Death toll from floods, landslides in Indonesia rises to 811
Floods and landslides in the provinces of Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra have left 811 people dead and 623 missing, according to the latest official data by Indonesia's National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) on Wednesday.
The BNPB stated in a press release that it had received 40 tons of relief supplies on Tuesday, coordinated by the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs. The aid included food, drinking water and medical equipment, which would be distributed to affected areas across the three provinces.
Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto said that the assistance reflects the government's concern for disaster-affected communities, adding that it is expected to "help meet urgent needs, expedite the disaster response process, and provide strength to all parties working to recover from the disaster."
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto said Tuesday that the government's current priorities include meeting the needs of residents, accelerating socio-economic recovery, and repairing infrastructure disrupted by the disaster.
Russia, U.S. discuss Ukraine's NATO accession: Russian presidential aide
Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. presidential special envoy Steve Witkoff discussed Ukraine's accession to NATO during their talks, Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov said Wednesday.
Russia and the United States had reached a consensus, said Ushakov without elaborating.
Ushakov said that the successful progress made by the Russian army on the Ukrainian frontlines in recent weeks has enabled the West to form a more appropriate assessment of the situation.
Ushakov said that Russia has so far only engaged in negotiations with the United States over the Ukraine crisis.
He emphasized that Russia does not hold a negative stance toward engaging with Europe, but Europe has refused to cooperate.
Putin and Witkoff held a roughly five-hour meeting that ended after midnight on Wednesday. Ushakov described the meeting as "extremely useful, constructive and highly informative," saying that the two sides reviewed documents previously conveyed by the United States and agreed not to disclose the essence of the talks.
Ukraine to hold separate meetings with European, U.S. representatives
Ukraine's delegation for peace negotiations is planning to hold separate meetings with European and U.S. representatives following the recent U.S.-Russia talks in Moscow, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Wednesday.
In a post on the social media platform X, Zelensky announced that Ukrainian negotiators would meet with national security advisors to European leaders on Wednesday.
Rustem Umerov, Ukraine's secretary of national security and defense council, and Andrii Hnatov, chief of the general staff of the Ukrainian armed forces, will represent Ukraine at the meetings.
"Ukrainian representatives will brief their colleagues in Europe on what is known following yesterday's contacts by the American side in Moscow, and they will also discuss the European component of the necessary security architecture," Zelensky said.
Trump talks with Lula on fighting organized crime, trade during phone call
U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday spoke by phone with his Brazilian counterpart, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, with the two sides focusing on fighting organized crime, trade and sanctions.
"We had a great talk. We talked about trade. We talked about sanctions, because, as you know, I sanctioned them having to do with certain things that took place. But we had a very good talk," Trump told reporters at the White House.
Later in the day, Trump said on Truth Social that the call was "very productive" and they also discussed "how our Countries could work together to stop Organized Crime."
"I look forward to seeing and speaking with him soon. Much good will come out of this newly formed partnership," Trump added.
During the phone call which lasted about 40 minutes, Lula said that Brazil seeks to move quickly on tariff negotiations on other items after Washington last month removed additional tariffs on several Brazilian food products, according to media reports.
Lawmakers, scholars gather in Tokyo to urge PM Takaichi to withdraw remarks on Taiwan
Several Japanese lawmakers and prominent scholars gathered Tuesday evening at the Members' Office Building of the House of Councillors to urge Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to retract her recent erroneous remarks on Taiwan.
The meeting was held under the theme of demanding Takaichi withdraw her remarks linking a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan to the Taiwan question and return to the starting point of the normalization of Japan-China relations.
Speaking at the event, Former Foreign Ministry official Ukeru Magosaki argued that Takaichi's comments undermine the 1972 Sino-Japanese Joint Statement.
Kumiko Haba, professor emeritus at Aoyama Gakuin University, said Takaichi's statements on Taiwan were "extremely dangerous," pointing out that her remarks would clearly violate Article 9 of Japan's Constitution as well as international law.
5 Palestinians killed in Israeli airstrike in S. Gaza
At least five Palestinians were killed on Wednesday in an Israeli airstrike on a tent sheltering displaced people in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, according to Gaza's Civil Defense.
Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson for the Civil Defense, said the airstrike targeted the tent in the Al-Mawasi area west of Khan Younis, killing all five people inside. The bodies were taken to the nearby Kuwaiti Field Hospital.
The Israeli military has not commented on the attack.
Israel's Channel 12 reported that the Israeli Air Force had begun strikes across the Gaza Strip in response to what it described as a breach of the ceasefire agreement.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Israeli military said five soldiers were wounded during a clash with militants who emerged from an underground tunnel in eastern Rafah.
Hong Kong police to expand search to vicinity of fire-affected buildings
The Hong Kong police have completed the search for remains inside all seven buildings, and will expand the search to the vicinity to check for remains under scaffolding that collapsed in the flames.
This will be conducted under safe conditions, involving the careful removal of scaffolding and ashes, which will require additional time, according to the police.
The blaze that engulfed seven buildings in the residential complex Wang Fuk Court had claimed 159 lives by 2 p.m. on Wednesday, with 31 people still missing, the Hong Kong Police Force told reporters.
A total of 140 bodies had been identified, said the police, adding that the victims were aged between 1 and 97 years old.
The police on Tuesday arrested six people linked to a contractor responsible for installing fire safety equipment for allegedly deceiving the Fire Services Department that fire alarms would work during maintenance for the Wang Fuk Court buildings.
At least 35 injured in tram collision in Krakow, Poland
A collision between two trams in the southern Polish city of Krakow on Wednesday injured at least 35 people, Polish media reported.
The accident occurred around 6 p.m. local time (1700 GMT) on Bienczycka Street, when a moving Tram Line 5 struck a stationary Tram Line 52 near a major traffic roundabout.
According to the police and the transport company, two people with the most severe injuries, including one of the tram drivers, have been taken to hospital in life-threatening condition. Emergency services mounted a large-scale rescue operation.
Investigators are still looking into the cause, and several tram lines have been diverted.■
