Today's headlines: thousands of Syrians take to the streets to celebrate the first anniversary of the uprising that ousted Assad; Chinese car manufacturer BYD recalls nearly 90,000 vehicles due to battery problems; The ICC rules that former Philippine President Duterte must remain in prison; Hong Kong mourns the victims of the fire; Bangladeshi workers arrested in Singapore for drugs. Japanese court rules ban on same-sex marriage constitutional.

 

CAMBODIA

 

HIV/AIDS killed about 1,000 people in Cambodia in 2024, a 9% decrease from 1,100 the previous year. This was reported by Prime Minister Hun Manet on the eve of World AIDS Day, which is celebrated tomorrow, adding that there were about 1,200 new HIV infections, a 20% decrease from 1,500 in 2023. To date, there are about 76,000 HIV-positive people, of whom 71,716 have received antiretroviral drugs. The head of government then stated that the goal is to reduce new infections to just over 200 cases and deaths to less than 200 per year. By the end of 2025, Phnom Penh aimed to achieve the 95-95-95 HIV treatment targets by the end of 2025, according to the National AIDS Authority.

SYRIA - ISRAEL

Thousands of people across Syria took to the streets yesterday to celebrate the first anniversary of the military operation that led to the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime and the former dictator's flight to Russia with his family. The demonstrators wanted to show unity and territorial integrity, despite the fact that the country is still torn by sectarian divisions and is the target (even in recent days, with several casualties) of Israeli attacks. In Aleppo, where the uprising began, large crowds gathered in the main squares, waving flags and chanting pro-unity and democracy slogans, condemning separatist agendas. Interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa congratulated the Syrian people, inviting citizens to celebrate the “victory”.

CHINA

BYD, a Chinese car manufacturer based in Shenzhen, will urgently recall 88,981 plug-in hybrid cars due to a potential battery safety risk. The Qin PLUS DM-i models affected were produced between January 2021 and September 2023 and “may have limited power” due to problems with “battery packs” that occurred during “the manufacturing process”. In extreme cases, they may not be able to drive in pure electric mode.

PHILIPPINES

The International Criminal Court ruled yesterday that 80-year-old former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte must remain in prison, despite an appeal by the defence calling for his release on grounds of age and health. In office from 2016 to 2022, the former head of state has been on trial in The Hague since March for murders linked to the war on drugs. He will remain in custody until the trial.

HONG KONG

Today is a day of mourning in Hong Kong, which is mourning the 128 victims of the huge fire in a high-rise apartment complex, with the death toll set to rise as another 200 people are still missing days after the disaster. Authorities have arrested 11 people in connection with the city's worst fire in nearly 80 years, while investigations focus on corruption and the use of unsafe materials during the renovation of the Wang Fuk Court complex.

BANGLADESH - SINGAPORE

Twelve migrant workers were arrested in a dormitory in Woodlands, Singapore, on suspicion of drug-related offences. The Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB), which conducted the raid, said the men - 11 Bangladeshi nationals and one from Myanmar - are aged between 23 and 40. In particular, a 34-year-old Bangladeshi man is also charged with drug trafficking in addition to drug use. Superintendent Xanthus Tong, deputy commander of the CNB's J Division, said the operation was part of law enforcement efforts against drug abuse and trafficking and other criminal activities.

JAPAN

A Japanese court has ruled that the current ban on same-sex marriages is constitutional, overturning contrary rulings by other judges. The Tokyo High Court concluded that the current provisions of civil law are ‘reasonable in the current circumstances’, in contrast to five previous rulings in Sapporo, Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka and Fukuoka. Court President Ayumi Higashi said that the current marriage system is useful for preparing an environment for raising children and that it is reasonable to interpret ‘husband and wife’ as man and woman.

RUSSIA - SYRIA

Israeli Environment Minister Ze'ev Elkin, a native of Kharkiv in Ukraine, gave an interview to Rbk in which he said that Russia, after losing control of Syria, has been significantly weakened in its relations with the entire Middle East. He warns that Moscow would no longer be able to provide military aid to the pro-Iranian groups Hezbollah and Hamas, distancing itself from Tehran in this area, as it “does not wish to take the side of those who are now defeated”.

KYRGYZSTAN

A few days before the early parliamentary elections in Kyrgyzstan, Kadyrbek Atambaev, the son of former president Almazbek, who was conducting a strong smear campaign against current president Sadyr Žaparov, was arrested. He accused him of organising an “attempted coup”, similar to previous election campaigns in 2021 and 2024, with blanket searches of the homes of many opposition politicians.

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