While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, Nov 5
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(From left) Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken disagreed on a ceasefire.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
Blinken rebuffs Arab states’ push for immediate Gaza ceasefire
Arab leaders on Saturday urged an immediate ceasefire in Israel’s military offensive in Gaza, pressing US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to convince Israel, but the top US diplomat said such a halt right now would only allow Palestinian militant group Hamas to regroup and attack Israel again.
In a rare public disagreement at a news conference in Amman, foreign ministers of Jordan and Egypt, standing alongside Blinken, repeatedly pushed for a cessation of hostilities, saying the death of thousands of civilians could not be justified as self-defense.
They also refused to discuss in-depth what comes next for Gaza, when and if Hamas is eradicated, saying the immediate focus should be on the effort to establish a cessation of hostilities.
Ukraine’s Zelensky denies war with Russia at ‘stalemate’
President Volodymyr Zelensky denied on Saturday that Ukraine’s war with Russia had reached a “stalemate”, pushing back at suggestions Western leaders were lobbying for peace talks.
The sprawling frontline between the two warring sides has barely moved in almost a year, with one senior Ukrainian official warning this week that the conflict was deadlocked.
“Time has passed, people are tired... But this is not a stalemate,” Zelensky told a news conference in Kyiv with EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen.
Protesters march in major cities to demand Gaza ceasefire
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators staged protests in London, Berlin, Paris, Ankara and Istanbul Saturday to call for a ceasefire in Gaza and castigate Israel after its military intensified its assault against Hamas.
In London, television footage showed large crowds holding sit-down protests blocking parts of the city centre, before marching to Trafalgar Square.
Protesters held “Freedom for Palestine” placards and chanted “ceasefire now” and “in our thousands, in our millions, we are all Palestinians”.
ELN concedes abduction of Diaz’s father was ‘mistake,’ vows release
The head of Colombia’s ELN guerilla group on Saturday acknowledged the organisation was responsible for last week’s abduction last week of the father of Liverpool footballer Luis Diaz, calling it a “mistake” and vowing to work toward his release.
“The retention of Luis Diaz’s father by the Northern War Front was a mistake,” Antonio Garcia wrote on his Telegram channel.
“Lucho is a symbol of Colombia, that is how we in the ELN feel about him,” he added, calling Diaz by his nickname.
Newcastle hand Arsenal first league defeat with controversial goal
Newcastle United handed Arsenal their first Premier League defeat of the season with a 1-0 win on Saturday thanks to a controversial second-half goal by Anthony Gordon after a long VAR review that left visiting manager Mikel Arteta livid.
Gordon scored in the 64th minute, firing past goalkeeper David Raya from close range after a goalmouth scramble.
There was a VAR break of four minutes six seconds to check if the ball went out of bounds, whether there was a foul in the build-up and for offside before the home fans could celebrate.
