December 22, 2023

A roundup of local and international news.

Newsroom, 22.12.2023, 13:55

Revolution. 22 December 1989 is celebrated as the Day of
the Victory of the Romanian Revolution. It marks the flight of the Ceausescu
couple after protests broke out in Timisoara on 16th December and
spread to many other places around the country and the capital Bucharest. 1,166
people were killed in the December 1989 uprising, according to the Institute of
the Romanian Revolution. They are commemorated these days in Bucharest and
across the country in military and religious ceremonies. Those who took part in
the Revolution and the families of the victims prayed and laid flowers in the
cities were the fiercest clashes took place.

Shooting.
A 24-year-old armed man killed 14 people on Thursday at the prestigious Charles
University in Prague, said the Czech authorities, who ruled out the idea of
international terrorism, according to France Presse news agency. The attacker
was found dead by the police at the site of the shooting. The armed attack
began at the Faculty of Arts, located near major tourist attractions. The
police had begun to look for the perpetrator even before the attack, after his
father was found dead in a village west of Prague. Romania’s president Klaus
Iohannis said he was horrified with the attack and sent his deepest condolences
to the families of the victims and said Romania stands by the Czech people in
these difficult times. Prime minister Marcel Ciolacu also sent his condolences
to the victims’ families.

Holiday.
Romanian pupils are today going on their winter holiday. They will return to
school in two weeks’ time, on 8th January, when the third module
begins, according to the current curriculum structure. The first holiday in the
new year will be one week, to be taken differently around the country, between
12th February and 3rd March.

Flights. From June next
year, direct flights from Bucharest to the United States will be resumed after
20 years. Tickets are already being sold, as the company in charge of the
flights has received permission from the US Department of Transport. The
flights between Bucharest’s Henri Coanda Airport and New York’s John F. Kennedy
Airport will take place four times a week on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and
Saturday and return. The trip will last under ten hours. The first flight is
scheduled for 7th June 2024.

Middle
East. The UN Security Council is today expected to vote, after several delays,
on a resolution meant to improve the access of humanitarian aid to Gaza. The
initial version, proposed by the United Arab Emirates, was diluted after
intense negotiations, to prevent a veto from the United States, who did not
want the resolution to call imperatively for a ceasefire. On the ground, the
Israeli army has blown up a network of tunnels linking the private residences
of Hamas leaders to offices and ministries in the city, secret homes and even
hospitals. The army also announced taking over full control of another
difficult district in Gaza. Clashes were also reported on the border with
Lebanon, where Hezbollah began to fire incendiary rockets to cause forest fires
and burn harvests on the Israeli side. In response, Israel attacked targets of
this terrorist organisation inside Lebanon. (CM)