From Reuters Daily Briefing |
|
|
By Robert MacMillan, Reuters.com Weekend Editor |
We're glad to have you back or to welcome you for the first time to the Weekend Briefing. We have the latest news on the Middle East, Australia's Indigenous Voice referendum and more. |
|
|
Israeli soldiers secure tanks and military vehicles near the Gaza Strip. REUTERS/Violeta Santos Moura |
|
|
- The latest: Israel said it would guarantee the safety of Palestinians fleeing the area, including Gaza City, on two main roads until 4:00 pm local time. That is two hours from the time we are publishing. Thousands fled as Israel is expected to launch a ground assault after Hamas' rampage a week ago that killed 1,300 people. More than 1,900 people in Gaza, a quarter of them children, were killed by Israeli airstrikes. And in Lebanon, a Reuters video journalist was killed and six other journalists injured when missiles fired from the direction of Israel struck them. Issam Abdallah was providing a live video signal for broadcasters when a loud explosion shook the scene. Two other Reuters journalists, Thaer Al-Sudani and Maher Nazeh, were wounded.
- No exit: Calls for a humanitarian corridor or an escape route for Palestinians from Gaza have drawn a blunt reaction from Arab neighbors: they should stay on their land. This reflects deep Arab fears that the war with Hamas could spark a new wave of permanent displacement from land where Palestinians want to build a future state. I also recommend this story on how Hamas secretly built a 'mini-army' to fight Israel.
|
|
|
- 'No': Australia decisively rejected a proposal to recognize Indigenous people in the constitution, a major setback to the country's efforts for reconciliation with its First Peoples. Indigenous citizens make up 3.8% of the population and have inhabited the land for about 60,000 years. They are not mentioned in the constitution and by most measures are the most disadvantaged people in the country.
- Early results: A thousand miles to the east, New Zealand's center-right National Party triumphed over the ruling Labour Party, which has lost support since it captured an outright majority in 2020. Many New Zealanders are dissatisfied over the country's long COVID-19 lockdown and the rising cost of living.
|
|
|
- Stepping it up: The U.S. and Britain signaled support for the plan, which would tax windfall profits generated by frozen Russian sovereign assets to finance Ukraine as it fights Moscow's invasion. Belgium has held up talks for months, saying it would not be effective, and that a G7 solution would be better.
- Time for a vote: Poland holds its parliamentary election on Sunday, with the ruling nationalist Law and Justice party, called PiS, seeking an unprecedented third term in power. Critics say the government has politicized the judiciary, used public media as a propaganda tool and undermined the country's position in the EU. The party says it supports Ukraine in its war against Russia, but not at the expense of Poland's own interests.
|
|
|
- Derivatives: Energy companies, hedge funds and commodity traders are stepping up their use of financial products that let them bet on the weather as they seek to protect themselves against - or profit from - the increasingly extreme global climate. (Want more news like this? Subscribe to our Sustainable Switch newsletter. You will like it.)
- Effects: The world's water cycle is spinning out of balance. Global losses from extreme weather could hit $5 trillion, Lloyd's of London says. Hunger is stalking Guatemala's highlands as temperatures rise. And billions of people could struggle to survive in periods of deadly, humid heat within this century.
|
|
|
Before I forget… President Erdogan told Turkey after its ruinous earthquake earlier this year that the disaster zone would be rebuilt within a year. There is little chance that his promise, made with a national election looming at the time, will be fulfilled. No shade, no water, and record heat: Why more migrants are dying as they try to cross the vast desert expanses on the U.S.-Mexico border. Republicans nominated hardline conservative and noted Ukraine-aid skeptic Jim Jordan for speaker of the House of Representatives, but he might not have the 217 votes required to take the gavel. Donald Trump's broadsides during his multiple legal tussles have put courts in a bind. Allowing them to continue risks undermining the judicial process, while efforts to constrain the former president could fuel his claims that the justice system has been "weaponized" against him. I don't believe the children are our future: Malta plans to allow 16-year-olds to serve as mayors. Some people think it's a silly plan. Sample comment: "The council meeting has been delayed while the mayor waits for his mother to drive him to the office." |
|
|
Sponsors are not involved in the creation of newsletters or other Reuters news content. |
Weekend Briefing is sent once a week. Think your friend or colleague should know about us? Forward this newsletter to them. They can also sign up here.
Want to stop receiving this newsletter? Unsubscribe here. To manage which newsletters you're signed up for, click here. |
Follow Reuters on social media |
|
|
|
