world cruise story kings

Hints, tips, and tricks for Kairosoft's World Cruise Story

Fishing for hints

Another Kairosoft release, another excuse to get down and dirty with the tips and tricks that lie hidden in its depths.

World Cruise Story is a lot more straightforward than your average Kairosoft management game, but that doesn't mean it's a walkover. If you want to boost that three-star cruise, you're going to need some help to understand the inner workings.

So Pocket Gamer has once again compiled all the help you'll need to make sure your cruises are the best in the world.

Sit back and relax - it's going to be smooth sailing from here on in.

Throughout the life of your seafaring vessel, you'll have numerous options to invest in businesses, destinations, and upgrades for your ship.

Investing is where most of your cash will go, and since time is precious you'll want to throw your funds into investments as soon as you can.

There's one exception to the rule, however. Whenever there's a new big investment, such as a ship expansion or a new passenger type, make sure you save up and put your money into these rather than splashing out on smaller tricks that aren't as important.

Also remember that you can put your money into three investments at a time, so if you have the cash make sure you're also putting it towards the development of the various countries via the Tourism and Industrial options.

The positioning of each of your cabins, facilities, and plants is incredibly important for increasing the attractiveness of your ship.

Putting cabins around the edges of the ship will give them a boost thanks to the window view. In fact, if you put cabins on the second floor against the walls they'll get an even greater boost thanks to the inclusion of a balcony.

Don't just stack all the cabins one by one next to each other, however - leave gaps in between each one, and put plants in there.

As you unlock new carpets, plants, and other such refinements, delete the old ones and replace them with the new ones to make sure rooms continue to receive the greatest attractiveness possible.

Later on you'll unlock bigger and better cabins. Don't worry too much about leaving space for those, as you'll also unlock the ability to move rooms around. In other words, you can shift everything around as the opportunities present themselves.

Don't forget to use the decks as much as possible, too, as the sea breeze brings in special bonuses. Deckchairs are all very well, but the majority of rooms and additional bits and pieces can also go outside.

When you've been operating from a particular country for a while, the king or queen of that country will ask to take a trip with your cruise liner.

If you can impress them enough during their visit, they'll put you in touch with the ruler of another country, allowing you to add new regions to your cruises.

This is the main method for moving the game forward, so this is of course a rather important aspect of the game.

Asking royalty to voyage with you is relatively cheap, so the best idea is to keep getting them onboard over and over again until they're impressed. The facilities they use are chosen at random, so you'll find that they may well be totally unimpressed the first time, and then suddenly over the moon the second.

Of course, it helps if you give them the best cabin in the house - find the highest quality cabin, but also consider whether it's in the vicinity of enough facilities for the royalty to get to quickly.

Every six months, you'll have the opportunity to change the start point and destinations of your cruise.

For your start point, you want to choose the place where you currently have the fewest fans.

That may sound counter-productive, but the idea is that you build up the fans there and bring in a whole new type of people onto your ship.

For the tour stops, you'll want to choose the places where you haven't yet reached 100 per cent tourism. If you've already managed to discover everything everywhere, choose the places where you have the highest attraction instead.

Of course, make sure you have the tour operator's room, or else people won't be able to go on coach trips and discover new items for you!

Buy all the facility upgrades available from the shop, and use them on your various shops and attractions regularly. When you go to use an item, it will tell you which shops it works best with - make sure to match the right ones up.

When the critics come to rate your ship, look over how many stars they've given you in the past. Choose the critic who has given you the fewest stars, as you'll probably get more this time around, and you'll earn extra money and bonuses for your total star count.

It sounds obvious, but it's incredibly important - always make sure you have enough cabins to house all your guests. If there aren't enough, people will wait outside your ship until it's ready to part, and if nothing becomes available in time you'll lose them.

And their little digital lives will be ruined.

Hey there! Thanks for dropping by kairosoft! Take a look around and grab the RSS feed to stay updated. See you around!

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• World Cruise Story – Aura Guide

World Cruise Story, the most important part, is the Aura of each character, you probably need those aura to pass those King/Queen request.

People may think of, how to get the Aura, i cant make it, or whatever reason.

Here is the tips, and a Walk Though how you going to build a better CRUISE.

Cruise Plan

1. There will total 5 Floor in the Cruise, once you upgrade to the last expansion.  So let start talking about the Floor PLAN..

1st floor – A Maze + Tour Guide. tour guide try to put near the exit if your MAZE is too big.  at late game like Yr 7 onward, u can start placing CABIN at 1st floor.

2nd Floor – FULL of Facilities, all the IN-Door facilities is at 2nd FLoor, you can make a SUITE some where near the side, and put some statue or plant to make the APL higher. This SUITE will let you handle THOSE KING/QUEEN/REVIEWER.  Dont let them RUN too FAR to get to the next facility.

3rd Floor – i call it a STATEROOM Floor, Red Carpet + Stateroom, vending machine as well, left a gap between each stateroom from left to right. and leave 2-3 gap from top to btm, so you can make a walk way + some deco(Plant or Statue) to boose nearby APL, remember to put vending machine between 2 stateroom. the map plan is something like that

|Stateroom|V|Stateroom|Plant|Stateroom|V|Stateroom|Plant|

4th Floor – i call it a SUITE FLOOR, this floor have the highest BONUS APL, So suite room is the best.

5th Floor – the Roof, OUT-DOOR facility + Pool + Hot Tub. this will BOOST all +25 APL Bonus

this is all the PLAN, so you probably get like 40++ ROOM allow this passengers, the problem you will still facing is too many ppl, so placing CABIN at 1st Floor will help you a lot.

** IF you have enough Money, u can try building ATM x4 or more. to reduce the time for waiting.

**All Facilities only need to have 1. except SLOT x2

King/Queen Request

Many people fail at the 6 or 7th king/queen. the problem mostly is not enough QLty of facilities. Try to Boost Your Suite Qlty to 200 Above, and Vending Machine + Restaurant to 120 above. i found that most of the king like to visit this 2. if you Fail, just try to remember which facilities that king/queen visit often, just boost 3 facilities to 120. it will get PASS easily(but better + your MAZE at 1st Floor)

how to make a maze? ok, here is the screen shot. i will explain later if you still dont understand

Ok, got what i mean? There are total 4 Entrance, just block the 3 with any object, do not let those people pass through.  Did you see the pink carpet at top? and beside is the statue and Plant, those statue and plant BOOST the pink carpet to higher ENERGY, so the before the traveler check in to their room, they will have aura on their body.

here is the Floor plan

See the MAZE work? this is just for beginning, while u go to like year 8, the maze will look bigger ^^

Ok, hopefully this little tips will help you people pass all the king/queen faster.

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14 comments:.

Thanks, been looking for a good guide for this.

where r the stairs in the floor plan?

this is how i play WCS. 1st floor is MAZE + TOUR GUIDE + some CABIN(in-case room not enough) 2nd floor is all the STORE and FACILITIES 3rd floor is Stage Room 4th is Delux Room

So from the above, you can PLACE your STAIRCASE, somewhere at the 4 x 2 PINK Store area.

how to get $276.441 on 3 years?

hi, just use some Game Cheat to hack the $$. e.g GameCIH, but 1st, you need to Root your Android, or Jailbreak your ios.

how to use gameCIH??

you need to root your android phone/tablet 1st 🙂

Hi! Do you mind posting all the floor plans?

And, how do you get those pink carpets? 😮

How to get pink carpet

How to get a theater too?? I completed all country ang kings and queen but I did nt have any theater

Thanks for the guide. Btw, how do you get more statue (like thinker or angel)? I think thinker and angel is available in limited quantity…

Just wondering, could you post the layout for the other rooms? I get the general idea, but I want a clear visual of how it turns out.

Pictures are fine, but if you feel like explaining the rooms then go ahead!

Leave a comment Cancel reply

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World Cruise Story

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World Cruise Story

Playstation 4 android ios (iphone/ipad) nintendo switch pc, description.

• Captain a luxury cruise liner, sailing the entire world while entertaining VIPs! Get ready to take the helm of history's grandest, most over-the-top luxury cruise liner for an unforgettably addictive excursion at sea! Deck your own ship with everything from lavish suites and first-class restaurants to casinos and hot tubs! You call the shots as you travel the world, visiting every country on the map--even entertaining royalty with tours truly fit for kings! Put the right facilities next to each other and you'll score big points with passengers and reviewers. Amass enough fame and even celebrities will come flocking when you're in port! Can you turn your sea buggy into a 5-star floating paradise? Put on your captain's hat and find out in World Cruise Story!

User Ratings

World Cruise Story

This item will be sent to your system automatically after purchase.

Captain a luxury cruise liner, sailing the entire world while entertaining VIPs!

Get ready to take the helm of history's grandest, most over-the-top luxury cruise liner for an unforgettably addictive excursion at sea! Deck your own ship with everything from lavish suites and first-class restaurants to casinos and hot tubs! You call the shots as you travel the world, visiting every country on the map--even entertaining royalty with tours truly fit for kings! Put the right facilities next to each other and you'll score big points with passengers and reviewers. Amass enough fame and even celebrities will come flocking when you're in port! Can you turn your sea buggy into a 5-star floating paradise? Put on your captain's hat and find out in World Cruise Story! Try searching for "Kairosoft" to see all of our games!!

Software description provided by the publisher.

ESRB rating

Supported play modes, product information, release date, no. of players, game file size, supported languages.

Play online, access classic NES™ and Super NES™ games, and more with a Nintendo Switch Online membership.

This game supports: Save Data Cloud

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WARNING: If you have epilepsy or have had seizures or other unusual reactions to flashing lights or patterns, consult a doctor before playing video games. All users should read the Health and Safety Information available in the system settings before using this software.

A Nintendo Switch Online membership (sold separately) is required for Save Data Cloud backup.

©KAIROSOFT CO.,LTD. All Rights Reserved.

World Cruise Story 4+

Kairosoft co.,ltd, designed for ipad.

• #126 in Strategy
• 4.6 • 65 Ratings

Screenshots

Description.

Get ready to take the helm of history's grandest, most over-the-top luxury cruise liner for an unforgettably addictive excursion at sea! Deck your own ship with everything from lavish suites and first-class restaurants to casinos and hot tubs! You call the shots as you travel the world, visiting every country on the map--even entertaining royalty with tours truly fit for kings! Put the right facilities next to each other and you'll score big points with passengers and reviewers. Amass enough fame and even celebrities will come flocking when you're in port! Can you turn your sea buggy into a 5-star floating paradise? Put on your captain's hat and find out in World Cruise Story! --- Try searching for "Kairosoft" to see all of our games, or visit us at https://kairopark.jp. Be sure to check out both our free-to-play and our paid games!

Version 2.34

Fixed minor issues.

Ratings and Reviews

Finally quality cruise ship game.

Honestly I love cruise ships they are my favorite, but before they made this game I could not find any good cruise ship games. Finally this game came out and I played the free version, and I loved it so much that I bought it. I recommend this game to you if you like cruise ships, management, building, designing, planing, simulators, and if you want to go to the top. I also recommend trying the free version before just to be safe, but be careful because the free Version does not save to the game if you buy it.

My Favorite Game Makers! 👍👍👍Plz Read!

Hello. I love your games! In my opinion you guys are the best game makers! Just one thing. You made World Cruise (Boat) You made Station Manager (Trains) But Your Missing A type of transportation. (PLANES) If you guys could make a plane game where you make an airport that has planes that you can design. Some things the airport could have would be... Security,Lost and found,Information Kiosk,Restaurants,Gift Shops,Gates,Baggage Claim, Bathrooms,Pay Phones, and more! I'lol leave the rest to you!

First of all this game is soooo fun, I started off playing high sea saga and have been playing that game everyday since! So I know it's gonna be the same with this. I wanted to find a game that I don't get bored and delete after a week I been playing high sea saga for a month straight! So it will be the same with this! You guys make amazing games! Keep it coming! My addiction game number 2!!!

App Privacy

The developer, Kairosoft Co.,Ltd , indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .

Data Not Linked to You

The following data may be collected but it is not linked to your identity:

Privacy practices may vary, for example, based on the features you use or your age. Learn More

Information

English, Japanese, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Thai, Traditional Chinese

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Family Sharing

Up to six family members can use this app with family sharing enabled., more by this developer.

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Buy World Cruise Story

Buy 🎁kairosoft bundle🟨🟥 bundle ().

Includes 54 items: Dream Town Island , Game Dev Story , Dungeon Village 2 , Pocket Academy 3 , Cafe Master Story , High Sea Saga DX , Convenience Stories , Ninja Village , The Sushi Spinnery , The Ramen Sensei , Jumbo Airport Story , Pocket Stables , Hot Springs Story , The Manga Works , Pool Slide Story , Hot Springs Story 2 , Mega Mall Story 2 , Dream Park Story , Mega Mall Story , Venture Towns , Dream House Days DX , Forest Camp Story , Dungeon Village , Pocket League Story , Pocket Clothier , Anime Studio Story , Cafeteria Nipponica , Grand Prix Story , Station Manager , Pocket Arcade Story , Pocket Academy , Oh! Edo Towns , Tropical Resort Story , Zoo Park Story , Magazine Mogul , Home Run High , Epic Astro Story , World Cruise Story , Shiny Ski Resort , Tennis Club Story , Beastie Bay DX , Burger Bistro Story , Pocket Harvest , Kairobotica , Boxing Gym Story , The Pyraplex , March to a Million , Biz Builder Delux , 8-Bit Farm , Basketball Club Story , Silver Screen Story , Wild Park Manager , Forest Golf Planner , TV Studio Story

Next Kairogames

Coming soon https://store.steampowered.com/app/2488340/

About This Game

System Requirements

• Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
• OS: Windows 10 64bit
• Processor: Intel Atom® x7-Z8750
• Memory: 1 GB RAM
• DirectX: Version 10
• Storage: 250 MB available space

©KAIROSOFT CO.,LTD. All Rights Reserved.

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Cruise ship sails into New York City port with 44-foot dead whale across its bow

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A cruise ship sailed into a New York City port with a 44-foot dead whale across its bow, marine authorities said.

The whale, identified as an endangered sei whale, was caught on the ship’s bow when it arrived at the Port of Brooklyn on Saturday, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration fisheries spokesperson Andrea Gomez said.

A spokesperson for MSC Cruises said the whale was on the MSC Meraviglia, which docked at Brooklyn before sailing to ports in New England and Canada.

“We immediately notified the relevant authorities, who are now conducting an examination of the whale,” officials with the cruise line said in a statement.

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of any marine life,” the officials said, adding that the Geneva-based MSC Cruises follows all regulations designed to protect whales, such as altering itineraries in certain regions to avoid hitting the animals.

The dead whale was towed to shore in Sandy Hook, N.J., to allow for better access to equipment and to conduct a necropsy, Gomez said.

The necropsy, an autopsy on an animal, was conducted Tuesday, Gomez said. Samples collected from the whale will help biologists determine whether it was already dead when it was struck by the ship, she said.

Sei whales are typically observed in deeper waters far from the coastline, Gomez said. They are one of the largest whale species and are internationally protected.

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Feb. 8, 2024

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Search ends for missing crew member who disappeared during around-the-world voyage, report says

• A crew member from an Ambassador Cruise Line ship was reported missing at sea.
• The ship was sailing from Lisbon to Tilbury, England when the crew member disappeared.
• The search has now been called off, the BBC reported.

The search for a missing cruise ship employee who disappeared during an around-the-world voyage has ended, BBC News reported.

The Indian crew member was reported missing after breakfast on Friday morning while the ship was off the coast of Cape Finisterre, northwestern Spain.

The "Ambience" ship had been sailing from Lisbon to Tilbury, England, on the final leg of a 120-night trip when the employee disappeared.

Staff on the Ambassador Cruise Line ship then carried out a sweep of the vessel before it rerouted and sailed back through its previous route.

The ship is now on its way back to the UK, per the BBC.

Related stories

An Ambassador Cruise Line spokesperson told the outlet: "Our immediate priority is to provide full support to all crew members closely affected by this incident."

"Ambassador is committed to the safety and wellbeing of all our crew and guests. The search for the missing person is ongoing and remains our utmost priority," they continued.

"We are deeply saddened by this incident and our thoughts and prayers are with the friends and family of our colleague at this difficult time," they added. "Specialist support will be offered to all crew affected by today's events."

Ambassador Cruise Line, which describes itself on its website as "Britain's premium value no-fly cruise line," is based in Purfleet, Essex, and operates from eight regional UK ports.

Ross Klein, an international authority on the cruise ship industry, previously told Business Insider that he believed cruise ship safety rules were outdated, noting that there had been no substantial changes to safety measures since the Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act of 2010.

"I think legislation has been dreadfully inadequate," he said.

"Going on a ship today would be like going on a ship in 1990. There have been no improvements. Railing heights are the same," he added.

Business Insider has reached out to Ambassador Cruise Line for comment

Watch: Sub taking tourists to see the Titanic goes missing

• Main content

Endgame (World Cruise Story)

• View history

Score Calculation [ ]

Carryovers [ ].

Does carry over

• 1 of the 12 countries as the Starting Point of a new game:
• Leafy Plant
• Bronze, Silver and Gold Kairobot Statues (1 each)
• Vending Machine ("Vndng Mchn")
• Slot Machine
• Theater (with all available programs)
• 20% of Fans value of citizens in each country (excluding kings)
• Compatibility Guide

Does not carry over

• Grand Stairs
• Decorations and facilities other than the ones listed in "Does carry over" above
• Quality and Price of every facility after using items
• Average Income of citizens in and Attr of each country
• Completion(%) on Tourism of any country
• 1 Special Rooms (Dream House Days)

Gaza latest: Israel's use of weapons provided by US likely violated international law, report by Biden govt finds

The Biden administration says Israel likely violated international law with US-provided weapons. Earlier, Israel's ambassador to the UN used a paper shredder to shred the UN charter on stage at the UN General Assembly.

Saturday 11 May 2024 04:47, UK

• Israel-Hamas war

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• US report says Israel's use of arms likely violated international law
• Israeli ambassador to United Nations shreds 'copy of UN charter'
• UN General Assembly backs Palestinian bid for full membership
• Mark Stone analysis: Who voted with Israel at the UN and why were most Pacific Island nations?
• Netanyahu says Israelis will fight with 'fingernails' after Biden weapons warning - but Rafah decision unclear
• Israeli war cabinet 'approves expanded Rafah operation'
• Alistair Bunkall analysis: Biden's reputation is on the line if Netanyahu defies him
• Listen to the Daily above and tap here to follow wherever you get your podcasts
• Live reporting by Lauren Russell and (earlier) Richard Williams

Firefighters are battling a large blaze in Kiryat Shmona, a city in northern Israel, after 35 rockets were fired by Lebanon's Hezbollah, according to The Times of Israel.

The news site cited the Israel Fire and Rescue Services as saying 10 firefighting teams were at the scene.

Video posted on social media appeared to show the fire on what looked like the side of a hill.

No casualties or injuries have been reported. 

A report by the US government has said that Israel's use of US-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law.

In the findings of a state department report - known as the national security memorandum - the Biden administration said it has found "reasonable" evidence to conclude that its ally had breached international law.

But it added it was unable to link specific US weapons to individual Israeli strikes. 

The report said: "Given Israel's significant reliance on US-made defence articles, it is reasonable to assess that defence articles have been used by Israeli security forces since 7 October in instances inconsistent with its international humanitarian law obligations or with established best practices for mitigating civilian harm."

It added that while Israel has the knowledge, experience and tools to implement the "best practices for mitigating civilian harm in its military operations" evidence from the ground - including high levels of civilian casualties - raise "substantial questions whether the IDF is using them effectively in all cases".

Turning to the issue of aid getting into Gaza, the US government report said it does not currently assess that the Israeli government is prohibiting or restricting the transport or delivery of aid. 

Crucially, the report stops short of saying that Israel has violated the terms under which it is able to use US weapons to carry out its offensive in Gaza.

By Mark Stone , US correspondent 

A huge majority of the world's nations voted with the Palestinians at the United Nations today.

But who were the nine countries that voted against the Palestinian quest for membership, rights and privileges at the UN, and why?

The current Israeli government is firmly against a Palestinian state in every sense.

Different iterations of Israeli governments over the years have oscillated on 'two states', but after the 7 October Hamas attacks the Israeli position cemented - no two states, no Palestinian state.

Broadly, they do not distinguish between the extremism of Hamas and the moderate nature of other Palestinian political factions like the Fatah-run Palestinian Authority in the West Bank. It's the crux of deadlock.

So who else? 

The United States

They stand behind Israel despite significant tension now between President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. 

America is committed to a two-state solution but argues that it begins with a ceasefire and that the formation of a Palestinian state comes much further down the line.

Speaking after the vote, White House spokesman John Kirby said: "We continue to believe in the promise of a two-state solution and an independent state for the Palestinian people. 

"That's something that President Biden remains fully and firmly committed to. We also believe that the best way to do that is through direct negotiations with the parties and not through a vote at the UN of this kind, so that's why we voted no."

As always with geopolitics, relationships are so often symbiotic; they are all about mutual benefit even when, ostensibly, the relationship might seem incongruous.

The eastern-European EU member voted with Israel and against the Palestinians.

Don't assume that hard-right Hungarian Prime Minister Orban's hatred of Hungarian-born Jewish-US billionaire George Soros is a reflection of his views on Israel despite the anti-Soros narrative often being seen as antisemitic.

Antisemitism has haunted the right of politics in Hungary since the Second World War when half a million Jewish Hungarians were murdered. Yet Orban and Netanyahu have a close, longstanding relationship.

Israel and Hungary are aligned by mutual interests. 

Orban admires the way Netanyahu's ethos of building strength out of a small nation-state and the two leaders found mutual interest in standing up to liberal democratic headwinds.

Orban's fallout with the EU has aligned with Netanyahu's assessment that Europe is increasingly anti-Israel.

The Soros-hatred also aligns with Netanyahu in that the conspiracy is that Soros is somehow seeking to 'Islamise' Judeo-Christian Europe with his pro-immigration stance.

Argentina's vote is driven by new populist President Javier Milei who has pledged unwavering support for Netanyahu and has vowed to move Argentina's embassy to Jerusalem. 

Milei has said he plans to convert to Judaism.

Czech Republic

The Czech Republic also voted with Israel in line with a strongly pro-Israel stance underlined repeatedly since 7 October.

There is a strong historical bond between Czech leaders and the Zionist movement which helped cement the Jewish State which strengthened after the fall of Communism in 1989. 

As a new democracy, the Czech Republic bonded with a young democracy in Israel. In recent years, economic ties have flourished.

Pacific Island Nations

The rest, curiously maybe, are all Pacific Island nations: Micronesia, Papua New Guinea, Nauru and Palau.

The reason for their support is simple: straightforward soft power.

The small developing nations all enjoy generous Israeli aid from the government and from Israeli charities. 

The understanding is that, in return, they will always support Israel at international bodies of which they are members.

Israel insists that its motivation is predominantly humanitarian, but officials are up front to that it's also about positioning Israel in a better light.

Israel uses its considerable expertise in many arenas deftly.

At natural disasters, for example, Israeli rescue crews are often among the first on the ground. 

This targeted soft power diplomacy has helped Israel to secure votes, but also abstentions in its favour among many other nations too.

On this vote though, on Palestine, global opinion was overwhelmingly against Israel.

Israel's entry for Eurovision 2024, Eden Golan, has become one of the favourites among bookies to win this year's contest.

The 20-year-old singer climbed to second favourite from ninth after the semi-final, according to Eurovision World, a website that compiles betting odds from 15 of Europe's biggest bookmakers. 

It said Israel is seen as having a 22% chance of winning, behind Croatia's Baby Lasagna who was seen having a 41% chance.

It comes despite more than 10,000 people gathering in the host Swedish city of Malmo to stage a non-violent protest against Israel's participation in Saturday's final.

While the results of the two semi-finals are decided by viewers, in the final, audience votes will make up only half of the result, while juries of five music professionals in each participating country will make up the other half.

Earlier, the Israeli ambassador to the United Nations appeared on stage at a meeting of the UN General Assembly.

Whilst on stage in New York he shredded "a copy of the UN charter" - which was, in reality, three pieces of paper.

His actions came moments before the 193-member world body approved a resolution, giving Palestine new "rights and privileges" within the agency. 

Watch the full moment below. 

A first of its kind report by the US government is expected to conclude that Israel has not violated the terms of its use of US weapons, according to sources cited by the Associated Press. 

The report - known as the national security memorandum - was pushed by President Joe Biden's Democrats in Congress.

When agreed to back in February, defence and state departments were tasked to conduct "an assessment of any credible reports or allegations that such defence articles and, defence services, have been used in a manner not consistent with international law, including international humanitarian law".

They were also obliged to tell Congress if they thought Israel has acted to "arbitrarily to deny, restrict, or otherwise impede, directly or indirectly," delivery of any US-supported humanitarian aid into Gaza for starving civilians there.

It follows the US pausing a shipment of 3,500 bombs heading for Israel over concern they would be used in an offensive on Rafah.

The conclusions of the memorandum are expected to be sharply critical of Israel, but will not state that Israel violated terms of weapons agreements between the two countries. 

A senior Biden administration official said the full report is expected to be released later today, but declined to comment on its conclusions.

Palestinians in Rafah are still preparing to evacuate the eastern parts of the city amid the threat of an Israeli ground offensive. 

The United Nations estimates around 110,000 Palestinians have already fled in search of safety. 

In the latest pictures from the city, a tent camp where people are currently living is seen. 

In one of the images, people appear to have started to make piles of their belongings as they get ready to evacuate. 

South Africa has asked the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to order additional emergency measures against Israel over its attacks on the city of Rafah, the United Nations top court has said. 

It is part of the ongoing case brought by South Africa in January which accuses Israel of acts of genocide against Palestinians . 

The court - which is located in The Hague in the Netherlands - ordered Israel at the beginning of the year to take all measures within its power to prevent genocide.

South Africa wanted the ICJ to implement provisional measures on Israel which would "immediately suspend military operations in and against Gaza" - but the ICJ stopped short of that.

Any decision to impose provisional measures will be "hugely problematic" for the Israeli offensive, which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed will continue until all hostages are returned and Hamas is destroyed.

Within the last few hours, the United Nations General Assembly has backed a bid put forward by Palestine for it to become a full agency member.

The vote passed by 143 votes to nine but 25 countries - including the UK - abstained.

In a post on X, the UK at the UN explained why it took the decision to abstain. 

"We are abstaining on this resolution because we believe that the first step towards achieving this goal is resolving the immediate crisis in Gaza," it said.

It said the fastest way to end the conflict is to secure a deal which releases all hostages and allows for a pause in fighting. 

The statement added that the UK remains firmly committed to a two-state solution and recognising a Palestinian state, including in the UN, and should be part of the process to achieving a sustainable ceasefire. 

The US ambassador to the UN Robert Wood gave similar reasons as to why America voted against the bid, saying its vote does not reflect opposition to Palestinian statehood.

"Instead, it is an acknowledgement that statehood will only come from a process that involves direct negotiations between the parties," he said.

What happens next?

For Palestine to become a full UN member, the 15-member UN Security Council will have to vote, and pass, the application.

At the last security council vote in March - which demanded a ceasefire in Gaza during the holy month of Ramadan - the US abstained.

The 14 other council members - including Russia, China and the UK - voted in favour.

For now, it remains unclear if or when the security council will vote on Palestine's membership bid.

Hamas has said it will hold talks with leaders of what it called "Palestinian resistance factions" to reconsider its negotiation strategy. 

It said the discussions need to be held due to Benjamin Netanyahu's behaviour, Israeli attacks on places in Rafah and the occupation of the city's border crossing with Egypt.

"Netanyahu and his government are using the negotiations as a cover to attack Rafah and occupy the crossing, and continue the war of extermination against our people, and they bear full responsibility for obstructing reaching an agreement," the statement said. 

Earlier this week, Hamas said they expressed agreement over a ceasefire deal following a phone call with Qatar's prime minister and Egypt's intelligence minister.

Israel later put an end to this, saying it would not accept the deal in its current form, a decision Hamas said today had brought things "back to square one". 

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'It was scary': Air Force evacuates 12-year-old boy in critical condition from cruise

A 12-year-old boy in critical condition was medically evacuated from a Carnival cruise ship. Due to the ship being more than 350 miles offshore, the Air Force Reserve Command’s 920th Rescue Wing had to perform the air evacuation on Saturday, according to a press release by the combat search and rescue wing.

Aiden Bridges and his family were onboard the Carnival Venezia cruise ship , which was sailing along the East Coast to return to New York from the Caribbean, when he “fell ill,” according to a GoFundMe created by Aiden’s mom, Angela Bridges. 

The pre-teen visited the ship's medical team, where he got an X-ray and learned he had a rupture in his bowel. The onboard doctors told the family Aiden needed to be medically evacuated immediately to a hospital in North Carolina for urgent surgery. 

Angela Bridges did not immediately respond to USA TODAY’s request for comment. 

At the time, the ship was on a sea day and scheduled to arrive back in New York on Monday. 

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“Carnival Venezia's team worked with United States Coast Guard and Air Force officials to adjust its course Saturday so a medical helicopter could rendezvous with the ship when a guest on board needed treatment ashore,” Janna Rowell, a spokesperson for Carnival Cruise Line, told USA TODAY in an email statement.

Within hours of the call, the 920th Rescue Wing prepared and launched a rescue force from Florida comprising two HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopters, two HC-130J Combat King II aircraft and two teams of combat rescue officers and pararescuemen to fly to the ship’s position, the press release said. Flight doctors were used to identify the treatment station to which Aiden was transported. 

“Everyone in the wing mobilized with exceptional speed. By uniting our efforts, we saved crucial time, delivering life-saving assistance six hours ahead of other response teams,” said Capt. Dylan Gann, 301st Rescue Squadron pilot, in the release.

Due to the ship’s remote location, the helicopters had to do air-to-air refueling. Pararescuements were hoisted down to the ship’s deck, and Aiden and his mother were brought up to the helicopter. 

Mira Simanovsky, who was also onboard the cruise, told USA TODAY the passengers were alerted of a medical evacuation via an intercom announcement. Simanovsky was on her balcony when she saw the two helicopters and army planes circling the ship. She later moved to the deck to watch the rescue mission with other passengers. 

“It was scary. Everybody was crying,” she said. An avid cruiser with 35 sailings under her belt said it was the first time she’d ever “seen anything like that.”

The crowd gathered on the deck were cheering and clapping when the mother and her son were airlifted. 

By the time the aircraft returned to the station, the rescue mission had taken more than eight hours with over 1,000 miles flown. 

Carnival said the ship then resumed its route to New York and arrived in New York Monday morning as normad. 

“Thank you so much to everyone who has expressed well wishes and prayers and good thoughts for our sweet baby and the rest of our family,” Bridges wrote on the GoFundMe fundraiser to help the family with Aiden’s insurance deductible and out-of-pocket medical costs. “I can’t express to everyone how in awe I am at the outpouring of kindness and support.”

On Tuesday, Bridges posted an update on Aiden, saying he “has a long road of recovery ahead of him.” 

Kathleen Wong is a travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Hawaii. You can reach her at [email protected] .

Panama's next president says he'll try to shut down one of the world's busiest migration routes

Panama is on the verge of a dramatic change to its immigration policy that could reverberate from the dense Darien jungle to the U.S. border

PANAMA CITY -- Panama is on the verge of a dramatic change to its immigration policy that could reverberate from the dense Darien jungle to the U.S. border.

President-elect José Raúl Mulino says he will shut down a migration route used by more than 500,000 people last year. Until now, Panama has helped speedily bus the migrants across its territory so they can continue their journey north.

Whether Mulino is able to reduce migration through a sparsely populated region with little government presence remains to be seen, experts say.

“Panama and our Darien are not a transit route. It is our border,” Mulino said after his victory with 34% of the vote in Sunday’s election was formalized Thursday evening.

As he had suggested during his campaign, the 64-year-old lawyer and former security minister said he would try to end “the Darien odyssey that does not have a reason to exist.”

The migrant route through the narrow isthmus grew exponentially in popularity in recent years with the help of organized crime in Colombia, making it an affordable, if dangerous, land route for hundreds of thousands.

It grew as countries like Mexico, under pressure from the U.S. government, imposed visa restrictions on various nationalities including Venezuelans and just this week Peruvians in an attempt to stop migrants flying into the country just to continue on to the U.S. border.

But masses of people took the challenge and set out on foot through the jungle-clad Colombian-Panamanian border. A crossing that initially could take a week or more eventually was whittled down to two or three days as the path became more established and entrepreneurial locals established a range of support services.

It remains a risky route, however. Reports of sexual assault s have continued to rise, some migrants are killed by bandits in robberies and others drown trying to cross rushing rivers.

Even so, some 147,000 migrants have already entered Panama through Darien this year.

Previous attempts to close routes around the world have simply shifted traffic to riskier paths.

“People migrate for many reasons and frequently don't have safe, orderly and legal ways to do it,” said Giuseppe Loprete, chief of mission in Panama for the U.N.'s International Organization for Immigration. “When the legal routes are not accessible, migrants run the risk of turning to criminal networks, traffickers and dangerous routes, tricked by disinformation.”

Loprete said the U.N. agency's representatives in Panama would meet with Mulino's team once its member are named to learn the specifics of the president's plans.

If Mulino could be even partially effective, it could produce a notable, but likely temporary, impact. As with the visa restrictions that unintentionally steered migrants to the overland route through Panama, if the factors pushing migrants to leave their countries remain they will find other routes. One could be the dangerous sea routes from Colombia to Panama.

In a local radio interview Thursday, Mulino said the idea of shutting down the migration flow is more philosophical than a physical obstacle.

“Because when we start to deport people here in an immediate deportation plan the interest for sneaking through Panama will decrease,” he said. By the time the fourth plane loaded with migrants takes off, “I assure you they are going to say that going through Panama is not attractive because they are deporting you.”

Julio Alonso, a Panamanian security expert, said what Mulino could realistically achieve is unknown.

“This would be a radical change to Panamanian policy in terms of migration to avoid more deaths and organized crime using the route,” he said. Among the challenges will be how it would work operationally along such an open and uncontrolled border.

“In Panama, there is no kind of suppression with this situation, just free passage, humanitarian aid that didn't manage to reduce the number of assaults, rapes, homicides and deaths along the Darien route,” Alonso said. Mulino's proposal is “a dissuasive measure, yes, (but) whether it can be completely executed we will see.”

It's also unlikely that much could be accomplished without a lot of cooperation and coordination with Colombia and other countries, he said.

Adam Isacson, an analyst at the Washington Office on Latin America, said that “without considering the risk of returning migrants to dangerous situations, in mathematical terms I don't know how they hope to massively deport" migrants.

"A daily plane, which would be extremely expensive, would only repatriate around 10% of the flow (about 1,000 to 1,200 per day). The United States only manages to do about 130 flights monthly in the entire world,” Isacson said.

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Disney Salutes: Veteran Portraits by President George W. Bush Coming to EPCOT

by Cappy Surette , Manager, Communications at Disney Experiences and co-chair of the Veteran Employee Resource Group known as “Disney SALUTE”

The start of May kicks off National Military Appreciation Month, and soon EPCOT will welcome a very exciting collection to The American Adventure Pavilion. With a grand opening on June 9, Portraits of Courage: A Commander in Chief’s Tribute to America’s Warriors, a special exhibit from the George W. Bush Institute, will be featured as part of Disney’s enduring admiration for those who serve in the U.S. Armed Forces and veterans. 

President George W. Bush working on his painting collection that is now known as the “Portraits of Courage: A Commander’s Tribute to America’s Warriors”

The exhibit grows out of President Bush’s personal commitment and the ongoing work of the  Bush Institute’s Veterans and Military Families program . This extraordinary art exhibit brings together more than 60 vibrant oil paintings by President Bush of service members and veterans who have served in military uniform with honor since 9/11, and whom the President has come to know personally since leaving office.

“Celebrating those who give so much to our country has been part of the fabric of The Walt Disney Company throughout our 100-year history,” said Josh D’Amaro, Chairman, Disney Experiences. “We’re grateful to the Bush Institute for allowing us to feature this special collection and share it with our guests.”

Sharing Military Veteran Stories Through Art

Each painting is accompanied by the inspiring story of the veteran depicted and our guests visiting the exhibit will learn more about these military heroes’ journey.  These include tales of valiant service on the battlefield, resilience in recovering from injury to the continued leadership and contributions they make in their post-military careers. Even better is that each story was personally written by President Bush himself. 

Pieces of the Portraits of Courage: A Commander’s Tribute to America’s Warriors collection from its initial debut in 2017 at the George W. Bush Presidential Center on the SMU campus in Dallas, Texas.

“We are thrilled Portraits of Courage will be on display for EPCOT visitors to experience this year,” said Ken Hersh, President and CEO of the George W. Bush Presidential Center. “My hope is that those who have the opportunity to see this special exhibit will also remember the leadership, service, and sacrifice behind each of the heroes painted and the unique challenges our servicemembers and their families face when transitioning out of the military.”

Offering Resources for Post 9/11 Veterans

Additionally, the exhibit will also include information and resources created to support post 9/11 veterans and their families. One of those resources, called  Check-In , is a tool for veterans and their families to easily connect to no cost, high-quality, mental and brain health care. To learn more about Check-In, visit  Veterancheckin.org .

Creating Care Kits for Deployed Military Service Members with the USO

We have much more in store over the coming weeks as we recognize National Military Appreciation Month. This includes Disney Consumer Products hosting a series of Disney VoluntEARS events alongside the Disney SALUTE veteran employee resource group in both Glendale, CA and Orlando, FL to assemble 4,000 USO care packages for deployed military service members. The  USO Care Package Program  is designed to provide service members with a connection to home while they are serving overseas in challenging conditions. 

The Walt Disney Company has worked with the USO since 2003 on various initiatives such as care packages, family room renovations, USO/character tours and movie screenings. By the end of the month, our Disney VoluntEARS will have had the honor of assembling an astonishing 16,000 care packages this year so far for deployed military service members. 

We look forward to celebrating National Military Appreciation Month with additional events leading up to us welcoming back the  Department of Defense Warrior Games  to Disney World June 21-30.

Destinations: Walt Disney World Resort

Topics: Disney Salute

Hi! We’re going to be at Epcot June 3rd any idea if the paintings will be up before the grand opening on the 9th? Thank you!

Impressive….Know every personnel will like to be painted by their commander in chief… Congratulations.

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