mali, an elephant dubbed as the world's "saddest" has died at a Philippine Zoo, Manila's Mayor Honey Lacuna has announced. Vishwa Ma'ali -- commonly known as Mali -- was the only captive elephant in the Philippines. She passed away aged 43. "Just to set the record straight, Mali died yesterday at 3:45 pm here at Manila Zoo," Honey Lacuna announced during a news conference on Wednesday. "She is about 43 years old. She was given to city government of Manila in 1981 by the Sri Lankan government." Tributes have poured in for Mali in the Philippines and on social media, many sharing their memories seeing the Asian elephant, considered one of Manila Zoo' ... Read More
United Nations: 2023 set to be hottest year on record
Tim Grist Photography/Getty Images(LONDON) -- There may still be an entire month to go in 2023 but the United Nations announced on Thursday that 2023 is set to be the warmest on record. âWhile 2023 is not yet over, a provisional report from the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) confirmed that it is set to be the warmest on record, with global temperatures rising 1.4 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, according to a statement from the U.N. released on Thursday. The world is heating up at an unprecedented pace, according to new climate data, and U.N. chief AntĂłnio Guterres called on leaders who are gathered for the COP28 conference -- which opened in Dubai on Thursday -- to get us ... Read More
Why it matters what happens at COP28, the UN climate conference being held in Dubai
Sean Gallup/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- The most important discussions around climate change are set to begin in the United Arab Emirates, where world leaders, scientists and environmental advocates will discuss strategies for best ways to efficiently mitigate climate change in the coming years. The 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP28, kicks off Thursday in Dubai. The conference is the forefront of establishing ambitious policies at a global scale to promote the rapid mitigation of warming temperatures. The awareness and accountability that established at the climate conference is one of its most important purposes, experts told ABC News. In 2023, headline after headline from scientific reports confirmed how the effects of climate change are already here. Earlier this month, the ... Read More
US military aircraft crashes off Japan’s coast, officials say
CT757fan/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- A U.S. military Osprey aircraft carrying eight airmen crashed off the Japanese coast at about 3 p.m. Wednesday, U.S. officials said. The crash took place during a "routine training mission," according to the U.S. Air Force, which added that the cause is currently unknown. At least one airman who had been on board was located, Japanese officials said, although there was no immediate confirmation on the person's condition. "The crew's conditions are unknown at this time," the U.S. Air Force added. Japanese officials had previously said six people were on board the CV-22B Osprey. The Japan Coast Guard deployed search and rescue vessels to the area off Kagoshima prefecture in southern Japan. The wreckage of the ... Read More
US warns Israel to fight in a more targeted way in Gaza, officials say
Mustafa Hassona/Anadolu via Getty Images(WASHINGTON) --Â The U.S. is warning Israel to fight in a more targeted way once the pause ends in order to avoid displacing more Palestinians and worsening the humanitarian crisis, senior administration officials say. If the sort of displacement that happened in northern Gaza happens in the south -- where Israeli forces are now on the ground -- it would cause a crisis beyond the ability of any humanitarian support network, one official said on a call with multiple officials and reporters Monday evening, noting it would be "beyond disruptive." The current pause in fighting was brokered to enable the release of some of the more than 200 people taken hostage during Hamas' Oct. 7 surprise attack ... Read More
Virgin Atlantic makes maiden transatlantic flight using 100% green fuel
Ying Tang/NurPhoto via Getty Images(LONDON) --Â The Virgin Boeing 787 took off from Londonâs Heathrow Airport en route to New York on Tuesday. Virgin Atlantic just became the first airline to power a transatlantic flight using 100% sustainable aviation fuel. The Boeing 787 passenger jet â dubbed Flight 100 â left London's Heathrow Airport Tuesday morning bound for John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City, with Virgin Atlantic billionaire founder Richard Branson, Virgin Atlantic Chief Executive Shai Weiss, and U.K. Secretary of State for Transport Mark Harper on board, Reuters reported. The flight marks the first time a commercial long-haul flight was powered using only sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). It's scheduled to land at JFK at 2:40 p.m. EST. ... Read More
Ukrainian forces under intense pressure in key eastern battle
omersukrugoksu/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Ukrainian forces are under intense pressure around a strategically important city in eastern Ukraine, where the Russian military has made some of its greatest gains this year, according to the U.K. Ministry of Defense. Over the last two months Russia has been assaulting heavily fortified Ukrainian positions around Avdiivka, which is situated just a few miles north of Donetsk, the largest Russian-occupied city in eastern Ukraine. Since the beginning of October Russian forces have advanced by more than a mile, however U.K. officials claimed the Russian units involved have sustained "thousands of casualties" during that period. It is impossible for independent journalists to verify the numbers of casualties sustained by either side in the war, however ... Read More
“WSJ” reporter’s pre-trial detention in Russia extended into January
Darrin Klimek/Getty Images(LONDON) -- A Moscow court extended on Tuesday the pre-trial detention of a Wall Street Journal reporter accused of spying. Evan Gershkovich, an American reporter in the newspaper's Moscow bureau, was arrested in March. "By a court decision of November 28, the period of detention in relation to Evan Gershkovich was extended by 2 months, and in total up to 10 months, that is, until January 30, 2024," Lefortovo Court said, according to Interfax. Gershkovich, his newspaper and the U.S. government deny the espionage charges that have been brought against the reporter. He stands accused of "acting on the instructions of the American side" and collecting state secrets about the military." He's appeared in Moscow courtrooms several times ... Read More
Pentagon says Somali pirates likely behind seizure of commercial ship near Yemen
Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Taylor A. Elberg/U.S. Navy photo(WASHINGTON) -- Attackers who seized a commercial ship in the Gulf of Aden this weekend appear to have been Somali pirates, the Defense Department's top spokesman told reporters at the Pentagon Monday. A U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer and allied ships belonging to a counter-piracy task force on Sunday responded to a distress call from the crew of the Central Park, which had been boarded by five armed individuals, Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said on Monday. "They attempted to access the crew cabin. The crew, essentially, were able to lock themselves into a safe haven. These individuals attempted to access and take control of the ship," he said. The ... Read More
North Korea redeploys troops to surveillance posts along DMZ after withdrawing from military agreement with South Korea
South Korean Defense Ministry(SEOUL, South Korea) -- North Korea has redeployed troops and equipment at the front-line guard posts within the Demilitarized Zone after withdrawing from a military agreement with South Korea last week. The North Korean military has been spotted re-installing surveillance posts, according to surveillance footage provided by the South Korean military Monday. Photos taken by the South Korean Defense Ministry show temporary structures made of wood in eleven locations where they had blown up along the border in accordance with the inter-Korean military agreement signed on September 19, 2018. "South Korean military is closely monitoring North Korean military's movements at the frontline area and maintaining readiness posture accordingly," South Korea's Defense Ministry spokesperson Jeon Ha-kyu said during ... Read More
Critically endangered Sumatran rhino born at Indonesian sanctuary
Indonesian Ministry of Environment and ForestryA sanctuary in Indonesia is celebrating the birth of a Sumatran rhino, the most threatened species of rhinoceros in the world. The healthy male calf was born on Saturday at the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary at Way Kambas National Park in the Lampung province, the Indonesian government announced Sunday. The baby rhino is the first for his mother, Delilah, as well as his father, Harapan, a male Sumatran rhino born at the Cincinnati Zoo, Indonesian Minister of Environment and Forestry Siti Nurbaya said in a statement. Although Delilah is a first-time mom, she began nursing her calf immediately after he was born "with no fuss or fanfare," Nina Fascione, executive director of the International Rhino Foundation, ... Read More
‘Double joy’: Rare elephant twins born in Kenya’s Samburu National Reserve
@gilbert_sabinga/Save the Elephants(LONDON) -- An elephant in Kenya has given birth to a rare set of twins, conservation group Save the Elephants has announced. The two baby elephant calves â both female - were born to a mother elephant named Alto in Kenya's Samburu National Reserve. "Yet another set of twins have been born in Samburu National Reserve," Save the Elephants announced in an Instagram post. "Alto from the Clouds has astonished us with her own set of twins. Her two adorable female calves, estimated to be just days old, were first spotted by our researchers in Samburu National Reserve this week." Described as "amazing odds," the birth is the second arrival of twins in Kenya's Samburu National Reserve in ... Read More
Inside the northern Ukraine training center where units learn to fight Russian drones
ABC News(KYIV, Ukraine) -- In a secret location in Northern Ukraine sits one of the country's biggest training centers for mobile air defense units. In the large open-air area, soldiers train to shoot drones with machine and anti-aircraft guns mounted on pick-up trucks. Some of those weapons are at least two times older than the young Ukrainian soldiers who are learning to operate them. "Everything we have, every help we get, we use it to create mobile fire groups to fill every inch of space here," Lieutenant General Serhii Nayev, responsible for Ukraine's Northern border defense, told ABC News during a recent visit to the training center. More than 600 miles long, the border touches both Belarus and Russia. With ... Read More
Israel-Gaza live updates: IDF says they killed 1 of the Jerusalem bus stop shooting victims by mistake
pawel.gaul/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- The cease-fire between Hamas and Israel has ended, according to the Israel Defense Forces, which said early Friday morning that Hamas had broken the cease-fire. The end of the cease-fire comes after Hamas freed over 100 of the more than 200 people its militants took hostage during the Oct. 7 surprise attack on Israel. In exchange, Israel released more than 200 Palestinians from Israeli prisons. Here's how the news is developing. All times Eastern: Dec 01, 10:57 AM EST IDF says they killed 1 of the Jerusalem bus stop shooting victims by mistake When Hamas militants opened fire at a Jerusalem bus stop Thursday morning, Hamas killed three of the victims, and an Israeli Defense Forces ... Read More
Bethlehem cancels Christmas in honor of Palestinian âmartyrsâ
BETHLEHEM - Christmas festivities in the West Bank town of Bethlehem have been canceled âin [honor] of the martyrs and in solidarity with our people in Gaza,â The Telegraph reported on Wednesday, citing local authorities. A spokesman for the municipality confirmed to the British broadsheet that its customary Christmas tree and decorations, including its nativity scene, were being dismantled. The spokesman said it would not be âappropriate at allâ in light of âthe general situation in Palestine; people are not really into any celebration, they are sad, angry and upset; our people in Gaza are being massacred and killed in cold blood.â He added that Christmas âmass and prayersâ would still take place. The Telegraph reported that Bethlehem, a town ... Read More
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife announce their separation
[caption id="attachment_1248494" align="alignnone" width="144"] Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau smiles as he arrives at 10 Downing Street in London ahead of a NATO reception hosted by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2019. U.S. President Donald Trump and his NATO counterparts were gathering in London Tuesday to mark the alliance's 70th birthday amid deep tensions as spats between leaders expose a lack of unity that risks undermining military organization's credibility. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant, Pool)[/caption]TORONTO (AP) â Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife, Sophie Gregoire Trudeau, say they are separating after 18 years of marriage. The two said in statements posted on Instagram on Wednesday that they made the decision after âmany meaningful and difficult conversations.â The ... Read More
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