The Soapbox: Airstrikes in Gaza, shortages in the UK, coal mine collapse in China

The Soapbox is WSN’s weekly column covering breaking news on NYU campuses and overseas study centers. Global consciousness for a global university.

China coal mine collapse kills at least five

The collapse of a coal mine in Inner Mongolia killed at least five deaths and 48 disappearances. The initial collapse of one of the quarry walls buried the workers under rocks and sand, prompting a rescue effort. Five hours after the start of the rescue operation, another, more severe collapse occurred, due to which the rescue was delayed until the next day.

Mine collapse now under police investigation, according to Chang Zhigang, head of the rescue operation. Chinese President Xi Jinping has assembled a team of 900 government-approved rescuers for a “comprehensive search and rescue effort.” Drone footage shows debris left over from the crash stretching for about 500 meters.

Inner Mongolia Xinjing Coal Industry, the company operating the mine at the time of the collapse, was fined last year for numerous security breaches, including unsafe storage of volatile materials, unsafe exit routes, and lack of training for security inspectors. In June 2022, the investigating authorities found two employees working without proper attestation. The company, which was also involved in hundreds of lawsuits over unpaid debts between 2014 and 2022, has yet to comment on the collapse.

Despite the natural disaster, China’s Ministry of Emergency Situations said that during its 2022 COVID-19 policy, which introduced lockdowns and set up government quarantine facilities, industrial accidents decreased by 27% and the number of deaths – by 23.6%.

Military raid in occupied Palestine followed by rocket attacks

Israeli military killed 11 Palestinians during the raid in Nablus, a city in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. The military said the four-hour operation targeted three wanted Palestinian militants, all of whom were killed along with seven civilians, including a 16-year-old boy, Mohammad Fareed Shaban, and a 72-year-old man, Adnan Sabe Baara. More than 100 people were injured in the attack, according to Palestinian officials.

Last month, the military similar operation in a West Bank refugee camp. The raid was followed Palestinian militants attack near a synagogue in East Jerusalem, which killed seven Israelis.

Military operations intensified after far-right Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was re-elected in November, insisted on the expansion of Israeli settlements on the West Bank. The Israeli government recently approved the construction of 2,000 new homes in the West Bank, according to The Guardian.

A few hours after the raid on Nablus, Palestinian militants fire six rockets from Gaza, five of which were aimed at the Israeli cities of Ashkelon and Sderot in the south. The Israeli military said its air defenses intercepted five missiles, the sixth of which landed in an open field. They said no one was hurt.

The next day, Thursday, February 23, Israeli fighters fired several missiles in Gaza, an arms factory and a military complex belonging to Hamas, the Islamic militant group that controls the region, were shelled. No injuries were reported.

In response, Netanyahu said the Israeli government would “settle scores with anyone who harms Israeli citizens” at a cabinet meeting, the Associated Press reported. Thor Wensland, UN Permanent Representative to the Middle East, arrived in Gaza to meeting with Hamas leaders and become a mediator in the conflict, according to Reuters.

“I continue to interact with all interested parties to de-escalate the situation. I call on all parties to refrain from taking steps that could further aggravate an already fragile situation,” Vennesland said in a statement released ahead of his visit.

UK supermarkets face fruit and vegetable shortages

Temperature fluctuations in Europe and Africa cause lack of fresh fruits and vegetables in British supermarkets. Two major supermarket chains in the United Kingdom, Tesco and Aldi, recently announced that they will be limiting the number of peppers, cucumbers and tomatoes available for purchase to three packs per person.

On Tuesday, February 21, two other supermarkets, Asda and Morrisons, similar limits have been announced for products due to lack of caused by cold weather in producing countries such as Spain and Morocco, the two main suppliers of fresh food to the UK during the winter months.

Coexphal is an association of 101 fruit and vegetable companies in the Spanish city of Almeria, major exporter of products in Europe – blamed the lack of high temperatures in the region during autumn and winter. The group, which produces 70% of Almeria’s fruit and vegetable exports, said tomato production fell by 22% and cucumber production by 21%. Coexphal manager Luis Miguel Fernandez said higher production costs and viruses on fruits also contributed to lower yields.

Cold weather in Morocco, which has slowed down ferries carrying goods and lowered crop yields, is also contributing to reduced availability. The deficit affects Ireland as well as England, although to a lesser extent.

Alfonso Galvez, general secretary of Asaja, Spain’s largest agricultural association, said only the weather could not cause a decrease in the supply of productsand blamed the UK deficit on post-Brexit trading rules that It entered into force in May 2021. However, experts say that Brexit policy have minimal impact on a deficit.

“I have seen these articles but I don’t understand why they are talking about shortages here,” Gálvez told The Guardian. “So far this season everything is fine, so I don’t know if this is a UK logistics problem since Brexit rules have come into effect. There is enough food to supply the market, and the vegetable season is going well.”

Contact Jezen Saada by phone [email protected]