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'No friendship or cooperation whatsoever!' - Protesters clash with police in Milan over council votes to maintain Tel Aviv twinning

'No friendship or cooperation whatsoever!' - Protesters clash with police in Milan over council votes to maintain Tel Aviv twinning

"Protesters clashed with police in Milan on Monday as the City Council voted to maintain the twinning with Tel Aviv. Footage shows protesters marching with Palestinian flags and chanting slogans as they gathered outside the city hall. Inside the council chamber, many attendees were shouting 'Shame' after the vote. The motion to end the twinning was introduced by the Green Party and supported by a faction of the centre-left Partito Democratico (PD). Councillor Francesca Cucchiara, representing the Greens, argued that "there can be no friendship or cooperation whatsoever with a city that is in fact the capital of a genocidal state," referring to Israel. "It is true, we came to a peace agreement, more than peace, I would say, truce; however, what happened is a very serious fact, and it is not true that hostilities have really ended because still there are illegal occupations in the West Bank, there is still a naval blockade," Cucchiara added. The motion to break the twinning was rejected by a vote of 21 against, 9 in favour, and 6 abstentions. The six abstentions reportedly came from PD councillors. Following the vote, the session was suspended due to the unrest. This comes as Israeli authorities announced the release of 1,900 Palestinian prisoners on Monday, while Hamas confirmed the release of 20 Israeli hostages in exchange, marking the most significant phase of the ongoing truce.  The ceasefire came into effect at noon on Friday, after the Israeli military said its troops had "begun repositioning along adjusted deployment lines" as outlined in the agreement. The move followed the Israeli cabinet’s approval of the first phase on Thursday.  On 29 September, US President Donald Trump unveiled a 20-point Gaza peace plan with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calling for an immediate end to fighting and the release of all hostages, living and deceased, within 72 hours, as well as 250 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences and 1,700 Gazans detained after October 7, 2023. The plan also guarantees full humanitarian aid access to Gaza, amnesty for Hamas members who accept peace, and safe passage for those who refuse, stating that "no one will be forced to leave the enclave."  Hamas conditionally accepted the US-brokered plan, agreeing to release hostages through Qatari and Egyptian mediators if Israel committed to a lasting peace and complete withdrawal from Gaza."

Rachel Reeves, just tell voters why taxes must go up – and then do it | Polly Toynbee

Rachel Reeves, just tell voters why taxes must go up – and then do it | Polly Toynbee

The Thatcherite notion of tax as wicked must be challenged in the upcoming budget. Target unearned wealth; explain that tax creates a decent society It’s late already: only six weeks to prepare the way for what’s to come. Everyone knows taxes will rise on 26 November, budget day . Speculation runs wild, often malevolently designed to frighten. Will she, won’t she break her pledge not to raise the three big taxes? Even if the chancellor keeps her promise, people already think she’s broken it. She (unwisely) promised tax rises were one-and-done at the last budget, so best to raise a hefty sum now as she’ll be damned anyway. In the old saw, taxes are certain: what’s uncertain is whether they threaten the death of this government. She is some £40bn short , but she’s not short of super-abundant advice. But though everyone knows tax rises are coming, neither she nor the prime minister are rolling the political pitch to explain why this must happen and expound the choices. Polly Toynbee is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

Human rights groups call for France to suspend ‘one in, one out’ treaty with UK

Human rights groups call for France to suspend ‘one in, one out’ treaty with UK

UK and French organisations file legal challenge against July agreement to swap asylum seekers Fifteen French and UK human rights organisations are calling for the suspension of the controversial “one in, one out” treaty in a legal challenge that has been launched in France. The deal, signed by the UK and France in July, involves one asylum seeker who arrives in the UK from France in a small boat being sent back there in exchange for another selected in France to come to the UK. Continue reading...

African football’s general secretary accused of creating toxic culture of fear

African football’s general secretary accused of creating toxic culture of fear

Mosengo-Omba said to run CAF as a ‘proprietorship’ Employee: ‘Anyone who dares speak up is terminated’ The Confederation of African Football’s general secretary, Véron Mosengo-Omba, has been accused of running the organisation as his “proprietorship” and creating a toxic culture of fear where employees are fired for speaking out against him. Several former and current members of staff have told the Guardian there is an atmosphere of intimidation and paranoia at the Caf headquarters in Cairo, where Mosengo-Omba is accused of sidelining colleagues and silencing whistleblowers. Continue reading...

Actors trained during pandemic lack vocal power and range, says RSC leader

Actors trained during pandemic lack vocal power and range, says RSC leader

Daniel Evans says young drama graduates who learned voice work online missed out on the physical presence of theatre training Young actors who trained at drama school during the pandemic are struggling to project their voices and lack range because they were denied the crucial “experience of full vocal and physical presence” within a theatre, the co-artistic director of the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) has said. Continue reading...