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Every weekend, Asia Pacific Daily will provide you with a run-down of the latest hot news.
This week, the following hot news you should know:
Top 1 | Foreign Ministry confirms a high-level Chinese delegation to visit DPRK
Chinese Foreign Ministry on Tuesday confirmed that a Chinese delegation will start visiting the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on July 26 and attend commemorative activities for the 70th anniversary of the armistice of the Korean War.
According to Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning, the delegation will be headed by Li Hongzhong, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.
Top 2 | UN says it will continue engagement with all involved in Black Sea grain deal
United Nations relief chief Martin Griffiths on Friday said the world body will continue its engagement with all involved in the Black Sea Grain Initiative to try to ensure that Russian and Ukrainian food and fertilizer can continue to reach global markets.
"Unified international support is essential if this is to be successful," said Griffiths, UN undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator.
Top 3 | Yemen strongly condemns 'repeated offenses' against Quran in Sweden
The Yemeni government on Friday strongly condemned the "repeated offenses" against the Quran in Sweden after an Iraqi refugee trampled on a copy of the Islamic holy book during a protest in Stockholm on Thursday.
"Such actions, which aim to provoke Muslims' feelings and insult Islamic sanctities, run contrary to the principles of humanity and morality and have nothing to do with genuine freedom of expression," Yemen's Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Top 4 | Cambodian PM's party claims landslide victory in general election
The ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP) of Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen claimed a landslide victory in Sunday's general election, a party spokesman said.
Though official results have yet to be announced, CPP spokesman Sok Eysan confirmed the results on Sunday evening, saying that this marked another great success for the CPP.
"We have won a landslide victory in this election, but we have not yet calculated the number of seats we have gained," he told Xinhua. "This truly reflects people's confidence in the CPP's leadership."
Top 5 | 'Italy needs immigration' - Italian PM Meloni backtracks on anti-immigration stance
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has softened her stance on migration after admitting that "Europe and Italy needed immigration."
Nations from the Mediterranean, Middle East and Africa agreed steps on Sunday to try to slow unauthorized migration and to tackle some of the pressures driving people to leave their homes and attempt to reach Europe.
After a one-day meeting led by Meloni, the new alliance committed to cracking down on people smuggling, but also to improve cooperation in areas such as renewable energy to fight climate change and improve the prospects of poorer nations.
Top 6 | Japanese population falls in all 47 prefectures for 1st time
The population of Japanese nationals totaled 122,423,038 across the country in 2022, down by 801,000, marking the biggest drop and the first time all 47 of the country's prefectures have seen a decline, government data showed Wednesday.
As of January 1, 2023, Japan's population, including foreign residents, fell around 511,000 from a year earlier to 125,416,877, according to a demographics survey by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
The population of Japanese nationals declined for a 14th straight year in 2022, with a record low of 772,000 births in Japan significantly exceeded by a record high of 1.57 million deaths, the survey showed.
Top 7 | Trump faces further charges in documents case as legal woes grow
U.S. prosecutors broadened their criminal case against Donald Trump on Thursday, bringing new charges against the former president and accusing a second of his employees of helping to evade officials who were trying to recover sensitive national security documents he took from the White House.
Trump slammed the U.S. Justice Department for "abuse" and said "this is what you get" for leading the polls for the White House in 2024, Fox News reported.
U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith filed three new criminal counts against Trump, bringing the total to 40, and charged a maintenance worker at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort, Carlos De Oliveira, with conspiracy to obstruct justice, accusing him of helping Trump hide documents.
Top 8 | Niger's President Bazoum held by guards, sparking regional concerns
Presidential guards were holding Niger's President Mohamed Bazoum inside his palace in the capital Niamey on Wednesday, security sources said, but the presidency said the guards had started an "anti-republican" movement "in vain" and that Bazoum was well.
West Africa's main regional and economic bloc, ECOWAS said it was concerned about an attempted coup and called on the plotters to free Bazoum. The African Union called on the "treasonous" soldiers involved to stop immediately.
The national army was ready to attack the guards if they did not come to their senses, the presidency said in a statement.
Top 9 | Israeli lawmakers approve key bill of judicial overhaul plan
Israeli lawmakers on Monday voted into law the first major bill of a contentious plan to overhaul the judiciary.
The bill, passed with 64 votes in favor, would cancel the Supreme Court's power from reviewing the reasonableness of government and ministerial decisions.
Israeli Justice Minister Yariv Levin congratulated the coalition on the legislative win. "We have taken the first step in a historic process to correct the judicial system," Levin said.
Top 10 | Guantanamo prison features most flagrant human rights violation by U.S.– academic
The prison at the Naval Station Guantanamo Bay in Cuba sees the most flagrant violation of human rights perpetrated by the U.S. administration, said a Cuban academic and diplomat.
"This is a topic that has been presented again before the international community, but it is one of the longest human rights violations in U.S. history," Jose Ramon Cabanas, director of Cuba's Center for International Policy (CIPI) told Xinhua in a recent interview.
Speaking about the recent technical visit to the U.S. Naval Station in Guantanamo by Fionnuala Ni Aolain, the United Nations (UN) special rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, Cabanas said that the final report was "relatively objective and impartial."
(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)
