defense

China fires rockets on second day of military drills around Taiwan

defense

China fires rockets on second day of military drills around Taiwan

BY JAMES EDGAR, WITH ISABEL KUA IN PINGTAN AND AMBER WANG IN TAIPEI

  • - 'Live-fire training' - China on Tuesday morning said it had deployed destroyers, frigates, fighters and bombers "to conduct drills on subjects of identification and verification, warning and expulsion, simulated strikes, assault on maritime targets, as well as anti-air and anti-submarine operations". 
  • China launched missiles and deployed dozens of fighter aircraft and navy vessels around Taiwan on Tuesday for a second day of live-fire drills aimed at simulating a blockade of the self-ruled island's key ports and assaults on maritime targets.
  • - 'Live-fire training' - China on Tuesday morning said it had deployed destroyers, frigates, fighters and bombers "to conduct drills on subjects of identification and verification, warning and expulsion, simulated strikes, assault on maritime targets, as well as anti-air and anti-submarine operations". 
China launched missiles and deployed dozens of fighter aircraft and navy vessels around Taiwan on Tuesday for a second day of live-fire drills aimed at simulating a blockade of the self-ruled island's key ports and assaults on maritime targets.
The two-day war games, code-named "Justice Mission 2025", began Monday and were slammed by Taipei as "highly provocative and reckless".
China claims Taiwan as part of its sovereign territory and has refused to rule out military action to seize the island democracy.
AFP journalists in Pingtan -- a Chinese island that is the closest point to Taiwan's main island -- saw a volley of rockets blast into the air on Tuesday morning at around 9:00 am (0100 GMT), leaving trails of white smoke.
At least 10 rockets were launched in quick succession, each sending a booming sound reverberating throughout Pingtan as they soared across the sky. 
Tourists rushed towards wooden barricades overlooking the sea, whipping out their phones to snap photos and videos of the rockets.
China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) said in a statement shortly after that it had "conducted long-range live fire drills in the waters to the north of the Taiwan Island and achieved desired effects".
The latest show of force follows a bumper round of arms sales to Taipei by the United States -- Taiwan's main security backer -- and comments from Japan's prime minister that the use of force against Taiwan could warrant a military response from Tokyo.
China's top diplomat Wang Yi said Tuesday in a speech in Beijing that China would "forcefully counter" large-scale US weapons sales to Taiwan, adding that any attempt to obstruct China's unification with the island "will inevitably end in failure".
Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te vowed Tuesday in a Facebook post that the territory would not be "escalating the conflict" or provoke disputes.

'Live-fire training'

China on Tuesday morning said it had deployed destroyers, frigates, fighters and bombers "to conduct drills on subjects of identification and verification, warning and expulsion, simulated strikes, assault on maritime targets, as well as anti-air and anti-submarine operations". 
A statement from the PLA's Eastern Theater Command said the exercises in the waters to the north and south of the Taiwan Island "tested capabilities of sea-air coordination and integrated blockade and control". 
Announcing the drills on Monday, military spokesman Shi Yi said they were "a stern warning against 'Taiwan Independence' separatist forces, and... a legitimate and necessary action to safeguard China's sovereignty and national unity".
State broadcaster CCTV reported that a core theme of the exercises was a "blockade" of key Taiwanese ports, including Keelung in the north and Kaohsiung in the south.
Chinese authorities published a map of five large zones around Taiwan where the war games would take place. They are due to finish at 6:00 pm (1000 GMT) on Tuesday.
Taiwan said China's designated exercise zones, some of which are within 12 nautical miles of its coast, have affected international shipping and aviation routes. 
Dozens of flights to offshore Kinmen and Matsu islands were cancelled on Tuesday, according to Taiwan's Civil Aviation Administration, affecting around 6,000 passengers, while more than 850 scheduled international flights will be "affected" and could face delays.
The island's defence ministry said on Tuesday it had detected 130 Chinese military aircraft near the island in a 24-hour period, as well as 14 Chinese navy ships and eight unspecified government vessels in the 24 hours ending 6:00 am (2200 GMT on Monday).
Taiwan's coast guard said it deployed 14 ships to monitor the naval activity, "employing a one-on-one shadowing approach to forcefully deter the vessels".
The drills by China's ruling Communist Party are "highly provocative and reckless", a spokesman for Taipei's defence ministry said on Tuesday, adding they "seriously undermine regional peace and stability".

Stoic reaction

Many ordinary Taiwanese reacted stoically.
"There have been so many drills like this over the years that we are used to it," said fishmonger Chiang Sheng-ming, 24, at a market in Beitou, Taipei.
"If you stand your ground, there's nothing to be afraid of," added fruitseller Tseng Chang-chih, 80.
"War? Impossible. It's just posturing. If they really attacked Taiwan, they would have to pay a price."
China's military last held large-scale drills involving live firing around Taiwan in April -- surprise manoeuvres condemned by Taipei.
Beijing said this month it would take "resolute and forceful measures" to safeguard its territory after Taiwan said the United States had approved a major $11 billion arms sale.
US President Donald Trump said he was not concerned about the drills, appearing to brush aside the possibility of counterpart Xi Jinping ordering an invasion of Taiwan.
"I don't believe he's going to be doing it," Trump said.
burs-je/fox

Zia

Bangladesh's former prime minister Khaleda Zia dies aged 80

BY SHEIKH SABIHA ALAM AND MOHAMMAD MAZED

  • "The BNP Chairperson and former prime minister, the national leader Begum Khaleda Zia, passed away today at 6:00 am (0000 GMT), just after the Fajr (dawn) prayer," the party said in a statement.
  • Bangladesh's former prime minister Khaleda Zia, who many believed would sweep elections next year to lead her country once again, died on Tuesday aged 80, her Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) said.
  • "The BNP Chairperson and former prime minister, the national leader Begum Khaleda Zia, passed away today at 6:00 am (0000 GMT), just after the Fajr (dawn) prayer," the party said in a statement.
Bangladesh's former prime minister Khaleda Zia, who many believed would sweep elections next year to lead her country once again, died on Tuesday aged 80, her Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) said.
Despite years of ill health and imprisonment, Zia vowed in November to campaign in elections set for February 2026 -- the first vote since a mass uprising toppled her arch-rival Sheikh Hasina last year.
The BNP is widely seen as a frontrunner, and Zia's son Tarique Rahman, who returned only on Thursday after 17 years in exile, is seen a potential prime minister if they win a majority.
In late November Zia was rushed to hospital, where, despite the best efforts of medics, her condition deteriorated from a raft of health issues.
Nevertheless, hours before her death, party workers had on Monday submitted nomination papers on her behalf for three constituencies for the polls.
"The BNP Chairperson and former prime minister, the national leader Begum Khaleda Zia, passed away today at 6:00 am (0000 GMT), just after the Fajr (dawn) prayer," the party said in a statement.
"We pray for the forgiveness of her soul and request everyone to offer prayers for her departed soul," it added.
Interim leader Muhammad Yunus said Bangladesh "has lost a great guardian".
"Through her uncompromising leadership, the nation was repeatedly freed from undemocratic conditions and inspired to regain liberty," the Nobel Peace Prize winner said in a statement.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he hoped Zia's "vision and legacy will continue to guide our partnership", a warm message despite the strained relations between New Delhi and Dhaka since Hasina's fall.
Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Zia had been a "committed friend" to Islamabad, while China's ambassador in Dhaka Yao Wen offered his condolences.
"China will continue to maintain its longstanding and friendly ties with the BNP," he said.

'Prison over luxury'

Braving cold rain, mourners gathered on Tuesday morning outside the hospital in Dhaka where Zia's body rests.
"This is an irreparable loss for the nation," senior BNP leader Ruhul Kabir Rizvi told reporters, his voice choking with emotion.
"She chose prison over luxury and spent years behind bars," said Golam Kibria, 29, a BNP loyalist who said he was tortured under Hasina's government, calling Zia an "unmatched leader who can never be replaced".
Three-time prime minister Zia was jailed for corruption in 2018 under Hasina's government, which also blocked her from travelling abroad for medical treatment.
She was released last year, shortly after Hasina was forced from power.
Hasina, 78, sentenced to death in absentia in November for crimes against humanity, remains in hiding in her old ally India.
"I pray for the eternal peace and forgiveness of Begum Khaleda Zia's soul," Hasina said, in a statement on social media by her now banned Awami League party.
Bangladesh's Prothom Alo newspaper, which said Zia had "earned the epithet of the 'uncompromising leader'", reported that Rahman and other family members were by her side at the time of her death.
"The lives of politicians are marked by rises and falls," the newspaper wrote on Tuesday.
"Lawsuits, arrests, imprisonment, persecution, and attacks by adversaries are far from uncommon. Khaleda Zia endured such ordeals at their most extreme."
mma-sa-pjm/abs

UAE

Saudi-led coalition says targets arms shipments from UAE in Yemen

  • The coalition targeted two ships carrying "a large quantity of weapons and combat vehicles to support the Southern Transitional Council forces", the Saudi state news agency SPA reported.
  • A Saudi-led coalition said it targeted Tuesday a large quantity of weapons and combat vehicles destined for separatist forces that were being offloaded from ships at a port in Yemen, coming from the UAE. Yemen has been fighting a crippling war, as armed factions loosely grouped under the government and backed by the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia turn on each other.
  • The coalition targeted two ships carrying "a large quantity of weapons and combat vehicles to support the Southern Transitional Council forces", the Saudi state news agency SPA reported.
A Saudi-led coalition said it targeted Tuesday a large quantity of weapons and combat vehicles destined for separatist forces that were being offloaded from ships at a port in Yemen, coming from the UAE.
Yemen has been fighting a crippling war, as armed factions loosely grouped under the government and backed by the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia turn on each other.
The UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC), which seeks to revive the formerly independent state of South Yemen, has in recent weeks swept through swathes of the country, expelling other government forces and their allies.
The Saudi-led coalition warned on Saturday that it would back Yemen's government in any military confrontation with separatist forces and has urged them to withdraw "peacefully" from recently-seized provinces.
"At 4:00 am, we received a call to evacuate the port of al-Mukalla a quarter of an hour before the strike," an official at the Yemeni port told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to speak to the media.
"The evacuation completed, and the strike occurred a quarter of an hour later in a dirt area within the port. The fire is still burning," he said.
The coalition targeted two ships carrying "a large quantity of weapons and combat vehicles to support the Southern Transitional Council forces", the Saudi state news agency SPA reported.
"Given the danger and escalation posed by these weapons... the Coalition air forces carried out a limited military operation this morning targeting weapons and combat vehicles that had been unloaded from the two ships at the port of al-Mukalla," it said.
The ships had arrived from the port of Fujairah, on the east coast of the United Arab Emirates, the SPA said, adding that the operation was conducted in accordance with international humanitarian law and that no collateral damage occurred.
Aerial footage showing docked boats and a large number of vehicles driving through the port was shared by the SPA.

'Sensitive moment'

The attack came days after reported Saudi air strikes on separatist positions in Yemen's Hadramawt province -- and after Washington called for restraint in the rapidly escalating conflict.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said: "We urge restraint and continued diplomacy, with a view to reaching a lasting solution."
Saudi Defence Minister Khalid bin Salman posted Saturday on X that troops from the separatist STC should "peacefully hand over" two regional governorates to the government.
"It's time," he posted, "at this sensitive moment, to let reason prevail by withdrawing from the two provinces and doing so peacefully."
But the STC had warned on Friday they were undeterred after strikes blamed on Saudi Arabia hit their positions, following their seizure of large swathes of territory in the Hadramawt and Mahrah provinces.
Since the takeover, supporters of the separatists have been gathering regularly in cities including Aden to demand they declare independence, with the largest rallies taking place every Friday.
On Saturday, hundreds of Yemeni tribesmen gathered in Aden to ask the STC's leaders to announce the independence of South Yemen, according to the separatist-affiliated Aden Independent Channel.
The channel aired footage of a large crowd marching and waving the South Yemen independence flag alongside the UAE's flag.
A Yemeni military official said on Friday that around 15,000 Saudi-backed fighters were massed near the Saudi border but had not been given orders to advance on separatist-held territory.
The areas where they were deployed are at the edges of territory seized in recent weeks by the UAE-backed STC.
The government is a patchwork of groups that includes the separatists, and is held together by shared opposition to the Iran-backed Houthis.
The Houthis pushed the government out of Yemen's capital Sanaa in 2014 and secured control over most of the north.
bur-tc/mtp

defense

What to know about China's drills around Taiwan

  • - This is China's sixth major round of manoeuvres since 2022 when a visit to Taiwan by then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi enraged Beijing.
  • China's military drills around Taiwan entered their second day on Tuesday, the sixth major manoeuvres Beijing has held near the self-ruled island in recent years. 
  • - This is China's sixth major round of manoeuvres since 2022 when a visit to Taiwan by then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi enraged Beijing.
China's military drills around Taiwan entered their second day on Tuesday, the sixth major manoeuvres Beijing has held near the self-ruled island in recent years. 
AFP breaks down what we know about the drills:

What are the drills about?

The ultimate cause is China's claim that Taiwan is part of its territory, an assertion Taipei rejects.
The two have been governed separately since the end of a civil war in 1949 saw Communist fighters take over most of China and their Nationalist enemies flee to Taiwan.
Beijing has refused to rule out using force to achieve its goal of "reunification" with the island of 23 million people.
It opposes countries having official ties with Taiwan and denounces any calls for independence.
China vowed "forceful measures" after Taipei said this month that its main security backer, the United States, had approved an $11 billion arms sale to the island.
After the drills began on Monday, Beijing warned "external forces" against arming the island, but did not name Washington.
China also recently rebuked Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi after she said the use of force against Taiwan could warrant a military response from Tokyo.

What do the drills look like?

Chinese authorities have published a map showing several large zones encircling Taiwan where the operations are taking place.
Code-named "Justice Mission 2025", they use live ammunition and involve army, navy, air and rocket forces.
They simulate a blockade of key Taiwanese ports including Keelung in the north and Kaohsiung in the south, according to a Chinese military spokesperson and state media.
They also focus on combat readiness patrols on sea and in the air, seizing "comprehensive" control over adversaries, and deterring aggression beyond the Taiwanese island chain.
China says it has deployed destroyers, frigates, fighters and bombers to simulate strikes and assaults on maritime targets.
Taipei detected 130 Chinese military aircraft near the island in the 24 hours to 6:00 am on Tuesday (2200 GMT on Monday), close to the record 153 it logged in October 2024. 
It also detected 14 Chinese navy ships and eight unspecified government vessels over the same period.
AFP journalists stationed at China's closest point to Taiwan saw at least 10 rockets blast into the air on Tuesday morning.

How has Taiwan responded?

Taipei has condemned China's "disregard for international norms and the use of military intimidation".
Its military said it has deployed "appropriate forces" and "carried out a rapid response exercise".
President Lai Ching-te said China's drills were "absolutely not the actions a responsible major power should take".
But he said Taipei would "act responsibly, without escalating the conflict or provoking disputes".
US President Donald Trump has said he is not concerned about the drills.

How common are the drills?

This is China's sixth major round of manoeuvres since 2022 when a visit to Taiwan by then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi enraged Beijing.
Such activities were rare before that but China and Taiwan have come close to war over the years, notably in 1958.
China last held large-scale live-fire drills in April, surprise manoeuvres that Taipei condemned.
This time, Beijing is emphasising "keeping foreign forces that might intervene at a distance from Taiwan", said Chieh Chung, a military expert at the island's Tamkang University.

What are analysts saying?

"China's main message is a warning to the United States and Japan not to attempt to intervene if the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) uses force against Taiwan," Chieh told AFP.
But the time frame signalled by Beijing "suggests a limited range of activities", said Ja Ian Chong, an associate professor at the National University of Singapore.
Falling support for China-friendly parties in Taiwan and Beijing's own army purges and slowing economy may also have motivated the drills, he said.
But the goal was still "to cow Taiwan and any others who might support them by demonstrating that Beijing's efforts to control Taiwan are unstoppable".
bur-mjw/fox

Zia

Bangladesh ex-PM Khaleda Zia dies aged 80

BY SHEIKH SABIHA ALAM AND MOHAMMAD MAZED

  • Rahman will lead the party through the February 12 general election, and is expected to be put forward as prime minister if his party wins a majority.
  • Bangladesh's former prime minister Khaleda Zia, who many believed would sweep elections next year to lead her country once again, died on Tuesday aged 80, her Bangladesh Nationalist Party said.
  • Rahman will lead the party through the February 12 general election, and is expected to be put forward as prime minister if his party wins a majority.
Bangladesh's former prime minister Khaleda Zia, who many believed would sweep elections next year to lead her country once again, died on Tuesday aged 80, her Bangladesh Nationalist Party said.
"The BNP Chairperson and former prime minister, the national leader Begum Khaleda Zia, passed away today at 6:00 am (0000 GMT), just after the Fajr (dawn) prayer," the party said in a statement.
"We pray for the forgiveness of her soul and request everyone to offer prayers for her departed soul," it added.
Despite years of ill health and imprisonment, Zia vowed in November to campaign in elections set for February 2026 -- the first vote since a mass uprising toppled her arch-rival Sheikh Hasina last year.
The BNP is widely seen as a frontrunner.
But in late November she was rushed to hospital, where, despite the best efforts of medics, her condition declined from a raft of health issues.
Nevertheless, hours before her death, party workers had on Monday submitted nomination papers on her behalf for three constituencies for the polls.
During her final days, interim leader Muhammad Yunus called for the nation to pray for Zia, calling her a "source of utmost inspiration for the nation".
BNP's media chief Moudud Alamgir Pavel also confirmed Zia's death to AFP.
Zia was jailed for corruption in 2018 under Hasina's government, which also blocked her from travelling abroad for medical treatment.
She was released last year, shortly after Hasina was forced from power.
There had been plans earlier this month to fly her on a special air ambulance to London, but her condition was not stable enough.
Her son, political heavyweight Tarique Rahman, only returned to Bangladesh after 17 years in self-imposed exile on Thursday, where he was welcomed back by huge crowds of joyous supporters.
Rahman will lead the party through the February 12 general election, and is expected to be put forward as prime minister if his party wins a majority.
Bangladesh's Prothom Alo newspaper, who said that Zia had "earned the epithet of the 'uncompromising leader'", reported that Rahman and other family members were by her side at the time of her death.
"The lives of politicians are marked by rises and falls," the newspaper wrote on Tuesday.
"Lawsuits, arrests, imprisonment, persecution, and attacks by adversaries are far from uncommon. Khaleda Zia endured such ordeals at their most extreme."
mma-sa-pjm/abs

Zia

End of an era as Bangladesh ex-PM Zia dies

  • "Unite the party and prepare to lead," Zia had urged BNP members earlier this year.
  • Bangladesh's three-time prime minister Khaleda Zia, who hoped to lead her nation one last time after elections next year, died on Tuesday aged 80.
  • "Unite the party and prepare to lead," Zia had urged BNP members earlier this year.
Bangladesh's three-time prime minister Khaleda Zia, who hoped to lead her nation one last time after elections next year, died on Tuesday aged 80.
Zia, a dominant figure for decades in the South Asian country's turbulent power struggles, had vowed to run in elections next year, the first since a mass uprising toppled her arch-rival.
Despite years of ill health and imprisonment, just last month Zia had promised to campaign in elections expected in February 2026, in which her Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) is widely seen as a frontrunner.
"Unite the party and prepare to lead," Zia had urged BNP members earlier this year.
But in late November she was rushed to hospital, where despite the best efforts of medics, her condition declined from a raft of health issues. 
Zia was jailed for corruption in 2018 under the autocratic government of Sheikh Hasina, which also barred her from travelling abroad for medical treatment.
She was released shortly after Hasina's ouster in August 2024.

'Battle of the Begums'

For decades, Bangladesh's politics was defined by the bitter rivalry between Zia and Hasina -- a feud dubbed the "Battle of the Begums", an honorific title in South Asia for a powerful woman.
The hatred traces back to the 1975 assassination of Hasina's father, independence leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, along with most of her family, in a coup.
Three months later, Zia's husband, Ziaur Rahman, then deputy army chief, effectively took control. He became president in 1977. He was himself assassinated in 1981.
Zia, then a 35-year-old mother of two, inherited the BNP leadership.
Initially dismissed as a political novice, Zia proved a formidable opponent, rallying against military dictator Hussain Muhammad Ershad, and later joining forces with Hasina to oust him in 1990.
The two women alternated in power for the next decade and a half.
Their intractable rivalry fuelled crises, including the January 2007 standoff that brought military-backed emergency rule. Both women were detained for more than a year.
Hasina later dominated, ruling from 2008 until her violent downfall in 2024.
Zia's own tenure left a mixed legacy: she was admired for her resolve but criticised for her refusal to compromise, which often left her isolated, domestically and internationally.
But Zia's political legacy may yet continue.
Her son, Tarique Rahman, 60, long seen as her political heir, has also said he will run in the polls.
Rahman, known in Bangladesh as Tarique Zia, returned from exile in London on December 25, after fleeing what he called politically motivated persecution in 2008.
Following Hasina's fall, he was acquitted of the most serious charge against him: a life sentence handed down in absentia for a 2004 grenade attack on a Hasina rally, which he has always denied.
His image is displayed alongside his mother's on party banners, offering a potential new chapter in Bangladesh's enduring political saga.
bur-pjm/abs

missile

North Korea's Kim touts new rocket launchers that could target South

BY CLAIRE LEE

  • Kim described the new multiple rocket system as a "super-powerful weapon system as it can annihilate the enemy through sudden precise strike with high accuracy and devastating power", KCNA said.
  • North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has toured a factory making new multiple rocket launchers that could target the South, touting their ability to "annihilate the enemy" in a concentrated attack, state media reported Tuesday.
  • Kim described the new multiple rocket system as a "super-powerful weapon system as it can annihilate the enemy through sudden precise strike with high accuracy and devastating power", KCNA said.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has toured a factory making new multiple rocket launchers that could target the South, touting their ability to "annihilate the enemy" in a concentrated attack, state media reported Tuesday.
The country is still technically at war with the South and "saturation" strikes by its vast artillery arsenal have long been believed to be central to its strategy should conflict break out.
A 2020 study by the RAND think tank assessed that North Korean artillery systems could inflict 10,000 casualties in just an hour if targeting major population centres like the South Korean capital Seoul.
Kim's visit to the factory was reported a day after Pyongyang said it had carried out a test-fire of two strategic long-range cruise missiles in a show of "combat readiness" against external threats.
Accompanied by top officials from North Korea's missile programme, Kim said the new weapons system would serve as his military's "main strike means", according to the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
He also said they could have uses in a "strategic attack" -- typically a euphemism for nuclear use.
Kim described the new multiple rocket system as a "super-powerful weapon system as it can annihilate the enemy through sudden precise strike with high accuracy and devastating power", KCNA said.
The system would be "used in large quantities for concentrated attack in military operations", state media added.
State media images showed Kim standing next to the massive new missile systems in a vast factory with propaganda on the walls.

'Increasing threat'

"North Korea may now be in a position to seriously enhance its ability to carry out strategic missions," Hong Sung-pyo, a senior researcher at the Korea Institute for Military Affairs, told AFP.
"From South Korea's perspective, this means the military threat from the North is increasing," he added.
Pyongyang has also significantly stepped up missile testing in recent years.
Analysts say this drive is aimed at improving precision strike capabilities, challenging the United States as well as South Korea, and testing weapons before potentially exporting them to Russia.
Pyongyang is set to hold a landmark congress of its ruling party in early 2026 -- its first in five years.
Economic policy, as well as defence and military planning, are likely to be high on the agenda.
Ahead of that meeting, Kim ordered the "expansion" and modernisation of the country's missile production and the construction of more factories to meet growing demand.
"Kim Jong Un seems to judge that the country is in the best position to accelerate the upgrading of its nuclear forces and the modernization of its conventional weapons," Lim Eul-chul, a professor at the Institute for Far Eastern Studies at Kyungnam University, told AFP.
"Systems to mount various types of small nuclear warheads on multiple rocket launchers are already in place," he added.
cdl-oho/abs

Bondi

Police say Bondi Beach mass shooting suspects 'acted alone'

  • "There is no evidence to suggest these alleged offenders were part of a broader terrorist cell, or were directed by others to carry out the attack."
  • A father and son accused of a mass shooting at Australia's Bondi Beach "acted alone" and were not part of a wider terrorist cell, police said on Tuesday.
  • "There is no evidence to suggest these alleged offenders were part of a broader terrorist cell, or were directed by others to carry out the attack."
A father and son accused of a mass shooting at Australia's Bondi Beach "acted alone" and were not part of a wider terrorist cell, police said on Tuesday.
Sajid Akram and his son Naveed allegedly killed 15 people in an ISIS-inspired attack targeting a Jewish festival on December 14.
The pair travelled to the southern Philippines in the weeks before shooting, fuelling suspicions they may be linked to extremists in a region with a history of Islamist insurgencies.
Australian Federal Police commissioner Krissy Barrett said so far this did not appear to be the case.
"These individuals are alleged to have acted alone," she told reporters.
"There is no evidence to suggest these alleged offenders were part of a broader terrorist cell, or were directed by others to carry out the attack."
Barrett said police would continue to probe why the pair travelled to the city of Davao, where CCTV showed they barely left their budget hotel.
"I want to be clear. I am not suggesting they were there for tourism," she said.
Police believe the duo "meticulously planned" the attack for months, and have released pictures showing them training with shotguns in the Australian countryside.
They also recorded a video in October railing against "Zionists" while sitting in front of a flag of the Islamic State jihadist group, police have said.
Sajid Akram, 50, was shot and killed by police during the attack.
An Indian national, he entered Australia on a visa in 1998.

Gun crackdown

His 24-year-old son Naveed, an Australian-born citizen, remains in custody charged with 15 murders and a litany of other serious offences.
New Year's Eve parties across Sydney will pause at 11pm on Wednesday for a minute of silence in memory of the victims.
Crowds will be watched over by squads of police carrying high-powered firearms, New South Wales state premier Chris Minns said on Tuesday.
"That is a clear and deliberate message from the police that safety is the number one priority," he told reporters.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced a nationwide crackdown on gun ownership and hate speech in the wake of the attack, promising stricter laws and harsher penalties.
He has announced a sweeping buyback scheme to "get guns off our streets".
It is the largest gun buyback since 1996, when Australia tightened firearms laws in the wake of a mass shooting that killed 35 people at Port Arthur.
Albanese has also ordered a review of police and intelligence services.
sft/fox

conflict

Trump warns Hamas, Iran after Netanyahu talks

BY JIM WATSON WITH DANNY KEMP IN WASHINGTON

  • "If they don't disarm as they agreed to do, then there will be hell to pay for them," Trump told reporters at his lavish Mar-a-Lago resort.
  • US President Donald Trump warned Iran of fresh strikes and said Hamas would have "hell to pay" if it fails to disarm in Gaza, as he presented a united front with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday.
  • "If they don't disarm as they agreed to do, then there will be hell to pay for them," Trump told reporters at his lavish Mar-a-Lago resort.
US President Donald Trump warned Iran of fresh strikes and said Hamas would have "hell to pay" if it fails to disarm in Gaza, as he presented a united front with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday.
Speaking at a news conference with Netanyahu in Florida, Trump threatened to "eradicate" any attempt by Tehran to rebuild its nuclear program or ballistic missile arsenal following US and Israeli strikes earlier this year.
Trump also downplayed reports of tensions with Netanyahu over the second stage of the fragile Gaza ceasefire, saying that Israel had "lived up" to its commitments and that the onus was on Palestinian militant group Hamas.
"If they don't disarm as they agreed to do, then there will be hell to pay for them," Trump told reporters at his lavish Mar-a-Lago resort. "They have to disarm in a fairly short period of time."
Hamas's armed wing reiterated earlier on Monday that it would not surrender its weapons.
A top political adviser to Iran's supreme leader on Monday said any aggression against his country would be met with an "immediate harsh response."
"Iran's #Missile_Capability and defense are not containable or permission-based. Any aggression will face an immediate #Harsh_Response beyond its planners' imagination," Ali Shamkhani wrote on X.

'Productive' meeting

Netanyahu said his meeting with Trump had been "very productive" and announced that Israel was awarding the US leader its highest civilian honor -- the first time it has gone to a non-Israeli citizen.
Trump, the self-proclaimed "president of peace," has been keen to move onto the next phase of the Gaza truce, which would see a Palestinian technocratic government installed and the deployment of an international stabilization force.
While some White House officials fear Netanyahu is slow-walking the process, Trump said he had "very little difference" with the Israeli premier and was "not concerned about anything that Israel's doing."
During their fifth meeting in the United States since Trump's return to power this year, Netanyahu also appeared to have steered the US leader toward focusing on Israel's concerns about Iran.
Israeli officials and media have expressed concern in recent months that Iran is rebuilding its ballistic missile arsenal after it came under attack during the 12-day war with Israel in June.
Trump said Iran "may be behaving badly" and was looking at new nuclear sites to replace those targeted by US strikes during the same conflict, as well as restoring its missiles.
"I hope they're not trying to build up again because if they are, we're going have no choice but very quickly to eradicate that buildup," Trump said, adding that the US response "may be more powerful than the last time."
But Trump said he believed Iran was still interested in a deal with Washington on its nuclear and missile programs. Tehran denies that it is seeking nuclear weapons.

Focus on Gaza

Trump and Netanyahu's talks also focused on other regional tension points, including Syria and the Hezbollah movement in Lebanon.
Trump said he hoped Netanyahu could "get along" with Syria's new president, a former Islamist rebel commander who toppled long-term ruler Bashar-al-Assad a year ago, despite a series of Israeli strikes along their border.
Netanyahu's visit caps a frantic few days of international diplomacy in Palm Beach, where Trump hosted Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday for talks on ending Russia's invasion.
The Gaza ceasefire in October is one of the major achievements of Trump's first year back in power, and Washington and regional mediators have hoped to keep their foot on the gas.
The Axios news site said Trump seeks to make announcements as soon as January on an interim government and an international force.
But Trump gave few details beyond saying that he hoped "reconstruction" could begin soon in the Palestinian territory, devastated by Israeli attacks in response to Hamas's October 7, 2023 attacks.
The disarmament of Hamas however continued to be a sticking point, with its armed wing again saying that it would not surrender its arms.
"Our people are defending themselves and will not give up their weapons as long as the occupation remains," the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades said in a video message.
dk/aha/sla

defense

China holds military drills around Taiwan simulating ports blockade

BY PETER CATTERALL, WITH ISABEL KUA IN PINGTAN AND JOY CHIANG IN TAIPEI

  • China's military last held large-scale drills involving live firing around Taiwan in April -- surprise manoeuvres condemned by Taipei.
  • China launched live-fire drills around Taiwan on Monday that it said would simulate a blockade of the self-ruled island's key ports, prompting Taipei to condemn Beijing's "military intimidation".
  • China's military last held large-scale drills involving live firing around Taiwan in April -- surprise manoeuvres condemned by Taipei.
China launched live-fire drills around Taiwan on Monday that it said would simulate a blockade of the self-ruled island's key ports, prompting Taipei to condemn Beijing's "military intimidation".
Beijing claims Taiwan as part of its sovereign territory and has refused to rule out using military action to seize the island democracy.
The latest show of force follows a bumper round of arms sales to Taipei by the United States, Taiwan's main security backer.
Beijing warned on Monday that "external forces" arming Taipei would "push the Taiwan Strait into a perilous situation of imminent war", but did not mention any countries by name.
Foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said any attempts to stop China's unification with Taiwan were "doomed to fail".
AFP reporters in Pingtan -- a Chinese island that is the closest point to Taiwan's main island -- saw two fighter jets soaring across the sky and a Chinese military vessel in the distance.
Visitors said they had been unaware of the drills as they milled around snapping photos. 
A tourist surnamed Guo, from Inner Mongolia, told AFP she thinks a unification will "definitely happen".
"It's just a matter of time," she said.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said he was not concerned about the Chinese drills around Taiwan, appearing to brush aside the possibility of counterpart Xi Jinping ordering an invasion.
"I have a great relationship with President Xi. And he hasn't told me anything about it. I certainly have seen it," Trump told reporters Monday when asked about the exercises.
"I don't believe he's going to be doing it," Trump added, in apparent reference to an invasion. Asked if the drills worried him, he replied: "No, nothing worries me."

'Live-fire training'

China said early on Monday it was conducting "live-fire training on maritime targets to the north and southwest of Taiwan" in large-scale exercises involving destroyers, frigates, fighters, bombers and drones.
Military spokesman Shi Yi said Beijing would send army, navy, air force and rocket force troops for drills code-named "Justice Mission 2025".
He said the drills would focus on "sea-air combat readiness patrol, joint seizure of comprehensive superiority, blockade on key ports and areas, as well as all-dimensional deterrence outside the island chain".
Chinese authorities published a map of five large zones around Taiwan where the war games would take place.
Taiwan said China's designated exercise zones, some of which are within 12 nautical miles of its coast, have affected international shipping and aviation routes.
The island's government condemned China's "disregard for international norms and the use of military intimidation to threaten neighbouring countries", Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo said.
Its defence ministry said it had detected 89 Chinese military aircraft near its shores on Monday -- the highest number in a single day since October 2024.
It also said it had detected 28 warships and coastguard vessels.
Taiwan's Civil Aviation Administration said China had declared a "Temporary Danger Area" for 10 hours on Tuesday.
It also said "more than 100,000 (air) passengers" on 857 domestic, international and transit flights would be affected by the drills on Tuesday.
Taiwan's military said it had established a response centre, deployed "appropriate forces" and "carried out a rapid response exercise", while its coastguard said it "immediately deployed large vessels".
The drills by China's ruling Communist Party "further confirm its nature as an aggressor, making it the greatest destroyer of peace", Taipei's defence ministry said.

'Stern warning'

Chinese military spokesman Shi said the drills were "a stern warning against 'Taiwan Independence' separatist forces, and...a legitimate and necessary action to safeguard China's sovereignty and national unity".
Beijing's military released a poster about the drills showing "arrows of justice" -- one engulfed in flames -- raining down on a geographical outline of Taiwan.
State broadcaster CCTV reported that a core theme of the exercises was a "blockade" of key Taiwanese ports, including Keelung in the north and Kaohsiung in the south.
China's military last held large-scale drills involving live firing around Taiwan in April -- surprise manoeuvres condemned by Taipei.
Beijing said this month it would take "resolute and forceful measures" to safeguard its territory after Taiwan said the United States had approved a major $11 billion arms sale.
It announced fresh sanctions on 20 American defence companies last week, although they appeared to have little or no business in China.
Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi triggered a backlash from Beijing last month when she said the use of force against Taiwan could warrant a military response from Tokyo.
bur-je/ane/pbt/iv/jgc

conflict

Russia says Ukraine attacked Putin's home, Kyiv calls this 'lie'

  • Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called Russia's claim "a complete fabrication" designed to undermine the peace process, but US President Donald Trump -- who held a call with Putin earlier Monday -- directed his criticism at Kyiv.
  • Russia accused Ukraine on Monday of having fired dozens of drones at one of President Vladimir Putin's residences, an accusation that Ukraine called a "lie" aimed at undermining US-led efforts to end the war.
  • Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called Russia's claim "a complete fabrication" designed to undermine the peace process, but US President Donald Trump -- who held a call with Putin earlier Monday -- directed his criticism at Kyiv.
Russia accused Ukraine on Monday of having fired dozens of drones at one of President Vladimir Putin's residences, an accusation that Ukraine called a "lie" aimed at undermining US-led efforts to end the war.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who does not typically announce drone strikes, said Ukraine had fired "91 long-range unmanned aerial vehicles" at Putin's home in the Novgorod region between late Sunday and early Monday, all of which were shot down.
"Given the complete degeneration of the criminal Kyiv regime, which has shifted to a policy of state terrorism, Russia's negotiating position will be reconsidered," Lavrov said, without elaborating or providing evidence for Russia's assertions.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called Russia's claim "a complete fabrication" designed to undermine the peace process, but US President Donald Trump -- who held a call with Putin earlier Monday -- directed his criticism at Kyiv.
"I don't like it. It's not good," Trump told reporters of the alleged attack at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida. "You know who told me about it? President Putin told me about it."
"It's a delicate period of time. This is not the right time," Trump added.
Russia's accusation comes at a pivotal moment in the peace process.
Ukraine says it has agreed to 90 percent of a US-drafted peace plan -- including the issue of post-war security guarantees.
But the issue of territory remains unresolved, and Russia -- which has been advancing on the battlefield for months -- has repeatedly rejected plans that do not yield to its maximalist demands.
In his call with Trump on Monday, Putin said he was still committed to the peace process but would "revise" Russia's negotiating position in light of the alleged drone attack, according to the Kremlin.
Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, describing it as a "special military operation" to demilitarise the country and prevent the expansion of NATO.
Kyiv and its European allies say the war, the largest and deadliest on European soil since World War II, is an unprovoked and illegal land grab that has resulted in a tidal wave of violence and destruction.

Territory main sticking point

Trump said a peace deal was "very close" following talks with Zelensky on Sunday.
Zelensky announced on Monday the United States had finally promised security guarantees in a post-war settlement -- albeit for 15 years, with the possibility of an extension.
But the key issue of territory and the future of the Moscow-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine remains unresolved.
Putin has been pushing for full control of Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region as part of a post-war settlement and said Monday that his army still aimed to take it and three other Ukrainian regions Moscow claims as its own by force.
In Kyiv, where residents have been living under relentless Russian attacks for almost four years, few were hopeful of a breakthrough.
"Security guarantees have already been signed before -- and what did that give us? Absolutely nothing," photographer Anastasiia Pashchenko told AFP.
In Moscow, where criticism of Russia's invasion is banned, residents told AFP they wanted the fighting to end, but on the Kremlin's terms.
"Only Russia can put forward some conditions," said 53-year-old engineer Alexei.
Nikita, a 23-year-old who fought in Ukraine for a year, lauded Russia's advance in eastern Ukraine, even if it came "at a cost". 
"Russia is a superpower that still needs to be reckoned with," he said.
bur-cad/cc

film

Brigitte Bardot's funeral to be held next week in Saint-Tropez

BY FANNY CARRIER WITH JEAN-FRANCOIS GUYOT AND ALICE HACKMAN IN PARIS

  • The Brigitte Bardot Foundation said the funeral in the Notre-Dame de l'Assomption church on January 7 would be broadcast on screens across the town, followed by a "private" burial, but did not confirm where in Saint-Tropez she would be inhumed.
  • Cinema icon Brigitte Bardot's funeral will take place next week in her hometown of Saint-Tropez, her foundation said Monday, as France wrestles with how to pay tribute to a cultural legend who in later years championed far-right views.
  • The Brigitte Bardot Foundation said the funeral in the Notre-Dame de l'Assomption church on January 7 would be broadcast on screens across the town, followed by a "private" burial, but did not confirm where in Saint-Tropez she would be inhumed.
Cinema icon Brigitte Bardot's funeral will take place next week in her hometown of Saint-Tropez, her foundation said Monday, as France wrestles with how to pay tribute to a cultural legend who in later years championed far-right views.
The mayor's office earlier said the film-star-turned-animal-rights-activist, who died aged 91 on Sunday, would be laid to rest in the town's seaside cemetery.
The Brigitte Bardot Foundation said the funeral in the Notre-Dame de l'Assomption church on January 7 would be broadcast on screens across the town, followed by a "private" burial, but did not confirm where in Saint-Tropez she would be inhumed.
Bardot said in 2018 she wished to be buried in her garden, to avoid a "crowd of idiots" trampling on the tombs of her parents and grandparents.
Bardot shot to fame in her early twenties in the 1956 film "And God Created Woman" and went on to appear in about 50 films, but turned her back on cinema in 1973 to throw herself into fighting for animal welfare.
Her anti-immigration views and support for the far right however stirred controversy.
Bardot was convicted five times for hate speech, mostly about Muslims, but also about the inhabitants of the French island of Reunion whom she described as "savages". 
She passed away before dawn on Sunday with her fourth husband, Bernard d'Ormale, a former adviser to the far right, by her side.
"She whispered a word of love to him... and she was gone," Bruno Jacquelin, a representative of her foundation for animals, told BFM television.

'Cynicism'

Right-wing politicians paid gushing tributes to the film star. But leftists were more reserved, given her racist remarks in later years.
President Emmanuel Macron, a centrist, hailed the actor as a "legend" of the 20th century cinema who "embodied a life of freedom".
Three-time presidential candidate Marine le Pen, whose far-right National Rally party is riding high in the polls, called her "incredibly French: free, untameable, whole".
Bardot backed Le Pen for president in 2012 and 2017, describing her as a modern "Joan of Arc" she hoped could "save" France.
Conservative politician Eric Ciotti called for a national farewell like the one organised in 2018 for French rock star Johnny Hallyday. He started a petition online that by late Monday had garnered more than 12,000 signatures.
But Socialist party leader Olivier Faure was against the idea, saying such public tributes were for people who had rendered "exceptional services to the nation".
"Brigitte Bardot was an iconic actor of the New Wave," he said. "But she also turned her back on (French) republican values and was several times convicted for racism."
Communist party leader Fabien Roussel said at least all could agree she made French cinema "shine throughout the world".
But Greens lawmaker Sandrine Rousseau was more critical.
"To be moved by the fate of dolphins but remain indifferent to the deaths of migrants in the Mediterranean -- what level of cynicism is that?" she quipped on BlueSky.

Fame to 'protect animals'

Born on September 28, 1934 in Paris, Bardot was raised in a well-off traditional Catholic household.
Married four times, she had one child, Nicolas-Jacques Charrier, with her second husband, actor Jacques Charrier.
After quitting the cinema, Bardot withdrew to her home in the Saint-Tropez to devote herself to animal rights.
Her calling apparently came when she encountered a goat on the set of her final film, "The Edifying and Joyous Story of Colinot". To save it from being killed, she bought the animal and kept it in her hotel room.
"I'm very proud of the first chapter of my life," she told AFP in a 2024 interview ahead of her 90th birthday.
"It gave me fame, and that fame allows me to protect animals -- the only cause that truly matters to me."
burs-ah/rmb

currency

Tehran shopkeepers shut stores over economic conditions

  • - Judicial warning - On Sunday, the ISNA news agency said a group of shopkeepers and mobile phone vendors at a main shopping centre in the city "protested against sharp fluctuations in the exchange rate and the damage caused to the mobile phone market" by briefly shutting up shop.
  • Some shopkeepers in Tehran shut their stores for the second day in a row Monday in protest against economic hardships and sharp swings in Iran's embattled currency, media reports said.
  • - Judicial warning - On Sunday, the ISNA news agency said a group of shopkeepers and mobile phone vendors at a main shopping centre in the city "protested against sharp fluctuations in the exchange rate and the damage caused to the mobile phone market" by briefly shutting up shop.
Some shopkeepers in Tehran shut their stores for the second day in a row Monday in protest against economic hardships and sharp swings in Iran's embattled currency, media reports said.
The rial has hit new lows on the unofficial market, with the US dollar trading at around 1.42 million rials on Sunday -- compared to 820,000 rials a year ago -- and the euro nearing 1.7 million rials, according to price monitoring websites.
The rates eased somewhat on Monday, with the dollar at around 1.39 million rials, and the euro at about 1.64 million rials.
A journalist from the pro-labour news agency ILNA reported "demonstrations" at several bazaars in the centre of the capital on Monday, the agency said.
It said protesters "are demanding immediate government intervention to rein in exchange-rate fluctuations and set out a clear economic strategy".
Price fluctuations are paralysing the sales of some imported goods, with both sellers and buyers preferring to postpone transactions until the outlook becomes clearer, AFP correspondents noted.
"Continuing to do business under these conditions has become impossible," ILNA quoted protesters as saying.
State news agency IRNA reported: "Many shopkeepers preferred to suspend sales in order to prevent potential losses."
It added that some protesters on Monday "chanted slogans".
The conservative-aligned Fars news agency released images showing a crowd of demonstrators occupying a major thoroughfare in central Tehran, known for its many shops.
Another photograph appears to show tear gas being used to disperse protesters.
"Minor physical clashes were reported... between some protesters and the security forces," Fars said, warning that such gatherings could lead to instability.

Judicial warning

On Sunday, the ISNA news agency said a group of shopkeepers and mobile phone vendors at a main shopping centre in the city "protested against sharp fluctuations in the exchange rate and the damage caused to the mobile phone market" by briefly shutting up shop.
On Monday, Iranian Chief Justice Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei called for "the swift punishment of those responsible for currency fluctuations", the justice ministry's Mizan agency reported.
The government has also announced the replacement of the central bank governor.
"By decision of the president, Abdolnasser Hemmati will be appointed governor of the Central Bank," presidency communications official Mehdi Tabatabaei posted on X.
Hemmati is a former economy and finance minister who was dismissed by parliament in March because of the sharp depreciation of the rial.
On Sunday, President Masoud Pezeshkian delivered the budget for the next Persian year to parliament, vowing to fight inflation and the high cost of living.
Notably, the budget provides for a 20 percent increase in wages, a rate that is nonetheless well below that of inflation.
In December inflation stood at 52 percent year-on-year, according to official statistics. But this figure still falls far short of many price increases, especially for basic necessities.
Iran's economy, already battered by decades of Western sanctions, was further strained after the United Nations in late September reinstated international sanctions linked to the country's nuclear programme that were lifted 10 years ago.
Western powers and Israel accuse Iran of seeking to acquire nuclear weapons, a charge Tehran denies.
Negotiations with the United States on the issue are at a standstill, and uncertainty stemming from 12 days of war in June against Israel is also affecting the economic outlook.
Pezeshkian in an interview published on Saturday accused the United States, Israel and Europeans of waging "total war" against Iran.
rkh-ap-sbr/cm/srm/amj

film

Media on Bardot: France's biggest 'sex symbol' or 'crazy cat lady'

  • - 'Diva', 'controversial' - "She was probably the last of that handful of new and free figures in which France liked to recognise itself at the turn of the '60s," noted Liberation, which called her the "greatest sex symbol of French cinema".
  • International and French media on Monday paid tribute to Brigitte Bardot, with some highlighting her reputation as "the greatest sex symbol of French cinema" and others her role as a "controversial activist". 
  • - 'Diva', 'controversial' - "She was probably the last of that handful of new and free figures in which France liked to recognise itself at the turn of the '60s," noted Liberation, which called her the "greatest sex symbol of French cinema".
International and French media on Monday paid tribute to Brigitte Bardot, with some highlighting her reputation as "the greatest sex symbol of French cinema" and others her role as a "controversial activist". 
Images of the screen legend were splashed across media outlets around the globe following the announcement of her death on Sunday aged 91 .
All highlighted her lasting cinema and style impact, though many also noted prominently her decision to give up her film career to defend animal rights -- and her becoming a far-right supporter.
The New York Times saw Bardot as having "redefined mid-20th century movie sex symbolism", highlighting her "unapologetic carnal appetite" on screen.
It added, however: "At best, Ms Bardot was considered eccentric in her later years, prompting observations that this former sex kitten, as she was often called, had turned into a 'crazy cat lady'."
"She was a French cocktail of kittenish charm and continental sensuality," said Britain's BBC.
France's conservative newspaper Le Figaro said "this blonde whirlwind burst onto the screens" in a France still suffering from post-World War II fallout.
"She shook things up, danced the mambo on the tables of Saint-Tropez," it added, recalling the iconic scene in her breakthrough movie "And God Created Woman".
Bardot's libertine attitude in the 1956 film outraged censors at the time.
French Catholic daily La Croix said Bardot was "the only French star to have rivalled Marilyn Monroe in sex appeal", but added she had a "career without much success" that was cut short with her decision to devote herself to animals. 
France's left-wing Liberation newspaper disagreed, saying Bardot had a "meteoric career".

'Diva', 'controversial'

"She was probably the last of that handful of new and free figures in which France liked to recognise itself at the turn of the '60s," noted Liberation, which called her the "greatest sex symbol of French cinema".
But, it added, she then fell from her pedestal later in life -- "fuming with hatred", as she attacked immigrants, Muslims, homosexuals, the disabled and job seekers.
Bardot was convicted five times for comments that incited racial hatred.
Italy's La Repubblica newspaper called her "a diva rebel" who "chose liberty until the very end".
Germany's Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung said it would be better to "forget, even if it may be difficult, the political Bardot of recent years for the duration of this obituary" and "remember THE Bardot" instead.
In Spain, El Pais called Bardot a "controversial activist".
"In her own way, she hid nothing. Neither the wrinkles, nor her increasingly radical character or her ideological convictions, which she evoked with crude euphemisms," it said.
vgu/tw-ah/rmb

conflict

Thai army accuses Cambodia of violating truce with over 250 drones

  • The Thai army said on Monday "more than 250 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) were detected flying from the Cambodian side, intruding into Thailand's sovereign territory" on Sunday night, according to a statement.
  • Thailand's army accused Cambodia on Monday of violating a newly signed ceasefire agreement, reached after weeks of deadly border clashes, by flying more than 250 drones over its territory.
  • The Thai army said on Monday "more than 250 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) were detected flying from the Cambodian side, intruding into Thailand's sovereign territory" on Sunday night, according to a statement.
Thailand's army accused Cambodia on Monday of violating a newly signed ceasefire agreement, reached after weeks of deadly border clashes, by flying more than 250 drones over its territory.
The Southeast Asian neighbours agreed to the "immediate" ceasefire on Saturday, pledging to end renewed border clashes that killed dozens of people and displaced more than a million this month.
But the fresh allegation from Bangkok and its threat to reconsider releasing Cambodian soldiers held by Thailand left a sustained truce in doubt, even as their foreign ministers wrapped up two days of talks hosted by China.
The Thai army said on Monday "more than 250 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) were detected flying from the Cambodian side, intruding into Thailand's sovereign territory" on Sunday night, according to a statement.
"Such actions constitute provocation and a violation of measures aimed at reducing tensions, which are inconsistent with the Joint Statement agreed" during a bilateral border committee meeting on Saturday, it said.
The reignited fighting this month spread to nearly every border province on both sides, shattering an earlier truce for which US President Donald Trump took credit.
Under the truce pact signed on Saturday, Cambodia and Thailand agreed to cease fire, freeze troop movements and cooperate on demining efforts and combatting cybercrime.
They also agreed to allow civilians living in border areas to return home as soon as possible, while Thailand was to return 18 Cambodian soldiers captured in July within 72 hours, if the ceasefire held.

'Small issue'

Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn described the drone incident as "a small issue related to flying drones seen by both sides along the border line".
He said on Cambodian state television on Monday that the two sides had discussed the issue and agreed to investigate and "resolve it immediately".
Phnom Penh's defence ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata later denied any drones had been flown by the Cambodian side because the ministry and provincial authorities on the border had banned such flights.
"We confirm that no such drone launches have occurred," she said in a statement.
Thai army spokesman Winthai Suvaree said in a statement the drone activity reflected "provocative actions" and a "hostile stance toward Thailand", which could affect the security of military personnel and civilians in border areas.
Thailand's army "may need to reconsider its decision regarding the release of 18 Cambodian soldiers, depending on the situation and the behaviour observed", it said.
Several family members of soldiers held by Thailand for six months had little faith they would be released, even before Bangkok raised fresh doubts.
Heng Socheat, the wife of a soldier, told AFP on Monday she worried the Thai military might renege on its pledge.
"Until my husband arrives home, then I will believe them," she said.

Prayers for peace

Five days of border clashes in July killed dozens of people before a truce was brokered by the United States, China and Malaysia, the chair of the ASEAN regional bloc.
Trump witnessed the signing of a follow-on declaration between Thailand and Cambodia in October but it was broken within weeks, with each side blaming the other for instigating the fresh fighting.
The conflict stems from a territorial dispute over the colonial-era demarcation of the 800-kilometre (500-mile) Thai-Cambodian border, where both sides claim centuries-old temple ruins.
While the two nations agreed on Saturday to stop fighting, they still need to resolve the demarcation of their border.
Cambodia, Thailand and China issued a statement at the end of talks in China's Yunnan province on Monday, saying they had discussed "working step by step through mutual efforts to resume normal exchanges, rebuild political mutual trust, improve Cambodia-Thailand bilateral relations, and safeguard regional stability".
Cambodia also said on Monday it had called on Thailand to join another bilateral meeting in Cambodia in early January "to discuss and continue survey and demarcation work" at the border.
More than a hundred Buddhist monks and hundreds of others dressed in white shirts met at a war monument on the outskirts of the Cambodian capital on Monday evening to pray for peace with their neighbour.
Mok Sim, 73, said she joined the gathering to show the world that Cambodians wanted peace.
"We also pray that our soldiers will be released soon, but we don't know the mind of the Thai army," she said. "We hope they will be back home soon."
tp-suy-sco/ane/pbt

election

New year, new mayor for New York City

BY RAPHAëLLE PELTIER

  • - Policy agenda - The mayor-elect, an avowed socialist, campaigned on addressing the prohibitive cost of living in the metropolis of 8.5 million. 
  • New York mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani is set to become the US city's first Muslim mayor, and the youthful optimism of his Democratic Socialist platform will be put to the test as he takes office Thursday with high expectations.
  • - Policy agenda - The mayor-elect, an avowed socialist, campaigned on addressing the prohibitive cost of living in the metropolis of 8.5 million. 
New York mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani is set to become the US city's first Muslim mayor, and the youthful optimism of his Democratic Socialist platform will be put to the test as he takes office Thursday with high expectations.

Festive swearing in

At the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve, New York Attorney General Letitia James -- friend to Mamdani, foe to President Donald Trump -- will swear in the new mayor in a private ceremony at a subway stop called Old City Hall Station. 
The underground venue reflects his "commitment to the working people who keep our city running every day," his office said.
At midday, left-wing stalwart Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders will preside over a much larger swearing-in ceremony open to the public outside City Hall.
At a neighborhood celebration, festivities will echo "one of his core messages... that this is a great city, and we like living here," said Lincoln Mitchell, a Columbia University political science professor. 

Policy agenda

The mayor-elect, an avowed socialist, campaigned on addressing the prohibitive cost of living in the metropolis of 8.5 million. 
One of his key proposals is freezing rent on more than a million apartments, but it's unclear if the city board that handles rent control -- packed with appointees of outgoing Mayor Eric Adams -- will be supportive.
Details of Mamdani's other campaign promises -- the construction of 200,000 units of affordable housing, universal access to childcare, publicly owned supermarkets and free buses -- have yet to be spelled out.
But Mamdani has one ace in his pocket: an excellent relationship with New York Governor Kathy Hochul, who approves measures like the tax hikes he seeks.
Once an election is over, "symbolism only goes so far with voters. Results begin to matter a whole lot more," New York University lecturer John Kane said.

Opposition to Trump

Despite expectations to the contrary, the late November Oval Office meeting between Trump and Mamdani was cordial and calm. 
Mamdani "wisely sought a point of common ground with Trump: wanting to make New York City a better place to live," Kane said.
Trump can "be surprisingly gregarious toward those that he perceives to have little leverage over," Kane added.
But federal immigration officers are increasingly active in New York, which could become a flashpoint.

Reassuring the public

At 34, Mamdani is one of New York's youngest mayors and his political resume is short -- he's held office once previously, as a local representative in the State Assembly.
To compensate, he is surrounding himself with seasoned aides, recruited from past mayor's offices and former president Joe Biden's administration.
Mamdani has also already opened dialogue with business leaders, some of whom predicted a massive exodus of wealthy New Yorkers if he won. Real estate sector leaders debunked those claims in recent weeks.
As a defender of Palestinian rights, the mayor -- Muslim and of Indian origin -- will also have to reassure the Jewish community of his inclusive leadership style. 
Recently, one of his hires resigned after it was revealed she had posted antisemitic tweets years ago.

'Cultural figure'

"The mayor of New York is always a cultural figure," Mitchell said.
Mamdani has already reflected some of his generation's cultural tastes with his brief forays into rap music, improv classes in Manhattan, and wearing what the New York Times called "the quintessential entry-level suit for a 30-something striving to be taken seriously."
New Yorkers have also noted his enthusiastic support of his wife, Syrian-born artist Rama Duwaji, with approval.
Her Instagram account has gained more than a million followers since November, according to Social Blade statistics.
And on the cover of The Cut, New York magazine's revered fashion and culture publication, she recently marked her own path -- the hallmark of every young generation of city dwellers striving to make it there.
"At the end of the day, I’m not a politician. I'm here to be a support system for Z and to use the role in the best way that I can as an artist," she said.
pel/sla/ksb/lb/bgs

Global Edition

Myanmar pro-military party claims huge lead in junta-run poll

  • Official results have yet to be posted by Myanmar's Union Election Commission and two more phases are scheduled for January 11 and 25.
  • Myanmar's dominant pro-military party claimed an overwhelming victory in the first phase of the elections, a senior party official told AFP, after democracy watchdogs warned the junta-run poll would entrench military rule.
  • Official results have yet to be posted by Myanmar's Union Election Commission and two more phases are scheduled for January 11 and 25.
Myanmar's dominant pro-military party claimed an overwhelming victory in the first phase of the elections, a senior party official told AFP, after democracy watchdogs warned the junta-run poll would entrench military rule.
The armed forces snatched power in a 2021 coup, but on Sunday opened voting in a phased month-long election they pledge will return power to the people.
"We won 82 lower house seats in townships which have finished counting, out of the total of 102," a senior member of the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) told AFP.
The figure implies that the party -- which many analysts describe as a civilian proxy of the military -- took more than 80 percent of the lower house seats that were put to the vote on Sunday.
It won all eight townships in the capital Naypyidaw, the official added, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to disclose the results.
At the last poll in 2020, the USDP was trounced by Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD), which was dissolved after the coup and did not appear on Sunday's ballots.
The Nobel laureate has been in detention since the putsch, which triggered a civil war.
Campaigners, Western diplomats and the United Nations' rights chief have condemned the vote -- citing a stark crackdown on dissent and a candidate list stacked with military allies.
"It makes sense that the USDP would dominate," said Morgan Michaels, a research fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies think tank.
"The election is not credible," he told AFP. "They rig it ahead of time by banning different parties, making sure that certain people don't turn up to vote, or they do turn up to vote under threat of coercion to vote a certain way."
Official results have yet to be posted by Myanmar's Union Election Commission and two more phases are scheduled for January 11 and 25.
"My view on the election is clear: I don't trust it at all," Yangon resident Min Khant said Monday.
"We have been living under a dictatorship," said the 28-year-old. "Even if they do hold elections, I don't think anything good will come of them because they always lie."
After voting on Sunday, military chief Min Aung Hlaing -- who has ruled by diktat for the past five years -- said the armed forces could be trusted to hand back power to a civilian-led government.
"We guarantee it to be a free and fair election," he told reporters in Naypyidaw. "It's organised by the military, we can't let our name be tarnished."
The coup triggered a civil war as pro-democracy activists formed guerrilla units, fighting alongside ethnic minority armies which have long resisted central rule.
Sunday's election was scheduled to take place in 102 of the country's 330 townships -- the most of the three phases of voting.
But amid the war, the military has acknowledged that elections cannot happen in almost one in five lower house constituencies.
hla-jts/slb/lb

conflict

Russia reopens theatre devastated by siege of Mariupol

  • "Mariupol Drama Theatre has reopened its doors to spectators" after a three year redevelopment, said Denis Puchilin, the pro-Russian leader in the Donetsk region that includes the city.
  • A theatre that became one of the bombed out symbols of a Russian siege of the city of Mariupol in eastern Ukraine in 2022 has reopened after a huge redevelopment, Russian authorities have announced.
  • "Mariupol Drama Theatre has reopened its doors to spectators" after a three year redevelopment, said Denis Puchilin, the pro-Russian leader in the Donetsk region that includes the city.
A theatre that became one of the bombed out symbols of a Russian siege of the city of Mariupol in eastern Ukraine in 2022 has reopened after a huge redevelopment, Russian authorities have announced.
A special ceremony and a show by performers from Mariupol and the Russian city of Saint Petersburg were held on Sunday, with Russian television showing images of the gala event as well as the theatre's rebuilt marble staircase and columns, and a 2.5 tonne crystal chandelier hanging in the auditorium.
Russian forces rolled into Mariupol, a bustling Black Sea coast city, in the first months of its assault in 2022 and imposed a brutal, nearly three month siege that resulted in thousands of deaths -- 8,000 according to Human Rights Watch, and 22,000 according to the city's exiled Ukrainian mmunicipal council.
Amnesty International said at least 12 people were killed in the bombing of the theatre.
The city on the Sea of Azov was devastated and some 300,000 of the pre-conflict population of 540,000 fled. The UN said 90 percent of the buildings were destroyed or damaged in the siege. Russia has since sought to turn Mariupol into a new symbol of prosperity in the parts of Ukraine it controls.
Amnesty International said at least 12 people were killed in the bombing of the theatre in 2022. 
"Mariupol Drama Theatre has reopened its doors to spectators" after a three year redevelopment, said Denis Puchilin, the pro-Russian leader in the Donetsk region that includes the city.
The theatre's "historic image" has been restored with its sculptured facade and "modern equipment of the highest level", he added in comments on Telegram.
The former Russian imperial capital of Saint Petersburg was a major contributor to the restoration, sending workers and architects to Mariupol, according to Saint Petersburg governor Alexander Beglov.
Beglov, who was in the 500 audience on Sunday, called the rebuilding project "a question of honour".
In September 2022, Russia announced the annexation of four Ukrainian regions -- Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia -- even though it does not fully control the areas.
bur/tw/jh

Global Edition

Myanmar pro-military party 'winning' junta-run poll first phase: source

  • The military overturned the results of the last poll in 2020 after Suu Kyi's party, the National League for Democracy, trounced the Union Solidarity and Development Party.
  • Myanmar's dominant pro-military party is "winning a majority" in the first phase of junta-run elections, a party source told AFP Monday, after democracy watchdogs warned the poll would entrench military rule.
  • The military overturned the results of the last poll in 2020 after Suu Kyi's party, the National League for Democracy, trounced the Union Solidarity and Development Party.
Myanmar's dominant pro-military party is "winning a majority" in the first phase of junta-run elections, a party source told AFP Monday, after democracy watchdogs warned the poll would entrench military rule.
The armed forces snatched power in a 2021 coup, but on Sunday opened voting in a phased month-long election they pledge will return power to the people.
The massively popular but dissolved party of democratic figurehead Aung San Suu Kyi did not appear on ballots, and she remains jailed since the military putsch which triggered a civil war.
Campaigners, Western diplomats and the United Nations' rights chief have condemned the vote -- citing a stark crackdown on dissent and a candidate list stacked with military allies.
"The USDP is winning a majority of seats around the country according to different reports," said a party official in the capital Naypyidaw, requesting anonymity because they were not authorised to speak to media.
Official results have yet to be posted by Myanmar's Union Election Commission and there are two more phases scheduled for January 11 and 25.
The military overturned the results of the last poll in 2020 after Suu Kyi's party, the National League for Democracy, trounced the Union Solidarity and Development Party.
The military and USDP then alleged massive voter fraud, claims which international monitors say were unfounded.
But on Sunday military chief Min Aung Hlaing -- who has ruled by diktat for the past five years -- said the armed forces could be trusted to hand back power to a civilian-led government.
"We guarantee it to be a free and fair election," he told reporters after casting his vote in Naypyidaw. "It's organised by the military, we can't let our name be tarnished."
The military's coup triggered a civil war as pro-democracy activists formed guerrilla units, fighting alongside ethnic minority armies which have long resisted central rule.
Sunday's election was scheduled to take place in 102 of the country's 330 townships -- the largest of the three rounds of voting.
But amid the war, the military has acknowledged that elections cannot happen in almost one in five lower house constituencies.
hla-jts/sco/mtp

conflict

Trump says Ukraine deal closer but no talks breakthrough

BY JIM WATSON, WITH SHAUN TANDON IN WASHINGTON AND STANISLAV DOSHCHITSYN IN KYIV

  • "I really believe we're, Mr. President, probably closer than -- far closer than -- ever before with both parties," Trump said with Zelensky at his side in the tea room of his Mar-a-Lago estate.
  • US President Donald Trump said Sunday that a deal was closer than ever to end Russia's invasion of Ukraine but reported no apparent breakthrough on the flashpoint issue of territory after new talks with the warring countries' leaders.
  • "I really believe we're, Mr. President, probably closer than -- far closer than -- ever before with both parties," Trump said with Zelensky at his side in the tea room of his Mar-a-Lago estate.
US President Donald Trump said Sunday that a deal was closer than ever to end Russia's invasion of Ukraine but reported no apparent breakthrough on the flashpoint issue of territory after new talks with the warring countries' leaders.
Trump, who had promised a peace deal on day one of his nearly year-old presidency, said it would become clear within weeks whether it was possible to solve the conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people.
In a pre-New Year's diplomatic sprint, Trump brought to his Florida estate Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who described a peace plan as 95 percent complete despite Russia unleashing major new attacks a day before on Kyiv's residential areas.
Much like when Zelensky last met Trump in October, Russian President Vladimir Putin also spoke shortly beforehand by telephone with the US leader, who immediately insisted that Moscow was "serious" about peace despite the assault.
"I really believe we're, Mr. President, probably closer than -- far closer than -- ever before with both parties," Trump said with Zelensky at his side in the tea room of his Mar-a-Lago estate.
"Everybody wants it ended," Trump said.
Zelensky looked on politely, only betraying the slightest look of disbelief as Trump told him that Putin, who ordered the February 2022 invasion that has included major attacks on infrastructure, "wants to see Ukraine succeed."
"President Putin was very generous in his feeling toward Ukraine succeeding, including supplying energy, electricity and other things at very low prices," Trump said.
Zelensky has been careful not to annoy Trump, mindful of his disastrous White House meeting on February 28 where he pushed back and saw the United States briefly snap off key support.
Zelensky also nodded politely as Trump insisted the Ukrainians enjoyed the club's food but stayed stoic as Trump digressed into familiar grievances about his predecessor Joe Biden.

Call to Europeans

After their talks, Zelensky and Trump spoke jointly by telephone with key European leaders, who have been particularly alarmed about any decisions that would embolden Russia.
Zelensky said that he and European leaders could return jointly for talks with Trump in Washington in January.
French President Emmanuel Macron also announced a new meeting of Kyiv's allies in early January in Paris.
Trump acknowledged continued disagreement between Kyiv and Moscow on territory. The current plan, revised after weeks of intense US-Ukrainian negotiations, would stop the war at the current frontlines in the eastern Donbas region and set up a demilitarized area, while Russia has long demanded territorial concessions.
"It's unresolved, but it's getting a lot closer. That's a very tough issue, but one that I think will get resolved," Trump said.
Trump offered to address the Ukrainian parliament to promote the plan  -- an idea, however unlikely, that Zelensky quickly welcomed.
Zelensky's openness to the revised US plan marks Kyiv's most explicit acknowledgement yet of possible territorial concessions, although Ukrainians would need to vote in a referendum.
By contrast, Russia has shown no signs of compromise, as it sees hope in the grinding gains it has made over four years against tough Ukrainian defenses.
The Kremlin in its readout of talks between Putin and Trump called on Kyiv to make a "bold and responsible decision" and immediately withdraw troops from Donbas and cast European leaders as the impediment to Trump.
Trump and Putin agree that a "temporary ceasefire" would "merely prolong the conflict and risk a renewed escalation on the battlefield," Kremlin diplomatic advisor Yuri Ushakov said.
He said that Trump and Putin would speak again "promptly" after the Zelensky meeting, although there was no immediate news of a second call.

'90 percent' agreed by Ukraine

Trump's advisors have previously floated the idea of offering NATO-like security guarantees to Ukraine, meaning in theory that the alliance's members would respond militarily if Russia attacks again.
Zelensky said that the peace framework laid out by Trump was "90 percent agreed" and that "US-Ukraine security guarantees: 100 percent agreed."
Russia had adamantly rejected any entrance of the former Soviet republic into NATO.
bur/sct/sla