World Echo

Japan on Thursday dismissed criticism from China and Russia over its "remilitarisation" as "unfounded." Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a joint statement on Wednesday that Japan is accelerating remilitarisation and threatening regional peace and stability. Japanese Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Masanao Ozaki said at a news conference that Japan wants China to "change its behaviour" over issues such as Beijing’s military activities, which he said are a "cause for serious concern for the international community," and urged Russia to "stop its invasion of Ukraine," according to Kyodo News Agency. Putin concluded a two-day visit to China on Wednesday. Japan’s relations with China have deteriorated since Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's remarks last November that China's possible use of force against Taiwan, which it considers a breakaway province, could constitute a survi...

Eighty-seven activists aboard the Gaza-bound Global Sumud Flotilla, who are being held by Israel, have begun a hunger strike to protest their detention and show solidarity with Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. In a post on X on Tuesday, the flotilla said that for the second time in three weeks, the Israeli army, which claimed to be “the most moral army,” had abducted their companions from international waters. It added that “in protest of their illegal abduction and in solidarity with the over 9,500 Palestinian hostages held in Israeli dungeons, at least 87 flotilla participants have committed to a hunger strike until they are released.” The flotilla called for the release of all detainees held by Israeli authorities and urged governments to condemn the “act of piracy.” The flotilla also called for lifting the blockade on the Gaza Strip and for the release of all abductees from the flotilla, as well as all Palestinian prisone...

Israel moved closer on Wednesday to a snap election after lawmakers gave an initial nod to dissolve parliament, with opinion polls showing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would lose the first national vote since 2023. Lawmakers voted almost unanimously for an early ballot in a preliminary reading of a bill to disband the 120-seat Knesset. If it receives final approval, a process that could take weeks, Israel could hold an election several weeks ahead of an October 27 deadline. Netanyahu's own coalition submitted the bill to dissolve parliament after an ultra-Orthodox faction traditionally close to the Israeli leader accused him of failing to deliver on a promise to pass a law exempting their community from mandatory military service. Netanyahu behind in polls Some 110 members of parliament voted in favour of the bill to dissolve, with no opponents or abstentions. It now heads to committee, where an election date is agreed, before going back to the Knesset for final appro...

Israeli occupiers began establishing an illegal settlement outpost in a village in the Masafer Yatta region of Hebron governorate in the southern occupied West Bank under the protection of the army, a Palestinian official said on Wednesday. Khalil Hathaleen, head of the Umm al-Khair village council, told Anadolu that occupiers had “started building a new settlement neighbourhood in the middle of the village by installing caravans, erecting fences, and paving roads.” Hathaleen explained that the new outpost cuts Umm al-Khair into two sections and blocks roads used by students and residents. He said Umm al-Khair “has been subjected to a fierce and ongoing campaign by occupiers,” adding that construction of the settlement neighbourhood had accelerated since midnight with the aim of “tightening pressure on residents and displacing them.” “The goal is to expel the people, but we are staying here,” he said. Read: Israeli minister annou...

Three months after the United States and Israel staged an attack on Iran, a US blockade and Tehran's grip on the Strait of Hormuz have created a deadlock, with neither side bending, economic pain deepening and the risk of ​renewed war rising. A growing concern among policymakers is not whether a deal is near, but how long tensions can persist before a miscalculation by Washington or Tehran triggers renewed conflict. Calls for a fresh strike are growing louder in the US ‌and Israel, even though public opinion of the war skews against renewed strikes, with some officials arguing that increased pressure could weaken Tehran's leverage and force Iran back to the negotiating table. "There is one major problem with this theory: We have already tested it, repeatedly, and Iran did not capitulate," said Danny Citrinowicz, a senior researcher on Iran at Israel's Institute for National Security Studies and former head of the Iran branch in Israeli Defence Intellig...

US lawmakers expressed support for the families of the victims of a fatal shooting at the Islamic Centre of San Diego on Monday. Authorities said that five people, including two suspected shooters, were killed in the incident. California Senator Adam Schiff said on X that he is “heartbroken" by the shooting. "My prayers are with the families of the three precious lives lost today,” he said. I’m heartbroken by the shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego, and my prayers are with the families of the three precious lives lost today. Today's shooting is a horrific attack on Southern California's Muslim community. Every American should be able to practice their faith… — Adam Schiff (@SenAdamSchiff) May 18, 2026 “Today's shooting is a horrific attack on Southern California's Muslim community. Every American should be able to practice their faith without fear of violence. And we must never be silent in the face of...