Latest from Hala
MTV Lebanon
16 minutes ago
- Climate
- MTV Lebanon
Mexico assessing damage from Hurricane Erick after storm killed 2
Residents and authorities in southern Mexico are assessing the damage and watching for rising rivers as rain from the remnants of Hurricane Erick doused the region. Landslides and flooding were an ongoing concern for officials after Erick – once a Category 4 hurricane — dissipated following landfall early Thursday. At least two deaths have been confirmed – a 1-year-old boy who drowned in a swollen river in Guerrero state and a man was electrocuted while helping with debris removal in Oaxaca state, officials said. Erick came ashore down southern Mexico's Pacific coast Thursday morning as a Category 3 major hurricane. It landed between the resort cities of Acapulco and Puerto Escondido. Erick had strengthened to a Category 4 storm as it approached the coast, but weakened to a Category 3 storm before making landfall. Having doubled in strength in less than a day, Erick churned through an ideal environment for quick intensification. Last year, there were 34 incidents of rapid intensification — when a storm gains at least 55 kph (35 mph) in 24 hours — which is about twice the average and causes problems with forecasting, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. Authorities reported landslides, blocked highways, downed power lines and some flooding as coastal residents, above all in Acapulco, took the storm seriously with memories of the devastating Hurricane Otis in 2023 still fresh in their minds. Erick wiped out power to more than 120,000 customers at one point. "It was very strong, very ugly... the entire town is homeless, without clothes, we have no help," Francisca Avila, a 45-year-old housewife, told AFP, as she surveyed the loss of most of her belongings. In Puerto Escondido, fishermen searched for and inspected storm-tossed boats and residents cleared downed trees and other debris. Much of the town of about 30,000 people was left without electricity or cellphone coverage, AFP reported. The remnants of the storm dissipated Thursday night over the mountains in Michoacan state. Restaurants, shops and supermarkets gradually reopened in Acapulco, but schools remained closed across Guerrero on Friday as authorities continued to assess damage, clear debris and monitor rising rivers. "Many of us were frightened, but now it has passed," said Juan Carlos Castañeda, a 49-year-old security guard at an Acapulco condominium complex. He said the "tragedy of Otis marked all of us." Despite the rain, Castañeda decided to go out for a walk. Down the coast in the fishing village of Barra Vieja, the wind-whipped surf battered the shore and heavy rain kept residents sheltered indoors. Perla Rosas, however, was among the few who ventured out, umbrella in hand, to get to her job at a convenience store. "I feel more relaxed now, so I decided to come to work." Erick is the first major hurricane of the Eastern Pacific hurricane season, which runs from May 15 to Nov. 30. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to Nov. 30.
MTV Lebanon
16 minutes ago
- Health
- MTV Lebanon
UK parliament votes for assisted dying, paving way for historic law change
Britain's parliament voted on Friday in favour of a bill to legalise assisted dying, paving the way for the country's biggest social change in a generation. The legislation passed by a vote of 314-291, clearing its biggest parliamentary hurdle. The "Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life)" law would give mentally competent, terminally ill adults in England and Wales with six months or less left to live the right to choose to end their lives with medical help. The bill now proceeds to Britain's upper chamber, the House of Lords, where it will undergo months of scrutiny. While there could be further amendments, the unelected Lords will be reluctant to block legislation that has been passed by elected members of the House of Commons. The vote puts Britain on course to follow Australia, Canada and other countries, as well as some U.S. states, in permitting assisted dying. Prime Minister Keir Starmer's Labour government was neutral on the legislation, meaning politicians voted according to their conscience rather than along party lines. Starmer voted in favour. Supporters of the bill say it will provide dignity and compassion to people suffering, but opponents worry that vulnerable people could be coerced into ending their lives. Hundreds of people gathered outside parliament to hear news of the vote. When the result was read out, those in favour of the legislation hugged, clapped and cheered. They shouted 'victory', 'we won' and waved placards. Those opposed to it stood in silence. Emma Bray, who has motor neurone disease, said she hoped the result would help people in her condition. Bray, who is 42 and has two children, said she plans to starve herself to death next month to help relieve the pain after being told she only has six months to live. 'This result will mean that people will not have to go through the same suffering I have faced,' she told Reuters. Opinion polls show that a majority of Britons back assisted dying. Friday's vote followed hours of emotional debate and references to personal stories in the chamber and followed a vote in November that approved the legislation in principle. Opponents of the bill had argued that ill people may feel they should end their lives for fear of being a burden to their families and society. Some lawmakers withdrew their support after the initial vote last year, saying safeguards had been weakened. John Howard, a Catholic priest who led about a dozen people in prayer outside parliament while voting took place, said he worried that some people would be forced to end their lives early under pressure from family members. "I feel great sorrow and concern, particularly for the most vulnerable and disabled," he told Reuters. "This is a dark day for our country." Friday's vote took place 10 years after parliament last voted against allowing assisted dying. The 314-291 vote showed narrowing support from the 330-275 vote in favour in November. In the original plan, an assisted death would have required court approval. That has been replaced by a requirement for a judgement by a panel including a social worker, a senior legal figure and a psychiatrist, which is seen by some as a watering down. The Labour lawmaker who proposed the bill, Kim Leadbeater, said the legislation still offered some of the strongest protections in the world. "I am fully confident in the bill," she told the BBC after the vote. "The safeguards are extremely thorough, extremely robust, and I'm confident that this will help the people it needs to help." Opponents had doubts not just about the potential for coercion, but also about the impact of assisted dying on the finances and resources of the state-run National Health Service, how the law might change the relationship between doctors and their patients and whether it could mean that improvements to palliative care might now not be made. Care Not Killing, a group that opposes the law change, issued a statement calling the bill "deeply flawed and dangerous", saying that its safeguards had been weakened since November. "Members of Parliament had under 10 hours to consider over 130 amendments to the Bill, or less than 5 minutes per change. Does anyone think this is enough time to consider changes to a draft law that quite literally is a matter of life and death?" said the group's CEO, Gordon Macdonald. The law was proposed under a process led by an individual member of parliament rather than being government policy, which has limited the amount of parliamentary time allocated to it. Some lawmakers have said that such a major social change should have been allocated more parliamentary time for debate and involve a greater degree of ministerial involvement and accountability.
MTV Lebanon
16 minutes ago
- Politics
- MTV Lebanon
UN's Guterres Urges 'Give Peace a Chance' Amid Israel–Iran Tensions
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned on Friday that expansion of the Israel-Iran conflict could "ignite a fire no one can control" and called on both sides and potential parties to the conflict to "give peace a chance." Representatives from Israel and Iran later traded angry accusations at the same UN Security Council meeting, with Israel vowing not to stop its attacks. The head of the UN nuclear watchdog agency, meanwhile, warned that attacks on nuclear facilities could result in "radioactive releases with great consequences within and beyond boundaries" of the state attacked and called for maximum restraint. Guterres said there were "moments when the directions taken will shape not just the fate of nations, but potentially our collective future". "This is such a moment," he said. He said the conflict must not be allowed to expand. "To the parties to the conflict, the potential parties to the conflict, and to the Security Council as the representative of the international community, I have a simple and clear message: give peace a chance," Guterres said. The Security Council session took place as European foreign ministers met their Iranian counterpart on Friday hoping to test Tehran's readiness to negotiate a new nuclear deal despite there being scant prospect of Israel ceasing its attacks soon. Israel has repeatedly bombed nuclear targets in Iran, which it sees as components of a weapons program, and Iran has fired missiles and drones at Israel as a week-old air war escalated with no sign yet of an exit strategy from either side. The White House said on Thursday U.S. President Donald Trump would make a decision within the next two weeks whether to get involved on Israel's side. Iran says its nuclear program is only for peaceful purposes. It said on Friday it would not discuss the future of the program while under attack by Israel, which is widely assumed to possess nuclear weapons. Israel neither confirms nor denies this. Iran's UN Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani said Iran would continue to defend itself from Israeli attacks, while his Israeli counterpart Danny Danon vowed: "We will not stop. Not until Iran's nuclear threat is dismantled, not until its war machine is disarmed, not until our people and yours are safe." Iravani said Iran was "alarmed by credible reports that the United States... may be joining this war," and accused Israel of hitting five hospitals in its attacks, a charge for which Danon demanded he provide evidence. Danon said Israel sought genuine efforts to dismantle Iran's nuclear capabilities from Friday's meeting between European and Iranian ministers, not just another round of talks. "We have seen diplomatic talks for the last few decades, and look at the results," he told reporters. "If it is going to be like another session and debates, that's not going to work." Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, outlined Israeli attacks on nuclear facilities at Natanz, Isfahan and Arak. He said the level of radioactivity outside Iran's Natanz site had remained unchanged and at normal levels, indicating no external radiological impact on the population or the environment there. However, he said that within the facility there was both radiological and chemical contamination. He said the IAEA was not aware of any damage at Iran's Fordow plant at this time. An attack on Iran's Bushehr plant would be most serious, he said: "It is an operating nuclear power plant and hosts thousands of kilograms of nuclear material." "I want to make it absolutely and completely clear: In the case of an attack on the Bushehr nuclear power plant, a direct hit would result in a very high release of radioactivity to the environment," Grossi said. "Similarly, a hit that disabled the only two lines supplying electrical power to the plant could cause its reactor's core to melt." He said any action against the Tehran nuclear research reactor will also have severe consequences, "potentially for large areas of the city of Tehran and its inhabitants." The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Dorothy Camille Shea, said the United States "continues to stand with Israel and supports its actions against Iran's nuclear ambitions." "We can no longer ignore that Iran has all that it needs to achieve a nuclear weapon," she said. China and Russia demanded immediate de-escalation. Russia's UN ambassador, Vasily Nebenzya, said Israel's actions risked pulling third countries into the conflict and internationalization of the conflict must be avoided. He said targeting of what he called Iran's peaceful civilian nuclear facilities was "liable to plunge us into a hither to unseen nuclear catastrophe." Iran says its nuclear program is only for peaceful purposes. Israel is widely assumed to possess nuclear weapons. It neither confirms nor denies this.
South Wales Argus
31 minutes ago
- Lifestyle
- South Wales Argus
Rogerstone: Four-bed detached house in Alcan Grove for sale
The property, listed by Davis & Sons, boasts a large living room, study, utility room, conservatory, and a spacious kitchen diner. There is also an en-suite attached to the master bedroom, and another to the second bedroom. The property also features an entrance hall, utility room, and a downstairs WC. The conservatory (Image: Davis & Sons) The property has a large evergreen rear garden, a spacious lawn area, and a patio seating area. There is also a double driveway and garage to the front, providing ample off-street parking. The house is situated in a quiet residential area, close to local amenities, schools, and transport links. Rogerstone, a suburban village in Newport, blends historic charm with modern convenience. One of the bedrooms (Image: Davis & Sons) It offers well-regarded schools, green spaces like the Fourteen Locks Canal Centre, and regular rail links to Newport and Cardiff via Rogerstone station. With easy access to the M4, it is a popular choice for families and commuters seeking a strong community feel with excellent transport connections. The agency states: "This property is not to be missed." To arrange a viewing, contact the Newport head office or reach out via email.
Alalam24
31 minutes ago
- Health
- Alalam24
Dark Consequences Await After Just Three Nights of Sleep Deprivation
A recent study conducted at Uppsala University in Sweden has revealed that reducing sleep to only four hours per night for three consecutive nights can lead to changes in blood composition linked to an increased risk of heart disease. The study involved 16 healthy young men who participated in two different protocols within a controlled laboratory setting, where their diet, physical activity, and light exposure were strictly regulated. In the first protocol, participants slept for 8.5 hours per night over three nights. In the second, their sleep was restricted to 4.25 hours for the same period. After each phase, the participants performed high-intensity exercise on a stationary bike, and blood samples were taken before and after the workout. Researchers analyzed around 90 types of proteins in the blood and observed a significant increase in inflammatory markers associated with heart disease following the sleep-restricted phase. The study focused on inflammatory proteins that the body produces in response to stress or illness. Persistently high levels of these proteins can damage blood vessels and increase the risk of health issues such as heart failure, coronary artery disease, and arrhythmias. The study also found that the body's usual healthy response to exercise—such as the rise in beneficial proteins like interleukin-6 and BDNF, which support brain and heart function—was significantly weakened after poor sleep. What's particularly alarming is that these changes were observed in healthy young adults after only a short period of disrupted sleep. The researchers noted this as concerning, especially given the widespread prevalence of sleep disorders—affecting about one in four shift workers who experience circadian rhythm disruption. The study also pointed out that the timing of blood sample collection influenced protein levels, which varied between morning and evening. This variation was more pronounced after sleep restriction, suggesting that sleep affects not only blood composition but also the timing of biological changes. In today's fast-paced lifestyle, where sleep is often sacrificed for work, social life, or entertainment, this study highlights a sobering truth: our bodies keep a precise record of these sacrifices—and the toll they take on our health.
