Monday, December 11, 2023

Brits told to ‘elbow bump’ family members this Christmas as 100-day cough that can crack ribs & cause seizures runs rife

Brits told to ‘elbow bump’ family members this Christmas as 100-day cough that can crack ribs & cause seizures runs rife


People should also wear masks to stop the spread of the disease, experts say




BRITS are being urged to social distance this Christmas by 'elbow bumping' relatives instead of hugging them. 

A leading virologist gave the advice after new government data suggested cases of whooping cough have risen by 250 per cent compared to last year.


Looking at 2023 until late November, data from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) revealed 1,141 suspected cases in England and Wales

This is more than double the 450 for the same period of 2022, and 454 for that period in 2021 – about a 250 per cent increase.

Speaking to The Sun, Prof Richard Tedder, ex-head of the Department of Virology at the University College London (UCL), warned that cases would likely rise further over Christmas as people socialise more than usual.

He said: "People should ensure they are vaccinated and consider using masks to help prevent the spread [of whooping cough].




Updates/Headlines From Times Of Israel:

Defense minister says Hamas northern battalions near collapse, with many surrendering
The Times of Israel is liveblogging Monday


IDF: 500 terrorists arrested in Gaza in past month; after criticism, new photos show suspects fully dressed

The IDF and Shin Bet say forces have arrested more than 500 terror operatives in the Gaza Strip in the last month. They have been taken for questioning by the IDF Military Intelligence Directorate’s Unit 504 and the security agency.

According to the joint statement, more than 140 of the operatives were arrested since the ceasefire ended on December 1.

“The operatives were detained during battles in recent days by IDF troops. Some of them voluntarily surrendered and were taken by the field interrogators… for further investigation,” the IDF says.

The IDF says some of the operatives were arrested while hiding in civilian buildings, including schools and shelters for civilians.

It says that of the 500 operatives detained in the last month, some 350 of them are members of Hamas, and another 120 are members of Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

IDF strikes Lebanese terror cell that fired rockets at Israel

The IDF says it struck a cell in southern Lebanon that had fired rockets at the Shtula area in northern Israel, as well as a launcher used to fire projectiles at the Yiftah area earlier.

One mortar was also fired at Shtula a short while ago, landing in an open area.

The IDF publishes footage of the strikes.


Gallant: War against Hamas will end when Israel obtains its goals

Defense Minister Gallant vows that the war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip will end once Israel has obtained its goals, despite apparent international pressure to wrap up the operation soon.

“The war will end when its goals are achieved. I take into consideration everything the US asks and says, and take seriously, along with all the members of the cabinet, what America is doing,” Gallant says in response to a question.

Gallant: Some of Hamas’s Oct. 7 terrorists surrendering, telling us interesting things

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant says Hamas’s Jabaliya and Shejaiya battalions in the northern Gaza Strip are “on the verge of being dismantled.”

“We have encircled the last strongholds of Hamas in Jabaliya and Shejaiya, the battalions that were considered invincible, that prepared for years to fight us, are on the verge of being dismantled,” Gallant says at a press conference.

He says hundreds of Hamas operatives have surrendered to Israeli troops in recent days, which he says “shows what is happening” to the terror group.

“Whoever surrenders — his life is spared,” Gallant says, adding that among those who have been arrested by the IDF are terrorists who participated in the October 7 terror attack on Israeli communities.

“They are telling us very interesting things,” he adds, apparently alluding to intelligence gleaned from those prisoners.

Gallant also threatens Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, saying his fate and that of “any other senior commander in Hamas, and the fate of the [low-ranking] terrorist is the same: surrender or die. There is no third option.”

Army says it found Hamas training site inside a mosque in northern Gaza

More...


White towel from US-Germany: "Ukrainian Army completely destroyed - Kiev to negotiate"

White towel from US-Germany: "Ukrainian Army completely destroyed - Spring 2025 next counterattack - Kiev to negotiate"
WARNEWS247



The USA and Germany have decided to pressure Ukraine to capitulate with Russia and that is why they are constantly reducing military aid, German media broadcast, speaking of a "secret" Biden-Sholtz plan aimed at ending the war.

According to the WSJ, the strategy of the West has changed as the Ukrainian Army has suffered an unprecedented disaster, due to which it will not be able to launch a new counterattack before the spring of 2025


"A new secret plan for Ukraine"! This is the title of an article by the military-political analyst of the German newspaper Bild, Julian Röpke.

According to Bild, the United States and Germany intend to force Zelensky to negotiate with Russia.

"Zelensky himself must understand that this cannot continue. No external prompts. He must willingly go to his people and explain to them that negotiations are necessary ," a representative of the German government told BILD.


The very meaning of the "secret plan" is that Germany and the United States plan to supply Kiev with exactly those weapons and exactly in those quantities with which the Ukrainian army will be able to hold the current front , but it will not be able to retake territory from Russia.

USA and Germany will continue to give weapons to Ukraine, but now very limited, so that it will be forced to capitulate.

Röpke, citing information from German government circles, claims that the current aim of Ukraine's Western allies is to put it in a "strategically advantageous negotiating position" .

From this position, the country must negotiate with the Kremlin for its "sovereignty and territorial integrity."

Ukraine will be able to take the initiative on the battlefield in 2025 if it can hold out against Russia until the end of next year, reports the Wall Street Journal (WSJ).

The WSJ analyzed the critical problems and challenges facing Ukraine at this stage of the Russian-Ukrainian war. While economic and military support from the West is dubious, domestic political fissures are widening as the nation's morale plummets, the WSJ notes.

NATO allies hope that Russia's efforts to further breach Ukraine's defenses will fail, depleting its resources (manpower and ammunition) and giving Ukraine better prospects for taking the strategic initiative on the battlefield in the spring of 2025 , the WSJ concludes.



Putin inaugurates two fourth generation nuclear submarines

Putin inaugurates two fourth generation nuclear submarines
RT


Russian President Vladimir Putin inaugurated two brand-new fourth generation nuclear-propelled submarines in the northern shipyard city of Severodvinsk on Monday.

The two vessels, ‘Emperor Alexander III’ and ‘Krasnoyarsk,’ are set to join the Russian Navy’s Pacific Fleet, Putin announced during the flag-hoisting ceremony to inaugurate the vessels.

“Soon, the submarine missile carriers ‘Emperor Alexander III’ and ‘Krasnoyarsk’ will begin their service with the Pacific Fleet,” Putin stated, describing the subs as “fearsome” and “unrivaled in their classes.”

The ‘Emperor Alexander III’ is the seventh vessel in the strategic Borei-class series and the fourth among the upgraded Borei-A variants. ‘Krasnoyarsk’ is the fourth among the multi-role Yasen-M family.

Three more Borei-A submarines are currently under construction and expected to be launched over the next few years, Putin stated, with five other Yasen-M vessels under construction.

Borei-class submarines are the backbone of Russia’s strategic naval forces, each carrying 16 solid-fueled 8,000km (4971 miles) range Bulava intercontinental ballistic missiles. The vessels also boast six massive 533-mm torpedo tubes as their ‘secondary’ armament, with the weapons capable of launching various munitions, including cruise missiles and naval mines.

The Yasen-M family of submarines fills more of a tactical role within the navy, with vessels in this class capable of carrying a wide range of munitions. A Yasen-M submarine has ten 533-mm torpedo tubes and eight vertical launch systems. Each launcher can be armed with four Oniks anti-ship missiles or the new Zircon hypersonic munitions introduced early this year. The vertical launchers can also fit up to five Kalibr cruise missiles each.


Gantz tells Blinken Israel will need to remove Hezbollah threat in north



Gantz tells Blinken Israel will need to remove Hezbollah threat in north
TOI



War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz speaks with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, thanking him for the US veto on a ceasefire resolution at the UN Security Council and updating him on the war in Gaza.

According to a readout from Gantz’s office, he also told Blinken Israel will need to remove the threat posed by Hezbollah along the northern border.