An independent investigation commissioned by George Washington University , in Washington, D.C., acquitted Lara Sheehy , a professor of psychology, of charges of anti-Semitism after claiming that her views on Israel created a hostile environment for Jewish students.

The investigation came after the pro-Israel organization StandWithUs filed a complaint in January, alleging that Sheehy had discriminated against several Jewish students because of their Israeli or Zionist identity during the fall semester.

The well-known DC law firm, Cowell & Moring, which was appointed to conduct the university's investigation, found that there was no evidence Sheehy had discriminated against the students, or retaliated against them after their complaints.

In a statement released by the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), which represented the Palestinian-born Dr. Sheehy, Sheehy welcomed the findings and said she hoped the report's findings "send a clear message" to groups trying to "harass and silence" academics like herself.

"I am grateful for the investigators and the effort to document what I knew meticulously from day one: Those of us who fight for Palestinian liberation do not do so at the expense of our Jewish brothers, nor do we discriminate against, retaliate or isolate Jewish or Israeli students in our ranks," she said.

The university said in a summary of the law firm's findings on Monday (3/27/23) that "many of the statements that the complaint alleges were made by Dr. Sheehy, according to those who listened to them, were either inaccurate or taken out of context and distorted."

The Zionist group StandWithUs said in a statement that it did not agree with the university's investigation findings, that its complaint had been submitted to the Federal Education Administration, not the university, and could still proceed, according to Rose Rothstein, director of StandWithUs.

The summary of the investigation indicated that the dispute in Sheehy's course, which is compulsory for students of psychology, centered on how to define anti-Semitism. The abstract states that StandWithUs, and a few students in the class, advocated a broad view of the definition of anti-Semitism, which, if accepted in a university setting, could violate the principles of freedom of speech and academic freedom.

Sheehy, a psychoanalyst of Palestinian origin, has publicly participated in advocacy activities for the Palestinian cause outside the university campus, prompting StandWithUs to say that Sheehy made offensive comments to students during class.

George Washington University, one of the most important universities in Washington, D.C., which some have accused of anti-Semitism, announced the results of the investigation, while Sheehy declined to comment immediately after the decision was issued that acquitted her of the allegations against her. But in February, she published a defense in the progressive online magazine Counterpunch, saying that StandWithUs was seeking to "stoke controversy about my studies and activism throughout Palestine."

Sheehy said (in the cited article) that the students who participated in the complaint against her displayed a "disturbing level of anti-Black and Arab racism," and that she provided a comprehensive discussion and condemnation of anti-Semitism in her diversity-focused course.

The summary of the investigation found that Sheehy had "denounced anti-Semitism as a real and present danger".

More than 200 Jewish psychologists defended Sheehy following the complaint filed by StandWithUs, which she said resulted in threats and harassment.

Sheehy was represented by the Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee during the investigation, and Abdel Ayoub, the organization's director, praised the findings and said on social media, "This was a defamation campaign by StandWithUs."

“This whole ordeal reveals how influential groups like StandWithUs are in discrediting pro-Palestinian academics,” Ayoub said. "The findings of GW should set a precedent across all universities."

A Kuwaiti court has sentenced Malaysian businessman Low Taek Jho and a member of the ruling family to prison over a financial case linked to the Malaysian sovereign fund, according to a copy of the verdict seen by AFP on Wednesday.

According to the text of the ruling issued by the Court of First Instance, the son of the former Kuwaiti prime minister , Sabah Jaber Mubarak Al-Sabah, and four partners, including Low Taek Jehu, laundered 343.7 million Kuwaiti dinars (more than 1.1 billion dollars).

The ruling stated that this money was looted from the Malaysian Sovereign Fund.

Launched by former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak in 2009, this public investment fund is at the center of a wide-ranging corruption scandal.

The case, for which the former leader was sentenced to 12 years in prison, has sparked investigations around the world, including in the United States, Switzerland and Singapore.

According to the Kuwaiti court, Sheikh Sabah Jaber Mubarak Al-Sabah received funds under a fictitious construction contract, and then the sums were transferred to various accounts, mainly in tax havens, through complex financial operations carried out with the help of his partners.

Sheikh Sabah Jaber Mubarak Al-Sabah and his partner, Hamad Al-Wazn, were sentenced to 10 years in prison with hard labor. The Kuwaiti lawyer, Saud Abdul Mohsen, was sentenced to 7 years in prison, and the expatriate, Muhammad Kiwan, and the Malaysian financier, who were tried in absentia, were sentenced to the same period.

This ruling can still be appealed.

Low Taek Jeho is considered the "mastermind" of the looting.

According to civil lawsuits filed in the United States, more than $4.5 billion was diverted from the Malaysian investment agency between 2009 and 2015 to purchase luxury residences, yachts, works of art and to invest in film productions, including "The Wolf of Wall Street" starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

On Wednesday, Israeli forces arrested two young men, one from Jenin and the other in occupied Jerusalem .

According to local sources, an Israeli military force arrested a young man, whose identity was not known, when he passed a flying military checkpoint at the Araba roundabout, south of Jenin.

Another force arrested a 27-year-old man at the Al-Jib checkpoint near Jerusalem, claiming that he had a knife in his possession, and referred him for investigation.

On Wednesday, Azerbaijan opened its first embassy in Israel .

The embassy was opened in the presence of Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov , who arrived in Tel Aviv yesterday.

Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said, "The opening of the Azeri embassy in Israel is further evidence of the strengthening of relations between the two countries."

He added, "I agreed with the Azeri foreign minister to form a united front against Iran." As stated in a statement on his tongue.

Occupational stress or work-related burnout costs the British economy each year 28 billion pounds , or about 32 billion euros, and results in 23.3 million days of leave, according to a study published Wednesday.

The authors of this study, conducted by the French insurance company "AXA" and the British research center CEBR, said that Britons are "more likely to suffer psychological problems than citizens of other countries" included in this research.

Their conclusions were based, in particular, on a census conducted by the "Ipsos" institute that included 30,000 people between the ages of 18 and 74 in 16 countries and regions around the world.

This statistic shows that 21% of British adults suffer from emotional distress, ahead of Americans (17%), Belgians (11%), French (10%), Chinese (10%) and Swiss (9%).

"Nearly half of Britons are currently not in good mental health and are at risk of occupational stress, which has a significant impact on the UK economy and businesses," a statement read.

The authors of the study pointed out that the cost of living crisis in the United Kingdom is having a negative impact, as inflation rose again in February to 10.4% on an annual basis, which weakened the purchasing power of the British.

CEBR data showed that financial stress and employee concerns cost British businesses up to £6.2 billion in sick leave and lost productivity.

Today, Wednesday, the Israeli Central Court in Tel Aviv issued a 20-year prison sentence and a fine of 180,000 shekels against the young man, Muhammad Bani Odeh, from Tammun, south of Tubas .

According to the Hebrew Channel Seven, the occupation accuses Odeh of carrying out an operation in Jaffa more than two years ago, which resulted in the injury of an Israeli.

Forests, oceans and wetlands are amazing carbon sinks and thus limit the effects of climate change , but a recent study showed that nine species of animals play an important role in achieving the goal of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Some wild species facilitate carbon capture, by treading on the ground, eating plants and animals, or through their feces.

Preserving nine species, namely marine fish, whales, sharks, gray wolves, otters, sea otters, musk oxen, African forest elephants and American bison, captures 6.41 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide annually, according to the study published in the journal Nature Climate Change. They were prepared by 15 scientists from eight countries.

The amount of carbon dioxide captured by these animals, combined with all other measures to reduce emissions, constitutes 95% of the amount needed annually to achieve the global goal of removing 500 gigatonnes of carbon from the atmosphere by 2100, which would keep global warming below a threshold. 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to the pre-industrial era.

Oswald Schmitz, the study's lead author, said, "Wild animals account for only 0.3% of carbon emissions within the global biomass, and this figure is not taken into account when calculating the amounts of carbon emitted into the atmosphere. However, several types of animals can contribute to the control significantly." significantly alters the carbon cycle, by causing changes of 15 to 250% in the amounts of carbon dioxide absorbed and stored by plants and soils.

Among these animals are the elephants of the Congo Basin forest, whose role is not only to eat tree seeds and defecate, which is an effective carbon storage process, but also contribute to the germination of trees through their feces. Also, by trampling on plants that grow beneath others, they provide more space for tall trees, which capture a large amount of carbon.

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the number of these elephants has decreased by 86% over the past 31 years.

Restoring this species could store an additional 13 million tons of carbon annually, according to the scientists.

As for their extinction, it will cause a loss of 7% of the stored carbon quantities, equivalent to three tons in total, according to a study published in 2019.

Fish are the main contributors to the carbon storage process, as they alone are responsible for capturing 5.5 gigatonnes of this gas annually.

US President Joe Biden will open his "democracy summit" on Wednesday, considering it a "turning point" in confronting authoritarian regimes, during which he will announce about $700 million to support "democratic renewal" in the world.

The United States , Costa Rica, the Netherlands, Zambia and South Korea are participating in organizing the second edition of this summit, which comes in the midst of the war in Ukraine, and against the backdrop of fears of the growing power of China.

Democracies are under pressure from the United States to Israel, where a judicial reform project deeply divided the country and sparked mass demonstrations before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu finally announced his "suspend".

"They cannot continue this path, and I think I have expressed my opinion clearly," Biden said on Tuesday evening, noting that he does not intend "in the near term" to invite the Israeli prime minister to visit the White House.
In an online speech at the summit, Netanyahu said, "Israel and the United States have known differences of opinion from time to time, but I am keen to stress that the alliance between the largest democracy in the world and Israel, a strong, proud and independent democracy in the heart of the Middle East, is firm and unshakable. Nothing can change that."

Biden is expected to announce an investment of $690 million to support "democratic renewal" in the world, largely at the virtual summit, said a senior US official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

He stressed that this amount should be used to promote fair and free elections, defend human rights and freedom of the press, and fight corruption, explaining that it will be added to the 400 million that were released in the first edition of the summit held under the auspices of President Biden in 2021.

It is expected that a large part of the discussions will also revolve around the threats posed by new technologies, according to what the US official confirmed, referring to spying programs in particular.

The leaders of each of the five host countries will preside over a virtual plenary session during the summit on Wednesday, and the US President's session will focus on "democrats' response to global challenges", to which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was invited.

Thursday, on the second day of the summit, activities will be held in the capitals of each of the host countries.

At least 121 countries were invited to attend the summit, eight more than at the first summit.

The many working sessions, most of which are virtual, bring together civil society officials to discuss challenges to democracy around the world, including in the field of technology, while Westerners accuse the "Tik Tok" application in particular of working as a tool for Beijing.

President Biden fulfilled his campaign pledges regarding this summit, and revived US alliances after the years of Donald Trump's rule, but he disappointed many observers by cozying up to leaders accused of authoritarian abuses and with controversial human rights records. Last year, Biden visited Saudi Arabia and Egypt to participate in the COP27 summit and established working relations with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

However, none of these three countries were invited to participate in the summit.

Others not invited include Hungary, led by nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Singapore and Bangladesh.

The US State Department refused to address the criteria that determined whether or not to invite certain countries, speaking of a social, economic and regional distribution. "We are not looking to identify democratic and non-democratic countries," a spokesman said.

India, the world's largest democracy, was invited days after opposition leader Rahul Gandhi was excluded from the Indian Parliament.

Neighboring Pakistan declined the invitation, saying it wanted, according to a spokesperson, to "work bilaterally" with the host countries.

Freedom House, a democracy research group supported by the US government, said that the year 2022 witnessed a decline in democracy around the world, according to its annual report.

South Korea offered to host the third edition of this summit at an unspecified time, according to the US official.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad issued today (Wednesday) a decree to make a government reshuffle that includes five ministers, according to the Syrian official media .

And the Syrian News Agency (SANA) stated that President Al-Assad "issued today Decree No. (91) of 2023, which provides for a government reshuffle that includes five ministers."

The decree stipulated naming Firas Hassan Kaddour as Minister of Oil and Mineral Resources to succeed Bassam Tohme, Mohsen Abdel Karim Ali as Minister of Internal Trade and Consumer Protection to succeed Amr Salem, and Abdel Qader Joukdar as Minister of Industry to succeed Ziyad Sabbagh.

The decree also stipulated the naming of Louay Imad al-Din al-Munajjid as Minister of Social Affairs and Labor to succeed Muhammad Saif al-Din, and Ahmed Bustahji as Minister of State.

The decree ended the naming of Muhammad Fayez Al-Barsha as Minister of State.

The amendment also comes more than a month after a devastating earthquake struck several areas in Syria, killing 1,414 people and wounding 2,357, according to the Syrian Ministry of Health.

The Russian administration announced on Wednesday that Melitopol, one of the main cities in southern Ukraine, was hit by a missile attack by the Ukrainian army, which caused a power outage.

Melitopol is the Russian capital in the section it controls from the Zaporizhia region, where the nuclear power plant of the same name is located, which is occupied by Russian forces and is visited by the director of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, on Wednesday.

In recent days, Russia has accused Ukraine of intensifying attacks and strikes in Melitopol, where 150,000 people lived before the war . According to the occupation administration in the city, the bombing hit a depot for locomotives at dawn, without causing any injuries.

The official in the region , Vladimir Rogov, said on Telegram that the bombing was carried out with the American high-precision HIMARS system, and the city is located more than 65 km from the front.

"Because of the fires launched by Kiev, the electricity supply infrastructure was damaged, and electricity distribution was cut off in Melitopol and many nearby villages," he added.

On the Ukrainian side, the city's exiled mayor , Ivan Fedorov, reported the explosions Wednesday, saying he hoped to receive "good news" from Ukraine's armed forces about the target sites.

Russia had accused Ukraine of carrying out strikes on Melitopol on March 27. On March 23, Kiev was accused of launching a homemade bomb attack, which resulted in the injury of a policeman, and on the 15th, an occupation official was killed in a car bomb attack.

For weeks, speculation has been circulating about a possible Ukrainian counterattack towards Melitopol, because advancing towards it and retaking it would cut off the land corridor that Russia occupied to connect its lands with the Crimean peninsula, which Moscow annexed in 2014.

To be able to inflict new defeats on Russia, Ukraine needs long-range munitions to destroy Russian supply routes and warehouses.

Until now, the range of the missiles in its possession did not exceed 80 km.

The United States promised ammunition with a range of 150 km.

Ukraine launched successful counterattacks, and the fall offensive in the south allowed Kherson to be recaptured in November, preceded by Himars strikes and attacks on Russian-appointed officials.

After arriving from Reunion Island, Stephen Mayo (23) joined the ArcelorMittal plant in Eisenhötenstadt, Germany , for an apprenticeship at the giant steel group.

This sector is one of the sectors most affected by the shortage of specialized labor force in Europe's largest economies .

Faced with this challenge, the government of Olaf Scholz should adopt a bill on Wednesday aimed at easing the rules for obtaining visas and work permits for citizens of non- EU countries.
For example, it will soon no longer be necessary to present an employment contract to settle in the country, as this is replaced by a points system that measures the "abilities" of candidates to integrate into society.

The goal is to attract more workers. Thus, Berlin is going against the general trend in Europe of closing borders to immigrants.

For Stephen, it was the higher salary and future career behind his decision to leave his island for this city near the border with Poland on Germany's eastern frontier.

This decision was a relief for the giant group, whose director in Germany, Rainer Blaschick, realized that attracting young apprentices like himself was "increasingly difficult".

The shortage of specialized labor has become a real problem. There are currently 2 million vacancies in Germany as the 60's retire.

Due to an aging population, the labor market is expected to lose seven million people by 2035 if the government does not take any steps according to a study by the Institute for Labor Market Research (IAB).
Forty-four percent of German companies from various sectors surveyed by the Ifo institute confirmed that they were affected by a labor shortage in January.

Faced with this difficult situation, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz encouraged employees not to retire early while companies are testing the increasing use of robots, as is the case in the field of providing care for the elderly.

At the beginning of the month, Scholz warned in parliament that relying on Germany's population alone "would not be sufficient" to make up for the shortfall.

Industrialists are trying to face shortage challenges themselves by proposing to train foreigners.

New Eisenhotenstadt (City of Ironworks) was built in the 1950s during communist East Germany. ArcelorMittal employs 2,700 people and welcomes fifty new trainees annually, such as Stephen Mayo.

"For the sake of my future career I have to stay here," he told AFP at the factory, though he misses his country.

Employment Minister Hubertus Hill said during a recent visit to the factory, where he met apprentices, that proper training is important to "retention" of young people.

But it is particularly difficult to find candidates in eastern Germany because of lower incomes compared to the West and an inhospitable reputation.
"So we will also attract the workers we need by opening legal immigration channels," the minister explained.

Achim Dirks, deputy director of the German Chambers of Commerce (DIHK), said at the beginning of the year that the shortage could "impede the achievement of important transition goals" in Germany towards "electric vehicles or renewable energy".

For example, the ArcelorMittal group plans to replace a fossil-fuel furnace with a new hydrogen-electric unit by the end of 2026.

The shift to greener production processes will eliminate some jobs but will create new jobs and thus new job opportunities.

"We are facing a major technical transformation... If we want to transform our facilities over the next four years, we have to start changing the method of training starting now," Blachik says.

Russian oil giant Rosneft announced on Wednesday that it had signed a contract with an Indian partner to "significantly increase" shipments of Russian oil, while Moscow, targeted by Western sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine, seeks to redirect its sales to Asia.

Rosneft said in a statement that its president , Igor Sechin , during a trip to India "signed an agreement with Indian Oil Company to significantly increase oil supplies to India."

The Russian company did not specify the value of the signed contract nor the quantities agreed upon under this deal.

This announcement comes a day after Russia announced that its oil exports to India increased 22 times in the year 2022.

Russia, which is targeted by severe Western economic sanctions and an embargo on oil derivatives because of its attack on Ukraine, is trying to redirect its oil and gas exports to other countries, especially in Asia.

India and China, two big energy consumers, are at the forefront of countries that Moscow relies on to offset contracts in Europe.

"The parties also discussed ... possibilities of payment in the national currency," Rosneft said in its statement on Wednesday, as Russia tries to remove the dollar from its economy to become less dependent on Washington.

According to data from the Indian Ministry of Commerce mentioned in the press release, last year Russia became, for the first time in its history, one of the five main trading partners of India, while the volume of trade between the two countries amounted to $38.4 billion.

The Captive Club said that the family of the prisoner and thinker Walid Daqqa , in cooperation with the competent authorities, announced a campaign to demand his release from the occupation prisons, due to the seriousness of his health condition.

Yesterday, the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs warned of the seriousness of the health condition of prisoner Daqqa, who has cancer in the spinal cord, and has been detained for 38 years. He was recently transferred to the Israeli Barzlai Hospital, after suffering a new setback, as he entered the stage of real danger.

The prisoner Daqqa is going through an unstable condition caused by acute pneumonia, and a tube was inserted into the lung area to withdraw fluids, and to find out the causes of the acute pneumonia he suffers from, in addition to his suffering from back and leg pain, and fatigue and emaciation when speaking.

The prisoner, Daqqa, 60, from the town of Baqa al-Gharbia in the lands of 1948, has been detained since March 25, 1986. He is from a family consisting of three sisters and six brothers, noting that he lost his father during his years of detention.

The prisoner Daqqa is considered one of the most prominent prisoners in the occupation prisons, and he contributed to many paths in the detention life of the prisoners, and during his long career in detention, he produced many books, studies and articles, and contributed cognitively to understanding the prison experience and its resistance.

It is noteworthy that the occupation imposed a life imprisonment sentence against him, which was later determined to be (37) years, and the occupation added two years to his sentence in 2018, to become (39) years.

Recently, it was confirmed that he had a rare type of cancer in the bone marrow, and he needs treatment and close follow-up, noting that he is in Ashkelon Prison.

For the freedom of Abu Daqqa and all our free prisoners, participate via the campaign link:

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100091256805982&mibextid=LQQJ4d

Today, Wednesday, the Captive Club confirmed that a serious deterioration occurred in the health status of the prisoner, Khader Adnan , who has been on hunger strike for 53 days, refusing to arrest him. To refuse medical examinations and treatment.

The club stated in a statement that the prisoner Adnan suffers mainly at this stage from continuous vomiting, frequent loss of consciousness, and great difficulty in sleeping.

And he indicated that the prisoner Adnan refuses to undergo medical examinations, and to take any kind of treatment, as his refusal of examinations and treatment is the most important tool that can contribute to resolving his battle.

Today, Wednesday, an Israeli court sentenced the prisoner , Khalil Muhammad Awawdeh (40 years), from the town of Beit Ithna, west of Hebron, to 16 months in prison, and a fine of 5,000 shekels, with an 8-month suspension.

According to the Prisoners' Club, the occupation accuses the prisoner, Awawda, of trying to bring a phone into the prison.

He stated that the prisoner, Awawda, was supposed to be released on October 2, 2022, after he went on a hunger strike that lasted for 172 days against his administrative detention. However, the occupation authorities, and shortly before his release, charged him with an attempt to A phone was inserted during his transfer from the Israeli "Asaf Harofeh" hospital to "Ramle", and kept his arrest until today.

On Wednesday afternoon, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed his government ministers to refrain from commenting on US President Joe Biden's statements.

According to the website of the Hebrew newspaper, Israel Hume, the aim of this step is to contain tensions with the US administration.

Biden had said in a press conference that he would not invite Netanyahu to visit the White House in the near future, and that his government must make a settlement regarding judicial reforms.

Netanyahu responded to him later, by saying that "Israel is an independent state that takes its decisions by the will of its citizens and not on the basis of external pressure."

Today, Wednesday, the Central Bureau of Statistics stated that the number of Israeli colonial sites and military bases reached 483 sites until the end of the year 2021 in the West Bank .

In a statement, on the occasion of the 47th anniversary of Earth Day, the agency said, "These sites are distributed in 151 settlements, 25 inhabited outposts that were considered as neighborhoods belonging to existing settlements, 163 colonial outposts, and 144 other classified sites, which include (industrial, tourist, service areas, and camps for the occupation army)." .

The year 2022 witnessed a significant increase in the pace of building and expanding Israeli settlements , and the occupation authorities approved about 83 colonial plans to build more than 22,000 colonial units throughout the West Bank, including Jerusalem.

According to the statement, the occupation authorities and colonizers, with the protection of the occupation army, carried out 8,724 attacks against Palestinian citizens and their property during the year 2022, with 1,515 attacks on religious property and places, 362 attacks on lands and natural resources, and 6,847 attacks on individuals.

He pointed out that the occupation authorities carried out a total of 378 demolitions during the year 2022, affecting 953 facilities in the West Bank, including the city of Jerusalem, and most of them were concentrated in the Jerusalem governorate, with 118 demolitions, or 31%.

And the statistics indicated that the number of Palestinian and Arab martyrs reached about one hundred thousand martyrs, since the Nakba in 1948 until today (inside and outside Palestine), while the number of martyrs from the beginning of the Al-Aqsa Intifada until 12/31/2022 reached about 11,540 martyrs, and during the year 2022 the number of martyrs reached There are 231 martyrs in Palestine, including 56 children and 17 women.

The occupation controls more than 85% of the land of historical Palestine

The estimated number of Palestinians in the world at the end of 2022 was about 14.3 million, of whom 5.4 million reside in the State of Palestine, and about 1.7 million Palestinians in the 1948 lands, while the number of Palestinians in Arab countries reached about 6.4 million Palestinians, and about 761 thousand in foreign countries, in When the number of Jews in historic Palestine reaches 7.1 million, and thus the number of Palestinians and Jews in historical Palestine equals by the end of the year 2022, at 7.1 million each.

The Israeli occupation exploits more than 85% of the total land area in historical Palestine, knowing that the Jews during the British Mandate era and until 1947 exploited only 1,682 square kilometers, which constituted 6.2% of the land of historical Palestine.

The occupation exploits 76% of the total area classified as (C).

The Israeli occupation took advantage of the classification of lands according to the Oslo Accords (A, B, and C) to tighten control over Palestinian lands, especially in areas classified (C), which are completely subject to the control of the Israeli occupation, as the Israeli occupation directly exploits 76% of the total The area classified as (C), where the regional councils of the settlements control 63% of it, while the area of the areas of influence in the Israeli settlements in the West Bank (including the closed areas designated for the expansion of these settlements) amounted to about 537 square kilometers at the end of 2022, representing about 10% Of the area of the West Bank, while the areas confiscated for the purposes of military bases and military training sites represent about 18% of the area of the West Bank at 1,016 km2, in addition to the annexation and expansion wall that isolated more than 10% of the area of the West Bank, and more than 219 Palestinian communities were damaged as a result The construction of the wall, which is about 714 km long. Since 1967, the Israeli occupation authorities have confiscated about 353 thousand dunums of Palestinian lands and classified them as natural reserves in preparation for their seizure.

As for the number of settlers in the West Bank, it reached 719,452 settlers, at the end of the year 2021, and the data indicates that most of the settlers live in Jerusalem governorate by 326,523 settlers (constituting 45.4% of the total number of settlers), of whom 239,951 settlers are in J1 area (including The part of Jerusalem governorate that the Israeli occupation annexed by force after its occupation of the West Bank in 1967), followed by Ramallah and Al-Bireh governorate with 143,311 settlers, 95,279 settlers in Bethlehem governorate and 50,067 settlers in Salfit governorate. As for the lowest governorates in terms of the number of settlers, they are Tubas and the northern Jordan Valley with 2,629 settlers. The ratio of settlers to Palestinians in the West Bank is about 23 settlers for every 100 Palestinians, while the highest is in Jerusalem governorate with about 69 settlers for every 100 Palestinians.

70 colonial plans to build more than 10,000 colonial units in Jerusalem during 2022

Within the policy of deportation and replacement, the Israeli occupation authorities are taking accelerated Judaization measures in Jerusalem in order to obliterate the Islamic and Christian monuments, displace the Palestinians from the city of Jerusalem, and replace them with Israelis coming from all over the world. During the year 2022, the Israeli occupation authorities approved about 70 colonial plans to build more than 10,000 buildings. A colonial unit in the Jerusalem governorate and its surroundings, at a time when the Israeli occupation authorities demolished more than 258 buildings and issued demolition decisions for more than 220 buildings, including 100 residential buildings in the Al-Bustan neighborhood within the collective demolition policy, which leads to the displacement of 1,550 people, the majority of whom are children and women. In addition, the frequency of targeting Palestinians increased, as 19 Jerusalemites were martyred and about 2,486 were injured by the Israeli occupation bullets during the year 2022. The number of arrest cases launched by the Israeli occupation in Jerusalem governorate increased during the year 2022, as the number of arrest cases reached about 3,504 cases, compared to about 2,879 cases in The year 2021, an increase of about 22%.

More than 8,700 attacks carried out by the occupation and its settlers in 2022

The Israeli occupation authorities and settlers, under the protection of the Israeli occupation army, carried out 8,724 attacks against Palestinian citizens and their property during the year 2022. These attacks were distributed by 1,515 attacks on religious property and places, 362 attacks on lands and natural resources, and 6,847 attacks on individuals. On the other hand, the year 2022 witnessed an attempt by settler groups on 63 occasions to establish outposts, most notably the attempt of the right-wing Nahla movement to establish more than 10 outposts on 7/20/2022. The occupation forces and settlers also launched a total of 223 confiscation operations of about 294 Palestinian property, including 48 agricultural tractors. , and 53 cars for citizens. These attacks also caused the uprooting, damage and destruction of 10,291 olive trees, including 2,400 trees in the Nablus governorate.

378 demolitions affected 953 facilities in the West Bank in 2022

During the year 2022, the Israeli occupation authorities carried out a total of 378 demolitions, affecting 953 establishments in the West Bank, including the city of Jerusalem. Most of the demolitions were concentrated in the Jerusalem governorate, with 118 demolitions, or 31%, leaving 178 demolished establishments in the city of Jerusalem, of which 98 were demolitions. Self, and the Israeli occupation authorities issued 1,220 demolition notices, of which about 33% were in Hebron Governorate, 18% in Bethlehem Governorate, and 9% in Ramallah and Al-Bireh Governorate, in addition to the destruction of many infrastructure sites that serve the Palestinians, including roads, water and sanitation networks. Entertainment places...etc.

About a hundred thousand martyrs since the Nakba

The number of Palestinian and Arab martyrs since the Nakba in 1948 until today (inside and outside Palestine) reached about 100,000 martyrs, while the number of martyrs from the beginning of the Al-Aqsa Intifada until 12/31/2022 reached about 11,540 martyrs. 2,240 martyrs, of whom 2,181 were martyred in the Gaza Strip, most of them were martyred during the aggression on the Gaza Strip, while during the year 2022, the number of martyrs in Palestine reached 231 martyrs, including 56 martyrs of children and 17 women, while the number of wounded reached about 10 thousand, and the number of prisoners in prisons The Israeli occupation, as it is at the end of February 2022, reached 4,700 prisoners (of whom 150 are children, in addition to 29 female prisoners), and during the year 2022, the occupation authorities arrested about 7,000 Palestinians throughout the Palestinian territories, including about 882 children and 172 women, of whom 129 are women. From Jerusalem governorate, while the number of administrative detention orders against citizens who have not been charged with any charges reached 850.

The policy of the occupation forces did not stop demolishing Palestinian-owned buildings and the resulting displacement of residents from their homes throughout the West Bank, as the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Territories (OCHA) documented since 2009 that the occupation forces destroyed 9,353 homes or facilities since 2009. 2009, including 1,639 facilities funded by donors, which led to the displacement of 13,641 citizens. The demolitions were 19% in East Jerusalem, 79% in areas classified (C), and about 2% of the demolitions were in areas classified (A) and (B). OCHA documented About 953 facilities were demolished during the year 2022, including 140 facilities funded by donors, which led to the displacement of 1,031 citizens and affected 28,446 citizens, inhabited and uninhabited agricultural and residential facilities represented about 70% of them.

It is noteworthy that the Palestinian people commemorate the Earth Day annually, in which six Palestinian youths were martyred in the 48 lands in response to the occupation’s decision to seize 21 thousand dunums of the lands of Galilee, the Triangle and the Negev, on the thirtieth of March 1976, and this day has become a memory to perpetuate and embody the adherence of the Palestinian people With his land and homeland, and in memory of the martyrs of Earth Day.

"My father, do not sleep and wait for me. I ask the Lord of the Worlds to give me the strength to break the glass of the prisons and bring you to our house, to spend the month of Ramadan and all the days with us. I am sad for your separation." Hassan Maraba, 46, on the occasion of the holy month of Ramadan, which she received with her mother and four brothers, deprived of their father, who is still detained and detained in the Israeli "Megiddo" prison.

And her mother added: "My daughter could not bear our tears, our grief, and our constant pain since the beginning of Ramadan, so she wrote this letter to send it to his father. Since his arrest, despite her young age, she has not stopped expressing her longing and pain through writing that draws her thoughts alone and expresses all of us."

And she continues: "Because she is attached to her father like the rest of her brothers, they always miss their father, and they cannot forget him, and every day she cries for his separation and his distance from her, especially in the holy month."

From the village of Fahma in Jenin Governorate, the 46-year-old prisoner, Hasan "Abu Ali", hails from and dedicates his life to his wife and his family consisting of 4 members, the eldest of whom is 17 years old and the youngest 7 years old. His companion, Rana Maraba, says: "Since our marriage, he works and dedicates himself to live a beautiful and stable life." Amna, he filled the lives of his children with all love, and had nothing to do with politics or affiliation with an organization.

And she adds: "At about two o'clock in the morning on January 11, 2023, the soldiers stormed our house, detained us and isolated us in one room until the search campaign ended, sabotaging and destroying all the contents, and after confiscating the cell phones that were not returned to us until today, they took my husband from us." .

And she adds: "Without taking into account the presence of children, and their horror at the sight of the soldiers, they handcuffed their father and blindfolded him, prevented us from saying goodbye, and arrested him in the midst of our shock and transferred him to military patrols, noting that my husband suffers from a difficult health condition, he has discs and pains that do not stop in the back and joints, and he suffers from Ulcers in the stomach and colon, and imprisonment exacerbated the complications of his condition.

Umm Ali stated that the occupation forces detained her husband for more than a month in torture cells in "Al-Jalama" prison, during which time there was no news of him, and they refused to allow the lawyer to enter the medicines he was taking. After the investigation was over, they transferred him to "Megiddo" prison, and the court still refuses to release him. After 7 sessions, his detention was extended until 16-5-2023.

And she added: "For the first time we live the atmosphere of Ramadan without my husband and his children. Sadness overshadows us and we see it in their eyes whenever they see their father's place empty, and difficult moments we live at the Ramadan table, and this atmosphere is very different from the previous Ramadans that he lived with us and spent with obedience to God Almighty."

And she continued: “We hope that this difficult and difficult period in our lives will end, as the Ramadan table is without taste or flavor, and we spent the time praying and then praying to be with us soon, God willing.”

Prince Harry accused the royal family of withholding information from him regarding wiretapping of his phone by British newspapers, in a statement published on Tuesday as part of the lawsuit he filed against the publisher of the Daily Mail newspaper.

For the second day in a row, the youngest son of King Charles participated in a session of the High Court in London, where hearings are being held in cases against the "Associated Newspaper" (ANL), which several celebrities accuse of illegally collecting information about them.

In his statement signed on February 24, which was seen by AFP, Harry discussed his strained relations with the media since the death of his mother, Diana.

He pointed out that the royal family had deterred him from flirting with the press because "that would have sparked a chain of unwanted events and reactions."

He continued, "There is no doubt that the royal family was withholding information from me regarding the hacking of my phone, and it only became clear to me in recent years when I filed a lawsuit personally."

Harry, who is on an exceptional visit to the United Kingdom, suddenly came to London to participate in a hearing in which the "ANL" house is trying to drop lawsuits brought against it by the youngest son of King Charles, singer Elton John and actress Liz Hurley.

The six prosecutors accuse the "ANL" house of using investigators to eavesdrop on them.

The media group had "categorically and unequivocally refuted this absurd defamation which appears to be a planned attempt to involve the Daily Mail publications in a wiretapping scandal involving articles dating back 30 years".

The British tabloid press was rocked about ten years ago by scandals of illegal wiretapping, which had been practiced since the beginning of the first decade of the twenty-first century.

The sudden appearance of Prince Harry in London comes just over a month before his father, the king, is crowned on May 6. Harry and his wife Megan moved to the United States after their withdrawal from the royal family in 2020, but they have not yet announced whether they will accept the invitation.

After a documentary about Harry was shown on Netflix in December, the prince released his controversial memoir, Spear, in early January, in which he details the breakdown of his relationship with his father and brother William.

The body of Uday Abdel-Fattah Ahmed arrived in the Gaza Strip this morning, Wednesday, after he drowned in the Italian coast .

It is noteworthy that a boat sank off the Italian coast a few weeks ago, with the deceased Ahmed on board.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo will send FIFA President to hold talks with FIFA officials about hosting the U-20 World Cup, after the draw that was scheduled for Friday was canceled due to the Bali governor's call to exclude Israel from the tournament.
There is no official diplomatic relationship between the two countries, and support for the Palestinian cause in the largest Muslim-majority country has raised tensions over hosting Israel.
In a video clip posted on the Internet, Widodo said on Tuesday that he would send FIFA President and Minister of State Eric Tohir to hold talks with FIFA, in light of doubts about the host country.
No date was set for Tuhir, the former president of the Italian club Inter, to meet with FIFA officials.
The meeting will be held in the Qatari capital, Doha, according to what was revealed by the official of the Indonesian Federation, Eko Rahmanto, to Agence France-Presse.
The draw for the tournament, which will be held between May 20 and June 11, 2023 in six cities with the participation of 24 teams, was scheduled for Friday in Bali, but the International Federation (FIFA) canceled the event without giving reasons or setting a new date, according to what the Indonesian Federation announced on Sunday.
Officials said a possible factor in the cancellation of the lottery was Bali Governor Ian Koster's call to exclude Israel over its policies toward the Palestinians, in a letter to the Ministry of Youth and Sports last month.
The International Federation did not respond to a request for comment.
Israel is scheduled to participate after qualifying for the first time to the finals, while Jakarta pledged to protect its participation.
The organizers hoped that hosting Israel's matches on the Hindu-majority island of Bali would lead to solutions, but Koster's opposition cast more doubts.
About 100 conservative Muslim demonstrators marched in the capital, Jakarta, this month to protest Israel's participation.
While FIFA did not comment on the cancellation of the lottery draw, the country's president called for politics not to conflict with sports.
Widodo's intervention comes after football officials in Jakarta feared losing the right to host the first major tournament, and isolating the country spherically through exposure to sanctions from the International Federation if they failed to resolve the issue.
The country is hosting the tournament after one of the worst stadium disasters in football history, which led to the death of 135 people in a stampede in the city of Malang, east Java last October, including more than forty children.
Officials are trying to polish the game's reputation after being suspended by the International Federation in 2015 for a year, due to government interference in the game.

(AFP) - Scotsman Scott McTominay scored a new brace and led his country to a 2-0 victory over its Spanish guest on Tuesday, inflicting its first loss under the supervision of its new coach, Luis de la Fuente, in the second round of Group A competitions of the 2024 European Cup qualifiers. .
McTominay imposed himself as a star for the second match in a row, after scoring two goals from his country’s hat-trick against Cyprus in the first round of the qualifiers, raising his tally to 4 goals in two matches.
Scotland topped the group with a full score of 6 points, 3 points ahead of Spain, while Norway, tied with Georgia 1-1 earlier today, after losing 3-0 against Spain at the start of the qualifiers, ranks fourth with a point equal to Georgia, who played their match The first after she missed the first round.
The champion and runner-up of each of the ten groups, in addition to three teams from the European Nations League and the host country, qualify directly for the finals scheduled for the summer of 2024 in Germany.
The new coach of the "La Roja" team, de la Fuente, who replaced Luis Enrique after the disappointing exit from the World Cup in Qatar in the final price against Morocco with a penalty shootout 0-3 after they tied negatively, made 8 substitutions compared to the match that he won against Norway on Saturday.
At Hampden Park, Scotland opened the scoring after 7 minutes, after defender Pedro Burrow fell on the left flank to take advantage of Andrew Robertson and pass the ball back to McTominay inside the area, who shot past goalkeeper Arisabalaga Kepa.
The "La Roja" team almost equalized the score, but Joselo's header, who scored two goals within 106 seconds against Norway, hit the crossbar (23).
Boro tried to make up for the mistake he had made, hitting a ball from 25 meters with his right foot, which was narrowly blocked by goalkeeper Angis Gun (29), before Scotsman Lyndon Dykes won his struggle with Garcia, entered the area and hit a falling ball, "Loeb", which passed over the goal a minute before the half-time whistle ( 45+1).
McTominay added a second personal goal for him and his team at the start of the second half, after a pass from Kieran Tierney was intercepted by the Spanish defense, and the “Red Devils” player followed it up on the fly into the net (51).
Goalkeeper Kiba crossbar saved Spain from a third goal after a free kick by John McGinn (57).
Within the same group, the Norwegian national team, without its star striker, the giant Erling Haaland, who was absent due to injury, failed to win the second match in a row, after falling into a 1-1 draw against Georgia.
Georgia, seeking to qualify for the finals of a major tournament for the first time in its history, prepared for its continental match with a landslide victory over Mongolia 6-1 in a friendly on Saturday.
French coach Willy Sagnol contributed to the development of the Georgian national team in the last 12 months, as he led it to the second classification in the Nations League competition.
Since its exit from the group stage in 2000, Norway has failed to qualify for the European Cup final 5 times, while it has only achieved an orphan victory in its last six matches in various competitions.
Norway failed to win against Georgia after it had previously won the three previous matches that brought them together, knowing that the last meeting between them, before this evening, dates back to May 1999 in the European Cup 2000 qualifiers (Norway won 1-0).
In Batumi, the visiting team opened the scoring early through Spanish Real Sociedad striker Alexander Sorloth (15), before the hosts equalized through French second-division Metz striker Georges Mikotadze in the second half (60).
The Italian star of Napoli, Khvica Kvaratskhelia, played the match without succeeding in scoring.
In Group D, Croatia compensated for its 1-1 draw with Wales in the first round by defeating its host Turkey 2-0, scored by Chelsea midfielder Mateo Kovacic (20, 45 + 4).
Croatia, runner-up to the World Cup Russia 2018 and third to Qatar 2022, topped the group with 4 points, equal to Wales, who defeated its guest Latvia 1-0, with a goal by Kiefer Moore (41).
Turkey, which returned with a valuable victory from Armenia 2-1 at the start of the qualifiers, froze at 3 points in third place, while the latter was absent from the competitions of this round.
In the ninth group, Switzerland achieved its second victory in a row by dropping Israel 3-0. It was scored by Robin Vargas (39), Zaki Amdouni (48) and Sylvain Widmer (52).
Switzerland has not missed the European Cup finals since 2012 and the World Cup since 2002, and it seems a strong candidate to obtain one of the two group nine cards to the 2024 German finals.
Switzerland, which defeated Belarus 5-0 in the first round, equaled 6 points with Romania, which inflicted its second consecutive loss on Belarus by defeating it 2-1.
The third Kosovo fell into the trap of a tie for the second consecutive match against Andorra 1-1, after tying with Israel with the same result in the first round.

Canada unveiled Tuesday a budget aimed at making the country a "superpower" for clean energy and developing its capabilities in producing rare earths and electric cars in the world.

In the face of the rising cost of living, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland also announced specific assistance for the poorest, which will benefit 11 million Canadian families, and the launch of a new dental care plan for the nearly nine million Canadians who do not have health insurance.

Justin Trudeau's government has granted large tax breaks ranging from 15 to 30 percent to a wide range of power generation sectors, from marine energy to the nuclear sector as well as the extraction of base metals for electric batteries.

The announced measures also build on past tax breaks and investments in "clean economy" projects, such as producing hydrogen from renewable sources.

Freeland said the world was going through "the most significant economic transition since the Industrial Revolution," referring to the fight against climate change.

"Today and in the years ahead, Canada must seize this historic moment, this incredible opportunity before us, or we will be left behind as democracies around the world build the clean economy of the 21st century," she added during her budget presentation to Parliament.

With these tax breaks likely to reach more than 80 billion Canadian dollars (54 billion euros) in the next decade, Ottawa hopes to close the gap with the billions that the United States has allocated for electric cars, batteries and renewable energy projects.

The International Energy Agency says the clean technology sector is expected to be worth more than $630 billion worldwide by 2030, more than three times the current level.

Ottawa's budget includes billions of dollars to attract more private investment in this sector. It also promises to keep energy prices and carbon credits as negotiated in the event that market prices fall below the minimum stipulated in the contracts.

For its part, the Canadian Labor Conference expressed its "concern that a 3 percent cut in funding for the public health sector could have a significant impact on workers and the services that people depend on."

Canada will see weak economic growth in 2023, as the government forecasts in its budget, while emphasizing the risk of a "moderate recession" in a worst-case scenario.

Ottawa currently expects its gross domestic product to grow by 0.3 percent this year before rising to 1.5 percent in 2024. However, the government does not rule out the possibility of a contraction (0.2 percent) in 2023.

According to the draft budget, public debt will rise next year to 43.5 percent of GDP, then gradually decrease to less than forty percent by 2027-2028.

The Egyptian national team, led by its star Mohamed Salah, put forward the 2023 African Cup of Nations in football, scheduled for Ivory Coast early next year, by defeating host Malawi 4-0 on Tuesday, while defending champions Senegal and Tunisia won the qualification ticket.
And to the host Ivory Coast, six teams have so far secured their qualification: Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, South Africa, Burkina Faso and Senegal.
Egypt, the record holder for the number of titles (7, the last of which was in 2010), raised its tally to nine points from four matches at the top of Group D, with a goal difference from Guinea, while Malawi and Ethiopia were equal with three points.
The "Pharaohs" now need one point from one of their matches against hosts Guinea in June or at home to Ethiopia in September, to ensure official qualification.
And it took turns to score the goals of Egypt, absent from the last World Cup in Qatar, each of the midfielder Tariq Hamed (34 years) with a powerful shot from outside the area, scoring his first international goal (4), Omar Marmoush after a turmoil inside the area after a corner kick carried out by the English star Liverpool Mohamed Salah (16), Salah with a powerful shot from inside the area after exchanging the ball with striker Mustafa Mohamed (20) and Ahmed Sayed “Zizou” after a cross from Mohamed Hani (49).
This is the first time that Egypt has scored four away goals since 2015 against Chad (5-1).
His Portuguese coach, Roy Vittoria, said, "The Egyptian national team was the best back and forth against Malawi, and deserves to get six points in the two matches.. I am happy with Mohamed Salah's brilliance and his scoring of two goals in the two Malawi matches, and my greatest happiness came after the collective performance of the players."
Tunisia, holders of the 2004 title, reached the finals for the 21st time in its history and the 16th in a row (a record), by defeating its host Libya 1-0 in Benghazi in Group X, with Haitham Jouini's goal from a header after a corner kick (16).
The "Carthage Eagles" raised their tally to 10 points from four matches, a point ahead of Equatorial Guinea, which went a long way towards qualification, with its third successive victory at the expense of Botswana 3-2, noting that the champion and runner-up of each group guaranteed their qualification to the finals.
Tunisia coach Jalal Al-Qadri bemoaned the missed opportunities.
And the Tunisian national team, which achieved its fourth successive victory, is the only one that has not conceded a net so far in the qualifiers.
Senegal secured its place in the continental finals for Group Twelve, after beating its host Mozambique with a clean goal scored by Boulaye Dia in the 18th minute, after a pass from star Sadio Mane.
With this victory, the defending champion raised its tally to 12 points at the top of the group, to secure official qualification, while Mozambique remained second with 4 points, against Rwanda (two points) and Benin (one point).
In the same context, the South African national team also qualified for the finals after defeating its Liberian host 2-1, to return after its absence from the previous edition.
Zakeli Libasa (19) and Mihalali Mayampila (54) scored for Bafana Bafana, while William Jebor scored Liberia (35).
And the South African national team raised its score to 4 points, to ensure qualification with Morocco from the eleventh group, after the exclusion of Zimbabwe.
On the other hand, the rise of the Mali national team was postponed after losing to Gambia Saqr-1 from Group G, with a goal scored by Omar Colby (79).
The Gambian team raised its tally to 6 points behind the Congo, while the Mali team leads the group with 9 points, while the South Sudan team lies at the bottom of the standings with three points.
Burkina Faso qualified by drawing 1-1 with its host, Togo, in Group Two, which witnessed Cape Verde's victory over its host, Eswatini, 1-0. Burkina Faso raised its score to ten points, compared to 7 for Cape Verde, which is close to qualifying.
In Group C, Cameroon, the defending champion five times, most recently in 2017, suffered its first loss against Namibia 1-2 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Scored for the winner Peter Shaluleli (55) and Absalom Eibondi (79), and for Cameroon Vincent Aboubakar (72).
Namibia took the lead with five points from three matches, one point ahead of Cameroon, in a group that eliminated Kenya due to its international ban.
Namibia coach Colin Benjamin valued his country's victory, saying, "We achieved a very impressive victory over the strong Cameroon team. I congratulate our players for their hard work, in order to score all the points in the Cameroon match."
In turn, Cameroon coach Rigobert Song expressed his disappointment after the defeat of the "Untamed Lions": "We failed to take advantage of the opportunities that were available to us in the match, which made the Namibia national team punish us."
The conflict intensified in the ninth group, with Mauritania tied with its guest, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, 1-1, as Gabon leads (7 points), by a point from Sudan, two from Mauritania and three from the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Argentine captain and star Lionel Messi crossed the 100-goal barrier with his country by scoring a hat-trick in a landslide victory over submerged Curaçao by 7-0 on Tuesday in Santiago del Estero in an international friendly football match, the second for the Albiceleste at home, after winning the world title in Qatar.
Seven-time Ballon d'Or winner, Messi scored his hat-trick in 20 minutes, taking his tally of international goals to 102.
It is Messi's seventh hat-trick with his country, and he scored his first international goal 17 years ago, specifically in March 2006 when Argentina lost to Croatia 3-2 in a friendly match.
Messi consolidated his position in third place in the list of historical scorers in the world, behind his Portuguese rival Cristiano Ronaldo (122) and Iranian Ali Daei (109).
Messi also moved away from his closest pursuers on the list of historic scorers for Argentina, Gabriel Batsiuta (56 goals) and Sergio Aguero (41).
Messi, 35, opened the scoring in the 20th minute, and Italian Fiorentina striker Nicholas Gonzalez scored the second three minutes later, before the "flea" added his second and third personal goal for his country in the 33rd minute.
Chelsea midfielder Ansu Fernandez added the fourth goal after two minutes (35), which is the same time that the French star Paris Saint-Germain needed by scoring the third and fifth personal goal for Argentina (37), ending the first half festival.
Juventus winger Angel Di Maria added the sixth goal from a penalty kick (78), and Seville defender Goncalo Montiel concluded the festival with the seventh goal (87).
Argentina played the second match since winning the World Cup for the third time in its history when it beat France 4-2 on penalties in the final, which ended in an exciting 3-3 draw in regular and extra time.
Argentina beat Panama on Thursday with a clean double, including Messi's second goal in the 89th minute, raising his tally of international goals to 99.

The Israeli forces launched, at dawn and Wednesday morning, a campaign of arrests among citizens in separate areas of the West Bank and occupied Jerusalem .

Those forces carried out a massive incursion into the city of Nablus , covering several areas, and concentrated in the eastern region and the outskirts of the Old City.

The Israeli forces arrested Anan al-Sudani from his house in the old Askar camp, east of Nablus, after besieging him and demanding that his son surrender, who was not arrested because he was not at home.

They also surrounded a house in the vicinity of the eastern cemetery on the outskirts of the Old City, before arresting Abdullah Abu Safi, while Abdullah Ammar Faraj was arrested south of Nablus.

A young man was slightly wounded by shrapnel from a bullet, and was treated on the field in the old Askar camp, according to the Red Crescent in Nablus.

Resistance fighters clashed with the occupation forces during their storming of Nablus.

In Ramallah , the Isralei forces arrested Ali Atta "Al-Rimawi" and Wahbi Al-Rimawi, after storming their homes in the town of Beit Rima, northwest of Ramallah.

The Israeli forces stormed the towns of Zababdeh, Qabatiya and Marka in Jenin , amid being fired upon by the resistance fighters.

And those forces arrested the young Qusay Maali.

In Hebron , the citizen, Abdullah Muhammed Sweilem Tamizah, was arrested after his house was raided and searched in the town of Beit Ithna.

In Bethlehem , the Israeli forces arrested Mahmoud Radwan Hamamreh, from Beit Sahour, while he was crossing the "Container" military checkpoint.

Meanwhile, Mahmoud Abu Jamous, from the village of Al-Auja, north of Jericho, was arrested.

In occupied Jerusalem, the Israeli forces arrested the young men, Jihad Shadi Bishara, Muhammad Shadi Bishara, Abd al-Rahman Rami Hijazi, Abdullah Muhammad Hijazi, and Abd Ashraf Zahayqa, all from the town of Jabal al-Mukabber. While they arrested Saeed Ramadan Dabash, after they raided his house, And I searched him in the town of Sur Baher.

Two shepherds were injured, this morning, Wednesday, when settlers attacked their homes east of Bethlehem .

According to local sources, a group of settlers assaulted shepherds in their homes in the Kisan wilderness area, beating and wreaking havoc with their property, which led to the injury of Ali Youssef Abyat (70 years old), and his son Jihad, in his thirties, with bruises and wounds.

Walking 8,000 steps, or about 6.4 kilometers, once or twice a week contributes to a significant reduction in the risk of early death , according to a study published Tuesday.

It is already known that regular physical activity reduces the risk of death, but the study published in the journal "Jama Network Open" deals with the health benefits of vigorous walking just a few days a week.

Researchers from Kyoto University and University of California, Los Angeles analyzed data on 3,101 American adults.

The researchers found that those who walk eight thousand steps or more once or twice a week are 14.9 percent less likely to die over a ten-year period than those who do not walk that much.

Those who walked such long distances three to seven times a week had a 16.5 percent lower risk of dying.

The benefits of walking distances of 8,000 steps or more once or twice a week are most evident in people over the age of 65.

The scientists noted that the study showed "a link between the number of days a person walks 8,000 steps or more per week and a lower risk of cardiovascular disease and all other causes."

They conclude from the study that "people can achieve significant health benefits from walking just a few days a week."

The researchers based this study on the daily steps recorded by the participants between 2005 and 2006 and then studied their mortality rate ten years later.

632 of those included in the study did not reach the limit of walking eight thousand steps at least one day a week, while it was found that 532 people walk this amount or more once or twice a week, and that 1937 people walk this distance from three to seven times a week. .

Americans walk an average of 3,000 to 4,000 steps per day, according to data from the Mayo Clinic, which stresses that walking as a regular physical activity can reduce the risk of heart disease, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure and depression.

Today (Tuesday), the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs decided to summon the Chargé d'Affairs of the Iraqi Embassy in the Kingdom of Bahrain and withdraw him to the Ministry's headquarters, at Bahrain's request.

Ahmed Al-Sahhaf, spokesman for the ministry, told the official Iraqi News Agency (INA), "Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein directed the return of the Iraqi Chargé d'Affaires to the Kingdom of Bahrain to the ministry's center in Baghdad."

Al-Sahhaf added, "This measure comes to enhance the status of Iraqi diplomacy, which the ministry pursues in preserving diplomatic norms."

Al-Sahhaf did not give any details about the reason for summoning the Iraqi Chargé d'Affairs and withdrawing him from Bahrain.

The Bahraini Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced today (Tuesday) that it had summoned Chargé d'Affaires at the Iraqi Embassy in the Kingdom, Moayad Omar Abdul Rahman, and handed him a letter of protest for what it described as his "repeated violations of diplomatic norms."

According to the Bahrain News Agency (BNA), the Bahraini Foreign Minister, Dr. Abdullatif Al-Zayani, informed the Iraqi Chargé d'Affairs of the ministry's strong condemnation of his recent unacceptable behavior that contradicts the diplomatic protocols in the Kingdom, and contradicts his diplomatic duties, as it is an unacceptable interference in the internal affairs of the Kingdom. Bahrain contradicts the principles governing relations between states enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations.

Bahrain is witnessing a multibillion-dollar economic revival based on the implementation of new mega projects, which contribute to putting the kingdom in a position to compete with its wealthy neighbours, while at the same time consolidating stability in it after more than a decade of turmoil.

The road does not appear to be paved for the smallest Arab Gulf states located near the wealthy Emirates and gas-rich Qatar, while it is linked to Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter and the largest Arab economy, by a 25-kilometer bridge.

Bahrain, which consists of 30 islands and which has witnessed unrest since the 2011 demonstrations, is undergoing a major modernization and reform process aimed at diversifying its revenues, benefiting from a great Gulf economic momentum against the backdrop of high oil prices and various plans to diversify the economy.

Numerous construction sites are spread across the kingdom, while Bahrain, an oil producer outside the Organization of Exporting Countries (OPEC), aspires to reduce dependence on crude, which provides 80 percent of its revenues, most of which come from refining.

"The plan is clear: we want to grow and we want to grow faster than the world," Khalid Ibrahim Humaidan, chief executive of Bahrain's Economic Development Board, told reporters in Manama this month.

Bahrain may find in announcing the resumption of relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran, which Manama accuses of fueling unrest there, an impetus for its efforts to achieve stability.

"In an optimistic scenario, the Saudi-Iranian rapprochement will increase and create a more favorable environment for political reconciliation within Bahrain, which in turn may lead to defusing instability from the economic factor," Justin Alexander, an economist on Gulf affairs from the Gulf Economics consulting group, told AFP.

Bahrain enjoys a rich heritage in the trade and business sector dating back to decades ago when it was seen as a pearling center.

However, its historical status has been weakened in light of intense regional competition, especially from Dubai and Doha, but also due to internal economic challenges since the collapse of oil prices in 2014.

The 2011 demonstrations, which coincided with the "Arab Spring" uprisings, ended with a campaign against demonstrators who demanded an elected government. Bahrain banned opposition parties and imprisoned political opponents, which sparked widespread international criticism.

In 2018, wealthier Gulf states agreed to support Bahrain's economic ambitions with $10 billion in loans, sparking a new construction wave in the country.

In addition to plans to build tourism and sports centers, including diving headquarters and a city of games under the sea, Bahrain announced a new passenger terminal at its international airport that can accommodate up to 14 million passengers annually, more than double the previous capacity.

It also opened one of the largest conference centers in the Gulf, hoping to host major events.

A fiscal balance program in the Kingdom aims to achieve a balance in the budget by 2024, while Bahrain's Vision 2030 focuses on reducing dependence on modest resources of oil and gas and developing new sectors such as tourism.

According to a statement by the Ministry of Finance on Monday, the economy grew by 4.9 percent last year, the highest since 2013.

The country, which has a population of 1.4 million people, about half of whom are foreigners, aspires to raise the level of tourism's contribution to the GDP from 7 to more than 11 percent within a few years.

"We are confident that we will continue on this path and achieve the results we desire," said Humaidan, who was speaking on the sidelines of the annual Formula One Grand Prix.

Bahrain, a country about the size of New York City, has a relatively low tax system and modern infrastructure.

The small country is an ally of the West and is home to the US Navy's Fifth Fleet. Its strategic location along major shipping routes makes it an important logistical hub in the Middle East, but also puts it at the center of regional conflicts.

"Bahrain has tried to develop new sectors such as financial technology (...). However, since the 2011 protests, tensions in Bahraini society have become a source of concern for investors," says Alexander.

But after the agreement brokered by China this month to end the seven-year-old dispute between Iran and Saudi Arabia, Tehran said last week that it also welcomed the restoration of relations with Bahrain.

At the same time, reformists from a young, Western-educated generation led by Crown Prince and Prime Minister Sheikh Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa (54 years old) are carving out their position as a force for change in the country.