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First thing: The death toll rises as Florida mourns the destruction of Hurricane Milton | American news
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First thing: The death toll rises as Florida mourns the destruction of Hurricane Milton | American news

Good morning.

The death toll from Hurricane Milton rose to at least 10 on Thursday as Florida continued to assess the devastation of the Category 3 storm that caused extensive property damage across the state and left more than 3.5 million homes and businesses without power left behind.

Five people were killed at a St. Lucie County senior community that was hit by a tornado formed in the outer bands of Milton, authorities there said. The tornado struck Wednesday evening before the hurricane made landfall near Sarasota on Florida’s west coast.

A Coast Guard helicopter crew rescued a man clinging to a glacier in the Gulf of Mexico after his boat became stranded overnight in Milton waters.

Drone captures devastation caused by Hurricane Milton in Florida – video

  • How bad was the storm surge? Although strong storm surge authorities predicted before Milton’s arrival was not as bad as expected, some areas, such as parts of Sarasota County, recorded a storm surge of 8 to 10 feet.

  • What is the role of global warming? It is always complicated when discussing specific weather conditions. But the burning of fossil fuels has made storms as severe as this month’s Hurricane Helene about 2.5 times more likely than in pre-industrial times, according to scientists from the World Weather Attribution group.

  • What did Joe Biden say? The president attacked lies and disinformation when asked if he had spoken to Donald Trump, who falsely claimed that disaster relief funds had been redirected to migrants. “Former President Trump, get a life, man,” Biden said.

At least 22 people were killed and 117 injured in the Israeli attack on Beirut, health officials say – in addition to a new bombardment of Gaza

People gather in front of a damaged building after an Israeli military attack in the Nuwayri area of ​​Beirut, Lebanon. Photo: Wael Hamzeh/EPA

At least 22 people were killed and another 117 injured in Israeli attacks on central Beirut on Thursday evening, Lebanese health officials said. A passerby told the Guardian that families fled the scene with mattresses and bags, some with ears bleeding from the force of the blasts.

Israeli media reported that the target was Wafiq Safa, one of Hezbollah’s top political officials. About an hour after the airstrikes, the Israeli military issued new evacuation orders for residents of Dahiyeh, in Beirut’s southern suburbs, warning that they would carry out airstrikes.

In addition, the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon said on Thursday that Israeli forces had deliberately fired on their positions, wounding two peacekeepers – and raising new allegations of violations of international law.

Meanwhile, in Gaza, a “catastrophic situation” was unfolding at a hospital that provides specialized pediatric care, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital said, as Israeli forces launched new ground attacks and airstrikes in Gaza.

  • Here is the impact of the Israeli attack on Lebanon so far: The Health Ministry said 2,169 people have been killed and 10,212 injured in the past year of conflict, not including those from last night’s bombings in Beirut.

  • Here is the impact of the Israeli attack on Gaza so far: More than 42,065 people have been killed and 97,886 injured since Oct. 7, 2023, health officials said, including at least 28 dead after an Israeli airstrike hit a school housing displaced people in central Gaza on Thursday morning.

  • Don’t miss this: a before and after visualization of how a year of Israeli bombing has devastated the Gaza Strip. About 90% of the 2.3 million inhabitants have been displaced, often several times.

Trump insults Detroit during speech… in Detroit

Donald Trump speaks in Detroit, Michigan. Photo: Rebecca Cook/Reuters

Donald Trump attacked Detroit on Thursday at the Detroit Economic Club in Michigan – a crucial swing state.

The former president, whose speeches are often boisterous, spoke about China as a developing country, saying: “Well, we are also a developing country, just look at Detroit. Detroit is more of a developing area than most places in China.”

Trump left his teleprompter throughout, later saying, “Our entire country will end up looking like Detroit if (Kamala Harris) is your president.”

Meanwhile, Barack Obama went on the campaign trail for vice president last night.

  • What are Trump’s tax and tariff policies? He has proposed a blanket tariff of up to 20% on all imports, and 60% or more on Chinese products, as well as tax cuts that would benefit corporations and billionaires. The plans have been attacked as a recipe for rising inflation and a weaker, less competitive and less equal economy.

Other news…

An FBI agent stands next to Claude Monet’s 1865 painting Bord de Mer. Photo: Chris Granger/AP
  • An 1865 Claude Monet pastel, looted from a Jewish couple by the Nazis in World War II, was returned to the family’s descendantsFBI officials said Wednesday.

  • More than 370 million women and girls alive today – or nearly one in eight – have experienced rape or sexual assault before turning 18according to UNICEF’s first global estimates.

  • Ethel Kennedy, the activist and widow of Senator Robert F Kennedy, has passed away at 96. You can read her obituary here.

Stat of the day: 2.4% inflation in September, lowest in three years

The cost of living has become a key issue in the presidential campaign after inflation rose to 9.1% in June 2022. Photo: Terry Chea/AP

Inflation weakened last month to the slowest pace in more than three years, with the consumer price index rising 2.4% annually in September, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That was slightly higher than economists’ expectations of 2.3%.

Don’t Miss: Han Kang’s Nobel Laureate Testifies the Importance of Small Press Publishing

Han Kang at a press conference. Photo: Yonhap/Reuters

Thursday’s announcement that South Korean writer Han Kang has been awarded the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature is not only a triumph for Korean literature, writes Catherine Taylor, but also a reminder of the enormous reach and influence of small press publications.

Climate check: Collapsing wildlife populations near ‘points of no return’, report warns

An orangutan in Sabah, where much of the forest has been cleared for palm oil. A study shows that 3,000 orangutans are killed every year on Borneo’s palm oil plantations. Photo: Loes Kieboom/Alamy

Global wildlife populations have declined by an average of 73% over 50 years, according to a report by the WWF and the Zoological Society of London. But experts insisted that “nature can recover, if given the opportunity”.

Last thing: an opera where 18 people treated for severe nausea? A sale

Netti Nüganen, Jasko Fide and Cornelia Zink in Sancta by Florentina Holzinger. Photo: Nicole Marianna Wytyczak

Eighteen theatergoers at the Stuttgart State Opera required medical treatment this weekend due to severe nausea. They had seen a work by Austrian choreographer Florentina Holzinger that featured live piercings, unsimulated sex and real blood. Since then, seven upcoming shows have sold out.

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