“The Israeli parliament has given its final approval to controversial legislation that allows the government to deport the family members of so-called ‘terrorists,’ including its own citizens, to the Gaza Strip and other locations. As the bill cleared the two required final plenum readings on Thursday, lawmakers in the Knesset approved the law – which would apply to Palestinian citizens of Israel as well – by 61 votes in favour to 41 against. … The parents, siblings or spouses of a so-called ‘terrorist’ can be sent away from Israel in case they are deemed to have ‘expressed support or identification’ or have failed to report information about ‘an act of terrorism or a terrorist organisation.’ It would also apply to residents of occupied East Jerusalem, but it was still unclear if it would apply in the occupied West Bank.” (11/07/24)
“U.S. stocks completed a momentous trading session on Wednesday, with investor optimism over Donald Trump’s presidential-election victory fueling the biggest post-election jump in the Dow Jones Industrial Average in more than 100 years. Wednesday’s advance in all three major U.S. stock indexes came despite a spike in Treasury yields, led by a 15.3-basis-point rise in the 30-year rate. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up by 1508.05 points, or 3.6%, at a new record close of 43,729.93, based on preliminary data. The S&P 500 closed up by 146.28 points, or 2.5%, at 5,929.04. The Nasdaq Composite ended up by 544.29 points, or almost 3%, at 18,983.47.” (11/06/24)
“Hurricane Rafael slammed into Cuba as a Category 3 hurricane Wednesday afternoon before losing some strength as it passed over the island and entered the Gulf of Mexico. The storm is moving away from western Cuba as a Category 2 hurricane, and conditions on the island were expected to improve overnight, with winds, rain, and storm surge diminishing. The hurricane, which caused the island’s power grid to crash, is the fifth major hurricane of the year in the Atlantic and the strongest this late in the year since 2020. … Rafael is expected to turn to the west and slow on Thursday, likely meandering along the southern Gulf of Mexico into the weekend. It is unlikely at this time that this storm will impact the northern Gulf of Mexico with the hurricane center only warning that the southern and southwestern Gulf of Mexico should keep up to date on Rafael.” (11/07/24)
“Kyiv has attacked Russian vessels in the Caspian Sea, hundreds of miles from Ukrainian territory, according to a Ukrainian and Russian official. ‘A port was attacked in Kaspiysk, Russia,’ said Andriy Kovalenko, the head of countering disinformation under Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, in a post to messaging app Telegram early Wednesday. The Russian city of Kaspiysk sits on the Caspian Sea, part of the southwestern republic of Dagestan. Dagestan’s regional governor, Sergey Melikov, said on Wednesday that Russian air defenses had ‘destroyed an unmanned aerial vehicle over Kaspiysk,’ and authorities were investigating the incident. But Russia’s Defense Ministry did not report any Ukrainian drones over the Dagestan region overnight. Several Ukrainian media outlets reported that at least two missile ships, the Dagestan and the Tatarstan, were damaged.” (11/06/24)
“Israeli strikes on Lebanon killed 40 people around the eastern city of Baalbek in the Bekaa Valley on Wednesday, according to the country’s health ministry, and at dusk more strikes hit Beirut’s southern suburbs. Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah have exchanged fire for over a year in parallel with the Gaza war but fighting has escalated since late September, with Israeli troops intensifying bombing of Lebanon’s south and east and making ground incursions into border villages. Israeli strikes on Baalbek and the Bekaa Valley killed 40 people and wounded 53, the health ministry said. The Israeli military did not comment.” (11/06/24)
“More than a third of Americans continue to express mistrust in the science behind COVID vaccines, a new study finds. This level of mistrust has remained relatively consistent, expressed by 36% of people in 2021, 33% in 2022 and 36% in 2023. People who lost a family member or close friend to COVID were significantly more likely to trust vaccine science and accept vaccination, results showed. … ‘Our findings underscore the critical role of trust in science during public health crises,’ said lead researcher Trenton White, a postdoctoral fellow with the Barcelona Institute for Global Health.” [editor’s note: Perhaps they should also look into the trustWORTHINESS of whatever’s being held out as “science” for political reasons at any given moment, too – TLK] (11/06/24)
“A Malaysian businessman has been jailed for his part in an unprecedented bribery scandal that rocked the US Navy. Leonard Glenn Francis, 60, also known as ‘Fat Leonard,’ was sentenced to 15 years in prison in federal court on Tuesday, according to the Department of Justice. He was also ordered to pay $20m in compensation to the US Navy and a $150,000 fine. Francis’s company, Glenn Defense Marine Asia, was also sentenced to five years probation and ordered to pay a $36m fine. The convicted fraudster had admitted to a scam where he bribed senior Navy officials with millions of dollars in cash, sex workers, first-class travel expenses, luxurious hotel stays, watches, Spanish suckling pigs and Cuban cigars.” (11/06/24)
“Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 presidential election sent shares of Tesla surging as much as 15% Wednesday, propelled by CEO Elon Musk’s prominent role in the Republican’s White House campaign and expectations that the company will benefit from proposed tax cuts and a deregulatory blitz. Trump name-checked Musk, the world’s richest man, during his victory speech Wednesday morning, calling him a ‘super genius.’ Campaign finance records show that Musk — who’s expected to receive a position in the president-elect’s administration, despite massive conflicts of interest — pumped more than $100 million into the 2024 race in support of Trump’s bid for a second term. According to Forbes’ real-time tracker, Musk’s net worth — the bulk of which is tied up in Tesla stock — rose by over $16 billion on Wednesday.” (11/06/24)
“Germany’s center-left Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced Wednesday he was firing Finance Minister Christian Lindner, which could undermine the ruling three-party coalition that relies on Lindner’s pro-business party. The coalition had been arguing for weeks over ways to boost the country’s ailing economy, but were not able to find a compromise.” (11/06/24)
“Fines of up to £900 for wearing a burqa will be introduced in Switzerland next year, the country’s government has announced. The measure widely known as the ‘burqa ban’ will take effect in every Swiss canton on January 1, after it was already established in St Gallen and Ticino following regional votes. Narrowly passed in a 2021 referendum in neutral Switzerland, and condemned by Muslim associations, the country-wide ban was proposed by the right-wing Swiss People’s Party. The governing Federal Council said in a statement it had fixed the start of the ban, and that anyone who unlawfully flouts it in a public place faces a fine of up to £888 (1,000 Swiss francs).” (11/06/24)
