Author: Admin

Israeli military forces have eliminated the top commander of Hamas’ armed forces and his successor within the last two weeks, continuing a pattern of targeted operations against high-ranking militants.

The deceased leaders were named as Mohammed Odeh and Izz al-Din al-Haddad, both key planners behind the Oct. 7, 2023, assault on Israel. Military officials describe these eliminations as components of a wider campaign to hunt down those responsible for the attacks that sparked the current Gaza conflict.

However, while such precision strikes may deliver concrete results that political leaders can present as successes, they seldom tackle the fundamental issues that fuel ongoing conflicts.

“The killing of military chiefs such as Odeh and Haddad points to Israel’s operational ability to reach Hamas’ military leadership,” said Nasser Khdour of the nonprofit ACLED, which tracks reports of political violence and conflict worldwide. But, he added, “the killing of senior commanders is unlikely, on its own, to push Hamas toward disarmament or make it accept the complete removal of its role in Gaza’s security and governance.”

Throughout its history, Israel has conducted numerous targeted eliminations, yet Palestinian and Lebanese armed organizations have frequently survived and even strengthened following the deaths of senior figures.

Consider Hezbollah’s experience. Israeli warplanes killed its leader Abbas Musawi in southern Lebanon during 1992. Under Nasrallah, his charismatic successor, Hezbollah developed into the region’s most formidable armed organization and battled Israel to a costly deadlock in 2006.

Nasrallah and almost all his top deputies perished during the 2024 conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. The Iran-supported organization sustained additional significant casualties that year, yet continued launching rocket and drone strikes against Israel within days of the current war’s beginning.

Hamas has repeatedly lost senior leadership. Israel eliminated its founder and spiritual guide, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, in a 2004 air attack. Almost every planner of the organization’s Oct. 7 assault on Israel has subsequently been killed.

Both organizations have continued operating, driven by longstanding complaints rooted in the Israeli-Palestinian dispute.

The United States has similarly employed targeted eliminations against al-Qaida and the Islamic State group, eliminating Osama bin Laden during a 2011 operation in Pakistan and IS founder Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in 2019. Both organizations have been significantly weakened, though only following extended conflicts involving ground troops.

Yossi Kuperwasser, the former head of Israel’s military intelligence research division, said in March that targeted killings can be an effective tool but are not a “cure for all problems.”

“These operations by themselves don’t dramatically change the ability of those organizations to cause damage and to carry out attacks,” he said. “But it’s important for Israel to weaken its enemies.”

In Gaza, Lebanon and now Iran, he noted, Israel has taken out dozens of figures, reshaping the leadership structure in lasting ways.

Precision strikes became a primary tactic during the early phases of the Iran conflict. Senior military and civilian leaders up to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei were eliminated in the war’s initial attacks. Khamenei has been succeeded by his son, Mojtaba, who is viewed as even more uncompromising.

Kuperwasser said that targeted killings in Iran hadn’t transformed the theocracy but had changed it.

“Maybe there’s not ‘regime change’ yet, but there is ‘change in regime.’ The people are not the same people,” he said.

Historically, precision eliminations have sometimes radicalized supporters or members of political movements and armed groups, promoting more extremist successors or transforming killed leaders into martyrs with lasting impact.

Northeastern University political scientist Max Abrahms said data from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Israel and the Palestinian territories shows violence against civilians spikes after targeted killings.

“Leadership decapitation is risky,” he said. “When you take out a leader that prefers some degree of restraint and had influence over subordinates, then there’s a very good chance that, upon that person’s death, you’re going to see even more extreme tactics.”

Precision eliminations can generate leadership gaps and opportunities for transformation, but only when combined with a comprehensive political approach, said Mohanad Hage Ali, deputy director of the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut.

“You can decapitate an organization or defeat it militarily, but if you don’t follow through politically, it doesn’t work. And it’s hard to see how this goes much further,” he said.

GILGIL, Kenya — A tragic overnight blaze at a Kenyan girls’ boarding school has claimed the lives of at least 16 students, marking another devastating incident for the East African country, according to a government official.

Julius Ogamba, the Education Minister, announced Thursday that 79 additional students suffered injuries in the fire at Utumishi Girls School, an institution serving more than 800 pupils in the Gilgil region of central Kenya.

Investigators have not yet determined what sparked the deadly blaze. Ogamba stated that officials will examine whether the institution followed proper fire safety protocols.

Law enforcement officials reported they are spearheading rescue operations and emergency response at the facility, situated approximately 120 kilometers (75 miles) from Nairobi, the nation’s capital.

The secondary institution is a government-operated school under the management and sponsorship of the Kenya Police Service. A significant number of enrolled students are children of law enforcement officers.

Officials have not released the identities of those who perished in the fire.

Wambui Nderitu, a witness at the location, reported that a matron unlocked one of two dormitory exits “without alerting the children to exit.”

“The second door remained closed, and even though my cousin escaped with a leg injury, we’ve been told many children are injured and some died,” Nderitu stated.

The Kenya Red Cross confirmed that multiple students were transported from the scene and are now receiving medical care at different healthcare facilities.

The organization reported deploying “tracing and psychosocial support teams to support affected students and families.”

The most catastrophic school fire in Kenya’s recent past took place in 2001, when 67 pupils lost their lives in a dormitory blaze in Machakos County.

During 2024, 21 students perished in a school fire in central Kenya. President William Ruto announced three days of mourning.

In 2017, 10 students died in a school fire in Nairobi. A student was charged with murder.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation announced Thursday it has selected a top Reuters executive to lead its news division. Simon Robinson, who currently serves as executive editor at Reuters, will take over as director of news and current affairs beginning in September.

The appointment was confirmed in a statement posted on the broadcaster’s website by managing director Hugh Marks. Robinson, an Australian citizen based in London, will fill the position previously held by Justin Stevens, who stepped down Wednesday after serving four years in the role for personal and professional reasons.

At Reuters, Robinson will be succeeded by Nick Tattersall, the organization’s global managing editor for newsroom operations, according to a staff memo from Editor-in-Chief Alessandra Galloni.

Robinson joined Reuters in 2010 and was promoted to executive editor in October 2022. Prior to that promotion, he spent nearly seven years overseeing investigations and enterprise reporting across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, where he supervised award-winning coverage of Iran, Russia, corporate taxation, Greek banks and migration issues.

His journalism career began at Time magazine, where he worked as a correspondent and later editor from 1995 to 2010. During his tenure there, he reported from more than 50 countries across Africa, South Asia, the Middle East and Europe. Robinson has also published short stories and created an award-winning satirical film about aid workers and journalists working in Africa.

The Guardian in Australia first broke news of Robinson’s appointment to the broadcasting corporation.

Reuters operates as a division of Thomson Reuters and employs more than 2,600 journalists in 200 locations worldwide. The news organization serves 50 million monthly digital users and hundreds of thousands of professional subscribers through Thomson Reuters and LSEG platforms.

A weekly ferry route connecting Taiwan and Japan launched Thursday aboard a vessel that Japanese officials have designated for potential emergency evacuations during regional conflicts.

The Yaima Maru ferry now operates between Keelung in northern Taiwan and Japan’s Ishigaki island, making overnight trips once per week to transport tourists. Japanese authorities included this vessel on their 2024 list of ships available to evacuate residents from southern Japanese islands during potential crises.

Regional military tensions have intensified as China has increased pressure on Taiwan over recent years. China considers Taiwan part of its territory and has conducted military exercises near Japanese territorial waters. The ferry route serves an area where the U.S. maintains significant military presence in Okinawa and Japan has been bolstering its defensive capabilities.

At the ferry’s inaugural ceremony in Keelung port, Ishigaki Mayor Yoshitaka Nakayama emphasized the route’s broader significance beyond transportation. “This regular route is not merely transportation infrastructure,” he stated. “It serves as a new bridge that supports tourism, logistics, economic activity, cultural exchange, and education.”

When asked about regional security concerns, Tatsuya Ohama, president of ferry operator Shosen Yaima, avoided direct commentary on military matters. “This is fundamentally a matter between countries. As a private ferry operator, our first step is to get the service up and running,” he explained to reporters.

The ferry connects regions where Japan has strengthened military defenses, particularly on Yonaguni island, which sits nearest to Taiwan among Japanese territories. Taiwan and Japan maintain strong economic ties despite lacking official diplomatic relations, a legacy from Japan’s colonial rule of Taiwan from 1895 to 1945.

Recent diplomatic tensions have escalated after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested in November that a Chinese military action against Taiwan might prompt Japanese military involvement. This statement angered Beijing and strained relations between the countries.

Taiwan’s government continues to reject China’s territorial claims over the island.

The American diplomatic mission in Ukraine’s capital issued a firm denial Thursday regarding reports that it had ceased operations after Russia warned foreign diplomats and citizens to evacuate before launching intensified attacks.

Ukrainian news outlets on Thursday referenced comments from European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas suggesting the American embassy had departed the capital city.

Speaking to journalists during an EU gathering in Cyprus, Kallas indicated that foreign diplomatic missions in Ukraine’s capital had dismissed Moscow’s attack threats, with one exception.

“What we heard from Ukraine yesterday was that all the embassies stayed except one,” Kallas stated Thursday. “All the Europeans stayed. America left.”

Multiple EU nations called in their Russian ambassadors following Moscow’s Monday warning directing foreigners to depart.

Through a social media post, the American embassy in Ukraine’s capital refuted any operational changes.

“The U.S. Embassy is open. There are no changes to our operations and reports otherwise are false,” the statement read.

A communications adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Dmytro Lytvyn, informed reporters that Ukraine understood some American diplomatic personnel had departed the capital during Sunday’s large-scale Russian assault.

Lytvyn expressed Ukraine’s appreciation for all diplomatic missions operating in the capital and providing support to Ukraine.

An embassy representative declined to address Lytvyn’s statements.

Embassy social media indicated that the acting American ambassador to Ukraine, Julie Davis, was in Lviv attending a weekend function.

“The State Department has no higher priority than the safety and security of Americans and regularly reviews the security posture of Embassy Kyiv,” the embassy stated in its social media post.

Israeli forces launched devastating attacks early Thursday morning on Lebanon’s fourth largest city, resulting in at least eight fatalities as military operations against Hezbollah continue to escalate before critical discussions in Washington.

Additional individuals sustained injuries during the bombardment, Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency confirmed.

In a separate incident, an Israeli soldier lost his life in northern Israel when Hezbollah launched a drone assault, military officials reported.

The heightened military activity follows an announcement by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to broaden Israeli military operations in Lebanon, seemingly in response to Hezbollah’s deployment of fiber-optic exploding drones that have targeted Israeli forces in Lebanon and reached northern Israeli border communities.

Military representatives from Lebanon and Israel are scheduled to conduct their initial security discussions Friday in the U.S. capital. These negotiations have prolonged a temporary ceasefire that began April 17, though hostilities have grown more severe while avoiding the Lebanese capital Beirut.

Hezbollah has rejected participation in the discussions and has instead backed its primary partner Iran, which has established an end to the Lebanese conflict as a prerequisite for its own negotiations with Washington facilitated by Pakistan.

Before Thursday’s bombardment began, Israeli military Arabic spokesperson Avichay Adraee delivered evacuation notices to eight structures in the Mediterranean coastal city of Tyre and nearby areas. Numerous residents have evacuated the region.

In the northern city of Sidon, an Israeli drone targeted an apartment complex housing displaced families.

Mohammad Al-Gharbi, a resident living opposite the struck building in Sidon, was awakened by the blast.

“I was in my room when part of the wall and shattered glass fell on me, and everything was thrown into chaos,” he said. “This building that was hit had six apartments occupied by poor families who had fled from the south to escape the attacks there, only to be hit here.”

In the coastal community of Adloun, an Israeli drone attacked a vehicle carrying a fleeing family, resulting in six deaths including children. A separate drone assault without advance warning killed two individuals on a motorcycle near Tyre. The intended target remained unclear, NNA reported.

Israeli military officials confirmed Thursday that a soldier in northern Israel died in a Hezbollah drone strike and two reservists suffered injuries.

Hezbollah has taken responsibility for numerous drone and rocket strikes that it claims were directed at Israeli forces in southern Lebanon and northern Israel.

More than 1 million Lebanese residents have been forced from their homes due to the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, which began when Hezbollah launched rockets into northern Israel on March 2 in support of Iran, two days after the Iran war commenced.

Israeli strikes have claimed at least 3,269 lives since the war’s beginning, the Lebanese Health Ministry reports, with more than 9,800 people wounded.

Data from Netanyahu’s office indicates that at least 23 Israeli soldiers and a defense contractor have died in or near southern Lebanon, while two civilians have been killed in northern Israel, primarily from drone attacks.

A team from China’s People’s Liberation Army National Defence University will represent the nation at a major Asian security conference scheduled for this weekend in Singapore, according to an announcement from Beijing’s defense ministry on Thursday.

The delegation will be led by Meng Xiangqing from the defense university, ministry spokesperson Jiang Bin announced during Thursday’s press briefing. The group will participate in the Shangri-La Dialogue, considered Asia’s most important security summit, running from May 29 through May 31.

This will be the second consecutive year that Chinese Defence Minister Dong Jun has chosen not to participate in the high-profile international gathering.

The director of Russia’s SVR foreign intelligence service made allegations Thursday that NATO is actively conducting practical preparations for what he described as a “large-scale conflict in the east,” according to reporting from the state RIA news agency.

Sergei Naryshkin also claimed that the European Union is quickly building up its military capabilities and transforming into a military partnership “directed against Russia,” the agency reported on May 28 from Moscow.

Three oil tankers were struck by drones Thursday in Black Sea waters off Turkey’s northern coastline, according to shipping agency Tribeca.

The vessel James II, flying a Palau flag and carrying no cargo, was positioned approximately 50 miles north of the Turkeli Area when the strike happened, according to the agency’s report.

Two additional vessels, the Altura and Velora, both operating under Sierra Leone flags and also empty, came under attack in the same vicinity while conducting a ship-to-ship transfer operation, the agency reported.

Emergency response vessels from coastal authorities were dispatched to provide aid, and all sailors aboard the three tankers were confirmed to be in good health, according to the agency.

Russia and Ukraine have repeatedly targeted each other’s maritime facilities and oil vessels following Russia’s comprehensive military offensive against Ukraine that began more than four years ago. No immediate claims of responsibility were made by either nation regarding Thursday’s reported strikes.

Officials from Turkey’s transport ministry could not be reached for statements about the incidents due to the Muslim Eid holiday observance.

MORENO, Argentina (AP) — Analía Celis, 34, lives with intellectual disability and cerebral palsy that prevents her from walking, but specialized sports therapy helped relax her tight muscles. While unable to hold traditional employment, baking activities provided her with feelings of autonomy. Though verbal communication proves difficult, art sessions with fellow participants allowed her to form connections beyond spoken language.

These vital therapeutic programs that have served as crucial support for Celis and countless others among Argentina’s estimated 5 million disabled citizens are now facing elimination under President Javier Milei’s aggressive budget-cutting approach.

Government funding to organizations delivering therapeutic and educational disability services has been suspended in recent months. Family members and advocates report that participants have lost access to carefully structured daily activities, while what was once considered a strong regional social support system has been systematically dismantled.

“I never thought we would reach this situation, selling our cars because we lack funds to pay basic utilities,” stated Martín Lucero, who serves as legal representative for the Argentine nonprofit Andar, which operates a disability day center outside Buenos Aires.

Financial pressures have forced Andar to eliminate its transportation service two months ago, leaving Celis and numerous other residents throughout the extensive Buenos Aires suburb of Moreno without access to the center they previously reached through free, specialized bus service.

“Cutting off individuals from environments essential for their growth cannot be the only answer,” Lucero stated. “This represents a deliberate policy decision.”

Following Milei’s assumption of office in late 2023, his fiscal restraint policies have established him as a symbol of worldwide conservative resistance to liberal governance. Similar to allies within the Trump administration, his government has characterized disability program reductions as components of reform efforts designed to eliminate fraud and inefficiency within federal operations.

A spokesperson for the president did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Organizations providing disability care in Argentina — encompassing day centers such as Andar along with residential facilities, specialized education, and vocational training programs — depend on income generated through billing state-operated insurance systems.

These nonprofit organizations face growing debt due to inconsistent government payments and compensation rates that fail to keep pace with extremely high inflation. Conditions deteriorated six months ago when funding completely ceased, according to service providers.

Cost reduction measures have led to widespread staff reductions, delayed employee payments, smaller meal portions, and reduced operating hours. While no official count exists of therapeutic centers forced to close, disability advocacy organizations estimate approximately 50 facilities shut down this year, particularly in Argentina’s rural areas.

“I want to ask the president to notice us, to truly observe us, to visit and meet us personally,” said Roman Pontecorvo, a 28-year-old with intellectual disability who found his love for theater at Andar. “If Andar shuts down, many of us will have nowhere to go. It will be complete disorder.”

Andar reports that roughly 30% of the 150 disabled individuals registered in its day program cannot access the facility anymore — a peaceful property featuring a soccer field, vegetable garden, and commercial-quality kitchen where participants earn monthly income through its catering business.

Mental health professionals warn that without structured programming, disabled individuals can experience rapid deterioration.

“She awakens three or four times nightly, crying that she wants to return to the farm,” explained Celis’ mother, Clementina Tabares, 74, who now skips her own doctor visits because Celis needs constant supervision. Celis remains in bed throughout the day with a blanket covering the window to block sunlight and loud music playing from her phone, occasionally making sounds of distress.

“She’s isolating herself,” Tabares explained. “That frightens me.”

Rights advocates point to a straightforward solution: enforcing legislation approved last year that declared a disability emergency. The law increases benefits that have declined 30% due to inflation and ensures provider funding through at least December 2026.

However, Milei has delayed implementing the law, contending that its financial cost — approximately 0.35% of gross domestic product — would compromise his achieved budget surplus, Argentina’s first following decades of deficits.

“Through worthy causes, they enact legislation that bankrupts the country,” Milei commented after rejecting the law last year.

Congress overturned his rejection. Legal disputes continue regarding fund distribution.

In a sharp ruling, a federal judge on May 18 ordered the government to resume frozen provider payments within 72 hours to comply with the law, noting that for disabled individuals, “treatment interruption causes developmental regression.” The government filed an appeal.

Milei has simultaneously proposed legislation that would officially eliminate the existing system of government payments to therapeutic centers, allowing private insurance companies and provincial authorities to establish their own provider rates.

The proposal would also impose new benefit eligibility restrictions, terminating subsidies for everyone except those living in poverty with disabilities classified as “complete” and “permanent.”

The legislation, which has generated opposition from rights organizations, awaits congressional discussion.

Months before billionaire Elon Musk — from the Trump administration’s brief Department of Government Efficiency — incorrectly alleged that millions of deceased individuals received Social Security payments, Argentine officials made similar extraordinary fraud claims: that recipients were falsifying medical examinations to illegally obtain disability funds, including at least one instance involving submission of an injured dog’s X-rays.

The scope of such fraudulent activities remains unknown. Officials have not provided evidence of widespread misconduct.

Prosecutors are examining higher-level corruption allegations: In leaked recordings from last year, former national disability agency director Diego Spagnuolo described Karina Milei, the president’s sister and primary advisor, accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in illegal payments from pharmaceutical companies seeking government contracts.

Milei has rejected accusations regarding his sister. As oversight efforts gained importance, the government eliminated the national disability agency, Andis, terminating hundreds of employees and transferring disability programs to the Health Ministry.

Most agree that increased transparency is necessary. However, critics argue the government seems more focused on completely destroying the system rather than improving it.

“Destroying institutions without creating replacements abandons people,” stated Celeste Fernandez, co-director of the Civic Association for Equality and Justice in Buenos Aires, which successfully sued the government last year after Andis suspended 140,000 disability payments due to suspected fraud.

In most situations, the government subsequently admitted, recipients had simply failed to comply with or understand notices requiring in-person evaluations — often at locations hundreds of miles from their residences.

“The government is not implementing genuine reform,” she stated. “It is merely draining the system.”

The Australian government has initiated legal action against American manufacturing giant 3M, demanding over $1.4 billion in damages related to chemical contamination at military installations, officials announced Thursday.

This unprecedented compensation claim targets contamination from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly called PFAS, which affected 28 defense facilities. These synthetic compounds earn the nickname “forever chemicals” due to their inability to decompose naturally in the environment.

The legal action was filed in Minnesota’s Federal Court against both 3M Company and its Australian division, targeting the corporation’s home jurisdiction.

The company has vowed to contest Australia’s allegations.

“3M has never manufactured PFAS in Australia and ceased sales of the products at issue in Australia around two decades ago,” the company stated. “Despite this, the (Australian) Department of Defense continued to use PFAS-containing firefighting foams for nearly two decades longer.”

These chemical compounds have been utilized in consumer and commercial applications since the 1950s, providing resistance to heat, stains, grease and water. The firefighting foam containing these substances proved particularly effective against fuel-based fires.

In 2018, Australia’s Defense Department issued warnings to residents living near Richmond Air Base outside Sydney, advising them to limit consumption of locally sourced fish and eggs after detecting the chemicals in area groundwater.

Attorney-General Michelle Rowland accused the manufacturer of concealing environmental hazard information about the foam on Thursday.

“The Commonwealth (of Australia) is seeking more than AU$2 billion ($1.4 billion) in damages to recover significant past and future expenses incurred in investigating and managing contamination resulting from the historic storage and use of this foam,” Rowland told reporters.

Assistant Defense Minister Peter Khalil revealed his department has already invested AU$1.3 billion ($920 million) in addressing and reducing the foam’s environmental consequences. The department has extracted 200,000 metric tons (220,000 U.S. tons) of polluted soil from installations and processed 13 billion liters (3.4 billion gallons) of contaminated water, according to Khalil.

“We are prepared to take on powerful corporations when Australians and Australian communities have been impacted,” Khalil said.

MELBOURNE, Australia — A 34-year-old woman from Melbourne faces terrorism charges after Australian authorities accused her of joining ISIS in Syria, according to police officials.

Australia Federal Police Deputy Commissioner Hilda Sirec announced Thursday that the woman was taken into custody at her Melbourne residence eight months following her return to Australia through Lebanon, accompanied by another woman.

The charges come just two days after 19 individuals — seven women and 12 children with ISIS connections — arrived back in Australia from a Syrian refugee facility, despite opposition from the Australian government.

Last month, 13 additional people in comparable situations returned from the Roj displacement camp, situated close to where Syria’s borders meet Turkey and Iraq. Upon their arrival, three of the four women in that group faced slavery and terrorism charges and were detained.

Sirec stated that all women who have returned from Syria this month continue to face police scrutiny. The companion who traveled with Thursday’s arrestee from Lebanon is also under investigation.

“A period of time passing without charges does indicate investigations have ceased,” Sirec noted.

The Melbourne woman was scheduled to appear Thursday before the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on charges of entering and staying in a designated conflict area and joining ISIS as a terrorist organization. Both charges could result in up to 10 years imprisonment.

Authorities claim she journeyed to Syria during 2013 and 2014 to become an ISIS member. Kurdish forces captured her in March 2019 following ISIS’s defeat and held her at al-Hol displacement camp.

Police allege her return to Australia occurred on September 26.

Janai Safar, 32, from Sydney, received similar charges upon her May 7 arrival in Australia with her 9-year-old son. A magistrate denied her bail request, requiring her to serve a minimum two-month prison term in Sydney.

Authorities claim Safar followed her ISIS-fighter partner to Syria in 2015 and gave birth to a child there. The partner reportedly died in 2017. Australian law prohibited citizens from traveling to Raqqa, the former ISIS stronghold in Syria, without legitimate purposes from 2014 through 2017.

Kawsar Ahmed, also called Kawsar Abbas, and her daughter Zeinab Ahmed, 31, faced charges in a Melbourne court on May 8 related to accusations that their family purchased a female Yazidi slave for $10,000 while in Syria, police reported.

The daughter plans to seek bail next week, while the mother has a bail hearing set for June 16.

PARIS (AP) — Nearly 200 years after France ended slavery, a colonial-era statute that defined human beings as property has remained quietly on the books. Thursday marks the day legislators will finally take action to remove it.

The legislation, anticipated to pass in the National Assembly, will eliminate the Code Noir, also known as the Black Code, which was established by a 1685 decree from King Louis XIV to regulate enslaved people throughout France’s colonial territories.

This statute transformed people into commodities, permitting their exploitation through forced labor, physical violence, sale, sexual assault and murder — and France never officially eliminated it.

This discovery has stunned many citizens.

“That shocks me,” said Muriel Jean-Baptiste, a Paris-born nurse whose parents are from Martinique, a French overseas department in the Caribbean.

“A law that treated Black people as property was left sitting there,” she said.

The statute’s scope was comprehensive. Article 44 designated enslaved individuals as “movable property.” Additional provisions mandated bodily harm for escapees and established that testimony from enslaved people held no legal weight.

The 60 provisions of Code Noir “should never have survived the abolition of slavery” in the 19th century, President Emmanuel Macron stated last week.

“The silence, even the indifference, that we have maintained for nearly two centuries toward this Black Code is no longer an oversight,” Macron said. “It has become a form of offense.”

Similar to previous French presidents, Macron did not offer an apology.

France operated the world’s third-largest slave trade, transporting approximately 1.4 million Africans to plantations whose sugar profits funded the development of French cities like Nantes and Bordeaux. Its colonial reach eventually extended across four continents.

Some view this repeal as more significant — evidence, they contend, of a nation that has not fully confronted its history, representing one of many gradual measures in that process.

Legally, formally removing it is straightforward, experts note. Code Noir became powerless in 1848, when France ended slavery.

France maintained control of its slave territories: the four oldest — Guadeloupe, Martinique, French Guiana and Réunion — became full French overseas departments in 1946. This designation means Paris governs them like any other region.

Their approximately 1.9 million residents, mostly descendants of enslaved people, hold French citizenship.

Despite full integration into France, these overseas departments remain among the nation’s most impoverished areas. Joblessness rates run about twice the mainland average, and over three-quarters of Mayotte households fall below the national poverty threshold.

Before learning the facts, the French legislator who introduced the repeal proposal was unaware the law still existed.

Max Mathiasin, representing Guadeloupe, had purchased copies of the document over time and stored them on his bookshelf.

“As the great-great-grandson of people who were enslaved, I had never been able to read it in full,” he said. “This was made by human beings — against human beings.”

For him, the legislative action represents “a way of restoring our ancestors, restoring our humanity” before a France whose national motto proclaims liberty, equality, fraternity. “It means living up to the Republican promise.”

That commitment, he argues, remains unfulfilled domestically.

“In Guadeloupe,” Mathiasin said, “in the most important positions, in the structures of the state, they are white.”

The Foundation for the Memory of Slavery is led by a former prime minister, Jean-Marc Ayrault, and its deputy director is Pierre-Yves Bocquet — both white men.

Bocquet describes Code Noir as the origin of France’s “colonial exception” — the concept that the French Republic’s fundamental rights could be suspended for those under its authority.

This concept survived the empire’s end, he explained: “Even today, we accept that people in the overseas territories can have fewer rights than in mainland France.”

France is not the only nation maintaining remnants of empire — the United Kingdom and the United States also govern overseas territories.

However, what distinguishes France, analysts say, is its decision to make former slave colonies equal departments of the Republic, rather than distant dependencies.

The government maintains that overseas departments are France like everywhere else, while residents say they face inferior treatment.

For Max Relouzat, 81, president of the Association for the Memory of Slaveries, the repeal holds importance because so little else has changed.

His African ancestor possessed no name under the law, only a number and registration code — the family living in Martinique received the surname Relouzat upon emancipation, probably derived from Nelouzat, a village in central France’s Auvergne region.

What frustrates him, he explained, is what the symbolic gesture leaves unchanged: institutional racism in France.

“Under the cover of departmentalization, a colonial system was maintained,” Relouzat said. “If the overseas departments are part of France, why is there a ministry for the overseas?”

In France, he stated, “we are still today in a form of apartheid … a form of colonial continuity.”

For some longtime advocates, Thursday does not represent the milestone it seems.

For Florence Alexis, a slavery expert and daughter of Haitian writer Jacques Stephen Alexis, the genuine breakthrough occurred 25 years earlier. In 2001, the Taubira law made France the first nation to classify the slave trade and slavery as crimes against humanity.

“That is what changed my life,” Alexis said.

For her, racism stems from slavery itself, not from any single law.

“When I was a child at school, they called me the little monkey,” she said. “People made animal cries when I walked past — as they still do in football stadiums today.”

Paris-born Élodie Léon, 29, whose family originates from French Guiana, supports the repeal but regrets the postponement.

“Symbolic neglect is also neglect,” she said.

During the Taubira law’s 25th anniversary on May 21, Macron suggested the possibility of reparations — an issue France has long avoided confronting.

He described it as “a question we must not refuse,” but one where “we must not make false promises.”

He pledged no funds, instead defining repair primarily as truth-telling, education and historical research.

France’s most profitable plantations operated in Saint-Domingue, where enslaved people rebelled and achieved independence in 1804 as Haiti. France subsequently compelled the liberated nation to pay compensation for their masters’ losses — a debt settled only in 1947.

France is not unique in this regard. In the United States, federal reparations proposals have remained stagnant for decades. California approved an apology but provided no monetary compensation.

However, the timing of Macron’s recent remarks was problematic. Two months prior, France abstained when the U.N. General Assembly voted 123-3, with 52 abstentions, to designate the trans-Atlantic slave trade as the most serious crime against humanity.

Additionally, this month at the Africa Forward Summit in Kenya, days after calling himself a “pan-Africanist,” Macron grabbed a microphone and demanded the room become silent.

“As soon as he sets foot on the African continent,” French opposition lawmaker Danièle Obono said, “he can’t help but behave like a colonizer.”

The Code Noir repeal, Bocquet noted, “will have no direct effect.” Whether it assists France in combating racism and inequality in its overseas territories, he said, “remains to be seen.”

“It is easy for the French authorities, and for Macron, to do this,” Alexis added. “Because it commits them to nothing.”

WIENER NEUSTADT, Austria — An Austrian court is set to deliver its decision Thursday in the case of a young man who confessed to planning an assault on a Taylor Swift performance in Vienna almost two years ago.

Although authorities successfully prevented the attack, officials in Austria decided to call off Swift’s trio of scheduled shows in August 2024.

The accused, a 21-year-old Austrian national identified only as Beran A. according to Austrian privacy laws, is charged with terrorist-related crimes and belonging to a terrorist group.

According to his defense lawyer, he entered a guilty plea to the charges connected to the concert scheme when the trial began last month. The maximum sentence he could receive is 20 years behind bars.

Prosecutors allege that Beran A. intended to harm concertgoers outside the Ernst Happel Stadium using knives or explosive devices he made himself. Thousands of Taylor Swift supporters, commonly called Swifties, had made the journey to Austria for the pop star’s historic Eras Tour shows. Crushed by the show cancellations, many fans congregated in Vienna’s city center to exchange friendship bracelets and share their disappointment over the cancelled events.

Beran A. stands trial with Arda K., whose complete identity has also been kept confidential. These two defendants, along with a third individual who was taken into custody and continues to be held in Saudi Arabia awaiting trial, reportedly conspired to execute coordinated attacks in Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates during the 2024 Ramadan period on behalf of the Islamic State group.

Beran A. alone faces charges regarding the concert attack plan. He entered a not guilty plea concerning the charges tied to the coordinated international attack scheme.

The timeline for Thursday’s verdict remains uncertain, as expert testimony must still be presented and final arguments delivered.

MALABO, Equatorial Guinea — A luxury hotel on a tropical island off Central Africa’s coast has been transformed into an unlikely prison for asylum seekers under a controversial deportation agreement with the United States.

The Bamy Hotel, with its palm-lined entrance and marble lobby adorned with the country’s presidential portrait, now serves as a detention center rather than welcoming tourists or business visitors. Since November, the facility has housed people against their will as part of a $7.5 million arrangement between the Trump administration and Equatorial Guinea’s leader, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo.

The hotel, owned by the president’s family, functions as a temporary holding facility. Of at least 32 individuals detained there since late last year — all previously granted protection by US courts, according to their attorneys — 25 have been compelled to return to African nations where they may face danger. Those remaining endure pressure from officials to depart.

“Government people would come all the time and say: Where is your passport? You need to go back to your own country,” explained a 26-year-old man from an East African nation who was held at the facility. He requested anonymity due to fear of repercussions, as did two other deportees who spoke with The Associated Press.

Immigration attorneys describe these third-country deportations as a legal workaround used by the Trump administration to indirectly compel asylum seekers to return to their origins.

The authoritarian nature of Equatorial Guinea’s government — similar to other nations with comparable agreements — makes it challenging for international journalists to visit and document conditions firsthand. The AP gained access to the island of Bioko during a recent papal visit and became the only global news organization to observe the migrant detention hotel.

Individuals from Angola, Eritrea, Ethiopia and Mauritania now find themselves stranded in a nation many had never known existed before their arrival. They spend their days walking the hotel’s lengthy hallways and staring through windows at a swimming pool they cannot access.

While no physical mistreatment has occurred, detainees experience severe psychological strain knowing they likely face return to countries they fled in fear.

“I am scared and depressed,” the East African man stated.

Due to his ethnic background and refugee status, he believes he would face imprisonment or death if forced to return home. Human rights specialists say all asylum seekers at the hotel confront significant persecution risks in their countries of origin.

Through a series of unclear and often confidential agreements, the Trump administration has sent thousands of people to nearly two dozen nations other than their homelands, according to advocacy groups, as part of extensive US immigration enforcement efforts. These partner countries are primarily in the developing world, says Third Country Deportation Watch, with approximately twelve located in Africa. Specialists believe nations accepting deportees may seek to build favorable relationships with the US regarding trade, migration or assistance negotiations.

The Trump administration refused to discuss specifics of its Equatorial Guinea arrangement. A State Department representative stated, “we remain unwavering in our commitment to end illegal and mass immigration.”

Equatorial Guinea’s government did not respond to requests for comment.

During the East African man’s interview, a government supervisor with limited English proficiency sat nearby, using his phone in an otherwise vacant conference room.

Following his journey from Africa through Brazil, the man reached the US border in August 2024 and was detained. He was then transferred between detention facilities in California, Arizona and Louisiana before arriving in Equatorial Guinea nearly six months ago.

Daily life at the hotel follows a monotonous routine made surreal by the circumstances, he explained.

Detainees occupy luxurious rooms that receive infrequent cleaning and eat rice and meat served at white-clothed tables in the hotel restaurant. After becoming ill from the food multiple times, the East African man now consumes minimal amounts.

A local attorney provides fresh toothbrushes, phone SIM cards, and feminine hygiene products for women.

Healthcare provision has been inconsistent. The East African man received immediate hospital treatment for an eye complaint. However, when he developed malaria and typhoid, medical attention was delayed until his condition severely worsened, requiring intravenous treatment. He reports other detainees have faced similar delays.

When the East African man recently voiced complaints to a police officer about his circumstances, the officer suggested his troubles would end if he went to the hotel’s fourth floor and jumped from the window.

“What can I do now? It’s become worse,” he said, his weakened frame trembling. “I started losing my mind.”

Equatorial Guinea ranks among Africa’s wealthiest nations due to petroleum reserves. However, it also faces widespread corruption and human rights violations, according to US officials.

The former Spanish territory experienced economic collapse after 1968 independence. Its fortunes changed in the 1990s when American companies began offshore oil drilling. The resulting economic transformation left over half the population in poverty despite national wealth.

Rights organizations report that oil revenues have been largely captured by Obiang and his relatives. The president’s 57-year-old son and successor, Teodoro “Teodorin” Obiang Nguema, displays his extravagant lifestyle on TikTok — showing infinity pools, lobster dinners, and private jet travel — while citizens cannot access the platform.

The younger Obiang, serving as vice president, has faced international sanctions due to corruption throughout his father’s government. However, the US removed sanctions, permitting him to attend a senior UN meeting in New York last September, shortly before deportations to Equatorial Guinea commenced.

Critical voices are virtually absent in Equatorial Guinea, where rights groups and the State Department accuse the government of detaining, torturing and killing dissidents.

Despite this record, American companies remain the largest foreign investors, and the US government provides military training funding.

Remaining detainees at the Bamy Hotel understand they could be sent home at any moment.

Officials from the UN’s International Organization for Migration and refugee agency visited the hotel in November, promising to return. They have not done so.

The East African man is the sole detainee permitted legal representation, though the reason remains unclear.

Although Equatorial Guinea lacks asylum procedures, his attorney submitted a formal appeal to the prime minister’s office — a desperate attempt with minimal success prospects.

He was instructed to appeal for clemency from the vice president, but his asylum request was denied.

The following morning, authorities deported five others, leaving him distressed while awaiting his outcome. Officials informed him he would be next to leave.

BOGOTA, Colombia — Colombian citizens will select their next president and vice president on May 31 in an election being viewed as a judgment on the current administration’s policies under President Gustavo Petro.

Petro, age 66 and a former participant in Colombia’s M-19 guerrilla movement that fought for social justice during the 1970s and 1980s, has pursued disputed peace talks with remaining rebel organizations while advocating for social and economic changes including a complete revision of the country’s employment laws.

His foreign policy approach has also differed from past Colombian administrations by confronting the United States on issues such as drug enforcement policy and immigration, though he has maintained some cooperation with the Trump administration on these topics.

These policies face scrutiny as citizens prepare to vote, putting to the test Petro’s statement that “the people will decide if the revolution is defeated or if it moves forward.”

While 14 candidates appear on the ballot, the contest has essentially become a competition between three main contenders.

Colombia’s constitution prevents Petro from running for another term. His party, the Historical Pact, has nominated Iván Cepeda, 63, a three-term senator recognized for advocating for victims of government crimes during Colombia’s extended conflict.

Cepeda faces competition from Abelardo de la Espriella, 47, a flamboyant attorney known as “The Tiger” who is campaigning as an independent and portrays himself as an outsider. He maintains he is seeking the presidency without backing from any of the country’s major political parties.

De la Espriella has represented high-profile clients including business leaders accused of money laundering, a sex worker who exposed misconduct by U.S. Secret Service agents, and an acid attack victim whose case led to legislation imposing severe penalties for such attacks, which typically target women.

Another contender with significant backing is Paloma Valencia, 48, a senator from the Democratic Center, the party headed by former President Álvaro Uribe. Valencia’s campaign receives support from most traditional parties and economists concerned about rising debt levels during the Petro presidency who want Colombia to return to more conventional policies.

A runoff election will take place on June 21 between the leading two candidates if no one receives 50% of the vote.

Cepeda has pledged to expand the economic changes initiated by Petro, which include substantial minimum wage increases, including a 23% boost this year, along with increased taxes on wealth and corporate earnings.

The senator has also committed to continuing peace discussions with remaining rebel organizations while promoting rural development by providing subsidized loans to small farmers through a government-operated bank.

Cepeda has indicated he will seek a “national agreement” to advance reforms. However, he has also stated that without such an agreement, he would call for a constituent assembly, a process that could allow Colombia to rewrite its constitution. Opponents claim this would threaten Colombia’s democracy by weakening the independence of the country’s Congress and courts.

Valencia and De la Espriella strongly oppose constitutional revision. Both candidates have stated they will halt peace negotiations with rebel groups and confront them more aggressively.

They have also committed to lowering business taxes and enabling oil and gas investments that were prevented during the Petro administration.

De la Espriella has pledged to cut government spending by as much as 40% over four years and eliminate various government departments, including the Ministry of Equality, an agency established under Petro to address discrimination against ethnic minorities and promote economic inclusion for disadvantaged groups.

Over 41.2 million people are registered to vote, including 1.2 million living overseas. This represents the third-largest presidential election in Latin America following Brazil and Mexico. Voting is voluntary.

More than half of Colombian overseas voters reside in three nations: the U.S., Spain and Venezuela. During the previous presidential election in 2022, 59% of overseas-registered Colombians voted, according to the National Registrar’s Office.

In 2022, 21.3 million voters participated in the first round of the presidential election, while 22.6 million people voted in the runoff, according to the National Registrar’s Office.

A 2016 peace agreement between Colombia’s government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, resulted in the demobilization of over 13,000 fighters.

However, multiple criminal organizations did not join the agreement and some former FARC leaders returned to conflict after several years of retirement. Since the peace deal was implemented, various smaller groups have been battling for control of rural territories previously held by FARC.

The Petro administration has tried to conduct peace negotiations with these groups and provided them with multiple ceasefires as incentives to remain in talks.

However, critics argue these rebel organizations have exploited peace discussions to reorganize, rearm and strengthen their control over communities where they extort businesses and benefit from illegal activities, such as cocaine trafficking.

The Red Cross reports that the humanitarian impact of Colombia’s armed conflict reached its most severe level in ten years last year, with displaced persons doubling in 2025 to 225,000 people. The Red Cross also reported that in 2025, there were 965 people killed or wounded by explosive devices including land mines and drones, representing a 33% increase from the previous year.

Brazil’s lower house of congress moved the country closer to joining a regional trend toward shorter work weeks, passing a constitutional amendment Wednesday that would establish a 40-hour, five-day work schedule.

The measure has strong public support as Brazil approaches its October presidential elections, with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva backing the initiative and frequently advocating for it. The change represents part of a broader regional movement that has earned praise from labor advocates while drawing sharp criticism from business interests.

Under the current system, Brazilian workers put in five eight-hour shifts plus an additional four hours on a sixth day, totaling 44 hours weekly. The approved amendment would eliminate the sixth work day while maintaining current wages for approximately 37 million workers and cap the work week at 40 hours. The new rules would guarantee workers two full consecutive days off each week, ideally Saturday and Sunday.

“People who have this workweek from Monday to Saturday are the ones that have to work the hardest and are paid the least,” lawmaker Paulo Pimenta, Brazil’s government whip in the lower house, told his peers as they voted. “We need to be brave and do justice.”

While numerous opposition legislators supported the measure following months of constituent pressure, some maintained their opposition to the plan.

“I don’t care this is an election year. I think we need to be responsible. This will be a problem for many companies,” lawmaker Kim Kataguiri said. “We are doing this in a rush and workers should know they might end up worse than they are now if business leaders stop hiring.”

The legislation provides companies with 14 months to implement the changes, a crucial element in the negotiation process. Many corporate executives and legislators had pushed for a gradual implementation spanning 10 years.

“This was built with a lot of responsibility, thinking about workers and families in Brazil,” said lawmaker Leo Prates, who drafted the amendment in the lower house. “We need to accomplish this for the Brazilian people.”

Wednesday evening’s lower house approval sends the amendment to the upper chamber. Brazil’s Senate has not scheduled its vote and could modify the proposal before it reaches Lula for final constitutional approval.

Lula’s primary electoral opponent, Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro, advocates replacing the existing work week structure with a more flexible hourly payment system, an approach that appears popular mainly among certain business leaders.

Several other Latin American nations have recently implemented similar work week reductions.

Mexican lawmakers in February approved President Claudia Sheinbaum’s proposal to reduce the 48-hour work week. The changes will be phased in gradually, reaching a 40-hour work week by 2030.

Chile enacted its “40-Hour Law” in 2023, cutting its work week to 40 hours effective last year. The law covers all workers under Chile’s Labor Code while preserving current pay levels.

However, Argentina has moved in the opposite direction under libertarian President Javier Milei and may expand its 48-hour work week. A labor reform package enacted earlier this year increases the maximum daily shift from eight to 12 hours and eliminates overtime compensation, among other changes that Argentine labor organizations claim benefit employers over workers.

A multinational peacekeeping mission for Gaza announced with fanfare in February has yet to deploy a single soldier, as escalating regional conflicts and diplomatic complications derail the ambitious plan.

The International Stabilization Force for Gaza was unveiled during the first gathering of U.S. President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace, with an American general selected to oversee the proposed 20,000-person deployment promising to deliver “future prosperity and enduring peace” following the destructive Israel-Hamas conflict.

However, three months later, the designated commander remains without troops as all five nations that committed forces have failed to deliver meaningful deployments.

Peacekeeping efforts have encountered significant obstacles as Hamas continues to resist disarmament while Israel expands its territorial control and maintains military operations against what it identifies as militant positions, frequently resulting in civilian casualties.

The conflict with Iran has created additional challenges for Arab and Muslim nations considering cooperation with the United States and Israel, whom many regional populations perceive as hostile actors, while the accompanying global energy shortage has strained their available resources.

The most significant setback occurred approximately one week following the February 28 U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran, when Indonesia indefinitely postponed its commitment to provide 8,000 personnel. The original deployment schedule called for 1,000 troops in April with the remaining forces arriving in June.

Indonesia’s contribution represented the largest portion of the multinational commitment, which also included pledges from Morocco, Kazakhstan, Kosovo and Albania. U.S. Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers, who addressed the Board of Peace gathering, was designated as the force commander.

Indonesian officials halted their participation due to what Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin described as insufficient commitment from a preoccupied Washington administration, stating “we have not yet received any implementation guidelines.”

“New dynamics have emerged,” he informed parliament. “Because the intensity of the conflict between U.S. and Iranian forces remains very high, the BoP has tended to be left behind. Since the BoP has been left behind, the ISF has also been left behind.”

Internal political considerations may have influenced Indonesia’s withdrawal, according to Muhammad Zulfikar Rakhmat, director of the Indonesia-Middle East/North Africa desk at Jakarta’s Center for Economic and Law Studies.

The Iran conflict faces overwhelming opposition in Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim nation. Economic hardship from rising prices linked to the fighting has combined with widespread doubt about the Board of Peace initiative.

“If you talk to the people on the street, I don’t think they believe that the Board of Peace will actually help the people of Gaza,” Rakhmat explained. He noted additional concerns about deploying military personnel to the Middle East during domestic economic difficulties.

Indonesia suffered the loss of four peacekeepers serving with the United Nations mission in Lebanon during clashes between Israel and Iran-supported Hezbollah. This incident has further damaged public support for such international military commitments, he said.

The U.S. military’s Central Command refused to provide comments or make Jeffers available for interviews, directing all inquiries to the Board of Peace.

Board of Peace spokesman Brad Klapper similarly declined to discuss Indonesia’s withdrawal or the stabilization force’s prospects, instead referencing May 21 statements delivered at the U.N. by Nickolay Mladenov, a former Bulgarian defense minister appointed by Trump to direct the Board of Peace.

Mladenov indicated the international force could not commence operations without agreement and execution of the ceasefire’s second phase, requiring Hamas disarmament and the beginning of Israeli withdrawal. Israeli forces currently occupy approximately 60% of Gaza.

Mladenov has attributed the impasse to Hamas, declaring its disarmament “non-negotiable” and blocking advancement on other issues, including Israeli withdrawal and reconstruction efforts.

“You cannot build a future with armed groups running the streets, hiding in tunnels and stockpiling weapons,” Mladenov stated in Jerusalem this month. “You cannot deliver reconstruction with militias on every corner.”

Hamas maintains Israel has repeatedly breached the ceasefire, preventing further implementation, and has criticized Mladenov for favoring Israel.

Israeli military actions have resulted in more than 880 Palestinian deaths since the ceasefire began, according to local health authorities. Israel claims these operations responded to truce violations.

Hamas is also demanding Israeli withdrawal from territories captured after the ceasefire’s start, according to an Egyptian official familiar with the negotiations, who spoke anonymously to discuss private discussions. Egypt has traditionally mediated with Hamas.

Multiple countries that promised forces have declined to deploy troops without an agreement on Hamas disarmament, the official said.

Kazakhstan has limited its stabilization force support to “the humanitarian component,” including medical units with a field hospital. Its Foreign Ministry did not respond to requests for comment.

Albania’s Defense Ministry also refused to discuss its troop commitment, describing it as a “dynamic and ongoing process.”

Earlier this month, its chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Arben Kingji, informed reporters that while the military had “participated in reconnaissance activities,” no troops had been deployed. He said only a small number would be sent as part of the stabilization force headquarters, without specifying numbers, adding that additional contributions remained under consideration.

Kosovo, expected to contribute 20 troops, announced in April it was in the “final phase of preparations.” The Defense Ministry did not respond to requests for updates.

Morocco’s Foreign Ministry also failed to reply. At the Board of Peace inaugural meeting, Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita said it would deploy “high-level military officers to the joint military command of the ISF.”

Despite Indonesia’s delays, Rakhmat suggested it was premature to eliminate eventual participation in the stabilization force.

President Prabowo Subianto is a former army general eager to elevate Indonesia’s international standing and avoid damaging economic relationships with the U.S., Rakhmat said.

“Prabowo wants to strengthen ties to Washington and sign different agreements with the U.S., so to completely withdraw and completely cancel the plan, I don’t think it’s on the table,” he said.

TOKYO (AP) — A four-day diplomatic mission to Japan by Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is concluding Thursday with an extraordinary display of hospitality from his hosts.

The visit has featured a formal palace dinner, a distinguished national honor, and clear signals that Tokyo wants to strengthen relationships with a country it views as a crucial defense ally — and significant arms buyer — amid growing concerns about China’s military presence across Asia.

Marcos’ trip, which ends with his Friday departure, has included a formal reception by Emperor Naruhito, who presented him with the Grand Cordon of the Supreme Order of the Chrysanthemum.

Thursday’s agenda includes discussions between Marcos and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, with expectations that the meetings will produce announcements further enhancing defense and military equipment collaboration.

During remarks to Japanese lawmakers Wednesday, Marcos noted that the focus on elevating bilateral relations demonstrates an “exceptional level of trust” between the two countries.

Both governments are keeping China at the forefront of their thinking as they strengthen a military partnership that the United States anticipates will serve as a barrier against Beijing’s territorial goals in the East and South China Seas and its claims over Taiwan, the independently governed island that China considers its territory.

Marcos represents the first significant potential buyer of Japanese military equipment since Takaichi’s administration eliminated restrictions on exporting deadly weapons. This policy shift in April marked a departure from Japan’s post-World War II pacifist approach as the country accelerates its defense and arms manufacturing expansion.

The two countries have committed to pursuing discussions regarding the sale of several Abukuma-class destroyers and Japanese navy TC-90 training aircraft. Philippine Defense Minister Gilberto Teodoro Jr., who watched joint live-fire training exercises with his Japanese counterpart this month, has also shown interest in Type-88 surface-to-ship missiles.

According to Japanese officials, Marcos’ state visit also connects to the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the nations and to the Philippines currently serving as the rotating chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

Marcos and Takaichi are also anticipated to establish formal discussions aimed at creating a military intelligence sharing agreement, which would allow better communication and strengthen three-way military cooperation with the U.S., their shared ally, according to Japanese officials.

Japan has delivered a package of five coastal surveillance radars to the Philippines through official security aid, and intelligence-sharing would improve reconnaissance collaboration.

Japan seeks to strengthen its relationship with the Philippines beyond Marcos’ term, which concludes in 2028, as Tokyo aims to prevent what it views as inconsistent China policies by some former Philippine administrations.

Marcos has adopted a firm position against China regarding territorial conflicts in the South China Sea. Under his leadership, the Philippines and Japan have quickly strengthened their security connections both bilaterally and in partnership with the U.S.

Japan and the Philippines established an agreement in 2024 permitting their military forces to easily visit each other’s territory for joint training exercises. This created opportunities for Japan to send 1,400 military personnel as regular participants in combined military training.

The nations signed an additional defense agreement this year that would permit the duty-free supply of ammunition, fuel, food and other essential items when their forces conduct joint training.

Throughout the state visit, Marcos and Takaichi are also scheduled to address energy cooperation and a Japan-led international funding initiative announced in April.

This initiative aims to assist Southeast Asian nations, including the Philippines, in maintaining stable oil reserves through financial support for building required infrastructure as they deal with consequences from the Iran conflict that has stopped oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has introduced legislation to his country’s parliament seeking approval for a major loan agreement with the European Union, according to parliamentary documents released Thursday.

The proposed legislation outlines a framework that would enable Ukraine to secure 90 billion euros in total funding, which equals approximately $104 billion based on current exchange rates, according to supporting documentation accompanying the draft.

The draft legislation now awaits parliamentary consideration for ratification of the loan agreement with the EU.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards announced Thursday they launched a strike against an American military installation at 4:50 a.m. local time, according to reports from Tasnim news agency. The Iranian forces described their action as retaliation for what they characterized as an earlier morning American attack near the airport in Bandar Abbas.

Iranian officials did not reveal the location of the American base they claim to have targeted.

The Revolutionary Guards issued a warning that future incidents they consider acts of aggression would prompt a “more decisive” response. They placed blame for any resulting consequences on what they termed the “aggressor.”

A veteran Indigenous leader in Brazil is stepping up to continue his uncle’s decades-long battle to protect the Amazon rainforest and Indigenous rights.

Chief Megaron Txucarramae, 75, has dedicated his life to defending the Kayapo people’s interests, working to establish boundaries for their Amazon territory and fighting against unauthorized mining operations and dam construction projects.

The leader now faces his biggest responsibility yet: carrying on the work of his uncle and teacher, Chief Raoni Metuktire, a 94-year-old Indigenous activist recognized around the world for his environmental advocacy.

Chief Raoni recently spent a week receiving intensive medical treatment for pneumonia before returning to his community. His health struggles have occurred multiple times in recent years. For many years, Chief Raoni has been an international symbol of Indigenous activism, meeting with world leaders, religious figures, and celebrities like musician Sting during 1980s campaigns to save the rainforest. Both chiefs guide Kayapo settlements along the Xingu River, where the Amazon rainforest borders Brazil’s expansive grasslands.

The Kayapo people first encountered non-Indigenous Brazilians during the 1950s, when Chief Megaron was just a child.

Soon afterward, he started collaborating with Chief Raoni and now declares his readiness to take up the cause.

“I have followed it closely,” he said. “And I will continue it, continue his struggle.” He made these comments to Reuters while in Pykany village during a Greenpeace-organized expedition to investigate unauthorized mining activities on Kayapo territory.

Megaron’s mission comes during a critical period for the Amazon. Almost 20 percent of the rainforest has disappeared due to agricultural development, cattle ranching, and mining operations, while climate change has brought more severe dry periods and forest fires.

“The best thing is to preserve the Amazon, to preserve what is ours, what belongs to everyone,” he said. “It helps people breathe better, it holds back the winds, it keeps the heat from becoming too intense.”

His goals include continuing advocacy for the Kayapo and other Indigenous communities, building international understanding of the forest’s significance, and working toward greater Indigenous participation in Brazil’s government.

Brazilian lawmakers have enacted multiple measures in recent years that restrict Indigenous rights, including legislation that reduces land protections for certain Indigenous communities.

Chief Megaron expressed particular concern about the possibility of an anti-Indigenous candidate winning the October general elections.

Chief Raoni had backed President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva during his 2023 swearing-in ceremony, following the tenure of former president Jair Bolsonaro, who had promised to stop creating new Indigenous reserves. Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, the ex-president’s son, is challenging Lula in the upcoming election.

“They can’t kill us with weapons, but they want to pass laws to exploit [our land], to destroy our culture, to put an end to our customs,” he said. “The more Indigenous people there are in Congress, the better for us.”

During the 2022 elections, seven Indigenous candidates won seats among the 594 total Congressional positions.

He also aims to support his uncle’s efforts to prevent young Indigenous people from abandoning their forest homeland and traditional ways of life.

“You can learn, you can reach university, but you must not stop being Indigenous,” he said. “That is his struggle.”

Kuwait’s military announced Thursday that defense systems were actively countering incoming missile and drone threats targeting the country.

Military officials explained that any explosion sounds heard by residents were from their air defense systems successfully neutralizing the attacks. The army did not identify where the hostile fire was originating from.

Australia’s government announced Thursday it has filed a massive lawsuit against chemical manufacturer 3M, demanding more than $1.43 billion in compensation for contamination linked to firefighting foam containing dangerous PFAS chemicals.

The legal case represents the largest lawsuit ever initiated by Australia and targets both the Minnesota-based company and its Australian subsidiary for environmental, economic and cultural damages caused by the contamination, officials said.

“Make no mistake, this legal action against 3M is significant,” Attorney-General Michelle Rowland told reporters.

“The Commonwealth is seeking more than A$2 billion in damages to recover significant past and future expenses incurred in investigating and managing contamination resulting from the historical storage and use of this foam,” Rowland stated.

Australian officials claim 3M provided assurances that the firefighting foam was safe for disposal, would break down naturally, and posed no toxicity risks when the government utilized it at 28 military installations nationwide.

However, Rowland accused 3M of concealing its own research that demonstrated “significant adverse environmental effects” from the product’s use.

In response, 3M indicated it plans to contest the allegations in court proceedings.

“3M has never manufactured PFAS in Australia and ceased sales of the products at issue in Australia around two decades ago,” the company stated.

“Despite this, the Department of Defence continued to use PFAS-containing firefighting foams for nearly two decades longer,” 3M added.

PFAS represents a category of synthetic chemicals commonly found in products designed to resist heat, stains, grease and water.

These substances, dubbed “forever chemicals,” persist indefinitely in the environment without natural decomposition, creating concerns about their buildup in ecosystems, water supplies and human bodies.

Scientific studies have connected PFAS exposure to various health problems including liver damage, reduced birth weight and testicular cancer.

Assistant Defence Minister Peter Khalil revealed the department has invested $1.3 billion addressing contamination consequences, including $408 million in legal settlements with impacted communities.

The cleanup efforts have involved treating or removing over 200,000 metric tons of contaminated soil and processing more than 13 billion liters of water.

“This is the most significant legal action undertaken by Commonwealth and Defence in living memory,” Khalil said.

“To put it plainly, we are taking on 3M on behalf of the Australian people and the Australians that are affected,” he added.

3M has confronted thousands of PFAS-related lawsuits. The company reached a $10.3 billion settlement in 2023 with numerous U.S. public water systems to resolve water pollution claims.

WASHINGTON, May 27 — Federal officials on Wednesday imposed fresh sanctions targeting Iran by placing the Persian Gulf Strait Authority on the Treasury Department’s Specially Designated Nationals list, according to the department’s website.

The authority serves as Iran’s administrative body for handling passage requests through the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran’s control over this critical waterway, which carries roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil supply, has created significant disruption to global economic markets.

The strait was shut down by Iran following the commencement of military operations by the U.S. and Israel against Iran on February 28.

Last week, the Persian Gulf Strait Authority released a map that reinforced Iran’s territorial claims over an extensive area of water surrounding the strategic chokepoint.

The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, which oversees the SDN list containing thousands of sanctioned individuals and organizations, made the designation official.

A prominent defense research organization warned Thursday that military confrontation between the United States and China over Taiwan could spiral into nuclear conflict, with both nations likely to launch extensive attacks on each other’s command and communication centers.

The London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) released the strategic evaluation before this weekend’s major annual defense gathering in Singapore. The organization stated the world stands at the threshold of a fresh nuclear arms competition “with the Asia-Pacific at its core.”

“Regional states and those with strategic interests are expanding their nuclear arsenals, while non-nuclear weapons states pursue long-range conventional-strike capabilities: both challenging strategic stability,” the IISS assessment said.

Taiwan is anticipated to be a major discussion point at the IISS’ Shangri-La Dialogue, alongside Iranian conflicts and questions about American regional commitments.

The unofficial conference spans May 29 to 31, bringing together a diverse group of ministers, generals, intelligence chiefs, diplomats, analysts and weapons makers.

The gathering follows a summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump in Beijing earlier this month, which led to some concern in Taipei about the U.S. commitment to help the democratically ruled island defend itself.

Beijing has never ruled out the use of force to take control of Taiwan, but has also said it would prefer “peaceful reunification.” Taiwan’s government rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims.

China has ramped up pressure on Taiwan by increasing its military presence around the island, keeping Taipei on high alert for further Chinese moves following the summit.

Trump’s Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth will be speaking at the Singapore conference on Saturday, China has yet to confirm that its Defence Minister Dong Jun will be attending.

The 156-page IISS assessment examines evolving military doctrines across the region as well as how a conflict over Taiwan might play out.

Although American and Chinese forces would have different objectives in a Taiwan situation – the Chinese seeking to keep the U.S. and its allies away while America strengthens Taiwan’s defenses – both nations could be anticipated to initiate massive operations spanning all military areas.

“Conflict with China would risk escalation, potentially to a nuclear level, given the strategic importance of Taiwan to Beijing,” the document says.

“There is currently little public evidence to suggest that both militaries understand the necessary guard rails to prevent, or rules of engagement that would restrict, both sides potentially targeting each other’s key command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance nodes,” the assessment says.

“The prospect of nuclear escalation will thus continue to loom large in an major U.S.-China conflict.”

While both the U.S. and Russian nuclear arsenals still dwarf China’s stockpiles, U.S. officials and arms control analysts say China is expanding and improving its atomic weapons capabilities faster than any other nuclear power.

A Pentagon report released in December said China was on track to field 1,000 warheads by 2030.

The Federation of American Scientists estimates that Russia and the U.S. field 4,400 and 3,700 active warheads respectively while China has 620.

Washington imposed new economic penalties Wednesday on Iran’s maritime control agency as part of an extensive financial pressure strategy during ongoing hostilities, focusing on the nation’s recently established organization that oversees vessel movement through the Strait of Hormuz.

The action, initially disclosed by The Associated Press, represents Washington’s continued strategy of combining financial pressure with military measures to compel Iranian officials toward a settlement that would conclude the conflict and reopen the crucial shipping lane through which one-fifth of global oil and natural gas typically flows. President Donald Trump has indicated an agreement is approaching, though discussions continue.

The decision arrives amid increasing energy costs and other expenses resulting from Iran’s effective blockade of the strait, creating political challenges for Trump and fellow Republicans before upcoming midterm congressional elections.

“The Iranian military’s latest attempt to extort global maritime trade is proof that Economic Fury has left the regime desperate for cash,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement.

The penalties focus on Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority and any individual or organization working with the recently announced agency that authorizes passage through the strait and imposes fees potentially reaching $2 million per ship.

Iran’s influential paramilitary Revolutionary Guard has supported this supervision initiative, claiming the sole secure passage for transit through the vital waterway follows their designated corridor and warning that vessels departing from that route encounter multiple attacks and dangers.

Iran’s grip on the strait has triggered global energy disruptions following the commencement of hostilities by the U.S. and Israel on Feb. 28. Costs have increased for oil, gas and associated products, with analysts indicating recovery of shipping and pricing would require weeks or months after the waterway’s reopening.

Meanwhile, the U.S. has maintained a blockade of Iranian ports for more than a month, with Trump stating it “will remain in full force and effect until an agreement is reached, certified, and signed.”

These recent financial measures occur as Washington and Tehran have participated in some of their most intensive diplomatic discussions and negotiations in years, seeking to conclude the war and establish a framework for addressing longer-term disputes between the long-standing adversaries.

Trump stated Wednesday that Iran is “negotiating on fumes” and indicated the parties are approaching an agreement even after U.S. military officials reported conducting strikes on missile facilities and vessels deploying mines in “self-defense.” Later Wednesday, American forces executed additional defensive strikes on an Iranian military installation after destroying Iranian attack drones, according to U.S. officials who lacked authorization for public comment and requested anonymity.

“They want very much to make a deal,” Trump said at a Cabinet meeting Wednesday. “So far, they haven’t gotten there. We’re not satisfied with it, but we will be — either that or we’ll have to just finish the job.”

The Republican president has also restated his warning that combat would continue without a settlement but has stepped back from those threats multiple times over recent months.

American military forces launched fresh overnight attacks against an Iranian military installation that defense officials say presented a danger to US personnel and commercial shipping vessels navigating the Strait of Hormuz, according to a US official who spoke to Reuters on Wednesday.

The official, requesting anonymity, revealed that American forces have also destroyed several Iranian drones that presented comparable risks to regional security.

These previously unreported military operations took place while diplomatic efforts continue to resolve a three-month conflict that has resulted in thousands of casualties and caused worldwide energy costs to surge dramatically since hostilities began February 28 with American and Israeli military actions.

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday rejected claims from Iranian state media suggesting that Iran and Oman would share control of Strait of Hormuz shipping operations as part of a potential peace agreement. Trump stated the critical waterway would continue operating normally.

American forces previously conducted what officials described as defensive military operations against Iran on Monday, which Iranian authorities characterized as breaking the nations’ delicate ceasefire agreement. Those US operations targeted vessels attempting to deploy mines and missile launching facilities that Central Command determined threatened American military personnel.