UN chief slams ‘systematic’ looting of Gaza humanitarian aid

MARSEILLE, France: The lighthouse appeared overnight. Painted on a wall tucked away in a quiet Marseille street, its beam aligned perfectly with the real-life shadow of a metal post on the pavement. At its center, stenciled in crisp white, are the words: “I want to be what you saw in me.”
Banksy had struck again.
On Friday, the elusive British street artist confirmed the work by posting two images on his official Instagram account — without caption or coordinates. Fans quickly identified the location as 1 Rue Félix Frégier, in the Catalans district of Marseille’s 7th arrondissement, near the sea.
Since then, crowds have gathered at the site. Tourists snap photos. Children point. Locals who usually walk past the building stop to take a closer look.
There is no official explanation for the phrase. But its emotional pull is unmistakable — a quiet plea for recognition, love or redemption. Some speculate it references a country ballad by Lonestar. Others call it a love letter. Or a lament. Or both.
The image is deceptively simple: a lone lighthouse, dark and weathered, casting a stark white beam. But what gives it power is the way it plays with light — the real and the painted, the seen and the imagined. The post in front of the wall becomes part of the piece. Reality becomes the frame.
Marseille’s mayor, Benoît Payan, was quick to react online. “Marseille x Banksy,” he wrote, adding a flame emoji. By midday, the hashtag #BanksyMarseille was trending across France, and beyond.
Though often political, Banksy’s art is just as often personal, exploring themes of loss, longing and identity. In recent years, his works have appeared on war-ravaged buildings in Ukraine, in support of migrants crossing the Mediterranean and on walls condemning capitalism, Brexit, and police brutality.
The artist, who has never confirmed his full identity, began his career spray-painting buildings in Bristol, England, and has become one of the world’s best-known artists. His mischievous and often satirical images include two male police officers kissing, armed riot police with yellow smiley faces and a chimpanzee with a sign bearing the words, “Laugh now, but one day I’ll be in charge.”
His work has sold for millions of dollars at auction, and past murals on outdoor sites have often been stolen or removed by building owners soon after going up. In December 2023, after Banksy stenciled military drones on a stop sign in south London, a man was photographed taking down the sign with bolt cutters. Police later arrested two men on suspicion of theft and criminal damage.
In March 2024, an environmentally themed work on a wall beside a tree in north London was splashed with paint, covered with plastic sheeting and fenced off within days of being created.
Despite the fame — or infamy — at least in Marseille, not everyone walking past noticed it. Some didn’t even know who Banksy was, according to the local press.
On Instagram observers say this Marseille piece feels quieter. More interior.
And yet, it is no less global. The work arrives just ahead of a major Banksy retrospective opening June 14 at the Museum of Art in nearby Toulon featuring 80 works, including rare originals. Another exhibit opens Saturday in Montpellier.
But the Marseille mural wasn’t meant for a museum. It lives in the street, exposed to weather, footsteps and time. As of Friday evening, no barriers had been erected. No glass shield installed. Just a shadow, a beam and a message that’s already circling the world.

WILMINGTON, US: Former US President Joe Biden told reporters Friday he was feeling “optimistic” about the future after delivering his first public remarks since revealing he had an aggressive form of prostate cancer.
“Well, the prognosis is good. You know, we’re working on everything. It’s moving along. So, I feel good,” Biden, 82, said after an event in Delaware belatedly marking Monday’s Memorial Day federal holiday.
Biden’s office announced earlier this month he is battling prostate cancer with a Gleason score of nine, which places him in the most severe category.
The veteran Democrat told reporters he had decided on a treatment regime, adding that “the expectation is, we’re going to be able to beat this.”
“It’s not in any organ, my bones are strong, it hasn’t penetrated. So I’m feeling good,” he said.
The mental and physical health of the former president, the oldest person ever to hold the office, was a dominant issue in the 2024 election.
After a disastrous debate performance against Trump, Biden ended his campaign for a second term.
When Biden’s office announced his diagnosis, they said the cancer had spread to his bones.
But Biden told reporters: “We’re all optimistic about the diagnosis. As a matter of fact, one of the leading surgeons in the world is working with me.”
The political row over Biden’s aborted candidacy has become a major scandal since the release of the book “Original Sin” — which alleges that Biden’s White House covered up his cognitive decline while he was in office.
The ex-president was asked about the controversy and responded with sarcasm, joking that “I’m mentally incompetent and I can’t walk.”
He said he had no regrets about initially running for a second term, and that his Democratic critics could have challenged him but chose not to “because I’d have beaten them.”
In earlier formal remarks in New Castle, Delaware, Biden spoke of his presidency as his greatest honor, and called for better treatment of veterans.
But he saved his most poignant comments to mark the 10th anniversary on May 30 of his son, National Guard veteran Beau Biden, dying of brain cancer at the age of 46.
“For the Bidens, this day is the 10th anniversary, the loss of my son Beau, who spent a year in Iraq,” said Biden, who had attended a memorial service for his son earlier in the day.
“And, to be honest, it’s a hard day.”