Israeli drone strikes on Tehran stoke fears of a surge in Middle East crisis as Iran says it won’t hit back
Israel said nothing about the incident. It had said for days it was planning to retaliate against Iran for Saturday’s strikes, the first ever direct attack on Israel by Iran in decades of shadow war waged by proxies which has escalated throughout the Middle East through six months of battle in Gaza.
Israel retaliatory strikes on Iran rattle stocks but US Treasuries report recovery after attacks
Oil prices jumped $3 a barrel on concern that Middle East oil supply could be disrupted, but later pared some of the gains after Iran said it has no plans for an immediate retaliation, denying that any attack had taken place.
India’s sitting PM Modi’s quest for a third term put to test as world’s largest democracy votes
Most polls predict a win for Modi and his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, who are up against a broad opposition alliance led by the Indian National Congress and powerful regional parties. It’s not clear who will lead India if the opposition alliance, called INDIA, wins the election. Its more than 20 parties have not put forward a candidate yet.
Death-row inmates, terminally and elderly among 4,000 prisoners freed on Zimbabwe Independence Day
All death row prisoners who have been in jail for at least 10 years had their sentences commuted to life in prison under the amnesty. Zimbabwe has more than 60 inmates on death row. It wasn’t immediately clear how many of those had their sentences commuted to life under the amnesty.
UN approves simplified, cheaper version of cholera vaccine expected to reduce surge in cases
WHO’s approval means donor agencies like the vaccines alliance Gavi and UNICEF can now buy it for poorer countries. Leila Pakkala, director of UNICEF’s supply division, said in a statement that the agency will be able to boost supplies by more than 25 per cent.
Politics or banditry: Speculation rife as Kenya’s military chief dies in suspect helicopter crash
Gen Ogolla, 61, was on a tour of the country’s troubled western region that has seen frequent attacks by local bandits. He was appointed Kenya’s Chief of Defence Forces in April last year after Gen Robert Kibochi retired.
Leaked New York Times memo on Gaza bans use of terms such as genocide, ethnic cleansing and occupied territory
The leak gave rise to a highly unusual internal probe. The company faced harsh criticism for allegedly targeting Times workers of Middle East and North African descent, which Times brass denied. On Monday, executive editor Joe Kahn told staff that the leak investigation had been concluded unsuccessfully.
Kenyan military helicopter crashes, 10 soldiers killed but fate of military chief unknown
However, three other soldiers on the helicopter were injured and taken to hospital, the police source said, asking not to be named.
Double-face: Leaked diplomatic cables show White House opposes Palestinian statehood
While clarifying that President Joe Biden has worked vigorously to support “Palestinian aspirations for statehood” within the context “of a comprehensive peace that would resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” a diplomatic cable dated April 12 details US talking points against a UN vote for Palestinian statehood.
After Covid, WHO defines disease spread as ‘through air’ and drops common ‘airborne’ descriptor
During the early days of Covid in 2020, around 200 aerosol scientists publicly complained that the WHO had failed to warn people of the risk that the virus could spread through the air. This led to an overemphasis on measures like handwashing to stop the virus, rather than focusing on ventilation, they said.
