World Echo

Elon Musk's surprise visit to China this week won concessions for Tesla (TSLA.O) but left India feeling spurned after he cancelled a scheduled trip there for earlier this month, with Indian commentators calling the move a snub. India's pained reaction highlights the increasing rivalry between India and China, Asia two largest countries by population and among the region's most dynamic economies. Business and diplomatic relations between them have been strained since a 2020 border clash left 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers dead. Musk was due to meet Modi last week and announce an investment of up to $3 billion in a car plant, but cancelled saying there were "very heavy Tesla obligations". By then, the Indian government had sent out invites for a startup event Musk was to attend. On Sunday, Musk turned up in China, meeting with Premier Li Qiang and making progress towards rolling out its advanced driver assistance package in the world's biggest auto market. ...

A gunman stormed a mosque in western Afghanistan and killed six people, a government spokesman said Tuesday, with local residents claiming the minority Shia community had been targeted. Interior ministry spokesman Abdul Mateen Qani said that "an unknown armed person shot at civilian worshippers in a mosque" in Herat province's Guzara district on Monday at around 9:00 pm (1630 GMT). "Six civilians were martyred and one civilian was injured," he wrote on social media platform X early Tuesday morning. Locals said the mosque served the minority Shia community in a district just south of the provincial capital of Herat city, and the imam and a three-year-old child were among those killed. They also said a team of three gunmen staged the attack, contradicting the official account. "One of them was outside and two of them came inside the mosque, shooting the worshippers," said 60-year-old Ibrahim Akhlaqi, the brother of the slain imam. "It was in the mid...

  At the invitation of China, representatives of the Palestinian National Liberation Movement (Fatah) and the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) recently came to Beijing for in-depth and candid talks on promoting intra-Palestinian reconciliation, and achieved positive progress, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson confirmed on Tuesday. Spokesperson Lin Jian told a daily press briefing in response to a related query that the two sides fully expressed their political will to achieve reconciliation through dialogue and consultation, discussed many specific issues, and made positive progress. "They agreed to continue this dialogue process and strive for the early realization of Palestinian unity," Lin said, noting that the two sides highly appreciate China's firm support for the just cause of the Palestinian people to restore their legitimate national rights, and thanked China for its efforts to promote Palestine's internal unity and reached an agreement on the next s...

India's southern state of Karnataka will investigate a lawmaker whose party is a key ally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), on suspicion of sexual harassment, the state's chief minister has said. The scion of a prominent political family, the lawmaker, Prajwal Revanna, 33, is the grandson of former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda, the nephew of a former chief minister of the state and the son of another former Karnataka minister. The accusations surfaced last week as half of the state voted in India's seven-phase general elections, in which Revanna was seeking a second term for his Janata Dal (Secular) party. "The government has decided to form a special investigation team in connection with Prajwal Revanna's obscene video case," Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, whose Congress party is a BJP rival, said in a social media post over the weekend. "Obscene video clips are circulating ... where it appears that women have ...

Afghanistan's Taliban face criticism over their human rights record at a UN meeting on Monday, with Washington accusing them of systematically depriving women and girls of their human rights. However, in an awkward first for the UN Human Rights Council, the concerned country's current rulers will not be present because they are not recognised by the global body. Afghanistan will instead be represented by an ambassador appointed by the previous US-backed government, which the Taliban ousted in 2021. In a series of questions compiled in a UN document ahead of the review, the United States asked how authorities would hold perpetrators to account for abuses against civilians, "particularly women and girls who are being systematically deprived of their human rights"? It also called for the promotion of the rights of LGBTQ persons, noting an "escalation of threats and abuse" since the Taliban takeover. Read also: UN contact group on Afghanistan stalled Britain and...

South and Southeast Asia braced for a searing heatwave that has gripped the region over the past week, sending the mercury as high as 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit) and forcing thousands of schools to suspend in-person classes amid health warnings. From the Philippines to Thailand, and India to Bangladesh, forecasters warned that mercury could exceed 40C (104F) in the coming days as people suffered from scorching heat. In the Philippines, the government suspended in-person classes in all public schools for two days due to extreme weather, the local English daily Manila Times reported. "In view of the latest heat index forecast ... and the announcement of a nationwide transport strike, all public schools nationwide shall implement asynchronous classes/distance learning on April 29 and 30, 2024," the Department of Education, which oversees more than 47,000 schools, said in a statement. The exceptionally extreme weather is expected to last until mid-May after the te...

Scotland's leader Humza Yousaf resigned on Monday, further opening the door to the UK opposition Labour Party regaining ground in its former Scottish heartlands during a national election expected to be held later this year. Yousaf said he was quitting as head of the pro-independence Scottish National Party (SNP) and first minister of Scotland's devolved government after a week of chaos triggered by his scrapping of a coalition agreement with Scotland's Greens. He then failed to secure enough support to survive a vote of no confidence against him expected later this week. Resigning a little over a year after he replaced Nicola Sturgeon as first minister and SNP leader, Yousaf said it was time for someone else to lead Scotland. "I've concluded that repairing our relationship across the political divide can only be done with someone else at the helm," Yousaf said, adding he would continue until a successor was chosen in an SNP leadership contest. Yousaf abruptly...

Tesla (TSLA.O) CEO Elon Musk arrived in Beijing on Sunday on an unannounced visit, where he is expected to meet senior officials to discuss the rollout of Full Self-Driving software and permission to transfer data overseas, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. Chinese state media reported that he met Premier Li Qiang in Beijing, during which Li told Musk that Tesla's development in China could be regarded as a successful example of US-China economic and trade cooperation. The US electric vehicle maker rolled out Full Self-Driving, or FSD, the most autonomous version of its Autopilot software, four years ago but has yet to make it available in China, its second-largest market globally, despite customers urging it to do so. Musk said this month Tesla may make FSD available to customers in China "very soon", in response to a query on social media platform X. Rival Chinese automakers such as Xpeng (9868.HK) have been seeking to gain an advantage over Tesla by r...

Portugal's government said on Saturday it refuses to initiate any process to pay reparations for atrocities committed during transatlantic slavery and the colonial era, contrary to earlier comments from President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa. From the 15 to the 19 century,six million Africans were kidnapped and forcibly transported across the Atlantic by Portuguese vessels and sold into slavery, primarily in Brazil. Rebelo de Sousa had said on Saturday Portugal could use several methods to pay reparations, such as cancelling the debt of former colonies and providing financing. The government said in a statement sent to the Portuguese news agency Lusa it wants to "deepen mutual relations, respect for historical truth and increasingly intense and close cooperation, based on the reconciliation of brotherly peoples". But it added it had "no process or program of specific actions" for paying reparations, noting this line was followed by previous governments. It called rel...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will depart on a two-day visit to Saudi Arabia today, to attend a World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting on global collaboration, growth, and energy, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed. HRH Muhammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and Professor Klaus Schwab, the founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum extended the invitation to Shehbaz. The prime minister will be accompanied by a high-level delegation including, Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar and Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb. The diplomatic talks will center around trade and investment measures, new investment frameworks, restructuring of supply chains, sustainable growth, and the energy landscape. The forum will highlight Pakistan’s crucial priorities in global health architecture, inclusive growth, revitalizing regional collaboration, and the need to balance promoting growth and energy consumption. The ...

Tehreek-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Malakand chapter commander Talha Swati was killed in the Asadabad area of Afghanistan's Kunar province, sources confirmed on Saturday. Swati – associated with the Fazal Ullah group belonged to Swat. He was gunned down in broad daylight after Friday prayers. The TTP commander was linked to the intelligence group and worked as intelligence chief in Barikot area. As per reports, the slain terrorist was reporting on Jammat Ul Ahrar activities to South District Taliban, Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), and his close aide Noor Wali Mehsud. There were conflicting reports surrounding the commander's death. Some reports suggested he was killed by ISKP, while others stated he was killed by a rival faction due to some internal rifts. The Swati group, following the commander's death, demanded punishment for the killers. Read TTP group confirms senior commander's killing in Waziristan clashes Earlier this month, a most-wanted commander of the ...

Britain's King Charles will return to public duties next week for the first time since being diagnosed with cancer as he makes good progress following treatment and a period of recuperation, Buckingham Palace said on Friday. In February, the palace revealed that the 75-year-old king had been diagnosed with an unspecified form of cancer detected in tests after a corrective procedure for an enlarged prostate. Although Charles continued with official state business, the diagnosis led him to postpone public engagements to begin treatment and rest. "His majesty’s treatment programme will continue, but doctors are sufficiently pleased with the progress made so far that the king is now able to resume several public-facing duties," a Buckingham Palace spokesperson said. "His majesty is greatly encouraged to be resuming some public-facing duties and very grateful to his medical team for their continued care and expertise." Although it was too early to say how much longer...

Alphabet and Microsoft ignited a rally in technology stocks on Friday with earnings that showed big AI investments were driving growth, allaying doubts that their costly bets would take time to pay off after a soft forecast from Meta Platforms. After pouring billions of dollars into the infrastructure needed to support AI applications, both Alphabet and Microsoft reported that their quarterly revenue growth was outpacing expectations as more users turn to services including the Copilot AI assistant and the Gemini chatbot. AI services accounted for 7 percentage points of the 31% jump in revenue at Microsoft's Azure cloud-computing platform between January and March, finance chief Amy Hood said. Read: Former Google engineer indicted for stealing AI secrets to aid Chinese companies She added near-term AI demand was a bit higher than the company's capacity, which held back growth in the quarter and highlighted the need for spending to expand its infrastructure. At Google, cloud rev...

United States State Department’s spokesperson for the Middle East and North Africa, Hala Rharrit, has resigned in protest of America’s policy on Gaza — at least the third high-profile resignation from the department, as pro-Palestinian demonstrations at university campuses across the country grow. Rharrit was also the Dubai Regional Media Hub’s deputy director and joined the State Department almost two decades ago as a political and human rights officer, the department’s website showed. “I resigned April 2024 after 18 years of distinguished service in opposition to the United States’ Gaza policy. Diplomacy, not arms. Be a force for peace and unity,” Hala Rharrit wrote in a LinkedIn post, according to Al Arabiya. A State Department spokesperson, when asked about the resignation in Thursday’s press briefing, said the department has channels for its workforce to share views when it disagrees with government policies. Under close questioning, Spokesperson Vendant Patel refused to go beyond...

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday told top US diplomat Antony Blinken that the world's two biggest economies should be "partners, not rivals", but that there were a "number of issues" to be resolved in their relations. Meeting Blinken in Beijing's Great Hall of the People, Xi said the two countries had "made some positive progress" since he met with US President Joe Biden last year, according to state broadcaster CCTV. "There are still a number of issues that need to be resolved, and there is still room for further efforts," Xi said. "I proposed three major principles: mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and win-win cooperation," the Chinese leader added. "The earth is big enough to hold the common development and... prosperity of China and the United States," he continued. "China would be pleased to see a confident and open, prosperous and developing United States," Xi said. "We hope the US can a...

India's Election Commission said on Thursday it has sought responses from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the opposition Congress on alleged violations of poll rules by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and opposition leader Rahul Gandhi. India is holding the world's largest election over seven phases, with votes due to be counted on June 4. Read also: ‘Infiltrators’: Modi accused of targeting Muslims in election speech In their complaints to the commission, the BJP accused Gandhi and Congress accused Modi of making divisive speeches on religion, caste and linguistic issues, notices from the panel said. Modi, who is seeking a rare third consecutive term, referred to Muslims as "infiltrators" and "those who have more children" during a campaign speech on Sunday, drawing widespread criticism from opposition groups and a complaint from Congress to the poll panel. Rahul Gandhi, a senior leader of India's main opposition Congress party, gestures as he ...

A Palestinian civil defence team on Thursday called on the United Nations to investigate what it said were war crimes at a Gaza hospital, saying nearly 400 bodies were recovered from mass graves after Israeli soldiers departed the complex. "There are cases of field execution of some patients while undergoing surgeries and wearing surgical gowns at the Nasser Medical Complex," the civil defence forces said at a press conference, without presenting any evidence. Palestinian authorities have this week reported finding hundreds of bodies in mass graves at Nasser hospital, the main medical facility in central Gaza, after Israeli troops pulled out of the city of Khan Younis. Bodies were also reported to have been found at the Al Shifa hospital in northern Gaza, which was targeted in an Israeli special forces’ operation. UN rights chief Volker Turk said on Tuesday he was "horrified" by the destruction of the Nasser and Al Shifa medical facilities and by the reports of the ...

Marine wildlife experts were frantically trying to rescue some 140 pilot whales stranded on Thursday in the shallow waters of an estuary in the southwest of the state of Western Australia. The whales are stranded at Toby Inlet in Geographe Bay, the Western Australia Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions said. The area is near the town of Dunsborough in a region popular with tourists, and about 236 km (146 miles) south of state capital Perth. "We understand there are four pods of up to 160 pilot whales in total spread across about 500 metres. Unfortunately, 26 whales that stranded on the beach have died," a department spokesperson said in a statement. "A team of experienced staff including wildlife officers, marine scientists, veterinarians are on site or on their way." Based on previous strandings, "these events usually result in the beached animals having to be euthanised as the most humane outcome," the spokesperson said. Read also: Ra...

The Kremlin said on Thursday that deliveries of US long-range Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) to Ukraine would not change the outcome of the war but would create more problems for Ukraine itself. The United States in recent weeks secretly shipped long-range missiles to Ukraine, which has so far used them twice, a US official said on Wednesday. The missiles were used for the first time on April 17 against a Russian airfield in Crimea that was about 165 km (103 miles) from the Ukrainian front lines, the official said. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters: "The US is directly involved in this conflict. They are following the path of increasing the operating range of the weapon systems they supply." He added: "This will not fundamentally change the outcome of the special military operation. We will achieve our goal. But this will cause more problems for Ukraine itself." Whether to send the Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) with a range up to 300 km...

US prosecutors want Changpeng Zhao, the founder and former chief executive of Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, to serve three years in prison after he pleaded guilty to violating laws against money laundering. Prosecutors made the request in a Tuesday night filing in Seattle federal court. They said sentencing Zhao to twice the maximum 18 months recommended under federal guidelines would reflect the magnitude of his wilful violations, and send a message that "the right choice, every time, is to comply with the law." Lawyers for Zhao requested probation. US District Judge Richard Jones is expected to sentence Zhao on April 30. Read more: Binance to end support for USDC stablecoin on Tron blockchain network Once the most powerful figure in the crypto industry, Zhao, 47, stepped down as Binance's chief last November, when he and the exchange admitted to evading anti-money laundering requirements under the Bank Secrecy Act. Binance agreed to a $4.32 b...

An Australian counter terrorism team arrested seven teenagers on Wednesday linked to a boy charged with a religiously-motivated terror attack on a Sydney bishop and questioned another five people. Police said a team of more than 400 police and security personnel were involved in the operation, which arrested associates of a 16-year-old boy charged with a terrorism offence for the knifing of Assyrian Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel during a live-streamed church service on April 15. Police said they took the teens into custody because they posed an "unacceptable risk" to society. They will allege the teens believed in a religiously motivated violent extremist ideology. A further five people are being questioned by police. "I can assure the community there is no ongoing threat to the community, and the action we have taken today has mitigated any risk of future or further harm," said New South Wales state Police Deputy Commissioner David Hudson at a news conference following ...

President Joe Biden will sign a bill into law on Wednesday that provides billions of dollars of new aid to Ukraine for its war with Russia, a bipartisan victory for the president as he seeks re-election and a boost to allies who have looked to Washington to support Kiev. Biden, a Democrat who is expected to face Republican former President Donald Trump, a Ukraine aid skeptic, in the November election, has pressed lawmakers for six months to approve more funding for Ukraine, which has been fighting a full-scale Russian invasion for more than two years. Despite bipartisan support, a proposed package of aid idled amid opposition mostly from Republicans closely tied to Trump.That ended when the Republican-controlled House of Representatives abruptly changed course and approved four bills that included funding for Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan and other US partners in the Indo-Pacific on Saturday. Biden and House Speaker Mike Johnson held intense talks about Ukraine in February and the president ...

Iran is ready to strengthen ties with Sri Lanka and other Asian countries, its president, Ebrahim Raisi, said on Wednesday, during a short visit to the island nation, the first by an Iranian president in 16 years. The two countries are set to sign five pacts, or Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) on the visit, only the second since one in April 2008 by Iran's then president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Opening a $514-million hydro power project, Raisi pledged to support development projects in the Indian Ocean island by providing technical and engineering services. "We stand fully ready to further expand bilateral relations with all Asian countries, our neighbouring countries, and sovereign and independent states," Raisi said. Sri Lanka is a sovereign, independent country that has aligned policies with Iran, enabling co-operation to create a shining future for both nations, he added. Iran agreed to build the project in 2010 but funds dried up after it released $50 million, as U...

In a display of determination and patience, a young Japanese boy, known as Tomo on social platform X, spent three weeks meticulously piecing back together a 10,000 yen bill that had been accidentally shredded into thousands of pieces, Oddity Central reported. 長らくお待たせしました 例のバラバラの1万円札の件ですが無事に全額戻って来ました！ この状態でも許してくれた日本銀行の方々ありがとうございます！ （※4枚目タップ推奨） pic.twitter.com/cRon8ujOhN — Tomo (@C8kCGa5jT0LlbuA) April 12, 2024 The story began when Tomo's father inadvertently shredded an old envelope at work, forgetting that it contained a 10,000 yen bill from months ago. Rather than despair over the mistake, the father saw an opportunity to turn it into a unique challenge for his son. He brought home the entire shredder waste basket and presented Tomo with the task: if he could reconstruct the shredded bill and exchange it for a new one at the bank, he could keep it. Japanese X user ‘Tomo’ put back together a 10,000 yen bill that had been shredded. PHOTO: X/@C8kCGa5jT0LlbuA Tomo, undaunted by the pr...

UN rights chief Volker Turk said on Tuesday he was "horrified" by the destruction of the Nasser and Al Shifa medical facilities in Gaza and reports of mass graves containing hundreds of bodies there, according to a spokesperson. Palestinian authorities reported finding hundreds of bodies in mass graves at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis this week after it was abandoned by Israeli troops. Bodies were also reported at the Al Shifa site following an Israeli special forces operation. The Israeli military said claims by Palestinian authorities that the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) had buried bodies were "baseless and unfounded". It said forces searching for Israeli hostages had examined bodies previously buried by Palestinians near Nasser hospital and had returned the bodies to where they were buried after they were examined. "The examination was conducted in a careful manner and exclusively in places where intelligence indicated the possible presence of hostages. Th...

The head of Israeli military intelligence has resigned after accepting responsibility for the failures that allowed the devastating Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7, the military said on Monday. Major General Aharon Haliva, a 38-year veteran of the military, was one of a number of senior Israeli commanders who said they had failed to foresee and prevent the deadliest attack in Israel's history. "The intelligence division under my command did not live up to the task we were entrusted with. I have carried that black day with me ever since," he said in a resignation letter released by the military. He will remain in post until a successor is named. Israeli media and commentators expect further resignations once the main military campaign in Gaza wraps up. The Oct. 7 attack badly tarnished the reputation of the Israeli military and intelligence services, previously seen as virtually unbeatable by armed Palestinian groups like Hamas. Read also: Israel will defend itself, N...

Some 16,000 US and Philippine troops kicked off the annual joint military drills on Monday in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), local media reported. WPS is the official designation by Philippines to the parts of the South China Sea that are included in the country's exclusive economic zone. The 19-day exercises, dubbed "Balikatan 2024," will involve around 5,000 Philippine and 11,000 US troops, making it the largest joint military drills between the two allies conducted in decades, local English daily Manila Times reported citing the military. A total of 14 nations, including Japan and India, will take part in the drills as observers amid mounting maritime tensions in the South China Sea. Contingents from the Australian Defence Force and the French Navy will also join the exercise as participants. Read also: China urges US to stop using Philippines as a pawn to destabilise South China Sea France will join the group sail but will only navigate on the edge of the Philippine E...

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) said Monday that it started a three-week joint military exercise named Desert Flag 9, with participation from 10 countries. "Air forces from brotherly and friendly nations have arrived in the UAE's territory to start the multinational joint exercise Desert Flag 9 for the year 2024," the UAE Ministry of Defence said in a statement. The participating countries include Turkiye, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, the United States, South Korea, France, the United Kingdom, and Germany. Read also: Flooded UAE counts cost of epic rainstorm, airport still facing disruptions The military drill, as per the ministry, aims to enhance combat efficiency and readiness, as well as facilitate the exchange of military expertise through various scenarios over the course of three weeks. The ministry shared footage on X showing the exercise's commencement, featuring aerial sorties and lectures for military personnel. from Latest World News, International News | B...

In fake videos that have gone viral online, two of India's A-lister Bollywood actors are seen criticizing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and asking people to vote for the opposition Congress party in the country's ongoing general election. In a 30-second video that shows Aamir Khan and another 41-second clip of Ranveer Singh, the two Bollywood actors purportedly say Modi failed to keep campaign promises and failed to address critical economic issues during his two terms as prime minister. Both AI-generated videos end with the Congress election symbol and slogan: "Vote for Justice, Vote for Congress". The two videos have been viewed on social media more than half a million times since last week, a Reuters review shows. Their spread underlines the potential role such AI (artificial intelligence)-generated content can play in the mammoth Indian election that started on Friday and will continue until June. AI and AI-generated fakes, or deepfakes, are being increasingly used...

At least five rockets were launched from Iraq's town of Zummar towards a US military base in northeastern Syria on Sunday, two Iraqi security sources and a US official told Reuters. The attack against US forces is the first since early February when Iranian-backed groups in Iraq stopped their attacks against US troops. It comes a day after Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani returned from a visit to the United States, where he met with President Joe Biden at the White House. A post on a Telegram group affiliated with Kataib Hezbollah said armed factions in Iraq had decided to resume attacks after a near-three month pause after seeing little progress on talks to end the US-led military coalition in the country. Another popular Telegram group close to Kataib Hezbollah, Sabreen News, later said there had been no official statement by the Iran-backed faction. A US official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said more than five rockets were fired from Iraq towards troops ...

Three Russians set a world record for parachuting from the Earth's stratosphere to the North Pole last week in a mission that also served as a test of a new prototype communications system for use in the Arctic, an organiser of the venture told Reuters. Mikhail Korniyenko, Alexander Lynnik and Denis Yefremov hurled themselves from an Ilyushin-76 plane at a height of 10,500 metres (34,450 feet) and spent about two and a half minutes in freefall before opening their chutes 1,000 metres above the ground. The descent was captured in a spectacular video. All three suffered some frostbite to their cheeks, despite wearing heated masks, said organiser Nikita Tsaplin. As they plunged at a speed of more than 300 km/h, the air temperature of around -50 Celsius (-58 Fahrenheit) felt like -70C (-94F). They landed near Russia's Barneo polar base, where Tsaplin said they were able to power up a server using diesel generators and establish a connection to a satellite. The equipment had been dr...

Major rivers, waterways and reservoirs in China's Guangdong province are threatening to unleash dangerous floods, forcing the government on Sunday to enact emergency response plans to protect more than 127 million people. Calling the situation "grim", local weather officials said sections of rivers and tributaries at the Xijiang and Beijiang river basins are hitting water levels in a rare spike that only has a one-in-50 chance of happening in any given year, state broadcaster CCTV news said on Sunday. China's water resource ministry issued an emergency advisory, CCTV reported. Guangdong officials urged departments in all localities and municipalities to begin emergency planning to avert natural disasters and promptly disperse disaster relief funds and materials to ensure affected people have food, clothing, water and somewhere to stay. The province, a major exporter and one of China's main commercial and trading centres, has seen major downpours and strong winds f...

The Israeli settlers who rampaged through the West Bank village of al-Mughayyer on April 12 came in greater numbers and carried more weapons than during any of the previous raids on the Palestinian community, residents said. Days later, torched homes and cars still bear testament to the attack, which residents said lasted several hours and that they said Israeli soldiers did nothing to stop. With few means to defend themselves in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, they fear more such assaults on the village. "We have stones and they have weapons, and the army supports the settlers," said Abdullatif Abu Alia, whose house came under attack. His roof was spattered with the blood of Palestinians wounded as they tried to repel the attackers with rocks. One of them, his relative Jihad Abu Alia, was shot and killed, he said. "Of course, the aim is to force displacement," he added. Al-Mughayyer was one of several Palestinian villages raided by settlers over several days beginn...

The Bangladesh government has closed schools for seven days as scorching heat waves sweep across the South Asian country. The Ministry of Education and Ministry of Primary and Mass Education in separate notifications announced the decision, saying that primary and secondary schools, colleges, madrasas, and technical education institutions will remain closed until April 27. The schools were scheduled to reopen on Sunday after Eidul Fitr vacation. However, they will now be closed and will open on April 27 (Sunday). The decision was made in consultation with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare considering the Meteorological Department's 72-hour heat alert starting from Friday. Read also: Heatwave threat The Bangladesh Meteorological Department on Friday issued a 72-hour heat alert after temperature crossed 41°C (105F). It predicted that the scorching heat waves are likely to continue for more days with the temperature rising further. Temperatures in the South Asian country surge...

North Korea conducted a power test for a "super-large warhead" in a strategic cruise missile and test-fired a new anti-aircraft missile this week, state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said Saturday. The Missile Administration performed the warhead test on the Hwasal-1 Ra-3 strategic cruise missile and launched its new Pyoljji-1-2, in the Yellow Sea on Friday. The report highlighted that the tests achieved a "certain goal." Read also: North Korea fires cruise missiles off east coast KCNA said both tests were routine activities aimed at advancing technology and were unrelated to the current situation. The tests follow North Korea's Feb. 3 announcement on a "cruise missile super-large warhead power test" and a test of a new anti-aircraft missile. from Latest World News, International News | Breaking World News https://ift.tt/eVIiTSk

A new Chinese high-altitude, high-speed reconnaissance unmanned air vehicle (UAV) was spotted on Friday in the air making its debut flight. The WZ-8 drone aircraft reportedly flew three times the speed of sound and can reach altitudes of approximately 30 kilometres (18.6 miles). The blog of Defence Blog magazine sighted the WZ-8 positioned beneath a Xian H-6 bomber, signalling that it requires assistance from carrier aircraft to initiate flight. Read also: China launch of relay satellite Queqiao-2 for lunar probe mission successful The WZ-8's deployment is expected to bolster China's intelligence-gathering efforts, with a focus on South Asian regions, notably Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan. The drone is also expected to enhance China's strategic capabilities in regions where conventional surveillance methods may falter. from Latest World News, International News | Breaking World News https://ift.tt/UhTpYro

Iran's foreign minister on Friday said Tehran was investigating an overnight attack on Iran, adding that so far a link to Israel had not been proven as he downplayed the strike. Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian told NBC News the drones took off from inside Iran and flew for a few hundred meters before being downed. "They are more like toys that our children play with, not drones," Amirabdollahian said. "It has not been proved to us that there is a connection between these and Israel," he said, adding that Iran was investigating the matter but that media reports were not accurate, according to Tehran's information. Iranian media and officials described a small number of explosions, which they said resulted from air defenses hitting three drones over Isfahan in central Iran in the early hours of Friday. They referred to the incident as an attack by "infiltrators", rather than by Israel, obviating the need for retaliation. Amirabdollah...

A man set himself on fire on Friday outside the New York courthouse where Donald Trump's historic hush-money trial was taking place as jury selection wrapped up, but officials said he did not appear to have been targeting Trump. The man burned for several minutes in full view of television cameras that were set up outside the courthouse, where the first-ever criminal trial of a former US president is being held. "He was on fire for quite a while," one witness, who declined to give his name, told reporters. "It was pretty horrifying." Officials said the man, who is in his late 30s, survived and was in critical condition at a hospital. Witnesses said the man pulled pamphlets out of a backpack and threw them in the air before he doused himself with a liquid and set himself on fire. One of those pamphlets included references to "evil billionaires" but portions that were visible to a Reuters witness did not mention Trump. The New York Police Department said...