GAZA -Israeli soldiers shot and killed a Palestinian teenager near the border fence with the Gaza Strip on Friday, Palestinian officials said. Israel’s military said soldiers had been fending off Palestinians who had approached and tried to sabotage its security fence. The military also said the demonstrators threw a number of explosive devices. Residents in Gaza said a few dozen Palestinians had approached the border fence, an area in which Israel’s military, citing security concerns, enforces a “no go” zone. Some in the crowd hurled stones at the barrier, residents said. One 16-year-old was killed and four other people were wounded by live fire, Gaza’s health ministry said. An Israeli army spokesman said soldiers had “identified a number of attempts to approach the fence as well as a number of attempts to sabotage it”. “Troops responded with riot dispersal means and 0.22 caliber rounds,” the spokesman said. “A report regarding the death of a Palestinian is being looked into.” Israeli soldiers have been confronted by frequent Palestinian protests that often turn violent along the Gaza border. They have used tear gas, rubber bullets and live ammunition against demonstrators who the military said hurled rocks or petrol bombs at them. The organisers of those protests said they had called off this week’s mass-demonstration, but a smaller crowd still gathered.
Europe to consider law on climate neutrality by March
BRUSSELS - The European Union executive will propose by March 2020 a new climate law to turn the bloc neutral in terms of carbon dioxide emissions by 2050 and help lead the struggle against global warming, a draft showed on Friday. The European Commission document, to be published on Dec. 11 and seen by Reuters, also said it would by next October present a plan to halve the bloc’s greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. Anxiety is growing globally that governments are not doing enough to reach the Paris Agreement’s target of curbing emissions sufficiently to keep temperature rises to within 1.5-2 degrees Celsius of pre-industrial levels. The 28-nation EU says it wants to be at the forefront of action. But there are divisions. Some EU countries dependent on coal for energy such as the Czech Republic, Poland and Hungary oppose the 2050 carbon neutral target, saying they need help transforming energy production. To win them over, the Commission, whose proposed laws require consent of members and the European Parliament, wants to create a “just transition fund” to wean economies off coal. The discussions over funding to tackle climate change are closely tied to negotiations over the EU’s 2021-2027 budget.
In a letter released on Friday, the heads of state of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania called for “significant EU investment” in the transition to a fossil-free economy, in addition to the “just transition fund”.
