WORLD - The African Mirror

Apr

12

2024

Israel’s killing of Hamas leader’s sons stokes concerns over hostage talks

WORLD

ISRAELI forces killed three sons of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh this week without consulting top commanders or political leaders, Israeli media reported an action that risks complicating efforts to free hostages still in Gaza. Israel's government has faced rising pressure from families of the 133 Israeli hostages still believed to be held in the besieged enclave to secure their release, although talks mediated by the U.S., Egypt and Qatar have yet to secure a deal. "I can only hope this won't affect the negotiation. I hope it won't make Hamas put harder conditions on the deal," said Ofri Bibas Levy,…

Apr

12

2024

By KHANH VU

Vietnam tycoon sentenced to death in $12.5 billion fraud case

WORLD

A court in Vietnam handed the death sentence to real estate tycoon Truong My Lan for her role in a 304-trillion-dong ($12.5-billion) financial fraud, the country's biggest on record, state media said. Her trial, begun on March 5 and ending earlier than planned, was one dramatic result of a campaign against corruption that the leader of the ruling Communist Party, Nguyen Phu Trong, has pledged for years to stamp out. Lan, the chairwoman of real estate developer Van Thinh Phat Holdings Group, was found guilty of embezzlement, bribery and violations of banking rules at the end of a trial in the…

Apr

12

2024

By WILL DUNHAM

O.J. Simpson, football star turned celebrity murder defendant, dead at 76

WORLD

O.J. Simpson, the American football star and actor who was acquitted in a sensational 1995 trial of murdering his former wife but was found responsible for her death in a civil lawsuit and was later imprisoned for armed robbery and kidnapping, has died at the age of 76. Simpson, cleared by a Los Angeles jury in what the U.S. media called "the trial of the century," had died on Wednesday after a battle with cancer, his family posted on social media on Thursday. Simpson avoided prison when he was found not guilty in the 1994 stabbing deaths of former wife…

Apr

12

2024

By ANDREW GOUDSWARD

FBI concerned about possible coordinated attack in US after Russia massacre

WORLD

THE FBI is concerned about the possibility of an organized attack in the United States similar to the one that killed scores at a Russian concert hall last month, the bureau's director plans to tell a House of Representatives panel. “Looking back over my career in law enforcement, I’d be hard-pressed to think of a time where so many threats to our public safety and national security were so elevated all at once,” Christopher Wray is set to tell lawmakers during a budget hearing. “But that is the case as I sit here today.” The March 22 attack on a…

Apr

11

2024

By MOHAMMAD SALEM

Gazans live on memories of past Eid festivals as war ruins special day

WORLD

PALESTINIANS visited the graves of loved ones killed in the Gaza war and prayed beside the wreckage of a mosque and in shattered streets as the devastating conflict cast a pall over the Eid al-Fitr holiday. Millions of Muslims around the world are observing Eid, marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan, with festivities, feasts and family gatherings. But few in Gaza can take solace from this special time for Muslims. After six months of war, their focus is on surviving Israeli air strikes, shelling, a ground offensive and a humanitarian crisis. Amany Mansour and her mother stood at…

Apr

11

2024

By CLARK MINDOCK

Swiss women win big in a landmark climate case. Where do US climate cases stand?

WORLD

A landmark climate change ruling from the European Court of Human Rights found that the Swiss government had violated the human rights of its citizens by failing to do enough to combat climate change, in a case brought by a group of older Swiss women. In the United States, similar litigation has been filed largely on behalf of young people who claim their futures and health are jeopardized by climate change. Here is a look at where those cases stand. YOUTH-LED EFFORT There are at least three youth-led climate cases pending in U.S. federal trial courts and state courts in Hawaii. Youth plaintiffs have already…

Apr

11

2024

By BERNARD ORR

China labels US comments on Taiwan and AUKUS ‘dangerous’

WORLD

CHINA'S government labelled as "dangerous" comments by a senior U.S. diplomat that the AUKUS submarine project between Australia, Britain and the United States could help deter any Chinese move against Taiwan. The project, finalised by the three countries last year, involves Australia acquiring nuclear-powered attack submarines as part of the allies' efforts to push back against China's growing power in the Indo-Pacific region. Speaking last week, the U.S. State Department's No. 2 diplomat, Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, said the new submarine capabilities would enhance peace and stability, including in the strait that separates China and Taiwan. China claims democratically governed…

Apr

10

2024

By NIDAL AL-MUGHRABI and AHMED MOHAMED HASSAN

Gaza truce talks still deadlocked, Netanyahu sets date for offensive

WORLD

HAMAS rejected an Israeli ceasefire proposal made at talks in Cairo, a senior Hamas official sai, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said a date was set for an invasion of Rafah, Gaza's last refuge for displaced Palestinians. Israel and Hamas sent teams to Egypt on Sunday for talks that included Qatari and Egyptian mediators as well as CIA Director William Burns. Burn's presence underlined rising pressure from Israel's main ally the U.S. for a deal that would free Israeli hostages held in Gaza and get aid to Palestinian civilians left destitute by six months of conflict. But senior Hamas official Ali…

Apr

10

2024

By JOHN KRUZEL

Special counsel urges US Supreme Court to reject Trump immunity bid

WORLD

THE special counsel pursuing federal criminal charges against Donald Trump for his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss filed a U.S. Supreme Court brief urging the justices to reject the former president's bid for immunity from prosecution on the principle that "no person is above the law." The case is due to be argued before the justices on April 25. Trump has appealed a lower court's rejection of his request to be shielded from the criminal case brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith because he was serving as president when he took the actions at the centre of the case. In his last filing…

Apr

10

2024

By The African Mirror

China communist party politburo member Zhao to lead delegation to North Korea

WORLD

A Chinese government and communist party delegation led by its top legislator and the party's third ranked official Zhao Leji will pay an official goodwill visit to North Korea, the North's official KCNA news agency reported on Tuesday. China's foreign ministry also announced Zhao's visit that will take place from Thursday to Saturday. The trip led by Zhao, a member of the powerful Political Bureau Standing Committee of the Chinese communist party, comes as Pyongyang seeks to expand diplomatic exchanges with its main political ally after lifting COVID-19 restrictions. Zhao, who is also the chairman of the Standing Committee of…