7 die in clashes on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border

Today's headlines: Seoul parliament calls for Interior Minister's resignation after Itaewon massacre; Chinese citizens urged not to mix drugs to fight Covid-19; vegetable and fish prices rise in Malaysia due to climate change; two Islamic State militiamen killed in Syria.

PAKISTAN - AFGHANISTAN

Six Pakistani civilians and an Afghan soldier died yesterday after a border clash. According to Pakistani authorities, Afghan soldiers opened fire at civilians at the Chaman border crossing, which connects the western province of Belucistan in Pakistan with the southern province of Kandahar in Afghanistan. Last month, the crossing had been closed after similar clashes. The Afghans oppose the construction of checkpoints on the Pakistani side.

SOUTH KOREA

South Korea's parliament yesterday passed a motion calling for the dismissal of the interior minister over the government's response to the Itaewon massacre, in which 156 people died and 152 others were injured. Lee Sang-min has faced mounting pressure but President Yoon Suk-yeol is likely to reject the minister's request for his resignation.

CHINA

Chinese authorities are warning citizens against attempting to self-medicate after the relaxation of the 'zero covid' policy and the resulting increase in coronavirus infections. The People's Daily, the main press organ of the communist regime, advised against mixing drugs and dismissed beliefs that taking yellow peaches would help healing, while taking oranges would make antigenic tests positive.

INDONESIA

The governor of Bali wanted to reassure the international public, stating that the new penal code recently approved by the Indonesian parliament - which prohibits, among other things, extramarital sex - will not have an impact on tourism. Wayan Koster assured that 'there will be no checks on marital status when checking into any tourist facilities, such as hotels, villas, flats, guesthouses and spas'.

MALAYSIA

Prices of vegetables and fish products have risen in Malaysia due to climate change. According to experts, if the heavy rains persist, prices, which have risen by between 10 per cent and 20 per cent, could rise again before the Chinese New Year. Fishermen are catching less and less fish, while demand is increasing and foreign labour, especially from Thailand, is very expensive, the experts explained.

SYRIA

Yesterday during a night operation, US military forces killed two Islamic State fighters. The statement came from the US Central Command (Centcom), according to which no civilians were among the victims. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, recently attacked by Turkey, were also involved in the raid. The operation was conducted two weeks after the killing of the Isis leader was announced.

RUSSIA

In the Russian region of Samara, Olga Tsukanova, the leader of the 'Council of Soldiers' Mothers and Wives' movement, which calls for the return of the mobilised men, was arrested, along with journalist Svetlana Belova, on the pretext of checking for drug possession, and were held in a cell for a whole day for mere intimidation, for no reason.

KAZAKHSTAN

A Kazakh refugee from the Chinese region of Xinjiang, Sintszjan Ongarbek, organised a protest action with individual pickets at the Almaty Famine Victims Monument in the 'Karagajli' public garden near the historical KGB headquarters, condemning Soviet and Chinese repression of ethnic Kazakhs in various regions.

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