United News of Bangladesh

Israeli forces shot dead two Palestinians in the occupied West Bank on Friday after accusing them of attempting an attack near Hebron, prompting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to order security forces to seal off the city and prepare for a territory-wide closure. At least five other people were injured in the incident, some of them critically, according to reports. The Israeli military said it had thwarted what it described as a “terror attack against Israeli civilians”. The two Palestinians, both from Hebron, were carrying an M16 rifle and a handgun, the military said, without specifying the intended target. Netanyahu’s office later announced that security forces had been instructed to immediately cordon off Hebron and prepare for a complete closure of the West Bank beginning Friday. The incident comes ahead of Israel’s parliamentary election scheduled for Tuesday, which will determine whether Netanyahu secures another term as prime minister. The vote is taking place three years after the Hamas-led attacks on Israel that triggered the war in Gaza. Israeli authorities have warned of possible attacks by the country’s “enemies” ahead of the election. Following the shooting, Netanyahu convened an emergency meeting of his Security Cabinet and senior military and security officials. He alleged that Hamas was planning a major attack aimed at killing civilians but provided no details of the alleged plot. “Our brave soldiers thwarted this attack with courage and determination,” Netanyahu said, praising the forces involved and wishing the wounded a speedy recovery. He did not clarify whether those injured were soldiers or civilians. Earlier on Friday, Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir called for restrictions on Palestinian movement in the West Bank following the incident. “The lives of the residents of Judea and Samaria, of the settlers, the lives of the soldiers, the lives of the police officers, the lives of our fighters are a million times more important than freedom of movement,” he said, using Israel’s term for the West Bank. Ahead of the anniversary of the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack, Netanyahu had also accused the Palestinian militant group of potentially seeking to carry out an attack to influence the Israeli election outcome, without presenting evidence to support the claim.

Two workers were killed and five others injured in an explosion inside a mine in northern Turkey on Friday, while rescuers were working to reach another worker trapped underground, an official said. The blast occurred near Kilimli, in the Black Sea coastal province of Zonguldak. The cause of the explosion was not immediately known. Medical teams and rescue workers were dispatched to the scene to assist the victims and search for the missing miner. Zonguldak Governor Osman Hacibektasoglu told reporters that two of the injured workers were in critical condition. One of them was being transferred to the capital, Ankara, for further treatment. Mine accidents are relatively common in Turkey. One of the country's deadliest mining disasters occurred in 2014, when a fire inside a coal mine in the western town of Soma killed 301 people.

Seven oil tankers caught fire or sustained damage in the Strait of Hormuz overnight after being struck by Iran or hitting naval mines, Tehran said Thursday, raising fresh concerns about a possible return to full-scale war. Fears of renewed US-Israeli attacks on Iran are growing ahead of Israel’s closely contested election, scheduled for Oct 27, in which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could lose power, and next month’s US midterm elections, where rising prices linked to the war have fuelled voter anger. “Netanyahu wants to attack Iran, that’s not even a question,” Danny Citrinowicz, a researcher at Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies and a former Iran specialist in the country’s military and intelligence services, told The Associated Press. Citrinowicz accused Israel of rushing towards another confrontation with Iran without revising its strategy. He said a clear victory for Netanyahu in the Oct 27 election would make another attack almost inevitable. Although leading opposition candidates are expected to prioritise domestic issues, Citrinowicz said he believed the region was heading towards “another kinetic escalation.” Iran renews threat to strike US bases in region Iranian state television reported the latest attacks on the vessels, citing the navy of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The Associated Press could not independently verify the claims. The report did not mention any casualties. It also quoted the Guard's navy as renewing its threat to target US military bases in the region if Washington continued helping commercial vessels navigate the Strait of Hormuz. Iran continues to assert control over the strategic waterway, which remains a key source of leverage in any negotiations with the United States over the war. October has seen the highest number of reported attacks on commercial shipping since March, when the war began, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, a British maritime security monitor. Although UKMTO did not report the latest incidents, it has noted that some shipping operators have become increasingly reluctant to report attacks. Experts say oil producers have managed to maintain crude supplies through alternative arrangements, but doing so has become increasingly costly.

The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen announced early Friday that it had intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by Yemen's Houthi group toward the Saudi capital Riyadh, according to a statement posted on X by the coalition's spokesperson. Loud explosions were heard in Riyadh early Friday, while residents received alerts on their mobile phones. The coalition also announced the interception and destruction of two drones launched by the group toward the kingdom's southern region, without providing further details.    

Chinese President Xi Jinping has ordered all-out search and rescue efforts for the missing and prompt medical treatment for the injured after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck a county in southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region on Thursday night. Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks in an important instruction, calling for every effort to minimize casualties.  Sixteen people were killed and 46 others injured after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Baqen County of Nagqu City in southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region at 10:33 p.m. Thursday (Beijing Time), according to the city's earthquake relief headquarters. The regional disaster prevention, reduction and relief committee activated a Level III emergency response for natural disaster relief on Friday. As of 5:20 a.m. Friday, 11 of the injured were in serious condition, while 35 sustained minor injuries. Over 330 houses collapsed or were damaged.

Sixteen people were killed and 65 others injured after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Baqen County of Nagqu City in southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region at 10:33 p.m. Thursday, the city's earthquake relief headquarters said on Friday. The regional disaster prevention, reduction and relief committee activated a Level III emergency response for natural disaster relief on Friday. Over 330 houses collapsed or were damaged. The damage caused by the quake is being further evaluated, and disaster relief work is underway. Quake relief supplies allocated by the authorities at various levels have been arriving at the quake-hit zone as of early Friday morning, including 1,000 sets of prefabricated houses, more than 3,200 tents, over 2,800 folding beds, and other daily necessities like quilts, stoves and clothes.     

The 31st session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP31) will focus on the concrete implementation of climate policies, said Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Berris Ekinci on Thursday. Speaking at an event commemorating the upcoming United Nations Day, Ekinci said the conference would be designed as an "implementation COP," reflecting growing expectations that the second decade of the Paris Agreement should focus on delivering climate commitments rather than primarily negotiating new decisions. She highlighted the importance of linking national climate priorities with financing through the Climate Implementation Bridge, an initiative developed with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to help turn climate ambitions into bankable projects. According to the Turkish minister, the summit will also combine formal negotiations with a climate action agenda that involves cities, businesses, investors, researchers, civil society, and young people. Ekinci said the agenda includes six global targets for 2035. Babatunde Ahonsi, the UN Resident Coordinator in Türkiye, said that addressing climate change requires broad participation across society, including businesses, local authorities, women and young people, as well as governments. Describing the approach as "inclusive multilateralism," Ahonsi said preparations for COP31 had involved dialogues with businesses, municipalities, youth groups and women's organizations. Also on Thursday, Murat Kurum, minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change, said Türkiye expects 85 world leaders to attend COP31 in the Mediterranean resort city of Antalya next month, while 26,000 security personnel will be deployed to ensure the event proceeds smoothly. Kurum made the remarks during an inspection of the summit venue. According to the minister, nearly 300 ministers are expected to visit Türkiye, and applications for 159 pavilions and 90 delegation offices have been approved, a record number for the UN conference. More than 1 million visitors are expected during the event, which will feature dedicated meeting halls, exhibition areas and a media center designed to accommodate 4,000 journalists, he said. Meanwhile, Interior Minister Mustafa Ciftci said 26,000 personnel from the police, gendarmerie and coast guard would be assigned to security duties, with measures covering land, air and maritime operations. COP31 is scheduled to take place in Antalya, Türkiye, from November 9 to 20.

Hundreds of Ethiopians crossed into Kenya on Thursday amid gunfire and chaotic scenes in the border town of Moyale, Kenyan police said. A police officer escaped injury after a bullet struck a metal bar supporting a tent at the football ground of the Moyale police station, according to a police report. A woman was shot in the neck and taken to a private hospital in Moyale, where the bullet was removed. She was in stable condition, the report said. Another bullet shattered a window at La-Tahsan Hotel. Police did not identify where the gunfire originated. In a separate security brief issued on Thursday, police said hundreds of Ethiopians had entered Kenya through several points in Moyale, including Sessi, Kore, Biashara, Foundation and Miti. The crossings began on Wednesday, with women, children and young people accounting for most of the arrivals, the brief said. According to Kenyan police, the Ethiopians were fleeing tensions between leaders of Ethiopia’s Oromia and Somali regional states. The Kenya Red Cross said it was arranging temporary shelters and distributing essential supplies, including cereal and porridge flour, to those arriving from Ethiopia. “The response will initially reach 1,000 households,” the organisation said in a statement. Gunfire was heard on the Ethiopian side of the border from around 5:50am on Thursday and continued afterward, according to the police brief.

At least six people, including two women and a girl, were killed and 25 others injured after a passenger bus rammed into a roadside tree in India's central state of Chhattisgarh on Thursday. The accident took place within the jurisdiction of Kelhari Police Station in the Manendragarh-Chirmiri-Bharatpur (MCB) district while the bus was travelling from the Manendragarh area to Kelhari town at a high speed. More than 30 passengers were on board when the accident occurred, police said. According to police, the driver suddenly lost control of the vehicle, causing it to crash into the tree. The death toll was feared to rise, as more than 15 of the injured were reported to be in critical condition.

French authorities have imposed restrictions on demonstrations in several cities following a weekend of violent clashes and widespread looting, but dozens of protesters took to the streets of Paris on Thursday despite the restrictions. Organisers of the Paris protest said an administrative court overturned a police ban, though the ruling was not immediately made public. Police had justified the restriction by citing the risk of further violence after masked youths clashed with security forces, looted shops and set cars on fire over the weekend. French President Emmanuel Macron said the measures were intended to protect city centres, businesses and public buildings. He said demonstrations requested by groups without legitimate authority should be banned, while trade unions seeking permission to protest would be offered alternative routes. The restrictions on planned demonstrations in Paris, Lyon, Lille and Grenoble have raised concerns among some about the constitutional right to protest. Student organisations said they would continue their mobilisation despite the start of the autumn school break. Macron blamed the weekend violence on radical far-left groups seeking to undermine the Republic, as well as criminals who took advantage of the unrest to loot shops. The government has stepped up security measures, including night-time curfews in some areas of Paris and other cities where order has since been restored. The Paris restrictions covered areas around the presidential palace, parliament buildings, major railway stations and parts of the city centre badly affected by looting. Thursday’s demonstrations were seen as a prelude to a larger protest planned for Saturday, when activists from the Yellow Vest movement and the CGT labour union are expected to join. Authorities said some demonstrations, including marches in Lyon, would also be prohibited. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu, who met union representatives on Wednesday, said a large-scale security operation was planned for Saturday to prevent a recurrence of the violence. Union representatives said the meeting produced no concrete proposals. They are now preparing for another day of action on November 5 and have urged public- and private-sector employees to participate. The protests began last month at a high school in Créteil, southeast of Paris, over staff shortages before spreading to other suburbs and cities across France. Students have raised concerns over underfunded schools, deteriorating facilities and a lack of staff, particularly in poorer neighbourhoods. Some have also called for reforms to the university admissions system, which they consider complex and unfair. With the government struggling to address the students’ demands, the demonstrations have expanded into a broader movement over rising living costs, months before next year’s presidential election to choose Macron’s successor.