PALESTINA – On a Thursday afternoon towards the end of last month, a 59-year-old Palestinian woman set out to gather olives on her family’s land near the village of Faqqua, in the north of the occupied West Bank. It was something that Hanan Abu Salameh had done for decades. Within minutes, the mother of seven and grandmother of 14 lay dying in the dust of the olive grove, with a bullet wound in her chest – she’d been shot by an Israeli soldier. Even though the family had co-ordinated their intention to pick olives with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), according to her son Fares and husband Hossam, the soldier fired several shots as other family members fled for cover. The IDF says it’s investigating the incident, but Hanan’s grieving relatives have little hope or expectation that her killer will be brought to justice. This wasn’t an isolated incident. (BBC)

Photo: Hanan Abu Salameh, 59, was shot and killed by an Israeli soldier while she harvested olives.

ISRAEL – Israel prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday offered $5 million and safe passage out of Gaza to anyone returning a hostage. “To those who want to leave this entanglement I say: Whoever brings us a hostage will find a safe way out for himself and his family. We will also give $5 million for every hostage,” Netanyahu said. “Choose, the choice is yours, but the result will be the same. We will bring them all back.” Speaking at the Netzarim Corridor in central Gaza alongside Defense Minister Israel Katz, Netanyahu added that whoever harmed a hostage would “pay the price”.

Critics of the prime minister have accused him of deliberately stalling negotiations for a hostage release deal, alleging it serves to extend the war and prolong his hold on power – claims Netanyahu has denied. His announcement was met with outrage from the mother of Matan Zangauker, one of the hostages still held in Gaza. “The prime minister is trading the hostages’ lives,” said Einav Zangauker. She criticized Netanyahu for “offering money to Hamas” and said his attempt to “divide and rule in Gaza through bribes to the captors” would put the hostages at risk. “It’s unbelievable that the man who funded Hamas is once again offering money to Hamas,” she said, referring to a controversial deal in which Qatar sent millions of dollars to Gaza for years with Israel’s backing. Netanyahu defended the initiative when it was launched in 2018, saying it was meant to return calm to Israeli villages in the south and prevent a humanitarian disaster in Gaza. (CNN)

Photo: Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. (Reuters)

TOKYO – Japan’s exports expanded faster than expected in October, led by a pick-up in chip equipment demand in China, though fears persist over potential U.S. protectionist trade policies that could hamper future shipments. Japanese businesses are weighing the impact of new and potentially hefty tariffs promised by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump that could disrupt international trade. Total exports in October rose 3.1% from a year earlier, data from the Ministry of Finance showed on Wednesday, rebounding from a 1.7% drop in September and outpacing a median forecast in a Reuters poll of a 2.2% increase. Exports to China led the recovery with a 1.5% gain due to strong demand for chipmaking equipment, while those to the United States, Japan’s largest export destination, were down 6.2% on weak auto shipments, the data showed. Kazuma Kishikawa, economist at Daiwa Institute of Research, warned that global demand remains weak. “In particular, U.S.-bound shipments are likely to take months to recover as it would take time for interest rate cuts to start to lift the economy,” he said.

Imports in October grew 0.4% from a year earlier, compared with market forecasts for a 0.3% decrease. That resulted in a trade deficit of 461.2 billion yen ($2.98 billion) in October, compared with the forecast of a deficit of 360.4 billion yen. Shunsuke Kobayashi, chief economist at Mizuho Securities, estimated that a proposed 10% tariff on all U.S. imports could push down Japan’s gross domestic product by 0.13%, and another 0.12% if a potential 60% levy on Chinese-made products triggers retaliatory tariffs from China. (Reuters)

Photo: A cargo ship and containers are seen at an industrial port in Tokyo, Japan. (Reuters)

PARAMARIBO – The chairman of the Organization of Bus and Boat Owners in Suriname (OBS), Antonius Pokie, recently presented an ultimatum to the government over delayed payments. The government has until Wednesday to pay the union members. If it fails to comply, the bus and boat owners will go on strike.

The union chairman explained that the last payment to union members was in August. In both August and September, the bus and boat owners only received payment for the days they worked, meaning they were not paid for the second half of August or for September, as children and teachers do not attend school during the summer vacation.

Although they resumed work in October, the owners were not paid at the end of the month. The OBS pointed out that the government has not made any payments in the past three months. Pokie further explained that the buses and boats required maintenance during the summer vacation, and the maintenance costs are high.

The OBS is also awaiting a response to a letter regarding a proposed bus fare hike, which was sent to the Ministry of Education, Science, and Culture on October 29th. If the ministry does not respond by Friday, the OBS will hold a union meeting to decide on the next course of action.

“We have tried to keep talking to the government but it did not seem that necessary which is why we must discuss the issue at a union meeting,” said Chairman Pokie who added that he hopes that the government will make the payments before Thursday.

PARAMARIBO – The chairman of the Association of Pharmacists in Suriname, Rakesh Gangaram Panday, on Monday told Times of Suriname that Health Minister Amar Ramadhin went too far with the controversial statements that he made in parliament. He made it clear that the pharmacists are furious over the minister’s statements. “The pharmacists do not like it that the minister accused them of charging extra for medicines. He could have contacted us to get the right information,” said Gangaram Panday.

Gangaram Panday pointed out that the minister made baseless accusations and that the way the payment system works is not clear to everyone. Last week Minister

Ramadhin told parliament that pharmacies are wrongfully charging additional costs for medicines that are in fact covered by the state health insurance. He also announced that he would publish a list of 271 medicines that people with state health insurance do not have to pay extra for. The list will be published so that people can check if they are wrongfully being charged extra. 

The minister revealed that he and the State Health Insurance Fund (SZF) also found out that a pharmacist had charged a person with a state health insurance card SRD 2,000 for a medication that only costs SRD 80 per month. The Association of Pharmacists explained that there are clear agreements regarding the price of medications that could be influenced by the price of foreign currency. Many of the medications and the base materials that are needed to produce certain medicines are imported. This means that the prices keep fluctuating and that the old prices are not updated on the list of the SZF.

The pharmacies ask the SZF for permission to raise the price but there requests take a while to be processed. The association made it clear that patients only pay for a medication if it is not included in the package of the health insurance provider. It urged the minister to check all the facts if things are unclear before sharing information with the nation.

PARAMARIBO – On Monday, the National Army (NL) officially commissioned the RSS Barracuda into active duty. The inauguration ceremony was held at the Maritime Authority Suriname (MAS) wharf.

The event was attended by President Chandrikapersad Santokhi, Parliament Chairman Marinus Bee, Defense Minister Krishnakoemarie Mathoera, Staatsolie Director Annand Jagesar, Bram van der Plas (Sales Manager at Damen Shipyards Group), and representatives from the Netherlands, India, and Brazil.

With the addition of the RSS Barracuda, the National Army has enhanced its capability to safeguard Suriname’s maritime territories. The vessel will be used for patrolling coastal waters, combating illegal fishing, and securing the nation’s oil and gas industry.

General Werner Kioe A Sen highlighted that illegal fishing costs Suriname approximately $60 million annually, underscoring the importance of this acquisition. He remarked, “The purchase of the RSS Barracuda is a good investment.”

Defense Minister Mathoera noted that the army would no longer act as a mere security service but would assume an active and strategic role. She stated, “The era of uncertainty regarding the army’s role is definitely over.” The RSS Barracuda is a lease-to-buy ship, and the government is financing the acquisition independently.

AFRICA – United Nations agencies on Monday warned of a hunger crisis facing South Sudan, with returnees fleeing the Sudan war expected to have the highest levels of food insecurity. United Nations agencies on Monday warned of a hunger crisis facing South Sudan, with returnees fleeing the Sudan war expected to have the highest levels of food insecurity.

The World Food Program (WFP), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and the UN Children’s Fund or UNICEF said alarming new food security data from South Sudan, show that 57 percent of the population will be acutely food insecure through the 2025 lean season, with returnees and young children facing some of the highest levels of hunger and malnutrition as economic pressures, climate extremes, and the effects of Sudan’s war worsen hunger.

Meshack Malo, the FAO country representative in South Sudan, said the emergence of the economic crisis and associated high food prices as a key driver of food insecurity sends a powerful message that it is time to collectively ramp up investment in supporting South Sudanese to produce their food.

“This will not only reduce the household food budget but will also create more employment opportunities in the agriculture sector and increase household incomes so that they can seek more healthy diets,” Malo said in a joint statement issued in Juba, the capital of South Sudan.

The latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), released Monday, showed more than 85 percent of returnees fleeing Sudan will be acutely food insecure through the next lean season, starting April 2025. The returnees will also make up almost half of those facing catastrophic hunger, as they struggle to rebuild their lives amid an unprecedented economic crisis, severe flooding, and prioritization of resources as needs outpace funding. According to the report, many communities across South Sudan will continue to struggle as the economic crisis, extreme flooding, prolonged dry spells, and conflict continue to interrupt gains made. (Xinhua)

Photo: Displaced people receive food donations from the World Food Program (WFP) at Akuom Boma.

SYRIA – Turkish air strikes in drought-struck north-east Syria have cut off access to electricity and water for more than a million people, in what experts say may be a violation of international law. Turkey carried out more than 100 attacks between October 2019 and January 2024 on oil fields, gas facilities and power stations in the Kurdish-held Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), according to data collated by the BBC World Service.m The attacks have added to the humanitarian crisis in a region reeling from a years-long civil war and four years of extreme drought exacerbated by climate change.

Water had already been scarce, but attacks on electricity infrastructure in October last year shut off power to the region’s main water station, in Alouk, and it has not been working since. On two visits there, the BBC witnessed people struggling to get water. Turkey said it had targeted the “sources of income and capabilities” of Kurdish separatist groups it regards as terrorists. It said that it was well known there was a drought in the area, adding that poor water management and neglected infrastructure had made things worse. The AANES has previously accused Turkey of seeking to “destroy our people’s existence”. (BBC)

Photo: People living in Hassakeh now rely on deliveries of water transported by tanker.

Vladimir Putin has approved changes to Russia’s nuclear doctrine, setting out new conditions under which the country would consider using its arsenal. The doctrine now says an attack from a non-nuclear state, if backed by a nuclear power, will be treated as a joint assault on Russia.

The update was proposed in September and rubber stamped on Tuesday, the 1,000th day of the war with Ukraine. It also follows Washington’s decision on Monday to allow Ukraine to fire long-range US missiles into Russia. Under the changes, a large attack on Russia with conventional missiles, drones or aircraft could meet the criteria for a nuclear response, as could an attack on Belarus or any critical threat to Russia’s sovereignty. Any aggression against Russia by a state which is a member of a coalition would be seen by Moscow as aggression from the whole group. The updates expand the number of countries and coalitions, and the kinds of military threats, subject to a possible nuclear response, according to state-run news agency Tass. Putin has threatened the use of nuclear weapons before, and Ukraine has criticised it as “nuclear sabre-rattling” to deter its allies from providing further support. But Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said “we strongly are in favour of doing everything to not allow nuclear war to happen”. Speaking at a press conference at the G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro, Mr Lavrov said a declaration signed by the group, which includes Russia “clearly said we want to move towards a world free of nuclear weapons”. (BBC)

It was the early hours of the morning when a guard entered Sohrab’s cell – a small, dark room with a barred window and a blanket on the floor – in Kabul’s sprawling Pul-e-Charkhi prison last August. The 19-year-old was escorted to another room in the complex, where he heard a Taliban member order the prison guards to leave and stop anyone else from entering. Panic set in, for Sohrab knew what these words often preceded. He had experienced physical violence at the hands of the Taliban before. “He grabbed me from behind, tore my clothes apart and raped me,” Sohrab – whose name has been changed for security reasons – told CNN in October. “For several days after that I had severe pain and bleeding.”

Sohrab was being detained at Pul-e-Charkhi on the charge of sodomy, after family members found out about his and his boyfriend’s clandestine romance last year, he said. News of their relationship had spread through their tight-knit community, leading to his arrest and forced confession.

Sohrab spoke to CNN on the condition of anonymity, following his release from prison after two months. On his release, Sohrab said the Taliban warned that if he was arrested again, he would face execution. Human rights monitors have told CNN that since 2021, when the Taliban regained power in Afghanistan, LGBTQ citizens have faced widespread sexual and physical violence in detention amid a systematic clampdown on minority groups. CNN has spoken to five LGBTQ Afghans who say they experienced physical abuse during time in detention, including – for some – repeated rape, electrocution, strangulation and flogging with metal chains. Transgender and gender non-conforming people are being “consistently” targeted at Taliban checkpoints due to their choice of clothing, human rights groups said.

In response to CNN’s findings, a spokesperson for the Taliban’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that “acts such as sodomy, bestiality and other perversions that contravene Islamic law are illegal and perpetrators dealt with within the legal framework.” They added: “These allegations are fabrications as the alleged claims of torture, rape, persecution and mistreatment are themselves explicit violations of the legal framework.” (CNN)

JAMAICA – Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Kamina Johnson Smith is heading a Jamaican delegation to the second summit of CARICOM leaders and India. The CARICOM-India Summit is being co-chaired by Dickon Mitchell, Prime Minister of Grenada and current Chair of the Conference of CARICOM Heads of Government, and India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, in Georgetown, Guyana, on Wednesday. Johnson Smith said Jamaica looks forward to focusing on shared priorities including energy and infrastructure, agriculture and food security, health and pharmaceuticals, technology and innovation, as well as human resources and capacity-building.

“Having recently participated in Prime Minister Holness’ historic visit to India, the first bilateral visit made by a Jamaican Prime Minister to that country, we look forward to strengthening ties even further through wider regional engagement,” added Johnson Smith. She further notes that strengthening people-to-people connections between India and the CARICOM region would also be a central point of interest, given the close to 190 years of integration of Indians across the region. (Jamaica-Gleiner)

Photo: Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Kamina Johnson Smith.

FRANCE – Gisele Pelicot on Tuesday lambasted the cowardice of the dozens of men accused of abusing her during 10 years of mass rape organized by her husband and told the court hearing the trial France’s patriarchal society must change. Dominique Pelicot, her husband, has admitted in court to drugging his wife, 71, and inviting strangers to their house to rape her while she was unconscious. Most of the 50 other men on trial have denied rape.

She only learnt of her ordeal when police stumbled upon videos and pictures her husband recorded of the abuse he is accused of orchestrating. “For me this is the trial of cowardice, there is no other way to describe it,” Gisele Pelicot said, with many of the accused in the courtroom. It is the third time she has addressed the court in Avignon, southern France, as the trial heads towards delivering its verdicts and sentences around Dec. 20.

Testimony that dozens of seemingly ordinary men, aged 26 to 74 and from all walks of life, could have raped an unconscious woman has attracted worldwide attention and turned the trial into an examination of the pervasiveness of sexual violence.

Video recorded by her husband and shown in court over the past weeks have repeatedly featured Gisele Pelicot motionless, sometimes snoring, while some of the accused abused her. Many of the accused have told the court they did not realize they were raping her, did not intend to rape her or put all the blame on her husband, whom they said had manipulated them. (CNN)

Photo: Gisele Pelicot at the courthouse in Avignon on Tuesday. (Reuters)

JAMAICA – Leader of the Opposition, Mark Golding, is calling for the Government to immediately address the systemic issues in the tourism industry that have led to a series of strikes over the past weeks. On Monday line staff at Excellence Oyster Bay Resort in Coopers Pen, Trelawny, walked off the job protesting low wages, lack of overtime pay and lack of job security. Their strike followed others at Royalton Negril and Iberostar and Breathless resorts in St James.

Golding asserted in a media release on Tuesday that the ongoing unrest in the tourism sector is a direct result of poor governance. “For too long, the Minister of Tourism has neglected the critical needs of the local industry. The high cost of living, inadequate transportation and poor road conditions have placed tremendous pressure on hotel operators and workers, bringing the situation to a boiling point,” he said.

“It is disrespectful to the serious concerns of tourism workers to suggest that they are being politically manipulated when they take action to have their grievances addressed. Instead of the Prime Minister seeking to ‘pass the buck’ by blaming the People’s National Party for current unrest in the sector, he should take responsibility for failing to address these issues in the sector over the past nine years,” he added.

Golding reiterated his call for the Government to establish a Joint Council as a robust mechanism for constructive dialogue to protect the rights of tourism workers and uphold the Decent Work Agenda of the International Labour Organization. He is also calling for a comprehensive analysis of the industry as a matter of urgency, and a cohesive response from the ministries of labour, tourism and transport to address the challenges facing the sector. (Jamaica-Gleaner)

Photo: Leader of the Opposition, Mark Golding.