This year, 2024, is set to become the hottest on record, surpassing the previous high in 2023, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S). For the first time, average global temperatures will exceed 1.5C (2.7F) above pre-industrial levels from 1850-1900, the upper limit set by the Paris Agreement. The agreement aimed to have countries work towards reducing global greenhouse gas emissions, with a goal of limiting the global average surface temperature increase to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels and striving to keep it well below 2C. “This does not mean that the Paris Agreement has been breached, but…
Author: THE CONNECTING NEWSPAPER
A lead organization monitoring for food crises around the world withdrew a new report this week warning of imminent famine in north Gaza under what it called Israel’s “near-total blockade,” after the U.S. asked for its retraction, U.S. officials told The Associated Press. The move follows public criticism of the report from the U.S. ambassador to Israel. The rare public challenge from the Biden administration of the work of the U.S.-funded Famine Early Warning System, which is meant to reflect the data-driven analysis of unbiased experts, drew accusations from aid and human-rights figures of possible U.S. political interference. A finding…
By Henry Campbell and John Coyne Youth radicalization and its connection to political violence and terrorism is an urgent concern. Despite consistent warnings from intelligence and law enforcement agencies in Australia and globally, public discussion around this issue often falls short. We need to understand why it persists and how to disrupt it before it escalates. Australian Security Intelligence Organization said on 6 December that about 20 percent of its priority counterterrorism cases involved minors. Since 2017, ASIO and the AFP has investigated 35 young Australians for violent extremism, some as young as 12. Young adults are also a risk factor, as illustrated this month by…
Rumors about Jimmy Butler trades have been swirling for months. According to team president Pat Riley, the Miami Heat aren’t trading their star. Riley responded to the reports that Butler wanted to be traded with a firm statement that clarified the team’s stance: “We are not trading Jimmy Butler.” Miami does have until the trade deadline on Feb. 6 to rethink this decision, but for now, this should put a damper on some of the trade speculation about the 35-year-old All-Star. Maybe.On Christmas Day, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that Butler “prefers a trade out of Miami,” naming the Phoenix Suns…
Seoul – South Korea’s National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik has emerged as an unlikely symbol of leadership during the country’s ongoing political turmoil, triggered by President Yoon Suk-yeol’s brief declaration of martial law on December 3. Despite holding South Korea’s second-highest office after the presidency, the assembly’s speaker has historically had a low-profile role, operating behind the scenes of political life. Unlike the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, who drives Washington’s legislative agenda as the leader of the majority party, South Korea’s parliamentary speaker is required by law to renounce party affiliation upon election to maintain neutrality.…
article The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced Monday that Alcon Laboratories, based out of Texas, is voluntarily recalling a single lot of “Systane Lubricant Eye Drops Ultra SPF, Single Vials On-the-Go” as the products may be contaminated with fun A popular brand of eye drops is being recalled nationwide due to a possible contamination, which may cause vision damage, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). On Monday, the FDA announced that Alcon Laboratories, based out of Texas, was voluntarily recalling a single lot of “Systane Lubricant Eye Drops Ultra SPF, Single Vials On-the-Go” as the products may…
100 officers from 14 different agencies join forces to protect native tree species BUENOS AIRES, Argentina – Authorities in Paraguay have arrested 26 individuals, identified two criminal networks and 12 companies suspected of illegal deforestation and the trafficking of native tree species. Operation Panthera Onca (14-19 October 2024) focused on the tri-border region where Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay converge. The region’s strategic location and economic activity make it a key hotspot for both legal commerce and illicit networks. The operation, led by Paraguay and coordinated by INTERPOL, involved targeted checks and inspections at land borders, surveillance of waterways and aerial…
The Kansas City Chiefs (15-1) appear to be one of the hottest teams in the NFL and in history (on paper), but that’s not necessarily the case.In each win, the team scored less than 30 points, an NFL record, and 11 of those finished with a deficit within one score.The 2024 Chiefs appear to be more lucky than good, but as long as they’re winning, that’s all that currently matters to them.On Wednesday, Kansas City clinched the No. 1 seed in the AFC with a 29-10 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, which means the defending back-to-back Super Bowl champions are…
More than 10,000 migrants perished – an average of 30 a day – in 2024 while trying to reach Spain, NGO says in new report.More than 10,000 migrants died while trying to reach Spain by sea this year, a report released by a Spanish migration rights group has revealed, the most since it began keeping a tally in 2007. On average, that means 30 migrants died every day this year attempting to reach the country by boat, the NGO Caminando Fronteras (Walking Borders) said on Thursday. Overall deaths rose by 58 percent compared with last year, the report added. Tens…
For 30 years, the family of Judy Rodriguez wondered what happened to the beloved mother and sister after she vanished without a trace. The family had all but given up hope of getting answers, but the combination of determined detectives, science and the Queens district attorney’s office gave them the gift of new information during the holiday season. “It really is heartwarming to have answers,” said an emotional Anna Salvadore, Rodriguez’s sister. Another sister, Jennifer Musse, called Judy “a beautiful person, she always had a smile on her face.” A photo showed Judy and her daughter Stephanie at her first…