- Hamas has agreed to a ceasefire under a proposal from Egypt and Qatar. Despite some international pressure, including a warning from France that the forced removal of thousands of Palestinians from Rafah (pretty much the last refuge in Gaza for them) could constitute a war crime, the Israelis seem bent on pushing ahead. Mairav Zonszein of the International Crisis Group (who is Israeli, by the way) thinks that "Netanyahu is sensing that this deal could go through, so he’s looking to avert it". One can't help thinking that he fears that being prime minister in wartime might be the only thing standing between him and prison, so he's going to try to maintain a permanent state of war.
- Former Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis was scheduled to give a video address to a conference in Germany on the Israel-Palestine conflict last month, however the event was cancelled by German authorities who claimed that they were trying to prevent "antisemitic and violence-glorifying remarks", despite the fact that one of the organizations behind the conference was Jewish Voice for a Just Peace in the Middle East. Varoufakis says that in response he recorded the speech and posted it to his blog; he says that the following day German authorities warned pro-Palestinian activists against playing the speech on loudspeakers at any protest.
- Ukrainian men of military age (defined as between 18 and 60) who live abroad face loss of consular services if they don't return home to fight. This applies to those who left before the war as well as during it.
- Donald Trump has been held in contempt of court for the tenth time for violating the order not to speak publicly about witnesses or jurors in his trial regarding the Stormy Daniels hush money. Judge Juan Merchan is warning that he will impose a jail sentence if this keeps up, even while admitting that this is "the last thing" he wants to do. Not sure of the reason for his reluctance.
- A Republican fundraiser in Colorado was cancelled due to "safety concerns". These concerns appear to have arisen because of threats stemming from South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem's admission that she shot her dog for being unruly. As an aside, the first article indicates that the chair of the Republican Party's Jefferson County wing is named Nancy Pallozzi; I bet she has to put up with a lot of ribbing about her name from her fellow Republicans.
- Despite all the FUD about how Canada's deficits will scare off investors, Warren Buffett's company, Berkshire Hathaway, is looking north of the border. Buffett himself says "We do not feel uncomfortable in any way, shape or form, putting our money into Canada".
- The Winnipeg Housing Rehabilitation Corporation will redevelop a housing complex closed by Manitoba Housing in 2019, in cooperation with Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs and the Spence Neighbourhood Association. The province is donating the site; the existing units (which were problematic from the start) will be demolished and a new building constructed.
- Two men in Headingley were arrested for possession of a large amount of explosives as well as firearms. One of them has a significant record already. Meanwhile, police in Winkler arrested another man and seized an enormous arsenal of firearms, including a homemade cannon as well as 21 rifles (two of them were loaded; in addition one was fitted with an over-capacity magazine, and one with a suppressor), 4 shotguns, explosives, body armour, and over 6,500 rounds of ammunition.
- The suspected serial killer being tried in Winnipeg for the deaths of four women has admitted to the killings but is trying to argue that he is not criminally responsible due to mental illness. Following this development the prosecution has agreed to allow the case to be heard by a judge alone, and the jury will be discharged.
- A large species of catfish, indigenous to the American South, has turned up in the Thames River in Ontario. In other invasive species news, several large flatworm species have also been found in the province.
- A former Hamilton police officer who was convicted of sexually assaulting a woman he was mentoring has been sentenced to 12 months of house arrest followed by 12 months of probation. What stands out about this story, though, is that the judge had already told him that he wouldn't serve any jail time, two weeks before the actual sentence was issued.
- In Saskatchewan, sexual health education is pretty much banned from all classrooms; this includes such things as educating kids about consent. I guess Saskatchewan Party MLAs don't want their kids' victims to know what their rights are.
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