UK Teachers offered £2,000 to give up generous pensions


Ruby Hinchliffe
Wed, 17 April 2024


Teachers are being offered cash to relinquish generous pensions that private schools are no longer able to afford, a union has claimed.

Employer contributions to the Teachers’ Pension Scheme increased from 23.7pc to 28.7pc, this month. In state schools, teachers’ pensions are funded by taxpayers – and extra funding is issued alongside each rise. But private schools receive no such state funding.

Contribution levels last changed in 2019, when employer rates jumped from 16.5pc to 23.6pc. Pre-2019 changes, 86 schools had left the Teachers’ Pension Scheme. But since 2019, 346 schools have left the scheme according to the Independent Schools’ Bursars Association (IBSA).


Since then independent schools have been attempting to cut costs by limiting pay or persuading teachers to quit the generous pension scheme and move to self-managed pots.

The funding challenge comes as Labour’s plan to impose VAT on school fees threatens to add to the financial burden private schools face.

Around 800 teachers leave the Teachers Pension Scheme each month, according to the National Education Union (NEU).

But now, in some cases, the union said teacher members are being offered “one-off payments” of £2,000 to give up their defined benefit pensions and switch to defined contribution schemes.

David Woodgate, CEO of ISBA, said he was “aware that some schools have offered, or are proposing to offer, additional payments or increased salaries to teaching staff in return for their agreement to proposed contractual pension changes”.

“Those schools in consultation with teaching staff, or preparing to consult, are seeking to identify appropriate ways in which they can balance the financial needs of the school, and the desire to offer teaching staff a flexible and attractive remuneration and benefits package.

“Of course, the approach taken, and specific proposal, will vary from school to school based on the circumstances.”

Niamh Sweeney, deputy general secretary of the NEU, told the Telegraph: “I am really concerned that in a cost-of-living crisis members of the Teachers Pension Scheme will be tempted by a one-off payment to leave.

“Pension contributions are deferred income. We want teaching to be seen as a long-term career and a strong pension scheme should be part of the remuneration for the dedication teachers give to the profession.”

Ms Sweeney, who first spoke to The i, also said: “In many independent schools, NEU members are resisting employer attempts to leave the scheme – with strike action increasingly commonplace.

“The NEU believes that it is irresponsible of employers to seek to entice their staff to leave the Teachers Pension Scheme with the lure of a cash payment now, with some employers offering £2,000.”

Back in January 2020, a year after the last contribution rise, private schools began to offer less competitive pay packages in order to meet steep payments to their employees’ pension pots.

As reported by this newspaper at the time, Taunton School in Somerset came up with a “hybrid” solution , where it kept the old scheme open but gave its 200-plus teachers the option of switching to a new defined contribution scheme.

Krissy Scott, head of education at law firm Harrison Clark Rickerbys, said she was seeing more and more schools operate “hybrid alternatives” to the Teachers Pension Scheme.

She added: “Some schools are asking teachers to accept reduced salaries if they want to remain in the scheme, or to switch to a defined contribution scheme where contributions are lower so the overall cost to the school remains the same.

“Unions are worried. There’s been a lot of strike action as a result of it. But it’s important to note that these defined contributions can still be around 20pc.”

The average employer contribution for men across all industries is around 4.6pc, and for women it is slightly less – 4.4pc – according to financial advice portal Unbiased.

Ms Scott also said in London, teachers’ outgoings are much higher and that they in particular want bigger salaries. She added: “Ultimately to them, what they take home is more important to them right now than what’s going into their pension.”

Google employees arrested after protesting against tech giant’s work with Israel

Matthew Field
Wed, 17 April 2024 


The workers protesting at Google's offices say they 'do not want their labour to power Israel's genocide of Palestinians in Gaza' - Twitter

A group of Google workers have been arrested after they held a sit-in protest to challenge the tech giant’s work for the Israeli government.

Employees from the No Tech For Apartheid movement organised a 10-hour sit-in at Google’s offices in New York and California on Tuesday.

During the protest, activists targeted the office of Thomas Kurian, the chief executive of Google Cloud, amid a row over a $1bn (£800m) contract with Israel.

Videos posted on social media showed nine protesters subsequently being removed by police.

This led to a spokesman for the protest group, Jane Chung, criticising Google in a post on X: “Google orders arrest against its workers for protesting.”


A live-stream video of the incident at Google’s California office showed a security worker telling protesters that they had been placed on “admin leave”, while also warning them about trespassing.

Later footage shows California police officers moving into the office, asking protesters if they are “refusing to leave” before they are marched out in handcuffs.

A separate video from Google’s New York office also shows protesters being arrested.

Tuesday’s protests represent an escalation in the row between tech workers and executives over Google’s work in Israel.

Some staff members have long challenged a cloud computing agreement between the Israeli government, Google and Amazon, called Project Nimbus.

However, tensions have intensified in recent months following Israel’s invasion of Gaza in response to Hamas’s terrorist attack on October 7.

The conflict has left more than 1,200 Israelis and 34,000 Palestinians dead.

A statement from the No Tech For Apartheid protest group said: “Google workers do not want their labour to power Israel’s genocide of Palestinians in Gaza. The time is now to rise up against Project Nimbus, in support of Palestinian liberation and join calls to end the Israeli occupation.”

Last month, a Google worker from the protest group disrupted a talk being given by the company’s Israel chief, as he accused the company of “powering genocide”. He was later sacked.

Israel has rejected claims that it has committed genocide and has maintained it is acting in self-defence.

A Google spokesman said: “These protests were part of a longstanding campaign by a group of organisations and people who largely don’t work at Google. A small number of employee protesters entered and disrupted a couple of our locations.

“Physically impeding other employees’ work and preventing them from accessing our facilities is a clear violation of our policies, and we will investigate and take action. These employees were put on administrative leave and their access to our systems was cut. After refusing multiple requests to leave the premises, law enforcement was engaged to remove them to ensure office safety.”

No Tech for Apartheid, the NYPD, and Sunnyvale Police were all contacted for comment.

Google employees protest company’s work with Israeli government


Filip Timotija

THE HILL
Tue, 16 April 2024 


Google employees in two different offices protested the company’s work with the Israeli government Tuesday, objecting to a billion-dollar contract it signed with the U.S. ally in 2021.

The protestors organized sit-ins in two locations, one in Sunnyvale, Calif., and the other in one of the company’s New York City’s offices.

The Sunnyvale sit-in was organized by the activist group No Tech for Apartheid. Protesters entered Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian’s office, saying they would not leave until the tech giant backed out of its $1.2 billion contract.


The contract, known as Project Nimbus, that Google shares with Amazon provides cloud computing services to the Israeli government. It was signed in 2021. The contract faced backlash from workers and activists since its inception, but the objections have escalated with Israel’s ongoing military campaign in Gaza in response to Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack.

Google software engineer Emaan Haseem and her colleagues object to the company’s involvement with the Israeli government despite the possible repercussions.

“I would not like to lose my job,” Haseem told ABC 7 News. “But I think that it is impossible for me to continue coming into work every week without acknowledging and loudly condemning Project Nimbus and any support for the Israeli government.”

The contract was structured to allow sharing of Google and Amazon services to various branches of the Israeli government. When signed in 2021, the contract raised concerns among some employees since Israeli officials said the companies could not shut down their services and could not bar services to particular government branches.

Time magazine reported last week that Google has provided cloud computing services to the Israel Defense Ministry.

“Google Cloud supports numerous governments around the world in countries where we operate, including the Israeli government, with our generally available cloud computing services,” a Google spokesperson said in a statement to The Hill.

“We have been very clear that the Nimbus contract is for workloads running on our commercial cloud by Israeli government ministries, who agree to comply with our Terms of Service and Acceptable Use Policy,” the spokesperson said. “This work is not directed at highly sensitive, classified, or military workloads relevant to weapons or intelligence services.”

The spokesperson said the protests involved organizations and people who “largely” do not work at the tech company.

The company said it would investigate and “take action” regarding the employees, who were put on administrative leave.

“A small number of employee protesters entered and disrupted a couple of our locations,” the spokesperson said. “Physically impeding other employees’ work and preventing them from accessing our facilities is a clear violation of our policies, and we will investigate and take action.

These employees were put on administrative leave, and their access to our systems was cut. After refusing multiple requests to leave the premises, law enforcement was engaged to remove them to ensure office safety.”

Divisions among Colombia's FARC dissidents complicate peace talks

Valentin Diaz and Juan Sebastian Serrano
Wed, 17 April 2024 

Nestor Gregorio Vera, alias Ivan Mordisco, had been considered the EMC's top commander when it was announced that he would no longer participate in Colombia's peace talks (JOAQUIN SARMIENTO)

One of Colombia's most powerful guerrilla groups has suffered an internal rupture expected to further complicate the country's troubled peace process.

The Central General Staff (EMC) is made up of thousands of rebels who refused to join in when the Marxist guerrilla group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), signed a 2016 peace deal with the government.

Since 2023, the government has attempted to negotiate with the EMC, but the process has suffered multiple setbacks.


On Tuesday, Bogota announced that the top guerrilla leader known by the alias Ivan Mordisco was no longer at the negotiating table after a split in the group.

This is what you need to know about the latest developments:

- What is the EMC? -

In 2016, when former president Juan Manuel Santos was finalizing a historic peace accord with the FARC, the country's biggest rebel group, some guerrilla factions announced they were breaking away from a process that they believed implied "military defeat."

Those factions were "regional structures, fronts and blocs with different names," said Jorge Mantilla, an independent expert in Colombia's conflict.

In 2017, FARC disarmed and transformed itself into a political party.

During the administration of president Ivan Duque (2018-2022), the dissidents "grew and began to become a very significant problem," said Mantilla.

And he said it was only when current President Gustavo Petro came to power in 2022, vowing to seek "total peace" with all the country's armed groups, that the disparate factions united under the name Central General Staff.

Military intelligence says the EMC has around 3,500 fighters. The group is involved in narcotrafficking and illegal mining, in areas of the Amazon on Colombia's borders with Venezuela and Ecuador.

"They define themselves as a decision-making body that unites different dissident schools of thought," said Juana Cabezas, from the independent research center Indepaz.

- Who is Ivan Mordisco? -

Nestor Gregorio Vera, alias Ivan Mordisco, had been considered the EMC's top commander.

Mantilla said he had served more than 20 years with the FARC where he was a "mid-level commander."

"His military experience and his early opposition to the negotiations gave him important legitimacy" among the dissidents, he said.

In 2022, Duque announced Mordisco had been killed in a military operation, but he reappeared a few months later expressing his willingness to join Petro's peace process.

Negotiations and a ceasefire got underway last year. However, a series of attacks on civilians and security tested Petro's patience, and the truce was suspended in three departments in March.

At the time, Petro called Mordisco a "mobster" and "drug trafficker disguised as a revolutionary," and ordered his capture.

On Tuesday, the government said Mordisco was "no longer at the (negotiating) table. We do not know where he is."

The government said it would now recognize EMC commander Andrey Avendano as its main interlocutor, even though he only commands about half its forces.

- Why have negotiations faltered? -

A year and a half after the launch of the peace process with the EMC, Bogota has made few advances and concedes the rebel group has expanded its territory and boosted recruitment.

"The main failure has been thinking that there was a unified Central General Staff. They were not unified, nor did all (the fronts) have the same capacity," said Cabezas.

Ceasefires, which have been agreed and suspended several times, are largely respected in some regions, such as on the Colombia-Venezuela border, while others such as one in the southwest have seen several attacks on civilians and security forces.

Mantilla attributes this to factional differences and the groups' relationships with the communities in which they operate.

Petro's ambitious "total peace" plan, which launched negotiations with a dozen diverse armed groups, has also turned out to be "a problem," he added.

"Much of the violence in Colombia occurs between these groups and not between these groups and the State. That is why displacement, confinement and massacres have been so difficult for this government to stop."

vd-jss/lv/fb/sst

Drought-hit Colombia halts electricity exports to Ecuador

AFP
Tue, April 16, 2024 

Drought conditions have dried up the Lebrija River, trapping manatees in northeastern Colombia (Handout)


Colombia has halted electricity exports to neighboring Ecuador as its hydropower plants reach near-critical levels due to a biting drought, the government in Bogota said.

The severe dry spell, associated with the El Nino climate phenomenon, has also led to water rationing that is affecting 10 million people in the capital Bogota and surrounding areas.

Mining and Energy Minister Andres Camacho told journalists the country, which gets most of its energy from hydroelectric sources, was taking "all measures" to avoid energy cuts.


"Since Easter week, we limited energy exports to Ecuador. Right now, we are not exporting any electricity," Camacho said.

Water reservoirs currently stand at 29.8 percent of their capacity, according to the XM national electricity operator. A level of 27 percent is considered critical.

Camacho said that rains were expected soon to break the dry spell and high temperatures which also led to hundreds of forest fires in the country earlier this year.

The measure was set to worsen electricity woes in Ecuador, whose President Daniel Noboa on Tuesday declared an emergency in the sector and replaced the energy minister.

"I have declared an emergency in the electricity sector, I have asked for the resignation of the Minister of Energy (Andrea Arrobo) and we have begun an investigation into sabotage in certain areas and power plants," Noboa wrote on X.

Arrobo was replaced by transport minister Roberto Luque.

Noboa did not give details on what the sabotage entailed, but slammed the "inefficiency and corruption of a few miserable people."

On Monday night, Ecuador's energy ministry announced "temporary rationing" due to the drought and asked the population to "reduce energy consumption in this critical week."

However, Noboa overrode the order, and announced "we are not going to have more blackouts this week."

He also said household electricity bills would be halved this month.

Drought causes power cuts in Ecuador

Vanessa Buschschlüter 

- BBC News
Wed, April 17, 2024 

Neighbouring Colombia has stopped exporting power to Ecuador as it suffers from drought, too [Getty Images]


A severe drought has led to power cuts in Ecuador, which relies on hydroelectrical sources for much of its power.

Energy companies published a schedule of power cuts which has seen the capital and other major cities go without electricity for hours on end.

The drought has already led to water rationing in neighbouring Colombia.

The lack of rain in the Andean region has been linked to the El Niño weather pattern.

What is El Niño and how does it change the weather?

On Monday, power companies in Ecuador announced power cuts lasting between two and five hours to ensure less electricity was used.

The energy ministry said Ecuador's power system had been affected by "several unprecedented situations", including a drought, increased temperatures and minimum water levels.

The power shortage has been made worse by Colombia's decision to halt its export of energy to Ecuador in order to prioritise its own needs during the drought.

Last week, Ecuador's energy minister had still ruled out rationing electricity, but after several power cuts over the weekend, which caught residents and businesses by surprise, officials asked energy companies to publish a schedule of planned cuts.

Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa said the situation had been exacerbated by "saboteurs", but did not provide further details about who may be behind the alleged sabotage.

"Anyone involved will be not only be considered a traitor to the fatherland, but also a threat to national security," President Noboa said.

He also ordered the sacking of the energy minister and appeared to overrule the decision to ration energy, when he said that "we are not going to have more blackouts this week".

The newly appointed energy minister, Roberto Luque, warned there were no "short-term solutions" to solve the country's energy crisis.

In Colombia, the lack of rain linked to El Niño has seen water levels fall close to critical levels in some of the country's main reservoirs.

Most neighbourhoods in the capital, Bogotá, have had their water rationed, while residents have been urged to limit the time they shower to four minutes or less.

People who are deemed to be wasting water by washing their cars have been threatened with substantial fines.

Apple CEO says that he wants to increase investments in Vietnam

IMPERIALISM; 

THE HIGHEST FORM OF CAPPLETALI$M



Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, left, speaks to Apple CEO Tim Cook, right, before their meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam on Tuesday, April 16, 2024. The tech giant CEO is on a visit to Vietnam to promote cooperation and boost investment in the Southeast Asian nation.

 (Duong Van Giang/VNA via AP)

ANIRUDDHA GHOSAL
Tue, Apr 16, 2024,

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Apple CEO Tim Cook said Tuesday that he wants to further increase investment in Vietnam a day after the company announced it would spending on suppliers in the Southeast Asian manufacturing hub.

Vietnam has become more important to Apple as the company seeks to diversify its supply chains away from China, where most of its smartphones and tablets are assembled.


The company began looking at moving its production to countries like Vietnam, and more recently India, after shutdowns to fight COVID-19 in China repeatedly disrupted the company's shipments.

Cook made his comments while meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, according to state media outlet Voice of Vietnam. Apple also said that it would increase its spending on suppliers, according to a press release on Monday.

“There is no place like Vietnam, a vibrant and beautiful country," said Cook, according to the press release, adding that the company's annual spending in the country had doubled since 2019.

No details were shared about the plan. Cook arrived in Hanoi on Monday for a two-day visit during which he met students, programmers and content creators.

Apple began operating in Vietnam over a decade ago, and says it is responsible for creating over 200,000 jobs there. Vietnam is also among the top five leading mobile game producers globally.

Apple has 26 suppliers with 28 factories in Vietnam, according to its 2022 list. Most of these located in northern provinces, where they can be easily connected to existing supply chains in southern China. Northern Vietnam has also historically been a hub for making electronics and has cheap, skilled labor.


Apple CEO says company will 'look at' manufacturing in Indonesia

Apple CEO Tim Cook gestures upon the arrival for a meeting with Indonesian President Joko Widodo at palace in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, April 17, 2024.

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Apple CEO Tim Cook arrives for a meeting with Indonesian President Joko Widodo at the palace in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, April 17, 2024.(AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
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Apple CEO Tim Cook ,center, talks to journalist during a joint press conference with Indonesian Minister of Industry Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita, left, and Indonesian Minister of Communication and Information Technology Budi Arie Setiadi, right, after a meeting with Indonesian President Joko Widodo at the palace in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, April 17, 2024.(AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
ASSOCIATED PRESS

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Apple CEO Tim Cook walks after a meeting with Indonesian President Joko Widodo at the palace in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, April 17, 2024.(AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
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Apple CEO Tim Cook, center, walks with Indonesia’s Minister of industry Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita, right, and Minister of Communication and Information Technology Budi Arie Setiadi, left, after a meeting with President Joko Widodo at the palace in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, April 17, 2024.(AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
ASSOCIATED PRESS

Apple CEO Tim Cook, right, walks with Indonesia's Minister of Communication and Information Technology Budi Arie Setiadi, left, after a meeting with President Joko Widodo at the palace in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, April 17, 2024.

(AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)



EDNA TARIGAN and ACHMAD IBRAHIM
Updated Wed, Apr 17, 2024


JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Apple CEO Tim Cook said the company will “look at” manufacturing in Indonesia as he met with Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Wednesday.

“We talked about the president’s desire to see manufacturing in the country, and it’s something that we will look at,” Cook told reporters after the meeting.

Widodo’s administration has worked for years to bring manufacturing to the country to power economic development, while Apple is seeking to diversify its supply chains away from China, where most of its smartphones and tablets are assembled.


The company began moving some production to countries like Vietnam, and more recently India, after shutdowns to fight COVID-19 in China repeatedly disrupted the company’s shipments.

“I think the investment ability in Indonesia is endless. I think that, there is a lot of great places to invest, and we’re investing. We believe in the country,” Cook said.

The previous day, Cook met Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh in Hanoi, where he said Apple plans to invest more in Vietnam and increase spending on suppliers in the Southeast Asian manufacturing hub.

“Given the slowing Chinese economy as well as the Chinese government’s ongoing efforts to squeeze out foreign companies and replace them with domestic brands, Apple wants alternatives for manufacturing,” said Chris Miller, an associate professor at Tufts University whose work focuses on technology and geopolitics.

“It has already invested more in India and Vietnam, but it is likely looking at other partners in South East Asia to additional manufacturing and assembly operations,” Miller said.

Cook's visit to Indonesia came after Apple announced its fourth Apple Developer Academy in the country, to be located in Bali. The company first launched the program to train app developers in Indonesia in 2018, in the capital Jakarta.

Apple has no manufacturing facilities in Indonesia, but the company says it has invested 1.6 trillion rupiah ($99 million) in its app developer ecosystem in the country.

Widodo's government has sought to leverage the country's reserves of nickel and other raw materials to bring in manufacturing, banning export of raw commodities such as nickel and bauxite to oblige companies to build refineries domestically.

After the meeting with Widodo, Cook also met Indonesia’s president-elect Prabowo Subianto, who is currently defense minister, in Jakarta. He's set to take power in October.

Indonesia’s minister of communication and information, Budi Arie Setiadi, said Wednesday that Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella would visit Indonesia at the end of April. ___

Associated Press writers Victoria Milko in Jakarta and Zen Soo in Hong Kong contributed to this report.

Relief group SmartAid providing thousands of tents to Gazans, says it’s the only Israeli NGO operating in the Strip

Judith Sudilovsky
Tue, April 16, 2024

Tents set up for Palestinians in Gaza by the Israeli relief group SmartAid.

The Israeli humanitarian tech aid nonprofit SmartAid has provided thousands of tents to civilians in Gaza in partnership with an American relief group since January, which its founder revealed exclusively to eJewishPhilanthropy.

“We have helped build three refugee camps; it is thousands of tents,” Shachar Zahavi, founding director of SmartAid, told eJP. “We have experience in war-torn areas for decades —this is a whole different ball game.”

Working with partners whose logistics infrastructures are spread across the Gaza Strip, Egypt and Jordan, SmartAid has purchased tents through Egypt and brought them to the crossing on the Egyptian border, where the IDF has inspected, vetted and approved every shipment. The tents have then been delivered to their partners on the ground for distribution to civilians, Zahavi said. He refrained from identifying his partners in order to protect them and the civilians receiving the aid from Hamas retribution.

Since the IDF’s accidental killing of seven World Central Kitchen aid workers earlier this month, Zahavi said he felt it necessary to come out openly about the work SmartAid has been doing to let the world know that Israelis and Jews are also involved in helping with the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

“We have been doing this quietly for months,” he said. “I want [people critical of Israel] to know that we are an international humanitarian aid organization, and yes we are Israeli and yes we are helping our [own] people and yes we are helping [people whom many Israelis perceive as our enemies]. This is exactly what Israel did when civil war broke out in Syria and the (injured) civilians came to Israel’s borders. That is what Jews do. There is never a simple answer or solution.”

Zahavi said he believes that his organization is the only Israeli nonprofit currently operating in Gaza. eJP could not immediately verify the claim.

The strike on the World Central Kitchen staff has also prompted a number of Jewish groups to step up their humanitarian efforts on behalf of Gazans, notably the New Israel Fund, which recently launched a Passover-themed fundraising campaign to combat food insecurity in Gaza.

He said the organization is constantly reevaluating how it conducts its work in Gaza to assure the aid does not get into the hands of Hamas, and has coordinated its aid delivery with the Israel Defense Forces and Defense Ministry’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), which provided them with the names of trusted American charities with whom to cooperate.

“We make sure we do not get involved in anything that might by mistake get into Hamas’ hands. We spoke to the IDF. We did all due diligence to make sure that we are looking at what the types of needs there are, and if Hamas might take it away from civilians,” Zahavi said. “There is always an internal debate about what we can do to add another percentage of certainty that [our aid] reaches civilians, specifically kids.”



Trucks carrying tents for Palestinians in Gaza from the Israeli relief group SmartAid.

Trucks carrying tents for Palestinians in Gaza from the Israeli relief group SmartAid. The efforts are being funded by a donation of an initial $200,000 from donors from abroad specifically for this project, he said. Due to the sensitivity of the issue, the donors asked to remain anonymous.

Since the strike, Zahavi said that SmartAid has also been in discussions with its partners about the growing food needs in Gaza, if it can help with distribution, with partners in the US in the waiting with “hundreds of tons” of food prepared to be shipped to SmartAID for distribution if given the approval.

Zahavi said that the decision to operate in Gaza came about over a series of conversations between SmartAid, longtime colleagues from international aid groups and different SmartAid Jewish and non-Jewish donors about whether to consider helping Gaza children.

“Some of our donors discussed with us that we are also a humanitarian charity and we have helped all over the world, and that we need to consider this,” said Zahavi. “It is something that is obvious but because it is in our country and because it is our people it is a lot harder to digest. It took a while but eventually we (came to the conclusion) that we are an aid organization and we are helping around the world in 40 countries. This is another conflict which hit straight in our backyard and so what are we going to do about it?”

Zahavi acknowledged the moral complexity of an Israeli organization — one that has helped the Israeli victims of the Oct. 7 attacks and the war — providing aid to Palestinians in Gaza.

“As Jews, we totally demand the release of the hostages, totally demand that Hamas be held fully accountable for what it did. I had close friends who were massacred on Oct. 7 and I know people who are still [captive] in Gaza. I am not doing this lightly,” he said. “But there is also the Jewish side of us, the Holocaust side of us, the humane side of us. How are we going to live with everything going on [in Gaza]?” he said.

“Everyone is saying we are against Hamas, not against children, but for me saying it wasn’t enough. I felt we had to do something, I know there are a lot of groups and individuals around the world in the Jewish community who are against this and I totally understand,” he said, noting that SmartAid also continues to provide aid to survivors of the Oct. 7 attacks, evacuated Israeli communities and Israeli farmers along the Gaza border.



Forklifts unloading tents for Palestinians in Gaza from the Israeli relief group SmartAid.

Forklifts unloading tents for Palestinians in Gaza from the Israeli relief group SmartAid. Coming from a family with very few members who survived the Holocaust, Zahavi said he takes his humanitarian aid work seriously, combining the need to do what is right with the desire to show the world that as an Israeli he actually does what Israel says.

“I am doing what people are saying,” said Zahavi. “If you just Google (you can find) thousands of articles about the Israeli government saying they are supporting aid for civilians, but are against Hamas. We are taking the words and making it into action.”

NI girl’s incredible journey to war-torn Ukraine for life saving brain surgery

Conor Coyle
Wed, 17 April 2024 

Rachel with some of the team at St Nicholas Children’s Hospital in Lviv -Credit:Submitted


A four-year-old girl from Co Down is home and recovering after an incredible journey travelling to war-torn Ukraine for life saving brain surgery.

The family of Rachel Gribben from Killyleagh had raised thousands in a desperate attempt to pay for a risky surgery to save her from daily epileptic seizures - wich were not able to be treated by medication.

The severe form of epilepsy led to serious development issues, Rachel being non verbal and gradually losing muscle tone in her legs., while she suffered several injuries to her body caused by falls as a result of seizures.

READ MORE: Family's desperate plea for surgery to save daughter, three, from rare form of epilepsy

Doctors in the UK were unwilling to chance the complex brain surgery Rachel needed, which involved removing part of the little girl’s brain.

After successfully raising the funds required to travel to Ukraine for the surgery, Rachel and her family travelled to a hospital in Lviv, a city in war-torn Ukraine.

Paediatric neurosurgeons at St Nicholas Children’s Hospital successfully removed part of the four-year-old girl’s brain to relieve her from the debilitating seizures. This was the hospital’s first treatment of a young patient from abroad.

Now seizure free in the four weeks since her surgery, Rachels’ mum Katie Jennings says her daughter is now going from strength to strength.

“Everything went fantastic, she had the surgery she should have had all along,” Katie told Belfast Live.

“She hasn’t had a seizure since and has been recovering really well, it’s just absolutely amazing.

“She is so happy now, you wouldn’t even think she has had brain surgery apart from her scar now.

“Rachel has just been taking it all in her stride, she is an amazing little girl.

“We are immensely proud of her.”

Describing conditions in western Ukraine, Katie said they had constant reminders of the ongoing war with Russia, but the treatment Rachel received was first class.

“Going to Ukraine was a scary prospect with the war going on and I would be lying if I said there wasn't moments when I wondered if I was doing the right thing.

Rachel Gribben recovering in hospital in Ukraine following her brain surgery -Credit:Family photo

“I’m the first to admit that I thought to myself - what have I done?

“There were air raid sirens going off while we were there, it was pretty surreal.

“But the team there constantly put us at ease and I can honestly say there wasn't a moment we didn't feel safe.

“Lviv is a beautiful city, with wonderfully kind and generous people. In the midst of all they are going through the people of Ukraine keep pushing, keep rebuilding and keep fighting in every way, true resilience.

“In all of this, these amazing people had the time to treat a little girl from Killyleagh, to give a little girl from Killyleagh a life to live.”

Paying tribute to the hundreds of people who donated to fundraising efforts for her daughter, Katie said they have given Rachel a second chance at life.

Rachel Gribben and her mum Katie Jennings at a fundraiser ahead of their trip to Ukraine -Credit:Submitted

She added: “Now we are home and getting settled we can concentrate on Rachel’s development, which is already coming on leaps and bounds after just three weeks.

“Without all those who supported the fundraisers, none of this would have been possible.

“Without all of you, the possibility of my daughter dying at some stage in her life was very high, now she can live and have a good life.

“She’s going to go to school, she’s going to be able to play in the park without fear of having a seizure.

“None of that would have been possible without any of that support.”

The artist running Israel’s Venice Biennale pavilion says she won’t open it until hostage deal and Gaza ceasefire is reached

Benjamin Brown, CNN
Tue, April 16, 2024 

Israel’s representative at Venice’s Biennale exhibition has said she won’t unveil the country’s pavilion until a hostage and ceasefire deal has been reached in Gaza.

Artist Ruth Patir said the exhibit in the Italian city “will only open when the release of hostages and ceasefire agreement happens” in a statement shared on Instagram Tuesday.

Patir said she would raise her voice “with those I stand with in their scream, ceasefire now, bring the people back from captivity. We can’t take it anymore.”


The Venice Biennale, an eight-month-long international festival of art and culture, is staged every other year, showcasing some of the world’s most prominent creatives in one place.

Each year, an artistic director is appointed to curate the central exhibit which in many ways sets the tone for the whole festival.

A petition signed by more than 23,000 people had recently called for Israel to be excluded from the international cultural exhibition, as calls for truce and an independently Palestinian state have grown.

Israel launched its military offensive in Gaza on October 7 after the militant group Hamas, which governs the strip, killed at least 1,200 people and abducted more than 250 others.

Israeli attacks in Gaza have since killed at least 33,797 Palestinians and injured another 76,465 people, according to the Ministry of Health there. Human Rights Watch and Oxfam have accused Israel of carrying out “indiscriminate and disproportionate attacks in violation of international law” and imposing collective punishments on the civilian population.

Patir on Tuesday said that she and commissioners Mira Lapidot and Tamar Margalit had become the news in recent weeks rather than the art and the exhibition entitled, “(M)otherland.” “If I am given such a remarkable stage, I want to make it count,” Patir said, adding that she “firmly objected” to cultural boycott but chose to take action as she felt there was “no right answer.”

Italian soldiers patrol the Israeli national pavilion at the Biennale contemporary art fair in Venice, Italy, Tuesday, April 16, 2024. - Colleen Barry/AP

Israel artist shuts Biennale show until ceasefire, hostages freed

AFP
Tue, April 16, 2024 

Ruth Patir's video installation "(M)otherland" had been due to open at Israel's national pavilion at the international art show. (GABRIEL BOUYS)


The artist representing Israel at the Venice Biennale called Tuesday for a ceasefire in the war with Hamas and said her exhibit would remain closed until the hostages were released.

Ruth Patir's video installation "(M)otherland" was due to open on Saturday at Israel's national pavilion at the international art show, but the day before a media preview, she said it would remain closed for now.

"I feel that the time for art is lost and I need to believe it will return," she wrote in a post on Instagram.


She said she and curators Mira Lapidot and Tamar Margalit "have become the news, not the art".

"And so if I am given such a remarkable stage, I want to make it count," she wrote.

"I have therefore decided that the pavilion will only open when the release of hostages and ceasefire agreement happens."

Thousands of artists, architects and curators signed a petition earlier this year urging the Biennale organisers to ban Israel over its actions in Gaza -- a call condemned by Italy's culture minister as "shameful".

"I am an artist and educator, I firmly object to cultural boycott," Patir continued.

"But since I feel there are no right answer(s), and I can only do what I can with the space I have, I prefer to raise my voice with those I stand with in their scream, ceasefire now, bring the people back from captivity.

"We can't take it anymore."

The Biennale's curator Adriano Pedrosa told AFP he thought Patir's decision was "very courageous".

"I respect and appreciate that decision. I think it's also very wise," he said.

Hamas launched an unprecedented attack against Israel on October 7, resulting in the deaths of 1,170 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to Israeli figures.

Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed over 33,000 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.

The militants also took about 250 hostages, of whom Israel estimates 129 remain in Gaza, including 34 who are presumed dead.

The Biennale Arte 2024, one of the world's leading international art exhibitions, runs from April 20 to November 24.


Israeli artist, curators refuse to open exhibit until cease-fire, hostage deal is reached

Bradford Betz
Tue, April 16, 2024 

The artist representing Israel at this year's Venice Biennale in Italy, along with its curators, said Tuesday they will not open the Israeli pavilion until a cease-fire and hostage deal are reached in Israel’s months-long war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

A sign on the window of the Israeli pavilion posted Tuesday and written in English reads: "The artist and curators of the Israeli pavilion will open the exhibition when a cease-fire and hostage release agreement is reached."

In a statement, artist Ruth Patir, said she and the curators wanted to show solidarity with the families of the hostages "and the large community in Israel who is calling for change."

"As an artist and educator, I firmly object to cultural boycott, but I have a significant difficulty in presenting a project that speaks about the vulnerability of life in a time of unfathomed disregard for it," Patir said in the statement.

Israel is among 88 national participants in the 60th Venice Biennale, which runs from April 20-Nov. 24. The Israeli pavilion was built in 1952 as a permanent representation of Israel inside the Giardini, the original venue of the world's oldest contemporary art show and the site of 29 national pavilions. Other nations show in the nearby Arsenale or at venues throughout the city.

But even before the statement, curators and critics had signed an open letter calling on the Biennale to exclude the Israeli national pavilion from this year's show to protest Israel's war in Gaza. Those opposed to Israel's presence had also vowed to protest on-site.

Italy's culture minister had firmly backed Israel's participation, and the fair was opening amid unusually heightened security.

The national pavilions at Venice are independent of the main show, and each nation decides its own show, which may or may not play into the curator's vision. Patir’s Israeli exhibit was titled "(M)otherland."

The curators of the Israeli pavilion, Mira Lapidot and Tamar Margalit, said they were delaying the opening of the exhibit because of the "horrific war that is raging in Gaza," but that they hoped the conditions would change, so the exhibit could open for public view.

"There is no end in sight, only the promise of more pain, loss, and devastation. The exhibition is up and the pavilion is waiting to be opened," they said. For now, a video work made by Patir can be seen through the pavilion window.

The (M)otherland exhibit was set to run from Saturday, April 20, through Sunday, November 24.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

CTHULHU CUDDLES
Video of Woman Getting a ‘Hug’ From a Friendly Wild Octopus Goes Viral

Natalie Hoage
Wed, April 17, 2024 



Here's something that you have to see to believe! Catherine is an amateur wildlife photographer in Canada. She had an amazing experience recently that she recorded as it happened and then shared on Instagram on Friday, April 12th. She appeared to be sitting on rocks and had her feet in the ocean when a friendly octopus came up to say hello!

In the video, we see a Giant Pacific Octopus with his tentacles wrapped around her feet. He lets Catherine touch him as he feels her legs with his arms. After a few moments he lets go and swims back out into the ocean waters. It is incredible to see!

View the original article to see embedded media.

How crazy was this? I would have been afraid that he was going to pull me in, but Catherine just enjoyed the interaction. The video quickly went viral, and has more than 21.6 million views, more than 650 thousand likes, and over 8 thousand comments. @alt492022 asked, "Oh my this looks dangerous. He is so big. How did this start?" Catherine responded, "I saw him 6 months ago when he surrounded me while I was standing on a small wobbly rock. Then on March 5 while I was videographing sea slugs he charged me and wrapped his tentacles around my leg very aggressively. Now he just gently moves in for a hug or head pat. It’s very cute! I feel we’ve become friends now."

Related: Octopus 'Hugs and Kisses' Diver in Extremely Rare Footage

More About Giant Pacific Octopus

Another commenter asked how many encounters she'd had with the octopus, and she replied, "Maybe 10?" @bancoubear said what I was thinking, "Kind of scary… it could literally just pull her down in the water." @Umbryella replied, "They’re strong but not strong enough to drag her all the way down against her own might. Plus it would never behave that way, they’re not aggressive creatures, they’re incredibly intelligent and curious."

I wondered if she was right and headed to American Oceans to find out more about the cool color changing animal. "The Giant Pacific Octopus is not generally regarded as a dangerous octopus, unlike its counterpart the Blue-Ringed Octopus."

These are the biggest octopuses in the world, with an average length of 16 feet, but they can reach up to 30 feet! They weigh in at 110 pounds and could easily attack a human if they chose to. Fortunately, they are known to be shy and usually friendly towards us, but they could do some damage. "The suckers (“suction cups”) on the arms can become dangerous if they lock onto a human as they are very difficult to remove." But that's not the only way they could hurt a human, "The bite of the Giant Pacific Octopus will not only hurt, but it will also inject venom into its target (although this venom is not fatal)."

The octopuses that have had negative interactions with humans and inflicted injuries usually have done so to defend themselves. If you leave them alone, they'll leave you alone. Unless you're lucky enough to befriend one like Catherine!

OLF (ORCA LIBERATION FRONT)

Infamous boat-sinking orcas spotted hundreds of miles from where they should be, baffling scientist

Harry Baker
Tue, April 16, 2024 

Orcas swimming near a boat.

Orcas that have been terrorizing boats in southwest Europe since 2020 were recently spotted circling a vessel in Spain for the first time this year. The close encounter, which took place hundreds of miles from where the cetaceans should currently be, hints that this group is switching up its tactics — and scientists have no idea why.

The Iberian subpopulation of orcas (Orcinus orca) is a small group of around 40 individuals that lives off the coast of Spain and Portugal, as well as in the Strait of Gibraltar — a narrow body of water between southern Spain and North Africa that separates the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea.

Since 2020, individuals from this group have been approaching and occasionally attacking boats, sometimes causing serious damage to the vessels and even sinking them. The most recent sinking occurred on Oct. 31, 2023, but the orcas have sent at least three other boats to the bottom of the sea. However, no humans have been injured or killed.

Related: Orcas are learning terrifying new behaviors. Are they getting smarter?

On April 10, three of these orcas were spotted persistently swimming near a large yacht off the coast of Malpica in Galicia, northern Spain, local news site Diario de Pontevedra reported. The trio did not attack the vessel, but local conservation group Orca Ibérica GTOA, which has been closely monitoring the Iberian subpopulation, warned boaters to "take caution when passing through" the area.

The encounter was surprising as the orcas don't normally venture this far north until mid to late summer, Spanish science news site gCiencia reported.

"Theoretically, they are in the Strait [of Gibraltar] in the spring and should reach the north [of Spain] at the end of the summer," Alfredo López Fernandez, a biologist at the University of Aveiro in Portugal and representative of the Atlantic Orca Working Group, told gCiencia in the translated article. "There is an absolute lack of knowledge" about why this is happening, he added.

A map showing how far the orcas have had to swim to get to Spain

Other orcas have also been spotted further east along the Spanish coastline toward Biscay and further south in Portuguese waters over the last few weeks, gCiencia reported. The orcas normally only enter these areas to follow tuna, their preferred prey. It is unclear if the tuna have arrived early this year.

So far, the orcas have not attacked any boats. But López Fernandez believes this could start within the next few months. However, he says it is hard to predict when and where these encounters will occur.

Scientists still don't know exactly why these attacks started. Some researchers believe that the first attacks may have been perpetrated by a lone female named "White Gladis," who may have been pregnant when she started harassing the boats. But regardless of how it started, the behavior quickly spread among the group.

So far, at least 16 different individuals have attacked boats. Eyewitnesses also claim to have seen orcas teaching other individuals how to attack boats, with an emphasis on attacking vessels' rudders to immobilize them.

A juvenile orca swims away from the yacht with a large piece of fiberglass from the rudder in its mouth.

There is also a suggestion that the behavior may have spread outside the population after a boat in Scotland was attacked by a different group in June 2023. However, it is impossible to prove this attack was connected to the others.

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As the number of attacks has increased, boat owners have started using firecrackers and even guns to scare off the orcas, gCiencia reported. However, scientists like López Fernandez have urged for restraint because the subpopulation is "in danger of extinction."

"We want to transmit real and truthful information," López Fernandez said. "We're not going to hide that the orcas can touch the boats and sometimes break something, but we also have to be aware that what we have in front of us is not a monster."