Hamas set to join Cairo ceasefire talks
- At least 27 Palestinians have been killed, including many children and women, in overnight Israeli attacks on Rafah and Gaza City.
Hamas’s response to deal expected in coming ’24 hours or so’
The Israelis have a delegation ready to go to Cairo tomorrow, but that depends on the response from Hamas to Israel’s ceasefire proposal.
It’s understood that the Israelis are asking for fewer than 40 of the 130 or so captives being held by Hamas, and in return for that, they’ll release Palestinian prisoners, and they’ll move to a second phase of a truce, which will offer this period of “sustained calm”.
The wording is very important there because we know that Hamas has been insisting that throughout previous talks, they get a complete end to hostilities and the removal of Israeli forces from Gaza so that Palestinians can return to their homes, particularly in the north.
Iran’s death sentence for rapper sparks protests and undermines criticism of US
Regime’s effort to exploit US campus crackdown damaged by treatment of Toomaj Salehi
An Iranian court’s decision to pass the death sentence against Toomaj Salehi, a popular Iranian rapper and regime opponent, has led to international protests and damaged Iran’s fledgling efforts to exploit crackdowns on unrest in US university campuses over Gaza as an abuse of human rights.
Crowds gathered in the US, Europe and Canada on Sunday to support Salehi, while dozens of political prisoners in Iran’s Ghezel Hesar prison issued a statement condemning the death sentence, calling it “the culmination of gross human rights violations in Iran”. Salehi has also won the support of major US rappers, as well as human rights groups.
German far-right coup plot trial to begin
The first of three trials involving a far-right network of "Reichsbürger" around ringleader Prince Reuss is about to start. The group is accused of planning to topple the government.
The first of three trials linked to a far-right coup plot begins in Germany on Monday, with the defendants accused of preparing to commit high treason and belonging to a terrorist organization.
All the suspects, part of the so-called "Reichsbürger" movement, were allegedly plotting to overthrow the German government. The Reichsbürger, or "citizens of the Reich," reject Germany's post-war state, claiming it was installed and controlled by the Allied powers who won World War II.
Police uncovered the suspected plot in a series of nationwide raids on December 7, 2022. Some 25 people were arrested and are now in detention awaiting the upcoming trials. More than 380 firearms were confiscated, along with almost 150,000 pieces of ammunition.
Tesla clears key Chinese regulatory hurdles during Musk visit
Tesla received a key security clearance from China during Elon Musk's whistlestop visit to the world's biggest electric car market, which wrapped up on Monday.
The tech billionaire arrived on Sunday for his second trip to China in less than a year, meeting top officials including Premier Li Qiang as he worked to boost his electric car company's fortunes in the face of intense competition from local challengers such as BYD.
On the same day, Tesla's locally produced models were listed among the EVs that meet China's data security requirements for smart cars, clearing a key regulatory hurdle.
Musk boarded his private jet at Beijing Capital Airport just before 1:00 pm (0500 GMT), and a Chinese flight tracking app said it was bound for Anchorage, Alaska.
China coast guard confronts Japanese politicians in disputed East China Sea area
China's coast guard confronted Japanese lawmakers in waters claimed by both countries in the East China Sea, China's embassy in Tokyo and Japanese media said on Sunday, the latest in a series of maritime disputes involving China and its neighbours.
Chinese vessels took unspecified law enforcement measures, the embassy said in a statement, adding that it had lodged solemn representations for what it called "infringement and provocation" by Japan near tiny, uninhabited islands that Beijing calls the Diaoyu and Tokyo calls the Senkaku.
The Japanese group, including former Defense Minister Tomomi Inada, was on an inspection mission organized by the city of Ishigaki in Okinawa prefecture, according to the Chinese embassy and Japanese public broadcaster NHK.
'Invisible in our own country': Being Muslim in Modi's India
By Soutik Biswas, India correspondent
Six years ago, a Muslim boy returned red-faced from a well-known school in the northern Indian city of Agra.
"My classmates called me a Pakistani terrorist," the nine-year-old told his mother.
Reema Ahmad, an author and counsellor, remembers the day vividly.
"Here was a feisty, little boy with his fists clenched so tightly that there were nail marks in his palm. He was so angry."
As her son told the story, his classmates were having a mock fight when the teacher had stepped out.
"That's when one group of boys pointed at him and said, 'This is a Pakistani terrorist. Kill him!'"
