WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden on Friday (Apr 12) said he expected Iran to attack Israel "sooner, rather than later" and warned Tehran not to proceed.
Asked by reporters about his message to Iran, Biden said simply, "Don't", and he underscored Washington's commitment to defend Israel.
"We are devoted to the defence of Israel. We will support Israel. We will help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed," he said.
Biden said he would not divulge secure information, but said his expectation was that an attack could come "sooner, rather than later". He spoke to reporters at the White House after a virtual speech at a civil rights conference
It remains unclear what exactly caused the fire. French authorities have said an electrical fault or a burning cigarette may have been responsible.
"A firefighter told me 'Sir, take a close look at the facade because if we don't manage to put out that fire, it will all go to ruin'," remembered Laurence Alsina, who owns a bookselling stand close to the cathedral on the banks of the River Seine.
The facade held but the damage has needed five years of intense stabilisation and restoration works.
The pride of those working on the project shines through.
"This is the construction work of a lifetime, because restoring an entire monument in all its three-dimensionality, that's quite exceptional," Emma Roux, an artisan working on the iconic stained glass windows, said.
The reopening is scheduled for December and is currently running on schedule, according to the official leading the project.
"We are on time and on budget," Philippe Jost said last month at a Senate hearing.
Jost told lawmakers that the project had so far cost €550 million (US$587 million), funded in part by massive donations, including from luxury sector billionaires Francois Henri Pinault and the Arnault family.
So much money has been donated that there will even be funds left over for further investment in the building, he said.
"An additional €150 million should be made available and – provided the approval of our sponsors – it will be used to restore the cathedral and tackle problems that predate the fire, which mainly concern the exterior stonework," Jost added.
Jost, 63, a trained engineer who spent much of his career in the defence ministry, took over the job after his predecessor, General Jean-Louis Georgelin, died in a hiking accident in August 2023.
Pope Francis’ visit to Singapore is part of a 12-day tour of the Asia-Pacific region.
PHOTO: AFP
SINGAPORE - Pope Francis will visit Singapore from Sept 11 to 13, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore confirmed on April 12.
The Pope will also celebrate mass, which is tentatively set to take place on Sept 12.
In a statement on its website, the Archdiocese said it was sharing the news of the Pope’s visit, which was confirmed by The Holy See, with great “jubilation and thanksgiving”.
Cardinal William Goh, the Archbishop of Singapore, said of the visit: “It has been 38 years since we had a visit from the Vicar of Christ to Singapore, when Pope St John Paul II honoured us with a visit on 20 November 1986.
“It is my hope that this visit of the Holy Father, Pope Francis, will bring renewed fervour to all Catholics in Singapore, uniting them in faith and mission, especially in these most challenging of times.”
The Archdiocese statement added: “As we prepare for His Holiness’ visit, let us, as a community, pray for the continued health and safety of the Holy Father and ask the Lord to grant us a truly meaningful and grace-filled visit.”
The tour, which had been earlier scheduled for August, will mark only the second papal visit to Singapore.
The Singapore Government, the Holy See and local church officials are discussing details of Pope Francis’ visit.
More information about the visit will be released progressively to the public at www.popefrancis2024.sg
There are about 243,000 Roman Catholics in Singapore, according to the 2020 census.
Pope Francis’ visit to Singapore is part of a 12-day tour of the Asia-Pacific region. He will also visit Jakarta in Indonesia from Sept 3 to 6, Port Moresby and Vanimo in Papua New Guinea from Sept 6 to 9, and Dili in Timor-Leste from Sept 9 to 11, according to the Vatican.
Reports of an Asia-Pacific tour first appeared in January in two Catholic media outlets: America and EWTN Vatican.
Outgoing Indonesian President Joko Widodo reportedly invited the pontiff to visit Indonesia – which has the world’s largest Muslim population, numbering about 242 million – in June 2022, as part of efforts to promote religious tolerance.
The last papal visit to Singapore was almost 40 years ago, when the late Pope John Paul II drew thousands of Roman Catholics during a brief stopover in 1986, which lasted just five hours.
MAE SOT, Thailand: A stream of people, some fearing air strikes, queued at a border crossing to flee Myanmar early on Friday (Apr 12), a day after the strategically vital town of Myawaddy near Thailand fell to anti-junta resistance that is gaining strength.
The loss of the town robs the junta, already grappling with an economy in free fall, of vital earnings from border trade while strengthening rebel groups such as the Karen National Union (KNU) that led the assault on Myawaddy, analysts say.
"I am afraid of air strikes," said Moe Moe Thet San, a Myawaddy resident who crossed to Thailand with her son, who is about five years old.
"They caused very loud noises that shook my house," added the 39-year-old mother, one of those gathered at the single fully-operational border crossing at Mae Sot, who said the sound of bombs drove them to leave home, fearing for their safety.
"That's why I escaped here. They can't bomb Thailand," she added.
Thai Foreign Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara is set to visit Mae Sot, just across the Moei River from Myawaddy, on Friday to assess matters after Myanmar's embattled junta lost yet more territory in the latest round of fighting.
Junta spokesperson Zaw Min Tun told Myanmar media some of its troops had surrendered because they were accompanied by their families and talks with Thailand for their return were in progress.
He did not respond to a telephone call from Reuters to seek comment.
In a viral video filmed by one of the tourists, some of her fellow travellers are sitting on the beds and others are lying on them. Salespeople appear to be standing guard to prevent them from leaving the shop.
A video filmed by a member of the group shows them sitting and lying on beds inside the shop. Photo: Baidu
“This is the shop that sells latex mattresses in Xishuangbanna. We arrived at noon and we’re still here,” the tourist who filmed the clip said.
“The group of 37 tourists is not allowed to leave,” she added.
It is not clear precisely how long the group was detained in the shop, but it is thought to have been several hours before they were eventually released.
The tourist explained that they each spent 3,979 yuan (US$550) to join the group tour to Yunnan that was managed by Liaoning Youde International Travel Service.
“I hadn’t expected that all of our activities in Xishuangbanna would be about shopping,” she said.
Once the clip was shared online, it went viral and triggered an official probe.
Details of how the group was finally allowed to leave the shop are not known.
The next day, the local market supervision and administration bureau made an announcement on its WeChat account.
They said the shop is owned by the Taisi Dika Sleep Technology Company and that a local travel agency, Faxian Zhilv, was responsible for conducting the group tour on behalf of Youde travel service.
As a result, Taisi Dika was ordered to cease trading, and the local tourist guide was fined 10,000 yuan (US$1,400). An investigation into the travel agencies continues.
The story has caused an outpouring of anger on mainland social media.
People being forced to shop while on group tours is a perennial problem in China. Photo: Shutterstock
“It sounds so horrible,” one online observer said.
“Is this an illegal detention?” another asked.
Incidents involving tourists travelling to Yunnan and being forced to shop by tour guides are common.
In February, a family of five was told to leave a tour bus by the guide after they refused to buy a gold bracelet for 50,000 yuan (US$7,000).
In August last year, a tour guide in southwestern China was investigated after a video emerged of him “threatening” sightseers and bullying them into shopping while on an eco-tour.
WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has asked China's foreign minister and other counterparts to use their influence to dissuade Iran from striking Israel, the State Department said Thursday (Apr 11).
Blinken spoke by telephone over the past day to his Chinese, Turkish, Saudi and European counterparts "to make clear that escalation is not in anyone's interest and that countries should urge Iran not to escalate", State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters.
Blinken also spoke by telephone with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant "to reiterate our strong support for Israel against these threats", Miller said.
Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said on Thursday that Israel would respond directly to any attack by Iran.
“A direct Iranian attack will require an appropriate Israeli response against Iran," Gallant told US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, according to remarks issued by his office.
