海角大神

Three U.N. peacekeepers were killed in southern Lebanon. It鈥檚 not clear who was responsible, but the U.N. Security Council is set to discuss the situation. Defense ministers of Italy and France stressed the 鈥渦nacceptability of such incidents.鈥� Israel is trying to push Hezbollah militants out of southern Lebanon in a campaign that Israeli officials say could become a prolonged occupation. 鈥� The Associated Press

Israel passes a death penalty applicable only to Palestinians. Israel鈥檚 parliament passed a law Monday establishing the death penalty for Palestinians convicted of murdering Israelis. Critics say the law makes it nearly impossible to apply the same measure to Jewish Israelis convicted of murdering Palestinians. The Israeli union of doctors refuses to give lethal injections, so deaths would be by hanging. Israeli human rights groups argue the law is racist. Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir argues the law will deter attacks on Israelis.

Taiwan鈥檚 opposition party leader will visit China in April. Cheng Li-wun, chairwoman of the Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang, said she hopes the April 7-12 visit will promote peace across the Taiwan Strait. Ms. Cheng鈥檚 trip is politically sensitive in Taiwan. China claims Taiwan as its territory, but most residents of the self-governed island prefer de facto autonomy. Taiwan is likely to be on the agenda when President Donald Trump visits China in May.

Haiti attack shows gangs鈥� expanding reach. The Gran Grif gang assaulted a town in the crucial agricultural heartland of Artibonite Sunday with complete impunity, with rights groups saying the death toll could reach 80. Gangs effectively control the capital of Port-au-Prince and are expanding their authority. The U.N.-backed Gang Suppression Force, coordinated by the U.S. and Canada, is scheduled to arrive in April but faces numerous challenges.

Texas could soon be required to air condition every prison cell in the state. A trial began in federal court on Monday in a lawsuit brought by a coalition of inmates who argue that extreme heat in state prisons constitutes 鈥渃ruel and unusual punishment鈥� prohibited by the Eighth Amendment. Nearly 70% of Texas inmates, roughly 90,000 prisoners, live without air conditioning, according to legal filings. The suit could have national implications.

Spain barred U.S. planes involved in the Iran war from its airspace. The Monday announcement comes after Spain declared Washington could not use jointly operated military bases in the war, according to the Associated Press. Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles told reporters, and called the war in Iran 鈥減rofoundly illegal and profoundly unjust.鈥�

A U.S. immigration agency ends asylum freeze for many. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services had paused decisions on asylum applications last fall, following an attack against National Guard members in which the suspected gunman was an asylee. The agency will decide asylum applications again except for people from 39 countries deemed high-risk by the president, a Homeland Security spokesperson said Monday. USCIS has halted benefits requests from citizens of those countries as it enhances scrutiny of immigrants lawfully here.

Public transit is now free in parts of Australia, amid rising fuel costs. Victoria will offer free travel for a month, while Tasmania will make buses and ferries free for three months. Fuel prices have jumped about 40% since the Iran war began. Victoria鈥檚 plan will cost about $48 million in lost revenue, according to Premier Jacinta Allan. The federal government plans to cut fuel taxes by half for three months to ease costs.

鈥� Compiled by Monitor writers around the world

In stark contrast with residents of other Arab countries in the Gulf region, Saudis exhibit a decidedly blas茅 attitude toward the U.S.-Israel war with Iran. Conversations focus on jobs and the economy and reveal a calm faith in their government鈥檚 ability to provide security.

Pakistan is leading the charge to bring the United States and Iran to the negotiating table, leaning on a budding friendship with Washington and deep ties to Tehran. But its role as mediator faces headwinds.

President Donald Trump used an executive memorandum to get around congressional gridlock and pay airport security workers. But the Constitution gives the legislative branch exclusive responsibility to appropriate funds, a power presidents of both parties have eroded.

Cesar Chavez, an icon in the labor rights movement who was revered by millions of Latinos and others, now is accused of sexual abuse of girls and women. The allegations, coming decades after his death, profoundly complicate his legacy.

The Artemis II mission will take astronauts beyond low-Earth orbit for the first time in 50 years. This next era of the U.S. space program marks a step toward building a permanent presence in outer space.

Geopolitics feels fraught these days, even between the closest of allies like Canada and the U.S. But the Artemis II moon launch is a reminder of how nations continue to work more closely together than ever.

One theme of the Iran war has been rising concern 鈥� from nearly all sides 鈥� for children. More to the point, the concern is for how to safeguard their inherent innocence and propensity for peace.

The latest example focuses on Iran鈥檚 new campaign to enlist 12- and 13-year-olds in 鈥渨ar-related roles,鈥� such as security patrols. A teachers union in Iran has condemned the regime鈥檚 militarization of childhood. It warns about placing children in harm鈥檚 way, which would be a violation of international child rights.

For its part, the United States was roundly criticized after an American missile struck near an Iranian girls鈥� school Feb. 28, resulting in more than 170 deaths. The White House claims children are not U.S. military targets. Meanwhile, the Pentagon has launched a formal investigation of the incident. And the U.N. Human Rights Council has agreed to examine the killings.

Meanwhile, Israel has appealed to the United Nations to respond to Iran鈥檚 alleged indiscriminate missile attacks on 鈥渋nnocent civilians and children.鈥� And on March 3, U.S. first lady Melania Trump chaired a meeting of the Security Council on the general topic of children and education during conflict. The Iran war was top of mind, starting with opening comments by U.N. Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo.

鈥淲hen conflicts erupt, children are among those most severely affected,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e have been reminded of this truth over the last two days. Schools in Israel, the [United Arab Emirates], Qatar, Bahrain and Oman have closed and moved to remote learning owing to the ongoing military operations in the region.鈥�

One reason for this strong spotlight on children in war lies in the expanding set of treaties and global norms over decades to protect youth in conflicts. The U.N. has found that many armed militias, such as in Colombia, are willing to accept that the innocence of children requires they not be used as soldiers. This tendency might indicate a growing recognition that nurturing a child鈥檚 expression of innocence can help lessen the aftereffects of a war.

The focus on children has also sometimes helped end wars. In recent decades, outcry over the use of child soldiers during conflicts in Sierra Leone and Liberia, for example, raised pressure on belligerents to compromise. Sierra Leone鈥檚 1991鈥�2002 civil war led to the first conviction for the war crime of recruiting children as well as attention on the rehabilitation of former child soldiers.

At the same time, many current wars, including in Myanmar and Yemen, still involve children as combatants. In Iran, many parents accept the regime鈥檚 recruitment of children. Still, the worldwide attention on the issue might turn public attitudes to further support the safeguarding of children鈥檚 innocence 鈥� and perhaps help turn the tide of the war.