Kamala Harris per il cessate il fuoco a Gaza. Trump eleggibile 🗞️ Rassegna del 5/3/2024

Israele

(Reuters) Israel carries out biggest Ramallah raid in years

• Israeli forces raided the Palestinian administrative capital of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank overnight, killing a 16-year-old in a refugee camp during their biggest such operation into the city in years, Palestinian sources said on Monday
• In a separate West Bank raid, Israeli forces killed a 10-year-old boy and in the village of Burin, south of Nablus, the Palestinian news agency WAFA reported. Citing medical sources, it said the boy had been shot in the head by Israeli soldiers. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
• The Israeli military said security forces had conducted a six hour-long operation in the camp, apprehending two wanted suspects, questioning others and seizing "inciting material spread by Hamas". "During the operation, a violent riot developed, in which suspects hurled rocks and Molotov cocktails at Israeli security forces, who responded with live fire. A hit was identified," it said.

(New York Times) Middle East CrisisHarris Calls for ‘Immediate Cease-Fire,’ Urging Hamas to Agree

• Vice President Kamala Harris on Sunday called for an “immediate cease-fire” in Gaza, saying that Hamas should agree to the six-week pause currently on the table and that Israel should increase the flow of aid into the besieged enclave amid a humanitarian crisis.
• Ms. Harris assailed the dire conditions in Gaza, calling the situation a “humanitarian catastrophe.” It was her most forceful assessment to date of the Middle East conflict, which has killed more than 30,000 Palestinians, according to Gazan health authorities, and put the enclave on the brink of famine.
• Ms. Harris also said on Sunday that Israel must do more to allow for the flow of aid into Gaza, including opening new border crossings, lifting unnecessary restrictions on aid deliveries and restoring services to Gaza.

Europa

Germania:

(Reuters) Germany accuses Russia of seeking to divide Europe with leaked call

• Germany accused Russia on Monday of leaking an intercepted recording of German military discussions about how to support Ukraine against the Kremlin's invasion in an attempt to divide Europe.
• "This hybrid attack aimed to generate insecurity and divide us," a government spokesman said on Monday. "And that is exactly what we will not allow. We are in constant contact with our partners."
• A spokesman for British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told reporters the leak was a matter for Germany to investigate and Britain would continue to work with Germany to support Ukraine. Still, he added that Britain was the first country to provide long-range precision strike missiles to Ukraine "and we would encourage our allies to do the same".

Albania:

(Reuters) Albania, wary of Russia, reopens Soviet-era air base to NATO

• NATO member Albania, which has no fighter jets of its own, opened a rebuilt Soviet-era air base to serve NATO aircraft on Monday amid an increased threat from Russia, Prime Minister Edi Rama said. NATO has spent over 50 million euros ($54.26 million) on the Kucova Air Base to bolster its presence in the region.
• Two fighter jets flying from NATO's Aviano Air Base in Italy landed in Kucova to mark the reopening of the airfield.
• The air base is located in the small town of Kucova once known as "Stalin City" when Soviet and Chinese-made MIGs were on standby for orders to scramble in the case of a war with the West that never arrived. The likely targets then were Austria, Germany, Italy and Denmark, Rama said. "Today we live in a different era and fortunately Albania is on the other side," Rama said.

Francia:

(Associated Press) Abortion is enshrined as a constitutional right in France after lawmakers approve an amendment

• In an exceptional joint session of parliament convened at the Palace of Versailles, the bill was approved in a 780-72 vote. Abortion enjoys wide support in France across most of the political spectrum, and has been legal since 1975.
• None of France’s major political parties represented in parliament have questioned the right to abortion, including Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally party and the conservative Republicans. However, some lawmakers have voted against inscribing abortion right into the constitution in previous votes in both houses.

UE:

(New York Times) Apple Fined $2 Billion by E.U. for Using App Store to Thwart Competition

• The penalty, announced by the E.U. antitrust regulator, is the culmination of a five-year investigation set in motion by one of its biggest rivals, Spotify. Regulators said Apple illegally used its App Store dominance to box out rivals.
• The action by the European Commission, the E.U. executive branch, is the latest in a series of regulations and penalties to target the App Store. Most of the disputes are because Apple requires that apps use its in-app payment service for sales. It takes as much as a 30 percent commission on each transaction, a fee that many developers say is excessive.
• Apple said it would appeal the ruling. “While we respect the European Commission, the facts simply don’t support this decision,” Apple said in a statement on Monday.

NATO:

(Guardian) Norway, Sweden and Finland host Nato military exercises

• The joint defence exercise, which runs until 14 March, was previously known as Cold Response and held in northern Norway, a founding Nato member, every other year. In recognition of Finland’s recent membership of the western military alliance, and with Sweden expected to join imminently, this year it is being designated Nordic Response for the first time.
• Nordic Response is part of an ongoing series of Nato exercises, Steadfast Defender, involving 90,000 soldiers. It is also closely aligned with the UK-led naval exercise Joint Warrior, which ran between Scotland, Norway and Iceland last week.
• The Swedish government is anxiously awaiting the final signoff from Hungary to finally complete its Nato membership. It had been hoped the process could have been finished off last week, but having only been signed by the speaker of Hungary’s parliament on Sunday it still needs to be signed by the president before the documentation can go to Washington.

Politica internazionale

Nord America

Stati Uniti:

(Reuters) Trump wins Colorado ballot disqualification case at US Supreme Court

• The justices unanimously overturned a Dec. 19 decision by Colorado's top court to kick the former president off the state's Tuesday Republican primary ballot after finding that the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment disqualified him from again holding public office. The Colorado court had found that Trump took part in an insurrection for inciting and supporting the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by his supporters.
• The justices determined that only Congress can enforce the constitutional provision against federal officeholders and candidates. But four of the nine justices, including the court's three liberal members, faulted the rest of the court for announcing rules limiting how the provision may be enforced in the future.

(Guardian) Jack Teixeira agrees to prison sentence of 16 years over Pentagon leaks – report

• Jack Teixeira, the 22-year-old charged with leaking classified US military documents to fellow gamers on a social media platform, agreed on Monday to accept a prison sentence of 16 years.
• As part of his plea agreement Teixeira must sit for a debrief with the US Department of Defense and Department of Justice, and return any sensitive materials that may still be in his possession.
• Following Teixeira’s arrest, his unit’s commanding officer, Sean Riley, was removed and 14 other officers and enlisted personnel with the air national guard were reprimanded.

Medio Oriente

Iran:

(Reuters) Iran election turnout hits record low, hardliners maintain grip on parliament

• Turnout in Iran's parliamentary election was around 41%, the country's interior minister said on Monday, the lowest participation since Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution that swept the clerical rulers into power.
• "Authorities should listen to the silent majority ... and reform the governance method ... I hope they realise before it's too late to reverse the damage and harm this path will cause," state media quoted reformist politician Azar Mansouri as saying.
• Activists and opposition groups, arguing that a high turnout would legitimise the Islamic Republic, had called for a boycott by widely distributing the hashtags #VOTENoVote and #ElectionCircus on the social media platform X.

Asia e Pacifico

Corea del Sud:

(Deutsche Welle) US, South Korea launch drills to counter North's threat

• The joint military exercises are happening from March 4-14, and come as Pyongyang continues to develop its nuclear capabilities with missile and other weapons tests. It has twice the number of troops from both US and South Korea as compared to last year, in 48 rounds of combined field training, including live-firing, bombing, air assault and missile interception drills, said South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).
• The exercises aim to neutralize North Korea's nuclear threat. One of the methods is by "identifying and striking" cruise missiles, which Pyongyang maintains could carry nuclear warheads, JCS spokesperson Colonel Lee Sung-jun said.  He said a nuclear attack scenario will be integrated into summertime drills.
• Experts believe the chances of North Korea launching a full-blown attack are slim, as Pyongyang is aware it is outmatched by the militaries of Washington and Seoul. They say North Korea believes an advanced nuclear arsenal will increase its leverage in future diplomacy.