November 12, 2023
A roundup of local and international news.
Newsroom, 12.11.2023, 13:50
GAZA – The Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, reiterated that the war in Gaza will continue until Hamas is destroyed and all the hostages it holds are released. In a televised press conference, he rejected criticism from French President Emmanuel Macron, who is calling for an end to hostilities to prevent further casualties among the Palestinian civilian population, and pledged “to stand firm against the world, if necessary.” Netanyahu also said Israel liquidated thousands of Hamas fighters, including those involved in the October 7 attack on Israeli soil that killed about 1,400 people. He added that Israel would retain military control over the Gaza Strip after the war, similar to that established in the West Bank. On the other hand, according to the BBC, the situation in the hospitals in Gaza is more and more desperate, against the backdrop of the Israeli offensive against Hamas. Hospitals are facing an acute shortage of electricity, food and fuel.
EVACUATION – Another 41 Romanians evacuated from the Gaza Strip to Egypt have arrived in Romania today with a Ministry of Defense aircraft. They were accompanied from the Rafah check point to Cairo by a mobile team of the Crisis Cell of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Meanwhile, the Bucharest diplomacy continues the dialogue with the Israeli and Egyptian authorities, in order to facilitate the evacuation of the other citizens who requested evacuation. The Ministry has announced that, due to the complex security situation in the region, the evacuation plans must be continuously adjusted so as not to put people at risk. According to Reuters, the evacuation of foreigners and people who need medical treatment through Rafah check point will be allowed again today. We remind you that the first group of Romanians and family members that was evacuated from the Gaza Strip to Egypt and then flown to Bucharest with an aircraft of the Romanian company Tarom, included 93 people.
NATO – The Black Sea region is of exceptional strategic importance for NATO, the Alliance’s deputy secretary general Mircea Geoană said Saturday, in Constanța. He said that the organization would continue to pay special attention to this area and would take all necessary measures to protect the interests, citizens and economies of its allies. According to Mircea Geoana, Romanias decision to purchase Abrams tanks is one that the North Atlantic Alliance respects and encourages. The NATO official added that now, when we realize that war is possible in Europe, it is time to reinvest in defense and national security. The US Congress has recently approved the sale of 54 Abrams tanks, ammunition and training simulators to Romania.
PENSIONS – The new pension law is to be debated and voted on next week by the two Chambers of the Bucharest Parliament, after the project was adopted by the government on Thursday. The project is supported by the Minister of Labor, Simona Bucura-Oprescu, who says that it is a stable and sustainable law that will lead to the elimination of inequities and is based on respect for contribution and work. She is criticized by the opposition, which claims that the law also favors Romanians with big pensions. The government wants the law to be adopted by Parliament by November 20, so that it should take effect as of January 1st, 2024. The law provides for two increases in pensions in 2024, one from January 1st and the other from September 1st. At the initiative of the parliamentary group AUR, on Monday, in the plenary session of the Chamber of Deputies, Public Finance Minister Marcel Boloş is expected to explain whether there is a risk of European funds to be suspended for Romania due to the budget deficit. (EE)
