Daily World Briefing, Sept. 12

Former Brazilian President Bolsonaro sentenced to over 27 years in prison

Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was sentenced to 27 years and three months in prison on Thursday after four out of five Supreme Federal Court justices voted to convict him of attempting a coup.

Bolsonaro was found guilty on five counts -- plotting a coup d'etat, attempted violent abolition of the democratic rule of law, participation in an armed criminal organization, aggravated damage, and deterioration of listed heritage sites.

Netanyahu vows "no Palestinian state" as Israel advances controversial West Bank settlement plan

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed Thursday that "there will never be a Palestinian state" as he signed an agreement to fast-track construction in the contentious E1 area of the occupied West Bank, a project the international community has long warned could shatter prospects for Palestinian statehood.

The land, a corridor east of Jerusalem between the city and the settlement of Ma'ale Adumim, is seen as especially sensitive because construction there would sever East Jerusalem from the northern West Bank, undermining territorial contiguity for a future Palestinian state.

Hamas says not to change position on ceasefire talks after Israeli strike in Doha

Hamas will not change its positions and demands for the Gaza ceasefire talks after Israel targeted its negotiation team in the Qatari capital Doha, the Palestinian movement said on Thursday.

"We reiterate that this heinous crime will not succeed in changing our firm positions and clear demands to stop the aggression against our people, the complete withdrawal of the occupation army from the Gaza Strip, a genuine exchange of prisoners, relief for our people, and reconstruction," senior Hamas official Fawzi Barhoum said in a statement.

ECB keeps rates on hold

The European Central Bank (ECB) on Thursday kept its key interest rates unchanged, saying eurozone inflation remains broadly under control.

All three benchmark rates stayed on hold, with the deposit facility rate, the ECB's main policy rate, maintained at 2.0 percent, where it has stood since the last rate cut in June.

"Inflation is currently around the 2-percent medium-term target and the Governing Council's assessment of the inflation outlook is broadly unchanged," the central bank said in a statement.

FBI offers 100,000 USD reward for tips in Charlie Kirk shooting

U.S. investigators on Thursday expanded the search for the gunman who killed political activist Charlie Kirk and offered a reward of 100,000 U.S. dollars for information leading to the arrest of the person responsible for Kirk's shooting.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has released two images of the "person of interest."

Fresh cholera outbreak reported in northern Zambia

Fresh cholera cases have been reported in northern Zambia, barely two months after the government declared the waterborne disease had been contained, health authorities said on Thursday.

Kennedy Lishimpi, permanent secretary for technical services in the Ministry of Health, said 13 new cases were reported in the past 24 hours, bringing the cumulative total to 114 cases and one death since the fresh outbreak began on Aug. 5.

Yemen's Houthis claim fresh missile, drone attacks on Israel

Yemen's Houthi group said on Thursday it has launched a "hypersonic ballistic missile" and three drones toward Israel, while the Israeli military said it intercepted two threats with no damage reported.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said in a statement on the group's al-Masirah TV that the missile and one drone targeted unspecified sites in Israel's Negev desert, while two other drones were aimed at Ramon Airport in the southern city of Eilat. He described the attacks as "successful."

Death toll from floods in Indonesia rises to 19

Floods triggered by days of heavy rains have killed at least 19 people and left 10 others missing on Indonesia's Bali Island and in East Nusa Tenggara province.

Gusti Ayu Ketut Wijayanti, spokesperson for the Bali office of the National Search and Rescue Agency, told Xinhua on Thursday that flash floods have killed 13 people and left six missing on the island. Flooding and 18 landslides were also reported in several areas.■