Death toll rises over 100 in Gaza
At least 105 people have died in the Gaza Strip, Hamas officials say, as Israeli forces continue waves of airstrikes on the beleaguered region.
More than 100 rockets were fired on Israel by opposing forces on Monday, but no casualties were reported. Last week, three Israelis died in one such attack.
The Israeli cabinet has been meeting to discuss a ceasefire proposal submitted by Egypt, the content of which is not known, though both Israel and Hamas have vocalized conditions, The BBC reports. @@checked@@
West Bank protests leave two Palestinians dead
All across the West Bank, Palestinians have taken to the streets to protest the Israeli air attacks on the Gaza Strip leading to two deaths.
Protests began in Hebron’s Old City after which Palestinian protesters were pushed back into the center of the city by IDF soldiers reportedly using both live and rubber ammunition as well as teargas.
Reports have said one such protester, Hamdi al-Falah, 17, was shot four times by Israeli troops.
Amateur videos show Palestinian youth shooting fireworks in the middle of the city, prompting a violent response from Israeli soldiers, according to witnesses, Al Jazeera reports.
President Obama hails progress in Burma
On the first visit made to the South East Asian nation by a serving U.S. president, Barack Obama said that Burma is on a “remarkable journey” of reform that has much further to go.
In a speech at Rangoon University, he urged Burmese people to accept Muslim Rohingyas after recent violence.
Crowds of people, some waving U.S. flags, lined the streets as he arrived. The President said that a desire for change had been met by an agenda of reform, and he was there to extend a “hand of friendship.”
The visit was intended to show support for the reforms put in place by Thein Sein’s government since the end of military rule in November 2010.
Though political prisoners remain behind bars and ethnic conflicts in border areas are unresolved, President Obama said America would help to rebuild Burma’s economy and could be a partner on its journey forward, The BBC reports.
At least 14 people killed in stampede after bridge collapse in India
Following the collapse of a bridge which triggered a stampede during a Hindu festival in the Indian city of Patna, officials say at least 14 people have been killed and dozens more injured.
Jayant Kant, a police superintendent in Patna, said Monday’s stampede occurred when a makeshift bridge erected to help people reach the Ganges River gave way under the weight of devotees rushing to offer prayers to the setting sun as part of an annual Hindu religious ritual.
A few of the casualties may have been the result of the collapse of the low-slung bamboo-and-rope bridge designed to help worshipers cross rough terrain.
The toll is likely to go up as several other Hindu devotees are reported missing at the site, Al Jazeera reports.
News Corporation picking up steam as cloud lifts over Rupert Murdoch
Rupert Murdoch, News Corporation’s chairman and chief executive, will soon be able to buy back into the media industry after more than a year of being on his heels due to a major phone tapping scandal. His potential purchases include The Los Angeles Times, The Chicago Tribune and education companies.
News Corporation’s stock has reached highs as the company prepares to transfer its underperforming publishing assets, including newspapers such as The Wall Street Journal and The New York Post, into a separate publicly traded entity.
In the last several weeks, Murdoch has exuded a satisfaction and sure-footedness that people close to the company said they had not seen since before Murdoch’s British newspaper unit became embroiled in the scandal. That is in part because hacking has been overtaken in the press by an unfolding scandal at the British Broadcasting Corporation.
People close to Murdoch said he considers the BBC scandal a kind of justice for months of negative coverage of News Corporation, and he has provided almost daily commentary via Twitter on the subject, The New York Times reports. @@checked all@@