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SNAP benefits, trade barriers among obstacles to farm bill renewal

By Mike Heuer


Trade barriers, foreign ownership of U.S. farmland and rising food costs that affect SNAP benefits are among several issues federal lawmakers hope to address before a final Farm Bill is enacted. File Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI | License Photo

June 14 (UPI) -- A potential reduction in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for needy families is among key issues keeping Congress from renewing a five-year agriculture policy law known as the farm bill.

Republicans on the House Agricultural Committee want to freeze SNAP benefits at current levels to help rein in government spending. But Democrats in the House and Senate say doing so could deprive a family of four of one or two days' worth of food every month -- and that could be a deal-breaker.

"Key parts of the House bill split from the Farm Bill Coalition in a way that makes it impossible to achieve the votes to become law," Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., said in a prepared statement. "We do not have time to waste on proposals that cannot meet that goal."

Stabenow, who chairs the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee, said there is a "bipartisan path forward" by "respecting the needs and interests of the broad farm and food coalition."

"I know we can pass a strong, bipartisan bill that keeps farmers farming, families fed and rural communities strong," she said.

But the GOP seems to have a plan that veers away from a bipartisan effort.

The revised bill should devote tens of billions of dollars more to crop subsidies, as well as crop insurance, Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., said last week when he released the Senate Republican outline for farm bill discussions.

U.S. Department of Agriculture officials say they are disappointed that the GOP-controlled House is offering a bill that would halt increases to SNAP benefits. About 80% of the farm bill's funding is dedicated to those benefits for an estimated 41 million Americans.

Under the House version of a new bill, Congress would impose limits on the USDA's Thrifty Food Plan over the next five years The food plan is based on what the agency says is a food basket that represents a practical, nutritious and cost-effective diet.

When the cost of that virtual food basket rises, so do SNAP benefits. And USDA officials say the House bill reneges on a promise made during debt ceiling negotiations last year by halting increases in SNAP benefits.

The House majority made a deal with President Joe Biden in which, after implementing work requirements for SNAP benefits, the GOP agreed no further changes would be made while the 118th Congress is in session, the USDA told UPI via email.

The proposal to freeze future Thrifty Food Plan benefit adjustments, which SNAP benefits are based on, violates the deal, according to the USDA.

The USDA says the House bill undermines nutrition security by taking away the USDA's ability to ensure that SNAP reflects the price of a healthy and cost-conscious diet while rising prices make it harder to put food on the table.

Freezing SNAP benefits is among areas of contention that Stabenow said make it hard to reconcile differences in the House measure and and eventual Senate version of the farm bill.

One element that is complicating the picture is that trade barriers are making it difficult for many U.S. farmers to sell goods overseas while keeping domestic prices lower.

"American farmers are now facing trade barriers and higher costs that are making it harder to market and sell their goods overseas," House Agriculture Committee co-Chairman Glenn Thompson, R-Pa., and Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith, D-Mo., said in a joint op-ed column.

They said the nation's agriculture trade deficit reached a record $21 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow to $30.5 billion this year.

Under former President Donald Trump's administration, the nation averaged an agriculture trade surplus of $5.2 billion.

"Policymakers in Congress must ensure we are doing everything in our power to support American farmers and ranchers and be willing to bat for them globally," Thompson and Smith said.

The House version of the 2024 farm bill would help farmers compete abroad by improving the reach and impact of trade-promotion programs to access new markets for U.S.-produced agriculture goods, Thomson and Scott said.

Meanwhile, the House Agriculture and House Ways and Means committees are working to improve export opportunities for the nation's farmers and ag producers.

The Ways and Means Committee in April reauthorized the federal Generalized System of Preferences program, which eliminates duties on products imported from 119 participating nations.

In exchange, participating nations must "treat U.S. agriculture exports fairly" by "dropping both tariff and non-tariff barriers to goods produced by America's farmers," Scott and Thompson said.

Meanwhile, foreign ownership of U.S. farmland, especially purchases made by Chinese citizens or entities, has been blamed for increased food prices.

"For years, China has quietly amassed hundreds of thousands of acres of American farmland," Thompson and Scott said. "Americans cannot afford China's malign influence in our food supply."

The House version of the farm bill creates greater transparency of foreign ownership of U.S. farmland to determine how much is owned or controlled by foreign entities.

The House Ways and Means Committee recently approved a measure that would stop "countries of concern" from buying U.S. farmland. Those countries include China, Russia and Iran.

"China has been eating our lunch under the current administration," Scott and Thompson said. "We cannot allow our adversaries to meddle in our domestic food supply chain."

But some experts say the concern about Chinese ownership and control of the U.S. food supply is overblown.

Available data and evidence "suggest that Chinese ownership, representing a minuscule fraction of our agricultural lands, does not compromise our ability to produce food or manage our agricultural resources effectively," Professor David Ortega of Michigan State University testified in March to the House Agriculture Committee.

"Food security concerns are raised when discussing the threat of Chinese ownership of American farmland," he said. "The U.S. is not only self-sufficient in basic food production, but we also provide food for many across the globe.

"Food insecurity arises in our country not because of production deficits, but because of issues of affordability and access facing consumers."

The farm bill, which comes up for renewal every five years, initially expired Sept. 30. An extension ensures it will remain in effect through the 2024 crop year, while Congress debates a replacement measure that is due by the current extension's Sept. 30 expiration date.

Some agriculture observers have predicted that Congress won't meet that deadline, and another extension will be required -- to sometime after November's elections.

The House Agriculture Committee on May 29 voted out its version of the 2024 measure by a

Namibia: Major win for LGTBQ+ community

Jasko Rust

DW

June 21, 2024

A Namibian court has declared two laws banning same-sex acts unconstitutional. Members of the LGTBQ+ community say there is still a long road ahead.

Members of the public expressed their support for the LGTBQ+ community outside the court

Image: Opas Onucheyo/REUTERS

On a small stage in the garden of a house in the Namibian capital of Windhoek, half a dozen drag queens are rehearsing for their show the next day — Drag Night Namibia.

Each new pose is cheered on frenetically by the small crowd watching the rehearsal.

"The hardest working legs in drag," someone shouts as Aedin Mohrmann does a deep squat. Tonight he's wearing grey sweatpants, but tomorrow he will transform into his drag persona: Atlantis.

These drag performances are a safe space for Namibia's LGTBQ+ community, a place where they can feel free to be themselves.

Singer Lize Ehlers hosts rehearsals for Drag Night Namibia in her home

Image: Jasko Rust

"People are changing. I believe that visibility opens more minds," says Lize Ehlers.

The well-known Namibian singer is co-director of Drag Night Namibia and offers her home for rehearsals.

Events such as these are a chance to reach out to people outside of the LGTBQ+ community and engage them in dialogue, says drag queen Aedin Mohrmann. Opening a dialogue is his way of combating queer hostility. Mohrmann, like others in the country's LGTBQ+ community, remains cautious in everyday life.

"We simply have to be mindful," he told DW. "Even if it's just going to the shopping center. Just do what you have to do and go out."
LGBTQ+ community under pressure

Namibia's LGTBQ+ community is currently celebrating a major success in court. On June 21, 2024, Namibia's high court declared two colonial-era laws that criminalized sexual acts between men, to be unconstitutional. Still, life for members of Namibia's LGTBQ+ has become increasingly difficult in recent months.

Aedin Mohrmann presents his drag identity "Atlantis"Image: 

Aedin Mohrmann

In May 2023, the Namibian supreme court ruled that non-Namibian spouses of same-sex marriages that took place abroad must be given residency rights upon their return to Namibia.

A wave of homophobia followed.

"This backlash did not come from the (general) public," Omar van Reenen, a non-binary person who advocates for LGTBQ+ rights, tells DW. "It came from two actors: The government and religious extremists who fanned the flames of hatred."

High-ranking members of the ruling SWAPO party criticized the 2023 ruling. In a statement, the party expressed its "grave disappointment" and said it condemned all forms of "immoral and indecent acts." The SWAPO Youth League even referred to the ruling as "foreign cultural imperialism."

Van Reenen sees elements of state-supported homophobia in the actions of the country's politicians, and laments the marginalization of the queer community and the increase in hate crimes.

The past year has seen a number of shockingly violent homophobic crimes.

At the end of April 2024, a transgender woman was brutally murdered in an informal settlement of Windhoek. The 30-year-old was found with dozens of stab wounds and her mutilated genitals lying on her chest, according to police.

Ugandan could face death penalty under anti-gay law  01:40

Namibia politicians united against homosexuality

In response to the Supreme Court's LGTBQ+ friendly ruling in 2023, SWAPO politician Jerry Ekandjo introduced a bill in parliament. It includes an amendment to the Marriage Act of 1961 that defines marriage exclusively as a union between a man and a woman. It would also criminalize being a witness in a same-sex wedding and generally promoting same-sex marriages.

Laws such as those which were overturned on June 21, 2024, are the legacy of the colonial period in Namibia.

Image: Opas Onucheyo/REUTERS

The amendment was approved in both chambers of parliament with little protest and has been awaiting the president's signature for months.

"I think that the president has not yet signed the law because he knows that it is undemocratic," activist Omar van Reenen speculates.

The upcoming election campaign could also play a role. DW inquiries for comment to Jerry Ekandjo have so far gone unanswered.

Until the laws were overturned on June 21, 2024, sexual acts between two men could be prosecuted. Although convictions were relatively rare, rights campaigners said they have perpetuated discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community and caused gay men to live in fear of arrest.

A major win for the LGBTQ+ community

The decriminalization of same-sex acts is undeniably a major win for the LGTBQ+ community. Speaking of the ruling, Namibia's high court acknowledged that sexual practices were being criminalized solely on the basis of gender. The lawsuit was brought on by LGBTQ+ activist Friedel Dausab.

Many say the victory in court could mark a turning point for securing the rights of LGTBQ+ people in Namibia. "We need a precedent that we can rely on and that forms the basis for the protection of future generations" activist Omar van Reenen told DW.

For van Reenen, going to the Supreme Court is the next step, and that the court should make a statement about the status of LGBTQ+ rights in Namibia.

Omar van Reenen founded the organization "Equal Namibia," which campaigns for the rights of queer people

Image: Jasko Rust

Drag queen Aedin Mohrmann is now calling for a referendum on the rights of LQTBQ+ people in Namibia, including their right to marry. He feels the public would vote in favor of the LGTBQ+ community. "It would certainly be close, but the majority would vote yes in the end" he told DW. Mohrmann is counting on the country's youth in particular — they understand that a united Namibia would be stronger.

This article was adapted from German by Martina Schwikowski.

Are African LGBTQ+ rights improving?  01:16

Medical centre for illegal immigrants to be closed during Paris Olympics

A medical centre for illegal immigrants in Paris' Seine-Saint-Denis, located a stone's throw from main sites for the Olympics, will close its doors during the summer to protect its patients from an expected increase in police checks. "It was an extremely difficult decision, a certain kind of abandonment, but at the same time a certain kind of responsibility towards the people we support," says Matthieu Dréan, head of the NGO Médecins du Monde health centre.

Issued on: 17/06/2024 - 

01:38

FORWARD TO THE PAST

Can Greece's new six-day workweek be a model for others?

 BACKWARDS TO THE FUTURE

Timothy Rooks

DW

June 22, 2024

Greece is moving toward a six-day workweek, while several other countries are experimenting with shorter office hours. The government hopes to make up for missing workers and fight black market labor. Can it work?


https://p.dw.com/p/4hHft

For most people, labor law can be boring. But when someone suggests working an extra day, people start to pay attention.

In Greece, new regulations are coming into effect on July 1 that make this possible.

After that day certain industrial and manufacturing facilities, as well as businesses providing 24/7 services, can move to a six-day workweek instead of the traditional five, says Emmanouil Savoidakis, head of the labor law practice at Politis & Partners, a law firm based in Athens that specializes in business law. Tourism and food service industries are excluded from this new arrangement.

For those impacted, it would mean a normal legal workweek of 48 hours instead of the previous 40. In theory, employees can choose to work more if companies want them to. Those who work more will also be paid more.

The Greek government says the new rules will simplify administration, reduce probation periods to six months and shine a light on overtime.

The legislation is also supposed to help fill holes in the skilled-labor market by combating undeclared work and offering incentives like free employee training to help "upskill and adapt to evolving market demands," said Savoidakis, who has over 15 years of legal experience. Importantly "the six-day workweek is not universally applicable but is restricted to certain business sectors."

Can this be a role model for other countries?

Tourism makes up a big part of the Greek economy and it is suffering from a lack of qualified workersImage: Petros Giannakouris/AP/picture alliance
Putting in more or less hours at the office

Greece has many challenges like low wages, high unemployment and a declining population, but it is not alone. Yet working more stands in stark contrast to most of its European neighbors.

Companies in several countries like Germany, Belgium, France, the UK, Spain and Iceland have been experimenting with different workweek models. Either squeezing the 40-hour week into four days of more intense 10-hour days. Or simply getting 100% of the work done in just 80% of the time, while still receiving a full salary.

Earlier this year in Germany, the national railway company Deutsche Bahn and the train drivers' union agreed to gradually reduce the standard workweek from 38 to 35 hours. Demands for a shorter workweek are being made in other sectors as well.
A Greek recovery from bad times

Greece though is taking another path. And this isn't the first time the country has been confronted with a six-day workweek. During their debt crisis, which started in 2009 and nearly got the country kicked out of the eurozone, some lenders demanded that the Greeks work more.

The country accepted bailouts worth billions of euros that came with strict austerity measures. Yet, a sixth day of work was not introduced.

Now Greece is back on track and GDP growth is expected to be 2.2% this year and 2.3% next year, above the eurozone average, according to European Commission calculations released in mid-May. Unemployment is expected to fall from a forecast 10.3% this year to 9.7% in 2025.

Still, during the past decade many young, well-educated Greeks have left the country because they saw better opportunities abroad. The population is expected to shrink from 10.7 million in 2019 to around 10.4 million in 2029, worsening an existing shortage of skilled workers in some sectors like agriculture, tourism and construction.

At the same time, Greeks already put in some of the longest hours per year, according to the OECD. Although the OECD numbers are sometimes difficult to compare, the trend is clear. Greeks work significantly more than their counterparts in the UK, the US and Germany.

1933

Making the law reflect a Greek reality

On the positive side, the minimum monthly wage for white-collar workers rose to €830 ($887) from April 1, up from €650 in 2019. The average monthly wage is now around €1,250, and the Greek prime minister recently announced he plans to bring it up to €1,500 by 2027.

But these wage increases do not make up for previous wage reductions and persistent high inflation that have forced many citizens to work two jobs to make ends meet, says Jens Bastian from the German Institute for International and Security Affairs in Berlin.

The new regulations just "retroactively adjust the legal context to the reality existing in the Greek labor market for years," he said, which simply means many people already work more than five days.

Working longer and earning more could even "land various employees in higher personal income tax and social security brackets, thus neutralizing prospective wage gains by working longer hours," Bastian told DW.

Structural change instead of longer hours

Moreover, the new regulations give employers a lot of sway. Can jobseekers refuse the offer and stick to their current five-day workweek?

"The negotiations between employer and employee can include the former demanding and the latter refusing to work longer," said Bastian.

In Greece, many working time arrangements lack trade union representation, in particular at small and medium-sized companies. "Keeping your job may be the bigger incentive than refusing to work longer hours at the insistence of the employer," Bastian said.

Emmanouil Savoidakis from the Politis & Partners law firm in Athens says several corporate clients are already interested in a six-day workweek "to enhance their operational capacity and better serve their customers, particularly those in industries facing labor shortages and high seasonal demand." He could see it rolled out in businesses with fluctuating workloads like retail, manufacturing and health care.

Much of this is just a short-term fix though. A six-day workweek can't solve Greece's broader economic problems, said Bastian. Longer working hours won't make up for missing personnel in the long term and other countries should pay attention.

Greece needs to make structural changes that include "incentives such as viable career trajectories, equal opportunity and higher wages that reflect people's professional expertise," said Bastian.

"In that respect, Greece has a long and winding road to go until it catches up with most other countries in Europe. Working longer hours and Saturday is akin to taking a road in the opposite direction," he concluded.

Edited by: Ashutosh Pandey

Timothy Rooks One of DW's team of business reporters, Timothy Rooks is based in Berlin.

Will climate change make insurance too expensive?

Insa Wrede

DW

Extreme weather events influenced by climate change are causing ever greater destruction, forcing insurers to increase their premiums where they can. What does this mean for the future?

Extreme weather events, such as the recent floods in Germany (above), are causing ever more damage

Image: Bernd Weißbrod/dpa/picture alliance


"Basically, if there is more damage, someone has to pay for it," said Ernst Rauch, a climate expert with Munich Re, a major reinsurance company. Either insurance companies, the state, or the person who suffered the damage must foot the bill.

The logic behind insurance is that many people sign up, but only a few suffer losses and receive compensation. If a growing number of people are hit by losses, however, insurance companies will pass on the risk and increase premiums for insurance holders.

As some previous extreme events have proven too costly to cover, insurance companies have in turn passed on some of their risk to what are known as reinsurers. Munich Re is one of these companies. It has been studying the effects of climate change for around 50 years with regard to their consequences for their own business.
A shrinking field of insurance companies

What happens when climate change creates such great risks that insurers no longer want to insure certain parts of the world, or they have to raise premiums to such an extent that no one is willing to pay them?

One such example is State Farm. The major insurance company has stopped selling insurance policies in California, citing the growing risk of catastrophes, steep construction costs and a challenging reinsurance market.

US insurance company State Farm no longer offers new policies in California, in part due to extreme heat and fire riskImage: California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection

In California, insurance companies had to cover between $1 to $3 billion (€935 million to €2.8 billion) in damages annually over the past decades, Rauch told DW. These days, however, annual insurance claims have jumped to well over $10 billion, he added.
Global damages totaling a hundred billion dollars

Other parts of the world have also been hit by increasingly extreme weather events that cause serious destruction, and Germany is no exception. It experiences floods, storms, droughts and fires. The German Meteorological Service warns that such extreme events will grow more frequent, resulting in even greater destruction, affecting more and more people.

"The amount of insured damage resulting from natural disasters now annually totals around $100 billion worldwide, " Rauch told DW. "Eighty to 90% of these damages are weather-related."

Extreme weather is a global phenomenon: Volunteers rescue a man from flooding in Porto Alegre, Brazil

Image: Bruno Nagel Conrado/DW

Damage can be minimized

The increasing amount of damage is only partly the result of more frequent extreme weather events, Rauch says, explaining that socio-economic factors play a greater role. The value of buildings and infrastructure is increasing, populations are growing, and construction is still taking place in particularly vulnerable areas such as coastal regions or near rivers.

The actual amount of damage caused is much greater, however, as not everything is covered by insurance. In fact, only half of all the world's natural disasters are covered at all, Rauch says. Even in Germany, for example, only about half of all buildings are insured against flooding, he points out.

The cost of Germany's floods for farming and industry  03:18

Extreme weather events in Germany, such as the exceptionally hot and dry summers of recent years and the devasting flood of 2021, have caused more than €80 billion in damage, says Germany's Environment Ministry. This figure includes damage caused to buildings and infrastructure, harvest losses and damaged forestry, as well as indirect losses, for instance due to reduced labor productivity.

Following the deadly floods in Germany's Ahrtal in 2021, the state had to cover many damage costs incurred by the uninsured

Image: Boris Roessler/dpa/picture alliance

Premiums must match risk

Does Rauch believe Germany may one day find itself in a similar situation to California, where insurers like State Farm have stopped issuing policies? He explains that US supervisory authorities, called insurance commissioners, do not allow insurers to increase premiums to reflect growing risks. This, he said, is the reason State Farm withdrew from California.

In the long term, however, Rauch believes that certain regions may find it impossible to get insurance coverage even in those parts of the world where insurers can charge what they want. He does not think this could happen in the next five to 10 years, with the exception of some smaller regions.

The June floods in Baden-Württemberg (above) and Bavaria caused estimated billions in damage

Image: Marijan Murat/dpa/picture alliance

The overall economic costs wrought by climate change will increase enormously in Germany in the coming years, the German government has found. Depending on how rapidly the planet heats up, this could cause damages in the range of €280 to €900 billion by 2050. This estimate excludes the impact of deaths, diminished quality of life, animal and plant species going extinct and damage to the water supply system.
Damage prevention ever more important

When it comes to controlling costs, damage prevention plays a key role alongside attempts to limit climate change. According to Rauch, these are the most important measures that can be taken in areas where the climate risks become so high that insurance companies can no longer offer affordable policies. Possible examples in the public realm include building levees; private individuals can secure their heating oil tanks, tile their basements and make sure no valuable possessions are stored there.

Flood protection measures improved greatly in Germany after significant flooding occurred along the country's major rivers in 2002 and 2013, Rauch says, adding that similar measures must be implemented along coastlines around the world.

The German Insurance Association (GDV) has also called for action: "The top priority should be climate-adapted planning, construction and renovation." No new building should take place in areas prone to flooding, the association says, and natural surfaces must be restored.

No time to waste

The industry group believes fast action is required. "If we fail to systematically institute preventive measures and adapt to the climate, our estimates show that premiums for homeowners insurance will double in Germany within the next 10 years due to climate damage alone," Jörg Asmussen, the chief executive officer of the German Insurance Association, warned more than a year ago.

Europe as a whole is also too slow when it comes to prevention, the European Environment Agency (EEA) concluded in its first European Climate Risk Assessment. The EEA's executive director, Leena Ylä-Mononen, has called on the responsible European and national political authorities to act now, saying the only way to minimize climate risks is by quickly reducing emissions, adopting ambitious adjustment strategies and undertaking the necessary related measures.

This article has been translated from German.

Switzerland: Floods cause deadly landslide

Rescuers were looking for two missing people following a deadly landslide in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. Severe storms and flooding have also prompted evacuation of hundreds in the southwestern canton of Valais.

Heavy rainfall in southeastern Switzerland caused a landslide Saturday

Image: Jean-Christophe Bott/keystone/dpa/picture alliance

One person was dead in Switzerland on Sunday after severe storms hit the south of the country, causing flooding and a landslide.

Three people initially went missing in the landslide, but police later announced that the body of one was found. The search for the other two remained ongoing.

Dozens of people were evacuated due to a landslide in the Mesocco and Calanca valleys in the southeastern canton of Graubünden.

The houses of those missing were destroyed in the landslide in Mesocco. Streets in the village were flooded, according to cantonal police.

Another woman had been reported missing but was found on Saturday morning.

A stretch of some 200 meters on the A13 highway to Italy was destroyed.

Swiss President Viola Amherd said she was shocked by the scale of the damage.

“My thoughts are with those affected. I thank the emergency personnel for their tireless efforts in this difficult situation,” Amherd said on X.

Trains resume in Zermatt, after ski town was briefly cut off by floodwaters

Trains began running in the town of Zermatt in the southwestern canton of Valais after rail traffic had been suspended for over 24 hours.

Schools had also been closed in the town.

Zermatt is located near Matterhorn, a popular tourist destination.

Both the railway line and the road into the town had been blocked temporarily due to flooding.

The Vispa river, a headstream of the Rhone that runs through the canton, broke its banks. Authorities declared a state of emergency for the Rhone and several of its tributaries.

Swiss news agency SDA cited Marie-Claude Noth-Ecoeur, the head of the Valais branch of the civil protection service, as saying that 230 people were forced to leave their homes by late on Friday.

Over 200 firefighters and 50 civil protection workers were involved in rescue activities, she said.

Swiss authorities declared an emergency for the Rhone and associated waterways after rivers burst their banks, leading to heavy flooding in the Valais canton

DW

Israeli military straps man to jeep during West Bank arrest

The Israel Defense Forces said an incident, involving a Palestinian man tied to a military jeep moving through the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, was a "violation" of its rules and values.

The man's family said he was strapped to the jeep after being wounded in fighting with Israel's military

Image: Reuters TV

Israel's military on Sunday said its soldiers violated orders when they drove with a wounded Palestinian man tied to the hood of a military jeep in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin.

Video footage on social media, verified by news agencies, shows Jenin resident Mujahed Azmi tied horizontally to the hood of the vehicle that passes by two ambulances through a narrow alley on Saturday.

The Israeli military said the man was wounded during a "counterterrorism operation" in the area of Wadi Burqin.

The military claimed he was a suspected Palestinian militant who was part of a group shooting at Israeli troops.

"During the exchange of fire, one of the suspects was injured and apprehended," the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement.

IDF says 'violation' of operating procedures

"In violation of orders and standard operating procedures, the suspect was taken by the forces while tied on top of a vehicle," an IDF statement sent to news agencies said.

"The conduct of the forces in the video of the incident does not conform to the values of the IDF," it continued, adding that the incident would be investigated and "dealt with accordingly."

The injured man was transferred to the Palestinian Red Crescent and is being treated at a hospital in Jenin, medics told AFP news agency.

Azmi's family told Reuters news agency that they had asked for an ambulance after he was wounded, but the army took him, strapped him to the hood and drove off.
West Bank troubles soar since October 7

Violence in the West Bank has soared since the Israel-Hamas conflict began, with frequent army raids on militant groups, rampages by Jewish settlers in Palestinian villages, and deadly Palestinian street attacks.

At least 553 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank by Israeli troops or settlers since the war broke out on October 7, according to Palestinian officials.

How Israel is displacing Palestinians in West Bank  05:06

Attacks by Palestinians have killed at least 14 Israelis in the West Bank over the same period, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

Earlier this month, the World Health Organization warned that the increasing violence was causing a major health crisis , as residents struggled to access urgent medical care.

Jenin is known as a stronghold for Palestinian militant groups, and the Israeli army routinely carries out raids in the city and nearby refugee camp.

mm/rm (AFP, Reuters)

New Buddhist temple opens in Berlin

Christoph Strack

DW

Germany's newest Buddhist temple has opened in Berlin. It will be home to a small but very international religious community.

Germany's newest Buddhist temple opens in Berlin on Sunday

Image: Christoph Strack/DW

This particular street in central Berlin looks as if it has been overlooked by the gentrification elsewhere in the district. A few rather shabby apartment buildings, a car repair shop, a high-rise at the end of a cul-de-sac with a daycare center. A place where construction waste, smashed toilet bowls, empty paint buckets, and other junk are regularly and illegally dumped at night.

Yet this section of Ackerstrasse, barely two kilometers (1.2 miles) from Olaf Scholz's chancellery, is also home to a new building, seven years in construction, that happens to be one of the most remarkable religious buildings in the German capital: A modern Buddhist temple.

Miaoshiang Shih is the master of the Fo Guang Shan Community Temple. Born in Taiwan, she has been living in Berlin for decades, and for over 30 years has been meditating at the same place on Ackerstrasse with two or three other nuns in a wooden shack that used to be an auto parts factory. The nuns lived in an apartment next door.
The Buddhas have to make way

The friendly Buddhist with the shaved head leads a tour through the new building, showing off the rooms with pride: The main hall of the temple, where morning and evening meditation will be held in front of the three golden Buddhas, plus the kitchen, the guest rooms, the dining room, rooms for art exhibitions or small concerts, and a small memorial hall for the deceased.

Miaoshiang Shih is the master of the Fo Guang Shan Community TempleImage: Christoph Strack/DW

The master elaborates on the artfully crafted metal structure in front of the building. This, she tells DW, "is the incense stand. It's not allowed in the building because of fire safety regulations."

The temple was built without any financial support from the government. Everyone here on the team is familiar with the fire safety and building codes. As for the cost of the temple, Miaoshiang Shi remains discreet — she does say, however, that the construction was four times more expensive than calculated. Buddhist monasteries and Fo Guang Shan practitioners from all over the world helped to cover the costs.
Worldwide network

The monastery is part of the Fo Guang Shan community, which was founded in Taiwan in 1967. The name means "Buddha's Mountain of Light" in Chinese, and there are many such monasteries in Taiwan and around the world, including in a number of major European cities. In Germany, a monastery was opened in Frankfurt in 2004. Shi emphasized that there are also several monasteries in mainland China, and among the Asian members who come to Ackerstrasse to meditate, there are also many from China.

"At our center, humanistic Buddhism is our guiding principle," said the master. This modern Buddhist philosophy combines the meditative practice of Zen with a deliberate closeness to people. The teachings encourage people to care for others. On Sundays, Ackerstrasse also offers lunch and everyday care for those in need.

Several texts now need translating into English

Image: Christoph Strack/DW

The new Buddhist temple fits in well in Berlin. With more than 3.5 million people, the capital is not especially religious. But it is known for its religious diversity. According to estimates on the website of the state's Department for Culture and Social Cohesion, there are more than 250 religious or ideological communities active in Berlin, who play an "important role in the social life of this multicultural metropolis." The Ackerstrasse building is by no means the only Buddhist institution in the city. The Buddhist House in Frohnau, in northern Berlin, is already over 100 years old.

Religious diversity in Berlin

As more young people from around the world come to Berlin to study or work, the city is becoming more diverse. Later this year, a Hindu temple that has been under construction for almost 20 years is due to open in the south of the city.

And at the end of November, the Catholic Church plans to reopen its St. Hedwig Cathedral on central Bebelplatz for worship after four years of renovation. Construction on the House of One, a joint project of Christians, Jews, and Muslims, is behind schedule. Smaller non-denominational churches, synagogues, and mosques are also springing up at the same time.

This fits in with the picture that Miao Shiang Shi paints of the visitors and supporters of the monastery. She described passers-by popping into the building, or school classes who want to get to know the building. Among the members of the community are also some long-time Berliners. But the guests are becoming more and more international.

The new temple is officially called the Fo-Guang-Shan

Image: Christoph Strack/DW

For a long time, the nuns struggled to translate their liturgical and spiritual texts from Chinese into German. Now the demand for texts in English is growing. There have been temple visitors from South Africa and Indonesia. And an Indian scientist who got to know the monastery finally ended up coming to Ackerstrasse every week, eventually translating texts into English. "He has become a kind of family member for us," says the master.

Sunday, June 23 will be an exceptionally international day. The small community of nuns, two from Taiwan and one from Singapore, is expecting the highest-ranking abbot of the order to attend the opening ceremonies, along with a few companions from Taiwan and all the masters of the Buddhist monasteries in Europe, approximately three dozen representatives. In total, Shi expects up to 600 guests, far too many to fit into the temple space itself.

But the master is delighted. She says that the guests will be seated in the small Chinese garden that has been newly created at the back of the building. There, under a large picture of Buddha on the façade of the building, people will fill the rows of seats for the first time and watch the celebrations on large screens.

This article was originally written in German.

ISIS NEW FRONT

Dagestan lies east of Chechnya

Gunmen in Russia’s Dagestan attack churches, synagogue and police post

Gunmen on Sunday attacked synagogues and churches in Russia's North Caucasus region of Dagestan, killing a priest, six police officers, and a member of the national guard, security officials said.


Issued on: 23/06/2024 - 21:44
2 min

Photo taken from video released by Golos Dagestana shows smoke rises following an attack in Makhachkala, Dagestan, Russia, June 23, 2024.

© Golos Dagestana via AP

The attacks took place in Dagestan's largest city of Makhachkala and in the coastal city of Derbent, where gunfights were ongoing.

Russia's Investigative Committee said it had opened criminal probes over "acts of terror", while the hunt for the gunmen was ongoing.

Witnesses could hear shooting near a church in Makhachkala while shootouts were continuing in Derbent, the TASS state news agency reported. Dagestan's interior ministry said it had killed two of the gunmen in Makhachkala.


Sunday is a religious holiday in the Russian Orthodox Church called Pentecost Sunday. Dagestan is a largely Muslim region of Russia, neighbouring Chechnya.

"This evening in the cities of Derbent and Makhachkala armed attacks were carried out on two Orthodox churches, a synagogue and a police check-point," said the National Antiterrorism Committee in a statement to RIA Novosti news agency.

"As a result of the terrorist attacks, according to preliminary information, a priest from the Russian Orthodox Church and police officers were killed."

In all, six police officers had been killed and another 12 wounded in the attacks, the spokeswoman for Dagestan's interior ministry, Gayana Gariyeva, told RIA Novosti.

Russia's National Guard said one of its officers had been killed in Derbent and several others wounded.

A 66-year-old priest was killed in Derbent, the press secretary of Dagestan's interior ministry, Gariyeva told the agency.
Synagogues on fire

Dagestan's RGVK broadcaster named the priest as Nikolai Kotelnikov,saying he had served more than 40 years in Derbent.

"The synagogue in Derbent is on fire," the chairman of the public council of Russia's Federation of Jewish Communities, Boruch Gorin wrote on Telegram.

"It has not been possible to extinguish the fire. Two are killed: a policeman and a security guard".

He added: "The synagogue in Makhachkala has also been set on fire and burnt down."

Gorin wrote that in Derbent, firefighters had been told to leave the burning synagogue because of the risk that "terrorists remained inside".

He added: "There is shooting in the streets around the synagogue".

The leader of Dagestan, Sergei Melikov, wrote on Telegram: "This evening in Derbent and Makhachkala unknown (attackers) made attempts to destabilise the situation in society.

"They were confronted by Dagestani police officers."

Russia's FSB security service in April said it had arrested four people in Dagestan on suspicion of plotting a deadly attack on Moscow's Crocus City Hall concert venue in March, which was claimed by Islamic State.

Militants from Dagestan are known to have travelled to join the Islamic State group in Syria.

In 2015, the group declared it had established a "franchise" in the North Caucasus.

Dagestan lies east of Chechnya where Russian authorities battled separatists in two brutal wars, first in 1994-1996 and then in 1999-2000.

After the defeat of Chechen insurgents, Russian authorities have been locked in a simmering conflict with Islamist militants from across the North Caucasus that has killed scores of civilians and police.

(AFP)

Gunmen in Russia's Dagestan conduct deadly attacks on churches, synagogue, police post

Issued on: 23/06/2024 - 

Gunmen opened fire at a synagogue, an Orthodox church and a police post in Russia's North Caucasus region of Dagestan on Sunday, killing six policemen and injuring 12, the region's Russian news agencies quoted the interior ministry as saying.

02:03  Video by FRANCE 24

Priest, 15 security personnel killed in attacks on synagogue, church in Russia's Dagestan

Derbent occupies the narrow gateway between the Caspian Sea and the Caucasus Mountains. Photo by lnur Neciyev/Wikimedia Commons


June 23 (UPI) -- At least 15 police officers, a priest and an unknown number of civilians died in an attack on two Orthodox churches and a synagogue in Russia's majority Muslim Republic of Dagestan, the national counterterrorism agency and police said Sunday.

The attacks were in the cities Derbent and Makhachkala. Also, a police traffic stop in Makhachkala was hit. The region is in the southernmost tip of Russia, about 2,000 miles south of Moscow, along the Caspian Sea.

Attackers used automatic rifles around 5:50 p.m. local time at the synagogue in Derbent, just 40 minutes before evening prayers, then drove away in a white Volkswagen Polo car, officials reported. The synagogue then was set on fire by "terrorists," according to TASS News Agency.

Six of the attackers are dead, TASS reported.


"Further operative and search and investigative action will continue until detecting all the participants of sleeper cells, which were definitely prepared in particular from abroad," Sergey Melikov, head of the Dagestan Republic, said.

Father Nikolai, a 66-year-old priest at the Orthodox church, died in a knife attack, Shamil Khadulaev, the chairman of Dagestan's Public Monitoring Commission, said in a report by TASS.

Priests locked themselves inside the church and were waiting for help.

A security guard at the Orthodox church in Makhachkala was also killed, Khadulaev said.

"As far as is known, there were no worshipers in the synagogues at the time of the attack, and there are no known casualties from the Jewish community," according to a statement from the Israeli foreign ministry.

Elsewhere, a group of unknown assailants attacked the traffic police post in the regional capital of Makhachkala.

Residents of Makhachkala were asked to remain in their homes.

"The Russian Jewish Congress offers condolences to the families of those killed and wishes the soonest recovery to those hurt," it said in a statement. "We call on the authorities to take the toughest measures against the bandits and murderers who committed this atrocious crime."

A terror investigation has been launched under the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, the Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of Russia for the Republic of Dagestan said.

"All the circumstances of the incident and the persons involved in the terrorist attacks are being established, and their actions will be given a legal assessment," the investigative directorate statement said.

More than 3.1 million people live in the republic, which is ethnically diverse.

"The Muftiyat of the Republic of Dagestan expresses sincere words of condolences to the families and friends of the victims," the centralized Islamic organization said in a statment on Telegram.

"We mourn with you and ask the Almighty to grant you patience. We also ask the Merciful Lord to grant speedy healing to all those affected."

Three days of mourning have been declared in Dagestan, TASS reported.

Buildings burned, police attacked amid renewed unrest in New Caledonia

Several buildings, including a police station and a town hall, were set on fire in New Caledonia overnight, authorities said Monday, as the French Pacific territory was hit by a fresh surge of unrest.

THE LAST COLONY    VIVA INDEPENDENCE 

Issued on: 24/06/2024

A young man takes part in a road block lighting a fire on a roadside overnight, in the district of Auteuil, in France's Pacific territory of New Caledonia on June 19, 2024.

 © Thomas Bernardi, AFP

"The night was... marked by unrest throughout the mainland and on the island of Pins and Mare, requiring the intervention of numerous reinforcements: with attacks on the police, arson and roadblocks", the High Commission, which represents the French state in the archipelago, said in a press release.

Rioting and looting erupted in New Caledonia in mid-May over an electoral reform plan that Indigenous Kanak people feared would leave them in a permanent minority, putting independence hopes definitively out of reach.

The unrest left nine dead and damage estimated at more than 1.5 billion euros ($1.6 billion).

The French government responded by sending more than 3,000 troops and police to the territory almost 17,000 kilometres (10,600 miles) from Paris.

In Dumbea, north of the capital Noumea, the municipal police station and a garage were set alight. Four armoured vehicles intervened, an AFP journalist said.

Several fires broke out in the Ducos and Magenta districts of Noumea, while police and separatists clashed in Bourail, resulting in one injury, AFP learned.

The High Commission reported "several fires were extinguished", particularly in Ducos and Magenta, adding that "the premises and vehicles of the municipal police and private vehicles" were set on fire.

"Abuses, destruction and attempted fires were also committed in several places in Paita," in the Noumea suburbs, added the High Commission, which said police in Mare had also been attacked.

On Monday morning, many schools were closed due to the renewed unrest.

On Saturday, seven independence activists linked to a group accused of orchestrating the riots last month were indicted and sent to mainland France for pre-trial detention.

(AFP)