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JERUSALEM — Israel approved a ceasefire agreement with Lebanon's Hezbollah militants on Tuesday that would end nearly 14 months of fighting linked to the war in the Gaza Strip. The ceasefire, starting at 4 a.m. local time Wednesday, would mark the first major step toward ending the regionwide unrest triggered by Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. But it does not address the devastating war in Gaza , where Hamas is still holding dozens of hostages and the conflict is more intractable. Hours before the ceasefire with Hezbollah was to take effect, Israel carried out the most intense wave of strikes in Beirut and its southern suburbs since the start of the conflict and issued a record number of evacuation warnings. At least 42 people were killed in strikes across the country, according to local authorities. People are also reading... Another huge airstrike shook Beirut shortly after the ceasefire was announced. Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike on Dahiyeh, in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. There appeared to be lingering disagreement over whether Israel would have the right to strike Hezbollah if it believed the militants had violated the agreement, something Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted was part of the deal but which Lebanese and Hezbollah officials have rejected. Israel's security Cabinet approved the U.S.-France-brokered ceasefire agreement after Netanyahu presented it, his office said. U.S. President Joe Biden, speaking in Washington, called the agreement “good news” and said his administration would make a renewed push for a ceasefire in Gaza. The Biden administration spent much of this year trying to broker a ceasefire and hostage release in Gaza but the talks repeatedly sputtered to a halt . President-elect Donald Trump vowed to bring peace to the Middle East without saying how. Still, any halt to the fighting in Lebanon is expected to reduce the likelihood of war between Israel and Iran, which backs both Hezbollah and Hamas and exchanged direct fire with Israel on two occasions earlier this year. In this screen grab image from video provide by the Israeli Government Press Office, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu makes a televised statement Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Jerusalem, Israel. Netanyahu presented the ceasefire proposal to Cabinet ministers after a televised address in which he listed accomplishments against Israel’s enemies across the region. He said a ceasefire with Hezbollah would further isolate Hamas in Gaza and allow Israel to focus on its main enemy, Iran. “If Hezbollah breaks the agreement and tries to rearm, we will attack,” he said. “For every violation, we will attack with might.” The ceasefire deal calls for a two-month initial halt in fighting and would require Hezbollah to end its armed presence in a broad swath of southern Lebanon, while Israeli troops would return to their side of the border. Thousands of additional Lebanese troops and U.N. peacekeepers would deploy in the south, and an international panel headed by the United States would monitor compliance. Biden said Israel reserved the right to quickly resume operations in Lebanon if Hezbollah breaks the terms of the truce, but that the deal "was designed to be a permanent cessation of hostilities.” A police bomb squad officer inspects the site where a rocket fired from Lebanon landed in a backyard in Kiryat Shmona, northern Israel, Tuesday Nov. 26, 2024. Netanyahu’s office said Israel appreciated the U.S. efforts in securing the deal but “reserves the right to act against every threat to its security.” Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati welcomed the ceasefire and described it as a crucial step toward stability and the return of displaced people. Hezbollah has said it accepts the proposal, but a senior official with the group said Tuesday it had not seen the agreement in its final form. “After reviewing the agreement signed by the enemy government, we will see if there is a match between what we stated and what was agreed upon by the Lebanese officials,” Mahmoud Qamati, deputy chair of Hezbollah’s political council, told the Al Jazeera news network. “We want an end to the aggression, of course, but not at the expense of the sovereignty of the state," he said, referring to Israel's demand for freedom of action. “Any violation of sovereignty is refused.” Rescuers and residents search for victims Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, at the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted a building in Beirut, Lebanon. Even as ceasefire efforts gained momentum in recent days, Israel continued to strike what it called Hezbollah targets across Lebanon while the militants fired rockets, missiles and drones across the border. An Israeli strike on Tuesday leveled a residential building in central Beirut — the second time in recent days warplanes have hit the crowded area near downtown. At least seven people were killed and 37 wounded, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry. Israel also struck a building in Beirut's bustling commercial district of Hamra for the first time, hitting a site around 400 meters (yards) from Lebanon’s Central Bank. There were no reports of casualties. The Israeli military said it struck targets linked to Hezbollah's financial arm. The evacuation warnings covered many areas, including parts of Beirut that previously were not targeted. The warnings sent residents fleeing. Traffic was gridlocked, with mattresses tied to some cars. Dozens of people, some wearing pajamas, gathered in a central square, huddling under blankets or standing around fires as Israeli drones buzzed overhead. Israeli military spokesman Avichay Adraee issued evacuation warnings for 20 buildings in Beirut's southern suburbs, where Hezbollah has a major presence, as well as a warning for the southern town of Naqoura where the U.N. peacekeeping mission, UNIFIL, is headquartered. UNIFIL spokesperson Andrea Tenenti said peacekeepers will not evacuate. Israeli soldiers inspect the site Tuesday Nov. 26, 2024, where a rocket fired from Lebanon landed in a backyard in Kiryat Shmona, northern Israel. The Israeli military also said its ground troops clashed with Hezbollah forces and destroyed rocket launchers in the Slouqi area on the eastern end of the Litani River, a few miles from the Israeli border. Under the ceasefire deal, Hezbollah would be required to move its forces north of the Litani, which in some places is about 20 miles north of the border. Hezbollah began firing into northern Israel on Oct. 8, 2023, saying it was showing support for the Palestinians, a day after Hamas carried out its attack on southern Israel, triggering the Gaza war. Israel returned fire on Hezbollah, and the two sides have exchanged barrages ever since. Israeli security officers and army soldiers inspect the site Tuesday Nov. 26, 2024, where a rocket fired from Lebanon landed in a backyard in Kiryat Shmona, northern Israel. Israel escalated its bombardment in mid-September and later sent troops into Lebanon, vowing to put an end to Hezbollah fire so tens of thousands of evacuated Israelis could return to their homes. More than 3,760 people have been killed by Israeli fire in Lebanon the past 13 months, many of them civilians, according to Lebanese health officials. The bombardment has driven 1.2 million people from their homes. Israel says it has killed more than 2,000 Hezbollah members. Hezbollah fire has forced some 50,000 Israelis to evacuate in the country’s north, and its rockets have reached as far south in Israel as Tel Aviv. At least 75 people have been killed, more than half of them civilians. More than 50 Israeli soldiers have died in the ground offensive in Lebanon. Chehayeb and Mroue reported from Beirut and Federman from Jerusalem. Associated Press reporters Lujain Jo and Sally Abou AlJoud in Beirut and Aamer Madhani in Washington contributed. Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.By SARAH PARVINI, GARANCE BURKE and JESSE BEDAYN, Associated Press President-elect Donald Trump will return to power next year with a raft of technological tools at his disposal that would help deliver his campaign promise of cracking down on immigration — among them, surveillance and artificial intelligence technology that the Biden administration already uses to help make crucial decisions in tracking, detaining and ultimately deporting immigrants lacking permanent legal status. While immigration officials have used the tech for years, an October letter from the Department of Homeland Security obtained exclusively by The Associated Press details how those tools — some of them powered by AI — help make life-altering decisions for immigrants, including whether they should be detained or surveilled. One algorithm, for example, ranks immigrants with a “Hurricane Score,” ranging from 1-5, to assess whether someone will “abscond” from the agency’s supervision. The letter, sent by DHS Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer Eric Hysen to the immigrant rights group Just Futures Law, revealed that the score calculates the potential risk that an immigrant — with a pending case — will fail to check in with Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. The algorithm relies on several factors, he said, including an immigrant’s number of violations and length of time in the program, and whether the person has a travel document. Hysen wrote that ICE officers consider the score, among other information, when making decisions about an immigrant’s case. “The Hurricane Score does not make decisions on detention, deportation, or surveillance; instead, it is used to inform human decision-making,” Hysen wrote. Also included in the government’s tool kit is a mobile app called SmartLINK that uses facial matching and can track an immigrant’s specific location. Nearly 200,000 people without legal status who are in removal proceedings are enrolled in the Alternatives to Detention program, under which certain immigrants can live in the U.S. while their immigration cases are pending. In exchange, SmartLINK and GPS trackers used by ICE rigorously surveil them and their movements. The phone application draws on facial matching technology and geolocation data, which has been used before to find and arrest those using the app. Just Futures Law wrote to Hysen earlier this year, questioning the fairness of using an algorithm to assess whether someone is a flight risk and raising concerns over how much data SmartLINK collects. Such AI systems, which score or screen people, are used widely but remain largely unregulated even though some have been found to discriminate on race, gender or other protected traits. DHS said in an email that it is committed to ensuring that its use of AI is transparent and safeguards privacy and civil rights while avoiding biases. The agency said it is working to implement the Biden administration’s requirements on using AI , but Hysen said in his letter that security officials may waive those requirements for certain uses. Trump has publicly vowed to repeal Biden’s AI policy when he returns to the White House in January. “DHS uses AI to assist our personnel in their work, but DHS does not use the outputs of AI systems as the sole basis for any law enforcement action or denial of benefits,” a spokesperson for DHS told the AP. Trump has not revealed how he plans to carry out his promised deportation of an estimated 11 million people living in the country illegally. Although he has proposed invoking wartime powers, as well as military involvement, the plan would face major logistical challenges — such as where to keep those who have been detained and how to find people spread across the country — that AI-powered surveillance tools could potentially address. Karoline Leavitt, a spokesperson for Trump, did not answer questions about how they plan to use DHS’ tech, but said in a statement that “President Trump will marshal every federal and state power necessary to institute the largest deportation operation” in American history. Over 100 civil society groups sent a letter on Friday urging the Office of Management and Budget to require DHS to comply with the Biden administration’s guidelines. OMB did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Just Futures Law’s executive director, Paromita Shah, said if immigrants are scored as flight risks, they are more likely to remain in detention, “limiting their ability to prepare a defense in their case in immigration court, which is already difficult enough as it is.” SmartLINK, part of the Intensive Supervision Appearance Program, is run by BI Inc., a subsidiary of the private prison company The GEO Group. The GEO Group also contracts with ICE to run detention centers. ICE is tight-lipped about how it uses SmartLINK’s location feature to find and arrest immigrants. Still, public records show that during Trump’s first term in 2018, Manassas, Virginia-based employees of BI Inc. relayed immigrants’ GPS locations to federal authorities, who then arrested over 40 people. In a report last year to address privacy issues and concerns, DHS said that the mobile app includes security features that “prohibit access to information on the participant’s mobile device, with the exception of location data points when the app is open.” But the report notes that there remains a risk that data collected from people “may be misused for unauthorized persistent monitoring.” Such information could also be stored in other ICE and DHS databases and used for other DHS mission purposes, the report said. On investor calls earlier this month, private prison companies were clear-eyed about the opportunities ahead. The GEO Group’s executive chairman George Christopher Zoley said that he expects the incoming Trump administration to “take a much more aggressive approach regarding border security as well as interior enforcement and to request additional funding from Congress to achieve these goals.” “In GEO’s ISAP program, we can scale up from the present 182,500 participants to several hundreds of thousands, or even millions of participants,” Zoley said. That same day, the head of another private prison company told investors he would be watching closely to see how the new administration may change immigrant monitoring programs. “It’s an opportunity for multiple vendors to engage ICE about the program going forward and think about creative and innovative solutions to not only get better outcomes, but also scale up the program as necessary,” Damon Hininger, CEO of the private prison company CoreCivic Inc. said on an earnings call. GEO did not respond to requests for comment. In a statement, CoreCivic said that it has played “a valued but limited role in America’s immigration system” for both Democrats and Republicans for over 40 years.The Winnipeg Sun recently highlighted the heartbreaking story of Dan Milburn and his wife, Rosanne, a stark reminder of the dire state of health care in Manitoba. Rosanne faced complications from surgery at the Health Sciences Centre, resulting in an open wound left untreated for days due to bed shortages. Despite Dan’s repeated attempts to seek help, including eight consecutive days of emails to the Health Minister’s office, the response was little more than empty reassurances. Rosanne’s condition worsened, ultimately leading to the amputation of her leg. This story underscores the systemic failures plaguing healthcare in Manitoba and across Canada. Following the publication of this story, I received several emails from readers who shared their horror stories about navigating the health-care system. These accounts ranged from delayed treatments to misdiagnoses and even outright neglect, leaving some individuals with life-changing results. These are not isolated incidents — they are symptoms of a system in crisis. One particularly devastating email detailed the experience of a young woman, Lacey-Jade, who went to the Health Sciences Centre in November 2023 with severe symptoms, including the inability to pass urine for several days. After enduring a 12-hour wait, she gave up and went home, planning to return the next day. She visited another hospital, was sent to a walk-in clinic, and received antibiotics for what was presumed to be a bladder infection. Her condition worsened, and after being treated dismissively at Concordia Hospital, she collapsed. A nurse dragged her across the floor, causing electric shocks down her spine. She was finally rushed to HSC by ambulance, where she underwent extensive surgery to save her life. Lacey-Jade spent days in the ICU and now faces life in a wheelchair. At just 30 years old, with two young children, she is struggling financially and physically due to the improper care she initially received. This family’s ordeal highlights the tragic consequences of a system that is boardroom-heavy and bedside-short. Another reader shared a disturbing account involving his spouse, an experienced nurse. She encountered a patient who was HIV-positive and threatened to harm staff by cutting himself to infect them. Despite the obvious danger, no action was taken against the patient. The nurse’s spouse contacted their MLA, who followed up, but the response from the Minister’s office merely reiterated existing safety measures. This incident exemplifies the failure to enforce protections for frontline workers, leaving overworked nurses endangered. These stories raise a critical question: How much does the Minister’s office cost? There is the Minister, four or more support staff, a deputy minister, multiple assistant deputy ministers, and numerous directors — none of whom are frontline-facing. The administrative bloat within Manitoba Health is staggering. Executives earn six-digit salaries and they have assistants who have assistants — none work cheaply. Meanwhile, frontline workers, patients, and families bear the brunt of systemic inefficiencies. Like many government departments, Manitoba Health is burdened by unnecessary layers of management. To address this, we need a forensic review of administrative costs. How many supervisors, managers, directors, and executives are on the payroll? What value do they provide, and could these funds be reallocated to hire more nurses, add more beds, or upgrade facilities? Accountability must be at the forefront of health-care reform. Every level of management within the system must be held responsible for outcomes. This means implementing transparent performance metrics, conducting regular audits, and ensuring that management decisions directly benefit patient care. The culture of evasion and deflection must end. Leaders within the system should face real consequences for failures, and successes must be tied to measurable improvements in care and efficiency. Without accountability, any efforts at reform will remain superficial. This accountability must extend to unions, nurses, and doctors. Unions, in particular, need to understand that consistent demands for higher wages in a system already in crisis are not the way forward. Unions should be working with us, not against us, to find sustainable solutions for Manitobans. During the last election, unions spent hundreds of thousands of dollars campaigning to put the NDP in power. They flooded the province with signs condemning the state of health-care. Now, the same unions are echoing those criticisms against the government they helped elect. This raises a fundamental question: why is the system still broken, and what can unions do to help Manitobans instead of perpetuating the problem? It is time for unions to take a hard look at their role and commit to being part of the solution. We must take a comprehensive approach to health-care reform. Reducing administrative overhead is just the beginning. Resources must be redirected to frontline care, ensuring that every dollar spent directly benefits patients. By trimming unnecessary layers of management, we can free up funds to address critical needs like staffing shortages, equipment upgrades, and expanded hospital capacity. The goal is not to cut for the sake of cutting but to build a system that works for the people it is meant to serve. Capacity planning must also become a top priority. Manitoba needs more hospital beds, not in small increments of 20 here and there, but in substantial numbers that reflect the growing demand. This requires a shift in how we allocate resources, focusing on long-term investments rather than short-term fixes. Building new facilities and expanding existing ones should be paired with increased staffing to ensure that beds are not just added but are usable. Another critical area for reform is how we use technology in health care. Digital health tools can streamline patient care, reduce administrative burdens, and improve outcomes. Investing in electronic health records, telemedicine, and data analytics can help identify inefficiencies and optimize resource allocation. These tools are not a luxury — they are essential for modernizing our health-care system and making it more responsive to patient needs. We also need to rethink how we deliver care. Community-based clinics and urgent care centres can help alleviate pressure on hospitals by handling non-emergency cases. These facilities are less expensive to operate and can provide faster, more convenient care for patients. Expanding their availability across Manitoba would reduce wait times and improve access to care, particularly in rural and underserved areas. The public’s frustration with the health-care system is understandable. We pay dearly for health-care through taxes, yet the services we receive are often inadequate. Stories like Rosanne’s, Lacey-Jade’s, and the nurse who faced a dangerous patient highlight the urgent need for wholesale reform. Incremental changes will not suffice. We need a complete overhaul that addresses the structural inefficiencies at the heart of the problem. Health care in Manitoba, and across Canada, is at a tipping point. We can continue down the current path, allowing inefficiencies and mismanagement to erode the quality of care, or we can demand better. The solutions are within reach, but they require courage and a willingness to challenge the status quo. By reducing administrative bloat, investing in capacity and technology, holding the system accountable, and ensuring transparency, we can build a health-care system that truly serves all Manitobans. — Kevin Klein is a former Tory cabinet minister, a former city councillor and President & CEO of Klein Group Ltd. Have thoughts on what’s going on in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada or across the world? Send us a letter to the editor at wpgsun.letters@kleinmedia.ca
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AI is a game changer for students with disabilities. Schools are still learning to harness itThus far, Alabama has landed five transfers this offseason. Those five include defensive back Cam Calhoun, interior offensive lineman Kam Dewberry, defensive lineman Kelby Collins, linebacker Nikhai Hill-Green, and wide receiver Isaiah Horton. Each of them have an opportunity to come in and make an immediate impact for the Crimson Tide next season. Today, I will assess Alabama’s transfer portal haul up to this point in the offseason. The first thing that stands out to me is the fact that Alabama was able to land experienced transfers in power-four conferences. Each of the five transfers have valuable experience and have competed in larger conferences. Calhoun signed with Michigan coming out of high school but transferred to Utah after his first season. In 2024, Calhoun tallied 21 tackles, nine pass deflections, and one interception for the Utes. He will provide depth and experience in Alabama’s secondary. With starting cornerback Domani Jackson potentially turning pro, his role could be vital to Alabama’s success in the secondary. Dewberry was a key offensive lineman for Texas A&M in each of his three seasons in College Station. He made seven starts and played in 32 games for the Aggies. At 6-foot-4 and 330 pounds, Alabama could experiment with Dewberry at offensive tackle or offensive guard. He has the potential to play both for the Crimson Tide. Regardless of where he plays, I expect Dewberry to be an offensive starter in 2025. Collins is an Alabama native that returns to his home state with two years of experience at Florida. Alabama defensive line coach Freddie Roach played a key role in helping the Crimson Tide land Collins’ commitment the second time around. At 6-foot-4 and 278 pounds, Collins can play either defensive end or defensive tackle in Kane Wommack’s ‘SWARM’ defense. In two seasons in the Swamp, Collins recorded 29 tackles, 1.5 sacks, and one forced fumble. He will bey a key player up front for Alabama in 2025. Hill-Green is the most experienced transfer that Alabama has landed this offseason. The Maryland native spent two seasons at Michigan, one season at Charlotte, and this past season at Colorado. Altogether, he has recorded 206 total tackles, eight pass deflections, and four sacks. He could be Jihaad Campbell’s replacement at inside linebacker with Campbell expected to depart for the NFL. Regardless, he will have an opportunity to see the field early and often next season. Horton might be the most valuable transfer addition so far this season. With Alabama losing four wide receivers to the transfer portal, his presence will be welcoming for the Crimson Tide in 2025. Horton spent three seasons at Miami before transferring to Alabama. During those three seasons, Horton reeled in 70 receptions for 790 yards and six touchdowns. At 6-foot-4, Horton could pose a deep ball threat and become a reliable target for whoever Alabama starts at quarterback next season. Overall, I am pleased with the players that Alabama’s coaching staff has brought in through the transfer portal. I feel like each of the transfers bring something valuable to the team. The other positions that I believe Alabama will need to add depth and talent at are safety, offensive tackle, and kicker. Those are positions that could use some proven talent and experience as the Crimson Tide look to turn things around in 2025. This article first appeared on Touchdown Alabama Magazine and was syndicated with permission.Chennai: University of Madras will lease 85 cents of land on Ramanujan Institute for Advanced Study in Mathematics ( RIASM ) campus at Chepauk to social welfare and women empowerment department for 33 years for construction of a hostel for working women . In return, the cash-strapped university will get 350 rooms to accommodate women students. "The university's syndicate gave its approval to lease the space. It will benefit them as more than 700 postgraduate students can be accommodated in the new hostel," a source from the university said. The women's hostel on the RIASM campus is currently not being used as its buildings are in a dilapidated state. State govt had earlier announced the construction of a girl's hostel with modern facilities on the Chepauk campus which spans 3.38 acres. It was estimated to cost 53 crore. But, University of Madras, which is facing a financial crisis, said it would not be able build it. "Govt asked the university to explore the possibility of using the social welfare department's funds to construct the hostel, with 150 rooms provided for working women," a source in the university said. The working women's unit will be run by Tamil Nadu Working Women's Hostel Corporation Limited, and the students' unit will be run by the university. The cost of constructing the hostel will be met through the Nirbhaya funds, state govt funds, and a loan from the Tamil Nadu Infrastructure Fund Management Corporation. The Madras University Teachers' Association has welcomed the decision. "It's a good deal. Students will get a brand new hostel, and the land will be returned to the university after the lease period," said C Murugan, general secretary of the Madras University Teachers' Association. Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India . Don't miss daily games like Crossword , Sudoku , Location Guesser and Mini Crossword .
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