Most Patients, Staff and Displaced Have Left Shifa Hospital, Palestinian Health Authorities Report

KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip — Patients, staff and displaced people departed Gaza’s largest hospital Saturday, health officials said, leaving behind only Israeli forces and a skeleton crew to care for those too sick to move. The exodus came the day internet and phone service was restored to the Gaza Strip, ending a telecommunications outage that forced the United Nations to shut down critical aid deliveries.

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Dozens of people were killed in the urban Jabaliya refugee camp when what witnesses described as an Israeli airstrike hit a crowded U.N. shelter in the main combat zone of northern Gaza. It caused massive destruction in the camp’s Fakhoura school, said Ahmed Radwan and Yassin Sharif.

“The scenes were horrifying. Corpses of women and children were on the ground. Others were screaming for help,” Radwan said by phone. Associated Press’ photos from a local hospital showed more than 20 bodies wrapped in bloodstained sheets.

The Israeli military, which had warned Jabaliya residents and others in a social media post in Arabic to leave, had no immediate comment on the strike and said only that its troops were active in the Jabaliya area “with the aim of hitting terrorists.” It rarely comments on individual strikes, saying only that it targets Hamas while trying to minimize harm to civilians.

“Receiving horrifying images & footage of scores of people killed and injured in another UNRWA school sheltering thousands of displaced in the north of the Gaza Strip. These attacks cannot become commonplace, they must stop. A humanitarian ceasefire cannot wait any longer,” Philippe Lazzarini, the commissioner general of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, or UNRWA, said on X, formerly Twitter.

Attacks also continued in southern Gaza. An Israeli airstrike hit a residential building on the outskirts of the town of Khan Younis, killing at least 26 Palestinians, according to a doctor at the hospital where the bodies were taken.

Israel’s military has been searching Shifa Hospital for traces of a Hamas command center that it alleges was located under the building — a claim Hamas and the hospital staff deny — and urging the several thousand people still there to leave.

On Saturday, the military said it had been asked by the hospital’s director to help those who would like to leave do so by a secure route. The military said it did not order any evacuation, and that medical personnel were being allowed to remain in the hospital to support patients who cannot be moved.

But Medhat Abbas, a spokesman for the Health Ministry in Hamas-controlled Gaza, said the military had ordered the facility cleared, giving the hospital an hour to get people out.

After it appeared the evacuation was mostly complete, Dr. Ahmed Mokhallalati, a Shifa physician, said on social media that some 120 patients remained who were unable to leave, including some in intensive care and premature babies, and that he and five other doctors were staying to care for them.

It was not immediately clear where those who left the hospital had gone, with 25 of Gaza’s hospitals non-functional due to lack of fuel, damage and other problems and the other 11 only partially operational, according to the World Health Organization.

Israel has said hospitals in northern Gaza were a key target of its ground offensive aimed at crushing Hamas, claiming they were used as militant command centers and weapons depots, which both Hamas and medical staff deny.

Israeli troops have encircled or entered several hospitals, while others stopped functioning because of dwindling supplies and loss of electricity.

The war, now in its seventh week, was triggered by Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack in southern Israel, in which militants killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted some 240 men, women and children. Fifty-two soldiers have been killed since the Israeli offensive began.

More than 11,500 Palestinians have been killed in the war, according to Palestinian health authorities. Another 2,700 have been reported missing, believed buried under rubble. The count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants, but more than two-thirds of those killed were women and children; Israel says it has killed thousands of militants.

After the war, “there’ll be no Arab troops going to Gaza. None. We’re not going to be seen as the enemy,” Jordan’s foreign minister, Ayman Safadi, told a conference in Bahrain organized by the International Institute for Strategic Studies. “How could anybody talk about the future of Gaza when we do not know what kind of Gaza will be left once this aggression ends?”

Gaza’s main power plant shut down early in the war, and Israel has cut off electricity. That makes fuel necessary to power the generators needed to run the telecommunications network, water treatment plants, sanitation facilities, hospitals and other critical infrastructure.

Juliette Touma, spokeswoman for the agency for Palestinian refugees, said 120,000 liters (31,700 gallons) of fuel arrived , meant to last for two days, after Israel agreed Friday to allow in that amount for the U.N.’s use. It is also allowing another 10,000 liters (2,642 gallons) to keep the telecommunications systems running.

The U.N. has warned that Gaza’s 2.3 million people are running critically short of food and water, and said the amount of fuel being provided is only half of the daily minimum requirement. It was not immediately clear when UNRWA would resume the delivery of aid that was put on hold Friday.

Gaza has received only 10% of its required food supplies each day in shipments from Egypt, according to the U.N., and the water system shutdown has left most of the population drinking contaminated water, causing an outbreak of disease. Dehydration and malnutrition are growing, with nearly all residents in need of food, according to the U.N.’s World Food Program.

In Jerusalem, thousands of marchers — including families of more than 50 hostages — were arriving on the last leg of a five-day trek from Tel Aviv calling on the government to do more to rescue some 240 hostages held by Hamas. Many are furious with the government for refusing to tell them more about what is being done to rescue them.

Israel has signaled plans to expand its offensive south, where most of Gaza’s population is now sheltering, including hundreds of thousands of people who heeded Israel’s calls to evacuate Gaza City and the north ahead of its ground offensive.

People continued to move south. Some recovered bodies of strangers along the way. “I found these young men inside the car. The car was destroyed,” said Moemen Abu Erban, one man on the move. The bodies had been placed on a horse cart and covered with blankets. “Frankly, it is a difficult thing. There is complete destruction.”

Elsewhere, the Israeli military said its aircraft struck what it described as a hideout for militants in the urban refugee camp of Balata in the occupied West Bank. The Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance service said five Palestinians were killed.

The deaths raised to 212 the number of Palestinians killed in West Bank violence since the war began, making it the deadliest period in the territory since the second Palestinian uprising in the early 2000s.

source https://time.com/6337235/most-shifa-hospital-patients-staff-and-displaced-leave-as-israel-strikes-gazas-north-and-south/

How to Prepare for the Busy Thanksgiving Travel Season This Year

More than 55 million people are expected to travel in the U.S. to share a Thanksgiving meal next week, marking what experts say is the busiest travel season of the year.  

Most people will be driving for the holiday making roads congested, especially on Nov. 22, according to data from AAA. But another 4.7 million people are also expected to fly out of their local airports during the holiday travel period. 

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To ensure that people are making the most of their holiday and getting to their destinations as planned, experts say people should plan proactively. 

“For many Americans, Thanksgiving and travel go hand in hand, and this holiday, we expect more people on the roads, skies, and seas compared to 2022,” said Paula Twidale, senior vice president of AAA Travel.

TIME spoke to experts about how to prepare for Thanksgiving travel. Here’s what they said. 

Prioritize car maintenance before hitting the road

Some 49 million Americans are driving to see family and loved ones for the holiday. With so many people behind the wheel, experts say it is important to schedule a quick car service before making the trip. 

“Make sure your tires are properly inflated, your fluid is topped off, and your battery is in good shape. Now is the time to do that because you don’t want to have something that could have been fixed with routine maintenance go wrong while you’re on the road,” says AAA spokesperson Andrew Gross. 

Try to avoid road traffic

Data from AAA suggests that people should hit the road before 11:00 a.m. if they are planning to travel the day before Thanksgiving. Families who live 100 miles or less from the Thanksgiving hosts can also opt to travel that same Thursday if it’s before 10:00 a.m. to avoid traffic. 

When returning from the holiday weekend, AAA research shows that streets are busiest between 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. You can check the peak congestion times of major U.S. cities like New York and Seattle, here. 

Gross adds that people should pack snacks and an emergency kit in the car to avoid unnecessarily stopping. “If you don’t have to pull over to grab something to eat, that will probably help,” he says. 

Check for weather delays

Travelers should make sure to check for possible weather hazards days in advance in case it would be better to leave earlier or later than expected. 

A new Accuweather report forecasts a large storm across the central and eastern U.S. that is scheduled to hit on Tuesday and could pose a problem for travelers. “A storm will develop along a slow-moving cold front and will produce moderate to heavy rain from the Ohio and Tennessee valleys to the East Coast…,” said Accuweather long-range expert Paul Pastelok. The storm  is expected to last until Wednesday, and could cause flight cancellations or extend travel time in several metro areas—including Atlanta, Baltimore, and Philadelphia. 

Disruptive weather should subside by Black Friday, experts say, making the return home much easier. 

Prepare to make the airport process smooth

Jo Franco, a well-known travel influencer, suggests people flying figure out their “security strategy” before arriving at the airport. That can look like enrolling in programs such as TSA Precheck or Clear to help save time, although wait times for these services are still going to take longer than usual during the holiday. She also says others can ease the security process by abiding by guidelines that can be found here, to avoid an additional security check for your luggage.

Gross says that people can also save time by reserving airport parking ahead of time if need be. He adds that those who are traveling for a shorter amount of time should avoid checking a bag, if possible. Downloading their airline’s app to be notified of any last-minute gate changes, delays or cancellations is also helpful. 

Booking last-minute flight deals

Since Thanksgiving is swiftly approaching, Franco notes flights will be limited and pricier. For those booking last-minute flights, the best option may be to mix and match different airlines. “Look at flying out with one airline and back with another or out of one airport and back into another. Comparing and contrasting dates, providers, departure airports and destinations will enable you to find the best deal available for your needs,” Laura Lindsay, Skyscanner travel editor, says.

Priceline data shared with TIME shows that flights cost less on the actual day of Thanksgiving. Travelers who extend their weekend and return between Nov. 27-30 can save nearly 30% on domestic flights, when compared to traveling on Sunday, Nov. 26. 

Consider flight alternatives 

If you are really on a tight budget, consider alternatives to flying like a bus or train. Tickets may appear more expensive, but Franco says people should remember that transportation to and from the airport is an additional cost. “It might look cheaper to fly somewhere,” she says, but things might change “when you factor in the stress of airport travel and the expensive ubers to the airports.” 

But ultimately, experts say that whatever mode of transportation you take, be aware that any trip will be longer than usual. “Thanksgiving, it’s kind of viewed as an obligatory holiday. It’s intensely family oriented,” says Gross. “It’s probably the busiest holiday of the year.”

source https://time.com/6336808/how-to-prepare-for-thanksgiving-travel/

Saltburn Is a Black Comedy That’s Too Eager to Shock

In general, there’s nothing wrong with movies that remind us of other movies. This is how genres rejuvenate themselves across the decades, building on themes and moods that have come before. But a movie’s tone, maybe even more than its plot, is everything, and that’s where writer-director Emerald Fennell’s Saltburn fails. Saltburn—which, seemingly intentionally, tears more than a few deckled-edge pages from Brideshead Revisited and The Talented Mr. Ripley—isn’t just about class envy and repressed desire. There’s something arch and self-satisfied about it as a work; it’s a satire served up with a sneer rather than a conspiratorial wink, as if Fennell knows stuff you don’t and isn’t interested in allowing you inside her club. Saltburn begins with a mildly intriguing premise. But Fennell can’t seem to distinguish dark, transgressive pleasures from outright unpleasantness, and the whole enterprise ends with an acrid aftertaste.

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The setting is Oxford University circa the early 2000s. Barry Koeghan, who gave such a crushing performance as the lovesick Dominic in The Banshees of Inisherin, is Oliver Quick, a freshman who shows up with the wrong clothes, the wrong luggage, the wrong everything. He desperately wants to fit in, but the kids from the fancier families look right through him. He gazes from afar at one shimmering god in particular: Felix Catton (played by Jacob Elordi, recently seen as Elvis Presley in Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla) is one of those young men who moves through the world like a cool breeze. Everyone likes him, especially the girls. He’s at ease with everyone and jealous of no one, because he’s never had to fight for anything. And unlike Oliver, he comes from a hugely rich, titled family. Oliver yearns to be Felix’s friend, or maybe more, but he’s left stammering on the sidelines, terrified at even attempting to make contact.

Read more: The 100 Best Movies of the Past 10 Decades

Then a miracle happens: Oliver, biking home from class one day, spots Felix sitting near the road, his own bike felled by a flat tire. Oliver sees his chance: gallantly, he loans his bicycle to Felix, who gratefully accepts. After this, Felix takes a surprising interest in Oliver, inviting him into his circle of friends, even though these are generally disdainful kids who point at Oliver behind his back, mocking him for his OxFam wardrobe. Worst of all is Farleigh Start (Archie Madekwe), Felix’s cousin, who’s dependent on the charity of Felix’s family and sees Oliver as a rival. Still, Oliver barrels through, courting Felix’s friendship, if not his romantic affection. And Felix takes pity on him: Oliver has explained that his parents are drug addicts, so hopelessly messed up he’s had to cut ties with them. At the end of the school term, Oliver has nowhere to go for the summer, and Felix makes a cheerful suggestion: Why doesn’t Oliver join him at his family’s estate, Saltburn? It’ll be a lark. Oliver doesn’t want to be pitied, but reluctantly, he accepts.

The fun of Saltburn, or at least whatever fun it has to offer, lies in not knowing who the villains are. Farleigh, also spending the summer at Saltburn, is the most obvious antagonist; he wields his haughtiness like a clanking sword. There’s a butler, Duncan (Paul Rhys), who seems to have it out for Oliver from the beginning, sneering at him with the kind of snobbery that only a dedicated servant of the rich can summon. Felix has an emotionally fragile sister, Venetia (Alison Oliver), whose motives are hard to discern at first. And Felix himself is, for much of the movie, blankly enigmatic. He’s kind enough to Oliver. But what does he want, really? Upon Oliver’s arrival, he leads his less-fortunate friend on a tour of the family house, pointing out its many artifacts and wonders, including room after room filled with paintings of “dead rellies” and a bed that reportedly “still has Henry VIII’s spunk on it.” It’s all rather jolly, until Felix informs his friend that the family insists on dressing for dinner—and offers one of his own discarded dinner jackets, knowing Oliver won’t have brought anything suitable.

What’s going on here? Who’s zoomin’ who? As Oliver settles in at Saltburn, he becomes emboldened, happy to play at being something he’s not. (It’s also revealed that he’s exceptionally well-endowed, a fact we eventually get to confirm with our own eyes.) But the film becomes more sour with every twist; it wears its grim determination to shock like a family crest. There’s grandness in its setting: the house, with all its brooding wood molding and dusty tapestries, is clearly a place of secrets. (These portions of the film were shot at Drayton House in Northamptonshire, a private residence.) But like Fennell’s debut film, Promising Young Woman—which netted her the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay—Saltburn is more clever than it is smart. Promising Young Woman presented complicated ideas about consent only to roll them into one big, obvious teachable moment. Saltburn riffs on the psychology of sociopaths with little wit or subtlety. Instead of seducing us with wicked treachery, it draws big neon signs around its vision of the dark side of human nature, just to make sure we get the point.

But there’s at least a cream-dollop of pleasure to be had in watching some of Saltburn’s performances. Carey Mulligan pops in as a kooky family friend, with fuzzy, rock-star-girlfriend hair and a penchant for rhinestone Union Jack accessories, who eyes Oliver as if he were a delectable prize. Richard E. Grant is mildly delightful as Sir James Catton, Felix’s dotty, seemingly benign father. But the movie really belongs to Rosamund Pike, as Felix’s mother, the posh girl turned mistress of the manor Elsbeth, Lady Catton. Elsbeth swirls through the house, and the movie, in an assortment of elegant-eccentric caftans and evening dresses, her eyebrows perpetually arched in either faux or sincere superiority. Elsbeth gets by on a mix of shrewd wisdom and glorious, feathery upper-crust cluelessness. It’s little wonder Oliver is enchanted by her. But the movie around her is too smug by half. Elsbeth deserves her own picture, maybe one exploring the story of how she just may have, as she alludes in Saltburn, inspired Pulp to write “Common People.” Now that would be a movie.

source https://time.com/6336017/saltburn/

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes Is a Real Dystopian Bummer

In a world rife with real-life horrors, the idea of escaping into a movie dystopia is tempting, and more than understandable. Fantasies about tyrannical governments and sharp divisions between the haves and the have-nots strike a chord for good reason: no matter how bad things get in our own world, it could always be worse somewhere else. But how desperate are we, really, for a dreary prequel that jettisons a series’ best qualities and replaces them with recycled sawdust stuffing? The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, directed by Francis Lawrence, strives to offer spectacle, drama, and excitement. But it’s really just a tired rehash, albeit an extravagant one, this time with less appealing characters. As dystopias go, it’s a real bummer.

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In The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes—adapted from Suzanne Collins’ 2020 novel of the same name, set some 60 years before the events of the Hunger Games series—Tom Blyth plays the young Coriolanus Snow, the teenager who will grow up to be the malevolent ballbuster played by Donald Sutherland in the earlier Hunger Game pictures. (The last of these was 2015’s The Hunger Games: Mockingjay—Part 2, also directed by Lawrence, the filmmaker behind three of the four movies in the series.) But Coriolanus is not yet a baddie; he’s a principled kid who hopes to follow in the footsteps of his esteemed father, who died during the long war following the uprising of the downtrodden districts against the hoity-toity Capitol. But his family has fallen on hard times. As the 10th annual Hunger Games approach, he is, like his fellow Capitol University students, matched with a Tribute, a contestant from the districts. Coriolanus really needs the money that will be awarded to the winner, and the stakes are higher than usual, because viewer ratings have dipped. Luckily, he’s been matched with the Tribute with the mostest, a Loretta Lynn-style balladeer in a tattered peasant dress who holds her head high despite the fact she’s from the lower orders. This is Lucy Gray Baird (played by Rachel Zegler, the dynamite performer who broke out in West Side Story), and she has little interest in cooperating.

Read more: The 100 Best YA Books of All Time

Eventually, though, Lucy Gray realizes it’s in her best interest to do so, and she and Coriolanus become close. Soon, a romance brews. Here and there, she sings a song or two. Lucy Gray—who is never referred to as plain old Lucy—has a clear, strong voice, and it stirs the masses. This makes sense: Zegler is the most charismatic presence in the movie. But you also wonder how on Earth her Lucy Gray could be attracted to the faux dignity of Coriolanus—this kid is just a dud. His transformation into a true baddie is hardly a surprise, and the movie sets it up clumsily.

In the Hunger Games, as you know if you’ve read the books or seen any of the previous movies, the Tributes are pitted against one another in a series of death matches. Their Capitol counterparts advise them and cheer them on from the sidelines—nice work if you can get it. But as Lawrence stages them, the matches in The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes are unpleasant and grisly; I’d hesitate to take little kids to this movie, especially given the harsh demise of the smallest and most innocent Tribute, Wovey (played by Sofia Sanchez). No one needs that much dystopia in their entertainment.

Meanwhile, an array of ill-tempered evildoers chomp their way through the story. Viola Davis, as devious gamemaker Dr. Volumnia Gaul, cranks up the grand-lady acting while dressed in a series of costumes that look to be made of sofa fabric. (It’s Volumnia who has amped up the games’ stakes by introducing an army of menacing blue serpents to the proceedings.) Peter Dinklage is the school’s Dean Casca Highbottom, who stomps around huffily enforcing the rules. Jason Schwartzman is Lucky Flickerman, the games’ emcee, inflicting his big personality on his viewership, and on us. There are more heroic characters, too, like Coriolanus’ friend Sejanus Plinth (Josh Andrés Rivera), who comes from one of the Capitol’s richest families but whose idealism leads him to believe he can make life better for those in the districts.

This is a movie stuffed with too many characters and, sadly, none of them are played by Jennifer Lawrence, who was the best feature of the earlier entries: she was so likably vital that she made you feel there was something at stake in this fantasy world. Zegler is charming, but no single performer can carry a movie this unwieldy. The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is divided into three (long) chapters, which feel more like 20. It’s the kind of product designed to send audiences off feeling like they’ve gotten a real bang for their buck. But it’s really an endurance test disguised as a movie.

source https://time.com/6336379/the-hunger-games-the-ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes-review/

What to Know Before Watching The Hunger Games Prequel The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

Fans of Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games franchise can dust off their bow and arrows as the series returns to the silver screen with the long-awaited prequel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, out Nov. 17.

The film, based on the Collins’ 2020 prequel to the hit Hunger Games trilogy, stars Rachel Zegler as Lucy Gray Baird and Tom Blyth as a young Coriolanus Snow, in addition to a stacked cast that includes Hunter Schafer as Snow’s cousin, Tigris; Viola Davis as Dr. Volumnia Gaul; Peter Dinklage as Dean Casca Highbottom; and Jason Schwartzman as Lucky Flickerman. The prequel, which goes back 64 years before the events of The Hunger Games, gives audiences a look at an earlier era of Panem, as the Capitol prepares for the 10th annual Hunger Games.

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In the book and movie, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes details a fundamental turning point for the Hunger Games and draws out Snow’s backstory, adding dimension to the villainous character who later becomes Panem’s tyrannical president. Snow is crucial to making the Hunger Games not just a brutal bloodbath but a form of inescapable entertainment for the Capitol. Songbirds and Snakes sets into motion the events of The Hunger Games trilogy. Here’s what to know.

How The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes connects to The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games series and Songbirds and Snakes is set in Panem, a war-torn dystopian version of North America, comprising 13 districts and the Capitol, which has all of the money and a cast of colorful characters. Each district has goods they produce for the Capitol (oil, lumber, fish, etc.) and are numbered based on class, with District 1 being the wealthiest and resource-rich, while the others are less so. 

After an unsuccessful three-year rebellion against the Capitol by Panem citizens, about a decade before the events of Songbirds and Snakes, the Hunger Games were established as a yearly tradition of violent control. Each district is made to send a teen boy and girl—selected during a ceremony called “The Reaping”—to an arena where they fight to the death, leaving the sole survivor as the winner. The Capitol imposed the game to punish the districts and remind them who holds the power. 

The Hunger Games seen in The Hunger Games movies are a well-oiled machine of entertainment and spectacle: the tributes get makeovers and weapons training before entering violent battle in an arena that can change at any time at the whims of the game’s controllers. The games are televised, turning the tributes into characters with storylines for the Capitol audiences to root for—and, eventually, help by sending medication and food to their favored fighters.

Songbirds and Snakes opens on a cruel but much less exciting version of the Hunger Games. In the first 10 years of the games, tributes are sent into an arena with nothing but weapons, and left to fight—leading the game to end within a couple hours. Decades before Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark enter the picture, the makers of the games are figuring out how to, essentially, increase ratings and interest in the games.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes tells President Snow’s backstory

Students at the most prestigious school in the Capitol become mentors to the tributes in an effort to make the games more entertaining. Coriolanus Snow, a student at the Academy, suggests that the games play to audience interests and sets the precedent of tributes receiving gifts through sponsors. Along with his classmates, Snow is also tasked with mentoring one of the young tributes. When he meets tribute Lucy Gray, a member of a musical nomadic people who got stuck in District 12 during the war, they form an unexpected bond, throwing Snow’s future into question. She and Snow must work together to ensure her survival but, of course, not everything goes according to plan.

In the Hunger Games, Snow is Katniss Everdeen’s foil. True to his name, he’s icy and has it out for Katniss after she forces the hand of the gamemaker into letting both her and Peeta win. Songbirds and Snakes reveals why Katniss’ unwavering confidence in herself and her abilities is a particular thorn in Snow’s side: they remind him of Lucy Gray.

source https://time.com/6336296/ballad-of-songbirds-and-snakes-hunger-games-what-to-know/

House Releases Scathing George Santos Ethics Report

House investigators on Thursday released a highly-anticipated ethics report on embattled Rep. George Santos, concluding there is “substantial evidence” that the New York Republican knowingly violated a litany of ethics and criminal laws.

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The explosive report by the House Ethics Committee following a months-long investigation found that Santos spent campaign funds on Botox treatments, designer goods, OnlyFans, and lavish Atlantic City trips with his husband. It also details his purported attempts to obfuscate his financial transactions, suggesting a deliberate effort to construct a misleading and “fictional” financial narrative within official records.

Shortly after the report was released, Santos announced that he would not seek reelection. “I will however NOT be seeking re-election for a second term in 2024 as my family deserves better than to be under the gun from the press all the time,” he wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.

If there was a single ounce of ETHICS in the “Ethics committee”, they would have not released this biased report. The Committee went to extraordinary lengths to smear myself and my legal team about me not being forthcoming (My legal bills suggest otherwise).

It is a disgusting…

— George Santos (@MrSantosNY) November 16, 2023

The bipartisan committee asserted that Santos’ conduct warrants public condemnation and is “beneath the dignity of the office,” further contending that it has brought “severe discredit upon the House.” The report did not make a recommendation as to whether Santos should be expelled from the House—he already survived one expulsion attempt earlier this month—but said investigators are referring the matter to the Justice Department.

Despite the damning allegations, Santos maintains his innocence and has refused to resign, defying calls from numerous colleagues urging him to step down. The release of the report is expected to intensify the controversy surrounding Santos, who is already facing 23 federal criminal counts, including wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.

More From TIME

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source https://time.com/6336275/george-santos-ethics-report/

Your 2023 Holiday Season Guide to COVID-19, Flu, and RSV

As you make your shopping list, plan travel, and schedule parties this holiday season, there’s something else you should add to your to-do list: making sure you’re up-to-date on the latest guidance around COVID-19, the flu, and RSV, as respiratory disease season hits full swing.

“It’s always important to factor in the possibility of either transmitting an infection to other people or becoming infected, especially when getting together in large groups,” says Matthew Binnicker, director of clinical virology at the Mayo Clinic. “There are ways to safely gather and enjoy the holiday season,” but it requires taking the right precautions.

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Here’s what to know about—and how to say safe from—COVID, the flu, and RSV this holiday season.

Will there be a COVID-19 surge this winter? What about flu and RSV?

Late fall and winter are typically peak times for COVID-19, the flu, and RSV to spread—and mid-November surveillance data suggests all three are already on the rise in the U.S. Based on historical trends, Binnicker says he expects to see continued upticks in infections in late November into December. “We typically see a surge in respiratory viruses as the temperatures drop and we proceed into the winter months,” he says.

Which shots should I get and when?

If you haven’t had COVID-19 or been vaccinated against it in at least six months, Binnicker recommends getting the updated booster shot, which was authorized in September. “If you were vaccinated a year ago or two years ago…your immunity likely isn’t going to protect you from infection with the currently circulating strains,” he says.

As of the two-week period ending Nov. 11, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated about 50% of new sequenced cases were caused by the Omicron subvariants HV.1 and EG.5. Both are descendants of the XBB family, the lineage vaccine manufacturers designed the latest booster shot to target.

Sooner is better when it comes to getting boosted. “You can’t get it an hour before and then jump into a party,” says Emily Smith, an assistant professor at Duke University with a specialty in global health. It takes about two weeks for the body to mount a full immune response after getting vaccinated.

The same goes for flu shots, Smith says. Recent research suggests you can get your COVID-19 booster and flu shot at the same time without reducing either’s efficacy, so you can schedule both appointments at once.

Finally, those eligible—people who are pregnant or elderly—should consider getting the newly approved RSV vaccine. Young babies can also get an antibody treatment meant to protect against RSV.

How long do I have to isolate if I get COVID-19?

The CDC still says anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 should isolate themselves for at least five full days. And through the 10th day after testing positive—even once the five-day isolation period is over—they should wear a high-quality mask, such as an N95 or KN95, any time they have to be around other people indoors.

If your holiday plans fall within that initial five-day isolation period, “the responsible thing to do is the hardest thing to do, which is wait until you’re better to see family,” Smith says.

The decision is a little trickier if you’re done with your five-day isolation, but still within the 10 days of recommended masking. It is possible to be contagious even after your five days of isolation are up, Binnicker notes, so it’s best to continue taking precautions. If your holiday plans involve being around people who are high-risk for severe disease, including elderly adults or people who are immunocompromised, CDC guidance suggests you should stay home. If you do keep your plans, agency guidance supports staying masked or outdoors the entire time.

The exception: if you test negative on two separate at-home tests taken 48 hours apart, the CDC says you can remove your mask, even if it hasn’t been a full 10 days.

Can I travel if I have or recently had COVID-19?

While testing requirements for travel are mostly a thing of the past, the CDC still says not to get on planes, trains, or buses during your five-day isolation period. Through day 10, if you absolutely must use public transit, you should remain masked the entire time, unless you’ve gotten your pair of negative test results.

How can I make my holiday gatherings safer?

If you’re hosting a party, Smith says it’s a good idea to ask everyone to test first, particularly if you’ll have high-risk guests in attendance. “Make a game out of it, where people have to test before they come in the house and hand them hot cocoa” while they wait, she suggests.

Hosts may also want to keep a supply of masks on hand in case any guests show up ill (or simply want to wear one while around others)—or have a plan for moving the party to an outdoor area.

In fact, if the weather in your area allows, consider hosting an entirely outdoor gathering. If it’s too cold to be outside, Smith says opening a few windows to improve air flow is better than nothing.

What if I spent time with someone who tests positive for COVID-19?

At this point, “it’s probably inevitable that there will be many people in the country who will show up to a gathering and someone will be coughing, sneezing, acting visibly unwell,” Binnicker says.

If that person turns out to have COVID-19, you don’t have to completely isolate yourself unless you also develop symptoms or test positive, the CDC says. However, the agency recommends taking certain precautions in the following days, including wearing a mask when you’re around other people indoors, monitoring yourself for symptoms, and testing yourself. Recent research suggests that, after an Omicron exposure, it can take only about three days for an illness to start.

source https://time.com/6335691/covid-19-holidays-flu-rsv/