EU

Eurostar likely back to normal overnight after power glitch sparks travel chaos

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

EU

Eurostar likely back to normal overnight after power glitch sparks travel chaos

BY CAROLINE TAIX WITH ISABEL MALSANG IN PARIS

  • Eurostar said mid-afternoon that the Channel Tunnel had partially reopened, allowing it to begin running services again, with the first trains scheduled for around 1600 GMT. A little later, operator Getlink said "Traffic is being re-established in both directions on an alternative basis".
  • Channel Tunnel traffic should return to normal overnight, operator Getlink said Tuesday, after a power supply issue that brought to a halt train trips connecting London to the European mainland.
  • Eurostar said mid-afternoon that the Channel Tunnel had partially reopened, allowing it to begin running services again, with the first trains scheduled for around 1600 GMT. A little later, operator Getlink said "Traffic is being re-established in both directions on an alternative basis".
Channel Tunnel traffic should return to normal overnight, operator Getlink said Tuesday, after a power supply issue that brought to a halt train trips connecting London to the European mainland.
Travellers making journeys in the busy run-up to New Year were left scrambling to find alternatives after the operator postponed all services between London, Paris, Amsterdam and Brussels.
Eurostar said mid-afternoon that the Channel Tunnel had partially reopened, allowing it to begin running services again, with the first trains scheduled for around 1600 GMT.
A little later, operator Getlink said "Traffic is being re-established in both directions on an alternative basis".
"Work will continue this evening and should allow a return to normal overnight," it added in a statement.
But Eurostar warned that the "overhead power supply issue remains, and we strongly advise all our passengers to postpone their journey to a different date".
Services would be subject to severe delays and last-minute cancellations, it said, urging passengers not to go to the station if their train was confirmed cancelled.
Eurostar's site earlier showed that even services on the continent not using the Channel tunnel -- such as ones between Paris and Brussels -- had been cancelled during the day.
As well as the power problem, there was also a failed LeShuttle train in the Channel Tunnel, the 31-mile (50-kilometre) undersea rail link between Folkestone, in southeast England, and Coquelles, in northern France. 
Crowds of stranded travellers, many with suitcases, swelled at London's St Pancras International station and at the Gare du Nord in Paris as they were notified that their end-of-year holiday plans were being thrown into doubt.
"I'm disappointed. We were going to do New Year's Eve in Paris," Jessica, a 21-year-old business coordinator looking to travel to France with three friends, told AFP in London.
"We are going to see if we can find another ticket. Otherwise we will stay in London."
Jodie, who also declined to give her surname, had an AirBnB booked in the French capital until January 4 for her husband and four-year-old daughter.
"We can't find tickets for tomorrow. It has disrupted all our holiday. We are looking for alternative routes," the 37-year-old told AFP.

'Stay calm'

One traveller, Sophie Gontowicz, trying to head back to Paris after three days holidaying in the British capital with her family, said she was taking the disruption "philosophically".
"In the end, it gives us an extra day of vacation," she told AFP.
In Paris, 19-year-old British traveller Grace Emery was also laid back about her train being cancelled, saying she might try to catch a ferry.
"It is an inconvenience for people. But stuff like this happens all the time and there's nothing you can really do about it," she said after a trip with a friend to Disneyland.
But Chaitan Patel, a 46-year-old American, was more determined to get back to London.
"We're looking at every option: plane, car -- but even flying is difficult," he told AFP.
Katherine Jordan, 39, another Briton, said she too hoped to find a flight -- ideally so she and her nine-year-old son Oscar could make it back on Wednesday for New Year's Eve.
But even if they missed ringing in 2026 in Britain, getting back "any time in the next 48 hours would be amazing", she said, adding her son had just told her to "stay calm because there's no point in getting annoyed".

High demand

A record-high 19.5 million passengers travelled on Eurostar last year, up nearly five percent in 2023, driven by demand from visitors to the Olympics and Paralympics in Paris.
Eurostar has held a monopoly on passenger services through the tunnel linking Britain and France since it opened in 1994.
But British entrepreneur Richard Branson -- the man behind the Virgin airline -- has vowed to launch a rival service.
Italy's Trenitalia has also said it intends to compete with Eurostar on the Paris-London route by 2029.
Tuesday's disruption was the latest to affect Eurostar at a time when the company has faced criticism over its high prices, especially on the Paris-London route.
An electrical fault forced the cancellation of Eurostar services and severe delays on others in August. 
The theft of cables on train tracks in northern France caused two days of problems in June.
LeShuttle operates vehicle-carrying trains between Folkestone in southeast England and Calais in northern France.
bur-pdh-ah-har/phz

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

currency

Students join Iran demonstrations after shopkeepers protest

  • AFP saw a large police and security presence deployed at major intersections in central Tehran and around certain universities on Tuesday, 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.
  • AFP saw a large police and security presence deployed at major intersections in central Tehran and around certain universities on Tuesday, 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 seven Tehran universities that are among the country's most prestigious, and at the technology university in the central city of Isfahan.
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.
AFP saw a large police and security presence deployed at major intersections in central Tehran and around certain universities on Tuesday, while some of the shops closed the previous day in the capital's centre had reopened. 
Spontaneous 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/amj/jfx

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

UAE

A war within a war: Yemen's latest conflict

BY HAITHAM EL-TABEI

  • Despite spending billions in a campaign including air strikes, the Saudi-led intervention has failed to bring the Houthis to heel.
  • Yemen has been at war since Iran-backed Houthi rebels ousted the government in 2014, triggering a Saudi-led military intervention, but a new internal conflict has been brewing in recent weeks.
  • Despite spending billions in a campaign including air strikes, the Saudi-led intervention has failed to bring the Houthis to heel.
Yemen has been at war since Iran-backed Houthi rebels ousted the government in 2014, triggering a Saudi-led military intervention, but a new internal conflict has been brewing in recent weeks.
The face-off involves rival armed factions loosely grouped under the government but separately backed by the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
The UAE on Tuesday said 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, who have refused to pull back.
Here is what we know about the latest events threatening the already-fractured government and what could happen next.

What's happening now?

This month, the Southern Transitional Council (STC), a UAE-backed secessionist group and key government partner, seized most of resource-rich Hadramawt province and swaths of neighbouring Mahrah. 
Saudi Arabia, chief supporter of Yemen's government, has hit back, and tensions escalated Tuesday when a Saudi-led military coalition attacked an alleged shipment of weapons and combat vehicles it said was sent from the UAE to the separatists.
The UAE denied sending weapons to the STC.
After the strikes, Yemen's presidential council dissolved a defence pact with the UAE and declared a 90-day state of emergency.
The strikes came after raids hit STC positions on Friday, following calls from Riyadh for a separatist withdrawal. 
Later Tuesday, the UAE announced its remaining forces would leave Yemen, before an STC spokesman vowed the separatists would hold their positions.
A Yemeni military official said around 15,000 Saudi-backed fighters were massed near the Saudi border, with no orders to advance.
"The standoff risks upending Yemen's fragile three-and-a-half-year truce," wrote April Longley Alley, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute, in an analysis.
"It could also further strain relations between key US allies Saudi Arabia and the UAE."

What does the STC want?

The STC appears to be launching a bid for greater self-determination over territories it controls or even outright independence, observers said. 
Headed by Aidaros Alzubidi, the STC is a coalition of groups that want to bring back South Yemen, which existed from 1967 to 1990, when it reunified with North Yemen.
They now control almost all of South Yemen's former territory.
The STC "is betting that if the South can be united under a single leadership –- its own, of course –- it can cordon the South off from the Houthis in the North, utilise oil and gas revenue, and create a stable and functioning state," wrote Gregory D. Johnsen, a non-resident fellow at the Arab Gulf States Institute, in a recent analysis.
Such a move "is a tall order, and it will likely be contested both internally and externally", Johnsen added.

Why is Saudi 'sleepless' over Hadramawt?

Hadramawt is Yemen's largest province, comprising roughly a third of the country's territory, and its wealthiest.
It is home to most of Yemen's vital petroleum deposits, and its ports are away from the Red Sea hotspot that regularly comes under Houthi fire.
But for the Saudis, the province abutting their southern border is about more than just land and wealth. 
For generations, Hadramawt families have been a force in the Saudi economy and make up a sizeable portion of the business community.
Seen as having entrepreneurial skills and grit, migrants from Hadramawt have long flourished in Saudi Arabia, from running family restaurants to starting multi-billion dollar construction consortiums. 
Losing Hadramawt to a UAE-backed militia would be a strategic blow to Riyadh.
"If I'm Saudi Arabia, I'd be sleepless if I lose Hadramawt," said Farea al-Muslimi, a research fellow at Chatham House's Middle East and North Africa Programme. 

Can the Saudis stop the separatists?

The latest escalation pits the Saudi alliance against a militia keen to exert control over territory it sees as historically distinct from the rest of Yemen. 
The decade-long, largely fruitless fight against the Houthis may not give Riyadh much cause for optimism. 
Despite spending billions in a campaign including air strikes, the Saudi-led intervention has failed to bring the Houthis to heel.
Military experts cite the south's more open terrain as playing to Saudi Arabia's possible advantage. An air campaign alone, however, is unlikely to dislodge their forces. 
Air strikes "can never make a significant difference in battles if there is no ground war", said Muslimi.
ht-ds/th/dc/lg/jfx

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.
Earlier, Yemen's presidential council and Saudi Arabia, the UAE's rival powerbroker in the Arabian Peninsula's poorest country, both demanded Emirati troops pull out.
Before dawn, the Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen's Huthi 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

AU

AU observers praise 'peaceful' Central African Republic polls

  • Since Touadera was first elected in the middle of a civil war, the Central African Republic has seen unrest ease, although feuds persist between armed groups and the government in some regions. 
  • African Union observers on Tuesday said elections in the Central African Republic, where incumbent president Faustin-Archange Touadera is widely expected to win, had gone ahead peacefully.
  • Since Touadera was first elected in the middle of a civil war, the Central African Republic has seen unrest ease, although feuds persist between armed groups and the government in some regions. 
African Union observers on Tuesday said elections in the Central African Republic, where incumbent president Faustin-Archange Touadera is widely expected to win, had gone ahead peacefully.
Touadera, 68, is seeking a third term and has touted his efforts steadying a nation long plagued by conflict.
Part of the opposition had called for a boycott, condemning the election as a sham and lacking political dialogue. 
Touadera went into the election in pole position after a new constitution was adopted in 2023 allowing him to seek another term.
AU delegation representative Bernard Makuza praised the elections -- which included parliamentary, municipal and regional ballots at the same time -- as "a step forward towards democracy".
He said that given their compliance with the legal framework in force, the polls were "incomparable with the electoral processes of 2016 and 2020".
At those elections, the AU had expressed misgivings over poll fairness.
The AU delegates monitored this year's polls in three of the country's 20 prefectures.
Makuza, a former Rwandan prime minister, stressed that the "overall security" of the country had allowed voting to take place in a "general atmosphere of calm".
He said sources on the ground reported the electoral process had gone ahead peacefully across the country apart from the Haut-Mbomou prefecture in the southeast.
The region is beset by tensions between the Central African armed forces, supported by Russian Wagner group mercenaries, and a local militia.
Wagner has established itself as one of the Central African government's main security partners.

'Legal avenues'

In 2020, only 50 percent of sub-prefectures were able to host polling normally.
The electoral process was marred by an attempted coup by rebels from the Coalition of Patriots for Change (CPC) and by violence.
This time, Makuza urged candidates with a grievance to "resort to legal avenues in the case of disputes".
The AU monitors will send their final conclusions to the Central African government within a month.
However, Yves Sanghamy Maikane, spokesman for the party of opposition leader Anicet-Georges Dologuele, denounced malfeasance in the poll process, in remarks during a press conference attended by foreign diplomats and the UN special representative.
He separately told AFP he did not want to see the African Union's view of proceedings "create a misleading narrative".
Provisional results are due to be published on January 5, while the Constitutional Court is due to announce final results -- in the event of first-round victories not requiring a run-off -- on January 20.
Since Touadera was first elected in the middle of a civil war, the Central African Republic has seen unrest ease, although feuds persist between armed groups and the government in some regions. 
Despite being pushed back, anti-government fighters are still at large on main highways, as well as in the east near the borders with war-battered Sudan and South Sudan. 
Nearly 90 percent of the country is now under government authority, compared to 80 percent being held by armed groups four years ago, analysts have told AFP.
cmb/cc/cw/kjm 

Global Edition

I.Coast ruling party's dominance leaves opposition on brink

BY PIERRE DONADIEU

  • - Ouattara, who turns 84 years old on Thursday, kicked off his fourth presidential term -- and under the constitution, his last -- vowing "generational" change.
  • Ivory Coast's ruling party has further cemented its power after another crushing victory in parliamentary elections at the weekend, two months after President Alassane Ouattara won re-election for a fourth term.
  • - Ouattara, who turns 84 years old on Thursday, kicked off his fourth presidential term -- and under the constitution, his last -- vowing "generational" change.
Ivory Coast's ruling party has further cemented its power after another crushing victory in parliamentary elections at the weekend, two months after President Alassane Ouattara won re-election for a fourth term.
With the opposition all but out of the picture, Ouattara's party now boasts nearly 80 percent of seats in parliament, largely controls the Senate and dominates municipal and regional councils, in one of west Africa's fastest-growing economies and the world's top cocoa producer. 

Electoral dominance

Supporters of the Rally of Houphouetists for Democracy and Peace (RHDP) put its success down to a dynamic economy and stability in a troubled region under Ouattara's watch since coming to power in 2011.
William Assanvo, a researcher at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), said the party's dominance was the "result of discipline, organisation and the substantial resources made available to the candidates".
Francis Akindes, a teacher and researcher at Bouake university, said for decades people especially in rural areas were told to elect those close to power in order to secure infrastructure.
"And that’s enough to mobilise some voters," he said.
Critics point, however, to low turnout rates -- 35 percent in Saturday's parliamentary election and 50 percent for the presidential poll -- as well as opposition leaders being excluded from the race for president. 

Collapse of opposition

Since the 1990s, Ivory Coast has been split between pro-Ouattara support in the north, supporters of ex-president Laurent Gbagbo in the south and west and the leading opposition force the Democratic Party of Ivory Coast (PDCI) in the centre.
But the RHDP has extended its power in recent elections beyond its traditional stronghold.
Support for the PDCI, the country's oldest party, slumped in the legislative elections, while it did not put up a presidential candidate in October after its leader Tidjane Thiam was barred from standing.
Thiam, an ex-Credit Suisse banker, has been outside of Ivory Coast since March, saying he fears arrest if he returned.
"This absence of leadership is a problem for the party," a PDCI official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Assanvo, of the ISS, pointed to "divisions" in the party which have contributed to its weakening position.
Gbagbo's party has not fared much better. It has no deputies in parliament after it boycotted the ballot.
"The policy of the empty chair is a grave mistake. The opposition parties are going to experience internal crises," said Akindes from Bouake university.
The opposition has denounced the arrest of its members -- two PDCI lawmakers won election on Saturday even as they were in prison -- while the government says the courts and legal system are independent.

Who comes next ?

Ouattara, who turns 84 years old on Thursday, kicked off his fourth presidential term -- and under the constitution, his last -- vowing "generational" change.
But no clear successor has yet emerged.
His vice president Tiemoko Meyliet Kone is seen as a technocrat and has a low public profile.
Veteran leading party figures include the powerful defence minister and brother of the president Tene Birahima Ouattara, National Assembly president Adama Bictogo and ex-prime minister Patrick Achi.
But younger RHDP ministers, such as Mamadou Toure, 50, and Amadou Kone, 59, command support in the central cities of Daloa and Bouake.
All were comfortably elected on Saturday as MPs.
"It’s still a bit early, but in two years' time a clash of titans will unfold. Everyone will push their own agenda and the battle will be fierce," Akindes predicted.
Assanvo said that Ouattara was currently a unifying figure for his party but despite its overwhelming dominance, it faced "its own challenges when it comes to succession".
pid/kjm/cw

Zia

Bangladesh's former prime minister Khaleda Zia dies aged 80

BY SHEIKH SABIHA ALAM AND MOHAMMAD MAZED

  • The BNP said Zia died shortly after dawn on Tuesday.
  • 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.
  • The BNP said Zia died shortly after dawn on Tuesday.
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.
The government declared three days of state mourning for the country's first woman prime minister, with vast crowds expected to attend her funeral on Wednesday.
Despite years of ill health and imprisonment, Zia vowed in November to campaign in elections set for February -- the first vote since a mass uprising toppled her arch-rival Sheikh Hasina last year.
Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) is widely seen as a frontrunner, and her son Tarique Rahman, who returned only on Thursday after 17 years in exile, is seen a potential prime minister if they win a majority.
"The country mourns the loss of a guiding presence that shaped its democratic aspirations," Rahman said in a statement.
He said he was also mourning the loss of the "infinite love" of his mother, who "endured repeated arrests, denial of medical care, and relentless persecution".
"Yet even in pain, confinement, and uncertainty, she never stopped sheltering her family with courage and compassion. Her resilience... was unbreakable."
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 said Zia died shortly after dawn on Tuesday.
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," Nobel Peace Prize winner Yunus 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 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.
Zia 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/ami

conflict

Loss and laughter: war medics heal in west Ukraine mountains

BY BARBARA WOJAZER

  • Zukh had fallen asleep. 
  • Ukrainian war medic Roma Zukh has learned a hard rule during the Russian invasion -- don't get too close to your colleagues.
  • Zukh had fallen asleep. 
Ukrainian war medic Roma Zukh has learned a hard rule during the Russian invasion -- don't get too close to your colleagues. They could be killed at any moment.
Since Russia invaded in February 2022, the former truck driver, with light blue eyes and a ginger beard, had lost too many people to see any new friends suffer the same fate.
"You remember each one... the ones you were wounded with, the ones that enlisted at the same time -- those you definitely won't forget," the 37-year-old said.
"Now I try to keep my distance, as I get very attached," he said, having recently joined a new battalion.
"I don't sit at the same table for lunch, for example."
The gruesome toll of the war is a daily reality for Ukraine's hundredsof combat medics -- with the sights, sounds and smells of the front weighing heavily on their mental health.
Over 1,000 kilometres (620 miles) away from the battlefield at a 10-day mountain retreat, designed to help them recover, Roma's rule was being put to the test.
Taking place in wooden chalets in the Carpathians, the RePower programme was much like a children's holiday camp, featuring pottery classes, hikes and even sushi-making lessons. 
For some, the relief is instant.
When the car carrying Dmytro Kunytskyi started climbing into the mountains, bright with autumnal orange and green trees, the 20-year-old medic was struck by a long-forgotten feeling.
"We opened the windows and the air filled with the smell of pine," he said.
"We were just very happy, like little kids."

'Every breath'

But completely leaving the front line was not easy. 
Kunytskyi was often on the phone, delegating tasks to his team on the front.
He has been serving for two years in a role that requires him to retrieve and examine the corpses of comrades killed in battle.  
"I get flashbacks. Times when the smell of blood is so sweet that you feel poisoned, when you don't have any chance to immediately wash it off. And with every breath you take, you smell blood."
"But deaths, smells. That's just nothing compared to having to lose so many friends," he said, his eyes rimmed in dark, red circles.
The psychologists working with the medics at the camp say they face a difficult challenge.
The medics would soon go back to the front, making in-depth therapy risky. 
"To delve into trauma, we need time to stabilise people," Andrii Anpleiev, a doctor, told AFP.
"This is something new -- working with trauma when the traumatic conditions are still ongoing."
They instead focused on giving medics concrete tools to regulate their emotions and introduce them to the benefits of therapy.
They also created spaces where people could feel safe, for once.
At a "sound-healing" experience, a dozen medics lay on yoga mats, relaxing to the sound of waves lapping on a beach and forests filled with chirping birds.
Suddenly, a growling snore threatened to break the tranquillity.
Zukh had fallen asleep. 
Lying tucked in blankets, the others suppressed smiles, trying to stay in the moment.
"The temptation was great, but I tried not to laugh at him," Kunytskyi said at the end of the session, as everyone cracked up.

 'Blood'

After evening sessions with a psychologist, the medics dined in a local restaurant decorated with mountain paintings and fairy lights. 
The war dominates even this downtime -- evident during a game of Alias, where players try to explain random words to their teammates.
"We don't have enough of it," one said.
"Blood!" the team shouted.
An attempt to mime the word "shorts" by slicing imaginary trousers fell flat.
"Tourniquets!" the team guessed, thinking about the devices tied around limbs to halt massive bleeding. 
Within just a few days, the medics had grown tight, forming a WhatsApp group to stay connected once they returned to the front. 
Zukh pledged to stay in contact too, even if he couldn't shake his concern.
"How could I not worry about them? Of course I worry, but they'll be fine. I hope."
brw/jc/phz

drugs

Trump says US hit dock for Venezuela drug boats

BY JIM WATSON WITH DANNY KEMP IN WASHINGTON

  • "So we hit all the boats and now we hit the area, it's the implementation area, that's where they implement.
  • The United States hit and destroyed a docking area for alleged Venezuela drug boats, President Donald Trump said Monday, in what could amount to the first land strike of the military campaign against trafficking from Latin America.
  • "So we hit all the boats and now we hit the area, it's the implementation area, that's where they implement.
The United States hit and destroyed a docking area for alleged Venezuela drug boats, President Donald Trump said Monday, in what could amount to the first land strike of the military campaign against trafficking from Latin America.
The US leader's confirmation of the incident comes as he ramps up a pressure campaign against Venezuela's leftist President Nicolas Maduro, who has accused Trump of seeking regime change.
"There was a major explosion in the dock area where they load the boats up with drugs," he told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida as he hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. 
"So we hit all the boats and now we hit the area, it's the implementation area, that's where they implement. And that is no longer around."
Trump would not say if it was a military or CIA operation or where the strike occurred, noting only that it was "along the shore."
Sources familiar with the operation told CNN and the New York Times that the CIA had carried out a drone strike on a port facility. 
The strike was believed to be targeting the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, though no one was present at the time of the operation and there were no casualties, the US media outlets reported.
There has been no official comment from the Venezuelan government.
The Pentagon earlier referred questions to the White House. The White House did not respond to requests for comment from AFP. 
Asked on Monday if he had spoken to Maduro recently, Trump said they had talked "pretty recently" but that "nothing much comes out of it."
Trump revealed details of the operation after being asked to elaborate on comments he made in a radio interview broadcast Friday that seemed to mention a land strike for the first time.
"They have a big plant or a big facility where they send, you know, where the ships come from," Trump told billionaire supporter John Catsimatidis on the WABC radio station in New York.
"Two nights ago, we knocked that out. So we hit them very hard." 
Trump did not say in the interview where the facility was located or give any other details.
Trump has been threatening for weeks that ground strikes on drug cartels in the region would start "soon," but this is the first apparent example.

Fresh US strike in Pacific

US forces have also carried out numerous strikes in both the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean since September, targeting what Washington says are drug-smuggling boats.
The administration has provided no evidence that the targeted boats were involved in drug trafficking, however, prompting debate about the legality of these operations. 
International law experts and rights groups say the strikes likely amount to extrajudicial killings, a charge that Washington denies.
After Trump spoke Monday, the US military announced on social media that it had carried out another strike on a boat in the Eastern Pacific, killing two and bringing the total killed in the maritime campaign to at least 107.
It did not specify where exactly the strike took place.
The Trump administration has been ramping up pressure on Maduro, accusing the Venezuelan leader of running a drug cartel himself and imposing an oil tanker blockade.
dk/lga/lb

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