(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Overnight News Digest April 2, 2023 [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2023-04-02 NPR U.N. food chief says billions of dollars are needed to avert unrest and starvation UNITED NATIONS — Without billions of dollars more to feed millions of hungry people, the world will see mass migration, destabilized countries, and starving children and adults in the next 12 to 18 months, the head of the Nobel prize-winning U.N. World Food Program warned Friday. David Beasley praised increased funding from the United States and Germany last year, and urged China, Gulf nations, billionaires and other countries "to step up big time." In an interview before he hands the reins of the world's largest humanitarian organization to U.S. ambassador Cindy McCain next week, the former South Carolina governor said he's "extremely worried" that WFP won't raise about $23 billion it needs this year to help millions of needy people "Right at this stage, I'll be surprised if we get 40% of it, quite frankly," he said. Reuters Ukraine's Zelenskiy thanks Bakhmut defenders as Wagner head says town has fallen KYIV, April 3 (Reuters) - Fighting around the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut remained "particularly hot", President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said, giving no indication the city had finally fallen to Russia as claimed by the founder of the Wagner mercenary force. Yevgeny Prigozhin said his troops, involved in a months-long effort to encircle and capture the bombed-out city, had raised a Russian flag on its administrative building. "From a legal point of view, Bakhmut has been taken. The enemy is concentrated in the western parts," Prigozhin said in an audio message posted on his press service's Telegram account on Sunday. But there was no indication from Ukrainian officials that Bakhmut, a town of 70,000 before the Russian invasion launched over a year ago, had fallen into Russian hands. Prigozhin has previously made claims that were premature. Reuters Police identify two among eight dead trying to enter U.S. from Canada April 2 (Reuters) - Police in Canada on Saturday identified two victims among eight bodies recovered from two families who died this week trying to enter the United States from Canada by boat across the St. Lawrence River. The Akwesasne Mohawk Police Service said 28-year-old Florin Iordache died and had two Canadian passports in his possession for a two-year-old and one-year-old whose bodies were also recovered. Police also identified 28-year-old victim Cristina (Monalisa) Zenaida Iordache. Police believe the tragedy may have occurred on Wednesday night in poor weather and were searching for a missing person of interest in the case. His boat was found near the area where the victims were recovered. Deputy Chief Lee-Ann O'Brien said Friday the victims appeared to be from two families, one Indian and one Romanian, who were trying to the reach the United States illegally. Al Jazeera Israeli cabinet approves Ben-Gvir’s ‘private militia’ plan The Israeli cabinet has authorised plans for a controversial “national guard” sought by far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir to deal with unrest in Palestinian communities in Israel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on Sunday that the cabinet approved the establishment of the force, but that a committee comprised of Israel’s existing security agencies would determine the guard’s authorities and whether it would be subordinate to the police or take orders directly from Ben-Gvir, as he demands. The committee has 90 days to make its recommendations. A statement from Ben-Gvir’s office said the guard, which would operate under his ministry, would deal with “emergency scenarios, nationalistic crime, terror, and strengthening sovereignty”. Reuters McDonald's temporarily shuts US offices, prepares layoff notices, Wall Street Journal reports April 2 (Reuters) - Burger chain McDonald's Corp (MCD.N) is temporarily closing its U.S. offices this week as it prepares to inform corporate employees about its layoffs as part of a broader company restructuring, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday. In an internal email last week to U.S. employees and some international staff, McDonald's asked them to work from home from Monday through Wednesday so it can deliver staffing decisions virtually, the report said. It is unclear how many employees will be laid off. The fast-food chain said in January that it would review corporate staffing levels as part of an updated business strategy, which could lead to layoffs in some areas and expansion in others. McDonald's is expected to begin announcing key decisions by Monday. Deutsche Welle Algerian court jails prominent journalist for 3 years A court in Algeria on Sunday sentenced prominent journalist Ihsane El Kadi to five years in prison, with two of those years suspended. El Kadi, a vocal critic of the government, was arrested in December and charged with receiving foreign funding. Algeria's penal code prohibits anyone from receiving funds aimed at "inciting acts susceptible to threaten state security." His Maghreb Emergent news website and Radio M, some of the last independent outlets in the country, were also shut down. The court in the capital, Algiers, ordered the media company behind El Kadi's website and radio station dissolved. El Kadi's lawyer, Abdelghani Badi, said they would appeal the sentence. Buzzfeed News The Las Vegas Mass Shooter Had Lost Thousands Of Dollars Gambling And Was Mad At Casinos A Few Weeks Before Killing 60 People, The FBI Says [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/4/2/2161740/-Overnight-News-Digest-April-2-2023 Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/