Economy

Israel has not provided evidence to support its allegations that many employees of the main U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees are members of terrorist organizations, according to an independent review commissioned by the United Nations that was released on Monday.The review did not address Israel’s allegation that a dozen employees of the agency, known as UNRWA, were involved in the Hamas-led assault on Israel on Oct. 7. “It is a separate mission, and it is not in our mandate,” said Catherine Colonna, the former French foreign minister who led the inquiry.The review was announced in January, before Israel circulated claims…

Dr. Joel Breman, a specialist in infectious diseases who was a member of the original team that helped combat the Ebola virus in 1976, died on April 6 at his home in Chevy Chase, Md. He was 87.His death was confirmed by his son, Matthew, who said his father died of complications from kidney cancer.“We were scared out of our wits,” Dr. Breman, recollecting his pioneer mission, told a National Institutes of Health newsletter in 2014, as a new and even deadlier Ebola outbreak raged that year.Nearly 40 years earlier, his team of five had just landed in the interior…

This is an updated version of an article first published on March 8.It is two and a half years since Mark Clattenburg had his autobiography, Whistle Blower, to plug. No prisoners were taken in the book’s content or the promotional work ahead of its release.Graham Poll, Martin Atkinson and David Elleray were all among the former colleagues Clattenburg swung for in caustic appraisals designed to settle old scores. And as for Mike Riley, his old boss at Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), the body responsible for overseeing referees? “A boring f**ker,” was the succinct description.Less spiteful were the words…

In Bogota, Colombia, Babynova fertility clinic enables female couples from Nelson (New Zealand) to start their family with the ROPA method. This unique assisted reproduction technique, known as "Reception of Oocytes from Partner" (ROPA), enables both women to actively participate in the conception and gestation of their child. By sharing genetic material, they create a special bond with their baby. What is the ROPA method? The ROPA method involves a process of in vitro fertilization (IVF) with unique features tailored for female couples. The steps are outlined below: Ovarian stimulation and egg retrieval: one partner undergoes ovarian stimulation through medication…

Ecuadoreans will vote on Sunday in a referendum that could give their center-right president greater powers to combat drug-related gang violence and also gauge how he would fare in his bid for re-election next year.President Daniel Noboa, the 36-year-old heir to a banana empire, took office in November after an election season focused on drug-related gang violence, which has surged over the past five years to levels not seen in decades.In January, he declared an “internal armed conflict” and directed the military to “neutralize” the country’s roughly two dozen gangs, which the government labeled “terrorist organizations.” The drastic move allowed…

In the age of Ozempic, the “fat activist” Virginia Sole-Smith is inspiring and infuriating her followers. More information

Rudy Gobert knows what is coming. He knows that a fourth NBA Defensive Player of the Year award is almost assuredly his after being the best defensive player on the best defensive team all season long.He also knows that will do nothing to quiet the legion of skeptics who are ready to pile on should he fail to break through in the playoffs.Gobert is one of the NBA’s great development stories, the gangly teen who has morphed into a chiseled All-Star. The former 27th pick who played in the D-League as a rookie before blossoming into a generational defender. But…

The Greek government on Friday published a list of 198 “untrodden beaches” that it said are now off limits to bars, restaurants and large public gatherings in its latest attempt to contain development and address the backlash to the throngs of tourists that descend on the country’s coastlines each year.The move comes amid growing frustration among residents of Greek islands and parts of the coastal mainland that are popular with foreign visitors. Protests ballooned into a nationwide “beach towel movement” last summer as disgruntled locals complained that they were being pushed off their own beaches by businesses seeking to take…

Some Context: Experts say bad situations can often be reversed with treatment.Both mental health and drug addiction crises have been roiling the country, and the effects of parental drug use and mental illness can quickly trickle down to their children. Public health experts say substance use disorders can incapacitate a previously diligent parent and lead to the involvement of child protective services.In 2021 alone, more than seven million children were referred to authorities over worries of maltreatment, according to a federal report, and more than 200,000 were removed from their homes. But research shows that when parents seek treatment for…

The playoffs are almost here, and while we’re still waiting on a couple of matchups, we know the 16 teams. If you root for one of them, you’re not reading this because you’re curled up in a little ball, twitching and sweating and trying not to puke. Playoffs, baby!That leaves the rest of you, the fans of the 16 teams that spent the season being big losers strategically retooling for a brighter future. You’ve got to figure out who to root for over the coming weeks and months. You could skip that part entirely, of course, and just enjoy the…