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New DCPO chief to focus on personnel morale, asset optimization
THE Davao City Police Office (DCPO) bid farewell to PCol. Alberto Lupaz and welcomed its new City Director, PCol. Richard Bad-ang, in a turn-over ceremony at the Camp Captain Domingo E. Leonor on March 22......»»
SC allows UN expert to act as friend of the court in Maria Ressa s cyber libel plea
Irene Khan, United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur for freedom of expression and opinion, has been allowed by the Supreme Court (SC) to sit as an "amicus curiae" to the court in the appeal for the cyber libel case of Rappler.com chief executive officer Maria Ressa and former researcher Reynaldo Santos......»»
Amid MSU bombing, defense chief urges review of campus ban on security forces
Defending the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Teodoro stressed that what happened was officials’ “failure to appreciate” the intelligence sent to them.....»»
Philippines arrests suspect related to Sunday s school blast
MANILA, Dec. 8 (Xinhua) -- Philippine troops have arrested a suspect related to a university gym bombing on Sunday that killed four and injured 50 others, a military spokesperson said Friday. Xerxes Trinidad, the Armed Forces of the Philippines' public affairs chief, called the male suspect "one of the accomplices." He did not elaborate on the details of the suspect's arrest. Authorities earlier identifie.....»»
MSU blast victims receive medical, burial assistance
In response to the bomb explosion at the Dimaporo Gymnasium of Mindanao State University–Main Campus in Marawi City, Lanao del Sur, victims received medical and burial assistance. Officials from the Ministry of Social Services and Development (MSSD) and other Bangsamoro Government agencies, including Barmm Chief Minister Ahod “Al-Hadj Murad” Ebrahim, visited victims at hospitals. Six patients received financial aid through MSSD’s Bangsamoro Critical Assistance for Indigents in Response to Emergency Situations program. Additionally, injured patients at the MSU Infirmary received financial aid for transportation and medical needs. The MSSD workforce also visited the bereaved families of the deceased victims to provide cash assistance and support. Mental Health and Psychosocial Support will be provided for MSU-Main Campus Marawi students, and interventions for deceased victims' families will be determined by MSSD. Officials from various agencies, including the university and security sector, held a meeting and inspected the site of the incident. Related stories include the naming of MSU Marawi bombing suspects and statements from officials condemning the attack......»»
No need for martial law after bombing – AFP chief
There is no need to declare martial law following the bombing of a gymnasium in the Mindanao State University in Marawi City, Armed Forces of the Philippines chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. said yesterday......»»
Philippines Identifies Suspects After Bombing At Sunday Mass
MANILA - Philippine police have identified at least two suspects in the bombing of a Catholic Mass that killed four people, a regional police chief said onMonday, vowing to hunt down those behind the blast, which was claimed by Islamic State militants.The bomb went off on Sunday during a service at a university gymnasium in Marawi, a city left in ruins in 2017 by a five-month military campaign to end a bl.....»»
Police eye 2 ‘persons of interest’ in Mindanao State University bombing
MANILA, Philippines — Police were looking into two “persons of interest” in the bloody bombing that killed four people and wounded scores in Marawi City. Police Regional Office Bangsamoro Autonomous Region (PRO-BAR) assistant chief Lieutenant Eirene Mazon did not reveal the names of the individuals but said they reside in areas within Lanao del Sur......»»
Philippines Identifies Suspects After Bombing At Sunday Mass
MANILA - Philippine police have identified at least two suspects in the bombing of a Catholic Mass that killed four people, a regional police chief said onMonday, vowing to hunt down those behind the blast, which was claimed by Islamic State militants.The bomb went off on Sunday during a service at a university gymnasium in Marawi, a city left in ruins in 2017 by a five-month military campaign to end a bl.....»»
Scores killed in Gaza strikes as new aid convoy arrives
Scores of Palestinians were killed in central Gaza on Sunday after Israel stepped up its strikes on the war-torn enclave and another convoy of 17 aid trucks arrived as the Hamas-run territory faces "catastrophic" shortages. With the violence raging unchecked, Iran said the region could spiral "out of control". Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a stark warning to Lebanon's Hezbollah, saying getting involved would be "the mistake of its life". Washington warned any actors looking to inflame the conflict that it would not hesitate to act in the event of any "escalation". Hamas militants in Gaza stormed across the border into Israel on 7 October, launching a raid that killed at least 1,400 people, mostly civilians who were shot, mutilated, or burnt to death on the first day, according to Israeli officials. They also seized more than 200 hostages in the worst-ever attack in Israel's history. Israel has hit back with a relentless bombing campaign that has so far killed more than 4,600 Palestinians, mainly civilians, according to Gaza's health ministry. Officials said the central town of Deir al-Balah had been particularly badly hit overnight from Saturday to Sunday. The ministry said at least 80 people had been killed in the overnight raids on central Gaza, which destroyed more than 30 homes. At the hospital morgue, an AFP journalist saw the bodies of many children on the bloodied floor, where distraught families wept as they identified the victims. Among them was a man clutching his dead toddler and a young boy who pulled back a blanket over his little sister's body. "My cousin was sleeping in his house with his daughter in his arms. He was a man with no record, nothing to do with the resistance," said Wael Wafi, gazing at the body of his cousin, his arm still wrapped around his three-year-old daughter Misk. Also Sunday, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said that 29 of its staff had been killed since the start of the war in a statement on X, formerly Twitter, saying half of them were teachers. On Saturday it had given a toll of 17. The scale of the bombing has left basic systems unable to function. The UN said dozens of unidentified bodies had been buried in a mass grave in Gaza City because cold storage had run out. Meanwhile, an Israeli soldier was killed near the Gaza border by an anti-tank missile fired by militants inside the enclave, the army said. 'Accident' as Israel hits Egypt post Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant warned the war with Hamas could take months. "It will take one month, two months, three months, and at the end, there will be no more Hamas," Gallant said. A second convoy of 17 trucks of aid entered Gaza from Egypt on Sunday following an initial delivery of 20 trucks on Saturday after intensive negotiations and US pressure. Separately, an AFP journalist saw six trucks leaving Rafah after filling up from dwindling fuel stocks held at the crossing as the enclave faces catastrophic shortages after Israel cut off supplies of food, water, fuel, and electricity. It later resumed water supplies to the south on 15 October. Although Egyptian media said another 40 trucks would enter Gaza on Monday, the UN says the enclave needs 100 trucks per day to meet the needs of Gaza's 2.4 million residents. And so far, there have been no deliveries of fuel, with UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini warning Sunday that supplies would run out "in three days". "Without fuel, there will be no water, no functioning hospitals, and... aid will not reach many civilians in desperate need," he said. The Hamas government said 165,000 housing units -- half of those in the entire Gaza Strip -- had been destroyed in the raids. With fears growing that the conflict could spread, Israel on Sunday admitted accidentally hitting an Egyptian border post, apologizing for the incident which Cairo said had left an unspecified number of border guards with "minor injuries". Risk of regional escalation There were fresh exchanges of fire over Israel's northern border with Lebanon as fears grew that Hezbollah, a close ally of Hamas and Iran, could enter the conflict, prompting Israel's Netanyahu to warn it would be "the mistake of its life". "We will strike it with a force it cannot even imagine, and the significance for it and the state of Lebanon will be devastating," he said. Iran also warned about the conflict spreading on Sunday, with top diplomat Hossein Amir-Abdollahian cautioning that if Washington and Israel did not "immediately stop the crime against humanity and genocide in Gaza.. the region will go out of control". But Washington said it wouldn't hesitate to act in the event of any "escalation", just hours after the Pentagon moved to step up military readiness in the region. "If any group or any country is looking to widen this conflict and take advantage of this very unfortunate situation that we see, our advice is: don't," US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said on ABC News. On Sunday, Pope Francis used his weekly Angelus prayer in Rome to plead for an end to the bloodshed. "War is always a defeat, it is a destruction of human fraternity. Brothers, stop!" he said. He later held a 20-minute conversation with US President Joe Biden about "conflict situations in the world and the need to identify paths to peace", the Vatican said. Biden later discussed with war with the leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, and Italy, the White House said. The US president also held talks with Netanyahu, said the White House, adding: "The leaders affirmed that there will now be continued flow of this critical assistance into Gaza." In Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron's office announced he would be traveling to Israel on Tuesday for talks with Netanyahu. Protesters marched in several European capitals on Sunday. At least 10,000 people rallied in support of Israel in Berlin as Chancellor Olaf Scholz vowed to stamp out a resurgence of anti-Semitic incidents linked to the Israel-Hamas conflict. Thousands gathered in Paris to demand an end to Israel's operation in Gaza, the first pro-Palestinian rally in the French capital that wasn't banned on security grounds. The post Scores killed in Gaza strikes as new aid convoy arrives appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
UN chief urges ceasefire to end Gaza’s ‘godawful nightmare’
UN chief Antonio Guterres pleaded Saturday for a "humanitarian ceasefire" in the war between Israel and Hamas militants that has devastated much of Gaza, demanding "action to end this godawful nightmare". Addressing a Cairo summit that ultimately proved fruitless, according to Arab diplomats, Guterres said the Palestinian enclave of 2.4 million people was living through "a humanitarian catastrophe" with thousands dead and more than a million displaced. The latest bloodshed began on October 7 when Hamas militants killed at least 1,400 people, mostly civilians who were shot, mutilated or burnt to death on the first day of the raid, and took more than 200 hostages, according to Israeli officials. Israel has hit back with a relentless bombing campaign, killing more than 4,300 Palestinians, mainly civilians, according to Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry, and cut off supplies of water, electricity, fuel and food. According to Arab diplomats who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity, the meeting in Cairo failed to reach an agreement, with Western representatives seeking "a clear condemnation placing responsibility for the escalation on Hamas", which Arab leaders refused. The Western officials also wanted to call for the release of those held by Hamas. Egypt's presidency instead released a statement -- drafted with the approval of Arab attendees, the diplomats said -- saying the war had laid bare "a defect in the values of the international community". World leaders have long "sought to manage the conflict, and not end it permanently, by proposing temporary solutions and palliatives that do not live up to even the lowest aspirations of a suffering people", the statement read. In response, Israel bemoaned the lack of a condemnation of what it called "Islamic terror" that endangered the region and entire world. "It is unfortunate that even when faced with those horrific atrocities, there were some who had difficulty condemning terrorism or acknowledging the danger," a foreign ministry statement said. "Israel will do what it has to do and expects the international community to recognise the righteous battle." 'Global silence' In the opening session, Guterres had said "the grievances of the Palestinian people are legitimate and long" after "56 years of occupation with no end in sight" but stressed that "nothing can justify the reprehensible assault by Hamas that terrorised Israeli civilians". He then stressed that "those abhorrent attacks can never justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people". In the meeting which also included the leaders of the United Arab Emirates, Spain and Italy, Jordan's King Abdullah II called for "an immediate end to the war on Gaza" and condemned what he labelled "global silence" on Palestinian death and suffering. "The message the Arab world is hearing is loud and clear: Palestinian lives matter less than Israeli ones. Our lives matter less than other lives," he charged. "The application of international law is optional. And human rights have boundaries -- they stop at borders, they stop at races, and they stop at religions." The summit came on the day a first convoy of aid trucks rumbled into southern Gaza, which Guterres said needed to be rapidly scaled up, with "much more" help sent through. The UN has said that about 100 trucks per day are needed to meet worsening needs in Gaza. The Palestinians need "a continuous delivery of aid to Gaza at the scale that is needed", the UN chief told the Cairo "Summit for Peace". 'We will not leave' Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi argued that the "only solution" to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is "justice" and said that "Palestinians must realise their legitimate rights to self-determination" and have "an independent state on their land". Abbas stressed his demand for a two-state solution and an "end to Israel's occupation" and rejected what he has warned could be a "second Nakba" -- a reference to the more than 760,000 Palestinians who fled or were expelled from their lands during the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. "We will not leave," he repeated three times at the end of his speech. Cairo and Amman have repeatedly rejected calls for large numbers of refugees to enter Egypt from Gaza, warning that the "forced displacement" would lead to the "eradication of the Palestinian cause". Egypt and Jordan were the first Arab states to normalise relations with Israel, in 1979 and 1994 respectively, and have since been key mediators between Israeli and Palestinian officials. Turkey's foreign minister Hakan Fidan urged for the current conflict to become, "rather than a regional conflagration, a breeding ground for a just and lasting peace". He also condemned "unconditional military aid to Israel which only serves to maintain the occupation", while Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan condemned the failure of the UN Security Council to pass a resolution calling for a ceasefire after a US veto. The post UN chief urges ceasefire to end Gaza’s ‘godawful nightmare’ appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
First relief convoy enters Gaza devastated by ‘nightmare’ war
The first aid trucks arrived in war-torn Gaza from Egypt on Saturday, bringing urgent humanitarian relief to the Hamas-controlled Palestinian enclave suffering what the UN chief labelled a "godawful nightmare". Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas after the Islamist militant group carried out the deadliest attack in the country's history on October 7. Hamas militants killed at least 1,400 people, mostly civilians who were shot, mutilated or burnt to death, and took more than 200 hostages, according to Israeli officials. Israel has retaliated with a relentless bombing campaign on Gaza that has killed more than 4,300 Palestinians, mainly civilians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. An Israeli siege has cut food, water, electricity and fuel supplies to the densely populated and long-blockaded territory of 2.4 million people, sparking fears of a humanitarian catastrophe. AFP journalists on Saturday saw 20 trucks from the Egyptian Red Crescent, which is responsible for delivering aid from various UN agencies, pass through the Rafah border crossing from Egypt into Gaza. The crossing -- the only one into Gaza not controlled by Israel -- closed again after the trucks passed. The lorries had been waiting for days on the Egyptian side after Israel agreed to a request from its main ally the United States to allow aid to enter. UN chief Antonio Guterres warned Friday that the relief supplies were "the difference between life and death" for many Gazans, more than one million of whom have been displaced. "Much more" aid needs to be sent, he told a peace summit in Egypt on Saturday. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken welcomed the aid and urged "all parties" to keep the Rafah crossing open. But a Hamas spokesman said "even dozens" of such convoys could not meet Gaza's needs, especially as no fuel was being allowed in to help distribute the supplies to those in need. 'Reeling in pain' Tens of thousands of Israeli troops have deployed to the Gaza border ahead of an expected ground offensive that officials have pledged will begin "soon". As international tensions soar, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was hosting a peace summit in Cairo on Saturday attended by regional and some Western leaders. "The time has come for action to end this godawful nightmare," Guterres told the summit, calling for a "humanitarian ceasefire". The region "is reeling in pain and one step from the precipice", he said. Guterres said "the grievances of the Palestinian people are legitimate and long" after "56 years of occupation with no end in sight". But he stressed that "nothing can justify the reprehensible assault by Hamas that terrorised Israeli civilians". "Those abhorrent attacks can never justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people," he added. Egypt, historically a key mediator between Hamas and Israel, has urged "restraint" and the relaunch of the long-frozen peace process. But diplomatic efforts to end the violence have made little headway, without the participation of Israel and its enemy Iran, a supporter of Hamas and other armed groups. 'Sliver of hope' A full-blown Israeli ground offensive carries many risks, including to the hostages Hamas took and whose fate is shrouded in uncertainty. So the release of two Americans among the hostages -- mother and daughter Judith and Natalie Raanan -- offered a rare "sliver of hope", said Mirjana Spoljaric, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross. US President Joe Biden thanked Qatar, which hosts Hamas's political bureau, for its mediation in securing the release. He said he was working "around the clock" to win the return of other Americans being held. Natalie Raanan's half-brother Ben told the BBC he felt an "overwhelming sense of joy" at the release after "the most horrible of ordeals". Hamas said Egypt and Qatar had negotiated the release and that it was "working with all mediators to implement the movement's decision to close the civilian (hostage) file if appropriate security conditions allow". Traumatised families with loved ones missing in Gaza demanded more action. "We ask humanity to interfere and bring back all those young boys, young girls, mothers, babies," Assaf Shem Tov, whose nephew was abducted from a music festival where Hamas killed hundreds, said Friday. Devastation Almost half of Gaza's residents have been displaced, and at least 30 percent of all housing in the territory has been destroyed or damaged, the United Nations says. Thousands have taken refuge in a camp set up in the city of Khan Yunis in southern Gaza. Fadwa al-Najjar said she and her seven children walked for 10 hours to reach the camp, at some points breaking into a run as missiles struck around them. "We saw bodies and limbs torn off and we just started praying, thinking we were going to die," she told AFP. In Al-Zahra in central Gaza, Rami Abu Wazna was struggling to take in the destruction wreaked by Israeli missile strikes. "Even in my worst nightmares, I never thought this could be possible," he said. Israel's operation will take not "a day, nor a week, nor a month" and will result in "the end of Israel's responsibilities in the Gaza Strip", Defence Minister Yoav Gallant warned on Friday. Regional tensions flare In Gaza, retired general Omar Ashour said the destruction was "part of a clear plan for people to have no place left to live". "This will cause a second Nakba," he added, referring to the 760,000 Palestinians who were expelled from or fled their homes when Israel was created in 1948. The United States has moved two aircraft carriers into the eastern Mediterranean to deter Iran or Lebanon's Hezbollah, both Hamas allies, amid fears of a wider conflagration. Fire across Israel's border with Lebanon continued overnight, with one Israeli soldier killed, Israeli public radio said. The military said it hit Hezbollah targets after rocket and missile fire. Violence has also flared in the West Bank, where 84 Palestinians have been killed since October 7, according to the Palestinian health ministry. The post First relief convoy enters Gaza devastated by ‘nightmare’ war appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
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......»»
Shun mass protests in Egypt
Filipinos in Egypt have been advised to avoid joining any protests following the mass demonstrations, denouncing the bombing of a hospital in the Gaza Strip that reportedly killed at least 500 civilians. In an advisory, the Philippine Embassy in Egypt cautioned Filipinos against joining the random demonstrations and planned mass actions. “The Philippine Embassy in Cairo advises everyone to exercise caution, keep away from mass congregations, and stay home unless necessary,” it said. According to the Department of Foreign Affairs, there are 1,990 Filipinos in Egypt. Egyptians took to the streets to express their anger over the bombing of the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza, which left hundreds of Palestinians dead. In one of the demonstrations, a Palestinian flag was raised while an Israeli flag was burned. The demonstrations came after Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi called on Egyptians to express solidarity with the Palestinians amid the Israel-Hamas war. This developed as top diplomats of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations on Friday denounced the ongoing war in the Middle East. End bloodshed In a statement, the foreign ministers of the 10-member regional bloc called for an immediate end to the bloodshed. “We strongly condemn the acts of violence which have led to the deaths and injuries of civilians, including ASEAN nationals,” the foreign ministers said. “We urge the immediate end of violence to avoid further human casualties and call for the full respect of international humanitarian law,” it added. Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas are engaged in armed conflict following the surprise attack launched by the terror group on Israel last 7 October. The attack by Hamas has left more than 1,400 dead, most of them massacred on the first day of the assault. Meanwhile, the widespread airstrikes on the Gaza Strip have reportedly left at least 3,478 dead. ASEAN also called on “all parties to create safe, rapid and unimpeded passages of human corridors.” Last week, Israel imposed a 24-hour deadline for 1.1 million civilians to evacuate northern Gaza ahead of its ground offensive in the Palestinian territory. Since then, millions of civilians, including foreign nationals, have scrambled to move from northern Gaza to southern Gaza in hopes of exiting the war-torn territory. The bulk of civilians are swarming to the Rafah border in an attempt to enter Egypt despite the border remaining closed and the restricted availability of food, water and electricity. Two-state solution Meanwhile, ASEAN reaffirmed its support for a “negotiated two-state solution that allows Israelis and Palestinians to live side-by-side in peace and security consistent with relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions.” “This will be the only viable path to resolving the root cause of the conflict,” it said. The regional bloc also called on the “international community to support the peace process in order to ensure long-lasting peace and stability in the region.” “We have issued our respective national statements on the escalation of armed conflicts in the Middle East,” it said. On Wednesday, the Philippines, one of the founding members of ASEAN, expressed its “profound sadness” over the bombing of a hospital in the Gaza Strip, which reportedly killed at least 500 civilians. Israel and Hamas denied being behind the attack and blamed each other for the bombing. The Philippines said all parties should “do their utmost to protect civilians in times of war and armed conflict.” “We support efforts of the United Nations to provide humanitarian relief in the conflict areas,” it said. According to the Department of Foreign Affairs, there are 135 Filipinos in the Hamas-controlled Gaza. Deep concern In Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is attending the ASEAN-Gulf Cooperation Council Summit, the Chief Executive expressed deep concern over the rising number of victims and the safety of those affected by the conflict. In his intervention during the 1st ASEAN-GCC Summit here on Friday, Marcos said, “All parties (should) exert their utmost efforts to de-escalate the situation, stop all violence, and engage in dialogue and diplomacy.” He called on the members of the GCC and ASEAN to work together to promote peace, security, and stability in the South China Sea and the Arabian Sea. Marcos also underscored the importance of cooperation between member countries of the two regional groups to ensure their continued prosperity. “As the two regional organizations located astride the major sea gates and vital corridors of the world’s commerce and communications, it is imperative that we work together to promote peace, security, and stability in both our regions, the South China Sea and the Arabian Sea, grounded on the rules-based international order to ensure the stability and prosperity of our countries and the rest of the world,” Marcos said. “Peace and stability are indispensable to ensuring continued prosperity in our respective regions and the world,” he added. The six GCC member countries are Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, while the 10 ASEAN member countries are Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. President Marcos attended the ASEAN-GCC Summit, where he discussed business opportunities in the Philippines and urged investors to invest in the Maharlika Investment Fund, among other significant opportunities in the Philippines. The post Shun mass protests in Egypt appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Japan slams Russia threat on Hiroshima anniv
Japan’s leader took the occasion of the Hiroshima bombing commemoration on Sunday to hit out at Russia for threatening to nuke Ukraine. “Devastation brought to Hiroshima and Nagasaki by nuclear weapons can never be repeated,” Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, whose family comes from the city, said at a ceremony marking the world’s first nuclear bombing in Hiroshima 78 years ago. Around 140,000 people died in Hiroshima on 6 August 1945 and 74,000 in Nagasaki three days later, when the United States dropped atomic bombs on the two Japanese cities days before the end of World War II. Kishida warned that the path towards a nuclear free world “is becoming increasingly difficult because of deepening divisions in the international community over nuclear disarmament and Russia’s nuclear threat.” United Nations chief Antonio Guterres also issued a statement on the Hiroshima anniversary, saying that “some countries are recklessly rattling the nuclear saber once again, threatening to use these tools of annihilation.” “In the face of these threats, the global community must speak as one. Any use of nuclear weapons is unacceptable,” Guterres said. At the ceremony in Japan, thousands of people — survivors, relatives and foreign dignitaries from a record 111 countries — prayed for those killed or wounded in the Hiroshima bombing and called for world peace. Hiroshima officials, however, did not invite Russia or Belarus to the event for the second-straight year because of the Ukraine invasion. Russia’s leaders had repeatedly issued thinly veiled warnings that Moscow could use nuclear weapons against Ukraine while North Korea continues to test ballistic missiles in defiance of UN sanctions. WITH AFP The post Japan slams Russia threat on Hiroshima anniv appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Russian-occupied Ukraine nuclear plant mined
International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors have found anti-personnel mines in an area of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. IAEA chief Rafael Grossi said on Monday the mines are located in a buffer zone between the site’s internal and external perimeter barriers that are inaccessible to plant personnel. Any detonation of the mines “should not affect the site’s nuclear safety and security systems,” Grossi said. The laying of the explosives at the site, however, was inconsistent with IAEA safety standards and nuclear security guidance, he added. The mines also created additional psychological pressure on the staff, he further said. The ZNPP, which has six reactors and produces around a fifth of Ukraine’s electricity, have been shut down for months. Europe’s largest nuclear facility fell to Russian forces shortly after the invasion of Ukraine in February last year. Kyiv and Moscow have since accused each other of planning an incident at the site. Meanwhile, Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis on Monday condemned the Russian bombing of Ukrainian port infrastructure on the Danube river at his country’s border. “This recent escalation poses serious risks to the security in the Black Sea. It also affects further Ukrainian grain transit, thus the global food security,” Iohannis said. Amateur footage posted on social media by a Romanian showed an explosion just across the Danube, as drones appeared to hit the Ukrainian port of Reni on the river. Reni is a Ukrainian port town where the Danube forms a natural frontier with Romania, and is also near the Moldovan border. Ukrainian officials reported a four-hour Russian drone attack on port infrastructure in the southern Odesa region. The Danube delta region, which spans Romania and Ukraine, is being used as an export route for Ukrainian grain. Romania is a member of the United States-led North Atlantic Treaty Organization. US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told journalists in Washington on Monday that Secretary of State Antony Blinken assured his Romanian counterpart, Foreign Minister Luminita Odobescu that NATO will defend every inch of its territory. WITH AFP The post Russian-occupied Ukraine nuclear plant mined appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Attempted NGCP tower bombing foiled
ZAMBOANGA CITY — The military on Tuesday reported that its troops and police personnel discovered four powerful improvised explosive devices at the foot of National Grid Corporation of the Philippines Tower 39 in Pikit town, Cotabato province. Joint Task Force Central commander Major General Alex S. Rillera on Tuesday narrated that soldiers recovered and disarmed three IEDs found at the foot of the NGCP tower in Sitio Punol, Batulawan in Pikit on Monday. The soldiers visited the area after civilians reported to them that an IED exploded in the vicinity of the NGCP Tower 39 on Monday morning and during their search, they recovered three IED anti-personnel mines. Rillera added that aside from the three APMs found, another Unexploded Ordnance made from an 81mm high explosive was also found by the residents of Barangay Kadigasan, Midsayap town in Cotabato on Monday. While Rillera did not disclose any armed group of operating in the area which is part of the Special Geographic Area of Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, he ordered the implementation of a high alert level status to ensure the safety of the people in the area. “That’s why your military continues to guard the vital installations of the government and the private sector that stimulate the economy while we don’t put aside the safety of our people,” Rillera said. “So, we in the JTF-C in collaboration with other security forces will not hesitate to hunt down the bad elements responsible for sowing violence and destroying the peace and continued economic development of Central and South Central Mindanao,” he added. Meantime, Lt. Col. John Miridel Calinga, municipal police station chief, said that the EIDs bore the signature style of the Daesh-inspired Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters operating in the area. “It was not meant to harm civilians but only the NGCP tower,” Calinga said, adding that the site is far from residential areas. The discovery of IEDs here came a day after residents of Barangay Kadigasan, Midsayap town, North Cotabato, also found a homemade bomb fashioned from an 81-mm mortar explosive. Bomb experts safely deactivated the ordnance. The post Attempted NGCP tower bombing foiled appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Almost 200 dead, 1,800 wounded in Sudan battles: UN
Fighting between the army and paramilitaries in Sudan has killed around 200 people and wounded 1,800, damaging hospitals and hampering aid after three days of urban warfare. A weeks-long power struggle exploded into deadly violence Saturday between the forces of two generals who seized power in a 2021 coup: Sudan's army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who commands the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Analysts say the fighting in the capital of the chronically unstable country is unprecedented and could be prolonged, despite regional and global calls for a ceasefire as diplomats mobilize. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday he had spoken with the two generals and "underscored the urgent need for a ceasefire". "Too many civilian lives have already been lost," Blinken tweeted, adding he had "stressed the importance of ensuring the safety of diplomatic personnel and aid workers". The European Union's ambassador to Sudan was attacked in his home in Khartoum on Monday, the bloc's top diplomat Josep Borrell said. A spokesperson told AFP the veteran diplomat was "OK" following the assault. Battles have taken place throughout the vast country and there are fears of regional spillover. Terrified residents of the capital are spending the last and holiest days of Ramadan watching from their windows as tanks roll through the streets, buildings shake and smoke from fires triggered by the fighting hangs in the air. The conflict has seen air strikes, artillery and heavy gunfire. Those compelled to venture out face queues for bread and petrol at outlets that are not shuttered. Residents are also dealing with power outages. Hospitals 'out of service' Volker Perthes, the head of the United Nations mission to Sudan, told the Security Council in a closed-door session that at least 185 people had been killed and another 1,800 wounded. "It's a very fluid situation so it's very difficult to say where the balance is shifting to," Perthes told reporters after the meeting. Earlier Monday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres again urged Sudan's warring parties to "immediately cease hostilities". He warned that further escalation "could be devastating for the country and the region". Medics in Sudan had earlier given a death toll of nearly 100 civilians and "dozens" of fighters from both sides, but the number of casualties was thought to be far higher, with many wounded unable to reach hospitals. The official doctors' union warned fighting had "heavily damaged" multiple hospitals in Khartoum and other cities, with some completely "out of service". The World Health Organization had already warned that several Khartoum hospitals tending to wounded civilians "have run out of blood, transfusion equipment, intravenous fluids and other vital supplies". In the western region of Darfur, international medical aid organisation Doctors Without Borders (MSF) reported receiving 136 wounded patients at the only hospital in El Fasher still operating in North Darfur state. "The majority of the wounded are civilians who were caught in the crossfire -- among them are many children," MSF's Cyrus Paye said. Due to limited surgical capacity, "11 people died from their injuries in the first 48 hours of the conflict". Call for talks Three UN World Food Programme staff were also among those killed on Saturday in Darfur, where humanitarian missions have had medical and other supplies looted, according to Save the Children and MSF. A number of organisations have temporarily suspended operations in the country, where one-third of the population needs aid. "This renewed fighting only aggravates what was already a fragile situation, forcing UN agencies and our humanitarian partners to temporarily shutter many of our more than 250 programmes across Sudan," said UN emergency relief coordinator Martin Griffiths. Diplomatic manoeuvres seemed to ramp up on Monday, as the fighting showed no signs of abating. Influential northern neighbour Egypt announced it had discussed with Saudi Arabia, South Sudan and Djibouti -- all close allies of Sudan -- "the need to make every effort to preserve stability and safety". President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi called on the two warring parties to "return to the negotiating table" and said he was working on the return of Egyptian military "trainers" captured Saturday at an air base by RSF forces. There are no more civilian flights arriving in Khartoum, where fighting has damaged aircraft. 'Unprecedented' On Twitter, Daglo called on the international community to intervene against Burhan, branding him a "radical Islamist who is bombing civilians from the air". "We will continue to pursue Al-Burhan and bring him to justice," said Daglo, whose RSF and its predecessor the Janjaweed in Darfur have previously been accused of atrocities and war crimes. Army statements call the RSF "a rebel militia" intent on "engaging near populated areas". The fighting broke out after bitter disagreements between Burhan and Daglo over the planned integration of the RSF into the regular army -- a key condition for a final deal aimed at ending a crisis since the 2021 coup, which derailed a transition to democracy. Both claim to be in control of key sites, including the airport and the presidential palace -- none of which could be independently verified. On Monday, the army resumed broadcasting on state TV. While Sudan has endured decades of bitter civil wars, coups and rebellions since independence, Sudanese analyst Kholood Khair said the level of fighting inside the capital was "unprecedented". The post Almost 200 dead, 1,800 wounded in Sudan battles: UN appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Suicide bomber balak umatake pagtapos magbuntis
Ibinunyag ni Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Camilo Cascolan na plano sana ni Rezky Fantasya Rullie alyas ‘Cici’ na magsagawa ng suicide bombing pagkatapos niyang manganak. The post Suicide bomber balak umatake pagtapos magbuntis first appeared on Abante......»»
Army chief binawi hirit na martial law sa Sulu
Biglang binawi ni Philippine Army chief Lt. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana ang kanyang naunang rekomendasyon na magdeklara ng martial law sa Sulu matapos ang twin bombing sa Jolo. The post Army chief binawi hirit na martial law sa Sulu first appeared on Abante......»»