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A natural stones quarry in Indonesia’s West Java province collapsed on several people who were working inside on Friday, killing at least two people and leaving several workers missing, officials said. At least 10 people were trapped in the rubble when the mine in Cirebon district collapsed, West Java Governor Dedi Mulyadi estimated in a video statement, and rescuers have retrieved at least two bodies. Earthquake off Sumatra damages over 100 homes in Indonesia The exact number of casualties was still unclear as local television reported rescuers were able to pull at least a dozen injured people from the debris and recover bodies during a grueling search effort. Police, emergency personnel, soldiers and volunteers were trying to locate any remaining worker. Their efforts were hampered by unstable soil that risked further slides, the television report said.  

China will resume Japanese seafood imports it banned in 2023 over worries about Japan's discharge slightly radioactive wastewater from the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the sea, a Japanese official said Friday. China said their talks this week made “substantial progress” but did not confirm an agreement with Japan on the issue that has been a significant political and diplomatic point of tension. Agriculture Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said the agreement was reached after Japanese and Chinese officials met in Beijing and the imports will resume once paperwork is complete. ”Seafood is an important export item for Japan and a resumption of its export to China is a major milestone," Koizumi said. Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya also welcomed the move, saying, “It will be a big first step that would help Japan and China to tackle a number of remaining issues between the two countries," such as disputes over territory, trade and wartime history. But officials said China's ban on farm and fisheries products from 10 Japanese prefectures including Fukushima is still in place and that they will keep pushing toward their lifting. China's General Administration of Customs, in a statement issued Friday, said the two sides on Wednesday held "a new round of technical exchanges on the safety issues of Japanese aquatic products ... and achieved substantial progress” but did not mention an agreement. Japan to use radioactive soil from Fukushima on flowerbeds at prime minister's office How the disagreement over seafood imports began China blocked imports of Japanese seafood because it said the release of the treated and diluted but still slightly radioactive wastewater would endanger the fishing industry and coastal communities in eastern China. Japanese officials have said the wastewater will be safer than international standards and its environmental impact will be negligible. They say the wastewater must be released to make room for the nuclear plant’s decommissioning and to prevent accidental leaks. Tokyo and Beijing since March held three rounds of talks on the issue before reaching the agreement on Wednesday on the “technical requirements” necessary for Japanese seafood exports to China to restart, Japan's Foreign Ministry said in a statement. It did not say how long it may take before the actual resumption. Mainland China used to be the biggest overseas market for Japanese seafood, accounting for more than one-fifth of its seafood exports, followed by Hong Kong. The ban became a major blow to the fisheries industry, though the impact on overall trade was limited because seafood exports are a fraction of Japan’s total exports. Japan’s government set up an emergency relief fund for Japanese exporters, especially scallop growers, and has sought alternative overseas markets. Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, which operates the Fukushima Daiichi plant, has said it would compensate Japanese business owners appropriately for damages from export bans. China forms new global mediation group with dozens of countries Why the wastewater is being treated and released into the sea The nuclear plant had meltdowns in three reactors after being heavily damaged in the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that struck northeastern Japan. Water used to cool the reactor cores has been accumulating ever since, and officials say the massive stockpile is hampering the cleanup of the site. The wastewater was treated and heavily diluted with seawater to reduce the radioactivity as much as possible before Japan began releasing it into the sea in August 2023. Last September, then-Prime Minster Fumio Kishida said the two sides reached “a certain level of mutual understanding” that China would start working toward easing the import ban and join the International Atomic Energy Agency's expanded monitoring of wastewater discharges. People inside and outside Japan protested the initial wastewater release. Japanese fishing groups said they feared it would further damage the reputation of their seafood. Groups in China and South Korea also raised concerns.

Dozens of countries joined China on Friday in establishing an international mediation-based dispute resolution group. Representatives of more than 30 other countries, from Pakistan and Indonesia to Belarus and Cuba, signed the Convention on the Establishment of the International Organization for Mediation in Hong Kong to become founding members of the global organization, following Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Binzhou celebrates international Friendship Cities Day with focus on trade and development The support of developing countries signaled Beijing's rising influence in the global south amid heightened geopolitical tensions, partly exacerbated by U.S. President Donald Trump's trade tariffs. At a ceremony, Wang said China has long advocated for handling differences with a spirit of mutual understanding and consensus-building through dialogue, while aiming to provide “Chinese wisdom” for resolving conflicts between nations. “The establishment of the International Organization for Mediation helps to move beyond the zero-sum mindset of ‘you lose and I win,’” he said. The body, headquartered in Hong Kong, aims to help promote the amicable resolution of international disputes and build more harmonious global relations, he said. Beijing has touted the organization as the world's first intergovernmental legal organization for resolving disputes through mediation, saying it will be an important mechanism in safeguarding the principles of the Charter of the United Nations. It also positioned Hong Kong as an international legal and dispute resolution services center in Asia. Wang said the city's rule of law is highly developed, with the advantages of both common law and mainland Chinese law systems, asserting that it possesses uniquely favorable conditions for international mediation. Hong Kong leader John Lee said the organization could begin its work as early as the end of this year. The ceremony was attended by representatives from some 50 other countries and about 20 organizations, including the United Nations. Yueming Yan, a law professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said the new organization is a complementary mechanism to existing institutions such as the International Court of Justice and the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague. “While the ICJ and PCA focus on adjudication and arbitration, IOMed introduces a structured, institutionalized form of alternative dispute resolution — namely, mediation — on a global scale,” she said. Although many details about the new body are yet to be clarified, it could open the door for greater synergy between formal litigation or arbitration and more flexible methods like mediation, she said. Shahla Ali, a law professor at the University of Hong Kong, said the International Organization for Mediation would have the capacity to mediate disputes between states, between a state and a national of another state, or in international commercial disputes. Japan to use radioactive soil from Fukushima on flowerbeds at prime minister's office “Conventions can provide opportunities to experiment with new approaches," she said, noting rising interest in mediation globally as a means to resolve investor-state disputes.

The White House said Thursday that the U.S. has submitted a new Gaza ceasefire proposal that has Israeli support. Hamas officials gave the Israeli-approved draft a cool response, but said they wanted to study the proposal more closely before giving a formal answer. President Donald Trump’s Mideast envoy had expressed optimism this week about brokering an agreement that could halt the Israel-Hamas war, allow more aid into Gaza, and return more of the 58 hostages still held by Hamas, around a third of whom are alive. Experts say a nearly three-month Israeli blockade of Gaza — slightly eased in recent days — has pushed the population of roughly 2 million Palestinians to the brink of famine. Israel’s war in Gaza has killed around 54,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its tally. The war began with Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which left around 1,200 dead. Here's the latest: Witnesses in Gaza describe more chaos at US-backed food distribution sites Turmoil erupted again Thursday as tens of thousands of desperate Palestinians tried to collect food from distribution sites in the Gaza Strip run by a new U.S.- and Israeli-backed foundation. More than a dozen Palestinians described chaos at all three aid hubs on Thursday, with multiple witnesses reporting a free-for-all of people grabbing aid, and they said Israeli troops opened fire to control crowds. At the hub in central Gaza, Aisha Na’na said she only managed to grab sticks for firewood. “We had come to get food for our children, but it was all in vain — we returned with nothing,” she said. The distribution points are guarded by armed private contractors, and Israeli forces are positioned in the vicinity. Over the past three days, there have been reports of gunfire at GHF centers, and Gaza health officials have said at least one person has been killed and dozens wounded. Aid-seekers are shot at the new distribution hubs, says a surgeon and witnesses Dr. Khaled Elserr, a surgeon at Nasser Hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis, told the AP he treated two people wounded at distribution centers on Thursday — a 17-year-old girl and a man in his 20s. Both had gunshot wounds in the chest and stomach, he said, adding that other casualties had come in from the centers but that he did not have an exact number. A 41-year-old man, who spoke on condition he be identified only by his first name Shehada for fear of reprisals, said the crowd descended on the food boxes, and pushing and shoving got out of control. Shehada said the contractors pulled back and Israeli troops shot at people’s feet. His cousin was wounded in the left foot, he said. “The gunfire was very intense,” he said. “The sand was jumping all around us.” In a statement Thursday, GHF said no shots had been fired at any of its distribution centers the past three days and there have been no casualties, saying reports of deaths “originated from Hamas.” Hamas says it's studying the new Gaza ceasefire proposal The Palestinian militant group has yet to formally respond to the latest proposal for a temporary ceasefire in Gaza, which Israel has accepted. UN, Aid Agencies condemn US-Israel-Backed Gaza aid effort after fatal incident “The Zionist response, in essence, means perpetuating the occupation and continuing the killing and famine,” Bassem Naim, a top Hamas official, told The Associated Press. He said it “does not respond to any of our people’s demands, foremost among which is stopping the war and famine.” Nonetheless, he said the group would study the proposal “with all national responsibility.” UN says Israel denied its attempts to pick up aid at Gaza border for 3 days this week U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters Thursday that no U.N. trucks were given permission to move into the Kerem Shalom holding area to pick up desperately needed food and other aid on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday. He did not yet have information for Thursday, Since Israel reopened the Kerem Shalom crossing 10 days ago – after blocking all aid deliveries since March 2 – nearly 900 trucks have been approved to enter Gaza and almost 600 have been offloaded on the Gaza side, he said. But almost all if the aid has not reached U.N. warehouses because of security constraints, Dujarric said, and none has yet been distributed. Israel says it intercepted a missile from Yemen Yemen’s Houthi rebels took responsibility for firing the long-range missile Thursday evening, which Israel’s military says was intercepted as air-raid sirens sounded in parts of the country. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage. Israel halted a national soccer championship match in Tel Aviv due to the Houthi missile attack, which came as the tempo of negotiations on a ceasefire in Gaza has increased. The Houthis have targeted Israel throughout the war in Gaza in solidarity with Palestinians. The Houthi missiles have mostly been intercepted, although some have penetrated Israel’s missile defense systems, causing casualties and damage. Palestinian militants were once firing volleys of rockets each day out of Gaza, but that dwindled to nearly zero over the course of the 19-month war. White House says Israel accepted a new US proposal for a temporary ceasefire in Gaza “I can confirm that special envoy (Steve) Witkoff and the president submitted a ceasefire proposal to Hamas that Israel backed and supported,” White House press Karoline Leavitt told reporters. Israeli forces raid West Bank foreign exchange shops; one killed, dozens injured But Leavitt said talks were ongoing and Hamas had not yet accepted terms of the proposal. Witkoff on Wednesday said the U.S. administration was close to presenting a new proposal. The new proposal was intended to return surviving as well as dead hostages still being held in Gaza in exchange for an an extended truce in fighting. Israeli strike on a house in central Gaza kills 22 people, including nine women and children The airstrike hit a family home in Bureij, an urban refugee camp in central Gaza, according to the officials at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the nearby town of Deir al-Balah. An AP journalist viewed the hospital records of the dead from the strike. Strikes in northern Gaza late Wednesday and early Thursday hit a house, killing eight people, including two women and three children, and a car in Gaza City, killing four, local hospitals said. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military, which says it only targets militants and blames civilian deaths on Hamas because the militants operate in populated areas. Israeli military orders evacuation of a hospital in northern Gaza, staff says Dr. Rami al-Ashrafi said Thursday that the Israeli army wants to evacuate everyone in Al-Awda Hospital in the heavily devastated Jabaliya area. One of the last functioning medical centers in northern Gaza, the hospital has been encircled by Israeli troops and has come under fire in recent days. Speaking by phone to The Associated Press, al-Ashrafi said there are 82 staffers, including doctors, and seven patients left at the hospital. A total of 30 patients and 57 staff were already evacuated Tuesday, he said Israeli authorities issued evacuation orders last week for large parts of northern Gaza ahead of offensives against Hamas, although the army did not order the hospital itself to evacuate. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director general of the World Health Organization, said last week that Israeli military operations and evacuation orders in Gaza “are stretching the health system beyond the breaking point.” Israeli military says a civilian engineer was killed in northern Gaza The Israeli military didn’t offer details on how the unnamed civilian contractor was killed Thursday or what kind of engineering work they were doing for the army. The brief statement offered condolences to employee’s family. UK slams new Israeli settlements as an obstacle to Palestinian statehood. “The U.K. condemns these actions,” Foreign Office Minister Hamish Falconer said on the X social media platform. “Settlements are illegal under international law, further imperil the two-state solution, and do not protect Israel.” The British government last week imposed new sanctions on three people, two illegal settler outposts and two organizations that they said were supporting violence against the Palestinian community in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Foreign Secretary David Lammy said at the time that the illegal settlements were spreading across the West Bank with support of the Israeli government. Israel authorizes 22 more Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank This would include new settlements and the legalization of outposts already built without government authorization. Defense Minister Israel Katz called Thursday's settlement decision “a strategic move that prevents the establishment of a Palestinian state that would endanger Israel.” The Israeli anti-settlement watchdog Peace Now said the announcement was the most extensive move of its kind since the 1993 Oslo accords that launched the now-defunct peace process. Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war, and the Palestinians want it to be the main part of their future state. Most of the international community views settlements as illegal and an obstacle to resolving the decades-old conflict. Israel has already built well over 100 settlements across the territory that are home to some 500,000 settlers. The settlements range from small hilltop outposts to fully developed communities with apartment blocks, shopping malls, factories and parks. The West Bank is home to 3 million Palestinians, who live under Israeli military rule. Israeli strike kills a municipal worker in southern Lebanon An Israeli drone strike killed a municipal worker in southern Lebanon, the state-run National News Agency said. Israel's latest strikes in Gaza kill 38 people including children The man was on his way to work on a well supplying water to homes when he was killed in the town of Nabatieh al-Fawqa, the agency said. Lebanon’s Health Ministry also reported one person killed in the strike. The Israeli army said in a statement that it had killed a “Hezbollah terrorist” who was “rehabilitating a site used by” the group “to manage its fire and defense array." A U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement brought the latest war between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah to an end in late November, but Israel has continued to launch near-daily strikes on Lebanon since then. Lebanon has complained that Israel is violating the ceasefire while Israel says it is striking Hezbollah facilities and officials to prevent the group from rearming. Palestinians describe more chaos at Israeli and US-backed aid hub Palestinians described more scenes of chaos on Thursday at an aid distribution hub in the Gaza Strip established by a new Israeli and U.S.-backed foundation. They said large crowds pushed their way through metal turnstiles as security contractors struggled to control the crowd. People scattered as gunfire rang out, though it was not clear who fired or if there were any casualties. One woman said she had waited for hours before leaving with only a small bag of lentils. “We have no bread to feed our children. I couldn’t get a single bag of flour,” she said in tears, declining to give her name. “I want to eat. I’m hungry.” The hubs set up by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation are guarded by private security contractors, with Israeli forces stationed nearby. Gaza’s Health Ministry and the United Nations said dozens of people were wounded by gunfire as they sought aid on Tuesday. GHF denied its forces fired on anyone, and the Israeli military said it only fired warning shots. The U.N. and other humanitarian organizations have rejected the new aid system, saying it will not be able to feed Gaza’s 2.3 million people and that it lets Israel use food to control the population. GHF did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Israeli military says it demolished a long attack tunnel in southern Gaza The Israeli military says troops recently located and destroyed an attack tunnel stretching several hundred meters (yards) in the southern Gaza Strip. It said the tunnel was found in a self-declared security zone, apparently referring to the now mostly evacuated southern city of Rafah, which Israeli forces have severed from the rest of the territory. The army said the tunnel had several exits, some rigged with explosives. It said militants emerged from one of the shafts during the operation and were killed. Hamas built hundreds of miles (kilometers) of tunnels beneath Gaza in the years leading up to the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that ignited the war. Its fighters use them to shelter from Israeli airstrikes and move around undetected. Hamas has also held hostages in the tunnels. Israeli newborn dies after mother was killed in West Bank attack An Israeli baby who was delivered after his mother was fatally shot in an attack in the West Bank has died. A Palestinian militant opened fire on Tzeela Gez’ car as her husband drove her through the Israeli-occupied West Bank on May 14. The couple was heading to the hospital to give birth. She later died from her wounds, but doctors delivered the baby by emergency cesarean section. Hamas praised the attack but did not claim it. The military announced days later that its forces had killed the suspected attacker. “It is with great sadness and pain that we learned this morning of the death of baby Ravid Chaim, son of Tzeela and Hananel Gez,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement. “There are no words that can offer consolation for the murder of a newborn baby along with his mother.”

The opening ceremony of Binzhou International Friendship Cities Day took place on Thursday, emphasising strengthened economic and trade collaboration to promote mutual growth and development among partner cities. The event highlights Binzhou’s commitment to fostering international relations and boosting regional prosperity. Liu Guangzheng, Deputy Secretary-General of the Binzhou Municipal People's Government, hosted the event, while Song Yongxiang, Secretary of the CPC Binzhou Municipal Committee, Asefa Endeshaw Desta, Minister at the Embassy of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, and Li Hong, Deputy Director-General of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the CPC Shandong Provincial Committee, also delivered speeches.

Elon Musk is leaving his government role as a top adviser to President Donald Trump after spearheading efforts to reduce and overhaul the federal bureaucracy. His departure, announced Wednesday evening, marks the end of a turbulent chapter that included thousands of layoffs, the evisceration of government agencies and reams of litigation, reports AP. Despite the upheaval, the billionaire entrepreneur struggled in the unfamiliar environment of Washington, and he accomplished far less than he hoped. He dramatically reduced his target for cutting spending — from $2 trillion to $1 trillion to $150 billion — and increasingly expressed frustration about resistance to his goals. Sometimes he clashed with other top members of Trump's administration, who chafed at the newcomer's efforts to reshape their departments, and he faced fierce political blowback for his efforts. Musk's role working for Trump was always intended to be temporary, and he had recently signalled that he would be shifting his attention back to running his businesses, such as the electric automaker Tesla and the rocket company SpaceX. But administration officials were often vague about when Musk would step back from his position spearheading the Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE, and he abruptly revealed that he was leaving in a post on X, his social media website. “As my scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end, I would like to thank President @realDonaldTrump for the opportunity to reduce wasteful spending,” he wrote. “The @DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government.” A White House official, who requested anonymity to talk about the change, confirmed Musk's departure. Trump admin cancels $766m Moderna contract to fight pandemic flu Musk announced his decision one day after CBS released part of an interview in which he criticised the centerpiece of Trump’s legislative agenda by saying he was “disappointed” by what the president calls his “big beautiful bill.” The legislation includes a mix of tax cuts and enhanced immigration enforcement. Musk described it as a “massive spending bill” that increases the federal deficit and “undermines the work” of his Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE. “I think a bill can be big or it could be beautiful,” Musk said. “But I don’t know if it could be both.” Trump, speaking in the Oval Office on Wednesday, defended his agenda by talking about the delicate politics involved with negotiating the legislation. “I’m not happy about certain aspects of it, but I’m thrilled by other aspects of it,” he said. Trump also suggested that more changes could be made. “We’re going to see what happens,” he said. “It’s got a way to go.” Republicans recently pushed the measure through the House and are debating it in the Senate. Musk's concerns are shared by some Republican lawmakers. “I sympathize with Elon being discouraged,” said Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson. Speaking at a Milwaukee Press Club event on Wednesday, Johnson added that he was “pretty confident” there was enough opposition “to slow this process down until the president, our leadership, gets serious” about reducing spending. He said there was no amount of pressure Trump could put on him to change his position. Speaker Mike Johnson has asked senators to make as few changes to the legislation as possible, saying that House Republicans reached a “very delicate balance” that could be upended with major changes. The narrowly divided House will have to vote again on final passage once the Senate alters the bill. On Wednesday, Johnson thanked Musk for his work and promised to pursue more spending cuts in the future, saying “the House is eager and ready to act on DOGE’s findings.”

In a major blow to a key part of President Donald Trump’s economic policy, a US federal court has blocked a sweeping set of tariffs he imposed, ruling that he exceeded his legal authority. The decision by the Court of International Trade strikes down key trade measures that were central to Trump’s "America First" agenda, reports BBC.  Trump admin to cut $100 million in federal contracts for Harvard The court, based in Manhattan, found that the emergency law cited by Trump — the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) of 1977 — does not authorise the president to unilaterally impose broad tariffs on nearly every country. The ruling emphasised that the US Constitution grants Congress exclusive powers to regulate international commerce, which cannot be overridden by the executive branch under the pretext of economic safeguarding. Within minutes of the decision, the Trump administration filed an appeal. The ruling also blocks a separate set of levies targeting China, Mexico, and Canada, which the administration reintroduced after returning to the White House, citing concerns over drug trafficking and illegal immigration. "It is not for unelected judges to decide how to properly address a national emergency," White House deputy press secretary Kush Desai said in response. "President Trump pledged to put America First, and the Administration is committed to using every lever of executive power to address this crisis and restore American Greatness," he added. The lawsuit, spearheaded by the Liberty Justice Center on behalf of five small businesses that import goods from countries affected by the tariffs, marks the first major legal challenge to what the administration called "Liberation Day" tariffs. Twelve US states, including New York, supported the legal challenge. "The law is clear: no president has the power to single-handedly raise taxes whenever they like," said New York Attorney General Letitia James. "These tariffs are a massive tax hike on working families and American businesses that would have led to more inflation, economic damage to businesses of all sizes, and job losses across the country if allowed to continue," she added. Trump pardoning a Virginia sheriff convicted on bribery charges In its decision, the three-judge panel stated that Trump’s tariff orders exceeded the authority granted by the IEEPA. "The Worldwide and Retaliatory Tariff Orders exceed any authority granted to the President by IEEPA to regulate importation by means of tariffs. The Trafficking Tariffs fail because they do not deal with the threats set forth in those orders," the panel wrote. The ruling is one of seven ongoing legal challenges against the Trump administration’s trade policies, including actions brought by 13 US states and various small business groups.

The Trump administration has cancelled $766 million awarded to drugmaker Moderna Inc to develop a vaccine against potential pandemic influenza viruses, including the H5N1 bird flu. The company said it was notified Wednesday that the Health and Human Services Department had withdrawn funds awarded in July 2024 and in January to pay for development and purchase of its investigational vaccine. The funds were awarded through the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, or BARDA, a program that focuses on medical treatments for potential pandemics. The new vaccine, called mRNA-1018, used the same technology that allowed development and rollout of vaccines to fight Covid-19 in record time. Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr has expressed deep skepticism regarding mRNA vaccines, despite real-world evidence that the vaccines are safe and saved millions of lives. The cancelation came as Moderna announced positive interim results from an early-stage trial of the vaccine that targeted H5 bird flu virus, tested in 300 healthy adults. Donald Trump halts all new student visa interviews “While the termination of funding from HHS adds uncertainty, we are pleased by the robust immune response and safety profile observed in this interim analysis," the company said in a statement. H5N1 bird flu viruses spilled from wild bird into cattle in the US last year, infecting hundreds of animals in several states. At least 70 people in the US have been sickened by bird flu infections, mostly mild. One person died. Scientists fear that continued mutation of the virus could allow it to become more virulent or more easily spread in people, with the possibility that it could trigger a pandemic. Moderna received $176 million in July 2024 and $590 million in January. The January award would have supported a late-stage clinical trial that could have determined the vaccine's efficacy against pandemic viruses, including bird flu, a company spokesman said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that Mohammed Sinwar, believed to be the head of Hamas' armed wing, has been killed, apparently confirming his death in a recent strike in the Gaza Strip. There was no confirmation from Hamas. Sinwar is the younger brother of Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas leader who helped mastermind the October 7, 2023, attack that started the Israel-Hamas war, and who was killed by Israeli forces in October 2024, according to news agency AP. Israeli strikes have decimated Hamas’ leadership during the 19-month war, and Mohammed Sinwar was one of the last widely known leaders still alive in Gaza. But the militant group has maintained its rule over the parts of Gaza not seized by Israel. It still holds dozens of hostages and carries out sporadic attacks on Israeli forces. As the head of Hamas’ armed wing, Sinwar would have had the final word on any agreement to release the hostages, and his death could further complicate U.S. and Arab efforts to broker a ceasefire. Israel has vowed to continue the war until all the hostages are returned and Hamas has been either defeated or disarmed and sent into exile. Netanyahu mentioned the killing of Sinwar in a speech before parliament in which he listed the names of other top Hamas leaders killed during the war. “We have killed tens of thousands of terrorists. We killed (Mohammed) Deif, (Ismail) Haniyeh, Yahya Sinwar and Mohammed Sinwar,” he said. Netanyahu did not elaborate. Israeli media had reported that the younger Sinwar was the target of a May 13 strike on what the military said was a Hamas command center beneath the European Hospital in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, the Sinwars' hometown. The military declined to comment on whether Sinwar had been targeted or killed. Israeli forces raid West Bank foreign exchange shops; one killed, dozens injured At least six people were killed in the strike and 40 wounded, Gaza's Health Ministry said at the time. A Hamas veteran Mohammed Sinwar was born in 1975 in the urban Khan Younis refugee camp. His family was among hundreds of thousands of Palestinians driven from what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation. The refugees and their descendants today make up the majority of Gaza's population. Like his older brother, Yahya, the younger Sinwar joined Hamas after it was founded in the late 1980s as the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood. He became a member of the group’s military wing, known as the Qassam Brigades. He rose through the ranks to become a member of its so-called joint chiefs of staff, bringing him close to its longtime commander, Deif, who was killed in a strike last year. Mohammed Sinwar was one of the planners of a 2006 cross-border attack on an Israeli army post. In that attack, militants captured Israeli soldier Gilad Schalit, who was held for five years and later exchanged for more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, including Yahya Sinwar. In an interview with Qatar’s Al Jazeera TV aired three years ago, Mohammed Sinwar said that when Hamas threatens Israel, “we know how to specify the location that hurts the occupation and how to press them.” Hamas has said that Mohammed Sinwar was targeted by Israel on several occasions and was briefly believed to have been killed in 2014. He is said to have been one of a handful of top commanders who knew about the October 7 attack in advance. In December 2023, the Israeli military released a video it said showed a bearded Mohammed Sinwar sitting next to a driver in a car as it moved inside a tunnel in the Gaza Strip. Hamas never confirmed what would be one of the few public images of him.

In an era where innovation seamlessly merges with sustainability and health, Yuyue Home Textile Co. stands at the forefront of China’s high-tech industries. Since its inception in 2004, the company has not only revolutionised the home textiles sector but has also expanded into healthcare and advanced health materials, establishing a formidable international presence. Yuyue Home Textile Co. and The Yuyue Life Science Pavilion Yuyue Home Textile Co., Ltd, situated in the Binzhou High-tech Industrial Development Zone, has established itself as a prominent high-tech enterprise in China. Specialising in home textiles, healthcare, advanced health materials, and modern education, the company boasts an impressive portfolio of 245 national patents and has contributed to the development of 36 national and industry standards. Yuyue’s technological innovations are recognised both domestically and internationally, with its eco-friendly textile products meeting over 30 global certification standards. Notably, their high-end wax-print fabrics command over 70% of the African market share, underscoring their global influence.