https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67664804



[b]"UN secretary general Ant├│nio Guterres spoke this afternoon about the "serious risk to the maintenance of international peace and security", citing the spillover of hostilities in "the occupied West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Yemen".[/b]
He triggered Article 99, prompting Friday's UN Security Council vote, because he believes this is a very urgent matter which must be brought to the attention of the council.
The Israeli government detests the UN and they detest the secretary general.


There was, Mr Guterres said, a high risk of the "total collapse of the humanitarian support system in Gaza". And the Palestinians say that is exactly what Israel wants because it wants to get all Palestinians out of Gaza.

Journalists are not permitted by Israel to enter Gaza so I can't report from there myself, but what the secretary general is saying sounds pretty accurate from the pictures and video we can see and the people we speak to.
By all the measures you can think of, the situation there for civilians is absolutely catastrophic, as they are subjected to a remorseless military campaign. Israel says they are doing what they can to save civilian lives but insists Hamas holds responsibility for using them as human shields.

At the UN, the Americans duly vetoed this resolution calling for a ceasefire. For those concerned about the significant loss of life, that does sound a bit hollow - the Americans claim the Israelis are saying they will stick to the rules of war and avoid unnecessary civilian deaths. But, they say, there is a gap between what Israel says and what it does.
I think the strategy behind the secretary general's decision to bring a vote - which he knew would probably get vetoed - was to hurry up the inevitable moment when the Americans will say to Israel: "Enough is enough, you've had enough time and killed enough people and it's time for a ceasefire."


https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67664854



[b]"The armed wing of Hamas has released a video which it says shows the bloody aftermath of a failed Israeli operation to free an Israeli hostage.[/b]
In the footage, a man says he has been held for 40 days, suggesting the video may have been recorded in mid-November.
A lot of blood is seen on a tiled floor, as well as military equipment, which Hamas claims to have captured.
The video ends with gruesome images of a bloodied body that appears to be that of the same hostage seen earlier.
We are withholding the man's name - he says this and his age in the video.
A script in Arabic says that Israeli soldiers "failed to reach" the hostage, leading to his death, and that the Israeli team "quickly fled the place".

It claims that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) used an ambulance to reach the place where the hostage was being held."




https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67666270



[b]"A 22-year-old Palestinian has told the BBC how he was detained with dozens of others by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in northern Gaza on Thursday.[/b]
Footage verified by the BBC shows a group of men stripped to their underwear, kneeling on the ground and being guarded by Israeli soldiers.
The man says he was forced to sit in the street for hours, handcuffed and blindfolded, before being driven away.
An Israeli official said the soldiers were searching for Hamas members.
Mark Regev, a senior adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, told the BBC they were looking for those "responsible for the massacre of October 7".
The detainees were taken by truck from Beit Lahia in northern Gaza to an unknown place, according to the young man - who asked to remain anonymous for his safety.


One image - which has not yet been verified by the BBC - shows men blindfolded, kneeling in what appears to be a large pit of bulldozed sand.
The 22-year-old says the place that he, his father, brother and five cousins were taken to was sandy - and they were left there almost naked but given a blanket at night.
After questioning, he says he was taken to another location before being told to go home, arriving at around 01:40 in the morning.
"They released all of us, except my father and eldest cousin. My father works for UNRWA. I don't know why they took him," he said.

UNRWA is the UN agency that supports Palestinian refugees.

One of the detained men, Diaa al-Kahlout - who has not been released yet, according to a colleague - is a correspondent for The New Arab, or Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, a London-based pan-Arab outlet.
Some of those later released told al-Kahlout's family that the journalist had been transferred to Zikim military base in Israel, according to Lamis Andoni of The New Arab."

Article explains well the science behind methane and agriculture.
More animals require more plants to feed them which in turn absorb more co2.
https://www.ruralnewsgroup.co.nz/rural-n...dis-credit

This man is the third most important man in government in America.

Mike Johnson thought the cameras were off. They werenÔÇÖt.


https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opin...rcna128126

My old Sky box has RCA terminals that I connect  a Digitech Transmitter and Receiver device that transmits an audio visual signal to a TV in another room.
Worked well for years.
Now, I am offered the New Sky box, but it has HDMI terminals and no RCA.
Should I stick with the old Sky box, or is there a method to connect the old with the new?
TIA, Peter.

Who knew!

Winston being Winston again . 


There is only one of him, for which we're all extremely thankful.

ome/politics/2023/12/winston-peters-appears-to-claim-credit-for-making-three-women-pm-in-speech-audience-member-calls-it-gross.html



"Winston Peters has credited himself with the political pinnacles of Aotearoa's only three female PMs, telling an audience at Parliament: "In my career, I made three women Prime Minister."   

Novel idea which could work well. She assaulted a worker at a chipotle

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-67619012



[b]"An Ohio woman who was convicted of assault for hurling a burrito bowl at a Chipotle worker was offered an unusual way to reduce her time in jail.[/b]
A judge has ordered Rosemary Hayne, 39, must now work at a fast-food job for two months.
Hayne was captured in a viral video screaming at a Chipotle employee before throwing her food in the worker's face.
At first, she was slated to pay a fine and serve 180 days in jail, with 90 days suspended.
But then, the judge had another idea.
"You didn't get your burrito bowl the way you like it, and this is how you respond?" Judge Timothy Gilligan told Hayne at her sentencing in Parma, Ohio.



"This is not 'Real Housewives of Parma.' This behaviour is not acceptable," he said, according to local Fox affiliate WJW.
Mr Gilligan told Hayne she could cut off 60 days in jail if she agreed to work at least 20 hours per week at a fast-food restaurant for two months."

I have been using this programme for more than 10 years,
In recent weeks it has started to "self start" intruding over the top of the app I am in.
. There is a message which has a tab stating FAQs etc. and a box to tick saying "do not show this message again'. I tick that box, save and press top right X to close.
The intrusive behaviour continues. I select the Cute pdf app but it does not show any option to overcome this recent self start".
Any ideas? It really irritates me

thanks

For pulling off an X rated publicity stunt.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/kiw...7B7XAQSCE/

Amazing end of year concert by St Andrews College students in ChCh

When I think of the rubbish modern "pop" music these days. it is great to see young people playing tricky guitar solos.

Stairway to Heaven

Nothing in the treaty demands two classes of people, nor does it require a maori health authority.
The maori today were protesting against democracy.
NZ has been far too divided and it's time to treat everyone here in this country as one people regardless of race or ancestry.
Equal rights and treatment for everyone, no place for race based Healthcare.
Luxon is undoing all the divisive policies labour put in place.
Nz first and act both have maori MPs along with national anyway, but get slammed as racist.
Good news is winston and Seymour won't back down and I'm sure luxon will demonstrate that he can unite everyone with a health system treats everybody the same.