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Gazans await ‘life and death’ aid, Israel readies invasion
Thousands of tonnes of "life and death" aid for Gaza should be delivered soon, the United Nations said Friday, to relieve a "beyond catastrophic" situation after unrelenting Israeli bombing in response to an unprecedented Hamas attack. Some 175 lorries stuffed with vital medicines, food, and water stretched into the distance at the Rafah crossing with Egypt, which has removed concrete roadblocks and is scrambling to repair the route into besieged Gaza -- the only one not controlled by Israel. Overseeing operations personally, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told reporters: "These trucks are not just trucks, they are a lifeline, they are the difference between life and death for so many people in Gaza." Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas after the Islamist militant group launched a shock raid from the Gaza Strip on October 7, killing at least 1,400 people, mostly civilians shot, mutilated or burned to death, according to Israeli officials. Hamas gunmen also kidnapped some 200 hostages including foreigners from around two dozen countries. The Islamist group said Friday that its armed wing had released two Americans among the captives, a mother and her daughter, the first fruit of mediation efforts by the Gulf state of Qatar. The Islamist group did not detail how or when the hostages were released. The Israeli military said earlier Friday that most of those abducted to Gaza were still alive. It said more than 20 were minors. In response to the Hamas attack, Israeli bombers have levelled entire city blocks in Gaza in preparation for a ground invasion they say is coming soon. The Hamas-run health ministry said 4,137 Palestinians, mostly civilians, have died in the onslaught. Israeli jets pounded more than 100 Hamas targets in Gaza overnight, the army said, with AFP reporters hearing loud explosions and witnessing plumes of smoke billowing from the northern Gaza Strip. Embracing front-line soldiers and clad in body armour, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged them to "fight like lions" and "win with full force". Fists clenched and voice raised, Netanyahu told cheering troops: "We will deal harsh blows to our enemies in order to achieve victory." Defence Minister Yoav Gallant told some of the tens of thousands of personnel preparing the ground invasion that "the order will come soon". 'Beyond catastrophic' US President Joe Biden said Friday he expected the first aid for Gaza to pass through the Rafah crossing from Egypt within the next two days, under a deal he clinched to allow in 20 trucks of supplies for civilians. Medicine, water purifiers and blankets were being unloaded at El Arish airport near Gaza, an AFP reporter saw, with Ahmed Ali, head of the Egyptian Red Crescent, saying he was getting "two to three planes of aid a day". But World Health Organization emergencies director Michael Ryan said Biden's 20-truck deal was "a drop in the ocean of need" and that 2,000 trucks were required. The UN says more than one million of Gaza's 2.4 million people are displaced, with the humanitarian situation "beyond catastrophic" and deteriorating daily. Refugees from northern Gaza told harrowing tales of bombs, profiteering and extreme temperatures as whole families trekked on foot to flee the violence. Mother of seven Fadwa Al-Najjar walked for 10 hours with her family from northern Gaza to reach a UN camp in the southern city of Khan Yunis, saying she saw cars hit by a strike just in front of them. "We saw bodies and limbs torn off and we just started praying, thinking we were going to die," she said. 'It's unimaginable' On the other side of the conflict, the full horror of what Israel suffered on October 7 and following days was still emerging, as traumatised residents recounted their stories. Shachar Butler, a security chief at the Nir Oz kibbutz, where Hamas militants killed or kidnapped a quarter of the 400 residents, recalls more than a dozen gunmen spraying bullets indiscriminately and lobbing grenades at homes. "It's unimaginable," the 40-year-old told AFP as part of a trip organised by the Israeli military. "Anytime someone tried to touch my window, I shot him," he said. "The people who came out got kidnapped, killed, executed, slaughtered." Butler estimated as many as 200 militants attacked the kibbutz, entering from three sides before going house-to-house. Homes there were still charred with burnt personal belongings strewn everywhere. Israel says around 1,500 Hamas fighters were killed in clashes before its army regained control. 'No safe place' Biden requested a massive $105 billion security package Friday, including $14 billion for Israel, but paralysis in the still speakerless Congress means it will hit an immediate wall. Fresh from a whirlwind trip to Israel this week, Biden is hoping to staunch the possibility of a wider Middle East war. The United States has moved two aircraft carriers into the eastern Mediterranean to deter Iran or Lebanon's Hezbollah, both Hamas allies, from getting involved. After days of clashes with Hezbollah fighters along the Lebanese border, Israeli authorities announced the evacuation of Kiryat Shmona, a nearby town which is home to some 25,000 residents, many of whom have already left. The conflict has inflamed passions across the region, with protests held in several countries. Thousands flooded into Egypt's iconic Tahrir Square in support of Gaza, an AFP correspondent said. Protests were also held outside the French and US embassies in Tunis. Following a strike at a church compound late Thursday, the Hamas-controlled interior ministry said several people sheltering at the church were killed and wounded, blaming an Israeli strike. The Israeli army acknowledged a church wall had been damaged in one of its air strikes targeting a "command and control centre belonging to a Hamas terrorist". "This place is dedicated for praying, a place of love and peace," said witness Abu Khalil Jahshan. "There is no safe place here in Gaza." The post Gazans await ‘life and death’ aid, Israel readies invasion appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Israeli forces shoot 7 in West Bank raid
Seven Palestinians were injured in an Israeli army operation in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian health ministry said Tuesday, hours after two Israeli men were injured by gunfire near a Jewish site in annexed east Jerusalem. The shooting comes amid a period of deadly attacks and military raids across the West Bank, along with killings in Israel. The Palestinian ministry reported six people with "minor injuries from live fire" had gone to Jenin governmental hospital, while another person shot had been admitted to a nearby hospital following the raid in the northern West Bank city. A statement from the Israeli military confirmed that an operation was underway in the Jenin refugee camp, without giving further details. Earlier Tuesday, Israeli authorities said a suspected Palestinian gunman had wounded two Israeli men in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood of east Jerusalem after firing at their car. "Police officers are at the scene conducting searches for the suspect who fled," the police said in a statement. Israeli security forces closed off streets in the neighbourhood, where an AFP journalist saw officers entering a Palestinian home, with a drone and helicopter as well as police dogs aiding the search. Officers enforcing the shutdown prevented cars and people from moving in the centre of the neighborhood, as heavily armed forces combed the area. Police announced they had found the perpetrator's gun near the scene of the attack, which took place near the tomb of Simeon the Just -- Shimon Hatzadik in Hebrew -- a site frequented by religious Jews. The weapon was identified as a Carlo makeshift submachine gun, which Palestinians manufacture in the West Bank. Hadassah Hospital said they received a 48-year-old gunshot victim lightly wounded, and Shaare Zedek medical centre said it was treating a man in his 50s in moderate condition. The search was punctuated by the 10:00 am (0700 GMT) two-minute siren marking Israel's Holocaust Remembrance Day, honouring more than six million Jews killed by the Nazis during World War II. Jerusalem mayor Moshe Lion, speaking at a city hall ceremony, said one of the Holocaust's main lessons was "to never be helpless in the face of those seeking to harm us". Later in the morning, most of the security forces had left Sheikh Jarrah, with roads reopened and traffic flowing as normal, the AFP journalist said. Sheikh Jarrah was the focal point of protests against the eviction of Palestinian residents by Israeli settler organisations in the build up to and during the May 2021 war between Israel and Gaza militants. It is also the site of a weekly Israeli demonstration against the occupation of the Palestinian territories. The attack took place a day after a Palestinian woman stabbed and moderately wounded an Israeli man at the Gush Etzion junction in the southern West Bank. The woman was shot by security forces and taken to hospital in moderate condition. The conflict has this year claimed the lives of at least 96 Palestinians, 19 Israelis, one Ukrainian and one Italian, according to an AFP count based on Israeli and Palestinian official sources. These figures include, on the Palestinian side, combatants and civilians, including minors, and on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, including minors, and three members of the Arab minority. The post Israeli forces shoot 7 in West Bank raid appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Philippines accuses Chinese coastguard of firing water cannons at supply boats
Manila [Philippines], March 23 (ANI): The Philippines has accused China's coastguard of firing water cannons at one of its supply boats in South China Sea, Al Jazeera reported. The Armed Forces of the Philippines said that BRP Cabra managed to manoeuvre and reach Unaizah May 4 to provide assistance to the Philippine supply boat, which had sustained "significant damage."According to the Philippine military, the confrontati.....»»
Kyiv, Lviv under Russian air attack; missile violates Polish airspace
'The object entered Polish space near the town of Oserdow and stayed there for 39 seconds,' Poland's armed forces says on the social media platform X.....»»
Philippines accuses Chinese coastguard of firing water cannons at supply boats
Manila [Philippines], March 23 (ANI): The Philippines has accused China's coastguard of firing water cannons at one of its supply boats in South China Sea, Al Jazeera reported. The Armed Forces of the Philippines said that BRP Cabra managed to manoeuvre and reach Unaizah May 4 to provide assistance to the Philippine supply boat, which had sustained "significant damage."According to the Philippine military, the confrontati.....»»
US warns China against armed attack on Philippines
Washington, DC [US], March 19 (ANI): US Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned China on Tuesday, stating that any "armed" attack on Philippine vessels in the South China Sea would activate a mutual self-defence agreement between Washington and Manila, underscoring the escalating tensions in the region that could potentially embroil the United States in conflict with Beijing, as reported by The New York Times. Despite th.....»»
US Officials Warn of New Axis of Evil With China at the Fore
WASHINGTON - U.S. military and defense officials are increasingly concerned that as China and Russia forge ever stronger ties, they might attempt to challenge Western unity and eventually alter the balance of power on the world stage.The commander of U.S. forces in the Indo-Pacific told lawmakers on the House Armed Services Committee that the evolving relationship between Beijing and Moscow is a "big portion" of.....»»
Militants got close to 20 meters in Lanao clash
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY (MindaNews / 22 February)—The Dawlah Islamiyah militants managed to creep up to 20 meters of the soldiers of the 44th Infantry Battalion in their attack in the mountains of Lanao del Norte on Sunday, dealing a heavy blow to the Armed Forces of the Philippines, a military official said. The ensuing […].....»»
NEWS BRIEFS | 8 February 2024
House Speaker Romualdez visits Army’s 4ID HQ in Cagayan de Oro House Speaker Martin Romualdez visited the headquarters of the Army’s 4th Infantry Division in Camp Evangelista, barangay Patag here on Tuesday. Major Francisco Garello, 4ID spokesperson, said Romualdez came here as part of a two-day Armed Forces of the Philippines and House of Representatives […].....»»
Malaybalay attack vs NPA a showcase of latest military assets
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY (MindaNews / 27 December)—The attack against the New People’s Army (NPA) in neighboring Malaybalay City before dawn on Christmas Day, where 10 rebels were allegedly killed, was a showcase of the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ (AFP) latest military assets. Used in action were the Philippine Air Force’s (PAF) A-29 Super […].....»»
Xinhua world news summary at 0700 GMT, Dec. 3
LIMA -- At least nine people were killed and 15 were injured on Saturday after armed assailants attacked the Poderosa mine in north Peru's La Libertad Department, the Interior Ministry has confirmed. The incident occurred at about 1:00 a.m. local time (0600 GMT). (Peru-Attack) - - - - MANILA -- A 7.4-magnitude offshore earthquake that hit southern Philippines late Saturday night has killed a.....»»
Xinhua world news summary at 0700 GMT, Dec. 3
LIMA -- At least nine people were killed and 15 were injured on Saturday after armed assailants attacked the Poderosa mine in north Peru's La Libertad Department, the Interior Ministry has confirmed. The incident occurred at about 1:00 a.m. local time (0600 GMT). (Peru-Attack) - - - - MANILA -- A 7.4-magnitude offshore earthquake that hit southern Philippines late Saturday night has killed a.....»»
Villagers displaced by gunfight in Maguindanao del Norte
COTABATO CITY --- The police and military have urged the Moro Islamic Liberation Front to disengage and reconcile two of its groups that clashed on Monday morning in Maguindanao del Norte, causing the displacement of about a hundred villagers. The two groups figured in running gunfights for about four hours in Linib and Tinindanan areas in Barangay Bugawas in Datu Odin Sinsuat town, the local police stated in a report on Tuesday to Brig. Gen. Allan Nobleza, director of the Police Regional Office-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region. Lt. Col. Esmael Madin, chief of the Datu Odin Sinsuat Municipal Police Station, and officials of the Maguindanao del Norte Provincial Police Office identified the leaders of the feuding groups as Commanders Salim and Adam, who has more than 30 followers each, armed with assault rifles and grenade launchers. Evacuees from the conflict-torn villages are convinced the hostilities were related still to the October 30 synchronized barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections, where both groups had favored candidates. Talks are spreading around Datu Odin Sinsuat and in this city hinting that the incident, which affected more than 30 families, could be connected to the gun attack on Monday morning in the same barangay that resulted in the death of two residents, Juhaimen Ube and Mistah Alon and left four others wounded. The slain duo, who were attacked while on their way to a polling site, campaigned for certain candidates for barangay elective posts, according to their relatives. They are both related to members of one of the two groups that clashed in Linib and Tinindanan on Monday, according to traditional community Moro leaders. Army Major Gen. Alex Rillera, commander of the 6th Infantry Division, said he has directed their units in Datu Odin Sinsuat and nearby towns to secure Barangay Bugawas to prevent a repeat of Monday’s skirmishes in the area. The two groups scampered away when they sensed that soldiers backed by armored combat vehicles dispatched to secure Barangay Bugawas were closing in......»»
7 cops relieved over Crame breach
Seven police officers were relieved from their posts after a 50-year-old armed man snuck past security and fired a shot in the Philippine National Police headquarters at Camp Crame in Quezon City on Friday......»»
Command center activated in Visayas for BSKE
The Armed Forces of the Philippines Visayas Command on Saturday activated a monitoring center at its headquarters in Camp Lapulapu, Cebu City for efficient deployment of security forces and close coordination with troops on the ground before and during the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections tomorrow......»»
US says anti-Iran strikes in Syria hit ammunition depots
The United States said Friday it sought to degrade ammunition supplies of Iranian-linked militias with strikes in Syria but insisted it did not want to widen the Middle East conflict. The Pentagon on Thursday announced air strikes on two sites in eastern Syria it said were used by Iran's elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) after a string of attacks on US forces in Iraq and Syria since the start of the Israel-Hamas war. "The purpose for those two sites that we targeted was to have a significant impact on future IRGC and Iran-backed militia group operations," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters Friday. "It went right at storage facilities and ammo depots that we know will be used to support the work of these militia groups, particularly in Syria." "The main goal was to disrupt that ability and also to deter -- to prevent -- future attacks," he said. The White House earlier said that President Joe Biden had relayed a direct warning to Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei against militias' strikes on US troops in Syria and Iraq, where US forces are stationed as part of efforts against the Islamic State group, which also has clashed with Shiite Iran. There have been at least 14 attacks on US and allied forces in Iraq and six in Syria since October 17, a period in which 21 American military personnel suffered minor injuries and one contractor died from a cardiac incident, according to the Pentagon. The US strikes on Thursday were the first on Iranian interests since March, breaking a stretch of calm after the Biden administration opened quiet diplomacy with the US arch-enemy that led to a prisoner swap and conversations on Iran's disputed nuclear program. The October 7 assault by Hamas and Israel's retaliatory strikes have inflamed the region. Iran's clerical leaders back Hamas, while the United States is the foremost ally of Israel. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, in a statement Thursday, said that the strikes were "narrowly tailored" to protect US personnel. "They are separate and distinct from the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, and do not constitute a shift in our approach to the Israel-Hamas conflict," Austin said. The Pentagon said Friday evening that its current assessment is the strikes did not cause casualties. 'Finger on the trigger' In new pressure, the United States -- which already considers Hamas and the Revolutionary Guards to be terrorist organizations -- said it was imposing sanctions on a Hamas official based in Iran and members of the IRGC. The Biden administration has vowed to target the finances of Hamas, which holds hundreds of millions of dollars in global assets, according to US Treasury Department estimates. Iran also has a close relationship with Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shiite militia and political movement that has repeatedly fired at Israel but has so far stopped short of opening a full second front. Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said Friday that he has spoken with Lebanese and Palestinian militants and they "have their finger on the trigger" if Israel expands its ground operation into Gaza. Speaking to US National Public Radio from the United Nations, Amir-Abdollahian said the militants' actions would be "much more powerful and deeper than what you’ve witnessed." "Therefore I believe that if this situation continues and women and children and civilians are still killed in Gaza and the West Bank, anything will be possible," he said. Amir-Abdollahian insisted, however, that militants would decide their own actions, saying, "We don't really want this conflict to spread out." Addressing the General Assembly on Thursday, Amir-Abdollahian said that the Palestinians "as a nation under occupation" have the "legitimate right to resist the occupation using all available methods, including armed struggle." Hamas militants on October 7 stormed out of the blockaded Gaza Strip and killed 1,400 people, mostly civilians, including children, the elderly and revelers at a music festival, and took more than 220 hostages in the deadliest attack in Israel's history. Israel has struck back with a relentless bombing campaign which Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry says has killed 7,326 people, mostly civilians, among them 3,038 children. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, meeting Friday with Amir-Abdollahian, urged Iran to work toward the "unconditional and immediate release of hostages held in Gaza." The post US says anti-Iran strikes in Syria hit ammunition depots appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
After conflict’s won, what happens next?
In the wake of the coordinated, well-planned savage attack mounted by the Palestinian terror group Hamas, which stunned Israel on 7 October, a seething Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed the total annihilation of Hamas. A “mighty vengeance” is what he promised against what he described as a “cruel enemy, worse than ISIS.” Likewise enraged by the slaughter of scores of Israelis, including over 200 revelers who were mowed down by armed paragliders and foot soldiers as they made merry at an electronic music festival outside the Re’im kibbutz, about 3.3 miles (5.3 kilometers) from the wall that separates Gaza from southern Israel, Netanyahu’s words were echoed by Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant who declared, “We will wipe this thing called Hamas, ISIS-Gaza off the face of the earth. It will cease to exist.” Hamas didn’t spare any of the nearly 1,500 Israelis they felled —men, women, children, old people — they also took with them over 200 hostages. Within a week of the attack, Israel retaliated with an intense bombing of Central and Northern Gaza, with Israel striking over 7,000 targets, including rocket launchers, command centers, munitions factories, and leaders of Hamas. It has been nearly three weeks since the 7 October attack by Hamas, and it remains unclear if or when Israel will conduct a ground invasion of Gaza. Even as Israel continues to blast enemy targets, Western leaders and the UN are pleading for a pause to give aid a chance to get through the blockade and into Gaza and for the safe release of the hostages in Hamas’s hands. On Thursday, Israel said it had briefly sent tanks into Gaza to “prepare the battlefield ahead of the next stages of combat.” Again, on Wednesday, Netanyahu vowed Israel would exact a price for the terrorist assault, which killed over 1,400. Despite these statements by Netanyahu and the Israeli defense minister to decimate Hamas to kingdom come, there is no exact clarity as to when Israel will begin its ground invasion. For sure, the challenges of a ground war are gargantuan. If or when such a ground invasion is finally mounted, what awaits the Israeli defense force will be sustained urban warfare in enemy territory in pursuit of an objective that, other than the total demolition of Hamas, leaves so many other vital matters hanging in the air. The Israelites will confront at least four critical challenges in carrying out a major ground offensive. For Council for Foreign Relations expert Max Boot, these include urban fighting, an inherently different form of warfare where buildings provide positions for defenders, and the multiplication of difficulties for Israeli combatants due to the presence of a large number of Palestinian civilians and even the hostages seized by Hamas who could be used as human shields. Then there are all the underground tunnels built by Hamas over the years, enabling them to hide from Israeli troops and emerge at unexpected moments. There, too, is the challenge of a possible second front, with the Hezbollah in Lebanon poised on Israel’s northern border. The Hezbollah has an estimated arsenal of some 150,000 missiles and rockets. So far, Hezbollah has not mounted a major assault on Israel, but analysts fear it could do so once Israeli ground forces get into Gaza. “A two-front conflict would be a nightmare for Israel,” says Boot. A third critical challenge consists of post-combat stabilization operations. Known in the US military as “Phase IV,” this is where US efforts in both Washington and Iraq foundered badly for lack of preparation. Israeli media have reported that the Israeli government has been struggling to develop a Phase IV plan of its own and, Boot points out, “no wonder because there are no good options.” If Israel simply attacks Hamas and then leaves — as it had done in the past — the terrorist group would just regenerate itself. If to prevent that from happening, a Palestinian Authority government would be established in place of Hamas, with help from Arab states, that could be an option. But if that fails, Israel may have no choice but to re-occupy Gaza — a situation that could leave Israeli soldiers vulnerable to a grinding guerrilla war of the kind they faced in Lebanon in the early 1980s all through 2000. Even as they do get into Gaza, there are many unknowns, according to Boot: how will Israel deal with the Hamas tunnel network; how skillfully will Hamas fight; will a toll on civilian lives in Gaza force Israel to suspend its offensive; will Hezbollah join the war; will this war spread across the region and draw into the fray Hamas’s biggest supporter, Iran? If Hamas is indeed physically decimated — what then should be done to stabilize Gaza after the enemy has been vanquished? Who takes over Gaza once the guns have been stilled and the smoke of war clears? What happens next? Israel’s leaders say those matters, for the moment, are not of immediate concern to them. But at a certain point, they will become unavoidable; Israel will have to grapple with complex questions and carve out a workably resolute path through the din for its continued survival. The post After conflict’s won, what happens next? appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Colombian gets life sentence in US over killing of Haiti’s president
A US court sentenced a retired Colombian military officer to life in prison for his role in the assassination of Haiti's president in 2021. The United States says it has jurisdiction in the case because it alleges the plot to kill President Jovenel Moise was hatched in part in the US. German Rivera, considered one of the leaders of the mercenary squad that shot and killed Moise in his residence outside Port au Prince, appeared before Judge Jose Martinez to hear the sentence. Rivera, a retired captain, pleaded guilty last month to taking part in the plan. On Friday, dressed in brown prison garb, with his feet and wrists bound, Rivera passed on an opportunity to address the court before the sentence was read out. He was the second person convicted in the United States over the assassination, which plunged Haiti -- already plagued by poverty, gang violence, natural disasters, epidemics, and a weak government -- further into crisis. In June, another member of the conspiracy, Haitian-Chilean Rodolphe Jaar, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison for his role in supplying weapons to carry out the assassination. The 53-year-old Jovenel was gunned down on 7 July 2021 at his private residence by a hired group of about 20 military-trained Colombians. His security detail did not intervene to protect him. In February, US Attorney Markenzy Lapointe told a new conference that underlying the attack on Jovenel was a lust for money and power. Lapointe said two managers of a Miami security firm, CTU, devised a plan to kidnap Moise and replace him with Christian Sanon, a Haitian-American citizen who wanted to become president of the Caribbean country. In exchange for toppling Moise, they were promised lucrative contracts to build infrastructure and provide security forces and military equipment in a future government led by Sanon, also indicted in the United States, prosecutors said. The plot at first was aimed at kidnapping Moise, but then evolved to assassination, according to court filings. In Haiti a probe into the assassination has not led to anyone being put on trial. Haiti has spiraled into deeper chaos since Moise's death. No election has been held and he has not been succeeded. Gangs control around 80 percent of the Haitian capital, and violent crimes such as kidnappings for ransom, armed robbery and carjackings continue to escalate in the impoverished Caribbean nation. The post Colombian gets life sentence in US over killing of Haiti’s president appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Protect WPS frontliners
Dear Editor, Recent events in the West Philippine Sea, in which Chinese vessels have used lasers and water cannons, and then intentionally bumped Philippine ships resupplying the BRP Sierra Madre, are showing ever-worsening acts of harassment by Indo-Pacific bully China. Kudos to the brave men and women of the Armed Forces and the Coast Guard who have not blinked in the face of the blatant transgressions by Chinese forces that have made Philippine territorial waters their playground of mischief. And the world has taken notice with many countries like the United States and Australia voicing their concern that China is getting more and more brazen in claiming the whole of the South China Sea as part of its sovereign domain. Of course, China’s nine-dash-line claim had been thrown into the wastebasket by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in 2016, while affirming the Philippines’ right to its 200-nautical exclusive economic zone within the WPS. Even as he was hosting no less than the Australian Prime Minister, US President Joe Biden just could not resist warning China that any attack by it against any Philippine vessel in the WPS would put in play America’s Mutual Defense Treaty with the Philippines. Whether China would dial down its antics in the WPS remains to be seen, however. Over the years, China has asserted its ownership of Ayungin Shoal and other areas in the WPS, disregarding the arbitral ruling. Even if China argues that Philippine vessels are transporting construction materials to repair the BRP Sierra Madre, it does not justify its actions. It is well within the rights of the Philippines to repair its commissioned Navy ship serving as a permanent troop outpost in what is, after all, our territory. Ayungin is just over 100 nautical miles from Palawan, while it is over a thousand miles away from China. So how can China ever claim it to be part of its territory? In addition to lodging protests and sending diplomatic notes to Beijing, the government should prioritize the well-being of those stationed in the West Philippine Sea, as they consistently face dangers while fulfilling their duty to safeguard the country’s territories. I sincerely hope that the government will take all necessary measures to ensure the safety and protection of these individuals from China’s evident acts of intimidation. Brent Cruz sensui_mavi@yahoo.com The post Protect WPS frontliners appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Hunt for ‘armed and dangerous’ US gunman who killed 18
Hundreds of police in the US state of Maine hunted Thursday for a fugitive gunman who killed 18 people at a bowling alley and a bar, as President Joe Biden mourned "yet another senseless and tragic mass shooting." The rampage in the small northeastern city of Lewiston also left 13 people wounded, three critically, in the deadliest shooting this year in America. A wide area around Lewiston was locked down during the tense search as authorities erected roadblocks, ordered schools and businesses closed, and told residents to stay indoors. Governor Janet Mills said the suspect was "considered armed and dangerous, and police advised that Maine people should not approach him under any circumstances." "This attack strikes at the very heart of who we are and the values we hold dear," Mills told a press conference. "This is a dark day for Maine." Police named the suspect as 40-year-old Robert Card -- seen in surveillance footage pointing a semi-automatic rifle as he walked into the Sparetime Recreation bowling alley. Police converged on the home of Card's father in nearby Bowdoin early Thursday evening, closing off roads. One longtime neighbor, Dave Letarte, said news of the shooting "floored me." "I would have never expected that from him," he told AFP of the younger Card. Joseph Walker, a manager at the Schemengees Bar & Grille, was among those killed the night before, his father Leroy Walker told NBC News. Walker said his family was "suffering and dying in a nightmare we don't understand. "We were up all night. We didn't know where to go, who to turn to," he said. Terror at bowling alley News outlets broadcast footage of people fleeing in terror from the Sparetime Recreation bowling alley after the shooting started Wednesday evening. One survivor told television reporters that he was 15 feet (5 meters) from the gunman when he opened fire. He thought at first it was a balloon popping. "And as soon as I turned and saw it was not a balloon and he was holding a weapon, I just booked it down the lane and I slid basically into where the pins are and climbed up into the machine and was on top of the machines for about 10 minutes until the cops got there," he said. Card is a member of the US Army Reserve. US media reported that he had recently been sent for psychiatric treatment after he said he was hearing voices. Hundreds of police in military-style camouflage gear and FBI agents flooded the search zone in what Lewiston police chief David St. Pierre called "an all-hands-on-deck approach." "We continue to work tirelessly in bringing the situation to an end," he told reporters, vowing "to locate and hold the person accountable." Biden called Maine's governor to offer federal support and ordered flags to be lowered to half-staff at the White House and all government buildings. "Once again, our nation is in mourning after yet another senseless and tragic mass shooting," he said. Biden added that the gun violence that plagues the United States "is not normal, and we cannot accept it," urging lawmakers to pass a bill banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. Daily mass shootings Police and rescuers reportedly arrived at the Sparetime Recreation bowling alley at about 7:15 p.m. in response to an active shooter, and then received reports of another shooting at the Schemengees Bar & Grille. In surveillance images of Card at the bowling alley, he appeared calm and composed as he moved through the doorway with his rifle raised. Officers located a "vehicle of interest" -- a white sport utility vehicle -- in Lisbon, a town around eight miles (12 kilometers) from Lewiston. The shooting is one of the deadliest in the US since 2017, when a gunman opened fire on a crowded music festival in Las Vegas, killing 60 people. Mass shootings are alarmingly common in the United States, a country with more guns than people, and attempts to clamp down on their spread are always met with stiff resistance. The country has recorded at least 565 mass shootings this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, a nongovernmental organization that defines a mass shooting as four or more people wounded or killed. Efforts to tighten gun controls routinely run up against opposition from Republicans, staunch defenders of the constitutional right to bear arms. The political paralysis endures despite widespread outrage over recurring shootings. The post Hunt for ‘armed and dangerous’ US gunman who killed 18 appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»