While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, Feb 14
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Israeli troops on the ground in the Gaza Strip amid ongoing battles between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas.
PHOTO: AFP
Gaza truce talks end inconclusively as Rafah braces for Israeli assault
Talks involving the US, Egypt, Israel and Qatar on a Gaza truce ended without a breakthrough on Feb 13 as calls grew for Israel to hold back on a planned assault on the southern end of the enclave, crammed with over a million displaced people.
The city of Rafah, whose pre-war population was about 300,000, teems with homeless people living in tent camps and makeshift shelters who fled there from Israeli bombardments in areas of Gaza further north during more than four months of war.
Israel says it wants to flush out Hamas militants from hideouts in Rafah and free Israeli hostages being held there, and is making plans to evacuate trapped Palestinian civilians. But no plan has been forthcoming and aid agencies say the displaced have nowhere else to go in the shattered territory.
US CDC plans to drop five-day Covid-19 isolation guidelines: Washington Post
REUTERS
The US CDC plans to drop its five-day Covid-19 isolation recommendations under new guidance planned by the agency, the Washington Post reported on Feb 13.
The health agency plans to recommend people who test positive for Covid-19 to take a call on when to end isolation based on their symptoms.
People with mild and improving symptoms would no longer need to stay home if they have been fever-free for at least 24 hours, the report said citing CDC officials familiar with the matter, adding the new recommendations would not apply to hospitals and other health-care settings with more vulnerable populations.
Storm dumps snow on US Northeast, closing schools and grounding flights
AFP
A powerful, fast-moving winter storm was blanketing the US Northeast on Feb 13 with heavy snow, creating treacherous driving conditions for millions of Americans, while forcing schools to close and wreaking havoc on air travel.
More than 30 million people from West Virginia northeast into New England were under a winter storm warning as the Nor’easter pummeled parts of the area with as much as 6 inches (15 cm) of heavy, wet snow overnight, the National Weather Service said.
In New York City, the nation’s most populous city, rain turned to snow in the early morning hours. The city was expected to get as much of 7 inches of snow throughout the day, making for hazardous driving conditions.
Putin’s suggestion of Ukraine ceasefire rejected by United States, sources say
via REUTERS
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s suggestion of a ceasefire in Ukraine to freeze the war was rejected by the United States after contacts between intermediaries, three Russian sources with knowledge of the discussions told Reuters.
The failure of Putin’s approach ushers in a third year of the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War Two and illustrates just how far apart the world’s two largest nuclear powers remain.
A US source denied there had been any official contact and said Washington would not engage in talks that did not involve Ukraine.
Venus Williams and Wozniacki get wild cards for Indian Wells
Grand Slam champions Venus Williams and Caroline Wozniacki have been awarded wild cards to play in the Indian Wells tournament in March.
Williams, a seven-time Grand Slam champion, has not played since suffering an early exit from last year’s US Open after a humbling defeat by qualifier Greet Minnen in the first round.
The 43-year-old American and former world number one will return to Indian Wells for the first time since 2019, when she reached the quarter-finals.
