AFGHANISTAN
Taliban kill militia
The Taliban has attacked a local militia, killing 13 pro-government fighters, officials said. Local forces were on their way to take part in a security operation when they were ambushed in Balkh Province’s Chemtal District, a spokesman for the governor of the province said. The men were part of a local militia established under the authority of the Ministry of the Interior to defend the area from insurgents. The Taliban, who have increased their attacks since the start of their annual spring offensive in April, claimed responsibility for the ambush.
YEMEN
Airstrikes hit al-Qaeda camp
Warplanes believed to be from the US struck an al-Qaeda militant camp in the home village of the nation’s president, according to Al-Yemen Al-Youm TV, which is affiliated with former president Ali Abdullah Saleh. The local Aden Alghad newspaper said that a drone attacked a vehicle for the militants in the same district. No information about casualties was given. The latest in a series of strikes by a US-led coalition, this one — in the al-Wadhee District, where President Abdurabuh Mansur Hadi lives — came hours after aircraft dropped leaflets on the city of Ataq. The leaflets called on residents to provide information on any of four al-Qaeda leaders, according to the al-Masdar news Web site.
PHILIPPINES
Duterte threatens critics
President Rodrigo Duterte has threatened to jail critics of his use of martial law in the violence-wracked south, days before the Supreme Court is to rule on its legality this week. Duterte declared military rule across the region of Mindanao, home to about 20 million people, in late May to quell what he said was a fast-growing threat from the Islamic State group there. Duterte has insisted he would ignore the findings of the court, which has constitutional oversight, vowing only to listen to recommendations from the armed forces. “It’s not dependent on the whim of the Supreme Court. Should I believe them? When I see the situation is still chaotic and you ask me to lift it? I will arrest you and put you behind bars,” Duterte said in a speech to local officials on Saturday. “We can talk of anything else and make compromises maybe but not when the interest of my country is at stake.”
COSTA RICA
Power cut hits region
A huge power outage affected Central America on Saturday, causing blackouts in Costa Rica, Panama, Nicaragua and El Salvador, as authorities across the region scrambled to restore electrical service. Institute for Electricity (ICE) officials said power was disrupted throughout the entire nation. “ICE is trying to diagnose the problem,” Communications Minister Mauricio Herrera said. He said that workers succeeded in restoring power to some areas of the nation. ICE said that the origins of the blackout were outside of the country and urged the public to remain indoors while they try to fix the problem. In Panama, the ETESA government power authority on Twitter said that the nation had experienced just a “partial blackout” and that workers were trying to restore power to the affected areas. The blackout in Panama occurred about 15 minutes into a major speech being delivered by Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela to the country’s legislature.
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
Conjoined twins Lori and George Schappell, who pursued separate careers, interests and relationships during lives that defied medical expectations, died this month in Pennsylvania, funeral home officials said. They were 62. The twins, listed by Guinness World Records as the oldest living conjoined twins, died on April 7 at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, obituaries posted by Leibensperger Funeral Homes of Hamburg said. The cause of death was not detailed. “When we were born, the doctors didn’t think we’d make 30, but we proved them wrong,” Lori said in an interview when they turned 50, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported. The
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
A prominent Christian leader has allegedly been stabbed at the altar during a Mass yesterday in southwest Sydney. Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was saying Mass at Christ The Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley just after 7pm when a man approached him at the altar and allegedly stabbed toward his head multiple times. A live stream of the Mass shows the congregation swarm forward toward Emmanuel before it was cut off. The church leader gained prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic, amassing a large online following, Officers attached to Fairfield City police area command attended a location on Welcome Street, Wakeley following reports a number