Moscow accused of scaremongering in France

NEWS

1. Apparently dozens of arrests after memorial service:

   On the day of the funeral of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, police in Russia detained more than 100 people across the country in connection with the funeral rallies, according to civil rights activists.

   The civil rights platform OWD-Info wrote in the evening of 128 arrests in 19 cities. "There may be more detainees in each police station than on the published lists," it said. In most cases, those affected were released after a short time.

2. Biden announces drop of aid supplies over the Gaza Strip:

   US President Joe Biden has announced an airdrop of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. The operation will begin in the "coming days", said Biden. The USA would do everything in its power to bring more aid supplies to the coastal strip. The current aid deliveries to the Gaza Strip were not nearly enough. The USA was also continuing to work towards a ceasefire to allow more aid to be transported to the area. The UN fears famine in the Gaza Strip in view of the Israeli offensive.

3. Palestinian government submits resignation:

   The resignation of Mohammed Shtayyeh, the Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority (PA), has already been the subject of speculation in recent days. He is to clear the way for a so-called technocratic government.

   The Palestinian Authority under Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas controls parts of the West Bank. However, it has lost more and more influence, partly as a result of the Israeli occupation, is considered corrupt and has hardly any support among the population.

4. Paris accuses Moscow of "bedbug scaremongering":

   The French "bedbug panic", which made international headlines last autumn, was fuelled by Russia, according to the government in Paris. The issue had been "blown up in online services by accounts linked to Russia", Europe Minister Jean-Noël Barrot told TF1.

   "A link was even falsely drawn between the arrival of Ukrainian refugees and the spread of bedbugs," the minister explained. "This was spread by accounts linked to the Kremlin."

5. Brussels releases 137 billion euros for Poland:

   The EU Commission has formally authorised the release of 137 billion euros for Poland, which had been frozen due to concerns about the rule of law. The government in Warsaw had introduced the required reforms and satisfactorily fulfilled important milestones regarding the independence of the judiciary.

   The money comes from two sources: Firstly, around 76.5 billion euros from the EU cohesion budget, which is intended to harmonise the living standards of the member states. Secondly, the Commission wants to release around 60 billion euros in long-blocked EU coronavirus aid. Of this, €34.5 billion is to be channelled in the form of loans and €25.3 billion in the form of grants.

FACTS

1. The deadly Texas wildfire is now the largest in the state’s history:

   The second-largest fire in US history, the Smokehouse Creek Fire has destroyed 1 million acres in the Texas Panhandle and an additional 31.5k in Oklahoma. Numerous houses and ranches were damaged, many more lost power, and at least one person died. CNN reported that as of Thursday, just 3% of the fire had been suppressed. Experts cautioned that the situation can get worse due to the mix of predicted dry air and erratic wind this weekend. Numerous state officials predicted the death of thousands of animals.

2. The Most Common Street Name in the United States is "Second Street":

   Across many cities and towns in the United States, "Second Street" holds the title of being the most common street name. It often follows "First Street" and precedes "Third Street."

3. The longest word in English is "pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis":

   This word has 45 letters and refers to a lung disease caused by inhaling fine ash or sand particles.

4. There are more possible chess games than there are atoms in the observable universe:

   The number of possible chess games is estimated to be 10^120, while the estimated number of atoms in the observable universe is about 10^80.

5. There is a species of jellyfish that is biologically immortal:

   Turritopsis dohrnii, also known as the "immortal jellyfish," has the ability to revert back to its juvenile form after reaching maturity, essentially restarting its life cycle. This process can theoretically continue indefinitely, making it effectively immortal.

That’s it for this week, we hope you enjoyed this newsletter issue!

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