Cairo: progress towards a truce in Gaza. New Israeli raids in Lebanon

Today's news: reports of workplace abuse have doubled in South Korea in five years; Baghdad will send 10 million liters of fuel to the Gaza Strip; Public apology from a company in Malaysia for a shoe logo that resembles the word "Allah"; The Taliban have built a wall around the Eidgah mosque in Kandahar for fear of ISIS attacks: Moscow has slowed issuing work permits to migrants from Central Asia.

ISRAEL - PALESTINE
Three people have been killed in an Israeli air raid in southern Lebanon. Meanwhile, Egyptian sources speak of "significant" progress in the talks in Cairo for a truce in the Strip (where the army withdrew from the south), with agreement on the fundamental points. But Israeli officials are freezing their enthusiasm, the "distance" is still "large". Yesterday tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Jerusalem to ask the government for more commitment on the hostage front.

SOUTH KOREA
Reports of workplace abuse and violations in South Korea have doubled in five years. Over 10 thousand cases registered by the Ministry of Labor in 2023, with an increase of 12% compared to the previous year. The most common form of harassment is verbal abuse and insults at 32.8%, followed by "inappropriate" measures relating to the human resources sector at 13.8%,

IRAQ - GAZA
The Baghdad government yesterday approved the shipment of 10 million liters of fuel to Gaza, to support the Palestinian people. This was announced by Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, adding that the country is also ready to receive the wounded from the Strip and treat them in public and private hospitals. The energy crisis has paralyzed hospitals, water systems, bakeries and relief workers.

MALAYSIA
Verns Holding Sdn Bhd, the manufacturer of a pair of shoes with a logo similar to the word "Allah" in Arabic, has apologized to try to put an end to the strong controversy that has broken out in Malaysia. The design represents a stylized shoe with a high heel and was not intended to be offensive towards Muslims; marketing was suspended and a refund was offered for those already sold.

AFGHANISTAN
Fearing attacks by the Islamic State on the occasion of the Eid al-Fitr holiday, the Afghan Taliban have erected a protective wall around the Eidgah mosque in Kandahar, the scene in the past of one of the rare outings of their leader Hibatullah Akhundzada. Military vehicles worked for a long time around the place of worship, creating a concrete ring that blocked the entrances.

RUSSIA - CENTRAL A.
After the Krokus attack, the issuing of work permits to migrants from Central Asia was greatly slowed down in Moscow, creating kilometre-long queues at the authorized centres, in front of which one had to wait entire days, if not weeks, in the cold and under the rain. According to activists, this does not depend on checks, but is merely a form of pressure.

INDONESIA - ORTHODOX
The Russian Orthodox Patriarchal Exarch for Southeast Asia, Metropolitan Sergius (Chashin) visited the city of Kupang on the island of Timor in the Malay archipelago of Indonesia for the first time, meeting the Christians residing there. The province of East Nusa Tenggara, in which the city is located, is the southernmost in the country and, at the same time, the most extreme point of the Russian mission.