23 November 2023; MEMO: The Pentagon announced this morning that a US destroyer intercepted several explosive-laden drones launched from Yemen from areas controlled by the Houthis.

23 November 2023; MEMO: Jewish groups have criticised Pope Francis and demanded clarifications over his comments that they saw as accusing both Hamas and Israel of “terrorism”, Reuters reports.

Francis made the comments on Wednesday after meeting separately with Jewish relatives of hostages held by Hamas and with Palestinians with family in Gaza.

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia’s state Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to approve rules for a new commission to discipline and remove state prosecutors, meaning the commission can’t begin operating.

Some Republicans in Georgia want the new commission to discipline or remove Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis for winning indictments of former President Donald Trump and 18 others.

23 November 2023; MEMO: Thousands of Palestinian children were killed during Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip, a UN official said on Wednesday, calling Gaza the “most dangerous place in the world to be a child”, Anadolu Agency reports.

“More than 5,300 Palestinian children have been reportedly killed in just 46 days … or over 115 a day, every day, for weeks and weeks. Based on these figures, children account for 40 per cent of the deaths in Gaza. This is unprecedented.

MANILA, Nov 24 (Reuters) - The Philippines is considering resuming membership of the International Criminal Court (ICC) nearly five years after it withdrew over objections to a bid by the court to investigate a bloody anti-narcotics campaign, the president said on Friday.

"There is also a question, should we return under the fold of the ICC, so that’s again under study. So we’ll just keep looking at it and see what our options are," President Ferdinand Marcos Jr told reporters.

23 November 2023; MEMO: Members of the European Parliament have described Israel’s actions in Gaza as a “violation of international law,” “genocide” and “ethnic cleansing.”

During a session held at the European Parliament’s General Assembly yesterday, parliamentarians accused the European Union of applying double standards by remaining silent on Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip.

BEIJING, Nov 24 (Reuters) - China will temporarily exempt citizens of France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia from needing visas to visit the world's second-largest economy in a bid to give a boost to post-pandemic tourism.

From Dec. 1 to Nov. 30 next year, citizens of those countries entering China for business, tourism, visiting relatives and friends, or transiting for no more than 15 days, will not need a visa, a foreign ministry spokesperson said on Friday.

MOSCOW, November 24. /TASS/: Humanity can agree on common principles of controlling artificial intelligence similar to the nuclear non-proliferation rules, Russian President Vladimir Putin told a conference on artificial intelligence.

22 November 2023; MEMO: The United States government, under President Joe Biden’s administration, is reportedly concerned over the potential for journalists to reveal the extent of Israel’s devastation in Gaza during the agreed temporary ceasefire, according to a senior official in a report which sheds further light on Washington’s protection of Israel and its narrative.

23 November 2023; MEMO: New York police yesterday arrested a former US State Department official after he was captured on video calling an Egyptian halal street vendor a terrorist and saying the death of 4,000 Palestinian children “wasn’t enough”, Reuters reports.

Stuart Seldowitz, 64, was arrested on charges of aggravated harassment, hate crime stalking, stalking causing fear, and stalking at a place of employment, police said in a statement.

BEIJING, November 24. /TASS/: China and the European Union have the ability to prevent a new cold war if they work together, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said.

"If China and Europe work together, there will be no opposing blocs, no split in the world, no new cold war," he said at a joint news conference with French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna.

NEW DELHI (AP) — The Afghan Embassy in New Delhi is permanently closed, it announced Friday, due to challenges from the Indian government and a lack of diplomatic support.

In a press release, it said the decision was already effective from Thursday and follows the embassy’s earlier move to cease operations starting Oct. 1 due to the absence of a recognized government in Kabul. At the time, it had said it would continue to provide emergency consular services to Afghan nationals.