Thousands of people yesterday gathered outside the Legislative Yuan calling for more transparency regarding legislative reform bills and demanding that proceedings that devolved into brawls on Friday last week be declared null and void.The demonstrators included members of civic groups and political
A man, surnamed Hung (洪), yesterday stabbed and injured two people on a Taichung MRT train before passengers stopped him, police said.The knifeman put his bag down, pulled out a knife and attacked the man closest to him, a witness said.A video uploaded to social media showed a 27-year-old man surnam
The UN has contradicted its charter and infringed on freedom of the press by asking two Taiwanese correspondents covering the World Health Assembly (WHA) in Geneva, Switzerland, to present a Chinese passport when applying for interview permits, the Association of Taiwan Journalists said yesterday. W
French President Emmanuel Macron is to visit riot-hit New Caledonia, Paris said yesterday, as the first tourists were evacuated from the Pacific territory that has faced more than a week of unrest.Macron “will leave as soon as this evening,” government spokeswoman Prisca Thevenot said.He is hoping t
OPPOSING VIEWS: France said it supports the ICC ‘and the fight against impunity,’ while Biden criticized the move, saying Israel has a right to defend itself
Israel’s foreign minister yesterday headed to France in a bid to contain the fallout from the decision by the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to request arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas leaders, a move supported by several European countries, including key ally France.Franc
PURSUING PEACE: As the new president took office, he reiterated Taiwan’s sovereignty while saying that the nation must cooperate with other democracies
President William Lai (賴清德) in his inaugural speech yesterday called on Beijing to acknowledge Taiwan’s government and engage in dialogue with Taipei, saying that both sides are responsible for promoting peace in the Taiwan Strait.“I hope that China will face the reality of the Republic of China’s e
The US and Japanese governments congratulated President William Lai (賴清德) on taking office yesterday while affirming close ties with Taiwan.US Secretary of State Antony Blinken issued a statement congratulating Lai on his inauguration and “the Taiwan people for once again demonstrating the strength
A group of 30 foreign academics yesterday released a statement condemning legislative reforms proposed by opposition lawmakers, saying they are unconstitutional and undermine the objective of good governance.The statement publicized at a news conference in Taipei is cosigned by international academi
MOUNTAIN CRASH: One-time top nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri was named acting foreign minister after it was found that his predecessor was among the nine dead
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi was yesterday confirmed dead after search-and-rescue teams found his crashed helicopter in a fog-shrouded mountain region, sparking mourning in the Islamic republic.Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has ultimate authority in Iran, declared five days o
President William Lai (賴清德) made repeated calls for cross-strait peace in his inaugural address on Monday, including a direct appeal to Beijing to resume tourism and student exchange.Fresh from being sworn in at the Presidential Office in Taipei, Lai in his speech set the tenor of his coming four ye
President William Lai (賴清德) and Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) were sworn into office on Monday morning as the fifth popularly elected leaders of Taiwan.Outgoing president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) also attended the inauguration ceremony at the Presidential Office in Taipei, where Lai received the grea
BUILDING FRIENDSHIPS: Tsai said that one of her most satisfying achievements in office has been strengthening the nation’s relationships with other countries
Outgoing President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) expressed optimism about maintaining peace in the Taiwan Strait by working together with international friends in an interview with the BBC released on Saturday.“If we deal with the matter very carefully, there’s still a great possibility for us to maintain peac
SEAFOOD DIPLOMACY: Lai and incoming vice president Hsiao hosted leaders of diplomatic allies in a traditional shrimp-fishing event
President-elect William Lai (賴清德) would express “concrete” goodwill toward China in his inauguration speech today, and call for both sides of the Taiwan Strait to pursue peace, a senior official briefed on the matter said.Lai would say that Taiwan will continue to be a promoter of regional peace and
The Taiwan Bar Association yesterday urged legislators not to circumvent established procedures to push through legislative reforms, while condemning a massive brawl that erupted between lawmakers on Friday.Voting on the amendments to Article 15 of the Act Governing the Legislative Yuan’s Power (立法院
A helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi suffered a “hard landing” on Sunday, Iranian state media reported, without elaborating. Some began urging the public to pray for Raisi and the others on board as rescue crews sped through a misty, rural forest where his helicopter was believed to
Two Chinese warships yesterday docked in a commercial port in Cambodia as part of the biggest-ever joint military drills with the Southeast Asian nation, with Beijing’s ambassador hailing their “ironclad” friendship.Cambodia has long been a staunch ally of China and has received billions of dollars
An Israeli airstrike yesterday killed 20 people in central Gaza, mostly women and children, as fighting raged across the north while Israel’s leaders aired divisions over who should govern Gaza after the war, now in its eighth month.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has faced criticism from
CALL FOR UNITY: Lai and his administration, who take office amid a divided and partisan legislature, have faith that Taiwanese know their destinies are intertwined, a source said
President-elect William Lai’s (賴清德) inaugural address tomorrow would emphasize solidarity, steadfastness, confidence and responsibility as the themes of his administration, an incoming senior security official said yesterday.Lai, who succeeds President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) after having been her vice p
DISPUTED WATERS: A ‘robust deterrence’ ensures peace and security in the region, which guarantees economic prosperity, US ambassador Emanuel said
US Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel on Friday stressed the importance of increased deterrence and his country’s commitment to its key ally as he visited two southwestern Japanese islands at the forefront of Tokyo’s tensions with Beijing.Emanuel first visited Yonaguni, Japan’s westernmost island just
Deputy Legislative Speaker Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday urged president-elect William Lai (賴清德) to reiterate that Itu Aba Island (Taiping Island, 太平島) is a part of the nation’s territory in his inaugural address tomorrow.Chiang made the call during a visit to