The cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah marks a step toward peace in the Middle East, but what happens now in Gaza where Israel is still at war with Hamas? And rain or shine — but not wind — revelers get ready to celebrate in New York City at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. These stories and more highlight your Unbiased Updates for Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2024.
Cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah holding so far
A cease-fire deal between Israel and the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon is holding, so far.
President Joe Biden announced the deal — which the United States and France helped broker — on Tuesday, Nov. 26. Israel and Hezbollah have agreed on an initial 60-day cease-fire, which sets the stage for a lasting truce.
Already, long-displaced residents of parts of Lebanon have started returning to their homes, hopeful the tenuous agreement will be extended beyond two months. That’s despite the Israeli military warning people to stay away from previously evacuated areas.
Israel has said if Hezbollah breaks the cease-fire agreement, it will attack.
Following the directive of the political echelon, the ceasefire agreement in Lebanon took effect at 04:00 today, and the IDF has been operating accordingly.
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) November 27, 2024
IDF troops are stationed at their positions in southern Lebanon.
Over the past hour, the IDF identified a vehicle with…
During the 60-day truce, Hezbollah fighters are to retreat at least 25 miles from the border with Israel and Israeli forces will withdraw from Lebanese territory.
The agreement does not address the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas, another Iran-backed militant group, in Gaza. However, Hamas has said it is ready for a truce.
“So, now Hamas has a choice to make,” President Biden said on Tuesday. “Their only way out is to release the hostages, including American citizens, which they hold. In the process, bring an end to the fighting, which would make possible a surge of humanitarian relief. Over the coming days, the United States will make another push with Turkey, Egypt, Qatar, Israel and others to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza.”
Biden told reporters he’s hopeful he’ll help achieve a cease-fire in Gaza before the end of his term in January. If not, President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to bring peace to the Middle East, though he has not yet said how.
Trump picks nominations for NIH, trade
President-elect Trump has kept busy this holiday week. On Tuesday night, he announced new picks to join his administration.
Among them, Trump nominated Dr. Jay Bhattacharya to serve as the director of the National Institutes of Health. As head of the NIH, the Stanford University professor would work alongside Trump’s pick for health secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Bhattacharya, who also has a doctorate in economics, became known for opposing lockdown restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic.
— Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) November 27, 2024
Trump also selected Jamieson Greer to lead the Office of the United States Trade Representative. Greer is no stranger to the department, having served as chief of staff to the trade representative during Trump’s first term — which saw tariffs imposed on Chinese goods and the signing of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada agreement.
Greer served as a lawyer in the Air Force and is currently a partner in international trade at the law firm King and Spalding.
Both of these nominations will need Senate confirmation.
Australia’s House passes bill to ban kids under 16 from social media
Australia’s lower branch of parliament has passed a world-first bill that would ban children under 16 from social media.
The bill would make platforms such as Tiktok, Facebook, Snapchat, Reddit, X and Instagram liable for fines of up to $50 million ($33 million USD) for failing to prevent young children from holding accounts.
Australia’s communications minister Michelle Rowland introduced a world-first law into Parliament on Thursday that would ban children younger than 16 from social media, saying online safety was one of parents’ toughest challenges. pic.twitter.com/K0zui1wHLv
— The Associated Press (@AP) November 21, 2024
The legislation passed 102-13 in Australia’s House of Representatives and now moves on to the Senate. If the bill becomes law, social media companies would have one year to figure out how to implement the age restrictions before they are enforced.
More than 3,000 fake name-brand electric guitars seized in California
U.S. Customs and Border Protection said it seized more than 3,000 fake electric guitars in Southern California. CBP said the knockoffs were destined for the e-commerce market, just in time for holiday gift shopping.
CBP said if the guitars were real, they would be worth about $18 million. Most of the fakes look like Gibson brand guitars, but some were supposedly from other well-known companies such as Fender.
Federal authorities would not release any details about suspects in the investigation or where the counterfeit guitars came from.
Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade to go on, rain or shine
Despite rain in the forecast in the Northeast on Thursday, Nov. 28, the show must go on. The show being the 98th Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City.
A Macy’s spokesperson told the New York Post the parade will proceed regardless of wet weather — good news for the expected 3.5 million people who will be along the parade route and the estimated 30 million watching at home. However, wind could pose a problem.
The spokesperson told the Post, “Based on the city’s guidelines, no giant character balloon will be operated when there are sustained wind conditions exceeding 23 miles per hour and wind gusts greater than 34 miles per hour on the parade route.”
So far, according to weather reports, the winds should not be a problem, and all 32 balloons should be able to fly. New ones this year include Minnie Mouse and Spider-Man, which is marking its return to the parade for the first time in a decade.
Happy Thanksgiving from Straight Arrow News
With Thursday being Thanksgiving, as you get ready to gather around the table with your family, we wanted to take this time for you to get to know ours a little better. In the video above, members of our Straight Arrow News team have special messages about what they’re thankful for this holiday season. Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours!
