SOUTH KOREA
Warship prompts questions
North Korea’s newly unveiled warship could have involved Russian help, Seoul’s military said yesterday, while cautioning it was still conducting “a more detailed analysis.” Pyongyang recently unveiled a destroyer-class vessel named Choe Hyon that some analysts said could be equipped with short-range tactical nuclear missiles. Joint Chiefs of Staff spokesman Lee Sung-jun told reporters that Russia might have given help with the warship. “Looking at the weapons and equipment that were revealed, we believe that there is a possibility that they received technology, funds or assistance from Russia,” Lee said. “We are conducting a more detailed analysis.” Lee said its deployment is likely to require more time. “In the case of warships it takes several years to build and even after completion it takes additional time for them to become operational,” he said. “So although the Choe Hyon has been unveiled it seems likely that considerably more time will be needed for its [operational] deployment.”
Photo: AFP
MYANMAR
Truce allowed to expire
The military junta let a truce declared to spur aid efforts after last month’s earthquake expire yesterday, a ceasefire that monitors say it consistently violated with airstrikes. The March 28 magnitude 7.7 quake in the nation’s central belt killed nearly 3,800 people and has left tens of thousands homeless as the summer monsoon season approaches. The junta declared a ceasefire on April 2 and extended it last week as aid groups warned of a long road to recovery. It expired at midnight on Wednesday, with the junta information team making no announcement of an extension.
KENYA
Political killing ‘targeted’
The killing of a member of parliament, Charles Ong’ondo Were, in the capital, Nairobi, appeared to have been targeted, police said. Were was shot by a passenger on a motorbike late on Wednesday as he was in a car on the major Ngong Road, which runs through the capital, according to eyewitnesses cited in a police statement released hours afterward. “The nature of this crime appears to be both targeted and premeditated,” National Police Service spokesman Muchiri Nyaga said in the statement. After the gunman fled on the motorbike, the driver of the car rushed Were to Nairobi hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival, Nyaga said. Neither the driver nor a male passenger, also in the car at the time of the incident, were hurt during the attack, the statement said. “At this stage, it is too early to provide further details,” Nyaga added.
BRAZIL
World’s oldest person dies
The world’s oldest person, nun Inah Canabarro Lucas, died on Wednesday, the religious community she belonged to in the city of Porto Alegre said. She was 116. The title now passes to Ethel Caterham, a resident of Surrey, England, who is 115 years old, according to the US Gerontological Research Group and the LongeviQuest database. Born on June 8, 1908, Canabarro became the world’s oldest person following the death in January of Japanese woman Tomiko Itooka, who was also 116. The Congregation of Teresian Sisters of Brazil announced Canabarro’s death in a statement in which it gave thanks “for the dedication and devotion” she had shown in life. LongeviQuest said Canabarro had attributed her longevity to God and on her 110th birthday, received a blessing from Pope Francis, who himself died on Monday last week.
BACKLASH: The National Party quit its decades-long partnership with the Liberal Party after their election loss to center-left Labor, which won a historic third term Australia’s National Party has split from its conservative coalition partner of more than 60 years, the Liberal Party, citing policy differences over renewable energy and after a resounding loss at a national election this month. “Its time to have a break,” Nationals leader David Littleproud told reporters yesterday. The split shows the pressure on Australia’s conservative parties after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s center-left Labor party won a historic second term in the May 3 election, powered by a voter backlash against US President Donald Trump’s policies. Under the long-standing partnership in state and federal politics, the Liberal and National coalition had shared power
CONTROVERSY: During the performance of Israel’s entrant Yuval Raphael’s song ‘New Day Will Rise,’ loud whistles were heard and two people tried to get on stage Austria’s JJ yesterday won the Eurovision Song Contest, with his operatic song Wasted Love triumphing at the world’s biggest live music television event. After votes from national juries around Europe and viewers from across the continent and beyond, JJ gave Austria its first victory since bearded drag performer Conchita Wurst’s 2014 triumph. After the nail-biting drama as the votes were revealed running into yesterday morning, Austria finished with 436 points, ahead of Israel — whose participation drew protests — on 357 and Estonia on 356. “Thank you to you, Europe, for making my dreams come true,” 24-year-old countertenor JJ, whose
A documentary whose main subject, 25-year-old photojournalist Fatima Hassouna, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza weeks before it premiered at Cannes stunned viewers into silence at the festival on Thursday. As the cinema lights came back on, filmmaker Sepideh Farsi held up an image of the young Palestinian woman killed with younger siblings on April 16, and encouraged the audience to stand up and clap to pay tribute. “To kill a child, to kill a photographer is unacceptable,” Farsi said. “There are still children to save. It must be done fast,” the exiled Iranian filmmaker added. With Israel
Africa has established the continent’s first space agency to boost Earth observation and data sharing at a time when a more hostile global context is limiting the availability of climate and weather information. The African Space Agency opened its doors last month under the umbrella of the African Union and is headquartered in Cairo. The new organization, which is still being set up and hiring people in key positions, is to coordinate existing national space programs. It aims to improve the continent’s space infrastructure by launching satellites, setting up weather stations and making sure data can be shared across
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