January 24, 2025

Daily News Brief

UN says 17,000+ children without their families in Gaza Israel's genocidal war in Gaza has seen children killed, starved, frozen to death, orphaned and separated from their families, the UN humanitarian chief has said. At a UN Security Council meeting, the humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said that ""a generation has been traumatised." "Conservative estimates indicate that over 17,000 children are without their families in Gaza," he said. Report reveals Google's secret AI support for Israel amid war on Gaza "Google has continued providing AI technologies to Israel's military-industrial complex despite public attempts to distance itself from the country's violent aggressions, according to a report by the Washington Post. According to the newspaper's investigation, Google has been supporting Israel's Defence Ministry and military with artificial intelligence tools since the onset of its attacks on Gaza on October 7, 2023, even as its employees protested the Nimbus cloud computing contract. The company documents reveal Google expedited access to its Vertex AI service for the Israeli Defence Ministry. Internal communications show Google employees were concerned about losing potential contracts to competitors like Amazon if they did not quickly provide AI technology access." Dozens of diplomats, officials ousted in sweeping reset at State Department "In a swift and sweeping move, the Trump administration has directed dozens of senior State Department officials to step aside, triggering one of the most extensive leadership shake-ups in recent history, according to US media. Career diplomats and political appointees alike, including some in top roles overseeing US foreign policy, have been reportedly instructed to vacate their positions in recent days as President Donald Trump's team accelerates its plans to realign the Department with the administration's vision. This dramatic overhaul, which includes the departure of key figures such as John Bass and Geoff Pyatt, has sent shockwaves through Foggy Bottom." M23 rebels battling DRC army approach Goma city after seizing Sake town "Panic has spread in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo's main city, with M23 rebels steadily inching closer to Goma and seizing a nearby town as they battle the Congolese army. Bombs were heard going off in the city's distant outskirts and hundreds of wounded civilians were brought in to the main hospital from the area of the fighting. The rebel group has pushed significantly in recent weeks, closing in on Goma, which has around 2 million people and is a regional hub for security and humanitarian efforts." Climate shocks disrupted schooling for 242M children in 2024 — UN "Extreme weather disrupted the schooling of about 242 million children in 85 countries last year — roughly one in seven students, the UN children's agency has reported. It deplored what it said was an ""overlooked"" aspect of the climate crisis. Heat waves had the biggest impact, the report showed, as UNICEF's executive director Catherine Russell warned children are ""more vulnerable"" to extreme weather."