Lebanon: Two are dead after residents of a Christian village clash with Hezbollah
The news of the day: Pakistan’s parliament is dissolved, but elections will be postponed. Political instability grips Vanuatu. Group tours for Chinese tourists resume. North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un says the country must "prepare for war." To protect the environment, Malaysia scraps plans to build an airport. Some 30 "Afrovillages" are planned in Russia.
LEBANON
Armed clashes broke out between Hezbollah members and residents in Kahaleh, a Christian village located on the road to Damascus. The incident unfolded after a lorry owned by the Shia group overturned at a narrow turn on the road to Beirut. Men in civilian clothes formed a security cordon around the vehicle and began shooting when residents approached. A Christian man and a member of the Iran-backed group were killed. According to local authorities, the lorry was carrying weapons.
PAKISTAN
Pakistan's parliament has been dissolved and a caretaker government should be sworn in shortly. Elections, which should be held within 90 days, will likely be delayed because the boundaries of electoral districts must be redrawn after the publication of the new census, this according to the Election Commission. Meanwhile, the five-year ban from politics imposed on former Prime Minister Imran Khan has been confirmed. Various observers believe the government is delaying the vote for fear of losing at the polls.
VANUATU
The small Pacific Ocean country of Vanuatu has been plunged in political instability after pro-Beijing opposition leader Bob Loughman filed a no-confidence motion with 29 signatures out of 51 deputies, enough to oust Prime Minister Ishmael Kalsakau. The debate on the motion has been postponed until next week.
CHINA – TOURISM
China has authorised group tours to the United States, Australia, Japan and South Korea, lifting a measure imposed after the coronavirus outbreak three years ago. Before COVID-19, Chinese tourists spent more than travellers from any other country, and group tours accounted for about 60 per cent of earnings in foreign countries.
NORTH KOREA
North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un told the Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea that the country must "prepare for war”. The North Korean leader also replaced the chief of the General Staff of the Korean People's Army (KPA), and ordered an increase weapons production and military drills, the government-controlled Korean Central News Agency reported.
MALAYSIA
Malaysian authorities have rejected a bid by tycoon Vincent Tan to build an international airport on Tioman Island, saying the proposal would cause damage to the environment. This reflects Malaysia's commitment to strike a balance between environmental concerns and development needs. According to a study, 76 per cent of the airport would have been built on land reclaimed from the sea, destroying the island’s famous coral reefs. Some 3,000 people live on the island.
RUSSIA – AFRICA
Work has begun on 30 so-called Afro-villages in Moscow and Tver provinces (Russia) to welcome Afrikaner migrants. In Tver, a ceremony was held laying the first stone in Tver in the presence of the dean of the Eurasian University and a representative from the International African Congress in Russia, Konstantin Klimenko. The village will have all “the necessary structures to live and devote themselves to farm work”.
UZBEKISTAN
The ministries of Defence of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan organised a joint operational-tactical computer exercise co-named Kanzhar 2023 at the Chirchik simulation base, Tashkent region (Uzbekistan). Some 20 soldiers trained for cyber warfare designed to provide support for military actions and study various scenarios and variables.
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