THAILAND
Ceasefire holds for 72 hours
A renewed ceasefire between Thailand and Cambodia over border clashes yesterday passed the 72-hour mark, an initial goal the countries set to secure a more lasting peace, but Bangkok said it had delayed the release of 18 Cambodian soldiers held since July due to alleged breaches of the deal. The neighbors agreed on a ceasefire that took effect at noon on Saturday, which included the release of the soldiers, halting 20 days of fighting that killed at least 101 people and displaced more than 500,000 people on both sides, and included fighter-jet sorties, exchanges of rocket fire and artillery barrages. Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Nikorndej Balankura said the military had detected many drones from Cambodia on Sunday night, which it saw as a breach of the deal, and so had reconsidered the timing of the handover of the soldiers.
Photo: Reuters
AUSTRALIA
Bondi shooters acted alone
An investigation that extended to the Philippines of two men accused of shooting dead 15 people at a Sydney Jewish festival has found no evidence that they were part of a “broader terrorist cell,” police said yesterday. Sydney residents Sajid Akram, 50, and his 24-year-old son Naveed Akram spent most of November in Davao City in the southern Philippines, Federal Police Commissioner Krissy Barrett said. They returned on a flight from Manila on Nov. 29. Two weeks later, they were accused of the mass shooting at Bondi Beach. Philippine National Police determined the pair rarely left their hotel during the visit, Barrett said. “There is no evidence to suggest they received training or underwent logistical preparation for their alleged attack,” Barrett told reporters. “These individuals are alleged to have acted alone. There is no evidence to suggest these alleged offenders were part of a broader terrorist cell, or were directed by others to carry out an attack.”
TURKEY
Police detain 357 IS suspects
Police yesterday detained 357 suspects in a nationwide operation against Islamic State (IS), Minister of the Interior Ali Yerlikaya said, a day after three police officers and six militants were killed in a gunfight in the country’s northwest. Yerlikaya said authorities carried out raids in 21 provinces across the country. Earlier, the Istanbul prosecutor’s office said that police raided 114 addresses in Istanbul and two other provinces, and digital materials and documents were seized.
UNITED KINGDOM
Idris Elba knighted
Actor Idris Elba and members of England’s triumphant Women’s UEFA Euro soccer team on Monday were among the famous Britons recognized in the traditional New Year Honours. Ice dancers Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean, and players from England’s victorious Women’s Rugby World Cup-winning squad were also honored. Elba, known for his roles in hit TV series The Wire and Luther, was knighted for services to young people, having founded an international charity that helps support disadvantaged youngsters.
UNITED STATES
Beyonce now a billionaire
Singer Beyonce is a billionaire, Forbes said on Monday, becoming only the fifth musician to achieve such a milestone. The 44-year-old entertainer joins a select club that includes her husband, rapper Jay-Z, as well as Taylor Swift, Bruce Springsteen and Rihanna, it said. In 2023, Beyonce’s Renaissance World Tour grossed nearly US$600 million, and she this year staged the world’s highest-grossing tour.
The death of a former head of China’s one-child policy has been met not by tributes, but by castigation of the abandoned policy on social media this week. State media praised Peng Peiyun (彭珮雲), former head of China’s National Family Planning Commission from 1988 to 1998, as “an outstanding leader” in her work related to women and children. The reaction on Chinese social media to Peng’s death in Beijing on Sunday, just shy of her 96th birthday, was less positive. “Those children who were lost, naked, are waiting for you over there” in the afterlife, one person posted on China’s Sina Weibo platform. China’s
‘NO COUNTRY BUMPKIN’: The judge rejected arguments that former prime minister Najib Razak was an unwitting victim, saying Najib took steps to protect his position Imprisoned former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak was yesterday convicted, following a corruption trial tied to multibillion-dollar looting of the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) state investment fund. The nation’s high court found Najib, 72, guilty on four counts of abuse of power and 21 charges of money laundering related to more than US$700 million channeled into his personal bank accounts from the 1MDB fund. Najib denied any wrongdoing, and maintained the funds were a political donation from Saudi Arabia and that he had been misled by rogue financiers led by businessman Low Taek Jho. Low, thought to be the scandal’s mastermind, remains
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese yesterday announced plans for a national bravery award to recognize civilians and first responders who confronted “the worst of evil” during an anti-Semitic terror attack that left 15 dead and has cast a heavy shadow over the nation’s holiday season. Albanese said he plans to establish a special honors system for those who placed themselves in harm’s way to help during the attack on a beachside Hanukkah celebration, like Ahmed al-Ahmed, a Syrian-Australian Muslim who disarmed one of the assailants before being wounded himself. Sajid Akram, who was killed by police during the Dec. 14 attack, and
VISHNU VANDALS: A Cambodian official accused Thailand of destroying a statue in a disputed border area, with video showing the Hindu structure being torn down The Thai military said ceasefire talks with Cambodia, set to begin yesterday, are expected to conclude with a meeting of the countries’ defense ministers on Saturday, as the two sides seek to end weeks of deadly clashes. The talks started at 4pm in Thailand’s Chanthaburi Province, which borders Cambodia. The Thai Ministry of Defense outlined several demands to be discussed ahead of the bilateral meeting of the General Border Committee (GBC) on Saturday. If secretariat-level discussions fail to reach agreement on key technical frameworks such as troop deployments, the Thai side would not proceed with the GBC meeting or sign any agreement on
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