World Echo

The Trump administration announced on Wednesday $11.1 billion in arms sales to Taiwan, the largest-ever US weapons package for the island, which is under increasing military pressure from China. The announcement marks the second Taiwan arms sale under US President Donald Trump’s current administration and comes as Beijing ramps up military and diplomatic pressure on Taiwan, whose government rejects China’s sovereignty claims. The proposed sales cover eight items, including HIMARS rocket systems, howitzers, Javelin anti-tank missiles, Altius loitering munition drones and spare parts for other equipment, Taiwan’s defence ministry said in a statement. “The United States continues to assist Taiwan in maintaining sufficient self-defence capabilities and in rapidly building strong deterrent power and leveraging asymmetric warfare advantages, which form the foundation for maintaining regional peace and stability,” the ministry added. The package must be approved by the US Congress, where Taiw...

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Thursday promised new laws targeting hate speech and radicalisation following the deadly attack at a Hanukkah celebration on Sydney’s Bondi Beach, as the youngest of 15 victims was laid to rest. Ten-year-old Matilda, whose middle name was Bee, was remembered as a “ray of sunshine” who loved animals and dancing. Yellow toy bees adorned her coffin, and attendees wore bee-themed stickers, toys, and balloons in her memory. The family has requested that her surname not be published. Rabbi Yehoram Ulman described the attack as “tragic, so totally cruel, unfathomable,” adding that Matilda’s murder felt personal to all. “Matilda grew up like a child would, loving what children love. She loved the outdoors, animals. She went to school, she had friends, everybody loved her,” he said. The attack on Sunday, allegedly carried out by a father-and-son duo, occurred as hundreds gathered for the Jewish festival. Authorities say the incident appears to have ...

Hydrogen has long been touted as a possible solution to the climate crisis, but it could also be a small part of the problem, a study warned on Wednesday. Advocates of hydrogen hope it can be produced and used on a large scale in transport and heavy industries in the future, providing a clean alternative to fossil fuels as it only emits water vapours. But the research published in the journal Nature found that hydrogen has played a part in rising temperatures by helping methane, a potent greenhouse gas, stay longer in the atmosphere. Emissions of hydrogen rose between 1990 and 2020, contributing a fraction of a degree — or 0.02C — to the nearly 1.5C increase in average temperatures since the pre-industrial period, the research found. "We need a deeper understanding of the global hydrogen cycle and its links to global warming to support a climate-safe and sustainable hydrogen economy," said Stanford University scientist Rob Jackson, the paper's senior author. The study, by...

Australian police charged one of the alleged Bondi Beach gunmen with murder and terrorism on Wednesday, as grief-stricken mourners buried the first of 15 people slain in the attack. Sajid Akram and his son Naveed are accused of opening fire on a Jewish festival at the famed surf beach on Sunday evening, killing 15 people in a shooting spree inspired by the Islamic State group. Naveed was charged with 15 counts of murder on Wednesday after waking from a coma, as well as committing a "terrorist act" and planting a bomb with intent to harm. Read: Bondi gunman confirmed to be of Indian origin "Police will allege in court the man engaged in conduct that caused death, serious injury and endangered life to advance a religious cause and cause fear in the community," New South Wales state police said in a statement. "Early indications point to a terrorist attack inspired by ISIS, a listed terrorist organization in Australia." Father Sajid, 50, was killed at the sce...

The interviews included executives at TD Bank, which last year paid the largest-ever fine to settle a US money laundering case. What would normally be a routine once-a-decade review has caused concerns in Ottawa and in Toronto’s financial sector, the sources said, as Canada reckons with TD's $3 billion fine. The visit also coincided with new indictments against fugitive Canadian Olympic snowboarder turned alleged cocaine kingpin Ryan Wedding. A negative report from the Financial Action Task Force, an international crime watchdog, could hurt Canada’s foreign investments and the country’s reputation as Prime Minister Mark Carney tries to boost productivity and make the Canadian economy less reliant on the United States. Canada hopes to prove it has taken enough measures since the last review in 2016 found its anti-money laundering efforts needed improvement, particularly on tracking the companies incorporated in Canada and their controlling owners. "We've had nine years to i...

Nurlela Agusfitri has nowhere to turn after losing her home and business to devastating floods that wreaked havoc on her Indonesian island of Sumatra, killing more than 1,000 people. Nearly three weeks since the massive deluge ravaged the island, 40-year-old Nurlela picked her way barefoot through uprooted trees and debris, as victims and civil society groups clamoured for international aid. The latest government figures issued on Tuesday put the death toll at 1,030 people. Another 205 remain missing in the aftermath of one of the deadliest natural disasters to hit Sumatra's resource-rich Aceh province, the scene of a killer tsunami in 2004. Nurlela said she had fled with her two children as the water lapped around her house in Pengidam village, where she used to run a kiosk selling goods like cooking oil and sugar. When she came back, there was nothing left. "I saw my house destroyed, swept away by the water. My belongings were scattered everywhere," she told AFP. "...

The United States said Tuesday it was designating Colombia's largest drug-trafficking gang, Clan del Golfo, as terrorists, just as the group engaged in talks with the country's leftist government. The move comes as President Donald Trump's administration controversially carries out strikes at sea against purported drug traffickers on boats around Venezuela. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the United States was designating Clan del Golfo as a foreign terrorist organization and specially designated global terrorists -- making any US support for them a crime. Read: Sanctions hit Venezuelan star over gang links "The United States will continue to use all available tools to protect our nation and stop the campaigns of violence and terror committed by international cartels and transnational criminal organizations," Rubio said in a statement. "We are committed to denying funding and resources to these terrorists." The Clan del Golfo has origins in righ...