The E.U. agreed to a deal to curb natural gas consumption starting next week, the latest show of solidarity in its efforts to punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.

The cuts, which aim for savings of up to 15 percent by the spring, are meant to blunt Russia’s ability to use its energy sources as a political weapon. For now, the reductions will be voluntary, but they could become binding should an energy supply crunch cause an emergency.

Twenty-six of the 27 E.U. states agreed to the deal, diplomats involved in the process said, with the only holdout being Hungary, which had been slow to agree to sanctions before.

The agreement came less than 24 hours after Russia’s state-owned gas monopoly, Gazprom, said that it would further reduce the amount of natural gas it sends to Germany, Europe’s biggest consumer of Russian gas.

Meanwhile, Brittney Griner, the W.N.B.A. star who has been detained in Russia since February, appeared in a court near Moscow as her lawyers argued that she had not intended to break the law. However, a ship carrying grain will depart a Ukrainian port in the coming days — the first since the signing of a deal to allow a resumption of Ukraine’s grain exports. Interestingly, in space, Russia announced that it will leave the International Space Station after its current commitment expires at the end of 2024, ending two decades of post-Cold War cooperation.

The United States has announced a visa ban on Israeli extremist settlers involved in attacks on civilians in the West Bank.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken announced the visa ban on Tuesday (December 5).

Blinken made a post on his X (Twitter) about the visa policy. In which he wrote, Today I am announcing a new visa restriction policy targeting individuals and their family members who have engaged in or meaningfully contributed to acts that undermine peace, security and stability in the West Bank.

According to Reuters, it will apply to extremist settlers who have carried out violent attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank. The US will punish anyone involved in 'undermining the peace, security or stability of the West Bank' or who deprives civilians of essential services and basic needs. will unreasonably prevent them from doing so, they will be brought under this visa policy.

Blinken said Israel was not doing enough to end violence against settlers in the occupied West Bank. Rights groups have claimed that the war has escalated as a result.

Recently, the Biden administration warned Israel that it could impose sanctions on those who commit violence against Palestinians in the West Bank. Finally, Washington took this action against the Israelis.

The Ministry of Health of Gaza has reported that at least 16,200 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli air and ground operations in the besieged Gaza since October 7. 70 percent of them are women or children under 18 years of age. Also more than 40 thousand were injured.

At least 13 people were killed in a gunfight between two armed groups in Leithu village of Tengnupal district in the Indian state of Manipur, bordering Myanmar. Yesterday, Monday (December 4). This gun battle took place between noon and afternoon. The security forces were at least 10 kilometers away, according to various media in Manipur. Indian media NDTV has published this news citing officials of the security forces of the state.

According to media reports, the death toll was reported on Monday (December 4) between the two groups, four days after the Central and Manipur governments signed a peace accord with the state's oldest armed group, the United National Liberation Force (UNLF). The police recovered the bodies of 13 people. However, their identity is yet to be confirmed.

However, the state police is not yet sure whether the gunfight took place between two armed groups. The police believe that this clash has nothing to do with the ethnic conflict that has been going on for the past seven months.

A section of observers believe that those killed may also be armed fighters from other states or countries.

According to police, based on initial observations, a fight between two groups was reported in Leithu village, a place called Saibol in Tengnupal. Thirteen people are believed to have died in the fighting.

A senior officer of the Manipur Police said that the place has been surrounded and a search is being conducted. It is being investigated how this incident happened.

The situation in Manipur remained peaceful on Monday night. The official also said that this incident has nothing to do with ethnic conflict.

The state government lifted the ban on mobile internet services from vast areas of Manipur from last Sunday. After about seven long months, the ban was almost completely lifted. However, this ban remained in place in the hilly areas.

More than 175 people have lost their lives in Manipur since May 3 this year in continuous ethnic clashes. Thousands of people are still in relief camps after losing their homes. At least 60,000 people lost their homes during the violence. After a long six months of conflict, this state of northeast India has been relatively calm for the past one month.

Local newspapers were writing that peace was returning permanently to the state. Through dialogue between the majority on one side and the hill tribes on the other. At such a time, suddenly there was news of violence.

Chennai, India is experiencing heavy rains due to the impact of Cyclone 'Migjaum' in the Bay of Bengal. It submerged many residential areas in the state and the runway of one of the country's busiest airports. Indian media NDTV has already reported the death of five people.

According to media reports, the cyclone is expected to hit the coast of Andhra Pradesh in the early hours of Tuesday (December 5). Five people died in Chennai yesterday (December 4) due to rain.

Two of them died due to electrocution. One died after being buried under a tree. Two more bodies were found in Chennai city, local police said. However, it is not certain whether they died in the storm or not.

Authorities in both states have taken precautionary measures to minimize damage. Because of this, thousands of people living in coastal areas have been evacuated. Apart from this, state officials said that fishermen have been warned not to go into the sea.

Schools, colleges, offices and banks have been ordered to keep closed on Monday and Tuesday in at least four districts of Tamil Nadu, including Chennai, due to the weather, a government notification said.

Parts of Andhra Pradesh are likely to receive more than 200 millimeters (8 inches) of rain in the next 24 hours, the India Meteorological Department said.

At least 47 people have been killed in floods and landslides caused by heavy rains in northern Tanzania, officials from the country's meteorological agency said. Another 80 people were injured in this incident. The incident happened near the slopes of Hanang mountain in the country.

The British media BBC reported this information in a report on Monday (December 4).

According to the report, President Samia Hasan deployed the National Security Forces to deal with the situation and assist in rescue efforts. Houses and infrastructure in the area have also been damaged due to adverse weather conditions.

The BBC also reported that flooding is the biggest natural hazard in the East African country of Tanzania. Hundreds of thousands of people are affected by floods in the country every year. Mainly East African countries are heavily affected by floods and landslides in 2023. And that is partly due to El Nino weather.

It is to be noted that the above-normal rainfall in the country last month resulted in loss of life and destruction of many properties in the capital Darussalam and Kigoma, Kagera, Geita and Unguja areas. Crops in some parts of the country were also washed away and people's livelihoods were affected. Meanwhile, the Tanzania Meteorological Agency has warned that this rain will continue this month.