World
Hamas launches rocket barrage into Israel from Rafah, sounding alarms in Tel Aviv
![Hamas launches rocket barrage into Israel from Rafah, sounding alarms in Tel Aviv](https://static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/05/GettyImages-1232900873.jpg)
Hamas terrorists launched a barrage of rockets into Israel on Sunday, with roughly a dozen of them being fired from the hotly contested city of Rafah.
Israel’s Iron Dome successfully intercepted the majority of the rockets, with alarms sounding in Tel Aviv and other major cities. The strike comes as Israeli forces are increasing operations in and around Rafah, what Israel says is the final major stronghold for Hamas in Gaza.
Hamas took responsibility for the barrage and argued it was retaliation for “Zionist massacres against civilians.”
Israel has faced growing international pressure to cease its operations in Rafah, which plays host to roughly 1.5 million displaced Gazans. Israel encouraged civilians in the region to leave areas where they conducted military operations against Hamas in an effort to minimize civilian casualties.
GROWING CONTROVERSY OVER BIDEN’S GAZA PIER FUELS CONCERNS OVER COST, SECURITY
Hamas terrorists launched a barrage of rockets into Israel on Thursday, with roughly a dozen of them being fired from the hotly contested city of Rafah. (Getty Images)
Rafah lies on the border with Egypt and had served as a major artery for humanitarian aid. Israel took control of the Gazan side of the border this week, however, and Egypt responded by refusing to allow further aid through.
US MILITARY CONSTRUCTS HULKING METAL PIER AMID BIDEN’S $320 MILLION GAMBLE TO GET AID INTO GAZA
Egypt refuses to reopen its side of the Rafah crossing until control of the Gaza side is handed back to Palestinians. It agreed to temporarily divert traffic through Israelâs Kerem Shalom crossing, Gazaâs main cargo terminal, after a call between President Biden and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi.
![Tents near Rafah, Gaza](https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/02/1200/675/Rafah-shelters.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
Rafah, pictured here, lies on the border with Egypt and had served as a major artery for humanitarian aid. Israel took control of the Gazan side of the border this week, however, and Egypt responded by refusing to allow further aid through. (Reuters/Maxar Technologies)
Hundreds of aid trucks traveled through Israel’s Kerem Shalom crossing this weekend, but United Nations workers say they have had difficulty accessing the aid due to heavy fighting nearby.
The new aid agreement comes as a “floating pier” created on the Gaza coast by the U.S. suffered damage this weekend. The pier remains mostly operational, but four vessels that had served to stabilize the pier were detached due to rough weather.
![Israeli military vehicle along Gaza border](https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/05/1200/675/idf.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
Israeli military vehicles along the border with Gaza on April 24, 2024. (Jack Guez/AFP via Getty Images)
The U.S. spent roughly $320 million constructing the pier, which has been a conduit for aid from the U.S. and other countries. While the pier has been used to transfer roughly 569 metric tons of aid into Gaza, as of last week none of that aid had been delivered to Palestinians, the Pentagon confirmed.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
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World
Flatulent cows and pigs will face a carbon tax in Denmark, a world first
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) â Denmark will tax livestock farmers for the greenhouse gases emitted by their cows, sheep and pigs from 2030, the first country in the world to do so as it targets a major source of methane emissions, one of the most potent gases contributing to global warming.
The aim is to reduce Danish greenhouse gas emissions by 70% from 1990 levels by 2030, said Taxation Minister Jeppe Bruus.
As of 2030, Danish livestock farmers will be taxed 300 kroner ($43) per ton of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2030. The tax will increase to 750 kroner ($108) by 2035. However, because of an income tax deduction of 60%, the actual cost per ton will start at 120 kroner ($17.3) and increase to 300 kroner by 2035.
Although carbon dioxide typically gets more attention for its role in climate change, methane traps about 87 times more heat on a 20-year timescale, according to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Levels of methane, which is emitted from sources including landfills, oil and natural gas systems and livestock, have increased particularly quickly since 2020. Livestock account for about 32% of human-caused methane emissions, says the U.N. Environment Program.
âWe will take a big step closer in becoming climate neutral in 2045,â Bruus said, adding Denmark âwill be the first country in the world to introduce a real CO2 tax on agricultureâ and hoped other countries would follow suit.
New Zealand had passed a similar law due to take effect in 2025. However, the legislation was removed from the statute book on Wednesday after hefty criticism from farmers and a change of government at the 2023 election from a center-left ruling bloc to a center-right one. New Zealand said it would exclude agriculture from its emissions trading scheme in favor of exploring other ways to reduce methane.
In Denmark, the deal was reached late Monday between the center-right government and representatives of farmers, the industry, unions, among others, and presented Tuesday.
Denmarkâs move comes after months of protests by farmers across Europe against climate change mitigation measures and regulations that they say are driving them to bankruptcy.
The Danish Society for Nature Conservation, the largest nature conservation and environmental organization in Denmark, described the tax agreement as âa historic compromise.â
âWe have succeeded in landing a compromise on a CO2 tax, which lays the groundwork for a restructured food industry -â also on the other side of 2030,â its head Maria Reumert Gjerding said after the talks in which they took part.
A typical Danish cow produces 6 metric tons (6.6 tons) of CO2 equivalent per year. Denmark, which is a large dairy and pork exporter, also will tax pigs although cows produce far higher emissions than pigs.
The tax is to be approved in the 179-seat Folketing, or parliament, but the bill is expected to pass after the broad-based consensus.
According to Statistic Denmark, there were as of June 30, 2022, 1,484,377 cows in the Scandinavian country, a slight drop compared to the previous year.
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Read more of APâs climate coverage at http://www.apnews.com/climate-and-environment
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Associated Press writer Charlotte Graham-McLay in Wellington, New Zealand, contributed to this report.
World
Evan Gershkovich's closed-door trial on espionage charges begins in Russia, where a conviction is expected
![Evan Gershkovich's closed-door trial on espionage charges begins in Russia, where a conviction is expected](https://static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/06/E.Gershkovich.png)
Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich’s trial in Russia on espionage charges is starting Wednesday behind closed doors in the city of Yekaterinburg.
Gershkovich, 32, was arrested in March 2023 in Yekaterinburg on espionage charges, with Russian authorities alleging he was gathering secret information for the CIA, a claim he, his employer and the U.S. government deny.
“Evan Gershkovich is facing a false and baseless charge. … The Russian regime’s smearing of Evan is repugnant, disgusting and based on calculated and transparent lies. Journalism is not a crime,” Wall Street Journal publisher Almar Latour and chief editor Emma Tucker said after his trial date was announced. “We had hoped to avoid this moment and now expect the U.S. government to redouble efforts to get Evan released.”
He is the first known Western journalist to be arrested on espionage charges in post-Soviet Russia.
WSJ REPORTER EVAN GERSHKOVICH SET TO BEGIN ESPIONAGE TRIAL ON JUNE 26
Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich stands in a glass cage in a courtroom in Yekaterinburg, Russia, Wednesday, June 26, 2024. (AP)
The journalist appeared in the courtroom Wednesday morning in a glass cage, with his head shaven, according to The Associated Press.
Gershkovich’s appeals seeking his release have thus far been rejected.
“Evan has displayed remarkable resilience and strength in the face of this grim situation,” U.S. Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy said on the anniversary of Gershkovich’s arrest.
If convicted, which is expected, Gershkovich faces up to 20 years in prison. Russian courts convict more than 99% of defendants and prosecutors can appeal sentences that they believe to be light. Prosecutors can even appeal acquittals.
The Russian Prosecutor General’s office said Gershkovich is accused of gathering secret information on orders from the CIA about Uralvagonzavod, a plant that produces and repairs military equipment about 90 miles north of Yekaterinburg.
![Gershkovich dressed in black in Moscow court box](https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/03/1200/675/GettyImages-2016822628.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
If convicted, Gershkovich faces up to 20 years in prison. (NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA/AFP via Getty Images)
Another American detained in Russia, American corporate security executive Paul Whelan, was arrested in Moscow for espionage in 2018 and is serving a 16-year sentence.
Gershkovich’s arrest came about a year after Russian President Vladimir Putin pushed laws that drew concerns about journalism in the country, criminalizing criticism of the war against Ukraine and statements viewed by officials as discrediting the military.Â
Foreign journalists largely left the country after the laws passed. Many gradually moved back in subsequent months, but concerns still remained about whether Russian authorities would take action against them.
Several Western reporters have been forced to leave following Gershkovich’s arrest because Russia would not renew their visas.
WSJ REPORTER EVAN GERSHKOVICH ORDERED TO STAND TRIAL IN RUSSIA ON CHARGE OF ‘GATHERING SECRET INFORMATION’
![Gershkovich being escorted to a van](https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/01/1200/675/AP24026272538074.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich is escorted from the Lefortovsky court in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Jan. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)
Following Gershkovich’s arrest, many feared Russia was targeting Americans amid tensions with the U.S.
Russia has suggested a prisoner exchange for Gershkovich could potentially happen in the future, but such a swap is not possible until a verdict is reached in his case. Putin has floated the idea that he might be interested in freeing Vadim Krasikov, a Russian imprisoned in Germany for the assassination of a Chechen rebel leader.
In 2022, Russia and the U.S. worked out a swap that released WNBA star Brittney Griner, who was serving a 9 1/2-year sentence for cannabis possession in Russia, in exchange for arms dealer Viktor Bout, also known as “the Merchant of Death.”
The Biden administration would likely be sensitive when negotiating a swap for Gershkovich, not wanting to appear to be giving away too much after intense criticism of trading Bout for Griner.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
World
US journalist Gershkovich on trial in Russia over spying charges he denies
![US journalist Gershkovich on trial in Russia over spying charges he denies](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/2024-06-26T063158Z_537001878_RC2UI8AHI3P2_RTRMADP_3_RUSSIA-USA-JOURNALIST-TRIAL-1719384062.jpg?resize=1920%2C1440)
American journalist Evan Gershkovich went on trial behind closed doors in Russia on charges of espionage 15 months after he was arrested in the city of Yekaterinburg.
The 32-year-old Wall Street Journal reporter appeared in a glass cage in the Yekaterinburg courtroom on Wednesday, with his head shaven clean and wearing a black-and-blue plaid shirt.
Gershkovich is accused by prosecutors of gathering secret information about Uralvagonzavod, a plant manufacturing tanks for Russiaâs war in Ukraine, on the orders of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
Prosecutor Mikael Ozdoyev claimed there was proof that Gershkovich âon the instructions of the CIA ⊠collected secret information about the activities of a defence enterprise about the production and repair of military equipment in the Sverdlovsk regionâ.
The court said the next hearing will be held on August 13.
The US Embassy in Russia on Wednesday called for Gershkovichâs release and said the âRussian authorities have failed to provide any evidence supporting the charges against him, failed to justify his continued detention, and failed to explain why Evanâs work as a journalist constitutes a crimeâ.
1/5
Today, a Russian court began closed-door proceedings in the case of Wall Street Journal reporter, Evan Gershkovich, who has been wrongfully detained by Russian authorities for more than a year. https://t.co/edWy9MGvPmâ ĐĐŸŃĐŸĐ»ŃŃŃĐČĐŸ ХКРĐČ Đ Đ€/ U.S. Embassy Russia (@USEmbRu) June 26, 2024
The Journal said the âsecret trialâ will âoffer him few, if any, of the legal protections he would be accorded in the US and other Western countriesâ.
The reporter, his employer and the United States government vigorously deny the allegations, saying he was just doing his job, with accreditation from Russiaâs Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
On Tuesday, the Journalâs editor-in-chief, Emma Tucker, wrote in a letter to readers that Russian judicial proceedings are âunfair to Evan and a continuation of this travesty of justice that already has gone on for far too longâ.
Tucker said: âThis bogus accusation of espionage will inevitably lead to a bogus conviction for an innocent man.â
If convicted, Gershkovich faces a sentence of up to 20 years in prison. A verdict could be months away because Russian trials often adjourn for weeks.
Tucker noted that even covering Gershkovichâs trial âpresents challenges to usâ and other media âover how to report responsibly on the proceedings and the allegationsâ.
âLet us be very clear, once again: Evan is a staff reporter of The Wall Street Journal. He was on assignment in Russia, where he was an accredited journalist,â she wrote.
The case, the US Embassy wrote on X, âis not about evidence, procedural norms or the rule of law. It is about the Kremlin using American citizens to achieve its political objectivesâ.
âHostage diplomacyâ
The American-born son of immigrants from the Soviet Union, Gershkovich is the first Western journalist to be arrested on espionage charges in post-Soviet Russia.
His detention came about a year after President Vladimir Putin pushed through laws that chilled journalists, criminalising criticism of the war in Ukraine and statements seen as discrediting the military.
After his arrest on March 29, 2023, Gershkovich was held in Moscowâs Lefortovo prison. His appeals for release have been repeatedly rejected.
The proceedings will take place behind closed doors, meaning that the media is excluded and no friends, family members or US embassy staff are allowed in to support him.
Putin has indicated that Russia is open to the idea of a prisoner exchange involving Gershkovich and others, claiming that contacts with the US have taken place, but that they must remain secret.
The US has in turn accused Russia of conducting âhostage diplomacyâ.
It has designated Gershkovich and another jailed American, security executive Paul Whelan, arrested in Moscow for espionage in 2018, as âwrongfully detainedâ, thereby committing the government to assertively seek their release.
In its statement, the US Embassy said Russia should stop using people like Gershkovich and Whelan âas bargaining chipsâ. âThey should both be released immediately,â it said.
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