Russian Pause Push; Closed Amnesty; Netanyahu's Rhetorical Question; Hamas Courts PLO; Going South in Korea; Underground Sharia; SCOTUS Considering Sister Wives; and 200k Eggs/Hour

Syria

Aleppo: Russia announces ‘humanitarian pause’ as residents fear devastating ‘final push’ from Putin and Assad independent.co.uk

The break in hostilities is planned for daylight hours on Friday, with two corridors opened for rebels, whom are allowed to take their arms, and six others for civilians and the wounded.

Also see Russia calls for 10-hour ‘humanitarian pause’ in Aleppo timesofisrael

Russia

Amnesty International's Moscow office 'sealed by authorities' bbc

The human rights group amnesty.org says it was given no warning but hoped there was "a simple administrative explanation".

Israel-Palestinian

Netanyahu to Abbas: If settlements didn’t exist, would you recognize a Jewish state? jpost

“And they won't, because the real settlement issues are the settlements of Tel Aviv, Jaffa, Haifa, Akko,” Netanyahu said.

Hamas

Hamas looks to join PLO, marking major unification step timesofisrael

A senior PLO member told The Times of Israel that the group wants to bring Hamas under its framework, while an expert on Palestinian politics said the move was likely to take place.

The call by Hamas — considered a terror group by Israel, the US and most of the international community — for inclusion in the PLO comes amid concerted efforts by the Palestinians to challenge the 1917 British Balfour Declaration, which promised the Jewish people a “homeland” in Palestine, and to establish an independent Palestinian state as soon as possible.

Also see Palestinians Demand UK Apologize For 1917 Balfour Declaration That Helped Create Israel rinf

South Korea

South Korea presidential scandal: What you need to know cnn

The drama surrounds Park's friend and informal adviser, Choi Soon-sil, for whom prosecutors issued an arrest warrant Wednesday on charges of abuse of power and attempted fraud following accusations she had access to secret government documents and intervened in state affairs.

Also see South Korean Prosecutors Say They Will Bring Charges Against President’s Friend nytimes

Islam

Sharia law being administered in [UK] shop basements, MPs told telegraph.co.uk

Dr Ahmad Al-Dubayan, chairman of UK Board of Sharia Councils shariahcouncil.org, based in Regent’s Park Mosque in London, said it was impossible to know how many so-called sharia “councils” are operating in Britain.

One widely-quoted think-tank report, published seven years ago, estimated that there are at least 85 sharia bodies in the UK but Dr Al-Dubayan said the true extent is unknown.

Society

U.S. Supreme Court asks Utah for a response in ‘Sister Wives’ case sltrib

In a sign that it is interested in the case, the U.S. Supreme Court has asked the Utah Attorney General's Office to respond to an appeal from the polygamists who were the stars of the television show "Sister Wives."

While the request means the appeal from the Brown family has survived one phase of the court's screening process, it is no guarantee the justices will hear oral arguments in the case. The Supreme Court website says it receives 7,000 to 8,000 appeals a year and hears about 80 of those.

Robots

This wholesaler processes 201,600 eggs per hour with robots video.cnbc v