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Palestine Scores One of World's Highest Literacy Rates

In this May 26, 2019 file photo, a teacher supervises while school children attend a final exam during the last day of the school year, at the UNRWA, Hebron Boys School, in the West Bank. (AP)
In this May 26, 2019 file photo, a teacher supervises while school children attend a final exam during the last day of the school year, at the UNRWA, Hebron Boys School, in the West Bank. (AP)
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Palestine Scores One of World's Highest Literacy Rates

In this May 26, 2019 file photo, a teacher supervises while school children attend a final exam during the last day of the school year, at the UNRWA, Hebron Boys School, in the West Bank. (AP)
In this May 26, 2019 file photo, a teacher supervises while school children attend a final exam during the last day of the school year, at the UNRWA, Hebron Boys School, in the West Bank. (AP)

On the occasion of International Literacy Day, the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) published a report saying Palestine has one of the world's highest literacy rates.

Illiteracy rates among Palestinian population aged 15 years and above in Palestine fell in the period from 13.9% in 1997 to 2.8% in 2018, said the PCBS report.

For males, the rate fell from 7.8% in 1997 to 1.3% in 2018, while for females it fell from 20.3% to 4.3% over the same period.

By region, the rate fell from 14.1% in 1997 to 3.0% in 2018 in the West Bank while the rate fell in the Gaza Strip from 13.7% in 1997 to 2.4% over the same period.

The illiteracy rate varies considerably between age groups, where the age group 65 years and above got the highest rate, while the lowest rate was among the age groups 30-44 years and 15-29 years.

In 2018, the illiteracy rate among rural locales reached 3.7% (18,000 illiterate persons), while scored 2.8% in the refugee camps (7,100 illiterate persons) and 2.6% (57,700 illiterate persons) in urban areas. In 2018, the female illiteracy rate was the highest in rural localities, followed by refugee camps and urban areas respectively. Male illiteracy rate did not vary by type of locality.

In 2018, the highest illiteracy rate among persons aged 15 years and above was in the Salfit governorate with 5.4%, followed by Jericho and Al Aghwar with 3.9%. The lowest rate was in Gaza governorate with 2%.

By gender, the highest illiteracy rate among males aged 15 years and above was in Jerusalem governorate with 2.9% while the highest illiteracy rate among females for the same age group was in Salfit with 9.2%.

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10 Lions Die in Suspected Poisoning at Tanzania Wildlife Reserve

Lions are seen in their counpound at the Artis Amsterdam Royal Zoo in Amsterdam, Netherlands in this handout photo released to media on January 28, 2021. Artis Amsterdam Royal Zoo/Handout via REUTERS
Lions are seen in their counpound at the Artis Amsterdam Royal Zoo in Amsterdam, Netherlands in this handout photo released to media on January 28, 2021. Artis Amsterdam Royal Zoo/Handout via REUTERS
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10 Lions Die in Suspected Poisoning at Tanzania Wildlife Reserve

Lions are seen in their counpound at the Artis Amsterdam Royal Zoo in Amsterdam, Netherlands in this handout photo released to media on January 28, 2021. Artis Amsterdam Royal Zoo/Handout via REUTERS
Lions are seen in their counpound at the Artis Amsterdam Royal Zoo in Amsterdam, Netherlands in this handout photo released to media on January 28, 2021. Artis Amsterdam Royal Zoo/Handout via REUTERS

Ten lions were found dead in Tanzania's Ngorongoro wildlife reserve this week and preliminary findings suggest they may have been poisoned, the area's management authority said.

The deaths raise concerns over the conservation of lions in one of Africa's most renowned wildlife ecosystems. Poisoning has been a recurring threat to large ⁠carnivores across parts ⁠of East Africa, often linked to conflicts between predators and livestock owners.

The lions were discovered on September 18 in the Ndutu area of Endulen Ward in Arusha ⁠region, Reuters quoted the Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority as saying in a statement released late on Saturday.

"Preliminary findings suggest the animals may have died after ingesting poison," the authority said, adding that it had launched an investigation to determine the cause and identify those responsible.

The Ngorongoro Conservation Area, a UNESCO ⁠World ⁠Heritage Site in northern Tanzania, is one of the country's leading tourism attractions. It is home to a wide range of wildlife, including lions, elephants, buffaloes and endangered black rhinos.

Last month, police arrested four suspects in an investigation into the deaths of 18 elephants across the border in Kenya.

Varieties

Diana's Brother Compares Media Treatment of Harry, Meghan to Late Princess' Ordeal

FILED - 13 February 2018, United Kingdom, Edinburgh: FILE PHOTO - Prince Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, attend a reception for young people at Holyroodhouse Palace in Edinburgh. Photo: Andrew Milligan/PA Wire/dpa
FILED - 13 February 2018, United Kingdom, Edinburgh: FILE PHOTO - Prince Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, attend a reception for young people at Holyroodhouse Palace in Edinburgh. Photo: Andrew Milligan/PA Wire/dpa
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Diana's Brother Compares Media Treatment of Harry, Meghan to Late Princess' Ordeal

FILED - 13 February 2018, United Kingdom, Edinburgh: FILE PHOTO - Prince Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, attend a reception for young people at Holyroodhouse Palace in Edinburgh. Photo: Andrew Milligan/PA Wire/dpa
FILED - 13 February 2018, United Kingdom, Edinburgh: FILE PHOTO - Prince Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, attend a reception for young people at Holyroodhouse Palace in Edinburgh. Photo: Andrew Milligan/PA Wire/dpa

The media's treatment of Prince Harry and his wife Meghan is on a par with that faced by his mother Diana, the late princess' brother said in an interview published on Sunday, warning that lessons needed to be learned from that period.

Diana died aged 36 in a 1997 Paris car crash as photographers pursued her on motorbikes, sparking an outpouring of grief and a reckoning over whether the media bore some responsibility for her death after splashing details of her life across front pages for years.

"If you look at an article in a tabloid about Diana or the couple that you were ⁠mentioning, Harry and ⁠Meghan, you know, they can be really, really unpleasant," Diana's brother, Earl Charles Spencer, told the BBC.

"And I think it would be really beholden on people to learn from Diana's example.

"I'm not here to speak for Harry and Meghan, but for anyone who's being destroyed in this way daily, it must be such ⁠a cancerous influence in their life,” Reuters quoted him as saying.

Harry, Diana's youngest son, and Meghan, cited the impact of what they called a toxic media on their lives before they quit royal duties and moved to the United States in 2020.

They also sued much of the British tabloid press - with varying degrees of success - before they moved back to Britain in August.

Spencer has made headlines around the world in the last week after his book, "Swan Song: Diana, My Sister", was serialized in the Daily Mail, accusing her former husband, the now ⁠King Charles, of ⁠sounding "giddily elated" in the hours after her death.

The palace hit back by saying the king "is mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and color memory in ways others do not recognize, even many years after such a loss".

The publication of the book and the return of Harry and Meghan to Britain are another challenge for the king, who is still undergoing treatment for cancer.

Diana's family accused the royals of showing a lack of support or care towards the late princess before her death, a charge that was repeated by Harry, who is now largely estranged from the rest of the royal family.

Varieties

Brigitte Bardot Widower Slams Sale of Star's Belongings

This photograph shows details of a preview exhibition of personal belongings once owned by late French actress Brigitte Bardot at Maison Drouot in Paris on September 15, 2026, ahead of an auction of her memorabilia and clothing. (Photo by Charlotte SIEMON / AFP)
This photograph shows details of a preview exhibition of personal belongings once owned by late French actress Brigitte Bardot at Maison Drouot in Paris on September 15, 2026, ahead of an auction of her memorabilia and clothing. (Photo by Charlotte SIEMON / AFP)
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Brigitte Bardot Widower Slams Sale of Star's Belongings

This photograph shows details of a preview exhibition of personal belongings once owned by late French actress Brigitte Bardot at Maison Drouot in Paris on September 15, 2026, ahead of an auction of her memorabilia and clothing. (Photo by Charlotte SIEMON / AFP)
This photograph shows details of a preview exhibition of personal belongings once owned by late French actress Brigitte Bardot at Maison Drouot in Paris on September 15, 2026, ahead of an auction of her memorabilia and clothing. (Photo by Charlotte SIEMON / AFP)

The widower of French screen icon Brigitte Bardot on Saturday slammed as a "joke" the planned auction of hundreds of the late star's personal belongings organized by her animal welfare foundation.

The sale, featuring more than 300 items ranging from portraits and toiletries to a flamenco guitar and a black tutu, is due to take place Monday at Paris auction house Drouot.

"These are personal items. Why hold this sale? For the animals? It's a joke," Bernard d'Ormale told AFP, adding it amounted to a "disrespect to Brigitte's memory".

"All of this could have been kept for the day when people are able to visit La Madrague," he added, referring to Bardot's famed home in Saint-Tropez.

He said around three-quarters of the items came from Bardot's Paris apartment, with the remainder from La Madrague.

Her belongings should have been preserved as part of her legacy rather than sold to raise funds for the foundation she created, d'Ormale argued, adding that Bardot "would not have agreed to this sale".

The Brigitte Bardot Foundation rejected the criticism, saying the auction was approved by the board in June, including Bardot's widower, who was then its president.

However, d'Ormale said he had not understood the auction would involve such personal items.

The dispute comes days after he was removed as head of the foundation, a role he had held since the star's death in December.

The 85-year-old, who remains on the foundation's board, also complained he no longer has free access to La Madrague.

"I've lived there for 35 years and now they're throwing me out. It's quite something," d'Ormale said.

Founded by the actor in 1986, the Brigitte Bardot Foundation says it has taken in 13,000 animals through four shelters and 150 partner facilities, supports 350 groups in France and operates in 70 countries.