A government investigative commission says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is personally responsible for the 2021 Meron disaster, in which 45 people were killed in a stampede on the hilltop burial site of a 2nd-century Elder Century man in northern Israel.
However, the investigation does not make any operational recommendations for Mr. Netanyahu. In addition, the Commission also considers the former Minister of Public Security, Amir Ohana, personally responsible for the disaster and recommends that he should not be reappointed to this position.
The report points the finger at police chief Kobi Shabtai, who is also responsible, and that he should be removed from his post. However, given Israel's current security challenges, the report says the government should wait to remove him from office. Yaakov Avitan, then Minister of Religious Services, is also held personally responsible in the 322-page report. The commission recommends that he no longer be appointed minister.
Families at Mount Meron in northern Israel after an accident that killed 45 people, April 29, 2021David Cohen/Flash90
45 men and boys were killed on April 30, 2021, in a stampede on the tomb of the 2nd-century sage Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai on Mount Meron in northern Israel during the annual Lag B'Omer celebrations after 100,000 worshipers, mostly Members of the ultra-Orthodox community flocked to the holy site despite longstanding warnings about the security of the complex.
Krakow (Poland), March 6 (EFECOM). – Thousands of Polish farmers demonstrated again in Warsaw this Wednesday in protests that turned into unrest and sought to increase pressure on the government, which they accuse of failing to defend their interests before Brussels.
The center of the Polish capital, which was already the scene of protests with tractors a few days ago, remained closed to traffic this Wednesday due to the massive protests against the European “Green Deal” and agri-food imports from Ukraine to Poland.
Farmers are also demanding the imposition of a total embargo on Russian and Belarusian products, a proposal that the Polish government will submit to Europe.
At times there were violent incidents that led to the intervention of riot police, such as when a group of demonstrators tried to throw a burning coffin at the official residence of Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
Although the Warsaw City Council banned the tractors that blocked the city a few days ago from entering the center, several vehicles formed barriers on avenues on the outskirts of the city.
Piotr Duda, spokesman for an agricultural group, recalled the demands of Polish producers: that Poland should not accept the energy and environmental measures of the Green Deal; to prevent the import of Ukrainian grain, which producers consider to constitute unfair competition; and block agri-food imports from Russia and Belarus.
According to him, “The European Union is responsible for only 7% of global CO2 emissions, and China or the United States do not limit their emissions at all.”
In addition to the farmers, steel workers, hunters, workers in the food sector and in trade also demonstrated.
The continuation of the protests, which will last until Friday, depends on the outcome of a meeting between Tusk and farmer representatives planned for Saturday.
For weeks, Polish pickets at various points on the Polish-Ukrainian border have prevented the passage of trucks transporting food from Ukraine, and several vehicles have been destroyed.
Kiev has officially protested against this situation and although it has suggested to the Polish government to start talks immediately, the Tusk government does not plan to meet with the Ukrainian side before the end of the month. EFECOM
Daniela Klette was arrested by police in an apartment in Berlin-Kreuzberg. She is said to have lived there for 20 years.
Former RAF terrorist Daniela Klette lived in her one-room apartment in Berlin-Kreuzberg without a rental contract. There was also no approved subletting, a spokesperson for Wohnungsbaugesellschaft Mitte (WBM) said on Wednesday. Therefore, the WBM did not know that the wanted terrorist lived in the building on Sebastianstrasse. The apartment tenant himself should expect consequences, the WBM spokesperson said. But he did not give details. This also applies to information about the rental contract or who paid the rent in previous years. The spokesperson referred to data protection.
Klette, 65, was arrested on February 26 at her apartment in Kreuzberg. She is said to have lived there for about 20 years. During the search of the approximately 40 square meter social apartment, the police found, among other things, a grenade and explosives. The police are still on duty there. Operational measures were also underway on Wednesday, according to the Lower Saxony State Criminal Police Department (LKA).
According to media reports, the apartment was rented from a previous resident. It is not known whether he knew Klette's identity. According to the “BZ” report, the man’s current place of residence is unknown.
Money transport robbery
Together with former RAF terrorists Burkhard Garweg (55) and Ernst-Volker Staub (69), Klette went into hiding for more than 30 years. All three belonged to the so-called third generation of the left-wing extremist terrorist organization Red Army Faction, or RAF for short. The terrorist organization carried out numerous assassination attempts until 1991. In 1998, the RAF declared itself disbanded.
Burdock, Staub and Garweg are wanted on suspicion of involvement in terrorist attacks. They also allegedly robbed cash conveyors and supermarkets in Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia between 1999 and 2016 to obtain money. They are also accused of attempted murder because there was a shooting.
After Klette's arrest, the search for Garweg and Staub continues. In this context, several searches have been carried out in Berlin in recent days.
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) said this Wednesday (6/3) that he is “happy” after Venezuela scheduled the country's presidential elections for July 28. He also mentioned that Nicolás Maduro's government had warned him that he would have to invite scouts from around the world to follow the election, but replied that “nothing matters” if the Venezuelan opposition behaves like its opposition in Brazil .
“You know what made me happy? “Elections are planned in Venezuela,” Lula told reporters after receiving Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez for a meeting at the Palácio do Planalto. Asked whether he thought Venezuela's elections were fair, Lula reported that the country's authorities said they would invite international scouts to monitor the process while attending the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (Celac) summit last week monitor. Lula even had a bilateral meeting with Maduro.
However, the president warned against attempts to cast doubt on the election without evidence. “If the opposition candidate behaves the same way we do here, it won’t be worth anything,” said the president. His opponent, former President Jair Bolsonaro (PL), and his allies are questioning the validity of electronic voting machines.
In Venezuela, Maduro's government is accused of rigging elections and preventing free competition for opposition candidates. In 2018, when the last presidential elections were held in the country, a number of international agencies and institutions drew attention to electoral fraud.
Holding democratic elections this year is part of an agreement with Venezuela to lift economic sanctions imposed by the United States. However, the North American government is threatening to resume measures amid recent reports of the Maduro government arresting opponents.
Quebec Environment Minister Benoit Charette announced Wednesday his intention to decommission the Mount Kaaikop area. The protection of this area, located at the crossroads of the Laurentides and Lanaudière regions, is the goal that a group of citizens have been tirelessly pursuing for a decade.
Posted at 9:10am
Stéphane Blais The Canadian Press
For Claude Samson, the government's announcement is the culmination of a multi-year battle to protect Mount Kaaikop.
“We are entering the 12th year of our commitment to conserving this area,” the president of the Mount Kaaikop Conservation Coalition told The Canadian Press.
In 2014, his citizens group won its case in the Supreme Court when a judge ordered the Department of Natural Resources to suspend its logging permit.
Since that ruling, the coalition says it has invested more than $85,000, mostly in studies to document the environmental value of the sector and ultimately transform it into a conservation project.
PHOTO OLIVIER PONTBRIAND, LA PRESSE ARCHIVE
A view of downtown Montreal from the top of Mt.
Mount Kaaikop is the second highest massif in the Laurentian Islands after Mont Tremblant and “its territory covers 40.5 km2 of ancient and ancient natural forests,” explained Claude Samson.
“Kaaikop Mountain offers connections to several nature reserves as well as natural animal and plant corridors. »
Among the fauna that lives there we find some of Quebec's emblematic mammals, such as the moose, the black bear, the gray wolf and even the wolverine.
“Today we have a thought for our dear silent inhabitants of Mount Kaaikop, this diverse fauna, for which areas are being dedicated to them so that they can seek refuge, feed, reproduce and move freely,” explained Claude Samson.
A commitment to protect 30% of the territory
Mount Kaaikop is “an area that is very popular with hikers and nature lovers,” Minister Charette said in an interview with The Canadian Press.
He added that “by developing access to nature, we develop a sense or urgency to protect biodiversity.”
During the Conference of the Parties (COP15) on biodiversity in Montreal in 2022, the government announced an investment of 650 million to ensure the protection of 30% of its territory by 2030.
PHOTO OLIVIER PONTBRIAND, LA PRESSE ARCHIVE
The network of protected areas currently covers approximately 17% of Quebec.
“Our government is committed to achieving the global conservation target of 30% of our territory by 2030, particularly by improving Quebec's network of protected areas through initiatives like these,” the minister added.
“A conservation plan”
The government has not yet determined the exact boundaries of the area to be protected in the Mount Kaaikop sector.
“But what is important is that the territory is defined. There will be no exploitation, neither forestry nor mining,” explained Claude Samson.
The next step, he explained, is to develop “a plan to conserve and enhance the ecosystems” of Mount Kaaikop.
“The government calls it a conservation plan, but we have not advocated for humans to completely invade the area for 12 years,” he stressed.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY THE COALITION FOR THE PRESERVATION OF MOUNT KAAIKOP
His coalition therefore wants there to be “use zones that are intended for humans and for recreational tourism,” but also zones that are reserved for “wildlife and university research.”
In recent years, various scientific research has been carried out at Mount Kaaikop, particularly on the importance of ancient forests for underground biodiversity and soil carbon sequestration.
Ultimately, says Claude Samson, “we aim to establish a research center or research chair in ancient forests” at Mount Kaaikop.
In 2019, a study by the natural sciences department of the Université du Québec en Outaouais and the biological sciences department of the Université du Québec à Montréal concluded that “stopping deforestation in the area studied would normally have little economic impact on forestry” and would most likely significantly increase the value of ecosystem services related to recreational tourism activities, biodiversity habitats, aesthetic value and indigenous cultural services in the public area surrounding Mount Kaaikop.
The Madrid City Council is ruling out, for now, any further reduction in the number of Argentine parrots and Kramer's parrots, since their population is currently “in a stable balance”, said the delegate for urban planning, environment and mobility this Wednesday city councilor, Borja Carabante , in statements to the press reported by Efe. In the last two years, the eradication campaign, accompanied by strong controversy when pellets were used to kill birds, has reduced the colony of this invasive species from 13,000 to 10,000 individuals, a 30% reduction, which has led to a decrease in neighborhood complaints against it invasive species.
“The two-year contract signed for this purpose in May 2021 ended in May last year and the population was reduced as expected. “To date there is no new treaty,” add environmental sources, who do not detail what the distribution of the parrots was by district or where they were most exterminated.
The actions of the City Council have managed to “maintain the indices established by the technical services to ensure tranquility in the neighborhood while protecting the biodiversity of the capital,” defended the delegate. Carabante has also explained that, beyond the noise problem, the overpopulation of parrots also poses a threat to the physical integrity of neighbors, since this species built “bulky” nests in the branches of trees that weighed up to 200 kilos and could lead to branches fall. Due to their invasive behavior, parrots crowd out other native birds such as sparrows and are vectors of disease, the council added.
In announcing the two-year contract, the city council stated that Madrid is the area where the largest concentration of Argentine parrots is found in all of Spain. According to the census carried out by the Spanish Society of Ornithology (SEO) Birdlife, in 2019 there were 13,000 specimens – half of all specimens living in the country – compared to 7,000 in 2015. Compared to 2005, the dizzying increase was 665%. Kramer's parrot colony numbered 770 individuals. Concurrent with the colonization of the city, citizen complaints increased by 136% since 2018, with Latina, Usera and Carabanchel being the districts with the highest number of complaints.
Before the start of the operations, the district with the largest parrot population was Abrantes (Carabanchel district), with 1,142 individuals (8.8% of the total), followed by Ciudad Universitaria (Moncloa-Aravaca) with 1,031 individuals (7.9%). Las Águilas and Lucero (Latina) and Casa de Campo (Moncloa-Aravaca) with populations between 500 and 1,000 parrots.
The companies responsible for the service, Matinsa and Dypsa, were responsible for checking the nests to re-count the birds, thus facilitating the planning of laying and population control work. In August, coinciding with the birds' laying and birthing cycle, the eggs were sterilized and returned to their place to avoid re-laying. “It is the most effective technique because clutch control reduces the renewal rate and growth of the parrot population,” the consistory explained.
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Nests that posed a danger to citizens or the tree would also be removed. In the bloodiest part, they wanted to “catch specimens with cage traps and nets” and exterminate them “while respecting animal welfare regulations.” However, in November 2021, residents of Fuente del Berro Park in the Salamanca district reported that they were killed with compressed air pellets. The city council confirmed to this newspaper that it was “a collection operation within the framework of the plan for exceptional situations” and that it corresponds to the authorization of the Community of Madrid to reduce these invasive exotic birds. “The signed contract specifies the use of a compressed air gun in certain circumstances and in limited areas,” admitted a spokesman for the environmental sector. This Wednesday, after the end of the campaign, the city council did not clarify how many of the birds were killed with shotgun shells.
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Located between the northern United States and southern Canada Lake Superior In terms of area, it is considered the largest freshwater lake in the world. This massive body of water is not only comparable in size to numerous European nations, but even surpasses them, making it a major player in the rankings of the world's most impressive lakes.
According to research carried out in the region, the Lake Superior It ranks third in the world in terms of volume. There is only one lake in Russia, which takes second place, and another in Africa, which tops the international list.
Anthropological history suggests that the first inhabitants of the Lake Superior area arrived there 10,000 years ago. Photo: Riosdelplaneta
Why is Lake Superior the second largest in the world?
Located in the American continentThis water body is notable for being the largest in its category, covering a huge area of 82,000 square kilometers. This data makes it the largest among the Great Lakes North America.
In other words, this body of water has a maximum length of 583 kilometers and a width of 257 kilometers. In addition, it has 4,393 kilometers of coastline, which includes both the main perimeter and the numerous islands.
At the same time, thanks to its impressive water volume of an estimated 12,232 cubic kilometers, it is considered the third largest lake in the world during this period, surpassed only by Lake Baikal in Siberia and Lake Tanganyika in the heart of Africa.
Lake Superior is considered one of the most important freshwater reserves in the world. Photo: Riosdelplanet
The curiosities of Lake Superior, the second largest in the world:
The average depth is 149 meters and the deepest point is 406 meters above the surface.
It was created at an altitude of 187 meters above sea level.
At a depth of less than 200 meters, the temperature is 4°C all year round.
It is home to 80 species of fish.
It receives water from more than 210 rivers, the St. Louis being the most important.
It integrates the San Lorenzo River river system.
How many names did the largest freshwater lake in the world have?
Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface area and has been known by several names throughout history. The native Ojibwe called it “Gichigami,” meaning “Great Sea” or “Great Sea.” The French who explored the region called it “Le Lac Supérieur,” which translates to “Lake Superior,” in reference to its geographical location as the most remote of the Great Lakes.
Although these are the most documented and recognized names, it is likely that other names were given by various indigenous groups and explorers before the arrival of Europeans. Although there are primarily two historically significant names known, the exact total number of names it has received over time may vary depending on sources and interpretations of historical and linguistic records.
Hong Kong's future national security law will not allow the blocking of social networks, the territory's justice minister assured on Wednesday after a public consultation that suggested a possible ban on certain applications.
“I can say with certainty that we have absolutely no intention of banning social media,” Minister Paul Lam told a meeting of the city’s Legislative Council.
“The aim is to misuse or misuse these tools to disseminate comments that could endanger national security (…). We are not targeting social networks as such,” he continued.
The minister was speaking after releasing the results of a month-long public consultation in Hong Kong on the future national security law, which will complement the law imposed by Beijing in 2020 following major pro-democracy demonstrations in 2019.
According to these findings, some respondents believed that “sites such as Facebook and YouTube should be removed from the Hong Kong market” or that Telegram and Signal messaging services were “hotbeds of crime” that needed to be banned.
Several platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and X are blocked for regular users in mainland China but remain accessible in Hong Kong.
The Hong Kong government is expected to present its draft law next week, which will criminalize new offenses such as treason, sedition and espionage, in addition to those provided for in the 2020 text. The latter was imposed directly on the territory of Beijing in 2020 by the central government and has made virtually any form of dissent or protest in the city illegal.
Journalist associations, human rights organizations, foreign companies and diplomats fear that the new law will further restrict freedom of expression.
Since the 2020 law, foreign tech giants like Google and Meta have been walking a tightrope in Hong Kong. Some are rejecting requests from the Hong Kong government to remove content.
Authorities seeking to legally ban the 2019 protest anthem, “Glory to Hong Kong,” have notably called on YouTube and Google to remove it from search results.
