World News

Poll finds most Americans don't support Israel's action in Gaza as Biden-Israel relations hit 'low point'

Fox World News - Mar 27, 2024 12:25 PM EDT

Approval of Israel’s actions in Gaza has fallen among Americans for the first time since the conflict began, according to the newest Gallup poll published Wednesday. 

"While there have been other recent surveys showing continued support for Israel, you have to expect there will be a negative impact on Democratic voters when the leader of the party engages in non-stop political warfare against Israel on a daily basis," Richard Goldberg, a senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) and former National Security Council official, told Fox News Digital. "President Biden is doing permanent damage to the U.S.-Israel relationship."

Gallup’s poll on Israel in Gaza, taken in November when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu first pushed his forces into the Palestinian enclave, found that at least half of all Americans approved of the operation – with 45% disapproving and 4% having no opinion.

The poll was taken before the United Nations Security Council on Monday passed a resolution calling for a cease-fire during Ramadan, Gallup noted. 

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"The U.S. action at the U.N. has driven U.S.-Israel relations to a low point in their history and left America’s reputation as a credible ally in ruins," Caroline Glick, one of Israel’s leading experts on American-Israeli relations, told Fox News Digital. She continued, "Israel is engaged in a multi-front war against Iran and its proxies for its survival. In Tehran, Lebanon, Iraq, Syria and Jordan, Israel’s enemies saw on Monday that the U.S. has abandoned Israel at the height of the war, effectively adopting Hamas’ positions as its own."

The latest survey, taken between March 1 and 20, found that 55% of Americans now disapprove of Israel’s actions, with 36% approving, and 9% having no opinion. Of those polled, 74% said they are actively following news of the crisis (a minor uptick from the 72% who said the same in November).

Political division over approval remains clear and consistent: Republicans still overwhelmingly approve, even if that approval dropped from 71% in November to 64% in March. Democrats, who mostly disapproved of the action even in November, saw support plummet to 18%, with 75% disapproval. 

ISRAELI HOSTAGE DESCRIBES GRAPHIC SEXUAL ASSAULT, BEATINGS, TORTURE IN GAZA

Gallup highlighted the difficulty President Biden faces among his "most loyal supporters," with some critics arguing the president "has been too closely aligned with Israel by not taking stronger actions to promote a cease-fire and to assist Palestinian civilians caught in the war zone." 

Jon Alterman, director at the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Middle East Program, told Fox News Digital that Americans have absorbed the conflict through multiple channels – traditional media, social media and even conversation with friends and colleagues – but the coverage has differed in some areas. 

"Some Israeli leaders have been critical of their country’s own outreach, including Prime Minister Netanyahu, who complained last week that he’s surrounded by people who ‘can’t put two words together in English,’" Alterman explained. 

BIDEN CONCEDES TO PRO-PALESTINIAN PROTESTERS AFTER MULTIPLE INTERRUPTIONS: ‘THEY HAVE A POINT’

"I’m also struck that the narrative in Israel is profoundly different from the narrative in the rest of the world," Alterman said. "Israelis are preoccupied by stories of their own suffering and heroism, as well as persistent threats from Palestinians. There is virtually nothing in the Hebrew press about either civilian casualties in Gaza or humanitarian conditions there."

"The international press carries both sets of stories, but it seems to me that many Israelis are embedded in their own narratives, and that makes it harder for them to shape other ones," he added. "They end up rejecting those narratives as biased or illegitimate, rather than reshape them."

While Republicans approve of what Israel has done, Biden himself only has 16% approval for his handling of the situation, according to a Gallup poll released last week, while Democrats had 47% approval – still a significant drop from the 60% approval in November.

Biden’s overall approval rating has hit around 40%, according to the pollster – up from 37% in the November survey, but Gallup ascribed the shift to greater confidence in the economy than anything he’s done with Israel. 

Fox News' Benjamin Weinthal contributed to this report.

Categories: World News

Banksy's London tree mural covered in plastic, fenced off after apparent vandalism

Fox World News - Mar 27, 2024 11:59 AM EDT

It was nice while it lasted.

An environmentally themed mural by elusive street artist Banksy that appeared last week on a London street has been encased in plastic and surrounded by fencing after an apparent act of vandalism.

The work is on a four-story wall near a public housing project. Beside a real and severely pruned cherry tree, the artist stenciled a small figure holding a pressure hose. Swathes of green paint across the wall stand in for the tree's absent leaves.

NEW BANKSY MURAL WITH A 'GREEN' THEME APPEARS IN LONDON

The work quickly attracted crowds including Banksy fans from around the world. Two days later, it was splashed with white paint.

The mural was then covered in transparent plastic by the building's owner, and a sign appeared saying the area was under video surveillance.

On Wednesday, workers began to erect wooden boards around the site.

The local authority, Islington Council, said it was fencing off the site to protect the art and residents from the impact of visitors.

"We’ve had a lot of concerns from our residents about disruption from the numbers of visitors to the artwork, which is right outside their homes," the council said in a statement. It said the fencing would include clear plastic panels "to protect the artwork and allow clear views."

Banksy, who has never confirmed his full identity, began his career spray-painting buildings in Bristol, England, and has become one of the world’s best-known artists.

His work has sold for millions of dollars at auction, and past murals on outdoor sites have often been stolen or removed by building owners soon after going up. In December, after Banksy stenciled military drones on a stop sign in south London, a man was photographed taking down the sign with bolt cutters. Police later arrested two men on suspicion of theft and criminal damage.

The latest work would be harder to take down since the piece relies on the tree for its impact.

Islington Council said it would monitor the site and "continue to explore future solutions with the building owner so people can enjoy the artwork."

Categories: World News

Pakistan to perform DNA test on remains of suicide bomber who killed 5 Chinese nationals

Fox World News - Mar 27, 2024 11:57 AM EDT

Pakistani authorities will perform DNA testing on the remains of the suicide bomber who rammed his explosive-laden car into a vehicle in the country's northwest, killing five Chinese nationals and their local driver, officials said Wednesday.

The attack occurred in Shangla, a district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province where thousands of Chinese nationals work on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor which includes a multitude of megaprojects such as road construction, power plants and agriculture. The CPEC is a lifeline for Pakistan’s cash-strapped government, currently facing one of its worst economic crises.

The five were engineers and laborers heading Tuesday to the Dasu Dam, the biggest hydropower project in Pakistan, where they worked. Their remains were transported to the capital, Islamabad, local police official Altaf Khan said, adding that the deceased had a police escort when the attack happened.

6 KILLED, INCLUDING 5 CHINESE NATIONALS, IN NORTHWEST PAKISTAN SUICIDE ATTACK, POLICE SAY

Pakistani officials said they shared the latest investigation developments with their Chinese counterparts. China is expected to send its own experts Wednesday to the attack site to conduct an independent investigation while collaborating with Pakistani authorities.

Khan also said they have further expanded a search started a day earlier to look for the attacker’s possible accomplices.

No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack, but suspicion is likely to fall on separatists as well as a breakaway Gul Bahadur faction of Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP, and is a separate group, but a close ally of the Afghan Taliban.

The TTP denied being behind the suicide bombing in a statement Wednesday, saying: "We are in no way related to the attack on the Chinese engineers."

8 MILITANTS DEAD AFTER PAKISTAN FENDS OFF SEPARATIST ATTACK NEAR CHINA-FUNDED PORT

Tuesday’s attack came less than a week after Pakistani security forces killed eight Baluchistan Liberation Army separatists who opened fire on a convoy carrying Chinese citizens outside the Chinese-funded Gwadar port in the volatile southwestern Baluchistan province.

The Chinese foreign ministry condemned the attack and offered "deep condolences to the deceased" in a statement Wednesday.

The ministry said China has asked "Pakistan to thoroughly investigate the incident as soon as possible, hunt down the perpetrators, and bring them to justice" and added that "any attempt to undermine China-Pakistan cooperation will never succeed."

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif promised a swift conclusion to the investigation during a visit with the Chinese ambassador, Jiang Zaidong, on Tuesday.

Zaidong, accompanied by Pakistani officials, visited the Dasu dam Wednesday, according to a statement by Pakistan's government.

The statement also said Sharif presided over a high-level security meeting, attended by the country's powerful army chief Gen. Asim Munir. In the meeting, the premier said Tuesday's attack was "creating mistrust" between Pakistan and China and vowed to bring "the barbaric perpetrators to justice."

The army chief seconded Sharif's promise and said they would ensure the safety of all foreigners in the country, "especially Chinese nationals, contributing to the prosperity of Pakistan."

Chinese laborers working on CPEC-related projects in Pakistan have come under attack in recent years.

In July 2021, at least 13 people, including nine Chinese nationals, were killed when a suicide bomber detonated his vehicle near a bus carrying several Chinese and Pakistani engineers and laborers, prompting the Chinese companies to suspend work at the time. Pakistani authorities at the time initially insisted it was a road accident, but China disputed the claim, saying victims were the target of a suicide attack.

Categories: World News

Iraqi man responsible for Quran burnings in Sweden seeks asylum in Norway after facing deportation

Fox World News - Mar 27, 2024 11:29 AM EDT

An Iraqi man who carried out several Quran burnings in Sweden told a newspaper on Wednesday that he would seek asylum in neighboring Norway in the wake of a deportation order by authorities in Stockholm.

Salwan Momika, 37, has staged several burnings and desecrations of the sacred book of Islam in Sweden over the past few years.

"I am on my way to Norway," Momika said in an interview published Wednesday by Swedish tabloid Expressen. "Sweden only accepts terrorists who are granted asylum and given protection, while philosophers and thinkers are expelled."

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Videos of Momika’s provocative Quran burnings got worldwide publicity and raised anger and criticism in several Muslim nations, leading to riots and unrest in many places. He is currently being investigated by Swedish authorities for incitement against ethnic groups in Sweden.

According to Expressen, Momika is one of the reasons why Sweden’s NATO membership, which was finalized earlier this month, got delayed by months. Among other countries, his actions got wide publicity in NATO member Turkey, which vetoed Stockholm's bid to join the military alliance for a lengthy period.

Sweden’s migration authorities revoked Momika’s residence permit in October, saying he had provided incorrect information on his application and he would be deported to Iraq. But his deportation has been on hold for security reasons, because according to Momika, his life could be in danger if he were returned to his native country.

Swedish media reported that Momika was granted a residence permit in 2021. In connection with last year's deportation decision, Momika was granted a new temporary residence permit that expires on April 16, according to Expressen.

"I am moving to a country that welcomes me and respects me. Sweden doesn't respect me," Momika told the newspaper, adding that he had already entered Norway and was on his way to the capital, Oslo.

There was no immediate comment available from Norwegian authorities.

Categories: World News

ISIS-K attack in Moscow highlights growing terror threat from Afghanistan

Fox World News - Mar 27, 2024 11:16 AM EDT

The terrorist attack on Moscow's Crocus City concert hall was the worst attack in Russia in over 20 years, leaving 137 people dead and over 180 wounded, and reminds Russia and the West that the threat from ISIS and international terrorism hasn't gone away.

Gunmen, identified by Russian media as Tajik nationals, entered the concert hall with automatic weapons and indiscriminately opened fire in the 6,200-seat venue. The Islamic State's affiliate in Afghanistan, known as the Islamic State in Khorasan Province (ISIS-K), claimed responsibility for the brutal attack on concertgoers. 

While the ISIS caliphate that spanned across Iraq and Syria was largely defeated by the U.S. and its mostly Kurdish ally there, the Afghan chapter of ISIS has been one of the most active post-caliphate branches. It was responsible for the suicide attack on Kabul airport in August 2021 that killed 13 American service members amid the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

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The world's attention has once again returned to Afghanistan over two years since the Taliban regained control after the U.S. withdrawal in 2021.

"It seems that ISIS-K has exploited the American withdrawal and has successfully tapped into recruits, especially from Afghanistan and Central Asia," Max Abrahms, terrorism expert and professor of political science at Northeastern University, told Fox News Digital. The deadly attack in Moscow comes after ISIS claimed responsibility for twin suicide bombings in January that killed at least 95 people commemorating the death of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, head of the Qud's Forces of Iran's Revolutionary Guard, who was killed in a U.S. drone strike in 2020.

It's also no surprise that ISIS-K would target Russia, according to Ivana Stradner, a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies who focuses on Russian information security. Stradner told Fox News Digital that Russian actions in Syria and Moscow’s ties to Iran also play an important role in ISIS' decision to challenge the Kremlin. Russia intervened in the Syrian civil war in 2015 to prop up the Assad regime, at the time on the verge of collapse. Moscow's treatment of Muslim minorities in Russia and the brutal wars against Chechnya are also long-standing grievances. 

ISIS-K was formed in 2015 and operates primarily in Afghanistan but has expanded across the world, including in Russia's backyard of Central Asia. It may share a similar ideology with the Taliban, but remains a grave danger to their rule as it looks to undermine the regime and strike at foreign interests in Afghanistan.

WITH TALIBAN VICTORY, AFGHANISTAN COULD BECOME THE 'SECOND SCHOOL OF JIHADISM'

Abrahms says many countries are now grappling with the question of what to do with ISIS and other terrorist networks that operate in unstable nations with weak governance. "Naturally, they will begin to think more seriously about arming relative moderates in Afghanistan and other rebel forces could be empowered as well insofar as they brand themselves as anti-ISIS." Abrahms said.

The Afghan National Resistance Front (NRF) is seen by some as the most viable Afghan resistance unit, and it has stepped up its attacks against the Taliban in recent months. Dislodging the Taliban and reinstalling the Afghan Republic remains the NRF's main objective, but they have also fought against ISIS-K and other networks. Terrorist groups like ISIS-K also challenge the Taliban's rule, but aren't looking to restore a secular and democratic Afghanistan. However, their coordinated attack in Moscow demonstrated the group's ability to strike internationally.

"ISIS-K's expansion is directly the result of the Taliban allowing terror networks and foreign fighters to flood Afghanistan," Ali Maisam Nazary, head of foreign relations for the NRF, told Fox News Digital.

"These groups are preparing themselves inside Afghanistan for attacks on a larger scale than Moscow against the West and regional countries in the years to come," Nazary warned.

TALIBAN HAVE A 2-FRONT WAR HEADED THEIR WAY

The NRF, which primarily operated in northeastern Afghanistan and concentrated operations in the Panjshir Valley, recently opened a new front in western Afghanistan and is increasing operations in Herat City. Nazary notes that within the last several weeks, NRF forces executed attacks in Kabul and will be intensifying their efforts starting this spring and summer. These operations, Nazary claims, underscore the increased support for the NRF across Afghanistan, and showcase their strategic capabilities in confronting the Taliban.

The Taliban normally downplay the threat posed by the NRF and other armed groups, claiming they have restored stability to Afghanistan since the downfall of the U.S.-backed government. While the NRF is quick to highlight its success in its attacks against the Taliban, the U.S. Intelligence Community’s Annual Threat Assessment, released on March 11 by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, only briefly mentions Afghanistan. It states that the Taliban regime has strengthened its power and suppressed anti-Taliban groups like the NRF and ISIS-K.

The threat assessment provides a short but bleak outlook for the future of Afghan resistance groups.

"However, near-term prospects for regime-threatening resistance remain low because large swathes of the Afghan public are weary of war and fearful of Taliban reprisals, and armed remnants lack strong leadership and external support," the document states.

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The resistance group has been in a two-year campaign to gain greater international recognition and support for their efforts to fight the Taliban and ISIS-K and hopes to organize a unified political opposition to govern Afghanistan without the Taliban. Unfortunately for the NRF and their supporters, they have so far failed to gain international recognition from another state, lack external financial backing and have not been endorsed by the U.S.

"The United States does not support further armed conflict in Afghanistan. The country has been at war for 46 years. We do not want to see Afghanistan at war, and Afghans tell us they don’t want conflict either," a State Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital.

Fatemeh Aman, a non-resident senior fellow at the Middle East Institute in Washington, D.C., told Fox News Digital that the NRF is largely respected and has sympathy from many Afghans, but it is still not sufficient.

"Just by guerrilla warfare and without active support from the population, external moral and military support, and even some diplomatic interventions, it may be difficult to achieve the goal of liberating Afghanistan," Aman said.

Categories: World News

Ostrich runs through traffic in South Korea after escaping zoo

Fox World News - Mar 27, 2024 10:00 AM EDT

A runaway ostrich was caught on video dodging traffic in South Korea on Tuesday, after escaping from its enclosure due to what its owner believes was loneliness.

The male ostrich named Tadori broke out from a zoo called Bug City in the town of Seongnam, located about an hour south of Seoul.

Witnesses recorded video of the ostrich jogging down a busy street through traffic. It appeared to run into a box truck and get knocked down at one point before continuing to trot down lanes of cars.

About an hour after the escape, the big bird was captured using a net in a parking lot about 1.6 miles from the zoo, Reuters reported.

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Tadori, who is 4 years old, was unharmed and later returned to the zoo. The zoo’s owner says Tadori has been lonely since his mate died.

"His only friend, a female ostrich Tasooni, passed away about a month ago," zoo owner Choi Yun-joo told Reuters. "Guess that has been tough on Tadori."

Tadori is believed to have escaped the zoo by squeezing through a narrow gap between fences, the Korea Herald reported. 

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The incident is similar to another animal escape in Seoul that occurred almost exactly one year ago.

In that case, a young male zebra named Sero escaped the Children’s Grand Park and ran alongside traffic and down narrow alleys until it was subdued with tranquilizers.

It was reported that Sero escaped after showing signs of stress following the deaths of his parents.

Categories: World News

Taiwan safeguards against rising China threat with commissioning of 2 new navy corvettes

Fox World News - Mar 27, 2024 9:33 AM EDT

Taiwan has commissioned two new navy ships as a safeguard against the rising threat from China, which has been ratcheting up its naval and air force missions around the island that it claims as its own territory to be annexed by force if necessary.

The pair of Tuo Chiang class corvettes completes the first order of six of the domestically produced catamarans with stealth capabilities. The ships are relatively small, capable of carrying just 41 sailors and officers, but are fast and highly maneuverable and carry a range of missiles and deck guns aimed at countering larger Chinese vessels and rocketry.

Outgoing President Tsai Ing-wen oversaw the commissioning on Tuesday at the northern port of Suao, emphasizing her push to revitalize Taiwan’s defense industries, alongside extensive arms purchases and support from key ally the United States.

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Tsai has also fast-tracked the production of trainer jets and the island's first homebuilt submarines, sometimes pushing budgets for such purchases through the legislature against resistance from representatives of the opposition Nationalist Party, which favors eventual unification with China.

Ma Ying-jeou, the last president from the Nationalists, also known as the KMT, is reportedly planning a visit to China next month that could include a meeting with Communist Party leader Xi Jinping.

Taiwan was colonized by China in the 1600s but later taken over by Japan, before reverting to the Republic of China at the end of World War II. The sides then split again amid the Chinese Civil War in 1949. Xi has been building his military with an eye to consolidating China's territorial claims throughout the Pacific, the South China Sea and along the contested high-mountain border with India.

China boasts the world's largest standing military and biggest navy — with three aircraft carriers — but has not fought in a major conflict since its brief 1979 invasion of Vietnam. Since then, its military budget has ballooned to the world's second largest behind the U.S., alongside a huge expansion of its economy, which is now showing signs of losing steam.

Most recently, frictions between patrol vessels from the sides near Taiwan-controlled islands just off the Chinese coast have renewed concerns about a conflict that could draw in the U.S., which is legally bound to ensure Taiwan can defend itself and considers all threats to the island as matters of "grave concern."

While vastly outgunned, Taiwan's military has been bolstered by new weaponry and an extension of the universal period of national service for men from four months to one year. Its air force, navy and missile corps also respond to near-daily incursions by Chinese ships and planes.

Taiwan's Defense Ministry says it is on alert for a Chinese sneak attack, possibly targeting Tsai or Vice President William Lai, who will take over the top office in May. Both are despised as separatists by Beijing. Recent Taiwanese media reports have shown satellite photos of Chinese People's Liberation Army training grounds including mock-ups of the neighborhood surrounding Taipei's Presidential Office Building.

Taiwan's Defense Ministry said it detected nine Chinese planes and six ships operating around the island between Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning.

In Beijing on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Cabinet's Taiwan Affairs Office criticized live-firing exercises by the Taiwanese military planned for next month near the Taiwan-held island group of Kinmen just off the Chinese coast.

"Any provocative move Taiwan's military takes is doomed to fail," Chen Binhua said at a biweekly news conference.

Categories: World News

Beijing residents play fetch with migratory birds in ancient Chinese tradition

Fox World News - Mar 27, 2024 9:31 AM EDT

Passersby in Beijing during winter or early spring might happen upon groups of residents playing fetch with birds. The players blow plastic beads into the air through carbon tubes for the birds — often from the migratory wutong species — to catch and return, in exchange for a treat.

It’s a Beijing tradition dating back to the Qing Dynasty, which ruled between the 17th century and early 20th century. Today, only about 50 to 60 people in Beijing are believed to still practice it.

Xie Yufeng, a 39-year-old cook, is one of them. Late Tuesday afternoon, Xie gathered with a few friends near Workers’ Stadium, where residents often congregate in the evenings to dance in tandem, practice tai chi or play the Chinese yo-yo.

BIRDS AS SYMBOLS OF WISDOM — AND WHAT THE OWL CAN TELL US ABOUT OURSELVES

Xie and his friends brought along their winged playmates — most of them wutong birds, with their distinctive yellow beaks and which fly southward from China’s northeast to Beijing every fall to escape the bitter winter.

Domesticating the birds and training them for the bead-catching game may take four to five months, Xie said. Players teach the birds to fetch by first throwing seeds into the air, and later replacing them with plastic beads. Every time the birds retrieve the beads, they are rewarded with a snack. In the past, the beads were made of bone.

"In order to do this well, patience is the most important quality for a player," Xie said.

The tradition is said to have taken root in the capital with the arrival of the Qing Dynasty, a Manchu group that took control of Beijing in the mid-1600s.

Manchu nobles, living around the Forbidden City, are believed to have popularized catching and training birds as a pastime.

Today, residents of Beijing’s traditional alleyways, called hutong in Chinese, often still raise birds in cages and may even take the whole birdcages out for walks.

The wutong bird owners usually release them in late spring and allow them to migrate back to the northeast — only to catch or purchase new ones the following fall.

Categories: World News

China's Xi Jinping tells Dutch PM that restricting technology access won't stop China's advance

Fox World News - Mar 27, 2024 9:11 AM EDT

Chinese leader Xi Jinping told visiting Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Wednesday that attempts to restrict China's access to technology will not stop the country's advance.

The Netherlands imposed export licensing requirements in 2023 on the sale of machinery that can make advanced processor chips. The move came after the United States blocked Chinese access to advanced chips and the equipment to make them, citing security concerns, and urged its allies to follow suit.

An online report from state broadcaster CCTV did not mention the chip machinery, but quoted Xi as saying that the creation of scientific and technological barriers and the fragmentation of the industrial and supply chains will lead to division and confrontation.

BIDEN'S PUSH TO PROTECT AMERICAN TECH FROM CHINA GARNERS MIXED REVIEWS FROM EXPERTS

"The Chinese people also have the right to legitimate development, and no force can stop the pace of China’s scientific and technological development and progress," Xi said, according to CCTV.

Rutte and Trade Minister Geoffrey van Leeuwen were also expected to discuss the wars in Ukraine and Gaza during meetings with Xi and Chinese Premier Li Qiang, a Dutch government release said ahead of their trip.

China has taken a neutral position on the Ukraine war, providing Russia with diplomatic cover and economic support through trade. That stance has angered and frustrated much of Europe, which sees Russia as the aggressor and Ukraine as the victim.

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"I’m going to try to convey how important it is for the Netherlands, for our security, that Russia does not win this, that Russia loses, and that we also ask a good friend like China to understand that," Rutte said in a video message recorded on a street in a historic tourist district in Beijing.

In the video, posted on X, he also said that he would bring up intellectual property rights, subsidies and human rights.

Dutch company ASML is the world’s only producer of machines that use extreme ultraviolet lithography to make advanced semiconductors. In 2023, China became ASML’s second-largest market, accounting for 29% of its revenue as Chinese companies bought up equipment before the licensing requirement took effect.

Beijing has repeatedly accused the U.S. of trying to hold back China's economic development by restricting access to technology. In response, Xi has launched a campaign to develop home-grown chips and other high-tech products.

"China always opposes the U.S. overstretching the concept of national security and making various excuses to coerce other countries into imposing a technological blockade against China," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said in January.

ASML, the Netherlands’ largest company, recently threatened to leave the country over anti-immigration policies that may impact the company’s ability to hire talent, leaving government officials scrambling to ensure that the firm does not leave.

Van Leeuwen said this week in an interview with The FD, a Dutch business newspaper, that protecting the interests of ASML is a top priority but acknowledged that national security comes before economic interests.

NATO and its growing ties with Asia also may come up at Wednesday’s talks. Rutte is a leading candidate to be the next head of NATO, an organization that China has criticized for provoking regional tensions and making forays into the Asia-Pacific region.

Categories: World News

Taiwan stands as major line of defense against global war with China, critical for US security

Fox World News - Mar 27, 2024 9:00 AM EDT

EXCLUSIVE - Taiwan, an island slightly bigger than the state of Maryland, carries enormous strategic importance for not only U.S. security and prosperity, but also in preventing a global war, a special report by the Heritage Foundation warned Wednesday.

Tensions between the U.S. and China over Taiwan have been on the rise over the last decade, and many have questioned why the U.S. would risk a potential war with its chief rival over a relatively small island.

"The security and prosperity of the United States depend to a shocking extent on a secure Taiwan that functions independently of the [People’s Republic of China] PRC," research fellow and China expert for the Heritage Foundation Michael Cunningham wrote in a report titled "The American case for Taiwan."

TAIWAN CONDUCTS DEFENSIVE MILITARY DRILLS AS CHINESE WARSHIPS, PLANES LOOM

 "A change in Taiwan’s status might not directly threaten the U.S. homeland in the immediate term, but it would irreversibly alter regional dynamics in ways that would benefit America’s chief geopolitical adversary and make every American less safe," he said in the report first viewed by Fox News Digital. 

A secure Taiwan became a top issue following the end of World War II, when the U.S. entered the Cold War with the Soviet Union and its fight against communism kicked off.

Cunningham pointed to a previously classified memorandum prepared by General Douglas MacArthur in 1950 that said China would "increase by 100 percent" its ability to deploy air combat options and strike American bases in places like Japan and the Philippines should they control the island of Taiwan. 

"Little has changed in the decades following," he noted. 

Some 80,000 U.S. troops are stationed in Japan and South Korea, but a Chinese-controlled Taiwan would not only serve as a better launch point for air and missile operations, it would enable Beijing to exert greater control over international waters that serve as major trade and security transportation routes, seriously threatening top U.S. allies. 

"The [People’s Liberation Army] PLA handbook outlines a post-Taiwan unification plan to use blockades to limit Japan’s imports of raw materials gradually until its ‘national economy and war-making potential will collapse entirely’ and there is ‘a famine within the Japanese islands’," Cunningham wrote in reference to China’s military. "Were China ever to execute such a plan, Japan would be at its mercy."

CHINA THREAT LOOMS LARGE AS TAIWAN VOTES IN PIVOTAL ELECTION: 'CHOICE BETWEEN WAR AND PEACE'

Cunningham also argued that even if China did not attempt to leverage its control over international waters, there would still likely be a "crisis of confidence" in either Washington’s willingness or ability to stop China from achieving regional hegemony.

This sentiment could have serious consequences when it comes to security and trade and could prompt some nations in Southeast Asia to bolster ties with Beijing, further weakening the U.S.’ influence in the region.

However, while some nations may kowtow to a stronger Beijing, many nations in the region would not, and the threat of a global war would only increase.

"China is the biggest threat to most regional actors, and it has territorial disputes with several of them," Cunningham wrote.

The China expert pointed out that the regional disputes are "serious political issues" and therefore are more likely to have "explosive" consequences should Beijing attempt to shift the power dynamics across Asia. 

"The U.S. security presence is widely viewed as the main factor preventing an outbreak of great-power conflict in a region that is so critical to global economic and political affairs that such a conflict could easily spread to assume a global scale," Cunningham warned.

"If China gained control of Taiwan, it would set in motion a series of events that could make every American less secure."

Categories: World News

5 killed after bus veers off highway, crashes in eastern Germany

Fox World News - Mar 27, 2024 8:17 AM EDT

At least five people were killed Wednesday when a bus headed from Berlin to Switzerland came off a highway in eastern Germany and ended up on its side, authorities said.

The accident happened on the A9 highway near Leipzig at about 9:45 a.m. and the road was closed in both directions.

It wasn't immediately clear why the bus, which was operated by Flixbus and en route from Berlin to Zurich, came off the road. Rescue helicopters and ambulances were at the scene.

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Police spokesman Olaf Hoppe told n-tv television that there were "numerous injured and at least five dead."

Flixbus said there were 53 passengers and two drivers on board, German news agency dpa reported. The company said it was working closely with local authorities and rescue services and would do everything to clear up the cause of the accident quickly.

The A9 is a major north-south route that links Berlin with Munich. The scene of the accident was just north of a highway interchange at Schkeuditz, next to the Leipzig/Halle airport.

Categories: World News

4 sentenced to death for 2013 assassination of Tunisian politician

Fox World News - Mar 27, 2024 7:23 AM EDT

A Tunisian court sentenced four people to death and two to life in prison on charges stemming from the murder of a left-wing politician, a public prosecutor said Wednesday.

Chokri Belaid, the 48-year-old leader of the Popular Front coalition, was shot in his car outside his home in Tunis in February 2013. His assassination, the country's first in decades, prompted mass protests and helped lead to the resignation of the then-prime minister.

The case was reopened last month after a former investigating judge was arrested on suspicion of concealing certain files. Wednesday's verdict came after hours of late night delays and lengthy deliberations due to "the complexity of the very thorny case," said Mohamed Jmour, a member of Belaid's defense committee.

TUNISIAN JOURNALIST TO STAND TRIAL FOR ALLEGEDLY INSULTING PUBLIC OFFICIAL ONLINE

Before his death, Belaid had earned a following for his forceful criticisms of Ennahda, the Islamist party that rose to power after President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali became the first dictator toppled in the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings. His supporters blamed the party for taking an overly accommodating approach toward extremists after his assassination.

Ennahda leaders classified Ansar al-Sharia as a terrorist group after the killing of another left-wing politician, Mohammed Brahmi, later that year. Law enforcement killed several alleged members of the al-Qaeda-linked group suspected of involvement in Belaid's death.

Several members of Ansar al Sharia were sentenced, including Mohamed Aouadi, the head of its military arm; Mohamed Khiari, the head of its field surveillance and information arm.

The assassinations and subsequent unrest set off a political crisis for Tunisia as it struggled to transition from dictatorship to democracy.

Two dozen defendants were ultimately charged in a sprawling case that took years to investigate and bring to trial. One died in prison. Of the 23 defendants sentenced on Wednesday, five were acquitted while others received sentences ranging from two to 120 years.

Aymen Chtiba, a deputy prosecutor in the terrorism court's judicial unit, said the dismissals had to do with the similarity of sentences already handed down against some defendants in other cases.

Belaid's brother Abdelmajid Belaid called the verdict "a positive step" and said that supporters were still awaiting the trial of those suspected of planning the assassination.

Categories: World News

Brazil and France announce $1.1 billion investment plan for Amazon rainforest after years of friction

Fox World News - Mar 27, 2024 7:22 AM EDT

The Brazilian and the French presidents on Tuesday announced a plan to invest $1.1 billion in the Amazon, including parts of the rainforest in neighboring French Guiana.

The two countries' governments said in a joint statement the money will be spread over the next four years to protect the rainforest. It will be a collaboration of state-run Brazilian banks and France's investment agency. Private resources will also be welcomed, Brazil and France said.

French President Emmanuel Macron and his Brazilian counterpart Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva are meeting this week to revive the relationship between the countries after years of frictions with former President Jair Bolsonaro, deepen cooperation to protect the rainforest and boost trade.

BRAZIL’S AMAZON RAINFOREST FACES SEVERE DROUGHT, AFFECTING FOOD AND WATER SUPPLIES FOR THOUSANDS

Macron started his three-day visit to Brazil in the Amazon city of Belem, where he met his long-time ally Lula. The French president then took a boat to the Combu island to meet with Indigenous leaders.

Both Macron and Lula saw a protest by Greenpeace Brazil with banners that read "No oil in the Amazon." Brazil’s government has contemplated allowing the tapping of oil in a region close to the Para state, where Belem lies.

Lula said during a speech that Macron's visit is part of a global effort to beef up rainforest protections.

"We want to convince those who have already deforested that they need to contribute in an important way to countries that still have their forests to keep them standing," Lula said in a speech next to the French president.

Macron's office prior said to the trip that a potential European trade deal with the South American bloc Mercosur won’t be on the agenda. The French president is an opponent of such an agreement as long as South American producers don’t respect the same environment and health standards as Europeans, after farmers raised concerns during protests across France and Europe.

The French president decorated Indigenous leader Raoni Metuktire with the prestigious Legion of Honor medal for efforts at conserving the rainforest.

"You were in Europe and I promised to come here to your forest and be with your people in this forest that is coveted," Macron told the Indigenous leader, according to French radio RFI. "President Lula and I have a common cause for one of our friends in this land that belongs to you."

Lula and Macron will seek to "set a common course" to fight both climate change and poverty, Macron’s office said, as Brazil is to host the summit of the Group of 20 leading economies in Rio de Janeiro in November and UN climate talks in Belem next year.

On Wednesday, Macron and Lula will launch a diesel-powered submarine built in Brazil with French technology at the Itaguai shipyard outside Rio de Janeiro. The French president will then head to metropolis Sao Paulo to meet with Brazilian investors. On Thursday, the French president will head to Brasilia to again meet with Lula.

Categories: World News

Thailand's lower house approves bill to legalize same-sex marriage

Fox World News - Mar 27, 2024 6:52 AM EDT

Lawmakers in Thailand's lower house of Parliament overwhelmingly approved a marriage equality bill on Wednesday that would make the country the first in Southeast Asia to legalize equal rights for marriage partners of any gender.

The bill passed its final reading with the approval of 400 of the 415 members of the House of Representatives who were in attendance, with 10 voting against it, two abstaining and three not voting.

The bill amends the Civil and Commercial Code to change the words "men and women" and "husband and wife" to "individuals" and "marriage partners." It would open up access to full legal, financial and medical rights for LGBTQ+ couples.

THAILAND DELIVERS FIRST BATCH OF HUMANITARIAN AID TO WAR-TORN BURMA

The bill now goes to the Senate, which rarely rejects any legislation that passes the lower house, and then to the king for royal endorsement. This would make Thailand the first country or region in Southeast Asia to pass such a law and the third in Asia, after Taiwan and Nepal.

Danuphorn Punnakanta, a spokesperson of the governing Pheu Thai party and president of a committee overseeing the marriage equality bill, said in Parliament that the amendment is for "everyone in Thailand" regardless of their gender, and would not deprive heterosexual couples of any rights.

"For this law, we would like to return rights to the (LGBTQ+ group). We are not giving them rights. These are the fundamental rights that this group of people … has lost," he said.

Lawmakers, however, did not approve inclusion of the word "parent" in addition to "father and mother" in the law, which activists said would limit the rights of some LGBTQ+ couples to form a family and raise children.

Thailand has a reputation for acceptance and inclusivity but has struggled for decades to pass a marriage equality law.

The new government led by Pheu Thai, which took office last year, has made marriage equality one of its main goals.

Categories: World News

Critics charge Biden with abandoning Israel, hostages amid growing tensions with Jewish state

Fox World News - Mar 27, 2024 4:00 AM EDT

JERUSALEM — The Biden administration’s failure on Monday to veto a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolution calling for a cease-fire in Gaza is putting further strain on the administration's relationship with America's closest ally in the region, Israel.

"The U.S. action at the U.N. has driven U.S.-Israel relations to a low point in their history and left America’s reputation as a credible ally in ruins," Caroline Glick, one of Israel’s leading experts on American-Israeli relations, told Fox News Digital. She continued, "Israel is engaged in a multi-front war against Iran and its proxies for its survival. In Tehran, Lebanon, Iraq, Syria and Jordan, Israel’s enemies saw on Monday that the U.S. has abandoned Israel at the height of the war, effectively adopting Hamas’ positions as its own."

When approached about the U.N. vote and the state of U.S.-Israel relations, a State Department spokesperson referred Fox News Digital to spokesperson Matthew Miller's remarks during Monday's press briefing. 

ISRAELI DELEGATION LEAVES QATAR NEGOTIATIONS AFTER HAMAS REJECTS LATEST HOSTAGE RELEASE PROPOSAL

"The U.N. Security Council resolution that passed today from which the United States abstained, there were … issues with which we had concerns related to that resolution, the fact that it did not condemn Hamas’s terrorist attacks of October 7th; that’s why we didn’t vote for it," Miller said. "But the reason we didn’t veto it is because there were also things in that resolution that were consistent with our long-term position; most importantly, that there should be a cease-fire, and that there should be a release of hostages."

The U.S.' move to not veto the resolution prompted Israel to cancel a high-level delegation to Washington, D.C., to discuss American concerns about Israel’s slated offensive to seize the remaining Hamas-controlled city of Rafah in Gaza. President Biden had requested the meeting.

Miller termed the cancelation "surprising and unfortunate." The State Department spokesperson added, "We believe this type of full-scale invasion would be a mistake. It would be a mistake not just because of the extraordinary impact it would have on the somewhere around 1.4 million civilians who are in Rafah now, but it would also be a mistake because it would harm Israel’s overall security." 

"This withdrawal damages both the war effort and the effort to release the hostages because it gives Hamas hope that international pressure will allow them to accept a cease-fire without the release of our hostages," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement after the U.S. enabled the alleged anti-Israel vote at the Security Council,

WHY MIDEAST NEIGHBORS WON'T OFFER REFUGE TO PALESTINIANS STUCK IN GAZA WAR ZONE

Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman told Fox News Digital, "I think by falsely criticizing Israel and agreeing to a U.N. resolution that does not condemn Hamas nor condition a cease-fire on the hostages being released, Biden has given Hamas a huge diplomatic victory."

Friedman, one of the key architects in the Trump administration of the diplomatic normalization agreements (Abraham Accords) between Israel and Sunni Gulf countries, added, "This is why [senior Hamas leader] Ismail Haniyeh is in Tehran today celebrating. All of this emboldens Hamas and makes a deal for the hostages far more difficult."

Friedman continued, "I think the last time America betrayed Israel like this was at the end of the Obama administration with UNSCR 2334." Obama’s then-Ambassador to the U.N., Samantha Power, abstained in a vote that enabled the UNSC to censure Israel for its construction of residences in the disputed territory of Judea and Samaria. The region is also known as the West Bank. Power is now the administrator for the United States Agency for International Development.

BIDEN ADMIN 'PERPLEXED' BY NETANYAHU DECISION TO CANCEL ISRAELI DELEGATION

White House national security spokesperson John Kirby told reporters on Monday, "We get to decide what our policy is. It seems like the Prime Minister’s office is choosing to create a perception of daylight here when they don’t need to do that."

Israel’s government and the public are determined to root out Hamas terrorists and its infrastructure in Rafah and secure the release of the over 100 hostages held by the Jihadi organization. Netanyahu has the backing of Israel’s population, who desperately want to prevent a reprise of Hamas’ massacre of 1,200 people on Oct. 7 in southern Israel. The bloodbath included sustained rapes of women and the seizure of more than 200 hostages. Israeli officials say that an invasion of Rafah is not contingent on a green light from the Biden administration.

The clash between Biden and Netanyahu is increasing at a fast pace. Domestic elections are fueling the Biden administration’s anxiety about an Israeli operation to defeat Hamas. According to critics, Biden seeks to woo Arab American votes in Michigan — a key swing state in this year’s presidential election — by pushing Israel to accept deep concessions.

Mort Klein, president of the Zionist Organization of America, told Fox News Digital that "Biden is becoming the worst president for Israel ever." He added that the "refusal to veto the resolution is intended to defend Hamas and strengthen Hamas. This is sinister. They are protecting the evil regime of Hamas and the evil regime of Iran." Klein claimed Biden is determined to "harm Israel."

HOUSE DEMS URGE BIDEN TO TARGET ISRAEL MILITARY AID OVER GAZA HUMANITARIAN CONCERNS

Glick, a former adviser to Netanyahu, noted, "The administration’s actions at the U.N. Security Council were a betrayal of Israel and of the hostages. By allowing resolution 2728 to pass, the U.S. blocked all paths to a diplomatic deal to secure the release of any hostages. By decoupling what Hamas wants — a cease-fire that will allow it to rebuild its terror army and its control over Gaza and so win the war — from the release of the hostages, Resolution 2728 seals the hostages’ fate." 

America’s top U.N. diplomat issued caveats at the Security Council meeting on Tuesday. Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the U.S. ambassador to the U.N., told the council that "we did not agree with everything" in the resolution.

The dire plight of the hostages has become a kind of political football, and the grueling conditions in Rafah, where Israeli intelligence officials believe the hostages are being held, will only get progressively worse as time unfolds.

"The only way to free them now is by rescuing them through direct military action. Hamas made this clear when they changed their position from accepting a swap of 40 hostages for 700 terrorists, (including 100 murderers) to demanding a full cessation of the war and a total withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza," said Glick.

Amos Harel, a senior military correspondent for the left-wing Israeli newspaper Haaretz, who has deep sourcing within Israel’s intelligence and defense establishment, wrote on Tuesday, "Senior defense officials are very worried about the worsening relations with America and the deterioration in Israel's international standing. Their fear, which is shared by every key officeholder, is that this is the start of a process that will go on for years and be very difficult to stop."

"Netanyahu has repeatedly infuriated the United States and other friendly Western governments in the 15 months since his far-right government was sworn in. The West's grievances intensified as the war in Gaza bogged down, and especially as Netanyahu refused to discuss postwar political arrangements for Gaza," he added.

Categories: World News

Tunisian journalist to stand trial for allegedly insulting public official online

Fox World News - Mar 26, 2024 7:02 PM EDT

A prominent Tunisian journalist was put under pre-trial detention on a judge's order after a Tuesday hearing in which he dangled the prospect of publishing reporting on corruption and the misuse of public funds by several ministers and public institutions.

Mohamed Boughalleb's court hearing came four days after he was arrested in Tunis on suspicion of insulting a public official on social media.

As Tunisia heads to a presidential election later this year, Boughalleb's arrest was the latest to earn condemnation from free speech advocates in the country where pro-democracy demonstrators sparked the Arab Spring last decade.

IMPRISONED TUNISIAN OPPOSITION LEADER BEGINS HUNGER STRIKE

Boughalleb, a regular contributor on popular radio stations and frequent critic of Tunisia's president, is scheduled to face trial next month and could be sentenced to two to four years behind bars, his lawyer Nafaa Larbi told The Associated Press.

His arrest is the latest example of officials in Tunisia referring complaints to public prosecutors using a controversial 2022 law that free expression and civil liberties advocates have said is increasingly being misused to silence journalists and opponents of the government.

The law, known as Decree 54, was intended to combat cybercrime but rights activists say it has been used to prosecute high-profile journalists and opposition figures, including opposition leader Chaima Issa, political commentator Ziad El Heni and Sofiane Zneidi, a member of Tunisia’s largest opposition party Ennahda.

Human Rights Watch said in December that Decree 54 had been used "to detain, charge, or place under investigation at least 20 journalists, lawyers, students, and other critics for their public statements online or in the media."

Zied Dabbar, the president of Tunisia's National Journalist Syndicate, decried Boughalleb's arrest as an indication of how routine the pursuit of journalists had become in Tunisia. Eight journalists currently face trial, he said.

"We can not produce on-demand journalism that conforms to the desires of those in power," Dabbar said Monday on Radio Mosaique, the country's most listened to private station.

"What should a journalist do when he learns that a minister travels using public funds with a civil servant who didn't professionally have to be there? Must he keep quiet and not reveal the scandal?" he added.

"While respecting privacy, it would be absurd that we not address the misuse of public funds and corruption of the public servants from the government that are paid from our pockets to serve us and not themselves."

Boughalleb's lawyer said during Tuesday's court hearing, the journalist said he intended to make public his reporting on corruption and waste of public funds regarding several ministers and public institutions.

His trial next month comes before President Kais Saied is expected to seek a second term in a yet-to-be-scheduled election. After winning the presidency on an anti-corruption platform in 2019, Saied later suspended Tunisia's parliament, rewrote the constitution to consolidate his own power and curtailed the independence of a judiciary that has since ramped up its pursuit of his critics and opponents.

Categories: World News

Things to know about the Turkish local elections that will gauge Erdogan’s popularity

Fox World News - Mar 26, 2024 6:22 PM EDT

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — On Sunday, millions of voters in Turkey head to the polls to elect mayors and administrators in local elections which will gauge President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s popularity as his ruling party tries to win back key cities it lost five years ago.

A victory for Erdogan’s party might spur the Turkish leader into pursuing constitutional changes that could allow him to rule beyond his current term’s limit.

16 DEAD, INCLUDING 4 CHILDREN, AFTER MIGRANT BOAT SINKS OFF THE COAST OF TURKEY

Meanwhile, retaining the key cities’ municipalities would help invigorate Turkey’s opposition, left fractured and demoralized following a defeat in last year’s presidential election.

Here’s a deeper look at what’s at stake and what the results could hold for Turkey’s future.

THE BATTLE FOR ISTANBUL

In the last local elections held in 2019, a united opposition won the municipalities of the capital Ankara and the commercial hub of Istanbul, ending the ruling party’s 25-year hold over the cities.

The loss of Istanbul especially was a major blow to Erdogan, who began his political career as mayor of the metropolis of nearly 16 million in 1994.

Erdogan has named Murat Kurum, a 47-year-old former urbanization and environment minister, to run against incumbent mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu — a popular politician from the center-left Republican People’s Party, or CHP. Imamoglu has been touted as a possible presidential candidate to challenge Erdogan.

This time around, however, Imamoglu, 52, is running in the local elections without the support of Turkey’s main pro-Kurdish party or the nationalist IYI Party who are fielding their own candidates.

Meanwhile, a new religious-conservative party, the New Welfare Party, or YRP, has also thrown its hat into the ring. Appealing to conservative and religious voters who have been disillusioned with Erdogan’s handling of the economy, it is expected to steal some votes from Erdogan’s candidates.

Opinion polls point to a neck-and-neck race between Imamoglu and Kurum who have both promised infrastructure projects to render buildings earthquake-proof and to ease the city’s chronic traffic congestion.

The opposition is widely expected to maintain its hold on Ankara where the incumbent mayor Mansur Yavas, who has also been named as a future presidential candidate, remains popular.

ERDOGAN SEEKS TO CONSOLIDATE POWER

Leaving nothing to chance, Erdogan, who has been in power as prime minister and then as president for more than two decades, has been holding election rallies across the country, campaigning on behalf of candidates running for mayor.

Analysts say winning back Istanbul and Ankara and achieving a strong showing in the ballots would stiffen Erdogan’s resolve to introduce a new constitution that could allow him to rule beyond 2028 when his current term ends. The current constitution sets a two-term limit on the presidency. Erdogan, 70, ran for a third term last year, citing a technicality, because the country switched to a presidential system in 2018 and his first term was held under the previous system.

Erdogan and his allies don’t currently have sufficient seats in parliament to enact a new constitution, but another electoral triumph may sway some conservative opposition parliamentarians to switch sides, analysts say.

Earlier this month, Erdogan said Sunday’s election would be his last according to the constitution. Critics see his comments as a ploy to win sympathy votes of supporters reeling from a cost-of-living crisis, as well as a strategy to push for the constitutional amendments.

THE OPPOSITION HOPES TO BOUNCE BACK

A six-party opposition alliance, led by the CHP, has disintegrated following a devastating election defeat last year. The alliance’s supporters were left demoralized after it failed to unseat Erdogan despite the economic turmoil and the fallout from a catastrophic earthquake.

The CHP’s ability to hold onto the major cities it took five years ago would help revitalize the party and allow it to present itself as an alternative to Erdogan’s ruling party. Losing Ankara and Istanbul to Erdogan’s party could, on the other hand, end Yavas and Imamoglu’s presidential aspirations.

The CHP went for a leadership change soon after the electoral defeat, but it remains to be seen whether the party’s new chairman, 49-year-old pharmacist Ozgur Ozel, can excite supporters.

UNFAIR CAMPAIGNING

As in previous elections, Erdogan has been using the advantages of being in office, often availing himself of state resources while campaigning. Some 90% of Turkey’s media is in the hands of the government or its supporters, according to media watchdog groups, promoting the ruling party and its allies’ campaigns while denying the opposition the same opportunity.

State broadcaster TRT devoted 32 hours of airtime to the ruling party in the first 40 days of campaigning compared with 25 minutes devoted to the challengers, according to the opposition.

During campaigning, Erdogan has issued thinly veiled warnings to voters to support ruling party-backed candidates if they want to receive governmental services. He increased the minimum wage by 49% to bring some relief to households, despite his government’s efforts to control high inflation.

The Turkish leader has also continued to showcase his country’s success in the defense industry during his campaign rallies. A prototype of Turkey’s homegrown fighter jet, KAAN, performed its maiden flight last month, in what critics believe was timed ahead of the elections.

KURDISH VOTES

Kurdish voters make up an estimated 10% of the electorate in Istanbul and the way they cast their vote could be decisive in the mayoral race

Turkey’s pro-Kurdish party — now known as the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party, or DEM — opted to support Imamoglu in the 2019 municipal elections, helping him win. This time, however, the party is fielding its own candidates, in a move that could lure votes away from Imamoglu.

Still, some observers say, the party deliberately named two low-profile candidates in tacit support of the current mayor. The Kurdish party traditionally has male and female figures share leadership positions.

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Meanwhile, the DEM Party is expected to win many of the municipalities in Turkey’s predominantly Kurdish-populated southeastern regions. The question remains whether the party would be allowed to retain them. In previous years, Erdogan’s government removed the elected mayors from office for alleged links to Kurdish militants and replaced them with state-appointed trustees.

During a rally in the mostly Kurdish city of Hakkari on March 15, Erdogan urged voters not to vote for individuals he said would transfer municipal funds to the "terrorist organization," in reference to the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK.

Categories: World News

Why is Japan changing its ban on exporting lethal weapons, and why is it so controversial?

Fox World News - Mar 26, 2024 5:42 PM EDT

TOKYO (AP) — Japan's Cabinet OK'd a plan to sell future next-generation fighter jets to other countries on Tuesday, its latest step away from the pacifist principles the country adopted at the end of World War II.

JAPAN'S PM OFFERED TO MEET WITH KIM JONG UN 'AS SOON AS POSSIBLE,' NORTH KOREA SAYS

The controversial decision to allow international arms sales is expected to help secure Japan's role in a year-old project to develop a new fighter jet together with Italy and the U.K., but it's also part of a move to build up Japan's arms industry and bolster its role in global affairs.

For now, Tokyo says that it doesn't plan to export co-developed lethal weapons other than the new fighters, which aren't expected to enter service until 2035.

Here is a look at what the latest change is about and why Japan is rapidly easing weapons export rules.

WHAT'S CHANGING?

On Tuesday, the Cabinet approved a revision to its guidelines for selling defense equipment overseas, and authorized sales of the future jet. The government says that it has no plans to export other co-developed lethal weapons under the guidelines, and it would require Cabinet approval to do so.

Japan has long prohibited most arms exports under the country's pacifist constitution, although it's begun to take steps toward a change amid rising regional and global tensions. In 2014, it began to export some non-lethal military supplies, and last December, it approved a change that would allow sales of 80 lethal weapons and components that it manufactures under licenses from other countries back to the licensors. The change, which was made in December, cleared the way for Japan to sell U.S.-designed Patriot missiles to the United States, helping replace munitions that Washington is sending to Ukraine.

The decision on jets will allow Japan to export lethal weapons it co-produces to other countries for the first time.

WHAT IS THE NEW FIGHTER JET?

Japan is working with Italy and the U.K. to develop an advanced fighter jet to replace its aging fleet of American-designed F-2 fighters, and the Eurofighter Typhoons used by the U.K. and Italian militaries.

Japan, which was previously working on a homegrown design to be called the F-X, agreed in December 2022 to merge its effort with a British-Italian program called the Tempest. The joint project, known as the Global Combat Air Program, is based in the U.K., and hasn't yet announced a new name for its design.

Japan hopes the new plane will offer better sensing and stealth capabilities amid growing tensions in the region, giving it a technological edge against regional rivals China and Russia.

WHY IS JAPAN CHANGING ITS STANCE ON ARMS EXPORTS?

In its decision, the Cabinet said that the ban on exporting finished products would hinder efforts to develop the new jet, and limit Japan to a supporting role in the project. Italy and the U.K. are eager to make sells of the jet in order to defray development and manufacturing costs.

U.K. Defense Minister Grant Shapps has repeatedly said Japan needs "updating" to not cause the project to stall.

Kishida sought Cabinet approval before signing the GCAP agreement in February, but it was delayed by resistance from his junior coalition partner, the Buddhist-backed Komeito party.

Exports would also help boost Japan’s defense industry, which historically has catered only to the country's Self Defense Force, as Kishida seeks to build up the military. Japan began opening the door to some exports in 2014, but the industry has still struggled to win customers.

The change also comes as Kishida is planning an April state visit to Washington, where he is expected to stress Japan’s readiness to take a greater role in military and defense industry partnerships.

Japan sees China’s rapid military buildup and its increasing assertiveness as threats, especially growing tensions in the disputed East and South China Seas. Japan also sees increasing joint military exercises between China and Russia around Japan as a threat.

WHY ARE ARMS EXPORTS DIVISIVE?

Because of its wartime past as an aggressor and the devastation that followed its defeat in World War II, Japan adopted a constitution that limits its military to self-defense and long maintained a strict policy to limit transfers of military equipment and technology and ban all exports of lethal weapons.

Opposition lawmakers and pacifist activists have criticized Kishida’s government for committing to the fighter jet project without explaining to the public or seeking approval for the major policy change.

Recent polls show public opinion is divided on the plan.

To address such concerns, the government is limiting exports of co-developed lethal weapons to the jet for now, and has promised that no sales will be made for use in active wars. If a purchaser begins using the jets for war, Defense Minister Minoru Kihara said, Japan will stop providing spare parts and other components.

WHAT’S NEXT?

Potential markets for the jet include the 15 countries with which Japan has defense partnership agreements, such as the United States, Germany, India and Vietnam. A defense official said Taiwan — a self-governed island that China claims as its own territory — is not being considered. He spoke on condition of anonymity due to briefing rules.

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More weapons and components could be added to the approved list under the new export guidelines.

When Kishida goes to Washington in April, he's likely to talk to U.S. leaders about potential new defense and weapons industry cooperation. The new policy could also help Japan push for a bigger role in alliances and regional defense partnerships like Australia, the U.S. and the U.K.'s AUKUS.

Categories: World News

The British Museum is suing a former curator over the alleged theft of almost 2,000 items

Fox World News - Mar 26, 2024 5:40 PM EDT

LONDON (AP) — The British Museum went to court Tuesday against a former curator alleged to have stolen hundreds of artifacts from its collections and offered them for sale online.

UK MUSEUMS RETURN LOOTED ARTIFACTS TO GHANA UNDER LONG-TERM LOAN ARRANGEMENT

The museum is suing Peter Higgs, who was fired in July 2023 after more than 1,800 items were discovered to be missing. Lawyers for the museum say Higgs "abused his position of trust" to steal ancient gems, gold jewelry and other pieces from storerooms over the course of a decade.

High Court judge Heather Williams ordered Higgs to list or return any items in his possession within four weeks. She also ordered the disclosure of his eBay and PayPal records.

The museum says it has recovered 356 of the missing items so far, and hopes to get more back.

"The items that have been stolen from the museum are of cultural and historical significance," museum lawyer Daniel Burgess said in written legal arguments.

Burgess said the defendant tried to "cover his tracks" by using fake names, creating false documents, manipulating the museum’s records and selling artifacts at less than their value.

Higgs, who worked in the museum’s Greece and Rome department for more than two decades, denies the allegations and intends to dispute the museum’s legal claim.

He did not attend Tuesday's hearing due to poor health, lawyers said.

A separate police investigation into the case is ongoing, and Higgs has not been charged with a crime.

Museum director Hartwig Fischer resigned after the loss of the items was revealed in August, apologizing for failing to take seriously enough a warning from an art historian that artifacts from its collection were being sold on eBay.

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Chairman of trustees George Osborne has acknowledged that the reputation of the 265-year-old institution has been damaged by the episode.

The 18th-century museum in central London’s Bloomsbury district is one of Britain’s biggest tourist attractions, visited by 6 million people a year. They come to see a collection that ranges from Egyptian mummies and ancient Greek statues to Viking hoards, scrolls bearing 12th-century Chinese poetry and masks created by the Indigenous peoples of Canada.

Categories: World News

South Sudan to reopen schools after 2-week, extreme heat-induced closure

Fox World News - Mar 26, 2024 5:38 PM EDT

South Sudan's government on Tuesday said schools will reopen next week following a two-week closure due to extreme heat across the country.

The health and education ministries said temperatures were expected to steadily drop with the rainy season set to begin in the coming days.

PORTLAND AREA RESIDENTS COMMEMORATE VICTIMS OF DEADLY 2021 HEAT WAVE BY PLANTING TREES

South Sudan in recent years has experienced adverse effects of climate change, with extreme heat, flooding and drought reported during different seasons.

During the heatwave last week, the country registered temperatures up to 113 degrees Fahrenheit.

Teachers have been urged to minimize playground activities to early morning or indoors, ventilate classrooms, provide water during school time and monitor children for signs of heat exhaustion and heatstroke.

Health Minister Yolanda Awel Deng singled out Northern Bahr El-Ghazel, Warrap, Unity and Upper Nile states as the most affected areas.

Higher learning institutions have remained open.

Some schools in rural areas also have continued despite a warning from the education ministry.

Categories: World News

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