war

Japan PM hopeful avoids war shrine visit amid political wrangle

BY KYOKO HASEGAWA

Takaichi became Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leader on October 4 but her aim to become Japan's first woman prime minister was derailed by the collapse of the ruling coalition last week.

The new head of Japan's ruling party Sanae Takaichi avoided visiting a controversial Tokyo war shrine on Friday, as political wrangling intensifies over her bid to become prime minister.
Takaichi became Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leader on October 4 but her aim to become Japan's first woman prime minister was derailed by the collapse of the ruling coalition last week.

The new head of Japan's ruling party Sanae Takaichi avoided visiting a controversial Tokyo war shrine on Friday, as political wrangling intensifies over her bid to become prime minister.

Takaichi became Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leader on October 4 but her aim to become Japan's first woman prime minister was derailed by the collapse of the ruling coalition last week.

The LDP is now in talks about forming a different alliance, boosting Takaichi's chances of becoming premier in a parliamentary vote that media reports said will likely happen on Tuesday.

Past visits by top leaders to Yasukuni, which honours even convicted war criminals, have angered China and South Korea, and no Japanese premier has visited since 2013.

Takaichi, seen as an arch-conservative and China hawk from the right of the LDP, has visited in the past, including as a government minister.

But on Friday, on the opening day of an autumn festival, the 64-year-old sent an offering and reports said she was likely to refrain from visiting in order not to upset Japan's neighbours.

The last visit by a prime minister was in 2013 by the late Shinzo Abe, who was Takaichi's mentor. His three successors including outgoing premier Shigeru Ishiba have stayed away.

Trump visit

The clock is ticking for Takaichi to become Japan's fifth prime minister in as many years with US President Donald Trump due to visit Japan at the end of October.

Details of Washington and Tokyo's trade deal remain unresolved and Trump -- who had warm relations with Abe in his first term -- wants Japan to stop Russian energy imports and boost defence spending.

The LDP's coalition partner of 26 years, the Komeito party, pulled the plug on their alliance on October 10.

Komeito said that the LDP has failed to tighten rules on party funding following a damaging slush fund scandal involving dodgy payments of millions of dollars.

The LDP this week began talks on forming a new coalition with the Japan Innovation Party (JIP) instead.

The two parties would be two seats short of a majority but the alliance would still likely ensure that Takaichi succeeds in becoming premier.

This is because while Takaichi needs support from a majority of MPs to become premier, in a second-round two-way runoff she only needs more than the other person.

A spanner in the works could be if opposition parties agreed on a rival candidate but talks on this this week appeared to make little headway.

"I believe we made progress on advancing the sense of mutual trust because (LDP) President Takaichi and I were very close in many areas, including our views on current affairs and the political philosophy of the country," Fumitake Fujita, co-head of the JIP, said Thursday.

However, he also acknowledged that there were big policy differences in specific areas, such as a JIP proposal to ban corporate political donations.

More talks were due to take place on Friday.

kh-aph-stu/dhw

poverty

Nearly 900 mn poor people exposed to climate shocks, UN warns

BY AMéLIE BOTTOLLIER-DEPOIS

As a result, 887 million people, or nearly 79 percent of these poor populations, are directly exposed to at least one of these threats, with 608 million people suffering from extreme heat, 577 million affected by pollution, 465 million by floods, and 207 million by drought.

Nearly 80 percent of the world's poorest, or about 900 million people, are directly exposed to climate hazards exacerbated by global warming, bearing a "double and deeply unequal burden," the United Nations warned Friday.
As a result, 887 million people, or nearly 79 percent of these poor populations, are directly exposed to at least one of these threats, with 608 million people suffering from extreme heat, 577 million affected by pollution, 465 million by floods, and 207 million by drought.

Nearly 80 percent of the world's poorest, or about 900 million people, are directly exposed to climate hazards exacerbated by global warming, bearing a "double and deeply unequal burden," the United Nations warned Friday.

"No one is immune to the increasingly frequent and stronger climate change effects like droughts, floods, heat waves, and air pollution, but it's the poorest among us who are facing the harshest impact," Haoliang Xu, acting administrator of the United Nations Development Programme, told AFP in a statement.

COP30, the UN climate summit in Brazil in November, "is the moment for world leaders to look at climate action as action against poverty," he added.

According to an annual study published by the UNDP together with the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative, 1.1 billion people, or about 18 percent of the 6.3 billion in 109 countries analyzed, live in "acute multidimensional" poverty, based on factors like infant mortality and access to housing, sanitation, electricity and education.

Half of those people are minors.

One example of such extreme deprivation cited in the report is the case of Ricardo, a member of the Guarani Indigenous community living outside Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia's largest city.

Ricardo, who earns a meager income as a day laborer, shares his small single-family house with 18 other people, including his three children, parents and other extended family.

The house has only one bathroom, a wood- and coal-fired kitchen, and none of the children are in school.

"Their lives reflect the multidimensional realities of poverty," the report said.

Prioritizing 'people and the planet'

Two regions particularly affected by such poverty are sub-Saharan Africa, and South Asia -- and they are also highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.

The report highlights the connection between poverty and exposure to four environmental risks: extreme heat, drought, floods, and air pollution.

"Impoverished households are especially susceptible to climate shocks as many depend on highly vulnerable sectors such as agriculture and informal labor," the report said.

"When hazards overlap or strike repeatedly, they compound existing deprivations."

As a result, 887 million people, or nearly 79 percent of these poor populations, are directly exposed to at least one of these threats, with 608 million people suffering from extreme heat, 577 million affected by pollution, 465 million by floods, and 207 million by drought.

Roughly 651 million are exposed to at least two of the risks, 309 million to three or four risks, and 11 million poor people have already experienced all four in a single year.

"Concurrent poverty and climate hazards are clearly a global issue," the report said.

And the increase in extreme weather events threatens development progress.

While South Asia has made progress in fighting poverty, 99.1 percent of its poor population exposed to at least one climate hazard.

The region "must once again chart a new path forward, one that balances determined poverty reduction with innovative climate action," the report says.

With Earth's surface rapidly getting warmer, the situation is likely to worsen further and experts warn that today's poorest countries will be hardest hit by rising temperatures.

"Responding to overlapping risks requires prioritizing both people and the planet, and above all, moving from recognition to rapid action," the report said.

abd/md/sst

military

Army colonel to be sworn in as Madagascar president

It is the third military transition in Madagascar since independence from France in 1960, following coups in 1972 and in 2009.

Madagascar is set Friday to swear in an army colonel as president, just days after a military power grab that sent President Andry Rajoelina fleeing and raised international alarm about a new coup on the island.
It is the third military transition in Madagascar since independence from France in 1960, following coups in 1972 and in 2009.

Madagascar is set Friday to swear in an army colonel as president, just days after a military power grab that sent President Andry Rajoelina fleeing and raised international alarm about a new coup on the island.

The country's highest court was expected to formalise the appointment of Colonel Michael Randrianirina in a ceremony at 9:00 am (06H00 GMT), capping a dramatic week in which Rajoelina was impeached for desertion of duty on Tuesday, with the military stepping in.

Amid international criticism, including from the United Nations, Randrianirina denied he had initiated a coup, pointing to the constitutional court's backing of his new role.

The 51-year-old commander of the CAPSAT unit has pledged elections in 18 to 24 months and told local media that consultations were under way to appoint a consensus prime minister.

"Madagascar has not chosen a military regime," he told reporters Thursday.

"The government belongs to civilians. The presidential council is also composed of military and civilians," he said.

Rajoelina's camp has condemned the constitutional court's support of the CAPSAT commander as riddled with procedural illegalities that risked destabilising the former French colony.

It has insisted that Rajoelina remain leader and was working to find solutions to the problems dogging the impoverished island, including power cuts that sparked a youth-led protest movement on September 25.

Government forces were accused of a harsh crackdown on the protesters, with many reported dead or wounded, until CAPSAT announced on October 11 that it would refuse orders to shoot on them.

The statement was a turning point in the uprising, with the unit hailed by the protest movement, which is now expecting a role in the new set-up.

Escape, hiding

Rajoelina's office confirmed in a statement late Wednesday that he fled the country the same weekend CAPSAT stood behind the protesters, saying he feared for his life. He did not reveal his whereabouts.

Media reports said the 51-year-old was evacuated on Sunday aboard a French military plane that took him to the French island of Reunion from where he travelled to Dubai.

Madagascar is the latest of several former French colonies to have fallen under military control since 2020, after coups in Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Gabon and Guinea.

It is the third military transition in Madagascar since independence from France in 1960, following coups in 1972 and in 2009.

The country, off Mozambique, is one of the poorest in the world, despite an abundance of natural resources and a rich biodiversity.

About 80 percent of its roughly 32 million people live in poverty, according to the World Bank's benchmark.

Rajoelina's escape is the third time a Malagasy head of state has left the country after being ousted. Didier Ratsiraka fled to France in 2002 after post-electoral violence and Marc Ravalomanana went to South Africa in 2009.

The African Union and regional SADC bloc said they would send fact-finding missions to the island and called for constitutional democracy to be upheld.

"The transition is now underway. We call for the full involvement of civilians in the ongoing process," French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said Thursday.

"The mobilisation of Madagascar's youth must be fully heard to build a sustainable, peaceful, and calm solution," he told reporters during a visit to Nigeria.

clv-br/rmb/tym

growth

China's economic growth slowed to 4.8% in third quarter: AFP poll

BY PETER CATTERALL

The survey of analysts by AFP forecasts the world's number two economy expanded 4.8 percent on-year in July-September.

China's economy likely grew at its slowest pace in a year last quarter, according to an AFP survey, dragged down by lacklustre demand and a crisis in the crucial property sector, compounded by a trade war with the United States.
The survey of analysts by AFP forecasts the world's number two economy expanded 4.8 percent on-year in July-September.

China's economy likely grew at its slowest pace in a year last quarter, according to an AFP survey, dragged down by lacklustre demand and a crisis in the crucial property sector, compounded by a trade war with the United States.

Beijing has struggled to kickstart a full recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, which hammered sentiment among the country's army of consumers, even after a series of measures aimed at stimulating buying.

The growth reading Monday will come as the ruling Chinese Communist Party kicks off a key meeting to formulate policy directions in the next five-year period -- a period experts warn could present more hurdles for growth.

Authorities will also announce other closely watched data Monday, including on retail sales and factory output, providing an extra insight into the state of the economy.

The survey of analysts by AFP forecasts the world's number two economy expanded 4.8 percent on-year in July-September.

That would be below the 5.2 percent expansion in the previous three months and mark the slowest pace since the same period last year. It would also fall short of Beijing's official annual target of around five percent.

"The economy is clearly decelerating, not drastically... but noticeably," Alicia Garcia-Herrero, Asia-Pacific chief economist at Natixis, told AFP.

The "main issue" is the consumption slump, she said, describing recent data as evidence of "really bad deflationary pressure".

"On top of that, there are increasing fragilities on the fiscal side with local governments," said Garcia-Herrero, referring to massive debt that has prevented several provinces from being able to service their loans.

She noted that China's exports -- which have remained strong despite the US trade war -- and hefty infrastructure investment mean such deeply rooted problems are not necessarily evident in headline gross domestic product figures.

Official data showed this week that consumer prices in China fell again in September after reaching a six-month low in August.

Economists argue the country needs to shift towards a growth model driven mainly by domestic spending, as opposed to infrastructure and property development.

Such a transition is likely to be on the table at next week's gathering of Party officials, Teeuwe Mevissen, senior China economist at Rabobank, wrote in a recent note.

Policy support

Another thorny problem facing policymakers is China's vast property sector -- driven for decades by rapid urbanisation and improvements in living standards -- but now mired in a debt crisis that began in 2020.

The downturn has spooked would-be homebuyers, dampened investment and left many major projects unfinished after several of the sectors' top firms defaulted.

Authorities have in recent years introduced various measures to boost the sector, including by scrapping various restrictions on property purchases, but results have been mixed.

This year has brought added headwinds with US President Donald Trump embarking on a global trade war that has a particular emphasis on China.

The row saw the two slap each other with eye-watering tariffs this year, and while they have reached a shaky detente, tensions continue to simmer.

Still, exports from the manufacturing powerhouse have proven resilient, with many shipments diverted to alternative markets including in Southeast Asia.

Data this week showed trade grew faster than expected in September, with exports expanding at a forecast-topping 8.3 percent year-on-year, the fastest since March.

"While business with the United States has dropped off, China's involvement in other markets has improved," Heron Lim, lecturer of economics at ESSEC Business School, told AFP.

"This realignment of supply chains has kept the factory lights on."

But Guo Shan of Hutong Research told AFP that while the export figures were healthy, "hitting the (annual five percent) target does require more policy support".

She added that she expected the meeting next week to focus on "policies to promote consumption, services and innovation".

pfc/dan/dhw

Trinidad

'This is the Caribbean, peace and love': Trinidadians on US boat strikes

Local media reported that another local man, named as Rishi Samaroo, was also on the latest boat to be blown up by US forces in an anti-drugs operation that has left at least 27 people dead since last month.

Trinidad and Tobago was in shock Thursday over the reported deaths of two local men in a US strike on a suspected drug boat, the latest of Venezuela's neighbors to become sucked into Washington's pressure campaign.
Local media reported that another local man, named as Rishi Samaroo, was also on the latest boat to be blown up by US forces in an anti-drugs operation that has left at least 27 people dead since last month.

Trinidad and Tobago was in shock Thursday over the reported deaths of two local men in a US strike on a suspected drug boat, the latest of Venezuela's neighbors to become sucked into Washington's pressure campaign.

"Are we in Israel or in Afghanistan? This is the Caribbean; here is peace and love," a fisherman in the Trinidadian village of Las Cuevas told AFP in a thick drawl after Tuesday's strike on a boat allegedly ferrying drugs from Venezuela.

Police in Trinidad and Tobago are investigating reports that two citizens were among the six "narcoterrorists" killed in the operation announced by US President Donald Trump.

But Lenore Burnley, mother of 26-year-old fisherman Chad Joseph, told AFP people her family knew in Venezuela "told them he was on the boat."

Local media reported that another local man, named as Rishi Samaroo, was also on the latest boat to be blown up by US forces in an anti-drugs operation that has left at least 27 people dead since last month.

Trump has deployed seven warships to the southern Caribbean and one to the Gulf of Mexico as part of a campaign to pressure Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who is widely accused of stealing the 2024 elections.

The Trump administration has accused the authoritarian Socialist of heading a drug cartel -- allegations Maduro denies.

Tensions inched higher on Wednesday after Trump announced that he was considering strikes on land targets in Venezuela and indicated he had authorized covert CIA operations against the country.

The fisherman in Las Cuevas, who asked to remain anonymous, lambasted Washington's trigger-happy methods, "even if they (boats) are transporting drugs."

"Go and arrest them," he advised.

Colombia's president Gustavo Petro recently called on the United Nations to open a "criminal process" against Trump for the strikes, which he believes have also killed Colombians.

- Drug trafficking hub -

At its closest point the twin-island nation of Trinidad and Tobago is just 11 kilometers (6.8 miles) from the Venezuelan coast.

Las Cuevas lies on the north coast of Trinidad, the bigger island, along a winding road, built by the US military during World War II.

With its translucent waters and coves topped by verdant cliffs, the village is like a postcard for Caribbean living.

Fishermen play cards in the shade while men fix boat engines and nets under a lean-to.

But the idyllic scenes mask a grittier reality.

Three men work on a speedboat equipped with three Yamaha engines that looks as if it is intended for a more lucrative business than fishing.

"Fishing doesn't provide enough of an income," one resident told AFP.

Garvin Heerah, a local security consultant, described Trinidad and Tobago as a key cog in the global drug trade.

"The country is more than a mere stopover. It operates as a transhipment hub where bulk shipments are received, stored, repackaged, and prepared for onward movement," he told AFP.

From here, the drugs are shipped north to the United States, east to Europe and West Africa as well as to other Caribbean countries in "go-fast" speedboats of the kind seen being blown up in videos shared by Trump.

Lynette Burnley, Chad Joseph's aunt, told AFP that her nephew, whom she described as a "really loving" and generous person, had been a fisherman from a young age.

She said that Joseph and his girlfriend had moved to Venezuela, where Joseph worked in farming, but that he "ended up getting in problems with boats."

Chad's mother Lenore claimed her son was on his way home after three months in Venezuela and said his killing contravened the laws of the sea.

"According to maritime law, if you see a boat, you are supposed to stop the boat and intercept it, not just blow it up. That's our Trinidadian maritime law and I think every fisherman and every human knows that," she said.

bur-pgf/cb/sla

Brazil

'Less and less sea ice': Brazil woman sails solo through Arctic

BY WITH ESTEBAN ROJAS IN SAO PAULO

Next month, Brazil will host the 30th edition of annual UN global climate talks which began at a time when the majority of ships needed icebreaker assistance or specialized hulls to navigate the Northwest Passage.

Brazilian navigator Tamara Klink told AFP she encountered "very little" sea ice on her solo sail through the Northwest Passage -- a rare feat that would have been impossible without an icebreaker ship three decades ago.
Next month, Brazil will host the 30th edition of annual UN global climate talks which began at a time when the majority of ships needed icebreaker assistance or specialized hulls to navigate the Northwest Passage.

Brazilian navigator Tamara Klink told AFP she encountered "very little" sea ice on her solo sail through the Northwest Passage -- a rare feat that would have been impossible without an icebreaker ship three decades ago.

In September, the 28-year-old became the second woman and the first Latin American to complete the perilous Arctic journey from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, which has only become possible due to melting ice caused by climate change.

"I only found ice on nine percent of the way which is very little," Klink told AFP after returning from the 6,500-kilometer (4,000-mile) voyage between Greenland and Alaska.

"By talking to scientists, by talking to local people, especially hunters, Inuit hunters and Inuit fishermen, I understand that this very little amount of ice that I found is part of a general trend of having less and less sea ice every year."

According to the United Nations, global temperatures in 2024 were the hottest on record, surpassing 1.5C above pre-industrial levels for the first time.

"This is part of a trend that will be very difficult to reverse if we don't act with bold decisions, if we don't make courageous choices in this decade," she said, referring to the climate crisis.

Next month, Brazil will host the 30th edition of annual UN global climate talks which began at a time when the majority of ships needed icebreaker assistance or specialized hulls to navigate the Northwest Passage.

"With global warming, now the sea ice is melting during summertime... so smaller boats are able to pass and smaller crew are able to do this long trip," said Klink.

Tamara is the daughter of celebrated Brazilian explorer Amyr Klink, the first and only person to row solo across the South Atlantic Ocean.

'The sea doesn't care if I am female'

Klink said her father's long absences while at sea first drew her to the water.

"I was 12 years old when I asked my father to help me to start sailing alone and my father said that if I wanted to do that, he would help me with zero boats, with zero advice," she said.

"My father had all the answers and he had all the tools, but by telling me he would not help me, he gave me the right to make mistakes and to learn how to be who I became."

Klink's first solo sailing adventure took her from Norway to Brazil in 2021 in a tiny boat she bought "for the price of a bicycle."

She then spent eight months of winter in Greenland, her boat stuck in the ice, between 2023 and 2024.

In July, she began the two-month journey through the Northwest Passage.

Klink is only the 14th person to make the solo voyage, according to her team.

"When I'm at sea, in my boat, I know that my gender does not matter. The sea doesn't care if I'm female or male, if I'm old or young, if I'm strong or weak, if I'm there or if I'm not there anymore."

erc/lg/fb/sst

Global Edition

Safety for hire: security firms cash in on World Cup in Mexico

BY ALEXANDER MARTINEZ

The daily price to hire one of Cerdeira's cars ranges from $800 to $1,100, plus an additional $500 for a driver and escort.

Gunshots rang out in a Mexico City warehouse as Leopoldo Cerdeira emptied a cartridge into a car door propped up on a stand.
The daily price to hire one of Cerdeira's cars ranges from $800 to $1,100, plus an additional $500 for a driver and escort.

Gunshots rang out in a Mexico City warehouse as Leopoldo Cerdeira emptied a cartridge into a car door propped up on a stand.

The reason for the smoky handgun and scattering of bullet casings littered over the floor was that Cerdeira wanted to demonstrate the quality of his vehicles' armour plating in order to rent them out to wealthy foreign visitors coming to Mexico for the 2026 World Cup.

The head of security firm Ruhe proudly displayed how the bullets had been blocked by the solid synthetic layer that coats the entirety of his fleet of 70 vehicles.

This Mexican entrepreneur is ready for the World Cup, which his nation will co-host with the United States and Canada from June 11 to July 19 next year.

"Our bookings are for tourists, people who have money, who come to see the matches but are afraid because they have heard bad things about Mexico," said Cerdeira at his company's headquarters.

Cerdeira's luxury cars recently transported a FIFA delegation visiting Mexico, and the fleet, reserved for the Mexican Formula 1 Grand Prix at the end of the month, will increase to 80 vehicles for the global footballing showpiece.

But there is far more to the Mexican security industry than what are essentially personal, luxury armoured vehicles.

Drivers, armed escorts, bomb protection, bulletproof vests and armoured briefcases are just some of the other products offered by a sector that profits from the criminal violence that plagues Mexico -- a country with some 30,000 murders per year.

Much of this bloodshed is linked to Mexico's infamous drug cartels.

"The country's insecurity has led to the growth of our industry," said Gabriel Hernandez, head of Armoring Group, which sells bulletproof cars and clothing for civilians and military personnel in Mexico, Spain and the United States.

Next year's World Cup will see three Mexican cities host matches, with millions expected to flock to Mexico City, northern industrial city Monterrey and the booming home of tequila and Mariachi music, Guadalajara.

The opening match will be held in Mexico City, where 40,000 additional CCTV cameras have been installed, and the use of drones will be restricted in the three cities.

Local authorities say they are doing their utmost to ensure security for the World Cup, and while the capital -- the site of Pele's Brazil lifting their third world title in 1970 and Diego Maradona's Argentina their second in 1986 -- is usually spared from attacks by drug traffickers, the same cannot be said of the other host cities.

'World Cup truce'

Guadalajara is the centre of operations for the Jalisco Nueva Generacion Cartel (CJNG), a group designated as terrorists by the United States, which has promised a reward of $12 million for the arrest of its leader, Nemesio Oseguera, known as 'El Mencho'.

To reassure clients beyond armour plating, there are car handles that can deliver electric shocks, wheels that can release a dose of pepper spray and tyres that can last for 80 kilometres (50 miles) after being punctured.

The daily price to hire one of Cerdeira's cars ranges from $800 to $1,100, plus an additional $500 for a driver and escort. For $1,500, customers can also purchase a discreet bulletproof vest.

However, such companies do not hold a monopoly on the Mexican private security industry.

The cartels have set up their own parallel sector, manufacturing 'monsters' -- huge vehicles with homemade armour plating.

Groups such as the CJNG have released videos showing their 'sicarios' (hitmen) parading around in these vehicles while armed to the teeth.

At the beginning of the year, authorities dismantled a clandestine armouring workshop in the state of Sinaloa, in the north-west of the country -- the stronghold of another of Mexico's major cartels.

The security industry has the additional concern of seeing its workforce fall into the hands of the cartels -- a challenge entrepreneurs claim to be tackling.

Eight years ago, two workers employed by Cerdeira were recruited by a criminal group.

According to the entrepreneur, these groups offer salaries three times higher, but the risk is enormous: his two former employees were found dead in the state of Sinaloa.

However, despite their dangerous nature, the cartels do not pose a direct threat to the World Cup, according to David Saucedo, a security consultant who works for embassies and local authorities.

"They themselves have a social base that will benefit from the matches," he explained.

Saucedo even refused to rule out a possible tacit agreement between the cartels and the authorities, who would commit to not conducting large-scale operations against the cartels in exchange for assurances that the latter will not carry out "bloody acts that would tarnish Mexico's image".

"It would be a kind of World Cup truce," added Saucedo.

axm/yug/obo/bdx/hpa/nf/bc

conflict

Turkish experts to help find bodies in Gaza, as Trump warns Hamas

BY JAY DESHMUKH

"If Hamas continues to kill people in Gaza, which was not the Deal, we will have no choice but to go in and kill them," Trump said on Truth Social in an apparent reference to recent shootings of Palestinian civilians.

Turkey has deployed dozens of disaster relief specialists to help search for bodies under the mountains of rubble in Gaza, as US President Donald Trump fired a warning at Hamas Thursday over a spate of recent killings in the territory.
"If Hamas continues to kill people in Gaza, which was not the Deal, we will have no choice but to go in and kill them," Trump said on Truth Social in an apparent reference to recent shootings of Palestinian civilians.

Turkey has deployed dozens of disaster relief specialists to help search for bodies under the mountains of rubble in Gaza, as US President Donald Trump fired a warning at Hamas Thursday over a spate of recent killings in the territory.

Trump characterised the killings as a breach of the ceasefire deal he spearheaded, under which the Palestinian militant group returned its last 20 surviving hostages to Israel.

Hamas says it has also handed back all the bodies of deceased captives it can access but the bodies of 19 more are still unaccounted for and believed to be buried under the ruins alongside an untold number of Palestinians.

The Palestinian militants stressed their "commitment" to the ceasefire deal with Israel, and that they want to return all the remaining bodies of hostages left in Gaza.

But it said in a statement that the process "may require some time, as some of these corpses were buried in tunnels destroyed by the occupation, while others remain under the rubble of buildings it bombed and demolished".

Turkey has sent staff from its disaster relief agency to help in locating the bodies but the families of the dead have fumed at Hamas's failure to deliver their loved ones' remains.

The main campaign group advocating for the hostages' families demanded Thursday that Israel "immediately halt the implementation of any further stages of the agreement as long as Hamas continues to blatantly violate its obligations regarding the return of all hostages and the remains of the victims".

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reaffirmed his determination to "secure the return of all hostages" after his defence minister warned on Wednesday that Israel "will resume fighting" if Hamas failed to do so.

Trump had appeared to call for patience when it came to the bodies' return -- insisting Hamas was "actually digging" for hostages' remains -- but later expressed frustration on Thursday with the group's conduct since the fighting halted.

"If Hamas continues to kill people in Gaza, which was not the Deal, we will have no choice but to go in and kill them," Trump said on Truth Social in an apparent reference to recent shootings of Palestinian civilians.

Hamas has been accused of carrying out summary executions in Gaza since the ceasefire went into effect.

Clashes have also taken place between the group's various security units and armed Palestinian clans, some of which are alleged to have Israeli backing.

Aid hopes

The ceasefire deal has so far seen the war grind to a halt after two years of agony for the hostages' families, and constant bombardment and hunger for Gazans.

According to Trump's 20-point plan for Gaza, the next phases of the truce should include the disarmament of Hamas, the offer of amnesty to Hamas leaders who decommission their weapons and establishing the governance of post-war Gaza.

The plan also calls for renewed aid provision, with international organisations awaiting the reopening of southern Gaza's Rafah crossing in the hope it will enable a surge of supplies.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on the sidelines of a summit in Naples that preparations were being made for the strategic crossing, and that he "hoped" it would reopen Sunday, Italian news agencies reported.

Israel, however, said earlier on Thursday that the crossing would only be open to people, not aid, and Saar did not appear to elaborate, according to the reports.

The humanitarian situation has been dire in Gaza throughout the war, with the UN declaring famine in parts of the north in August.

The World Health Organization has warned that infectious diseases are "spiralling out of control", with only 13 of the territory's 36 hospitals even partially functioning.

"Whether meningitis... diarrhoea, respiratory illnesses, we're talking about a mammoth amount of work," Hanan Balkhy, regional director for the UN health body, told AFP in Cairo.

'My children are home'

The families of the surviving hostages were able, after two long years without their loved ones, to rejoice in their return.

"My children are home! Two years ago, one morning, I lost half of my family," said Sylvia Cunio, mother of Ariel and David Cunio, who were released from captivity.

Israel returned the bodies of 30 Palestinians to Gaza on Thursday, the territory's health ministry said.

Under the ceasefire deal, Israel was to turn over the bodies of 15 Palestinians for every deceased Israeli returned.

For many in Gaza, while there was relief that the bombing had stopped, the road to recovery felt impossible, given the sheer scale of the devastation.

"There's no water -- no clean water, not even salty water, no water at all. No essentials of life exist -- no food, no drink, nothing," said Mustafa Mahram, who returned to Gaza City after the ceasefire.

"As you can see, all that's left is rubble."

The war has killed at least 67,967 people in Gaza, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory, figures the United Nations considers credible.

The data does not distinguish between civilians and combatants but indicates that more than half of the dead are women and children.

Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,221 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.

bur-ser-acc/smw/phz/rmb

conflict

Trump says to meet Putin in Budapest after 'great' call

BY DANNY KEMP

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky insisted that the threat of Tomahawks had pushed Moscow to negotiate, even as he deals with yet another Trump shift on the war.

US President Donald Trump said he would meet Russia's Vladimir Putin in Hungary after a "very productive" call Thursday, and questioned Kyiv's push for Tomahawk missiles just a day before hosting Ukraine's leader at the White House.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky insisted that the threat of Tomahawks had pushed Moscow to negotiate, even as he deals with yet another Trump shift on the war.

US President Donald Trump said he would meet Russia's Vladimir Putin in Hungary after a "very productive" call Thursday, and questioned Kyiv's push for Tomahawk missiles just a day before hosting Ukraine's leader at the White House.

In his latest abrupt pivot on Russia's 2022 invasion, Trump said he expected to meet Putin in Budapest within the next two weeks for what would be their second summit since the American's return to power.

The Kremlin welcomed the "extremely frank and trustful" call and said it was immediately preparing for the summit.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky insisted that the threat of Tomahawks had pushed Moscow to negotiate, even as he deals with yet another Trump shift on the war.

"I believe great progress was made with today's telephone conversation," Trump said on his Truth Social network, saying he and Putin would meet to "see if we can bring this 'inglorious' War, between Russia and Ukraine, to an end."

The 79-year-old Republican later told reporters in the Oval Office that the call was "very productive" and that he expected to meet "within two weeks or so, pretty quick."

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will swiftly meet his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov to sort out summit details, Trump added.

'Momentum'

Trump said the Russian leader "didn't like it" when he raised the possibility during their call of giving Moscow's enemy Ukraine the missiles with a 1,000-mile (1,600-kilometer) range.

But Trump appeared to cast doubt on whether Ukraine would actually get the American-made arms it covets, saying the United States could not "deplete" its own supply.

"We need them too, so I don't know what we can do about that," he said.

Trump's relations with Putin -- a leader for whom he has repeatedly expressed admiration over the years -- have blown hot and cold since he returned to the White House in January.

After an initial rapprochement, Trump has shown increasing frustration, particularly since he came away from Alaska with no end to the war he once promised to solve within 24 hours.

Zelensky meanwhile has gone the opposite way, winning Trump's support after a disastrous initial meeting in February when the US president berated him in front of the cameras.

But Trump's latest swing appears to have moved the dial again, leaving Zelensky having to negotiate the situation with Ukraine's main military backer.

Zelensky said as he arrived Thursday in Washington that he hopes the "momentum" of the Middle East peace deal Trump brokered will help end the war in Ukraine.

"We can already see that Moscow is rushing to resume dialogue as soon as it hears about Tomahawks," Zelensky said, adding that he'll also be meeting US defence companies to discuss additional supplies of air defence systems.

'Peace summit'

The Kremlin hailed the "highly substantive" Putin-Trump call, which Putin's top aide Yuri Ushakov told journalists was at Russia's initiative.

But Putin told Trump that giving Ukraine Tomahawks would "not change the situation on the battlefield" and would harm "prospects for peaceful resolution," added Ushakov.

Budapest had been discussed as a possible venue for the previous Trump-Putin meeting before they settled on Alaska.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has maintained friendly relations with both men, said later that he had spoken to Trump. "Preparations for the USA-Russia peace summit are underway," he said on X.

The choice of Budapest also sidesteps an International Criminal Court arrest warrant for Putin for alleged war crimes.

Hungary has announced its withdrawal from the ICC yet is still theoretically a member until June 2026.

But Orban gave Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a promise that he would not carry out the warrant when Netanyahu visited Hungary in April.

In Ukraine the war ground on with Moscow renewing its attacks on Kyiv's energy grid.

Russian strikes forced Ukraine to introduce nationwide rolling power cuts, for the second day in a row, in the cold season when temperatures can fall to zero at night.

dk/mlm

Global Edition

US stocks fall as regional bank angst adds to list of worries

Other mid-sized and regional banks also fell, including M&T Bank, Comerica and Fifth Third Bancorp, all of which lost between four and seven percent.

Wall Street stocks fell Thursday on fears that private credit problems may weigh on US regional banks, adding to concerns about trade tensions and a government shutdown.
Other mid-sized and regional banks also fell, including M&T Bank, Comerica and Fifth Third Bancorp, all of which lost between four and seven percent.

Wall Street stocks fell Thursday on fears that private credit problems may weigh on US regional banks, adding to concerns about trade tensions and a government shutdown.

After opening higher, US equities tumbled into the red around midday and lingered in negative territory thereafter.

All three major US indices finished lower, with the S&P 500 ending down 0.6 percent.

That came after a positive day on leading Asian and European bourses, including Paris, which climbed after French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu survived two confidence motions.

The VIX Volatility index -- a closely-watched benchmark of investor anxiety -- surged to its highest level since May, while gold prices set a new record.

"There's some emerging concerns about credit," Angelo Kourkafas of Edward Jones said of the drop in US equities. "Investors are taking a cautious approach."

The private market has been in focus following bankruptcies in recent weeks of two auto-related enterprises, the auto parts company First Brands and the subprime lender Tricolor.

Shares of Salt Lake City-based Zions Bancorp plunged 13.1 percent after the company disclosed a pair of problem loans to businesses with "apparent misrepresentations and contractual defaults," it said in a securities filing that announced a $50 million hit on the matter in the third quarter.

Other mid-sized and regional banks also fell, including M&T Bank, Comerica and Fifth Third Bancorp, all of which lost between four and seven percent.

Investors are "extrapolating" the instances of known problem loans to the potential to ensnare more banks, said Art Hogan of B. Riley Wealth Management.

The problem with banks is the "story of the day at a point when investors are already worried about a lot of other things," Hogan said.

In Europe, the Paris stock market climbed 1.4 percent on hopes of greater political stabilization.

London edged out a gain despite data that showed lackluster growth in the UK economy, six weeks ahead of the government's annual budget.

Among individual companies, Nestle shares surged more than nine percent after the Swiss food giant announced that it will cut 16,000 jobs worldwide over the next two years.

United Airlines fell 5.6 percent after reporting that earnings had dipped on higher costs. The carrier projected better than expected fourth-quarter profits on strengthening demand.

But Briefing.com noted that United's capacity additions could dent results if macro conditions "soften."

Key figures at around 2010 GMT

New York - Dow: DOWN 0.7 percent at 45,952.24 (close)

New York - S&P 500: DOWN 0.6 percent at 6,629.07 (close)

New York - Nasdaq Composite: DOWN 0.5 percent at 22562.54 (close)

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 9,436.09 (close)

Paris - CAC 40: UP 1.4 percent at 8,188.59 (close)

Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.4 percent at 24,272.19 (close)

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 1.3 percent at 48,277.74 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.1 percent at 25,888.51 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.1 percent at 3,916.23 (close)

Euro/dollar: UP $1.1692 from $1.1607 on Wednesday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3436 from $1.3320

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 150.35 yen from 151.84 yen

Euro/pound: DOWN at 87.02 percent from 87.14 pence

Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 1.4 percent at $61.06 per barrel

West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 1.4 percent at $57.46 per barrel

bur-jmb/sst

conflict

'Wonder weapon'? Five things about US Tomahawks coveted by Ukraine

BY DANNY KEMP WITH MATHIEU RABECHAULT IN PARIS

Here are five things to know about the Tomahawk: - Mainstay of US armed forces - The Tomahawk is a cruise missile that has been in service for 42 years and since then used in almost all US military interventions.

The Tomahawk cruise missile, set to be at the centre of talks between Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, has been a mainstay of the US armed forces for over four decades and repeatedly used with success in the theatre of war.
Here are five things to know about the Tomahawk: - Mainstay of US armed forces - The Tomahawk is a cruise missile that has been in service for 42 years and since then used in almost all US military interventions.

The Tomahawk cruise missile, set to be at the centre of talks between Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, has been a mainstay of the US armed forces for over four decades and repeatedly used with success in the theatre of war.

Ukraine is eager to obtain the American missiles which would allow Kyiv to strike deep into Russian territory and give its armed forces a significant boost three-and-a-half years into the conflict sparked by the February 2022 full-scale invasion.

Some analysts and observers question if for all the avowed prowess of the Tomahawk it would in any way tip the balance in the war.

But their delivery would be a symbol of American support for Kyiv in the wake of the disastrous Oval Office meeting between Zelensky and Trump in February and a strong signal to Russian President Vladimir Putin that Trump is losing patience with Moscow.

Trump announced Thursday one day ahead of the talks with Zelensky that, following a call with Putin, he would meet the Russian leader at an unspecified date in Budapest.

Here are five things to know about the Tomahawk:

- Mainstay of US armed forces -

The Tomahawk is a cruise missile that has been in service for 42 years and since then used in almost all US military interventions.

Fired from submarines or surface ships, the BGM-109 Tomahawk flies up to 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) in range, at 880 km/h (550 mph) and a few dozen meters above the ground.

According to US Navy budget documents 8,959 missiles have been produced since the programme began and more than 2,350 have been fired.

A version of the Tomahawk carrying a nuclear warhead was retired from service in 2013.

- Repeatedly used in conflict -

The Tomahawks were first fired in a conflict during the US-led Operation Desert Storm against Saddam Hussein's Iraq in 1991 and repeatedly in US military interventions since then.

Most recently, some 80 missiles were still fired in January 2024 against the Tehran-backed Huthi rebels in Yemen, and another 30 against the Isfahan nuclear site in Iran in June when the US joined Israel's war against the Islamic republic.

The Tomahawk is also in service with the British Navy. Japan decided last year to acquire 400, and Australia and the Netherlands are also considering acquiring them.

- Wanted by Ukraine -

With its 450-kilogramme explosive charge, the Tomahawk can be used against air defense sites, command centers, airfields, or any heavily defended target.

Ukraine could with a Tomahawk target at least 1,655 targets of interest, including 67 air bases in Russia, well beyond Moscow, according to the US-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

Stacie Pettyjohn, a researcher at the CNAS think tank, estimated the US could supply 20-50 units.

The US Navy has only ordered 57 for 2026, an insufficient number for its manufacturer Raytheon to quickly ramp up production, according to German missile researcher Fabian Hoffmann. They would therefore have to be taken from US stocks.

Ukraine would also rather launch the missiles from land rather than sea but the land-based launchers are in very limited supply: the US Army currently has only two batteries of four launchers, and the Marine Corps only four.

- No game changer -

Like the battle tanks or the F-16s and Mirages already sold to Ukraine, the Tomahawk is not "a wonder weapon that is going to win the war," Pettyjohn wrote on X while adding that they have "have a notable strategic and operational effect".

"I don't believe that a weapons system can radically change the situation in Ukraine," agreed the head of the French Army, General Pierre Schill.

Especially since, with the homegrown Flamingo cruise missile, "the Ukrainians have developed deep strike capabilities, which they built themselves and are now using on the ground," said Schill.

- Warning to Russia -

Schill said the possible delivery of Tomahawks is "above all a political and strategic signal from Mr Trump to Mr Putin to say 'I told you I wanted us to move towards peace, I am ready to support the Ukrainians'" if there is no progress.

Putin has warned that the supply of Tomahawks to Kyiv would constitute a "whole new level of escalation, including in relations between Russia and the United States".

Trump on Wednesday described the Tomahawk as an "incredible weapon, very offensive weapon".

"Do they want to have Tomahawks going in their direction? I don't think so," he said.

bur-mra-sjw/giv

conflict

Afghans return home to rubble, hoping truce holds with Pakistan

BY JULIETTE MANSOUR WITH AMINULLAH SAMSOOR IN SPIN BOLDAK

"When I returned, I saw shattered windows, injured people lying on the road, and several dead," says Rahim, now forced to live with relatives.

Abdul Rahim surveys the rubble that was his home in Kabul, where he lived with six family members.
"When I returned, I saw shattered windows, injured people lying on the road, and several dead," says Rahim, now forced to live with relatives.

Abdul Rahim surveys the rubble that was his home in Kabul, where he lived with six family members.

A gaping hole in the living room reveals only charred belongings and debris, while blackened teddy bears and makeup lie in what once was a bedroom.

The explosion at his home was one of four that hit the Afghan capital within a week, as unusually intense violence broke out with Pakistan -- then suddenly halted under a temporary truce.

The fighting -- which has left dozens of troops and civilians dead on both sides, mostly in border regions -- represents the worst clashes between the neighbours since the Taliban returned to power in 2021.

"We were attending a graduation ceremony when I learned that an explosion had struck my house around 4:00 pm," Rahim, a motorcycle vendor, tells AFP.

Two explosions occurred Wednesday afternoon following aerial bombardments, according to Kabul police spokesman Khalid Zadran. The strikes plunged central Kabul into terror.

Pakistani security sources meanwhile said they carried out "precision strikes" against an armed group.

Stunned residents have been clearing the rubble, hoping the ceasefire will hold.

"When I returned, I saw shattered windows, injured people lying on the road, and several dead," says Rahim, now forced to live with relatives.

"War is not a solution -- we hope for dialogue," he pleads.

Next door, a yellow-walled school has also been gutted.

'Not a solution'

At least five dead and 35 injured were transported to a Kabul hospital Wednesday afternoon, according to Italian NGO EMERGENCY, which runs the facility.

No official death toll has been released.

Passersby stop to stare at the devastation, kept at a distance by security cordons and numerous personnel.

Three hundred metres away, a market in a residential area was also hit, with videos shared by local media showing a fireball engulfing the neighbourhood.

Next to a tall building where at least seven stories can be seen charred, Safiullah Hamidi, a 21-year-old student says his uncle's apartment was among those impacted.

"Pakistan should fight with our army if they want a confrontation, but not by bombing civilians," he says.

Nearby, Samir Ousmani gathers up metal bars littering his car wash station, almost entirely destroyed.

"One of my employees was killed, and two others, along with my uncle, were injured," reports the 22-year-old.

Holding their breath

At the border, where the clashes have been concentrated, residents who had fled are returning home.

"Stores have reopened, and everyone is going about their business, but the border is still closed," says Naqibullah, a 35-year-old merchant in Spin Boldak, Kandahar province.

The death toll continues to mount.

In the border town, 40 civilians were killed Wednesday in exchanges of fire with the Pakistani army, according to local health authorities.

The UN recorded 37 civilians killed and 425 injured in recent days on the Afghan side.

"Yesterday, the situation was terrible because of the war. I hope it doesn't resume because there have already been too many victims," says Aminullah, 22.

Islamabad said the temporary truce would last 48 hours, which ends on Friday evening.

"We are waiting to see what happens tomorrow," says Shamsullah, 36, a biryani vendor.

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Thursday that for the truce to endure, the ball was "in the court" of the Taliban government.

Kabul has not immediately commented.

str-qb-jma/cgo/abs/des

unrest

Afghanistan-Pakistan ceasefire holds after deadly border clashes

BY WITH LEHAZ ALI IN PESHAWAR

Pakistani officials on the northern and southern border with Afghanistan told AFP on Thursday that "no violence was reported overnight, and the ceasefire remains in effect".

A ceasefire along the frontier between Afghanistan and Pakistan was holding on Thursday, officials on both sides said, after dozens of troops and civilians were killed in cross-border clashes.
Pakistani officials on the northern and southern border with Afghanistan told AFP on Thursday that "no violence was reported overnight, and the ceasefire remains in effect".

A ceasefire along the frontier between Afghanistan and Pakistan was holding on Thursday, officials on both sides said, after dozens of troops and civilians were killed in cross-border clashes.

In Spin Boldak, a flashpoint on the Afghan side, an AFP journalist saw shops reopening and residents returning to homes they had fled during the fighting.

The 48-hour truce -- which expires Friday evening -- was aimed at allowing time to "find a positive solution...through constructive dialogue", according to Islamabad.

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Thursday evening that whether the temporary truce would be extended now depended on Kabul's response.

"If in 48 hours they want to resolve the issues and address our genuine demands, then we are ready for them," Sharif told his cabinet, reiterating that Pakistani Taliban militants should be eliminated and that Afghan territory not be used to plot attacks.

Pakistan is facing a resurgence of attacks against its security forces on its western border with Afghanistan, led by the Pakistani Taliban and its affiliates.

Spin Boldak's health director said 40 civilians were killed and 170 wounded on Wednesday, while the UN mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has reported at least 37 killed and 425 wounded in several provinces impacted by the clashes.

"Our houses were bombed, a child was wounded. I heard the plane myself," Abdul Zahir, a 46-year-old resident, told AFP. "It's terrifying."

Hundreds of residents and Taliban officials attended the funeral of seven members of the same family in Spin Boldak, an AFP journalist saw.

Islamabad accuses Kabul of sheltering militants who plan their frequent assaults from Afghan soil -- a charge the Taliban government denies.

Pakistani officials on the northern and southern border with Afghanistan told AFP on Thursday that "no violence was reported overnight, and the ceasefire remains in effect".

A senior security official in Peshawar told AFP: "Additional paramilitary troops have been deployed to counter potential...militant activity that could jeopardise the ceasefire."

Blasts were reported in the capital Kabul shortly before the truce was announced, as well as in the southern province of Kandahar, where the Afghan Taliban's shadowy supreme leader lives.

UN rights chief Volker Turk welcomed the truce and urged both sides to prevent further harm to civilians and "commit to a lasting ceasefire".

'Precision strikes'

The first explosions that struck Afghanistan last week -- blamed by the Taliban on Islamabad -- occurred while Afghanistan's top diplomat was on an unprecedented visit to India, Pakistan's longtime rival.

Taliban authorities then launched an offensive at the border, prompting Islamabad to vow a strong response of its own.

Exchanges of fire from Saturday killed dozens of people, with renewed violence on Wednesday also causing civilian casualties, according to Kabul.

The Taliban government officially blamed Wednesday's blasts in the Afghan capital on the explosion of an oil tanker and a generator.

However, Pakistani security sources said the military targeted an armed group with "precision strikes" in Kabul, as well as hitting Afghan Taliban bases in Kandahar.

There were blackouts overnight and into Thursday morning in some areas of Kabul, caused by electricity cables damaged in the explosions, AFP journalists in the city said.

AFP journalists saw municipal workers carrying out repairs on Thursday morning in a Kabul neighbourhood, where the road was charred and apartment windows had been blown out.

At least five people were killed and 35 wounded in Wednesday's explosions in Kabul, an Italian NGO that runs a hospital in the city said.

"We started receiving ambulances filled with wounded people," said Dejan Panic, EMERGENCY's country director.

Ten people were in critical condition, with injuries including shrapnel wounds, blunt trauma and burns, the NGO said.

str-cgo-zz/ecl/rsc/abs/pbt/des/jgc

politics

Madagascar's new military leader insists takeover 'not a coup'

BY CLéMENT VARANGES

But Randrianirina, known affectionately as Colonel Michael, insisted there had been no coup.

Madagascar's Colonel Michael Randrianirina insisted on the eve of his swearing in as new leader on Friday that a military power grab that sent President Andry Rajoelina fleeing the island was "not a coup".
But Randrianirina, known affectionately as Colonel Michael, insisted there had been no coup.

Madagascar's Colonel Michael Randrianirina insisted on the eve of his swearing in as new leader on Friday that a military power grab that sent President Andry Rajoelina fleeing the island was "not a coup".

Randrianirina has faced international criticism after his CAPSAT military unit declared on Tuesday it had taken power -- an announcement made moments after parliament impeached Rajoelina.

"A coup is when soldiers enter the presidential palace with weapons. They shoot. There is bloodshed... This is not a coup," he told journalists on Thursday.

In the streets of Antananarivo, the capital of the poverty-stricken Indian Ocean island, there have been celebrations since the dramatic takeover.

Life has regained a semblance of normality after three weeks of barricades and anti-government protests that began on September 25.

The country's highest court was on Friday to officially confirm Randrianirina as "President of the Refounding of the Republic of Madagascar", according to a decree.

The 51-year-old soldier has pledged elections in 18 to 24 months and told local media that consultations are under way to appoint a prime minister.

The removal of Rajoelina -- who first came to power after a military-backed coup in 2009 and was elected in 2018 and 2023 -- raised concerns internationally.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned an "unconstitutional change of government" and called for "the return to constitutional order and the rule of law".

"(He) encourages all the Malagasy stakeholders, including the youth, to work together to address the underlying causes of instability in the country," a UN statement said on Thursday.

The African Union, which has suspended Madagascar, said it had deployed a delegation to the country for talks on "restoration of constitutional order".

Southern African regional bloc SADC also sent in a fact-finding mission.

'No coup'

Madagascar is the latest of several former French colonies to have fallen under military control since 2020, after coups in Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Gabon and Guinea.

But Randrianirina, known affectionately as Colonel Michael, insisted there had been no coup.

The approval of the country's top court of his appointment showed the takeover "follows the legal process", he told reporters on Thursday.

Randrianirina also said he would no longer dissolve most state institutions as he had announced on Tuesday after declaring at the presidential palace: "We have taken power."

The colonel added he wanted to include in his administration members of the youth-led Gen Z movement that started the protests last month over water and power shortages.

Parliament meanwhile elected as its new speaker Siteny Randrianasoloniaiko, previously the leader of the opposition.

Ahead of Randrianirina's inauguration, hundreds of people flocked to the CAPSAT barracks on the outskirts of the capital to offer advice to the new leader or make requests.

"We have come to discuss with the saviour president of this country how to move Madagascar forward," said former senator Robert Razaka as he waited.

- Escape flight confirmed -

Rajoelina confirmed for the first time that he had fled Madagascar between October 11 and 12, the same weekend CAPSAT soldiers announced they would stand with the youth-led protest movement and joined them in the streets.

He left after "explicit and extremely serious threats were made against the life of the head of state", according to a statement late on Wednesday sent to AFP that did not reveal his whereabouts.

Media reports said the 51-year-old was evacuated on Sunday aboard a French military plane that took him to the French island of Reunion, from where he travelled to Dubai where he has a home.

His office said on Wednesday the constitutional court's decision to appoint the CAPSAT commander to take over was riddled with procedural illegalities and risked destabilising the former French colony.

Madagascar has a long history of popular uprisings followed by the establishment of military governments.

It is one of the poorest countries in the world, with around 80 percent of its population of 32 million living in poverty, according to the World Bank.

strs-clv/br/gil

India

China defends Russian oil purchases, slams US 'bullying'

"The actions of the United States are a typical example of unilateral bullying and economic coercion," ministry spokesman Lin Jian said at a press briefing.

China said Thursday that its purchases of Russian oil were "legitimate" and decried recent "unilateral bullying" measures by the United States as the trade row between the two countries continues to intensify.
"The actions of the United States are a typical example of unilateral bullying and economic coercion," ministry spokesman Lin Jian said at a press briefing.

China said Thursday that its purchases of Russian oil were "legitimate" and decried recent "unilateral bullying" measures by the United States as the trade row between the two countries continues to intensify.

The rebuke came after President Donald Trump said Wednesday that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised to stop buying Russian oil, and that he would get China to follow suit.

Trump has accused both China and India of funding the three-year Ukraine war through the purchases, and has also demanded that European allies immediately stop buying oil from Russia.

India neither confirmed or denied it was shifting its policy.

Asked on Thursday about Trump's intention to pressure China further, Beijing's foreign ministry defended its "normal, legitimate economic, trade, and energy cooperation with countries around the world, including Russia".

"The actions of the United States are a typical example of unilateral bullying and economic coercion," ministry spokesman Lin Jian said at a press briefing.

If China's interests are harmed, it will "take firm countermeasures and resolutely safeguard its sovereignty", he warned.

Beijing and Moscow are key trading partners, and China has never denounced Russia's war, nor called for it to withdraw its troops.

Kyiv and Western governments have long accused Beijing of providing political and economic support for Moscow.

'Profoundly detrimental'

Beijing on Thursday also criticised recent US moves to expand export controls and impose new port fees on Chinese ships, saying the measures had a "profoundly detrimental" impact on trade talks between the two superpowers.

While tensions between Washington and Beijing have de-escalated from their peak, the truce remains shaky.

After Beijing imposed fresh controls on the export of rare earth technologies and items, Trump said he would roll out an additional 100-percent tariff on the country's goods from November 1.

The United States announced in April it would begin applying fees to all arriving Chinese-built and operated ships after a "Section 301" investigation found Beijing's dominance in the industry was unreasonable.

Section 301 of the US Trade Act of 1974 enables Washington to impose trade penalties on countries whose practices are deemed unfair or harmful to American commerce.

Beijing responded last week by announcing "special port fees" on American ships arriving at Chinese ports. Both sets of fees took effect Tuesday.

Commerce ministry spokeswoman He Yongqian said Thursday the US moved ahead with the measures while "disregarding China's sincerity in consultations", causing "severe damage to China's interests... (and) a profoundly detrimental impact".

"The Chinese side expresses strong dissatisfaction with and resolutely opposes the series of actions taken by the US side," He Yongqian said.

She urged Washington to "immediately rectify its erroneous practices" and respect the outcomes of recent trade talks.

China's commerce minister Wang Wentao accused the US of sparking the latest trade row during a meeting with Apple CEO Tim Cook in Beijing.

"Maintaining the overall stability of China-US trade ties requires both sides to meet halfway," Wang told the visiting American CEO according to a ministry readout.

"Maintaining the overall stability of China-US trade ties requires both sides to meet halfway," Wang said, adding that China welcomed deeper investment from Apple and remained open to foreign firms.

isk-mya/abs

abuse

Abuse victims still face 'disturbing' retaliation: Vatican commission

BY CLéMENT MELKI

The document was drawn up with the contributions of 40 victims, who shared their personal stories -- and who gave what the commission described as "disturbing accounts of retaliation" by Church leaders after they reported their abuse.

Victims of clerical sex abuse still face "disturbing" retaliation from Catholic Church leaders for speaking out despite years of efforts to tackle the global scourge, a Vatican commission said Thursday.
The document was drawn up with the contributions of 40 victims, who shared their personal stories -- and who gave what the commission described as "disturbing accounts of retaliation" by Church leaders after they reported their abuse.

Victims of clerical sex abuse still face "disturbing" retaliation from Catholic Church leaders for speaking out despite years of efforts to tackle the global scourge, a Vatican commission said Thursday.

In its second annual report, the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors set out how local Catholic churches can better help survivors, highlighting "cultural resistance" that hinders action in many countries.

The document was drawn up with the contributions of 40 victims, who shared their personal stories -- and who gave what the commission described as "disturbing accounts of retaliation" by Church leaders after they reported their abuse.

"My brother was a seminarian. The bishop told my family that my complaint could affect his ordination," one recalled.

Another described how a priest in the local church publicly declared their family excommunicated after they reported the abuse.

Yet another recounted that the local bishop said nothing for months after a case was reported, then sent representatives to persuade the victim it did not happen, "saying I was making trouble".

Others cited ongoing cases of abuse in their dioceses.

One person was "aware of other priests engaging in sexual relationships with young girls and nuns", while another said that "cases of forced abortions among religious sisters are ignored by Church authorities."

The co-director of victims' rights group BishopAccountability.org, Anne Barrett Doyle, called the victim testimony "especially sobering", adding that the Church was "still failing to prioritize" the safety of children.

"The commission is to be commended for depicting how little progress the church has made in ending abuse and cover-up," she said in a statement.

'Making reparations'

The late Pope Francis set up the commission near the beginning of his pontificate in 2014, as the Catholic Church was roiled by sexual abuse scandals around the world.

After years of criticism that it was toothless, Francis integrated the panel -- which includes religious and lay experts in the field of safeguarding -- into the government of the Holy See in 2022, and requested an annual progress report.

Thursday's report emphasised the importance of listening to survivors, offering psychological and financial support, and crucially, of acknowledging and taking public responsibility for what happened.

"The Church bears a moral and spiritual obligation to heal the deep wounds inflicted from sexual violence perpetrated, enabled, mishandled, or covered up by anyone holding a position of authority in the Church," read the 103-page report, which has been shared with Pope Leo XIV.

It added: "The damage to victims'/survivors' relationship to the Church cannot be healed without the Church taking responsibility and making reparations."

Commission President Thibault Verny told AFP that, faced with "persistent systemic shortcomings", the annual report was intended as a "tool" for use across the global Catholic Church, which counts some 1.4 billion followers.

It examined in detail almost 20 countries, and highlighted cultural resistance, taboos and silence over abuse from Malta to Ethiopia, Mozambique and Guinea.

In Italy, which has strong ties to the Vatican, the report noted a "substantial cultural resistance" in addressing abuse, while reproaching its bishops for a resistance to collaborate, as only 81 dioceses responded to the commission's survey out of a total of 226.

"It is a true cry that the victims raise: they do not feel listened to, not supported, sometimes there is no empathetic relationship, nor even respect," said Bishop Luis Manuel Ali Herrera, the commission secretary, during a press conference.

Francis, who was pope from 2013 until his death in April, took numerous measures to tackle abuse, from opening up internal documents to punishing high-ranking clergy, while making it compulsory to report suspicions of sexual assault to Church authorities.

But clergy are still not required to report abuse to civil authorities, unless a country's laws require it, while any revelations made in confession remain private.

Verny said Pope Leo "took up this issue very early on" after his election in May.

However, in an interview published in September, the US pope irritated victims' associations by insisting on the need to protect priests who were falsely accused of abuse, as well as listening to survivors.

"There may be false allegations. It must be said that they are a very, very small proportion," Verny said.

ams-cmk-ar/jhb

conflict

Trump to speak with Putin ahead of Zelensky visit

Zelensky's meeting with Trump on Friday will focus on the possible delivery of American long-range Tomahawk missiles for Kyiv, a senior Ukrainian official told AFP. On Sunday, Trump raised the possibility of speaking with Putin himself about the issue.

Donald Trump is set to speak with Russian leader Vladimir Putin Thursday, a White House official told AFP, a day before Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky meets the US president to push for Tomahawk missiles.
Zelensky's meeting with Trump on Friday will focus on the possible delivery of American long-range Tomahawk missiles for Kyiv, a senior Ukrainian official told AFP. On Sunday, Trump raised the possibility of speaking with Putin himself about the issue.

Donald Trump is set to speak with Russian leader Vladimir Putin Thursday, a White House official told AFP, a day before Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky meets the US president to push for Tomahawk missiles.

Trump has shown mounting frustration with Putin in recent months as the Kremlin leader snubs his calls for a ceasefire, while expressing sympathy for Ukraine as it fights against Russia's 2022 invasion.

Zelensky's meeting with Trump on Friday will focus on the possible delivery of American long-range Tomahawk missiles for Kyiv, a senior Ukrainian official told AFP.

On Sunday, Trump raised the possibility of speaking with Putin himself about the issue.

"I might talk to him, I might say, 'Look, if this war is not going to get settled, I'm going to send them Tomahawks.' I may say that," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to the Middle East.

"The Tomahawk is a incredible weapon, very offensive weapon, and honestly, Russia does not need that."

The US leader told reporters on Wednesday that the Ukrainians "want to go offensive" and that they would discuss Kyiv's request for the cruise missiles.

Relations between Trump and Zelensky have warmed since February, when they sparred during a now infamous televised meeting at the White House in which the US leader told his Ukrainian counterpart: "You don't have the cards."

The US president is also keen to up the pressure for a peace deal in Ukraine following the ceasefire agreement he brokered in Gaza between Israel and Hamas last week.

Trump's frustration has mounted after a summit in Alaska with Putin in August failed to produce a breakthrough.

dk/acb

animal

In the doghouse: flying canines count as cargo, EU court rules

An animal can be considered "baggage" for liability purposes "upon the condition that full regard is paid to animal welfare requirements while they are transported", the court added.

The European Union's top court ruled Thursday that a dog travelling in an aeroplane's cargo hold counts as baggage, meaning airlines are not required to pay higher compensation if the animal is lost.
An animal can be considered "baggage" for liability purposes "upon the condition that full regard is paid to animal welfare requirements while they are transported", the court added.

The European Union's top court ruled Thursday that a dog travelling in an aeroplane's cargo hold counts as baggage, meaning airlines are not required to pay higher compensation if the animal is lost.

The ruling stems from a dispute between Spanish airline Iberia and a passenger whose dog, Mona, went missing before a flight from Buenos Aires to Barcelona in October 2019.

The dog, which had to travel in a pet carrier in the aircraft's hold due to its size and weight, escaped while being taken to the plane and was never seen again.

Mona ran across the airport runway while being chased by three vans, according to her owner, Grisel Ortiz, who said her mother watched the scene from inside the plane.

"Many people laugh because they don't understand what Mona means to me," Ortiz added during an interview published in Argentine daily Clarin in January 2020.

"Since she went missing, all I do is cry and stay glued to my phone, waiting for a miracle."

Ortiz created a Facebook page seeking information on Mona's whereabouts and offered a cash reward for the dog's return, but her efforts yielded no credible leads.

She also sought 5,000 euros ($5,400) in damages from Iberia.

'Very disappointed'

The company accepted responsibility but argued that compensation should be limited to the lower amount set for checked baggage under the Montreal Convention, an international agreement that covers airline liability.

The Spanish court handling the claim referred the question to the European Union Court of Justice, which sided with the airline.

"Even though the ordinary meaning of the word 'baggage' refers to objects, this alone does not lead to the conclusion that pets fall outside that concept," the Luxembourg-based court ruled.

An animal can be considered "baggage" for liability purposes "upon the condition that full regard is paid to animal welfare requirements while they are transported", the court added.

The court noted the passenger had not made a "special declaration of interest" at check-in, an option allowing higher compensation for an additional fee with carrier approval.

Ortiz's lawyer, Carlos Villacorta Salis, told AFP this is a "false argument", saying "no airline in the world" would agree to such a declaration for a pet transported in a plane's hold.

He said he was "very disappointed" with the ruling, calling it a "missed opportunity to give visibility to the rights of animals and the people who care for them".

The judgement is advisory and leaves the final ruling to the Spanish court handling the compensation claim.

al/ds/imm/jhb

conflict

After two years of uncertainty, Israeli parents bury hostage son

BY ANNE-SOPHIE LABADIE

His body was returned to Israel on Tuesday evening under the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas brokered by US President Donald Trump.

After two agonising years of uncertainty following their son's abduction to Gaza, Israeli soldier Tamir Nimrodi's parents finally laid him to rest Thursday, after his body was returned under a ceasefire with Hamas.
His body was returned to Israel on Tuesday evening under the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas brokered by US President Donald Trump.

After two agonising years of uncertainty following their son's abduction to Gaza, Israeli soldier Tamir Nimrodi's parents finally laid him to rest Thursday, after his body was returned under a ceasefire with Hamas.

Nimrodi, 18 at the time of Hamas's attack on October 7, 2023, was doing his military service at a base near the Erez Crossing into Gaza when he was seized.

Since then, he was one of the few hostages for whom no proof of life had been given.

His body was returned to Israel on Tuesday evening under the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas brokered by US President Donald Trump.

"How many times did I speak about you, how many times did I tell your story, how many times did I cry out, and now I can't find words," said his father, Alon Nimrodi, his voice choking as he stood by the freshly covered grave.

Prior to his burial, Israeli soldiers marched in step ahead of his coffin at the military cemetery in Kfar Saba, in central Israel, where he was laid to rest.

Verses recited by a rabbi accompanied the procession as thousands of mourners, many in uniform, stood in solemn silence, an AFP correspondent reported.

Rows of soldiers in khaki uniforms and green berets surrounded the site, some of them from COGAT, the Israeli defence ministry unit responsible for civilian coordination in the Palestinian territories.

"Tamir, my dear son, I never objected when you enlisted," Alon Nimrodi said.

"After the monsters kidnapped you... I told your mother 'It's good he was taken, not killed'. I was so wrong."

Fighting back tears, he delivered a message directly to the Israeli authorities.

"You have the responsibility to do everything until the last hostage returns!" he said.

Hamas and its allied groups still hold the remains of 19 hostages in Gaza.

On the day of the attack, militants took 251 people to the territory. Most of them have been freed under three truces during the course of the war.

Earlier Thursday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to secure the return of the bodies of the remaining captives.

'Agony'

Nimrodi, the eldest in three siblings, was seized "in his pyjamas and unarmed," his mother previously told AFP.

He managed to send her a brief message about rocket fire before being taken with two other soldiers.

Since then, his image had become one of the symbols of the hostage crisis, appearing on banners and signs along the road leading to his home village of Nirit, near the Green Line separating Israel from the occupied West Bank.

For months his family joined rallies and public campaigns urging the government to prioritise the hostages' release as they waited for any sign that Nimrodi was alive.

In March, his mother lamented to AFP that "the issue of the hostages is no longer a priority in Israel."

"I can only imagine the unbearable pain and agony of the family, who for two years didn't know what had become of their son," said Hadas, a 68-year-old Israeli attending the funeral though she had never met Nimrodi.

Throughout the war, Hamas released sporadic videos of several hostages showing them alive but clearly under duress, urging Israel to halt its military campaign.

The first was published on October 16, 2023, featuring French-Israeli hostage Mia Shem.

"Those videos were psychological warfare," said David, 55, who declined to give his last name.

He blamed not just Hamas but also the Israeli government for the trauma the families of hostages were suffering.

"These two years have been deeply painful -- the humiliating hostage releases, the footage of captives, all of it," he said.

"I just hope for elections soon, to get rid of this government and its extremists. I just want to live in peace."

al-jd/acc/ser

crime

Police say Cambodia will deport 59 South Koreans linked to scam centres

"Authorities plan to deport 59 South Korean nationals... who have been rescued by Cambodian authorities or detained for other crimes to their country with cooperation from the embassy of South Korea," Cambodia's national police said in a statement on Thursday.

Cambodia will deport on Friday 59 South Koreans who worked in cyberscam schemes, police said, after Seoul sent a team to investigate the fate of dozens of its nationals.
"Authorities plan to deport 59 South Korean nationals... who have been rescued by Cambodian authorities or detained for other crimes to their country with cooperation from the embassy of South Korea," Cambodia's national police said in a statement on Thursday.

Cambodia will deport on Friday 59 South Koreans who worked in cyberscam schemes, police said, after Seoul sent a team to investigate the fate of dozens of its nationals.

South Korea banned its citizens on Wednesday from travelling to parts of Cambodia and sent officials to Phnom Penh to discuss cases of fake jobs and online scam centres that Seoul says have ensnared dozens of its nationals.

The multibillion-dollar illicit industry has ballooned in Southeast Asia in recent years, with thousands of people perpetrating online scams, some willingly and others forced by the organised criminal groups running the fraud networks, experts say.

Seoul's mission followed a public outcry in South Korea over the torture and killing of a Korean college student in Cambodia this year, reportedly by a crime ring.

"Authorities plan to deport 59 South Korean nationals... who have been rescued by Cambodian authorities or detained for other crimes to their country with cooperation from the embassy of South Korea," Cambodia's national police said in a statement on Thursday.

Cambodian authorities received requests to help 60 South Koreans in relation to scam operations this year, police said.

Forty of them were found following the requests from their families and the South Korean embassy.

However, police were still looking for 76 South Koreans missing in Cambodia, the statement said.

'Fruitful outcomes'

Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Manet met with South Korea's vice foreign minister Kim Jina and her delegation on Wednesday, he said in a statement on social media.

They discussed "joint efforts in combating transnational crimes, particularly online scams -- emphasizing that cooperation between the Cambodian and Korean authorities over the years has yielded many fruitful outcomes", he said.

The two countries would "continue to strengthen" their collaboration to combat online scams, Hun Manet added.

Seoul has said about 1,000 South Koreans were estimated to be among a total of around 200,000 people working in scam operations in Cambodia.

Some are forced under threat of violence to execute "pig butchering" scams -- cryptocurrency investment schemes that build trust with victims over time before stealing their funds.

Seoul has said 63 South Koreans were believed to have been detained by Cambodian authorities, and officials vowed to bring them home.

National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac told reporters that the 63 included both "voluntary and involuntary participants" in scam operations.

Touch Sokhak, a spokesman for Cambodia's interior ministry, told AFP on Wednesday that 80 South Koreans were "not in detention" but "being taken care of" by Cambodian immigration authorities.

He could not confirm whether the South Koreans with Cambodian immigration were the same individuals reported missing by Seoul.

South Korea's foreign ministry also said on Thursday it was "unclear whether the 80 South Koreans announced by Cambodia and the roughly 60 nationals the South Korean government is seeking to bring home are the same individuals".

'Ringleaders and accomplices'

Amnesty International says abuses in Cambodia's scam centres are happening on a "mass scale".

There are at least 53 scam compounds in the country where organised criminal groups carry out human trafficking, forced labour, torture, deprivation of liberty and slavery, according to the rights group.

Cambodia's anti-cybercrime commission said in a statement on Wednesday that authorities had arrested 3,455 online fraud suspects nationwide from 20 Asian and African countries since late June.

Authorities sent dozens of suspected "ringleaders and their accomplices" to court in 10 of the cases involving online fraud, murder and human trafficking, according to the statement.

More than 2,800 foreign nationals were deported from Cambodia, and authorities "rescued some victims from trafficking", it said.

bur-suy/sco/pbt

Odinga

Kenya opposition leader Raila Odinga dies, sparking emotion, uncertainty

war

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Trump visit

poverty

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Prioritizing 'people and the planet'

military

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Escape, hiding

growth

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Policy support

Trinidad

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Brazil

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'The sea doesn't care if I am female'

Global Edition

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'World Cup truce'

conflict

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Aid hopes

'My children are home'

conflict

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'Momentum'

'Peace summit'

Global Edition

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Key figures at around 2010 GMT

conflict

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conflict

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'Not a solution'

Holding their breath

unrest

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'Precision strikes'

politics

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'No coup'

India

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'Profoundly detrimental'

abuse

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'Making reparations'

conflict

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animal

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'Very disappointed'

conflict

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'Agony'

crime

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'Fruitful outcomes'

'Ringleaders and accomplices'

BY KYOKO HASEGAWA

BY AMéLIE BOTTOLLIER-DEPOIS

BY PETER CATTERALL

BY WITH ESTEBAN ROJAS IN SAO PAULO

BY ALEXANDER MARTINEZ

BY JAY DESHMUKH

BY DANNY KEMP

BY DANNY KEMP WITH MATHIEU RABECHAULT IN PARIS

BY JULIETTE MANSOUR WITH AMINULLAH SAMSOOR IN SPIN BOLDAK

BY WITH LEHAZ ALI IN PESHAWAR

BY CLéMENT VARANGES

BY CLéMENT MELKI

BY ANNE-SOPHIE LABADIE