‘Love Island’ Has a New Water Bottle—Here’s Where to Get It to Look Just Like an Islander

Reuters
New Dutch government to look for 'opt out' of EU asylum rules
The incoming Dutch government led by nationalist Geert Wilders' PVV party will look to opt out of European Union migration rules, as its says it is facing an asylum crisis. Wilders on Wednesday reached a deal to form what is set to be the most right-wing government in the Netherlands in decades, almost six months after a major election victory. In its government plan published early on Thursday, the four-party coalition says it will aim for the "strictest-ever asylum regime" with stronger border controls and harsher rules for asylum seekers that arrive in the Netherlands.
Associated Press
US military says Gaza Strip pier project is completed, aid to soon flow as Israel-Hamas war rages on
The U.S. military finished installing a floating pier for the Gaza Strip on Thursday, with officials poised to begin ferrying badly needed humanitarian aid into the enclave besieged over seven months of intense fighting in the Israel-Hamas war. The final, overnight construction sets up a complicated delivery process more than two months after U.S. President Joe Biden ordered it to help Palestinians facing starvation as food and other supplies fail to make it in as Israel recently seized the key Rafah border crossing in its push on that southern city on the Egyptian border. Fraught with logistical, weather and security challenges, the maritime route is designed to bolster the amount of aid getting into the Gaza Strip, but it is not considered a substitute for far cheaper land-based deliveries that aid agencies say are much more sustainable.
Associated Press
The top UN court is holding hearings on the Israeli military's incursion into Rafah
The United Nations’ top court opens two days of hearings on Thursday into a request from South Africa to make sure Israel halts its military operation in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where more than half of Gaza’s population has sought shelter. It is the fourth time South Africa has asked the International Court of Justice for emergency measures since the nation launched proceedings alleging that Israel’s military action in its war with Hamas in Gaza amounts to genocide.
Reuters
Kremlin says Switzerland conference on Ukraine is futile
The Kremlin said a planned summit that Switzerland hopes will pave the way for a peace process in Ukraine will be futile without the participation of Russia. "Without Russia, discussing security issues that concern us is absolutely futile," Kremlin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the Russian newspaper Izvestia. Russia has previously said it saw no point in a conference being planned by Switzerland to discuss how to end the Ukraine conflict and to which Moscow is not currently invited.
Associated Press
Filipino activists decide not to sail closer to disputed shoal, avoiding clash with Chinese ships
About 100 Filipino activists on wooden boats have decided not to sail closer to a fiercely disputed shoal in the South China Sea on Thursday to avoid a confrontation with dozens of Chinese coast guard and suspected militia ships guarding the area. Accompanied by journalists on four boats, the activists will distribute food packs and fuel to Filipino fishermen about 58 nautical miles (107 kilometers) southeast of Scarborough Shoal and then sail back home, Emman Hizon and other organizers said. Chinese and Philippine coast guard and accompanying ships have had a series of increasingly hostile territorial faceoffs at Scarborough, which is surrounded by the Chinese coast guard, and at Philippine-occupied Second Thomas Shoal since last year.
TODAY
NFL responds after Harrison Butker’s controversial graduation speech goes viral
The NFL issued a statement after Kansas City Chief's kicker Harrison Butker's graduation speech went viral.
AFP
Xi, Putin hail ties as 'stabilising' force in chaotic world
Leaders Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin framed their nations' ties as a stabilising force in a chaotic world as they met Thursday in Beijing, where the Russian president is seeking greater Chinese support for his war effort in Ukraine and isolated economy.US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who met Xi in Beijing last month, warned China's support for Russia's "brutal war of aggression" in Ukraine had helped Russia ramp up production of rockets, drones and tanks -- while stopping short of direct
Associated Press
Family of Lewiston shooter to testify before commission investigating tragedy
An independent commission investigating the mass shooting that left 18 people dead in Maine is preparing to hear from the shooter's family for the first time. An Army reservist with a history of mental health troubles committed the deadliest shooting in Maine history, opening fire with an assault rifle inside a bowling alley and a bar and grill in Lewiston in October. The commission has been meeting for months, hearing from police, victims and their families, and Army reservists who served with Robert Card.
CNN
Law enforcement detains at least a dozen protesters at University of California, Irvine as they clear encampment
Police detained at least a dozen pro-Palestinian demonstrators at the University of California, Irvine as they cleared an encampment in front of a lecture hall on Wednesday.
Reuters
Kremlin condemns shooting of Fico, wishes him a speedy recovery
The Kremlin on Thursday condemned the assassination attempt on Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico and wished him a speedy recovery after he was shot when leaving a government meeting. "Naturally, we condemn this attack in the strongest possible terms," Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Izvestia. As he prepared for a visit to China, President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday made the rare move of sending a telegram to Slovak President Zuzana Caputova over the shooting.
Associated Press
The Netherlands veers sharply to right with new government dominated by party of Geert Wilders
Anti-Islam firebrand Geert Wilders and three other party leaders agreed on a coalition deal early Thursday that veers the Netherlands toward the hard right, capping a half year of tumultuous negotiations that still left it unclear who will become prime minister. The “Hope, courage and pride” agreement introduces strict measures on asylum seekers, scraps family reunification for refugees and seeks to reduce the number of international students studying in the country. Wilders cried victory on what he called “a historic day,” claiming he had made sure the three other coalition parties, including the one of outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte, had accepted the core of his program.
CNN
Family of California man who died days after police restrained him is getting $7.5M in settlement with city
A Northern California city has agreed to pay $7.5 million to the family of a 30-year-old man who died days after police restrained him in 2020, the parties announced Wednesday, settling a wrongful death claim that the family filed.
Reuters
Temu targeted in EU consumer group's complaint to EU tech regulator
BRUSSELS (Reuters) -Chinese fast-fashion e-commerce retailer Temu was hit with a European Union complaint on Thursday over a potential breach of online content rules by the PDD Group-owned business. Under the European Union's Digital Services Act, online marketplaces and intermediaries are required to fight illegal and harmful content as well as counterfeit products on their platforms. Pan-European consumers organisation BEUC said it has lodged a grievance with the European Commission while 17 of its members in countries including France, Italy and the Netherlands have also filed complaints with their relevant national authorities.
Reuters
SoftBank Corp aims to help call centre workers by 'softening' angry customer calls with AI
Dealing with irate customers can be extremely stressful for call centre workers but Japan's SoftBank Corp thinks it has a solution: artificial intelligence-enabled software that softens the tone of customers' voices. "We are working on the development of a solution that can convert the customer's voice into a calm conversational tone and deliver it to our workers using AI-enabled emotion recognition and voice processing technology," SoftBank said in a press release on Wednesday. "With this solution, we aim to maintain good relationships with customers through sound communication while ensuring the psychological welfare of our workers."
CNN
China’s Xi Jinping rolls out red carpet for close friend Putin in strong show of unity
Russian President Vladimir Putin has arrived in Beijing for the start of a two-day state visit underlining close alignment with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Reuters
Microsoft asks some China staff to relocate amid Sino-US tensions
The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the news, said Microsoft is asking about 700 to 800 people who are involved in machine learning and other work related to cloud computing to consider relocating. Microsoft remains committed to China and will continue to operate there and other markets, the spokesperson said.
Reuters
Musk scheduled to visit Indonesia for Starlink launch, ministers says
Tycoon Elon Musk, the owner of SpaceX, is scheduled to visit Indonesia to launch its satellite unit Starlink this Sunday, according to two cabinet ministers. Minister Luhut Pandjaitan, a close ally of President Joko Widodo, said Musk would launch the service on the holiday island of Bali alongside the Indonesian leader. While Indonesian officials have several times previously announced Musk would visit the country to attend events or discuss possible investments by his auto firm Tesla, this would be his first in-person visit.
Associated Press
The Commission on Presidential Debates faces an uncertain future after Biden and Trump bypassed it
The nonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates, which has planned presidential faceoffs in every election since 1988, has an uncertain future after President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump struck an agreement to meet on their own. The Biden and Trump campaigns announced a deal Wednesday to meet for debates in June on CNN and September on ABC. Just a day earlier, Frank Fahrenkopf, chair of the Commission on Presidential Debates, had sounded optimistic that the candidates would eventually come around to accepting the commission’s debates.
NBC News
Doctor who saved Sen. Duckworth’s life says he's trapped in Gaza but still helping patients
‘We cannot leave’ says doctor who saved Sen. Duckworth’s life, now trapped in Gaza
Associated Press
As countries tighten anti-gay laws, more and more LGBTQ+ migrants seek safety and asylum in Europe
Ella Anthony knew it was time to leave her native Nigeria when she escaped an abusive, forced marriage only to face angry relatives who threatened to turn her in to police because she was gay. Since Nigeria criminalizes same-sex relationships, Anthony fled a possible prison term and headed with her partner to Libya in 2014 and then Italy, where they both won asylum. While many of the hundreds of thousands of migrants who arrive in Italy from Africa and the Mideast are escaping war, conflict and poverty, an increasing number are fleeing possible prison terms and death sentences in their home countries because of their sexual orientation or gender identity, advocates say.

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