‘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 

- 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.

Concern grows for Iran woman detained over underwear protest

By AFP
November 5, 2024

The woman's fate has mobilised attention worldwide - Copyright POOL/AFP/File GIL COHEN-MAGEN

Stuart WIilliams and Cecile Feuillatre

Concern grew Tuesday for an Iranian student arrested after stripping to her underwear in protest at alleged harassment over her dress, with activists worried authorities could confine her in a psychiatric institution.

In videos shared on social media, the woman, a student at Tehran’s prestigious Islamic Azad University, was seen protesting outside the campus on Saturday dressed only in her bra and underpants.

Persian-language media outside Iran have reported university security guards harassed her over what she was wearing, ripping her headscarf and clothes. She then took most of them off in protest.

Other footage showed her defiantly walking down the street before plainclothes agents bundled her into an unmarked car and drove her away.

It remains unclear where she is being held.

Many activists regard her as a new icon of the struggle for women’s rights in Iran, more than two years after the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, following her arrest for an alleged breach of the statutory dress code for women, sparked months of nationwide protests.

But Iranian authorities have alleged the student has a mental disorder, a claim activists fear may be a pretext for confining her in a psychiatric institution.

Rights group Amnesty International has called for the woman’s immediate and unconditional release, saying she “removed her clothes in protest against abusive enforcement of compulsory veiling by security officials”.

“I hail the courage of this young woman who demonstrated her resistance and turned herself into an icon for the women’s struggle in Iran,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told broadcaster France 2.

Under the dress code mandatory in Iran, women must wear a headscarf and loose-fitting clothes in public.



– ‘Tool to suppress dissent’ –



In a statement released Tuesday, the Iranian embassy in Paris said it wanted to address “false information” over the incident.

It said initial indications had “shown the student was suffering from family problems and a fragile psychological condition”.

“Signs of abnormal behaviour had already been observed by those close to her, including family members and students in her year,” it alleged.

Activists accused the authorities of seeking to portray women who protest against the dress code as mentally unstable.

“Iranian authorities systematically use involuntary psychiatric hospitalisation as a tool to suppress dissent, branding protesters as mentally unstable to undermine their credibility,” said the director of the New York-based Centre for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI), Hadi Ghaemi.

News website Iran Wire, which is based outside the country, said the woman was a “seventh-semester French language student” who had no previous history of mental health issues.



– ‘Symbol’ –



Several dozen people protested in Paris on Tuesday in support of the woman, with members of the feminist collective Femen stripping to their underwear and brandishing “Woman. Life. Freedom” slogans.

“We have no news of her. But what we do know is that the regime’s script is in full swing and she is now being presented as crazy and hysterical,” said Chirinne Ardakani, lawyer and member of the Iran Justice collective that organised the demonstration.

Iranian lawyer and Nobel Peace laureate Shirin Ebadi accused the authorities of “repeating the same threadbare scenario that the protester has a mental disorder”, and saying transferring such people to mental hospitals was “the most severe torture”.

Fellow Nobel Peace laureate Narges Mohammadi, who remains in Tehran’s Evin prison, said the student had turned her body into a “symbol of dissent”.

“Women pay the price for defiance, but we do not bow down to force… I call for her freedom and an end to the harassment of women,” Mohammadi said in a message from prison posted on her social media channels.

The video of the student strolling calmly in Tehran amid other women in the black Islamic chador dress has also captured the imagination of celebrities.

“Bravery,” said French film star Marion Cotillard as she posted the video on Instagram.

“You killed, you beat, you imprisoned… but the story ends with the victory of those who refuse to submit to your oppression,” said Iran-born and now France-based actor Golshifteh Farahani.

STALINIST MONARCHY

Award-winning Cambodian reporter quits journalism after arrest


By AFP
November 5, 2024


Cambodian journalist Mech Dara, who won an international award for his reporting on scam compounds, says he is leaving the profession after spending three weeks in jail - Copyright AFP TANG CHHIN Sothy
Suy SE

A high-profile Cambodian reporter who won an international award for uncovering alleged cyber scams told AFP Tuesday that he is quitting journalism, saying he has lost “courage” after being arrested by the authorities and freed on bail.

Police arrested Mech Dara on September 30 on charges of inciting social disorder, drawing condemnation from around the world.

He was released on bail three weeks later after apologising to Cambodia’s former leader Hun Sen and his son Prime Minister Hun Manet in a video shot while he was in prison.

“I have decided that I am retiring from journalism because of the arrest, the questioning and imprisonment,” Dara told AFP.

“I am still afraid.”

Dara said he was questioned all night after his arrest, and police threatened to hit him and deny him food and water unless he cooperated.

“I have lost my courage. It has attacked my spirit, and I have no more courage,” Dara said, referring to the arrest and time he spent in prison.

“The questioning and then being in the prison, it really, really crushed my soul — the soul that is always with me, no matter what is happening, I continue to report. But that spirit or soul is not with me any more.”

He also urged the court to drop the charges against him.

Hun Manet on Monday posted pictures of him meeting Dara, including one showing the pair embracing one another.

Dara said he informed Hun Manet of his decision to quit journalism during the meeting, which took place a day after his release.



– Scam farm reporting –



Police detained Dara, 36, after stopping a car carrying him and his family from Sihanoukville, a coastal city where many suspected cyber scam operations take place.

His reporting over 10 years has appeared in various international news outlets and he worked for the independent Voice of Democracy in Cambodia before the authorities shut it down in February 2023.

Dara has since used his social media platforms to share news content, particularly around the proliferation of “scam farms” — criminal operations that defraud victims online for vast sums of money and fuel human trafficking across the region.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken last year presented Dara with a Hero Award, which recognises efforts against human trafficking, for investigations into exploitation at the online scam compounds.

The award hailed his “courageous reporting on human trafficking for the purpose of forced criminality”, saying it had led to the government improving its response to the problem.

The Reporters Without Borders (RSF) press freedom campaign group said Dara’s departure would “leave a hole in the Cambodian journalistic field”.

“By repressing journalists such as Mech Dara, the Cambodian government sent a chilling message and directly threatens any remaining independent journalists in the country,” RSF’s Aleksandra Bielakowska told AFP.

Beh Lih Yi, Asia Program Coordinator at the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), said the departure of independent journalism was “alarming”.

“Cambodia’s once vibrant free press is a ghost of its former self after nearly four decades of Hun Sen’s iron-fisted rule. Prime Minister Hun Manet is no different from his father,” Beh told AFP.

Dara’s arrest came a day after he posted an image on social media purportedly showing a tourist site demolished to make way for a quarry, according to the Cambodian Journalists’ Alliance Association.

Local authorities labelled the now-deleted images “fake news” and called for Dara to face punishment for their publication.

After announcing charges against Dara, the Phnom Penh Municipal Court accused him of posting messages on social media platforms designed to “ignite anger (and) to make people misunderstand about the leadership of the Cambodian government”.

The charge of incitement is frequently used by Cambodian authorities against activists, and Dara could face up to two years in jail if convicted.

Cambodia places near the bottom of international press freedom rankings and rights groups have long accused the government of using legal cases as a tool to silence dissenting voices.

DECRIMINALIZE DRUGS!

Afghanistan poppy cultivation grows 19 percent despite ban: UN


By AFP

November 6, 2024

An Afghan farmer harvests opium sap from a poppy field in Badakhshan province in May, 2024 - Copyright AFP/File OMER ABRAR

Opium cultivation rose by 19 percent in Afghanistan this year, the UN reported Wednesday, despite a Taliban government ban that almost eradicated the crop.

Currently, 12,800 hectares of poppies are cultivated in Afghanistan — where up to 80 percent of the population depends on agriculture — a new survey by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) shows, the agency said in a statement.

The 19 percent increase year-on-year remains far below the 232,000 hectares cultivated when Taliban supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada banned the crop in April 2022, nearly a year after the Taliban returned to power, UNODC added.

The centre of poppy cultivation has also shifted, the agency noted, and is now concentrated in northeastern provinces instead of in the Taliban strongholds of southern Afghanistan.

In May, clashes between farmers and brigades sent to destroy their poppy fields resulted in several deaths in northeastern Badakhshan.

Following the poppy ban, prices soared for the resin from which opium and heroin are made.

During the first half of 2024, prices stabilised around $730 per kilogram, (two pounds) according to the UNODC, compared to about $100 per kg before 2022.

For years Afghanistan was the world’s biggest supplier of opium and heroin.

Many farmers in Afghanistan, one of the poorest countries in the world, were hit hard financially by the ban and have not been able to reap the same profits from alternative crops.

Even legal crops are only a short-term solution, according to the International Crisis Group (ICG), “so the focus should be on job creation in non-farm industries”.

The UNODC and the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) called for international support for farmers to transition to alternative crops and livelihoods, something the Taliban government has requested.

“With opium cultivation remaining at a low level in Afghanistan, we have the opportunity and responsibility to support Afghan farmers to develop sustainable sources of income free from illicit markets,” said UNODC Executive Director Ghada Waly in the statement.

Norway speeds ahead of EU in race for fossil-free roads


By AFP
November 5, 2024

Baard Gundersen at the wheel of his electric BMW iX in Baerum, Oslo

 - Copyright AFP CHARLY TRIBALLEAU, Rebecca DROKE

Pierre-Henry DESHAYES

On the quiet streets of an Oslo suburb, electric vehicles are parked in nearly every other driveway as Norway speeds towards its goal of becoming the first country free of fossil fuel-powered cars.

Electric cars make up 43 percent of all cars in Baerum, with resident Baard Gundersen making the switch in 2016.

Now on his second fully electric car, the CEO of a coffee company described his decision as a “no-brainer”.

“It was much cheaper to buy a car like this than a traditional car, almost half price,” he said at the wheel of his BMW iX SUV.

Despite being a major oil and gas producer, Norway has adopted the most ambitious electric vehicle (EV) objective in the world: only zero-emission private new cars will be sold from next year.

While not a European Union member, Norway would beat the bloc’s deadline to phase out the sale of fossil fuel-burning cars by 2035 by a decade.

Driven by the popularity of Teslas, electric cars accounted for a staggering 96.4 percent of new car registrations in Norway in September, vastly outpacing the European average of 17.3 percent.

Norway has come a long way since 2012, when EVs only made up 2.8 percent of the market.

The boom has much to do with proactive policy.

At the turn of the century, authorities exempted electric cars from certain taxes.

Norway had never had its own carmaker, and the hope was that the policies would create fertile ground for a homegrown EV champion.

It turned out to be in vain, as Norway’s Pivco electric car maker — later renamed Think and for a while owned by Ford — went bankrupt in 2011.

But the tax exemptions remained — even if some have been rolled back in recent years — making all-electric cars competitively priced compared to those with combustion engines, which are heavily taxed.

“We have used the stick for fossil vehicles and the carrot for electric cars,” Cecilie Knibe Kroglund, state secretary at Norway’s transport ministry, told AFP.

“It’s possible that other countries will have to use other types of incentives depending on usage, their geography and the way public transport works. But as far as we are concerned, our incentives have worked very well,” she said.

– A-ha takes on EVs –

Electric cars have also long benefited from other special privileges, like exemptions from city tolls and free parking in public car parks.

This was prompted by a civil disobedience campaign in the 1990s by environmental activist Frederic Hauge, co-founder of the NGO Bellona, and Morten Harket, the singer of iconic Norwegian pop group A-ha — famous for the hit “Take On Me”.

Travelling around in a small Fiat Panda — converted to be electric — the two men stubbornly racked up a mountain of fines which they refused to pay in an effort to promote zero-emission vehicles.

Their trusty car was finally seized, but a few years later authorities ended up granting electric vehicles, which were still rare at the time, the special privileges.

“I didn’t feel like I was entering into the role of a rebel really,” Harket told the BBC in 2022.

“It was just necessary.”

In 2005, the government also allowed electric cars to use lanes reserved for public transport — thus enabling them to avoid traffic jams.

These benefits have eroded somewhat since, but in the meantime electric cars have become the norm in the Scandinavian country.

Over the past decade, technology and car ranges have also evolved along with the development of a vast network of charging stations.

In September, the number of electric cars on Norwegian roads exceeded that of petrol cars for the first time and they are hot on the heels of diesel cars — which are still the country’s most popular vehicles.

Since November 1, all taxis in Oslo have had to be emissions-free.

– Transferable model? –

German carmaker Volkswagen, the top brand in Norway, delivered its last internal combustion car, a Golf, to Norway in July.

“Since January 1, we have removed all fossil-fuelled cars from our catalogue,” Kim Clemetsen, head of marketing at a dealership that imports the brand, said.

“We now only sell electric cars.”

Other brands, such as Toyota, are resisting the push and are planning to continue to offer hybrid cars and even combustion engines in 2025.

Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum, a staunch defender of rural interests, has also thrown a spanner in the works by saying that it is “not a problem at all” if “a few” combustion-powered vehicles are still sold next year.

But if current trends hold, the country should come very close to achieving its ambition of 100 percent zero-emissions vehicles.

Christina Bu, secretary general of the Norwegian Electric Vehicle Association, thinks this should be encouraging to other countries aiming to phase out combustion engines.

“Norway was in many ways not a very likely country to succeed with this: it’s a big country, long distances, very cold temperatures in winter, which affects the range of the car,” Bu told AFP.

“So there’s not really any reason why Norway should succeed rather than another country.”

Ultrafast fashion: Looking good results in medical and environmental concerns


By Dr. Tim Sandle
November 5, 2024
DIGITAL JOURNAL

AiDA was just one of the AidLab projects being showcased ahead of London Fashion Week, which started Friday - Copyright AFP JOSH EDELSON

The fashion industry produces up to 100 billion garments each year. Each year, approximately 92 million tons of clothing end up in landfills. It is responsible for roughly 10 percent of annual global carbon emissions.

Devansh Sood is the founder and CEO of Fique a clothing wear brand that offers protective Silver Shield-certified tested garments that block out Radio Frequencies (RF) and Electromagnetic Frequencies (EMF) produced from electronic devices, cell towers, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and power lines.

The brand was created by the fashion Activist Platform The Elegant Initiative (#elegantinitiative) and The Silver Lining Film, promoting the harmful effects of technology, such as everyday devices and electricity sources.

Sood points out that often fashion garments contain unsafe levels of toxic chemicals which can harm wellbeing and health. Toxic chemicals do not wash out, but they can leech out of clothes and be absorbed by your skin, potentially causing health problems.

Global Fashion Industry Waste

According to Sood:

• Up to 100 billion garments are produced by the fashion industry every year.
• Each year, as much as 92 million tons of clothing ends up in landfills.
• Only 20 percent of textiles are collected for reuse or recycling globally.

As an example, Sood mentions, a CBC investigation revealed that some of the most popular ultra-fast fashion brands on the planet had been selling toxic chemicals to the public, hidden in clothing and accessories.

Ultra fast fashion takes everything harmful about fast fashion and speeds it up. That means faster production cycles, faster trend churn, and faster to the landfills. The clothing is ultra plastic, with at least half of these garments made from virgin plastics that will shed microfibers into waterways and the air for years to come.

The negative impacts on workers and the environment reach new lows

Here, Sood says, scientists found that a jacket for toddlers, purchased from Chinese retailer Shein, contained almost 20 times the amount of lead that Health Canada says is safe for children. A red purse, also purchased from Shein, had more than five times the threshold.

For this, researchers tested 38 samples of children’s and adult clothes and accessories. One in five had concerning levels of chemicals, like lead, PFAS, and phthalates – a group of chemicals – often used to make plastic more durable, can interfere with some peoples’ reproductive hormones.

Phthalates are a family of chemical compounds primarily used to make plastics, PVC, or vinyl flexible and pliant. Phthalates are the most commonly used plasticisers in the world.

Phthalates have received significant attention due to their ubiquitous nature in industrial products and their potential for toxicity in the human body.

Furthermore, the research suggests that exposure to lead—a neurotoxicant—can damage the brain and nervous system, impacting growth, development, and behaviour patterns. This is a form of toxicity in which a biological, chemical, or physical agent produces an adverse effect on the structure or function of the central and the peripheral nervous system.

With another area of concern, fashion is one of the most labour-dependent industries in the world, as each piece of apparel travels through a complex supply chain. From the pickers harvesting the cotton to the yarn spinners and the workers manufacturing the garments – exploitation exists at many stages in the making of clothes.

Dutch, French authorities raid Netflix offices in tax probe

By  AFP
November 5, 2024

The raids on Netflix offices in Paris and Amsterdam to suspicions of 'covering up serious tax fraud and off-the-books work', a judicial source told AFP. - Copyright AFP/File Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV

French and Dutch authorities raided streaming giant Netflix’s offices in Paris and Amsterdam Tuesday as part of a tax fraud probe, a judicial source told AFP.

The search of “various locations” in France by specialist financial investigators relates to suspicions of “covering up serious tax fraud and off-the-books work” and is part of a probe opened in November 2022, the source said.

Netflix’s Amsterdam headquarters for Europe, the Middle East and Africa was also targeted for a search by a team of officials from both France and the Netherlands.

“French and Dutch authorities have been cooperating on this criminal case for many months,” the source said.

Netflix is under investigation in France for its tax filings for 2019, 2020 and 2021.

The company did not immediately respond Tuesday to AFP’s request for comment.

Netflix insisted last year that it complies with tax law in all countries where it operates, after the probes were revealed in a media report.

French outlet La Lettre A had reported that Netflix’s French operation was structured until 2021 so that all subscribers signed up with a Dutch subsidiary — thereby “minimising its tax bill”.

That left it paying less than one million euros ($1.1 million at today’s rates) in taxes to Paris across 2019 and 2020, when it had around seven million French subscribers.

Authorities are now trying to determine whether Netflix kept up illegal attempts to minimise its reported profits and thereby its tax bill, La Lettre A added.

The French subsidiary reported very low operating margins compared to the US mothership in 2021 and 2022, the outlet said, paying just 6.5 million euros in tax on its profits in 2022.

But its practice of billing a large share of revenue to entities outside France represented a “tax optimisation strategy that is legal” under certain conditions, La Lettre A added.

– Streaming success –

Netflix earned over $9.8 billion in revenue worldwide from its 282 million subscribers in July-September this year, with net profit reaching $2.4 billion.

The group arrived in France just over 10 years ago and now boasts 10 million households subscribed.

Netflix says it confirms with local laws on commissioning French content, paying the full rate of VAT and contributing to a film industry levy.

In 2023, the company said it pumped 250 million euros into producing French content, of which 50 million went to feature films.

Its top French-made output includes the “Lupin” series starring Omar Sy.

The show is a modern reimagining of the classic early-1900s tales of “gentleman thief” Arsene Lupin by writer Maurice Leblanc — France’s answer to British detective Sherlock Holmes.

The Netflix version broke into the top 10 most-watched shows in 70 different countries, the platform boasts.

Thousands in Tel Aviv protest Israel defence minister’s sacking

By AFP
November 5, 2024

Israelis protestors set a fire and block a road in Tel Aviv after Yoav Gallant's sacking as defence minister - Copyright AFP Cesar Manso
Michael Blum, Sharon Aronowicz

Thousands of Israelis rallied in Tel Aviv late Tuesday to protest the sacking of defence minister Yoav Gallant, calling on his successor Israel Katz to prioritise a hostage deal to return the captives still held in Gaza.

Chanting slogans against the government and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the demonstrators carrying Israeli flags gathered in the commercial hub shortly after Gallant’s dismissal was announced.

Protesters also blocked traffic and lit fires on the Ayalon highway in Tel Aviv, with some wearing “Bring them home now!” t-shirts referring to the hostages.

They held up signs with slogans such as “We deserve better leaders” and “Leaving no one behind!” and one protester wore handcuffs and a face mask with Netanyahu’s likeness.

“Bibi traitor! You’re guilty” chanted some, referring to Netanyahu and blaming for failing to prevent the Hamas attack on October 7 last year.

“We, the protesters, believe that Gallant… is actually the only normal person in the government,” said 54-year-old teacher Samuel Miller, slamming Netanyahu’s administration for opening “new fronts in uncalled-for wars”.

“He’s doing nothing to safeguard our peace, the peace of the Palestinians, the peace of everybody in this region,” Miller told AFP.

He also criticised Netanyahu’s government for “doing absolutely nothing to free the hostages” still held in Gaza.

Foreign minister Israel Katz took over the defence portfolio on Tuesday, after Netanyahu fired Gallant over eroded trust over the past months of the Gaza war.

– ‘Endangering Israel’s security’ –

An Israeli group campaigning for the release of hostages in Gaza on Tuesday expressed “deep concern” over the sacking and urged Katz to “prioritise” a deal to free the captives.

“We expect the incoming defence minister, Israel Katz, to prioritise a hostage deal… to secure the immediate release of all hostages,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said in a statement.

Gallant also called on the government to bring home the hostages, saying in a televised speech: “We must do this quickly, while they are still alive.”

Einav Tzangauker, whose son Matan is among the hostages, was among those protesting against Netanyahu in Tel Aviv.

“If it is possible to replace a defence minister in the middle of a war, then it is surely possible to replace a prime minister who is unqualified to bring back the hostages,” she told Israel’s Channel 12.

Netanyahu “is intentionally endangering Israel’s security and all that because of a dispute between him and Gallant on how to continue the war,” she added.

The war erupted on October 7, 2023 after Palestinian militants attacked Israel, resulting in 1,206 deaths, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed 43,391 people in Gaza, a majority of them civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry the United Nations considers reliable.

During the October 7 attack, Palestinian militants seized 251 hostages, of whom 97 are still in Gaza. The Israeli military says 34 of them are dead.

Netanyahu Ousts Defense Minister Gallant Over Breakdown of Trust

STEVEN GANOT
11/05/2024


Foreign Minister Katz steps into defense role as Netanyahu reshuffles cabinet positions

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday night dismissed his defense minister, Yoav Gallant, citing a breakdown of trust over disagreements in managing Israel’s ongoing war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Netanyahu announced that Foreign Minister Israel Katz would assume the role of defense minister and extended an invitation to Gideon Sa’ar to take the role of foreign minister.

At a time of war, full trust between the prime minister and the defense minister is critical

In a statement released by his office, Netanyahu emphasized the need for complete trust between the prime minister and the defense minister during wartime. “At a time of war, full trust between the prime minister and the defense minister is critical,” he stated. “Unfortunately, this trust has eroded and attempts to bridge the gaps have failed.” He expressed concern that their disagreements had become public knowledge, potentially benefiting Israel’s enemies who “derived great benefit” from the situation.

This is not the first time Netanyahu has attempted to dismiss Gallant. On March 25, 2023, Gallant spoke out against the government’s proposed judicial reforms and called for a delay to allow for negotiations between the ruling coalition and the opposition. His stance led National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir to call for his dismissal. The following day, Netanyahu announced that he was firing Gallant, sparking massive protests that night in several major cities across Israel. However, Gallant’s office stated that he would continue in his post, as he had not received an official notice of dismissal. On April 10, Netanyahu reversed his decision and announced that he would not fire Gallant.

The current dismissal follows Gallant’s recent approval of drafting an additional 7,000 ultra-Orthodox men into the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), a move that sparked controversy within the coalition government. The ultra-Orthodox party United Torah Judaism (UTJ) has been pressing for the advancement of the so-called Daycare Bill, which aims to ensure that children of ultra-Orthodox men who have not completed mandatory military service remain eligible for state-funded daycare subsidies. This legislation seeks to circumvent a High Court ruling that deemed such financial support illegal for those avoiding military service.


Netanyahu removed the Daycare Bill from the Knesset agenda, defying UTJ’s demands and further straining coalition unity. In response, UTJ threatened to withhold support for other coalition legislation unless the bill was advanced. UTJ Member of Knesset Israel Eichler demanded that the bill be brought to a vote immediately. The coalition’s ability to pass the legislation is uncertain, as it has lost majority support with several lawmakers, including Gallant and Economy Minister Nir Barkat, indicating opposition to the bill.

There is no low to which this government will not sink

Opposition leaders criticized Netanyahu’s decision to dismiss Gallant. National Unity chairman Benny Gantz, a former member of Netanyahu’s war cabinet, accused the government of putting politics ahead of national security. “There is no low to which this government will not sink,” stated National Unity lawmaker Orit Farkash Hacohen. Yair Golan, chairman of The Democrats, a merger of the left-wing Labor and Meretz parties, urged citizens to “take to the streets” in protest.

The security of the State of Israel always was, and will always remain, my life’s mission

Gallant responded to his dismissal with a brief statement: “The security of the State of Israel always was, and will always remain, my life’s mission.”

Netanyahu praised Israel Katz as Gallant’s successor, highlighting his experience as foreign minister, finance minister, and intelligence minister, as well as his long-standing membership in the Security Cabinet. “He brings an impressive combination of experience and practical skill, known as a ‘bulldozer’ with a quiet strength and responsible determination—all essential qualities in the campaign’s leadership,” Netanyahu said.

The prime minister also extended an offer to Gideon Sa’ar, currently a minister without portfolio, to serve as foreign minister. Netanyahu noted Sa’ar’s extensive experience in government and security matters, expressing confidence that his inclusion would strengthen the leadership during this critical time.

As Israel navigates the complexities of a prolonged war with Hamas and violent conflicts with Hamas-backer Iran and Tehran’s other proxies in the region, including Hezbollah and the Houthis, the reshuffling of key defense and foreign policy positions points to significant challenges facing the government. Internal disputes over military conscription and social benefits for the ultra-Orthodox community further complicate the political landscape, raising questions about coalition stability and the government’s ability to effectively manage ongoing war efforts.

 ALBERTA

The UCP’s new anti-trans bills are cruel

Naheed K. Nenshi Leader Alberta NDP I’ve spent the past few months travelling to each corner of this province talking to Albertans from every background. I’ve heard directly from Albertans what issues they care about most. Let me tell you, it’s not taking away rights from trans kids and their parents. In fact, punching down on minorities doesn’t even appear in the top 50 issues Albertans are concerned about. But anti-trans bills are being rammed through by the UCP anyway. We will fight this cruel legislation, but today I wanted to send a message to anyone who might be thinking “Am I next?”. The Alberta NDP sees you, and we will do everything we can to protect your rights. Watch our message to trans Albertans, and all Albertans. What we have heard over and over again from medical professionals and regular Albertans alike is, “Quit picking on vulnerable people.” Yet one quarter of the UCP’s legislation this fall is anti-trans legislation. She is acting like the Premier of a party, not the Premier of a province. Albertans are far more concerned about their public healthcare, education, and how they can afford to pay their bills. But the UCP hasn’t funded our education system to give our kids a brighter future. And they’re doing nothing to clear up backlogs in the health-care system so people can get care. Instead, we’re getting harmful legislation most Albertans didn’t even ask for and don’t want. As a teacher, an uncle, and a human being, I am disheartened by this government’s failure to prioritize the concerns of Albertans. And I know we have the responsibility to fight back on behalf of many people who will be harmed. I want all the kids in Alberta to know we love them, we support them, and we will never stop fighting for their rights and safety. This is our message to all Albertans, including vulnerable trans kids. There is a place for you in Alberta. Our 85,000 members are in your corner, and we will stick up for you. Watch the Video Thank you, Naheed   Naheed K. Nenshi Leader Alberta NDP