11 taxi drivers shot dead after attending funeral; France gets first female submarine officer
(Baonghean.vn) - The world over the past 24 hours has been filled with many events such as: US President Trump accused the Justice Department and FBI of deceiving the court; Wikileaks's owner may soon be handed over to the UK by Ecuador; Israel will reopen the border to the Gaza Strip; France has its first female nuclear submarine officers...
US President Trump accuses the Justice Department and FBI of deceiving the court
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| US President Donald Trump. Photo: AFP/TTXVN |
US President Donald Trump said on July 22 that documents released by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on July 21 about Mr. Carter Page - former advisor to Mr. Trump's 2016 presidential campaign - confirmed the possibility that the US Department of Justice and the FBI deceived the courts.
On his Twitter account, President Trump wrote: "Congratulations to Judicial Watch and Tom Fitton on their success in obtaining documents on Carter Page.
As usual, they were unreasonably redacted, but they all but confirmed that the Justice Department and FBI misled the court. A sham witch hunt, a scam."
Wikileaks boss may soon be handed over to Britain by Ecuador
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Wikileaks boss Assange speaks on the balcony of the Ecuadorian embassy in London. Photo:Reuters. |
Ecuadorian President Lenin Moreno is likely to reach an agreement with British authorities on not allowing WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to continue his asylum at the Ecuadorian embassy in London,RTAccording to Glenn Greenwald, co-founder of the Intercept, Greenwald wrote a series of articles about the US global surveillance program based on documents provided by former US National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden. Greenwald has also supported and defended Wikileaks and its whistleblowers for many years.
Ecuadorian President Moreno is in the UK as part of a European tour from July 22 to 28 to attend the UK-co-hosted Global Disability Summit. The Ecuadorian leader is said to be using the trip to “finalize a deal that will see Ecuador stop granting asylum to Julian Assange,” according to Greenwald.
If this happens, Assange could be imprisoned for at least a year for not complying with an arrest warrant issued by the UK since 2012. British authorities also cannot guarantee that Assange will not be extradited to the US, where he faces a prison sentence for publishing secret documents.
Israel to reopen main cargo transit crossing to Gaza Strip
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Trucks carrying goods pass through the Kerem Shalom border gate in Rafah city, Gaza Strip on July 10. Photo: THX/TTXVN |
Reuters reported that on July 22, Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman announced that the country will reopen the Kerem Shalom border crossing, considered the main transit route for goods with the Gaza Strip.
He also said he would expand Palestinian fishing zones if the calm on the border continued.
Hostilities between Israel and the Hamas Islamist movement in the Gaza Strip escalated last week, but subsided on July 21.
Thailand criticizes international media for interviewing youth soccer team
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Young players and coach at a press conference after being discharged from the hospital on July 18. Photo:Guardian. |
Thai authorities have accused foreign media of acting irresponsibly by approaching the young footballers at their homes despite warnings. Deputy Minister Tawatchai, Permanent Deputy Minister of Justice, urged the media to follow the rules when interviewing minors, including the mandatory presence of a psychologist to "prevent further damage to the children's hearts".
This statement was made after many international reporters visited the homes of the young players of the Wild Boar football team to interview them about their feelings when they were discharged from the hospital and returned to their families.
Earlier, Thailand held a press conference with the 13 members of the soccer team to talk about their days trapped in Tham Luang cave. Authorities then asked the press to respect the boys' privacy and not approach them for interviews for at least 30 days to ensure their mental health.
Britain's little prince celebrates his fifth birthday
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Prince George's 5th birthday portrait. Photo:BBC. |
The British royal family released a portrait of Prince George on the occasion of his 5th birthday on July 22. In the photo, the eldest son of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge leans against a wall, smiling brightly in the garden of Clarence House in London, according toBBC.
Prince George was last seen in public with his younger sister and brother at the christening of two-month-old Prince Louis at St James's Palace earlier this month. It was also the first time William's family of five had appeared together.
Prince George Alexander Louis was born on July 22, 2013, at St. Mary's Hospital in London. He is third in line to the British throne.
Chinese newspaper calls for strengthening nuclear weapons to counter the US
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China's DF-21D medium-range ballistic missile capable of carrying nuclear warheads. Photo:Defense News. |
Global Times,The People's Daily, a subsidiary of the Communist Party of China, published an editorial on July 21 stating that China does not have a nuclear force that is commensurate with "the US's attitude on the East Sea and Taiwan issues", predicting that Washington will take advantage of its nuclear superiority to take "military provocations" against Beijing.
The editorial said that the biggest lesson from the recent Trump-Putin summit in Finland was that the US has always been wary of countries with strong military potential, especially nuclear potential. Russia's huge nuclear arsenal is the reason why the US President has to respect Moscow and prevent NATO from getting involved in the conflicts in Syria and Ukraine.
The Global Times then called on China to strengthen its nuclear weapons, considering it a top priority to protect the country's core interests.
France has its first female nuclear submarine officers.
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| Karen, one of the first four female officers on a French nuclear submarine. Photo: Reuters |
Before the first submarine patrol, four female French officers boarded in a traditional ceremony, drank a bowl of seawater, then a glass of champagne. They were the first women to join the crew of the country's nuclear submarine fleet.
France has become the third country in the world (after the US and the UK) to deploy female sailors on its nuclear submarines, which operate for longer periods in more isolated positions than traditional vessels. Officials hope the presence of four female sailors will inspire the rest of the crew.
Submarines are the last branch of the French Navy that does not have women serving because of concerns about the sacrifices required during long missions and the difficulty of arranging living quarters in a confined space.
11 South African taxi drivers shot dead after attending colleague's funeral
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Scene of the attack that killed 11 drivers on the evening of July 21 in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa. Photo:Sun. |
On July 22, South African police said a shooting rampage in the country left at least 11 people dead and many others injured.
A gunman opened fire on a bus carrying members of a taxi driver association in the country, killing 11 people on the spot and leaving four others in critical condition, police said.
Police officer Jay Naicker said the massacre occurred at midnight on July 21 as members of the taxi drivers’ association were returning home after attending a colleague’s funeral. Naicker said the attack occurred between the towns of Colenso and Weenen in KwaZulu-Natal province.