Cincunri Sakia

Minggu, 19 November 2023

Iceland volcano – live: Met office warns magma ‘very close’ to surface - The Independent

Huge cracks appear on roads in Icelandic town at risk of volcanic eruption

Magma may have reached very high up in the Earth’s crust, according to Iceland’s meteorological office, which says people will have to “wait in suspense for the next few days” to see how events play out.

“While there is still magma flow into the corridor, and while our data and models show that, that probability is imminent, and we really just have to wait in suspense for the next few days to see what happens,” Kristín Jónsdóttir, head of department at the Icelandic Meteorological Office, said.

She said the decreasing earthquake activity over the last 24 hours could be a sign that magma has reached very high up in the earth’s crust, adding that the scenario is not unlike what was seen prior to a previous eruption in 2021.

The Met Office said magmatic gas has been detected at a borehole in Svartsengi, signalling an imminent eruption of the Fagradalsfjall volcano over the coming days, with the town of Grindavik most at risk.

“Hagafell is thought to be a prime location for an eruption,” the forecaster said.

An eruption is now feared by many experts to be a case of when, not if.

“I do think an eruption will take place, but the big question is when that might happen,” Dr Margaret Hartley, of the University of Manchester, told Live Science.

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Magma 'very close' to surface, Met Office says

The magma intrusion continues to deepen and widen, indicating it has reached high up in the earth’s crust, according to Kristín Jónsdóttir, the head of the volcanic activity department at the Icelandic Met Office.

“While model calculations still indicate that magma flows into the intrusion, it must be considered probable that an eruption will occur,” the seismologist said, according to local news.

The greatest widening is in an area west of Hagafell, which is the most likely place for an eruption, according to the Met Office.

Vishwam Sankaran19 November 2023 04:00

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Pinned post: Officials reveal most likely location for volcanic eruption

The most likely site for volcanic eruption in Iceland is near the mountainous region of Hagafell, according to the Icelandic meteorological office.

Latest models based on GPS data and satellite imagery suggest the largest magma intrusion movements are occurring north of Grindavík, near Hagafell, the Met Office said.

“If magma manages to reach the surface, Hagafell is thought to be a prime location for an eruption,” it said, adding that seismicity related to the magma intrusion remains constant.

About 2,000 mini quakes have been recorded in the last 24 hours the largest of which occurred near Hagefell and had a magnitude of 3.0.

Most of the earthquake activity is still being recorded in an area north of Hagafel, the Met Office noted.

Athena Stavrou18 November 2023 03:40

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Pinned post: Thousands of quakes recorded in single day

Over 2,000 quakes have been recorded in Iceland with continued land deformation on Friday, according to the country’s meteorological office.

The most likely scenario, according to the Iceland Met Office volcanism head Kristín Jónsdóttir, is eruption beginning in the “next few days.”

Experts say the eruption site is likely NE of Grindavík where ground deformation is happening more acutely, but it is still not entirely sure when and where it may happen, according to the Met Office.

Athena Stavrou18 November 2023 03:12

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Video report: Iceland volcano eruption warning forces residents in Grindavik to evacuate

Iceland volcano eruption warning forces residents in Grindavik to evacuate

Andy Gregory19 November 2023 09:07

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Seismic activity 'slightly less' than before midnight, officials say

While more than 300 earthquakes have been recorded since midnight, officials say this is still less activity than last night.

The biggest earthquake since midnight measured 2.8 in the mountainous region of Hagafell, north east of Grindavík, according to the Icelandic Met Office.

Magma is likely moving closer to the surface as less seismic activity may be a sign of less resistance in the earth’s crust, Ríkey Júlíusdóttir, a geologist at the Met Office, said.

“The magma is probably quite shallow, and maybe it doesn’t take much conflict for it to erupt,” seismologist Kristín Jónsdóttir said.

Vishwam Sankaran19 November 2023 08:30

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Iceland volcano eruption warning forces residents in Grindavik to evacuate

Iceland volcano eruption warning forces residents in Grindavik to evacuate

Residents of a fishing town in south-western Iceland have left their homes after fears of a volcanic eruption caused civil defence authorities to declare a state of emergency in the region. Police decided to evacuate Grindavik after recent seismic activity in the area moved south towards the town and monitoring indicated that a corridor of magma, or semi-molten rock, now extends under the community, Iceland’s meteorological office said. The town of 3,400 is on the Reykjanes Peninsula, about 30 miles south-west of the capital, Reykjavik.

Vishwam Sankaran19 November 2023 08:00

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It may be long time before residents can move back, officials say

It could be a long time before it is safe to move back into Grindavík due to damages to houses and pipes, Víðir Reynisson, director of the civil defense department, said yesterday.

“This plus uncertainty about earthquakes means that Grindvíkings have to prepare to live elsewhere in the coming months,” Mr Reynisson said.

A rescue worker told local news that at least about twenty houses in the town are badly damaged and need a lot of repairs.

More than 1,200 families in the town need to be given a shelter, Grindavík mayor Fannar Jónasson said, adding that “it will take days and weeks to resolve issues so that everyone can enjoy themselves.”

Vishwam Sankaran19 November 2023 07:30

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Is it safe to travel to Iceland? Your rights if you have a holiday booked

The town of Grindavík, just 10 miles south of Keflavik International Airport, has been evacuated as a precaution.

Read the full article here

Holly Evans19 November 2023 07:00

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Costs for housing measures will be significant, Iceland PM says

The government’s costs for new housing for Grindvíking residents will be significant, says Iceland prime minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir.

With 600 housing requests still outstanding, the prime minister told local news that the government would first “work with what is available,” but also needs to consider building new housing.

“There, we have also been looking at things that can possibly be done faster, such as modular houses that do meet all quality requirements, which could then be built relatively quickly to respond to this situation,” Ms Jakobsdóttir said.

“The authorities have been in conversation with the financial companies about going further, as these are completely unique circumstances,” she added.

Vishwam Sankaran19 November 2023 06:30

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Biggest volcanic eruptions in the last 10 years as Iceland town faces devastation

It comes as the country has been shaken by more than 880 small earthquakes, prompting fears that the tremors could disrupt the Fagradalsfjall volcano on the Reykjanes peninsula in the southwest of the country.

Read the full article here

Holly Evans19 November 2023 06:00

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2023-11-19 08:58:03Z
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WHO says Gaza's al-Shifa hospital a death zone, as hundreds leave - BBC

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By Oliver Slow

BBC News

The World Health Organization (WHO) has described al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City as a "death zone" after a visit to the complex.

A joint UN team led by the WHO assessed the hospital for one hour following its occupation and evacuation by the Israeli military.

The team said they saw evidence of shelling and gunfire and observed a mass grave at the hospital's entrance.

They were told it held the remains of 80 people.

Following an evacuation which the hospital director said was ordered by the Israeli army but which the army said was requested by the director, 300 critically ill patients remain in al-Shifa - formerly the largest and most advanced hospital in Gaza.

The WHO said it was trying to arrange the urgent evacuation of remaining patients and staff to other facilities in Gaza, and repeated calls for a ceasefire.

Meanwhile, the White House has responded to a report in the Washington Post which said Israel, Hamas and the US were on the verge of a deal that would see the release of women and children seized by Hamas on 7 October in exchange for a five-day pause in fighting.

A White House spokesperson said no such deal had yet been reached but it was working hard to get one agreed.

Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has ruled out a full ceasefire with Hamas and said he will consider only a temporary truce in exchange for the return of hostages kidnapped by the group.

Israeli troops look on as Palestinian move south

Hundreds of people, including some patients, left al-Shifa on Saturday. Some medical staff said they had been told to leave but Israel disputes this.

A journalist at al-Shifa hospital told the BBC that only "patients who could not move and a very small number of doctors" remained behind.

"We raised our hands and carried white flags," Khader, a journalist who had been at al-Shifa, told the BBC.

"Last night was very difficult. The sounds of explosions and gunfire was terrifying. The bulldozers created huge holes in the hospital yard and swept away some buildings."

Earlier, the Hamas-run health ministry said 120 patients remained at the hospital, as well as an unspecified number of premature babies.

The IDF denied ordering the evacuation of al-Shifa and said it had agreed to a request from the hospital's director for those wanting to leave to evacuate through a "secure route".

"At no point did the IDF order the evacuation of patients or medical teams and in fact proposed that any request for medical evacuation will be facilitated by the IDF," a statement said.

Dr Ramez Radwan, a doctor who said he was ordered to leave al-Shifa by Israeli authorities, described the situation at the hospital as "miserable", saying there were no painkillers or antibiotics and some patients had "worms coming out of the wounds".

Israel's military has raided the hospital in recent days, as part of what it describes as a "targeted operation against Hamas", but is yet to provide substantial evidence that the group conducted a major operation in tunnels underneath the medical complex.

Weapons, Kalashnikovs, ammunition and bullet-proof vests which Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers said they found inside Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City

Separately, Hamas health officials said two explosions in Jabalia in northern Gaza together killed 80 people.

Israel told the BBC it could not confirm it struck a UN school-turned-shelter but was investigating.

BBC Verify has geolocated footage to al-Fakhoura school in Jabalia that shows many people - including women and children - with severe injuries or lying motionless on the floor in different parts of the building.

There are more than 20 such casualties visible in the footage, and around half of these are seen in one particular room on the ground floor, which also shows signs of considerable damage.

The head of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, said he had seen "horrifying images and footage of scores of people killed and injured" in one of his agency's schools "sheltering thousands of displaced".

"These attacks cannot become commonplace, they must stop," he said.

Elsewhere, the Hamas-run health ministry said more than 30 people from the same family had been killed elsewhere in Jabalia, in what it also said was an Israeli strike.

The Israel Defense Forces had no immediate comment on the report but said it was expanding operations in Gaza, including in Jabalia, to target Hamas.

It has told Palestinians in northern Gaza to leave for their own safety and has now begun telling people in the southern city of Khan Younis, where many thousands of people who have fled northern Gaza are, that they must now also leave.

Israel says the aim is to wipe out Hamas, following its attack on Israel on 7 October in which 1,200 people were killed and more than 240 taken hostage.

The Hamas-run health ministry says the death toll in Gaza has reached 12,300. More than 2,000 more are feared to be buried under rubble.

Sabtu, 18 November 2023

Australia says divers injured by sonar pulses from Chinese navy - Sky News

Australian says divers were injured after the Chinese navy used sonar while they were in the water clearing fishing nets.

Australia's defence minister Richard Marles said the government had expressed his concerns to Beijing for its "unsafe and unprofessional" use of the technology. It comes after similar complaints from the US, Canada and Australia over alleged actions taken by Chinese forces in the western Pacific.

Mr Marles said the HMAS Toowoomba stopped while it was in international waters on Tuesday in Japan's exclusive economic zone after the fishing nets became caught on its propellers.

It had been helping the UN enforce sanctions in the region.

He said: "While diving operations were under way, a PLA-N destroyer (DDG-139) operating in the vicinity closed towards HMAS Toowoomba.

"Toowoomba again advised the PLA-N destroyer that diving operations were being conducted and requested the ship keep clear.

"Despite acknowledging Toowoomba's communications, the Chinese vessel approached at a closer range. Soon after, it was detected operating its hull-mounted sonar in a manner that posed a risk to the safety of the Australian divers who were forced to exit the water.

"The divers sustained minor injuries, likely due to being subjected to the sonar pulses from the Chinese destroyer."

Sonar uses sound waves to get an image of what is happening in the water.

When used at high levels, it can cause dizziness and in some cases organ damage.

Opposition politician James Paterson said the incident happened after the prime minister visited China to build closer ties.

"On one hand, China says it wants a better relationship with Australia and on the other hand it takes dangerous manoeuvres that put the safety of Australian personnel at risk," he told reporters.

China did not immediately respond to the accusations.

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2023-11-18 12:23:04Z
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Israel-Hamas war: 80+ dead in Israel strike on Gaza refugee camp - Euronews

The latest developments from the Israel-Hamas war.

Hamas Health Ministry announces more than 80 dead in two strikes on refugee camp

The Hamas health ministry has reported the deaths of more than 80 people in two separate Israeli strikes on a UN-run refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip.

Neither the Israeli army nor the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) immediately commented.

The first strike left at least 50 dead "at dawn, at the al-Fakhoura school", in the Jabalia camp, where displaced people were staying, a ministry official told AFP.

Images posted on social media showed bodies, some covered in blood, others in dust, on the floors of the building, where mattresses had been installed under school tables.

In the second strike, the ministry announced the death of 32 members of the same family, including 19 children, by releasing the list of names of the Abou Habal family.

At the beginning of November, the Hamas government announced more than 200 dead and hundreds injured in Israeli bombings of the Jabalia refugee camp, during various strikes spread over three days.

Jabalia is the largest refugee camp in the Gaza Strip, where more than 80% of the inhabitants are refugees or descendants of refugees who left their homes in 1948 when the State of Israel was established.

All are run by UNRWA which manages the eight camps in the small territory.

In Jabalia, they manage 26 schools and two health centres.

According to the UN agency, at least 71 displaced people were killed and 573 injured while sheltering in some of the 154 structures it opened in the Gaza Strip.

These shelters now accommodate some 813,000 displaced people, according to UNRWA.

No ‘meaningful’ pause before release of hostages - US official

A pause in fighting between Israel and Hamas and a "significant" increase in humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip will occur when hostages taken by the militant group are released, a senior US official in Bahrain has said.

The situation in the Palestinian territory, shelled and besieged by Israel for 43 days after an attack by the Palestinian Islamist movement on its soil, is "horrible" and "intolerable", Brett McGurk, the White House Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa said.

But "the influx of humanitarian aid, the influx of fuel (and) a pause in the fighting will take place when the hostages are released," he added during the annual security forum organised by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).

"The release of a large number of hostages would lead... to a significant pause in the fighting and a massive influx of humanitarian aid," McGurk added.

The UN Security Council has called for "urgent and prolonged humanitarian pauses" - but Israel refuses any ceasefire until all hostages have been released.

Ayman Safadi, the Jordanian minister of foreign affairs said, while at the same event, that it is “unacceptable” to link humanitarian pauses to the question of hostages.

Safadi also spoke on behalf of the leaders of Arab countries, reiterating their call for an immediate ceasefire.

President of the European Commission opposed to ‘forced displacement’ of Palestinians

The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has said that she is opposed to the "forced displacement" of Palestinians after meeting Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi in Cairo.

“I discussed the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza with President al-Sissi. I thanked Egypt for its key role in providing and facilitating humanitarian aid to vulnerable Palestinians. We agree on the principle of no forced displacement of Palestinians and a political horizon based on a two-state solution,” von der Leyen wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

The President of the European Commission then went to Sinai to visit the Rafah crossing point, inspect humanitarian aid and visit injured Palestinians in hospital.

She flew into Al-Arich airport, the site where international aid has been piling up for weeks, before reaching Rafah, the border post between Egypt and Gaza.

Rafah remains the only opening into the Gaza strip and aid is still only trickling in.

Shifa hospital evacuated - except 120 patients and premature babies

Gaza health officials say many patients, medical staff and the displaced have left the region's largest hospital, which was taken over by Israeli forces earlier in the week.

Palestinian officials and the Israeli military offered conflicting versions about what prompted the mass exodus from Shifa Hospital.

Health officials say they received an evacuation order from the military on Saturday morning, while the military said it had offered safe passage to those hoping to leave. Before the departure, several thousand people, including medical patients in serious condition, were trapped in Shifa in dire conditions.

Some 120 patients and premature babies remain at the hospital, according to Gaza health officials.

Several doctors are remaining in Shifa to care for these patients, officials at the establishment told AFP.

For days, hospitals in the Gaza Strip have said they no longer have enough fuel. After strikes and shootings on ambulances, particularly at the gates of al-Chifa, their drivers say they can no longer operate the vehicles.

In recent days, during their raid on the hospital, Israeli soldiers destroyed several departments with explosives, including the ground floor of the surgery department.

The Israeli army said it has found weapons and military equipment hidden around the hospital and in a vehicle outside, as well as the laptop it says belonged to a Hamas militant. It also released videos of what it says is a tunnel, which is still being studied. The military’s claims could not be independently verified.

But Israel has yet to present proof of a Hamas command and control centre it previously said is underneath the hospital.

Limited internet and phone access returns to Gaza

The Palestinian telecommunications company Paltel has announced that phone and internet services were partially working again across Gaza after fuel was delivered to restart generators that power the networks.

NetBlocks, a group tracking internet outages, confirmed that “internet connectivity is being partially restored” in the Gaza Strip.

On Thursday, Paltel announced that all communication services, including landline connection, mobile network and Internet connection, dropped due to a lack of fuel.

The next day, Israel agreed to allow two tanker trucks of fuel, equaling 60,000 litres, into Gaza each day.

A US State Department official said 10,000 litres of the daily intake will be used to power the enclave’s communications network.

Before this week, Israel had completely prohibited fuel from entering Gaza, fearing it could be commandeered by Hamas and used against them.

International criminal court is gathering info on alleged crimes

International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan says that his office has received “a significant volume of information and evidence” about alleged crimes committed during the Israel-Hamas war.

Khan did not elaborate on the nature of the information his office has received.

He commented in a written statement on Friday confirming that South Africa, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Comoros, and Djibouti had made official state referrals to the court about the “Situation in the State of Palestine,” which his office has been investigating since March 2021. South Africa announced the referral on Thursday.

The ICC investigation dates back to the last major Israel-Hamas war in 2014 but also includes the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

Khan says his prosecution office “will continue its engagement with all relevant actors, whether national authorities, civil society, survivor groups or international partners, to advance this investigation.”

He also says he will “continue my efforts to visit the State of Palestine and Israel to meet with survivors, hear from civil society organisations and engage with relevant national counterparts.”

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2023-11-18 13:57:46Z
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Israel-Hamas war: Shifa hospital begins evacuation as death toll rises - Euronews