PHILIPPINES
Aquino charged over raid
The Office of the Ombudsman yesterday filed criminal charges against former president Benigno Aquino III for mishandling a botched anti-militant raid that resulted in the death of 44 police commandos in 2015. The police officers’ deaths at the hands of an overwhelming number of rebel gunmen contributed to the stalling of peace efforts with Muslim separatists and was the biggest crisis of Aquino’s presidency. The office said it had charged Aquino with usurpation of authority, as well as graft and corruption, following preliminary investigations. The agency said Aquino allowed a suspended police chief to be involved in the planning and execution of the January 2015 raid in Mamasapano and kept the interior minister and police officer in charge out of the loop.
NEW ZEALAND
‘First cat’ run over by car
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern yesterday was mourning the loss of the nation’s “first cat,” Paddles, after her pet tabby was run over by a car in Auckland. The prime minister’s office confirmed that the ginger and white rescue cat, also described by Ardern as the PM (Prime Moggy), died in an accident on Tuesday. “To anyone who has ever lost a pet, you’ll know how sad we feel,” the 37-year-old leader posted on Facebook, urging people to donate to an animal rescue charity. “Paddles was much loved and not just by us. Thanks for everyone’s thoughts.” Paddles proved a popular member of the prime ministerial household after Ardern won office last month, with a Twitter account set up in her name attracting more than 11,000 followers.
EGYPT
VR tours of Pyramid on offer
A team of scientists from France’s HIP Institute who last week announced the discovery of a large void inside the Great Pyramid of Giza have created a virtual-reality (VR) tour that allows users to “teleport” themselves inside the structure and explore its architecture. Using 3D technology, the Scan Pyramids Project allows visitors wearing headsets to take a guided tour inside the Grand Gallery, the Queen’s Chamber and other ancient rooms not normally accessible to the public, without leaving Paris.
ITALY
Nutella to reduce hazelnuts
Nutella aficionados are up-in-arms after discovering that the recipe has been secretly changed, with more sugar and fat, but fewer hazelnuts. Ferrero, Nutella’s manufacturer, said it had carried out “fine-tuning,” but added that the nutritional value of the new version was similar to its predecessor. The recipe tweaks had been spotted by the Hamburg Consumer Protection Centre in Germany and revealed on its Facebook page. It claims the recipe has increased the content of powdered skimmed milk from 7.5 to 8.7 percent, and sugar from 55.9 to 56.3 percent. Furious fans took to Twitter to criticize the changes, using the hashtag #boycottNutella.
THAILAND
‘Evil’ palace official fired
The Royal Household Bureau has dismissed a top official for “extremely evil behavior,” a note said yesterday, in what appears to be the latest shake-up under King Maha Vajiralongkorn. The removal of Grand Chamberlain Distorn Vajarodaya, whose role was to manage the royal household, was announced by the palace in a document dated on Monday, media reported. The document listed things that Distorn allegedly did, including falsifying a 25 million baht (US$754,831) charity receipt for royal honors and tax evasion in the name of the crown.
Yemen’s separatist leader has vowed to keep working for an independent state in the country’s south, in his first social media post since he disappeared earlier this month after his group briefly seized swathes of territory. Aidarous al-Zubaidi’s United Arab Emirates (UAE)-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) forces last month captured two Yemeni provinces in an offensive that was rolled back by Saudi strikes and Riyadh’s allied forces on the ground. Al-Zubaidi then disappeared after he failed to board a flight to Riyadh for talks earlier this month, with Saudi Arabia accusing him of fleeing to Abu Dhabi, while supporters insisted he was
The Chinese Embassy in Manila yesterday said it has filed a diplomatic protest against a Philippine Coast Guard spokesman over a social media post that included cartoonish images of Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). Philippine Coast Guard spokesman Jay Tarriela and an embassy official had been trading barbs since last week over issues concerning the disputed South China Sea. The crucial waterway, which Beijing claims historic rights to despite an international ruling that its assertion has no legal basis, has been the site of repeated clashes between Chinese and Philippine vessels. Tarriela’s Facebook post on Wednesday included a photo of him giving a
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa on Sunday announced a deal with the chief of Kurdish-led forces that includes a ceasefire, after government troops advanced across Kurdish-held areas of the country’s north and east. Syrian Kurdish leader Mazloum Abdi said he had agreed to the deal to avoid a broader war. He made the decision after deadly clashes in the Syrian city of Raqa on Sunday between Kurdish-led forces and local fighters loyal to Damascus, and fighting this month between the Kurds and government forces. The agreement would also see the Kurdish administration and forces integrate into the state after months of stalled negotiations on
‘MOBILIZED’: While protesters countered ICE agents, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz activated the state’s National Guard to ‘support the rights of Minnesotans’ to assemble Hundreds of counterprotesters drowned out a far-right activist’s attempt to hold a small rally in support of US President Donald Trump’s latest immigration crackdown in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Saturday, as the governor’s office announced that National Guard troops were mobilized and ready to assist law enforcement, although not yet deployed to city streets. There have been protests every day since the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ramped up immigration enforcement in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul by bringing in more than 2,000 federal officers. Conservative influencer Jake Lang organized an anti-Islam, anti-Somali and pro-US Immigration and Customs Enforcement
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