Monday, September 30, 2024
Six In The Morning Monday 30 September 2024
Israel tells US it plans to launch limited ground incursion into Lebanon, US official says
Breaking
A US official confirms Israel has notified the US it intends to launch a limited ground incursion into Lebanon, the BBC's US partner CBS is reporting.
The official says the operation could start as soon as today.
We'll bring you more on this as we have it.
Speculation grows over Nasrallah’s possible successor
Hesham Shawish
BBC Monitoring Middle East Journalist
In the wake of Hassan Nasrallah’s death over the weekend, some Lebanese media outlets have speculated on his potential successor, with some pointing to Hashem Safieddine.
Safieddine is one of Nasrallah’s maternal cousins, described as more hard line. He is the head of Hezbollah's executive council, managing the group’s operations. His son is also the son-in-law of the late Iranian general Qassem Soleimani.
American man pleads guilty in Moscow court to charge of fighting for Ukraine
Mon 30 Sep 2024 13.55 BST
A US citizen has pleaded guilty in a Moscow court to charges of fighting for Ukraine, marking the first known instance of an American being tried as a mercenary in Russia.
Russian state media reported that Stephen James Hubbard, 72, of Michigan, had admitted he had received money to fight for Ukraine against Russia.
“Yes, I agree with the indictment,” the state news agency Ria Novosti quoted him as saying in court on Monday.
Venezuela opposition figure wins top European rights prize
The Council of Europe on Monday awarded its 2024 Vaclav Havel Human Rights Prize to Venezuelan politician and human rights defender Maria Corina Machado for her fight for democracy under the iron-fisted rule of President Nicolas Maduro.
Addressing the assembly remotely, Corina Machado said she was "deeply moved, honored and grateful" to be the first Latin American to win the distinction.
"I want to dedicate this recognition to the millions of Venezuelans who, every day, embody Havel's values and ideas," she added.
What to expect as Japan prepares for Oct 27 election
By Sakura Murakami
Japan's incoming prime minister Shigeru Ishiba said on Monday he plans to hold a general election on Oct 27.
Here is what to expect in the following weeks as Ishiba seeks to hold on to his party's lower house majority and solidify his position atop a scandal-plagued party.
WHAT HAPPENS NOW?
Ishiba's victory in the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leadership race last week virtually assures that he be officially voted in as Japan's next prime minister during a special parliamentary session on Tuesday.
Sudan military denies targeting UAE diplomatic post in Khartoum
Sudanese army has blamed the RSF for carrying out ‘shameful and cowardly’ attack on UAE ambassador’s residence.
Sudan’s military government has refuted accusations from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that its forces have bombed its ambassador’s residence in Khartoum, pointing instead at the rival paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
The UAE earlier on Monday said the diplomatic post was attacked by a Sudanese military aircraft, condemning it as a “heinous attack”. The government in Khartoum, which is in the midst of a new push to retake the capital, has previously accused the UAE of supporting the RSF, with which it has been entangled in war for more than a year.
Stark before-and-after pictures reveal dramatic shrinking of major Amazon rivers
Huge tributaries that feed the mighty Amazon River — the largest on the planet — have plunged to record-low levels, upending lives, stranding boats, and threatening endangered dolphins as drought grips Brazil.
The country is currently enduring its worst drought since records began in 1950, according to Cemaden, the country’s natural disaster monitoring center. It’s Brazil’s second straight year of extreme drought. Nearly 60% of the country is affected, with some cities, including the capital Brasília, enduring more than 140 consecutive days without rain.
In the heart of the Amazon rainforest, the impact on rivers is shocking and experts are sounding the alarm on what this means for the region, a biodiversity hot spot and crucial climate change buffer.
Sunday, September 29, 2024
How Israel is manufacturing consent for war in Lebanon
Israel reverts to its wartime playbook as it manufactures consent for all-out war on Lebanon.
Six In The Morning Sunday 29 September 2024
Israel strikes Houthis in Yemen after targeting Hezbollah stronghold in Lebanon
Lebanon health ministry says 24 killed in Israeli strike near city of Sidon
Throughout the day, we've been bringing you reports of Israeli strikes on various locations in Lebanon. Israel says it is targeting Hezbollah positions.
In the last half hour, Lebanon’s health ministry has said that 24 people have been killed - and 29 injured - in a strike on Ain al-Delb, near the city of Sidon.
What is the 'Axis of Resistance' and why is it important here?
As the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah intensifies, it carries with it the potential to draw in other Iran-backed forces in the Middle East.
As we reported in the past hour, Israel says it has struck Houthi targets in Yemen.
On Saturday, an alliance of Iraqi Shia militias known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq (IRI) claimed that it carried out drone attacks on Israel and the occupied Golan Heights.
Elections in Austria
A Right-Wing Populist Reaches for Power in Vienna
Aus Wien berichten Oliver Das Gupta und Walter Mayr
Cries of "Herbert! Herbert!” echo through the packed beer tent at the festival in the Upper Austrian town of Wels three weeks before the election. Some 4,500 visitors are singing "We Are One Big Family” as a beaming Herbert Kickl, the event’s star guest, strides through a sea of red and white. The snug traditional vest he is wearing seems out of place on him. The gigantic Austrian flag he is waving almost completely obscures his small, athletic figure.
Wels is friendly territory for Kickl, head of the right-wing populist Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ). The mayor of the town is a party ally and during the pandemic, the state emerged as a stronghold of those opposed to measures implemented to stop the spread of the coronavirus – a movement of which Kickl became a prominent spokesman. He would take the stage in public squares to blast the government’s COVID strategy and instead of vaccinations, he recommended the use of a drug designed to combat parasites.
Pakistan: Gunmen kill 7 workers in Balochistan
Pakistan's Balochistan province has been rocked by a series of attacks on Punjabi workers by separatist militants. Baloch nationalist groups accuse the central government and China of stealing the province's resources.
Seven workers were shot dead in the province of Balochistan in southwestern Pakistan, police said on Sunday.
"Seven laborers were killed and one injured," said Moazzam Jah Ansari, the head of Balochistan police in the provincial capital, Quetta.
Trojan cars: Why the US fears Chinese cyberattacks on electric vehicles
The White House announced a plan this week to ban the sale or import of connected vehicles containing “specific pieces of hardware and software” that could be made in China or Russia, citing national security fears. While the threat of cyberattacks on connected vehicles is very real, the timing of the US announcement is unusual.
US authorities have said they fear that vehicles containing the components, including trucks and buses, could become Trojan horses for Chinese sabotage.
It’s the second announcement targeting electric vehicles in six months from the US government.
Washington imposed a 100% border tax on electric vehicles from China in May, an action the White House said was aimed at protecting North American jobs from the Chinese automobile industry, which is supported by state subsidies.
The Indigenous ‘watchmen’ safeguarding Peru’s isolated tribes
Protection agents risk their lives to prevent deadly contact between remote tribes coming to contact with settled communities.
On an overcast afternoon in April, Nolasco Torres and Freddy Capitan navigate their canoe along a jungle-veiled ravine. Along the route, they scrutinise the creeping understory for footprints and broken branches – telltale signs of the imminent return of isolated tribes in this cutoff region.
After rounding a bend, they steer their boat towards Nueva Vida, a tiny Indigenous hamlet hidden within Peru’s eastern Amazon, some 100 kilometres (62 miles) from the Brazil border.
Japan’s magic bullet: 60 years of the train that helped rebuild the idea of a country
Japan’s magic bullet: 60 years of the train that helped rebuild the idea of a country
Over just a few days in 1964, the launch of the shinkansen and the Tokyo Olympics trumpeted the emergence of a new economic and democratic power
At 6am on 1 October 1964, two trains set off in opposite directions in a daring experiment that would quickly turn them into symbols of Japan’s transformation from militarist pariah to global economic powerhouse.
Black-and-white footage shows smartly dressed men, women and children marvelling at the countryside whizzing past their windows, some perhaps trying to calm their nerves at being whisked along at speeds unheard of in rail travel.
Crowds gathered on platforms to watch the two trains reach their destinations, Tokyo and Osaka. Then, like now, they arrived exactly on time, at 10am, depositing their passengers after a 320-mile journey that had once taken almost seven hours but which they had just completed in four.
Saturday, September 28, 2024
Six In The Morning Saturday 28 September 2024
Hezbollah confirms death of leader Hassan Nasrallah after Israeli strikes on Beirut
Hamas stands in 'solidarity' with Hezbollah after Nasrallah's death
We're hearing now from the Palestinian militant group Hamas, who alongside Lebanon-based Hezbollah is backed by Iran both militarily and financially.
In a statement from the Gaza-based group, it says it mourns the death of Hezbollah's leader and that it stands in "solidarity with the brothers in Hezbollah and the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon".
Nasrallah, who had not been seen in public for years because of fears of being assassinated by Israel, was one of the best known and most influential figures in the Middle East
Air strikes continue in southern Beirut, with a BBC correspondent seeing thick smoke rising over several locations in Dahieh on Saturday morning
Boris Johnson: we considered ‘aquatic raid’ on Netherlands to seize Covid vaccine
Former prime minister admits in extract from forthcoming book that he discussed possible military operation at height of pandemic
Sat 28 Sep 2024 00.18 BST
Boris Johnson considered an “aquatic raid” on a Dutch warehouse to seize Covid vaccines during the height of the pandemic, he has revealed in his memoirs.
The former prime minister discussed plans with senior military officials in March 2021, according to an extract from his forthcoming book, Unleashed, published in the Daily Mail.
The AstraZeneca vaccine was, at the time, at the heart of a cross-Channel row over exports, and Johnson believed the EU was treating the UK “with malice”.
India: Fire erupts at Tata iPhone parts plant in Tamil Nadu
Production at the plant was reportedly halted temporarily due to the blaze. Indian media outlets said nobody was harmed in the fire and the incident is now being investigated.
What do we know so far?
Indian media outlets and Reuters news agency reported that the plant in the village of Uddanapalli manufactures accessories for the Apple iPhone.
A TEPL spokesperson confirmed that was an "unfortunate incident of fire at our plant in Hosur, Tamil Nadu."
"Our emergency protocols ensured that all our employees are safe," the spokesperson said. "The cause of the fire is under investigation, and we will take necessary actions to safeguard the interests of our employees and other stakeholders."
Blinken questions China peace push in Ukraine, says Beijing's exports fuel Russia's 'war machine'
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed doubts Friday about China's efforts to pursue a peace deal in Ukraine, saying that Beijing's exports to Russia were fuelling Moscow's "war machine". China and Brazil have been trying to rally the world's emerging powers on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York to support a "comprehensive and lasting settlement" through negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday questioned China's sincerity in seeking peace in Ukraine as he directly pressed his counterpart over exports that boost Russia's military.
Blinken met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, the latest talks as the two powers look to dial down once-soaring tensions.
While crediting the diplomacy with bringing progress, Blinken warned that the United States would not back down on concerns over China's exports to Russia and made clear that Washington could impose more sanctions.
Special permission to stay in Japan given to over 200 foreign minors
Special permission to stay in Japan has been granted to 212 foreign minors and their family members who did not have residence status and could have been deported, the immigration agency said Friday.
The humanitarian measure at the justice minister's discretion was applied to minors under 18, born and attending school in Japan, and with parents without criminal histories. Calls have been rising for consideration for such foreign children, many of whom only speak Japanese.
The measure, which also extends to 183 of their family members, was described as a one-time provision by then-Justice Minister Ken Saito when announcing it in August 2023. However, the Immigration Services Agency has said it could make extraordinary recognitions in future cases.
Is Austria’s far right poised for historic win in Sunday elections?
The Freedom Party of Austria looks set to beat rivals for the first time – but where does it stand on immigration and the war in Ukraine?
Austria’s far-right Freedom Party of Austria (FPO) appears set to win the popular vote on Sunday in what would be a historic first.
The FPO has been outpolling the governing centre-right Austrian People’s Party (OVP) and the Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPO) for the past year, partly driven by opposition to immigration.
Father trapped in jail 18 years after being given 8-month sentence - for waving a starting pistol
Exclusive: James Lawrence was originally jailed for eight months in 2006 - and is still there. His mother Mandy told The Independent: ‘In his time he’s seen murderers come in and murderers go home’
A father trapped under an abolished indefinite jail term has made six attempts on his own life after serving 25 times longer than his original sentence, The Independent can reveal.
James Lawrence was handed a discredited imprisonment for public protection (IPP) jail sentence with an eight-month minimum term in 2006 for threatening someone with a starting pistol.
Then aged 20, he told the court he was carrying the imitation gun for protection after nearly losing his life in a stabbing in the same part of Southampton the year before.