AUSTRALIA
Synagogue vandalized
Authorities yesterday denounced “hate-filled” vandals who daubed swastikas and other graffiti on a Sydney synagogue in the early morning. The vandalism on the Southern Sydney Synagogue was “a hate-filled attack by individuals that have got hate in their hearts,” New South Wales Premier Chris Minns told journalists. “I think the painting of a swastika on a Jewish building shows you everything you need to know about how appalling these particular individuals are and what their ultimate aim is.”
Photo: EPA-EFE
AUSTRALIA
Bumbling arsonists sought
Police on Thursday released CCTV video of an apparent arsonist who set their own pants alight and had to run from the scene without them. Footage of the incident on a fast-food outlet in Melbourne showed two people in dark hoodies and trousers with a container of what police described as “flammable liquid.” One of them tried to set the fluid alight at the front of the outlet, just out of the view of a camera. In an instant, the person is seen again engulfed in flames and then hurriedly removing the burning trousers before running off bare-cheeked with an apparently unharmed accomplice. Victoria state police, who distributed the footage, asked for witnesses to the attack, which happened in the early hours of Dec. 25. “Investigators have released CCTV and images of two people they believe may be able to assist with their inquires,” they said in a statement.
Photo: AFP / Victoria Police
JAPAN
Russian sanctions approved
Tokyo yesterday approved additional sanctions against Russia over its war on Ukraine, including freezing the assets of dozens of individuals and groups and banning exports to dozens of organizations in Russia and several other countries that have allegedly helped it evade sanctions. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said that the additional sanctions shows its commitment to the G7’s effort to bolster action against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. “It is Japan’s contribution as part of the international effort toward achieving global peace and resolving the problems surrounding Ukraine because of Russian invasion,” Hayashi said.
Photo: AP
VENEZUELA
Maduro to take oath
President Nicolas Maduro was due to take the oath of office for a third term yesterday despite a global outcry that brought thousands out in protest on the ceremony’s eve. Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who came out of hiding to lead a demonstration in Caracas on Thursday, was briefly detained after the rally, according to her team, reigniting international condemnation of Maduro’s alleged vote steal and cowing of critics. The government denied arresting her.
Photo: Reuters
YEMEN
Tanker salvage completed
An oil tanker that burned for weeks in the Red Sea after being attacked by Houthi rebels and threatening a massive oil spill has been salvaged, a security firm said yesterday. The Sounion had 1 million barrels of crude oil aboard when it was struck and later sabotaged with explosives by the Houthis. It took months to tow the vessel away, extinguish the fires and offload the remaining crude oil. “Over three challenging weeks, the fires were extinguished, cargo tanks patched and pressurized with inert gas and the vessel declared safe,” said private security firm Ambrey, which helped lead the response alongside a European naval force and salvagers.
GLORY FACADE: Residents are fighting the church’s plan to build a large flight of steps and a square that would entail destroying up to two blocks of homes Barcelona’s eternally unfinished Basilica de la Sagrada Familia has grown to become the world’s tallest church, but a conflict with residents threatens to delay the finish date for the monument designed more than 140 years ago. Swathed in scaffolding on a platform 54m above the ground, an enormous stone slab is being prepared to complete the cross of the central Jesus Christ tower. A huge yellow crane is to bring it up to the summit, which will stand at 172.5m and has snatched the record as the world’s tallest church from Germany’s Ulm Minster. The basilica’s peak will deliberately fall short of the
FRAYED: Strains between the US-European ties have ruptured allies’ trust in Washington, but with time, that could be rebuilt, the Michigan governor said China is providing crucial support for Russia’s aggression in Ukraine and could end the war with a phone call, US Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker said. “China could call [Russian President] Vladimir Putin and end this war tomorrow and cut off his dual-purpose technologies that they’re selling,” Whitaker said during a Friday panel at the Munich Security Conference. “China could stop buying Russian oil and gas.” “You know, this war is being completely enabled by China,” the US envoy added. Beijing and Moscow have forged an even tighter partnership since the start of the war, and Russia relies on China for critical parts
Two sitting Philippine senators have been identified as “coperpetrators” in former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte’s crimes against humanity trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC), documents released by prosecutors showed. Philippine senators Ronald Dela Rosa and Christopher Go are among eight current and former officials named in a document dated Feb. 13 and posted to the court’s Web site. ICC prosecutors have charged Duterte with three counts of crimes against humanity, alleging his involvement in at least 76 murders as part of his “war on drugs.” “Duterte and his coperpetrators shared a common plan or agreement to ‘neutralize’ alleged criminals in the Philippines
In a softly lit Shanghai bar, graduate student Helen Zhao stretched out both wrists to have her pulse taken — the first step to ordering the house special, a bespoke “health” cocktail based on traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). “TCM bars” have popped up in several cities across China, epitomizing what the country’s stressed-out, time-poor youth refer to as “punk wellness,” or “wrecking yourself while saving yourself.” At Shanghai’s Niang Qing, a TCM doctor in a white coat diagnoses customers’ physical conditions based on the pulse readings, before a mixologist crafts custom drinks incorporating the herbs and roots prescribed for their ailments.
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