SunSeeker
SunSeeker's JournalU.S., U.K. among 8 countries pausing funding to UNRWA amid allegations 12 employees were part of Oct. 7 attack
Source: NBC News
Eight countries have paused future funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East amid an investigation into allegations some workers participated in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
The agency, known as the UNRWA, is entrusted with moving much-needed humanitarian aid into Gaza, which has been under intense bombardment by the Israel Defense Forces in its mission to annihilate Hamas militants after the October strike.
The nations have said they are awaiting the outcome of the investigation. “We must make sure that not a single euro of Finland’s money goes to Hamas or other terrorists,” Finland's minister for foreign trade and development, Ville Tavio, said in a statement Saturday.
Israel's foreign minister, Israel Katz, has accused the UNRWA of serving as the “civilian arm of Hamas in Gaza,” a charge the humanitarian aid agency has vehemently denied.
Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/us-uk-8-countries-pausing-funding-unrwa-allegations-12-employees-part-rcna136030
The best evidence yet that banning Airbnbs will make rent go down
On September 5, the hammer fell on Airbnb in New York City. After a series of desperate attempts by the home-sharing giant to stop the city from enforcing sweeping limitations on short-term rentals, the city passed a law that did just that. In a matter of weeks, thousands of Airbnb listings in the city — once one of the platform's largest markets — went up in smoke. Of the 3,000 or so Airbnb listings that remain in New York, down from some 22,000 in August, the vast majority are for stays of 30 days or more — the minimum number of nights required under the city's regulations.
The crackdown was a turning point. Despite legal challenges and histrionics from landlords, the city had all but vanquished short-term rentals. The thinking behind the move was fairly simple: New York City, where the average studio apartment costs $3,016 a month, is the epicenter of the country's sweeping affordable-housing crisis. By turning Airbnbs back into long-term housing, people will have more places to lay their heads and landlords will have more competition. In theory, this should make housing in the city more affordable.
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Airbnb has long denied culpability in the country's housing crisis, but the latest evidence that New York City made the right move comes from the opposite side of the country. Irvine, California, a picturesque city of 300,000 in Orange County, banned short-term rentals back in 2018 as residents grew frustrated by increasing numbers of vacation rentals in once-quiet neighborhoods. Based on a new study published this summer in Real Estate Economics, the move had a notable impact. After Irvine's ban went into effect, long-term rents in the city dropped by 3%, according to the study, a decrease of $114 a month on average.
Irvine is a single case study, but it's also a real-world validation of years of research that's found Airbnb and its many copycats drive up rents and home prices. That might be good for property owners, but if you're worried about affordable housing, then it's worth taking a lesson from Irvine: Banning short-term rentals can, in fact, make rents go down.
https://www.businessinsider.com/airbnb-ban-makes-rents-housing-prices-drop-irvine-california-study-2023-11#:~:text=Irvine%2C%20California%2C%20a%20picturesque%20city,move%20had%20a%20notable%20impact.
Three migrants drown in Rio Grande after Texas blocks Border Patrol from rescue
Source: Texas Public Radio
A woman and two children drowned in the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass on Friday night as they were attempting to cross the U.S. southern border.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection told TPR that Border Patrol was prevented from deploying lifesaving efforts by agents with Operation Lone Star, the controversial Texas border security initiative.
Under the direction of Gov. Greg Abbott, Operation Lone Star this week seized control of Eagle Pass' Shelby Park, which faces the Rio Grande and has denied access to the Border Patrol.
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The Texas Military Department acknowledged in a statement to TPR that it was contacted by Border Patrol about a "migrant distress situation" at 9pm on Friday night and did not deny that it blocked access.
Read more: https://www.tpr.org/border-immigration/2024-01-13/three-drown-in-rio-grande-after-texas-blocks-border-patrol-from-rescue
Abbott murdered that women and her kids.
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