Israeli tanks reach centre of Khan Younis in southern Gaza - The Straits Times

GAZA/CAIRO - Israeli tanks battled their way to the heart of Khan Younis on Dec 10 in a major new push into the main city of the southern Gaza Strip, as health authorities in Hamas-run Gaza said about 18,000 Palestinians had been killed in the war.

Israeli leaders said dozens of Hamas fighters had surrendered, encouraging more of them to do so, but the Palestinian militant group denied this, calling the claim “false and baseless”.

Residents of Khan Younis said tanks had reached the main north-south road through the city after intense combat through the night that had slowed the Israeli advance from the east. Warplanes were pounding the area west of the assault.

The air rumbled with the constant thud of explosions and thick columns of white smoke rose over the densely crowded city, filled with people displaced from elsewhere in the enclave.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who has unsuccessfully pushed for a ceasefire in Gaza, said the enclave was in collapse.

“I expect public order to completely break down soon and an even worse situation could unfold including epidemic diseases and increased pressure for mass displacement into Egypt,” he said.

Earlier on Dec 10, near a city-centre police station, the constant rattle of machinegun fire could be heard. Streets there were deserted as morning broke apart from an old woman and a girl riding on a donkey cart.

“It was one of the most dreadful nights, the resistance was very strong, we could hear gunshots and explosions that didn’t stop for hours,” a father of four displaced from Gaza City and sheltering in Khan Younis told Reuters. He declined to be identified for fear of reprisals.

At the opposite end of the Gaza Strip, in northern areas where Israel had previously said its forces had largely completed their tasks, residents also described some of the most intense fighting of the war so far.

“I daresay it is the strongest battle we have heard in weeks,” said Mr Nasser, 59, a father of seven sheltering in Jabaliya after his house was destroyed in Beit Lahiya, another northern area.

Explosions could be heard as he spoke.

“We are not going to leave Jabaliya regardless of everything. We shall die here as martyrs or they will leave us alone.”

Israel has vowed to annihilate Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since 2007, after militants burst across the fence on Oct 7 and went on a rampage through Israeli towns, gunning down families in their homes, killing 1,200 people and seizing 240 hostages.

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2023-12-10 22:40:00Z
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Japan industry minister says reviewing finances amid funds scandal: Report - CNA

TOKYO: Under-fire Japanese industry minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said he would continue in his cabinet duties and will fully disclose his finances at an appropriate time, local media reported on Sunday (Dec 10), amid allegations of undeclared funding that has embroiled several top lawmakers.

"I have not been told anything to the contrary at this time, so I would like to continue with my duties," Nishimura told reporters on Sunday at a news conference in Ibaraki Prefecture, north of Tokyo, according to the Nikkei newspaper and Kyodo.

"I am closely examining my own political financing report, and would like to provide a thorough explanation at the appropriate time," the news outlets reported him as saying.

The Asahi and Mainichi newspapers reported earlier on Sunday that Nishimura, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's (LDP) policy chief Koichi Hagiuda are among cabinet members set to be replaced by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida following media reports that they may have pocketed more than ¥100 million (US$689,988) of fundraising proceeds that were left off the books.

Tokyo prosecutors are looking to investigate lawmakers after the current session of parliament ends on Wednesday, local media reported.

Public support for Kishida's government has slid to a record low, partly due to voter worries over rising costs and looming tax hikes.

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2023-12-10 10:15:00Z
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Philippines, China trade blame for collision in disputed waters - CNA

The China Coast Guard, however, accused the Philippine boat of "deliberately colliding" with the Chinese vessel after "disregarding our multiple stern warnings".

The Philippine boat "changed direction suddenly in an unprofessional, dangerous manner, deliberately colliding with our Coast Guard Vessel 21556, which was on a normal law enforcement route, and caused a scrape", the China Coast Guard said in a statement.

ESCALATING TENSIONS

Hours before the latest incident, a civilian convoy involving 100 Filipino fishermen embarked on a trip that would pass Second Thomas Shoal as part of a mission to deliver Christmas cheer and provisions to a remote outpost.

Second Thomas Shoal is about 200km from the western Philippine island of Palawan, and more than 1,000 kilometres from China's nearest major landmass, Hainan island.

A handful of Filipino troops are stationed on the crumbling BRP Sierra Madre, which the Philippine Navy grounded on the reef in 1999 to check China's advance in the waters.

The troops depend on the resupply missions for their survival.

It is not clear if the supply boats were able to deliver their cargo on Sunday.

The Philippines and China have a long history of maritime incidents in the contested South China Sea, through which trillions of dollars of trade pass annually.

Tensions between Manila and Beijing have escalated as China becomes more assertive in pressing its claims to the waters, with the Philippines publishing strongly-worded statements with videos and photos of the incidents.

Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos, who took power in June 2022 and immediately set about improving ties with traditional ally Washington, warned last month that the situation in the South China Sea had become "more dire".

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2023-12-10 03:29:00Z
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Top US university president quits after anti-Semitism uproar - CNA

WASHINGTON: The president of an Ivy League university stepped down on Saturday (Dec 9) in the wake of a firestorm of criticism after a congressional hearing on the rise of anti-Semitism on US campuses.

University of Pennsylvania President Elizabeth Magill "voluntarily tendered her resignation", the chair of the university's board of trustees Scott Bok announced.

Bok also stepped down himself, a university spokesman confirmed to AFP.

Magill was among three presidents of elite universities who faced withering criticism following their testimony on Tuesday during a congressional hearing on campus anti-Semitism.

The trio gave long, legalistic and seemingly evasive answers at the hearing when asked whether students who call for the "genocide of Jews" on their campuses violate codes of student conduct.

Blowback was rapid and intense.

Seventy-four lawmakers wrote letters demanding the immediate removal of Magill and the presidents of Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Pennsylvania's Democratic governor called Magill's performance "absolutely shameful" and a major donor said he would rescind a US$100 million gift to the university's Wharton School of Business.

At Tuesday's hearing, Republican congresswoman Elise Stefanik asked each of the presidents if calling for the genocide of Jews violated university rules or codes of conduct.

"If the speech turns into conduct, it can be harassment, yes," Magill responded, according to a transcript on Stefanik's office website.

Stefanik pressed on: "I am asking, specifically calling for the genocide of Jews, does that constitute bullying or harassment?"

"If it is directed and severe, pervasive, it is harassment," Magill said.

"So the answer is yes," Stefanik queried.

"It is a context-dependent decision, congresswoman," Magill responded.

When Stefanik heard similar answers from the others, she erupted: "It does not depend on the context. The answer is yes, and this is why you should resign."

Harvard's president, Claudine Gay, apologised afterward for failing to more strongly condemn threats of anti-Semitic violence on her campus.

"When words amplify distress and pain, I don't know how you could feel anything but regret," Gay later told the Harvard Crimson newspaper.

Bok, who helms the University of Pennsylvania's board of trustees - a body that handles major governance issues - said Magill made "a very unfortunate misstep" as he announced her departure, student newspaper The Daily Pennsylvanian reported.

"She was not herself last Tuesday," Bok said in a statement published by the school paper.

"Over prepared and over lawyered given the hostile forum and high stakes, she provided a legalistic answer to a moral question, and that was wrong."

"It made for a dreadful 30-second sound bite in what was more than five hours of testimony."

He said his own resignation was "effective immediately".

Board vice chair Julie Platt replaces him temporarily, the executive committee announced Saturday night.

In Bok's note to the campus, he said Magill would stay in her post until an interim president is appointed and would remain on the faculty of the university's law school.

With Magill gone, Stefanik turned her sights on Harvard and MIT, tagging both schools in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

"Do the right thing," she said. "The world is watching."

Anti-Semitism and hate crimes targeting Jewish and Muslim people have risen in the United States and on university campuses since the Oct 7 attack on Israel by Hamas militants and the ensuing war in Gaza.

With passions inflamed on campuses, a broader debate has taken place about the boundaries between freedom of speech and deeply offensive, even inflammatory language.

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2023-12-10 05:53:57Z
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Japan PM to replace key government, LDP lawmakers: Media reports - CNA

TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida plans to make changes to his cabinet and his party executive following media reports that lawmakers received undeclared political funds, the Asahi newspaper reported on Sunday (Dec 10), citing government and party sources.

No one was immediately available at the prime minister's office to comment on reports published early on Sunday.

Kishida and his ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) are facing mounting scrutiny after allegations that party lawmakers, including high-profile members, may have pocketed more than US$693,000 of fundraising proceeds that were left off the books.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno, Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura and LDP's policy chief Koichi Hagiuda are set to be replaced as they are among those suspected of having failed to declare political funds properly, the Asahi newspaper reported.

The Mainichi newspaper also reported on Sunday that the three were set to be replaced.

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2023-12-09 21:48:00Z
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Japan's PM to replace chief cabinet secretary: Report - CNA

TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida plans to replace Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno amid media reports he received undeclared political funds, the Yomiuri newspaper said on Saturday (Dec 9), citing government and ruling party sources.

Kishida and his ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) are facing mounting scrutiny after allegations that party lawmakers, including Matsuno and other high-profile members, may have pocketed more than 100 million yen (US$693,000) of fundraising proceeds that were left off the books.

Media have reported that Tokyo prosecutors are looking to investigate lawmakers after the current session of parliament ends on Wednesday.

Kyodo news agency said on Saturday a plan to reshuffle the cabinet and appoint new party officials had also emerged. The changes could happen after the end of the parliament session, it said.

The Asahi newspaper and other media said Matsuno is suspected of having failed to declare more than 10 million yen he received in the past five years from the biggest faction in the LDP. Matsuno has declined to comment on the allegations.

No one was immediately available at Matsuno's office or the prime minister's office to comment on the latest reports.

Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura and Koichi Hagiuda, chairman of the LDP's policy research council, are among those suspected of having failed to declare political funds properly, according to Japanese media.

Nishimura has declined to comment and no one at his office was available to comment on Saturday.

Hagiuda told reporters last week that his organisation has handled the matter in accordance with the law, Kyodo reported. No one was available at Hagiuda's office on Saturday.

Public support for the Kishida's government has slid to a record low partly due to voter worries over rising costs and looming tax hikes.

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2023-12-09 11:52:51Z
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Woman's body found encased in cement in house: Malaysia police say victim is an Indian national - The Straits Times

KLANG – A woman whose body was found encased in cement inside a bathroom in a house in Selangor has been identified as an Indian national.

Selangor police chief Hussein Omar Khan said the victim was in her 30s and measured 160cm tall.

“We are getting further details from the Indian Embassy and will contact the victim’s family,” he said on Dec 9.

“She was the girlfriend of a man who was the previous tenant of the house.”

Datuk Hussein said the main suspect is an Indian national, who is one of two suspects wanted by the police in the investigation into the murder of the woman.

“We are seeking the assistance of the Indian Embassy and Indian police to track down and arrest the suspects,” he said.

Mr Hussein said the police have contacted 10 witnesses to assist with the investigation.

“We hope, with the new developments, the case could be completed soon,” he said.

He also said the police had obtained a sketch of the victim based on witnesses’ statements.

“We urge those with information about the victim or who knew her to contact the nearest police station,” he said.

Police previously detained a 53-year-old foreign man and tracked down two other foreigners in connection with the death of the woman in a house in Kampung Pendamar, Klang.

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2023-12-09 09:46:00Z
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