Ukraine calls Jeddah talks productive, Russia calls them doomed - CNA

A senior Ukrainian official said on Sunday (Aug 6) that talks in Saudi Arabia to make headway towards a peaceful settlement of the war with Russia had been productive, but Moscow called the meeting a doomed attempt to swing the Global South behind Kyiv.

More than 40 countries, including China, India, the United States, and European countries, but not Russia, are taking part in the Jeddah talks that are expected to end on Sunday without any written concluding statement.

Ukraine and its allies have said the talks are an attempt to secure broad international support for principles that Kyiv wants to be the basis for peace, including the withdrawal of all Russian troops and the return of all Ukrainian territory to its control.

President Volodymir Zelenskyy has said he wants a global summit to take place based on those principles later this year.

Eighteen months after Russia invaded Ukraine, any prospect of direct peace talks between Kyiv and Moscow appears remote.

Speaking about the Jeddah talks, Zelenskyy's head of staff Andriy Yermak said in a statement: "We had very productive consultations on the key principles on which a just and lasting peace should be built."

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted by state media on Sunday as saying the meeting was "a reflection of the West's attempt to continue futile, doomed efforts" to mobilise the Global South behind Zelenskyy's position.

While Western countries have broadly backed Ukraine, many other states have been reluctant to take sides even though they want an end to a conflict that has hit the global economy.

The participation of China, which stayed away from an earlier round of talks in Copenhagen and has shunned Western calls to condemn Russia's invasion, signalled a possible shift in its stance but not a major change, analysts said.

Western diplomats have also emphasised Saudi Arabia's role in convening a wider group of countries to take part, utilising its growing relationship with Beijing and its continued ties with both Moscow and Kyiv.

Yermak said different viewpoints emerged during the talks in Saudi Arabia, calling them "an extremely honest, open conversation".

He said all the countries present had demonstrated a commitment to the principles of international law and respect for the sovereignty and inviolability of the territorial integrity of states.

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2023-08-06 15:57:37Z
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Russia launches new burst of missile and drone attacks, Ukrainian air force says - CNA

Russia launched a multiwave overnight attack on Ukraine, using 70 air-assault weapons, including cruise and hypersonic missiles and Iranian-made drones, Kyiv's Air Force said on Sunday (Aug 6).

At least 10 missiles appeared to get through air defences. Ukraine's air defence destroyed 30 out of 40 cruise missiles and all 27 of the Shahed drones that Russia launched overnight, the Air Force – which is celebrated in a holiday on Sunday – said on the Telegram messaging channel.

It also said Russia launched three Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, but did not disclose any further information on them.

"In total, in several waves of attacks, from the evening of Aug 5 to the morning of Aug 6, 2023, the enemy used 70 means of air assault weapons," the Air Force said.

Reuters could not independently verify the report. There was no immediate comment from Russia.

It was not immediately clear whether there was any damage from the overnight attack or what happened to the 10 cruise missiles that were not shot down.

The deputy governor of the Khmelnytskyi region in western Ukraine, Serhiy Tiurin, said that a military airfield in Starokostiantyniv was among the targets.

"The Starokonstiantyniv airfield is on the enemy's mind. There was a series of explosions in Starokonstiantyniv and Khmelnytskyi communities," he said on messaging app Telegram.

"Most of the missiles were shot down by air defence forces."

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2023-08-06 08:22:15Z
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Too hot for K-pop as South Korea scrambles to save scout jamboree - CNA

SEOUL: A K-pop music concert scheduled for Sunday (Aug 6) at a World Scout Jamboree in South Korea was postponed due to heat safety concerns as the host pressed on with the meet despite extreme temperatures that led three national contingents to pull out.

Minister of Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min said the jamboree organisers "accepted the concerns over safety-related incidents" if the show was held on Sunday night. Temperatures at the jamboree site have hovered above 33 degrees Celsius.

Hundreds of participants have fallen ill due to the searing heat, prompting complaints from parents over the safety of their children. On Saturday, 132 additional people were treated for heat-related conditions, the jamboree organisers said.

South Korean government and jamboree officials said again the safety of the more than 40,000 participants from 155 countries was their top priority, with more water trucks, air-conditioned spaces, medics and sanitation workers being sent to the site.

But British, American and Singapore contingents continued to leave the jamboree on the Saemangeum reclaimed land project on the west coast on Sunday, moving to other locations in the country, including hotels in capital city Seoul.

Lee told a media briefing that two alternate sites are being reviewed for the K-pop concert, which is now rescheduled for the eve of the closing of the scouting meet on Aug 12.

The lack of shaded areas and inadequate water supply, food service and sanitation facilities prompted civic groups, parents and the World Organization of the Scout Movement to recommend on Saturday that the event be wrapped up early.

But the jamboree host and the government of South Korea said they had consulted with participating scouting contingents and decided the jamboree should continue.

Jacob Murray, director of world events for the World Organization of the Scout Movement, said at the media briefing there had been "increased improvement" in site conditions after additional resources were made available.

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2023-08-06 06:47:03Z
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Spectre of ethnic divisions hangs over Malaysia as racial, religious rhetoric intensifies ahead of state polls - CNA

RACIAL POLITICS WILL POLARISE COUNTRY: ANALYSTS 

In the lead up to the state polls, the Malaysia government announced that it will set up a “special unit” to deal with issues concerning race, religion and royalty - also known as 3R - issues that are played up ahead of the upcoming six state polls.
 
Communications and Digital Minister Fahmi Fadzil reportedly said that the special unit is focused on incidents which could cause disunity and social unrest.

"We have freedom of expression but we have no freedom to slander or pit the rakyat (citizens) against one another by resorting to 3R issues," he reportedly said.

The government is also mulling a new law to impose civil penalties on those who play up 3R. 

The new law which may be called the State and Nation Act is like the Maintenance of Racial Harmony Act in Singapore but in the Malaysian context.

Currently, the Sedition Act is primarily used to investigate any purported offences involving these 3R issues. 

Recently, caretaker Kedah chief minister Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor was charged with two counts of sedition for allegedly insulting Selangor ruler Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah.

A study by the Centre of Independent Journalism (CIJ) found that 15 per cent of 18,721 social media posts that they monitored from July 24-30 as part of a “Say No to Hate Speech” campaign in conjunction with the state elections indicated that racist, xenophobic, homophobic, transphobic comments and gender stereotypes continue to be normalised with no obvious counter-messaging from political leaders or the public.

The overall narratives of the posts centred on race, religion, gender, and targeting lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ+), with 85 per cent of the posts consisting of general comments and non-offensive disagreements. 

In this period of monitoring, Dr Mahathir emerged as one of the key proponents of inflammatory statements related to race, CIJ found.

CIJ also found the re-emergence of the ‘kafir harbi’ (infidel) narratives, some of which have been propagated by youths urging Muslims to vote with the warning that non-Muslims who are against Islam might take over the government. 

Amid the intensifying hate speech, political observers CNA spoke to outlined that these initiatives by the government are important as racial and religious rhetoric could widen ethnic divisions across the country and result in unrest. 

Nusantara Academy for Strategic Research senior fellow Dr Azmi Hassan said that the racial and religious polemics have been in the open for quite a while in the country and these sentiments are amplified during election campaigns.   

“We saw this during the 15th general election and PAS has been using these issues to their advantage. In the rural Malay heartland, it has been very effective for them with people seeing the party as a pillar to protect Malay rights,” he said. 

PAS - a key component in PN - won the most number of seats in the last General Elections, winning 49 of the 222 parliamentary seats. 

Dr Azmi said that the misuse of these issues would ultimately be detrimental to society.  

“During my school days, I didn’t see (my schoolmates as) Chinese or Indians but only friends. These days it is different and very polarised because of politicians who use this for their political gain,” he said.  

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2023-08-05 22:00:22Z
CBMikQFodHRwczovL3d3dy5jaGFubmVsbmV3c2FzaWEuY29tL2FzaWEvc3BlY3RyZS1ldGhuaWMtZGl2aXNpb25zLWhhbmdzLW92ZXItbWFsYXlzaWEtcmFjaWFsLXJlbGlnaW91cy1yaGV0b3JpYy1pbnRlbnNpZmllcy1haGVhZC1zdGF0ZS1wb2xscy0zNjc3NDg20gEA

Dad in tragic plane crash seen swigging a bottle of beer as his 11-year-old son flies his plane - The Straits Times

An unsettling video has surfaced on social media, showing a Brazilian rancher swigging a bottle of beer while his 11-year-old son is piloting his private plane.

Mr Garon Maia, 42, and his son, Francisco, died when the same aircraft – a US$1.2 million (S$1.6 million) twin-engine Beechcraft Baron 58 – crashed on July 29 in a forest between the states of Rondonia and Mato Grosso, in Brazil.

Overcome with grief, Mr Maia’s wife, Ms Ana Pridonik, took her own life with a gun hours after her husband and stepson were buried on Aug 1.

Investigators are now trying to determine how much the father’s actions recorded in the video contributed to the tragedy.

It’s unclear when Mr Maia took the video, but investigators said what was seen in it reflected how much he regarded his and his son’s safety.

In the video, Francisco could be seen in control of the plane as it took off on a dirt runway, with Mr Maia, on the co-pilot’s seat, giving him instructions.

“Wait, everything ready? Nothing in front, okay. Come on, 600 horses, you can push. 600, Kiko, go,” Mr Maia could be heard telling his son.

“Hand on the lever, hand on the lever. Keep your hand there and look at the speed,” he said, as the plane took to the sky.

Moments later, as the plane began cruising, Mr Maia was seen downing a bottle of beer.

“The passenger can have one. Right, Kiko?” he said.

Crash investigators said on July 29, Mr Maia flew out of his ranch in Nova Conquista and then stopped at an airport in Vilhena to refuel.

He was planning to fly Francisco back to Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul, where the boy lives with his mother and attends school, reported Daily Mail.

The plane took off at 5.50pm and plummeted eight minutes later.

“The plane crashed very close to the ploughed land. He didn’t have time to land,” news reports quoted one witness as saying.

Investigators are trying to determine whether his son was the one flying the plane when it crashed.

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2023-08-05 14:40:00Z
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Heatwave forces Singapore scouts to leave jamboree in South Korea - The Straits Times

The SSA said that the Singapore contingent comprises 40 youth participants aged 14 to 17 years old, while the rest are adult leaders and volunteers.

The association said: “The safety and welfare of our young people and adult volunteers are of the utmost importance and therefore, after consulting with local stakeholders, we made the decision to transfer our young people and adult volunteers from the jamboree site.”

The contingent will be transferred to the Daejeon Education Centre in Daejeon Metropolitan City, the SSA added, before heading to Seoul to meet their British counterparts for activities like visiting tourist attractions.

The jamboree, which began on Tuesday, faced calls on Saturday for it to be cancelled after large contingents from the United States and Britain pulled out a week early over extreme heat and weather conditions.

Saturday’s pullouts are a fresh blow to the organisers and the South Korean government, which on Friday promised more water trucks, air-conditioned spaces and medics in an attempt to save the event.

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2023-08-05 08:35:10Z
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Heatwave-hit jamboree in South Korea in doubt as Singapore, US and British scouts leave site - CNA

The World Organization of the Scout Movement said in a statement on Friday it had asked the Korean Scout Association to consider "alternative options to end the event earlier than scheduled and support the participants until they depart for their home countries".

Organisers would meet on Saturday to discuss whether to continue, cancel or scale back the event, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported.

Hit by extreme heat, hundreds of participants at the event fell ill and were treated for heat-related ailments, prompting complaints from parents over the safety of their children.

Reports in local media have suggested the event's issues go beyond the heat, citing poor campsite conditions, with sanitation "less than ideal" including rudimentary showers and toilets, and saying scouts had been plagued by insect bites.

A Korean-American parent, whose 15-year-old daughter lost consciousness while participating in the event, claimed an ambulance was called but it did not arrive at the site until 45 minutes later.

"We were told she lost consciousness and (her eyes rolled back), revealing the whites," she told South Korean broadcaster SBS.

"Those 45 minutes were terrifying for us. We can't even imagine what might have happened during that time. How can South Korea allow children to be neglected like this?"

The event is also facing additional challenges besides the heat. Jeolla authorities on Saturday said about 70 people on the site have come down with COVID-19.

Local media outlets have described the situation as a "national disgrace", given the time the country had to prepare for the event.

Critics had earlier warned of the risks of gathering such a large number of youth in a treeless region with little shelter from the summer heat.

Some people online have compared the situation to the deadly survival game featured in South Korea's mega-hit Netflix series Squid Game.

More than 150 countries were taking part in the gathering as of Friday, according to officials.

The jamboree is scheduled to run until Aug 12.

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2023-08-05 04:25:25Z
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