Sanae Takaichi elected Japan PM, unveils cabinet lineup
Sanae Takaichi, leader of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), was officially elected the country's prime minister on Tuesday after winning in both houses of parliament, becoming the country's first female leader.
In the House of Representatives vote, Takaichi secured 237 votes, defeating head of the opposition Constitutional Democratic Party Yoshihiko Noda with 149 votes and other rival candidates.
The House of Councillors also held its vote, but no candidate secured a majority in the first round. Takaichi led with 123 votes, followed by Noda with 44.
As a result, an unprecedented runoff for the upper chamber, the first in 13 years, was triggered between Takaichi and Noda, with Takaichi ultimately winning the race.
By winning in both chambers, she was officially named Japan's 104th prime minister, the first woman in the nation to hold the office.
Former French president Sarkozy begins five-year prison term
Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Tuesday arrived at La Sante Prison in Paris to begin serving a five-year sentence.
The 70-year-old former conservative leader was convicted of participating in a criminal conspiracy linked to alleged campaign financing from the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.
In the morning on Tuesday, Sarkozy denounced what he called a "judicial scandal" in a post on social media platform X.
980 trucks of humanitarian aid enter Gaza since ceasefire
The Hamas-run media office said Tuesday that only 980 trucks of humanitarian aid have entered the Gaza Strip since the ceasefire took effect on Oct. 10, far short of the 6,600 expected.
In a press statement, the office said the convoys included 14 trucks carrying cooking gas and 28 trucks loaded with diesel fuel for bakeries, generators, hospitals, and other critical sectors, amid a severe shortage of essential supplies that residents depend on for daily life.
It added that the average number of trucks entering Gaza each day since the ceasefire began stands at just over 89, compared with the 600 expected daily -- a situation the office described as "continued suffocation, starvation, and humanitarian blackmail practiced by the occupation against more than 2.4 million citizens in Gaza."
Gaza receives 15 more Palestinian bodies, total reaches 165
Gaza's health authorities said Tuesday that they received the bodies of 15 Palestinians from Israel via the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), bringing the total received since the ceasefire to 165.
Munir al-Bursh, director general of Gaza's health authorities, said medical teams would conduct examinations and complete documentation before returning the bodies to their families.
He added that the authorities are relying on rudimentary methods to identify the bodies, some of which show signs of "abuse, beatings, handcuffing, and blindfolding."
Israel receives 2 hostage bodies held by Hamas
Israel on Tuesday received the bodies of two unidentified Israeli hostages who had been held by Hamas in Gaza for two years, the Prime Minister's Office said.
The coffins were handed over by Hamas to the Red Cross in Gaza, which transferred them to the Israeli military and Shin Bet security agents inside the enclave. "From there, they will be transferred to Israel," the office said, adding that the bodies will then be taken to the National Center for Forensic Medicine in Tel Aviv.
"The effort to return our hostages continues ... and will not cease until the last hostage is returned," it added.
U.S. vice president Vance says Hamas will be "obliterated" if it rejects disarmament
U.S. Vice President JD Vance said on Tuesday that Hamas would be "obliterated" if it refuses to disarm, and that Israel will decide which foreign troops, if any, may be deployed in Gaza.
Speaking at a press conference in Kiryat Gat, just north of Gaza, Vance said Hamas fighters could be spared if the group cooperates. "If it doesn't cooperate ... Hamas is going to be obliterated," he said.
Vance emphasized that the White House will not pressure Israel on the presence of foreign troops, calling it "a question for the Israelis to agree to." He added that Türkiye could play a significant role.■
