Latest news bulletin | December 7th – Midday
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00:00 Israel`s offensive against Hamas militants in southern Gaza intensifies as humanitarian
00:05 conditions worsen. The UN has called for an immediate ceasefire.
00:10 There are key differences between the EU and China that must be addressed. That`s according
00:14 to Commission Chief Ursula von der Leyen as talks with China`s president commence in Beijing.
00:21 Kiev faces headwinds as the U.S. Senate blocks a multibillion-euro aid package, a move Democrats
00:26 warn could work in Russia`s favor.
00:31 At least three people have been killed at a university in the U.S. state of Nevada.
00:35 Police have neutralized the suspect and have yet to determine a motive.
00:43 Israel`s intensive air and ground offensive in southern Gaza continues. Its forces are
00:48 said to be operating in the heart of the city of Can Yunis. 25 percent of the city is under
00:53 evacuation orders. Meanwhile, Hamas militants are reportedly relying on improvised bombs
00:59 to inflict casualties and slow down the assault. The IDF and Hamas have released images of
01:05 the fighting.
01:06 The conflict has displaced thousands more Palestinians and worsened the territory`s
01:10 dire humanitarian conditions. The United Nations has called for an immediate ceasefire, a demand
01:16 backed by Europe`s foreign policy chief Joseph Bure.
01:20 Forces continue to take in the wounded but are overwhelmed and can often only give the
01:24 most basic treatment to dangerously injured individuals. Gaza`s health ministry has said
01:29 1,207 Palestinians have been killed since the collapse of the temporary ceasefire at
01:34 the beginning of the month. 70 percent of the dead are women and children.
01:39 Israel`s security cabinet has agreed to allow minimal amounts of fuel enter the Gaza Strip
01:44 to "prevent a humanitarian collapse and the outbreak of disease." It maintains Hamas
01:50 brought war to Gaza after their cross-border attack on the 7th of October.
01:55 The UN says some 1.87 million people, over 80 percent of the population of 2.3 million
02:01 people have already fled their homes. Many of them have been displaced several times.
02:06 Medical experts are now concerned that epidemics could spread.
02:13 Finnish artist Sharlina performing the song "Pieces of Me" on Wednesday in Brussels won
02:30 about her experience of surviving child abuse. She was one of many activists and survivors
02:35 that handed over a petition with more than 500,000 signatures to the European Parliament
02:40 collected by NGO Justice Initiative.
02:44 They are asking for a strong regulation to prevent and combat online child abuse after
02:48 the text approved by the Parliament`s Legal Affairs Committee weakened the European Commission`s
02:53 initial proposal.
02:57 So many young children experience sexual violence in their childhood and nowadays more than
03:01 ever because we have this new online playground which has no safety regulations to protect
03:07 children from these horrible crimes. And for me as a survivor, it`s really important to
03:11 ensure that no one needs to experience what I experienced.
03:15 The European Parliament text eliminated the ability of online platforms to voluntarily
03:19 detect and remove child abuse material which can only be done after a court order. This
03:25 is with the aim of protecting the individual privacy of online users.
03:30 The court will order it very quick and we have also put in a lot of measures to prevent
03:35 material to circulate because that`s the most important thing. We want to protect our children
03:39 to become a victim. Maybe it`s not 100 percent like we all want, but it`s a compromise which
03:46 we really can defend, which is a big step forward to protect the children`s rights.
03:51 One in three Internet users is a child and last year, there were 32 million reports globally
03:55 of suspected online child sexual exploitation. One Dutch MEP who`s part of the Child Rights
04:02 Intergroup also expects companies to step up their own capacities.
04:07 The part of legislation which is heavily debated is that it`s technology neutral. Is that really
04:12 the case? Because as the moment speaks, a lot of technological companies are saying
04:17 to us we only have limited capacity to do so. But I`m a big believer in the power of
04:22 innovation and the power of technology.
04:26 Negotiations between the European Parliament and member states is due to start soon. Many
04:30 EU countries are divided and want more time to debate the issue internally. If passed,
04:37 the legislation would be one of the most comprehensive in the world and could become a benchmark
04:41 for other regions.
04:51 China`s President Xi Jinping shakes hands with European Council President Charles Michel
04:55 and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Beijing. It`s their first in-person
05:00 meeting since 2019. The focus of the one-day EU-China summit is to exchange views on strategic
05:07 and global economic issues. Topics are likely to include the capital state subsidies for
05:12 the electric vehicle industry. In her opening remarks to the press, von der Leyen said China
05:17 is the EU`s most important trading partner, but there are clear imbalances and differences
05:22 that must be resolved.
05:23 The former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori has been released from prison on humanitarian
05:31 grounds with a reinstated pardon from the Constitutional Court. Fujimori was jailed
05:36 in 2009 over the killings of 25 people by army death squads in the early 1990s in a
05:42 purported anti-terrorism operation. He was also investigated over forced sterilization
05:48 of thousands of indigenous women in his final four years of power. He was released into
05:53 the care of his daughter Keiko, herself a former presidential candidate.
06:02 The political leader of Bosnian Serbs, Milorad Dodic, has made a brief appearance at the
06:08 opening of his trial on Wednesday. He`s being indicted for refusing to recognize rulings
06:14 made by the international envoy charged with overseeing the enforcement of the Dayton Agreement
06:19 that ended the country`s bloody civil war in the 1990s.
06:25 If found guilty in this unprecedented trial, he could face up to five years in jail, as
06:30 well as a ban from politics.
06:36 Italy has officially informed Beijing of its decision to withdraw from China`s Belt and
06:41 Road Initiative. It ends months of speculation over a relationship that has irritated Rome`s
06:46 Western allies. It was the only G7 member to have joined the international trade group.
06:53 Italy signed the pact in 2019 expecting a big boost to exports, but hope for economic
06:59 gains have not materialized.
07:01 However, Prime Minister Giorgia Maloney emphasized that her government was seeking to maintain
07:06 good relations with China despite the move.
07:12 Ukraine`s war effort has become embroiled in U.S. political squabbles with Republican
07:16 senators, blocking a White House request for 98 billion euros in emergency aid, primarily
07:22 for Ukraine and Israel.
07:24 The Republicans insisted that it be tied to sweeping U.S. immigration and asylum reforms.
07:29 They're angry at the lack of government action on an estimated 10,000 migrants crossing over
07:34 from Mexico daily.
07:36 Chuck Schumer, the Democrat Senate majority leader, spelled out the dangers of such action.
07:42 If Republicans in the Senate do not get serious very soon about a national security package,
07:49 Vladimir Putin is going to walk right through Ukraine and right through Europe.
07:56 Hours before the vote, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had called on G7 leaders
08:00 to remain effective against Russia.
08:03 In the video link, he said Moscow is hoping next year the free world`s consolidation efforts
08:07 will collapse.
08:09 The European Union and the U.S. have committed most of the aid received by Ukraine since
08:13 Russia`s full-scale invasion began.
08:15 In fact, Washington had just signed off on 162 million euro weapons package, but it`s
08:21 feared U.S. coffers could be running out.
08:26 The number of Republican presidential candidates was reduced to just four for the final primary
08:31 debate in Alabama on Wednesday.
08:34 In a lively debate between Ron DeSantis, Nikki Haley, Chris Christie and Vivek Ramaswamy,
08:40 attention was focused on Haley, who drew fire from the others after gaining the support
08:45 of the wealthy Koch network.
08:47 Republican front-runner Donald Trump once again skipped the forum.
08:51 He has an overwhelming lead in the polls and wants the party to cancel the debate, arguing
08:56 that no candidate can catch him.
09:03 Police patrolling Nevada University campus on Wednesday morning and students quickly
09:07 evacuating.
09:08 U.S. law enforcement said it responded to calls of shots fired inside UNLV.
09:14 At least three people were killed.
09:16 Officers confirmed they neutralized the suspected assailant on site.
09:21 You know, it`s very scary when you go to a college campus as open as this one.
09:24 You pay the money to come here and these are the leaders of tomorrow.
09:28 Students were told to barricade themselves in classrooms when the shots rang out.
09:32 They have been allowed to return to campus housing, but the university will be closed
09:36 for the rest of the week.
09:37 Police haven`t released any details about the victims or a possible motive.
09:41 Nevada University is home to more than 30,000 students.
09:45 It`s located about a kilometer and a half from the Las Vegas strip.
09:49 In 2017, 60 people were killed in a massacre at an outdoor music festival nearby.
09:54 One of the deadliest shootings in recent U.S. history.
10:06 Our planet is at risk from a series of dangerous tipping points, according to a new scientific
10:11 report released today.
10:13 That means the kinds of changes that could happen in just a couple of years and have
10:16 a massive impact on humanity.
10:19 I spoke to the report author, Professor Tim Lenton.
10:22 So, our global tipping points report shows that we`re already at risk of tipping five
10:28 damaging system tipping points, the loss of a couple of major ice sheets, disruption of
10:35 the circulation of the North Atlantic, affecting the climate in Europe where we are, as well
10:40 as losing large areas of permafrost that adds a global warming and triggering the dieback
10:45 of coral reefs that half a billion people depend on for their livelihoods.
10:49 The tipping points that may be passed don`t just have implications for places like coral
10:55 reefs or tropical forests.
10:57 Also, the kinds of changes he`s talking about in the Atlantic could have major impacts for
11:03 Europeans.
11:04 As a British and European citizen, I`m most concerned about a tipping point in what`s
11:09 called the subpolar gyre of the North Atlantic.
11:12 The last time this tipped, it gave us a little ice age in Europe.
11:15 We`re not adapted for a sudden shift to a much more seasonal climate that would have
11:19 much colder, snowier winters, as well as hotter summers and reduce the growing season for
11:26 major crops by a couple of months, as well as major disruption to water supplies.
11:30 A key takeaway is that it`s not just every degree of warming that counts, it`s every
11:34 0.1 degree of warming that counts when it comes to these tipping points.
11:38 The message the scientists hope will be getting through to delegates here.
11:42 Jeremy Wilkes at COP28 in Dubai for Euronews.
11:45 [SWOOSH]