Hello, you're listening to the free edition of The World in Brief from The Economist.

As a reminder, if you subscribe to The Economist or our new podcast subscription Economist Podcast Plus,

you'll get access to a deeper look at the day ahead,

updated three times a day.

You'll also get access to the rest of our award-winning podcasts.

If you're already a subscriber, visit Economist.com slash The World In Brief.

Or visit the Economist app to start listening. Here's today's free edition.

This is the Worldin Brief from The Economist, our top stories.

Around 9,000 people in Gaza need to be evacuated for life-saving medical care abroad, the World Health Organization said.

In recent days, there has been intense fighting around Al-Shifa Hospital, one of the few in the enclave to remain somewhat open.

Separately an official from America State Department told Reuters that famine might already be present in some areas of northern Gaza.

Israel's High Court ordered a freeze on funding for religious institutions

whose ultra-Orthodox students have not registered for military service,

despite being eligible for conscription.

The ruling intensifies the infighting in the coalition government over whether young

her ready men should be obliged to fight.

Ultra-Orthodox parties want to codify an exemption in law,

which many Israelis and some in the coalition government oppose.

Jerome Powell, the head of the Federal Reserve, said that he expects inflation to fall just hours after the personal consumption expenditures index, the Fed's preferred measure of inflation,

showed it had risen by 0.1 percentage points to 2.5% in February.

Mr Powell said that, though the road was sometimes bumpy,

inflation was heading towards the Central Bank's target of 2 percent.

...