CHINA
French national attackedm
France has warned its citizens in China to be vigilant after a French national was attacked by a man with a knife in Shanghai this week. The French Consulate in Shanghai yesterday said in a notice on its Web site that the attacker fled after a Chinese colleague came to the victim’s assistance. It said police caught the attacker soon after Wednesday’s stabbing. The attack came four days after a Chinese man was killed by a police officer in Paris, sparking protests by members of the Chinese community in France. The incident has been extensively reported on in Chinese media and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday summoned a representative of the French embassy in Beijing to express its concern over the case.
ISRAEL
New settlement approved
The government on Thursday approved the establishment of a new settlement in the occupied West Bank for the first time in more than two decades and also laid the groundwork for further expansion, despite a request from US President Donald Trump to hold off on settlement activity. It was not immediately clear whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had received a green light from the White House for the announcement. Trump’s public request to hold off on settlements came last month during a meeting between the two leaders at the White House, after a series of moves by Netanyahu to approve thousands of new housing units in the West Bank.
SOUTH KOREA
‘Sewol’ reaches port
The salvaged wreck of the Sewol ferry yesterday reached port, about three years after setting out on a doomed voyage that killed more than 300 people. A semi-submersible ship carrying the wreck docked alongside a pier at the southwestern harbor of Mokpo, a photographer on the scene said. The vessel was raised from the sea floor in one piece in a complex salvage operation before being transferred to the semi-submersible for the 105km journey to the port, where investigators are to search it.
BRAZIL
Shooting footage probed
Military police said they are investigating a video that appears to show two officers shoot injured suspects who are on the ground. The video, shared widely on social media, led to protests on Thursday night in northern Rio de Janeiro, where the incident apparently happened. It was unclear who made the video. In a statement, military police said an investigation had been launched. In the video, two officers are seen carrying automatic rifles. They both shoot suspects on the ground. One of the men appears to be moving when he is shot.
Republican US lawmakers on Friday criticized US President Joe Biden’s administration after sanctioned Chinese telecoms equipment giant Huawei unveiled a laptop this week powered by an Intel artificial intelligence (AI) chip. The US placed Huawei on a trade restriction list in 2019 for contravening Iran sanctions, part of a broader effort to hobble Beijing’s technological advances. Placement on the list means the company’s suppliers have to seek a special, difficult-to-obtain license before shipping to it. One such license, issued by then-US president Donald Trump’s administration, has allowed Intel to ship central processors to Huawei for use in laptops since 2020. China hardliners
Conjoined twins Lori and George Schappell, who pursued separate careers, interests and relationships during lives that defied medical expectations, died this month in Pennsylvania, funeral home officials said. They were 62. The twins, listed by Guinness World Records as the oldest living conjoined twins, died on April 7 at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, obituaries posted by Leibensperger Funeral Homes of Hamburg said. The cause of death was not detailed. “When we were born, the doctors didn’t think we’d make 30, but we proved them wrong,” Lori said in an interview when they turned 50, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported. The
RAMPAGE: A Palestinian man was left dead after dozens of Israeli settlers searching for a missing 14-year-old boy stormed a village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank US President Joe Biden on Friday 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 simply said: “Don’t,” underscoring Washington’s commitment to defend Israel. “We are devoted to the defense 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.” Israel braced on Friday for an attack by Iran or its proxies as warnings grew of
IN PURSUIT: Israel’s defense minister said the revenge attacks by Israeli settlers would make it difficult for security forces to find those responsible for the 14-year-old’s death Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday condemned the “heinous murder” of an Israeli teenager in the occupied West Bank as attacks on Palestinian villages intensified following news of his death. After Benjamin Achimeir, 14, was reported missing near Ramallah on Friday, hundreds of Jewish settlers backed by Israeli forces raided nearby Palestinian villages, torching vehicles and homes, leaving at least one villager dead and dozens wounded. The attacks escalated in several villages on Saturday after Achimeir’s body was found near the Malachi Hashalom outpost. Agence France-Presse correspondents saw smoke rising from burned houses and fields. Mayor Amin Abu Alyah, of the