World News

Summary

Former Labor Secretary Robert Reich urged a global boycott of U.S. travel to protest Trump’s policies, warning his administration is “brutally attacking U.S. democracy.”

In a Guardian op-ed, Reich called on foreign visitors, students, and skilled workers to reconsider coming, citing economic and safety concerns. He argued withholding tourism revenue could pressure Trump.

His plea follows Trump’s anti-immigration crackdown and rising tensions with Canada.

Reich’s call comes as Canadian travel to the U.S. has already shown signs of decline.

Archived at https://web.archive.org/web/20250319111518/https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/17/i-escaped-one-gulag-only-to-end-up-in-another-russian-asylum-seekers-face-ice-detention-in-the-us

Summary

Hours after Trump and Putin agreed to halt attacks on energy infrastructure, Russia launched drone and missile strikes on Ukraine, damaging homes and injuring civilians.

A hospital in Sumy was hit, forcing evacuations. Ukraine also struck a Russian oil depot. Putin rejected a full ceasefire, demanding an end to Western military aid to Ukraine.

Trump praised the call as "productive," while Zelenskyy awaited U.S. clarification before responding.

Talks on a broader ceasefire will begin Sunday in Jeddah, but skepticism remains over Russia’s commitment to peace.

Summary

Hungary passed a new anti-LGBTQ+ law banning Pride events and allowing facial recognition to identify attendees, sparking large protests in Budapest.

Protesters blockaded the Margaret Bridge over the Danube, blocking traffic and ignoring police orders to leave. The law, passed 136-27, amends Hungary’s “child protection” legislation, which already restricts LGBTQ+ content.

Critics call it an attempt to scapegoat LGBTQ+ people and distract from economic issues.

Despite repression, support for Budapest Pride is growing, with many vowing to attend in defiance of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s crackdown.

CAIRO, March 19 (Reuters) - A foreign national was killed and four other people were wounded in an Israeli airstrike on the site of a United Nations headquarters in central Gaza City on Wednesday, Gaza's health ministry said.

Summary

Putin rejected Trump’s proposal for a 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine, instead demanding a halt to all foreign military aid, a condition Kyiv cannot accept.

Analysts see this as an unrealistic bid to weaken Ukraine. Trump secured only a limited agreement: Russia would stop bombing Ukraine’s energy infrastructure if Kyiv halted attacks on Russian refineries.

Meanwhile, Europe reaffirmed support for Ukraine. Talks will continue, but Russia appears intent on sidelining Ukraine and isolating the U.S. from its allies, raising concerns about its true motives.

Just hours after US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks on a potential cease-fire in Moscow's war on Ukraine, Russian drone strikes hit Ukrainian civilian infrastructure in the country, including on power generation infrastructure that Putin had agreed to spare in the phone call, Kyiv said.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/27386046

For better context in the broader timeline: Yesterday, the government pressured the university he graduated from to falsify his diploma. Law enforcement previously conducted raids and arrested various elected mayors, and is also keeping Umit Ozdag, leader of Zafer Party in jail without any reasonable justification.

Istanbul Republic Chief Prosecution Office has ordered arrest on 100 people that include politicians, journalists and businessmen, and Erdogan's biggest rival candidate for president, Ekrem Imamoglu, who is also the current mayor of Istanbul.

By MEE staff Published date: 18 March 2025 20:17 GMT

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/58861266

Summary

Hungary’s parliament passed a law banning Pride events and allowing facial recognition to identify and fine attendees.

The legislation, backed by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s party, passed 136-27 and expands Hungary’s “child protection” law, which restricts LGBTQ+ content. Amnesty International condemned it as a “full-frontal attack” on LGBTQ+ rights.

Critics argue Orbán is scapegoating minorities to distract from economic issues and boost far-right support ahead of elections.

Budapest Pride organizers vowed to proceed with their march despite fines of up to 200,000 forints (£425).

Beijing would like to participate in the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine, China’s foreign aid and international development agency announced on Monday.

Israeli attacks on Tuesday killed at least 174 Palestinian children in Gaza, causing “one of the largest one-day child death tolls” in the territory’s history, the civil society group Defense for Children has said.

“Israeli forces have signed a death warrant for Palestinian children in Gaza as they carry out nonstop attacks, continue to destroy civilian infrastructure, and prevent any humanitarian aid from reaching Palestinians in need,” Ayed Abu Eqtaish, accountability programme director at DCIP, said in a statement.

“This is nothing short of genocide.”

The French government is reportedly planning to send a “survival manual” to every household in the country with instructions on how to prepare for an “imminent threat” including armed conflict, a health crisis or a natural disaster.

If approved by François Bayrou, the prime minister, the 20-page booklet will be sent to households before the summer, French media reported.

It will be divided into three parts with advice on how to protect “yourself and those around you”, what to do if a threat is imminent – with a list of emergency numbers, radio channels and a reminder to close doors and windows if the threat is nuclear – and details of how to get involved in defending your community, including signing up for reserve units or firefighting groups.

MBFC
Archive

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/27372199

Rasha Abou Jalal
Mar 18, 2025

No one in Gaza feels safe. Israeli warplanes circle the skies nonstop, bombing civilian homes mercilessly, killing dozens without reason.

The airstrikes last night killed more than 400 Palestinians, including 174 children, 89 women, and 32 elderly people.

We’re still in shock. My eight-year-old daughter can no longer sleep.

I tried to comfort her, to help her sleep, but she kept waking up crying. She told me, “Mama, every time I close my eyes, I feel like another bomb is falling on us.”

dipos-lintas dari: https://lemmy.ml/post/27373322

Summary :

The International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) has launched a global coalition called Global 195, aiming to pursue legal action against Israelis and Israeli dual nationals accused of involvement in suspected war crimes in Gaza. The coalition, which includes former detectives and legal scholars from around the world, plans to use domestic and international legal mechanisms to seek justice against Israeli soldiers and others. The ICJP has collected 135 eyewitness testimonies from Gaza and is working with former detectives to ensure the evidence meets a high standard. This initiative is one of several launched since Israel's bombardment of Gaza in 2023, and its goal is to create accountability for war crimes committed by Israeli forces.

Summary

Europol reports that Russia and other state actors are using criminal networks to conduct sabotage, cyber-attacks, and migrant smuggling to destabilize the EU.

The agency’s 2025 threat assessment describes a “shadow alliance” where criminals act as proxies for state-backed hybrid threats. Recent attacks, including arson in Lithuania and Poland, have been linked to Russian intelligence.

Officials warn of ongoing security risks, including AI-driven cybercrime.

Europol says these tactics aim to weaken institutions through persistent disruptions rather than large-scale attacks.

Germany’s parliament has voted in favour of unleashing historic levels of spending to boost the military of Europe’s biggest economy and inject its infrastructure with investments worth hundreds of billions of euros.

Incoming conservative chancellor Friedrich Merz along with the Social Democrats (SPD), his likely coalition partners after last month’s election, led the drive for the creation of a €500bn fund and relaxation of its constitutionally protected debt rules. The parties secured the last-minute backing of the Greens, which was needed to push the plans through the outgoing parliament.

. . .

Merz told MPs the package was mainly motivated by “Putin’s war of aggression against Europe”, listing a range of suspected Russian sabotage “taking place every day” against Germany. He said these included attacks on critical infrastructure, arson attacks, spying and disinformation campaigns, as well as broader “attempts to divide and marginalise the European Union”.

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Archive

As United States President Donald Trump pushes ceasefire talks with Russia, top European officials gathering for a security conference on the other side of the world warned that Vladimir Putin isn’t actually interested in any meaningful peace deal.

Summary

Hungary’s parliament passed a law banning LGBTQ+ Pride events, including the annual Budapest Pride march, in a 136-27 vote.

The ruling Fidesz party and its coalition partner fast-tracked the measure, arguing that Pride events harm children. The law allows authorities to fine attendees up to $550 and use facial recognition for enforcement.

Opposition lawmakers protested with smoke bombs, while Budapest Pride organizers condemned the law as political scapegoating.

Critics view the move as part of Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s broader crackdown on LGBTQ+ rights amid economic struggles and upcoming elections.

Israel will continue its new offensive in Gaza until Hamas releases all hostages and “all threats to residents of the south [of Israel] are removed”, the country’s defence minister said on Tuesday, raising the prospect of many weeks or even months of war in the devastated Palestinian territory.

“Hamas must understand that the rules of the game have changed,” Israel Katz told reporters during a visit to an airbase, adding that “the gates of hell will open and it will face the full might of the IDF in the air, at sea and on land” if remaining hostages were not freed.

The threat came after Israel launched a wave of airstrikes that killed more than 400 people, shattering the pause in hostilities since mid-January in Gaza in the bloodiest single day of violence since the first months of the war in 2023.

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The Houthis' military spokesman Yahya Saree said in a statement posted on X that the group targeted Israel's Nevatim air base with a "hypersonic ballistic missile type Palestine 2".

Israel said it intercepted the missile, after air raid sirens sounded in several areas in Israel's south.

Sirens went off in Beersheba and parts of the Negev desert, according to the Israeli military's Home Front Command.

It was the first reported attack on Israel from Yemen since a ceasefire in the Israeli genocidal war on Gaza came into force on January 19.

Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump spoke on the telephone for more than an hour and a half on Tuesday, March 18. According to the Kremlin’s readout, shared on Telegram, the Russian and American leaders “continued a detailed and candid exchange of views on the situation surrounding Ukraine,” with Putin thanking Trump “for his efforts to contribute to the noble goal of ending hostilities and preventing further loss of life.” Moscow repeated that any settlement must address “the root causes of the crisis” and “Russia’s legitimate security interests” in Ukraine. The most immediate result of the conversation appears to be Putin’s agreement to a “mutual 30-day suspension of strikes on energy infrastructure.”