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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 |France cancels defense meeting with UK over submarine row: report
France has cancelled a meeting between Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly and her British counterpart planned for this week after Australia scrapped a submarine order with Paris in favor of a deal with Washington and London, Reuters reported on Sunday citing sources.
Top 2 | U.S. admits 10 civilians were mistakenly killed in Kabul drone strike
The U.S. Department of Defense admitted that a deadly U.S. drone strike in Kabul in late August mistakenly killed 10 civilians and not an ISIS-K member who posed an ‘imminent threat’ as they previously believed.
The U.S. fired an ‘over the horizon’ drone attack on Aug. 29, hitting what they said was a member of ISIS-K, but following an internal investigation and an in-depth NYT report, officials on Friday admitted they make a mistake.
The strike killed Zemari Ahmadi, a long-time aid worker who was employed by a U.S.- based company which provided food relief to poor and starving Afghans. Nine other civilians, including seven children were also killed.
Top 3 | Haitians stuck in Texas extend Biden's immigration woes
The growing group of Haitians massing under a bridge in Texas under increasingly squalid conditions is worsening President Biden's political headache over immigration.
Images of thousands of people camping under a highway overpass have reopened a favorite Republican line of attack against Biden, with Texas GOP officials blaming the president for the rise in Haitian migration.
The Hill on Thursday reported that an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) plane carrying 86 Haitians landed Wednesday in the ravaged Caribbean nation, which saw its president assassinated in July and suffered a devastating earthquake in August.
Eight further ICE flights scheduled to go to Haiti next week, according to a report by NBC News.
Top 4 | Vaccine equity, climate control and poverty are China's top priorities, Wang Yi tells UN
China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi has told the United Nations that ensuring equitable distribution of vaccines, adhering to the Paris Agreement on climate change and tackling poverty are the country's top priorities.
In a statement released by China's Ministry of Foreign affairs following a meeting with Mohamed Shahid, president of the UN General Assembly, Wang called on the member countries and regions to play a more active role in "the building of a community with a shared future for mankind," especially for smaller and poorer nations.
As China and the U.S. both pledged this week to donate funds and vaccines to assist those countries that have struggled to purchase enough doses to inoculate their populations, Wang told the UN: "China will play a bigger role in promoting international cooperation against COVID-19 and promoting equitable vaccine distribution."
Top 5 | Catalan separatist leader Puigdemont arrested in Italy
Exiled former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont was arrested in Italy on Thursday, his lawyer and an aide said, four years after fleeing following an independence referendum that Madrid ruled unconstitutional.
The European MEP was expected to appear in court on Friday at a hearing that could see him extradited to Spain to face sedition charges.
The Catalan leader -- who has been based in Belgium since the 2017 referendum -- was detained in Alghero, Sardinia, his chief of staff, Josep Lluis Alay, wrote on Twitter."At his arrival at Alghero airport, he was arrested by Italian police. Tomorrow (Friday), he'll appear before the judges of the court of appeal of Sassari, who will decide whether to let him go or extradite him," Alay said.
Top 6 | EU chief says France's treatment in Australia sub deal 'unacceptable'
France was treated in an "unacceptable" way when Australia, Britain and the United States negotiated a defense pact ditching its contract to supply submarines to Canberra, EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said Monday.
"There are a lot of open questions that have to be answered," von der Leyen told CNN, according to a tweeted video extract of her interview. "One of our member states has been treated in a way that is not acceptable."
Von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, said Brussels would want to "clarify" what had happened "before you keep on going with business as usual.”
Earlier, France rebuked Australia and the U.S. for "a major breach of trust and contempt" in the submarine row, following the decision to recall its ambassadors from the two countries.
Top 7 | Progressives say they plan to vote against bipartisan infrastructure bill next week
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, the chairwoman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, is standing by her claim that her members will not vote for the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill without passing the $3.5 trillion package that is aimed at enacting President Joe Biden's economic agenda.
To those who think progressives are bluffing about voting down the bipartisan package, Jayapal told reporters Tuesday, "Try us."
The Washington state Democrat made the remarks after meeting with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who can only afford to lose a handful of votes in order to pass anything through the narrowly divided chamber. The talks come at a crucial moment for Democrats in control of Congress and the White House as Capitol Hill faces a self-imposed September 27 deadline to pass the bipartisan deal, as well as a separate, looming threat of the government shutting down at the end of the month and raising the nation's borrowing limit in the coming weeks.
Top 8 | Polls close in Hong Kong Election Committee's subsector ordinary elections
The polls have closed in China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region's (SAR) 2021 Election Committee's (EC) subsector ordinary elections, the first elections since improvements were made to Hong Kong's electoral system earlier this year. Starting at 9:00 a.m, voters cast their ballots at five ordinary polling stations and one dedicated polling station across Hong Kong set up by the SAR government. An electronic poll register system was used for the first time at the polling stations to ensure more efficient and accurate issuance of ballot papers. After the polls closed at 6:00 p.m. on Sunday, the ballot boxes were delivered to the Convention and Exhibition Centre for a vote count, under the observance of candidates, election agents and counting agents at the central counting station's designated area. All election results will be announced by the SAR's Returning Officers at the media center.
Top 9 | Sudan's sovereign council chairman says army has no intention to seize power
Chairman of Sudan's Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan on Wednesday denied any intention for the Sudanese army to seize power, following a foiled coup attempt carried out by armed forces officers on Tuesday.
"The (Sudanese) Armed Forces were the ones who foiled the coup attempt. We are convinced with the democratic transition and we have no intention of seizing the power," said Al-Burhan in a speech at Al-Markhiyat Military Camp, north of the capital Khartoum.
"We are working to establish a civil and democratic State to be chosen by the people through free and fair elections," he noted.
Al-Burhan, meanwhile, lashed out at the Sudanese political forces, saying that "there is not any political force that speaks about the elections or the end of the transitional period. The political forces' concern is to hold on chairs."
Top 10 | Alaska shifts to crisis standards of care amid influx of COVID-19 patients
Alaska on Wednesday activated crisis standards of care as hospitals become overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients, which essentially sets emergency guidelines for rationing care.
According to Alaska's Department of Health and Social Services, crisis standards of care "give ethical guidelines to health care providers when they have too many patients and not enough resources to care for them all."
Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R-Alaska) announced that the crisis standards were enabled through an addendum to Alaska's existing COVID-19 public health emergency order.
(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)
