KULTURKAMPF DEFEATED DEMS
THEY FAILED TO ADDRESS MAGA ATTACKS ON TRANS (LGBTQ+) RIGHTS
Wednesday, November 06, 2024
U.S., South Korea agree to greater cooperation on civil nuclear energy
WHILE DENYING THE NORTH THE SAME RIGHT TO CIVIL NUCLEAR ENERGY
By UPI Staff
According to one trade organization, South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol has set a target for nuclear energy to provide a minimum of 30% of electricity to the nation by 2030.
Though most of today's recent news about nuclear topics on the Korean peninsula seemingly involve North Korea's expansion of its nuclear weaponry capabilities, the south's use and promotion of nuclear energy for civil and peaceful needs has been noteworthy.
South Korea is one of the world's most prominent nuclear-reliant nations, according to the World Nuclear Association, an international pro-nuclear organization that tracks such information. Twenty-six reactors provide about one-third of South Korea's electricity, the organization says, adding that President Yoon Suk Yeol set a target for nuclear energy to provide a minimum of 30% of electricity to the nation by 2030.
Additionally and according to the International Trade Association, a private group that promotes U.S. exports, South Korea currently is seeking to transform its "energy-generation mix" by adopting an expanded use of nuclear power as a way to also increase the source of carbon free energy in its overall energy mix from the current 40% to 70.2% by 2038.
That seemed to be echoed in the release this week in which DOE officials said the commitments made by the United States and the ROK "will provide a springboard for the expansion of our bilateral work in combatting climate change, accelerating global energy transitions, and assuring critical supply chains while creating billions of dollars worth of new economic opportunities and the creation or maintenance of tens of thousands of manufacturing jobs for both of our industries."
The memorandum will now face a final review by both U.S. and ROK officials.
By UPI Staff
According to one trade organization, South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol has set a target for nuclear energy to provide a minimum of 30% of electricity to the nation by 2030.
File Photo by Nathan Howard/UPI | License Photo
Nov. 5 (UPI) -- Earlier this month, the United States and the Republic of Korea reached an agreement on greater cooperation between the two nation's civil nuclear energy industries.
On Nov. 1, the two nations reached a so-called "memorandum of understanding" on topics affecting nuclear exports and cooperation, according to a statement released from the U.S. Department of Energy on Monday.
In that statement, U.S. and Republic of Korea officials reaffirmed their mutual commitment to promoting peaceful nuclear energy while "upholding the highest standards of nonproliferation, safety, safeguards and security.
"Toward this end, the parties strengthened their administration of export controls on civil nuclear technology," officials said in the statement.
Nov. 5 (UPI) -- Earlier this month, the United States and the Republic of Korea reached an agreement on greater cooperation between the two nation's civil nuclear energy industries.
On Nov. 1, the two nations reached a so-called "memorandum of understanding" on topics affecting nuclear exports and cooperation, according to a statement released from the U.S. Department of Energy on Monday.
In that statement, U.S. and Republic of Korea officials reaffirmed their mutual commitment to promoting peaceful nuclear energy while "upholding the highest standards of nonproliferation, safety, safeguards and security.
"Toward this end, the parties strengthened their administration of export controls on civil nuclear technology," officials said in the statement.
Though most of today's recent news about nuclear topics on the Korean peninsula seemingly involve North Korea's expansion of its nuclear weaponry capabilities, the south's use and promotion of nuclear energy for civil and peaceful needs has been noteworthy.
South Korea is one of the world's most prominent nuclear-reliant nations, according to the World Nuclear Association, an international pro-nuclear organization that tracks such information. Twenty-six reactors provide about one-third of South Korea's electricity, the organization says, adding that President Yoon Suk Yeol set a target for nuclear energy to provide a minimum of 30% of electricity to the nation by 2030.
Additionally and according to the International Trade Association, a private group that promotes U.S. exports, South Korea currently is seeking to transform its "energy-generation mix" by adopting an expanded use of nuclear power as a way to also increase the source of carbon free energy in its overall energy mix from the current 40% to 70.2% by 2038.
That seemed to be echoed in the release this week in which DOE officials said the commitments made by the United States and the ROK "will provide a springboard for the expansion of our bilateral work in combatting climate change, accelerating global energy transitions, and assuring critical supply chains while creating billions of dollars worth of new economic opportunities and the creation or maintenance of tens of thousands of manufacturing jobs for both of our industries."
The memorandum will now face a final review by both U.S. and ROK officials.
Israel war seriously impacts Lebanon's healthcare system, raising fear of Gaza scenario
ISRAEL IS CREATING A MID EAST NO MAN'S LAND BETWEEN IT AND IRAN
By Dalal Saoud
A firefighter stands amid the smoldering debris Friday at the site of overnight Israeli airstrikes that targeted the neighborhood of Kafaat in Beirut's southern suburbs. Photo by Fadel Itani/UPI | License Photo
BEIRUT, Lebanon, Nov. 4 (UPI) -- Israel must immediately stop its devastating war against Lebanon -- that Tel Aviv says aims at destroying the Iran-backed Hezbollah -- to avoid the collapse of the healthcare system and spare the tiny Arab country the same fate as Gaza, Lebanese and international medical officials said.
Israel has been violating international humanitarian laws by targeting hospitals, medical care centers and health workers, 178 of whom have been killed so far, according to recent comments by Lebanese Health Minister Dr. Firas Abiad.
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International humanitarian organizations, including Amnesty International, Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) and Première Urgence Internationale, have denounced the regular targeting of Lebanon's health infrastructure, calling on Israel to stop its "indiscriminate bombing campaigns" that do not spare civilians or medical and humanitarian workers.
Amnesty International went a step further in expressing fears that Lebanon may face the same dramatic situation as the occupied Gaza Strip.
The new round of Israel-Hezbollah war came to add tremendous pressure on the country's health care sector, which was barely recovering from the shocks it suffered in recent years, including the 2019 financial collapse, the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2020 Beirut port explosion.
The World Health Organization saw hope for the revival of the health system in late 2023 after the return of some health workers to the country. During the financial crisis, almost 40% of the Lebanese doctors left the country, leaving many hospitals and medical facilities suffering because of the emerging shortages and financial distress.
With the raging war, "Now, we went back to [point] zero." Dr Abdinasir Abubakar, the WHO representative in Lebanon, told UPI.
The "turning point," Abubakar said, was the highly sophisticated unprecedented pager and talkie-walkie attacks carried out by Israel against Hezbollah followers Sept 17 and 18.
Twelve people, including two children, were killed and more than 3,000 were wounded, with severe injuries mainly to eyes, hands and waists.
In less than an hour, hospitals became overwhelmed with such a great number of wounded people.
"Some 100 hospitals were involved in managing that day alone, and we have reached the level where some hospitals were running out of supplies. Doctors and nurses continued to work 24, 48 and 72 hours continuously. That was the beginning of a major crisis," Abubakar said.
The situation worsened when Israel assassinated Hezbollah leader Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah and several of his military commanders in a huge airstrike targeting his bunker in Beirut's southern suburbs Sept 27.
It then stepped up its air attacks against Hezbollah officials, headquarters and bases, while its forces started to advance inside southern Lebanon.
The relentless Israeli air and ground bombardment led to large destruction of villages, property, hospitals and schools in the targeted areas. Some 3,002 have been killed and 13,492 wounded since October 2023, according to Lebanese Health Ministry counts.
Health workers were not spared, with some 178 killed and 306 injured. Eight out of 40 hospitals targeted from a total of 160 are now out of service while seven continue to partially operate. Some 244 ambulances and other medical vehicles were destroyed.
Abubakar said WHO and all humanitarian organizations "are seriously concerned" about the repeated attacks on the health care sector.
"Almost every day, we are losing health care workers, ambulances and facilities. If this continues, we will reach a breaking point where hospitals will be full and health workers will be overwhelmed," he said. "We don't want to [reach] the same level as in Gaza."
During their planning for the conflict, Lebanon Health Ministry and WHO estimated that 5,000 people would be injured in six months, but the country reached that number within a few days with the pager attacks.
Hospitals have been so far able to deal with the growing number of injured due to the ministry leadership and dedication of the medical staff, the WHO representative stressed.
But it is getting "harder every day," according to Suleiman Haroun, president of the Syndicate of Private Hospitals.
Haroun told UPI that the pressure is increasing on the hospitals, especially in southern and eastern Lebanon, as well as the southern suburbs, where "they are not functioning in a normal way ... just for emergencies."
Hospitals in more secure areas are not only taking in war wounded, but also have to treat sick, displaced people who fled for safety and need special assistance, such as cancer patients and those who require dialysis.
"The main challenge we are currently facing is the fact that the medical teams are exhausted morally and physically from working in an intensive way for many consecutive days," Haroun sadi.
Recalling the Sept. 17 pager attacks and the resulting injuries, he said "we have never seen such a thing before; every patient needed 2 or 3 surgeons to operate on him for his eye and hand injuries. ... Many still need more surgeries to recover."
Medications and supplies still are available, but the fear is the lack of funding.
"So far, we are managing but it doesn't mean that we will be able to function for a long time," Haroun said, "We are speaking of several weeks, not months -- thus the need for an immediate cease-fire."
Among the 1 million displaced scattered in various parts of the county, some 300,000 live in poor conditions at overcrowded shelters and public schools.
A cholera case was confirmed by the Health Ministry because of poor water and sanitation conditions, highlighting the escalating health risks amidst the ongoing conflict.
"You have the ingredients for diseases to spread. We have seen the first case of cholera. The number of diarrheas is increasing ... the risk of outbreaks is very high," Abubakar warned.
Last month, the United Nations launched a flash appeal for $426 million to assist civilians affected by the escalating conflict and resulting humanitarian crisis in Lebanon. However, only 17% of the targeted amount has been raised so far.
Sahel Hospital in Beirut's southern suburbs, which continues to provide medical care despite the relentless Israeli shelling, found itself under additional threats after Israel claimed that Hezbollah was keeping $500 million in cash and gold in a bunker under the hospital.
Shocked by the Israeli allegations, the hospital evacuated its staff and patients and called on journalists to inspect the site. Despite that Israel repeated its threats, no Hezbollah assets were found.
Fadi Alame, a deputy in the parliament and president of the Sahel Medical Group, denied the Israeli claims saying they meant to create "fear and confusion" and force another hospital in the targeted area to stop operating.
"This is what happened, and we evacuated the hospital," Alame told UPI. "It was part of the [Israeli] psychological war."
A few days later, the hospital resumed providing medical services to cancer patients and those in need of dialysis because "they have no other place to go to."
Arab and international urgent humanitarian assistance has been pouring on Lebanon, but the most urgent is to stop the "killing and destruction," according to Alame.
Forcing Israel to respect international humanitarian laws to protect civilians, medical staff and facilities, is an immediate urgent issue.
With WHO documenting and collecting information on what he called Israel's violation of international human rights, Abubakar said, "There should be accountability .... There will be one day when judgement will come .... The world is not [the] accepting Gaza [tragedy], not accepting [the one developing in] Lebanon and not accepting Ukraine['s]."
By Dalal Saoud
A firefighter stands amid the smoldering debris Friday at the site of overnight Israeli airstrikes that targeted the neighborhood of Kafaat in Beirut's southern suburbs. Photo by Fadel Itani/UPI | License Photo
BEIRUT, Lebanon, Nov. 4 (UPI) -- Israel must immediately stop its devastating war against Lebanon -- that Tel Aviv says aims at destroying the Iran-backed Hezbollah -- to avoid the collapse of the healthcare system and spare the tiny Arab country the same fate as Gaza, Lebanese and international medical officials said.
Israel has been violating international humanitarian laws by targeting hospitals, medical care centers and health workers, 178 of whom have been killed so far, according to recent comments by Lebanese Health Minister Dr. Firas Abiad.
Advertisement
International humanitarian organizations, including Amnesty International, Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) and Première Urgence Internationale, have denounced the regular targeting of Lebanon's health infrastructure, calling on Israel to stop its "indiscriminate bombing campaigns" that do not spare civilians or medical and humanitarian workers.
Amnesty International went a step further in expressing fears that Lebanon may face the same dramatic situation as the occupied Gaza Strip.
The new round of Israel-Hezbollah war came to add tremendous pressure on the country's health care sector, which was barely recovering from the shocks it suffered in recent years, including the 2019 financial collapse, the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2020 Beirut port explosion.
The World Health Organization saw hope for the revival of the health system in late 2023 after the return of some health workers to the country. During the financial crisis, almost 40% of the Lebanese doctors left the country, leaving many hospitals and medical facilities suffering because of the emerging shortages and financial distress.
With the raging war, "Now, we went back to [point] zero." Dr Abdinasir Abubakar, the WHO representative in Lebanon, told UPI.
The "turning point," Abubakar said, was the highly sophisticated unprecedented pager and talkie-walkie attacks carried out by Israel against Hezbollah followers Sept 17 and 18.
Twelve people, including two children, were killed and more than 3,000 were wounded, with severe injuries mainly to eyes, hands and waists.
In less than an hour, hospitals became overwhelmed with such a great number of wounded people.
"Some 100 hospitals were involved in managing that day alone, and we have reached the level where some hospitals were running out of supplies. Doctors and nurses continued to work 24, 48 and 72 hours continuously. That was the beginning of a major crisis," Abubakar said.
The situation worsened when Israel assassinated Hezbollah leader Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah and several of his military commanders in a huge airstrike targeting his bunker in Beirut's southern suburbs Sept 27.
It then stepped up its air attacks against Hezbollah officials, headquarters and bases, while its forces started to advance inside southern Lebanon.
The relentless Israeli air and ground bombardment led to large destruction of villages, property, hospitals and schools in the targeted areas. Some 3,002 have been killed and 13,492 wounded since October 2023, according to Lebanese Health Ministry counts.
Health workers were not spared, with some 178 killed and 306 injured. Eight out of 40 hospitals targeted from a total of 160 are now out of service while seven continue to partially operate. Some 244 ambulances and other medical vehicles were destroyed.
Abubakar said WHO and all humanitarian organizations "are seriously concerned" about the repeated attacks on the health care sector.
"Almost every day, we are losing health care workers, ambulances and facilities. If this continues, we will reach a breaking point where hospitals will be full and health workers will be overwhelmed," he said. "We don't want to [reach] the same level as in Gaza."
During their planning for the conflict, Lebanon Health Ministry and WHO estimated that 5,000 people would be injured in six months, but the country reached that number within a few days with the pager attacks.
Hospitals have been so far able to deal with the growing number of injured due to the ministry leadership and dedication of the medical staff, the WHO representative stressed.
But it is getting "harder every day," according to Suleiman Haroun, president of the Syndicate of Private Hospitals.
Haroun told UPI that the pressure is increasing on the hospitals, especially in southern and eastern Lebanon, as well as the southern suburbs, where "they are not functioning in a normal way ... just for emergencies."
Hospitals in more secure areas are not only taking in war wounded, but also have to treat sick, displaced people who fled for safety and need special assistance, such as cancer patients and those who require dialysis.
"The main challenge we are currently facing is the fact that the medical teams are exhausted morally and physically from working in an intensive way for many consecutive days," Haroun sadi.
Recalling the Sept. 17 pager attacks and the resulting injuries, he said "we have never seen such a thing before; every patient needed 2 or 3 surgeons to operate on him for his eye and hand injuries. ... Many still need more surgeries to recover."
Medications and supplies still are available, but the fear is the lack of funding.
"So far, we are managing but it doesn't mean that we will be able to function for a long time," Haroun said, "We are speaking of several weeks, not months -- thus the need for an immediate cease-fire."
Among the 1 million displaced scattered in various parts of the county, some 300,000 live in poor conditions at overcrowded shelters and public schools.
A cholera case was confirmed by the Health Ministry because of poor water and sanitation conditions, highlighting the escalating health risks amidst the ongoing conflict.
"You have the ingredients for diseases to spread. We have seen the first case of cholera. The number of diarrheas is increasing ... the risk of outbreaks is very high," Abubakar warned.
Last month, the United Nations launched a flash appeal for $426 million to assist civilians affected by the escalating conflict and resulting humanitarian crisis in Lebanon. However, only 17% of the targeted amount has been raised so far.
Sahel Hospital in Beirut's southern suburbs, which continues to provide medical care despite the relentless Israeli shelling, found itself under additional threats after Israel claimed that Hezbollah was keeping $500 million in cash and gold in a bunker under the hospital.
Shocked by the Israeli allegations, the hospital evacuated its staff and patients and called on journalists to inspect the site. Despite that Israel repeated its threats, no Hezbollah assets were found.
Fadi Alame, a deputy in the parliament and president of the Sahel Medical Group, denied the Israeli claims saying they meant to create "fear and confusion" and force another hospital in the targeted area to stop operating.
"This is what happened, and we evacuated the hospital," Alame told UPI. "It was part of the [Israeli] psychological war."
A few days later, the hospital resumed providing medical services to cancer patients and those in need of dialysis because "they have no other place to go to."
Arab and international urgent humanitarian assistance has been pouring on Lebanon, but the most urgent is to stop the "killing and destruction," according to Alame.
Forcing Israel to respect international humanitarian laws to protect civilians, medical staff and facilities, is an immediate urgent issue.
With WHO documenting and collecting information on what he called Israel's violation of international human rights, Abubakar said, "There should be accountability .... There will be one day when judgement will come .... The world is not [the] accepting Gaza [tragedy], not accepting [the one developing in] Lebanon and not accepting Ukraine['s]."
MINISTER OF GENOCIDE
'Bulldozer': Israel's new Defence Minister Israel Katz is longtime Netanyahu ally
In a surprise announcement, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Tuesday kicked his popular defence minister Yoav Gallant to the curb and replaced him with Israel Katz, the country's former foreign minister. Nicknamed a “bulldozer” in Israeli media, the 69-year-old is a close confidante more likely to be in tune with Netanyahu than his predecessor.
Issued on: 06/11/2024
By: NEWS WIRES
Attacks on the UN
As foreign minister, Katz drew international attention for his pointed attacks on world leaders and international organisations that had expressed opposition to Israeli military actions, particularly in Gaza.
He spearheaded a diplomatic battle against the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, and last month Israel's parliament banned the agency from working in Israel and occupied east Jerusalem.
On Monday, Katz instructed his ministry to formally notify the United Nations that Israel was cancelling its agreements with UNRWA.
Before serving as foreign minister, Katz's most notable role was as minister of transport.
He spent a decade in the post from 2009-2019, but had also held the energy and finance portfolios in various Netanyahu cabinets.
Aviv Bushinsky, a political commentator and Netanyahu's former chief of staff, told AFP that Katz was likely to be more in tune with the prime minister than his predecessor Gallant.
"I cannot recall an incident when Israel Katz was in opposition to Netanyahu with anything," Bushinsky said.
"It is true he does not have any military experience, but he was a very good transport minister and has sat in the cabinet for many years," he added.
"Besides, Netanyahu thinks he can run the show himself – and he has managed to run the show even though Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot, two generals, quit the government."
Born in the coastal city of Ashkelon, Katz has been a prominent player in Israeli politics since becoming a member of parliament, the Knesset, in 1998.
Today he is among the highest-ranking ministers in the Likud party.
Married with two children, Katz is a resident of Moshav Kfar Ahim in southern Israel.
(AFP)
'Bulldozer': Israel's new Defence Minister Israel Katz is longtime Netanyahu ally
In a surprise announcement, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Tuesday kicked his popular defence minister Yoav Gallant to the curb and replaced him with Israel Katz, the country's former foreign minister. Nicknamed a “bulldozer” in Israeli media, the 69-year-old is a close confidante more likely to be in tune with Netanyahu than his predecessor.
Issued on: 06/11/2024
By: NEWS WIRES
Israel Katz speaks during a joint press conference in Budapest, Hungary, on June 17, 2024. © Attila Kisbenedek, AFP
Israel's new Defence Minister Israel Katz, known for his abrasive style, is a long-time ally and loyalist of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.
In a dramatic announcement late on Tuesday, Netanyahu sacked defence minister Yoav Gallant over what he said was a breakdown in trust during the Gaza war against Hamas.
"Over the past few months that trust has eroded. In light of this, I decided today to end the term of the defence minister," Netanyahu said in a statement issued by his office.
Read more
Israel's new Defence Minister Israel Katz, known for his abrasive style, is a long-time ally and loyalist of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.
In a dramatic announcement late on Tuesday, Netanyahu sacked defence minister Yoav Gallant over what he said was a breakdown in trust during the Gaza war against Hamas.
"Over the past few months that trust has eroded. In light of this, I decided today to end the term of the defence minister," Netanyahu said in a statement issued by his office.
Read more
Netanyahu fires Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant in surprise announcement
The statement added that he had appointed Foreign Minister Israel Katz to take Gallant's place.
Katz, 69, labelled by Israeli media as a "bulldozer" for his direct and sometimes abrasive style, is considered both close and loyal to Netanyahu.
After his appointment, Katz vowed to defeat Israel's enemies and achieve the country's war goals.
"We will work together to lead the defence establishment to victory over our enemies and to achieve the goals of the war: the return of all hostages as the most important moral mission, the destruction of Hamas in Gaza, the defeat of Hezbollah in Lebanon, the containment of Iranian aggression, and the safe return of the residents of the north and south to their homes," he said in a statement.
A member of Netanyahu's ruling Likud party, in which he was previously president of the party's convention, Katz has held multiple cabinet roles going back to 2003.
The statement added that he had appointed Foreign Minister Israel Katz to take Gallant's place.
Katz, 69, labelled by Israeli media as a "bulldozer" for his direct and sometimes abrasive style, is considered both close and loyal to Netanyahu.
After his appointment, Katz vowed to defeat Israel's enemies and achieve the country's war goals.
"We will work together to lead the defence establishment to victory over our enemies and to achieve the goals of the war: the return of all hostages as the most important moral mission, the destruction of Hamas in Gaza, the defeat of Hezbollah in Lebanon, the containment of Iranian aggression, and the safe return of the residents of the north and south to their homes," he said in a statement.
A member of Netanyahu's ruling Likud party, in which he was previously president of the party's convention, Katz has held multiple cabinet roles going back to 2003.
Attacks on the UN
As foreign minister, Katz drew international attention for his pointed attacks on world leaders and international organisations that had expressed opposition to Israeli military actions, particularly in Gaza.
He spearheaded a diplomatic battle against the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, and last month Israel's parliament banned the agency from working in Israel and occupied east Jerusalem.
On Monday, Katz instructed his ministry to formally notify the United Nations that Israel was cancelling its agreements with UNRWA.
Before serving as foreign minister, Katz's most notable role was as minister of transport.
He spent a decade in the post from 2009-2019, but had also held the energy and finance portfolios in various Netanyahu cabinets.
Aviv Bushinsky, a political commentator and Netanyahu's former chief of staff, told AFP that Katz was likely to be more in tune with the prime minister than his predecessor Gallant.
"I cannot recall an incident when Israel Katz was in opposition to Netanyahu with anything," Bushinsky said.
"It is true he does not have any military experience, but he was a very good transport minister and has sat in the cabinet for many years," he added.
"Besides, Netanyahu thinks he can run the show himself – and he has managed to run the show even though Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot, two generals, quit the government."
Born in the coastal city of Ashkelon, Katz has been a prominent player in Israeli politics since becoming a member of parliament, the Knesset, in 1998.
Today he is among the highest-ranking ministers in the Likud party.
Married with two children, Katz is a resident of Moshav Kfar Ahim in southern Israel.
(AFP)
It’s not official yet but Mount Fuji gets its trademark snowcap after the longest delay in 130 years
Mt. Fuji in Japan is covered with snow Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024.
Mt. Fuji in Japan is covered with snow Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024.
Mt. Fuji in Japan is covered with snow Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024
Mt. Fuji is snowcapped, seen from Shizuoka prefecture, central Japan Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024.
Mount Fuji in the early morning sunlight is seen from Lake Kawaguchi, Japan, on Aug. 7, 2019. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
BY MARI YAMAGUCHI
November 5, 2024
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s Mount Fuji finally got its trademark snowcap early on Wednesday, more than a month after it normally would and after setting a record for the most-delayed snowfall in 130 years.
The first snowfall on Mt. Fuji, a UNESCO World Heritage site, could be seen from the southwestern side of the mountain, according to the Shizuoka branch of the Japan Meteorological Agency.
But the JMA’s Kofu Local Meteorological Office, which is on the other side of the mountain and has been in charge of making the announcement since 1984, still could not see the snow due to cloudy weather — meaning it’s not official yet.
The lack of snow on Mt. Fuji on Tuesday broke the previous record set on Oct. 26, 2016, meteorological officials said.
Usually, the 3,776-meter- (nearly 12,300-foot-) high mountain has sprinkles of snow falling on its summit starting Oct. 2, about a month after the summertime hiking season there ends. Last year, snow fell on the mountain on Oct. 5, according to the JMA.
The snowless Mt. Fuji has captured attention on social media. People posted photos showing the bare mountain, some expressing surprise and others concerned over climate change.
RELATED STORIES
Tropical Storm Rafael near hurricane intensity as it barrels toward Cuba and Cayman Islands
Cyclone Dana landfall: Nearly 600,000 evacuated as storm pounds eastern India
The JMA’s Kofu office has cited October’s surprisingly summery weather as the reason. The temperature earlier this year has been higher across Japan, including Mt. Fuji.
“Many people are waiting to see the snowcap and we’ve received many inquiries recently,” Kiryu said. He said clouds around the mountaintop have blocked the view since Wednesday morning, delaying the confirmation of the snowcap, but officials are continuing to try to get a peak at the first snowfall.
Kiryu said it is too early to link this year’s late snowcap to global warming, noting Mt. Fuji’s first snow last year was in early October, adding: “I think we need to examine data for a longer period of time to make any conclusion.”
The average October temperature is minus 2 degrees Celsius (28.4 degrees Fahrenheit) at the summit, but this year, it was 1.6 C, (34.9 F), a record high since 1932.
Japan this year also had an unusually hot summer and warm autumn.
A symbol of Japan, the mountain called “Fujisan” used to be a place of pilgrimage. The mountain with its snowy top and near symmetrical slopes have been the subject of numerous forms of art, including Japanese ukiyoe artist Katsushika Hokusai’s Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji.
Today, it attracts hikers who climb to the summit to see the sunrise. But tons of trash left behind and overcrowding have triggered concern and calls for environmental protection and measures to control overtourism.
Jun Kubota, a weather forecaster and a climber who grew up in Yamanashi, one of the two prefectures that are home to Mt. Fuji, says he is concerned if this year’s delayed snowfall is part of a trend.
“I wonder if the season we can enjoy the snow is getting shorter, not just at Mt. Fuji but also on other mountains in central Japan or on Hokkaido,” Kubota said in a Zoom call. i
He noted reports of snow shortage on ski slopes in recent years. “I’m afraid there could be an impact not only on snow mountain climbing, but also winter sports in general.”
___
AP video journalist Mayuko Ono contributed to this report.
Mt. Fuji in Japan is covered with snow Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024.
Mt. Fuji in Japan is covered with snow Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024.
Mt. Fuji in Japan is covered with snow Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024
Mt. Fuji is snowcapped, seen from Shizuoka prefecture, central Japan Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024.
Mount Fuji in the early morning sunlight is seen from Lake Kawaguchi, Japan, on Aug. 7, 2019. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
BY MARI YAMAGUCHI
November 5, 2024
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s Mount Fuji finally got its trademark snowcap early on Wednesday, more than a month after it normally would and after setting a record for the most-delayed snowfall in 130 years.
The first snowfall on Mt. Fuji, a UNESCO World Heritage site, could be seen from the southwestern side of the mountain, according to the Shizuoka branch of the Japan Meteorological Agency.
But the JMA’s Kofu Local Meteorological Office, which is on the other side of the mountain and has been in charge of making the announcement since 1984, still could not see the snow due to cloudy weather — meaning it’s not official yet.
The lack of snow on Mt. Fuji on Tuesday broke the previous record set on Oct. 26, 2016, meteorological officials said.
Usually, the 3,776-meter- (nearly 12,300-foot-) high mountain has sprinkles of snow falling on its summit starting Oct. 2, about a month after the summertime hiking season there ends. Last year, snow fell on the mountain on Oct. 5, according to the JMA.
The snowless Mt. Fuji has captured attention on social media. People posted photos showing the bare mountain, some expressing surprise and others concerned over climate change.
RELATED STORIES
Tropical Storm Rafael near hurricane intensity as it barrels toward Cuba and Cayman Islands
Cyclone Dana landfall: Nearly 600,000 evacuated as storm pounds eastern India
The JMA’s Kofu office has cited October’s surprisingly summery weather as the reason. The temperature earlier this year has been higher across Japan, including Mt. Fuji.
“Many people are waiting to see the snowcap and we’ve received many inquiries recently,” Kiryu said. He said clouds around the mountaintop have blocked the view since Wednesday morning, delaying the confirmation of the snowcap, but officials are continuing to try to get a peak at the first snowfall.
Kiryu said it is too early to link this year’s late snowcap to global warming, noting Mt. Fuji’s first snow last year was in early October, adding: “I think we need to examine data for a longer period of time to make any conclusion.”
The average October temperature is minus 2 degrees Celsius (28.4 degrees Fahrenheit) at the summit, but this year, it was 1.6 C, (34.9 F), a record high since 1932.
Japan this year also had an unusually hot summer and warm autumn.
A symbol of Japan, the mountain called “Fujisan” used to be a place of pilgrimage. The mountain with its snowy top and near symmetrical slopes have been the subject of numerous forms of art, including Japanese ukiyoe artist Katsushika Hokusai’s Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji.
Today, it attracts hikers who climb to the summit to see the sunrise. But tons of trash left behind and overcrowding have triggered concern and calls for environmental protection and measures to control overtourism.
Jun Kubota, a weather forecaster and a climber who grew up in Yamanashi, one of the two prefectures that are home to Mt. Fuji, says he is concerned if this year’s delayed snowfall is part of a trend.
“I wonder if the season we can enjoy the snow is getting shorter, not just at Mt. Fuji but also on other mountains in central Japan or on Hokkaido,” Kubota said in a Zoom call. i
He noted reports of snow shortage on ski slopes in recent years. “I’m afraid there could be an impact not only on snow mountain climbing, but also winter sports in general.”
___
AP video journalist Mayuko Ono contributed to this report.
Puerto Rico awaits historic results in four-way gubernatorial election
A supporter waves a Puerto Rican Independence Party flag while holding a campaign poster promoting the Citizens’ Victory Movement mayoral candidate Manuel Natal, during a caravan in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Friday, Nov. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Alejandro Granadillo)
Voters line up at a polling station during general elections in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Alejandro Granadillo)
Juan Dalmau, Puerto Rico’s Independence Party candidate for Governor, arrives with his family to vote in general elections in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Alejandro Granadillo)
Jenniffer González, Puerto Rico’s New Progressive Party candidate for Governor, arrives to vote in the general elections in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Alejandro Granadillo)
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Puerto Rico awaited election results late Tuesday that will be historic regardless of which of the two top candidates in the lead wins.
If Jenniffer González of the pro-statehood New Progressive Party wins Tuesday’s election, it will mark the first time in the island’s history that the party secures three consecutive terms.
If Juan Dalmau, who is running for Puerto Rico’s Independence Party and Citizen Victory Movement, wins, it will be the first victory for a candidate outside of the two main parties that have dominated the island’s politics for decades. If he comes in second, he will also make history as the first third-party candidate to do so.
As of late Tuesday, González had 40% of the votes and Dalmau had 32% with 73% of precincts reporting, according to partial results released by Puerto Rico’s State Elections Commission.
“Until the last vote is counted, no one here can claim a victory,” Dalmau said.
Trailing González and Dalmau was Jesús Manuel Ortiz, who conceded defeat as his Popular Democratic Party came in third for the first time in a general election.
Related Stories
Puerto Rico prepares for Election Day as a third-party candidate makes history
Javier Jiménez of Project Dignity, a conservative party created in 2019, conceded earlier after coming in fourth.
Voters began celebrating certain results early, with some clutching brooms as they talked about “cleaning house” and others cheering around a car fitted with a coffin on top.
Earlier on Tuesday, thousands of voters across the U.S. territory stood in long lines clutching umbrellas, undeterred by heavy rain.
“I feel that for the first time, there is an opportunity for change,” said Jorge Hernández, a 24-year-old arts student as he waited to cast his vote. “The bipartisanship is losing strength. I have faith that there can be real change.”
For decades, the New Progressive Party and the Popular Democratic Party would receive at least 90% of all votes, but that began to change in 2016. Newer parties are attracting more voters given Puerto Rico’s economic and political turmoil while a younger generation is decrying corruption, persistent power outages and a lack of affordable housing, among other things.
Education, health and public safety also were on voters’ minds as they marveled at the long lines despite the rain.
“I’ve never seen it like this,” said Nadja Oquendo, a 62-year-old retiree.
Faviola Alcalá, a pro surfer, said she was voting for the first time and was thrilled to see the line at her polling station.
“I love it,” she said, adding that she wants a break from Puerto Rico’s two main parties and more opportunities for young people.
Among the voters who stepped out despite the rain was reggaetón superstar Bad Bunny, who has derided the pro-statehood party and made a brief appearance at Dalmau’s campaign closer.
“I trust that we the people of Puerto Rico will make the right decision for the future of our people,” he told reporters.
Delayed results
Long lines were reported at several polling stations given malfunctioning voting machines and other issues, including power outages.
Some voters turned on their phone’s timers to see how long they stood in line while others munched on snacks as a street vendor cried out, “Cold water! Cold water!”
Ommy González, a 25-year-old bartender who was voting for the first time, carried a fold-out chair and a water bottle.
“I’m very excited,” he said. “Obviously we want something different for the people.”
González said he wants a stronger economy and education system and denounced persistent political corruption: “Stop taking money and misspending it.”
Several voters said they were surprised at how quickly minority and new parties have become serious threats to the stronghold the two main parties have had on Puerto Rico’s politics.
“I didn’t see this happening so early on, but I’m glad,” said Giulianna Abreu, a 33-year-old publicist.
Long lines persisted after the official closing of polls at 5 p.m. local time Tuesday, and people already in line were allowed to vote. Results could take days. In 2020, it took officials four days to release preliminary results.
Dalmau, however, said he believed results for the governorship would be ready by late Tuesday: “We are hopeful that this country will take a historic step.”
Puerto Rico’s State Elections Commission is still counting more than 220,000 early and absentee votes, with counting starting more than two weeks later than usual. Jessika Padilla, the commission’s alternate president, said some 40% of those votes had been counted as of Monday.
“This validation process is one that we are not going to take lightly,” she said.
More than 5,000 inmates out of some 7,400 total also have voted, although it’s unclear how many of those votes have been counted.
Officials also are still receiving allegations about electoral crimes, including from people who said they received confirmations for early voting when they made no such request.
A supporter waves a Puerto Rican Independence Party flag while holding a campaign poster promoting the Citizens’ Victory Movement mayoral candidate Manuel Natal, during a caravan in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Friday, Nov. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Alejandro Granadillo)
Voters line up at a polling station during general elections in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Alejandro Granadillo)
Juan Dalmau, Puerto Rico’s Independence Party candidate for Governor, arrives with his family to vote in general elections in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Alejandro Granadillo)
Jenniffer González, Puerto Rico’s New Progressive Party candidate for Governor, arrives to vote in the general elections in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Alejandro Granadillo)
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Puerto Rico awaited election results late Tuesday that will be historic regardless of which of the two top candidates in the lead wins.
If Jenniffer González of the pro-statehood New Progressive Party wins Tuesday’s election, it will mark the first time in the island’s history that the party secures three consecutive terms.
If Juan Dalmau, who is running for Puerto Rico’s Independence Party and Citizen Victory Movement, wins, it will be the first victory for a candidate outside of the two main parties that have dominated the island’s politics for decades. If he comes in second, he will also make history as the first third-party candidate to do so.
As of late Tuesday, González had 40% of the votes and Dalmau had 32% with 73% of precincts reporting, according to partial results released by Puerto Rico’s State Elections Commission.
“Until the last vote is counted, no one here can claim a victory,” Dalmau said.
Trailing González and Dalmau was Jesús Manuel Ortiz, who conceded defeat as his Popular Democratic Party came in third for the first time in a general election.
Related Stories
Puerto Rico prepares for Election Day as a third-party candidate makes history
Javier Jiménez of Project Dignity, a conservative party created in 2019, conceded earlier after coming in fourth.
Voters began celebrating certain results early, with some clutching brooms as they talked about “cleaning house” and others cheering around a car fitted with a coffin on top.
Earlier on Tuesday, thousands of voters across the U.S. territory stood in long lines clutching umbrellas, undeterred by heavy rain.
“I feel that for the first time, there is an opportunity for change,” said Jorge Hernández, a 24-year-old arts student as he waited to cast his vote. “The bipartisanship is losing strength. I have faith that there can be real change.”
For decades, the New Progressive Party and the Popular Democratic Party would receive at least 90% of all votes, but that began to change in 2016. Newer parties are attracting more voters given Puerto Rico’s economic and political turmoil while a younger generation is decrying corruption, persistent power outages and a lack of affordable housing, among other things.
Education, health and public safety also were on voters’ minds as they marveled at the long lines despite the rain.
“I’ve never seen it like this,” said Nadja Oquendo, a 62-year-old retiree.
Faviola Alcalá, a pro surfer, said she was voting for the first time and was thrilled to see the line at her polling station.
“I love it,” she said, adding that she wants a break from Puerto Rico’s two main parties and more opportunities for young people.
Among the voters who stepped out despite the rain was reggaetón superstar Bad Bunny, who has derided the pro-statehood party and made a brief appearance at Dalmau’s campaign closer.
“I trust that we the people of Puerto Rico will make the right decision for the future of our people,” he told reporters.
Delayed results
Long lines were reported at several polling stations given malfunctioning voting machines and other issues, including power outages.
Some voters turned on their phone’s timers to see how long they stood in line while others munched on snacks as a street vendor cried out, “Cold water! Cold water!”
Ommy González, a 25-year-old bartender who was voting for the first time, carried a fold-out chair and a water bottle.
“I’m very excited,” he said. “Obviously we want something different for the people.”
González said he wants a stronger economy and education system and denounced persistent political corruption: “Stop taking money and misspending it.”
Several voters said they were surprised at how quickly minority and new parties have become serious threats to the stronghold the two main parties have had on Puerto Rico’s politics.
“I didn’t see this happening so early on, but I’m glad,” said Giulianna Abreu, a 33-year-old publicist.
Long lines persisted after the official closing of polls at 5 p.m. local time Tuesday, and people already in line were allowed to vote. Results could take days. In 2020, it took officials four days to release preliminary results.
Dalmau, however, said he believed results for the governorship would be ready by late Tuesday: “We are hopeful that this country will take a historic step.”
Puerto Rico’s State Elections Commission is still counting more than 220,000 early and absentee votes, with counting starting more than two weeks later than usual. Jessika Padilla, the commission’s alternate president, said some 40% of those votes had been counted as of Monday.
“This validation process is one that we are not going to take lightly,” she said.
More than 5,000 inmates out of some 7,400 total also have voted, although it’s unclear how many of those votes have been counted.
Officials also are still receiving allegations about electoral crimes, including from people who said they received confirmations for early voting when they made no such request.
A status question and a symbolic vote
On Tuesday, voters also were asked for a seventh time about Puerto Rico’s political status. The nonbinding referendum offers three options: statehood, independence and independence with free association, under which issues like foreign affairs, U.S. citizenship and use of the U.S. dollar would be negotiated.
“We’re going to work to give our people equality,” said Jenniffer González of the pro-statehood party.
Party officials have long noted that despite being a U.S. territory, Puerto Rico receives unequal treatment when it comes to Medicaid, Medicare and other federal programs.
Statehood obtained 56% of votes followed by independence with 32%, the first time that option clinches second place in referendums that included that choice. More than 111,000 ballots were left blank.
Regardless of the outcome, a change in status requires approval from the U.S. Congress.
Some voters on Monday said that statehood is the only thing that will help pull Puerto Rico out of its slump.
In addition, Puerto Ricans on Tuesday can support Kamala Harris or Donald Trump in a symbolic vote if they wish. While Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens, those on the island are not allowed to vote in U.S. presidential elections.
Harris obtained 73% of symbolic votes versus 27% for Trump.
____
Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america
On Tuesday, voters also were asked for a seventh time about Puerto Rico’s political status. The nonbinding referendum offers three options: statehood, independence and independence with free association, under which issues like foreign affairs, U.S. citizenship and use of the U.S. dollar would be negotiated.
“We’re going to work to give our people equality,” said Jenniffer González of the pro-statehood party.
Party officials have long noted that despite being a U.S. territory, Puerto Rico receives unequal treatment when it comes to Medicaid, Medicare and other federal programs.
Statehood obtained 56% of votes followed by independence with 32%, the first time that option clinches second place in referendums that included that choice. More than 111,000 ballots were left blank.
Regardless of the outcome, a change in status requires approval from the U.S. Congress.
Some voters on Monday said that statehood is the only thing that will help pull Puerto Rico out of its slump.
In addition, Puerto Ricans on Tuesday can support Kamala Harris or Donald Trump in a symbolic vote if they wish. While Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens, those on the island are not allowed to vote in U.S. presidential elections.
Harris obtained 73% of symbolic votes versus 27% for Trump.
____
Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america
'Very nice!' Trump declares victory over Harris as he vows to usher in a new 'golden age'
Daniel Hampton
November 6, 2024
Former President Donald Trump declared victory early Wednesday over Vice President Kamala Harris and told a raucous crowd of MAGA supporters to brace for a new "golden age."
As chants of "U-S-A" broke out at his campaign HQ in West Palm Beach, Florida, Trump called MAGA a "movement like no one has seen before." He vowed to help the "country heal."
"It's a political victory our country has never seen before," Trump said.
He thanked voters for making him the 47th and 45th president, and pledged to deliver a "strong, safe and prosperous America."
"This will truly be the golden age of America," said Trump.
He said his campaign estimates the former president will carry at least 315 electoral votes ‚ and thanked supporters for helping him win the popular vote.
"Very nice!" he exclaimed.
Trump took a jab at "certain networks," naming CNN and MSNBC, repeating his campaign rhetoric of calling them the "enemy camp."
He also praised his running mate, J.D. Vance.
"He turned out to be a good choice," said Trump. "I took a little heat at the beginning. I knew the brain was a good one. About as good as it gets."
Daniel Hampton
November 6, 2024
Former President Donald Trump declared victory early Wednesday over Vice President Kamala Harris and told a raucous crowd of MAGA supporters to brace for a new "golden age."
As chants of "U-S-A" broke out at his campaign HQ in West Palm Beach, Florida, Trump called MAGA a "movement like no one has seen before." He vowed to help the "country heal."
"It's a political victory our country has never seen before," Trump said.
He thanked voters for making him the 47th and 45th president, and pledged to deliver a "strong, safe and prosperous America."
"This will truly be the golden age of America," said Trump.
He said his campaign estimates the former president will carry at least 315 electoral votes ‚ and thanked supporters for helping him win the popular vote.
"Very nice!" he exclaimed.
Trump took a jab at "certain networks," naming CNN and MSNBC, repeating his campaign rhetoric of calling them the "enemy camp."
He also praised his running mate, J.D. Vance.
"He turned out to be a good choice," said Trump. "I took a little heat at the beginning. I knew the brain was a good one. About as good as it gets."
Four states vote to protect abortion access, while effort fails in Florida
By UPI Staff
Florida residents are seen filling in their ballots on election day for Democrat and Republican Presidential candidates along with down ballot candidates in Miami on Tuesday. Florida is among nine states with measures related to abortion rights on the ballot. Photo by Gary I Rothstein/UPI | License Photo
Nov. 5 (UPI) -- Florida's attempt to protect access to abortion rights narrowly failed Tuesday, while similar efforts in Arizona, Colorado, New York and Maryland succeeded.
The controversial medical practice is on the ballot in 10 states, as voters continue to contend with the fallout of the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade.
Advertisement
Results in Missouri, Montana, Nebraska and South Dakota were still pending as of early Wednesday. Nevada voted to pass the measure, but it needs to pass in consecutive elections before taking effect.
Voters are being asked to alter or amend their constitutions to protect abortion rights in the absence of the federal protections previously provided by the landmark Supreme Court case.
Arizona
Arizona voters passed Proposition 139 to create a "fundamental right to abortion" under the state's constitution.
According to unofficial state results, nearly 63% voted "Yes" to the proposition, compared to 37.1% who voted "No." It needed a 50% "Yes" vote to pass.
Advertisement
The vote will alter the state's constitution to declare that Arizona will not be able to interfere with the fundamental right of abortion before fetal viability "unless it has a compelling reason and does so in the least restrictive way possible."
The measure describes "fetal viability" as "the point in the pregnancy when, in the good-faith judgement of a treating health care professional, the fetus has a significant likelihood of survival outside of the uterus."
The measure will prevent the state from interfering with "the good faith judgment" of a doctor that an abortion is necessary to protect the life or health of a pregnant person for the length of the pregnancy, both before and after fetal viability.
It will also protect against state penalties for aiding or assisting a pregnant person in receiving an abortion.
Colorado
Colorado's Amendment 79 to add a section to Article II of the state's constitution recognizing abortion rights passed with a "Yes" vote of 61.44%, according to unofficial state results, passing the 55% threshold needed.
Nearly 39% of voters ticked "No" on the ballot.
The measure will add "Section 32. Abortion" to the article, which states:
"The right to abortion is hereby recognized. Government shall not deny, impede, or discriminate against the exercise of that right, including prohibiting health insurance coverage for abortion."
Florida
In Florida, Amendment Four sought to "limit government interference with abortion" in wake of the state imposing a law that bans abortion after the gestational age of a fetus is determined to be more than six weeks.
The measure received a 57.02% approval, falling just shy of the required 60% to pass. It would have amended the state's constitution to say that "no law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient's health as determined by the patient's healthcare provider."
The amendment would not have altered the legislature's authority under the constitution to require that a parent or guardian be notified before a minor has an abortion.
Maryland
Question 1 in Maryland asked voters whether the state should amend the state's constitution to introduce a new section that guarantees a right to reproductive freedom, and voters overwhelming said "Yes."
According to unofficials state results, 73.9% approved the measure, well surpassing the 50% needed for the measures to pass.
The proposal states states that "reproductive freedom" includes but is not limited to "the ability to make and effectuate decisions to prevent, continue, or end the individual's pregnancy, and provides the state may not, directly or indirectly, deny, burden, or abridge the right unless justified by a compelling state interest achieved by the least restrictive means."
Missouri
Missouri's Amendment Three would alter the state's constitution to enshrine reproductive freedom in the state.
The language of the bill says the constitution would be amended to include a clause that would bar the state government from infringing on a person's right to "make and carry out decisions about all matters relating to reproductive health care, including but not limited to prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care, birth control, abortion care, miscarriage care, and respectful birthing conditions."
It would, however, allow the state to restrict abortion access after fetal viability and in instances where "such action is justified by a compelling governmental interest achieved by the least restrictive means."
The measure must receive a simple majority to pass.
Montana
Montana's Ballot Issue 14 would amend the state's constitution to guarantee the right to an abortion up until fetal viability or to protect the life of the patient.
The amendment states that the government would be prohibited from penalizing patients, healthcare providers or anyone who assists someone seeking or carrying out an abortion. Abortion is currently banned in Missouri except when to protect the life of the mother or to preserve a pregnant person's health.
Providing an abortion in violation of the state's law is a class B felony.
Ballot measures require a simple majority to pass.
Nebraska
Nebraska has two initiatives on the ballot related to abortion access.
Initiative 434 would amend the state constitution to ban abortions in the second and third trimesters unless the pregnancy is the result of sexual assault or incest.
Initiative 435 would amend the state constitution to enshrine the right to an abortion until fetal viability or when needed to protect the life of the mother.
Abortion is currently banned after 12 weeks of pregnancy in Nebraska, with exceptions for rape, incest and when there is a threat to the patient's life.
Ballot initiatives need a simple majority to pass in Nebraska and at least 35% of votes cast must affirm the initiative.
Nevada
Voters in Nevada passed Question Six to amend the state's Constitution to create an individual's fundamental right to abortion.
Unofficial state results show nearly 63% voted "Yes" to the amendment, while 37% voted "No."
The ballot measure required a simple majority to pass, but it must pass in consecutive elections before becoming law. It will need to pass again in 2026 to take effect.
According to the amendment, a fundamental right to abortion prevents interference from state and local governments when the procedure is performed by a medical professional before "fetal viability or when necessary to protect the health or life of the pregnant individual."
The measure will also direct the state to prohibit from penalizing or prosecuting any individual based on the outcome of their pregnancy.
New York
New Yorkers passed Proposal Number One, also known as the Equal Rights Amendment, to codify abortion rights into the state's Constitution through an amendment to protect pregnant people from discrimination.
The proposal passed by 61.27%, surpassing the 50% threshold needed, according to unofficials election night results from the state.
With the measure passing, the Constitution will be amended to ensure no person will be denied equal protection of the laws of the state because of "pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes and reproductive healthcare and autonomy."
South Dakota
South Dakota's Amendment G is a measure to establish the right to an abortion in the state constitution and create a legal framework for regulating abortion.
If passed, the state would be able to regulate abortion access only after the first trimester. Proponents of the measure say it effectively restores the rights once protected by the Roe vs. Wade decision.
The state enacted a near-total ban on abortion in 2022, making it a felony to perform an abortion with an exception for saving the life of the mother.
By UPI Staff
Florida residents are seen filling in their ballots on election day for Democrat and Republican Presidential candidates along with down ballot candidates in Miami on Tuesday. Florida is among nine states with measures related to abortion rights on the ballot. Photo by Gary I Rothstein/UPI | License Photo
Nov. 5 (UPI) -- Florida's attempt to protect access to abortion rights narrowly failed Tuesday, while similar efforts in Arizona, Colorado, New York and Maryland succeeded.
The controversial medical practice is on the ballot in 10 states, as voters continue to contend with the fallout of the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade.
Advertisement
Results in Missouri, Montana, Nebraska and South Dakota were still pending as of early Wednesday. Nevada voted to pass the measure, but it needs to pass in consecutive elections before taking effect.
Voters are being asked to alter or amend their constitutions to protect abortion rights in the absence of the federal protections previously provided by the landmark Supreme Court case.
Arizona
Arizona voters passed Proposition 139 to create a "fundamental right to abortion" under the state's constitution.
According to unofficial state results, nearly 63% voted "Yes" to the proposition, compared to 37.1% who voted "No." It needed a 50% "Yes" vote to pass.
Advertisement
The vote will alter the state's constitution to declare that Arizona will not be able to interfere with the fundamental right of abortion before fetal viability "unless it has a compelling reason and does so in the least restrictive way possible."
The measure describes "fetal viability" as "the point in the pregnancy when, in the good-faith judgement of a treating health care professional, the fetus has a significant likelihood of survival outside of the uterus."
The measure will prevent the state from interfering with "the good faith judgment" of a doctor that an abortion is necessary to protect the life or health of a pregnant person for the length of the pregnancy, both before and after fetal viability.
It will also protect against state penalties for aiding or assisting a pregnant person in receiving an abortion.
Colorado
Colorado's Amendment 79 to add a section to Article II of the state's constitution recognizing abortion rights passed with a "Yes" vote of 61.44%, according to unofficial state results, passing the 55% threshold needed.
Nearly 39% of voters ticked "No" on the ballot.
The measure will add "Section 32. Abortion" to the article, which states:
"The right to abortion is hereby recognized. Government shall not deny, impede, or discriminate against the exercise of that right, including prohibiting health insurance coverage for abortion."
Florida
In Florida, Amendment Four sought to "limit government interference with abortion" in wake of the state imposing a law that bans abortion after the gestational age of a fetus is determined to be more than six weeks.
The measure received a 57.02% approval, falling just shy of the required 60% to pass. It would have amended the state's constitution to say that "no law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient's health as determined by the patient's healthcare provider."
The amendment would not have altered the legislature's authority under the constitution to require that a parent or guardian be notified before a minor has an abortion.
Maryland
Question 1 in Maryland asked voters whether the state should amend the state's constitution to introduce a new section that guarantees a right to reproductive freedom, and voters overwhelming said "Yes."
According to unofficials state results, 73.9% approved the measure, well surpassing the 50% needed for the measures to pass.
The proposal states states that "reproductive freedom" includes but is not limited to "the ability to make and effectuate decisions to prevent, continue, or end the individual's pregnancy, and provides the state may not, directly or indirectly, deny, burden, or abridge the right unless justified by a compelling state interest achieved by the least restrictive means."
Missouri
Missouri's Amendment Three would alter the state's constitution to enshrine reproductive freedom in the state.
The language of the bill says the constitution would be amended to include a clause that would bar the state government from infringing on a person's right to "make and carry out decisions about all matters relating to reproductive health care, including but not limited to prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care, birth control, abortion care, miscarriage care, and respectful birthing conditions."
It would, however, allow the state to restrict abortion access after fetal viability and in instances where "such action is justified by a compelling governmental interest achieved by the least restrictive means."
The measure must receive a simple majority to pass.
Montana
Montana's Ballot Issue 14 would amend the state's constitution to guarantee the right to an abortion up until fetal viability or to protect the life of the patient.
The amendment states that the government would be prohibited from penalizing patients, healthcare providers or anyone who assists someone seeking or carrying out an abortion. Abortion is currently banned in Missouri except when to protect the life of the mother or to preserve a pregnant person's health.
Providing an abortion in violation of the state's law is a class B felony.
Ballot measures require a simple majority to pass.
Nebraska
Nebraska has two initiatives on the ballot related to abortion access.
Initiative 434 would amend the state constitution to ban abortions in the second and third trimesters unless the pregnancy is the result of sexual assault or incest.
Initiative 435 would amend the state constitution to enshrine the right to an abortion until fetal viability or when needed to protect the life of the mother.
Abortion is currently banned after 12 weeks of pregnancy in Nebraska, with exceptions for rape, incest and when there is a threat to the patient's life.
Ballot initiatives need a simple majority to pass in Nebraska and at least 35% of votes cast must affirm the initiative.
Nevada
Voters in Nevada passed Question Six to amend the state's Constitution to create an individual's fundamental right to abortion.
Unofficial state results show nearly 63% voted "Yes" to the amendment, while 37% voted "No."
The ballot measure required a simple majority to pass, but it must pass in consecutive elections before becoming law. It will need to pass again in 2026 to take effect.
According to the amendment, a fundamental right to abortion prevents interference from state and local governments when the procedure is performed by a medical professional before "fetal viability or when necessary to protect the health or life of the pregnant individual."
The measure will also direct the state to prohibit from penalizing or prosecuting any individual based on the outcome of their pregnancy.
New York
New Yorkers passed Proposal Number One, also known as the Equal Rights Amendment, to codify abortion rights into the state's Constitution through an amendment to protect pregnant people from discrimination.
The proposal passed by 61.27%, surpassing the 50% threshold needed, according to unofficials election night results from the state.
With the measure passing, the Constitution will be amended to ensure no person will be denied equal protection of the laws of the state because of "pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes and reproductive healthcare and autonomy."
South Dakota
South Dakota's Amendment G is a measure to establish the right to an abortion in the state constitution and create a legal framework for regulating abortion.
If passed, the state would be able to regulate abortion access only after the first trimester. Proponents of the measure say it effectively restores the rights once protected by the Roe vs. Wade decision.
The state enacted a near-total ban on abortion in 2022, making it a felony to perform an abortion with an exception for saving the life of the mother.
Florida's adult-use marijuana initiative fails as Nebraska voters approve medical cannabis
By Joe Fisher
Florida residents wait in line to cast their ballot on Election Day in Delray Beach, Fla., on Tuesday. Photo by Gary I Rothstein/UPI | License Photo
Nov. 5 (UPI) -- Florida's effort to legalize adult-use marijuana failed to pass with a 60% super majority of votes needed. Meanwhile, Nebraska voters approved the state's plan for medical cannabis.
Voters in two other states will weigh in on the legalization of marijuana on Tuesday, as well.
Cannabis advocates had been hopeful that ballot measures in Florida, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota could open the states up to manufacture and sell medical or recreational marijuana. Each ballot measure is the result of citizen-led petition drives.
Marijuana is legal to some degree in 38 states. Twenty-four states have legalized recreational marijuana.
By Joe Fisher
Florida residents wait in line to cast their ballot on Election Day in Delray Beach, Fla., on Tuesday. Photo by Gary I Rothstein/UPI | License Photo
Nov. 5 (UPI) -- Florida's effort to legalize adult-use marijuana failed to pass with a 60% super majority of votes needed. Meanwhile, Nebraska voters approved the state's plan for medical cannabis.
Voters in two other states will weigh in on the legalization of marijuana on Tuesday, as well.
Cannabis advocates had been hopeful that ballot measures in Florida, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota could open the states up to manufacture and sell medical or recreational marijuana. Each ballot measure is the result of citizen-led petition drives.
Marijuana is legal to some degree in 38 states. Twenty-four states have legalized recreational marijuana.
On May 21, the Department of Justice changed its classification from a schedule I controlled substance to schedule III. Schedule III drugs are considered to be at a lesser risk of abuse than schedule I and II, and they can be prescribed over the phone.
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More than 80% of adults believe marijuana should be legal in at least some cases, with 57% responding that it should be legal for medical and recreational use, according to a survey by the Pew Research Center.
Florida Amendment Three fails
Florida's Amendment Three would have allowed adults 21 years old and older to purchase, possess and use marijuana products recreationally. The measure was praised by presidential candidate Donald Trump, but it was fought against relentlessly by the state's governor, Ron DeSantis, who used state money to finance a robust campaign of TV ads decrying the measure.
With more than 95% of the state's voting recorded, the measure attracted a strong yet futile 57.2% of the vote to 42.8 opposed, according to reporting by Marijuana Moment, Axios and WFTS TV in Tampa.
It is already legal to purchase, possess and use marijuana for medical purposes.
The amendment would have allowed Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers and other vendors that have a license from the state to grow, acquire, manufacture and sell cannabis products and accessories related to the use of cannabis. An individual could possess up to 3 ounces or about 8.5 grams.
Constitutional amendments require a 60% majority to pass.
Nebraska medical program succeeds
Nebraska voters approved that state's two measures on the ballot related to the legalization of medical marijuana.
Both Initiative 437 and 438 were approved by voters, according to the New York Times, KCAU-TV and Marijuana Moment.
Initiative 437 will eliminate the penalties for possessing up to 5 ounces of cannabis for medical purposes. Initiative 438 will legalize possessing, manufacturing, distributing, delivering and dispensing cannabis for medical use. The measure passed 74% to 26%, according to news sources.
Initiative 438 also establishes a Nebraska Medical Cannabis Commission that will be responsible for regulating the medical marijuana industry in the state. That measure was approved by state voters by 70%, with 30% voting against.
Ballot measures require a simple majority to pass in Nebraska. At least 35% of voters who cast ballots must vote to approve the ballot measure, as well.
North Dakota Initiated Measure 5
A ballot measure attempting to legalize marijuana for recreational use is on the ballot in North Dakota for the third time in six years. Similar measures were voted down in 2018 and 2022.
Initiated Measure 5 will legalize the production, possession and use of recreational marijuana for adults 21 years old and older. A state entity will regulate recreational marijuana and the registration of adults, businesses and dispensaries.
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State lawmakers will have until Oct. 1, 2025 to establish regulations.
An individual will be allowed to possess an ounce of cannabis, four grams of concentrate and 1,500 milligrams of edibles.
Ballot initiatives require a simple majority to pass in North Dakota.
South Dakota Initiated Measure 29
Initiated Measure 29 in South Dakota seeks to legalize the possession, growing, use and distribution of marijuana recreationally for adults 21 years old and older.
Voters passed an amendment to the state constitution in 2020 that would have legalized recreational marijuana. Gov. Kristi Noem, a vocal opponent of legalization, challenged the measure in court after the fact and the state supreme court ruled in her favor. The court ruled that the ballot measure did not adhere to the state's single-subject requirement.
Medical marijuana is already legal in South Dakota, despite the efforts of Noem, who has sought to block medical protections.
Ballot measures require a simple majority of votes cast to pass in South Dakota.
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More than 80% of adults believe marijuana should be legal in at least some cases, with 57% responding that it should be legal for medical and recreational use, according to a survey by the Pew Research Center.
Florida Amendment Three fails
Florida's Amendment Three would have allowed adults 21 years old and older to purchase, possess and use marijuana products recreationally. The measure was praised by presidential candidate Donald Trump, but it was fought against relentlessly by the state's governor, Ron DeSantis, who used state money to finance a robust campaign of TV ads decrying the measure.
With more than 95% of the state's voting recorded, the measure attracted a strong yet futile 57.2% of the vote to 42.8 opposed, according to reporting by Marijuana Moment, Axios and WFTS TV in Tampa.
It is already legal to purchase, possess and use marijuana for medical purposes.
The amendment would have allowed Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers and other vendors that have a license from the state to grow, acquire, manufacture and sell cannabis products and accessories related to the use of cannabis. An individual could possess up to 3 ounces or about 8.5 grams.
Constitutional amendments require a 60% majority to pass.
Nebraska medical program succeeds
Nebraska voters approved that state's two measures on the ballot related to the legalization of medical marijuana.
Both Initiative 437 and 438 were approved by voters, according to the New York Times, KCAU-TV and Marijuana Moment.
Initiative 437 will eliminate the penalties for possessing up to 5 ounces of cannabis for medical purposes. Initiative 438 will legalize possessing, manufacturing, distributing, delivering and dispensing cannabis for medical use. The measure passed 74% to 26%, according to news sources.
Initiative 438 also establishes a Nebraska Medical Cannabis Commission that will be responsible for regulating the medical marijuana industry in the state. That measure was approved by state voters by 70%, with 30% voting against.
Ballot measures require a simple majority to pass in Nebraska. At least 35% of voters who cast ballots must vote to approve the ballot measure, as well.
North Dakota Initiated Measure 5
A ballot measure attempting to legalize marijuana for recreational use is on the ballot in North Dakota for the third time in six years. Similar measures were voted down in 2018 and 2022.
Initiated Measure 5 will legalize the production, possession and use of recreational marijuana for adults 21 years old and older. A state entity will regulate recreational marijuana and the registration of adults, businesses and dispensaries.
Advertisement
State lawmakers will have until Oct. 1, 2025 to establish regulations.
An individual will be allowed to possess an ounce of cannabis, four grams of concentrate and 1,500 milligrams of edibles.
Ballot initiatives require a simple majority to pass in North Dakota.
South Dakota Initiated Measure 29
Initiated Measure 29 in South Dakota seeks to legalize the possession, growing, use and distribution of marijuana recreationally for adults 21 years old and older.
Voters passed an amendment to the state constitution in 2020 that would have legalized recreational marijuana. Gov. Kristi Noem, a vocal opponent of legalization, challenged the measure in court after the fact and the state supreme court ruled in her favor. The court ruled that the ballot measure did not adhere to the state's single-subject requirement.
Medical marijuana is already legal in South Dakota, despite the efforts of Noem, who has sought to block medical protections.
Ballot measures require a simple majority of votes cast to pass in South Dakota.
Police fire tear gas at protest over deadly canopy collapse in Serbia
Protesters broke windows and sprayed red paint on the City Hall building in the Serbian city of Novi Sad on Tuesday in rage over last week’s collapse of a concrete canopy at the railway station that killed 14 people
A protester attempts to throw a flare into the City Hall building during a protest in rage over last week’s collapse of a concrete canopy at the railway station that killed 14 people, in Novi Sad, Serbia, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)
A flare burns in front of the City Hall building during a protest in rage over last week’s collapse of a concrete canopy at the railway station that killed 14 people, in Novi Sad, Serbia, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)
A protester paints grafitti on the City Hall building during a protest in rage over last week’s collapse of a concrete canopy at the railway station that killed 14 people, in Novi Sad, Serbia, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)
November 5, 2024S
NOVI SAD, Serbia (AP) — Protesters on Tuesday threw flares and red paint on the City Hall building in the Serbian city of Novi Sad in rage over last week’s collapse of a concrete canopy at the railway station that killed 14 people. Police responded by firing tear gas canisters.
The protesters surrounded the building in the city center, broke windows and threw stones and other objects despite calls by organizers to remain calm. Special police troops were deployed inside the building.
Serbia’s autocratic President Aleksandar Vucic said police were “showing restraint,” while warning that “horrific, violent protests are underway.”
“People of Serbia, please do not think violence is allowed,” he said on X. “All those taking part in the incidents will be punished.”
Miran Pogacar, an opposition activist, said “one glass window can be mended but we cannot bring back 14 lives. People are angry. Serbia won’t stand for this.”
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Protest organizers said they wanted to enter the City Hall building and submit their demands, including that those responsible for the canopy collapse face justice.
Some of the protesters trying to get inside the building wore masks and were believed to be soccer hooligans who are close to the populist government.
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Roof collapse at Serbian railway station kills at least 14
Bojan Pajtic, an opposition politician, said he believed violence was being stoked by provocateurs, a tactic used before in Serbia to derail peaceful anti-government protests and paint the opposition protesters as enemies of the nation.
Earlier, thousands of demonstrators had marched through the city streets demanding that top officials step down because of the fatal outer roof collapse last Friday, including President Vucic and Prime Minister Milos Vucevic.
The protesters first gathered outside the railway station where they held a moment of silence for the victims as organizers read their names. The crowd responded by chanting: “arrest the gang” and “thieves.”
The protest started peacefully but some demonstrators later hurled plastic bottles and bricks at the headquarters of Vucic’s ruling Serbian Progressive Party and smeared red paint on posters of the Serbian president and the prime minister — a message that they have blood on their hands.
The protesters removed most of the Serbian national red, blue and white national flags that were apparently hung on the headquarters to prevent it from an attack. That triggered an angry reaction from the president.
“Our Serbian tri-color has been destroyed, hidden and removed by all those who do not love Serbia,” Vucic wrote on X. “Tonight, in Novi Sad, this is being done by those who tell us that they love Serbia more than us, the decent citizens of this country.”
As protests wound down later in the evening, Vucic made a surprise trip to Novi Sad and made a brief appearance before his several hundred supporters gathered outside the party headquarters.
Critics of Serbia’s populist government have attributed the disaster to rampant corruption in the Balkan country, a lack of transparency and sloppy work during renovation work on the station building which was part of a wider railway deal with Chinese state companies.
The accident happened without warning. Surveillance camera footage showed the massive canopy on the outer wall of the station building crashing down on the people sitting below on benches or going in and out.
Officials have promised full accountability and, faced with pressure, Serbia’s construction minister submitted his resignation on Tuesday.
Prosecutors have said that more than 40 people already have been questioned as part of a probe into what happened. Many in Serbia, however, doubt that justice will be served with the populists in firm control of the judicial system and the police.
Opposition parties behind Tuesday’s protest said they are also demanding the resignation of Vucevic and that documentation be made public listing all the companies and individuals involved.
The victims included a 6-year-old girl. Those injured in the roof collapse remained inserious condition on Tuesday.
The train station has been renovated twice in recent years. Officials have insisted that the canopy had not been part of the renovation work, suggesting this was the reason why it collapsed but giving no explanation for why it was not included.
The Novi Sad railway station was originally built in 1964, while the renovated station was inaugurated by Vucic and his populist ally, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, over two years ago as a major stopover for a planned fast train line between Belgrade and Budapest.
Protesters broke windows and sprayed red paint on the City Hall building in the Serbian city of Novi Sad on Tuesday in rage over last week’s collapse of a concrete canopy at the railway station that killed 14 people
A protester attempts to throw a flare into the City Hall building during a protest in rage over last week’s collapse of a concrete canopy at the railway station that killed 14 people, in Novi Sad, Serbia, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)
A flare burns in front of the City Hall building during a protest in rage over last week’s collapse of a concrete canopy at the railway station that killed 14 people, in Novi Sad, Serbia, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)
A protester paints grafitti on the City Hall building during a protest in rage over last week’s collapse of a concrete canopy at the railway station that killed 14 people, in Novi Sad, Serbia, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)
November 5, 2024S
NOVI SAD, Serbia (AP) — Protesters on Tuesday threw flares and red paint on the City Hall building in the Serbian city of Novi Sad in rage over last week’s collapse of a concrete canopy at the railway station that killed 14 people. Police responded by firing tear gas canisters.
The protesters surrounded the building in the city center, broke windows and threw stones and other objects despite calls by organizers to remain calm. Special police troops were deployed inside the building.
Serbia’s autocratic President Aleksandar Vucic said police were “showing restraint,” while warning that “horrific, violent protests are underway.”
“People of Serbia, please do not think violence is allowed,” he said on X. “All those taking part in the incidents will be punished.”
Miran Pogacar, an opposition activist, said “one glass window can be mended but we cannot bring back 14 lives. People are angry. Serbia won’t stand for this.”
ADVERTISEMENT
Protest organizers said they wanted to enter the City Hall building and submit their demands, including that those responsible for the canopy collapse face justice.
Some of the protesters trying to get inside the building wore masks and were believed to be soccer hooligans who are close to the populist government.
RELATED STORIES
Protesters demand arrests over train station roof collapse that killed 14 people in Serbia
Serbian minister to resign over concrete canopy crash that killed 14 people
Roof collapse at Serbian railway station kills at least 14
Bojan Pajtic, an opposition politician, said he believed violence was being stoked by provocateurs, a tactic used before in Serbia to derail peaceful anti-government protests and paint the opposition protesters as enemies of the nation.
Earlier, thousands of demonstrators had marched through the city streets demanding that top officials step down because of the fatal outer roof collapse last Friday, including President Vucic and Prime Minister Milos Vucevic.
The protesters first gathered outside the railway station where they held a moment of silence for the victims as organizers read their names. The crowd responded by chanting: “arrest the gang” and “thieves.”
The protest started peacefully but some demonstrators later hurled plastic bottles and bricks at the headquarters of Vucic’s ruling Serbian Progressive Party and smeared red paint on posters of the Serbian president and the prime minister — a message that they have blood on their hands.
The protesters removed most of the Serbian national red, blue and white national flags that were apparently hung on the headquarters to prevent it from an attack. That triggered an angry reaction from the president.
“Our Serbian tri-color has been destroyed, hidden and removed by all those who do not love Serbia,” Vucic wrote on X. “Tonight, in Novi Sad, this is being done by those who tell us that they love Serbia more than us, the decent citizens of this country.”
As protests wound down later in the evening, Vucic made a surprise trip to Novi Sad and made a brief appearance before his several hundred supporters gathered outside the party headquarters.
Critics of Serbia’s populist government have attributed the disaster to rampant corruption in the Balkan country, a lack of transparency and sloppy work during renovation work on the station building which was part of a wider railway deal with Chinese state companies.
The accident happened without warning. Surveillance camera footage showed the massive canopy on the outer wall of the station building crashing down on the people sitting below on benches or going in and out.
Officials have promised full accountability and, faced with pressure, Serbia’s construction minister submitted his resignation on Tuesday.
Prosecutors have said that more than 40 people already have been questioned as part of a probe into what happened. Many in Serbia, however, doubt that justice will be served with the populists in firm control of the judicial system and the police.
Opposition parties behind Tuesday’s protest said they are also demanding the resignation of Vucevic and that documentation be made public listing all the companies and individuals involved.
The victims included a 6-year-old girl. Those injured in the roof collapse remained inserious condition on Tuesday.
The train station has been renovated twice in recent years. Officials have insisted that the canopy had not been part of the renovation work, suggesting this was the reason why it collapsed but giving no explanation for why it was not included.
The Novi Sad railway station was originally built in 1964, while the renovated station was inaugurated by Vucic and his populist ally, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, over two years ago as a major stopover for a planned fast train line between Belgrade and Budapest.
a train station roof collapsed last week killing 14 people
By AFP
November 5, 2024
Protesters lift up red painted hands to symbolise what they say is government neglect and mismanagement
- Copyright AFP I-Hwa CHENG
Ognjen ZORIC
Thousands of protesters, red paint and smashed windows at the city hall: The Serbian city where a train station roof collapsed last week killing 14 people was at boiling point Tuesday evening.
The deadly accident in Novi Sad struck just months after the station completed a years-long renovation.
It sparked outrage in Serbia where people have taken to the streets and social media users are demanding the resignation of government officials for what they allege is weak oversight on construction and development projects.
“I’m here because one six-year-old girl will never blow out seven candles on her birthday cake,” protester Maja Gledic told AFP.
“This little girl had a nine-year-old sister who won’t be blowing (her) ten (birthday) candles either,” the 50-year-old saleswoman said, referring to two little sisters who were among the victims.
“How many (dead) children we still have to count for this to be over?”, Gledic said barely holding back tears.
Three people, aged between 18 and 24, were seriously injured in the accident, and they were still in critical condition on Tuesday.
So far 48 people have been questioned in an investigation into the accident, according to the authorities.
Construction Minister Goran Vesic resigned earlier Tuesday, saying he made the move “as a responsible man who wants to show by personal example that in today’s Serbia there is moral responsibility due to the terrible tragedy”.
The minister said on X he was quitting with a “clear conscience”.
But, for the protesters in Novi Sad, who first gathered in font of the train station and observed a minute of silence for the victims, it was not enough.
“You are guilty!” one of the organisers told the authorities, speaking from an improvised stage.
Many held banners that read: “Crime”, with their hands painted red.
The protesters chanted: “Prison, prison!” and “Arrest the criminals”.
– ‘Victims of regime’ –
“These fourteen dead and three wounded are, above all, victims of this regime and of everything that is happening in Serbia over the last twelve years”, protester Vladimir Gvozdenovic, a 60-year-old economist, told AFP.
“This accident did not come by itself. It is the product of arrogance, impudence and thievery of this country and these authorities. Eventually, their criminal manner of running the country results in the death of people.”
For Gvozdenovic and fellow protesters, the ruling nationalist SNS party is guilty of negligence in overseeing public infrastructure construction projects that are proliferating across the country.
From the train station the protesters marched to the city hall where dozens of them threw red paint, stones, bottles and flares at the building, smashing its windows.
Police inside the building responded with pepper spray, while other protesters tried to intervene, shouting “don’t destroy our city,” in a very tense atmosphere, according to an AFP reporter.
Meanwhile, President Aleksandar Vucic pledged to punish those responsible for the violence.
“My message to them (protesters) is that the police are very restrained tonight, not only because of them, but also because of the reverence we show for the victims of the terrible tragedy,” he said in a video posted on Instagram.
Vucic pledged that “everyone who participated in this will be punished”.
The central railway station in Novi Sad, Serbia’s second-largest city, underwent three years of renovation that was completed in July, though Serbia Railways said the collapsed outdoor roof had not been part of the renovations.
Serbia train station tragedy: How Serbians are demanding accountability | DW News
Serbian protesters demand arrests after railway station canopy collapse killed 14
‘Black day’: French workers protest Michelin plans to close two plants
ByAFP
November 5, 2024
Tyres were set on fire as workers rallied outside the Michelin plant in Cholet
Laetitia DREVET with Celine CASTELLA in Clermont-Ferrand and Taimaz SZIRNIKS in Paris
Michelin factory workers burnt tyres in western France on Tuesday and vowed to stage a strike after the tyre company said it would close two plants by early 2026 over collapsing sales.
Michelin said the decision to close down the plants in Cholet and Vannes in western France, which together employ more than 1,250 people, had been made “as a last resort.”
In another sign of struggles in the European auto industry, German parts maker Schaeffler announced that it would cut 4,700 jobs in Europe.
European car sales have fallen at home and in key market China as demand for electric vehicles has fallen and competition from Chinese manufacturers has grown.
Michelin, which employs almost 19,000 people in France, said the plant closure had become “unavoidable” due to competition from Asian tyre makers as well as the “worsening competitiveness of Europe”, notably due to inflation and rising energy prices.
– ‘All over’ –
Employees at the Cholet plant voted in favour of staging a strike, unions said.
Thick black smoke rose into the air as workers at the Cholet production site, which employs 955 people, set tyres on fire during a protest in front of the plant. Around 200 workers blocked traffic at a crossroads leading to the site.
“They put the 900 employees in a room like cows in a slaughterhouse and announced that it was all over,” Morgane Royer, an employee and SUD union delegate, told AFP.
“Either they keep our jobs, or they pay us until we retire,” CGT secretary David Goubault shouted. “They’ve exploited us for years.”
Michelin had earlier said it planned to halt production at the two sites until November 13 “to give management and the unions time to propose collective and individual discussions with employees.”
The right-wing mayor of Cholet, Gilles Bourdouleix, denounced “the rogue version of capitalism”.
“For us, it’s heartbreaking,” Bourdouleix said, calling the announcement “brutal” as Michelin has been in Cholet for five decades.
Employees also burnt tyres and pallets in front of the Vannes plant, which was built in the early 1960s and employs around 300 people.
Eric Boisgard, who has worked there since 2004, said the workers greeted the announcement with silence.
“Everyone was devastated,” he said.
– ‘Earthquake’ –
The right-wing mayor of Vannes, David Robo, said: “It’s a black day for Vannes and an earthquake for the region.”
Michelin vowed to support the two regions by creating “as many jobs as those eliminated”.
The company said it would support its employees, including with job offers in other companies or within the group, or early retirement.
“It is the collapse in business that has led to this situation, and I want to say to all these employees that we will not leave anyone by the wayside,” Michelin CEO Florent Menegaux told AFP in an interview.
The Cholet plant mainly manufactures light truck tyres — a segment that “has seen a significant decline” in Europe in recent years, with no prospect of recovery, said Michelin.
The Vannes site mainly produces metal reinforcements such as cables, which are then used to manufacture car tyres in countries including Spain and Italy.
In recent years production volumes have been declining at the plant due to changing demand from truck tyre plants in Europe, said Michelin.
The group is going through a difficult year with a slowdown in the new vehicle market.
Michelin had already closed its La-Roche-sur-Yon site in western France in 2020, and is preparing to close two plants in Germany by 2025.
The company said that in La Roche-sur-Yon more than 635 jobs had been created, compared with 613 jobs eliminated.
Schaeffler said its cuts were in response to “the challenging market environment, the increasing intensity of global competition, and ongoing transformation processes affecting the automotive supply industry”.
Schaeffler, which specialises in making bearings for the automotive industry, currently has about 120,000 employees in 55 countries.
ByAFP
November 5, 2024
Tyres were set on fire as workers rallied outside the Michelin plant in Cholet
- Copyright AFP Philip FONG
Laetitia DREVET with Celine CASTELLA in Clermont-Ferrand and Taimaz SZIRNIKS in Paris
Michelin factory workers burnt tyres in western France on Tuesday and vowed to stage a strike after the tyre company said it would close two plants by early 2026 over collapsing sales.
Michelin said the decision to close down the plants in Cholet and Vannes in western France, which together employ more than 1,250 people, had been made “as a last resort.”
In another sign of struggles in the European auto industry, German parts maker Schaeffler announced that it would cut 4,700 jobs in Europe.
European car sales have fallen at home and in key market China as demand for electric vehicles has fallen and competition from Chinese manufacturers has grown.
Michelin, which employs almost 19,000 people in France, said the plant closure had become “unavoidable” due to competition from Asian tyre makers as well as the “worsening competitiveness of Europe”, notably due to inflation and rising energy prices.
– ‘All over’ –
Employees at the Cholet plant voted in favour of staging a strike, unions said.
Thick black smoke rose into the air as workers at the Cholet production site, which employs 955 people, set tyres on fire during a protest in front of the plant. Around 200 workers blocked traffic at a crossroads leading to the site.
“They put the 900 employees in a room like cows in a slaughterhouse and announced that it was all over,” Morgane Royer, an employee and SUD union delegate, told AFP.
“Either they keep our jobs, or they pay us until we retire,” CGT secretary David Goubault shouted. “They’ve exploited us for years.”
Michelin had earlier said it planned to halt production at the two sites until November 13 “to give management and the unions time to propose collective and individual discussions with employees.”
The right-wing mayor of Cholet, Gilles Bourdouleix, denounced “the rogue version of capitalism”.
“For us, it’s heartbreaking,” Bourdouleix said, calling the announcement “brutal” as Michelin has been in Cholet for five decades.
Employees also burnt tyres and pallets in front of the Vannes plant, which was built in the early 1960s and employs around 300 people.
Eric Boisgard, who has worked there since 2004, said the workers greeted the announcement with silence.
“Everyone was devastated,” he said.
– ‘Earthquake’ –
The right-wing mayor of Vannes, David Robo, said: “It’s a black day for Vannes and an earthquake for the region.”
Michelin vowed to support the two regions by creating “as many jobs as those eliminated”.
The company said it would support its employees, including with job offers in other companies or within the group, or early retirement.
“It is the collapse in business that has led to this situation, and I want to say to all these employees that we will not leave anyone by the wayside,” Michelin CEO Florent Menegaux told AFP in an interview.
The Cholet plant mainly manufactures light truck tyres — a segment that “has seen a significant decline” in Europe in recent years, with no prospect of recovery, said Michelin.
The Vannes site mainly produces metal reinforcements such as cables, which are then used to manufacture car tyres in countries including Spain and Italy.
In recent years production volumes have been declining at the plant due to changing demand from truck tyre plants in Europe, said Michelin.
The group is going through a difficult year with a slowdown in the new vehicle market.
Michelin had already closed its La-Roche-sur-Yon site in western France in 2020, and is preparing to close two plants in Germany by 2025.
The company said that in La Roche-sur-Yon more than 635 jobs had been created, compared with 613 jobs eliminated.
Schaeffler said its cuts were in response to “the challenging market environment, the increasing intensity of global competition, and ongoing transformation processes affecting the automotive supply industry”.
Schaeffler, which specialises in making bearings for the automotive industry, currently has about 120,000 employees in 55 countries.
Takeaways from AP’s report on three hospitals in northern Gaza raided by Israeli troops
A woman sits on a bed in a room of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital in Deir al Balah, Gaza Strip, Aug. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana, File)
BY ISABEL DEBRE, JULIA FRANKEL AND LEE KEATH
November 3, 2024
JERUSALEM (AP) — One of the most startling aspects of Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza has been the destruction wreaked on the territory’s health sector. Over the past 13 months, the Israeli military has besieged and raided at least 10 hospitals, saying the attacks are a military necessity because Hamas uses the facilities as command and control bases.
The Associated Press examined the raids late last year on three hospitals in northern Gaza — al-Awda, Indonesian and Kamal Adwan hospitals — interviewing more than three dozen patients, witnesses and medical and humanitarian workers as well as Israeli officials.
Israel has presented little or even no evidence of a significant Hamas presence at the three. The AP presented a dossier listing the incidents reported by those it interviewed to the Israeli military spokesman’s office. The office said it could not comment on specific events. All three hospitals have come under fire or been raided again in recent weeks.
Today there are no fully functional hospitals in all of Gaza – just 16 out of 39 hospitals are partly operational, according to the World Health Organization, most offering little more than first aid. Israeli attacks in and around medical sites have killed 765 Palestinians and wounded 990 others, WHO says. That number doesn’t include patients who doctors say died for lack of treatment or oxygen during Israeli sieges, whose number is not known.
Here is some of what the AP found:
AL-AWDA HOSPITAL:
—The Israeli military has never made any claims of a Hamas presence at al-Awda Hospital. When asked what intelligence led troops to besiege and raid the hospital last year, the military spokesman’s office did not reply.
—As fighting raged around the hospital, a shell blasted its operating room on Nov. 21, killing three doctors and a relative of a patient, according to international charity Doctors Without Borders.
—After troops surrounded the facility, staff said approaching the hospital could be deadly because of Israeli sniper fire. Three hospital administrators said two pregnant women walking to the facility to give birth were shot on Dec. 12 and bled to death in the street. Medics told of recovering their bodies later.
—Mohammed Salha, an administrator at the time who is now the hospital’s acting director, said that the next day he watched gunfire kill his cousin and her 6-year-old son as she brought the boy for treatment of wounds. Another pregnant woman, Shaza al-Shuraim, described walking to the hospital while in labor, accompanied by her mother-in-law and brother-in-law. Even as they waved white flags, a burst of gunfire killed her mother-in-law.
—The hospital’s director, Ahmed Muhanna, was seized by Israeli troops after they stormed the facility. His whereabouts remain unknown. One of Gaza’s leading doctors, orthopedist Adnan al-Bursh, was also detained during the raid and died in Israeli custody in May.
INDONESIAN HOSPITAL:
—The Indonesian Hospital is the largest hospital north of Gaza City. Before raiding the site, Israel claimed an underground Hamas command-and-control center lay underneath it. It released blurry satellite images of what it said was a tunnel entrance in the yard and a rocket launchpad nearby, outside the hospital compound.
—After its raid late last year, the military did not mention or show any evidence of an underground facility or tunnels. Asked if any tunnels were found, the military spokesman’s office did not reply.
—The military released images of two vehicles found in the compound — a pickup truck with military vests and a bloodstained car belonging to an abducted Israeli, suggesting he had been brought to the hospital on Oct. 7. Hamas has said it brought wounded hostages to hospitals for treatment.
—Despite continued Israeli suggestions that hospitals are linked to Hamas tunnel networks, the military has shown only a single tunnel from all hospitals it raided — one accessing Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.
—The Israeli assault in November and December left Indonesian’s top floors charred, its walls pockmarked by shrapnel, its gates strewn with piled-up rubble.
—As Israeli troops surrounded the hospital, shelling hit its second floor on Nov. 20, killing 12 people and wounding dozens, according to staff. Israel said troops responded to “enemy fire” from the hospital but denied using shells.
—During the siege, doctors and medics estimated a fifth of incoming patients died. At least 60 corpses lay in the courtyard. With few supplies, doctors said they performed dozens of amputations on infected limbs that could not be treated.
KAMAL ADWAN HOSPITAL:
—While Israeli troops surrounded Kamal Adwan in November, at least 10 patients died for lack of water, oxygen and medicine, according to Hossam Abu Safiya, a pediatrician who after the siege became the hospital’s director.
—As they stormed the hospital on Dec 12, troops allowed police dogs to attack staff, patients and others, multiple witnesses said. Ahmed Atbail, a 36-year-old sheltering at the hospital, said he saw a dog bite off one man’s finger. The Israeli military said it was unaware of the incident.
—Witnesses said the troops ordered boys and men from their mid-teens to 60 to line up outside crouched in the cold, blindfolded and nearly naked for hours of interrogation. After releasing some, it opened fire on them as they walked back into the hospital, wounding five, three witnesses said.
—Three witnesses said an Israeli military bulldozer plowed into buildings in the hospital compound and crushed tents that had been sheltering displaced people. Most had evacuated, but Abu Safiya said he found the bodies of four people who had been crushed.
—Asked about the incident, the Israeli military spokesman’s office said bodies were discovered that had been buried previously, unrelated to the military’s activities.
—The military said Hamas used the hospital as a command center but produced no evidence. It said soldiers uncovered weapons but showed footage only of a single pistol.
—The military said it arrested dozens of suspected militants, including the hospital director Dr. Ahmed al-Kahlout. The military released footage of him under interrogation saying he was a Hamas agent and that militants were based in the hospital. His colleagues said he spoke under duress.
ISABEL DEBRE
DeBre writes about Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay for The Associated Press, based in Buenos Aires. Before moving to South America in 2024, she covered the Middle East reporting from Jerusalem, Cairo and Dubai.
JULIA FRANKEL
Frankel is an Associated Press reporter in Jerusalem.
LEE KEATH
Keath is the chief editor for feature stories in the Middle East for The Associated Press. He has reported from Cairo since 2005.
A woman sits on a bed in a room of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital in Deir al Balah, Gaza Strip, Aug. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana, File)
BY ISABEL DEBRE, JULIA FRANKEL AND LEE KEATH
November 3, 2024
JERUSALEM (AP) — One of the most startling aspects of Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza has been the destruction wreaked on the territory’s health sector. Over the past 13 months, the Israeli military has besieged and raided at least 10 hospitals, saying the attacks are a military necessity because Hamas uses the facilities as command and control bases.
The Associated Press examined the raids late last year on three hospitals in northern Gaza — al-Awda, Indonesian and Kamal Adwan hospitals — interviewing more than three dozen patients, witnesses and medical and humanitarian workers as well as Israeli officials.
Israel has presented little or even no evidence of a significant Hamas presence at the three. The AP presented a dossier listing the incidents reported by those it interviewed to the Israeli military spokesman’s office. The office said it could not comment on specific events. All three hospitals have come under fire or been raided again in recent weeks.
Today there are no fully functional hospitals in all of Gaza – just 16 out of 39 hospitals are partly operational, according to the World Health Organization, most offering little more than first aid. Israeli attacks in and around medical sites have killed 765 Palestinians and wounded 990 others, WHO says. That number doesn’t include patients who doctors say died for lack of treatment or oxygen during Israeli sieges, whose number is not known.
Here is some of what the AP found:
AL-AWDA HOSPITAL:
—The Israeli military has never made any claims of a Hamas presence at al-Awda Hospital. When asked what intelligence led troops to besiege and raid the hospital last year, the military spokesman’s office did not reply.
—As fighting raged around the hospital, a shell blasted its operating room on Nov. 21, killing three doctors and a relative of a patient, according to international charity Doctors Without Borders.
—After troops surrounded the facility, staff said approaching the hospital could be deadly because of Israeli sniper fire. Three hospital administrators said two pregnant women walking to the facility to give birth were shot on Dec. 12 and bled to death in the street. Medics told of recovering their bodies later.
—Mohammed Salha, an administrator at the time who is now the hospital’s acting director, said that the next day he watched gunfire kill his cousin and her 6-year-old son as she brought the boy for treatment of wounds. Another pregnant woman, Shaza al-Shuraim, described walking to the hospital while in labor, accompanied by her mother-in-law and brother-in-law. Even as they waved white flags, a burst of gunfire killed her mother-in-law.
—The hospital’s director, Ahmed Muhanna, was seized by Israeli troops after they stormed the facility. His whereabouts remain unknown. One of Gaza’s leading doctors, orthopedist Adnan al-Bursh, was also detained during the raid and died in Israeli custody in May.
INDONESIAN HOSPITAL:
—The Indonesian Hospital is the largest hospital north of Gaza City. Before raiding the site, Israel claimed an underground Hamas command-and-control center lay underneath it. It released blurry satellite images of what it said was a tunnel entrance in the yard and a rocket launchpad nearby, outside the hospital compound.
—After its raid late last year, the military did not mention or show any evidence of an underground facility or tunnels. Asked if any tunnels were found, the military spokesman’s office did not reply.
—The military released images of two vehicles found in the compound — a pickup truck with military vests and a bloodstained car belonging to an abducted Israeli, suggesting he had been brought to the hospital on Oct. 7. Hamas has said it brought wounded hostages to hospitals for treatment.
—Despite continued Israeli suggestions that hospitals are linked to Hamas tunnel networks, the military has shown only a single tunnel from all hospitals it raided — one accessing Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.
—The Israeli assault in November and December left Indonesian’s top floors charred, its walls pockmarked by shrapnel, its gates strewn with piled-up rubble.
—As Israeli troops surrounded the hospital, shelling hit its second floor on Nov. 20, killing 12 people and wounding dozens, according to staff. Israel said troops responded to “enemy fire” from the hospital but denied using shells.
—During the siege, doctors and medics estimated a fifth of incoming patients died. At least 60 corpses lay in the courtyard. With few supplies, doctors said they performed dozens of amputations on infected limbs that could not be treated.
KAMAL ADWAN HOSPITAL:
—While Israeli troops surrounded Kamal Adwan in November, at least 10 patients died for lack of water, oxygen and medicine, according to Hossam Abu Safiya, a pediatrician who after the siege became the hospital’s director.
—As they stormed the hospital on Dec 12, troops allowed police dogs to attack staff, patients and others, multiple witnesses said. Ahmed Atbail, a 36-year-old sheltering at the hospital, said he saw a dog bite off one man’s finger. The Israeli military said it was unaware of the incident.
—Witnesses said the troops ordered boys and men from their mid-teens to 60 to line up outside crouched in the cold, blindfolded and nearly naked for hours of interrogation. After releasing some, it opened fire on them as they walked back into the hospital, wounding five, three witnesses said.
—Three witnesses said an Israeli military bulldozer plowed into buildings in the hospital compound and crushed tents that had been sheltering displaced people. Most had evacuated, but Abu Safiya said he found the bodies of four people who had been crushed.
—Asked about the incident, the Israeli military spokesman’s office said bodies were discovered that had been buried previously, unrelated to the military’s activities.
—The military said Hamas used the hospital as a command center but produced no evidence. It said soldiers uncovered weapons but showed footage only of a single pistol.
—The military said it arrested dozens of suspected militants, including the hospital director Dr. Ahmed al-Kahlout. The military released footage of him under interrogation saying he was a Hamas agent and that militants were based in the hospital. His colleagues said he spoke under duress.
ISABEL DEBRE
DeBre writes about Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay for The Associated Press, based in Buenos Aires. Before moving to South America in 2024, she covered the Middle East reporting from Jerusalem, Cairo and Dubai.
JULIA FRANKEL
Frankel is an Associated Press reporter in Jerusalem.
LEE KEATH
Keath is the chief editor for feature stories in the Middle East for The Associated Press. He has reported from Cairo since 2005.
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