The first tsunami waves, some more than a metre high, arrived on the north coast of central Japan on Monday after a series of powerful earthquakes rocked the region.
Waves as high as 1.2 meters (four feet) hit Wajima port in Ishikawa prefecture at 4:21 pm (0721 GMT), the Japan Meteorological Agency said, after the US Geological Survey and other agencies registered a major 7.5 magnitude quake little more than 10 minutes earlier.
Total of 21 earthquakes above 4.0 magnitude hit Japan.
India may be forced to forfeit a Davis Cup play-off hosted by rival Pakistan, with the local tennis association saying Thursday the team was waiting on New Delhi’s approval to travel.
The nuclear-armed neighbours have fought several wars since winning independence from British rule in 1947, and sporting contests between the two have long been the victim of their enduring animosity.
The All India Tennis Association (AITA) asked the sports ministry for approval to travel to Pakistan after a request to shift the fixture to a third country was rejected by the International Tennis Federation tribunal.
“The proposal is still pending with the ministry and we are awaiting a decision,” AITA secretary-general Anil Dhupar told AFP.
Pakistan Tennis Federation president Salim Saifullah Khan said 18 members of the Indian squad had requested visas for the World Group 1 clash scheduled for February 3-4.
“We have all the arrangements put in place. They will be given the best security and accommodation,” he told AFP. “Let politics be kept away from sports and better sense prevail.”
New Delhi last hosted the Pakistani tennis team in 2006 and the Indian Davis Cup team last travelled to Islamabad in 1964, according to news outlet India Today.
Local media reports said a 2019 match was moved to Kazakhstan, with the AITA citing political tensions as the reason for the request.
Sports matches between India and Pakistan are rare owing to decades of hostility between the two nations.
They share one of the world’s great sporting rivalries in cricket, by far the most popular sport in both countries.
But their teams have not played a bilateral series in more than a decade, and typically only face each other in larger tournaments.
India refused to travel to Pakistan for the 50-over Asia Cup in September, a move that forced its neighbour to partially relinquish hosting duties to Sri Lanka.
Pakistan travelled to India the following month for the Cricket World Cup after its request to stage some matches in a third country was rejected.
New Delhi (AFP) – India’s government has recently targeted high-profile journalists with Pegasus spyware, Amnesty International and The Washington Post said in a joint investigation published Thursday.
Created by Israeli firm NSO Group and sold to governments around the world, Pegasus software can be used to access a phone’s messages and emails, peruse photos, eavesdrop on calls, track locations and even film the owner with the camera.
Amnesty said journalists Siddharth Varadarajan of The Wire and Anand Mangnale of The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project had been targeted with the spyware on their iPhones, with the latest identified case occurring in October.
“Our latest findings show that increasingly, journalists in India face the threat of unlawful surveillance simply for doing their jobs, alongside other tools of repression including imprisonment under draconian laws, smear campaigns, harassment, and intimidation,” said Donncha O Cearbhaill, Head of Amnesty International’s Security Lab.
India’s government did not immediately respond, but it denied similar accusations in 2021 that it used Pegasus spyware to surveil political opponents, activists and journalists.
Indian media reported last month that the country’s cyber security unit was investigating allegations by opposition politicians of attempted phone tapping after they reported receiving Apple iPhone warnings of “state-sponsored attackers”.
In that case, Ashwini Vaishnaw, the information and technology minister, said the government was “concerned” by the complaints.
South Korean actor Lee Sun-kyun, best known for his role in the Oscar-winning film “Parasite”, was found dead Wednesday, police said. He was 48.
The actor was found inside a vehicle parked on the street in Seoul’s mid-northern Seongbuk district, an official from the Seongbuk police station told AFP.
“We believe his body has now been transferred to the Seoul National University Hospital,” he added.
South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported, citing police, that Lee had left a “note that reads like a will”.
Lee had been under police investigation over his alleged use of marijuana and other drugs.
Once celebrated for his wholesome image, local news outlets reported that the actor was being dropped from television and commercial projects following the scandal.
A graduate of South Korea’s prestigious Korea National University of Arts, Lee made his acting debut in 2001 in a television sitcom titled “Lovers”.
He later won acclaim for his performances in a variety of roles, including a charismatic chef and a genius neuroscientist who is incapable of empathy.
Lee received widespread critical acclaim for his performance in the 2018 TV drama series “My Mister”, for his portrayal of a diligent architectural engineer who, despite facing personal turmoil, steadfastly upheld his sense of responsibility as both an adult and a professional.
Globally, he is best known for his portrayal of the wealthy and shallow patriarch in director Bong Joon-ho’s 2019 Oscar-winning film “Parasite”.
He was also recognised for his performances in romance flicks, such as 2007 TV drama “Coffee Prince” and the 2012 film “All About My Wife”.
His last film, this year’s horror flick “Sleep” — in which he played a husband whose sleepwalking eventually leads to terrifying circumstances — was well-received and featured in the Critics’ Week section at the Cannes festival.
Devastated fans expressed their grief on social media, with one user writing on X: “I laughed and cried a lot while watching your acting. Thank you.”
Renowned Korean-American writer Min Jin Lee joined others in expressing their condolences.
“Lee was praiseworthy in ‘Parasite’ and exceptional in ‘My Mister,’” she wrote on Instagram.
“May he be remembered for his excellent work and creative gifts.”
Lee’s reputation suffered a significant blow when South Korean authorities launched an investigation into his alleged drug use in October.
He had been suspected of using illicit drugs at the residence of a hostess employed at a high-end bar in Seoul’s glamorous Gangnam district.
According to Yonhap, the actor asserted that he was “tricked” by the hostess into consuming the drugs and was unaware of their illegal nature.
From December 23 to 24, he attended his third police investigation session, which lasted 19 hours, Yonhap reported.
He briefly spoke to reporters in late October before entering a police station in Incheon to meet with investigators.
“I sincerely apologise for causing great disappointment to many people by being involved in such an unpleasant incident,” he said at the time.
“I feel sorry for my family, which is enduring such difficult pain at this moment.
“Once again, I sincerely apologise to everyone.”
South Korea has extremely tough laws on illegal drugs, with Koreans who take drugs such as marijuana legally abroad risking prosecution upon returning to their home country.
Lee is survived by his wife, actress Jeon Hye-jin and two sons.
Australian police said Wednesday they were scouring beaches after mysterious packages believed to contain more than 120 kilograms (260 pounds) of cocaine washed up over the Christmas period.
A first batch of 39 barnacle-encrusted, one-kilogram bricks of suspected cocaine was discovered on Friday near Magenta Beach, north of Sydney, police said.
Since then, another 85 packages of the same size had been spotted along about 80 kilometres (50 miles) of the New South Wales coastline, state police said.
Police urged people to report any suspicious packages, Detective Chief Superintendent Jason Weinstein said in a statement.
“Detectives and specialist police are currently combing beaches and coastlines for any outstanding packages and working behind the scenes to make sure we find and hold accountable those responsible,” said Weinstein, who is director of the state’s crime command.
A US import ban on certain Apple smartwatch models came into effect Tuesday, after the Biden administration opted not to veto a ruling on patent infringements.
The United States International Trade Commission (ITC) decided in October to ban Apple Watch models over a patented technology for detecting blood-oxygen levels.
Apple contends that the ITC finding was in error and should be reversed, but last week paused its US sales of Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2.
The order stemmed from a complaint made to the commission in mid-2021 accusing Apple of infringing on medical device maker company Masimo Corp’s “light-based oximetry functionality.”
“After careful consultations, Ambassador (Katherine) Tai decided not to reverse the… determination and the ITC’s decision became final on December 26, 2023,” the president’s executive office said in a statement on Tuesday.
Apple has been steadily ramping up fitness and health features with each generation of its Apple Watch, which dominates the smartwatch category.
In September, Apple released its Apple Watch Series 9, touting increased performance along with features such as the ability to access and log health data.
“Our teams work tirelessly to create products and services that empower users with industry-leading health, wellness and safety features,” Apple said when the ITC ban was issued.
“Masimo has wrongly attempted to use the ITC to keep a potentially lifesaving product from millions of US consumers while making way for their own watch that copies Apple.”
In May, a trial of Masimo’s allegations ended in a mistrial after jurors failed to reach a unanimous verdict.
Late last year, Apple filed two patent infringement lawsuits accusing Masimo of copying Apple Watch technology.
The Airbus A340 initially had been bound for Nicaragua when it was detained last Thursday at Vatry airport, east of Paris, where it had stopped for refuelling. A donkey flight is an illegal immigration used for unauthorized entry into foreign countries like the USA, UK, Canada etc.
It had arrived from the United Arab Emirates and was halted after an anonymous tip-off that it was carrying potential victims of human trafficking.
Of the original 303 people on the passenger list, 276 were on the plane that arrived in Mumbai before dawn on Tuesday.
Passengers began walking out onto the concourse four hours later but refused to speak to a large crowd of waiting journalists and covered their faces to shield their identities.
It was unclear whether the arrivals were questioned by authorities and India’s government has yet to issue a statement on their return.
Among those staying behind in France were two people questioned by police there over suspected people trafficking.
A judicial source said they were released after it was established the passengers had boarded the plane of their own free will.
French authorities are continuing to investigate the case for a potential violation of immigration laws, but no longer for people trafficking, judicial sources said.
Another 25 passengers sought asylum in France including five minors, local officials said.
A source close to the inquiry told AFP that those aboard were likely workers in the UAE bound for Nicaragua, which they intended to use as a staging post for journeys to the United States or Canada.
Authorisation for the plane to leave France came after a court ruled that any further detention of three of its passengers would be illegal.
The passengers of the flight, operated by Romanian company Legend Airlines, were put up at Vatry airport during the investigation.
Beds, toilets and showers were installed, the local prefecture said, while police prevented press and outsiders from entering the airport.
The passengers included 11 unaccompanied minors, according to Paris prosecutors.
The Indian embassy in Paris posted on X, formerly Twitter, on Monday that it was grateful for the “quick resolution” of the incident.
The 30 crew members were not detained. Some had handled the Dubai-Vatry leg while others were to take over for the flight to Nicaragua.
The use of charter flights to aid migrants “is a relatively new phenomenon”, Manuel Orozco, director of migration issues at the Washington-based Inter-American Dialogue, told AFP last month.
Orozco said he believed that airline operators and Nicaraguan airport authorities made “an economic calculation” for their “mutual benefit”.
Indian deputy foreign minister V. Muraleedharan this month told parliament that close to 100,000 illegal Indian migrants had attempted to enter the United States this year, citing US Customs and Border Protection data.
Last year the issue caught public attention when four Indians froze to death while trying to cross into the United States on foot from the Canadian border.
They were among a group of 11 people attempting the journey, with the remaining seven detained by US authorities.
Many Indian migrants seek passage to the United States for economic reasons.
But human rights experts say there are several other factors at play, including the oppression of minority communities in India and extreme visa backlogs.
Unlawful Indian migration abroad is such an established phenomenon that it forms the backdrop of the Bollywood comedy-drama “Dunki”, released in cinemas last week.
Starring Shah Rukh Khan, one of India’s most bankable film stars, “Dunki” delves into the various means by which Indians attempt the perilous journey to the West with the help of unscrupulous agents and corrupt border officials.
Palestinians said they felt “no joy” this Christmas as Israel bombed Gaza on Monday, with no end in sight to the war that Hamas says has claimed more than 20,000 lives.
Festivities were effectively scrapped in the occupied West Bank city of Bethlehem, revered as the birthplace of Jesus Christ, with few worshippers or tourists on the usually packed streets.
In the besieged Gaza Strip, the Hamas-run ministry of health said early Monday Israeli strikes had killed at least 18 people in the southern city of Khan Yunis, the centre of recent fighting.
At a hospital in the city, Fadi Sayegh — whose family has previously received permits to travel to Bethlehem for celebrations — said he would not be celebrating Christmas this year.
“There is no joy. No Christmas tree, no decorations, no family dinner, no celebrations,” he said while undergoing dialysis. “I pray for this war to be over soon.”
Sister Nabila Salah from the Catholic Holy Church in Gaza — where two Christian women were killed by an Israeli sniper earlier this month according to the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem — struck a sombre tone.
“All Christmas celebrations have been cancelled,” she told AFP. “How do we celebrate when we are… hearing the sound of tanks and bombardment instead of the ringing of bells?”
The war broke out when Hamas fighters attacked southern Israel on October 7 and killed about 1,140 people, mostly civilians, and seized 250 hostages, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.
Israel has vowed to eliminate Hamas in response and its military campaign, which has included massive aerial bombardment. The campaign has killed 20,424 people, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
Pope Francis kicked off global Christmas celebrations on Sunday with a call for peace.
“Our heart goes to Gaza, to all people in Gaza but a special attention to our Christian community in Gaza who is suffering,” the Catholic leader said.
Christmas eve strike
Just ahead of Christmas, the Hamas-run health ministry said at least 70 people were killed in an Israeli air strike on Sunday at the Al-Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza.
Health ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra said the “toll is likely to rise” as many families were thought to be in the area at the time of the strike.
In a separate incident, the ministry said 10 members of one family were killed in an Israeli strike on their house in the Jabalia camp in northern Gaza.
AFP was unable to independently verify either toll.
Vast areas of Gaza lie in ruins and its 2.4 million people have endured dire shortages of water, food, fuel and medicine due to an Israeli siege, alleviated only by the limited arrival of aid trucks.
Eighty percent of Gazans have been displaced, according to the UN, many fleeing south and now shielding against the winter cold in makeshift tents.
The head of the UN refugee agency, Filippo Grandi, called for an end to the suffering.
“A humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza is the only way forward,” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “War defies logic and humanity, and prepares a future of more hatred and less peace.”
World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus also renewed calls for a ceasefire, saying: “The decimation of the Gaza health system is a tragedy.”
‘No choice’
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday the war was exacting a “very heavy price”, as the death toll of soldiers killed in the conflict continued to mount.
“But we have no choice but to keep fighting,” he said, adding: “This will be a long war.”
The army said Monday two more soldiers had been killed, taking to 17 the number of troops killed since Friday and 156 since Israel’s ground assault began on October 27.
Israeli military spokesman Jonathan Conricus indicated that forces were close to gaining control in northern Gaza and that now “we focus our efforts against Hamas in southern Gaza”.
Two freed detainees and a medic said Sunday that Palestinians held by the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip had suffered torture, a charged denied by the military.
The two men were among hundreds detained by Israeli forces over alleged links with Hamas during Israel’s ground offensive.
About 20 men released from Israeli custody “have bruises and marks of blows on their bodies”, Marwan al-Hams, hospital director in the southern city of Rafah, told AFP.
Action star Vin Diesel has been accused of sexually assaulting his assistant in an Atlanta hotel room over a decade ago, according to a lawsuit filed Thursday. The suit is the latest claim to be lodged with courts in California, which has extended the length of time in which legal action can be taken in cases of alleged sexual crimes.
Asta Jonasson said her first assignment after being hired by the Fast and Furious star’s company was to travel to Atlanta in September 2010 during the filming of Fast Five. There, she was tasked with helping Diesel leave a hotel in the early morning hours after entertaining multiple women in a suite, before paparazzi were alerted to his whereabouts.
“Alone in the hotel suite with him, Vin Diesel sexually assaulted Ms Jonasson. Vin Diesel forcibly grabbed Ms Jonasson, groped her breasts, and kissed her. Ms Jonasson struggled continually to break free of his grasp, while repeatedly saying no. “Vin Diesel then escalated his assault,” the suit said, with the actor trying to pull down his assistant’s underwear.
The suit stated that Jonasson fled to a bathroom, where Diesel pursued her, and forced her to touch him. He then pinned her against a wall and masturbated. The following day, Samantha Vincent, the actor’s sister and president of One Race, the entertainment company that employed Jonasson, allegedly called and fired her.
“The message was clear. Ms Jonasson was fired for courageously resisting Vin Diesel’s sexual assault, Vin Diesel would be protected, and his sexual assault covered up,” the suit said. The civil suit seeks unspecified damages against Diesel, Vincent and their companies.
Diesel’s lawyer Bryan Freedman said his client “categorically denies this claim in its entirety” and that there is evidence that “completely refutes” the allegations, according to a statement published by Variety. Representatives for Diesel did not immediately respond to AFP requests for comment. Jonasson has waived the right to anonymity customarily granted to victims of alleged sex abuse.
The global #MeToo movement has seen powerful men in the world of entertainment punished for their abusive and predatory behaviour, starting with bombshell allegations against industry titan Harvey Weinstein in 2017 that led to his imprisonment on multiple sex assault convictions.
A 24-year-old student killed 14 people and wounded 25 at a Prague university on Thursday in the Czech Republic’s worst shooting in decades before authorities said the attacker was “eliminated”.
The deadly violence in the city’s historic centre sparked evacuations, a massive response by heavily armed police and warnings for people to stay indoors.
The shooting erupted at the Charles University’s Faculty of Arts, which sits near major tourist sites like the 14th-century Charles Bridge.
“At this moment I can confirm 14 victims of the horrible crime and 25 wounded, of which 10 seriously,” police chief Martin Vondrasek told reporters after the shooting.
All the victims were gunned down inside the building, he said. Media said at least some were the gunman’s fellow students.
Vondrasek added the gunman, previously unknown to the police, had a “huge arsenal of weapons and ammunition” and that quick police action prevented far more serious carnage.
Vondrasek said police started a search for the man before the mass shooting as his father had been found dead in the village of Hostoun west of Prague.
The gunman “left for Prague saying he wanted to kill himself,” Vondrasek said. Police suggested earlier the gunman had killed his father.
Police searched a Faculty of Arts building where the gunman was expected to show up for a lecture, but he went to the faculty’s main building nearby and they did not find him.
“At 1359 GMT, we received the first information about shooting,” Vondrasek told reporters, adding the rapid response unit was on the scene within 12 minutes.
“At 1420 GMT, the officers in action told us about the gunman’s motionless body,” Vondrasek said, adding unconfirmed information showed he had killed himself.
Citing a probe into social media, Vondrasek said the gunman was inspired by a “similar case that happened in Russia”, without going into details.
“At the moment, there is nothing to suggest any further imminent danger,” he added.
Vondrasek said police believed the same gunman had also killed a young man and his two-month-old daughter in a pram during a walk in a forest on the eastern outskirts of Prague on December 15.
The police investigation into the murder that had shocked Prague was deadlocked until evidence found in Hostoun linked the gunman with the crime.
Vondrasek said no police officer was wounded in Thursday’s action.
Police evacuated the building, using a concert hall across the street as a temporary refuge for the evacuees.
Czech President Petr Pavel said he was “shocked” by the violence and expressed “deep regret and sincere condolences to the families and relatives of the victims”.
Prime Minister Petr Fiala said the “lone gunman… wasted many lives of mostly young people”.
“There is no justification for this horrendous act,” he added.
The worst shooting since the Czech Republic emerged as an independent state in 1993 also prompted messages of support from across the world.
US President Joe Biden sent his condolences, slamming the “senseless” shooting.
“The president and the first lady are praying for the families who lost loved ones and everyone else who has been affected by the senseless act of violence,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters.
French President Emmanuel Macron also expressed his “solidarity” with the Czech people, as did many other European leaders including European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Czech Interior Minister Vit Rakusan said that there was no link between the shooting and “international terrorism”.
He added that “no other gunman has been confirmed” and called on people to follow police instructions.
Police cordoned off the area and asked people living nearby to stay at home.
Prague’s emergency service said on X that “a large number of ambulance units” were deployed at the faculty.
Though mass gun violence is unusual in the Czech Republic, the nation has been rocked by some instances in recent years.
A 63-year-old man shot seven men and a woman dead in 2015 before killing himself in a restaurant in the southeastern town of Uhersky Brod.
In 2019, a man killed six people in the waiting room of a hospital in the eastern city of Ostrava, with another woman dying days later. The man shot himself dead about three hours after the attack.