World

Rescuers said an Israeli strike on Monday killed at least 20 people at a Gaza school sheltering displaced people, as Israel stepped up what it calls an offensive to destroy Hamas.The intensified violence, after a nearly three-month blockade of humanitarian supplies into the Gaza Strip, has sharpened international condemnation of Israel.World leaders meeting in Madrid at the weekend called for an end to the “inhumane” and “senseless” war, while humanitarian organisations said the trickle of resumed aid is not nearly enough to staunch the hunger and health crises.In Gaza City, civil defence agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal said that “at least 20 martyrs” were transported to hospital, most of them children, and 60 people were wounded in the “horrific occupation massacre at the Fahmi al-Jarjawi ...

Israeli military strikes killed at least 30 Palestinians across Gaza on Sunday, including a senior rescue service official and a journalist, local health authorities said.The latest deaths in the Israeli campaign resulted from separate Israeli strikes in Khan Younis in the south, Jabalia in the north and Nuseirat in central Gaza, medical staff said.In Jabalia, they said local journalist Hassan Majdi Abu Warda and several family members were killed by an air strike that hit his house earlier on Sunday.Another air strike in Nuseirat killed Ashraf Abu Nar, a senior official in the territory’s civil emergency service, and his wife in their house, doctors said.Mourners at a funeral for Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes, at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza on Sunday. Photo: Reu...

Pope Leo asked on Sunday for prayers for China’s Catholics to be in communion with the Holy See, as he made his first public remarks about one of the thorniest foreign policy issues facing his new pontificate.History’s first American pope recalled that on Saturday the Catholic Church marked a special feast day to pray for the church in China.Pope Benedict XVI had initiated the feast day as part of his efforts to unify China’s estimated 12 million Catholics who were divided between an official, state-controlled church that did not recognise papal authority, and an underground church that remained loyal to Rome through decades of persecution.Leo noted that on the feast day “in the churches and shrines in China and throughout the world, prayers have been raised to God as a sign of the solicit...

With South Korea’s presidential election less than two weeks away, the stakes couldn’t be higher for a nation at a critical crossroads. Since former president Yoon Suk-yeol’s impeachment for declaring martial law in December, the country desperately needs leadership to restore domestic stability and navigate increasingly complex geopolitics.Society remains deeply divided, with massive demonstrations that support or oppose Yoon. The political turmoil extends to the ruling People Power Party (PPP), which has repeatedly changed its presidential candidate. Recent polling shows opposition Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung leading with 49 per cent support, well ahead of the PPP’s Kim Moon-soo, at 27 per cent.While Lee’s party traditionally leans left, he has shifted noticeably towards the...

In the wake of Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu’s successful visits to Qatar and Kuwait, Hong Kong’s efforts to deepen connections with emerging markets are gaining strong momentum. The signing of 59 memorandums of understanding and agreements has laid the groundwork for advancing the city’s economic and cultural links with the Middle East.The visit underscores Hong Kong’s strategic role as a gateway connecting the Chinese mainland and the world and reflects the city’s strategy to diversify global economic partnerships amid a rapidly evolving landscape.In today’s interconnected world, a single disruption can trigger sweeping impacts and unprecedented volatility. With this volatility comes growing uncertainty. The dismantling of the post-Cold-War consensus on globalisation has given way to ...

Air India has been ranked the worst airline for flight delays in Britain.The carrier’s departures from UK airports were an average of 45 minutes and 48 seconds behind schedule in 2024, according to analysis of Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) data by the PA news agency.The route with the longest average delay was Gatwick to Bengaluru, with an average of one hour and 23 minutes across 50 departures.Rory Boland, editor of consumer magazine Which? Travel, described Air India’s performance as “completely unacceptable”.The airline said the disruption was “primarily due to factors beyond our control”.A passenger arrives after disembarking from a flight at Heathrow Airport in London. Photo: APAir India was acquired from the Indian government by Tata Group in January 2022 after racking up billions o...

Voting began on Sunday in Surinamese parliamentary elections that will determine who will harness new-found oil wealth to carry out a rags-to-riches transformation of the smallest country in South America.The tiny nation – which has growing ties to China – is battling high debt, rampant inflation and poverty affecting nearly one in five of its 600,000 inhabitants.On Sunday, Surinamese began electing a new parliament of 51 members, who within weeks must choose a new president and vice-president for a five-year term to manage that wealth.“It will be a huge amount of income for the country,” incumbent President Chan Santokhi told Agence France-Presse this week. “We are now able … to do more for our people so that everyone can be part of the growth of the nation.”Wearing a polo shirt in the or...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met visiting US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in Jerusalem on Sunday, his office said.US and Israeli media reported that US President Donald Trump sent Noem to Jerusalem following the killing of two Israeli embassy employees in Washington last week.Noem was accompanied at her meeting with Netanyahu by US ambassador Mike Huckabee, the prime minister’s office said in a brief statement on Sunday night.The office added that during the meeting Noem “expressed unwavering support for the prime minister and the state of Israel”, as well as appreciation “for his conduct of the war” in Gaza.The visit comes as Israel ramps up its campaign in the Palestinian territory in what it says is a renewed effort to destroy Hamas.Earlier, Noem and Huckabee had...

US President Donald Trump issued a rare rebuke to Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Sunday, saying he was “not happy” with him after Moscow launched a record number of drones against Ukraine, killing 13 people across the country.Trump has expressed admiration for Putin in the past, but has in recent weeks shown growing frustration with Moscow’s position in truce negotiations with Kyiv, which are deadlocked.“I’m not happy with what Putin is doing. He’s killing a lot of people, and I don’t know what the hell happened to Putin,” said Trump on the tarmac at Morristown airport in New Jersey before boarding Air Force One bound for Washington.“I’ve known him a long time, always gotten along with him, but he’s sending rockets into cities and killing people, and I don’t like it at all.”Russia’s atta...

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said on Sunday she held a “good call” with US President Donald Trump following his threat of 50 per cent tariffs on the bloc, vowing to move “swiftly” to reach a trade deal with Washington.“The EU and US share the world’s most consequential and close trade relationship,” the president of the European Commission, which conducts trade policy for the 27-nation bloc, posted on social media.“Europe is ready to advance talks swiftly and decisively,” she wrote, adding: “To reach a good deal, we would need the time until July 9.”Brussels and the United States have been negotiating in a bid to avert an all-out transatlantic trade war, and had agreed to suspend tariff action on both sides until July.But Trump dramatically upped the stakes on Friday, complaining that tal...