Others
NATO's biggest drills since the Cold War send a signal to Russia and aim for a real-life feel
Large NATO drills in the frigid fjords of northern Norway may be just war games meant to hone the fighting skills of the newly expanded 32-nation military alliance. But for troops taking part, they are very real.
And that's the whole point.
With drills underway now, NATO is baring its fangs in its biggest exercises since the Cold War, sending an unmistakable message to Russia that alliance members are ready to defend each other if needed.
Having watched Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, now in its third year, the NATO training aims to cover all eventualities. That can include trying to catch troops off guard.
This week, crew members aboard the French frigate Normandie, one of France's most modern warships, were roused from sleep and scrambled to hunt down and destroy a submarine that snuck into cold Norwegian waters.
The submarine belongs to Germany, also a NATO member. But for the purpose of the war games dubbed Nordic Response 2024, it was acting as an enemy vessel.
The Normandie crew spotted its periscope poking through the waves and sprang into action. The submarine had already "attacked" a nearby Italian ship, the aircraft carrier Giuseppe Garibaldi, scoring an imaginary torpedo hit.
The crew were determined not to let Normandie — a top-of-the-line vessel, in service only since 2020 — suffer the indignity of also being struck.
An urgent 7 a.m. call got Normandie's commander, Capt. Thomas Vuong, up from his bunk. He ordered the frigate's submarine-hunting helicopter to be readied for flight, waking its pilot.
"We spotted its attack periscope," Vuong told The Associated Press on board Normandie in an exclusive interview.
"Then it dived again," he said. "We were asked to hunt for it. We succeeded."
Once airborne, the Normandie's NH90 helicopter hovered over the waves and lowered its submarine-detecting sonar into the sea. The frigate also used its sonar, and together, they zeroed in on the sub's position and "attacked" it in turn.
"Intelligence confirmed to us that there were no friendly submarines in the sector, so we were certain that it was an enemy submarine," the helicopter pilot, Lt. Olivier, recounted. The French navy withheld his last name for security reasons.
"So the frigate was able to fire a torpedo and destroy the submarine," he added — but not for real, of course.
The frigate and its helicopter pinpointed the submarine with sufficient accuracy to be sure that it wouldn't have survived had actual torpedoes been fired.
The Normandie crew of 146 mariners got no advance warning of the German sub "attack," to test their readiness in the inhospitable environment above the Arctic Circle, Vuong said.
As of this week, NATO nations now also include Sweden. It formally joined on Thursday as the 32nd member, ending decades of post-World War II neutrality. Finland had already joined NATO in April 2023 in a historic move after decades of its military nonalignment.
In both countries, Russia's aggression in Ukraine triggered a dramatic shift in public opinion, leading to their May 2022 applications to join the trans-Atlantic alliance.
The Nordic drill in the northern regions of Finland, Norway and Sweden involves more than 20,000 soldiers from 13 nations and kicked off on Monday. It is part of wider exercises called Steadfast Defender 24. They are NATO's biggest in decades, with up to 90,000 troops involved over several months. They're aimed at showing the alliance can defend all of its territory up to its borders with Russia.
German submariners are more familiar than Normandie with Norway's deep and narrow fjords and the cold Arctic waters that can complicate submarine detection, Vuong said.
The drill was "extremely beneficial, because we reach a very high degree of realism and so we better prepare our teams," he said. "The fjords are a special environment, with a temperature profile different to what we know in the Atlantic."
"To be able to train our teams here, against this threat, is extremely valuable and extremely stimulating," he added. "This is their playing field. So they know the hiding places."
Sea route for Gaza aid gains momentum as cease-fire talks stall
The United States and Europe are seeking to open a sea route that would bring humanitarian aid into Gaza, as alarm grows over the spread of hunger among the besieged territory's 2.3 million people.
However, aid officials say deliveries by ships or recent airdrops are far more costly and inefficient than sending trucks by land. And on Friday, five people in Gaza were killed and several others injured when airdrops malfunctioned and hit people and landed on homes, Palestinian officials said.
After more than five months of Israel's blistering military campaign, much of Gaza is in ruins. The U.N. says a quarter of the population faces starvation. Many of the estimated 300,000 people still living in northern Gaza have been reduced to eating animal fodder to survive.
Efforts to reach a cease-fire before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan appear stalled. Israeli strikes killed 78 people and wounded 104 across the territory in the past 24 hours, Gaza’s Health Ministry said Friday.
It’s not just Israeli bombs that have killed children in Gaza. Now some are dying of hunger too
That brings the number of Palestinians killed to more than 30,800, according to the Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip. The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its figures but says women and children make up around two-thirds of all casualties.
Israel launched its offensive after Hamas-led militants stormed across the border on Oct. 7, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250. Over 100 hostages were released during a temporary cease-fire in November in exchange for 240 Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.
After months of warnings of famine in Gaza, some children begin to succumb in rising deaths
Proposed UN resolution calls for ceasefire in conflict-torn Sudan during upcoming Muslim holy month
Britain has circulated a draft U.N. resolution calling for an immediate cessation of hostilities in conflict-wracked Sudan ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which begins soon.
The draft, obtained late Wednesday by The Associated Press, expresses “grave concern over the spreading violence and the catastrophic and deteriorating humanitarian situation, including crisis levels of acute food insecurity, particularly in Darfur.”
With Ramadan expected to begin around Sunday, depending on the sighting of the new moon, the council is expected to vote quickly on the resolution, likely on Friday.
Rape and sexual violence in Sudan's ongoing conflict may amount to war crimes, a new UN report says
Sudan plunged into chaos last April, when long-simmering tensions between its military led by Gen. Abdel Fattah Burhan and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces commanded by Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo broke out into street battles in the capital, Khartoum.
Fighting spread to other parts of the country, especially urban areas, but in Sudan’s western Darfur region it took on a different form, with brutal attacks by the Arab-dominated Rapid Support Forces on ethnic African civilians. Thousands of people have been killed.
Two decades ago, Darfur became synonymous with genocide and war crimes, particularly by the notorious Janjaweed Arab militias against populations that identify as Central or East African.
The International Criminal Court’s prosecutor, Karim Khan, said in late January there are grounds to believe both sides in the current conflict are committing possible war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide in Darfur.
UN says up to 300,000 Sudanese fled their homes after a notorious group seized their safe haven
Meanwhile, France’s U.N. ambassador, Nicolas de Riviere, said, “It would be a disgrace if we have a Ramadan truce in Sudan and no Ramadan truce in Gaza.”
“We need both,” he said.
The United States vetoed a resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza on Feb. 20 that was supported by almost the entire 15-member Security Council.
The U.S. is negotiating on its own proposed Gaza resolution, with the latest draft calling for a "ceasefire of roughly six weeks in Gaza together with the release of all hostages” as soon as Israel and Hamas agree. The draft makes no mention of Ramadan.
The latest draft on a Sudan ceasefire was circulated on the same day the head of the U.N. food agency warned that the Sudan conflict “risks triggering the world’s largest hunger crisis” as global attention is focused on the Israel-Hamas war.
Cindy McCain, head of the World Food Program, said the conflict in Sudan has shattered the lives of millions and called for the warring parties to stop fighting and allow humanitarian agencies to provide life-saving assistance.
According to that U.N. agency, 18 million people across Sudan are facing acute hunger, with the most desperate trapped behind the front lines. They include 5 million who face starvation, it said.
The proposed U.N. resolution calls on all parties to remove obstructions and allow “full, rapid, safe and unhindered humanitarian access” including across Sudan’s borders and across conflict lines.
The draft also urges strengthened coordination of several regional and international efforts “to facilitate an end to the conflict and to restore a lasting inclusive civilian-led democratic transition.”
U.N. experts said in a report obtained by AP on March 1 that fighters for the Rapid Support Forces and their allied militias carried out widespread ethnic killings and rapes while taking control of much of Darfur that may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The report to the Security Council painted a horrifying picture of the brutality of the Arab-dominated RSF against Africans in Darfur. It also detailed how the force succeeded in gaining control of four out of Darfur’s five states, including through complex financial networks that involve dozens of companies.
North Korea's Kim calls for stronger war fighting capabilities against the US and South Korea
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un called for greater war fighting capabilities against the United States and South Korea, state media reported Thursday, after his defense ministry vowed to respond to the ongoing South Korean-U.S. military drills that it views as an invasion rehearsal.
During a visit to a western operational training base on Wednesday, Kim said the military must “steadily intensify the actual war drills aimed at rapidly improving its combat capabilities for perfect war preparedness,” the official Korean Central News Agency said.
Kim said the heightened readiness is required to “contain the constant threat of the enemies with overwhelming force,” KCNA said.
North Korea threatens to take military moves in response to US-South Korean drills
It said Kim guided maneuvers of military units at the site but didn’t elaborate. State media photos showed Kim wearing a black leather jacket and standing in position to shoot a rifle and standing near soldiers who were lying on the ground and aiming their rifles.
Kim has previously made similar calls for a stronger military numerous times. But his latest demand came two days after North Korea's Defense Ministry threatened to conduct unspecified ”responsible military activities” because South Korean-U.S. military drills were allegedly getting more undisguised in their attempt for invading the North.
The South Korean and U.S. militaries began their annual computer-simulated command post training and a variety of field exercises on Monday for an 11-day run. This year’s drills were to involve 48 field exercises, twice the number conducted last year. The two countries have said their drills are defensive in nature.
North Korea has reacted to previous South Korean-U.S. military exercises with missile and other weapons tests.
North Korean leader Kim calls for war readiness while inspecting construction of warships
Jeon Ha Gyu, a spokesperson for the South Korean Defense Ministry, told reporters later Thursday that South Korea will “overwhelmingly” deal with any provocations by North Korea. He said it’s nonsensical for North Korea to call the South Korea-U.S. military drills an invasion rehearsal while elevating its nuclear and missile threats.
Animosities on the Korean Peninsula remain high in the wake of North Korea's barrage of missile tests since 2022. Many of the tests involved nuclear-capable missiles designed to attack South Korea and the mainland U.S. This year, North Korea performed six rounds of missile tests. The U.S. and South Korean forces have responded by expanding their training exercises.
Experts say North Korea likely believes a bigger weapons arsenal would increase its leverage in future diplomacy with the United States. They say North Korea would want to win extensive sanctions relief while maintaining its nuclear weapons.
North Korea is expected to further raise tensions with more provocative weapons tests and fiery rhetoric this year as the U.S. and South Korea head into major elections, observers say.
As conditions worsen for Palestinians in Gaza, international pressure grows for a deal
Nearly five months of fighting has left much of Gaza in ruins and created a worsening humanitarian catastrophe, with many, especially in the devastated northern region, scrambling for food to survive while pressure grows internationally for Israel and Hamas to reach a deal.
The United States, Qatar and Egypt have spent weeks trying to broker an agreement in which Hamas would release up to 40 hostages in return for a six-week cease-fire, the release of some Palestinian prisoners and an major influx of aid to the isolated territory. But the talks have so far failed to achieve a breakthrough.
US military aircraft airdrop thousands of meals into Gaza in emergency humanitarian aid operation
“We must get more aid into Gaza,” U.S. President Joe Biden said Tuesday. “There’s no excuse. None.”
Aid groups have said it has become nearly impossible to deliver supplies within most of Gaza because of the difficulty of coordinating with the Israeli military, the ongoing hostilities and the breakdown of public order.
Israel launched its offensive after Hamas-led militants stormed across the border on Oct. 7, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250. Over 100 hostages were released in November in exchange for 240 Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. The overall Palestinian death toll is more than 30,700, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. It does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its figures, but says women and children make up around two-thirds of the total casualties. It says over 72,000 people have been wounded.
Currently:
— The latest Gaza cease-fire talks fail to achieve a breakthrough with Ramadan just days away, Egypt says.
— Biden's allies are increasing pressure on the White House to act to ease Gaza suffering.
— A Mideast Starbucks franchisee is firing 2,000 workers after being targeted in an Israel-Hamas war boycott.
— A U.S. destroyer shoots down a missile and drones launched by Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
— Find more of AP’s coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war.
Here's the latest:
PALESTINIAN DEATH TOLL TOPS 30,700 IN THE LATEST COUNT FROM GAZA'S HEALTH MINISTRYRAFAH, Gaza Strip — Gaza’s Health Ministry says the Palestinian death toll from the Israel-Hamas war has climbed to 30,717. It said Wednesday that 86 bodies were brought to local hospitals in the last 24 hours, in addition to 113 wounded people.
UN experts condemn ‘flour massacre’, urge Israel to end campaign of starvation in Gaza
The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government and maintains detailed casualty records. Its figures from previous wars have largely matched those of the United Nations, independent experts and even Israeli counts.
The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its tallies, but says women and children make up around two-thirds of those killed. It says the real toll is higher as there are bodies buried in the rubble from Israeli airstrikes and in areas that paramedics cannot access. It says over 72,000 people have been wounded in the war.
Israel says it has killed over 10,000 Hamas fighters, without providing evidence.
The war began after Hamas launched a surprise attack into Israel on Oct. 7, in which Palestinian militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took around 250 hostage. Israel’s offensive has driven some 80% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million from their homes and pushed hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to the brink of starvation.
ISRAELI ALLIES' PATIENCE IS RUNNING THIN, BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY SAYSLONDON — British Foreign Secretary David Cameron says he will warn a member of Israel’s War Cabinet that allies’ patience is running thin over the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.
Cameron is due to meet Wednesday with Benny Gantz, who is stopping in London on the way back from a trip to Washington. Cameron told members of Parliament’s House of Lords on Tuesday that people in Gaza “are dying of hunger” and Israel must let in more humanitarian aid.
“We’ve had a whole set of things we’ve asked the Israelis to do, but I have to report to the House that the amount of aid they got in in February was about half what they got in January,” he said. “So patience needs to run very thin and a whole series of warnings need to be given, starting I hope with a meeting I have with minister Gantz when he visits the U.K.”
Hundreds of inmates flee after armed gangs storm Haiti's main prison, leaving bodies behind
Gantz, a rival to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is visiting Washington and London without the Israeli prime minister’s approval.
UN experts condemn ‘flour massacre’, urge Israel to end campaign of starvation in Gaza
UN experts on Tuesday condemned the violence unleashed by Israeli forces, which killed at least 112 people gathered to collect flour in Gaza last week, as a “massacre” amid conditions of inevitable starvation and destruction of the local food production system in the besieged Palestinian enclave.
“Israel has been intentionally starving the Palestinian people in Gaza since 8 October. Now it is targeting civilians seeking humanitarian aid and humanitarian convoys,” the UN experts said. “Israel must end its campaign of starvation and targeting of civilians.”
Israeli troops fired on crowds of Palestinians gathered to collect flour in the south-west of Gaza City on 29 February, killing at least 112 people and injuring some 760.
“The attack came after Israel has denied humanitarian aid into Gaza City and northern Gaza for more than a month,” the experts said.
They noted that the 29 February massacre followed a pattern of Israeli attacks against Palestinian civilians seeking aid, with over 14 recorded incidents of shooting, shelling and targeting groups gathered to receive urgently needed supplies from trucks or airdrops between mid-January and the end of February 2024.
“Israel has also opened fire on humanitarian aid convoys on several occasions, despite the fact that the convoys shared their coordinates with Israel,” the experts said.
On 26 January, the International Court of Justice recognised the plausibility of Israel committing genocide and ordered it to allow the delivery of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian aid to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. In January, before the Court’s decision, an average of 147 trucks entered Gaza every day. Since the ruling was issued, only 57 trucks have entered Gaza between 9 and 21 February 2024.
“Israel is not respecting its international legal obligations, is not complying with the provisional measures of the International Court of Justice, and is committing atrocity crimes,” the experts said.
“Israel systematically denies and restricts the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza by intercepting deliveries at checkpoints, bombing humanitarian convoys and shooting at civilians seeking humanitarian assistance,” they said.
Fifteen children have already died of malnutrition at Kamal Adwan Hospital in Gaza City, and there are fears that the figures could be higher in other hospitals. As the risk of famine continues to rise, all children under five – 335,000 – are at high risk of severe malnutrition, with serious negative impact on their development and their right to health. At least 90 per cent of children under five are affected by one or more infectious diseases, and 70 per cent have diarrhoea. In January, one in six infants (children under two) in northern Gaza were found to be acutely malnourished, leading to a condition known as wasting.
“We have said before: we are alarmed to see an entire civilian population suffering such unprecedented starvation, so quickly and completely,” the experts said. “We have been saying for months that widespread famine is imminent in Gaza,” they said.
They expressed horror that children were starting to die from malnutrition, dehydration and hunger. “When children start dying like this, you know that famine is probably already happening or just around the corner,” the experts said.
Reports on the recent negotiations between Hamas and Israel on a proposed 40-day ceasefire have revealed that, as part of the terms of the negotiations, Israel has committed to allow the entry of trucks and the delivery of tents, caravans, essential fuel, construction materials and equipment to rehabilitate critical infrastructure such as hospitals and bakeries.
“Humanitarian aid must not be used as a bargaining chip in negotiations,” the experts said. The provision of humanitarian aid is the minimum basic humanitarian obligation that Israel must provide unconditionally, they said.
“After months of Israel’s starvation campaign, Gaza may already be facing famine,” the experts said. “Recent airdrops will achieve little. The only way to prevent or end this famine is an immediate and permanent ceasefire.”
“We reiterate our earlier call by UN special procedures for an arms embargo and sanctions on Israel, as part of all States’s duty to ensure respect for human rights and stop violations of international humanitarian law by Israel,” the experts said.
The experts are Michael Fakhri, Special Rapporteur on the right to food; Francesca Albanese, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territory occupied since 1967; Tlaleng Mofokeng, Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health; Pedro Arrojo Agudo, Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation; Reem Alsalem, Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, its causes and consequences; Dominique Day and Bina D’Costa, Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent.
Special Rapporteurs and Working Groups are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN human rights system, is the general name of the Council’s independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms.
Special Procedures mandate-holders are independent human rights experts appointed by the Human Rights Council to address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. They are not UN staff and are independent from any government or organisation. They serve in their individual capacity and do not receive a salary for their work.
Israeli Cabinet member meets US officials as cease-fire talks get underway in Egypt
A top member of Israel's wartime Cabinet is meeting with U.S. officials in Washington while talks are underway in Egypt to broker a cease-fire in Gaza before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan begins next week.
Benny Gantz, a centrist political rival of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, traveled for talks with several senior U.S. administration officials this week.
An official from Netanyahu’s far-right Likud party said Gantz did not have approval from the prime minister for his meetings in Washington and that Netanyahu gave the Cabinet official a “tough talk” — underscoring the widening crack within Israel’s wartime leadership nearly six months into the Israel-Hamas war.
Israel did not send a delegation to cease-fire talks in Cairo because it is waiting for answers from Hamas on two questions, according to an Israeli official. Israeli media reported that the government is waiting to learn which of the hostages seized by Hamas in an Oct. 7 attack are alive and how many Palestinian prisoners Hamas seeks in exchange for each.
The U.N. says a quarter of Gaza’s 2.3 million people face starvation. The number of Palestinians killed in the Gaza Strip has soared above 30,000 since the war began nearly five months ago when Hamas-led militants stormed across southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking about 250 others hostage.
Currently:
— Harris is to meet with Israeli Cabinet official who is in Washington despite Netanyahu’s rebuke.
— A 4-year-old Gaza boy lost his arm – and his family. Half a world away, he’s getting a second chance.
— Find more of AP’s coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war.
Here's the latest:
HAMAS CALLS ON PALESTINIANS TO RISE UP DURING RAMADANBEIRUT — Hamas is calling on Palestinians in Israel and the West Bank to rise up against Israel during the upcoming Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
Hamas spokesman Osama Hamdan, speaking to reporters in Beirut on Monday, said Palestinians should “make every moment of Ramadan a confrontation.”
US military aircraft airdrop thousands of meals into Gaza in emergency humanitarian aid operation
The U.S., Qatar and Egypt have been trying for weeks to broker a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza and to convince the militant group to release some of the scores of hostages it is still holding from the Oct. 7 attack that sparked the war.
The mediators hope to broker a truce before Ramadan, which is expected to begin around March 10.
The month of dawn-to-dusk fasting is a time of heightened prayer, reflection and charity for Muslims around the world, but Israeli-Palestinian tensions often spike over access to a major holy site in Jerusalem.
Hamas has repeatedly called for a broader uprising in the occupied West Bank, where violence has surged since the start of the war, and among Israel’s own Palestinian minority.
Hamdan did not provide any specifics about the ongoing cease-fire negotiations. Addressing his remarks to Israel and its top ally, the United States, he said: “What they have not gained in the battlefield, they will not gain through political machinations.”
The war began when Hamas-led militants broke through Israel’s defenses on Oct. 7 and stormed into several communities near Gaza, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250 hostages. Hamas freed over 100 hostages during a weeklong November cease-fire in exchange for the release of 240 Palestinian prisoners.
Gaza’s Health Ministry says the war has killed over 30,000 Palestinians. Around 80% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million have been driven from their homes.
Israeli strike on Palestinians waiting for aid kills 70
A FOREIGN WORKER IS KILLED IN MISSILE FIRE FROM LEBANONKIRYAT SHMONA, Israel — Israeli rescuers say a foreign worker was killed and several others wounded by an anti-tank missile fired from Lebanon.
The Magen David Adom rescue service said Monday it was treating seven people, including two in serious condition.
Associated Press reporters saw the Israeli army transporting several Thai workers, some limping and bleeding, to ambulances near the northern Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona.
Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group have traded fire nearly every day since the start of the war in Gaza. Hezbollah, an ally of Hamas, says it is trying to pin down Israeli forces in the north to aid the Palestinian group.
Hezbollah did not immediately claim responsibility for Monday’s strike.
The Lebanese group said in statements Monday that it had stopped two attempts by Israeli forces to cross into Lebanese territory overnight and that it had launched an artillery attack on an Israeli barracks.
Also on Monday, U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein arrived in Beirut to meet with Lebanese officials in an attempt to tamp down tensions.
The near daily clashes between Hezbollah and Israeli forces have killed more than 200 Hezbollah fighters and at least 37 civilians in Lebanon. Around 20 people have been killed on the Israeli side, including civilians and soldiers.
Tens of thousands of people on both sides of the border have been forced to flee their homes because of the ongoing fighting. Israel has vowed to continue attacking Hezbollah, even if there is a cease-fire in Gaza, in order to push its fighters away from the border.
Farm workers from Thailand and other Asian countries have flocked to Israel in recent years, drawn by higher wages. Several foreign workers were among those killed and abducted in Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack out of Gaza, which triggered the war.
OPEC+ production cuts deepen with extensions from Saudi Arabia, Russia and other oil giants
Some members of oil cartel OPEC, led by Saudi Arabia, and allied producers like Russia are again deepening their voluntary crude supply cuts.
Announcements from several OPEC+ countries extend reductions of some 2.2 million barrels a day, the secretariat for the multinational organization noted Sunday. Saudi Arabia led the pack by extending its previously-implemented cut of 1 million barrels a day through the end of 2024's second quarter.
The extension, which was first shared by the state-owned Saudi Press Agency citing a Energy Ministry source, means the kingdom's crude production will stand at about 9 million barrels a day through the end of June.
Also on Sunday, Russia announced an additional voluntary cut of 471,000 barrels per day for the second quarter — across a blend of production and exports.
Iraq, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria and Oman will be continuing reductions as well, according to OPEC's secretariat, in smaller amounts.
The OPEC+ countries participating in production cuts, which have gradually piled up since October 2022, have pointed to goals of balancing the oil market — noting that volumes will be gradually returned subject to market conditions.
The price of Brent crude, the international benchmark, stood at about $83.55 per barrel at the end of last week, up from $77.33 seen a month ago. Despite the recent increase, Brent's going price is still modest — notably far below the soaring oil prices following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 — and in line with analysts' previous expectations.
Sunday's latest extension of cuts are in addition to voluntary reductions that were announced in April 2023 and extend through December of this year — including 500,000 barrel-a-day cuts from both Saudi Arabia and Russia.
Hundreds of inmates flee after armed gangs storm Haiti's main prison, leaving bodies behind
Hundreds of inmates fled Haiti's main prison after armed gangs stormed the facility in an overnight explosion of violence that engulfed much of the capital. At least five people were dead Sunday.
The jailbreak marked a new low in Haiti's downward spiral of violence. It comes as gangs step up coordinated attacks in Port-au-Prince and while embattled Prime Minister Ariel Henry is abroad trying to salvage support for a United Nations-backed security force to stabilize the country.
Three bodies with gunshot wounds lay at the prison entrance, which was wide open, with no guards in sight. Plastic sandals, clothing and electric fans were strewn across normally overcrowded concrete patios that were eerily empty on Sunday. In another neighborhood, the bloodied corpses of two men with their hands tied behind the backs laid face down as residents walked past roadblocks set up with burning tires.
Haiti’s government urged calm as it sought to find the killers, kidnappers and perpetrators of other violent crimes that it said escaped during the outbreak of violence.
“The National Police is taking all measures to find the escaped prisoners and arrest those responsible for these criminal acts as well as all their accomplices, so that public order can be restored," the Communications Ministry said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
Arnel Remy, a human rights attorney whose nonprofit works inside the prison, said on X that fewer than 100 of the nearly 4,000 inmates remained behind bars. Those choosing to stay included 18 former Colombian soldiers accused of working as mercenaries in the July 2021 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse. On Saturday night, several of the Colombians shared a video pleading for their lives.
“Please, please help us,” one of the men, Francisco Uribe, said in the message widely shared on social media. "They are massacring people indiscriminately inside the cells.”
On Sunday, Uribe told journalists who walked breezily into the normally highly guarded facility, “I didn't flee because I'm innocent."
Colombia's foreign ministry called on Haiti to provide “special protection” for the men.
In the absence of official information, inmates' family members rushed to the prison to check on loved ones.
“I don’t know whether my son is alive or not,” said Alexandre Jean as she roamed around the cells looking for any sign of him. “I don’t know what to do.”
The violence Saturday night appeared to be widespread, with several neighborhoods reporting gunfire.
There were reports of a jailbreak at a second Port-au-Prince prison containing around 1,400 inmates. Armed gangs also occupied and vandalized the nation's top soccer stadium, taking one employee hostage for hours, the nation's soccer federation said in a statement. Internet service for many residents was down as Haiti’s top mobile network said a fiber optic cable connection was slashed during the rampage.
In the space of less than two weeks, several state institutions have been attacked by the gangs, who are increasingly coordinating their actions and choosing once unthinkable targets like the Central Bank. As part of coordinated attacks by gangs, four police officers were killed Thursday.
After gangs opened fire at Haiti's international airport last week, the U.S. Embassy said it was halting all official travel to the country and on Sunday night urged all American citizens to depart as soon as possible. The embassy said it would also cancel until Thursday all consular appointments.
The Biden administration, which has steadfastly refused to commit troops to any multinational force while offering instead money and logistical support, said it was monitoring the rapidly deteriorating security situation with grave concern.
A National Security Council official said violence serves only to delay a democratic transition while destroying the lives of thousands. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, reiterated U.S. support for elections, inclusive governance and the restoration of democracy.
The epicenter of the latest violence Saturday night was Haiti's National Penitentiary, which is holding several gang leaders. Amid the exchange of gunfire, police appealed for assistance.
“They need help,” a union representing police said in a message on social media bearing an “SOS” emoji repeated eight times. “Let’s mobilize the army and the police to prevent the bandits from breaking into the prison.”
The clashes follow violent protests that turned deadlier in recent days as the prime minister went to Kenya to try and salvage a proposed U.N.-backed security mission in Haiti to be led by the East African country. Henry took over as prime minister following Moise's assassination and has repeatedly postponed plans to hold parliamentary and presidential elections, which haven’t happened in almost a decade.
Haiti’s National Police has roughly 9,000 officers to provide security for more than 11 million people, according to the U.N. They are routinely overwhelmed and outgunned by gangs, which are estimated to control up to 80% of Port-au-Prince.
Jimmy Chérizier, a former elite police officer known as Barbecue who now runs a gang federation, has claimed responsibility for the surge in attacks. He said the goal was to capture Haiti’s police chief and government ministers and prevent Henry’s return.
The prime minister, a neurosurgeon, has shrugged off calls for his resignation and didn’t comment when asked if he felt it was safe to come home.
US military aircraft airdrop thousands of meals into Gaza in emergency humanitarian aid operation
U.S. military C-130 cargo planes dropped food in pallets over Gaza on Saturday in the opening stage of an emergency humanitarian assistance authorized by President Joe Biden after more than 100 Palestinians who had surged to pull goods off an aid convoy were killed during a chaotic encounter with Israeli troops.
Three planes from Air Forces Central dropped 66 bundles containing about 38,000 meals into Gaza at 8:30 a.m. EST (3:30 p.m. local). The bundles were dropped in southwest Gaza, on the beach along the territory's Mediterranean coast. The airdrop was coordinated with the Royal Jordanian Air Force, which said it had two food airdrops Saturday in northern Gaza and has conducted several rounds in recent months.
Many of those killed or wounded in Gaza stampede for aid were shot by Israel's army, EU arm says
"The amount of aid flowing to Gaza is not nearly enough and we will continue to pull out every stop we can to get more aid in," President Joe Biden said Saturday in a post on the social media site X, formerly known as Twitter.
U.S. Central Command said on X that “the combined operation included U.S. Air Force and RJAF C-130 aircraft and respective Army Soldiers specialized in aerial delivery of supplies, built bundles and ensured the safe drop of food aid.”
The U.S. airdrop is expected to be the first of many.
Three Biden administration officials said the planes dropped the military Meals Ready to Eat (MREs) — shelf-stable meals that contain a day's worth of calories in each sealed package — in locations that were thought would provide civilians with the greatest level of safety to access aid. Afterward, the U.S. monitored the sites and was able to see civilians approach and distribute food among themselves, according to the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to provide additional details that had not been made public.
Biden on Friday announced the U.S. would begin air dropping food to starving Gazans after at least 115 Palestinians were killed and hundreds more wounded in the Thursday attack as they scrambled for aid, the Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza said.
Hundreds of people had rushed about 30 trucks bringing a predawn delivery of aid to the north. Palestinians said nearby Israeli troops shot into the crowds. Israel said they fired warning shots toward the crowd and insisted many of the dead were trampled.
Biden approves military airdrops of aid into Gaza after chaotic encounter left more than 100 dead
White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said Friday that the airdrops were being planned to deliver emergency humanitarian assistance in a safe way to people on the ground. The United States believes the airdrops will help address the dire situation in Gaza, but they are no replacement for trucks, which can transport far more aid more effectively, though Thursday’s events also showed the risks with ground transport.
Kirby said the airdrops have an advantage over trucks because planes can move aid to a particular location very quickly. But in terms of volume, the airdrops will be “a supplement to, not a replacement for moving things in by ground.”
The C-130 is widely used to deliver aid to remote places because of its ability to land in austere environments.
A C-130 can airlift as much as 42,000 pounds of cargo and its crews know how to rig the cargo, which sometimes can include even vehicles, onto massive pallets that can be safely dropped out of the back of the aircraft.
Air Force loadmasters secure the bundles onto pallets with netting that is rigged for release in the back of a C-130, and then crews release it with a parachute when the aircraft reaches the intended delivery zone.
The Air Force's C-130 has been used in years past to air drop humanitarian into Afghanistan, Iraq, Haiti and other locations and the airframe is used in an annual multi-national “Operation Christmas Drop” that air drops pallets of toys, supplies, nonperishable food and fishing supplies to remote locations in the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of Palau.
Since the war began on Oct. 7, Israel has barred entry of food, water, medicine and other supplies, except for a trickle of aid entering the south from Egypt at the Rafah crossing and Israel’s Kerem Shalom crossing.
The United Nations says one-quarter of Gaza’s 2.3 million people face starvation. Aid officials have said that airdrops are not an efficient means of distributing aid and are a measure of last resort.___