ISRAEL – Stung by accusations that his country is “committing genocide” against Palestinians in Gaza since the start of the war last year, an Israeli military official this week told the Jamaica Observer that if that was the Jewish State’s intention it would have been done in the space of a minute. Israel Defence Forces spokesman Roni Kaplan, in an obvious reference to his country’s military superiority, is therefore urging the international community to stop the accusations, saying that his people want to live in peace but Hamas has been embedding its fighters inside Gaza’s civilian population. “We are not targeting civilians. If we would like to make a genocide in the Gaza Strip we could do it in one minute, but the actual thing is that the population in the Gaza Strip multiplied itself six times since the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. If we would like to make a genocide in the Gaza Strip, why would we be making 15 million phone calls and dropping leaflets from the air asking the civilians to go out from dangerous places?” Kaplan argued in an interview on Thursday. “If we would like to make a genocide, why more than 1.1 billion kilograms of food, water, and medicine have been allowed to enter the Gaza Strip from the seventh of October?” he asked.

The war started on October 7, 2023 after Hamas fighters attacked at least four different areas in Israel that had a large concentration of Israelis and tourists, including the popular Nova Festival. More than 1,200 people were slaughtered in that attack and over 250 taken hostage. Additionally, houses and people were set on fire and there have been reports that hostages have been sexually assaulted by Hamas fighters.

In response, Israel launched a military offensive that has killed at least 44,580 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to data provided by the Hamas-run health ministry which the United Nations (UN) regards as reliable. That has resulted in UN human rights experts accusing Israel of genocide several times, and South Africa filed a case against Israel at the UN’s top court in December 2023 accusing the Jewish State of “violating the genocide convention by promoting the destruction of Palestinians living in Gaza”. (Jamaicaobserver)

Photo: Israel Defence Forces spokesman Roni Kaplan points to the Gaza Strip in Palestine on Thursday. (Photos: Jason Cross)

HAITI – An armoured vehicle carrying Kenyan police rumbles through Haiti’s capital with a shattered window that a high-calibre bullet failed to penetrate, a permanent sign of violence the officers face almost daily in Port-au-Prince. The Kenyans, who were deployed to Haiti earlier this year to help quell gang violence, have faced relentless attacks. On Thursday, gunfire erupted in Port-au-Prince as Kenyan officers repelled heavily armed gangs that run 85 per cent of the city and are fighting to seize full control. The Kenyans, joined by Haitian officers, crouched behind sandbags and a concrete wall at the former offices of the National Police that authorities were forced to abandon in recent years by encroaching gangs. Bullets whizzed by as police kept their heads down low and returned fire. “The days are numbered for the gangs,” Godfrey Otunge, commander of the United Nations-backed mission led by Kenya, told The Associated Press. “Either you surrender … or we are coming for you.” Police face a daunting task. More than 4,500 people have been reported killed in Haiti so far this year, and another 2,060 injured, according to the UN. (Jamaca Gleaner)

Photo: Kenyan police officers, part of a UN-backed multinational force, exchange fire with gang members at a Kenyan police base in the Delmas neighbourhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti. (AP)

AFRICA – More than 150 illegal miners have been rescued from an abandoned mine in South Africa’s eastern Mpumalanga province. Police say three bodies were recovered earlier this week on the first day of the rescue operation. Most of those rescued, reportedly foreign nationals, claim they were forced underground against their will to search for gold.

A police spokesperson confirmed the miners have been arrested, and investigations are continuing into illegal mining activities in the region. Days earlier, the national police head Fannie Masemola also confirmed officers were investigating “allegations of human trafficking and forced labour in these mining operations by those who have resurfaced”. On Friday night, the final miner to emerge from the disused shaft blew a whistle as he was received by army officers. He appeared exhausted but could not hide his relief after surfacing. A police spokesperson confirmed the rescue operation at the Mpumalanga mine is now complete, though investigations will continue before the site is shut down.

Meanwhile, rescue efforts are still under way at another abandoned mine in Stilfontein, south-west of Johannesburg. Authorities plan to deploy more equipment on Monday to assist with removing those still trapped underground. Illegal mining is widespread across South Africa, costing the economy millions in lost revenue. Gen Masemola has described Mpumalanga as a hotspot for such activities. (BBC)

Photo: The men say they were forced to mine for rocks containing gold. (Getty Images)

MEXICO – Mexico is doing everything it can to protect a regional trade agreement with the U.S. and Canada, the Latin American nation’s deputy economy minister said in an interview published on Friday. The three neighboring nations, and major partners in commerce, have entered a trade tussle after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump threatened to slap tariffs on the countries to the north and the south if they did not clamp down on drugs and migrants coming into the U.S. Mexico is working on both issues in order to “come to the table” to negotiate without obstacles, Luis Rosendo Gutierrez told outlet Inside U.S. Trade., opens new tab Since Trump’s tariff threat, Mexico has launched an offense on contraband goods from Asia coming into the country, and officials seized a record amount of fentanyl. They have also detained thousands of migrants, vowing to prevent them from making it north.

In a statement issued late Friday, U.S. President Joe Biden thanked Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and the country’s military and law enforcement officials for seizing over twenty million doses of illicit fentanyl. Mexican officials have been in touch with Trump allies, Gutierrez added, though they have not met with incoming administration officials. The exception is Jamieson Greer, Trump’s tapped trade representative, with whom Gutierrez met before his nomination. (Reuters)

Photo: Flags of the U.S., Canada and Mexico fly next to each other in Detroit, Michigan. (Reuters)

NEW YORK – The “brazen and targeted” killing of health insurance executive Brian Thompson, CEO of UnitedHealthcare, outside a New York hotel this week shocked America. The reaction to the crime also exposed a simmering rage against a trillion-dollar industry. “Prior authorisation” does not seem like a phrase that would generate much passion. But on a hot day this past July, more than 100 people gathered outside the Minnesota headquarters of UnitedHealthcare to protest against the insurance firm’s policies and denial of patient claims. “Prior authorisation” allows companies to review suggested treatments before agreeing to pay for them. Eleven people were arrested for blocking a road during the protest.

Police records indicate they came from around the country, including Maine, New York, Texas and West Virginia, to the rally organised by the People’s Action Institute. Unai Montes-Irueste, media strategy director of the Chicago-based advocacy group, said those protesting had personal experience with denied claims and other problems with the healthcare system. The latent anger felt by many Americans at the healthcare system – a dizzying array of providers, for profit and not-for-profit companies, insurance giants, and government programmes – burst into the open following the apparent targeted killing of Thompson in New York City on Wednesday. (BBC)

Photo: There have been protests against insurers accused of denying patient’s claims to cover health costs. (Getty Images)