Beyond satire: India’s viral cockroach movement

 When India’s chief justice called young, unemployed people “cockroaches”, he could never have imagined that the slur would be turned into an online satirical movement: the Cockroach Janta Party. The CJP quickly went viral, quickly racking up tens of millions of followers. The movement reflects Gen Z’s frustration with unemployment, education systems and the shrinking space for free expression in India.

Starbucks sales tumble in South Korea over 'Tank Day' backlash

Before there was a Tiananmen Square in China, there was Gwangju in South Korea.

The CEO for Starbucks Korea was immediately fired after this debacle, and two very public apologies have been made, but sales continue to plummet. It could well turn out that Starbucks is finished in South Korea.

ource: Associated Press

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean retail tycoon Chung Yong-jin on Tuesday issued his second apology in two weeks as Starbucks’ local operation faces a backlash over a recent marketing campaign that was widely perceived as mocking victims of a bloody military crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in 1980.

Chung, chairman of Shinsegae Group, which owns a 67.5% stake in Starbucks Korea, bowed three times during a televised statement as he pleaded for forgiveness from the families of democracy activists killed by the country’s former military dictatorship and from the broader public.

The coffee chain sparked public outrage when it attempted to promote a large size of tumbler it calls a “tank” by declaring May 18 to be “Tank Day.” That’s the anniversary of a democratic uprising in the southern city of Gwangju that was brutally suppressed by troops, tanks and helicopters, killing or injuring hundreds.

The campaign compounded outrage by using the slogan “Thwack it on the table!,” which many read as a reference to a notorious 1987 police statement that attempted to cover up the torture death of student activist Park Jong-chol. Police claimed that Park died suddenly after investigators “hit the desk with a thwack.” 

Turkish police fire water cannon at protesters after opposition leader ousted

 

Riot police in Turkey have fired a water cannon and teargas to break up a rally called by the ousted opposition leader Özgür Özel days after a court dismissed him from office. Özel called the lunchtime rally in İzmir as Turkey was poised to shut down for the four-day Eid al-Fitr holiday, which begins on Wednesday.

On Sunday, riot police had battered their way into the main opposition CHP’s headquarters in the capital, Ankara, firing teargas and beating party members before throwing them out, Özel said. A shock court ruling last Thursday overturned a 2023 party primary that elected Özel. It was the latest in a string of moves against the CHP, Turkey’s oldest political party, which scored a win over Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ruling AKP in 2024 local elections and has been rising in the polls.

Security guard finds fame as designer of duct tape signs

 

Rescue team enters flooded cave in Laos in effort to free seven people

 

Divers who helped in the dramatic rescue of a young Thai football team in 2018 have joined efforts to free seven people who have been trapped for five days inside a remote, flooded cave in central Laos.

The group entered the cave in Xaysomboun province on Wednesday to hunt for wildlife and search for gold, reports suggest. Heavy rain led to landslides, which blocked the cave entrance.

Laos' communist government, which tightly controls the country’s media, could not be reached for comment.

FRANCE 24 English – LIVE – International Breaking News & Top stories - 24/7 live stream

 

Alexiane A Million On My Soul Valerian And The City Of A Thousand Planets

 

Israeli security minister stirs diplomatic outrage with flotilla activist abuse

 

Far-right figure Itamar Ben-Gvir shares footage of himself taunting bound international detainees

Israel’s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, has sparked a diplomatic crisis by publishing footage of Israeli security forces abusing international activists who were detained as they tried to sail to Gaza with aid.

There was a rapid and furious response from countries whose citizens were onboard the boats, including the UK, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and Ireland, in many cases delivered in person from the top of government.

The hidden toll of the US-Israeli war on Iran

 

Has the US-Israeli war on Iran worsened human rights in Iran? Amnesty International has documented a spike in executions in Iran under the cover of war. DW speaks to Amnesty International’s Iran researcher Raha Bahreini, who says the regime is increasingly using the death penalty to crush dissent.

Israel’s Image Crisis: Becoming Too Big to Spin?

 

As criticism of Israel mounts over its wars on Gaza, Lebanon and Iran, along with the escalating settler violence in the occupied West Bank, the country is ramping up its PR offensive.

From a carefully managed appearance of Benjamin Netanyahu on CBS’s 60 Minutes to a major expansion of Israel’s Hasbara operation, the push includes pouring money into digital campaigns and media messaging.

Love & Rockets - Resurrection Hex (Deep Dish Luv 'N' Dub Mix) (12" Vinyl HD)

 

Could Trump compromise support for Taipei in return for China's help with the Iran war?

President Donald Trump is in Beijing for a high-stakes summit with President Xi Jinping. Flanked by a retinue of American CEOs and tech titans, Trump is hunting for headline-grabbing deals. But the escalating war with Iran is casting a shadow over the talks. Fears are growing that Trump — desperate for a Middle East peace deal - may be willing to compromise on US support for Taiwan, which China considers part of its own territory.

 

China won’t 'jeopardise' strategic partnership with Iran to help the US, analyst says

 

Is Tucker Carlson for Real?

 

From MAGA loyalist to antiwar dissident – is Tucker Carlson’s pivot sincere or a savvy reinvention?

Longtime Donald Trump supporter Tucker Carlson has broken with the president on some key issues, becoming one of the country’s staunchest critics of the US relationship with Israel. Carlson is engaging with voices he once criticised, like The New York Times, and his rising popularity has fueled speculation in Washington, DC that he could try to ride that momentum all the way to the White House.

The Source Fly Away

 

The United States of Conspiracy

 Another assassination attempt on Donald Trump reveals mistrust in the media and conspiracy theories fill the gap.

An assassination attempt at the White House correspondents’ dinner underscored the spectacle, chaos and violence that have defined Donald Trump’s second presidency.

VoB Voice of Baceprot Psychosocial Ubud Writers & Readers Festival 2017

 

CCTV captures moment a man attacks a nun in Jerusalem

 

Israeli police released a video on Thursday showing an attack on a French Catholic nun in Jerusalem. The footage shows the man running up behind the nun and pushing her to the ground. After briefly walking away, the attacker, who appears to be Jewish, returns to kick the nun as she lies on the ground and only stops when a passerby intervenes. Police said they had arrested a 36-year-old man. The date when the video was recorded was verified by an official statement from the Israeli foreign ministry, which said the attack occurred on 28 April