Here are some of today’s top news stories:
- The Suez Canal blockage
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Final vote results show major setback for Israel’s Netanyahu
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Michigan sees virus surge, but tighter restrictions unlikely
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Russia opposition leader Navalny’s health worsens in prison
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India’s massive coal mines auction sends mixed climate signals
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Big Tech chiefs face fresh grilling over misinformation
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US weekly jobless claims fall to pandemic-era low
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Georgia Republicans speed sweeping elections bill with restrictions
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Amazon blasts Bernie Sanders as he heads to Alabama to support union drive
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AP News
EXPLAINER: What we know about a ship blocking the Suez Canal
A giant backhoe and a squadron of tugboats look minuscule against the cargo ship’s bulk, demonstrating the enormity of the challenge at hand: freeing the wedged, skyscraper-sized container ship that has blocked the entire width of the Suez Canal and created a major traffic jam on one of the world’s most crucial trade routes.
The tugs and diggers toiled on Thursday as over 150 vessels carrying goods to destinations across the world on tight schedules remained trapped on either end of the canal, which links the Mediterranean and Red Seas.
Over its 150-year history, Egypt’s Suez Canal has seen wars and crises — but nothing quite like the stranding of the Ever Given.
How Did This happen ?
That remains murky. The vessel entered the canal from the Red Sea on Tuesday morning and ran aground 45 minutes later.
The ship’s operator and Egyptian officials blamed winds gusting as much as 50 kilometers per hour (30 miles per hour), along with a sandstorm sweeping the area.
Cargo ships have grown in recent years to take on more containers as fuel prices have risen because big boats burn less fuel per container moved. Some have wondered if the ultra-large size of the Ever Given was a factor.
AP News
Final vote results show major setback for Israel’s Netanyahu
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his right-wing allies fell short of winning a parliamentary majority in Israel’s latest election, according to a final vote count released Thursday, leaving a political deadlock that put the long-time leader’s future in question.
The fourth election in just two years brought a stinging rebuke for Netanyahu, the most dominant figure in Israeli politics in a generation. Adding to the pain, he lost ground to former partners who vowed never to sit in a government with him again.
Under Israel’s fragmented political system, Netanyahu could still try to reach across the aisle and cobble together a governing coalition. But the makeup of the new parliament will make that extremely difficult, giving his opponents the upper hand in coalition talks. It’s also quite possible Israel will go into a fifth election later this year.
AP News
Rallies in Atlanta, nation against hate after spa shootings
A diverse crowd gathered Saturday near the Georgia state Capitol to demand justice for the victims of recent shootings at massage businesses and to denounce racism, xenophobia and misogyny.
Hundreds of people of all ages and varied racial and ethnic backgrounds gathered in Liberty Plaza in Atlanta, and in similar rallies across the country, waving signs and chanting slogans.
In Atlanta, they cheered U.S. Sens. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, and Georgia state Rep. Bee Nguyen, the first Vietnamese American to serve in the Georgia House.
“I just wanted to drop by to say to my Asian sisters and brothers, we see you, and, more importantly, we are going to stand with you,” Warnock said to loud cheersas passing drivers honked car horns in support.
AP News
Michigan sees virus surge, but tighter restrictions unlikely
Michigan, which not long ago had one of the country’s lowest COVID-19 infection rates, is confronting an alarming spike that some experts worry could be a harbinger nationally.
In what public health authorities across the U.S. have been warning for months might happen around the country, the resurgence is being fueled by loosened restrictions, a more infectious variant and pandemic fatigue.
While vaccinations in Michigan are helping to protect senior citizens and other vulnerable people, the upswing is driving up hospitalizations among younger adults and forcing a halt to in-person instruction at some schools.
“It’s a stark reminder that this virus is still very real. It can come roaring back if we drop our guard,” said Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who does not plan to tighten restrictions on indoor dining, sports and other activities that were eased in recent months.
AP News
Russia opposition leader Navalny’s health worsens in prison
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has accused prison authorities of failing to provide proper treatment for his back pain and leg problems, saying in a letter posted Thursday that his physical condition has worsened in prison and he now has trouble walking.
Navalny blamed his health problems on prison officials failing to provide the right medicines and refusing to allow his doctor to visit him behind bars. He also complained in a second letter that the hourly checks a guard makes on him at night amounted to sleep deprivation torture.
Copies of his letters to penitentiary officials and Russia’s top prosecutor were posted on Navalny’s website.
The 44-year-old Navalny, who is President Vladimir Putin’s most outspoken opponent, was arrested on Jan. 17 upon his return from Germany, where he spent five months recovering from a nerve-agent poisoning that he blames on the Kremlin. Russian authorities have rejected the accusation.
Aljazeera News
The president’s bodyguard who amassed dozens of cars and houses
Blantyre, Malawi – For years, Norman Chisale was known as the “most trusted and feared” bodyguard of Peter Mutharika, Malawi’s former president. It seems he was also the “richest”.
In news that stunned Malawi, state authorities last month seized property belonging to Chisale, as well as his close associates and relatives, worth an estimated $2.2m.
The seized high-value assets included more than 80 vehicles, ranging from Mercedes Benzes and Range Rovers to Land Cruisers and Jeep Wranglers, as well as 21 properties, including residential houses and commercial buildings. The state also froze two bank accounts registered in Chisale’s name containing a combined sum of nearly $150,000.
Aljazeera News
Half of Israelis fully vaccinated as Palestinians lag
More than half of Israel’s 9.2 million people have received both doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine against COVID-19, the health ministry has said.
Yet vaccination is far slower in areas controlled by the Palestinian Authority (PA), which has relied on donations and limited supplies from Israel. The 5.5 million Palestinians living in the occupied West Bank and blockaded Gaza Strip have received only about 120,000 vaccines so far.
With more than 4.6 million residents vaccinated, Israel continues its world-beating campaign that sent infection rates plummeting and allowed for some limited loosening of restrictions.
Aljazeera News
India’s massive coal mines auction sends mixed climate signals
India has set in motion the biggest ever auction of coal mines in the country despite the fossil fuel’s key role in contributing to global warming.
The country will put 67 mines on the block, the most in a single auction. Winners will be allowed to produce and sell the fuel, a reform meant to dislodge state monopoly over the domestic coal market and open it up to private firms. The deadline for submitting technical bids is May 27 and electronic auctions have been scheduled from June 28 to July 28, the coal ministry said on Thursday.
The auction sends mixed signals at a time when the world’s third-biggest emitter of greenhouse gases needs to shed its dependence on coal. India is under growing pressure to improve its climate commitments, which have forced government officials to debate a possible net-zero emissions target. The country is one of the most vulnerable to climate impacts, and coal mining and burning also contributes to deadly air pollution.
Aljazeera News
Big Tech chiefs face fresh grilling over misinformation
The CEOs of social media giants Facebook, Twitter and Google face a new grilling by Congress Thursday, one focused on their efforts to prevent their platforms from spreading falsehoods and inciting violence.
That’s been a familiar theme for lawmakers over the past few years. But the pressure is even higher following the January 6 insurrection at the United States Capitol, the rise in COVID-19 vaccine misinformation and united Democratic control of Congress and the White House. The latter could make legislative action more likely, although it remains far from a sure thing.
As malicious conspiracy theories continue to spread, lawmakers are pounding the social media companies over their market dominance, harvesting of user data and practices that some believe actually encourage the spread of engaging but potentially harmful misinformation. Some Republicans have also alleged, without proof, that censorship and political bias against conservatives are another reason to rein in the enormous firms.
Aljazeera News
US weekly jobless claims fall to pandemic-era low
The number of people seeking unemployment benefits fell sharply last week to 684,000, the fewest since the coronavirus pandemic erupted a year ago and a sign that the economy is improving.
Thursday’s report from the US Department of Labor showed that jobless claims fell from 781,000 the week before. It is the first time that weekly applications for jobless aid have fallen below 700,000 since mid-March of last year. Before the pandemic tore through the economy, applications had never topped that level.
Still, a total of 18.9 million people are continuing to collect jobless benefits, up from 18.2 million in the previous week. Roughly one-third of those recipients are in extended federal aid programmes, which means they’ve been unemployed for at least six months.
CNN
Georgia Republicans speed sweeping elections bill restricting voting access into law
Republicans in Georgia sped a sweeping elections bill into law Thursday, making it the first presidential battleground to impose new voting restrictions following President Joe Biden's victory in the state.
The bill passed the Georgia Senate by 34-20 late Thursday afternoon, and Republican Gov. Brian Kemp swiftly signed it.
The law imposes new voter identification requirements for absentee ballots, empowers state officials to take over local elections boards, limits the use of ballot drop boxes and makes it a crime to approach voters in line to give them food and water.
"It's like the Christmas tree of goodies for voter suppression," Democratic state Sen. Jen Jordan said on the Senate floor as lawmakers prepared to vote on the nearly 100-page bill Thursday.
CNN
New Zealand approves paid leave after miscarriage, and encourages the world to follow
New Zealand will become one of the world's only countries to offer paid bereavement leave for workers who suffer a miscarriage, after lawmakers unanimously approved the motion on Wednesday.
Employees in the country will be entitled to three days' leave after a miscarriage under the law, which is set to gain royal assent after passing its final stage in parliament.
Ginny Andersen, the Labour MP who introduced the bill, said it would make New Zealand only the second country to provide such a benefit to her knowledge. India allows women six weeks of leave after a miscarriage
CNBC News
Amazon blasts Bernie Sanders as he heads to Alabama to support union drive
Amazon’s consumer boss took a swipe at Sen. Bernie Sanders for planning a visit to Alabama, where a historic union election is currently underway at one of the company’s warehouses.
Dave Clark, CEO of Amazon’s worldwide consumer business, fired off a series of tweets late Wednesday and Thursday morning, defending the company’s labor practices and taking jabs at the independent senator from Vermont over the debate around raising the federal minimum wage.
On Friday, Sanders, rapper Killer Mike and actor Danny Glover are set to meet with Bessemer, Alabama, Amazon workers who are in the process of voting whether to join the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union. The meeting will take place at a RWDSU union hall in Birmingham, Alabama. Workers began voting by mail on Feb. 8 and ballots are due by Monday. Counting will begin the following day.
Reuters News
U.S. Supreme Court widens ability to sue police for excessive force
The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday expanded the ability of people to sue police for excessive force, ruling in favor of a New Mexico woman who filed a civil rights lawsuit after being shot by officers she had mistaken for carjackers.
The 5-3 decision allowed the woman, Roxanne Torres, to pursue her lawsuit accusing New Mexico State Police officers Richard Williamson and Janice Madrid of violating the U.S. Constitution’s Fourth Amendment ban on illegal searches and seizures even though she had not been immediately detained, or seized, in the incident.
The court determined that in order to sue for excessive force under the Fourth Amendment, it is not necessary for a plaintiff to have been physically seized by law enforcement.
Reuters News
California, Florida, North Carolina announce expanded COVID-19 vaccine eligibility
Several U.S. states on Thursday announced broad expansions of their COVID-19 vaccine rollouts, with California opening immunizations to all adults aged 50 and older starting April 1 and Florida making anyone 40 and up eligible from Monday.
California, the most populous state, said it would further widen vaccine eligibility to all individuals at least 16 years of age beginning April 15, while Florida, ranking third in U.S. population, said it would lower its age threshold to 18 and up on April 5.
North Carolina said it was accelerating its timeline for vaccination eligibility to begin making shots available to all adults on April 7.
Good News Network
Chimps From Two Czech Zoos are Zooming Each Other Every Day
If there was anyone in our society who didn’t know how to use Zoom, they do now. The demand for the superior video call platform has obliterated all others over the course of the pandemic, and its popularity is even crossing the species boundary.
Chimpanzees at two Czech zoos are, like the rest of us, staying in contact via Zoom, as the zoo staff seek to give them some company and stimulation during the long hours of isolation.
Chimp gang Dingo, Babeta, Bonnie, Suzi, Chispi and Mat at Safari Park Dvur Kralove have had their lives Zoom-displayed on giant screens in front of the simians at a Brno Zoo enclosure 90 miles away, and vice versa.