film

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

jihadists

Turkey steps up anti-IS raids, arresting 125 suspects

  • "We captured 125 Daesh suspects in simultaneous operations carried out in 25 provinces this morning," Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya wrote on X, using the Arabic acronym for IS. On December 25, security forces arrested 115 IS suspects following an intelligence warning that the extremist group was "planning attacks during Christmas and New Year celebrations", the Istanbul's prosecutor's office said. 
  • Turkey on Wednesday detained another 125 Islamic State group suspects in a string of nationwide raids, a minister said, following warnings that IS militants planned attacks over the holidays. 
  • "We captured 125 Daesh suspects in simultaneous operations carried out in 25 provinces this morning," Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya wrote on X, using the Arabic acronym for IS. On December 25, security forces arrested 115 IS suspects following an intelligence warning that the extremist group was "planning attacks during Christmas and New Year celebrations", the Istanbul's prosecutor's office said. 
Turkey on Wednesday detained another 125 Islamic State group suspects in a string of nationwide raids, a minister said, following warnings that IS militants planned attacks over the holidays. 
Nearly 600 people have now been detained in anti-IS raids over the past week. 
"We captured 125 Daesh suspects in simultaneous operations carried out in 25 provinces this morning," Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya wrote on X, using the Arabic acronym for IS.
On December 25, security forces arrested 115 IS suspects following an intelligence warning that the extremist group was "planning attacks during Christmas and New Year celebrations", the Istanbul's prosecutor's office said. 
During another nationwide arrest operation on Monday, IS militants opened fire on police in the northwestern town of Yalova, killing three officers and wounding nine others, the interior minister said. 
Six IS militants were also killed in the hours-long gun battle in the town on the shores of the Sea of Marmara about 90 kilometres (55 miles) southeast of Istanbul.
A day later, another 357 suspects with ties to IS were arrested in 21 different provinces, the minister said. 
Ahead of the New Year celebrations, the Istanbul governor's office said security had been stepped up in Turkey's largest city where more than 50,000 police and other officials would be on duty to ensure "a peaceful and safe start to 2026". 
Extensive security measures were in place at airports, shopping malls, on public transport, and in squares and other entertainment venues where New Year celebrations were take place, it said in a statement.

Travel warnings

Ahead of the festivities, Germany and Australia issued travel warnings for Turkey, urging their nationals to exercise caution due to "the threat of terrorism". 
"The period before New Year's Eve is a particularly symbolic time for terrorist attacks," Germany's foreign ministry said. 
"Exercise particular caution at the turn of the year 2025/2026."
Australia urged its nationals to "be alert to threats, especially in crowded public settings" because "there is an increased risk of terrorist attacks around large gatherings, including New Year celebrations."
Turkey's anti-IS raids began just days after its intelligence agency captured a Turkish national who holds a senior IS role in a raid on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, state news agency Anadolu reported on December 22. 
The suspect, Mehmet Goren, had allegedly been tasked with organising suicide attacks in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Turkey and Europe. 
Islamic State has staged several major attacks in Europe over the past decade, including one in Istanbul on New Year's Eve. 
In the early hours of January 1, 2017, an IS gunman opened fire inside a nightclub on the banks of the Bosphorus, killing 39 people, mostly foreigners. 
The Uzbek gunman was captured and sentenced to 40 life jail sentences. 
In his comments, Yerlikaya warned anyone seeking to attack Turkey, saying they would "face the might of our state and the unity of our nation".
fo-hmw/st

social

France plans social media ban for children under 15

  • The French upper house, the Senate, this month backed an initiative for the protection of teenagers from excessive screen time and social media access, which includes a requirement for parental authorisation for children between 13 and 16 to register with social media sites.
  • France will make a fresh attempt to protect children from excessive screen time, proposing a ban on social media access for children under 15 by next September, according to a draft law seen by AFP. The initiative is backed by President Emmanuel Macron, who said earlier this month that parliament should start debating such a proposal in January.
  • The French upper house, the Senate, this month backed an initiative for the protection of teenagers from excessive screen time and social media access, which includes a requirement for parental authorisation for children between 13 and 16 to register with social media sites.
France will make a fresh attempt to protect children from excessive screen time, proposing a ban on social media access for children under 15 by next September, according to a draft law seen by AFP.
The initiative is backed by President Emmanuel Macron, who said earlier this month that parliament should start debating such a proposal in January. Australia this month imposed a social media ban on under 16s, in a world first.  
"Many studies and reports now confirm the various risks caused by excessive use of digital screens by adolescents," the French draft says.
Chidren with unfettered online access were exposed to "inappropriate content" and could suffer from cyber-harassment or experience changes to their sleep patterns, the government said.
The draft law has two articles. One would make illegal "the provision by an online platform of an online social media service to a minor under 15". The second calls for a ban of mobile phone use in secondary schools.
Macron has said that the digital protection of minors is a priority for his government, but enforcement and compliance with international law have been issues.
An ban on mobile phone use in pre-schools and middle-schools came into force in 2018, but is rarely enforced.
France meanwhile ran foul of European Union rules with a law calling for a "digital legal age" of 15, passed in 2023, that has since been blocked.
The French upper house, the Senate, this month backed an initiative for the protection of teenagers from excessive screen time and social media access, which includes a requirement for parental authorisation for children between 13 and 16 to register with social media sites.
The Senate's proposal has been submitted to the National Assembly which would need to approve the text before it can become law.
slb-kf/jh

protest

Iran government building attacked as top prosecutor responds to protests

  • The attack came after the country's prosecutor general said the protestor's economic concerns were legitimate, but warned action would be taken if necessary.
  • A government building in southern Iran was attacked on Wednesday, authorities said, as the country's top prosecutor warned of a "decisive response" to any attempt to create instability after days of economic protests.
  • The attack came after the country's prosecutor general said the protestor's economic concerns were legitimate, but warned action would be taken if necessary.
A government building in southern Iran was attacked on Wednesday, authorities said, as the country's top prosecutor warned of a "decisive response" to any attempt to create instability after days of economic protests.
Spontaneous protests, driven by dissatisfaction at Iran's economic stagnation, began on Sunday in Tehran's largest mobile phone market, where shopkeepers shuttered their businesses, and have since drawn in students across the country.
"A portion of the provincial governors' office door and its glass were destroyed in an attack by a number of people," said Hamed Ostovar, the head of the judiciary in the city of Fasa, as quoted by the justice ministry's Mizan agency, without specifying how the attack was carried out.
The attack came after the country's prosecutor general said the protestor's economic concerns were legitimate, but warned action would be taken if necessary.
"Peaceful livelihood protests are part of social and understandable realities," Mohammad Movahedi-Azad told state media.
"Any attempt to turn economic protests into a tool of insecurity, destruction of public property, or implementation of externally-designed scenarios will inevitably be met with a legal, proportionate and decisive response."
His comments came days after the Mossad intelligence agency of Iran's arch-foe Israel posted on social media that it was "with you on the ground" in a message to Iranian protesters.
Posting on its Persian-language X account, the spy agency encouraged Iranians to "go out into the streets together". 
Iran, which does not recognise Israel, has long accused it of conducting sabotage operations against its nuclear facilities and assassinating its scientists.

Fighting for food

The rallies have since built momentum, with students at 10 universities in the capital and in other cities, including Iran's most prestigious institutions, joining in on Tuesday.
The vice-president of the University of Tehran, Mohammad Reza Taghidokt, told the Iranian Students' News Agency that four students were arrested on Tuesday and released overnight.
Nevertheless, the protests remain limited in number and concentrated in central Tehran, with shops elsewhere in the sprawling metropolis of 10 million people unaffected.
Before the attack in Fasa, Iranian media had not reported any new protests on Wednesday.
Iran's economy has been in the doldrums for years, with heavy US and international sanctions over Tehran's nuclear programme weighing heavily on it.
The currency, the rial, has also plunged in recent months, losing more than a third of its value against the US dollar since last year.
Some basic necessities are becoming unaffordable for a portion of the population, which has been suffering from international sanctions against Iran for decades. 
"Everyone here is fighting for a scrap of bread," said one protester interviewed Tuesday by the daily newspaper Etemad.

Last-minute bank holiday

Schools, banks and public institutions were closed on Wednesday for a bank holiday, with officials saying the directive was due to the cold weather and the need to save energy. 
The capital's prestigious Beheshti and Allameh Tabataba'i universities announced that classes would be held online throughout next week for the same reason, the state-run IRNA news agency reported.
The authorities have not linked the bank holiday to the protests. Tehran is experiencing daytime temperatures in the low single digits, which is not unusual for the time of year.
Weekends in Iran begin on Thursdays, while this Saturday marks a long-standing national holiday.
Iran is no stranger to nationwide protests, but the latest demonstrations have not come close to the last major outbreak in 2022 triggered by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a young Iranian woman. 
Her death in custody after being arrested for allegedly violating the strict dress code for women sparked a wave of anger across the country.
Several hundred people were killed, including dozens of members of the security forces.
There were also widespread protests in 2019, sparked by a sharp increase in the price of petrol.
bur/dcp/jfx/dc

defense

China says live-fire drills around Taiwan 'completed successfully'

  • China said on Tuesday 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 "successfully completed" military drills around Taiwan that included live-fire exercises aimed at simulating a blockade of key ports and assaults on maritime targets, its military said on Wednesday.
  • China said on Tuesday 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 "successfully completed" military drills around Taiwan that included live-fire exercises aimed at simulating a blockade of key ports and assaults on maritime targets, its military said on Wednesday.
Beijing launched missiles and deployed dozens of fighter jets, navy ships and coastguard vessels on Monday and Tuesday around Taiwan's main island.
Taipei slammed the war games as "highly provocative and reckless" and said they failed to impose a blockade of the self-ruled island.
China's Communist Party has never ruled democratic Taiwan, but Beijing claims the island of 23 million people is part of its territory and has threatened to use force to annex it.
"The reunification of our motherland, a trend of the times, is unstoppable," Chinese President Xi Jinping said in his 2026 New Year message from Beijing later on Wednesday, state news agency Xinhua reported.
A spokesperson for the Eastern Theater Command of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) said it had "successfully completed" the drills, code-named "Justice Mission 2025".
Command spokesperson Senior Captain Li Xi said Chinese troops would keep training to "resolutely thwart the attempts of 'Taiwan Independence' separatists and external intervention".
The Taiwanese coastguard said earlier that Chinese warships and coastguard vessels were withdrawing from surrounding waters.
Taiwan's coastguard was maintaining a deployment of 11 ships at sea because China Coast Guard vessels hadn't "completely left the area yet" and "we can't let our guard down", its deputy director-general Hsieh Ching-chin told AFP earlier on Wednesday.
Taiwan's defence ministry said in a later statement it was adjusting its plans to maintain an "appropriate response mechanism".
Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te warned on Wednesday that Chinese drills targeting the island "are not an isolated incident" and pose "significant risks" to the region.
"China's authoritarian expansion and escalating coercion pose significant risks to regional stability and also impact global shipping, trade and peace," he said at a ceremony for military officers in Taipei.
China's drills followed 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.

International criticism

There has been a chorus of international criticism of China's drills.
Japan said on Wednesday that China's military exercises "increase tensions" across the Taiwan Strait, and that it had expressed its "concerns" to Beijing.
Australia's foreign ministry condemned the "destabilising" drills, saying it had raised concerns with its Beijing counterparts.
The Philippines' defence department also said it was "deeply concerned" over drills that threatened to "undermine regional peace and stability".
Beijing said criticism of its exercises was "irresponsible".
"These countries and institutions are turning a blind eye to the separatist forces in Taiwan attempting to achieve independence through military means," foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian told a news briefing on Wednesday.
"Yet, they are making irresponsible criticisms of China's necessary and just actions to defend its national sovereignty and territorial integrity, distorting facts and confusing right and wrong, which is utterly hypocritical."
China said on Tuesday 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 its armed forces said the exercises in waters to the north and south of Taiwan "tested capabilities of sea-air coordination and integrated blockade and control".
The drills were held as US ambassador to China David Perdue met with his counterparts from Australia, India and Japan, which are part of the Quad group that is seen as a counter to Beijing.
"The Quad is a force for good working to maintain a free and open Indopacific," Perdue said in a post on X on Tuesday, alongside a photo of the four ambassadors in Beijing.
burs-aw-mya/pbt

Global Edition

World begins to welcome 2026 after a year of Trump, truces and turmoil

  • More than two million people are expected to pack Brazil's lively Copacabana Beach for what authorities have called the world's biggest New Year's Eve party.
  • New Year's Eve revellers toasted the end of 2025 on Wednesday, waving goodbye to 12 months packed with Trump tariffs, a Gaza truce and vain hopes for peace in Ukraine.
  • More than two million people are expected to pack Brazil's lively Copacabana Beach for what authorities have called the world's biggest New Year's Eve party.
New Year's Eve revellers toasted the end of 2025 on Wednesday, waving goodbye to 12 months packed with Trump tariffs, a Gaza truce and vain hopes for peace in Ukraine.
It was one of the warmest years on record, the stifling heat stoking wildfires in Europe, droughts in Africa and deadly rains across Southeast Asia.
There was a sombre tinge to celebrations in Australia's harbour city Sydney, the self-proclaimed "New Year's capital of the world".
Barely two weeks have passed since a father and son allegedly opened fire on a Jewish festival at Bondi Beach, killing 15 people in the nation's deadliest mass shooting for almost 30 years.
Parties paused for a minute of silence at 11:00 pm (1200 GMT) as the famed Sydney Harbour Bridge was bathed in white light to symbolise peace.
"Right now, the joy that we usually feel at the start of a new year is tempered by the sadness of the old," Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in a video message.
Hundreds of thousands of spectators lined Sydney's foreshore, with nine tonnes of fireworks set off from the stroke of midnight.
Residents and tourists gathered by the city's harbour and boats dotted the water to secure the best viewing spots near the Sydney Opera House. 
"The fireworks have always been on my bucket list and I'm so happy to be here," said Susana Suisuikli, an English tourist.  
Security was tighter than usual, with squads of heavily armed police patrolling the crowds.
Pacific nations including Kiribati and New Zealand were the first to see in the new year, kicking off a chain of celebrations stretching from glitzy New York to the Hogmanay festival on the chilly streets of Scotland.
More than two million people are expected to pack Brazil's lively Copacabana Beach for what authorities have called the world's biggest New Year's Eve party.
In Hong Kong, a major New Year fireworks display planned for Victoria Harbour was cancelled to pay homage to 161 people killed in a housing estate fire in November.

Truce and tariffs

Labubu dolls became a worldwide craze in 2025, thieves plundered the Louvre in a daring heist, and K-pop heartthrobs BTS made their long-awaited return.
The world lost pioneering zoologist Jane Goodall, the Vatican chose a new pope and the assassination of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk laid bare America's deep political divisions.
Donald Trump returned to the White House in January, launching a tariff blitz that sent global markets into meltdown.
Trump used his Truth Social platform to lash out at his sliding approval ratings ahead of 2026 midterm elections.
"Isn't it nice to have a STRONG BORDER, No Inflation, a powerful Military, and great Economy??? Happy New Year!" he wrote.
But many expect tough times to continue in 2026.
"The economic situation is also very dire, and I'm afraid I'll be left without income," said Ines Rodriguez, 50, a merchant in Mexico City.
After two years of war that left much of the Gaza Strip in ruins, US pressure helped land a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in October.
No one is sure how long the break in hostilities will hold, with each side already accusing the other of flagrant violations.
Hamas militants stormed into southern Israel on October 7, 2023, resulting in the deaths of more than 1,200 people, most of them civilians.
Israel's retaliatory assault on Gaza has killed more than 70,000, also mostly civilians, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory, a figure the UN deems credible.
"We bid farewell to 2025 with deep sorrow and grief," said Gaza City resident Shireen Al-Kayali. "We lost a lot of people and our possessions. We lived a difficult and harsh life, displaced from one city to another, under bombardment and in terror."
World leaders including China's Xi Jinping and Russia's Vladimir Putin began exchanging New Year greetings.
Xi said he was "ready to maintain close exchanges with Putin to jointly push for continuous new progress in bilateral ties", state news agency Xinhua said on Wednesday.
The war in Ukraine -- sparked by Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022 -- grinds towards its four-year anniversary in February with no temporary ceasefire reached in the final days of 2025 despite a renewed burst of diplomacy.

Sports, space and AI

The coming 12 months promise to be full of sports, space and questions over artificial intelligence.
NASA's Artemis II mission, backed by Elon Musk, will launch a crewed spacecraft to circle the moon during a 10-day test flight, more than 50 years since the last Apollo lunar mission.
After years of unbridled enthusiasm, AI is facing scrutiny and nervous investors are questioning whether the boom might now resemble a market bubble.
Athletes will gather on Italy's famed Dolomites to hit the slopes for the Winter Olympics.
And for a few weeks in June and July, nations will come together for the biggest football World Cup in history in venues across the United States, Mexico and Canada.
sft/ceg/ceg/pbt

conflict

Israel to ban 37 aid groups operating in Gaza

  • For Israel, it says the new regulation aims to prevent bodies it accuses of supporting terrorism from operating in the Palestinian territories. 
  • Israel has said 37 aid organisations will be banned from operating in Gaza from Thursday unless they comply with guidelines requiring detailed information on Palestinian staff, drawing criticism from the United Nations and the European Union.
  • For Israel, it says the new regulation aims to prevent bodies it accuses of supporting terrorism from operating in the Palestinian territories. 
Israel has said 37 aid organisations will be banned from operating in Gaza from Thursday unless they comply with guidelines requiring detailed information on Palestinian staff, drawing criticism from the United Nations and the European Union.
Several NGOs have told AFP the new rules will have a major impact on food and medical shipments to Gaza, at a time when humanitarian organisations say the amount of aid getting in is inadequate to the devastated territory's needs.
Israel's deadline for NGOs to provide the details expires at midnight on Wednesday.
"They refuse to provide lists of their Palestinian employees because they know, just as we know, that some of them are involved in terrorism or linked to Hamas," spokesman for the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism, Gilad Zwick told AFP, naming 37 NGOs that had so far failed to meet the new requirements.
"I highly doubt that what they haven't done for 10 months, they will suddenly do in less than 12 hours," Zwick said. "We certainly won't accept any cooperation that is just for show, simply to get an extension."
The ministry had said in a statement on Wednesday that the move was part of Israel's decision to "strengthen and update" regulations governing the activities of international NGOs in the Palestinian territory.
A fragile ceasefire has been in place in Gaza since October, following a deadly war waged by Israel in response to Hamas's unprecedented attack on Israeli territory on October 7, 2023. 
For Israel, it says the new regulation aims to prevent bodies it accuses of supporting terrorism from operating in the Palestinian territories. 
On Tuesday, Israel specified that "acts of de-legitimising Israel" or denial of events surrounding Hamas' October 7 attack would be "grounds for license withdrawal".
Israel has singled out international medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF), alleging that it had two employees who were members of Palestinian militant groups Islamic Jihad and Hamas.
Apart from MSF, some of the 37 NGOs to be hit with the ban are the Norwegian Refugee Council, World Vision International, CARE and Oxfam, according to the list given by Zwick.

'Guarantee access'

On Wednesday, the United Nations rights chief Volker Turk described Israel's decision as "outrageous", calling on states to urgently insist Israel shift course.
"Israel's suspension of numerous aid agencies from Gaza is outrageous," he said in a statement, warning that "such arbitrary suspensions make an already intolerable situation even worse for the people of Gaza".
The European Union also warned that Israel's decision would block "life-saving" assistance from reaching Gazans.
"The EU has been clear: the NGO registration law cannot be implemented in its current form," EU humanitarian chief Hadja Lahbib posted on X.
"IHL (international humanitarian law) leaves no room for doubt: aid must reach those in need," Lahbib wrote.
On Tuesday, the foreign ministers of ten countries, including France and the United Kingdom, had already urged Israel to "guarantee access" to aid in the Gaza Strip, where they said the humanitarian situation remains "catastrophic." 
In a territory with 2.2 million inhabitants, "1.3 million people still require urgent shelter support," the ministers of Britain, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Japan, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland said.
While a deal for a ceasefire that started on October 10 stipulated the entry of 600 trucks per day, only 100 to 300 are carrying humanitarian aid, according to NGOs and the United Nations.
COGAT, the Israeli defence ministry body responsible for Palestinian civilian affairs, said last week that on average 4,200 aid trucks enter Gaza weekly, which corresponds to around 600 daily.
yif-jd/jfx/dc

eurozone

Bulgaria takes hesitant step into the eurozone

BY ROSSEN BOSSEV

  • Amid the political instability, any problems with euro adoption would be seized on by anti-EU politicians, said Boryana Dimitrova of the Alpha Research polling institute.
  • Bulgaria will become the 21st country to switch to the euro when it enters the New Year on Thursday, amid concerns the move could usher in higher prices and add to political instability rattling the Balkan country.
  • Amid the political instability, any problems with euro adoption would be seized on by anti-EU politicians, said Boryana Dimitrova of the Alpha Research polling institute.
Bulgaria will become the 21st country to switch to the euro when it enters the New Year on Thursday, amid concerns the move could usher in higher prices and add to political instability rattling the Balkan country.
When midnight strikes on Wednesday, Bulgaria will give up the lev currency, which has been in use since the late 19th century.
While successive governments in the country of 6.4 million people have advocated joining the euro, hoping that it will boost the economy of the European Union's poorest member, reinforce ties to the West and protect against Russia's influence. Some have opposed the switch however.
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said Wednesday that Bulgaria's move into the eurozone marked "an important milestone for the country, for the history of the euro, and for the EU as a whole."
The euro will bring "practical benefits to Bulgarian citizens and businesses," she added. 
"It will make travelling and living abroad easier, boost the transparency and competitiveness of markets, and facilitate trade."
Bulgaria, which joined the EU in 2007, faces unique challenges however, including anti-corruption protests that recently swept a conservative-led government from office, leaving the country on the verge of its eighth election in five years.  
Outgoing Prime Minister Rossen Jeliazkov still said on Tuesday that his cabinet had accomplished a milestone.   
"Bulgaria is ending the year with a gross domestic product of 113 billion euros (nearly $132.75 billion) and economic growth of more than three percent, which places us among the top five countries in the EU," he said.
He added that inflation in the Black Sea country, which hovers around 3.6 percent, was "linked to increased purchasing power" and a less corrupt economy, and not to the looming euro switch.

Cheers, fears and queues

Some Bulgarians worry the introduction of the euro could lead to price increases.
Those fears were fuelled in part by a protest campaign that emerged this year to "keep the Bulgarian lev", which tapped into a generally negative view of the single currency among much of the population.
According to the National Statistical Institute, food prices rose by five percent year-on-year in November, more than double the eurozone average.
"Unfortunately, prices no longer correspond to those in levs (...) 40 levs is not 20 but 30 euros for certain products," pastry shop owner Turgut Ismail, 33, told AFP, saying that prices have already begun surging.
Some people, including business owners, have complained that it has been difficult to get their hands on euros, with shopkeepers saying they haven't received the euro starter packages they ordered.
Banks said there could be some disruption at cash machines in the hours before the switch. On Tuesday, people queued outside the Bulgarian National Bank and several currency exchange offices in the capital Sofia to obtain euros.
Elena Shemtova, 37, who owns a small gallery and jewellery shop in Sofia, said she is optimistic.
"We will experience difficulties at first, there will be problems with giving change, but within a month we will have gotten used to it," she told AFP.
According to the latest Eurobarometer survey, 49 percent of Bulgarians are against the single currency.
Amid the political instability, any problems with euro adoption would be seized on by anti-EU politicians, said Boryana Dimitrova of the Alpha Research polling institute.
"There will be challenges, but we are counting on the tolerance and understanding of both citizens and businesses," said Jeliazkov.
He stressed that introducing the euro will have "a positive long-term effect on the Bulgarian economy and on the environment in which the country is developing".
The euro was first rolled out in 12 countries on January 1, 2002. Croatia was the last to join in January 2023.
Bulgaria's accession will bring the number of Europeans using the euro to more than 350 million.
rb-oaa-kym/tw/rl

Zia

Bangladesh mourns ex-PM Khaleda Zia with state funeral

BY SHEIKH SABIHA ALAM

  • The interim government, led by Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus, declared three days of national mourning and an elaborate state funeral.
  • Bangladesh bid farewell on Wednesday to former prime minister Khaleda Zia in a state funeral that drew vast crowds mourning a towering leader whose career defined the country's politics for decades.
  • The interim government, led by Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus, declared three days of national mourning and an elaborate state funeral.
Bangladesh bid farewell on Wednesday to former prime minister Khaleda Zia in a state funeral that drew vast crowds mourning a towering leader whose career defined the country's politics for decades.
Zia, the first woman to serve as prime minister in the South Asian nation of 170 million people, died on Tuesday aged 80.
Flags were flown at half-mast and thousands of security officers lined roads as her body was carried through the streets of the capital Dhaka by a vehicle in the colours of the national flag.
A sea of mourners gathered outside parliament and packed streets leading to it, many waving national flags as well as those of her Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), before prayers were held over her coffin.
Retired government official Minhaz Uddin, 70, said he had never voted for Zia, but came to honour the three-time prime minister.
"I came here with my grandson, just to say goodbye to a veteran politician whose contributions will always be remembered," he said.
"Khaleda Zia has been an inspiration," mourner Sharmina Siraj told AFP, adding that "it is difficult to imagine women in leadership positions anytime soon".
The 40-year-old mother of two said stipends introduced by Zia to support girls' education "had a huge impact on the lives of our girls".

'Legacy lives on'

Despite years of ill health and imprisonment, Zia had vowed to campaign in elections set for February 12 -- the first vote since a mass uprising toppled her arch-rival Sheikh Hasina in 2024.
Zia's BNP is widely considered a frontrunner, and her son Tarique Rahman, 60, who returned to Bangladesh last week after 17 years in exile, is seen as a potential prime minister if they win a majority.
"She is no more, but her legacy lives on -- and so does the BNP," said Jenny Parvez, 37, who travelled for several hours with her family to watch the funeral cortege pass.
The interim government, led by Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus, declared three days of national mourning and an elaborate state funeral.
Yunus said Bangladesh had "lost a great guardian".
Zia's body was then interred alongside her late husband, Ziaur Rahman, who was assassinated in 1981 during his time as president.
Leaders and members of the armed forces laid wreaths, and a bugle sounded as the burial took place. 

'Unbreakable'

Tarique Rahman said in a statement that "the country mourns the loss of a guiding presence that shaped its democratic aspirations".
His mother, he added, "endured repeated arrests, denial of medical care, and relentless persecution", but "her resilience... was unbreakable."
Suffering from a raft of health issues, Zia was rushed to hospital in late November, where her condition gradually deteriorated despite treatment.
Nevertheless, hours before her death, party workers had on Monday submitted nomination papers on her behalf for three constituencies for next year's polls. 
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.
New Delhi's Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar is attending -- the most senior visit by an Indian official since the overthrow of Hasina. He said he had met with Tarique Rahman and offered India's "deepest condolences".
Hasina, 78, sentenced to death in absentia in November for crimes against humanity, remains in hiding in her old ally India.
Zia was jailed for corruption in 2018 under Hasina's government, which also blocked her from travelling abroad for medical treatment.
Zia was released in 2024, shortly after Hasina was forced from power.
"I pray for the eternal peace and forgiveness of Begum Khaleda Zia's soul," Hasina said, in a statement shared on social media by her now-banned Awami League party.
sa/pjm/ceg

conflict

Hoping for better year ahead, Gazans bid farewell to 'nightmare' of 2025

BY YOUSSEF HASSOUNA

  • "We hope that this nightmare will end in 2026 ...
  • As 2025 draws to a close, Palestinians in Gaza are marking the new year not with celebration, but with exhaustion, grief and a fragile hope that their "endless nightmare" might finally end.
  • "We hope that this nightmare will end in 2026 ...
As 2025 draws to a close, Palestinians in Gaza are marking the new year not with celebration, but with exhaustion, grief and a fragile hope that their "endless nightmare" might finally end.
For residents of the battered territory, daily life is a struggle for survival.
Much of Gaza's infrastructure lies in ruins, electricity remains scarce and hundreds of thousands of people live in makeshift tents after being repeatedly displaced by the two years of fighting that began with Hamas's attack on Israel in October 2023.
"We in the Gaza Strip are living in an endless nightmare," said Hanaa Abu Amra, a displaced woman in her thirties living in Gaza City.
"We hope that this nightmare will end in 2026 ...The least we can ask for is a normal life-- to see electricity restored, the streets return to normal and to walk without tents lining the roads," she said.
Across Gaza, a territory of more than two million people, scenes of hardship are commonplace.
Children queue with plastic containers to collect water, while rows of tents stretch across streets and open spaces, sheltering families who have lost their homes.
What were once bustling neighbourhoods now bear the scars of bombardment, with daily activity reduced to the bare essentials.
For many, the end of the year is a moment to mourn as much as to hope.
In Gaza City, a teenager painted "2026" on his tent, while an AFP journalist observed a local artist sculpting the same in sand in Deir el-Balah, in central Gaza. 
The outgoing year brought relentless loss and fear, said Shireen Al-Kayali.
"We bid farewell to 2025 with deep sorrow and grief," she said.
"We lost a lot of people and our possessions. We lived a difficult and harsh life, displaced from one city to another, under bombardment and in terror."

Hope for 2026

Her experience reflects that of countless Gazans who have been forced to flee repeatedly, often with little warning, taking with them only what they could carry.
Entire families have been uprooted, livelihoods destroyed, and communities fragmented as the war dragged on for two years.
Despite the devastation, some residents cling to the belief that the new year might bring an end to the fighting and a chance to rebuild.
For many Gazans, hope has become an act of resilience, particularly after the truce that came into effect on October 10 and has largely halted the fighting.
"We still hope for a better life in the new year, and I call on the free world to help our oppressed people so we can regain our lives," said Khaled Abdel Majid, 50, who lives in a tent in Jabalia camp.
Faten al-Hindawi hoped the truce would finally end the war.
"We will bid farewell to 2025, leaving behind its pain, and we hope that 2026 will be a year of hope, prayer, determination and success stories."
Such hopes are shared widely across Gaza, even as conditions on the ground remain dire.
Humanitarian agencies have warned that shortages of food, clean water and medical supplies persist, while winter conditions are worsening life in overcrowded displacement camps. 
Amid the rubble and the tents, many Gazans say their aspirations are modest: safety, stability and dignity.
"I hope the reconstruction of Gaza begins in 2026. Gaza was beautiful, and we hope it returns to being beautiful again."
bur-az-jd/dcp

gender

Japanese women MPs want more seats, the porcelain kind

BY HIROSHI HIYAMA

  • Although the number of women politicians rose at the last election -- and despite Takaichi becoming the first female prime minister in October -- Japanese politics remains massively male-dominated.
  • Nearly 60 women lawmakers in Japan, including Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, have submitted a petition calling for more toilets in the parliament building to match their improved representation.
  • Although the number of women politicians rose at the last election -- and despite Takaichi becoming the first female prime minister in October -- Japanese politics remains massively male-dominated.
Nearly 60 women lawmakers in Japan, including Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, have submitted a petition calling for more toilets in the parliament building to match their improved representation.
Although the number of women politicians rose at the last election -- and despite Takaichi becoming the first female prime minister in October -- Japanese politics remains massively male-dominated.
This is reflected by there being only one lavatory containing two cubicles near the Diet's main plenary session hall for the 73 women elected to the lower house, according to the petition.
"Before plenary sessions start, truly so many women lawmakers have to form long queues in front of the restroom," said Yasuko Komiyama from the opposition Constitutional Democratic Party.
She was speaking after submitting the cross-party appeal signed by 58 women to Yasukazu Hamada, the chair of the lower house committee on rules and administration, earlier this month.
The Diet building was finished in 1936, nearly a decade before women got the vote in December 1945 following Japan's defeat in World War II.
The entire lower house building has 12 men's toilets with 67 stalls and nine women's facilities with a total of 22 cubicles, according to the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper.
Japan ranked 118 out of 148 this year in the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Report. Women are also grossly under-represented in business and the media.
In elections, women candidates say that they often have to deal with sexist jibes, including being told that they should be at home looking after children.
In the last election in 2024, 73 women were elected to the 465-seat lower house -- one has since left -- up from 45 in the previous parliament. There are 74 women in the 248-seat upper house. 
The government's stated target is to have women occupy at least 30 percent of the legislative seats.
Takaichi, an admirer of former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher, said before becoming premier that she wanted "Nordic" levels of gender balance in her cabinet.
But, in the end, she appointed just two other women to her 19-strong cabinet.
Takaichi, 64, has said she hopes to raise awareness about women's health struggles and has spoken candidly about her own experience with menopause.
But she is still seen as socially conservative.
She opposes revising a 19th-century law requiring married couples to share the same surname, and wants the imperial family to retain male-only succession.
The increasing demand for women's toilets can be seen as a sign of progress for Japan although it also reflects the nation's failure to achieve gender equality, Komiyama said.
"In a way, this symbolises how the number of female lawmakers has increased," Komiyama told reporters, according to her party's website, adding that she hoped for more equality in other areas of life.
hih/stu/mtp

Global Edition

Guinea junta chief Doumbouya elected president: election commission

BY MALICK ROKHY BA

  • In September 2021, Doumbouya led a coup to topple Guinea's first freely elected president, Alpha Conde.
  • Guinea's junta chief Mamady Doumbouya, who had pledged not to run for office after seizing power four years ago, has been elected president after securing a sweeping majority of the vote, according to initial results by the country's election commission published on Tuesday.
  • In September 2021, Doumbouya led a coup to topple Guinea's first freely elected president, Alpha Conde.
Guinea's junta chief Mamady Doumbouya, who had pledged not to run for office after seizing power four years ago, has been elected president after securing a sweeping majority of the vote, according to initial results by the country's election commission published on Tuesday.
Doumbouya, 41, faced eight rivals for the presidency but the main opposition leaders were barred from running and had urged a boycott of the vote held over the weekend.
In standing, the general reneged on his initial vow not to run for office and to hand the mineral-rich but poor west African nation back to civilian rule by the end of 2024.
He secured 86.72 percent of the first-round vote, according to the General Directorate of Elections, well over the threshold that would trigger a runoff vote.
Voter turnout stood at 80.95 percent, according to Djenabou Toure, head of the General Directorate of Elections.
Doumbouya had placed well ahead in districts of the capital Conakry, often winning more than 80 percent, according to official partial results read out by Toure earlier on RTG public television.
He had a similar lead in several other areas, including Coyah, a town near Conakry, and in other parts of the country, such as Boffa and Fria in the west, Gaoual in the northwest, northern Koundara and Labe, and Nzerekore in the southeast.
However, a citizens' movement calling for the return of civilian rule questioned the figure.
"A huge majority of Guineans chose to boycott the electoral charade," the National Front for the Defence of the Constitution said in a statement Monday.
In September 2021, Doumbouya led a coup to topple Guinea's first freely elected president, Alpha Conde.
He has cracked down on civil liberties and banned protests, while opponents have been arrested, put on trial or driven into exile.

'Ballot stuffing' allegations

Candidate Abdoulaye Yero Balde denounced "serious irregularities", citing in a statement late Monday in particular the refusal to grant his representatives access to vote-counting centres and allegations of "ballot stuffing" in some areas.
Another candidate, Faya Millimono, complained of "electoral banditry" linked, he said, to influence exerted on voters.
In late September, Guineans approved a new constitution in a referendum that permitted junta members to run for office, paving the way for Doumbouya's candidacy.
It also lengthened presidential terms from five to seven years, renewable once.
Opposition leader and former prime minister Cellou Dalein Diallo was one of three opposition leaders barred from standing by the new constitution.
Diallo was excluded because he lives in exile and his primary residence is outside of Guinea.
Former president Conde, whom Doumbouya overthrew in 2021, and ex-prime minister Sidya Toure, both of whom also live in exile, are over the maximum age limit of 80.
bur-mrb/kjm/jhb/tc/abs/rlp

election

Leftist Mamdani to take over as New York mayor under Trump shadow

  • Before the November vote, the president also threatened to slash federal funding for New York if it picked Mamdani, whom he called a "communist lunatic."
  • Zohran Mamdani, young upstart of the US left, was readying Wednesday to take over as New York mayor for a term sure to see him cross swords with President Donald Trump.
  • Before the November vote, the president also threatened to slash federal funding for New York if it picked Mamdani, whom he called a "communist lunatic."
Zohran Mamdani, young upstart of the US left, was readying Wednesday to take over as New York mayor for a term sure to see him cross swords with President Donald Trump.
After the clocks strike midnight, bringing in 2026, Mamdani will take his oath of office at an abandoned subway stop, taking the helm of the United States' largest city. He will be New York's first Muslim mayor.
His office says the understated venue for the oath-taking reflects his commitment to working people, after the 34-year-old Democrat campaigned on promises to address the soaring cost of living. 
But it remains to be seen if Mamdani -- virtually unknown a year ago -- can deliver on his ambitious agenda, which envisions rent freezes, universal childcare and free public buses. 
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.
What Trump does could be a decisive factor. 
The Republican, himself a New Yorker, has repeatedly criticized Mamdani, but the pair held surprisingly cordial talks at the White House in November.
Lincoln Mitchell, a political analyst and professor at Columbia University, said that meeting "couldn't have gone better from Mamdani's perspective."
But he warned their relationship could quickly sour. 
One flashpoint might be immigration raids as Trump wages an expanding crackdown on migrants across the United States.
Mamdani has vowed to protect immigrant communities.
Before the November vote, the president also threatened to slash federal funding for New York if it picked Mamdani, whom he called a "communist lunatic."
The mayor-elect has said he believes Trump is a fascist.

 Block party

Mamdani's private swearing-in at midnight to start his four-year term will be performed by New York Attorney General Letitia James, who successfully prosecuted Trump for fraud.
A larger, ceremonial inauguration is scheduled for Thursday with speeches from left-wing allies Senator Bernie Sanders and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Around 4,000 ticketed guests are expected to attend the event outside City Hall.  
Mamdani's team has also organized a block party that it says will enable tens of thousands of New Yorkers to watch the ceremony at streetside viewing areas along Broadway.
The new job comes with a change of address for Mamdani as he swaps his rent-controlled apartment in the borough of Queens for the luxurious mayor's residence in Manhattan.
Some had wondered if he would move to the official mansion given his campaigning on affordability issues. Mamdani said he is doing so mainly for security reasons.
Born in Uganda to a family of Indian origin, Mamdani moved to New York at age seven and enjoyed an elite upbringing with only a relatively brief stint in politics, becoming a member of the New York State Assembly before being elected mayor. 
Compensating for his inexperience, he is surrounding himself with seasoned aides recruited from past mayors' offices and former US president Joe Biden's administration.
Mamdani has also opened dialogue with business leaders, some of whom predicted a massive exodus of wealthy New Yorkers if he won. Real estate leaders have debunked those claims.
As a defender of Palestinian rights, he will have to reassure the Jewish community of his inclusive leadership. 
Recently, one of his hires resigned after it was revealed she had posted antisemitic tweets years ago.
rh-bjt/msp/lb

aid

Global 'fragmentation' fuelling world's crises: UN refugee chief

BY NINA LARSON

  • "This fragmentation of geopolitics that has caused the emergence of so many crises is perhaps the most worrying thing," the Italian diplomat said in his final interview as UN High Commissioner for Refugees.
  • The outgoing United Nations refugee chief fears an increasingly fragmented world is fuelling global conflicts and crises, and inflaming hostility towards people desperately fleeing for safety.
  • "This fragmentation of geopolitics that has caused the emergence of so many crises is perhaps the most worrying thing," the Italian diplomat said in his final interview as UN High Commissioner for Refugees.
The outgoing United Nations refugee chief fears an increasingly fragmented world is fuelling global conflicts and crises, and inflaming hostility towards people desperately fleeing for safety.
Reflecting on his decade at the helm of the UNHCR, Filippo Grandi told AFP that one of the most worrying developments had been how divisions had left the world seemingly incapable of resolving conflicts -- and increasingly unwilling to deal with the repercussions.
"This fragmentation of geopolitics that has caused the emergence of so many crises is perhaps the most worrying thing," the Italian diplomat said in his final interview as UN High Commissioner for Refugees.
"This world is unable to make peace; has become totally unable to make peace."
Grandi meanwhile lamented a "race to the bottom" in terms of countries tightening laws and practices to keep asylum seekers and refugees out.
He noted "a growing hostility, a rhetoric by the populist politicians targeting and scapegoating people on the move".

'Horrifying violations'

Speaking at UNHCR's Geneva headquarters a day before the end of his tenure, Grandi said he had been inspired over the past decade by how regular people worldwide showed kindness and hospitality to people on the move.
"In spite of all the politics, in spite of the real challenges that these movements represent," he said, there is still a "deeply entrenched sense that if somebody flees from danger, one has the responsibility to help".
He also highlighted inspiring moments, including in 2021 when he witnessed former Colombian president Ivan Duque grant legal status to 1.7 million Venezuelans.
And more recently, "at the border between Lebanon and Syria and talking to people who had made the choice to go back just a few weeks after the fall of the Assad regime". 
But the exhilaration felt in such moments had been matched by the "anger and profound sadness" felt in others.
"The worst is always when you witness an exodus that is caused by the most horrifying violations of human rights," he said, pointing to Myanmar and Sudan.
On Thursday, Grandi, 68, will be handing over the UNHCR reins to Barham Salih, 65, Iraq's president from 2018 to 2022, who was once a refugee himself.
"He will be an excellent leader for this organisation," Grandi said, adding though that he had warned Salih: "It will be tough".

'Very painful'

Grandi acknowledged it was "very painful" to be leaving when his agency is going through a profound crisis.
The UNHCR, like many other UN agencies, has been clobbered by international aid cuts since US President Donald Trump returned to office in January, and numerous other leading donors have also tightened their purse-strings.
The deep cuts have forced the agency to reduce aid and shutter services -- at a time when global displacement is surging.
In June, the UNHCR estimated that more than 117 million people have fled from their homes -- a figure that has nearly doubled in the past decade.
"We had to reduce the organisation by about a third," Grandi said, adding that "even more painful" was that the agency "had to reduce what we deliver to refugees, to displaced people, to stateless people around the world significantly".
Washington, traditionally the UN's biggest donor, has branded the United Nations bloated and inefficient, and on Monday warned its agencies to "adapt, shrink or die".
Grandi said reforms could be beneficial but fears that the current "criticism of multilateralism and the UN focuses on the wrong target".
"States need institutions that help them work together," he said, warning that the very concept of international cooperation appeared to be evaporating.
"What worries me most is this 'my country first' rhetoric," he said, stressing: "It's not just Washington -- it's global".
"When that slogan is applied to international challenges, it is weak."
Grandi insisted that "no country can do any of this alone, not even the United States".
"The challenges will hit us all, including those countries first... We need to work together."
nl/rjm/phz/tc

Global Edition

Regional temperature records broken across the world in 2025

BY VALENTIN RAKOVSKY

  • Northern Europe was largely spared the heatwave that hit Europe at the end of June but it instead experienced an abnormally warm autumn.
  • Central Asia, the Sahel region and northern Europe experienced their hottest year on record in 2025, according to AFP analysis based on data from the European Copernicus programme.
  • Northern Europe was largely spared the heatwave that hit Europe at the end of June but it instead experienced an abnormally warm autumn.
Central Asia, the Sahel region and northern Europe experienced their hottest year on record in 2025, according to AFP analysis based on data from the European Copernicus programme.
Globally, the last 12 months are expected to be the third hottest ever recorded after 2024 and 2023, according to the provisional data, which will be confirmed by Copernicus in its annual report in early January. 
But the average, which includes land and oceans, masks overall records for certain parts of the world.
Many poorer nations do not publish detailed climate data, so AFP has completed the global picture by independently analysing Copernicus data from climate models, measurements from about 20 satellites, and weather stations.
The data spans the whole world, hour by hour, since 1970.
Here is what the detailed analysis revealed for 2025, during which 120 monthly temperature records were broken in more than 70 countries.

Records shattered in C.Asia

Every country in Central Asia broke its annual temperature records.
Landlocked, mountainous Tajikistan, where only 41 percent of the population has access to safe drinking water, saw the highest abnormal temperatures in the world, at more than 3C above its seasonal averages from 1981 to 2010.
Monthly temperature records have been broken every month since May, with the exception of November.
Neighbouring countries such as Kazakhstan, Iran and Uzbekistan experienced temperatures 2C to 3C above the seasonal average. 

Up to 1.5C hotter in the Sahel

Temperature records were beaten in several countries in the Sahel and west Africa.
Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Burkina Faso and Chad saw a rare divergence in temperatures, notching 0.7C to 1.5C above their seasonal average.
The last 12 months were the hottest ever recorded in Nigeria, and one of the fourth hottest in the other countries.
Scientists from the World Weather Attribution (WWA) network, who assess the role of human-induced climate change in extreme weather events, wrote in their annual report published on Monday that extreme heat events "have become almost 10 times more likely since 2015".
Countries in the Sahel -- the semi-arid region of west and north-central Africa stretching from Senegal to Sudan -- are among the most vulnerable to rising temperatures, with many already facing armed conflict, food insecurity and widespread poverty.

Scorching summer in Europe

Around 10 European countries are on the verge of, or coming close to, breaking their annual temperature record, notably due to an exceptional summer.
In Switzerland and several Balkan countries, summer temperatures were 2C and even 3C above their seasonal average.
Spain, Portugal and Britain also recorded their worst summer on record, with extreme heat fuelling massive wildfires. 
The driest spring in more than a century led to a UK water shortage.
Northern Europe was largely spared the heatwave that hit Europe at the end of June but it instead experienced an abnormally warm autumn.
The last 12 months are expected to be one of the two warmest years on record in Norway, Sweden, Finland and Iceland.
vr/ico-maj/jw/phz/cc/tc

Saudi

UAE to pull forces out of Yemen as 24-hour deadline set

BY SAEED AL-BATATI WITH HAITHAM EL-TABEI IN RIYADH

  • The Saudi-led coalition had warned that it would back Yemen's government in any military confrontation with separatist forces, and urged them to withdraw.
  • The UAE said Tuesday it was pulling its remaining forces out of Yemen, following a Saudi demand to withdraw within 24 hours as tensions escalate over a sweeping offensive by Abu Dhabi-backed separatists.
  • The Saudi-led coalition had warned that it would back Yemen's government in any military confrontation with separatist forces, and urged them to withdraw.
The UAE said Tuesday it was pulling its remaining forces out of Yemen, following a Saudi demand to withdraw within 24 hours as tensions escalate over a sweeping offensive by Abu Dhabi-backed separatists.
The United Arab Emirates' defence ministry said it was withdrawing "counter-terrorism teams...of its own volition". Abu Dhabi had denied being behind the separatists' advance.
Yemen's presidential council and Saudi Arabia, the UAE's rival powerbroker in the Arabian Peninsula's poorest country, have both demanded Emirati troops pull out.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also spoke with his Saudi and UAE counterparts, which are both key US partners, his department said.
Rubio and UAE foreign minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan discussed "the situation in Yemen and broader issues affecting Middle Eastern security and stability", said Tommy Pigott, a State Department spokesman.
Before dawn, the Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen's Houthi rebels had struck an Emirati shipment at Mukalla port, saying it was carrying weapons for the separatists, a claim the UAE denied.
AFP footage of the port showed dozens of parked military vehicles and pick-ups, several of which were burnt out and smouldering as workers hosed them down.
Tuesday's rapid-fire events come after forces from the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) marched across resource-rich Hadramawt and Mahra provinces this month, bringing fresh upheaval after a decade-long civil war.
The advance has raised the spectre of the return of South Yemen, a separate state from 1967 to 1990, while dealing a hammer-blow to slow-moving peace negotiations with Iran-backed Houthi rebels.
Emirati troops arrived in Yemen as part of the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis, who had forced the government from the capital Sanaa in 2014 and seized much of the country.
The UAE pulled out most of its forces in 2019, leaving only a limited number in the government-run south where a patchwork of militias hold sway.

'Unreasonable'

Its final withdrawal follows a rare public dispute with Riyadh, which accused Abu Dhabi of pressuring STC forces "to conduct military operations" on Saudi Arabia's southern border. 
"The steps taken by the UAE are considered highly dangerous," a foreign ministry statement said, adding: "The Kingdom stresses that any threat to its national security is a red line."
Also on Tuesday, the leader of Yemen's presidential council dissolved a defence pact with the UAE and declared a 90-day state of emergency.
Abu Dhabi denied being behind the separatist advance and insisted the shipment targeted at Mukalla contained only vehicles destined for its own forces.
The UAE "condemns the claims made regarding the exertion of pressure or direction on any Yemeni party to carry out military operations", a statement said.
It added: "The shipment in question did not contain any weapons, and the vehicles unloaded were not intended for any Yemeni party."
Both the UAE and Saudi Arabia expressed a willingness to engage in dialogue.
"Diplomacy is still an option to stop any further escalation," a source close to the Saudi military coalition told AFP. 
However, the STC remained defiant, insisting there was "no thinking about withdrawal" from its newly seized positions.
"It is unreasonable for the landowner to be asked to leave his own land. The situation requires staying and reinforcing," STC spokesman Anwar Al-Tamimi told AFP.

'Unacceptable to God'

"We are in a defensive position, and any movement toward our forces will be responded to by our forces," he added. 
Tamimi said Saudi Arabia had moved around 20,000 security forces along its border with Hadramawt, adjacent to positions held by the STC. 
The STC is also a key member of the government -- a fractious alliance held together by its opposition to the Houthis.
Mukalla resident Abdullah Bazuhair, whose home overlooks the port, showed AFP the damage to his property, with windows blasted clear out of the walls and glass strewn across the floor.
"The children were terrified and the women frightened," he said, calling the strikes "unacceptable to God".
The Saudi-led coalition had warned that it would back Yemen's government in any military confrontation with separatist forces, and urged them to withdraw.
Tuesday's strike came days after reported Saudi air raids on separatist positions in resource-rich Hadramawt last week.
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.
burs/ds/th/lg/phz/jgc

Carlsen

Norway's Magnus Carlsen wins 20th world chess title

  • The Nordic grandmaster now has nine blitz titles, six in rapid and five in the most prestigious longer format, which involves more than 10 games between the world champion and a challenger.
  • Norway's Magnus Carlsen, the world's number one chess player, on Tuesday won the World Blitz Championship in Doha, days after victory in the slightly longer 'rapid' format, to secure his 20th world title.
  • The Nordic grandmaster now has nine blitz titles, six in rapid and five in the most prestigious longer format, which involves more than 10 games between the world champion and a challenger.
Norway's Magnus Carlsen, the world's number one chess player, on Tuesday won the World Blitz Championship in Doha, days after victory in the slightly longer 'rapid' format, to secure his 20th world title.
Carlsen, 35, beat Uzbekistan's Nodirbek Abdusattorov, 21, in the final, securing victory with black in the fourth and final game, after losing the first.
Blitz games are played with three minutes at the start for both players, plus an additional two seconds per move.
Carlsen almost failed to reach the semi-finals after suffering three defeats in the 19 qualifying games, finishing third in the standings.
He beat American Fabiano Caruana in the semis to take on Abdusattorov, rapid world champion in 2021.
On Sunday, Carlsen was crowned rapid world champion, where players have 15 minutes and 10 seconds added per move, finishing first in the regular standings, with the competition taking place without a final phase.
The Nordic grandmaster now has nine blitz titles, six in rapid and five in the most prestigious longer format, which involves more than 10 games between the world champion and a challenger.
Carlsen relinquished his long-format crown in 2023, citing lack of motivation. It is now held by India's Dommaraju Gukesh.
In October, he and the International Chess Federation (FIDE) backed a new world championship format that sets the stage for his return.
The new "Total Chess World Championship Tour" will consist of four events a year and will crown one combined champion for three disciplines: fast classic, rapid and blitz.
A pilot version of the competition will be tested in the autumn of next year, with the first full season set for 2027.
fs/ah/phz/pb

currency

Students join Iran demonstrations after shopkeepers protest

  • On Tuesday, security forces and riot police were deployed at major intersections in Tehran and around some universities, according to AFP journalists, while some of the shops closed the previous day in the capital's centre had reopened. 
  • Iranian students staged street protests in Tehran on Tuesday, a day after the capital's shopkeepers demonstrated against economic hardship and won a message of understanding from the president.
  • On Tuesday, security forces and riot police were deployed at major intersections in Tehran and around some universities, according to AFP journalists, while some of the shops closed the previous day in the capital's centre had reopened. 
Iranian students staged street protests in Tehran on Tuesday, a day after the capital's shopkeepers demonstrated against economic hardship and won a message of understanding from the president.
According to Ilna, a news agency associated with Iran's labour movement, protests erupted at 10 universities across the country, including seven in Tehran that are among the country's most prestigious.
Protests also broke out at the technology university in the central city of Isfahan and institutions in the cities of Yazd and Zanjan, Ilna and state-run IRNA reported.
On Tuesday, security forces and riot police were deployed at major intersections in Tehran and around some universities, according to AFP journalists, while some of the shops closed the previous day in the capital's centre had reopened. 
The student action came after Monday's protests in central Tehran by shop-owners and a day ahead of the temporary closure of banks, schools and businesses in the capital and in most provinces to save energy during the bitterly cold weather.
The Iranian rial has dropped against the dollar and other world currencies -- when the protests erupted on Sunday, the US dollar was trading at around 1.42 million rials, compared to 820,000 rials a year ago -- forcing up import prices and hurting retail traders.
Demonstrations erupted on Sunday at the city's largest mobile phone market, before gaining momentum, though they remained limited in number and confined to central Tehran. The vast majority of shops elsewhere continued to operate as usual.
President Masoud Pezeshkian -- who has less authority under Iran's system of government than supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei -- met Tuesday with labour leaders and made proposals to tackle the economic crisis, according to press agency Mehr. 
"I have asked the interior minister to listen to the legitimate demands of the protesters by engaging in dialogue with their representatives so that the government can do everything in its power to resolve the problems and act responsibly," he said in a social media post.
According to state television, parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, also called for "necessary measures focused on increasing people's purchasing power" but warned against foreign agents and government opponents attempting to exploit the protests.
On Monday, the government announced the replacement of the central bank governor with former economy and finance minister Abdolnasser Hemmati.

Battered economy

Price fluctuations are paralysing sales of some imported goods, with both sellers and buyers preferring to postpone transactions until the outlook becomes clearer, AFP correspondents reported.
According to the Etemad newspaper, one trader complained that officials had offered no support to storekeepers battling soaring import costs.
"They didn't even follow up on how the dollar price affected our lives," he complained, speaking on condition of anonymity.
"We had to decide to show our protest. With this dollar price, we can't even sell a phone case, and the officials don't care at all that our lives are run by selling mobile phones and accessories."
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.
The country'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.
The current protests against the high cost of living have not reached the level of the nationwide demonstrations that shook Iran in 2022.
Those protests were sparked by the death in custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was arrested for allegedly violating the country's strict dress code for women. 
Amini's death triggered months of unrest, with hundreds of people, including dozens of security personnel, killed and thousands more arrested.
In 2019, protests broke out in Iran after the announcement of a sharp increase in petrol prices. The unrest spread to around 100 cities, including Tehran, and left dozens dead.
bur/tc/abs/dc/jfx/amj

accident

Drones dive into aviation's deepest enigma as MH370 hunt restarts

  • Military screens later showed the aircraft veering sharply west, crossing back over Malaysia before heading south over the vast Indian Ocean.
  • Nearly 12 years after Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 vanished with 239 people on board, the search for answers to one of aviation's most haunting riddles resumed Tuesday in the remote southern Indian Ocean. 
  • Military screens later showed the aircraft veering sharply west, crossing back over Malaysia before heading south over the vast Indian Ocean.
Nearly 12 years after Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 vanished with 239 people on board, the search for answers to one of aviation's most haunting riddles resumed Tuesday in the remote southern Indian Ocean. 
Armed with cutting-edge deep-sea robots and smarter data, US investigators are scouring the seabed for clues that have eluded governments, experts and grieving families for more than a decade.
MH370 took off from Kuala Lumpur just after midnight on March 8, 2014, bound for Beijing on what should have been an uneventful six-hour flight.
Less than an hour later, its transponder went dark, wiping the Boeing 777 from civilian radar. Military screens later showed the aircraft veering sharply west, crossing back over Malaysia before heading south over the vast Indian Ocean.
What followed was the most ambitious and costly search in aviation history, as multinational teams combed more than more than 46,000 square  miles (120,000 square kilometers) of seabed off Western Australia with ships, aircraft and sonar. 
They found nothing.
The hunt was called off in 2017, leaving families with heartbreak and a mystery that spawned theories ranging from hijacking to deliberate pilot action.
Now, the Malaysian government has given the green light for a fresh attempt led by Texas-based marine robotics firm Ocean Infinity under a "no find, no fee" contract, according to a statement from Malaysia's transport ministry. 
"The latest development underscores the government of Malaysia's commitment in providing closure to the families affected by this tragedy," it said.
The company will pocket $70 million only if it locates the wreck, reports said.
This new phase, expected to last up to 55 days, targets a tighter search zone of about 5,800  square miles -- far smaller than earlier efforts and pinpointed using updated satellite data, drift modeling and expert analysis.

Keeping the hunt alive

Ocean Infinity is unleashing autonomous underwater vehicles that can dive nearly 19,700  feet (6,000 meters) and stay submerged for days at a time. 
The drones use high-resolution side-scan sonar, ultrasound imaging and magnetometers to map the seabed in 3D, detect buried debris and pick up traces of metal. If something promising appears, remotely operated vehicles can descend for close inspection.
Ocean Infinity, which also has a control center in Britain, led an unsuccessful hunt in 2018, before agreeing to launch a new search this year. AFP reached out to the company for comment but there was no immediate response.
Only fragments of MH370 have ever been recovered. Since 2015, fewer than 30 pieces believed to be from the aircraft -- bits of wing, landing gear and fuselage -- have washed ashore thousands of kilometers apart, from Reunion to Mozambique. 
No bodies have ever been found.
Malaysia's official probe concluded in 2018 that the plane was likely deliberately diverted from its course, but stopped short of assigning responsibility. 
Relatives from China, Australia, Europe and beyond have fought for years to keep the hunt alive, arguing that closure matters not only for the dead but for global aviation safety. 
Governments in Beijing and Canberra have welcomed Malaysia's decision, pledging support for any practical effort to crack the case.
Chinese national Jiang Hui, who lost his 72-year-old mother Jiang Cuiyun in the disaster, told AFP in an interview at his home in Beijing earlier this month that he remains set on finding answers, despite frustration with the authorities.
"Finding the plane, finding my loved one, and finding the truth -- I believe this is something I must do in my life," he said.
ft/msp/dw

conflict

10 countries warn of 'catastrophic' Gaza situation

  • - 'Vital supplies' - The ministers also called for the opening of crossings to boost the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
  • The foreign ministers of 10 nations on Tuesday expressed "serious concerns" about a "renewed deterioration of the humanitarian situation" in Gaza, saying the situation was "catastrophic".
  • - 'Vital supplies' - The ministers also called for the opening of crossings to boost the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
The foreign ministers of 10 nations on Tuesday expressed "serious concerns" about a "renewed deterioration of the humanitarian situation" in Gaza, saying the situation was "catastrophic".
The warning came a day after US President Donald Trump warned Palestinian militant group Hamas there would be "hell to pay" if it fails to disarm in Gaza, as he presented a united front with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
"As winter draws in, civilians in Gaza are facing appalling conditions with heavy rainfall and temperatures dropping," the ministers of Britain, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Japan, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland said in a joint statement released by the UK's Foreign Office.
"1.3 million people still require urgent shelter support. More than half of health facilities are only partially functional and face shortages of essential medical equipment and supplies. The total collapse of sanitation infrastructure has left 740,000 people vulnerable to toxic flooding," the statement added.
Trump's comments on Monday also downplayed reports of tensions with Netanyahu over the second stage of the fragile Gaza ceasefire.
The president, speaking at a news conference with Netanyahu in Florida, said Israel had "lived up" to its commitments and that the onus was on Hamas.
The foreign ministers in their statement said they welcomed the progress that had been made to end the bloodshed in Gaza and secure the release of Israeli hostages.
"However we will not lose focus on the plight of civilians in Gaza," they said, calling on the government of Israel to take a string of "urgent and essential" steps.
These included ensuring that international NGOs could operate in Gaza in a "sustained and predictable" way.
"As 31 December approaches, many established international NGO partners are at risk of being deregistered because of the government of Israel's restrictive new requirements," the statement said.
It also called for the UN and its partners to be able to continue their work in Gaza and for the lifting of "unreasonable restrictions on imports considered to have a dual use".
This included medical and shelter equipment.

'Vital supplies'

The ministers also called for the opening of crossings to boost the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
While welcoming the partial opening of the Allenby crossing, they said other corridors for moving goods remained closed or severely restricted for humanitarian aid, including Rafah.
"Bureaucratic customs processes and extensive screenings are causing delays, while commercial cargo is being allowed in more freely," the statement said.
"The target of 4,200 trucks per week, including an allocation of 250 UN trucks per day, should be a floor not a ceiling. These targets should be lifted so we can be sure the vital supplies are getting in at the vast scale needed," it added.
The Gaza ceasefire in October is considered 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 on Monday 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.
har/cc

defense

China fires missiles on second day of military drills around Taiwan

BY AMBER WANG WITH JAMES EDGAR IN BEIJING AND ISABEL KUA IN PINGTAN

  • - 'Live-fire training' - China said on Tuesday 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 said on Tuesday 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.
Taipei, which slammed the two-day war games as "highly provocative and reckless", said the manoeuvre failed to impose a blockade on the island.
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 at the closest point to Taiwan's main island -- saw a volley of rockets blast into the air at around 9:00 am (0100 GMT) on Tuesday, leaving trails of white smoke.
At least 10 were launched in quick succession, sending a booming sound reverberating across the sky and drawing tourists towards the seafront to snap photos and videos on their phones.
Taiwanese authorities counted 27 rockets fired by Chinese forces on Tuesday.
China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) said in a statement that it had "conducted long-range live fire drills in the waters to the north of the Taiwan Island and achieved desired effects".
The 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 on Tuesday that Beijing 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".
Foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian called the drills a "punitive response to Taiwan independence separatist forces and a necessary action to defend national sovereignty".
Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te expressed his "strongest condemnation" and said Beijing was "deliberately undermining regional stability through military intimidation".
"This is a blatant provocation," he wrote on Facebook, adding that Taipei would not escalate the situation.

'Live-fire training'

China said on Tuesday 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 Taiwan "tested capabilities of sea-air coordination and integrated blockade and control".
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.
However, senior Taiwanese military official Hsieh Jih-sheng told reporters that the intended blockade "essentially did not happen".
"The main reason they did this was to make the public believe that they had achieved the goal they were pursuing," he said.
Chinese authorities published a map of five large zones around Taiwan where the war games would take place. They were due to finish at 6:00 pm (1000 GMT) on Tuesday, although there was not yet any confirmation they had ended.
Taiwan said the zones, some of which are within 12 nautical miles of its coast, had affected international shipping and aviation routes.
Hundreds of flights were either cancelled or delayed, according to the island's Civil Aviation Administration.
Taiwan's defence ministry said on Tuesday it had detected at least 130 Chinese military aircraft near the island, as well as more than 50 vessels including 27 navy ships, over the course of the drill.
The Taiwanese coastguard said it deployed 14 ships to monitor the naval activity, "employing a one-on-one shadowing approach to forcefully deter the vessels".

Stoic reaction

Taiwan's Military News Agency said forces conducted several drills in response to the Chinese exercise, including one in the Taipei area focusing on the deployment of river obstacles and rapid troop response.
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 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.
Beijing said this month it would take "resolute and forceful measures" to safeguard its territory after Taiwan said the United States had approved an $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.
On Tuesday, the European Union slammed China over the drills, saying the exercise "endangers international peace and stability", and urging restraint from actions that could escalate tensions.
burs-je/mjw/aha/dw