The cyclone reshaped large swathes of the upcountry. The devastation is so great that remapping is necessary. More than half of all landslides occurred in the districts of Badulla, Kandy, and Matale. Experts need high-quality close-up images, with essential assistance from international organisations and agencies.
China’s special envoy Deng Xijun visits Phnom Penh to revive ceasefire efforts. Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy attacks Hun Sen and the Cambodian government for fanning the flames of conflict to mask a "personal conflict" with Thaksin Shinawatra. More than 30 Thai and Cambodian NGOs issue an appeal for a truce, stressing that mostly ordinary people are affected by war.
Viktor Erofeev, a critical anti-war voice since Crimea, presented his latest work. In Russia, repressing guilt has become automatic. The collapse of the Soviet Union is one example and the Orthodox Church, which never apologised for collaborating with the atheist regime, is another. Khrushchev words about Russia's wars in Georgia and Ukraine appear prophetic; meanwhile, the opposition abroad is failing.
Today's news: The US carried out a massive US strike against Islamic State targets in Syria in response to recent attacks. Taiwan police say 27-year-old Chang Wen acted "alone”, resulting in four people dead and 11 wounded. Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife have been sentenced to another 17-year sentence for corruption. More than 200 arrests have been made in Myanmar under a new law targeting people who “undermine” elections.
President Marcos strongly rejected reports of the Sydney attack linking the two perpetrators' 28-day stay in the country to training at some militia camp. Investigations reveal that the two men booked in at a hotel during their stay in Davao where they may have spoken to someone but did not engage in any activities. For Climate Conflict Action, “restraint and caution against hasty conclusions” are needed. But Dawla Islamia in Mindanao is not defeated and is still recruiting.
At least three people were killed and five wounded at the city's main station in an attack whose motives are still unclear. The perpetrator, a 27-year-old Taiwanese man known to law enforcement, was killed in a scuffle with police. President Lai Ching-te said that security was tightened across the island.
