CHINA
Kim Jong-un gets second job
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un strikes fear into some hearts, but pictures of a Chinese street food vendor with a distinct resemblance to him have fuelled online mirth. Chubby, with a round face and sporting Kim’s trademark haircut, the vendor was photographed cooking meat. Like Kim, he has a penchant for high-buttoned jackets and smokes, and although his identity remains unknown, it is known that he works in Shenyang, not far from the North Korea border. Thousands of Internet users commented on the images, with many referring to Kim as “Fatty the Third,” a reference to his weight and having inherited his position from his father and grandfather. “This has got to be Fatty the Third’s brother — quick, bring him back,” one Sina Weibo user wrote, with another saying: “Fatty the Third finally has a money-making career,” in an apparent reference to the government providing the bulk of North Korea’s trade and aid.
ISRAEL
Palestinian car tires slashed
Suspected Jewish extremists punctured the tires of dozens of Palestinian cars in annexed east Jerusalem yesterday in the latest so-called “price tag” hate crime — a euphemism for hate crimes that generally target Palestinians — police and a foreign journalist said. The attack took place in Beit Hanina, a Palestinian neighborhood, with Hebrew graffiti on a nearby bus reading: “Gentiles in the land are enemies.” Police said the tires of 34 cars were punctured, but the correspondent placed the number at 45, saying that all four wheels of each car were slashed. Local residents said that security cameras at the site showed a group of men were behind the crime.
CHINA
Man jailed for planning rally
A court yesterday jailed for 18 months a man who applied to hold a protest on the anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square killings, his lawyer said. Gu Yimin (顧義民) was found guilty of “inciting state subversion” for posting photographs of the 1989 crackdown online and applying for permission to stage a protest on its anniversary last year, said his lawyer, Liu Weiguo (劉衛國). “This judgement violates the constitution,” Liu said, adding that Gu would appeal the verdict, handed down by a court in Changshu in the eastern Jiangsu Province. “We maintain that Gu Yimin was exercising his right to freedom of speech.” Liu added that men he believed to be state security officers had assaulted him and another lawyer outside the courthouse.
CHINA
Farmer dies in land protest
A farmer was burned to death during a protest on Friday over land seized for development, state-run media said yesterday. Geng Fulin (耿福林), 62, died when a tent that he and other farmers had erected next to a swath of rural terrain sold by the local government to a property developer caught fire, the Global Times reported. Two others were injured in the blaze in Pingdu, Shandong Province, the paper said, adding that police suspect arson. Locals claimed that the land had been secretly sold to a property developer and farmers who held rights to use it had not received compensation to which they were entitled, the report said. Local government officials took Geng’s body to be cremated following his death, according to news portal Caixin. It added that a heavy police presence was visible at Geng’s funeral on Sunday. The case prompted widespread outrage on social media yesterday. Forced evictions are the single greatest source of public discontent, Amnesty International said in a report last year.
Republican US lawmakers on Friday criticized US President Joe Biden’s administration after sanctioned Chinese telecoms equipment giant Huawei unveiled a laptop this week powered by an Intel artificial intelligence (AI) chip. The US placed Huawei on a trade restriction list in 2019 for contravening Iran sanctions, part of a broader effort to hobble Beijing’s technological advances. Placement on the list means the company’s suppliers have to seek a special, difficult-to-obtain license before shipping to it. One such license, issued by then-US president Donald Trump’s administration, has allowed Intel to ship central processors to Huawei for use in laptops since 2020. China hardliners
A top Vietnamese property tycoon was on Thursday sentenced to death in one of the biggest corruption cases in history, with an estimated US$27 billion in damages. A panel of three hand-picked jurors and two judges rejected all defense arguments by Truong My Lan, chair of major developer Van Thinh Phat, who was found guilty of swindling cash from Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB) over a decade. “The defendant’s actions ... eroded people’s trust in the leadership of the [Communist] Party and state,” read the verdict at the trial in Ho Chi Minh City. After the five-week trial, 85 others were also sentenced on
‘DELUSIONAL’: Targeting the families of Hamas’ leaders would not push the group to change its position or to give up its demands for Palestinians, Ismail Haniyeh said Israeli aircraft on Wednesday killed three sons of Hamas’ top political leader in the Gaza Strip, striking high-stakes targets at a time when Israel is holding delicate ceasefire negotiations with the militant group. Hamas said four of the leader’s grandchildren were also killed. Ismail Haniyeh’s sons are among the highest-profile figures to be killed in the war so far. Israel said they were Hamas operatives, and Haniyeh accused Israel of acting in “the spirit of revenge and murder.” The deaths threatened to strain the internationally mediated ceasefire talks, which appeared to gain steam in recent days even as the sides remain far
RAMPAGE: A Palestinian man was left dead after dozens of Israeli settlers searching for a missing 14-year-old boy stormed a village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank US President Joe Biden on Friday said he expected Iran to attack Israel “sooner, rather than later” and warned Tehran not to proceed. Asked by reporters about his message to Iran, Biden simply said: “Don’t,” underscoring Washington’s commitment to defend Israel. “We are devoted to the defense of Israel. We will support Israel. We will help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed,” he said. Biden said he would not divulge secure information, but said his expectation was that an attack could come “sooner, rather than later.” Israel braced on Friday for an attack by Iran or its proxies as warnings grew of