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President Joe Biden laid out on Thursday his case for re-election in a fiery State of the Union speech that accused Donald Trump of threatening democracy, kowtowing to Russia and torpedoing a bill to tackle US immigration woes.“Not since President Lincoln and the Civil War, have freedom and democracy been under assault at home as they are today,” he said. “What makes our moment rare is that freedom and democracy are under attack at both at home and overseas.”In a 68-minute address to Congress, Biden, a Democrat, drew sharp contrasts with his Republican rival and gamely challenged Trump’s supporters in the chamber during a speech that was watched as much for the 81-year-old president’s performance as it was for his policy proposals.Biden charged Trump, his Republican challenger in the November 5 election, with burying the truth about the January 6, 2021, Capitol assault, bowing to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and blocking a bill to tighten restrictions at the US border with Mexico.On the Middle East, the president said he had been working for an immediate ceasefire to last six weeks between Hamas militants and Israel, and he warned Israel against using aid to Gaza as a bargaining chip.The greater thrust of his remarks focused on Trump, though Biden did not mention him by name.Biden opened by declaring that democracy was under threat at home and abroad and criticising Trump for inviting Putin to invade North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) nations if they did not spend more on defence.“Now my predecessor, a former Republican president, tells Putin, quote, ‘Do whatever you want’,” Biden said. “I think it’s outrageous, it’s dangerous and it’s unacceptable.”Biden, who pressed Congress to provide additional funding to Ukraine for its war with Russia, also had a message for Putin: “We will not walk away.”Trump, in a response on his Truth Social platform, responded with criticism of Biden.“He said I bowed down to the Russian Leader. He gave them everything, including Ukraine,” he said.The speech gave Biden, who is suffering from low approval ratings, a chance to speak directly to millions of American television viewers about his vision for another four-year term.He used the opportunity to draw contrasts with Trump over abortion rights and the economy, and he directed several barbs at Republican lawmakers in the chamber with off-the-cuff banter that appeared designed to assuage concerns about his age and mental acuity.Biden was directly challenged by Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, who heckled him over Laken Riley, a woman recently killed, allegedly by an immigrant in the United States illegally.“We can fight about fixing the border or we can fix it,” he said in response to Greene.Biden acknowledged Riley – and then, in a reference to efforts to reduce gun violence, referred to greater numbers of people killed in incidents unrelated to migrants in the country.Biden accused Trump and Republicans of trying to rewrite history about the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot by the former president’s supporters seeking to overturn Biden’s 2020 victory.“My predecessor and some of you here seek to bury the truth about January 6. I will not do that,” Biden said, a signal that he will emphasise the issue during his re-election campaign. “You can’t love your country only when you win.”He knocked Republicans for seeking to roll back healthcare provisions under the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, and driving up deficits, and jibed them for taking money from legislation they had opposed.Biden faces discontent among progressives in his party about his support for Israel in its war against Hamas, but the mood among Democrats in the chamber was rapturous.They greeted Biden with cheers and applause, prompting him to quip that he should leave before he even began.Trump, meanwhile, sent a steady stream of messages blasting Biden on Truth Social.“He looks so angry when he’s talking, which is a trait of people who know they are ‘losing it,’” Trump wrote. “The anger and shouting is not helpful to bringing our Country back together!”Opinion polls show Biden and Trump, 77, closely matched in the race. Most American voters are unenthusiastic about the rematch after Biden defeated Trump four years ago.Trump, facing multiple criminal charges as he fights for re-election, says he plans to punish political foes and deport millions of migrants if he wins a second White House term.Biden emphasised his support of abortion rights and pledged to make them the law of the land if Americans voted in enough Democratic lawmakers to do so.He also renewed his quest to make wealthy Americans and corporations pay more in taxes, unveiling proposals including higher minimum taxes for companies and Americans with wealth over $100mn.Any such tax reform is unlikely to pass unless Democrats win strong majorities in both houses of Congress in the November vote, which is not forecast.Biden proposed new measures to lower housing costs, including a $10,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers – an acknowledgement of consumers’ distress over high mortgage interest rates – while boasting of U.S economic progress under his tenure.The US economy is performing better than most high-income countries, with continued job growth and consumer spending.However, Americans overall give Trump better marks in polls for economic issues.Biden sought to cool anger among many Democrats over his support for Israel’s offensive in Gaza following the events of October 7.He announced that the US military will build a port on Gaza’s Mediterranean coast to receive humanitarian assistance by sea.“To the leadership of Israel I say this: Humanitarian assistance cannot be a secondary consideration or a bargaining chip. Protecting and saving innocent lives has to be a priority,” he said.Biden closed his speech with a reference to his age, saying he had been told during his career that he was both too young and too old.“Whether young or old, I’ve always known what endures,” he said.He highlighted Trump’s age being close to his.“Now other people my age see it differently,” he said, referring to their differing visions about America.US Senator Katie Britt of Alabama, who delivered Republicans’ formal response to Biden, attacked him over immigration and the economy.“The true, unvarnished State of our Union begins and ends with this: Our families are hurting. Our country can do better,” she said.

At least 10 people were killed by a huge fire that ripped through an apartment block in an affluent district of Spain’s third largest city Valencia, authorities said yesterday.The blaze, fanned by strong winds, engulfed the block within half an hour on Thursday evening, witnesses said.Firefighters with masks and oxygen tanks worked their way through the charred building yesterday looking for bodies or survivors.Valencia Mayor Maria Jose Catala said later in the day that there were no more missing people.“In a first visual inspection, 10 bodies were found in the building,” Pilar Bernabe, the central government’s representative for the Valencia region, told reporters.Two firefighters suffered serious injuries and were hospitalised.Valencians flocked to donate clothes, medicines and toys for surviving residents who lost all their belongings in the fire and are now being temporarily housed in a nearby hotel.Valencia’s mayor said 105 people had been rehoused and a regional official said they would receive money for daily costs and rent.Visiting the scene yesterday, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said residents “had lost everything in a matter of minutes in this terrible fire”.Local people took stock of the devastation, their faces grim with shock.“Luckily it was at a time when a lot of people were not home, some were working, others had gone to pick up their kids at school,” said Juan Bautista, a 70-year-old pensioner who was in a wheelchair. “If it was later, or at dinner, there would have been many more fatalities.”Slava Honcharenko, a 31-year-old Ukrainian, said he knew several families of compatriots who had lived in the building. They had been relocated to a hotel since Thursday night.“We feel very bad. We know what it is when you lose your house because we experienced this two years ago in Ukraine,” he told AFP.Emergency services said the fire began on the fourth floor of one of the towers but gave no cause.A local magistrate has opened an investigation into the blaze.Sergio Perez, a 49-year-old driver who lives nearby, said the building burned as if someone had “poured gasoline” on it.“It’s a catastrophe. Unimaginable. It’s devastating,” he said.Esther Puchades, a representative of insurance inspection agency APCAS, told RTVE that a lack of firewalls and use of the plastic material polyurethane on the facade would have contributed to the rapid spread of the blaze, a comment evoking memories of the deadly Grenfell Tower fire in London in 2017.A 2007 promotional video by the building’s developer highlighted the “innovative material” used to clad the building’s exterior, which passed “rigorous quality checks”.The association for the polyurethane industry said in a statement that no polyurethane was used in the building’s cladding.The spread of the 2017 fire in the Grenfell Tower block in west London that killed 71 people after an electrical fault was blamed on the use of highly flammable external cladding.Dental experts headed to Valencia from other parts of Spain to help identify charred bodies, while police collected DNA samples from relatives for the same purpose.Pope Francis was praying for all those affected by the blaze, his spokesman said.The wind was so strong at times that it had blown back the water unleashed by firefighting hoses, a policeman said.On the day after, an acrid smell hung in the air at the site of the fire in Valencia’s El Campanar district.Panicked residents had rushed to balconies to plead for help as burning embers fell to the ground during the fire. At least two people were rescued from their balconies on cranes.“I told my daughter and mother-in-law to leave, other people stayed inside,” a resident called Adriana told Reuters.The building, comprising two towers linked by what its developers described as a “panoramic lift”, was completed in 2008, officials said. It had 138 apartments, newspaper El Pais reported.Valencia decreed three days of mourning, cancelled local football matches and suspended the start of the city’s month-long, annual “Fallas” festival which features the torching of large cardboard statues and a fireworks display.

The UN said yesterday gross human rights violations, possibly including war crimes, had been committed in Israel and the Palestinian territories since the start of the war in Gaza.In its annual report, covering the 12 months to October 31, 2023, the UN Human Rights Office said clear violations of international humanitarian law, “including possible war crimes, have been committed by all parties” since October first week.“The entrenched impunity reported by our office for decades cannot be permitted to continue,” said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk.“There must be accountability on all sides for violations seen over 56 years of (Israeli) occupation and the 16 years of blockade of Gaza.” “Justice is a pre-requisite for ending cycles of violence and for Palestinians and Israelis to be able to take meaningful steps towards peace.”The report cited unlawful killings, hostage-taking, the wanton destruction of civilian property, collective punishment, strikes on civilian infrastructure, forced displacement, incitement to hatred and violence and torture.The war in Gaza began after the Hamas group that controls the Palestinian territory stormed Israel in the first week of October.Israel’s retaliatory bombardment and ground offensive in Gaza have killed at least 29,514 people, most of them women and children, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry. In less than five months, much of Gaza has been flattened and its population of around 2.4mn has been pushed to the brink of famine, the UN has said.WAR CRIMESIsrael’s response has led to “massive suffering of Palestinians, including through the killing of civilians on a broad scale, extensive repeated displacement, destruction of homes, and the denial of sufficient food and other essentials of life”, it said.“The blockade and siege imposed on Gaza amount to collective punishment and may also amount to the use of starvation as a method of war, which are war crimes.” The report identified three “emblematic” Israeli strikes — two on the Jabalia refugee camp and one in Gaza City — which caused enormous destruction.“Launching an indiscriminate attack resulting in death or injury to civilians, or an attack in the knowledge that it will cause excessive incidental civilian loss, injury or damage, are war crimes,” said Turk.

For the first time since the Apollo era, a US spaceship has landed on the Moon: an uncrewed commercial robot, funded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa) to pave the way for US astronauts to return to Earth’s cosmic neighbour later this decade.Odysseus, built by Houston-based Intuitive Machines, touched down near the lunar south pole on Thursday at 2323 GMT, after a nail-biting final descent where flight controllers had to switch to an experimental landing system and took several minutes to establish radio contact with the lander after it came to rest.“Odysseus has taken the moon,” Nasa administrator Bill Nelson said.“Today for the first time in more than a half century, the US has returned to the Moon,” he said in a video.“Today for the first time in the history of humanity, a commercial company, an American company, launched and led the voyage up there.”Images from an external “EagleCam” designed to shoot out from the spacecraft during its final seconds of descent could be released soon, a member of the team that built it told AFP.“After troubleshooting communications, flight controllers have confirmed Odysseus is upright and starting to send data,” Intuitive Machines said in its latest update on X. “Right now, we are working to downlink the first images from the lunar surface.”A previous moonshot by another American company last month ended in failure, raising the stakes to demonstrate that private industry had what it took to repeat a feat last achieved by US space agency Nasa during its manned Apollo 17 mission in 1972.Underscoring the technical challenges, an onboard navigation system failed and Odysseus instead flew the final leg of its trip using an experimental laser guidance system developed by Nasa to run only as a technology demonstration.Confirmation of landing was supposed to come seconds after the milestone, but instead nearly 15 minutes passed as announcers mused whether the craft had come down “off angle”.“Our equipment is on the surface of the moon, and we are transmitting, so congratulations IM team,” Intuitive Machines mission director Tim Crain was heard telling the operations centre. “We’ll see what more we can get from that.”Later in the evening, the company posted a message on the social media platform X saying flight controllers “have confirmed Odysseus is upright and starting to send data”.Odysseus touched down in Malapert A, an impact crater 300km (180 miles) from the lunar south pole.Still, the weak signal suggested the spacecraft may have landed next to a crater wall or something else that blocked or impinged its antenna, said Thomas Zurbuchen, a former Nasa science chief who oversaw creation of the agency’s commercial moon lander programme.“Sometimes it could just be one rock, one big boulder, that’s in the way,” he said in a phone interview with Reuters.Such an issue could complicate the lander’s primary mission of deploying its payloads and meeting science objectives, Zurbuchen said.Accomplishing the landing is “a major intermediate goal, but the goal of the mission is to do science, and get the pictures back and so forth”, he added.Nasa hopes to eventually build a long-term presence and harvest polar ice for both drinking water and rocket fuel for an onward journey to Mars under Artemis, its flagship programme.The current mission is “one of the first forays into the south pole to actually look at the environmental conditions to a place we’re going to be sending our astronauts in the future”, said senior Nasa official Joel Kearns.Nasa’s first crewed mission to the region is scheduled for no sooner than 2026.America’s geopolitical rival China is also planning to send its first crew to the Moon in 2030, ushering in a new era of space competition.Hexagon-shaped Odysseus, which is about the size of a large golf cart, launched from Florida on February 15 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, boasting a new liquid methane, liquid oxygen propulsion system that traversed the quarter million mile voyage in quick time.It carries six Nasa science instruments, including cameras to investigate how the lunar surface changes as a result of the engine plume from a spaceship, and a device to analyse clouds of charged dust particles that hang over the surface at twilight as a result of solar radiation.The rest of the cargo was shipped on behalf of Intuitive Machines’ private clients, and includes 125 stainless steel mini Moons by the artist Jeff Koons.The cargo can run for up to seven days before lunar night occurs, rendering Odysseus inoperable.Nasa paid Intuitive Machines $118mn to ship its hardware under a new initiative called Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS), which it created to delegate cargo services to the private sector to achieve savings and stimulate a wider lunar economy.The first CLPS mission, by Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic, launched in January, but its Peregrine spacecraft sprung a fuel leak and was eventually brought back to burn up in Earth’s atmosphere.Spaceships landing on the Moon must navigate treacherous terrain and rely on thrusters to control their descent in the absence of an atmosphere.Until now, only the space agencies of the Soviet Union, United States, China, India and Japan had accomplished the feat, making for an exclusive club.

Qatar has renewed its strong condemnation of the Israeli threats to storm the city of Rafah in Gaza Strip, warning that such attack will lead to a humanitarian catastrophe in the city which has become the last refuge for more than 1.5mn displaced people inside the besieged Strip.It called on the international community to take urgent measures and exert all pressure on Israel to stop its plans to storm Rafah, commit genocide there, and forcibly displace the Palestinian people.This came in a statement made by Qatar’s Permanent Representative to the UN Office in Geneva HE Dr Hind Abdulrahman al-Muftah during a briefing on the latest developments of the situation in the Gaza Strip, organised by the Permanent Mission of Egypt in its capacity as Chairman of the Arab Group in Geneva.Dr al-Muftah underlined the need for the international community to take all necessary measures to ensure the implementation of the resolutions issued by the UN and the International Court of Justice, work seriously to end the war on the Gaza Strip, achieve an immediate and complete ceasefire, ensure the protection of civilians in accordance with international humanitarian law, lift all restrictions that hinder the entry of humanitarian aid into the Strip, and support the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) to enable it to carry out its humanitarian duties towards the Palestinian refugees.Speaking about the humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip, she said that the residents of the Strip are still suffering from the continued Israeli attacks and bombing, and the difficult humanitarian conditions resulting from the destruction and interruption of basic services including electricity, water, sanitation and food, as well as the exhaustion of fuel and medicines.She added that Israel and the international community must realise that, after more than seven decades of the occupation, crimes and grave violations committed against the Palestinian people, the only solution to this crisis is to take irreversible steps to implement the two-state solution, and to recognise the State of Palestine on the June 4, 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, in accordance with the relevant international resolutions. ( QNA )

Qatar Foundation (QF) has introduced the ‘Goals For Girls initiative’ spotlighting outstanding female leaders within the Qatari sports community.Launched in collaboration with Generation Amazing, Goal Click, and The Sports Creative, the Goals For Girls initiative aims to harness the transformative power of sports beyond the playing field.It brings together 21 accomplished female athletes, engaging them in two distinct tracks within the programme.The primary track focuses on empowering young girls to articulate their inspirational stories through the mediums of photography and writing. Meanwhile, the secondary track is dedicated to the creation of a comprehensive playbook of sports programmes exclusively designed for women.“Qatar Foundation is committed to fostering sports among women and girls with the overarching goal of supporting and expanding youth participation in sports in Education City,” said Alexandra Chalat, executive director, Partnerships and Strategic Alignment at QF“This commitment is in line with our broader mission to enhance women’s involvement in sports, emphasising storytelling and community programmes, and placing a special emphasis on encouraging greater participation of girls in sports.”Nada Wafa, a swimmer representing the Qatari team at the Olympics, expressed her pride in the significant strides women’s sports in Qatar has made, and praised the nation for providing state-of-the-art sports facilities to support women’s sports, saying:“My participation in the Goals For Girls initiative is an opportunity to exchange experiences, and develop ideas and ambitions for the future.”Sonia Mohamed, a sports teacher involved in the Goals For Girls initiative, said: “I have a strong desire to develop sports programmes tailored for individuals with special needs, particularly autistic children, and to integrate them into international sports competitions.”The Goals For Girls initiative held a multimedia exhibition featuring digital and non-digital photography, video presentations, and written content celebrating the accomplishments and stories of the participants.

talabat, the region’s leading platform for everyday deliveries, has officially launched its rewards programme, ‘talabat Rewards’, in Qatar, a statement said. Curated to reward the brands’ customers, the new programme offers a wide range of benefits and deals to be redeemed through collected reward points.“talabat will constantly update its reward offerings with exciting rewards to elevate consumers’ experience, offering new, relevant and updated choices every time,” it was explained.Additionally, talabat has arranged special deals for talabat Pro subscribers, who can now indulge in various privileges and raffle opportunities such as staycation, gym memberships, talabat credit and many more which will continue to be updated throughout the year.Once enrolled on the app, customers can automatically access the free rewards programme, which allows them to earn reward points with every order placed – whether from restaurants, pharmacies or local grocery stores, including talabat’s 24/7 q-commerce service, talabat mart. With the collected points, customers can dive into the ‘rewards’ section to discover a curated list of incredible offers from popular brands.In a press statement, talabat Qatar managing director Francisco Miguel De Sousa said: “Announcing this programme is just the beginning, and there’s so much more prepared as we continue to build on this incredible user experience with a range of new features, benefits, raffles and massive deals being introduced over the course of this exciting year. Keep an eye out for an unparalleled experience that awaits all our customers, as we have many surprises and raffle opportunities are rolling out every single day. “We are opening up a new world of possibilities for our valued customers to earn and redeem loyalty points, in addition to having the opportunity to join fantastic raffle prizes that would attract a wide range of customers with distinctive opportunities.”Here’s how to access talabat rewards: Step 1: Download the talabat app, Step 2: Place an order, Step 3: Press ‘Account’ on the bottom right of the homepage, Step 4: Press ‘Rewards’ to explore the offer now.

Hamad Bin Khalifa University’s (HBKU) College of Islamic Studies (CIS) is hosting Dr Wael Hallaq, Avalon Foundation Professor in the Humanities, Columbia University, for a special three-part public lecture series titled “What is Shariah?”.The series explores the fields of knowledge and practice in law, ethics, governance, and politics, and draws comparative and critical insights to deepen the understanding of the Shariah system.Dr Hallaq gave the first talk of the series on February 5, in which he explored the relationship between Shariah law and ethics in Islam and offered insightful comparisons between the Islamic perspective and modern legal frameworks. In the second lecture, which took place February 12, Dr Hallaq analysed the value of the human being in Islamic law in comparison to how the human is perceived in modern legal discourse.His talk revolved around the argument that modernity, as a whole, has lost sight of what the “human” is, and is instead instrumentalising this concept for material and political ends. The third session on February 19, will introduce the main constitutional features of Islamic governance, map out the functioning of legislative, judicial, and executive powers within this system, and discuss their relationships to each other.Dr Hallaq is a distinguished academic who has authored eighty major scholarly articles and numerous books, including Restating Orientalism: A Critique of Modern Knowledge and Reforming Modernity: Ethics and the New Human in the Philosophy of Abdurrahman Taha. Dr Recep Senturk, dean, CIS, said: “By collaborating with Dr Hallaq, we have built a unique platform that adds considerable value to the intellectual debate and constructive dialogue surrounding Shariah and its influence in Islamic legal scholarship.His visit reinforces the College’s status as a hub for contemporary Islamic studies that fosters intellectual inquiry beyond curriculum-based teaching.”

Medics are sounding the alarm at southern Gaza’s Nasser hospital, where a nurse said snipers are killing people, sewage has flooded the emergency room and drinking water has run out.“It was a black night, with strikes and explosions all night,” Mohamed al-Astal, a nurse in the emergency department, said yesterday.Fighting between Israeli soldiers and Hamas fighters has taken place all around Nasser hospital in the southern Gazan city of Khan Younis.Astal said the facility has been “besieged” for a month, with constant danger and no food or drinking water left.“At night, tanks opened heavy fire on the hospital and snipers on the roofs of buildings surrounding Nasser hospital opened fire and killed three displaced people,” the 39-year-old nurse said.He said dozens of young men and some women were detained on Tuesday by Israeli troops, who also “forced the displaced people to leave under gunfire”.Gaza’s health ministry reported that thousands of people, including patients, have been made to leave the hospital.Israel’s military said soldiers “opened a secure route to evacuate the civilian population taking shelter in the area of the Nasser hospital”, without commenting on the allegations of sniper fire.In a statement, the military said it “does not intend to evacuate patients and medical staff” and troops have been “thoroughly instructed” to protect civilians and medical facilities.Israeli forces operating across the Gaza Strip have repeatedly raided hospitals, which are granted special protection under the laws of war.WHO CONCERNWorld Health Organisation chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said yesterday he was “alarmed” by reports from Nasser hospital, which he described as the “backbone of the health system in southern Gaza”.The agency has been denied access to the hospital in recent days and has lost contact with staff there, the WHO chief wrote on X, formerly Twitter.There have also been reports that the fighting in the area has destroyed warehouses filled with medical supplies, which the WHO said served hospitals in central and southern Gaza.The agency’s envoy for the Palestinian territories, Rik Peeperkorn, described Nasser as “a key hospital for all of Gaza”.“We cannot lose that hospital... this hospital is critically important,” Peeperkorn told journalists.The UN said a week ago there are no fully functioning hospitals left in Gaza, with only 13 out of 36 across the territory working at some capacity. Hospitals have been overwhelmed by more than four months of war, during which more than 68,200 people have been wounded according to the latest Gaza health ministry toll.The ministry says at least 28,576 people, mostly women and children, have been killed during Israel’s assault on the Palestinian territory since October first week.The Hamas attack that launched the war resulted in the deaths of about 1,160 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.Gaza’s health ministry warned on Tuesday that the situation at Nasser was “catastrophic”, with staff unable to move bodies to the mortuary because of the risks involved.“Healthcare workers, patients and companions in the complex are in grave danger,” the ministry said, and reported that multiple people had been shot.Despite the persistent peril, nurse Astal said he did not want to leave the hospital.“We serve the wounded and the sick, this is my duty — and I won’t give up even if they kill us.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said in Cairo yesterday that they were turning a “new leaf” in their relations after over a decade of estrangement.The two leaders also criticised Israel’s conduct of the war in the Gaza Strip and called for a ceasefire.Sisi welcomed Erdogan with great fanfare at Cairo airport before the pair signed several agreements. They both called for “a new stage in relations”, an increase in trade to “$15bn per year within a few years” and diplomatic co-operation in the Middle East.Erdogan, an outspoken critic of Israel’s conduct in its war with Gaza’s rulers Hamas, again took aim at the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.The Turkish leader, on his first visit to Egypt in more than 10 years, denounced Netanyahu’s “occupation, destruction and massacres”. Erdogan said the Palestinians were “at the top of our agenda” and that it was “our priority to establish a ceasefire as soon as possible”.Turkiye was “ready to work with Egypt for the recovery and reconstruction of Gaza in the medium term,” he added.For his part, Sisi criticised “Israel’s obstacles which mean that humanitarian aid enters Gaza too slowly”.Egypt controls the Rafah crossing into Gaza, but Israel insists on inspecting every aid shipment.Cairo has been hosting joint efforts with Qatar and the US to broker a new truce between Israel and Hamas. An Israel delegation was in Cairo on Tuesday, while a Hamas delegation was to travel to the Egyptian capital yesterday.Turkiye and Egypt cut ties in 2013.But relations have thawed since 2021, when a Turkish delegation visited Egypt to discuss normalisation.By last July, Cairo and Ankara had appointed ambassadors to each other’s capitals for the first time in a decade.In November 2022, Erdogan and Sisi shook hands in Qatar in what the Egyptian presidency heralded as a new beginning for their relations.

The UN voiced fears yesterday about worsening conditions in southern Gaza, saying a surge in people seeking safety in Rafah had made the town a “pressure cooker of despair”.The United Nations’ humanitarian agency OCHA said it was deeply concerned about the escalation of hostilities in Khan Younis, which had resulted in increased numbers heading further south to Rafah in recent days.“Most are living in makeshift structures, tents or out in the open,” OCHA spokesman Jens Laerke told a briefing in Geneva.“Rafah is a pressure cooker of despair, and we fear for what comes next.“Khan Younis has also come increasingly under attack, and it’s been shocking to hear about the heavy fighting in the vicinity of the hospitals, jeopardising the safety of medical staff, the wounded and the sick, as well as thousands of internally displaced people seeking refuge there.” Of the people rushing southwards, Laerke said: “Are they truly safe? No. There’s no safe place in Gaza; also not in Rafah. Every week we think it can’t get any worse. Well, go figure: it gets worse.” Richard Peeperkorn, the World Health Organisation’s representative for the occupied Palestinian territories, said Rafah used to be a town of around 200,000 people but the area was now sheltering more than half of Gaza’s 2mn-plus population.“When you hear about potential attacks, it should not happen...Rafah should not be attacked,” he said, via video-link from Jerusalem.The war in Gaza was triggered by Hamas’s October first week storming of Israel.After the storming, Israel launched a relentless military offensive that has killed at least 27,131 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run Palestinian territory.The UN’s top court last Friday said Israel must facilitate “urgently needed” humanitarian aid into Gaza.Laerke said that over recent weeks, “I do not detect any improvement whatsoever in the humanitarian situation, anywhere in the Gaza Strip.” Peeperkorn said that the WHO planned 15 missions to northern Gaza in January, of which three were facilitated, while four of 11 planned missions to the south were facilitated. He called for humanitarian corridors.Of the 36 hospitals in Gaza, 13 are partially functioning and two others are minimally functioning.Peeperkorn said an estimated 6,000 people with war injuries and 2,000 people with other medical conditions needed evacuating to neighbouring Egypt but only 1,243 patients had so far been able to do so.“That a pittance,” he said. “It’s really incredibly frustrating that this is not happening.” He said the WHO was extremely concerned about malnutrition in Gaza and the threat of famine.Peeperkorn noted that Gaza had been relatively self-sufficient in meat, poultry, eggs, fish, fruit and vegetables, but “that whole industry has gone”.Ahmed Dahir, head of the WHO Gaza sub-office, speaking from Gaza, added: “People are looking visibly weak and thin from lack of nutrition. Everyone we speak to is hungry.“People are searching for food and safety; both are almost impossible to find.”

Finally, some good news? Pennsylvania’s primo prognosticator Punxsutawney Phil did not see his shadow during annual Groundhog Day celebrations yesterday, meaning that, according to legend, there will be an early spring.The US state’s tradition of using a large rodent to predict the seasons dates back to the Pennsylvania Dutch belief that if a groundhog left its burrow and saw its shadow, it would scurry back inside and winter would go on for six more weeks.Groundhog Day is now a major yearly event in Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, complete with top-hatted comperes, cheering crowds and a full-court press.Thousands of revellers gathered at dawn in Punxsutawney, a small town northeast of Pittsburgh, to celebrate Groundhog Day.Phil and his predecessors, also called Phil, have been forecasting since 1887, and this year more than 40,000 people camped out to wait for sunrise and the groundhog’s emergence.“Another winter slumber paused so I could meet the crowd, it’s hard to sleep anyway when the party is this loud,” said Dan McGinley, vice-president of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club, reading from a scroll “selected” by the groundhog.“What this weather did not provide is a shadow or reason to hide. Glad tidings on this Groundhog Day. An early spring is on the way,” Phil’s official “interpreter” read in a proclamation, as cheers went up from the crowd who witnessed the tongue-in-cheek event staged every February 2 in the town.McGinley even raised the prospect of voters writing in Punxsutawney Phil’s name on ballots as the United States enters a presidential election year.In the past 10 years, Phil has been accurate only 30% of the time, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).In 2023, Phil saw his shadow but temperatures that February were above average and in March only slightly below, leading the NOAA to declare that the furry forecaster had got it wrong.Eager to cash in on the craze of animal forecasters, other states have adopted their own meteorological soothsayers, including Wisconsin’s Sun Prairie Jimmy, Woody the Woodchuck in Michigan, and Scramble the Duck in Connecticut.Businesses didn’t miss a trick, with potato chip maker Frito Lay preparing to air ads showing actor Stephen Tobolowsky enduring a scenario similar to the plot of the popular movie Groundhog Day.The cult 1993 film, in which Tobolowsky played a relentlessly upbeat salesman, saw leading man Bill Murray stuck in a never-ending 24-hour loop after Punxsutawney Phil predicted six more weeks of winter.The event evolved from an ancient ritual brought to America by immigrants who settled in what is now the state of Pennsylvania.The first official celebration of Groundhog Day was in 1886, according to the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club.As Punxsutawney Phil made his prediction yesterday, California was bracing for a second atmospheric river that was due to bring more torrential rains tomorrow after a similar storm dumped heavy rains on the state earlier this week.However, the Pittsburgh area can look forward to mostly mild, sunny weather until late next week, with temperatures ranging as high as 57° Fahrenheit (14° Celsius), much warmer than usual for early February.

Turkiye is providing documents for a case brought by South Africa against Israel at the UN’s top court on a charge of committing genocide against Palestinian civilians, President Tayyip Erdogan said yesterday.Speaking to reporters in Istanbul, Erdogan said that Turkiye would continue to provide documents, mostly visuals, on Israel’s attacks on Gaza.“I believe Israel will be convicted there. We believe in the justice of the International Court of Justice”, Erdogan said.JORDAN BLAMES ISRAEL FOR TENSIONSJordan said yesterday Israeli “war crimes” against Palestinians were to blame for heightened regional tension and violence in the Red Sea which it said threatened to ignite a wider war in the Middle East, Reuters reported.Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi also voiced support for South Africa’s “genocide” case against Israel at the UN’s top court over the war against Hamas in Gaza, and said Amman was ready to submit legal documents and appear in court if the case proceeds.Israel has denied allegations that it has committed war crimes, and rejected as “grossly distorted” the accusations brought by South Africa that the military operation in Gaza is a state-led genocide campaign against the Palestinian population.In comments after the US and Britain launched strikes on Houthi military targets in Yemen in response to the movement’s attacks on ships in the Red Sea, Safadi said the international community had failed to act to stop Israeli “aggression” against Palestinians which was endangering regional security.“The Israeli aggression on Gaza and its continued committing of war crimes against the Palestinian people and violating international law with impunity are responsible for the rising tensions witnessed in the region,” Safadi said in remarks carried by state media.The stability of the region and its security were closely tied, Safadi said.“The international community is at a humanitarian, moral, legal and security crossroads,” he said. “Either it shoulders its responsibilities and ends Israel’s arrogant aggression and protect civilians, or allows Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his extremist ministers to drag us to a regional war that threatens world peace.” Safadi said Israel was pushing the region towards more conflict “by continuing its aggression and its attempt to open new fronts,” and that Israeli military actions against civilians in Gaza met the legal definition of genocide.“Jordan supports South Africa in its case against Israel,” he said. “We will submit legal documentation and appear at the court when or if the case is accepted.”

Yemen’s Houthis said yesterday that US and British interests were “legitimate targets” after they launched deadly strikes against the rebels following weeks of disruptive attacks on Red Sea shipping.The barrage of strikes early yesterday against the Houthis, who say they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, stoked fears of the Israel-Hamas war spilling over across the region.Violence involving Iran-aligned groups in Yemen, Lebanon, Iraq and Syria has surged since the war in Gaza began in early October.Britain, the US and eight allies said the strikes aimed to “de-escalate tensions”. But Iran and other governments condemned the Western action or warned that unrest could worsen.The UN Security Council was due to hold an emergency meeting on the strikes, days after adopting a resolution demanding the Houthis immediately stop their attacks.The Houthis have intensified attacks on what they deem Israeli-linked shipping in the Red Sea — through which 12% of global maritime trade normally passes — since Hamas’ unprecedented storming of Israel in the first week of October.The rebels have controlled much of Yemen since a civil war erupted in 2014 and are part of an “axis of resistance” against Israel and its allies.“All American-British interests have become legitimate targets” for the Houthis following the strikes, the rebels’ Supreme Political Council said.Hussein al-Ezzi, the rebels’ deputy foreign minister, said the US and Britain “will have to prepare to pay a heavy price”.US President Joe Biden called the strikes a successful “defensive action” after the “unprecedented” Red Sea attacks and said he “will not hesitate” to order further military action if needed.British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the Houthis’ breach of international law merited a “strong signal” in response, with his government later publishing its legal position saying the strikes were lawful and “proportionate”.Nasser Kanani, spokesman for Iran’s foreign ministry, said the Western strikes will fuel “insecurity and instability in the region” while “diverting” attention from Gaza. Hamas said it will hold Britain and the US “responsible for the repercussions on regional security”.But the White House said the US was not seeking conflict with Iran, with National Security Council spokesman John Kirby telling MSNBC there was “no reason” for an escalation.Hundreds of thousands, some carrying Kalashnikov rifles, gathered in Yemen’s capital Sanaa in protest, many waving Yemeni and Palestinian flags and holding portraits of Houthi leader Abdulmalik al-Huthi, an AFP journalist reported. “Death to America, death to Israel,” they chanted.In Tehran, hundreds of people rallied against the US, Britain and Israel while voicing support for Gazans and Yemenis.Protesters also marched in the Gulf state of Bahrain, home base of the US Fifth Fleet.In Gaza, Palestinians lauded Houthi support and condemned Britain and the US for their military response.Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan described the strikes as disproportionate and said: “It is as if they aspire to turn the Red Sea into a bloodbath.”

Palestinians in the occupied West Bank welcomed the case brought by South Africa in the International Court of Justice accusing Israel of genocide, saying the proceedings were an opportunity to hold Israel to account for its military assault in Gaza.Israel has reacted with outrage at the charges brought against it, describing the accusation as “profoundly distorted” and saying South Africa’s bid to make it halt its offensive against the Hamas movement in Gaza would leave it defenceless.But for many Palestinians, the charges represent a chance to bring world attention to what they see as Israel’s historic suppression of their fundamental rights, and South African flags were flown in many cities in the West Bank.“Israel was built upon the crimes it committed against the Palestinian people,” Prime Minister Mohamed Shtayyeh told a rally at Nelson Mandela Square in Ramallah, where marchers defying the winter rains chanted “Thank you South Africa!” Israel said it launched an air and ground offensive to annihilate Hamas, the movement that rules the blockaded strip, after the group’s fighters stormed Israel in the first week of October.In the three months since October first week, Palestinian health authorities say more than 23,400 Palestinians, mostly children and women, have been killed in the Israeli bombardment, with some 7,000 believed to be still missing under the rubble.Israel says the South African case attempts to “weaponise” the term genocide delegitimises the existence of the state of Israel and disregards the responsibility of Hamas. South Africa told the court on Thursday that Israel’s offensive aimed to bring about “the destruction of the population” of Gaza. It said Israel’s political and military leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, were among “the genocidal inciters”.Most of Gaza’s 2.3mn people have been forced from their homes in a strip that has been in large part laid waste, where the health system has largely collapsed, and the UN says restrictions on food and medical aid deliveries have left thousands hungry and at risk of disease.“This is a test for humanity,” said Bassam Zakarneh, a member of the Revolutionary Council of the Fatah movement that dominates the Palestinian Authority, which exercises limited self rule in the West Bank.The ICJ case comes after two years of escalating violence in the West Bank, where regular army raids have killed hundreds of Palestinians, including both armed fighters and uninvolved civilians. Palestinians fighters have also killed dozens of Israelis.At the same time, settlements in the West Bank have continued to spread and attacks by groups of armed settlers on Palestinians have risen sharply, drawing international condemnation even from Israel’s closest allies.Atieh Jawabra, 68, a former political science professor at Al-Quds University Abu Dis, said he had long been waiting for Israel to appear before an international court for its crimes, which he said go back to the mass expulsion of Palestinians during the 1948 war of Israel’s founding, known as the Nakba.“Israel, the US and the West have put Israel above the law over the course of its history,” he said.But some, like shepherd Issa Taamri, said the case was unlikely to change their life. Israel’s expansion of settlements around the West Bank city of Bethlehem, where he lives, has severely shrunken the area his sheep can graze in, he said.“The world has been making promises for 75 years to no avail,” he said.

Low vaccination rates against the latest versions of the coronavirus (Covid-19) and influenza are putting pressure on healthcare systems this winter, leading public health officials told Reuters.In the United States, several European countries, and other parts of the world, there have been reports of rising hospitalisations linked to respiratory infections in recent weeks. Death rates have also ticked up among older adults in some regions, but far below the Covid-19 pandemic peak.Spain’s government has reinstated mask-wearing requirements at healthcare facilities, as have some US hospital networks.“Too many people are in need of serious medical care for flu, for Covid-19, when we can prevent it,” said Maria Van Kerkhove, the World Health Organisation (WHO)’s interim director of epidemic and pandemic preparedness.She cited “incredibly low” vaccination rates against flu and Covid-19 in many countries this season, as the world tries to move past the pandemic and its restrictions.Governments have struggled to communicate the risks still posed by Covid-19 and the benefits of vaccination since a global public health emergency was declared over in May 2023, infectious disease experts and health officials said.Only 19.4% of US adults have received this season’s Covid-19 vaccine based on the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)’s National Immunisation Survey, despite a recommendation that all adults get an updated shot to protect against serious illness.That compares roughly with 17% of adults who got the bivalent booster in the 2022-2023 season, based on actual vaccine data reported to the CDC by states.Nearly half of US adults over 18 got a flu shot this season (44.9%), roughly the same as last year (44%), according to the CDC.“We don’t think enough people have gotten the updated Covid-19 vaccine,” CDC director Mandy Cohen said in an interview. “Folks still aren’t understanding that Covid-19 is still a more severe disease than flu.”Flu represented 5.2% of US emergency visits compared with 3% for Covid-19 in the week ended December 30. Yet Covid-19 accounted for 10.5 out of 100,000 hospitalisations in that time, compared with 6.1 per 100,000 for flu.Most of the updated shots being used in the US and European Union are made by Pfizer with German partner BioNTech, or Moderna.In Europe, flu is circulating at a higher rate than Covid-19, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) said. In total, 24% of a representative sample of tests came back positive in the last week of 2023, up from 19% a fortnight earlier.The rates are in line with previous flu seasons, said ECDC’s respiratory virus expert Edoardo Colzani. However, “now we have Covid-19 as a new, unwanted guest”, he said.The ECDC did not have vaccination rates for the continent for flu or Covid-19, but Colzani said early data showed Covid-19 vaccine uptake well below pandemic levels.In Europe, the new Covid-19 shots are recommended for high-risk groups only, such as seniors and the immunocompromised. Among these groups, the WHO says there should be 100% coverage.Covid-19 rates are also rising in the southern hemisphere during their summer, the WHO said, because it is not yet a seasonal virus.Last month, 850,000 new Covid-19 cases and 118,000 new hospitalisations were reported globally, a rise from November of 52% and 23%, respectively, according to the WHO, which added that actual figures were likely higher.The vaccines are still very effective at preventing serious illness, even if they do not block infection, experts said.A recent study in the Lancet Infectious Diseases journal from the Karolinska Institutet and Danderyd Hospital in Sweden found the updated vaccine, which targets the XBB.1.5 coronavirus variant, reduced the risk of Covid-19 hospitalisation by 76.1% in people affected by more recent variants, based on public health records from adults over 65 years old.This year’s flu shots, made by a range of manufacturers, is estimated to reduce hospitalisation risk by 52%.However, “fatigue for Covid-19 vaccination” is hampering uptake, Colzani said.In Italy, for example, 8.6% of the eligible population have had their third Covid-19 booster after the initial vaccination series, ministry of health data from January 7 showed.The data for flu is not yet available, but a study by Federfarma, the association of Italian pharmacies, said 15% of Italians had been vaccinated against flu this autumn, compared to just over 20% last season.

Hundreds of thousands of people flocked to noisy closing rallies yesterday as Taiwan’s presidential candidates made a last push for votes in an election that China has warned could take the island closer to war. Taiwan’s bustling democracy of 23mn people is separated by a narrow 180km strait from Communist-ruled China, which claims the island as part of its territory.Today’s election is being closely watched around the world as the winner will lead the strategically important island - a major producer of vital semiconductors - as it manages ties with an increasingly assertive China. Vice-President Lai Ching-te, the front-runner candidate of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), paints the election as a choice between “democracy and autocracy” - criticising his main opponent Hou Yu-ih of the Kuomintang (KMT) for being too “pro-China”.“After I get elected as the president, I will continue to take the path of democracy and peace. I will stand with the international camp of freedom and democracy. What’s more, I will forever stand with Taiwan’s people,” he said. In a stadium nearby, Hou called for his red-and-blue-clad supporters to kick out the DPP, which has been in power for eight years. “This is a choice between war and peace...If Lai Ching-te is elected, the Taiwan Strait is very likely to fall into unrest,” said Hou. “Don’t say that we are pro-China,” said supporter Minai at Hou’s final rally. “We just want the peaceful co-existence of both sides...I don’t want there to be a war.”Hou, a former police chief who portrays himself as a “protector” of Taiwan, is echoing a line from Beijing, which has blasted Lai as a dangerous “separatist” who will bring “war and decline” to Taiwan. Barely 12 hours before polls opened, China’s defence ministry denounced the DPP for pushing “Taiwan toward the dangerous conditions of war” and said it will “crush” any attempts at Taiwan’s “independence”. Beijing has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control. In recent years it has maintained a near-daily military presence around Taiwan, sending in warplanes and ships to its surroundings in “grey zone” harassment actions which fall short of outright provocation.The weeks leading up to Saturday’s vote have also seen a flurry of Chinese balloons crossing the Taiwan Strait’s sensitive median line - with a record five balloons appearing on Thursday - which Taipei has slammed as a form of election interference. All the sabre-rattling from across the Taiwan Strait means the island must build up its “self-defence to prevent the other side from bullying us”, said DPP supporter Yoyo Chen.“I will fight them even if all I have left is a broomstick,” said the 30-year-old tailor at the DPP rally.The election has drawn massive attention overseas, as Taiwan’s next leader will determine future cross-strait relations with China in a flashpoint region that has Beijing and Washington tussling for influence. In a sign of the importance the United States attaches to the election, Secretary of State Antony Blinken will hold talks with a senior Chinese official in Washington on Friday as the Americans seek to discourage Beijing from taking action against Taipei. In Taipei, supporters of third-party candidate Ko Wen-je - who has made an unexpected show of force in the race - gathered outside the Presidential Office on the sprawling Ketagalan Boulevard, shouting that he is “Taiwan’s choice”. The leader of the small Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), Ko has criticised his opponents for being caught up in ideological deadlock, attracting voters who say they are sick of talking about China.“Let’s not be divided by colours anymore. We must try our best to unite each other,” he said, referring to the two dominant parties. Supporter Lisa Sun, 42, said she was ready for change. “I hope (Ko) can change Taiwan. Blue and green have each been in power... and nothing much has changed in Taiwan,” she told AFP. No matter who wins on Saturday, it remains unclear which candidate Beijing prefers, said Marc Julienne, head of China research at the French Institute of International Relations.All three candidates - from the DPP, KMT and TPP - have said they will maintain the island’s status quo, and rejected “one country, two systems”, a Beijing doctrine used for governing Hong Kong and Macau.“Today there is no political party that is pro-People’s Republic of China,” Julienne said, referring to China’s official name. “At the end of the day, it’s the Taiwanese who elect their president, vice-president and parliament, so it will be a victory for Taiwan.”

The administration of Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa has asked lawmakers to weigh an increase in value added tax (VAT) to finance efforts to combat crime gangs, as the armed forces increased operations in violent areas yesterday.A dramatic spike in violence this week – including the on-air storming of a TV station, the hostage-taking of 178 prison staff by inmates and the kidnapping of police officers – appears to be a response by gangs to Noboa’s plans to tackle a dire security situation, the government has said.Noboa, who took office in November, has declared a state of emergency and named 22 gangs as terrorist organisations.A total of eight prison staff have been released since late on Thursday, prisons agency SNAI said in a statement yesterday.Three were being held in Azuay prison in Cuenca, where 21 hostages have also been attended to by the Red Cross.Three were released from a prison in Canar province, while two others were freed in Esmeraldas.Remaining hostages number 170 – 155 are prison guards and 15 are administrative staff.The death of an inmate at a prison in El Oro province is being investigated, SNAI added.The government has said that operations to free hostages taken at least seven prisons are ongoing, but there has been scant information about their status, leading to criticism by their families and union.Videos purporting to show prison staff being subjected to extreme violence, including shooting and hanging, have circulated on social media, but the government has said no hostage has been killed and that some videos had been altered.Reuters could not independently verify the videos.Security has worsened in tandem with serious economic troubles, as the country grapples with domestic liquidity problems, limited options for foreign financing and tens of billions in external debt.Noboa’s tax proposal, sent to the national assembly late on Thursday, would raise VAT by three points to 15%.The bill is classed as urgent and must be approved within 30 days.The measure would not be levied on basic food products, medicine, public utilities, transport, health or education costs or rented housing, among other things, the government said in a statement.“The current security crisis in Ecuador underlines the urgency to increase potential tax collection for the state,” Noboa said in a document shared with the assembly. “Increasing VAT will give the state a constant source of income.”The measure could raise more than $1.3bn per year and would come into force in March.Funds would go to finance weapons and equipment for security forces and improvements to the prison system, as well as the payments owed to regional governments, the document said.Lawmakers – in a rare show of unity – have already approved two urgent proposals from Noboa’s government, another tax bill meant to increase youth employment and a law designed to attract investment in the electricity sector.However, lawmakers from the leftist Citizens’ Revolution party, which is part of Noboa’s majority coalition, said in a statement that they will not back the VAT measure, instead urging him raise funds through tax on foreign capital transfers or one-time duties on large sums.“President Noboa, you have options, but not at the cost of the wallets of a hurting citizenry!” the legislators said in a post to social media.The Social Christian party, also part of Noboa’s coalition, also said it would not back the bill, potentially forcing the president to seek agreements or make amendments with minority parties.Ecuador closed 2023 with a fiscal deficit of more than $5.7bn, according to the government. Its foreign debt totals more than $47bn.“Higher public spending on security and a likely loss in revenues from slower growth will put pressure on the government’s budget balance. That will make the job of establishing the country’s strained public finances even harder,” Capital Economics said in a note.The military on social media said it has intensified operations in several provinces, arresting gang members and seizing weapons.The attorney-general’s office said three people were being held on charges of plotting an attack on the head of the national police, without providing further details.The police made no comment on the issue.Noboa’s government blames the deteriorating security situation on an increase in drug trafficking through Ecuador, which borders cocaine-producing Colombia and Peru and has become a major drug shipment point.On Thursday Noboa presented details of two new high-security prisons he has pledged to build to hold top gang leaders.The chairmen of foreign relations committees at the United States Congress reaffirmed their support for Noboa’s efforts to restore order in a joint statement yesterday.Washington has not yet provided details of the aid it may offer Ecuador, but the State Department said on Thursday that law enforcement officials will travel there to assist with criminal investigations.Ecuador will ask people entering the country across its borders with Peru and Colombia to show their criminal record or lack of one during the duration of the state of emergency, the government said late on Thursday.