United News of Bangladesh

Myanmar’s military government began a nationwide census Tuesday, saying it will be used to compile voter lists for a general election promised for next year, even though much of the country is engulfed in civil war. The census is widely seen as an effort to gather information to closely monitor opponents of military rule even more. Census enumerators, mostly schoolteachers and local administrative workers, went door-to-door in the capital, Naypyitaw, accompanied by soldiers and police. State television MRTV reported Tuesday evening the census had been carried out in all 14 of the country's regions and states, and the initial collected data is hoped to be released by the end of this year. A group that leads the struggle against military rule, the shadow National Unity Government, has advised people to use “caution” in complying with the survey. “Whether they are doing it for the fake elections or census, they are doing it to terrorize the people, so don’t collaborate with them in these matters,” said Kyaw Zaw, a spokesperson for the National Unity Government. “I would like to say that all those who cooperate with the military council will be punished according to the law because their action is similar to encouraging and cooperating with the military’s terrorist activities.” Pro-democracy guerrillas have also warned that those who help collect information will face reprisals. The Chin Brotherhood Alliance, which comprises five ethnic Chin militias from the northwestern Chin state, and the Dawei Defense Team, a group from the southern Tanintharyi region, warned in statements last month that they will take strong action against military government personnel who participate in the survey. Such guerrilla groups, which frequently target people associated with the military, carried out attacks during a three-week survey to compile voter lists in January 2023, when elections were still expected later that year. About a dozen people including two police officers and local officials were killed and four military personnel were captured during the attacks. The military government is widely viewed as hoping the polls will legitimize its rule, which began after it seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021. In a televised speech in early September, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the head of the military government, said the census information being gathered from Oct. 1 to Oct. 15 is crucial for compiling voter lists for a general election, but did not specify a date for the polls. He previously pledged to hold an election in 2025. He also said that people must answer all the census questions without anxiety or doubt. MRTV showed footage of Min Aung Hlaing and other members of the ruling military council with family being interviewed by census takers. The Ministry of Immigration and Population says more than 42,000 census workers will gather information from more than 13 million households across the country. The survey contains 68 questions on matters such as the number of people living in each home, their education, disabilities, types of houses and access to water, electricity and toilets. It also includes questions about the occupants' backgrounds, family members who have been away from home and the cause of death of family members, all highly sensitive matters for those who joined the armed resistance or the civil disobedience movement. A 33-year-old nurse from the country’s biggest city, Yangon, who joined the civil disobedience movement in 2021 said she was worried about her safety because the census contains detailed questions about her job history and the military might use it to punish her. Like others who agreed to be interviewed, she spoke on condition of anonymity because she feared arrest. A 29-year-old man who took up arms to fight against the army in the southeastern state of Kayin said he had suggested to his family back in his hometown in Mon state that they visit relatives in other townships to avoid the survey. A 26-year-old gym trainer from Yangon told The Associated Press he believed authorities are gathering information not only for the census but also to obtain details of men who are eligible for military service. The military activated conscription in February after it was forced into the defensive against pro-democracy militants as well as ethnic militias seeking autonomy. Independent analysts believe the military government controls much less than half of Myanmar's territory. It would be difficult to organize an election while the country is at war, and critics see no way for the polls to be free and fair. At a meeting at the end of July, Min Aung Hlaing said the census would be prioritized in areas under the military’s control. The U.N. Population Fund, the major collaborator in the previous census in 2014, announced in late 2023 that it was unable to support the 2024 census due to Myanmar's political strife and conflict. The military government said in August this year that China, a close ally, had pledged to give technical support for the census. The Ministry of Immigration and Population estimates Myanmar has more than 56 million people.

Voting in the final phase of the election to choose a local government in Indian-controlled Kashmir began Tuesday, the first such vote since Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government stripped the disputed region of its special status five years ago. Over 3.9 million residents are eligible to cast ballots to choose 40 lawmakers out of 415 candidates in the region's seven districts during the third — and last — phase of the election. It's the first such vote in a decade and the first since Modi's Hindu nationalist government scrapped the Muslim-majority region's semi-autonomy in 2019. Residents in India-controlled Kashmir vote in the second phase of polls surrounded by heavy security Thousands of armed government forces patrolled the voting districts and guarded over 5,000 polling stations. Lines of voters stretched across the stations. The region's chief electoral office said about 56% turnout was recorded by 1 p.m. India's unprecedented move in 2019 downgraded and divided the former state into two centrally governed union territories, Ladakh and Jammu-Kashmir. Both are ruled directly by New Delhi through its appointed administrators along unelected bureaucrats and security setup. The move — which largely resonated in India and among Modi supporters — was mostly opposed in Kashmir as an assault on its identity and autonomy. The region has since been on edge with civil liberties curbed and media gagged. India and Pakistan each administer a part of Kashmir, but both claim the territory in its entirety. The nuclear-armed rivals have fought two of their three wars over the territory since they gained independence from British colonial rule in 1947. In Jammu areas, tens of thousands of Pakistani Hindu refugees are voting for the first time in any regional election since their migration in 1947. The refugees, officially called West Pakistan Refugees, have long been recognized as Indian citizens with voting rights in national elections. However, before the 2019 changes, Kashmir's special status allowed only descendants from residents of the territory in 1934 to vote and own property. At a polling station in Jammu's R S Pura area, scores of these refugees lined to cast their votes. "It's a Diwali for us," said the first-time voter Vikram Choudhary, 26, comparing the vote to the Hindu festival of light symbolizing the victory of light over darkness. "We feel liberated." "Our children will have a secure future and a say in local affairs now," said another voter, 76-year-old Satpal Choudhary. Voting for local government opens in Indian-controlled Kashmir for first time after losing autonomy India's ruling BJP has a strong political base in the region's Hindu-dominated areas of Jammu that largely favor the 2019 changes and has won multiple seats from there in the past elections. But it is weak in the Kashmir Valley where the BJP has never won a seat. The party has fielded only 19 candidates for the 47 seats in the valley while it is contesting all 43 seats in Jammu. Modi's party is not officially aligned with any local group, but many politicians believe it is tacitly supporting some parties and independent candidates in the valley who privately agree with it. The region's main pro-India political parties say the BJP is trying to manipulate the election and fragment the valley's vote through independents. About 43% of 503 candidates contesting the vote in the Kashmir Valley are independents, compared to 35% of 359 candidates in Jammu. As in the previous phases of the elections, many voters in the valley said people were frustrated over the absence of their own representatives for so many years. The ballot was the only means for them to express anger at India's actions in the region, they said. "Truth is that it's the central government has been the real ruler here even before 2019," said Syed Altaf after casting his vote in the Kashmir Valley's Pattan area. Voting began Sept. 18 with about 61% turnout. In the second phase of voting on last Wednesday, overall turnout was about 55%. There were no incidents reported in either phase. Votes will be counted next Tuesday, with results expected later that day. The multistage election will allow Kashmir to have its own truncated government and a local legislature, called an assembly, rather than being directly under New Delhi's rule. However, there will be a limited transition of power from New Delhi to the 90-seat assembly as Kashmir will remain a "Union Territory" — directly controlled by the federal government — with India's Parliament as its main legislator. Kashmir's statehood must be restored for the new government to have powers similar to other states of India. Many in Indian-controlled Kashmir plan to vote this time to deny Modi total control Militants in the Indian-controlled portion of Kashmir have been fighting New Delhi's rule since 1989. Many Muslim Kashmiris support the rebels' goal of uniting the territory, either under Pakistani rule or as an independent country. India insists the Kashmir militancy is Pakistan-sponsored terrorism. Pakistan denies the charge, and many Kashmiris consider it a legitimate freedom struggle. Tens of thousands of civilians, rebels and government forces have been killed in the conflict.  

Japan's parliament elected Shigeru Ishiba as the new prime minister on Tuesday, tasked with addressing public outrage over his governing party's corruption scandals ahead of a parliamentary election later this month, while trying to boost the economy and tackle security challenges from China and North Korea. Ishiba replaces Fumio Kishida, who stepped down earlier Tuesday to pave the way for a fresh leader after Kishida's government was dogged by scandals. Ishiba entered the Prime Minister's Office and formed his Cabinet, which includes several security and defense experts, as he has called for a stronger regional military alliance and a more equal Japan-U.S. security partnership. Ishiba will hold a news conference later Tuesday to announce his Cabinet and some of his policy priorities. Japanese PM Kishida steps down to make way for likely successor Shigeru Ishiba Ishiba said he plans to call a parliamentary election for Oct. 27 so his new administration can have "the people's judgement" as soon as possible. Ishiba appointed to his Cabinet two former defense ministers with whom he has worked closely — Takeshi Iwaya as foreign minister and Gen Nakatani as defense chief — underscoring his emphasis on defense and security policies. Only two of the 19 ministers are women: actor-turned-lawmaker Junko Mihara as children's policy minister and Toshiko Abe as education minister. The government is under pressure to increase the number of women in public office. Women now account for only 10% of the lower house, placing Japan near the bottom of global gender-equality rankings. Ishiba appointed several ministers who voted for him in the party leadership poll and retained Kishida's top confidante, Yoshimasa Hayashi, as chief Cabinet secretary. He also appointed Katsunobu Kato as finance minister. Hayashi also previously served as defense minister. The majority of his Cabinet members, including Ishiba, are unaffiliated with factions led and controlled by party heavyweights, and none are from former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's powerful group linked to damaging scandals. Ishiba's lack of a stable power base could also mean his government will be fragile and "could quickly collapse" even though Ishiba hopes to build party unity as it prepares for the upcoming election, the liberal-leaning Asahi newspaper said. The move is also seen as revenge by Ishiba, who was largely pushed to the side during most of Abe's reign. Ishiba announced his party's leaders Monday ahead of naming his Cabinet. Former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, who came in third in the party leadership race, will head the party's election task force. "I will squarely face the people, discuss policies sincerely to gain their understanding. My government won't walk away from challenges and get things done," Ishiba said before the parliamentary vote. Opposition leaders criticized Ishiba for announcing such a plan before even becoming leader and allowing only several days for his policies to be examined and discussed in parliament before the national election. The parliament Tuesday adopted a plan to have sessions until Oct. 9, when Ishiba is expected to dissolve the lower house ahead of the Oct. 27 vote. Opposition protests delayed the start of the parliamentary vote by about half an hour, signaling a rocky beginning for Ishiba. Kishida had announced in August he would resign at the end of his three-year term to pave the way for a fresh leader ahead of the next national election, as corruption scandals dogged his party and government. Earlier Tuesday, Kishida and his ministers stepped down at a Cabinet meeting. Kishida left his office after a brief send-off ceremony in which he was presented a bouquet of red roses and applauded by his staff and former Cabinet members. "As we face a critical moment in and outside the country, I earnestly hope key policies that will pioneer Japan's future will be powerfully pursued by the new Cabinet," Kishida said in a statement. Ishiba has proposed an Asian version of the NATO military alliance and more discussion among regional partners about the use of the U.S. nuclear deterrence. He also suggested a more equal Japan-U.S. security alliance, including joint management of U.S. bases in Japan and having Japanese Self Defense Force bases in the United States. Ishiba outlined his views in an article to the Hudson Institute last week. Ishiba proposes to combine existing security and diplomatic groupings, such as the Quad and other bilateral and multilateral frameworks involving the United States, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and the Philippines. He noted that an Asian version of NATO could also consider sharing control of U.S. nuclear weapons in the region as a deterrence against growing threats from China, North Korea and Russia. He pledged to continue Kishida's economic policy aimed at pulling Japan out of deflation and achieving real salary increases, while tackling challenges such as Japan's declining birthrate and population and resilience to natural disasters. The LDP has had a nearly unbroken tenure governing Japan since World War II. The party members may have seen Ishiba's more centrist views as crucial in pushing back challenges by the liberal-leaning opposition and winning voter support as the party reels from corruption scandals that drove down Kishida's popularity. Ishiba, first elected to parliament in 1986, has served as defense minister, agriculture minister and in other key Cabinet posts, and was LDP secretary general under Abe.

Taiwan closed schools and offices and evacuated hundreds from vulnerable areas around the island Tuesday ahead of a strong typhoon expected to hit its populated western coast after lashing northern Philippine islands. More than 500 people were moved from mountainous regions prone to landslides. Nearly 40,000 troops were mobilized to help with rescue efforts, according to the Defense Ministry. Typhoon Krathon is expected to hit the major port city of Kaohsiung in the island’s southwest on Wednesday morning then move across the center of Taiwan and northeast toward the East China Sea, according to the Central Weather Administration. It is expected to be felt in the capital Taipei on Wednesday and Thursday. In Kaohsiung, a city of 2.7 million people, many stores and restaurants were closed. Up to 80 centimeters (31 inches) of rain was forecast in its mountainous areas. The typhoon was moving toward the island with maximum sustained winds of 198 kph (123 mph) and gusts of 245 kph (152 mph), according to the weather administration. Typhoon Krathon on Monday displaced nearly 2,000 people in the northern Philippines, where it blew away roofs of rural houses, toppled trees and caused widespread flooding. Wind damaged an airport terminal and two parked light planes in Basco, the capital of the northernmost province of Batanes. An airstrip and a hangar were also flooded in Lingayen town in Pangasinan province, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines. There were no immediate reports of casualties by the government’s disaster-response agency, but local officials said a resident was electrocuted Monday by a downed power line while riding a motorcycle in the coastal town of Santa Ana in Cagayan province.

Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida resigned with his Cabinet on Tuesday, paving the way for his likely successor Shigeru Ishiba to take office. Kishida took office in 2021 but is leaving so his party can have a fresh leader after his government was dogged by scandals. Ishiba plans to call a parliamentary election for Oct. 27 after he is formally chosen as prime minister later in the day. “I believe it is important to have the new administration get the public’s judgment as soon as possible,” Ishiba said Monday in announcing his plan to call a snap election. Opposition parties criticized Ishiba for allowing only a short period of time for his policies to be examined and discussed in parliament before the vote. Ishiba was chosen as the governing Liberal Democratic Party’s leader on Friday to replace Kishida, who announced in August he would resign at the end of his three-year term. Ishiba is assured of becoming prime minister later Tuesday in a vote by parliament because it is dominated by his party’s ruling coalition. Kishida and his ministers stepped down at a Cabinet meeting in the morning, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said. Hayashi, who is Kishida’s top confidante, said the world has high expectations for Japan’s diplomatic role, noting a deepening global divide over Russia's war in Ukraine and the conflict in the Middle East. “We hope the next administration will pursue an active and powerful diplomacy while placing importance on (Japan's) main pillars such as achieving a free and open Indo-Pacific," Hayashi said. Ishiba earlier announced his party's leaders ahead of naming his Cabinet, once he becomes prime minister. Former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, who came in third in the party leadership race, will head the party’s election task force. He is expected to name defense experts Takeshi Iwaya as foreign minister and Gen Nakatani as defense chief. The majority of his Cabinet ministers, like Ishiba, are expected to be unaffiliated with factions led and controlled by party heavyweights, and none are from former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's powerful group linked to damaging scandals. Ishiba's lack of stable power base could also mean a fragility of his government, and “could quickly collapse” even though Ishiba hopes to build up party unity as it prepares for the upcoming election, the liberal-leaning Asahi newspaper said. The move is also seen as a revenge by Ishiba, who was largely pushed to the side during most of Abe's reign. Ishiba has proposed an Asian version of the NATO military alliance and more discussion among regional partners about the use of the U.S. nuclear deterrence. He also suggested a more equal Japan-U.S. security alliance, including joint management of U.S. bases in Japan and having Japanese Self Defense Force bases in the United States. Ishiba outlined his views in an article to the Hudson Institute last week. “The absence of a collective self-defense system like NATO in Asia means that wars are likely to break out because there is no obligation for mutual defense. Under these circumstances, the creation of an Asian version of NATO is essential to deter China by its Western allies,” he wrote. Ishiba proposes combining of existing security and diplomatic groupings, such as the Quad and other bilateral and multilateral frameworks involving the United States, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and the Philippines. He also noted that the Asian version of NATO can also consider sharing of the control of U.S. nuclear weapons in the region as a deterrence against growing threats from China, North Korea and Russia. Ishiba on Friday stressed Japan needs to reinforce its security, noting recent violations of Japanese airspace by Russian and Chinese warplanes and repeated missile launches by North Korea. He pledged to continue Kishida’s economic policy aimed at pulling Japan out of deflation and achieving real salary increases, while tackling challenges such as Japan’s declining birthrate and population and resilience to natural disasters. The LDP has had a nearly unbroken tenure governing Japan since World War II. The party members may have seen Ishiba’s more centrist views as crucial in pushing back challenges by the liberal-leaning opposition and winning voter support as the party reels from corruption scandals that drove down Kishida’s popularity. Ishiba, first elected to parliament in 1986, has served as defense minister, agriculture minister and in other key Cabinet posts, and was LDP secretary general under Abe.

The number of people killed in Nepal by flooding and landslides triggered by heavy rainfall over the weekend reached 193 while recovery and rescue work stepped up on Monday. Many of the deaths were in the capital, Kathmandu, which got heavy rainfall, and much of southern part of the city was flooded. Police said in a statement that 31 people were still reported missing and 96 people were injured across the Himalayan nation. A landslide killed three dozen people on a blocked highway about 16 kilometers (10 miles) from Kathmandu. The landslide buried at least three buses and other vehicles where people were sleeping because the highway was blocked. Kathmandu had remained cut off all weekend as the three highways out of the city were blocked by landslides. Workers were able to temporarily open up the key Prithvi highway, removing rocks, mud and trees that had been washed from the mountains. The home minister announced temporary shelters would be built for people who lost their homes and monetary help would be available for the families of those killed and to the people who were injured by the flooding and landslides. Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli was returning home Monday from attending the U.N. General Assembly meeting and has called an emergency meeting, his office said. Improved weather has allowed rescue and recovery work to be stepped up. Residents in the southern part of Kathmandu, which was inundated on Saturday, were cleaning up houses as water levels began to recede. At least 34 people were killed in Kathmandu, which was the hardest hit by flooding. Police and soldiers were assisting with rescue efforts, while heavy equipment was used to clear the landslides from the roads. The government announced it was closing schools and colleges across Nepal for the next three days. The monsoon season began in June and usually ends by mid-September. Meanwhile, in northern Bangladesh, about 60,000 people were affected by flooding in low-lying areas because of rains and rising water from upstream India. People have taken shelter on roads and flood protection embankments in Lalmonirhat and Kurigram districts, the English-language Daily Star reported. The River Teesta that crosses the border was overflowing at some points and the Dharala and Dudhkumar rivers in the Rangpur region were rising but remained below danger levels, the Dhaka-based Flood Forecasting and Warning Center said Monday. Waters could start receding in a day or two, it said. Bangladesh is a low-lying delta nation crisscrossed by about 230 rivers, including more than 50 that cross borders.

Hezbollah's acting leader vowed Monday to keep battling Israel and said the Lebanese militant group was prepared for a long fight even after much of its top command was wiped out, including its leader, Hassan Nasrallah. Israeli strikes have killed Nasrallah and six of his top commanders and officials in the last 10 days, and have hit what the military says are thousands of militant targets across large parts of Lebanon. Over 1,000 people have been killed in the country in the past two weeks, nearly a quarter of them women and children, according to the Health Ministry. Early Monday, an airstrike hit a residential building in central Beirut, wiping out one apartment, damaging others, and killing three Palestinian militants, as Israel appeared to send a clear message that no part of Lebanon is out of bounds. Despite the heavy blow Hezbollah has suffered in recent weeks, acting leader Naim Kassem said in a televised statement that if Israel decides to launch a ground offensive, the group's fighters are ready. He said the commanders killed have already been replaced. “Israel was not able to affect our (military) capabilities,” Kassem said in a televised statement, the first time any senior Hezbollah figure has been seen since Nasrallah was killed. “There are deputy commanders and there are replacements in case a commander is wounded in any post.” He added that Hezbollah, which fought Israel to a stalemate in their monthlong war in 2006, anticipated “the battle could be long.” A founding member of the militant group who had been Nasrallah’s longtime deputy, Kassem will remain in his acting position until the group’s leadership elects a replacement. The man widely expected to take over the top post is Hashem Safieddine, a cousin of Nasrallah who oversees Hezbollah’s political affairs. Hezbollah has significantly increased its rocket attacks in the past week to several hundred daily, but most have been intercepted or fallen in open areas. Several people have been wounded in Israel. There have been no fatalities since two soldiers were killed near the border on Sept. 19. But Hezbollah’s capabilities remain unclear. As recently as two weeks ago, a strike like Monday's in central Beirut — outside of the main areas where Hezbollah operates and next to a busy transportation hub normally crowded with buses, taxis and vans — would have been seen as a major escalation and likely followed by a long-range Hezbollah strike into Israel. But the unspoken rules of the long-running conflict no longer seem to be in effect. It's possible that Hezbollah is holding back to save resources for a bigger battle, including a threatened Israeli ground invasion. But the militant group might also be in disarray after Israeli intelligence apparently penetrated its highest levels. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, meeting with Israeli troops on Monday, said Israel would “use all the capabilities we have,” hinting at a ground operation. “You are part of this effort,” he added. In the past week, Israel has frequently targeted Beirut’s southern suburbs, where Hezbollah has a strong presence — including the massive strike on Friday that killed Nasrallah — but had not hit locations closer to the city center. The strike early Monday killed three members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a small, leftist faction that has not been meaningfully involved in months of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Israel has not claimed the strike but is widely assumed to have carried it out. Also Monday, Hamas announced that its top commander in Lebanon, Fatah Sharif, was killed with his family in an airstrike on the Al-Buss refugee camp in the southern port city of Tyre. The Israeli military confirmed that it had targeted him. Hezbollah began firing rockets, drones and missiles into northern Israel after Hamas' Oct. 7 attack from Gaza into Israel sparked the war in the Palestinian territory. Hezbollah and Hamas are allies and both supported by Iran, and Hezbollah said it would continue the attacks in solidarity with the Palestinians until there was a cease-fire in Gaza. Israel responded to the rockets with airstrikes in Lebanon, where Hezbollah is based, and the fighting has steadily escalated over the past year. The Lebanese government says the fighting may have displaced up to a million people, although the U.N. estimate is around 200,000. Tens of thousands of Israelis have also been displaced. Israel has vowed to keep fighting until the attacks stop and its citizens can return to their homes. The United States and its allies have called for a cease-fire, hoping to avoid further escalation that could draw in Iran and set off a wider war. But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has shown little interest, as his country racks up military achievements against a longtime foe. Some Israelis broke into spontaneous celebrations after Nasrallah’s death was announced. Videos circulated of crowds at bars singing a song in Hebrew mocking him. A news anchor on a pro-Netanyahu station sang and danced as the studio audience joined in with him while a commentator on Israel’s largest TV station offered co-panelists celebratory shots. Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said the country is committed to an immediate cease-fire followed by the deployment of Lebanese troops in the south, in keeping with a U.N. Security Council resolution that ended the 2006 war but was never fully implemented. Mikati spoke after meeting with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot. France, which has close ties to Lebanon, has joined the United States in calling for a cease-fire. Hezbollah, which boasts tens of thousands of battle-hardened fighters and long-range missiles capable of hitting anywhere inside Israel, has long been seen as the most powerful militant group in the region and a key partner to Iran in both threatening and deterring Israel. But Hezbollah has never faced an onslaught quite like this one, which began with a sophisticated attack on its pagers and walkie-talkies in mid-September that killed dozens of people and wounded around 3,000 — including many fighters but also many civilians. White House national security spokesman John Kirby said Israel's airstrikes in Lebanon had “wiped out” Hezbollah’s command structure but warned that the group will work quickly to rebuild it. “We’re watching to see what they do to try to fill this leadership vacuum. It’s going to be tough,” he told CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday.

The Israeli military said Sunday that it killed another high-ranking Hezbollah official in an airstrike as the Lebanese militant group was reeling from a string of devastating blows and the killing of its overall leader, Hassan Nasrallah. The military said Nabil Kaouk, the deputy head of Hezbollah's Central Council, was killed on Saturday. There was no immediate comment from Hezbollah, and it was not known where the strike took place. If confirmed, he would be the seventh senior Hezbollah leader slain in Israeli strikes in a little over a week, including founding members who had evaded death or detention for decades. The Israeli military said it carried out another targeted strike on Beirut later on Sunday, with details to follow. Hezbollah meanwhile confirmed that one of the seven, Ali Karaki, died in Friday's strike that killed Nasrallah. The Israeli military had earlier said that Karaki was killed in the airstrike, which targeted an underground compound in Beirut where Nasrallah and other senior Hezbollah figures were meeting. Hezbollah has also been targeted by a sophisticated attack on its pagers and walkie-talkies that was widely blamed on Israel. A wave of Israeli airstrikes across large parts of Lebanon has killed at least 1,030 people — including 156 women and 87 children — in less than two weeks, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry. Hundreds of thousands of people have been driven from their homes in Lebanon by the lastest strikes. The government estimates that around 250,000 are in shelters, with three to four times as many staying with friends or relatives, or camping out on the streets, Environment Minister Nasser Yassin told The Associated Press. Hezbollah has continued to fire rockets and missiles into northern Israel, but most have been intercepted or fallen in open areas. No Israelis have been killed since the latest wave of strikes on top Hezbollah leaders began on Sept. 20. Kaouk was a veteran member of Hezbollah going back to the 1980s and served as Hezbollah's military commander in southern Lebanon during the 2006 war with Israel. He often appeared in local media, where he would comment on politics and security developments, and he gave eulogies at the funerals of senior militants. The United States had announced sanctions against him in 2020. Hezbollah began firing rockets, missiles and drones into northern Israel after Hamas' Oct. 7 attack out of Gaza triggered the war there. Hezbollah and Hamas are allies that consider themselves part of an Iran-backed “Axis of Resistance” against Israel. Israel has responded with waves of airstrikes, and the conflict has steadily ratcheted up to the brink of all-out war, raising fears of a region-wide conflagration. Israel says it is determined to return some 60,000 of its citizens to communities in the north that were evacuated nearly a year ago. Hezbollah has said it will only halt its rocket fire if there is a cease-fire in Gaza, which has proven elusive despite months of indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas led by the United States, Qatar and Egypt.

The death toll from flooding and landslides in Nepal has reached at least 100, with dozens of people still missing. Police on Sunday morning warned the death toll was expected to rise further as reports come in from villages across the mountainous country. The weather in Nepal was improved on Sunday and rescue, recovery and clean-up efforts were underway. Rescuer workers recovered 14 bodies overnight from two buses headed to Kathmandu that were buried in a landslide on a highway near the capital city. At least one other bus and other vehicles were still buried at the same spot, and rescuer workers were digging through rocks and mud trying to find people. Kathmandu remained cut off Sunday as the main highways out of the city were blocked by landslides. Three highways, including the key Prithvi highway that connects Kathmandu to the rest of the country, have been blocked by landslides. Residents in the southern part of Kathmandu, which was inundated by water, were cleaning up their houses as water levels began to recede. At least 34 people were killed in Kathmandu, which was the hardest hit by Saturday’s flooding. Police officers and soldiers were assisting with rescue efforts, while heavy equipment was used to clear the landslides from the roads. The government announced it was closing schools and colleges across Nepal for the next three days. The heavy rains, which started on Friday, slowed on Saturday night, but were expected to continue through the weekend. Last week, the government issued flood warnings across the Himalayan nation warning of massive rainfall. Buses were banned from traveling at night on highways and people were discouraged from driving cars. The monsoon season began in June and usually ends by mid-September.

Dozens of children drowned while bathing in rivers and ponds in rituals that were part of a three-day Hindu festival in eastern India's Bihar state, officials said. Heavy monsoon rains recently had raised the levels of waterways across the state. At least 46 people, including 37 children, drowned in separate incidents across the state’s 15 districts, a statement from Bihar’s disaster management department said. Authorities have recovered 43 bodies so far, and the three missing people are presumed to be dead. During the annual festival, mothers fast for 24 hours for the well-being of their children. The women are sometimes accompanied by their children when they visit rivers and ponds for cleansing rituals. The festival concluded Thursday. The state government has announced a compensation of 400,000 rupees ($4,784) for the families of each of the dead. Deadly accidents like drownings and stampedes during religious festivals are common in India. In July, at least 121 people were killed after severe overcrowding and a lack of exits contributed to a stampede at a religious festival in northern India.