Fire breaks out after Iranian missile attack on southern Israel
The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. Founded in 1846, AP today remains the most trusted source of fast, accurate, unbiased news in all formats and the essential provider of the technology and services vital to the news business. More than half the world's population sees AP journalism every day.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Internet and phone outage in much of Gaza disrupts humanitarian operations and deepens isolation
CAIRO (AP) — A breakdown in communications networks in central and southern Gaza has cut many Palestinians off from the outside world for the past week, further straining aid efforts and emergency services amid continuing Israeli bombardment. Israeli strikes damaged a main connection, cutting off communications in large areas of the strip since Tuesday, according to the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, based in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. The telecom company Paltel said Friday that internet and landline services were restored in some areas in southern Gaza, including Khan Younis, with repairs ongoing in other southern and central areas. Paltel warned in a statement to AP that ongoing attacks on the main network could make future maintenance impossible, especially due to a shortage of essential materials and resources. The Gaza Strip has experienced at least 10 communications partial and full outages since the war began in October 2023, according to Palestinian telecom company Paltel. This week's outage has impacted aid efforts, emergency services, suspended academic classes, and cut off displaced Palestinians from the rest of the territory. Palestinians in Gaza rely heavily on cell service, as unsafe roads and fuel shortages limit movement across the enclave. Humanitarians say those in affected areas will struggle to access information on aid and medical services or call for ambulances. 'Telecoms have been used as a weapon of war against civilians,' said Juliette Touma, communications director at UNRWA, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugee that is the main service provider in Gaza. The vast majority of UNRWA workers don't have connectivity in the areas affected by the outages. As a result, they and other aid workers have struggled to deliver aid and coordinate with one another, Touma told the AP. 'Sometimes we get a signal when a team member has the courage to go on the rooftop of a building, which is extremely dangerous under strikes, and they send us a message that they're alive. I can't tell you how much of a relief it is, but they're more sporadic and less regular,' said Touma. Some people rely on E-sims, but they are not compatible with all devices and can only work in certain areas. Unreliable mobile service Over 70% of telecommunications networks in Gaza has been partially or completely destroyed as of August 2024 since the war began, according to statistics released by the Palestinian Ministry of Telecommunication and Digital Economy, cited by the Palestine Economic Policy Research Institute. However, Paltel said technical teams offered some technical solutions that would restore services. When they hear nearby strikes, Palestinians without connection don't know whether evacuation orders are issued and where should they relocate to, said Shaina Low, the Norwegian Refugee Council's communications adviser. 'This also means that people are isolated. They can't communicate with their family and friends inside of Gaza and understand what the current situation is or get external support from networks outside,' she said. Limited or unreliable mobile service has made it difficult for ambulances and civil defense teams to reach people in need of life-saving assistance, Low added. Fikr Shalltoot, Gaza director for the group Medical Aid for Palestinians, said its doctors working in hospitals and clinics in effected areas can't document or share their work with managers. 'Targeted daily' Meanwhile, with Gaza's university campuses heavily damaged, the internet has become the only way to continue education. But outages have forced educators to cancel classes and exams. 'It is, unfortunately, like a never-ending vicious cycle of suffering because when this issue is resolved in the north, the problem appears in the south,' said Mohammed Shbair, vice president for administrative and financial affairs, at al-Azhar University in Gaza. 'Students cannot reach universities because they are destroyed, and they can't even reach areas where the internet is available in cafes or displacement tents, as they are now being targeted daily and systematically by Israeli strikes,' said Shbair, an associate professor of public law. Online banking, a key alternative amid cash shortages, has also become unavailable. Palestinians who rely on online transfers to pay suppliers can no longer do so under the current conditions, according to Low. The outage complicates humanitarian operations and adds to the 'toxic stress' families face daily, said UNICEF spokesperson Tess Ingram. 'In a context of incessant bombardments, mass casualty events linked to food distributions, rising malnutrition and dwindling access to clean water, connectivity is a real lifeline for families in Gaza,' she said.
CBS News
an hour ago
- CBS News
Long Island teen Finn Schiavone overcomes paralysis, credits Navy SEALs as inspiration
A Long Island teenager says a Navy SEAL museum, and the people who run it, inspired him to overcome an unthinkable challenge. Finn Schiavone overcame paralysis after a traumatic brain injury he sustained during wrestling practice almost three years ago. "I lost my ability to walk, talk, read and write," Schiavone said. He says the bravery on display at West Sayville's Lt. Michael P. Murphy Navy SEAL Museum is what inspired him as he went through rehab. "It's like, truly amazing - what people were able to put their mind to," Schiavone said. After two years of slight improvements, one day his aide rolled him into the museum in his wheelchair. Schiavone said something within its walls lit a new spark. "I was dazed out, half the time. But I remember coming here, and I was like, this is the place. They're going to be with me," Schiavone said. He was right. "Every time he came back, something new changed" "This kid had this infectious smile and charisma to him, but he couldn't relay his message," Lt. Michael P. Murphy Navy SEAL Museum Executive Director Chris Wylie said. Wylie said the two developed an instant connection, and as Schiavone frequently returned to the museum, that bond grew. "Winded up making this museum a normal spot, monthly or every other month, to come and visit and give him a little more inspiration," Wylie said. Each time Schiavone showed off his progress. His rehab, six days a week, were helping him. "Every time he came back, something new changed," Wylie said. Finn Schiavone takes his first steps during a race in 2024. Schiavone family Last year, during a race, Wylie was there to help Schiavone take his first steps on his own. "He ended up surprising his mother, taking a couple of steps. She never saw him get out of his wheelchair and be able to move on his own," Wylie said. Schiavone made these significant improvements after two years in a wheelchair, which is when doctors say significant functional recovery is rare. Now Schiavone is fully recovered, and competing in strength challenges at the museum. "I have nothing but gratitude for this place," he said. His next goal is to finish up high school and, once he graduates in two years, he wants to go into the Naval Academy and pursue special warfare.
Washington Post
an hour ago
- Washington Post
15 sets of twins are graduating from one New York high school
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. — A high school in the suburbs of New York City will be seeing double on graduation day this weekend: Among the nearly 500 students in its graduating class, 30 are twins. It's a tight knit group. Some of the students at Long Island's Plainview-Old Bethpage John F. Kennedy High School have known each other since kindergarten, their parents meeting through a local twins club. Some even still plan family vacations together. These days, some of the twins are on a group text chain, which has helped them cope with their newfound notoriety as graduation day approaches. 'Honestly when we're together, the room is electric,' said Sydney Monka, as she attended graduation rehearsal with the other twins earlier this week. 'We're all very comfortable around each other and we all have these shared experiences so we're all bouncing off each other. It's really cool.' Save for the shared last names, though, the pairs may be hard to spot as they walk the stage Sunday at their high school graduation, held at Hofstra University in Hempstead. The students are all fraternal twins — meaning born from different eggs and sperm — so none of them are identical. Many of the twins are different genders. That doesn't make the bonds any less tight, says Bari Cohen, who is attending Indiana University in the fall. 'Especially for boy-girl twins, a lot of people think it's just, like, siblings, but it's more than that, because we go through the same things at the same time,' she said of her brother, Braydon Cohen, who is headed to the University of Pittsburgh. Most, when prodded, give a playful shrug at the curious phenomenon in the high school, which is located in an affluent, largely white district about 35 miles (56 kilometers) east of Manhattan. 'I guess there's just something in the water,' said Emily Brake, who is attending the University of Georgia, echoing a common refrain among the twins. 'We're all just very lucky. I think it's just a coincidence,' added her sister, Amanda Brake, who will be attending Ohio State University. Others acknowledge there's more than Mother Nature at work. Arianna Cammareri said her parents had been trying for years to have kids and in vitro fertilization was their last option. Back then, it was more common than it is now for IVF babies to be twins or triplets. There also may be a genetic component at play. 'There's a few twins in our family, like I have cousins that are twins, so I guess that raised the chances of having twins,' added the incoming freshman at Stony Brook University, also on Long Island. Large cohorts of twins are not unusual at Plainview-Old Bethpage. The high school had back-to-back graduating classes with 10 sets of multiples in 2014 and 2015, and next year's incoming freshmen class has nine sets of twins, according to school officials. Among the other schools around the country with big sets of graduating twins are Clovis North High School in Fresno, California, with 14 pairs, and Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt, Maryland, with 10 pairs. Last year, a middle school in suburban Boston had 23 sets of twins in its graduating class, though that's still far shy of the record for most multiples in the same academic class. New Trier High School in Winnetka, Illinois, had a whopping 44 twin pairs and a set of triplets in 2017, according to Guinness World Records. Most of the twins at Plainview-Old Bethpage are heading off to different colleges. An exception is Aiden and Chloe Manzo, who will both attend the University of Florida, where they'll live in the same dormitory on campus and both study business, though with different majors. 'We're going to see each other a lot,' Chloe said wryly. 'Deep down, my mom knew it would be easier if we went to the same school,' she added. 'You know, like moving in, graduation, going to sports games.' Some were apprehensive about living far from their longtime partner in crime. Emma and Kayla Leibowitz will be attending Binghamton and Syracuse University, respectively. The fifth generation twins say they're already making plans for frequent visits even though the upstate New York schools are some 80 miles (130 kilometers) apart. 'I think it's gonna be really weird because we really do everything together. She's my best friend. I really can't do anything without her,' said Emma. 'We're sleeping over every weekend. I'm coming for football games — like all of it,' said Kayla. Others were looking forward to getting some breathing room. Sydney and Kayla Jasser said they're both studying fashion design — but at different colleges. Sydney is attending the University of Delaware while Kayla will be attending Indiana University. 'We could have went to the same college, but we just wanted to be able to be independent since we've been with each other forever,' Kayla said. 'It's good to get out there and have our own experiences.' ___ Follow Philip Marcelo on X at .
