Comment on Departing defense chief flew nearly 700,000 miles, visited 104 countries; 13 trips to Iraq

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that extreme heat kills almost half a million people each year—more than war, terrorism and malnutrition combined. That number is likely to rise as the climate becomes hotter and less predictable. But the threats to public health posed by climate change go well beyond extreme heat.

TEL AVIV, Israel — The Israeli prime minister on Thursday appeared to downplay hopes of an imminent truce with Hezbollah after the United States and its allies called for an immediate 21-day cease-fire to “provide space for diplomacy.” In a statement released as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was en route to New York to attend the U.

Many nations keep a nervous eye on U. S. presidential races, but none have as much at stake this time as the people of Ukraine. For them, the outcome could determine how their war against Russia ends, and their leaders have spent months vying for the support of both candidates.

When Japan’s ruling political party, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), votes on Friday for its next leader, it will effectively be choosing the country’s next Prime Minister. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] A slew of scandals have plagued the tenure of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who announced in August he would step down after assuming power in 2021.

After months of business leaders and economists urging action, the People’s Bank of China (PBoC)—the central bank of the world’s second biggest economy—finally acquiesced, unleashing a triptych stimulus package aimed at spurring consumer spending to counter persistent deflation. Yet analysts doubt even this “policy bazooka” will have much of an effect. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] On Tuesday, the PBoC unveiled a policy interest rate cut of 0.2 percentage points, combined with a lowering of banks’ reserve requirements and the cutting of existing mortgage interest rates, both by 0.5 percentage points.

The U. S., European allies and Arab powers proposed a three-week ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon as part of a bid to clear the way for negotiations and avert all-out war after days of air-strikes by Israeli forces. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] “It is time to conclude a diplomatic settlement that enables civilians on both sides of the border to return to their homes in safety,” the nations said in a statement released Wednesday evening that called on the governments of Israel and Lebanon to implement the pause in fighting. If they do so, the countries said they stand ready to support a push toward a deal that would end the crisis altogether—though the terms of such an agreement remained undefined. Read More: Israel and Hezbollah Renew Fire After Deadliest Day for Lebanon in Decades Senior Biden administration officials said that they expect the governments of Israel and Lebanon to make statements accepting the deal in the coming hours, and expressed hope that it will open the door to achieving a so-far elusive end to the fighting between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.