GAZA — At least eight civilians, including children and women, were killed and others were injured at dawn in the ongoing Israeli occupation bombing of several areas in the Gaza Strip.
Medical sources reported that five civilians, including two children, were killed and others were wounded in a missile attack that targeted a house owned by Al-Matari family east of Khan Yunis city in the southern Gaza Strip.
They added that one civilian was killed and others were injured in the occupation bombing of a house belonging to the Fares family in Al-Amal neighborhood west of Khan Yunis, amid bulldozing and artillery shelling for the second day east of Al-Fakhari town.
Two women were killed after the occupation warplanes bombed a house in Jabalia camp north of the Strip, and another in the new camp in Al-Nuseirat.
The occupation carried out operations to blow up citizens’ homes in Al-Zeitoun neighborhood southeast of Gaza City, coinciding with the warplanes bombing two houses in the neighborhood.
The occupation forces have continued the brutal aggression on the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023, resulting in the killing of 41,495 civilians and the injury of 96,006 others, most of whom are children and women.
TOKYO — An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.7 struck off coast Kushiro of Hokkaido, northern main island of Japan, the weather agency said Thursday.
According to the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), at 04:01 p.m. local time, the temblor’s epicenter was located at a latitude of 42.8 degrees north and a longitude of 145.1 degrees east, and occurred at a depth of 60 km.
TOKYO — Tokyo stocks rebounded on Thursday, spurred by a buying spree for auto stocks such as Toyota and Honda following the yen’s depreciation.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei stock index, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average, jumped 2.79 percent, or 1,055.37 points, to close at 38,925.63, marking its highest level in nearly two months.
The yen’s depreciation, briefly reaching 145 yen to the dollar, prompted a buying spree for auto stocks as a weaker yen benefited the export companies.
Strong semiconductor stocks in the U.S. stock market overnight also helped drive gains in semiconductor-related shares in Japan, with stocks like Tokyo Electron seeing robust buying.
The broader TOPIX index rose on Thursday, closing 70.62 points, or 2.66 percent, higher at 2,721.12.
On the top-tier Prime Market, advancing issues outnumbered decliners by 1,580 to 56, with 9 issues remaining unchanged.
KANGAR — Pendakwah selebriti, Ustaz Ahmad Husam Muhamad Baderudin didakwa di Mahkamah Sesyen hari ini atas kesalahan menggunakan gelaran dan kehormatan yang tidak diiktiraf.
Tertuduh berusia 34 tahun dan berasal dari Kodiang, Kedah bagaimanapun mengaku tidak bersalah dan mohon dibicarakan selepas pertuduhan dibacakan di hadapan Hakim Sharifah Norazlita Syed Salim Idid.
Berdasarkan kertas pertuduhan, Ahmad Husam didakwa menerima gelaran dan kehormatan tidak diiktiraf daripada Yang Dipertua Negeri Melaka pada 4 Mei tahun lalu sekitar jam 11.30 pagi di Pejabat Jabatan Siasatan Jenayah Komersil, Ibu Pejabat Polis Kontinjen Perlis, Jalan Kangar-Alor Setar di Kangar.
Tertuduh didakwa melakukan kesalahan mengikut Seksyen 4A (3) Enakmen Lambang-Lambang dan Nama-Nama (Mencegah Penggunaan Tidak Betul) (Pindaan) 2016 (Enakmen A21) yang dibaca bersama Seksyen 17 Akta Kesalahan yang berhubungan dengan Anugerah 2017 (Akta 787).
Kesalahan berkenaan juga boleh dihukum mengikut Seksyen 4A(6) Enakmen Lambang-Lambang dan Nama-Nama (Mencegah Penggunaan Tidak Betul) (Pindaan) 2016 (Enakmen A21).
Jika sabit kesalahan, tertuduh boleh didenda tidak lebih RM500,000 atau penjara tidak lebih lima tahun atau kedua-duanya.
Pendakwaan dilaksanakan oleh Pengarah Pendakwaan Negeri Perlis, Muhamad Asyraf Md Kamal dan Timbalan Pendakwa Raya Negeri Perlis, Jodia Poh Yi Tying manakala tertuduh diwakili peguam, Nur Iman Nor Azmi dan Nur Amin Nor Azmi.
Muhamad Asyraf dalam hujahannya memohon mahkamah mengenakan jaminan sebanyak RM50,000 kepada tertuduh manakala, Nur Iman mewakili anak guamnya membantah perkara itu dan memohon jaminan minimum berikutan tertuduh hanya pengetua Maahad Tahfiz di Kedah, sudah berkahwin dan mempunyai seorang anak serta menderita sakit gout dan asma.
Mahkamah kemudian menetapkan tertuduh dengan jaminan sebanyak RM25,000 dengan seorang penjamin.
Sebutan semula kes pula ditetapkan pada 28 Oktober ini dan tertuduh dikehendaki melapor diri pada balai polis yang terdekat.
Tertuduh kemudian membayar jaminan yang dikenakan.
Terdahulu, Ahmad Husam tiba di perkarangan mahkamah sekitar jam 8.45 pagi diiringi hampir 10 orang ahli keluarga dan penyokong.
Dalam masa yang sama, tertuduh juga dilihat cuba mengelakkan diri daripada media yang menanti di perkarangan mahkamah sejak awal pagi.
KUALA LUMPUR — Polis sedang memburu dua rakan kepada suspek dengan 26 rekod jenayah yang maut ditembak polis di Kampung Baru Kundang, Rawang, Selangor, semalam.
Ketua Polis Selangor, Datuk Hussein Omar Khan berkata, terdapat dua suspek yang sedang diburu itu disyaki turut terbabit kes jenayah pecah kedai di Damansara, Petaling Jaya.
“Kedua-dua suspek kini dalam buruan polis bagi membantu siasatan,” katanya ketika dihubungi.
Terdahulu media melaporkan seorang lelaki yang juga penjenayah dikehendaki dan mempunyai 26 rekod jenayah lampau maut ditembak selepas merempuh kenderaan polis dan orang awam di Kampung Baru Kundang, Rawang.
Lelaki berusia 30-an yang pernah ditahan mengikut Akta Pencegahan Jenayah 1959 (POCA) itu disyaki terbabit dalam kes pecah kedai di Damansara.
Dalam kejadian jam 1.15 pagi, suspek mengundurkan kenderaan secara laju dan merbahaya ketika diarah berhenti sebelum merempuh kenderaan polis dan orang awam di lokasi.
Polis terpaksa melepaskan beberapa das tembakan untuk mempertahankan diri sebelum suspek disahkan meninggal dunia di lokasi kejadian.
Susulan kejadian itu, polis turut menyelamatkan seorang lelaki warga Indonesia yang menjadi mangsa culik suspek.
Mangsa dipercayai diculik di kawasan Salak South, Cheras dan ditemui selamat ketika operasi di Kundang.
Mengulas lanjut, Hussein berkata, lelaki yang menjadi mangsa culik itu sudah membuat laporan di Ibu Pejabat Polis Daerah (IPD) Cheras, selepas diselamatkan semalam.
Siasatan lanjut dijalankan Kontinjen Kuala Lumpur mengikut Seksyen 363 Kanun Keseksaan.
MUAR — Dua ‘ah long’ mengaku salah di Mahkamah Sesyen di sini, hari ini atas pertuduhan melakukan khianat dengan api hingga merosakkan tiga rumah peminjam di Tangkak, dua minggu lalu.
Tertuduh, Li Ao Chen, 30 dan Goh Poh Liang, 38, masing-masing mengaku bersalah selepas tiga pertuduhan dibacakan secara bersama di hadapan Hakim Nariman Badruddin.
Mengikut pertuduhan, mereka didakwa melakukan khianat dengan api terhadap tiga rumah mangsa berusia 41, 55, dan 52 tahun di tiga lokasi berasingan iaitu di Taman Tangkak Jaya 4, Taman Tangkak Jaya dan Taman Tiara 2 dengan ketiga-tiga kejadian berlaku jam 6.07 pagi, 14 September lalu.
Mereka didakwa mengikut Seksyen 435 Kanun Keseksaan yang dibaca bersama Seksyen 34 kanun sama, membabitkan hukuman penjara sehingga 14 tahun dan juga denda.
Pendakwaan dikendalikan Timbalan Pendakwa Raya, Mohammad Arif Marzuki, manakala kedua-dua tertuduh tidak diwakili peguam.
Mahkamah menetapkan 3 Oktober ini untuk tarikh hukuman terhadap dua tertuduh.
Selasa lalu, dua tertuduh turut didakwa di Mahkamah Majistret Tangkak bersama tujuh lagi yang ditahan susulan kejadian sama.
Mereka didakwa mengikut Seksyen 15(1)(a) Akta Dadah Berbahaya 1952 dan didenda RM1,500 setiap seorang.
KOTA BHARU: Seorang buruh didakwa di Mahkamah Sesyen di sini hari ini, atas pertuduhan mencederakan isteri dengan menggunakan seterika, 23 September lalu.
Bagaimanapun tertuduh, Mohd Nurhakiman Mohd Nasir, 35, mengaku tidak bersalah terhadap pertuduhan yang dibacakan jurubahasa di hadapan Hakim Zulkifli Abllah.
Mengikut pertuduhan, tertuduh dengan sengaja mencederakan isteri dengan menggunakan seterika di sebuah rumah di Kampung Rambutan Rendang, di sini, jam 7.30 pagi, pada 23 September 2024.
Menurut pertuduhan itu, tertuduh didakwa mengikut Seksyen 324 Kanun Keseksaan yang memperuntukan hukuman penjara maksimum 10 tahun atau denda atau sebatan dan boleh dihukum mengikut Seksyen 326A kanun sama.
Kesalahan mengikut Seksyen 326A memperuntukan hukuman penjara dua kali ganda tempoh maksimum.
Pendakwaan dikendalikan Timbalan Pendakwa Raya, Kamarul Hasyime Rosli manakala tertuduh tidak diwakili peguam.
Terdahulu, Kamarul Hasyime tidak mengemukakan sebarang jaminan kerana tertuduh dan isterinya masih tinggal bersama dalam satu rumah.
Mahkamah menetapkan 29 Oktober depan sebagai tarikh sebutan semula kes bagi latikan peguam dan serahan dokumen.
BANGI — Suruhanjaya Pencegahan Rasuah Malaysia (SPRM) akan melakukan tinjauan ke atas sekolah terpilih bagi menjejaki dan menyiasat isu tuntutan bayaran bagi tender perkhidmatan 1BestariNet, projek kerajaan terdahulu membabitkan Kementerian Pendidikan (KPM) bernilai RM4 bilion.
Ketua Pesuruhjaya SPRM, Tan Sri Azam Baki berkata, siasatan akan mengambil sedikit masa memandangkan ia membabitkan lebih 8,000 sekolah di seluruh negara.
“Isu dibangkitkan pelbagai pihak ini sedang disiasat. Masa (siasatan) panjang lagi kerana banyak tempat perlu dilawati, memandangkan kes ini melibatkan 8,000 sekolah.
“Bayangkan (jumlah sekolah yang banyak), jadi penyiasatan ini akan berleluasa (diperluas) sedikit. Semua sekolah terbabit dalam projek ini yang mana setiap sekolah akan dibekalkan data tertentu.
“Jadi kita kena kaji betul atau tidak pembekalan itu. Dalam penyiasatan kita, tumpuannya untuk melihat pembekalan dibuat atau tidak, kalau dituntut (bayaran) betul atau tidak,” katanya.
Beliau ditemui media selepas Majlis Perasmian Persidangan Penyelidikan Governans, Integriti dan Anti Rasuah Peringkat Kebangsaan kali ke-3 2024 di sini hari ini. Majlis disempurnakan Ketua Setiausaha Negara (KSN), Tan Sri Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar.
Pada 4 September lalu, media melaporkan SPRM memulakan siasatan terhadap tuntutan bayaran bagi tender perkhidmatan 1BestariNet KPM bernilai RM4 bilion yang dianugerahkan kepada YTL Communications Sdn Bhd (YTL).
Pada 2011, kerajaan memulakan projek 1BestariNet dengan matlamat menyediakan akses internet berkelajuan tinggi kepada 10,000 sekolah di negara ini dan melaksanakan Pelantar Persekitaran Pembelajaran Maya (VLE) berasaskan awan.
KPM kemudian menganugerahkan kontrak selama 15 tahun bernilai RM4.1 bilion kepada YTL Communications Sdn Bhd (Yes 4G) bagi pelaksanaan projek itu.
Mengulas lanjut Azam berkata, aspek mutu perkhidmatan bagi pembekalan data yang diperlu dan sudah dibekalkan kepada sekolah adalah antara tumpuan dan fokus siasatan.
“Banyak perkara kita siasat antaranya mutu perkhidmatan yang diberikan kepada sekolah-sekolah. Keduanya adalah ada (syarikat) dimana pembekalan data kepada sekolah tidak dibekalkan.
“Jadi kita perlu lihat perkara ini. Undang-undang rasuah, jika dituntut tapi tidak dibekalkan secara prinsipnya adalah satu kesalahan,” katanya.
PETALING JAYA — Dua belas syarikat berkaitan GISB Holdings (GISBH) dikenakan kompaun keseluruhan RM4.4 juta oleh Suruhanjaya Syarikat Malaysia (SSM) kerana gagal menyerahkan penyata tahunan dan penyata kewangan masing-masing.
Menteri Perdagangan Dalam Negeri dan Kos Sara Hidup, Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali, berkata kompaun itu dikeluarkan baru-baru ini selepas siasatan dilakukan SSM mendapati semua syarikat terbabit tidak mematuhi tanggungjawab berkenaan.
Selain 12 entiti perniagaan itu, katanya, terdapat 17 syarikat lain menggunakan nama ‘GISB’ dalam pendaftaran SSM.
Beliau berkata, semakan data serta laman sesawang berkaitan ‘GISB’ atau ‘Ikhwan’ pula mendapati sebanyak 201 perniagaan boleh dikaitkan dengan GISBH.
“Antara tanggungjawab syarikat setiap tahun ialah perlu mengemukakan penyata kewangan mereka yang telah diaudit. Siasatan SSM mendapati 12 syarikat ini tidak patuh dengan tanggungjawab menyerahkan penyata tahunan dan penyata kewangan,” katanya.
Beliau yang ditemui pemberita selepas majlis perasmian TikTok Shop Seller Summit 2024, di sini hari ini.
Dalam isu GISBH, katanya, Kementerian Perdagangan Dalam Negeri dan Kos Sara Hidup (KPDN) bertanggungjawab membantu Polis Diraja Malaysia (PDRM) dari segi perundangan dan ketidakpatuhan terhadap akta berkaitan oleh rangkaian perniagaan mereka.
KLANG — Ekoran tindakan merotan dan menekan dada kanak-kanak seperti video yang tular sebelum ini, seorang warden sekolah agama milik GISB Holdings (GISBH) dihukum penjara 10 tahun oleh Mahkamah Sesyen, di sini, hari ini.
Hakim Noridah Adam menjatuhkan hukuman ke atas Muhammad Barur Rahim Hisam, 23, selepas dia mengaku bersalah sebaik empat pertuduhan dibacakan terhadapnya.
Mengikut keempat-empat pertuduhan itu, lelaki itu didakwa sebagai seorang yang mempunyai pemeliharaan terhadap tiga kanak-kanak lelaki berusia 10 dan 11 tahun menganiaya mereka dengan merotan dan menekan dada menggunakan lutut salah seorang mangsa yang mungkin menyebabkan kesemua mangsa mengalami kecederaan fizikal.
Kesalahan itu didakwa dilakukan di dua premis di Bukit Raja, Klang Utara, di sini pada Jun, Julai dan September 2024.
Semua pertuduhan dikemukakan mengikut Seksyen 31(1)(a) Akta Kanak-kanak 2001 yang memperuntukkan hukuman maksimum penjara 20 tahun atau denda RM50,000 atau kedua-duanya, jika sabit kesalahan.
Muhammad Barur Rahim turut dikenakan bon kelakuan baik selama lima tahun dengan cagaran RM10,000 dengan seorang penjamin.
Jika gagal memasuki bon, tertuduh diperintahkan menjalani hukuman penjara selama enam bulan bagi setiap pertuduhan.
Mahkamah memerintahkan semua hukuman bermula tarikh tertuduh ditangkap 11 September lalu dan dijalankan secara berasingan.
Tertuduh tidak diwakili peguam.
Ketika rayuan, Muhammad Barur Rahim yang bertugas sebagai penjaga di Sekolah Rendah Islam Miftahul Hikmah kendalian kumpulan GISBH berkata dia telah insaf dan tekad serta berazam tidak akan ulangi kesalahan.
“Saya belum berkahwin namun menanggung ibu bapa saya, kalau boleh saya mohon hukuman diringankan,” katanya yang hanya menundukkan kepala sepanjang prosiding berlangsung.
Terdahulu tertuduh yang memakai baju-T merah diiringi polis, tiba di mahkamah jam 9.45 pagi.
Rabu lalu media melaporkan, Ketua Polis Negara, Tan Sri Razarudin Husain berkata pendakwaan terhadap suspek akan dibuat mengikut Seksyen 31(1)(a) Akta Kanak-Kanak 2001.
Pada 16 September lalu, polis memulakan siasatan berhubung rakaman video satu minit sembilan saat memaparkan beberapa kanak-kanak lelaki dipercayai didera. Dalam rakaman video itu, kanak-kanak lelaki terbabit dilihat mengerang kesakitan ketika disoal beberapa kali oleh seorang lelaki dewasa.
Polis juga telah mengesan kanak-kanak lelaki terbabit dalam kalangan mangsa yang diselamatkan sebelum ini yang dipisahkan dengan bapanya sejak 2021.
Sementara itu, Timbalan Pendakwa Raya Datin Kalmizah Salleh menegaskan bagi menentukan hukuman, mahkamah perlu melihat pada fakta kes yang dikemukakan.
Kalmizah menyenaraikan lima faktor tertuduh patut dihukum dengan hukuman yang setimpal dengan kesalahan yang dilakukan.
“Hukuman harus mempertimbangkan faktor kekerasan, kecederaan ke atas mangsa, faktor keadaan mangsa, faktor kepentingan awam, faktor mental mangsa kesan akibat kejadian yang berlaku.
“Tindakan tertuduh tidak berperikemanusiaan ke atas mangsa berdasarkan perlakuan tertuduh dalam melakukan kesalahan tersebut,” katanya.
Kalmizah turut memohon hukuman untuk semua empat pertuduhan dijalankan secara berasingan.
Mengikut pertuduhan, Muhd Barur Rahim didakwa merotan mangsa sekitar Jun dan Julai 2024 di Sekolah Rendah Islam Miftahul Hikmah, Bukit Raja Klang dengan menggunakan sebatang rotan yang mungkin menyebabkan kecederaan fizikal.
Mangsa pertama adalah seorang kanak-kanak lelaki berusia 11 tahun di rotan sebanyak lima kali kerana buang sampah merata-rata di sekolah tersebut.
Mangsa kedua, seorang budak lelaki 11 tahun dirotan enam kali, dan laporan perubatan mengesahkan mangsa mengalami kesan lebam lama di ibu jari.
Tertuduh didakwa menindih dada mangsa ketiga, seorang budak lelaki 10 tahun sekitar Jun 2024 di sekolah sama dengan lututnya sehingga meninggalkan kesan lebam dada mangsa.
Mangsa ketiga turut dirotan sekitar September sebelum serbuan dilakukan. Laporan perubatan sahkan mangsa ada kesan lebam di dada dan kecederaan lama di jari.
BH sebelum ini melaporkan polis percaya lebih banyak penderaan yang berlaku terhadap penghuni rumah amal yang dikaitkan dengan GISBH akan dapat dibongkar.
Sebelum ini Razarudin dilaporkan berkata, beberapa rakaman video berkaitan penderaan terhadap kanak-kanak dan remaja yang menghuni di rumah amal berkenaan kini dalam penelitian pihak polis.
Beliau mengulas beberapa rakaman video yang tular menunjukkan penderaan dialami dua kanak-kanak dipercayai penghuni rumah amal itu.
Israeli Iron Dome air defense system fires to intercept rockets that were launched from Lebanon, in northern Israel, Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
TEL AVIV, Israel — Israel is preparing for a possible ground operation in Lebanon, its army chief said Wednesday as Hezbollah fired dozens of rockets across the border and a missile aimed at Tel Aviv that was the militant group’s deepest strike yet.
Addressing troops on the northern border, Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said Israel’s punishing airstrikes this week were designed to ”prepare the ground for your possible entry and to continue degrading Hezbollah.”
Israel says it targeted Hezbollah weapons and rocket launchers in attacks that have killed more than 600 people, at least a quarter of them women and children, according to Lebanese health officials.
In an apparent reference to the missile fired at Tel Aviv, Halevi told troops: “Today, Hezbollah expanded its range of fire, and later today, they will receive a very strong response. Prepare yourselves.”
It was not clear whether he was referring to a ground operation, airstrikes or some other form of retaliation against Hezbollah, which is Lebanon’s strongest political force and, with backing from Iran, is widely considered the top paramilitary group in the Arab world.
The Israeli military has said in recent days it had no immediate plans for a ground invasion, but Halevi’s comments were the strongest yet suggesting troops could move in.
Israeli said Wednesday it would activate two reserve brigades for missions in the north — another sign that Israel plans tougher action.
In the southern Israeli city of Eilat, a building at the port was struck by a drone, an attack that injured two people and was claimed by an umbrella group for Iranian-backed militias in Iraq.
A second drone was intercepted, the Israeli military said.
Footage aired on Israeli media showed a plume of smoke in the area and at least one damaged building. The army said the drones were identified “approaching from the East.”
Tensions between Israel and Hezbollah have steadily escalated since war broke out 11 months ago between Israel and Hamas, another Iran-backed militant group. Hezbollah has been firing rockets, missiles and drones into northern Israel in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza and Hamas.
Israel has responded with increasingly heavy airstrikes and the targeted killing of Hezbollah commanders while threatening a wider operation.
Nearly a year of fighting had already displaced tens of thousands of people on both sides of the border before the recent escalation.
Israel has vowed to do whatever it takes to ensure its citizens can return to their homes in the north, while Hezbollah has said it will keep up its rocket attacks until there is a cease-fire in Gaza, something that appears increasingly remote.
To allow displaced Israelis to return to their homes, “we are preparing the process of a maneuver,” Halevi told troops.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Israel and Hezbollah to step back, saying all-out war would be disastrous for the region and its people.
In New York for the annual U.N. General Assembly, Blinken said the U.S. was working with other partners on a temporary cease-fire plan to reduce tensions and allow Israelis and Lebanese to return to their homes in border areas.
U.S. officials say they are floating ideas but have not been specific.
Some may be discussed at a special U.N. Security Council meeting on Lebanon that France called for later Wednesday.
Lebanon’s health minister said more than 50 people were killed Wednesday in the continuing Israeli strikes, raising the death toll from the past three days to 615, with more than 2,000 wounded.
At Dar Al Amal hospital in the eastern city of Baalbek, Soumaya Moussawi lay in bed with her head bandaged and face bruised.
She had been sitting outside with relatives when warplanes started striking in the distance, she said.
“Then suddenly it hit next to us. We were all thrown in different directions,” she said.
Two cousins and her father were killed, and another cousin was badly wounded.
This week has been the deadliest in Lebanon since the bruising 2006 monthlong war between Israel and Hezbollah.
Hezbollah said it fired a Qader 1 ballistic missile targeting the headquarters of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, which it blames for a recent string of targeted killings of its top commanders and for an attack last week in which explosives hidden in pagers and walkie-talkies killed dozens of people and wounded thousands, including many Hezbollah members.
Israeli military officials said they intercepted a surface-to-surface missile that set off air-raid sirens in Tel Aviv and across central Israel.
There were no reports of casualties or damage. The military said it struck the launch site in southern Lebanon.
Israeli military spokesman Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani said the missile fired Wednesday had a “heavy warhead” but declined to elaborate or confirm it was the type described by Hezbollah.
He dismissed Hezbollah’s claim of targeting the Mossad headquarters just north of Tel Aviv as “psychological warfare.”
The Israeli military said it was the first time a projectile fired from Lebanon had reached central Israel.
Hezbollah claimed to have targeted an intelligence base near Tel Aviv last month in an aerial attack, but there was no confirmation.
Hamas repeatedly targeted Tel Aviv in the opening months of the war in Gaza.
The launch ratcheted up hostilities in a region that appeared to be teetering toward another all-out war, even as Israel continues to battle Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
The Iranian-made Qader is a medium-range surface-to-surface ballistic missile with multiple types and payloads.
It can carry an explosive payload of up to 800 kilograms (1,760 pounds), according to the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Iranian officials have described the liquid-fueled missile as having a range of 2,000 kilometers (1,240 miles).
Israel said Wednesday its air force had struck some 280 Hezbollah targets across Lebanon by early afternoon, including launchers used to fire rockets on the northern Israeli cities of Safed and Nahariya.
Fleeing families have flocked to Beirut and the coastal city of Sidon, sleeping in schools turned into shelters, as well as in cars, parks and along the beach.
Some sought to leave the country, causing a traffic jam at the border with Syria.
The United Nations said more than 90,000 people have been displaced by five days of Israeli strikes.
In all, 200,000 people have been displaced in Lebanon since Hezbollah began firing rockets into northern Israel nearly a year ago, drawing Israeli retaliation, according to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
Hezbollah’s latest strikes included dozens of rockets fired Wednesday into northern Israel, the military said.
Rocket fire over the past week has disrupted life for more than 1 million people across northern Israel, with schools closed and public gatherings restricted.
Many restaurants and other businesses are shut in the coastal city of Haifa, and there are fewer people on the streets.
Some who fled from communities near the border are coming under rocket fire again.
Israel has moved thousands of troops who had been serving in Gaza to the northern border.
It says Hezbollah has some 150,000 rockets and missiles, including some capable of striking anywhere in Israel.
Cross-border fire began ramping up Sunday after pagers and walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah were attacked remotely, killing 39 people and wounded nearly 3,000, many of them civilians.
Lebanon blamed Israel, which has not confirmed or denied responsibility.
The next day, Israel said its warplanes struck 1,600 Hezbollah targets, destroying cruise missiles, long- and short-range rockets and attack drones, including weapons concealed in private homes.
The strikes racked up the highest one-day death toll in Lebanon since Israel and Hezbollah fought a bruising monthlong war in 2006.
A motorist is splashed by a car driving through a flooded street in the aftermath of Hurricane John in Acapulco, Mexico September 24, 2024. REUTERS/Javier Verdin
MEXICO CITY, Sept 25 (Reuters) – After already battering Mexico’s southern coast, a strengthening Tropical Storm John moved back into the Pacific Ocean but is forecast to again slam into the Mexican mainland on Wednesday evening, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center.
John first made landfall on Monday at major hurricane strength, triggering flooding and landslides that crushed homes while leaving at least five dead. Its remnants brought intense rains across several states, home to major ports and beach resorts, before strengthening again.
“The ocean’s surface temperatures are favorable to feeding this storm,” civil protection meteorologist Fermin Damian Adame told a press conference, predicting a fresh round of “intense” rainfall through Friday.
The Miami-based hurricane center flagged the possibility that John could again become a hurricane before it strikes the coast. The center warned of likely “catastrophic” flash flooding and mudslides across four states along Mexico’s Pacific coast.
John’s initial hit cut power to around 100,000 homes, uprooted trees and power poles while ripping off roofs.
The five reported casualties included a 10-year-old boy and his mother, who were trapped in their home by a landslide in the village of Tlacoachistlahuaca, in Guerrero state, one of Mexico’s poorest.
While John battered Guerrero’s southern Costa Chica region on Tuesday, it is now forecast to hit its northern coastline, the Costa Grande. State authorities said around 4,000 homes in the resort city of Acapulco were at risk and urged people living in low-lying areas to immediately move to shelters.
Last year, Acapulco was devastated by Hurricane Otis, which killed more than 50 people and is estimated to have left some $15 billion in damages, shocking forecasters by strengthening to a Category 5 hurricane in less than a day.
Scientists say hurricanes are strengthening faster due to higher sea temperatures resulting from human-caused climate change, leaving communities less time to brace for their impact.
KOTA KINABALU — Seorang remaja perempuan dipenjara 11 bulan selepas mengaku bersalah memberi maklumat palsu ketika memohon gantian kad pengenalan di Jabatan Pendaftaran Negara (JPN) Kota Kinabalu, pada 20 September lalu.
Tertuduh tanpa dokumen pengenalan diri yang hanya dikenali sebagai Sarah, 19, membuat pengakuan itu selepas didakwa mengikut Peraturan 25(1)(b) Peraturan-Peraturan Pendaftaran 1990 (Pindaan 2007) di Mahkamah Majistret Kota Kinabalu, di sini, hari ini.
Majistret Wan Farrah Farriza Wan Ghazali memerintahkan tertuduh menjalani hukuman itu bermula tarikh dia ditahan iaitu pada 20 September lalu dan dirujuk ke Jabatan Imigresen selepas selesai menjalani hukuman.
Berdasarkan fakta kes, kira-kira jam 10.30 pagi pada 20 September, tertuduh datang ke kaunter Bahagian Kad Pengenalan JPN Sabah untuk membuat permohonan gantian kad pengenalan atas nama Noralisah Asliah dan mengemukakan dokumen sijil kelahiran atas nama yang sama, selain laporan polis kehilangan kad pengenalan.
Bagaimanapun, perbandingan cap ibu jari tertuduh didapati tidak sepadan dengan rekod kad pengenalan dalam Pangkalan Data JPN dan semakan turut mendapati rekod nombor kad pengenalan yang ingin diganti sudah dikeluarkan MyKad kepada orang lain berstatus warga negara.
Berikutan itu, tertuduh dirujuk ke Bahagian Siasatan dan Penguatkuaasan JPN Sabah untuk tindakan lanjut dan hasil soal siasat, tertuduh mengaku bernama Sarah, lahir di Pulau Gaya, Kota Kinabalu, manakala sijil kelahiran yang dibawa bukan miliknya.
Tertuduh kemudian ditahan oleh Bahagian Siasatan dan Penguatkuasaan JPN Sabah mengikut Peraturan 25(1)(b) Peraturan-Peraturan Pendaftaran 1990 (Pindaan 2007) yang membawa hukuman penjara tidak melebihi tiga tahun atau denda tidak melebihi RM20,000 atau kedua-duanya sekali jika sabit kesalahan.
Pendakwaan dilakukan Pegawai Pendakwa JPN Sabah, Mohamad Faizal Tahir, manakala tertuduh tidak diwakili peguam.
JAKARTA — The Semeru volcano in Indonesia’s East Java province erupted 10 times on Wednesday, spewing ash up to 600 meters over its peak, according to a report by the Mount Semeru Observation Post.
“The first eruption was recorded at 04:14 a.m. at dawn, with the height of the ash column observed around 500 meters above the peak, or 4,176 meters above sea level,” said Ghufron Alwi, an officer at the post, in a written statement.
Not long after, the second eruption was recorded at 04:50 a.m., with the height of the ash column observed around 600 meters above the peak. The ash column was observed to be white to gray in color, with a thick intensity towards the northwest, according to the report.
Alwi said the following eruptions could not be clearly observed visually due to the thick haze.
Indonesia’s Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation advised people living near the volcano to avoid doing activities within a radius of 3 km from the eruption point due to the risk of hot lava flows and hot rockfalls.
GENEVA — Thousands of Lebanese and Syrian families fled Lebanon for Syria as Israeli airstrikes continued, said the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on Wednesday.
According to a statement issued by the UN Refugee Agency, hundreds of vehicles were backed up in queues at the Syrian border, with many people arriving on foot, carrying whatever belongings they can. Large crowds, including women, children and babies, reportedly waited in line after spending the night outdoors in falling temperatures. “Some carry fresh injuries from the recent bombardments,” the statement added.
Filippo Grandi, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, expressed deep concern over the ongoing violence, stating that the bloodshed was taking a heavy toll, displacing tens of thousands of people from their homes.
He highlighted the plight of families who had previously fled the war in Syria, only to now face bombings in the country where they had sought refuge. Grandi urged the international community to prevent further scenes of despair and devastation, warning that the Middle East could not endure another displacement crisis. He emphasized that protecting civilian lives must be the top priority.
Israel has carried out its most extensive bombardment of Lebanon since 2006, starting on Monday, resulting in over 550 deaths and more than 1,800 injuries nationwide. The attacks have also forced thousands of residents in Lebanon to flee their homes.
The UNHCR, along with its partners, has been present at border crossings, offering essential supplies such as food, water, blankets, and mattresses to incoming refugees, said the statement.
JOHANNESBURG — A fire broke out Tuesday night at the Broadwalk Urban Village residential complex in Midrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, claiming one life and leaving hundreds homeless.
Xolile Khumalo, spokesperson for Johannesburg Emergency Management Services (EMS), said that a search and rescue team discovered a woman’s body among the rubble on Wednesday, noting the body was trapped beneath debris from the collapsed roof.
The fire began shortly after 9 p.m. local time (1900 GMT), affecting about 130 apartments and injuring some residents as they attempted to escape. The EMS responded swiftly, extinguishing the blaze and transporting the injured to nearby hospitals.
“The majority of residents were evacuated safely,” Khumalo said, adding that the total number of residents affected remains uncertain and firefighters are conducting a thorough room-by-room search.
“EMS continues to urge Johannesburg residents to scrutinize accommodation facilities before taking residency and ensure all electrical appliances are switched off after use,” Khumalo said.
An investigation into the cause of the fire is underway.
Paramedics arrive at the site of an Israeli strike on the Mount Lebanon village of Maaysra, east of the Christian coastal town of Byblos, on Sept. 25, 2024. (AFP)
ATHENS — Greece will urge the EU to provide medical treatment to injured Lebanese citizens, Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis told his Lebanese counterpart at a meeting in New York, according to the Greek foreign ministry.
Gerapetritis told Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib that Greece was concerned about the Middle East crisis and the risk of its further expansion, the Greek ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.
“It is absolutely necessary to stop the vicious cycle of violence and confrontation,” it said.
Greece will try to mobilize Europe to provide “centrally and at a European level medical aid to Lebanese citizens who have been injured and are in need of treatment.”
Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon targeting its Hezbollah movement have sharply intensified since Monday, when more than 550 people were killed in the deadliest day in Lebanon since the end of its 1975-1990 civil war.
Around half a million Lebanese have fled their homes, and hospitals have been overwhelmed with the wounded.
Greece urged its citizens on Tuesday to evacuate Lebanon and avoid any travel to the country.
CAIRO — Israel returned the bodies on Wednesday of 88 Palestinians killed in its military offensive in the Gaza Strip, which the territory’s health ministry refused to bury before Israel discloses details about who they are and where it killed them.
The bodies were brought into Gaza in a container loaded on a truck through an Israeli-controlled crossing, but, according to Palestinian officials, there was no information provided about the names or ages of the victims or locations where they died.
Health officials at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis refused to receive them and bury them, urging the International Committee of the Red Cross ICRC to seek details from Israel.
“The health ministry halted the procedures to receive the container (carrying the bodies) until the completion of the full data and information about those bodies so their relatives can identify them,” the ministry said in a statement.
The head of the Hamas-run Gaza government media office said health ministry officials told the driver of the truck to bring the bodies of dead Palestinians back to the Israeli crossing from which he had arrived. The truck then left the hospital.
“They must act according to the international humanitarian law and in a way that preserves the dignity of the martyrs and their families,” Ismail Al-Thawabta told Reuters.
The Red Cross said it wasn’t involved in the transfer process.
“We reiterate that all families have the right to receive news about their loved ones and bury them respectfully and in line with their traditions,” said a statement issued by the ICRC.
Under International Humanitarian Law, those who have died during an armed conflict must be handled with dignity and be properly managed. The law requires that they be searched for, collected and evacuated, which helps ensure that people do not go missing, the ICRC statement added.
The Civil Emergency Service tasked with finding people missing under rubble, on roads and in ruined buildings in Gaza says it has been notified of around 10,000 people missing during the near year-long Israeli assault on Gaza.
Gaza health authorities list more than 41,000 Palestinians confirmed killed in the assault, which Israel launched after Hamas fighters attacked Israeli towns on Oct. 7 last year, killing 1,200 people and capturing around 250 hostages.
In recent days the conflict has spread to another major theater, with Israel launching the biggest airstrikes on Lebanon in nearly two decades, targeting the Hezbollah movement, which has been rocketing Israel in solidarity with the Palestinians.
MORE STRIKES IN GAZA
War in Gaza has not let up, even as the conflict in Lebanon has escalated. Many months of diplomatic efforts to reach a Gaza ceasefire have yielded little progress, with Israel refusing any deal to halt the fighting without the total defeat of Hamas.
Israeli military strikes across the Gaza Strip killed at least 14 Palestinians on Wednesday, medics said.
In Rafah, near the border with Egypt, Israeli forces continued their operations in different areas of the city, amid clashes with Hamas-led fighters, according to residents and statements posted by militants.
Medics said at least eight Palestinians were killed in two separate Israeli strikes on two houses in Rafah. One of those strikes killed a woman and her children, they added.
In another attack in Bureij, one of the Gaza Strip’s eight historic refugee camps, five Palestinians were killed in a house hit by an Israeli missile, medics said.
Israel has also sent tanks into the eastern area of Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip, and medics said a woman was killed in an air strike on a house in the town earlier on Tuesday.
TUNIS — Thirteen bodies believed to be of sub-Saharan African migrants have been found dead off Tunisia’s eastern coast, a judicial official told AFP on Wednesday.
The bodies were found Tuesday and Wednesday off the coastal towns of Salakta and Chebba, said Farid Ben Jha, the spokesman for the public prosecution in the Monastir and Mahdia governorates.
He added that an investigation has been opened but provided no further details.
Tunisia and neighboring Libya have become key departure points for migrants, often from other countries, who risk perilous Mediterranean Sea journeys in the hopes of reaching better lives in Europe.
Each year, tens of thousands of people attempt to make the crossing, with Italy — whose Lampedusa island is only 150 kilometers (90 miles) from Tunisia — often their first port of call.
Since January 1, at least 103 makeshift boats have capsized, and 341 bodies have been recovered off Tunisia’s coast, according to the interior ministry.
More than 1,300 people died or disappeared last year in shipwrecks off the North African country, according to the Tunisian FTDES rights group.
The International Organization for Migration has said that more than 30,309 migrants have died in the Mediterranean in the past decade, including more than 3,000 last year.
