Category Archives: POLITICS

The fall of Aleppo, one of Syria ’s key cities, has far-reaching implications for China’s Middle East strategy . At a time when Iran is consumed by the conflict in Lebanon and Russia by the war in Ukraine , both nations are constrained in their resources, preventing them from deploying military equipment or personnel to Syria. Yet abandoning Assad is unequivocally not an option for either ally. While China may express a peripheral interest in Assad’s regime, the repercussions of the Syrian crisis will undoubtedly extend beyond the immediate region. Despite Damascus inviting Chinese companies to spearhead the country’s reconstruction, the renewed instability makes any significant involvement by Chinese state-owned enterprises unlikely in the near future. Aleppo fell to Islamist militias under Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) a former al-Qaeda affiliate

South Korea’s embattled President Yoon Suk-yeol was set to address the nation on Saturday ahead of an impeachment vote in parliament and major protests calling for his departure, his office said. Yoon stunned the nation and the international community on Tuesday night by imposing martial law for the first time since 1980 and deploying troops and helicopters to parliament. But lawmakers managed to vote down the decree, forcing Yoon to rescind the order in the early hours of Wednesday in a night of extraordinary drama in a nation assumed to be a stable democracy. Yoon has gone to ground since and his scheduled address to the nation at 10:00am (local time) announced by his office will be the first time he has spoken in public. It comes ahead of a

A former Saudi Arabian diplomat was referred to prosecutors on Friday for allegedly touching a woman’s breasts at a nightclub in Tokyo earlier this year, investigative sources said. The man in his 30s, who was posted to the Saudi Arabian embassy at the time, has already returned to his country without responding to requests by police to appear for questioning, the sources said. He is suspected of touching the breasts of the woman in her 20s over her clothes at the club in Roppongi around 2:50am on July 15 in violation of Tokyo’s nuisance prevention ordinance, according to the sources. The two did not know each other. The woman then called the police, and the man told officers who arrived at the scene that he only touched her arms. He

Malaysians and Indonesians are sharing their teary-eyed video responses to a viral post of a Muslim cleric insulting an iced tea seller in Central Java, in an outpouring of anger at the attitudes of the powerful – especially leaders of their nations’ shared faith – towards the poor. The video, which went viral in both countries in late November, shows a prominent Indonesian cleric in central Java, Miftah Maulana Habiburrahman, scolding iced tea seller Sunhaji for running his business during the former’s open-air lecture and calling him goblok – a harsh term meaning stupid. The cleric, appointed President Prabowo Subianto ’s special envoy for religious harmony in October, mocked the vendor, saying his slow sales that night were “God’s will”. The clip shows him and the audience laughing while Sunhaji

Mathira MP Rigathi Gachagua, September 29, 2021. [FILE,Standard. ] Kenya Kwanza’s purge on leaders associated with impeached Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has now extended to the Senate. Nyeri Senator Wahome Wamatinga has now joined the plum Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC), replacing a Gachagua ally John Kinyua of Laikipia. In the changes announced by Majority Leader Aaron Cheruiyot, Wamatinga was rewarded for standing with President William Ruto during the impeachment even though he comes from the same county as Gachagua. He has been chairing the Energy Committee. The Laikipia Senator was among Mt Kenya leaders who opted to rally behind Gachagua. When reached for comment, Kinyua said he was not in a position to discuss the matter. “You live in Kenya and know what is happening at the moment. That is

Exit poll put left-wing nationalists Sinn Fein at 21.1 percent of votes, slightly ahead of two centre-right parties. Ireland is tallying votes from general elections as an exit poll suggested a dead heat between the three main parties, with the left-wing opposition Sinn Fein holding a narrow lead. The counting began at 09:00 GMT on Saturday with partial results expected throughout the day. A final result, however, may not be clear for days as European Union member Ireland’s proportional representation system sees votes of eliminated candidates redistributed during multiple rounds of counting. According to the exit poll on Friday conducted by Ipsos B&A, Sinn Fein, which backs Irish unity, led with 21.1 percent of the vote. Just behind were Ireland’s two centre-right parties, Fine Gael and Fianna Fail, which are

President Cyril Ramaphosa pictured at the signing of BELA into law at Union Buildings on 13 September 2024 in Pretoria. (Frennie Shivambu/Gallo Images) President Cyril Ramaphosa has acknowledged an agreement on the BELA Act by Minister of Basic Education Siviwe Gwarube and the Solidarity union, but clarified it doesn’t affect discussions on contentious sections. Gwarube reached an agreement with Solidarity regarding two suspended clauses in the BELA Act. Deputy President Mashatile distanced himself from the Solidarity agreement, emphasising it wasn’t part of sanctioned Government of National Unity processes. President Cyril Ramaphosa has acknowledged the agreement reached between the Minister of Basic Education Siviwe Gwarube and trade union Solidarity regarding the Basic Education Laws Amendment Act (BELA), but said this had little impact on ongoing discussions. During the public signing, Ramaphosa

Wallace Ruzvidzo- Herald Reporter SADC and Africa at large should intensify multi-faceted strategies to “silence the guns” on the continent, President Mnangagwa said yesterday. Speaking at the graduation ceremony of the Joint Command and Staff Course Number 37 in Harare, the President, who also serves as the SADC Chairman, highlighted that the exorbitant cost of war and conflict deprive African citizens of essential development and prosperity. The President delivers his keynote address at the graduation ceremony. The broader security environment in the region is characterised by armed conflicts, terrorism, and the proliferation and illicit trafficking of small arms and light weapons. This, President Mnangagwa stated, must be decisively addressed. “The SADC Mutual Defence Pact as well as the United Nations Charter enjoin States to pursue the settlement of international disputes

Presiding officers at various polling stations in the Oshana region estimate that more than 1 000 people cast their votes by 21h00 on Friday. This estimation was recorded at the Okandjengedi, Ehenye, Evululuko, Onawa Kindergarten, and Ruben Danger Ashipala polling stations alone. Leta Amweelo, the presiding officer at Onawa Kindergarten, on Friday night reported that more than 500 people voted at her station. “We recorded a huge number of voters around 17h00 . . . We attended to all of them,” she said, adding that voters were still arriving at 20h30. Loide Eelu from the Okandjengedi polling station said about 300 people voted at this station on Friday, while approximately 15 cast their votes by 07h50 on Saturday. Meanwhile, Vilho Niilambi from the Ehenye polling station estimated that more than

Thursday, November 28, 2024 | 690 Views |

The indictment of Indian tycoon Gautam Adani on bribery charges by US authorities has raised questions about his close ties to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and created political fodder for opposition parties ahead of key state elections, analysts say. US prosecutors have accused Adani and his nephew of orchestrating a US$265 million scheme to bribe Indian officials to secure power-supply deals. The explosive allegations come at a crucial time, coinciding with the tail end of state elections in Maharashtra and Jharkhand. The charges against Adani wiped out billions of dollars in stock market trading on domestic bourses on Thursday, with Adani Group companies losing more than US$26 billion in market capitalisation. Adani Group shares extended the losses early on Friday, but later in the day made a partial recovery. “The