Israel detains director of key north Gaza hospital as WHO condemns raids

Israel’s army has detained the director of one of the last functioning hospitals in northern Gaza, as the World Health Organization said Israeli assaults on medical facilities are a “death sentence” for thousands of Palestinians.

An Israeli military assault on the Kamal Adwan Hospital on Friday put the last major health facility in northern Gaza out of service, the WHO said.

“Initial reports indicate that some key departments were severely burned and destroyed during the raid,” the WHO said in a statement on X on Friday evening.

The Israeli military said in a statement that it had launched a raid on the Kamal Adwan Hospital as it “serves as a Hamas terrorist stronghold”, but failed to provide any evidence for this claim. Hamas said it “categorically” denied the claim.

Gaza health officials said on Saturday that Israeli forces had detained the director of the hospital.

“The occupation forces have taken dozens of the medical staff from Kamal Adwan Hospital to a detention centre for interrogation, including the director, Hussam Abu Safia,” the Palestinian Health Ministry in the Hamas-run territory said in a statement.

The ministry had earlier quoted Abu Safia as saying the military had “set on fire all surgery departments of the hospital” and that there were “a large number of injuries” among the medical team.

As of Friday morning, the hospital housed about 350 people, including 75 patients and 180 medical staff.

The WHO said 25 patients in critical condition, including those on ventilators, reportedly remain with 60 health workers in the hospital.

The patients in moderate to severe condition were forced to evacuate to the destroyed and non-functional Indonesian Hospital, the United Nations health agency said, adding it was “deeply concerned for their safety”.

The WHO reiterated its call for a ceasefire.

“This raid on Kamal Adwan Hospital comes after escalating restrictions on access for WHO and partners, and repeated attacks on or near the facility since early October,” the WHO said.

“Such hostilities and the raids are undoing all our efforts and support to keep the facility minimal[ly] functional. The systematic dismantling of the health system in Gaza is a death sentence for tens of thousands of Palestinians in need of healthcare.

“This horror must end and healthcare must be protected.”

OnePlus 13R launches with a huge battery upgrade, starting in China

OnePlus has unveiled its latest series of smartphones in China called Ace 5 and Ace 5 Pro, which will sport improvements in battery capacity and processing power. The company skipped the number 4 from its nomenclature, as the Chinese do not like using the number.

The flagship model, the OnePlus Ace 5 Pro, packs Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite processor. It also boasts a 6,100 mAh silicon carbon battery with support for 100W fast charging. On the front side, there is a 6.78-inch AMOLED display at 2780×1264 resolution with 4,500 nits peak brightness.

Mobile gamers get specialized features such as "double ice core VC" cooling system and dedicated gaming chip for stable 120 FPS at 1080p resolution on the Pro variant. It has also collaborated with Genshin Impact to promote the gaming experience.

The camera system includes a 50MP main sensor with optical image stabilization, accompanied by an 8MP ultrawide and 2MP macro lens. The device also has AI-powered features for removing unwanted subjects from images and minimizing glare.

Its sibling, the standard OnePlus Ace 5, carries many similar specifications but opts for the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor and a larger 6,415 mAh battery, though with slower 80W charging. Both models run on Android 15-based ColorOS 15.

Pricing for the Ace 5 Pro starts at CNY3,399 ($465) for the base 12GB/256GB configuration, while the Ace 5 begins at CNY2,299 ($315). Both devices offer variants up to 16GB RAM and 1TB storage, with special ceramic editions available at a premium.

The Ace 5 is currently available through Oppo's online store in China, with the Pro model scheduled for release on December 31. International availability has not been announced.

Key Specifications:

OnePlus Ace 5 Pro:
- Processor: Snapdragon 8 Elite
- Display: 6.78" 120Hz AMOLED
- Battery: 6,100 mAh, 100W charging
- Main Camera: 50MP with OIS

OnePlus Ace 5:
- Processor: Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
- Battery: 6,415 mAh, 80W charging
- Similar display and camera specifications
- Modified cooling system

Both models feature IP65 water resistance, Wi-Fi 7 support, and are available in multiple color options including special ceramic editions.

German president dissolves parliament and announces February election date

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier announced the dissolution of the Bundestag, the country’s lower house of parliament, on Friday, paving the way for early elections scheduled for February 23.

In a speech, Steinmeier emphasized the importance of political stability, stating, "I have decided to dissolve the 20th German Bundestag to fix the date for an early election for February 23rd. Political stability in Germany is a precious asset."

The decision follows Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s loss of a vote of confidence in the legislature on December 16. The Social Democrats (SPD) and the opposition Christian Democrats (CDU) agreed on the February election date.

Challenges Ahead for the SPD
Opinion polls indicate that Friedrich Merz’s CDU holds a lead of around 10 points over Scholz’s SPD, making the re-election bid for Scholz particularly challenging.

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, led by Alice Weidel, has also been polling strongly. However, Weidel’s chances of becoming chancellor remain slim as other major parties have ruled out forming coalitions with the AfD.

Key Election Issues
The upcoming elections will revolve around pressing issues such as immigration, revitalizing Germany’s economy, and determining the most effective support for Ukraine amidst its ongoing conflict with Russia.

The February 23 elections will mark a pivotal moment for Germany, as the nation seeks political stability and decisive leadership to address critical domestic and international challenge.

India’s former PM Manmohan Singh dies at 92

Former Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh, who governed the country for two terms and liberalised its economy in an earlier stint as finance minister, has died at the age of 92, local media reported on Thursday.

Singh, an economist-turned-politician who also served as the governor of the central bank, was ailing and admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi, local media reported.

He was very keen to convert Siachen into “a mountain of peace” after visiting the glacial heights in June 2005.

WhatsApp to roll out shortcut for users' conversations with Meta AI

WhatsApp has added a new shortcut to its interface that enables users to open a conversation with Meta AI from the chats tab, improving its visibility and accessibility for users.

According to WABetaInfo, the new shortcut, unveiled by the Meta-owned instant-messaging app in the latest WhatsApp beta for iOS 24.25.10.79 update, replaces the previous shortcut at the top of the navigation bar.

With this placement, Meta's popular instant-messaging app aims to improve the feature's visibility and accessibility, especially on larger devices where reaching the top of the screen may be inconvenient.

Additionally, the app aims to encourage more users to explore AI-powered features and experiment with functionalities such as generating personalised images, through the new shortcut.

This change reflects a thoughtful adjustment that caters to user experience, particularly in the Android version, where the shortcut resembles the floating action button.

However, it's important to note that this design choice could be seen as a test rather than a definitive placement.

WhatsApp may continue to tweak the interface based on user preferences and feedback.

The shortcut is currently available to some beta testers who install the latest version of WhatsApp beta for iOS from the TestFlight app, and it will be rolled out to more people over the coming weeks.

Israel kills 5 journalists in Gaza as babies in tent camp freeze to death

Gaza health authorities say new Israeli strikes have killed more than several people, including five journalists, and wounded several more in the besieged Palestinian territory.

In one of the latest attacks on Thursday morning, five journalists were killed after Israeli warplanes struck a vehicle carrying a press crew in front of Al-Awda Hospital in central Gaza.

The journalists worked for the Al-Quds Al-Youm television channel.

The vehicle was marked as a media van and was used by journalists to report from inside the hospital and Nuseirat camp, Palestinian media and local reporters said.

Earlier, at least five people were killed and 30 others were injured after Israeli warplanes bombed a Palestinian home in Gaza City’s al-Zaytoun neighborhood, the medics reported.

They warned the death toll could rise as many remained trapped under the rubble.

Another strike on a residential apartment in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza City killed ten citizens.

Israeli forces also continued extensive bombing operations around Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza.

To the south of Gaza, Israel’s bombings of homes and other residential buildings in Rafah caused several fatalities and dozens of injuries.

The Israeli genocide in Gaza has killed more than 45,300 Palestinians so far, leaving over 107,800 others injured.

According to a fresh UN report, more than 14,500 children have been killed so far in Gaza with thousands more believed to be still trapped or buried under the rubble.

On Wednesday, Pope Francis appealed for a ceasefire in Gaza during his traditional Christmas address, denouncing the "extremely grave" humanitarian situation in the blockaded territory.

Pope Francis made the call during his traditional annual message to the world's Catholics.

His new remarks came after he openly condemned the ongoing Israeli airstrikes in the war-stricken Gaza.

Last week, he described Israel's actions as acts of cruelty and criticized the continued bombardment of Palestinians, including children.

Trump’s incoming envoy calls for Imran Khan’s release

Richard Grenell, who has been picked by United States (US) President-elect Donald Trump as presidential envoy for special missions, said he would like to see Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder and former Prime Minister Imran Khan out of jail.

Speaking to a US news outlet, Richard Grenell said, “There are a lot of the same allegations just like President Trump, where the ruling party put him in prison and created some sort of corruption allegations and false allegations.”

“I would like to see Imran Khan be released from jail,” Richard Grenell said in the interview.

The special envoy of President-elect Donald Trump was of the view that the people of Pakistan should decide if Imran Khan wants to run for office.

“[The US] had a much better relationship with Pakistan during the Trump administration when Imran Khan was the leader because [he] was an outsider. He [Imran Khan] was a former cricket player, he wasn’t a politician and he spoke in very common sense language, and he and Donald Trump had a very good relationship.”

Earlier in November, the US Congress members once again wrote a letter to President Joe Biden, expressing grave concern over the detention of Imran Khan and the human rights situation in Pakistan.

At least 54 members of the US House of Representatives wrote outgoing US president Joe Biden, asking him to advocate for the immediate release of incarcerated PTI founder.

While terming Imran Khan’s arrest as ‘unlawful’ the US Congress members called on the Biden administration to advocate for release of other political prisoners.

“A focal point of our concern is the unlawful detention of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, widely perceived to be Pakistan’s most popular political figure. We urgently call on the U.S. government to advocate for the immediate release of former Prime Minister Khan and all political prisoners, and to ensure their safety in line with the findings of the UN Working Group report,” the letter read.