BANGKOK/JAKARTA/COLOMBO -- Parts of South and Southeast Asia have witnessed the most devastating flooding in years as a result of relentless downpours compounded by a tropical cyclone, with Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Thailand reporting a combined death toll exceeding 1,400, with nearly 900 people still missing.
It is believed that human-induced vulnerabilities have amplified the flood impact despite the heavy rainfalls, with experts appealing to strengthen early warning systems, shelter facilities, and disaster management plans. (Thailand-Floods-Risks)
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TOKYO -- A criminal complaint was filed against Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Thursday, alleging that she has received a political donation from a company that exceeded the legal maximum.
The complaint, sent by Hiroshi Kamiwaki, a constitutional law professor at Kobe Gakuin University, said a local chapter of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party in Nara Prefecture, represented by Takaichi, received in August 2024 a 10 million yen (64,400 U.S. dollars) donation, above a 7.5 million yen limit stipulated in the political funds control law for a donor of that size. (Japan-Takaichi-Complaint)
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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. (Gaza Strip-Israeli Airstrike-Casualty)
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WASHINGTON -- U.S. President Donald Trump hosted his counterparts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Rwanda here on Thursday, witnessing them signing a peace deal aimed to end a decades-long conflict in eastern DRC while opening their critical mineral resources to the United States.
Presidents Felix Tshisekedi of the DRC and Paul Kagame of Rwanda signed the deal at a ceremony held at the U.S. Institute of Peace, which was renamed "Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace" by the State Department one day earlier.
Eastern DRC has been gripped by decades of conflict, compounded by the March 23 Movement (M23) rebels' resurgence since late 2021. The DRC accuses Rwanda of supporting the group, an allegation the latter denies. (US-DRC-Rwanda)
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BEIRUT -- Lebanese President Joseph Aoun vowed Thursday that his country will make no concessions regarding its sovereignty in ongoing talks with Israel, while Israel launched fresh airstrikes in southern Lebanon.
A day after the first session of the talks in southwestern Lebanon's Naqoura, the first direct talks in decades attended by Israeli and Lebanese officials, during which Lebanon focused on Israeli violations of the ceasefire and UN Resolution 1701, Aoun outlined Lebanon's objectives in a cabinet session at the Baabda presidential palace.
Aoun said he has instructed former Lebanese Ambassador to the U.S. Simon Karam, a civilian envoy heading the Lebanese delegation, to focus on ending Israeli incursions, securing a border delineation, and the return of prisoners, read a statement released by the Lebanese Presidency. (Lebanon-Israel-Talks)
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MOSCOW -- Russia will respond if the European Union seizes frozen Russian assets, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Thursday.
Moscow's response will be a "surprise" for the EU, said Zakharova, without providing further details.
She said that the behavior of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was "inappropriate."
Von der Leyen proposed a revised plan on Wednesday to use frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine, reducing the funding amount from up to 186 billion U.S. dollars to around 105 billion dollars. Belgium rejected the EU plan, saying the proposal fails to address the financial and legal risks it faces. Most of the frozen Russian assets are held in a Brussels-based securities depository Euroclear. (Russia-EU-Assets) ■
