Saturday, January 18, 2025

BIG Wrap

Dutch government resigns over failure to agree on policy for asylum seekers

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said his coalition government was resigning over “insurmountable” differences about measures to curb the number of people seeking refuge in the country. The resignation on Friday of Rutte, 56, the Netherlands’ longest-serving leader, and his coalition government means the country will face a general election later this year. “It is no secret that the coalition partners have very different views on migration policy,” Rutte told reporters in The Hague. “And...

After brief exile in Belarus, Wagner boss in Russia, says Lukashenko

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, who last month brokered a deal to end Wagner’s mutiny in Russia, has said that its leader Yevgeny Prigozhin was no longer in Belarus. Lukashenko said on June 27 that Prigozhin, whose fighters briefly captured a southern Russian city and marched toward Moscow, had arrived in Belarus as part of the June 24 deal that defused the crisis. But addressing reporters on Thursday, he said: “As for Prigozhin, he’s in...

Twitter ponders suit to redress Zuckerberg’s new Threads

(BBC News) Twitter is considering legal action against Meta over its fast-growing rival app Threads. Threads, which was launched to millions on Wednesday, is similar to Twitter and has been pitched by Meta bosses as a "friendly" alternative. Twitter's Elon Musk said "competition is fine, cheating is not" – but Meta denied claims in a legal letter that ex-Twitter staff helped create Threads. More than 30 million people have signed up for the new app, according to...

Meta launches Twitter rival Threads

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Instagram and Facebook owner Meta has launched social media network Threads, aiming to capitalize on turmoil at Twitter under owner Elon Musk. “Let’s do this,” Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg wrote on Wednesday in a post welcoming users to the site. “Welcome to Threads.” “I think the world needs this kind of friendly community,” Zuckerberg said in a separate post on Instagram after the app went live. “And I’m grateful to all of...

Israeli forces start withdrawal after two-day operation in Jenin

(BBC News) Israeli forces have started withdrawing from Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank, a defence source says. This ends a major two-day operation during which 12 Palestinians and one Israeli soldier have been killed. Gunfire and explosions could be heard across Jenin camp as the news emerged on Tuesday evening. The Israeli military said later that it had intercepted five rockets fired towards southern Israel by Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip. No group immediately...

Israeli military launches major operation in West Bank refugee camp

(BBC News) There have been intense exchanges of fire between Israeli forces and armed Palestinian militants in Jenin refugee camp, in the occupied West Bank. The Israeli military began what appears to be one of its most extensive operations in the territory in years with drone strikes early on Monday. Nine Palestinians have been killed and 100 injured, health officials say. Israel said it was putting a stop to Jenin being "a refuge for terrorism." Palestinians accused...

Breakthrough quantum computer instantly makes calculations that take rivals 47 years

(The Telegraph) Google has developed a quantum computer that instantly makes calculations that would take the best existing supercomputers 47 years, in a breakthrough meant to establish beyond doubt that the experimental machines can outperform conventional rivals. A paper from researchers at Google published online claims that the company’s latest technology is “beyond the capabilities of existing classical supercomputers.” Proponents of quantum computers say the technology, which relies on the peculiar states of quantum physics, can...

UK police powers expanded to crack down on ‘scandalous mayhem’

(Al Jazeera Media Network) New and expanded powers for British police have taken effect including measures targeting activists who stop road traffic and major construction works with protests. Authorities have repeatedly condemned groups including Just Stop Oil and Extinction Rebellion that promote the urgency of climate change by staging multiple high-profile demonstrations at the busiest highways and roads. Their protests in recent years often caused serious disruptions for motorists. Starting Sunday, police will have powers to forcibly...

EU officials concerned over Russian threat with a ‘weaker Putin’

(Al Jazeera Media Network) The European Union officials have warned that Russia has become more dangerous following last weekend’s short-lived mutiny by the country’s Wagner mercenary force, which exposed that President Vladimir Putin was politically weaker than previously thought. Attending an EU summit in Brussels on Thursday, senior officials reiterated that the recent chaos in Russia – where the mercenary force came within 200 km of Moscow last Saturday – was an internal matter in which their governments played...

U.S. report slams planning for Afghanistan withdrawal

(Al Jazeera Media Network) The U.S. State Department did not adequately prepare for the swift collapse of the Afghan government in 2021, an internal review has found, in the latest report to criticize the United States’ chaotic withdrawal from the country. While the so-called After Action Review (AAR) released on Friday lauded the actions of State Department staff, noting that they worked “heroically” under extreme “stress, demands and risks”, it said the department should have...