/news/world/rss 九一星空无限 Keep up with the latest developments and breaking news around the globe with 九一星空无限talk ZB. Wed, 03 Dec 2025 00:55:35 Z en /news/world/trump-offers-maduro-exile-as-us-military-build-up-around-venezuela-grows/ /news/world/trump-offers-maduro-exile-as-us-military-build-up-around-venezuela-grows/ The United States has offered Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro the chance to leave his country for Russia or elsewhere, amid heightened fears of imminent US military action.  President Donald Trump sharply escalated his threats against Venezuela by warning Saturday that the country’s airspace should be considered “closed,” while the US military maintains a significant presence in the region.  Though Trump has not publicly threatened to use force against Maduro, he said in recent days that efforts to halt Venezuelan drug trafficking “by land” would begin “very soon”.  Maduro has said he views the US military presence in the Caribbean as a precursor to regime change.  “By the way, we gave Maduro an opportunity to leave. We said he could leave and go to Russia or he could go to another country,” Markwayne Mullin, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told CNN’s “State of the Union” talk show.  When asked whether Trump was planning to attack Venezuela, the senator from Oklahoma said: “No, he’s made it very clear we’re not going to put troops into Venezuela. What we’re trying to do is protect our own shores”.  Since September, US air strikes have targeted alleged drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing at least 83 people.  Washington claims the leftist Maduro heads an alleged drug cartel.  Maduro “is an illegitimate leader who has been indicted for drug trafficking in US courts and maintains control of Venezuela by a reign of terror”, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch Trump supporter, said Saturday on X.  “President Trump’s strong commitment to end this madness in Venezuela will save countless American lives and will give the beautiful people of Venezuela a new lease on life. I hear Turkey and Iran are lovely this time of year…”  The steady US military build-up has seen the world’s largest aircraft carrier deployed to Caribbean waters, while American fighter jets and bombers have repeatedly flown off the Venezuelan coast in recent days.  The New York Times reported Friday that Trump and Maduro had discussed a possible meeting, while The Wall Street Journal said Saturday that the conversation also included conditions of amnesty if Maduro were to step down.  - Agence France-Presse  Mon, 01 Dec 2025 07:49:09 Z /news/world/tearing-us-apart-from-within-israels-netanyahu-seeks-pardon-in-corruption-cases/ /news/world/tearing-us-apart-from-within-israels-netanyahu-seeks-pardon-in-corruption-cases/ Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on trial facing corruption charges, announced today he had submitted a pardon request, saying the long-running cases were tearing the country apart. United States President Donald Trump wrote to Israeli President Isaac Herzog last month, asking him to pardon Netanyahu, who has repeatedly denied wrongdoing in the proceedings. “The trial in my case has been ongoing for nearly six years, and is expected to continue for many more years,” Netanyahu said in a video statement, without admitting guilt. He explained he wanted to see the process through until acquittal, “but the security and political reality - the national interest - dictate otherwise. The state of Israel is facing enormous challenges. “The continuation of the trial is tearing us apart from within, arousing fierce divisions, intensifying rifts,” he added. The cases against Netanyahu have exposed divisions in Israeli society between his supporters and opponents. Netanyahu’s backers have dismissed the trials as politically motivated. The Prime Minister and his wife Sara are accused in one case of accepting more than US$260,000 worth of luxury goods such as cigars, jewellery and champagne from billionaires in exchange for political favours. He is also accused of attempting to negotiate more favourable coverage from two Israeli media outlets in two other cases. ‘Extraordinary request’ Netanyahu said the demand for him to testify three times a week had “tipped the scales”, calling it an “impossible requirement”. “An immediate end to the trial will greatly help to lower the flames and promote the broad reconciliation that our country so desperately needs.” Netanyahu’s statement was accompanied by a 111-page letter his lawyers submitted to Herzog which likewise did not admit culpability. Herzog’s office confirmed it had received Netanyahu’s request. “This is an extraordinary request which carries with it significant implications. After receiving all of the relevant opinions, the president will responsibly and sincerely consider the request,” the head of state’s office said in a statement. In September, Herzog indicated that he could grant Netanyahu a pardon, saying in an interview that the Prime Minister’s case “weighs heavily on Israeli society”. Netanyahu, 76, is Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, having spent more than 18 years in the post across three spells since 1996. During his current term, which started in late 2022, Netanyahu proposed far-reaching judicial reforms that critics say sought to weaken the courts. Those prompted massive protests that were only curtailed after the onset of the Gaza war in October 2023. Likud leader Netanyahu has said he will stand in the next elections, due to be held before the end of 2026. ‘Only the guilty seek pardon’ The timing of Netanyahu’s request - submitted a few weeks after Trump’s letter to Herzog - was “an orchestrated move”, according to Israeli legal expert Eli Salzberger. Herzog’s decision could take weeks, and if he grants the pardon, it is likely to be challenged in the Supreme Court, dragging out the process even further, said Salzberger, a law professor at the University of Haifa. “Netanyahu, of course, wants to come to the next elections ... without this heavy item of a trial.” According to Israeli law, however, a pardon can only be granted to a convicted criminal, and the legal precedents to grant it before the end of the trial are “very slim”. Salzberger predicted that “if the pardon request is denied, it will be an easier path for [Netanyahu] to settle on a plea bargain” - an option the Prime Minister has so far rejected. It is highly unlikely, however, that he would accept stepping down as part of a bargain. Opposition leader Yair Lapid insisted today that a pardon must be conditioned on Netanyahu’s “admission of guilt, an expression of remorse and an immediate withdrawal from political life”. Yair Golan, head of the left-wing opposition party the Democrats, said: “Only the guilty seek pardon”. However, top government ministers backed Netanyahu’s request. Defence Minister Israel Katz said a pardon would end the “deep rift that has accompanied Israeli society for nearly a decade”. Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said ending the trial saga “reflects the good of the state”. And far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich wrote on X that the PM had “been persecuted for years by a corrupt judicial system that fabricated political cases against him”. Netanyahu is the first sitting Israeli prime minister to face a corruption trial. Ex-premier Ehud Olmert was questioned by police in a corruption case but resigned in 2009 before being tried and sentenced to 27 months in prison for fraud. -Agence France-Presse Sun, 30 Nov 2025 21:27:37 Z /news/world/long-lost-rubens-masterpiece-sells-at-auction-in-france-for-55m/ /news/world/long-lost-rubens-masterpiece-sells-at-auction-in-france-for-55m/ A long-lost painting by 17th-century Flemish master Peter Paul Rubens sold at auction in France today for almost €3 million - well beyond its asking price. The work, of Jesus Christ on the cross and painted in 1613, was unearthed by auctioneer Jean-Pierre Osenat in a Paris mansion last year. Osenat, whose auction house sold the painting for €2.94m ($5.5m) against an expected €1-2m, found the painting as he was preparing the property to be sold. He told AFP earlier this year the picture was “a masterpiece” which was painted by Rubens when he was “at the height of his talent”. The auction house said in its promotional material that very little was known of the painting - only that a peer of Rubens had made an engraving of it. Later historians described this engraving and, despite having never seen the painting, catalogued its existence. It was bought by 19th-century French academic painter William-Adolphe Bouguereau and passed down through his family, according to the auction house. The painting was authenticated by German art historian Nils Buttner, known for his research on the master of the Flemish Baroque, Osenat said. Its provenance was certified through methods including X-ray imaging and pigment analysis, he added. “It’s the very beginning of Baroque painting, depicting a crucified Christ, isolated, luminous and standing out vividly against a dark and threatening sky,” he said. Although Rubens produced many works for the Church, the painting, measuring 105.5 by 72.5cm, was likely to have been created for a private collector. -Agence France-Presse Sun, 30 Nov 2025 21:20:20 Z /news/world/state-of-emergency-as-sri-lanka-cyclone-kills-153-leaves-191-missing/ /news/world/state-of-emergency-as-sri-lanka-cyclone-kills-153-leaves-191-missing/ Sri Lanka has declared a state of emergency and appealed for international assistance as the death toll from floods and mudslides triggered by Cyclone Ditwah rose to 153, with another 191 people missing. The extreme weather system has destroyed more than 20,000 homes, sending 108,000 people to state-run temporary shelters, the Disaster Management Centre (DMC) reported. A further 798,000 people required assistance after being temporarily displaced by the floods, DMC spokesman Pradeep Kodippili said. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake invoked emergency powers, granting him sweeping authority to manage the aftermath of the devastation caused by a week of torrential rain across the island. Kodippili confirmed that 153 people had been killed. Among them were 11 residents of an elder care home that was flooded in the north-central district of Kurunegala on Saturday afternoon (local time), police said. A man carries his cat across a flooded road in Wellampitiya on the outskirts of Colombo. Photo / Ishara S. Kodikara, AFP Troops from the army, navy, and air force have been deployed alongside civilian workers and volunteers to assist with the relief effort. The military rescued 69 bus passengers on Saturday, including a German tourist, who had been stranded in the Anuradhapura district after a 24-hour operation. One of the passengers, speaking from the hospital, described how navy sailors helped them climb on to the roof of a nearby house after using ropes to guide them safely through the floodwaters. “We were very lucky... while we were on the roof, part of it collapsed... three women fell into the water, but they were helped back on to the roof,” said W. M. Shantha. A helicopter had to abort an initial rescue attempt because the downdraught from its rotors threatened to blow away the roof they were perched on. They were later rescued by naval boats. Roads in the central district of Badulla remained inaccessible, leaving many villages cut off and relief supplies unable to get through. Children stand outside their partially submerged house after heavy rainfall in Wellampitiya on the outskirts of Colombo. Photo / Ishara S. Kodikara, AFP “We lost two people in our village... others are sheltering in a temple and a house that is still standing,” said Saman Kumara from the Badulla village of Maspanna, one of the worst-hit districts. “We can’t leave the village, and no one can come in because all roads are blocked by landslides. There is no food, and we are running out of clean water,” he told 九一星空无限 Centre website by telephone. No clean water Officials said about a third of the country was without electricity or running water because power lines had collapsed and water purification facilities were inundated. Internet connections were also disrupted. Cyclone Ditwah moved away from the island on Saturday and was heading towards neighbouring India. India’s Chennai Airport cancelled 54 flights because of the cyclone’s approach, with the weather department forecasting extremely heavy rainfall and strong winds over the next 48 hours. The Sri Lankan Government has issued an appeal for international aid and urged Sri Lankans abroad to make cash donations to support affected communities. India was the first to respond, sending two plane loads of relief supplies and two transport helicopters, along with a rescue crew of 22. An Indian warship, which was already in Colombo on a previously planned goodwill visit, donated its rations to assist the victims. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences over the loss of lives in Sri Lanka and said New Delhi was prepared to send more aid. Flooding in low-lying areas worsened on Saturday, prompting authorities to issue evacuation orders for residents living along the banks of the Kelani River, which flows into the Indian Ocean from Colombo. While rain had eased in most parts of the country, including the capital, the island’s north was still experiencing showers. The cyclone has become Sri Lanka’s deadliest natural disaster since 2017, when flooding and landslides claimed more than 200 lives and displaced hundreds of thousands of people. The worst flooding since the turn of the century occurred in June 2003, when 254 people were killed. - Agence France-Presse Sat, 29 Nov 2025 21:10:08 Z /news/world/australian-pm-anthony-albanese-ties-the-knot/ /news/world/australian-pm-anthony-albanese-ties-the-knot/ Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has married long-time partner Jodie Haydon in a private ceremony at his official home in Canberra. The 62-year-old took to his official Facebook and Twitter pages to share the happy news – posting a short video capturing the moment he and the woman who is now his wife walked down the aisle, hand-in-hand as friends and family showered them with cheers and white confetti. Albanese simply captioned the video with a red heart and two ring emojis. “Well done,” the blushing bride – dressed in a traditional, long-sleeved, white gown – can be heard saying to her husband as they near the end of the aisle. Albanese, looking dapper in a navy blue jacket and bow tie, is all smiles as there are loud “whoops” and cheers from guests. His adult son, Nathan Albanese, can be seen at the top of the aisle, possibly acting as best man to his dad on his big day. It is understood the couple, who announced their engagement on Valentine’s Day last year, married at the Prime Minister’s official residence at The Lodge, in Canberra. Secrecy has surrounded exactly when the pair would get married, with the only hint being that it would happen before the end of 2025, according to local media. Sat, 29 Nov 2025 20:13:08 Z /news/world/southeast-asia-floods-kill-more-than-300-in-indonesia-thailand-malaysia/ /news/world/southeast-asia-floods-kill-more-than-300-in-indonesia-thailand-malaysia/ Days of devastating flooding across Southeast Asia have killed more than 300 people in Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia, authorities said on Friday.  Heavy monsoon season rains paired with a tropical storm system inundated areas across the three countries, stranding residents on rooftops and cutting off entire communities.  Authorities in Indonesia were struggling to reach the worst-affected areas on Sumatra island, while authorities at a southern Thailand hospital brought in refrigerated trucks to store bodies after the morgue exceeded capacity.  In Indonesia’s West Sumatra province, 53-year-old Misniati described a terrifying battle against rising floodwaters to reach her husband at home.  She said that, returning from early morning prayers at a mosque, “I noticed the street was flooded.  “I tried to run back to my house to tell my husband, and the water was already reaching my waist,” she told AFP, adding that it was up to her chest by the time she reached home.  “We didn’t sleep at all last night, we just monitored the water,” said Misniati, who only uses one name.  Officials on Sumatra said flooding and landslides this week had killed at least 174 people, with nearly 80 more missing.  National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) chief Suharyanto said the toll could grow as rescuers reach isolated areas.  “There are locations that still cannot be reached ... where it is indicated that there may be human victims in those areas that are unreachable,” Suharyanto said.  North Sumatra police spokesman Ferry Walintukan said authorities were focused on “evacuation and providing assistance”, although access to some areas and communication was still cut.  “Hopefully, the weather will clear up so we can move the helicopter to the [worst-hit] locations,” he said.  In Aceh province in Sumatra’s north, receding water left behind cars buried in mud almost up to their windows. An AFP journalist saw a truck carrying timber abandoned in the mud, with no sign of the driver.  More rain is forecast for much of Sumatra island, although the intensity was expected to ease, officials said.  ‘Nothing I could do’  Among the hardest-hit areas in the region is southern Thailand, where residents of Hat Yai were left clinging to rooftops awaiting rescue by boat.  At least 145 people have been killed across Thailand’s south, government spokesman Siripong Angkasakulkiat said on Friday, as receding floodwaters allowed a clearer picture of the disaster.  Most occurred in Songkhla province, where authorities at the Songklanagarind Hospital said they had no more room for bodies and were relying on refrigerated trucks.  “The morgue has exceeded its capacity, so we need more,” Charn, a morgue official who only gave his first name, told AFP.  There has been growing public criticism of the flooding response and two local officials have been suspended over their alleged failures.  Hat Yai residents described floodwaters rising rapidly.  “The water rose to the ceiling of the second floor,” said Kamban Wongpanya, 67, who had to be rescued by boat.  Shop owner Rachane Remsringam said his general goods store Madam Yong was looted and vandalised by flood victims.  “Many kitchen products and food items were stolen, including sugar and milk,” he told AFP, saying the damage amounted to several hundreds of thousands of dollars.  AFP footage showed the shop littered with rubbish and empty shelves.  Two people were killed in Malaysia by flooding caused by heavy rain that left stretches of northern Perlis state under water.  ‘Extreme weather’  The annual monsoon season, typically between June and September, often brings heavy rains, triggering landslides and flash floods.  A tropical storm has exacerbated conditions, and the tolls in Indonesia and Thailand rank among the highest in flooding events in those countries in recent years.  Climate change has affected storm patterns, including the duration and intensity of the season, leading to heavier rainfall, flash flooding and stronger wind gusts.  A warmer climate holds more moisture, producing more intense rain events, while warmer oceans can turbocharge the strength of storm systems.  “Climate scientists have already warned that extreme weather events ... will continue to worsen as temperatures increase,” said Renard Siew, climate change adviser to the Centre for Governance and Political Studies in Malaysia.  “That is exactly what we have been seeing.”  – Kiki Tarigan, Agence France-Presse  Sat, 29 Nov 2025 02:49:49 Z /news/world/hong-kong-s-deadliest-blaze-in-decades-kills-at-least-83-scores-missing/ /news/world/hong-kong-s-deadliest-blaze-in-decades-kills-at-least-83-scores-missing/ Hong Kong authorities say the death toll from the city’s worst fire in decades has risen to at least 83, with the blaze almost entirely extinguished and rescuers scouring torched high-rise buildings for scores of people still listed as missing.  Early on Friday (local time), authorities said the fire had been contained to four of the sprawling apartment complex’s almost 2000 units, well over 24 hours after the blaze broke out in the eight-building complex.  At least 76 people were injured in the blaze, including 11 firefighters, a government spokesperson said. Scores remain missing, although the exact number has not been updated since early Thursday.  Authorities have begun investigating what sparked the disastrous blaze – the financial hub’s worst in almost 80 years – including the presence of bamboo scaffolding and plastic mesh wrapped around the structures as part of a housing-estate renovation.  Hong Kong’s anti-corruption body said it has launched a probe into renovation work at the housing complex, hours after police said they had arrested three men on suspicion of negligently leaving foam packaging at the fire site.  Residents of Wang Fuk Court, located in Hong Kong’s northern district of Tai Po, told AFP that they did not hear any fire alarms and had to go door-to-door to alert neighbours to the danger.  “The fire spread so quickly. I saw one hose trying to save several buildings, and I felt it was far too slow,” said a man surnamed Suen.  “Ringing doorbells, knocking on doors, alerting the neighbours, telling them to leave – that’s what the situation was like,” he said.  ‘Cannot describe it’  Of the 83 people confirmed dead, one was a 37-year-old firefighter and two were Indonesians working as migrant domestic workers.  It is Hong Kong’s deadliest fire since 1948, when an explosion followed by a fire killed 135 people.  Crowds distribute daily necessities after the major fire that swept through several apartment blocks at the Wang Fuk Court residential estate in Hong Kong's Tai Po district. Photo / Philip Fong, AFP  But the toll could yet rise further, with city leader John Lee saying that 279 people were unaccounted for.  Firefighters said later that they had made contact with some of those and authorities have not updated the figure since.  Police at a nearby community centre hoping to identify victims showed photos of bodies pulled from the fire to people seeking missing loved ones.  “If the faces are unrecognisable, there are personal items for people to identify,” said a woman surnamed Cheung who was looking for her relatives.  “I cannot describe my feelings. There were children ... I cannot describe it.”  A government spokesman said that of those being treated in hospital, 12 were in a critical condition, 29 were listed as serious and 17 were stable.  Deadly fires were once a regular scourge in densely populated Hong Kong, especially in poorer neighbourhoods, but improved safety measures have made them far less common.  Hong Kong authorities will immediately inspect all housing estates undergoing major works following the disaster, city leader Lee said.  The city’s number-two official Eric Chan told a news conference it was “imperative to expedite the full transition to metal scaffolding”, adding that the government would collaborate with the construction industry.  Chinese President Xi Jinping expressed condolences to the victims, according to state media, with the Hong Kong government saying Beijing would provide assistance such as drones and medicine.  City authorities said they had opened nine shelters and were organising temporary accommodation and emergency funds for those who had lost their homes.  Activities around Hong Kong’s legislative elections, set to take place on December 7, have been suspended.  Hellish scenes  Sections of charred scaffolding fell from the burning apartment blocks in hellish scenes, as flames inside apartments sometimes belched out through windows into a night sky that glowed orange.  Fire services said the wind and drifting debris likely spread the fire from one building to another.  Firefighters prepare for action after a major fire swept through several apartment blocks at the Wang Fuk Court residential estate in Hong Kong's Tai Po district. Photo / Dale De La Rey, AFP  Crowds moved by the tragedy gathered near the complex to organise aid for displaced residents and firefighters, part of a spontaneous effort in a city that has some of the world’s most densely packed and tallest residential blocks.  Volunteers distributed clothes and lunch boxes at the open-air podium of a nearby mall, while a few people gave out flyers with information about missing people.  “It’s truly touching,” said Stone Ngai, 38, one of the organisers of an impromptu aid station.  “The spirit of Hong Kong people is that when one is in trouble, everyone lends support ... It shows that Hong Kong people are full of love.”  - Holmes Chan and Tommy Wang, Agence France-Presse  Thu, 27 Nov 2025 19:41:08 Z /news/world/two-national-guard-members-shot-and-seriously-injured-near-white-house-suspect-in-custody/ /news/world/two-national-guard-members-shot-and-seriously-injured-near-white-house-suspect-in-custody/ Two National Guard members were shot and critically wounded on Wednesday morning (local time) outside the White House complex in what officials described as a targeted attack. A suspect - whom police say appears to be the only shooter - was shot and then taken in to police custody, according to authorities. The suspected shooter was identified as an Afghan national who entered the United States in 2021 and at some point lived in Washington state, according to multiple people familiar with the investigation who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive information. Two of those people said the suspect was Rahmanullah Lakanwal. Police did not comment on a potential motive. The wounded Guard members were from West Virginia, sent to DC to support US President Donald Trump’s deployment of more than 2000 National Guard troops to address what he called a “crime emergency” in the nation’s capital. A judge had recently said their presence in the city was illegal. The Guard troops were apparently ambushed, officials said, while patrolling in broad daylight in a busy downtown corridor typically packed with tourists and federal workers. “Our prayers are with these brave service members, their families, and the entire Guard community,” wrote West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey on X. Trump wrote on Truth Social that “the animal that shot the two National Guardsmen, with both being critically wounded … will pay a very steep price". “God bless our Great National Guard, and all of our Military and Law Enforcement,” he said. As news of the shootings ricocheted around the nation, Trump, who is in Florida, appeared set on increasing the military presence in the nation’s capital in response, ordering 500 more soldiers into the city - a signal that the ongoing debate about the Guard’s presence in the city would intensify. The attack began around 2.15pm, police said. National Guard members were on patrol in the area of 17th and I streets NW when a man came around a corner, raised a gun and fired at some of the troops, according to DC police executive assistant chief Jeffery Carroll. After some “back and forth”, National Guard members were able to “subdue” the suspect, Carroll said at a news conference Wednesday. The suspect was shot; police are still investigating by whom, he said. He was being treated at a local hospital, and there was no indication of other suspects, according to police. “This is a targeted shooting - one individual that appeared to target these Guardsmen,” said DC Mayor Muriel Bowser, who offered prayers to the Guard members and their families and assured her police department would thoroughly investigate the case and assist prosecutors in pursuing accountability to “the fullest extent of the law”. The Guard members remained hospitalised, in critical condition as of 6.30pm, according to the joint task force in charge of the mission. National Guard troops have been stationed around DC since August, when Trump declared a “crime emergency”, temporarily seized control of the police department and ordered the troops to the city. Since then, the Guard’s role has been largely limited to patrolling various Metro stations and engaging in beautification projects on public lands, including by picking up trash. Patrolling the Farragut North and West Metro stops, near where the shooting happened, was a frequent assignment. There were 2188 National Guard troops assigned to the DC mission as of Wednesday - 925 DC National Guard members and 1263 from other states, including 180 from West Virginia, according to the joint task force. The deployment has caused consternation among local DC officials, who have questioned the use of military troops on American soil. DC Attorney General Brian Schwalb sued the Trump administration over the deployment - and recently secured a preliminary win in US District Court, where a judge ordered the administration to cease the mission on December 11 barring intervention by a higher court. Law enforcement responds to the shooting near the White House on Wednesday. Photo / Tom Brenner, The Washington Post The Trump administration filed a notice to the court on Tuesday that they planned to appeal the ruling, and on Wednesday it filed another emergency motion seeking to prevent the mission from being halted. Schwalb denounced the attack on Wednesday. “Violence is never the answer and must be swiftly condemned by all,” he wrote in a post on X. “The National Guard are volunteers. They sign up to leave their regular jobs and families at a moment’s notice to serve their country. This is a heartbreaking day for DC and our nation. My thoughts are with the victims, their families, friends, and fellow Guardsmen.” Trump officials doubled down on the need for troops in the capital city. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters on Thursday that he had conveyed a request from Trump to send 500 additional National Guard members to the District. “This will only stiffen our resolve to ensure that we make Washington, DC safe and beautiful,” he said, speaking to reporters while visiting troops in the Dominican Republic. “President Trump will never back down.” Army spokesman Colonel David Butler said “we have received the request and will rapidly execute”. As of Wednesday evening, few details were available about the alleged shooter or his motive. The FBI was assisting with the investigation, in concert with local authorities. Bowser said she had briefed Attorney General Pam Bondi, who was speaking with Trump when the mayor called. National Guard members have been verbally threatened on numerous occasions during the DC deployment, according to court records. One night in late August, for example, troops in Northwest Washington were told by a man: “These are our streets” and “I’ll kill you”. Police later found a handgun in his waistband. Army officials had also considered that the mission could pose some risks, acknowledging in an internal memo that it “presents an opportunity for criminals, violent extremists, issue-motivated groups and lone actors to advance their interests, given the prominence of locality, and expected media coverage for the mission”. The internal documents, made public through the ongoing lawsuit, said troops would not be allowed to leave their hotels alone and were to move in “buddy teams” for their protection because of a potential “heightened threat environment”. People downtown said they heard the gunshots. “It was a tat, tat, tat sound,” said Dereje Wondime, a parking attendant at a garage at H and 17th NW, a half-block away from the shooting. He then went to the corner of 17th and H streets to look up in the direction of the sound. “There were people running, just running everywhere.” FBI Director Kash Patel speaks during a press conference after a shooting in downtown Washington, DC. Patel said two Guard troops are in critical condition. Photo / Brendan Smialowski, AFP Nko Muntangana, an employee with the World Bank, was taking her lunch break when she heard a loud boom and a man next to her yell, “Get down, get down.” She hid behind chairs outside of a coffee shop, listening as the gunshots continued. She saw glass shatter at the bus stop across the street. She saw what she described as a man with a “black tiny gun” pointed at the men in uniform. Then she saw officers in black tackle the man with the gun until he was on the sidewalk. Stacey Walters, a nurse at a doctor’s office near the Farragut West Metro stop, was on her lunch break around the time of the shooting, coming back from picking up her dry cleaning. Her Uber driver said he couldn’t get her close to her drop-off spot. They heard sirens and saw police officers and National Guard members running to the park. “I heard boom, boom. Two times,” she said. She looked at the park and saw children running, with adults urging them to flee. She heard someone calling for help. Thu, 27 Nov 2025 03:31:20 Z /news/world/bruna-ferreira-a-brazilian-immigrant-with-links-to-karoline-leavitt-detained-on-school-run/ /news/world/bruna-ferreira-a-brazilian-immigrant-with-links-to-karoline-leavitt-detained-on-school-run/ The mother of White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt’s 11-year-old nephew has been arrested for alleged civil immigration violations and is in a Louisiana detention centre fighting deportation to her native Brazil, the woman’s lawyers said. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers detained Bruna Caroline Ferreira, the former fiancee of Leavitt’s brother, Michael Leavitt, on November 12. She was arrested after being pulled over on her way to pick up her son from school, according to Ferreira’s lawyer, Todd Pomerleau. “She was arrested, was never told why, and shipped to the South,” Pomerleau said in an interview today. “She deserves to be back with her family.” A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security confirmed the arrest, saying that Ferreira has a criminal record and was previously arrested for battery. The agency did not provide evidence of any criminal offences. Pomerleau denied that she had any criminal history. “Under President [Donald] Trump and Secretary [Kristi] Noem, all individuals unlawfully present in the United States are subject to deportation,” the spokesperson said in a statement. The arrest comes as federal authorities are detaining record numbers of undocumented immigrants amid Trump’s mass deportation campaign. In her role as White House spokeswoman, Leavitt has fiercely defended the stepped-up immigration enforcement operations and referred to an “invasion” of unauthorised immigrants. She did not respond to requests for comment about the arrest of her nephew’s mother. Ferreira’s lawyers said Leavitt’s nephew had previously met Trump in the Oval Office. Members of the Leavitt family did not respond to requests for comment. The Eagle-Tribune, a newspaper in Massachusetts, posted a photo of Michael Leavitt, Ferreira and their son from 2014 after Leavitt won US$1 million in a Draft Kings Fantasy Football contest. In the photo, Ferreira wore a pink T-shirt emblazoned with the name of the family business, Leavitt Auto and Truck Sales, and her son wore a New England Patriots jersey. Jeffrey Rubin, Pomerleau’s law partner, used the term “Shakespearean irony” to describe the situation, saying a close relative of a top Administration official is now being “traumatised” by Trump’s “cruel mass-deportation campaign”. The Biden administration generally did not detain parents of young children. The current Administration provides little latitude for undocumented immigrants who are raising American children and have lived in the US for years. “The difference is the sheer volume,” Rubin said of the ramp up in arrests. “The sheer shamelessness of it.” Ferreira was driving from Massachusetts to New Hampshire to pick up her son when authorities pulled her over, Pomerleau said. She was transferred to the South Louisiana Ice Processing Centre. Federal authorities said she entered the US on a B-2 tourist visa that required her to depart by June 6, 1999. Pomerleau said he did not know what precipitated the arrest but that Ferreira was pulled over while driving. “She was apparently stopped and asked who she was,” he said. He called it shocking for her to be separated from her family. “She’s traumatised like many others, but she’s hopeful,” he said. “She believes in America. She believes in due process, and she’s going to see this case through. She doesn’t really understand why she was arrested. And I’ve been doing this over 20 years and I don’t understand it, either.” Ferreira, 33, came to the US on a visa with her family at about age 5, Pomerleau said. Her visa expired, and she obtained a work permit and protection from deportation under an Obama-administration programme called Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. Pomerleau said she is in the process of applying for a green card that could grant her legal permanent residency. She lives in Revere, a city outside of Boston, and owns her own small business and clothing line, the lawyer said. Pomerleau said Ferreira was involved in raising her son, though her relationship with Leavitt ended. He said her sister is a US citizen and her mother is a legal resident. Ferreira is “following the laws created by Congress to get a green card”, he said. “We are going to get her due process of law, and this applies to all persons on US soil, not just a select few that the Trump Administration thinks are entitled to a day in court,” he said. Immigration encounters Presidents and presidential candidates have had encounters with the US immigration system before. In 2006 and 2007, the Boston Globe reported that Mitt Romney, who would run in 2008 and 2012, hired a landscaping company that relied on undocumented workers to tend to his lawn in a Boston suburb. He eventually fired the company. Days before the 2008 election, a federal official disclosed that Zeituni Onyango, then-Democratic nominee Barack Obama’s Kenyan aunt, was living illegally in Boston public housing. Onyango, who has since died, was granted asylum in 2010. In 2011, her brother Omar Obama, also from Kenya, was arrested for drink driving in Massachusetts and referred for deportation. He was allowed to apply for a green card. In 2019, the Trump organisation was found to have had undocumented immigrants on the payroll for years at Trump’s golf clubs and other businesses in New York and New Jersey, leading to a purge of workers. - Arelis R. Hernandez contributed to this report. Thu, 27 Nov 2025 00:47:34 Z /news/world/hong-kong-housing-estate-fire-kills-at-least-36/ /news/world/hong-kong-housing-estate-fire-kills-at-least-36/ A huge fire that engulfed a Hong Kong residential estate has killed at least 36 people and left more than 200 unaccounted for in the city’s worst blaze in decades. The fire, which started on Wednesday afternoon (local time) and was still burning in the early hours of Thursday, shocked the Chinese financial hub, which has some of the world’s most densely populated and tallest apartment blocks. Huge flames first took hold on bamboo scaffolding on several apartment blocks of Wang Fuk Court, which contains nearly 2000 flats in eight towers in the northern district of Tai Po and was reportedly undergoing estate-wide maintenance. City leader John Lee on Thursday updated the death toll to 36 and said that 279 people were unaccounted for. Twenty-nine people were hospitalised, with seven in critical condition. An AFP reporter heard loud cracking sounds, possibly from the burning bamboo, and saw thick plumes of smoke billowing from the buildings as flames and ash reached high into the sky. Firefighters spray water on flames as a major fire engulfs several apartment blocks at the Wang Fuk Court residential estate in Hong Kong's Tai Po district on November 26, 2025. Photo / AFP  A 65-year-old resident surnamed Yuen said he had lived in the estate for more than four decades and that many of his neighbours were elderly and might not be mobile. “The windows were closed because of the maintenance, (some people) didn’t know there was a fire and had to be told to evacuate via phone calls by neighbours,” Yuen told AFP. “I’m devastated. There is loss of property and loss of life, and even a firefighter has died.” Bystanders look on as thick smoke and flames rise during a major fire at the Wang Fuk Court residential estate in Hong Kong's Tai Po district. Photo / Peter Parks, AFP  Nine people died at the scene and four more, including a 37-year-old firefighter, were certified dead at hospital, the Government said earlier. A police officer at a temporary shelter told AFP it was unclear how many people were unaccounted for because residents were still trickling in late into the night to report missing family members. Sections of charred scaffolding fell from the burning blocks and flames could be seen inside apartments, sometimes belching out through windows into the night sky, casting an eerie orange glow on surrounding buildings. “The temperature at the scene is very high and there are some floors where we have been unable to reach people who requested help, but we will keep trying,” said Derek Armstrong Chan, the deputy director of fire service operations. He said the fire likely spread from one building to another due to the wind and drifting debris, although he added that authorities are investigating the cause of the blaze. Thick smoke and flames rise during a major fire at the Wang Fuk Court residential estate in Hong Kong's Tai Po district. Photo / Peter Parks, AFP  Chinese President Xi Jinping expressed condolences to the victims, including “the firefighter who died in the line of duty”, according to state media. “He offered sympathies to the families of the victims and those affected by the disaster, and called for making every effort to extinguish the fire and minimise casualties and losses,” state broadcaster CCTV said. City leader Lee said he was “deeply saddened” and that all government departments were assisting residents affected by the fire. ‘Dare not leave’  A Tai Po resident surnamed So, 57, earlier told AFP near the scene that the fire was “heartbreaking”. “There’s nothing that can be done about the property. We can only hope that everyone, no matter old or young, can return safely,” So said. People look on as thick smoke and flames rise during a major fire at the Wang Fuk Court residential estate in Hong Kong's Tai Po district. Photo / Tommy Wang, AFP  An apartment owner in his 40s who did not want to give his name told AFP that the government needed to help those made homeless by the blaze. “The fire is not yet under control and I dare not leave, and I don’t know what I can do,” he said. Residents were seen being evacuated via large coaches, with local media reporting that adjacent blocks were also being cleared. Authorities set up a casualty hotline and opened two temporary shelters in nearby community centres. Fire engulfs several apartment blocks at the Wang Fuk Court residential estate in Hong Kong's Tai Po district on November 26, 2025. Photo / Yan Zhao, AFP  Sections of a nearby highway were also closed by the firefighting operation. Deadly fires were once a regular scourge in densely populated Hong Kong, especially in poorer neighbourhoods. However, safety measures have been ramped up in recent decades and such fires have become much less commonplace. People look on as thick smoke and flames rise from a major fire at Wang Fuk Court in Hong Kong's Tai Po district on November 26, 2025. Photo / Tommy Wang, AFP The Association for the Rights of Industrial Accident Victims expressed “deep concern” over scaffolding-related fires, noting similar incidents in April, May and October. Four people were hospitalised after a separate fire on the scaffolding of a building in Hong Kong’s central business district last month. A spokesperson for New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it is “monitoring the situation closely”. “At this stage we are not aware of any New Zealanders caught up in the fire.” The spokesperson said 62 New Zealanders were registered on SafeTravel as being in Hong Kong. - Holmes Chan and Tommy Wang, Agence France-Presse  Additional reporting by NZ Herald Wed, 26 Nov 2025 18:13:51 Z /news/world/luggage-lost-at-sea-in-thailand-australian-tourist-gets-compensation-after-bags-swept-away-on-ferry/ /news/world/luggage-lost-at-sea-in-thailand-australian-tourist-gets-compensation-after-bags-swept-away-on-ferry/ An Australian tourist in Thailand was shocked to find her luggage being swept out to sea due to “incompetent crew members”. Alice Zamparelli shared footage online that showed several suitcases floating away as the ferry moved through large waves. She captioned the video “lost all our luggage (because) of incompetent crew members”. It is understood that the crew did not properly secure the luggage, and the rough seas between the islands of Koh Tao and Koh Samui caused the bags to fall overboard, the Daily Mail reported. Zamparelli wrote in the comment section that she received 50,000 baht ($2727) in compensation from the ferry company. She had to be very persistent to get the payment, she said. “Some people didn’t get any compensation, and others also missed their flights home. “The ferry staff were fully convinced that a suitcase could not be worth more than 20,000 baht when in reality all our belongings would definitely have been around the 100,000 baht range for each of our suitcases,” she wrote in the video’s comment section, according to the Daily Mail. She said no one else got paid as much as she did, and the only reason she gained compensation is because “we stayed there until the very end, wearing them down”, the outlet reported. Wed, 26 Nov 2025 07:32:14 Z /news/world/us-envoy-advised-that-putin-should-flatter-trump-over-gaza-and-call-him-a-man-of-peace-report-says/ /news/world/us-envoy-advised-that-putin-should-flatter-trump-over-gaza-and-call-him-a-man-of-peace-report-says/ United States presidential envoy Steve Witkoff advised a senior Kremlin official on how President Vladimir Putin should pitch a Ukraine peace deal to Donald Trump, according to a transcript of their conversation published by Bloomberg. The phone conversation in mid-October appears to point to the origins of a Trump-endorsed 28-point proposal that was widely seen as favouring Moscow by requiring Ukraine to make significant territorial concessions and pledge not to join Nato. Bloomberg said it had produced the transcript after reviewing a recording of the conversation between Witkoff and Yuri Ushakov, Putin’s foreign policy adviser - but gave no indication of how the recording was acquired. According to the transcript, Witkoff said during the call that he believes Russia - which started the war in Ukraine by launching a full-scale invasion in February 2022 - “has always wanted a peace deal”, and that he has “the deepest respect for President Putin”. The US envoy advised Ushakov that Putin should flatter President Trump during an upcoming call over the recently concluded Gaza ceasefire and say “that you respect that he is a man of peace and you’re just, you’re really glad to have seen it happen”. Witkoff also suggested the creation of a 20-point peace plan for Ukraine “just like we did in Gaza”, and urged that Putin bring it up with Trump. “I think ... the President will give me a lot of space and discretion to get to the deal,” he told Ushakov. The phone call between Trump and Putin took place on October 16, with the US President describing it as “very productive” and subsequently questioning Kyiv’s push for Tomahawk missiles just a day before hosting Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House. Washington’s 28-point proposal to end the war has since been replaced by one taking in more of Ukraine’s interests. Witkoff will soon discuss that new version with Putin in Moscow, with Trump saying there were “only a few remaining points of disagreement”. Reacting to the publication of the transcript, White House communications director Steven Cheung said it only proved that Witkoff “talks to officials in both Russia and Ukraine nearly every day to achieve peace, which is exactly what President Trump appointed him to do”. -Agence France-Presse Wed, 26 Nov 2025 00:07:05 Z /news/world/thai-woman-brought-to-temple-for-cremation-found-alive-in-coffin/ /news/world/thai-woman-brought-to-temple-for-cremation-found-alive-in-coffin/ A woman brought for cremation at a Thai temple was found to be alive after staff heard her knocking on the coffin. The 65-year-old was brought to the Buddhist temple, Wat Rat Prakhong Tham, for cremation by her brother, the temple’s general and financial affairs manager, Pairat Soodthoop, told The Associated Press (AP). Staff at the temple on the outskirts of Bangkok heard a faint knocking before finding her to be alive, he told the outlet. “I was a bit surprised, so I asked them to open the coffin, and everyone was startled. “I saw her opening her eyes slightly and knocking on the side of the coffin. She must have been knocking for quite some time.” The woman was bedridden for two years and appeared to become unresponsive and stop breathing days before the incident, according to Soodthoop’s account of the brother’s story. Soodthoop said the brother was refused cremation for his sister as he did not have an official death certificate. He earlier brought her to a Bangkok hospital, to which she wished to donate her organs, and was rejected for the same reason, he told AP. He drove over 500km from another province to the hospital with his sister in the coffin. The temple manager told AP he was telling the brother how to get a death certificate when they heard the knocks on the coffin. She was then assessed and sent to a nearby hospital. Tue, 25 Nov 2025 07:37:51 Z /news/world/measles-outbreak-kiwi-traveller-in-quarantine-in-rarotonga/ /news/world/measles-outbreak-kiwi-traveller-in-quarantine-in-rarotonga/ A person travelling from New Zealand has been put under quarantine in the Cook Islands after being identified as a close contact of a measles case here. The passenger arrived in the island nation on Saturday local time (Sunday NZT), on a flight from New Zealand. It is not known whether or not they flew overseas knowing they were a close contact. The Cook Islands’ Ministry of Health – known as Te Marae Ora – has issued a travel advisory as a result of the traveller’s arrival on its shores. “As a precaution, the close contact is currently in quarantine on Rarotonga and will be monitored by Te Marae Ora Ministry of Health on a daily basis.” Health authorities are also working closely with the owners of the accommodation facility that the passenger is staying at. “TMO [is] in constant communication with New Zealand’s Ministry of Health for technical advice.” The passenger travelled to the Cook Islands over the weekend and is now in quarantine in Rarotonga. Cook Islands’ health authorities are now working on a targeted measles vaccination roll-out for its community – the details for which will be announced shortly, it said on its official social media page. It comes as New Zealand’s health authorities continue work to stamp out a measles outbreak here. How do you know you are a close contact? Anyone who has been at a location of interest on the same day and time as a measles-infected person is considered by NZ public health as a close contact of a person who has measles. They are told to call Healthline urgently on: 0800 611 116 “Due to your level of exposure with the virus, you are at an increased risk of becoming infected. You should follow the advice for close contacts urgently,” Te Whatu Ora Health NZ says. “Close contacts who are not immune to measles will be recommended to quarantine. This means staying at home (not going to work, school or public places).” The latest measles update from Te Whatu Ora, released on Friday, confirmed two new cases of measles – taking the number of known measles cases to 21, of whom 18 are no longer infectious. Of the 21 cases, a total of seven are from Auckland – the most number of measles cases around the country. The two new cases are linked to an existing measles case in Nelson. Auckland locations of interest The Stampede Restaurant and Bar in Papakura, South Auckland, is among the new locations of interest linked to a measles case. Image / Google However, new locations of interest – places where a measles-infected person visited – include those in Nelson, Auckland and Waikato. “[We] encourage anyone who has been at the locations below to check the page and follow the instructions listed if they are a close or casual contact – and to monitor for symptoms of measles.” The new Auckland locations of interest, listed below, include a popular restaurant and bar. Anyone who was at these locations during the times listed is considered a casual contact and should monitor for any measles symptoms until next week. BP Connect Māngere: (Sat, Nov 15), 5.30pm-6.50pm. Airport Takeaways, 741 Massey Rd, Māngere: (Sat, Nov 15), 6pm-7.15pm. Stampede Restaurant and Bar, Papakura: (Sun, Nov 16), 4.45pm-8.45pm Unichem Clevedon Road Pharmacy: (Mon, Nov 17), 2.45pm-4pm. Meanwhile, Samoa is also working hard to keep measles out of the country, as memories of the deadly measles epidemic of 2019 remain. Authorities there issued a travel advisory informing all travellers – including infants aged 12 months and above – are strongly advised to have received at least one dose of a measles-containing vaccine two weeks before or no later than 14 days prior to arrival in Samoa. Babies under the age of 12 months and pregnant women are exempt. Vaimoana Mase is the Pasifika editor for the Herald’s Talanoa section, sharing stories from the Pacific community. She won junior reporter of the year at the then Qantas Media Awards in 2010 and won the best opinion writing award at the 2023 Voyager Media Awards. Tue, 25 Nov 2025 02:32:02 Z /news/world/italian-man-dons-dead-mother-s-makeup-in-pension-collecting-ruse/ /news/world/italian-man-dons-dead-mother-s-makeup-in-pension-collecting-ruse/ An Italian man has been caught impersonating his deceased mother to collect her pension. According to Metro, the 57-year-old successfully claimed £50,000 ($116,847.50) a year in benefits after he failed to report his mother’s death in 2022. Mayor Francesco Aporti explained to Corriere della Sera the fraud was foiled when the man was made to physically visit the local registry office and renew her identification card. While the man had gone to great lengths to mimic his late mother, “Graziella Dall’Oglio’s” masculine voice quickly threw staff off. “He entered the municipal offices at a slow pace, he was wearing a suit with a long skirt, he had lipstick on his lips, nail polish on his hands, jewellery on his neck and hands, old style earrings, dark brown hair. “But that neck, on closer inspection, was a little too big and the wrinkles were also strange, the skin of the hands did not look like the one of the 85-year-old he said he was.” The suspicious civil servants quickly found they could not get in contact with the real Dall’Oglio, spurring a police investigation into the matter. “They isolated the images from the surveillance cameras and saw that the woman had arrived by car. “Alarm: the lady doesn’t have a driver’s licence. Then they carried out further investigations and, piece by piece, the picture of this troubling story began to emerge.” The mummified body of Dall’Oglio was discovered in the basement of her Lombardy home after the full ruse was exposed. It is believed her death is not suspicious at this stage, but an autopsy has been ordered and the man may face charges for concealing her body. He is still being investigated for both corpse-tampering and benefit fraud. Tue, 25 Nov 2025 01:35:49 Z /news/world/trump-faces-mounting-criticism-from-us-lawmakers-and-european-officials-over-plan/ /news/world/trump-faces-mounting-criticism-from-us-lawmakers-and-european-officials-over-plan/ United States and Ukrainian officials met in Geneva today to work through a new version of a controversial plan to end Russia’s war in Ukraine before a Thanksgiving deadline imposed by the US, while President Donald Trump faced mounting criticism from lawmakers and his own base over the proposal. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is leading the US delegation, sought to downplay widespread claims that the plan was written by the Russian side. The leaked draft ignores many of Kyiv’s red lines: it would force Ukraine to shrink its army, give up land that Russia hasn’t managed to grab in nearly four years of war and would bar the presence of Nato troops, among other concessions. Rubio told reporters in Switzerland that the initial plan was an early document that had received “input from both sides”. The talks with Ukrainians were the most positive so far, Rubio said, but he declined to describe more details, citing the ongoing nature of negotiations. “This is a living, breathing document. Every day, with input, it changes,” he said. The top US diplomat also de-emphasised the deadline, suggesting more negotiations could be ahead. More talks are planned for this week, but details have not been released. “The deadline is that we want to get this down as soon as possible,” Rubio said. “The important point today is that we have made substantial progress.” European officials, including those from France and Germany, have been working on a counter-proposal, according to a document obtained by the Washington Post, which would begin territorial negotiations at the front line – not beyond it – and give Ukraine “robust, legally binding security guarantees, including from the US”. Rubio said he met with national security advisers of key European partners in Geneva, adding that they would have heard the “incredible amount of positivity from both the Ukrainian and American side about the progress we’ve made today”. “We are co-ordinating our positions, and it is important that there is dialogue, that diplomacy has been reinvigorated,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on social media. He said he had just spoken to French President Emmanuel Macron, adding that Ukraine was grateful to Trump for his efforts and for US leadership. As the talks were ongoing, Trump took to social media to express his frustration over the delay in ending the war – something he claimed on the campaign trail he could do in “one day” and would accomplish before even returning to office. Trump said on Truth Social that he “inherited” the war, that Ukraine’s leaders were not sufficiently grateful for US assistance, and that European countries were still buying oil from Russia. He did not criticise Russian President Vladimir Putin in the message. Ukraine’s ambassador to the United States, Olha Stefanishyna, told CBS that a separate framework document outlines potential US security guarantees to Ukraine, including pledges that Washington and its allies would assist if Ukraine faces aggression from Russian territory. But, sounding sceptical, she noted that the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 began from Belarus’ territory, and that security pledges Kyiv received in 1994 after giving up nuclear weapons stationed on its territory were not honoured. “We are a very complicated partner for [the] US because we also had a lot of different experiences,” Stefanishyna said. Ukraine was uninvolved in the drafting of the document that would dictate its future, which was delivered in Kyiv on Friday by a US military delegation led by Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll. US lawmakers are worried the proposed plan would further destabilise global security by rewarding Russia after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine – raising questions over why Trump needs the deal signed so urgently, even if it comes at the expense of American and Ukrainian interests. “Some people better get fired on Monday for the gross buffoonery we just witnessed over the last four days,” Representative Don Bacon (R-Nebraska) posted on X yesterday. “This hurt our country and undermined our alliances and encouraged our adversaries.” A group of senators told reporters at a weekend security conference in Canada that they had spoken with Rubio by phone and learned that the 28-point plan was not, in fact, spearheaded by the US. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) said that according to Rubio, the plan “is not the Administration’s position. It is essentially the wish list of the Russians.” Rubio “made it very clear to us that we are the recipients of a proposal that was delivered to one of our representatives”, Senator Mike Rounds (R-South Dakota) said during the Halifax International Security Forum. “It is not our recommendation. It is not our peace plan.” Rubio denied the senators’ statements hours later, writing on X: “The peace proposal was authored by the US. It is offered as a strong framework for ongoing negotiations.” State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott called the senators’ comments “blatantly false”. In separate statements, Pigott and the White House said the plan “was authored by the US, with input from both the Russians and Ukrainians”. The exchange marks another confusing development surrounding the plan that leaked last week and immediately sparked alarm over its origins on both sides of the Atlantic. The White House has said the plan was drafted by Steve Witkoff and Kirill Dmitriev, the US and Russian special envoys. Representative Michael McCaul (R-Texas) said today he had spoken with Rubio, along with several senators, and that he was told the plan was “a US document with input from Ukraine and from Russia”, though he acknowledged that it appeared the “inception” of the plan came from Witkoff and Dmitriev. McCaul, a long-serving Republican who has clashed with the President on foreign policy issues, said on ABC that the negotiations would be ongoing and that he believed the US was flexible on its deadlines. “About 80% of this deal, I think, they’re going to find agreement with as they go to Geneva,” McCaul added. “The problem is going to be the 20% of really tough items to negotiate.” The White House and State Department did not respond to requests for additional comment. Senator Mark Warner (Democrat-Virginia) sharply criticised the plan, telling ABC that “Neville Chamberlain’s giving in to Hitler [before] World War II looks strong in comparison” and that the plan resembles a set of “Russian talking points”. The approach was backfiring on the Trump Administration, Warner added. “The President is seeing this one-sided plan kind of blow up in his face with push-back from the Ukrainians, from the Europeans, from members of Congress of his own party,” Warner said, adding that he expected Trump would change his deadline. A US official, who spoke like others on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, said that the President hasn’t been as involved in the specifics. “You tell him, ‘I’m going to try to get a deal.’ He will say, ‘Great, go see what you can do.’ And that’s the level of detail he has,” the official said. “It’s been absolute chaos all day because even different parts of the White House don’t know what’s going on. It’s embarrassing.” A European official said it seemed Washington was “almost taken by surprise on the whole thing”. “Usually when there’s more to it, it feels different … Our feeling has been, DC has been taken by surprise by Witkoff’s actions,” the official said. Defenders of the Trump Administration’s dealmaking efforts note that time is not on Ukraine’s side and say an agreement will protect Ukrainian sovereignty from Russia’s larger army, which continues to seize more territory from Kyiv. “People trying to tear this agreement down just want the war to continue,” said Dan Caldwell, a former Pentagon official who worked on Ukraine issues under the Trump Administration. “There is this persistent delusion that the US has a massive stockpile of munitions that we can dump in Ukraine, that there’s a magic sanctions package that will force the Russians to end the war and that Ukraine has the capacity to continue this war until they achieve total victory. “That’s just not the case so the constructive thing to do is consider some of the realistic proposals US officials are putting forward,” he said. Speaking with reporters on Sunday Trump said Zelenskyy had until Thanksgiving to agree to the plan or “continue to fight his little heart out” – only without American aid. But privately, the Trump Administration was “not treating this plan as immovable”, said a person familiar with the negotiations, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to speak candidly. It has been “communicated to the Ukrainians that there is some room for negotiations”. Still, Washington “also made clear that they want an agreement soon” and “the threat to suspend US assistance is dead serious”, the official said. Questions remain over whether Trump’s team can reach an agreement with Ukrainian and European partners before the US-imposed deadline arrives. Once again, Ukraine must try to convince an unpredictable White House that it’s Russia that must make concessions to its maximalist demands – not Ukraine. “Any appeasement of Russia as the aggressor, any attempts at putting pressure on Ukraine as the victim of this aggression, is morally reprehensible and an outrage against human decency,” more than four dozen European and Ukrainian leaders wrote in a letter sent to Trump over the weekend. “To bow before Russia is to abandon shared values and plunge the free world into anarchy and chaos. Strong American leadership is the only hope.” They added, a “cowed America can never be great again. A cowed America can never be first”. - John Hudson, Aaron Schaffer, Natalie Allison, Warren Strobel and Siobhan O’Grady contributed to this report. Mon, 24 Nov 2025 00:46:13 Z /news/world/fifty-children-escape-after-kidnapping-many-still-missing/ /news/world/fifty-children-escape-after-kidnapping-many-still-missing/ At least 50 of the more than 300 children snatched by gunmen from a Catholic school in Nigeria have escaped their captors, a Christian group said today. Separately, the country’s leader announced the rescue of 38 worshippers seized in a different attack last week. Gunmen at the weekend raided St Mary’s co-education school in Niger state, taking 303 children and 12 teachers in one of the largest mass kidnappings in Nigeria. The abduction came days after gunmen stormed a secondary school in neighbouring Kebbi state, taking 25 girls last week. Gunmen also raided a church in Kwara state in an attack that was recorded and broadcast online, showing the service being interrupted by gunfire, worshippers fleeing and screaming being heard outside. Two people were killed in that attack, but the 38 worshippers who were abducted were later rescued by security forces, President Bola Tinubu said today on his X account. Separately, the Christian Association of Nigeria said in a statement that “we have received some good news as 50 (St Mary’s) pupils escaped and have reunited with their parents”. The number of boys and girls - aged between 8 and 18 years - kidnapped from St Mary’s is almost half of the school’s student population of more than 600. The Nigerian Government has not commented on the number of children taken from the school, but Tinubu said in his X posting that “51 out of the missing” Catholic school students “have been recovered”. He vowed: “I will not relent and under my watch, we will secure this nation and protect our people”. Mounting security fears in Africa’s most populous nation have sparked a wave of school closures across some parts of the country. Since Islamist militants kidnapped nearly 300 schoolgirls from Chibok town more than a decade ago, Nigeria has struggled with a spate of mass kidnappings, mostly carried out by criminal gangs looking for ransom payments. Armed gangs often attack remote boarding schools where they know a lack of security presence will make for soft targets. Most victims are released after negotiations. ‘Deep sorrow’ Pope Leo XIV made “a heartfelt appeal for the immediate release of the hostages”. He expressed his “deep sorrow, especially for the many young boys and girls kidnapped and for their anguished families”, at the end of the Angelus prayer. The two abduction operations and the church attack came as United States President Donald Trump threatened military action over what he called the persecution of Christians by radical Islamists in Nigeria. When asked about the recent attacks and kidnappings on Fox 九一星空无限 Radio, Trump said “what’s happening in Nigeria is a disgrace”. Nearly a week after their capture, two dozen schoolgirls in neighbouring Kebbi state are still missing. Security forces have identified locations where they are thought to be held, according to a security source. Only one of the 25 girls managed to escape early in the week. Meanwhile, 13 women and girls aged between 16 and 23 were kidnapped in Nigeria’s northeastern Borno state while walking home from their farms at the weekend, a local official told AFP. One was later freed after she said she was married. “They are all Muslim,” said Abubakar Mazhinyi, chairman of the Askira-Uba district, adding the area where they were taken from is 20km from Sambisa Forest, a game reserve turned jihadist enclave in Borno state. Beyond the kidnapping gangs, Nigeria is also dealing with a deadly Islamist insurgency in the northeast of the country, where the violence has killed more than 40,000 people and displaced around two million since it erupted in 2019. Aisha Yesufu, co-founder of the #BringBackOurGirls group movement which led the campaign for the release of the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram 11 years ago, said kidnappings continues because “authorities are doing nothing” to curb the crisis. -Agence France-Presse Sun, 23 Nov 2025 21:34:13 Z /news/world/would-you-want-to-live-next-to-this-a-three-storey-home-addition-in-virginia-has-divided-neighbours/ /news/world/would-you-want-to-live-next-to-this-a-three-storey-home-addition-in-virginia-has-divided-neighbours/ No one on Marble Lane wanted it to get to this point, certainly not Courtney Leonard. But each day in October, she watched as construction started on an addition to her neighbour’s home in Greenbriar in Fairfax, Virginia. One storey. Two. Then three. For Mike Nguyen, the addition was a way to create more space for his elderly parents, who live with him and their two small children. “We decided that if my parents stay here with us, and the kids growing up, we want to add some square footage to accommodate what we want,” he said. Soon the hulking construction - 8m-high and 18m-long - was throwing Leonard’s home into shadows for half the day. She complained to county authorities, asking how the project was approved. “I’ve seen lots of other people in the neighbourhood do additions, so it didn’t even cross my mind that it would be anything out of the ordinary,” said Leonard, 45, a marketing executive who has lived at the home with her husband and daughter for more than a decade. “But not this. Would you want to live next to this?” Leonard’s first complaint to the county kicked off a neighbourhood dispute that has ballooned into a public spectacle. The attention fixed on Marble Lane has led to news stories and action from Fairfax leaders, who admit the situation highlights a blind spot in the building codes of one of the Washington region’s biggest counties. That attention has also driven a split into the leafy neighbourhood of mostly one- and two-storey homes, and the bad feelings have spilled out into Facebook screeds, awkward encounters and in-person harassment. “It’s just horrible,” Leonard said, referring to the public response. She stood in her front yard as a stranger pulled up to take a cellphone photo of the construction. “I cannot believe how it has taken off like this.” “I wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy,” Nguyen said from the footpath outside his house, the sounds of children at recess filtering in from the nearby primary school. The conflict Nguyen, 46, was just trying to be a good son, father and neighbour, he said. Born in Vietnam, he’s owned the home next to Leonard’s for over two decades. Both residents say they had a friendly relationship for years. Nguyen considered building the addition last year to accommodate three generations under one roof. He said that in Asian cultures, parents live with their grown children. “I don’t want to have to send them to a nursing home,” he said. Nguyen said he hired professionals to design the addition and submitted the proper paperwork to the county. Officials green-lit the construction. “We did exactly what the county allowed us to do,” he said. That was what Leonard learned when she read the county’s reply to her initial complaint in October. In an email dated October 16 from an official at Fairfax County’s Land Development Services, Leonard was informed that the work “appears consistent with the approved plans and within regulatory requirements”. According to those requirements, any new construction had to be 2.5m away from Leonard’s property line and remain under 10.5m in height. The county official wrote that a recent follow-up inspection confirmed compliance just days earlier. “I have to express my deep frustration and disappointment with this situation. The County has approved an addition that directly and negatively impacts my property,” Leonard wrote back. “I’m expected to simply accept a decision that so clearly diminishes my property and quality of life - with the County’s apparent permission.” Leonard was most concerned about her home value and said that a real estate agent had told her in passing that it might have depreciated by US$300,000 ($535,480). She estimated that her home’s previous value was in the US$800,000s. Frustrated, Leonard went to the media, appearing in a Fox 5 spot a week ago. The response quickly triggered follow-up pieces and drive-time FM radio discussions about the house. People started driving by to gawk. It also caught the attention of Fairfax Supervisor Pat Herrity, who represents the Greenbriar area. “We see pop-ups like this all the time in our older neighbourhoods,” Herrity said, referring to construction that is tall but on a narrow plot. “People buy and then they expand. Then they expand more.” As the code stands, there is no rule keeping the height and width of construction within a specific required ratio, Herrity said. That blind spot has led to construction that looms over a neighbour’s property. “That’s the problem we have to address,” she said. A stall in construction At last week’s board meeting, Herrity and two other supervisors introduced a motion to review the height standards for possible changes. The motion passed easily. “That will start a process,” Herrity said. “But that could be a long process.” The county also followed up with another inspection. This time, they determined Nguyen’s construction in fact was in violation of the code. Rather than the required 2.5m, the inspectors found the construction was 2.3m from Leonard’s property line. Standing in Leonard’s backyard, Nguyen pointed out how the mistake was made: the fence line, not the property line, was used as the basis for the construction. There were 15.2cm between the two spots. That has forced a pause on construction as Nguyen discusses next steps with the county. He said the addition has already cost more than US$400,000. His likely option is to go to the board of zoning appeals for a variance, which could allow building to continue despite the code violation. Leonard said she never wanted the situation to explode in such a public way. “My family is non-confrontational, I’m non-confrontational. I don’t love this,” she said in her driveway, pointing up at the wall now looming above. “But you can’t really put a cost on how much sunlight we’ve lost now.” Nearby, Nguyen spoke with a man conducting a follow-up survey of the property line. His wife and 3-year-old daughter played in the front yard. He’s been unable to sleep since the situation went public and said he never wanted to incur the anger of his neighbours, much less strangers. This week he was out the front with his daughter when a stranger pulled up to the house. The window rolled down. The driver started swearing and telling Nguyen the house was horrible. “I froze because you can’t expect something like that,” he said. “My wife was like, ‘You should have taken your phone out to record it.’ I told her, ‘Baby, I can’t think that fast.’ I was frozen. I’m old enough to take it, but in front of my kid?” He looked over at his daughter. Nguyen installed cameras on the house this week just to be safe. Sun, 23 Nov 2025 02:29:14 Z /news/world/ukraine-us-to-hold-geneva-talks-as-trump-says-plan-to-end-war-is-not-a-final-offer/ /news/world/ukraine-us-to-hold-geneva-talks-as-trump-says-plan-to-end-war-is-not-a-final-offer/ Ukrainian and United States envoys will meet in Switzerland along with European security chiefs to discuss Washington’s plan for ending the war with Russia, officials said. US President Donald Trump has given Ukraine less than a week to approve the plan to end the nearly four-year conflict, but Kyiv is seeking to amend a draft that accepts some of Moscow’s hardline demands. Trump’s 28-point plan would require the invaded country to cede territory, cut its Army, and pledge never to join Nato. Ukraine’s European allies, who were not included in drafting the agreement, said the plan requires “additional work” as they scrambled at the G20 summit in South Africa to come up with a counter-offer to beef up Kyiv’s positions. Trump said that his plan to end the war was not his final offer, and that “one way or the other”, he hoped the fighting would stop. When asked by reporters if it was his “final offer to Ukraine”, Trump replied: “No”. “We’re trying to get it ended. One way or the other, we have to get it ended,” he said. Trump said of Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy: “He’ll have to like it, and if he doesn’t like it, then you know, they should just keep fighting. At some point he’s going to have to accept something.” A US official told AFP that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and diplomatic envoy Steve Witkoff were scheduled to arrive in Geneva for the talks, and that US Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll had already arrived there after meeting Zelenskyy in Kyiv. “We will have an informal pre-meeting tonight for dinner” with Ukrainian delegates, the US official said. Russian ‘representatives’ expected Zelenskyy said “consultations will take place with partners regarding the steps needed to end the war”, after issuing a decree naming Ukraine’s delegation for the talks, led by his top aide Andriy Yermak. “Our representatives know how to defend Ukraine’s national interests and what is necessary to prevent Russia from launching a third invasion.” Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the senior officials would meet in Geneva “to take things further forward”, stressing the importance of solid “security guarantees” for Ukraine under any settlement. “The focus very much now is on Geneva tomorrow and whether we can make progress tomorrow morning,” he told the media on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Johannesburg. Zelenskyy’s decree said the negotiations would include “representatives of the Russian Federation”. There was no immediate confirmation from Russia whether it would join the talks. Starmer said his national security adviser Jonathan Powell would be in Geneva on Sunday. Italian diplomatic sources said their country was sending the prime minister’s national security advisor Fabrizio Saggio. Security officials from France and Germany will also attend, sources at the G20 summit said. West says plan needs more ‘work’ Western leaders at the G20 summit said that the US plan was “a basis which will require additional work”. “We are clear on the principle that borders must not be changed by force,” the leaders of key European countries as well as Canada and Japan said in a joint statement. “We are also concerned by the proposed limitations on Ukraine’s armed forces, which would leave Ukraine vulnerable to future attack.” Zelensky said yesterday in an address to the nation that Ukraine faces one of the most challenging moments in its history, adding that he would propose “alternatives” to Trump’s proposal. “The pressure on Ukraine is one of the hardest. Ukraine may face a very difficult choice: either the loss of dignity or the risk of losing a key partner,” Zelenskyy said in his address, referring to a possible break with Washington. Russian President Vladimir Putin said the blueprint could “lay the foundation” for a final peace settlement but threatened more land seizures if Ukraine walked away from negotiations. Better equipped and larger in numbers, the Russian Army is slowly but steadily gaining ground across the lengthy front line. Ukrainians are facing one of the toughest winters since the war began, after Moscow carried out a brutal bombing campaign against energy infrastructure. French President Emmanuel Macron told reporters on the sidelines of the G20 that the 30 countries in the “coalition of the willing” supporting Kyiv would hold a video call on Tuesday local time after the Geneva talks. -Agence France-Presse Sat, 22 Nov 2025 20:26:38 Z /news/world/more-than-50-dead-dozens-missing-after-week-of-severe-vietnam-flooding/ /news/world/more-than-50-dead-dozens-missing-after-week-of-severe-vietnam-flooding/ Rescuers raced to find more than a dozen people still missing on Saturday after a week of heavy flooding in Vietnam, where authorities said at least 55 people have died. Relentless rain has lashed south-central Vietnam since late October and popular holiday destinations have been hit by several rounds of flooding. Whole city blocks were inundated this week in coastal Nha Trang, while deadly landslides struck highland passes around the Da Lat tourist hub. At least 55 people have been killed across six provinces since Sunday, while the search continues for 13 others, the environment ministry said in a statement released on Saturday. Mountainous Dak Lak province was the hardest hit, with more than two dozen fatalities, it said. Rescuers were still plucking people from treetops and the roofs of homes as floodwaters receded there on Friday, state media reported. Multiple highways remained impassable Saturday and 300,000 people were without power, after a blackout that initially affected more than a million, the environment ministry added. Natural disasters have left 279 people dead or missing in Vietnam and caused more than US$2 billion ($3.5b) in damage between January and October, according to the national statistics office. The Southeast Asian nation is prone to heavy rain between June and September, but scientists have identified a pattern of human-driven climate change making extreme weather more frequent and destructive. - Agence France-Presse Sat, 22 Nov 2025 19:56:20 Z /news/world/thousands-rally-in-france-after-murder-linked-to-anti-drug-activism-in-marseille/ /news/world/thousands-rally-in-france-after-murder-linked-to-anti-drug-activism-in-marseille/ Thousands of people gathered in Marseille to honour the brother of an anti-drug activist murdered in France’s second largest city whose death sparked nationwide calls to confront drug crime. Demonstrators chanted “Justice for Mehdi” before observing a minute of silence at the roundabout where the 20-year-old Mehdi Kessaci was shot dead by a gunman in his parked car on November 13. Investigations are ongoing but authorities consider the murder to be a “warning crime” linked to the anti-drug activism of his brother Amine Kessaci, 22, who was welcomed by cheers as he joined the crowd. Amine Kessaci is now living under police protection and the gathering was marked by a heavy police presence in the southern port city hard hit by drug crime. The young anti-drug and environmental activist threw himself into campaigning after his half-brother Brahim was murdered in a drug-trafficking feud in 2020. “I demand justice for Mehdi. I demand justice for Brahim, my other murdered brother. I demand justice for all the victims. I demand safety for my family,” said Amine, whose presence at the gathering wasn’t confirmed until the last moment due to security concerns. A former lawmaker has called for him to be awarded France’s highest order of merit, the Legion of Honour, but the activist said it was “the mothers of the neighbourhoods [hit by drug crime] who deserve a decoration for their courage, their dignity, their daily struggle”. “For years we have been raising the alarm, we have been speaking out because we know that silence kills. Each retreat by the institutions has facilitated the advance of drug-trafficking,” he said via a recorded message played to the crowd. Marseille has been struggling to battle drug crime, with more than a dozen people killed since the start of the year in turf wars and other disputes linked to cocaine and cannabis dealing. “Fear cannot beat us,” said Marseille Mayor Benoit Payan. “We must resist and fight them, wage a war against those who kill for money,” he added, calling for unity and refusing to let Marseille be labelled a “narco-city”. White flowers Politicians from across the political spectrum joined the gathering, Mehdi’s death having sparked a nationwide focus on drug crime, with initiatives also planned in some 25 other towns and cities. Many laid white flowers at the spot where Mehdi, who aspired to become a police officer, was killed. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez has called the crime a “turning point” and President Emmanuel Macron urged France to step up its actions and use the same approach it has used against “terrorism”. While drug-related homicides often make front-page news in Marseille, Mehdi Kessaci’s killing stunned the city. Activists were among the crowd of more than 6200 people, where some carried white flowers and wore white shirts. For 72-year-old activist Anne-Marie Tagawa, the gathering would be a moment of “reflection, but also for us to say we are not okay with what is happening”. She said disadvantaged neighbourhoods were “fertile ground that has been abandoned by institutions, the state”, leaving them those who would turn them into places where crime thrives and establish “systems of violence”. The bereaved mother of Mehdi and Brahim, Ouassila Benhamdi, joined the gathering, dressed entirely in white. “My heart is torn apart. I am inconsolable. No mother wants to see her children die before her,” she said in a speech, which someone finished reading for her as she was overcome by grief. “I am asking the Government to grasp the gravity of everything that is happening,” she added. “This must stop, for all the families affected by this scourge.” -Agence France-Presse Sat, 22 Nov 2025 19:37:19 Z /news/world/europe-pushes-back-on-trump-peace-plan-for-ukraine/ /news/world/europe-pushes-back-on-trump-peace-plan-for-ukraine/ European leaders and the UN are calling for greater involvement from Kyiv and its allies as they guardedly pushed back against a proposed US plan to end the war in Ukraine largely on Russia’s terms.  The US 28-point plan, backed by President Donald Trump, calls for major concessions by Kyiv, including giving up a swathe of eastern territory and slashing its military.  Russian President Vladimir Putin said the plan could “lay the foundation” for a Ukraine peace deal, confirming for the first time that Moscow had received a copy from the US.  Putin threatened to seize more territory if Kyiv rejects the proposal, saying that the claimed recent capture of Ukrainian city Kupiansk “will inevitably be repeated in other key areas of the front line”.  United States  Trump indicated Friday (local time) that he had set a deadline of November 27 for Ukraine to accept his administration’s plan aimed at ending its war with Russia.  “I’ve had a lot of deadlines, but if things are working well, you tend to extend the deadlines. But Thursday is, we think, an appropriate time,” Trump said in an interview with Fox Radio.  Under the plan, Ukraine would give up a swathe of eastern territory to Russia and slash the size of its army, according to a draft obtained by AFP.  Kyiv would also pledge never to join Nato, and would not get the Western peacekeepers it has called for, although European warplanes would be stationed in Poland to protect Ukraine.  Trump stated that if the fighting kept going on, the Ukrainians would still end up losing the territories they would have to cede to Russia if the plan were validated.  “Say what you want, they were very brave,” he said about Ukrainian forces fighting the Russians.  Putin “is not looking for more war,” the Republican leader responded when asked about the possibility of Russia attacking other countries in Europe after it invaded Ukraine in February 2022.  Trump also stated that Putin was “taking punishment” for the conflict going on for nearly four years now when, the US president added, it “was supposed to be a one-day war”.  Ukraine  Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pushed back on the American plan, saying he would not “betray” his country over the 28-point document that is being seen in Kyiv as very favorable to the Kremlin.  He largely rejected the proposals, saying “we did not betray Ukraine [at the start of the war in 2022], we will not do so now”.  But he warned that “Ukraine may face a very difficult choice: either the loss of dignity or the risk of losing a key partner”.  He said he would propose alternatives.  France, Germany, Britain  France’s President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer called for a solution that “fully” involves Kyiv.  In a phone call with Zelenskyy, they said “all decisions with implications for the interests of Europe and Nato require the joint support and consensus of European partners and Nato allies”.  EU  EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said any workable plan “needs Ukrainians and Europeans on board”.  “We have to understand that in this war, there is one aggressor and one victim.  “So we haven’t heard of any concessions on the Russian side.”  European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen insisted on Friday (local time) that Ukraine must have a central role in deciding its future and said European leaders would hold discussions on a US peace plan on Saturday.  “We are clear that there should be nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine,” she said on X after talks with Zelenskyy.  She added that “as next steps, European leaders will meet tomorrow in the margins of G20 and then in Angola at the EU-AU meeting” next week. Several European leaders will be at the G20 summit in Johannesburg this weekend.  Italy  Italy Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni spoke with Merz, after which her office said they “reaffirmed the ultimate goal of achieving a just and lasting peace, in the interest of all of Europe,” adding that “other elements of the plan were deemed worthy of further exploration”.  Hungary  Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Friday said that the coming weeks will be key to stop the war.  “This peace plan includes propositions on which the Russians and the Americans have already held preliminary discussions,” Orban said.  “I think we’re at a decisive moment, the next two or three weeks will be crucial.”  UN  UN chief Antonio Guterres said any peace solution should “abide by the resolutions of the General Assembly that clearly indicated that the territorial integrity of Ukraine...must be respected”.  - Updated  - Agence France-Presse  Fri, 21 Nov 2025 19:36:35 Z /news/world/us-coast-guard-will-no-longer-classify-swastikas-and-nooses-as-hate-symbols/ /news/world/us-coast-guard-will-no-longer-classify-swastikas-and-nooses-as-hate-symbols/ The US Coast Guard will no longer classify the swastika – an emblem of fascism and white supremacy inextricably linked to the murder of millions of Jews and the deaths of more than 400,000 US troops who died fighting in World War II – as a hate symbol, according to a new policy that takes effect next month. Instead, the Coast Guard will classify the Nazi-era insignia as “potentially divisive” under its new guidelines. The policy, set to take effect on December 15, similarly downgrades the classification of nooses and the Confederate flag, though display of the latter remains banned, according to documents reviewed by the Washington Post. Certain historical displays or artwork where the Confederate flag is a minor element are still permissible, according to the policy. Though the Coast Guard is not part of the Defence Department, the service has been reworking its policies to align with the Trump administration’s changing tolerances for hazing and harassment within the US military. In September, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth directed a review and overhaul of those policies, calling the military’s existing standards “overly broad” and saying they jeopardise troops’ combat readiness. The Coast Guard declined to provide comment before publication of this report. Subsequent to publication, Coast Guard spokeswoman Jennifer Plozai said by phone that the service disagreed with the Post’s reporting but intended to look into the policy changes. “We will be reviewing the language,” Plozai said. US Coast Guard Admiral Kevin Lunday. Photo / Getty Images In a statement attributed to Admiral Kevin Lunday, the service’s acting commandant, the Coast Guard declined to address why its new policy no longer characterises swastikas, nooses and the Confederate flag as hate symbols. Lunday affirmed, though, that such symbols “and other extremist or racist imagery violate our core values and are treated with the seriousness they warrant under current policy”. “Any display, use or promotion of such symbols, as always, will be thoroughly investigated and severely punished,” Lunday’s statement said. An excerpt from a November 2025 US Coast Guard policy document (page 36) reads: “Potentially divisive symbols and flags include, but are not limited to, the following: a noose, a swastika, and any symbols or flags co-opted or adopted by hate-based groups as representations of supremacy, racial or religious intolerance, or other bias.” An excerpt from February 2023 US Coast Guard policy document (page 21) reads: “The following is a non-exhaustive list of symbols whose display, presentation, creation, or depiction would constitute a potential hate incident: a noose, a swastika, supremacist symbols, Confederate symbols or flags, and anti-Semitic symbols. The display of these types of symbols constitutes a potential hate incident because hate based groups have co-opted or adopted them as symbols of supremacy, racial or religious intolerance, or other bias.” A Coast Guard official who had seen the new wording called the policy changes chilling. “We don’t deserve the trust of the nation if we’re unclear about the divisiveness of swastikas,” the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of fear of reprisal. The Coast Guard is a military service branch under the Department of Homeland Security and the purview of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L Noem. But the service, which has been central to President Donald Trump’s increased focus on homeland defence, has been swept up like the others in the administration’s rash of leadership firings and broader targeting of military culture. Former Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Linda Fagan, the first woman to lead a branch of the US military, was fired on Trump’s first day in office for what administration officials said then was her focus on diversity initiatives and her handling of sexual assault investigations. Within days, Lunday ordered the suspension of the Coast Guard’s hazing and harassment policy that, among its other guidance, said explicitly that the swastika was among a “list of symbols whose display, presentation, creation, or depiction would constitute a potential hate incident”. Nooses and the Confederate flag also matched that description under the previous policy. Lunday was later nominated by Trump to become the service’s commandant. His Senate confirmation hearing was on Thursday and he was due to meet with lawmakers today. It is unclear when the Senate Commerce, Transportation and Science Committee, which has jurisdiction over the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), may vote to advance Lunday’s nomination. The new policy drew concern from Senator Jacky Rosen (D-Nevada), a Commerce Committee member who called on the Trump administration to reverse the changes before they take effect. “At a time when antisemitism is rising in the United States and around the world, relaxing policies aimed at fighting hate crimes not only sends the wrong message to the men and women of our Coast Guard, but it puts their safety at risk,” Rosen said in a statement to the Post. In Germany, public display of certain Nazi emblems, such as the swastika, is illegal and can be punished with a fine or imprisonment of up to three years. Exceptions are made if the symbols are used for educational, artistic, scientific or journalistic purposes. Rosen noted that the wording in the new Coast Guard policy “could allow for horrifically hateful symbols like swastikas and nooses to be inexplicably permitted to be displayed”. Senator Jacky Rosen criticised the move, citing rising antisemitism and potential risks to Coast Guard personnel. Photo / Getty Images The new guidance says that if a “potentially divisive” symbol is reported, supervisors should inquire about it. After consulting their legal office they may order the symbol’s removal, but there’s no further guidance requiring that it be taken down. The new Coast Guard policy also limits the amount of time that service members have to formally report the display of a noose or swastika – which could be enormously problematic for personnel at sea. Like the Navy, Coast Guard members can be deployed for months at a time. The new policy gives them 45 days to report an incident, whereas the previous policy did not have a deadline other than to advise that Coast Guard members who see a potential hate incident “should immediately report it to a member higher in their chain of command”. That 45-day deadline will have a chilling effect, said the Coast Guard official who had seen the new policy. “If you are at sea, and your shipmate has a swastika in their rack, and you are a Black person or Jew, and you are going to be stuck at sea with them for the next 60 days, are you going to feel safe reporting that up your chain of command?” this Coast Guard official said. The director of the advocacy arm of the Reform Movement, one of the major branches of US Judaism, said in a letter to Lunday that “the values that the Coast Guard is sworn to uphold do not allow a permissive attitude toward hate symbols”. “There is no context aside from the educational or historical in which a swastika is not a hate symbol … It is an emblem that has no place in the US Coast Guard or anywhere else,” Rabbi Jonah Pesner wrote. “The decision to weaken these standards is an indelible stain on the Coast Guard and a violation of the good that our nation stands for.” Previous guidance put in place in 2019 said Coast Guard commanders could order swastikas, nooses or other symbols to be removed even if it was determined the display did not rise to the level of a hate incident. That policy was enacted months after a Coast Guard officer, Lieutenant Christopher Hasson, was charged with plotting a large-scale attack on Democratic lawmakers, including then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. In securing his conviction, prosecutors cited evidence in his case showing Hasson to be an avowed white nationalist. The policy change, effective December 15, aligns with the Trump administration’s stance on hazing and harassment. Photo / Getty Images Over the past several years, each of the other military services has reworked its policies on extremism within the ranks. That was a response, directed by the Biden administration, to the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol by Trump supporters angry that he lost his re-election bid. Hundreds of military veterans were implicated in the Capitol riot, and subsequent law enforcement investigations found numerous ties between those veterans and extremist groups such as the Proud Boys. Those convicted of crimes associated with their participation in the Capitol attack were pardoned by Trump shortly after he took office this year. The Pentagon, where Hegseth has argued that prior administrations’ focus on racial diversity has harmed military recruiting, referred questions on the Coast Guard’s policy to the DHS, which did not respond to a request for comment before publication. In a statement sent to the Post after publication, DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin called the story “fake crap”. The changes to the swastika and noose classification were part of an effort by the Coast Guard to remove the concept of hate incidents from its regulations. “Conduct previously handled as a potential hate incident, including those involving symbols widely identified with oppression or hatred, is processed as a report of harassment,” the Coast Guard said in its new policy, which was recently published online. “… The terminology ‘hate incident’ is no longer present in policy.” Each of the military services is also reviewing its harassment policies in response to Hegseth’s directive, though unlike with the Coast Guard, any wording specific to swastikas would probably appear in their separate extremism guidelines. It does not appear there is wording addressing swastikas specifically within those policy documents. In the Air Force and Army, for example, current policy prohibits “knowingly displaying paraphernalia, words, or symbols in support of extremist activities or in support of groups or organisations that support extremist activities, such as flags, clothing, tattoos, and bumper stickers, whether on or off a military installation”. In 2007, two incidents involving nooses within the Coast Guard drew national attention. That summer, a Black cadet at the service’s officer training academy found a noose in his sea bag while aboard a Coast Guard vessel. The next month, an instructor discussing race relations in response to the first incident reported that a noose was left in her office. Fri, 21 Nov 2025 05:57:32 Z /news/world/fire-breaks-out-at-cop30-pavilion-in-belem-no-injuries-reported/ /news/world/fire-breaks-out-at-cop30-pavilion-in-belem-no-injuries-reported/ A fire has erupted in a pavilion of the UN’s climate talks in Brazil, forcing panicked delegates to run for the exits and disrupting tense negotiations among ministers from around the world.  UN and security crews rushed with extinguishers to put out the blaze, which tore a hole in the roof of the Cop30 site in Belem as smoke engulfed the corridor and people shouted “fire!”  The fire was brought under control and no injuries were reported, Brazilian tourism minister Celso Sabino said. The cause of the blaze was not immediately known.  Fire engines arrived at the scene as smoke billowed inside and out of the conference, which is being held in large tents in the city at the edge of the Amazon, with tens of thousands of people in attendance.  “Firefighters and security teams responded promptly and continue to monitor the site,” Brazil’s Cop30 organisers said.  The fire started in a country pavilion inside the site’s “blue zone” near the entrance of Cop30. A light rain caused people outside to cheer.  The fire took place as ministers were deep in negotiations aimed at breaking a deadlock over fossil fuels, climate finance and trade measures, with one day left in the two-week conference.  Mauricio Lyrio, the head of the Brazilian delegation, said he was signing an agreement with a third country when he was asked to leave. He said his team does not believe they will be able to return to the site on Thursday.  ‘World is watching Belem’  Nearly 200 countries have spent the past two weeks hashing out issues at Cop30 – from a “roadmap” to transition away from fossil fuels proposed by host Brazil, to concerns over weak emissions-reduction plans, finance for developing countries, and trade barriers.  Earlier in the day, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged negotiators to reach an “ambitious compromise”.  Negotiations focused on fossil fuels and climate finance, with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urging compromise. Photo / Getty Images  “The world is watching Belem,” he told reporters during a morning news conference, as nations awaited a new draft negotiating text before the summit officially closes on Friday evening.  “Communities on the frontlines are watching too – counting flooded homes, failed harvests, lost livelihoods, and asking how much more must we suffer?”  “Please engage in good faith,” he said.  - Nick Perry and Issam Ahmed, Agence France-Presse  Thu, 20 Nov 2025 20:31:07 Z /news/world/vietnam-flooding-death-toll-rises-to-16/ /news/world/vietnam-flooding-death-toll-rises-to-16/ Rescuers plucked stranded people from the rooftops of submerged homes as widespread flooding inundated central Vietnam, where authorities said on Thursday at least 16 people have died. Relentless rain has lashed south-central Vietnam since late October, and historic sites and popular coastal holiday destinations have been hit by several rounds of flooding. At least 16 people have been killed since the weekend, while the search was ongoing for five others, the environment ministry said on Thursday. More than 43,000 houses were submerged while several major roads remained blocked because of landslides. Rescuers using boats in central Gia Lai and Dak Lak provinces pried open windows and broke through roofs to assist residents stranded by the high water on Wednesday, state media said. In coastal Nha Trang, a popular tourist destination known for its pristine beaches, whole city blocks were inundated and hundreds of cars were underwater on Thursday, AFP photos showed. In highland passes around Da Lat, multiple deadly landslides have occurred, with some areas recording up to 600mm of rain since the weekend, according to the national weather bureau. More than 43,000 houses were submerged, and major roads blocked by landslides. Photo / Duc Thao, AFP Emergency hotlines recorded unusually heavy call volumes on Wednesday night as water levels across the region rose, state media said, adding that the defence ministry had deployed helicopters to search for stranded people. Water levels in the Ba River in Dak Lak surpassed a 1993 record in two places early on Thursday, while the Cai River in Khanh Hoa province also surged to a new high, according to the weather bureau. The historic floods occurred as heavy rains added to already high water levels, Hoang Phuc Lam, deputy head of the National Centre for Hydrometeorological Forecasting, said on state television. Natural disasters have left 279 people dead or missing and caused more than $2 billion in damage from January until October, according to Vietnam’s national statistics office. The Southeast Asian nation is prone to heavy rain between June and September, but scientific evidence has identified a pattern of human-driven climate change making extreme weather more frequent and destructive. -Agence France-Presse Thu, 20 Nov 2025 07:23:15 Z /news/world/trump-administration-is-renewing-efforts-to-end-the-war-pitching-a-revised-ceasefire-proposal/ /news/world/trump-administration-is-renewing-efforts-to-end-the-war-pitching-a-revised-ceasefire-proposal/ The Trump Administration is renewing efforts to end the war in Ukraine, with special envoy Steve Witkoff quietly pushing a revised peace plan that contains some provisions opposed by Kyiv. Top United States military officials are also undertaking an unusual diplomatic assignment in the Ukrainian capital, according to people familiar with the developments. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, who is leading the delegation, is the most senior Pentagon official known to have visited the war-ravaged country since US President Donald Trump’s return to the White House this year. His arrival in Kyiv today follows a secretive meeting in Miami this past weekend between Witkoff and top advisers to Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the people said, speaking like others on the condition of anonymity to discuss the negotiations. A breakthrough appears unlikely, however. One person familiar with Witkoff’s efforts said the Administration’s latest proposal includes several concessions that Zelenskyy will find difficult to approve, including a significant loss of territory and strict limits on Ukraine’s military. At the same time, Zelenskyy has been weakened by a major corruption scandal that has ensnared several of his close associates. That - coupled with the exhausting pace of Russian military strikes - could leave the Ukrainian leader with few good options as US officials exert greater pressure on him to accept a deal to end the war. Secretary of State Marco Rubio lent his public backing to the new diplomatic push, writing on social media that “ending a complex and deadly war such as the one in Ukraine requires an extensive exchange of serious and realistic ideas” and that achieving “a durable peace will require both sides to agree to difficult but necessary concessions”. It was not immediately clear whether, or how, Driscoll’s trip may be aligned with Witkoff’s negotiations. A senior Administration official said the Army secretary, who is travelling with two top US generals, will relay his findings to the White House. Spokespeople for the White House, Ukraine’s presidential office and the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington did not respond to requests for comment on the developments. Spokespeople for the State Department did not respond when asked about Witkoff’s proposal. A US defence official said that, in Ukraine, Driscoll will explore “efforts to end the war”. The official characterised the trip as a “fact-finding mission” but declined to say who within the Ukrainian Government the American delegation would be meeting or what the content of those gatherings would be. The latest push for a ceasefire follows Trump’s inconclusive summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the northern summer. The Administration’s effort to continue those talks with a second bilateral meeting, which was to be held in Budapest, collapsed under what US officials said were Putin’s unrealistic, maximalist demands. The plan pushed by Witkoff this past weekend included a number of proposals Zelenskyy’s Government determined were unworkable, including reducing the size of Ukraine’s Army by half and ceding territory in Luhansk and Donetsk not currently held by Russia, according to a person familiar with the matter. It would represent “a complete capitulation of Ukraine, and Zelenskyy is not willing to agree to that”, that person said. It was unclear whether Witkoff’s plan contained elements other than those already rejected by Ukraine. Having threatened early in the summer to impose new sanctions against Russia if it did not agree to a ceasefire, Trump instead held the August summit in Alaska with Putin. European diplomats briefed by Trump after the meeting said Putin demanded that he be granted all of Donbas, borderland that encompasses Luhansk and Donetsk. Four days after the Alaska meeting, Zelenskyy said after talking with Trump that full occupation of Donbas was a non-starter. Asked by reporters late last month if he had demanded Ukraine cede Donbas, Trump said: “We think what they should do is just stop where the battle line is right now … I think 78% of the land is already taken by Russia. Leave it the way it is right now. They can negotiate something later on down the line.” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House last month. Photo / Demetrius Freeman, The Washington Post Days later, Trump said he was unhappy with Putin and imposed new sanctions on two of Russia’s largest oil companies, Rosneft and Lukoil. On Monday, Trump said that pending Senate legislation that would levy secondary sanctions on Russia’s trading partners was “okay with me”. Trump, whose habit of showing deference to the Russian leader has faced biting criticism throughout much of Europe and in Washington, acknowledged today that what he once thought would be an “easy” conflict to settle had in fact proved quite challenging. He appeared to fault the Kremlin for that. “I’m a little disappointed in President Putin right now,” Trump said. In Kyiv, a major corruption scandal has engulfed Zelenskyy’s Government, which could put pressure on him to resign or accept a ceasefire settlement that most Ukrainians would find unacceptable. The corruption scandal focuses on a multimillion-dollar kickback scheme that has implicated close allies of the President - including his top national security adviser, Rustem Umerov, who was among the officials who met Witkoff in Miami, people familiar with the matter said. A spokesman at Ukraine’s presidential office did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Umerov. Zelenskyy was in Ankara today for a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to discuss peace efforts. Tatiana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Centre, said it appears that the trip may have come as a result of the intensifying pressure he faces over the corruption investigations. “There is a question, about whether this would have happened if there hadn’t been this scandal.” Kyiv is expected soon to lose a key ally in Washington. Keith Kellogg, the retired three-star general whom Trump made a special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, is expected to leave the Administration in coming months, according to people familiar with the matter. Kellogg has told officials he feels cut out of the policy process, according to a person who has worked directly with him. His departure, reported earlier by Reuters, would mark a significant blow for Ukraine, as he has been one of Kyiv’s most effective advocates within the Administration. Though Kellogg has been frustrated with his ability to steer US policy, he has also been able to get face time with Trump from time to time, a rare asset for Republicans who support Ukraine. The scope and significance of Driscoll’s visit to Ukraine is unclear. He is travelling with General Randy George, the Army’s chief of staff, and General Christopher Donahue, the service’s top general in Europe, the US defence official said. The 38-year-old Army veteran is a personal friend and former Yale classmate of Vice-President JD Vance. He is seen as a rising star in the Trump Administration. As secretary, he has focused on attempting to supercharge the Army for 21st-century warfare, paying particular attention to the proliferation of drones in the Ukraine conflict, along with advancements in artificial intelligence and other nascent technology. Driscoll has aligned himself with senior Army officers as he attempts to remake the service, and he has occasionally come under attack politically from elements of the far-right, including the influential activist Laura Loomer, who complained that he has not done enough to align himself with Trump. He has survived the turmoil, in part because of the trust he has built with Vance and others close to the Vice-President, people familiar with the matter said. Administration officials in recent weeks had offered little sign of activity in the Ukraine talks, with Rubio telling reporters in recent days that the US had come to the conclusion that Russia did not really want peace. “They’ve made a demand that Ukraine can’t agree to and so that’s sort of where we are at this point,” he said last week. Russian officials had offered similar assessments. Asked about earlier media reports on the negotiations published by Axios and Politico, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that “so far there’s nothing to add to what was discussed in Anchorage”. Kirill Dmitriev, head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund and a key interlocutor for the Kremlin, voiced an optimistic tone on social media, however, sharing reports about his own talks with Witkoff last month. Dmitriev did not respond to a request for comment. - Siobhán O’Grady, Karen DeYoung, Natalie Allison, Michael Birnbaum, Tara Copp and Alex Horton contributed to this report. Thu, 20 Nov 2025 03:02:04 Z /news/world/us-president-donald-trump-signs-epstein-files-transparency-act-requiring-release-of-controversial-files/ /news/world/us-president-donald-trump-signs-epstein-files-transparency-act-requiring-release-of-controversial-files/ Donald Trump has signed into law legislation requiring the release of United States government records on convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, spurring a showdown over whether the US President will allow full disclosure – or return to trying to bury the case. Trump stunned Washington DC over the weekend, reversing his months-long opposition to the Epstein Files Transparency Act, and ensuring that it sailed through Congress on Tuesday (US time) in a rare show of bipartisan unity. The Republican President, a former friend of the late sex offender, announced on social media late on Wednesday that he had signed the bill, forgoing any media spectacle of the event. Insiders warn that even with the President’s signature, his administration could lean on redactions, procedural delays or lingering federal investigations to keep explosive details out of the public eye. “Once the President signs the bill, he must apply and execute it faithfully. There must be no funny business from Donald Trump,” top Democrat Chuck Schumer warned in a speech on the Senate floor. “He must not use the excuse of frivolous investigations to release some Epstein documents, while intentionally hiding others that deserve to be seen by the American public.” Epstein, a wealthy financier, moved in elite circles for years, cultivating close ties with business tycoons, politicians, academics and celebrities to whom he was accused of trafficking girls and young women for sex. The law mandates the Justice Department to release unclassified files online within a month. Photo / Getty Images Trump and his allies spent years pushing theories about powerful Democrats being protected over involvement with Epstein, framing the case as a potent symbol of how powerful men can hide behind lawyers, money and connections. But Trump himself was a longtime associate of Epstein, raising questions over what he knew about the notorious figure. Far beyond Trump’s conspiracy-minded voter base, the saga dented public trust in the US justice system and raised suspicion among voters who believe important pieces of the story were either hidden or ignored. Epstein’s 2019 arrest fuelled a storm of outrage and pressure for a full accounting of his network, his finances and the people who helped him evade. Conspiracy theories about a cover-up only deepened after his death – ruled a suicide – in a New York jail soon after. Concerns remain about potential redactions and delays, despite bipartisan support for full disclosure. Photo / Getty Images Passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act in Congress marked a moment of deep emotional resonance, with abuse survivors filling the House gallery as the vote was called, hugging and cheering when it passed. It was a sharp rebuke of Trump and his ally, House Speaker Mike Johnson, who had led efforts to prevent disclosure. Johnson had said he would “cross that bridge” when asked if he’d push Trump to veto the bill. The President had warned House Republicans off the action but reversed course, fearing humiliation as he faced the largest rebellion of his presidency. Under the law, the Justice Department has a month to dump its unclassified files online – in a searchable trove of transcripts, flight logs and communications that could unearth unseen names and connections. The text makes only narrow exceptions for personal data and genuine legal and security concerns. But analysts question whether officials will comply, or argue that sensitive material cannot be released because related probes remain active – including a new investigation ordered by Trump last week into Epstein’s ties with Democrats. “[This] might be a big smoke screen, these investigations, to open a bunch of them as a last-ditch effort to prevent the release of the Epstein files,” Thomas Massie, the Kentucky Republican who pushed the House vote, told ABC 九一星空无限. The Justice Department and FBI said in July that they had uncovered no evidence in a review of the files that would support further action, and it was not clear if the new probe ordered by Trump on Friday would hamper disclosure. Attorney-General Pam Bondi was pressed on the justification for further investigation and said there was “new information, additional information”. “If there are any victims, we encourage all victims to come forward,” she told reporters. “And we will continue to provide maximum transparency under the law.” – Agence France-Presse Thu, 20 Nov 2025 02:42:05 Z /news/world/former-laneway-performer-d4vd-now-suspect-in-murder-of-los-angeles-teen-source-says/ /news/world/former-laneway-performer-d4vd-now-suspect-in-murder-of-los-angeles-teen-source-says/ Former Laneway performer D4vd is now being considered a suspect in the murder of a Los Angeles teenager, two months after her remains were discovered in his car, sources claim. The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) opened an investigation into the death of 15-year-old Celeste Rivas after her dismembered body was discovered in the boot of an impounded Tesla on September 8. D4vd, real name David Burke, was soon linked to the vehicle, but was not formally implicated in her death when police began treating it as a homicide. While no official paperwork has been filed, according to NBC4 Investigates, an LAPD source has confirmed the star is now being considered a suspect in Rivas’ murder. The source also claimed the 20-year-old has not been co-operating with the inquiry, despite the previous claims of his representative. Police are reportedly “certain they are going down the right path for a suspect”, a source told ABC 九一星空无限. Her cause of death is still unknown, but based on the state of decomposition, LAPD believe Rivas’ body was in the trunk of the car for some time. The source also told NBC4 Investigates that Burke would likely have needed an accomplice to dismember her. An occasion when he travelled to a “remote area” in Santa Barbara County earlier in the year is allegedly being probed, according to TMZ. It is believed the singer may have had a romantic relationship with the girl before her death. Rivas’ family reported her missing in April 2024 after she failed to return home from a trip to the movies. Her brother Matthew Rivas told NBCLA the then-13-year-old was attending the film with the Houston musician. Though Burke had previously not been deemed a person of interest in the case, he cancelled his world tour in late September after the discovery of Rivas’ body. In 2024, the Romantic Homicide singer performed in New Zealand at Laneway. Thu, 20 Nov 2025 02:05:50 Z /news/world/sri-lankan-police-apologise-to-solo-travelling-kiwi-woman-after-she-was-victim-of-lewd-sex-act/ /news/world/sri-lankan-police-apologise-to-solo-travelling-kiwi-woman-after-she-was-victim-of-lewd-sex-act/ WARNING: Story contains explicit content Sri Lankan police have apologised profusely to a solo traveller from New Zealand after she filmed a local man sexually harassing her and indecently exposing himself, saying the video has “damaged the country’s reputation”. The 25-year-old man, who had allegedly changed his appearance and address to evade capture, was arrested on Sunday in the country’s Ampara District, they said. Christchurch woman Molly, 24, was left “on edge” after the ordeal, which took place in late October while she travelled the country in a tuk-tuk. “I can’t believe that happened,” she told Instagram followers in a now-viral video. “I’m not going to let it ruin my trip, but it’s knocked my confidence back a little bit ... It’s the price you pay for being a solo female. Shouldn’t be, but unfortunately that’s the reality.” In a recent update, Molly said Sri Lankan police launched “a manhunt” for the man after she filed a report and local media started covering the incident. The 24-year-old said she "can’t thank the Sri Lankan police enough". Photo / @molsgonewild She published an email from the Police Tourism Division’s acting director who expressed regret for the man’s actions. “First, I must apologise [to] you on the incident taken place in my beautiful country due to a bad person,” it read. The Police Tourism Division, together with Thirukkovil and Pottuvil police, issued a public appeal to help identify the man. “At the time of his arrest, the suspect had reportedly altered his appearance and changed his residence in an attempt to evade capture,” a spokesperson said. Officials noted the case had “drawn international criticism and damaged the country’s reputation”. It took police approximately four days to find and arrest the man in the Periyanilaveni Police Division, located on the island’s east coast. “I can’t thank the Sri Lankan police enough. They were amazing. Their response was so incredible,” Molly said. “He is currently going through the court process, and the police said that they would keep me updated on what happens.” While acknowledging the situation could have been worse, and has been “for other women out there”, Molly was glad her experience had sparked a conversation around women’s safety. “One incident is not a representation of what solo travel is like as a female. I’ve travelled through so many different countries that people label as unsafe, and all I have experienced is kindness from locals,” she said. “Sri Lanka is an amazing country to travel to, and I will always recommend it to other people - especially solo female travellers - despite this incident.” Tom Rose is an Auckland-based journalist who covers breaking news, specialising in lifestyle, entertainment and travel. He joined the Herald in 2023. Thu, 20 Nov 2025 01:21:50 Z /news/world/beijing-using-its-economic-power-and-military-muscle-to-pressure-japan-s-new-pm-sanae-takaichi/ /news/world/beijing-using-its-economic-power-and-military-muscle-to-pressure-japan-s-new-pm-sanae-takaichi/ Chinese travellers have cancelled more than half a million plane tickets to Japan since the weekend. Chinese students there have been told to be careful. Two Japanese films have been pulled from the Chinese box office. Ships are patrolling in disputed waters. State-affiliated academics are warning that the entire country of Japan could be turned into a “battlefield”. And now, China has suspended imports of Japanese seafood. Beijing is using harsh rhetoric, military sabre-rattling and economic coercion to make clear its displeasure with Japan’s new Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi, a China hawk who suggested this month that Japan could intervene militarily if Beijing makes good on its threat to invade Taiwan, a self-governing island that the Chinese Communist Party claims as its territory. Governments in Japan and the United States, as well as like-minded-allies, are usually careful to practice “strategic ambiguity” when it comes to Taiwan. That means refraining from clarifying whether they would intervene if China tried to take control of the island - which avoids angering Beijing and provoking this kind of backlash. China’s response to Takaichi’s lack of ambiguity has been immediate and extreme, and it is threatening to turn a diplomatic spat into a regional crisis. “Her backstabbing obviously enraged China’s top leadership,” said Wang Guangtao, deputy director of the centre for Japanese studies at Shanghai’s Fudan University. “China’s reactions could also be meant as a reminder to some targeted audiences in the US and other Western countries who have great enthusiasm for the Taiwan issue.” Takaichi’s comments seem to be an attempt to “drag the US into the fray”, Wang said, as Washington would be treaty-bound to defend Japan if its ally were attacked as part of a cross-strait conflict. US President Donald Trump spoke to troops aboard USS George Washington on October 28, in Yokosuka, Japan. Photo / Getty Images The tensions underscore the combustible nature of the relationship between Japan and China, especially as Takaichi promises to strengthen Japan’s military capabilities, including accelerating Tokyo’s timeline for increasing defence spending - with the strong encouragement of the Trump Administration. Next month, Japan is set to vote on its largest-ever defence budget, with Takaichi committing to a spending goal of 2% of gross domestic product, accelerating recent sharp increases. Against that backdrop, Beijing may be looking to signal that it doesn’t want Japan to go too far in developing its military capabilities, said Jennifer Lind, an expert on East Asian international security at Dartmouth College. “This is a really formative time … [and] a time of tremendous flux in Japan’s security strategy,” Lind said. “China sees that, and China wants to lay down the marker. China wants to say, ‘We see you moving in this direction, and we don’t like it.’” It’s also a key moment for the US-China relationship. Washington and Beijing are in the middle of trade negotiations following months of tit-for-tat tariffs, while US President Donald Trump has indicated he will go to Beijing in April. Rana Mitter, a China expert at the Harvard Kennedy School, said he expects Chinese President Xi Jinping to push hard at the Beijing summit for a downgrading of US support for Taiwan. The anger directed at Tokyo may be a part of that broader effort, he said, as “Beijing generally tends to make very maximalist demands, often couched in extremely strong language early on in negotiations”. Taiwan’s capital, Taipei. Photo / Unsplash Takaichi pushes boundaries Takaichi’s November 7 comment - that a potential Chinese military attack on Taiwan would constitute a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan - signalled that Japan could respond militarily to a cross-strait war. The country’s post-World War II pacifist constitution stipulates that its armed forces exist only for self-defence, although Takaichi’s mentor, former prime minister Shinzo Abe, led a change in 2015 to allow Japan to act if an aligned country was attacked. While her remark was not particularly inflammatory, experts in Tokyo say, it did appear to go further than the Japanese Government’s official stance. Takaichi, who took office last month, has been one of Japan’s most prominent supporters of Taiwan. As lawmaker, she made several trips - most recently in April - to the island, which was formerly a Japanese colony. China and Japan are no strangers to diplomatic flare-ups - including a fierce dispute in 2012 over islands called Senkaku by Japan and Diaoyu by China. The Chinese animosity is largely driven by a belief that Japan has not fully apologised for atrocities committed during World War II. This history is particularly relevant this year, which marks the 80th anniversary of Japan’s surrender in that war. Beijing, which hosted an enormous military parade in September celebrating the anniversary, has been “reinserting Japanese war atrocities into the public sphere”, Mitter said. “There’s no doubt that Japan is a particularly sensitive subject for China, and this year is a particularly sensitive year.” That sensitivity is clear from Beijing’s rhetoric in recent days as state media has pumped out vitriolic attacks against Japan. In the PLA Daily, the official mouthpiece of the Chinese military, a researcher at a think-tank affiliated with China’s Ministry of State Security warned that all of Japan “risks becoming a battlefield”. Beijing hasn’t just used rhetoric to punch back. After four Chinese coast guard ships patrolled the waters around the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands on Sunday, China’s Maritime Safety Administration announced two sets of live-fire drills in the sea between China and the Korean Peninsula, which will stretch until next Tuesday and are widely seen as a response to the Japan spat. A Chinese Navy military warship spotted sailing south-east of Sydney in February. Photo / Australian Department of Defence Inflicting economic pain It has also deployed perhaps its most powerful tool: economic coercion. China is Japan’s largest trading partner by far, with bilateral trade between the two countries hitting US$308 billion ($548b) last year, according to official Chinese statistics. China on Wednesday informed Japan that it would suspend imports of Japanese seafood products, local media reported. Mao Ning, a spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry, confirmed the suspension, saying there was “no market” for Japanese seafood in the current environment anyway. She urged Tokyo to “retract its erroneous remarks” or prepare to “bear the consequences of more serious countermeasures”. China is also a key market for Japanese service industries including education, entertainment and tourism. To take aim at these sectors, Beijing issued a travel warning for Japan last week, saying that the Taiwan remarks posed “significant risks to the personal safety and lives of Chinese citizens in Japan”. Several Chinese airlines subsequently allowed free ticket cancellations for trips to Japan, and about 543,000 tickets have been cancelled since Saturday - accounting for 40% of all booked tickets, according to independent aviation analyst Li Hanming. China is the largest source of tourists to Japan, according to Japan National Tourism Organisation data. Photo / 123RF About 20% of flight routes between the two countries have also been cancelled, Li said. China is the largest source of tourists to Japan, according to Japan National Tourism Organisation data. They not only make up nearly a quarter of all foreign travellers to Japan - a number that had been growing, with 7.5 million Chinese tourists travelling to Japan in the first nine months of this year, surpassing last year’s total - but they are also the biggest spenders, according to the data. Chinese citizens also make up the largest proportion of Japan’s international student numbers, providing another pressure point. China’s Ministry of Education struck this nerve on Sunday, with an advisory telling Chinese students to “closely monitor” the security situation in Japan. Chinese film distributors postponed the release of several Japanese films, according to China Film 九一星空无限, an outlet supervised by the state film bureau. An animated Japanese movie released before the crisis, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, was performing well, but box office sales plummeted after Takaichi’s comments. China is the world’s second-largest movie market behind the US, accounting for 20% of the worldwide market last year. “We don’t want nationalism and patriotism to get overblown on either side, but there is a chance mutual hatred might put expats and tourists in danger,” said Cai Liang, director of the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies’ centre for northeast Asian studies. These tensions threaten to put a tangible dent in Japan’s economy, which was already looking shaky. A 25% drop in visitors from China and Hong Kong in the next year - similar to the decline of Chinese tourists during the 2012 territorial dispute - would slice 0.29% off gross domestic product, said Takahide Kiuchi, an economist at Nomura Research Institute. Partly because of these economic stakes, Japan is working to lower the temperature through dialogue, though experts do not expect Takaichi to retract her comments. Talks this week do not appear to have made any progress, and an annual academic forum for Japanese and Chinese scholars has been postponed. More retaliation from China could be on its way. “Chinese retaliation is going to be a whole package,” said Kuo Yujen, vice-president of the Institute for National Policy Research in Taipei and an expert on Japan-Taiwan relations. “I don’t think China will skip this good opportunity to make an example out of Japan.” The fierce retaliation also risks backlash in the region. Though countries like Japan, South Korea, and Australia are all economically interlinked with China, the diplomatic attacks breed a sense of camaraderie against Beijing, said Michael Green, head of the United States Studies Centre, an Australian think-tank. “The more Beijing does stuff like this, the more likely it makes it that you could have some kind of collective defence arrangement,” said Green, who worked on Asia in the George W. Bush administration. “China’s actions are creating the kind of containment that they say they don’t want.” - Chie Tanaka in Tokyo contributed to this report. Thu, 20 Nov 2025 00:46:54 Z