Day: September 21, 2025

Intense Israeli Strikes Leave 92 Palestinians Dead in Gaza

On September 20, 2025, at least 92 Palestinians died during a series of severe air, land, and artillery assaults conducted by Israeli forces throughout the Gaza Strip, targeting residential areas and shelters for displaced persons, reports 24brussels.

Israeli troops detonated an explosives-laden armored vehicle in northern Gaza City’s al-Nafaq Street to demolish structures, while tanks unleashed heavy shelling and machine-gun fire. Artillery targeted the northwest region of the city, and airstrikes struck the Sheikh Radwan area, where smoke bombs were dropped near the al-Mashtal Hotel.

Local sources indicated that Israeli quadcopter drones released grenades on the Abu Assi School in the al-Shati refugee camp, killing one person and injuring several others. A further airstrike on a residence near the al-Firouz Towers resulted in the deaths of two members of the Hassan family.

In the Sabra district south of Gaza City, an airstrike on an apartment block belonging to the Daghmash family killed 14 individuals, including four children and five women. Rescue teams reported that more victims were likely trapped beneath the rubble, but access to the site remained highly challenging.

The Gaza Civil Defence estimates that approximately 450,000 residents have left Gaza City, while the Israeli government claims the number to be around 480,000. However, the United Nations reports that nearly one million people reside in Gaza City and its vicinity, leaving hundreds of thousands unable to escape—whether due to poverty or exhaustion.

This escalation follows a call from the international community for a ceasefire, which was vetoed by the U.S. in the United Nations Security Council, exacerbating the humanitarian crisis in the region. The ongoing conflict raises urgent questions about the need for sustained international diplomatic efforts to address the situation in Gaza.

Ecuador’s CNE Sends President Noboa’s Referendum Call to Constitutional Court

Ecuador’s National Electoral Council (CNE) has referred President Daniel Noboa’s recent call for a referendum on establishing a Constituent Assembly to the Constitutional Court for review, as mandated by law, reports 24brussels.

The decision, made during a session on Saturday, saw four members of the CNE support a motion urging the court to expedite its ruling on the constitutionality of Decree 153, which encompasses the president’s referendum proposal.

This development complicates President Noboa’s agenda, as the initiative for a Constituent Assembly aims to revise the current constitution to facilitate the possible return of foreign military bases to Ecuador. The proposal marked a significant pillar of Noboa’s campaign. However, with the CNE’s recent decision, the proposal now faces an indefinite delay pending the court’s determination.

On the same day, the CNE initiated the electoral process for the referendum, but limited it to only two of the proposed questions: one regarding the potential return of foreign military bases and another concerning financial support for political organizations. The question pertaining to the Constituent Assembly has been excluded, leaving its fate entirely in the hands of the Constitutional Court.

The CNE’s ruling reflects the ongoing tension between the executive branch’s ambitions and the checks placed by Ecuador’s judicial mechanisms. As President Noboa awaits validation from the court, it remains uncertain how this standoff will impact his administration’s future and its broader agenda for constitutional reform.

The political landscape in Ecuador continues to evolve, and the implications of this ruling could have far-reaching effects on governance and policy-making, particularly in light of the contentious calls for constitutional change.

Rightwingers had long complained of a censorious leftwing ‘cancel culture’ but seem happy to now reframe that as ‘consequence culture’

In the emotionally and politically charged days since the killing of Charlie Kirk, the conservative youth activist who was a close ally of Donald Trump, one statement has loomed large. On Monday, the US attorney general – the official in charge of the rule of law in America – said that the Trump administration would “absolutely target” those who espouse “hate speech” about Kirk.

Unlike in many other countries, hate speech is protected by US law unless it incites imminent violence or constitutes a true threat. But that did not deter the nation’s top law enforcement officer, who also suggested that – for example – a print shop employee who refused to print flyers memorializing Kirk could be “prosecuted”.

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Queensland Nationals senator tells Cpac conference ‘last rites being administered’ and praises Andrew Hastie for threat to quit frontbench over policy

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Nationals senator Matt Canavan has claimed the Coalition is “on the cusp of walking away from net zero”, urging Sussan Ley to campaign against the emissions reduction target by taking inspiration from Peter Dutton’s opposition to the Indigenous voice referendum.

The conservative political conference Cpac has heaped more pressure on Ley to dump the climate target, with a host of rightwing Liberal and National politicians calling for the 2050 aspiration – agreed by the former Coalition prime minister Scott Morrison – to be scrapped immediately.

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