Other News

President Biden: 11 Americans dead, others likely held hostage

By Danny KEMP WASHINGTON, Oct 9, 2023 (AFP) – President Joe Biden said Monday that Americans are likely being held hostage by Palestinian militant group Hamas after its surprise attack on Israel, and that at least 11 US citizens were killed in the assault. Hamas dragged off about 150 hostages in its weekend onslaught on southern Israel from Gaza, an attack that a senior US defense official said involved “ISIS-level savagery”. Hamas threatened on Monday […]

Hamas threatens to kill hostages if Israeli airstrikes continue

By Jay Deshmukh with Adel Zaanoun in Gaza City JERUSALEM, Oct 9, 2023 (AFP) – Palestinian militant group Hamas, which dragged off about 150 hostages in its surprise weekend assault on southern Israel, threatened on Monday to kill them if Israeli air strikes continue “targeting” Gaza residents without warning. The threat came after Israel imposed a total siege on the Gaza Strip, cutting off the water supply which sparked UN fears of an increasingly dire […]

EU suspends development aid payments to Palestinians

The scale of terror and brutality against #Israel and its people is a turning point. There can be no business as usual. As the biggest donor of the Palestinians, the European Commission is putting its full development portfolio under review, worth a total of EUR 691m⤵️ — Oliver Varhelyi (@OliverVarhelyi) October 9, 2023 BRUSSELS, Oct 9, 2023 (AFP) – The EU has halted development aid payments to the Palestinians and is placing 691 million euros […]

‘Currently no chance’ of prisoner swap with Israel: Hamas official

DOHA, Oct 9, 2023 (AFP) – Palestinian Islamist group Hamas is not open to negotiating a prisoner exchange with Israel during hostilities, a member of the militants’ political office in Doha said Monday. “The military operation is still continuing… therefore there is currently no chance for negotiation on the issue of prisoners or anything else,” Hossam Badran, a Hamas official, told AFP from Doha. “Our mission now is to make every effort to prevent the […]

Hamburg airport says resumes traffic after Iranian jet threat

HAMBURG, Oct 9, 2023 (AFP) – Germany’s Hamburg airport said it had resumed service about 90 minutes after halting traffic following a threat against an Iranian flight Monday. “Flight service has resumed,” the airport said on its website after earlier stopping all takeoffs and landings over the threat received by email. “There may still be flight delays.”

Russia says Palestinian state ‘most reliable’ solution

MOSCOW, Oct 9, 2023 (AFP) – Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Monday that creating a Palestinian state was the “most reliable” solution for peace in Israel and that fighting terrorism alone would not ensure security. He spoke during a press conference with the head of the Arab League, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, who visited Russia after the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas launched a massive surprise attack on Saturday. Creating a “Palestinian state that would live […]

Landslide triggered by heavy rain kills 27 in Cameroon

By Romuald NKONLAK YAOUNDÉ, Oct 9, 2023 (AFP) – At least 27 people have been killed after heavy rains caused a section of a hillside covered in precariously built houses to collapse in Cameroon’s capital Yaounde. Rescuers were still searching for victims on Monday after the landslide happened in the district of Mbankolo, northwest of Yaounde, on Sunday evening. Landslides are frequent during the rainy season in the city of nearly three million people, where […]

Singapore death row families urge end to executions

SINGAPORE, Oct 9, 2023 (AFP) – Families of death row convicts urged the Singapore government Monday to impose a moratorium on capital punishment to allow for an independent review of the controversial use of executions in the city-state. Five families called for a meeting with Singapore’s law and home affairs minister “to listen to our stories, to our pain, and confront our humanity”, they said in a statement on the eve of World Day Against […]

Death toll from ‘unprecedented’ Afghan quakes doubles to 2,000

By Mohsen KARIMI HERAT, Afghanistan, Oct 8, 2023 (AFP) – The death toll from a series of earthquakes in western Afghanistan rose sharply on Sunday to more than 2,000, the Taliban government said, as bodies continued to be pulled from demolished villages and buried in mass graves. More than 1,300 homes were toppled when Saturday’s magnitude 6.3 quake — followed by eight strong aftershocks — jolted hard-to-reach areas 30 kilometres (19 miles) northwest of the […]

Israel music festival-goers ‘butchered in cold blood’

By Jonah Mandel JERUSALEM, Oct 9, 2023 (AFP) – Shocked volunteers spoke on Monday of their horrific work recovering the bodies of up to 250 young Israeli and foreign party-goers gunned down by Hamas militants at a usually joyful music festival near the Gaza border. Thousands of music-lovers had danced through the night at the Supernova festival in a remote area of southern Israel near the border with the Gaza Strip. But the revellers turned […]

Foreigners killed, missing or abducted in Hamas attack

PARIS, Oct 9, 2023 (AFP) – Dozens of foreigners have been killed, injured or taken hostage during a surprise attack on Israel by the Palestinian militant group Hamas Saturday that has left 700 people dead, mostly Israelis. Many of the missing foreigners were at a desert music festival, where scores of revellers were massacred. Here is what we know so far: – Thailand: 12 dead, 11 hostages – Twelve Thai labourers were killed, eight were […]

12 Thais killed in Israel-Gaza violence: government

BANGKOK, Oct 9, 2023 (AFP) – Twelve Thais have been killed in the conflict between Israel and Hamas militants, the kingdom’s government said Monday, as it prepared a plan to evacuate its citizens. Foreign ministry spokeswoman Kanchana Patarachoke said the Thai embassy in Israel learned of the deaths from the victims’ employers. She said a further eight Thais had been wounded and 11 taken captive since the war erupted when Hamas launched a large-scale attack […]