Read the daily news to learn English

‘Look at us with mercy’: displaced Palestinians dread onset of harsh winter

Everyone knew what was coming. But there was little the inhabitants of the tent cities that crowd the shore of southern Gaza could do as the storm approached. Sabah al-Breem, 62, was sitting with one of her daughters and several grandchildren in their current home – a makeshift construction of tarpaulins and salvaged wood – when the wind and the driving rain broke across Gaza last week. “Everything collapsed … We repaired our shelter but in the night it fell down again under the heavy rain. All our belongings were soaked. The day the winds blew was a black day for us,” said Breem, originally from Khan Younis but displaced multiple times since the start of the war in October 2023. This week the half million or so Palestinians living in al-Mawasi, a cramped coastal zone in southern Gaza, are bracing for a grim winter. For many it will be the third that they have faced after being displaced during the conflict. Last week’s storm revealed how more than 2 million Palestinians in Gaza, though they survived the two-year war, still face humanitarian crisis. Shelter is the most pressing need, aid agencies say. Most homes in Gaza have been destroyed or rendered uninhabitable by successive Israeli offensives, or lie east of the new “yellow line” that divides the territory into a zone under Israeli military control and one under de facto Hamas authority. There is nowhere for the displaced to go. In the aftermath of the storm, barefoot children splashed in muddy puddles as women made tea outside under dark clouds. Some tried to shelter in destroyed buildings, even those at risk of collapse, with gaping holes covered by pieces of plastic. Food comes a close second in terms of priorities for those in al-Mawasi. Donald Trump’s 20-point ceasefire deal called for “full aid” to be sent into Gaza, but though more has been reaching the devastated territory, residents and humanitarian officials say quantities are grossly insufficient. “Is it better? Yes … in the sense that people aren’t starving any more. Is it enough? Absolutely not. We have massive stockpiles of tents and tarpaulins and we can’t get them in. A lot is still waiting to clear all the hurdles the Israelis are still putting in our way … We could be handing out 10,000 tents a day,” said a senior official of a major international NGO last week. Israel has not yet allowed passage through the entry point into Gaza from Egypt at Rafah, though some other smaller crossings from Israel have been reopened. The majority of supplies entering the territory are trucked in by private commercial operators or donors, such as major Gulf countries, with officials from major United Nations agencies saying they still face daunting and opaque bureaucratic processes that slow or stop their distributions. Aid officials say many critical items, such as tent poles, are not permitted by Israel to enter Gaza because they are designated as potentially having a military use. COGAT, the Israeli Ministry of Defence agency that administers entry to Gaza, denies this and said that over the last few months it had facilitated the distribution of close to 140,000 tarpaulins in Gaza, though 19,000 tents brought by NGOs were designed only for summer conditions. The agency is supposed to be working closely with a new US-run centre to facilitate the supply of aid into Gaza, though few details have emerged of how this is working in practice. Prices in Gaza fluctuate wildly but those who have funds can buy a tent in markets for about $800. Few in al-Mawasi have any cash at all after two years of war and most Palestinians in the territory still cannot afford to buy food, medicine or scarce cooking gas. Community kitchens have stepped up operations, but cannot satisfy the acute need. Maher Abu Jerad, 29, from Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip, said his family of four was living mainly on canned beans and peas. “Sometimes we receive one meal from the public kitchen every three days – usually lentils or rice. The food in the market remains completely unaffordable. Water is also a struggle. We have to bring it from a long distance, and it does not last the whole day. We only have three containers that we fill for daily use,” said Abu Jerad, a painter before the war. All in Gaza know last week’s storm was the first of many and temperatures will plummet in coming weeks. “With no basic infrastructure or proper drainage in the camps, rainwater is collecting around the tents. Overcrowding and the limited access to clean water are also making the sanitation situation much worse,” said Mohammed Madhoun, a community healthcare worker at a clinic run by Medical Aid for Palestinians in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza. The storm left tents scattered across street and beaches where surges of seawater engulfed many. “The sound of the waves prevents us from sleeping. We barely sleep an hour or less, and the seawater reaches the tents when the waves crash,” said Breem. “We lack all winter essentials: no blankets, no rugs, no bedding. Diseases have spread among us: colds, coughs, aches … and this is just at the start of winter.” The first stage of the ceasefire agreement, which called for an Israeli partial withdrawal and the return of hostages held by Hamas, is close to completion. The next stage, which received a boost following the endorsement of Trump’s plan by the UN security council on Monday, calls for the creation of a committee of Palestinian technocrats to run Gaza under the ultimate authority of the president and the deployment of an international stabilisation force. A major unanswered question is how, or if, Hamas will be disarmed. The conflict was triggered in October 2023 when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251. The Islamist organisation still holds the remains of three hostages. Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has killed 69,100 Palestinians, mostly civilians, and reduced much of the territory to rubble. Naama Arafat, who now lives on the shore in al-Mawasi, said she remembered a “beautiful life” before the war in her family’s “small, simple, warm house” east of Khan Younis. “We wore our warm clothes, and mattresses and blankets were plentiful … Now, we cannot even light a fire to cook food because of the strong winds and the lack of wood and supplies,” Arafat, 53, said. “I pray to God that all aspects of our lives will be eased and we can live in better conditions. I say a message to the world: to look at us with mercy and offer us help, for we have entered a very harsh winter season.”

Samoa PM suspends country’s only daily newspaper from press briefings amid dispute over coverage

Samoa’s only daily newspaper has been banned from attending press conferences with the Samoan prime minister, in a move that critics say threatens the democratic integrity of the Pacific nation. Relations between La’aulialemalietoa Leuatea Polataivao Fosi Schmidt and the Samoa Observer have deteriorated in recent weeks, with the prime minister accusing the newspaper of inaccurate reporting during his eight-week medical stay in New Zealand. The temporary ban was imposed after the public removal of Observer journalist Marieta Heidi Ilalio from the prime minister’s weekly press conference on Monday. On Monday night, La’aulialemalietoa announced the Samoa Observer would be barred from all future press conferences. He accused the newspaper of inaccurate reporting while he was in New Zealand for a medical issue and said it had failed to uphold ethical standards. In a statement, La’aulialemalietoa listed several examples of stories that he claimed were “published without sufficient factual verification or a chance for those involved to respond”. He cited an editorial which “appeared to be aimed at creating discord during my absence”. He also detailed an incident on 16 November where he claimed Samoa Observer staff had trespassed at his private residence. “Their approach was rude, arrogant, and invasive and lacked respect for personal privacy.” After declaring the temporary ban, La’aulialemalietoa said he remained “committed however to a free and vibrant press”. The Observer responded with an editorial rejecting the prime minister’s claims and reaffirming its commitment to independent, public-interest journalism. It questioned the timing of the ban and said it appeared aimed at suppressing scrutiny rather than correcting inaccuracies. The Samoa Alliance of Media Practitioners for Development (Sampod) described the ban as a disproportionate and harmful reaction to any concerns about media coverage. Sampod representative Lilomaiava Maina Vai said the government has clear channels to raise complaints and resolve disputes. “There are legal avenues and the media council process that can address concerns about reporting,” she said. “Banning and targeting one newspaper is ill advised because it restricts the public’s access to information and undermines the role of the media in a democracy.” The ban threatens to weaken accountability and risks encouraging hostile actions against journalists, Sampod said. The Pacific Freedom Forum and Journalists Association of Samoa also expressed concerns about the ban and its implications. TV, radio and online news outlets will continue to cover the prime minister’s briefings. The former prime minister Fiame Naomi Mata’afa, leader of the opposition Samoa Uniting Party, condemned the ban as a deliberate effort to silence scrutiny. She said no media outlet was barred during her prime ministership, regardless of whether coverage was critical. “Leadership requires openness, accountability and the ability to face difficult questions.” Fiame raised concern over the lack of transparency regarding the prime minister’s medical absence and the rise in online hostility targeting the Samoa Observer, which she said risked normalising intimidation. Former prime minister and leader of the opposition Human Rights Protection Party, Tuilaepa Aiono Sailele Malielegaoi, also criticised the ban. “This is bad. If you think the information [in an article] is wrong, you will not get sick from it, it is an opportunity to correct it and to expand on the information.” Marieta said she was taken aback by the directive. “I have never been asked to leave a press conference before, and for it to be done like that, I had no choice but to stand up and walk away,” she said. “It made me sad to see how my role as a journalist was undermined at that point.” The ban has ignited a wider conversation about transparency, leadership accountability and media independence in the country.

Ukraine war briefing: rescuers comb through rubble after Russian attack kills at least 26

A Russian drone and missile attack in western Ukraine, has killed at least 26 people, including three children, amid reports that a new US- and Russian-drafted peace proposal would see Kyiv ceding land and slashing the size of its military. Many more people were listed as missing and nearly 100 had been hurt in the overnight strike that hit apartment buildings in the city of Ternopil, Ukrainian interior minister Ihor Klymenko said on Wednesday. Russia fired 476 drones and 48 missiles at Ukraine, striking energy and transport infrastructure and forcing emergency power cuts in a number of regions in frigid temperatures. The upper floors of a residential building in Ternopil were torn away in the attack. Klymenko said on Telegram that said emergency crews were working through the night, combing the site. “The main thing is to find those who could still be under the rubble … Flames flared up instantly and engulfed the building in a wave. People were terrified and tried to jump out of windows.” US and Russian officials have quietly drafted a new plan to end the Ukraine war that would require Kyiv to surrender territory and severely limit the size of its military, it was reported on Wednesday. The draft plan – which was reportedly developed by Donald Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, and the Kremlin adviser Kirill Dmitriev – would force draconian measures on Ukraine that would give Russia unprecedented control over the country’s military and political sovereignty, write Luke Harding, Pjotr Sauer and Andrew Roth. It was unclear whether the Trump administration had formally backed the proposal, which according to the reports would require Ukraine to cede territory it controls in the east of the country and halve the size of its military. The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has previously called those conditions non-starters. Zelenskyy travelled for talks in Turkey intended to help revive peace negotiations with Russia, after his short tour to European capitals. The Ukrainian president urged allies to increase pressure on Moscow to end the war, including by providing Kyiv with more air-defence missiles. “Every brazen attack against ordinary life shows that the pressure on Russia is insufficient,” he said on X. “Effective sanctions and assistance to Ukraine can change this.” Energy infrastructure was hit in seven Ukrainian regions in Russia’s overnight attacks, officials said. Restrictions were placed on power usage for consumers across the country. A Reuters witness in the western city of Lviv reported hearing explosions and the north-western city of Kharkiv came under fire. Residents took cover in metro stations in Kyiv. Poland’s foreign minister, Radosław Sikorski, has described last weekend’s sabotage attack on Poland’s rail system as “an act of state terrorism” ordered by Russia, as he announced that Poland was closing the last remaining Russian consulate in the country. “The clear intention was to cause human casualties,” he said of the weekend bomb attack. Shaun Walker and Jakub Krupa also report that the Polish security services said they were in the process of arresting several people linked to the incident. Italy’s top court has approved the handover to Germany of a Ukrainian man suspected of coordinating the 2022 sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipeline, his lawyer said on Wednesday. The suspect, identified only as Serhii K under German privacy laws, has been fighting attempts to transfer him to Germany since he was detained on a European arrest warrant in the Italian town of Rimini in August over the explosions, which largely severed Russian gas transit to Europe. The decision by the court of cassation in Rome means the suspect will be transferred to the German authorities in the next few days.

New Zealand bans puberty blockers for young transgender people

New Zealand has announced it is banning new prescriptions of puberty-blocking drugs for young transgender people, in a move that critics warned could worsen the mental health of those affected. The step comes amid growing global debate about the number of adolescents seeking to change gender, dividing those concerned about hastiness in prescribing such medications and those worried about access to remedies they deem lifesaving. The health minister, Simeon Brown, said doctors would no longer be able to prescribe gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues for gender dysphoria or incongruence to those seeking treatment for the conditions and not already on the drugs. The decision resulted from a health ministry finding of a lack of “high-quality evidence that demonstrates the benefits or risks”, Brown added in a statement. The ban takes effect from 19 December. Some countries, such as Britain, have placed a temporary ban on the sale or supply of these drugs to those under 18 who are not already taking them. The drugs will still be available in New Zealand for those with early onset puberty, endometriosis or prostate cancer, as well as for current users. The health ministry said 113 people were using puberty blockers in 2023, down from 140 in 2021. The ban will have a devastating impact on the lives and wellbeing of transgender and gender-diverse young people in New Zealand, said Elizabeth McElrea, an official with a transgender health body. “The ban will lead to worsening mental health, increased suicidality and dysphoria for gender-diverse children and young people,” McElrea, the vice-president of the Professional Association for Transgender Health Aotearoa, said in a statement. It would bring a higher risk of experiencing marginalisation and discrimination for them, she added. Treatment decisions should be made by doctors, young people and their parents, said Shanan Halbert, spokesperson for opposition party Labour on rainbow issues. He also called for the government to provide adequate support for those affected by the ban. Green Party MP Ricardo Menéndez March told RNZ the government was “buying into imported culture wars”. “The government should focus on addressing the core issues that our health system faces … rather than waging culture wars on trans people.”

US and Russian officials draft plan to end Ukraine war based on capitulation from Kyiv

US and Russian officials have quietly drafted a new plan to end the war in Ukraine that would require Kyiv to surrender territory and severely limit the size of its military, it was reported on Wednesday as Russian drone and missile strikes killed at least 25 people in the city of Ternopil. The draft plan, which was reportedly developed by Donald Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, and the Kremlin adviser Kirill Dmitriev, would force draconian measures on Ukraine that would give Russia unprecedented control over the country’s military and political sovereignty. The plan is likely to be viewed as surrender in Kyiv. The two men have formed an important but unofficial backchannel between Moscow and Washington, and it was unclear whether the Trump administration had formally backed the plan. The Financial Times and Reuters reported that the proposal would require Ukraine to cede territory it controls in the east of the country and halve the size of its military, conditions that the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has in the past called non-starters. Other conditions include limiting US military assistance and categories of armaments used by the Ukrainian military. The existence of the 28-point plan, which appears to be inspired by a similar proposal the Trump administration developed to end the war in Gaza, was first reported by Axios. The White House did not immediately respond to a Guardian request for more detail on the proposal. Washington has repeatedly suggested that it is close to a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, but the proposals have failed because they would have granted Russia most of its demands while requiring Kyiv to make painful concessions. On Wednesday night, US secretary of state Marco Rubio appeared to respond to reports of the plan by saying that a durable peace would require “both sides to agree to difficult but necessary concessions.” “That is why we are and will continue to develop a list of potential ideas for ending this war based on input from both sides of this conflict,” Rubio wrote on X. The leaked reports came as Russia launched a massive attack in western Ukraine targeting several multi-storey buildings in the city of Ternopil, as well as energy facilities in Ivano-Frankivsk and Lviv. Russia is engaged in a systematic campaign to destroy Ukraine’s civilian power infrastructure ahead of winter. Oleg Hrytsyshyn, who lives on the sixth floor of one of the damaged apartment blocks in Ternopil, said that the smoke instantly cut off evacuation routes, leaving him trapped in his home. “There were several loud explosions. When I tried to get dressed, there was thick black smoke in the entrance. It was burning,” he said. “It was impossible to get out, although I tried twice. The windows in the apartment were not broken. I knocked on the neighbors’ doors but no one answered.” The man was rescued and doctors treated him for high blood pressure. A video clip on social media appeared to show the moment a missile hit the building. Ukraine’s interior ministry said 25 people, including three children, had been killed in the strike, with another 73 injured, among them 15 children. A witness, Yaroslav Teslyuk, said the strike happened at about 5.30am, when most people were asleep. “I heard a loud rumble. It was followed by the noise of ‘shaheeds’ and several more rockets, and then explosions,” he said. “A fire started. I was told some people burned alive in their apartments because the strike happened when everyone was still asleep. The bodies were covered up. Some have already been taken away.” Zelenskyy, who met the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, on Wednesday in what he described as an effort to “reinvigorate negotiations” and secure a “just peace” for Ukraine, urged Kyiv’s allies to intensify pressure on Russia to end its nearly four-year invasion, including by providing more air-defence missiles. “Every brazen attack against ordinary life shows that the pressure on Russia is insufficient,” Zelenskyy wrote on X. “Effective sanctions and assistance to Ukraine can change this.” Potential peace talks have largely stalled in recent months as a result of Russia’s maximalist demands. Zelenskyy is expected to meet a senior delegation of US military officials on Thursday. The US army secretary, Daniel Driscoll, arrived in Kyiv on Wednesday to hold talks with Ukrainian officials and “discuss efforts to end the war,” the US Embassy said in a statement. Kyiv and Moscow have not held direct negotiations since the summer, and efforts to revive a diplomatic track have largely frozen since the last meeting between Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska in August. Despite Kremlin claims that it is open to talks on ending the war, Moscow has shown no willingness to scale back its far-reaching demands. Zelenskyy finds himself in an increasingly difficult position at home and on the battlefield. Russian forces have recently advanced into the strategically important city of Pokrovsk and are pressing forward elsewhere along the front, while a widening corruption scandal in the energy sector has erupted into Ukraine’s most serious political crisis since the start of the war. The Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, denied on Wednesday that any significant progress had been made. “So far there are no innovations on this that can be reported to you,” he said. Russia’s foreign ministry also said it was unaware of any new US peace proposal. Its spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, said Moscow had not received any draft agreement on Ukraine “of such a level” from Washington. “If the American side had come up with proposals, they would have been communicated through the established diplomatic channels between our two countries,” she said.

Death toll from Russian attack rises to 25 as Ukraine says it will raise issue at UN – as it happened

Thanks for joining us today. As we close the blog, here’s a quick summation of what we know so far: Sources are telling both Reuters and the Financial Times that the US is pushing Kyiv to accept a peace plan that was drafted by a mix of Trump administration and Russian officials. The plan, according to those familiar with the matter, is heavily favorable toward Russia and would require Ukraine to cede territory and weaponry and cut its armed forces in half, moves that would potentially leave the country vulnerable to future attacks by Russia. Meanwhile, Russian strikes on Ukraine continue, with an overnight attack on Ternopil killing 25 and injuring 73. Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said that Ukraine would bring up the overnight Russian attacks at Thursday’s UN security council meeting. And in Russia, Vladimir Putin is passing sweeping laws to bolster defences at home against Ukrainian drone strikes and sabotage operations, reflecting the Kremlin’s expectation of a protracted war. This comes as Poland responds to the alleged sabotage of its rail infrastructure. Prosecutors have drafted formal charges for two Ukrainians suspected of “sabotage of a terrorist nature” on behalf of Russia over the last weekend’s rail incidents. The army is also working on plans to deploy 10,000 soldiers to protect critical infrastructure across the country to “counteract acts of diversion and raise the level of security for Polish citizens”, said Polish defence minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas addressed the alleged sabotage incidents at a press conference on Wednesday, condemning “increasingly brazen” Russian attacks on EU infrastructure as she called for military mobility. “Military mobility is a critical insurance policy for European security. You hope you never have to use it full capacity, but having it ready ensures more credible deterrence and defence,” she said. The bloc’s “Military Schengen,” formally proposed on Wednesday, seeks to address some of these issues by removing regulatory obstacles, and working on the resilience of key infrastructure. Elsewhere in Europe, Social Democrats in Denmark suffer sweeping election losses and the Netherlands has suspended it seizure of the Chinese owner chip maker Nexperia. Nexperia was at the heart of a bitter six-week battle between the EU and China that threatened to halt car production.

US charges ex-Olympic snowboarder turned drug kingpin with murder of witness

US authorities have charged a fugitive former Canadian Olympic snowboarder turned drug kingpin with the murder of a witness who was prepared to testify against him. The attorney general, Pam Bondi, said on Wednesday that Ryan Wedding was accused in a newly unsealed indictment of tracking down a witness in Colombia who was then murdered before he could give evidence. Wedding, also known as “El Jefe”, “Giant” and “Public Enemy”, is alleged to have overseen the transport of hundreds of kilograms of cocaine from Colombia, through Mexico and southern California, and into Canada, as part of what Bondi called “one of the most prolific and violent drug-trafficking organizations” in the world. “We are coming for you. We will find you. And you will be accountable and held to justice for your crimes,” she said. Authorities also announced the arrest of the Ontario lawyer Deepak Paradkar, who allegedly advised Wedding to murder the FBI witness, Jonathan Acebedo-Garcia, a Canadian citizen who was shot dead in a restaurant in Medellín in January. Bill Essayli, first assistant US attorney at the central district of California, told reporters that Paradkar was one of a dozen individuals who were recently arrested in an “international takedown”. He said the well-known Brampton lawyer told Wedding: “If you kill this witness, the case will be dismissed.” Police in Canada also arrested Atna Onha, a Montreal man, and charged him with murder conspiracy in the killing of Acebedo-Garcia, a former member of Wedding’s organization. “Make no mistake about it: Ryan Wedding is a modern-day iteration of Pablo Escobar,” the FBI director, Kash Patel, said. “He’s a modern-day iteration of El Chapo Guzmán.” The state department also increased its reward for Wedding’s capture and conviction from US$10m to $15m. Wedding, 43, grew up in Thunder Bay, Ontario, and competed for Team Canada in the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympic games, where he placed 24th in the parallel giant slalom event. Four years after the Games, Ryan Wedding was named in a search warrant investigating a marijuana-growing operation in British Columbia, but was never charged. In 2010, Wedding was convicted of drug trafficking after attempting to buy cocaine from a US government agent and was sentenced to four years in prison. Described by media at the time as a 2010 “Olympic hopeful”, Wedding sought to dismiss the charges, alleging “outrageous conduct” by US authorities, suggesting they used a “violent former KGB agent” as an undercover operative. But in the years since, he has emerged as a powerful and ruthless transnational narcotics trafficker. The RCMP commissioner, Mike Duhame, was also present at the press conference and told reporters that seven Canadians have been arrested. Duheme said Wedding’s organization probably makes more than $1bn a year. On Wednesday, the US treasury department also announced sanctions on Ryan Wedding and nine other people linked to his criminal organization.

Rome decries ‘Italian-sounding’ pasta sauces on sale in EU parliament store

Italy’s agriculture minister, Francesco Lollobrigida, has called for an immediate investigation after coming across what he claimed were jars of “Italian-sounding” pasta sauce on the shelves of the European parliament’s supermarket. Lollobrigida, of Giorgia Meloni’s Brothers of Italy party, was particularly vexed by a carbonara sauce made with “Italiaanse pancetta” – the classic Roman pasta dish is made with a different cured meat, guanciale – and a tomato sauce containing “oignons de Calabria”, or onions from Calabria. “Ignoring the pancetta in carbonara … all these products represent the worst of ‘Italian sounding’,” he wrote on Facebook about his discovery. “It is unacceptable to see them on the shelves of the European parliament supermarket. I have asked for an immediate investigation.” Italy has long tried to fight against the huge global market in “Italian-sounding” products – that is, food items that give the impression they are made in Italy when they are not. The own-label sauces Lollobrigida referred to are sold by the Belgian supermarket chain Delhaize and have an Italian flag on their packaging. Under EU regulations, a food product could be deemed to be misleading consumers if its labelling distorts its actual country of origin. Reports in Brussels said the sauces were not claimed to be made in Italy and did include Italian ingredients. The Guardian has asked Delhaize to comment. The episode comes as Italy eagerly awaits the outcome of its application for Italian cuisine to be included in Unesco’s intangible cultural heritage list. A decision is expected in early December. Italy’s biggest agribusiness association, Coldiretti, said the “scandal of fake Italian products” cost the country €120bn (£106bn) a year. “Paradoxically, the biggest counterfeiters of Italian excellence are industrialised countries,” Coldiretti said. “Due to the so-called ‘Italian sounding’ phenomenon, more than two out of three Italian agrifood products worldwide are fake, with no production or employment link to our country.” It claimed the biggest offender was the US. The association also regularly battles against the use of mafia terms to sell a variety of food and drink products around the world, from Cosa Nostra whisky to Chilli Mafia hot sauces.