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October
Israel Ground Forces Raid Hamas Sites in Gaza, Withdraw - Military Statement
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOINews, Jakarta - Israeli ground forces operated within the northern Gaza Strip on Thursday, attacking multiple Hamas targets before withdrawing, the military said in a statement on what Israel's Army Radio described as the biggest incursion of the current war.
Video of the overnight action issued by the military showed armoured vehicles proceeding through a sandy border zone. A bulldozer is seen levelling part of a raised bank, tanks fire shells, and explosions are seen near or amid a row of damaged buildings.
The military statement posted online said the incursion was carried out "in preparation for the next stages of combat", a possible reference to the large-scale invasion that Israeli leaders have threatened as part of the war to destroy Hamas.
"The soldiers have since exited the area and returned to Israeli territory," the military statement added.
Israel began localised ground incursions on Sunday as the war, triggered by an Oct 7 cross-border rampage by Hamas gunmen, entered its third week. Israel's Army Radio described Thursday's incursion as the biggest yet.
There was no immediate comment from Hamas in Gaza. (Reuters)
October
Israel Mounts New Sortie Into Gaza, Hints There May be Several 'Invasions'
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOINews, Jakarta - Israel said its ground forces had pushed into Gaza overnight to attack Hamas targets as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was "preparing for a ground invasion" that could be one of several.
"I will not elaborate on when, how or how many," he said in a televised update to citizens on Wednesday evening.
The besieged Palestinian enclave is already reeling from almost three weeks of Israeli bombardment, which was triggered by a mass killing spree in southern Israel by the Iranian-backed Hamas militants who run Gaza.
Hamas has threatened to kill some of the more than 200 hostages it brought back to Gaza, of whom Israel says more than half hold foreign passports, from 25 countries.
Other Iranian-backed groups have since attempted attacks on Israel elsewhere in the region; Western leaders fear that a high death toll among Palestinian civilians, who have already been killed in large numbers by Israeli air strikes, could spark a wider war.
U.S. President Joe Biden held a call with Netanyahu, discussing "ongoing efforts to locate and secure the release" of Americans believed held hostage in Gaza, the White House said overnight.
It said safe passage for foreigners wishing to leave Gaza, a continuous flow of aid into the narrow coastal strip, which is blockaded by Israel, and a pathway to permanent peace with the Palestinian people were also discussed.
"The President reiterated that Israel has every right and responsibility to defend its citizens from terrorism and to do so in a manner consistent with international humanitarian law," the White House said.
The comments reflect a balancing act over U.S. support for Israel's actions after Biden was criticised for casting doubt on Palestinian casualty figures.
NETANYAHU SUGGESTS MORE THAN ONE GROUND INVASION PLANNED
Israeli army radio said the military had overnight staged its biggest incursion into northern Gaza in the current war against Hamas, which Israel has vowed to eliminate.
The military later released video on X showing armoured vehicles crossing the highly fortified barrier from Israel and blowing up buildings "in preparation for the next stages of combat".
"Tanks and infantry struck numerous terrorist cells, infrastructure and anti-tank missile launch posts," it said.
Palestinians in Gaza said Israeli air strikes had pounded the territory again overnight and people living in central Gaza, near the Bureij refugee camp and east of Qarara village, reported intensive tank shelling all night.
Hamas did not comment directly on the Israeli report but said its armed wing had struck an Israeli helicopter east of Bureij. The Israeli military said it was "not aware of this".
Israel has carried out weeks of intense bombardment of the densely populated Strip following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israeli communities, which it says killed some 1,400 people.
Gaza's health ministry said on Wednesday that more than 6,500 Palestinians had been killed in the air strikes.
In Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, an Israeli air strike hit a house, killing a mother, her three daughters and a baby boy.
The father said his parents had been made homeless by Israelis in 1948 and that he would not leave, whatever happened. Holding the baby's body, with those of his family nearby, he said:
"He is only two months and a half old, what did he do? Did he kill? Did he wound someone? Did he capture someone? They were innocent children inside their house."
The director of the Nasser hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis, Nahed Abu Taaema, said the bodies of 77 people killed in air strikes had been brought in overnight, most of them women and children, Hamas's Al-Aqsa radio station reported.
Many Palestinians are sheltering in Khan Younis's hospitals, schools, homes and existing refugee camps and on the street after Israel warned them to leave their homes in the north.
Israel did not respond directly to the report but said its forces had struck a Hamas surface-to-air missile launch post in the Khan Younis area, which it said had been placed next to a mosque and kindergarten.
It was not clear if both sides were referring to the same incident.
Humanitarian supplies are critically low but world powers failed at the United Nations to agree on how to call for a lull to the fighting to deliver significant amounts of aid. Mass graves have begun to be used as the civilian toll has mounted.
The Palestinian Red Crescent said 12 trucks had crossed from Egypt carrying food, water and medical supplies on Thursday, making 74 trucks since Saturday, still only a small fraction of Gaza's peacetime needs. Israel has not allowed fuel in, saying Hamas would just add it to its stockpile.
U.S. CONCERNED ABOUT IRANIAN-BACKED ATTACKS ON ITS TROOPS
Reflecting concerns the Gaza war may spread, the Wall Street Journal reported that Israel had agreed to delay invading Gaza until U.S. air defence systems can be placed in the region, as early as this week, to protect American forces.
Asked about the report, U.S. officials told Reuters that Washington had raised concerns with Israel that Iran and Iranian-backed Islamist groups could escalate the conflict by attacking U.S. troops in the Middle East. An Israeli incursion into Gaza could be a trigger for Iranian proxies, they said.
Israeli warplanes struck Syrian army infrastructure on Wednesday in response to rockets fired from Syria, an ally of Iran. Israel has also targeted Syria's Aleppo airport and Iranian-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Iran, Israel's arch-enemy, which backs armed groups in Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen as well as Hamas as part of a long-running bid for regional ascendancy, has warned Israel to stop its onslaught on Gaza. (Reuters)
October
Why is Israel Attacking South Gaza After Telling People to Go There?
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOINews, Jakarta - Israel has told civilians in the northern Gaza Strip, including residents of Gaza City, to move to the south of the enclave, saying it will be safer there as the military attacks Hamas following its Oct. 7 cross-border assault.
However, Israeli warplanes have continued to hit sites in southern Gaza, spreading fear among the evacuees that they are just as vulnerable there as they were in their homes in the north. Here is an overview of the situation.
WHY IS ISRAEL STILL HITTING THE SOUTH?
Since telling Gazans to head south, the Israeli military (IDF) has continued to pound targets across the area, killing an unknown number of civilians. In all, authorities in Gaza say 6,546 Palestinians have died since Israeli strikes started on Oct. 7.
Residents said the bombardment of the south intensified on Oct. 25. One strike brought down several apartment buildings in Khan Younis, some 10 km (6 miles) from the Egyptian border.
The IDF has said that even if Hamas's main power centre is in Gaza City, it is nonetheless entrenched among the civilian population across the enclave.
"Wherever a Hamas target arises, the IDF will strike at it in order to thwart the terrorist capabilities of the group, while taking feasible precautions to mitigate the harm to uninvolved civilians," the military said on Wednesday, reiterating previous statements.
The military has said the homes where militants live are "legitimate targets" even if civilians live alongside them.
"The so-called private home is not a private home," a senior Israeli air force officer told reporters in a recent briefing.
WHY DID ISRAEL ORDER THE EVACUATION SOUTH?
The Israeli military said on Oct. 12 that nearly half of Gaza's 2.3 million population should move to the southern half of Gaza within 24 hours. The military said the order was aimed at moving civilians away from "Hamas terror targets", which it believes are concentrated in the north.
Military spokesman Jonathan Conricus subsequently said: "We are preparing the area for significant military activity in Gaza City. That is the next stage. That's why we are asking civilians to go south of the Gaza River."
Israel has massed troops on the border with Gaza and is widely expected to launch a land invasion.
On Oct. 18, the military urged residents of Gaza to evacuate to what it called a humanitarian zone in Al Mawasi, on the coast of southern Gaza.
Israel renewed its warnings on Oct. 22, saying that anyone staying in the north could be identified as sympathisers of a "terrorist organisation" if they did not leave.
HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE MOVED?
Hamas has urged Palestinians to ignore the Israeli warnings.
Israel said on Wednesday it had attacked Hamas roadblocks that it believed were stopping people evacuate.
Despite Hamas's attempts to stop an exodus, residents and international aid organisations say there has been a mass displacement of people away from the north and other areas of the enclave seen as a especially vulnerable to attack.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimated on Oct. 24 that more than 1.4 million people are internally displaced (IDPs) within Gaza.
Gaza's border crossings with both Egypt and Israel are closed, effectively trapping residents inside the enclave.
WHAT HAS THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY SAID?
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said giving hundreds of thousands of people just hours to leave their homes was "dangerous and deeply troubling". Many Western governments have called for a pause in the fighting to open humanitarian corridors for the trapped civilians. Arab nations have called for Israel to stop the war. (Reuters)
October
China's Youngest-Ever Crew of Astronauts Heads to Space Station
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOINews, Jakarta - The youngest-ever crew of Chinese astronauts departed for China's space station on Thursday, paving the way for a new generation of "taikonauts" to advance the country's space ambitions in the future.
The spacecraft Shenzhou-17, or "Divine Vessel", and its three passengers lifted off atop a Long March-2F rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwest China.
Leading the six-month mission was former air force pilot Tang Hongbo, 48, who was on the first crewed mission to the space station in 2021.
His return to the orbiting outpost Tiangong, or "Celestial Palace" in Chinese, also set a new record for the shortest interval between two spaceflight missions by taikonauts - coined from the Chinese word for space - suggesting a faster rotation of taikonauts in coming years.
Tang, from China's second batch of astronauts in 2010, had to wait more than a decade before he was picked for his inaugural spaceflight in 2021.
By contrast, his fellow Shenzhou-17 crew members Tang Shengjie, 33, and Jiang Xinlin, 35, both travelling to space for the first time, joined China's third batch of astronauts in September 2020.
China has already kickstarted the selection process for the fourth batch of astronauts, seeking candidates with doctoral degrees in disciplines from biology, physics and chemistry to biomedical engineering and astronomy.
It is also opening the process to applicants from Hong Kong and Macau for the first time.
The first and second batches of astronauts were all former air force pilots, like Tang, who joined the People's Liberation Army in 1995 at age 20.
FOREIGN ASTRONAUTS
The selection and training process will commence soon for foreign astronauts looking to participate in joint flights to Tiangong, a senior official on China's manned space program said this year.
But as much as China is showcasing its efforts to internationalise its space missions, its space program has distinct Chinese characteristics, at least on Tiangong.
In a departure from the NASA-led International Space Station (ISS), where English is the working language, only Chinese is used on Tiangong, making Chinese-language skills a key criteria for foreign participants.
Tiangong has become a symbol of China's growing confidence in its space endeavours after being shut out of the ISS program for decades. China is banned by U.S. law from any collaboration, direct or indirect, with NASA.
Tiangong, completed in late 2022, can house a maximum of three astronauts at an orbital altitude of up to 450 km (280 miles) and will have an operational lifespan of more than 15 years.
The Shenzhou-17 astronauts will replace the Shenzhou-16 crew, who arrived at Tiangong at the end of May.
The Shenzhou-16 crew, consisting of veteran astronaut Jing Haipeng, Zhu Yangzhu and Gui Haichao, is scheduled to return to earth on Oct. 31.
Zhu and Gui, both in their 30s, are from China's third batch of astronauts.
Shenzhou-17 marks China's 12th crewed mission since Yang Liwei's solo spaceflight in October 2003, the first Chinese national in space. (Reuters)
October
Taiwan Reports 15 Chinese Air Force Planes in its Air Defence Zone
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOINews, Jakarta - Taiwan's defence ministry said that it had detected 15 Chinese air force planes entering Taiwan's air defence zone on Thursday morning, including fighter jets and drones, accompanying Chinese warships carrying out "combat readiness patrols" and drills.
Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory, has repeatedly complained over the past four years of Chinese military activity around the island. (Reuters)
October
S.Korea, Japan, US Condemn North Korea's Supply of Arms to Russia
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOINews, Jakarta - South Korea, Japan and the United States strongly condemned the supply of arms and military equipment by North Korea to Russia and said they had confirmed "several" deliveries of such weapons, a joint statement issued on Thursday said.
Russia and North Korea have denied the transfer of arms from the North for use in Russia's war against Ukraine amid reports that Washington and researchers said showed movement of vessels carrying containers likely with weapons between the two countries' ports.
While it was not possible to confirm the contents of the shipments, reports said containers from the North were later seen delivered to a Russian munitions storage facility near the border with Ukraine.
"The Republic of Korea, United States, and Japan strongly condemn the provision of military equipment and munitions by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) to the Russian Federation for use against the government and people of Ukraine," the statement said.
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is North Korea's official name.
"Such weapons deliveries, several of which we now confirm have been completed, will significantly increase the human toll of Russia’s war of aggression," the statement issued by the foreign ministers of the three countries said.
North Korea is seeking military assistance from Russia to advance its own military capabilities in return for its arms support for Moscow, it said.
"We are monitoring closely for any materials that Russia provides to the DPRK in support of Pyongyang’s military objectives," it said, adding any arms transaction with North Korea violated multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions that Moscow itself voted for.
North Korea and Russia pledged closer military cooperation when their leaders met in September in Russia's far east. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un this month and discussed implementing the agreements made at the summit. (Reuters)
October
Exclusive: Google to run internet cables to Pacific islands in Australia-US deal
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOI, Jakarta - Alphabet's Google (GOOGL.O) will run undersea cables powering internet access to at least eight far-flung Pacific Ocean nations under a joint U.S.-Australian deal set to be announced on Wednesday, according to a U.S. official.
The deal will expand an existing commercial project by Google in the region to the nations of Micronesia, Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.
Set to be announced during an official White House visit by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, the previously unreported deal involves contributions from both governments.
Canberra will contribute $50 million and Washington is adding another $15 million, according to a senior administration official.
The tiny and sometimes isolated nations of the Pacific have become an area of intense focus in recent years, with both China and the United States courting them with infrastructure development and military partnerships.
President Joe Biden has also pushed for U.S. dominance in telecommunications services, seeing the industry as a key national security issue given the control it affords over information flows worldwide.
Google is currently working on a fiber-optic cable that links Taiwan, the self-ruled island claimed by China, with the Philippines and the United States.
As part of the Pacific islands project, the United States will work with the countries on cybersecurity resilience, helping them back up key information to global cloud networks, according to the official. (Reuters)
October
New Zealand's Prime Minister-elect Luxon says coalition negotiations continue
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOI, Jakarta - New Zealand’s Prime Minister-elect Christopher Luxon said on Wednesday that negotiations were ongoing with potential coalition partners ACT New Zealand and New Zealand First, as the country awaits final results of the general election.
Luxon’s conservative National Party and preferred coalition partner ACT won a one-seat majority in the general election Oct. 14. However, this majority could be eroded after special votes are counted and final results are released Nov. 3.
“What we're doing between now and the third of November is progressing relationships and arrangements with both parties,” Luxon told state-funded Radio New Zealand on Wednesday.
He said once special votes are counted, the parties will move quickly to form a government.
“Unfortunately, this will take as long as it takes in order to be able to get a good agreement and good trust and a strong base and a good government,” Luxon added.
Special votes are ballots cast for example by electors overseas or by those who enrolled on the day of the election.
New Zealand is currently being governed by a caretaker government run by the previous Labour government. (Reuters)
October
Russia Passes Law Pulling Ratification of Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOINews, Jakarta - Russia's parliament completed the passage of a law on Wednesday withdrawing ratification of the global treaty banning nuclear weapons tests, evidence of the deep chill in relations with the United States as Moscow pursues its war in Ukraine.
Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Russia was not prepared to resume discussing nuclear issues with the U.S. unless Washington dropped its "hostile" policy.
The bill to deratify the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) was approved by 156 votes to zero in the upper house after the lower house also passed it unanimously. It now goes to President Vladimir Putin for signing.
Putin had requested the change to "mirror" the position of the United States, which signed the CTBT in 1996 but never ratified it.
Though it has never formally come into force, the CTBT has made nuclear testing a taboo - no country except North Korea has conducted a test involving a nuclear explosion this century.
Russia says it will not resume testing unless Washington does, but arms control experts say a test by either Russia or the United States could trigger a new arms race - and more testing by other countries - at a moment of acute tension, with wars raging in Ukraine and the Middle East.
CNN published satellite images last month showing that Russia, the United States and China have all expanded their nuclear test sites in recent years.
The U.S. Energy Department said last week it had conducted a chemical explosion at its test site in Nevada "to improve the United States' ability to detect low-yield nuclear explosions around the world".
Speaking to Russian lawmakers before Wednesday's vote, deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov said the Nevada blast was "undoubtedly a political signal".
"As our president said, we must be on alert, and if the United States moves towards the start of nuclear tests, we will have to respond here in the same way," he said.
Russia says its monitoring stations will keep supplying data to the global network that detects nuclear blasts.
But In separate comments, RIA news agency quoted Ryabkov as saying Russia was not ready to resume nuclear talks with the U.S.
Without changes in its "deeply fundamental hostile course", he said, "a return to dialogue on strategic stability, including the topic of strategic offensive arms and other topics in the form that was previously practised, is simply impossible".
Russia accuses Washington of trying to inflict a "strategic defeat" on it by arming Ukraine in the war. The U.S. says it is helping Kyiv to defend itself.
The absence of nuclear dialogue has called into question the fate of the New START treaty, which limits the number of strategic warheads that Russia and the U.S. can deploy.
Russia suspended the treaty this year and it is due to expire in 2026, leaving the two countries without any remaining bilateral nuclear weapons agreement.
Ryabkov said Moscow had received an unofficial memo from Washington on arms control and was looking at it, but it had "no novel elements". (Reuters)
October
Hong Kong Seeks Fresh Economic Edge While Steeling Security in Policy Blueprint
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOINews, Jakarta - Buffeted by years of upheaval and China's economic slowdown, Hong Kong's leader on Wednesday outlined his annual policy vision focused on kick-starting the ailing property market while further tightening national security laws.
The policy blueprint, the second delivered by Chief Executive John Lee since he took office, comes at a critical moment for Hong Kong, as the Chinese-ruled former British colony looks to emerge from the turmoil of the last few years.
Mass pro-democracy protests in 2019, the COVID lockdown, the emigration of tens of thousands of residents and unease over a national security crackdown have all sapped energy from one of Asia's most vibrant cities.
Lee, a former police officer, in a three-hour speech outlined policies that ranged from slashing property transaction fees to geopolitics and offering cash bonuses for local parents to have more babies.
"Hong Kong has many strengths. We should treasure them, without inflating our ego. In face of competition, we should never be complacent; we should not be frustrated or doubt ourselves when we lag behind," Lee said.
Lee's primary focus was on stimulating Hong Kong's economy, which contracted 3.5% last year, and luring back international businesses and capital at a time when the local stock market has struggled and families have sold flats and moved abroad.
But Lee, who was sanctioned by the U.S. government for his role in cracking down on freedoms after the pro-democracy protests in 2019, also emphasized the need to bolster national security -- a priority for China's President Xi Jinping.
"External forces continue to meddle in Hong Kong affairs," he said, adding that fresh security legislation including laws to counter alleged espionage activities, known as Article 23, would be enacted by the end of 2024.
"We should pay particular attention to those anti-China and destabilising activities camouflaged in the name of human rights, freedom, democracy and livelihood," he said.
To enhance Chinese national identity and unity, Hong Kong would be rolling out "patriotic" education in local schools, Lee said.
He also said cybersecurity would be strengthened to protect critical infrastructure.
Some observers say Lee's economic and security priorities are difficult to balance.
"The Hong Kong business environment is already facing challenges due to an unwelcoming atmosphere and a repressive political climate," said Sunny Cheung, an exiled activist and visiting fellow at John Hopkins University in Washington D.C.
PROPERTY AND STOCKS
Turning to the property market, Lee said stamp duty, would be halved to 7.5% from 15% for second home buyers and non-citizen buyers with immediate effect, to help revive a sector that is one of the economy's pillars.
Other adjustments were made to allow some home owners to sell properties after two years without incurring hefty duties.
And Lee said the government would continue to increase the overall supply of land for public and private housing.
The reaction from investors was lukewarm, with shares of Sun Hung Kai Properties (0016.HK) and Henderson Land (0012.HK), two major residential property developers, closing down 0.5% and 0.7%, respectively.
Hong Kong had tried to cool the property market during a surge of nearly 300% in home prices in the decade to 2019. Since then prices have fallen 13%.
In August, property prices dropped to a seven-month low, and realtors expect them to end 2023 as much as 5% down.
"The relaxation of cooling measures is only a band-aid solution that is unlikely to reverse the downward trend of home prices," said Joseph Tsang, chairman of property consultancy JLL in Hong Kong, citing the global economic downturn and interest rate hikes as lingering factors weighing on the market.
Lee said stamp duties for stock transactions would be reduced to 0.1% from 0.13% to help bolster liquidity in the Hong Kong market, and market data fees would be cut later this year to help brokerages.
He added Hong Kong would seek to strengthen its role as an offshore yuan centre and bolster financial ties to China, and enhance schemes to attract foreign talent.
($1 = 7.8241 Hong Kong dollars) (Reuters)