United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in Rafah, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Egypt March 23, 2024. (AN Photo/Nadia Al Faour)
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres visited Egypt’s border with the Gazan city of Rafah on Saturday to reiterate pleas for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
His visit comes after the UN Security Council’s failure to pass a resolution to halt the Israeli offensive on Gaza, which is now entering its sixth month with a death toll nearing 32,000.
Speaking at the border, he urged the world to remind Gazans they are not alone.
“I am deeply troubled to know during this holy month of Ramadan that there are those who will not be able to have a proper iftar,” Guterres said.
He added that it is “a moral outrage” that there are thousands of aid trucks parked on the Egyptian side of the border awaiting access, while people in Gaza are facing starvation.
“While nothing justifies the actions of October 7, nothing justifies the collective punishment of the Palestinian people,” Guterres said. “There are hardships, houses demolished, entire families and generations wiped out, while hunger stalks the population.”
He urged people to “stand on the right side of history,” adding, “It is time to silence the guns. We need a ceasefire. I will not give up. We should not give up, for the sake of humanity.”
Guterres also called for funding and support of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.
Prior to his press conference at the crossing, the secretary-general was received by Sinai governor Mohamad Shusha at El-Arish airport.
Shusha said that some 7,000 trucks are currently waiting in North Sinai to deliver aid to Gaza, but that inspection procedures demanded by Israel have held up the flow of aid.
Guterres also visited Palestinian evacuees from Gaza receiving treatment at Arish General Hospital in Sinai and said he was “moved” by their spirit.
People in camouflage burst into the ground floor of the Crocus City Hall venue located in Krasnogorsk, a city in the north-west of the Moscow region, and opened fire with automatic weapons. The gunmen then threw a grenade or an incendiary bomb, which started a fire in the venue.
Watch full video of Russian President Vladimir Putin delivering an address following the terrorist attack in the Moscow Crocus City Hall.
Earlier, the heads of the FSB, Interior Ministry, Investigative Committee and Rosgvardia reported to Putin on the progress of the investigation into the terrorist attack. The president also spoke with Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova, Health Minister Mikhail Murashko and Moscow Region Governor Andrey Vorobyov, and they reported on assistance to the victims.
The head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations spoke about measures to save people.
More than twenty countries condemned the terrorist attack and expressed condolences to the families of the victims.
Putin declares March 24 day of nationwide mourning
Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared March 24 a day of nationwide mourning after the terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall mall.
"I declare March 24 a day of nationwide mourning," he said in a televised address to the nation.
Death toll from concert hall terrorist attack rises to 133
The death toll from the terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall music venue near Moscow has climbed to 133 people, the Russian Investigative Committee told TASS.
"As the rubble was being removed in the concert hall of the Crocus City Hall, the number of people killed in the terrorist attack has risen to 133. The search operation is underway," the statement said.
Terrorists in Crocus City Hall were shooting at point-blank range — eyewitnesses
Terrorists who infiltrated the Crocus City Hall in Krasnogorsk near Moscow on Friday evening were firing at their victims at point-blank range. They opened fire near the turnstiles at the entrance, eyewitnesses told TASS.
"They were shooting at point-blank range," one of them said. According to another young man, the shooting began almost at the entrance.
"Some people fell down. I was wounded myself," he said before being taken to hospital.
Intelligence agencies have detained 11 people, including four terrorists, who were directly involved in an attack on the Crocus City Hall, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said in a statement.
"The activities of intelligence and law enforcement agencies have resulted in the detention of 11 people, including four terrorists, who directly participated in the terrorist attack on the Crocus City Hall," the statement reads.
Work is underway to identify terrorist accomplices and establish all the circumstances of the attack.
"It has already been established that the terrorist attack was carefully planned. The weapons that the terrorists used had been placed in a cache in advance," the FSB noted
Suspect in Crocus City Hall shooting attack says he was promised reward of $5,400
A man detained on suspicion of involvement in the Crocus City Hall attack has said he was promised a reward of 500,000 rubles ($5,400), according to a video posted on RT Editor-in-Chief Margarita Simonyan’s Telegram channel.
"I shot down people at the Crocus for money; [I was promised] about 500,000," he said.
The detainee added that half the money had been transferred to his card, while he had been promised he would receive the other half later. He lost the card while trying to escape from law enforcement officers.
Putin, Uzbek president discuss Crocus City Hall attack in phone call
President Vladimir Putin of Russia and President Shavkat Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan have discussed a terrorist attack on the Crocus City Hall near Moscow in a phone call, the Kremlin press service said in a statement.
"Shavkat Mirziyoyev strongly condemned the deadly terrorist attack on the Crocus City Hall, expressing heartfelt condolences over the tragedy. He conveyed sympathy to the families of those killed and wished a speedy recovery to the injured," the statement reads.
"Both parties reaffirmed their determination to maintain close cooperation in combating terrorism," the Kremlin press service added.
The terrorist attack took place at the Crocus City Hall in the town of Krasnogorsk outside Moscow late on March 22. Unidentified gunmen armed with automatic weapons went on a shooting spree. According to the latest data from Russia’s Investigative Committee, 115 people were killed but that number may grow. Federal Security Service (FSB) Director Alexander Bortnikov has announced the detention of 11 people involved in the attack, including four perpetrators who had tried to escape towards the Ukrainian border.
Catherine, the Princess of Wales, has cancer and is undergoing chemotherapy, she said Friday in a stunning announcement that follows weeks of speculation about her health and whereabouts.
Her condition was disclosed in a video message recorded Wednesday in Windsor and broadcast Friday, coming after relentless speculation on social media ever since she was hospitalized in January for unspecified abdominal surgery.
Kate asked for “time, space and privacy” while she is treated for an unspecified type of cancer, which was discovered after her surgery.
“I am well,” she said. “I am getting stronger every day by focusing on the things that will help me heal.”
Kate, 42, hadn’t been seen publicly since Christmas until video surfaced this week of her with her husband, Prince William, heir to the throne, walking from a farm shop near their Windsor home.
The news is another jolt for the royal family since the announcement last month that King Charles III was being treated for an unspecified type of cancer that was discovered while undergoing a procedure for a benign enlarged prostate.
Charles said he is “so proud of Catherine for her courage in speaking as she did,” according to a statement released by Buckingham Palace. He had remained in the “closest contact with his beloved daughter-in-law” in the past weeks.
Kensington Palace had given little detail about Kate’s condition beyond saying it wasn’t cancer-related, the surgery was successful and recuperation would keep the princess away from public duties until April. Kate said it had been thought that her condition was non-cancerous until tests revealed the diagnosis.
“This of course came as a huge shock, and William and I have been doing everything we can to process and manage this privately for the sake of our young family,” she said.
Kate said it had taken her time to recover from major surgery before starting preventative treatment, which she said was in the early stages.
“Preventive chemotherapy after surgery is given to reduce the risk of the cancer coming back in the future — a bit like mopping a floor with bleach when you’ve spilt something on it, chemotherapy kills any spilt cells,” said Professor Andrew Beggs, a senior clinical fellow at the University of Birmingham.
Kate said it has been “an incredibly tough couple of months” for her family. She said it had taken time to tell her three children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis in a way “appropriate for them” and reassure them she will be OK.
The news comes after the start of the Easter holidays, which will shield the children from media coverage of the news.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said in a statement that Kate “has shown tremendous bravery.” He added: “In recent weeks she has been subjected to intense scrutiny and has been unfairly treated by certain sections of the media around the world and on social media.”
Keir Starmer, leader of the main opposition Labour Party, also sent his best wishes to the princess at this “distressing time.”
“We are incredibly sad to hear of the news,” said White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, who opened her briefing with reporters moments after news of cancer treatment broke. “We are taking this in, this terrible news, as all of you are.”
Charles, 75, has withdrawn from public duties while he has cancer treatment, though he’s appeared frequently in photos carrying on meetings with government officials and dignitaries and was even seen going to church.
Kate, on the other hand, had been out of view instead of appearing at charity events and promoting causes such as early childhood, leading to weeks of speculation and gossip. Attempts to put rumors to bed by releasing a photo of her on Mother’s Day in the UK surrounded by her three smiling children backfired when The Associated Press and other news agencies retracted the image because it had been manipulated.
Kate issued a statement the next day acknowledging she liked to “experiment with editing” and apologizing for “any confusion” the photo had caused. But that did little to quell the speculation.
Even the footage published by The Sun and TMZ that appeared to show Kate and William shopping sparked a new flurry of rumor-mongering, with some armchair sleuths refusing to believe the video showed Kate at all.
Earlier this week, a British privacy watchdog said it was investigating a report that staff at the private London hospital where she was treated tried to snoop on her medical records while she was a patient for abdominal surgery.
The former Kate Middleton, who married William in a fairy-tale wedding in 2011, has boosted the popularity and appeal of the British monarchy worldwide more than any royal since Princess Diana.
The princess is the oldest of three children brought up in a well-to-do neighborhood in Berkshire, west of London. The Middletons have no aristocratic background, and the British press often referred to Kate as a “commoner” marrying into royalty.
Kate attended the private girls’ school Marlborough College and then University of St. Andrews in Scotland, where she met William around 2001. Friends and housemates at first, their relationship came to be in the public eye when they were pictured together on a skiing holiday in Switzerland in 2004.
Kate graduated in 2005 with a degree in art history and a budding relationship with the prince.
At least three people in camouflage opened fire at the Crocus City Hall concert venue near Moscow on Friday, a Sputnik correspondent reported.
More than 100 people were injured in the shooting, while the concert hall caught fire, according to the correspondent.
"At least three people in camouflage burst into the ground floor of Crocus City Hall and opened fire with automatic weapons. There are definitely wounded," the correspondent said. "After that [the gunmen] threw a grenade or an incendiary bomb, which started a fire."
"People in the hall laid down on the ground to avoid the fire, laying there for about 15-20 minutes, after which they began to crawl out. Many managed to get out," the correspondent said.
Reports appear on social media about an explosion in the Crocus City Hall building in Moscow. pic.twitter.com/N1KATRCbRC
Law enforcement has arrived and are working at the scene. Local authorities said that "all forces and means have been directed to the scene of the incident," and that "information about victims is being confirmed."
The Emergencies Ministry said about a hundred people have been evacuated from the venue's basement.
Moscow Region governor Andrei Vorobyov is on route to the scene of the emergency, and an operational headquarters has been created. Moscow Mayor has ordered authorities to provide "all necessary assistance," and expressed "condolences to the relatives of the victims."
Members of the musical group Piknik, at whose concert the shooting occurred, were not injured, the director of the show told Sputnik.
Moscow's Department of Transit said the nearby Myakinino metro station is operating as normal, but said that vehicular traffic in and out of the area has been complicated by traffic jams.
❗️The shooting occurred in the Crocus City Hall in Moscow, at least 3 people in camouflage opened fire. Some people are wounded, Sputnik correspondent reports.
A White House spokesperson said the United States is aware of the reports of the mass shooting in Moscow, and considers footage from the scene "terrifying." The US Embassy in Moscow and those of other NATO countries have spent the past several weeks warning of a heightened risk of terror attacks in Moscow and other Russian regions, and urging American nationals to avoid traveling to Russia.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has urged the international community to condemn incident at Crocus City Hall, which it characterized as a "terror attack."
Gunung Semeru erupsi terekam CCTV pada Jumat (22/3/2024), pukul 20.59 WIB (ANTARA/HO-PVMBG)
Lumajang, Jawa Timur (ANTARA) - Gunung Semeru di Jawa Timur yang berstatus siaga atau level III mengalami erupsi dengan lontaran abu vulkanik setinggi 1 kilometer di puncak gunung tersebut pada Jumat, pukul 20.59 WIB.
Petugas Pos Pengamatan Gunung Semeru, Ghufron Alwi, dalam laporan tertulis menyebutkan bahwa telah terjadi erupsi Gunung Semeru pada Jumat malam dengan tinggi kolom letusan teramati sekitar 1.000 meter di atas puncak gunung setinggi 4.676 meter di atas permukaan laut itu.
"Kolom abu teramati berwarna putih hingga kelabu dengan intensitas tebal ke arah utara dan timur laut. Erupsi terekam di seismograf dengan amplitudo maksimum 22 mm dan durasi 138 detik," katanya di Pos Pengamatan Gunung Semeru di Desa Sumberwuluh, Kecamatan Candipuro, Kabupaten Lumajang, Jatim.
Sebelumnya, Gunung Semeru juga erupsi pada pukul 17.21 WIB, namun visual letusan tidak teramati dan erupsi itu terekam di seismograf dengan amplitudo maksimum 22 mm dan durasi 121 detik.
Pihak Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologo (PVMBG) memberikan rekomendasi terkait dengan status siaga Gunung Semeru, yakni masyarakat dilarang melakukan aktivitas apapun di sektor tenggara di sepanjang Besuk Kobokan, sejauh 13 km dari puncak (pusat erupsi).
Di luar jarak tersebut, masyarakat diminta tidak melakukan aktivitas pada jarak 500 meter dari tepi sungai (sempadan sungai) di sepanjang Besuk Kobokan karena berpotensi terlanda perluasan awan panas dan aliran lahar hingga jarak 17 km dari puncak.
Masyarakat tidak boleh beraktivitas dalam radius 5 km dari kawah/puncak Gunung Semeru karena rawan terhadap bahaya lontaran batu (pijar).
Masyarakat juga diimbau mewaspadai potensi awan panas, guguran lava, dan lahar di sepanjang aliran sungai/lembah yang berhulu di puncak Gunung Semeru, terutama sepanjang Besuk Kobokan, Besuk Bang, Besuk Kembar, dan Besuk Sat serta potensi lahar pada sungai-sungai kecil yang merupakan anak sungai dari Besuk Kobokan.
Russia and China have vetoed a US-initiated UN Security Council draft resolution on the Middle East conflict, which notes the need for an immediate ceasefire but doesn’t explicitly call for it, a TASS correspondent reported.
According to the correspondent, eleven out of the 15 members of the Security Council, namely the United Kingdom, Malta, Mozambique, South Korea, Slovenia, the United States, Sierra Leone, France, Switzerland, Ecuador, and Japan, supported the resolution. Along with Russia and China, the draft was voted down by Algeria. Guyana abstained.
The resolution points to the need for an immediate and lasting ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and support international diplomatic efforts towards the ceasefire and hostages release.
It rejects any actions that might reduce the Gaza Strip’s area, including by means of establishing any buffer zones, condemns calls for displacing the Palestinian civilians, and rejects any attempts at demographic or territorial changes in the enclave. Apart from that, the resolution demands that Hamas and other armed groups immediately provide humanitarian access to the hostages still held in the Gaza Strip.
Russian First Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Dmitry Polyansky said earlier that the UN Security Council resolution must contain either a demand or a call for a ceasefire rather than merely note the need for it.
Ahead of the voting, Russian Permanent Representative Vasily Nebenzya called on UN Security Council member nations not to support the US-initiated document, saying that another draft had been submitted by several non-permanent members. He said he called for supporting this other draft because it unequivocally calls for a ceasefire and unconditional release of hostages.
‘Hypocritical spectacle’: Russia
Moscow accused Washington of a “hypocritical spectacle” that does not pressure Israel.
Russia’s ambassador to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, said the draft was exceedingly politicised and contained an effective green light for Israel to mount a military operation in Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah, where more than 1.5 million Palestinians are sheltering.
Nebenzia said there was no call for a ceasefire in the resolution’s text and accused the US leadership of “deliberately misleading the international community”.
He told fellow ambassadors that if they passed the resolution, “you will cover yourselves in disgrace.”
On Friday, Algeria’s UN ambassador, Amar Bendjama, said that had the Council passed its February resolution, thousands of innocent lives could have been saved. More than 32,000 people – mostly women and children – have been killed since the war began last October.
These figures represent lives and “hopes that have been destroyed”, Bendjama said, adding that the US text made no mention of Israel’s responsibility for their deaths.
