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Israel-US Relations
Every Second Democrat Wants to Cut Off Support for Israel: “Dramatic Shift”

Almost half of the Democrats in the House of Representatives voted on Wednesday in favor of a proposal to cut off US military and humanitarian aid to Israel, US media reports.

The New York Times describes it as a "rapid and dramatic shift". Democrats, like Republicans, have unconditionally supported Israel for many years.

Several of those who voted in favor of the proposal say it is the only way to protest the Israeli government's actions in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon. However, they opposed cutting off humanitarian aid.

"I would have liked to have been able to vote on a proposal that only affected military aid and at the same time continue to support humanitarian efforts. But we don't have that option," says Rep. Greg Casar.

However, the Democratic votes were not enough to pass the proposal, which fell by 104–314. 

The change of power in the UK
Starmer's last trip is to Kyiv: "Unwavering support"

The outgoing British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is visiting Kyiv today to meet President Volodymyr Zelenskyj. The trip will be Starmer's last as Prime Minister ahead of the upcoming change of power.

Ahead of the visit to Ukraine, Starmer said that Britain's "unwavering" support for the country continues, reports the BBC. He also said that the Ukrainian people have "preserved the security of Europe".

Tomorrow, Friday, Labour is expected to elect Andy Burnham as the new party leader. The Prime Ministership will be handed over on Monday, July 20.  

Political situation in Myanmar
UN: Over 500 may have died in boat accidents off Myanmar

The UN fears that over 500 people may have died after two boats were reported to have sunk off the coast of Myanmar, writes Reuters.

The boats are said to have left Myanmar at the end of June. One boat disappeared shortly after departure, while the other is believed to have sunk on July 8. The boats are said to have had around 250 and 280 passengers, respectively. A majority of the passengers are said to have belonged to the Muslim Rohingya minority.

The UN refugee agency UNHCR emphasizes that the information is not confirmed, but writes that it is “deeply concerned about the risk of a very large number of casualties.” 

Six-kilometer-long iceberg drifting off Greenland

An iceberg that is a full six kilometers long and four kilometers wide is currently drifting off the east coast of Greenland, according to the Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI).

The iceberg has currently traveled about 1,200 kilometers after breaking off the Nioghalvfjerds glacier on the northeast coast of Greenland.

“We can expect it to break up into smaller icebergs as it continues to drift south,” says Hans Henrik Light, ice analyst at DMI, in a press release.

Icebergs are common off the coast of Greenland and drift south, but they are usually between 200 and 500 meters long, according to Light. 

Eleven dead after fire at orphanage in Algeria

Eleven people have died after a fire broke out at an orphanage on the outskirts of the Algerian capital Algiers on Thursday morning, Reuters reports.

According to the AFP news agency, it is still unclear what caused the fire. Algerian authorities have not released any age information on the dead. 19 people are said to have been injured in the fire.

Algeria has been plagued by a heat wave for the past week. During the same period, almost 1,000 fires have broken out around the country, AFP writes