NEW ZEALAND
Space squadron announced
The air force would establish a small space squadron to signal its growing commitment to space-based defense and international security, a senior military official said yesterday. Air Vice Marshal Darryn Webb said that the air force had a team already focused on space, but creating a squadron symbolized its growing significance.
Photo: Reuters
NORTH KOREA
Kim observes test firings
Leader Kim Jong-un observed the first test firings of missiles from a recently launched destroyer — the nation’s first such warship — and called for accelerating efforts to boost the navy’s nuclear attack capabilities, the Korean Central News Agency reported yesterday. Kim watched the tests of the destroyer’s supersonic and strategic cruise missiles, anti-aircraft missiles, automatic guns and electronic jamming guns earlier this week, it said.
Photo: Reuters
SOUTH KOREA
Yoon’s home raided
Prosecutors yesterday raided the home of former president Yoon Suk-yeol as part of a probe into a shaman accused of receiving lavish gifts for the former first lady, Yonhap reported. Yoon’s house was raided “as part of [an] investigation into various suspicions over relations between his family and a controversial shaman,” it reported. The shaman, Jeon Seong-bae, is accused of receiving a diamond necklace, a luxury bag and ginseng from a high-ranking official from the Unification Church and handing them to Yoon’s wife, Kim Keon-hee. Prosecutors were trying to “verify the authenticity of the alleged delivery of gifts” and find out whether the then-first lady ever received them, Yonhap added.
Photo: AFP
INDIA
Kolkata fire kills 14
A fire tore through a hotel in Kolkata, killing at least 14 people, police said yesterday. Senior police officer Manoj Kumar Verma told reporters that the fire broke out on Tuesday evening at the Rituraj Hotel in central Kolkata. The cause of the fire was not immediately clear. Photographs and videos carried in media showed people trying to escape through the windows and narrow ledges of the building. Kolkata’s the Telegraph newspaper reported that at least one person died when he jumped off a terrace trying to escape. Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote on X that he was “anguished” by the loss of lives in the fire.
Photo: Reuters
VATICAN CITY
‘No pope’ stamps released
Post offices and selected collectors’ shops this week started selling special stamps marking the period between Pope Francis’ death and the election of his successor. The so-called sede vacante stamps include an image used by the Vatican in official documents in periods between popes: two crossed keys, but no papal headgear. They went on sale on Monday and remain valid until a new Holy Father appears at the window of St Peter’s Basilica. Until then, they can be used to send letters, postcards and packages.
MEXICO
Mayoral candidate killed
Armed men killed Anuar Valencia, a mayoral candidate from the governing Morena party, on Tuesday, the first day of campaigning for municipal elections in Veracruz State. Valencia had just finished an event launching his campaign and was preparing to hit the streets when more than two dozen gunmen opened fire at his campaign headquarters in northern Veracruz. The Veracruz state prosecutors’ office wrote on X that five others were injured, including two minors.
A new online voting system aimed at boosting turnout among the Philippines’ millions of overseas workers ahead of Monday’s mid-term elections has been marked by confusion and fears of disenfranchisement. Thousands of overseas Filipino workers have already cast their ballots in the race dominated by a bitter feud between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr and his impeached vice president, Sara Duterte. While official turnout figures are not yet publicly available, data from the Philippine Commission on Elections (COMELEC) showed that at least 134,000 of the 1.22 million registered overseas voters have signed up for the new online system, which opened on April 13. However,
EUROPEAN FUTURE? Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama says only he could secure EU membership, but challenges remain in dealing with corruption and a brain drain Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama seeks to win an unprecedented fourth term, pledging to finally take the country into the EU and turn it into a hot tourist destination with some help from the Trump family. The artist-turned-politician has been pitching Albania as a trendy coastal destination, which has helped to drive up tourism arrivals to a record 11 million last year. US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, also joined in the rush, pledging to invest US$1.4 billion to turn a largely deserted island into a luxurious getaway. Rama is expected to win another term after yesterday’s vote. The vote would
ALLIES: Calling Putin his ‘old friend,’ Xi said Beijing stood alongside Russia ‘in the face of the international counter-current of unilateralism and hegemonic bullying’ Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday was in Moscow for a state visit ahead of the Kremlin’s grand Victory Day celebrations, as Ukraine accused Russia’s army of launching air strikes just hours into a supposed truce. More than 20 foreign leaders were in Russia to attend a vast military parade today marking 80 years since the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II, taking place three years into Russia’s offensive in Ukraine. Putin ordered troops into Ukraine in February 2022 and has marshaled the memory of Soviet victory against Nazi Germany to justify his campaign and rally society behind the offensive,
CONFLICTING REPORTS: Beijing said it was ‘not familiar with the matter’ when asked if Chinese jets were used in the conflict, after Pakistan’s foreign minister said they were The Pakistan Army yesterday said it shot down 25 Indian drones, a day after the worst violence between the nuclear-armed rivals in two decades. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif vowed to retaliate after India launched deadly missile strikes on Wednesday morning, escalating days of gunfire along their border. At least 45 deaths were reported from both sides following Wednesday’s violence, including children. Pakistan’s military said in a statement yesterday that it had “so far shot down 25 Israeli-made Harop drones” at multiple location across the country. “Last night, India showed another act of aggression by sending drones to multiple locations,” Pakistan military spokesman Ahmed
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