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The assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Lebanon shows that no place in the Middle East is beyond the reach of Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned in a televised address on Saturday.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) killed the leader of the Lebanese militant group in a bombing of an underground compound in Beirut. Hezbollah confirmed Nasrallah's death on Saturday.

Netanyahu warned Iran — referring to it as the 'ayatollahs' regime' — that Israel will retaliate against any state that threatens it.

'Those who strike at us, we will strike at them. There is nowhere in Iran or the Middle East beyond the reach of the long arm of Israel, and today you know how true that is.'

The killing of Nasrallah serves as an additional message to Hamas, Netanyahu said. 'The more that Hamas political chief Yahya Sinwar realizes that Hezbollah is no longer coming to save him, the greater the chances for the return of our hostages.'

The prime minister cautioned Israelis, however, that the coming days will be difficult. 'We will face significant challenges in the days ahead and will meet them,' he said, calling it a 'historical turning point.'

According to sources from ABC News, the IDF may be planning a ground operation against Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Hezbollah and Israel have engaged in increasingly frequent cross-border strikes recently, raising concerns of a full-scale conflict since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war last October.

Tensions escalated earlier in September when thousands of pagers and handheld radios detonated across Lebanon, resulting in dozens of deaths and thousands of injuries. The UN condemned the attacks as 'unacceptable,' with the organization's human rights chief, Volker Turk, calling for a thorough investigation.

While Israel has neither confirmed nor denied involvement, the covert attack is widely believed to have been conducted by Israeli intelligence.

The post Netanyahu threatens Iran with Israel's 'long arm' appeared first on The Custom Reports.

Source : https://thecustomreports.com/netanyahu-threatens-iran-with-israels-long-arm/

Six people have died of Marburg virus disease (MVD, a haemorrhagic fever, Minister of Health Dr Sabin Nsanzimana, announced on September 28.

'A high-fever disease caused by Marburg virus has been identified in Rwanda. We count 20 people who are suffering from it, and six it has killed,' Nsanzimana said in a video posted on X by Rwanda Broadcasting Agency (RBA).

The update comes after the Ministry of Health, on Friday, September 27, announced that Marburg virus disease had been confirmed in a few patients in health facilities in the country.

Nsanzimana said that most of the people who suffer from and those who died from the disease are healthcare workers [at health facilities], especially in intensive care units.

'The Ministry of Health, other government entities and partners, we are collaborating on contact tracing to get those who had contact with those patients and the deceased.'

He indicated that the virus infections are transmitted through contact with blood and body fluids of people who are visibly sick, and sharing equipment or clothes with them.

He indicated that it can take between three days and three weeks without the person who contracted it showing signs.

'It is a very severe disease such that a person who contracted it has high risk of losing life to it,' he said.

'But we are ensuring that tests are carried out early so that those who were affected by the disease be provided treatment to prevent serious cases or more deaths,' he added.

According to the World Health Organisation, Marburg virus disease (MVD) is a severe, often fatal illness caused by the Marburg virus. The virus causes severe viral haemorrhagic fever in humans characterized by fever, headache, back pain, muscle pain, abdominal pain, vomiting, confusion, diarrhoea, and bleeding at very late stages.

It has a fatality ratio of up to 88 per cent, and it is in the same family as the virus that causes Ebola virus disease, as per WHO.

Nsanzimana said that Rwanda is working with the international organisation to curb the disease.

He requested the public not to panic, and to comply with measures to deal with the outbreak, especially by avoiding sharing equipment with a person who shows signs like those of Marburg, washing hands with clean water and soap, as well as sanitizers, among others.

He condoled with the families of the virus victims and promised that the government will continue being by their side.

'It is our partnership that enabled us to defeat previous epidemics. We hope we will also defeat this one soon,' he said.

The post Marburg update in Rwanda: Six people succumb to viral disease appeared first on The Custom Reports.

Source : https://thecustomreports.com/marburg-update-in-rwanda-six-people-succumb-to-viral-disease/

On Saturday, Hezbollah confirmed that its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, is dead after Israel announced he was killed in an airstrike in Beirut on Friday.

His death marks a major moment in recent Middle East history, but the long-term consequences are uncertain. It raises a key question: Do 'decapitation strikes' killing the leaders of terrorist groups cripple them? The short answer is not really.

Israel should know from its own history that such strikes don't always succeed in crippling a militant group. In 2008, Israel killed Hezbollah's military leader, Imad Mughniyeh, in Damascus, Syria, yet the group only gathered strength in the years that followed.

Four years earlier, Israel killed a founder of Hamas, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, in an airstrike. Yet, the group did not collapse, and almost two decades later it still carried out the October 7 attacks in Israel, killing some 1,200 Israelis in a single day.

More recently, in July, Israel said it killed one of the October 7 masterminds, Mohammed Deif, a key Hamas military commander, yet the militant group fights on in Gaza.

The US has its own history of killing terrorist leaders in the hope that it will cripple its foes. When Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the leader of al Qaeda in Iraq, was killed in a US bombing raid in 2006, it was treated as a major breakthrough because al Qaeda in Iraq was significantly contributing to the civil war that was then tearing the country apart.

Yet eight years later, al Qaeda in Iraq eventually morphed into ISIS, which took over territory the size of Portugal and presided over a population of some eight million people in Iraq and Syria. ISIS also carried out devastating terrorist attacks in the West, for instance, in Paris in 2015 that killed 130 people.

What actually ended ISIS's geographical 'caliphate' was not a strike on its leadership but a ground campaign against the terrorist army from 2014 to 2019 waged by the Iraqi military and Syrian Kurdish forces backed by thousands of US troops and significant American airpower. ISIS's base, the second largest city in Iraq, Mosul, was largely destroyed during this war.

In May 2016, then-President Barack Obama authorized a drone strike in Pakistan that killed the overall leader of the Taliban, Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour. Yet, today, the Taliban control all of Afghanistan.

Then-President Donald Trump ordered a strike in Baghdad, Iraq, in early January 2020 that killed Qasem Soleimani, the commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Quds Force who was crucial to Iran's relationships with its proxy forces in the region such as Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis in Yemen and Shia militias in Iraq.

After Soleimani was killed, Trump said, 'Soleimani was plotting imminent and sinister attacks on American diplomats and military personnel, but we caught him in the act and terminated him.'

Yet, his death had no lasting impact on Iran's regional power and ambitions, and Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis in Yemen have continued their attacks on Israeli targets and Shia militias continued their attacks on American targets in Iraq.

The United States has designated the Taliban, the Houthis, Hamas, ISIS and Hezbollah as terrorist groups.

What can disable a terrorist group?

What can cripple a terrorist group is a sustained campaign to take out as many of its leaders and middle managers as possible. A CIA drone campaign that was ramped up in 2008 in Pakistan's tribal regions bordering Afghanistan killed many of al Qaeda's leaders, according to New America, a research institution (where I am a vice president).

Documents recovered by the US Navy SEALs who killed Osama bin Laden in his compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, in 2011 show that al Qaeda's leader regularly wrote to his followers living in the country's tribal regions, urging them to move around only on cloudy days when the drones were less effective. As a result, bin Laden was planning to pull all his followers out of the tribal region and resettle them in other parts of Pakistan.

Bin Laden's death certainly significantly contributed to undercutting al Qaeda's appeal to terrorists and its abilities to carry out attacks since it was bin Laden who had founded the group, had directed its most lethal operations, and members of the group had sworn a personal oath of allegiance to him.

Bin Laden's successor, Ayman al-Zawahiri, didn't have the charisma or the organizational skills to resuscitate al Qaeda, and Zawahiri himself was killed in a US drone strike in Afghanistan two years ago. The UN estimates there are about four hundred members of al Qaeda living in Afghanistan today.

While al Qaeda is a relatively small terrorist group, Hezbollah has been in existence for four decades and is backed by Iran, which is a key player in the region and has an army of some 30,000 soldiers armed with an extensive arsenal, including some 150,000 rockets and missiles.

The killing of Nasrallah is a key prize for Israel as part of its larger wave of attacks on Hezbollah that intensified earlier this month with its covert action exploding thousands of pagers and walkie-talkies followed by massive airstrikes that have taken out infrastructure and other senior leaders.

But it's too early to write the militant group off, though it's clearly in disarray. History suggests it will reorganize and appoint other leaders to continue its long fight against Israel.

The post Killing of Nasrallah is a key prize for Israel, but it's too early to write off Hezbollah appeared first on The Custom Reports.

Source : https://thecustomreports.com/killing-of-nasrallah-is-a-key-prize-for-israel-but-its-too-early-to-write-off-hezbollah/

Source : https://en.igihe.com/health/article/5-key-measures-to-protect-yourself-from-the-marburg-virus

British Foreign Secretary David Lammy said he had spoken with Lebanon's Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Saturday, following an Israeli airstrike on Beirut which killed Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah.

'We agreed on the need for an immediate ceasefire to bring an end to the bloodshed. A diplomatic solution is the only way to restore security and stability for the Lebanese and Israeli people,' Lammy said in a statement on social media platform X.

Earlier in the week Lammy told the United Nations' General Assembly that there should be an immediate ceasefire between Lebanon's Hezbollah and Israel and that a full-blown war was not in the interest of the people in the region.

Britain's foreign ministry has advised its nationals to leave Lebanon as soon as possible.

The post UK calls again for immediate ceasefire in Lebanon appeared first on The Custom Reports.

Source : https://thecustomreports.com/uk-calls-again-for-immediate-ceasefire-in-lebanon/

Washington should stop 'smearing' China, especially when it comes to Beijing's stance on the Ukraine conflict, Foreign Minister Wang Yi has told US counterpart Antony Blinken.

The two top diplomats met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York to discuss tensions in bilateral relations and international issues. Hostilities between Moscow and Kiev loomed large on the agenda, as Blinken rebuked China for what he claimed was the fueling of Russia's 'war machine.'

The US Secretary of State charged that while Beijing says it wants peace, it is 'allowing its companies to take actions that are actually helping [Russian President Vladimir] Putin continue the aggression, that doesn't add up.'

Wang Yi fired back, saying, as quoted by China's Foreign Ministry, that 'the United States should stop smearing and framing China, imposing sanctions indiscriminately, and stop using this as an excuse to create confrontation and incite confrontation between camps.'

Beijing, he added, maintains an 'open and above board' position on the Ukraine conflict, and 'has always insisted on promoting peace and dialogue, and has made its own efforts to promote a political solution.'

Wang also noted that China opposes what he called 'the US suppression of China's economy, trade and technology,' adding that 'national security cannot be politicized, and the 'small courtyard and high walls' cannot become the 'big courtyard iron curtain'.'

Last month, the US released a new sanctions list targeting almost 400 companies and individuals, including those from China, UAE, and Türkiye, over what Washington says is their support for Russia in the Ukraine conflict. At the time, the State Department voiced particular concern about 'the magnitude of dual-use goods exports' from China to Russia which it claimed helped Moscow address 'critical gaps in Russia's defense production cycle.'

Following the start of the Ukraine conflict, China refused to join Western sanctions against Russia, and trade between the two has since steadily increased. Beijing has also positioned itself as a neutral party in the crisis, repeatedly calling for peace talks.

Commenting on ties with Beijing, Putin has rejected the idea that Russia is becoming too dependent on China economically, insisting that the EU economy is much more vulnerable in that regard.

The post China demands US stop 'smearing' campaign over Ukraine conflict appeared first on The Custom Reports.

Source : https://thecustomreports.com/china-demands-us-stop-smearing-campaign-over-ukraine-conflict/

Israel's Hostages Families Forum called for renewed efforts to free the remaining hostages held in Gaza on Saturday, following the Israeli military's claim that it had killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

'And now, to the most important mission, after a year's delay: returning all the hostages home,' the organization wrote in a post on X.

As escalating attacks between Israel and Hezbollah over the past week have dominated news coverage and political attention, the families of the hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza have expressed dismay that government's efforts to secure the release of their loved ones is being overshadowed.

The number of Israeli captives still in the enclave stands at 101, including 35 believed to be dead, according to data from the Israeli Prime Minister's Office.

The Israeli military has claimed that the group's chain of command 'has been almost completely dismantled' after it killed a series of what it says are top officials in the organization this week.

The chain of command is not publicly known, however, and CNN cannot independently verify Israel's claims.

'Hezbollah has taken the biggest blow to its military infrastructure since its inception. In addition to losing weapon depots and facilities, the group has lost most of its senior commanders, and its communications network is broken,' said Hanin Ghaddar, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute and author of 'Hezbollahland.'

Despite its losses however, the group still retains skilled commanders and many of its most powerful assets, including precision-guided missiles and long-range missiles that could inflict significant damage to Israel's military and civilian infrastructure, said Ghaddar. Most of those missiles haven't been deployed yet.

Since Israel stepped up its campaign, Hezbollah's military performance 'has proven that it was able to absorb that shock and was able to bounce back and it has been striking hard at northern Israel for days now,' said Amal Saad, Hezbollah expert and lecturer in politics and international relations at Cardiff University in Wales.

On Wednesday, Israel intercepted a ballistic missile fired by Hezbollah near Tel Aviv, an unprecedented attack that reached deep into the country's commercial heartland. Hezbollah said it targeted the headquarters of Israel's intelligence agency.

The post Israel's Hostages Families Forum calls for renewed efforts to free hostages in Gaza appeared first on The Custom Reports.

Source : https://thecustomreports.com/israels-hostages-families-forum-calls-for-renewed-efforts-to-free-hostages-in-gaza/

Hassan Nasrallah, whom Israel believes it killed in a strike on southern Beirut, turned Hezbollah into one of the most powerful paramilitary forces in the Middle East. His death caps a series devastating blows for the group, already reeling from the humiliation of having its communications network comprehensively infiltrated, and suggests that one of Israel's most formidable enemies is deeply wounded.

One of the founding members of the group formed four decades ago with the aid of Iran, Nasrallah ascended to the top of Hezbollah in 1992. He replaced his predecessor and mentor, Abbas Musawi, as secretary-general of Hezbollah, after he was killed by an Israeli helicopter strike.

Born to a grocer and his wife in Beirut in August 1960, Nasrallah spent his early adolescence under the shadow of Lebanon's civil war.

His family were forced to flee the capital when the fighting erupted in 1975, moving further south to a village near the coastal city of Tyre.

One year later, Nasrallah moved to Iraq to attend a Shiite seminary. But he was swiftly expelled during the persecution of Shiite Muslims under Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's repressive regime — returning to Lebanon to study under his teacher, Musawi.

When Israel invaded Lebanon in 1982, Nasrallah rallied a group of fighters to resist the occupation — which would evolve into Hezbollah.

Israeli forces took almost half of Lebanon's territory that year, and were held responsible for the killing of at least 17,000 people, according to reports and an Israeli inquiry into a massacre at a Beirut refugee camp.

Transformation of Hezbollah

Known for his fiery speeches, the leader oversaw the transformation of Hezbollah, from a rag-tag group of militants in the 1980s to an organization that mounted a concerted campaign to drive out Israeli occupation in 2000.

The Lebanese militant group became a regional fighting force under Nasrallah. He led the growth of Hezbollah's forces — his fighters and reservists are thought to number 100,000 — as well as the proliferation of its arsenal, which boasts long-range as well as medium and short-range missiles and drones.

Nasrallah commands a dedicated following of hundreds of thousands of largely Shiite Muslims — in Lebanon, Iraq, Syria and Yemen. His influence in the Iran-backed so-called axis of resistance grew exponentially after the US assassinated Iran's top general Qassem Soleimani, the architect of the region-wide axis, in 2020.

Hezbollah is the most robustly armed non-state group in the region — and is the most dominant political force in crisis-ridden Lebanon. Much of the Western world has designated Hezbollah a terrorist organization.

The post Israel claims Hezbollah leader killed in Beirut strike appeared first on The Custom Reports.

Source : https://thecustomreports.com/israel-claims-hezbollah-leader-killed-in-beirut-strike/

The teams comprise 63 young software engineers from diverse backgrounds who will be working in groups of two to four, with strong determination to leave their mark in the ever-evolving world of technology.

Speaking during the opening ceremony of the hackathon at the Irembo Campus in Nyarutarama, Peter Charles Djomga, Director of Software Engineering at Irembo, said the 48-hour competition aims to identify talent and create solutions that address real-world challenges and drive meaningful impact in society.

'We want to increase the capability of having doers in the IT ecosystem—not only people who can come and talk about AI, but people who can build things that have a real impact in the community,' Djomga stated.

Peter Charles Djomga, Director of Software Engineering at Irembo, said the 48-hour competition aims to identify talent and create solutions that address real-world challenges and drive meaningful impact in society.

Djomga noted that the 20 teams participating in the contest were selected from a pool of more than 130 teams who expressed interest in the competition.

In under 48 hours, participants, hosted at two Irembo campuses, are expected to harness the power of artificial intelligence and build functional, AI-driven applications to create innovative solutions for public services, healthcare, education, customer service, agriculture, financial inclusion, and cybersecurity, among other fields.

In developing practical AI solutions, the participants will leverage large language models (LLMs) and locally built technologies. Teams will also have the opportunity to access IremboPay APIs to integrate cutting-edge digital payment solutions into their projects. Pindo, a partner of the event, will provide access to its latest speech-to-text and text-to-speech AI models for voice-enabled applications.

The teams comprise 63 young software engineers from diverse backgrounds who will be working in groups of two to four.

Coding for the project kicked off at 7:00 p.m. on Friday and is expected to close at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday when the participants will submit their projects. Thereafter, presentations of the solutions to a panel of distinguished judges will commence and conclude by 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, followed by the unveiling of the top innovators.

According to the organizers, the judging criteria for the AI Connect Hackathon will focus on four key areas:

First, impact —judges will assess the project’s long-term potential for growth and its ability to improve people’s lives. Second, creativity —the originality and innovation of the AI application will be evaluated. Third, technical implementation —the quality of the technology’s execution will be taken into account. Finally, presentation —the team’s final pitch will be judged on how compelling and clear it is.

The winning team will receive a cash prize of RWF 5 million and VIP passes to the Global AI Summit on Africa in April 2025. Second- and third-place teams will receive RWF 2 million and RWF 1 million, respectively.

Besides the cash rewards, all participants will benefit from invaluable exposure, networking opportunities, and potential internships with event sponsors like the Rwanda Social Security Board (RSSB).

Besides the cash rewards, all participants will benefit from invaluable exposure, networking opportunities,

Patrick Rusimbi, a fourth-year Information Technology (IT) student at Adventist University Central Africa, expressed his excitement, stating that the facilities and resources provided by partners, including Groq API, will help him bring his long-harboured idea to life and possibly secure funding and other assistance to scale it up to have a worldwide impact.

'I have had my idea for the last six months. I have been yearning for an opportunity to bring it into being. When I saw this hackathon, I saw an opportunity to build something that no one has seen before,' Rusimbi told IGIHE.

Source : https://en.igihe.com/science-technology/article/20-teams-battle-it-out-in-irembo-s-48-hour-inaugural-ai-connect-hackathon

Source : https://en.igihe.com/news/article/over-82-mln-people-face-food-insecurity-in-east-central-africa-report