The Former Refugees Repatriation Association Namibia is demanding the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to release funds meant to repatriate over 43 387 refugees. Association president Mathues Nangolo says they want the same compensation the UNHCR gave to the Caprivi secessionists who were repatriated from Botswana to Namibia. “The Namibian refugees who were at Dukwe Refugee camp and were repatriated by the UNHCR from Botswana were given all kinds of assistance, they were resettled,” he says. He was speaking at a meeting between the association and UN resident co-ordinator Hopolang Phororo in Windhoek on Wednesday. Spokesperson Mathues Stefanus alleged the UNHCR has failed to implement its resettlement and rehabilitation programmes in Namibia under United Nations Resolution 435 of 1978. “What happened to the resettlement and rehabilitation budget of
Category Archives: WORLD NEWS
Feb
See Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to US President Donald Trump in Washington, DC. By BENJAMIN NETANYAHU FEBRUARY 5, 2025 09:09 US President Donald Trump greets Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he arrives at the North Portico of the White House in Washington, DC, on February 4, 2025. (photo credit: JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images) “Thank you, Mr. President. I’m honored that you invited me to be the first foreign leader to visit the White House in your second term. This is a testament to your friendship and support for the Jewish state and the Jewish people. I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again: You are the greatest friend Israel has ever had in the White House. That’s why the people of Israel have such enormous respect
Feb
Indonesia has removed dozens of immigration officers and launched an internal investigation after a leaked diplomatic letter from the Chinese embassy exposed allegations of systemic extortion at Jakarta’s main airport and reignited concerns over corruption in law enforcement. The letter, dated January 21, appears to have been sent to Indonesia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and details how the embassy has “solved at least 44 cases of extortion” by immigration officials against Chinese nationals who arrived at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta airport between February of last year and January. It says more than 32 million rupiah (US$1,950) in extortion money has been returned to more than 60 Chinese nationals. “It is just a tip of the iceberg since many more Chinese nationals who were extorted did not file complaints due to tight schedules
Feb
Less than 15% of Israelis believe Trump’s plan is “immoral,” including 54% of Arab respondents and only 3% of Jewish israelis. By JERUSALEM POST STAFF FEBRUARY 3, 2025 19:16 US President Donald Trump speaks to journalists in the Oval Office on January 20, 2025. (photo credit: Jim WATSON / POOL / AFP) A majority of Israelis support US President Donald Trump’s proposal to relocate Gaza’s population to other countries, a Jewish People Policy Institute (JPPI) Israel Index survey revealed Monday. The survey, which was published ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s meeting with Trump in Washington, found that approximately eight out of ten Israelis support Trump’s suggestion that “Arabs from Gaza should relocate to another country,” while most Arab Israelis oppose the proposal. According to the findings, 43% of all
Feb
Catch up on some of SCMP’s biggest China and economy stories of the day. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing . 1. Taiwanese actress Barbie ‘Big S’ Hsu dies from pneumonia Hsu gained popularity for her starring role in the 2001 TV drama Meteor Garden. Confirming Hsu’s sudden death on Monday, her family said in a statement that the actress was travelling in Japan when she caught the flu, which triggered pneumonia. 2. China warns that US tariffs will hit fentanyl cooperation efforts, damage trust China’s public security ministry has spoken out against the US decision to place a 10 per cent duty on all Chinese imports – along with larger tariffs for Canada and Mexico – warning that it will be detrimental
Jan
Hamas’s failure demonstrates how quickly years of diplomatic work can be jeopardized by chaos on the ground, which could derail future releases. By JPOST EDITORIAL JANUARY 31, 2025 06:01 Updated: JANUARY 31, 2025 06:07 Palestinian terrorist surround hostage Arbel Yehoud, held in Gaza since the deadly October 7 2023 attack, on the day they hand her to members of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as part of a ceasefire and a hostages-prisoners swap deal between Hamas and Israel, in Khan Yunis. (photo credit: Ramadan Abed/Reuters) Our ceasefire and hostage exchange deal is hanging by the thinnest of threads, and no instance proved that more than Thursday’s hostage return. On yet another emotional and miraculous occasion, Israel saw the release of eight hostages: three Israelis and five Thai
Jan
US President Donald Trump ’s decision to exit the Paris Climate Agreement has cast doubt over Washington’s commitment to a key clean energy partnership with Indonesia, raising the possibility that Jakarta may turn to China for climate funding. On Tuesday, the United Nations confirmed the US formally sent a notification of its withdrawal from the climate accord effective January 27, 2026, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. The Paris Agreement, signed in 2015 by nearly 200 countries, aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and limit global warming to no more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, or those recorded in the late 19th century. Climate scientists warn that exceeding this threshold would make it challenging for humanity to adapt to climate change. Dujarric noted that the US withdrew from the
Jan
The plane went down in the Potomac River near Reagan National Airport. Last Updated: January 30, 2025, 9:32 PM EST An American Airlines regional jet went down in the Potomac River near Washington, D.C.’s Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport after colliding with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter on Wednesday night, with no survivors expected. Sixty-four people were on board the plane, which departed from Wichita, Kansas. Three soldiers were on the helicopter. The collision happened around 9 p.m. when the PSA Airlines Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet was on approach to the airport. Map of the area around Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and the layout of Runway 33, which the regional American Airlines jet was approaching at the time of the collision with the Army Black Hawk helicopter, according
Jan
Rubio defended Trump’s proposed territorial expansions as a ‘national interest,’ while Denmark and Greenland firmly rejected offers amid concerns over potential military action. By JERUSALEM POST STAFF JANUARY 31, 2025 02:42 Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), US President Donald Trump’s nominee to be Secretary of State, arrives ahead of the Presidential Inauguration of Trump at the Rotunda of the US Capitol in Washington, DC, January 20, 2025. (photo credit: REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/POOL) Secretary of State Marco Rubio addressed President Donald Trump’s recent comments about buying Greenland and the Panama Canal, saying it would be in “the national interest” of the US during an interview with Megyn Kelley on Thursday. “This is not a joke,” Rubio said, “This is not about acquiring land for the purpose of acquiring land. This is in our
![Rifaat Jouda walks with his son as he enters Gaza City following a long journey from southern Gaza,on January 28, 2025 [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/Al Jazeera]](https://esbecgroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Exhausted-Palestinians-arrive-in-Gaza-City-to-no-homes-killed-family.jpg)
Jan
Al-Rashid Street, Gaza City, Palestine – There are many stories among the tens of thousands of people walking along Gaza’s al-Rashid Street, heading for the north. In the crowds is a man with a white beard walking with determination alongside his family. In one hand, he carries a blanket and a few meagre possessions. In the other, he holds onto his adult son, who has Down Syndrome. Rifaat Jouda doesn’t pretend that he isn’t tired. He started his journey in the morning in southern Gaza, in Khan Younis’s al-Mawasi, where his family had been displaced for 15 months during Israel’s war on Gaza. The aim was to reach Gaza City, a journey finally possible since Israel allowed Palestinians in the southern Gaza Strip to travel north on Monday, after a
![Palestinian families packing their belongings in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, January 27, 2025 [Mohamed Soulaimane/Al Jazeera]](https://esbecgroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Palestinians-reject-Trumps-relocation-plan-as-they-return-to-Gazas-north-1024x576.jpg)
Jan
Khan Younis and Deir el-Balah, Gaza Strip, Palestine – Saqr Maqdad and his family set out on their difficult journey back to northern Gaza late on Sunday night, hours before Israel reopened the north for the first time since the early days of its 15-month war on the Palestinian enclave, following a fragile ceasefire agreement with Hamas. Leaving behind the Khan Younis displacement camp in the south, the 31-year-old, along with his wife, and two daughters, Reema, 5, and two-year-old Rawaa, walked northward along the coastal al-Rashid road hoping to reach Beit Hanoon, the family’s hometown, at the far northern tip of the besieged territory. The Maqdad family were among an estimated 200,000 Palestinians who streamed back into the most devastated parts of the Gaza Strip on Monday, a dramatic
Jan
India’s Hindu festival of Maha Kumbh Mela, which has drawn millions of devotees to a confluence of sacred rivers in the northern Uttar Pradesh state, is mired in political controversy after officials held a cabinet meeting at the site and ritually bathed in its waters. State Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath held a special session in Prayagraj on January 22, after which his cabinet colleagues took a holy dip, sparking a war of words with Akhilesh Yadav, leader of the opposition Samajwadi party, who accused him of drawing political mileage by garnering attention. The row comes months after the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) suffered unexpected reversals in the politically important state in the parliamentary elections last year, despite the state’s core base of majority-Hindu voters. The BJP and its allies
Jan
A Chinese start-up said its superfast drone – capable of reaching four times the speed of sound – would make its first flight next year as military hypersonic technology trickled down to the commercial sector. The unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is being developed by Sichuan Lingkong Tianxing Technology Co, Ltd as part of a broader effort to develop a supersonic passenger jet, according to the company. The company announced it was developing the aircraft at a news conference in southwest China’s Chengdu on Monday. The drone bears the name Cuantianhou, which means “soaring stone monkey” – a name given to Sun Wukong, also known as the Monkey King , one of the best-known figures in Chinese literature and mythology. It weighs 1.5 tonnes and measures seven metres (23 feet) long
Jan
South Korea ’s anti-corruption agency has referred the case of suspended president Yoon Suk-yeol to the prosecution, requesting that he be indicted on insurrection charges over his failed martial law bid. Calling for charges against Yoon over his abuse of power, the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials (CIO) said in a statement on Thursday: “We have decided to request the Seoul Central District Prosecution Office to charge [Yoon] as the mastermind behind the insurrection [on December 3].” Although the CIO has the authority to investigate corruption and abuse of power cases involving high-ranking officials, it cannot directly file charges, which is the sole responsibility of state prosecutors. After a failed attempt to arrest Yoon on January 3, the CIO succeeded in taking him into custody on January 15 during
Jan
The family of a Japanese national who was just 13 when she was abducted by North Korean agents in 1977 have called on US President Donald Trump to intervene with Pyongyang and bring her and other abductees home – but experts say their wish may remain unfulfilled due to complex geopolitical realities. In a statement released on Tuesday, soon after Trump was sworn into office in Washington, 88-year-old Sakie Yokota said she hoped the president could use his connections with North Korea ’s leader Kim Jong-un to arrange the release of her daughter Megumi. “I want President Trump to urge North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to realise the rescue and return of the abduction victims,” Yokota said. “Mr Trump is a person who can talk with Mr Kim Jong-un.” The