Pope Francis has called for negotiations between Ukraine and Russia to end the war caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
In his traditional Christmas address, the Pope said that “courage is needed to open the door” to dialogue “in order to achieve a just and lasting peace” between the two sides.
His call came after a large-scale Russian attack on Ukrainian energy facilities on the same day, which Ukraine said involved at least 184 missiles and drones.
Earlier this year, Ukraine strongly rejected the pontiff’s call for Kyiv to negotiate an end to the war and “have the courage to raise the white flag.”
His message Urbi et Orbi (To the City and the World) also addressed other conflicts.
Addressing thousands of people gathered in St. Peter’s Square, the 88-year-old Pope said: “Let the sound of weapons be silenced in war-torn Ukraine and beyond.”
“I invite every person and all people of all nations… to become pilgrims of hope, to silence the sound of weapons and to overcome division,” he said.
Repeating his Christmas message from last year, Pope Francis also called for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages held by Hamas.
“I am thinking of the Christian communities in Israel and Palestine, especially in Gaza, where the humanitarian situation is extremely difficult,” he said.
He asked that “the door of dialogue and peace be open.”
The war in Gaza began after the Hamas group attacked Israel on October 7, 2023. The militants killed about 1200 people and took 251 more hostages in Gaza. According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, which is run by Hamas, more than 45,000 Palestinians have been killed as a result of Israel’s offensive.
Earlier this week, the Pope twice referred to Israel’s attacks as “cruelty,” which drew a sharp rebuke from Israel, which called the remarks “particularly disappointing.”
Pope Francis also said that his thoughts are with the Christian communities in Lebanon and Syria, where rebels recently overthrew Syrian President Bashar al-Assad after 24 years in power. The Christian population in Syria has declined since the start of the war in 2011, and according to some reports, it is now only a fraction of the pre-war number of 1.5 million.
Syria’s minorities have expressed fears about their future in the country after Islamist rebels came to power – although the leading rebel group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, has said that all faiths will be protected.
Experts expect domestic violence to increase during the holidays
2,777 criminal proceedings on domestic violence were recorded in 11 months of 2024, according to the Prosecutor General’s Office. The number of cases has been growing every year since the start of the great war. About 80% of cases go to court. In 76% of cases, women seek help. However, recently, there has been an increase in reports of domestic violence against the elderly: now it is every third call for help.
The level of domestic violence dropped sharply in 2022, probably due to the beginning of the full-scale invasion: 1,500 cases were opened under Article 126-1 “Domestic Violence” throughout the year. Since then, the number of cases has only increased. Thus, 2.7 thousand cases have been recorded this year, while last year there were 5% fewer cases. The number of appeals is 17% higher than in 2021.
It is worth noting that the detection rate in such cases is quite high: 85% of all cases opened this year have already been served with a notice of suspicion, and 80% of proceedings have been referred to court.
According to Alyona Kryvuliak, director of the National Hotlines and Social Assistance Department at La Strada-Ukraine, the most common causes of domestic violence include an increase in the level of aggression among Ukrainians due to the war, excessive alcohol consumption, and a deteriorating financial situation.
In 2024, the highest number of appeals was in January: 435 criminal cases were opened. For comparison, on average, 250 cases were opened per month. Alyona Kryvuliak notes that the winter holidays are the peak period for reports of domestic violence, and alcohol is the most common provoking factor. Usually, such an aggravation is observed in families where violence is a common practice.
This is not to say that alcohol is the root cause of domestic violence. At the same time, there is a problem that Ukrainians are not trained to relieve stress in a safe way, and many people reduce it with the help of various substances. Human aggression, even without a state of altered consciousness, takes on serious dimensions against the backdrop of war, and under the influence of alcohol and drugs, the level of aggression becomes more threatening.
Understanding the practice of previous years, this problem, unfortunately, will not go away. That is why it is very likely that on the night of December 31 to January 1 at one in the morning or at half past two, we will already receive calls about domestic violence.
76% of all victims of domestic violence this year are women. However, since the beginning of the full-scale war, there have been more cases where men seek help. For example, before the start of the full-scale war, 80% of appeals were from women and 20% were from men.
Among men, the most frequent callers are elderly people who face violence from their adult children and grandchildren, mainly for financial reasons.
Overall, the level of domestic violence against older Ukrainians has been gradually increasing since 2021. The hotline received 9.8 thousand calls from people aged 60 and older in the first 9 months of this year. Every third appeal comes from people of respectable age. This is already more than in the whole of 2021, when there were 9.3 thousand calls.
If you or someone you know is suffering from domestic violence, call the special hotlines: 0 800 500 335 or 116 123.
https://opendatabot.ua/analytics/domestic-violence-elders
The Cayman Islands (aka Cayman) has captured about 10% of the US offshore life reinsurance market, according to an estimate in US regulatory filings, Gallagher Re reports on its website. It stresses that the Cayman Islands is well known as a major offshore financial center, but is looking to enter new sectors.
Assets linked to international insurance companies in the Cayman Islands have more than doubled from $71.2 billion at the end of the first half of 2023 to $154 billion at the end of the third quarter of 2024, according to the islands’ regulator, the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA).
According to Moody’s, Bermuda remains the unchallenged leader, accounting for about 81% of cross-border reinsurance transactions from the US. However, Cayman’s growing importance has caught the eye. Mark Rowan, CEO of private equity group Apollo, which owns the Athene life insurance business, said in November that he wants to add a “caveat word” regarding the islands.
While the jurisdiction may not be as strict as Bermuda, it has its own risk-based solvency calculations that determine capital levels. Some Cayman-based companies have a customized approach to risk-based capital (RBC), while others apply the standard model. When considering any counterparty, it is important to assess how that entity measures and maintains adequate capital, the report stresses.
Jewish observers begin celebrating the Festival of Lights Hanukkah on Wednesday at sunset.
Tradition connects Hanukkah with the Jewish uprising in 167 B.C. against the Syrian king Antiochus IV, who wanted to force the Jews to join the ancient Greek polytheism. After the invaders were expelled from Israel and Jerusalem was taken, the Jews rebuilt their desecrated and partially destroyed temple. On the day of its consecration, the main temple lamp, the menorah, was to be lit, and its fire was to be kept burning constantly. But there was very little oil for the lamp, and according to Jewish tradition, it took eight days to make a new one. When the menorah was lit with the oil they found, the fire burned without interruption for eight days while the new oil was being prepared.
To commemorate this, Hanukkah is celebrated for eight days, with one new candle lit every night in a special eight-candle candlestick.
Hanukkah celebrations will last eight days and end at nightfall on January 2.
In 2024, Ukrposhta JSC increased the number of international shipments by 41% compared to 2023 – up to 36 million export and import shipments (excluding simple letters and letters without tracking numbers, which are sent by simple procedure without tracking – IF-U), said Yulia Pavlenko, Director of the International Operations Department of Ukrposhta JSC, in an exclusive interview with Interfax-Ukraine.
“In 2024, we will reach a figure of about 36 million export and import shipments (excluding simple letters and letters without tracking numbers, which are sent in a simple way without tracking – IF-U). This performance indicator was recorded as of December 17, 2024. In 2023, it amounted to 25.5 million tracked items,” Pavlenko said.
According to her, imports prevail: since the beginning of 2024, 32 million parcels have been delivered to Ukraine. These are mainly goods from foreign marketplaces, in particular, from China, which Ukrainians can buy cheaper than in Ukraine.
“There are fewer exports, but, of course, they are more valuable for us, as we are selling goods made by Ukrainian producers on the foreign market. These are mostly handmade goods,” Pavlenko said.
According to her, Ukrposhta continues to develop educational programs for small and medium-sized businesses that want to sell products on foreign marketplaces. In particular, the UA Etsy Global Start program, implemented in partnership with USAID, is nearing completion, under which the foundation provides a $500,000 grant for the best start-up entrepreneurs on Etsy. The program received 1.8 thousand applications from Ukrainian entrepreneurs who opened an Etsy store after October 2023. 500 winners were selected and given the opportunity to take a training course and receive $1100 in start-up assistance for their first promotions.
At the same time, a program for SMEs was implemented with the United Nations Development Program Fund with financial support from the Government of Japan. As part of it, training for small exporters at the Sustainable Business Academy was free of charge for entrepreneurs.
The Director of the International Operations Department at Ukrposhta said that Ukraine is now the ninth largest country in terms of sales on the largest handmade platform in the United States alone. Already 38 thousand Ukrainians have opened their own stores on Etsy.
