The Palestinian Islamic Jihad said it commends the Houthi’s announcement to restart their attacks on vessels with links to Israel passing through the Red Sea.

“The decision represents a bold step aimed at pressuring the entity [Israel] and its sponsors to reopen the crossings and allow aid into the besieged Gaza Strip,” the statement reads.

Last week, the Houthis gave Israel a deadline of four days to lift their blockade of Gaza and allow aid in or it will resume its attacks.

LOS ANGELES, United States — Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman died of natural causes about a week after his wife’s death, a medical examiner said on Friday, ending more than a week of mystery surrounding the death of one of Hollywood’s most beloved stars.

The bodies of “The French Connection” star and his wife were found on February 26 in their home in New Mexico after emergency services were called to their property.

“The cause of death for Mr Gene Hackman, aged 95 years, is hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, with Alzheimer’s disease as a significant contributory factor,” Heather Jarrell, the chief medical examiner for the New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator, told reporters.

“The cause of death for Miss Betsy Hackman, aged 65 years, is hantavirus, pulmonary syndrome. The manner of death is natural.”

Neither body showed any sign of trauma, nor any indication of carbon monoxide poisoning, which had been an initial suggestion.

Hantavirus presents as a flu-like disease, with symptoms including fever, muscle aches, cough, sometimes vomiting and diarrhea that can progress to shortness of breath and cardiac or heart failure and lung failure, Jarrell said.

“This occurs after a one- to eight-week exposure to excrement from a particular mouse species that carries hantavirus.”

Jarrell said data from Hackman’s pacemaker showed its last activity over a week before his body was found when maintenance workers were unable to access the couple’s sprawling Santa Fe property.

“Based on this information, it is reasonable to conclude that Mr. Hackman probably died around February 18. Based on the circumstances, it is reasonable to conclude that Miss Hackman passed away first, with February 11 being the last time that she was going to be alive,” said Jarrell.

First responders found the door unlocked and open, and pills scattered next to Betsy Hackman’s body, which was in the bathroom.

Gene Hackman’s body was found in another room, fully clothed, with sunglasses nearby, indicating a sudden fall.

Investigators suggested it could be the case that the elder Hackman had not realised his wife was dead in the bathroom, given his advanced age and neurodegenerative disease.

“He was in an advanced state of Alzheimer’s, and it’s quite possible that he was not aware that she was deceased,” the medical examiner said.

A Hackman family spokesperson had previously denied reports of his Alzheimer’s disease.

In addition to the deceased couple, a dog was found dead in the bathroom, and two other healthy dogs were at the house.

Along with the autopsies, the investigation had focussed on piecing together a timeline of the couple’s last days, which detectives said had been complicated by their low profile and their preference for privacy.

Hackman, a two-time Academy Award winner, was credited for intense performances inspired by his troubled upbringing, notching up dozens of movie credits extending into his 70s.

He is perhaps best known as vulgar New York cop Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle in the 1971 crime thriller “The French Connection” — for which he won an Oscar for best actor.

He won another golden statuette two decades later for best supporting actor for his portrayal of the brutal small-town sheriff “Little Bill” Daggett in the 1992 western “Unforgiven”.

President Wavel Ramkalawan received a delegation from the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) at State House this morning. The delegation was led by Honourable Commissioner Solomon Ayele Dersso as part of a promotional mission to assess the state of human rights in Seychelles.

In his opening remarks, President Ramkalawan warmly welcomed the delegation and praised the ACHPR’s ongoing efforts in advancing human rights across the African continent. He reaffirmed Seychelles’ unwavering commitment to the principles enshrined in the African Charter and reiterated the government’s dedication to ensuring a dignified life for all Seychellois citizens.

The delegation’s visit aims to evaluate various aspects of human and peoples’ rights in Seychelles. During the discussions, Honorable Solomon Ayele Dersso underscored several key areas of interest, including the prison riot of January 2025, the December 7th disaster, progress on the Truth, Reconciliation and National Unity Commission (TRNUC) report, the role of Parliament in upholding legislative duties, the state of freedom of expression, and initiatives surrounding the upcoming elections.

Speaking to the press, Honourable Dersso emphasized that the delegation would engage with various stakeholders to gather critical data for their assessment. He commended Seychelles for implementing key social provisions, such as free education and healthcare with protective measures, describing them as exemplary models for other African nations. Additionally, he acknowledged the country’s continued progress in strengthening democratic institutions.

“The promotional mission of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights involves firsthand engagement at the national level to gather direct information and understanding about the state of human rights in the country,” he explained. “This encompasses freedom of expression, issues related to prison conditions, the social and economic wellbeing of people in Seychelles, and a wide range of other issues that affect human rights and peoples in Seychelles.”

The Commission’s findings will be compiled into a comprehensive report, which will subsequently be released to the media. Honorable Dersso is expected to present preliminary observations during a press conference scheduled for March 14, 2025.

Present at the meeting were the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Sylvestre Radegonde; Principal Secretary Ambassador Vivienne Fock-Tave; Director General for Regional Affairs, Mr. Christian Faure; Director for Regional Affairs, Mrs. Veronique Morel; and Legal Advisor at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mrs. Sandra Michel.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of State House Seychelles.

Israel announced on Tuesday that it had released five Lebanese prisoners as a “goodwill” gesture to Lebanon’s newly elected president.

“In coordination with the United States and as a gesture to Lebanon’s new president, Israel has agreed to release five Lebanese detainees,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun’s office said four of the prisoners had been freed on Tuesday and the fifth would follow on Wednesday.

Their release followed a meeting earlier Tuesday in the Lebanese border town of Naqoura, attended by representatives of Israel, Lebanon, and mediators France and the United States.

“During the meeting, it was agreed to establish three joint working groups aimed at stabilising the region,” the prime minister’s statement said.

“These groups will focus on the five points controlled by Israel in southern Lebanon, discussions on the Blue Line and remaining disputed areas, and the issue of Lebanese detainees held by Israel.”

The Blue Line is the UN-patrolled demarcation line that has served as the de facto border since 2000.

In an interview with Lebanese news channel Al Jadeed, US Deputy Special Envoy for the Middle East Morgan Ortagus emphasised Washington’s efforts to resolve the border issue.

“We want to get a political resolution, finally, to the border disputes,” Ortagus said.

“When it comes to the border agreement, the land border agreement, there are 13 points – I think that six are still problematic,” she said.

Ortagus said Israel had “withdrawn from over 99 percent of the territory”.

“I feel fairly confident that… we can have final resolution on the five points and ultimately on the remaining issues related to the Blue Line”.

Meanwhile, Israel alleged on Tuesday it had killed a “senior Hezbollah militant”, reportedly responsible for drones and missiles.

Despite a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, Israel has continued to carry out air strikes in Lebanon, claiming they are “necessary” to prevent the group from rearming or re-establishing a presence along its northern border.

“Earlier today, the IAF (air force) conducted a precise intelligence-based strike in the area of Nabatieh in southern Lebanon, eliminating Hassan Abbas Ezzedine, the head of Hezbollah’s aerial array in the Bader regional unit,” the military said in a statement.

It said it carried out a second strike on Tuesday in the Froun area, targeting several militants.

“Several terrorists were identified in a site used by Hezbollah in the area of Froun in southern Lebanon,” the military said. “An IAF aircraft struck the suspects.”

Lebanon’s official National News Agency reported that two people were killed in the Israeli strikes.

“An enemy Israeli drone strike targeting a car on the Deir El-Zahrani road resulted in one fatality,” the news agency said, citing the health ministry.

It later reported that a second person was killed in an Israeli air strike on a vehicle in the Froun area.

Although a truce reached on 27 November largely ended more than a year of hostilities – including two months of full-scale war in which Israeli ground troops crossed the border – Israel has continued to launch periodic strikes in Lebanese territory.

Israel was initially expected to withdraw from Lebanon by 18 February, after missing a January deadline, but it has maintained a presence in five strategic locations.

The ceasefire also required Hezbollah to pull back north of the Litani River, about 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the border, and to dismantle any remaining military infrastructure in southern Lebanon.

Dr. Ronit Almog, a senior obstetrician-gynecologist at Ichilov Hospital, traveled to Oslo, Norway, as a guest of honor at an event marking International Women’s Month. Invited by the Israeli Embassy, she delivered a lecture on Israel’s cutting-edge medical innovations and efforts to promote women’s health. However, her visit coincided with a surge in anti-Israel sentiment in the Norwegian capital, turning her into an unofficial goodwill ambassador amid growing hostility.

Israeli AI startup Sola Security came out of stealth on Tuesday armed with $30 million in funding and a self-serve software platform to make cyber threat security accessible and affordable to any size of business or startup.

Cybersecurity veterans Guy Flechter, co-founder of Cider Security, acquired by US cyber giant Palo Alto Networks; and Ron Peled, former LivePerson executive said they founded Sola in 2024 out of frustration that security teams at businesses were drowning in expensive, siloed security tools that require engineering staff to manage and were not countering cyber threats effectively.

Businesses juggle up to 50 separate tools to secure their networks, data and assets, each with its own cost and maintenance headache to manage. Teams and security professionals, in particular in small and medium-sized businesses struggle to cope with alerts that security apps generate as they lack the resources to manage them. This often results in inefficiencies and security gaps, according to Sola.

“Security tools today are either too narrow to solve real problems or too bloated to be usable,” said Sola CEO Flechter. “Cybersecurity shouldn’t be this hard or expensive.”

Flechter said that Sola’s premise is to allow “any team to create and customize security solutions instantly, without the overhead, without the engineering burden, and without the ridiculous price tag.”

The startup has secured seed funding led by venture capital fund S Capital and prominent venture capitalist Mike Moritz. Other investors include venture capital funds S32, Glilot Capital Partners, and angel investors.

“Sola has embraced an audacious approach which will help make it easier for developers to plug the holes that riddle any security architecture,” said Moritz, former chairman at Sequoia venture capital fund. “Sola’s designs are bold, adventurous and desperately needed…but 10 years from now, security experts will wonder how they ever lived without Sola.”

Sola’s self-serve artificial intelligence-based software platform is tailored to enable businesses and organizations with a basic understanding of their security needs to build customized security tools in minutes by asking questions in natural language or using ready-made solutions from the startup’s app gallery. The no-code platform is designed to reduce complexity and lower costs as its use does not require dedicated security engineers.

“We see ourselves as part of the self-serve revolution created by giants such as Canva [for design] and Stripe [for payments], who changed the way we work in their domains,” said Flechter.

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Five Lebanese captives, who have been detained by Israel, have been released and arrived in their homeland on Tuesday, according to Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency.

They were handed over to the Red Cross and are currently undergoing medical check-ups at the Lebanese-Italian hospital in the southern city of Tyre.

Earlier, Israel had said it agreed to release five Lebanese captives held during its war with Hezbollah.

“In coordination with the United States and as a gesture to Lebanon’s new president, Israel has agreed to release five Lebanese detainees,” a statement issued by the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu read.

GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories – For Gazan teacher Abdullah Mortaja, Israel’s decision to cut off electricity to the war-battered territory was “a joke”, having already lived with little power supply since war began more than 16 months ago.

The announcement Sunday by Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen followed a decision to block the entry of aid into the Gaza Strip in a bid to pressure Hamas to extend a fragile ceasefire on Israel’s terms.

But for many in the Palestinian territory where Israel had imposed a “complete siege” at the start of the war in October 2023, living without electricity has become the norm.

“What electricity do they want to cut?” said Mortaja, 40.

“There is no electricity in Gaza”.

Of the nearly dozen high-voltage power lines cut at the start of the war — along with food and water supply — one was reconnected by Israel in November to restart Gaza’s main water desalination plant.

On Monday, employees at the facility in the central city of Deir el-Balah filled large tanks with water that had been treated before the cut-off, which brought the plant to a near-complete halt.

Around 600,000 people — about a quarter of Gaza’s population — rely on the plant’s supply of drinking water, according to UN figures.

Solar panels, which together with fuel-powered generators have become key sources of electricity in Gaza, allow only for extremely limited activity at the desalination plant, said a UN source.

Instead, many people are now left to rely on brackish well water or the occasional supply of potable water from international humanitarian aid groups, added the source involved in work in the Gaza Strip.

Power grid ravaged 

Announcing the electricity cut on the eve of a new round of ceasefire negotiations in Qatar, Cohen said Israel “will use all the tools at our disposal” to secure the release of hostages held by Gaza militants since Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack that sparked the war.

Hamas called Cohen’s decision “cheap and unacceptable blackmail” as the sides fail to agree a path toward a permanent end to their war.

The first phase of the fragile Gaza truce began on January 19 and ended in early March, with no agreement yet on subsequent stages.

More than 15 months of intense Israeli bombardment and fighting before the truce began had left electricity pylons collapsed and mangled across Gaza.

One official from the Gaza Electricity Company, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, said Israeli attacks “destroyed 70 percent of the electricity distribution networks”.

At night, the territory is plunged into almost total darkness.

In the relatively few buildings left standing, the odd window is illuminated by a small square of white LED light.

The war has displaced nearly all of Gaza’s 2.4 million inhabitants and triggered widespread hunger, according to the UN, with hundreds of thousands living in tents as their homes were damaged or destroyed.

“Cutting electricity will only worsen our suffering,” said Jihan Khalil, 35, who has taken shelter in a school building in Nuseirat refugee camp.

‘Went back to 50 years ago’ 

For 47-year-old Baha Al Helou, living conditions were as if “we went back to 50 years ago”.

“We sleep without electricity, wash our clothes by hand, cook with wood, and there is no gas for cooking,” he told AFP.

“Now our lives depend on wood, fire and candles.”

From apartment blocks to hospitals, fuel-powered generators have been a common alternative for years in Gaza, where the electricity supply was precarious even before the war, in part due to a crippling Israeli-led blockade.

Israel’s power supply to Gaza depended on payments from the Palestinian Authority — based in the occupied West bank, a separate territory, and dominated by political rivals of Hamas.

The Palestinian Authority had previously withheld funds as a means of exerting pressure on Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since 2007.

Carpenter Hani Ajour said he had little choice but to use a public generator in the street.

But that option is expensive, and he can only afford to plug in his machines for a few minutes a day.

Some Gazans rely on solar panels, but these are less efficient and sell for around $2,000, a fortune in the impoverished territory.

For the most destitute, street vendors offer to charge telephones on a multi-socket cable for a few Israeli shekels, the equivalent of several quarter dollars.

Quetta, Pakistan CNN  — 

A train carrying hundreds of passengers has been hijacked by separatist militants who are also holding a number of passengers hostage in Pakistan’s southwestern province of Balochistan, according to government and railway officials.

The train, known as the Jaffer Express, was stopped by the militants as it reached a tunnel on Tuesday afternoon, officials said. The train was on its way from Quetta in Balochistan, Pakistan’s westernmost province, to the northwestern city of Peshawar.

“Armed individuals stopped Jaffer Express inside Tunnel No. 8 (in Bolan),” Muhammad Kashif, Quetta Railways’ controller told CNN.

The train, which departed from Quetta at 9 a.m. local time, consists of nine coaches and is carrying approximately 450 passengers, Kashif said.

“We are unable to make any contact with passengers and crew, and the situation remains unclear,” Kashif told CNN Tuesday afternoon.

The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), a militant separatist group, has claimed responsibility for the attack. The BLA said in a statement seen by CNN that they had taken hostages from the train who will be “executed” if a security operation takes place.

Balochistan government spokesperson Shahid Rind told CNN that “intense gunfire has been reported” on the train.

Rind said the train is currently being held in Balochistan’s mountainous region of Sibi, making access “challenging.”

The Balochistan government has directed emergency response efforts, Rind said, with a relief train sent to the scene. Meanwhile, security forces are en route to secure the area, he said.

Authorities are investigating the incident and are considering the possibility of a terrorist attack, Rind added.

On Friday, in a letter seen by CNN, Balochistan’s Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) had issued a threat alert, regarding “a planned attack” by the BLA and asked “all concerned authorities” to “take extraordinary precautions and safety measures to prevent any occurrence.”

An insurgency in Balochistan has been running for decades, but has gained traction in recent years since the province’s deep-water Gwadar port was leased to China, the jewel in the crown of Beijing’s “Belt and Road” infrastructure push in Pakistan.

Militants are angered by what they say is the state’s exploitation of the region’s rich mineral resources, with little of the proceeds filtering down to people in what remains Pakistan’s poorest province. The port, often touted as “the next Dubai,” has become a security nightmare with persistent bombings of vehicles carrying Chinese workers, with many killed.

The BLA has been responsible for the deadliest attacks in Pakistan in the past year.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

Recent cuts in foreign aid have forced Save the Children to suspend lifesaving programmes for malnourished children as a reported 131 million children live in areas experiencing acute food crises globally.

In a remote corner of northern Afghanistan, where winter has set in, health workers are battling the clock to care for malnourished children as foreign aid cuts threaten to halt their efforts in the next 30 days, Save the Children said.  

For three and a half years, Dr Hanif* and his team at a Save the Children-supported clinic in northern Afghanistan have been the only lifeline for the community—providing essential care to 2,500 patients each month.  Now the clinic is only being kept open with limited emergency funding from Save the Children. In a matter of weeks, the clinic could be gone—leaving hundreds of malnourished children without access to the care they desperately need. 

“Our clinic is the only option for this community. There is no local doctor or nurse here,” said Dr Hanif. “The community is deeply disheartened [by the cuts]. At present, we have 135 malnourished children under treatment [at this clinic]. Should the clinic close, their families will be unable to afford the cost of taking them to either a public or private clinic, as they cannot pay for transportation to the nearest clinic. The doctors and nurses have pledged to work without pay for four or five months because our country is in dire need, and the community cannot survive without these essential services.”  

Recent cuts in foreign aid have forced Save the Children to suspend lifesaving programmes for malnourished children as a reported 131 million children live in areas experiencing acute food crises globally, the child rights organisation said.  

In Afghanistan, the loss of funding has already led to the closure of 18 health facilities supported by Save the Children and its partner. Only 14 Save the Children clinics have enough funding to remain open for one more month, and without new financial support, they will be forced to close. These 32 clinics supported over 134,000 children in January alone. 

Governments across the world are cutting foreign aid budgets, with about 40 countries impacted across Africa, Asia, Latin America, Europe and the Middle East by an abrupt halt to US government foreign aid. These cuts are threatening health, nutrition and education programmes for millions of children with Save the Children forced to close hundreds of health facilities and nutrition centres that provide lifesaving care for children. 

 Gabriella Waaijman, Chief Operating Officer at Save the Children International, said:  

“We’ve been saving children for over 100 years—it’s why we exist and why it’s in our name. With more children in need of aid than ever before, cutting off lifesaving support now is like trying to extinguish a wildfire with a hose that’s running out of water.”   

Children like Sahar*, 11 months, born amid the war in Gaza, are at extreme risk of starvation and malnutrition due to skyrocketing food prices and the already severe lack of access to lifesaving aid. 

Sahar’s mother, Zainab*, 24, was pregnant when the war began. She did not receive adequate medical assistance during her childbirth and struggled to buy food for her daughter.  

“The war took everything – I ended up having to beg on the streets just to get clothes for her. I don’t know how I survived. There was no food,” said Zainab. “She was malnourished, and I couldn’t buy milk for her. But I found Save the Children, and they helped me.” 

In Gaza, where nearly all 1.1 million children face critical food insecurity, aid cuts mean reducing treatment and services for malnourished children mid-recovery and closing 10 mother-baby areas where Save the Children is supporting pregnant women and newborns with critical nutrition assistance. 

Every minute, about 35 children are born into hunger. Economic instability, conflict, and climate shocks are driving a global hunger crisis that is stunting children’s growth, impairing their development, and weakening their immune systems. 

Children suffering from malnutrition are 11 times more likely to die from common childhood illnesses and diseases. 

 Families in Somalia are facing an equally dire situation due to aid budgets being cut. Somalia has been on the frontlines of the climate crisis for decades which has fuelled extreme hunger. By April, 4.4 million people – about one in five in the country – will not know where their next meal will come from. Due to aid cuts, Save the Children is forced to close about 121 health and nutrition sites in Somalia, cutting off support for more than 250,000 people.   

 Save the Children is calling on world leaders, partners, and everyone around the world to financially invest in children and their futures. In the longer term, we know the aid sector will be forever changed by these rapid decisions to cut foreign aid, but it is vital that alongside addressing immediate need, we collectively come together to reform the system to deliver effectively for children. Investing in children today creates a safer, brighter, and more stable world for us all. This is not just about funding – any reset or reform processes across the sector must defend the values underpinning foreign aid. 

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Save the Children.