International
North demolishing hotel that was symbol of Korean engagement
North Korea is demolishing a South Korean-owned hotel at a North Korean resort that was one of the last symbols of inter-Korean engagement, according to Seoul officials who called for the North to stop the “unilateral” destruction.
South Korea built dozens of facilities at North Korea’s Diamond Mountain resort to accommodate tourism by its citizens during a high period of engagement between the rivals in the 1990s. But North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in 2019 called the South Korean facilities there “shabby” and ordered them destroyed after months of frustration over Seoul’s unwillingness to defy U.S.-led sanctions that kept the tours from resuming.
The North postponed the demolition work in 2020 as part of stringent measures to prevent COVID-19.
South Korea’s Unification Ministry, which handles inter-Korean affairs, said Friday that North Korea was proceeding with the demolition of the Haegumgang Hotel. The floating hotel, docked at a coastal area of the resort, was a major property among dozens of facilities South Korea established to accommodate Diamond Mountain tours, which began in 1998.
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Unification Ministry spokesperson Cha Deok-cheol said it wasn’t clear whether the North also was destroying other facilities at the site. He said Seoul “strongly regrets North Korea’s unilateral dismantlement” of the hotel and urged the North to engage in talks to resolve disagreements over the South Korean properties at the site.
Commercial satellite images indicate the demolition work has been underway for weeks. Cha said Seoul used inter-Korean communication channels to demand an explanation and talks on the issue, but the North has ignored the request.
The demolition comes amid heighted tensions over recent missile launches. North Korea conducted its first intercontinental ballistic missile test since 2017 on March 24, as Kim revives brinkmanship aimed at forcing the United States and other rivals to accept the North as a nuclear power and remove crippling sanctions.
South Korean tours to Diamond Mountain were a major symbol of cooperation between the Koreas and a valuable cash source for the North’s broken economy before the South suspended them in 2008 after a North Korean guard fatally shot a South Korean tourist.
South Korea can’t restart mass tours to Diamond Mountain or any other major inter-Korean economic activity without defying sanctions, which have been strengthened since 2016, when the North began accelerating its nuclear and missile tests. While U.N. sanctions don’t directly ban tourism, they prohibit bulk cash transfers that can result from such business activities.
During their brief diplomacy in 2018, South Korean President Moon Jae-in met Kim three times and vowed to restart Diamond Mountain tours, voicing optimism that sanctions could end. But North Korea suspended cooperation with the South after diplomacy with the U.S. collapsed in 2019 and Seoul wasn’t able to wrest concessions from Washington on its behalf.
AP
International
BREAKING : Israel launches deadly attacks on Iran
BREAKING : Israel launches deadly attacks on Iran
Israel has attacked Iran, three people familiar with the matter said, as Iranian state media reported early on Friday that its forces had destroyed drones, days after Iran launched a retaliatory drone strike on Israel.
One source told Reuters the U.S. was not involved but was notified by Israel before the attack.
Iran’s Fars news agency reported three explosions were heard near an army base in the central city of Isfahan. An Iranian official told Reuters there was no missile attack and the explosions were the result of the activation of Iran’s air defense systems.
Iranian state TV said that shortly after midnight “three drones were observed in the sky over Isfahan. The air defense system became active and destroyed these drones in the sky.”
The broadcaster later said the situation in Isfahan was normal and no ground explosions had occurred.
The Israeli military had no comment on the reports.
Israel had said it would retaliate, opens new tab against Iran’s weekend attack, which involved hundreds of drones, opens new tab and missiles, in response to a suspected Israeli strike on its embassy compound in Syria. Most of the Iranian drones and missiles were downed before reaching Israeli territory.
Analysts and observers have raised concerns about the risks of the Israel-Gaza war spreading into the rest of the region.
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi had warned Israel before Friday’s strike that Tehran would deliver a “severe response” to any attack on its territory.
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Iran told the United Nations Security Council on Thursday that Israel “must be compelled to stop any further military adventurism against our interests” as the U.N. secretary-general warned that the Middle East was in a “moment of maximum peril.”
Asian shares and bond yields sank on Friday while safe-haven currencies, gold and crude oil jumped. Brent crude futures rose 2% to $88.86 a barrel, the dollar gained broadly, gold rose 1% and S&P 500 futures dropped 1%.
Iran’s state television said nuclear facilities where Iran has been conducting work – which Tehran says is peaceful but which the West believes is aimed at building a weapon – were unharmed.
The Natanz nuclear site, the centerpiece of Iran’s uranium enrichment program, is in Isfahan province.
Airports in Tehran, Shiraz and Isfahan were closed until 0700 GMT, subject to extension, and flights have been cleared from the western half of Iran, slight tracking website FlightRadar24 reported.
Some flights destined for Tehran from Turkish Airlines and Emirates were returning to their origin, FlightRadar24 said on X. An Iran Air flight from Rome to Tehran was diverting to Ankara, Turkey, it showed.
FlightRadar24 showed Emirates, flydubai, Turkish Air, Wizz Air Abu Dhabi and Belavia were among the carriers continuing to use the part of Iran’s airspace that remained open on Friday morning.
Israel’s assault on Gaza began after Palestinian Islamist group Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200, according to Israeli tallies. Israel’s military offensive has killed over 33,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to the local health ministry.
Iran-backed groups have declared support for Palestinians, launching attacks from Lebanon, Yemen and Iraq.
BREAKING : Israel launches deadly attacks on Iran
(REUTERS)
International
Updated: Tragedy hits Kenya, Defence chief, nine others die in military helicopter crash
Updated: Tragedy hits Kenya, Defence chief, nine others die in helicopter crash
A military helicopter on Thursday crashed in Kenya, claiming the life of the country’s Defence chief, Francis Ogolla, and nine officers on board.
Kenya’s President, William Ruto, confirmed the unfortunate accident in a televised address.
He said the helicopter crashed shortly after take-off Thursday afternoon local time, killing Ogolla and nine other members of the military.
Two people survived the crash, he added.
“I am deeply saddened to announce the passing on of General Francis Omondi Ogolla, the Chief of the Kenya Defence Forces,” he said.
A team of investigators was immediately dispatched to the site of the crash in Elgeyo Marakwet County to determine the cause of the accident, Ruto said.
Ogolla left Nairobi on Thursday to visit troops in the North Rift region of the country for inspection of ongoing school renovations, the president said.
Ruto has convened an urgent meeting of the country’s National Security Council in Nairobi, according to presidential spokesperson, Hussein Mohamed.
“For me, as the Commander in Chief of the Kenya Defence Forces, it is a tragic moment for the Kenya Defence Forces fraternity and it is a most unfortunate day for the nation at large,” Ruto said.
“Our motherland has lost one of her most valiant generals. We have also lost gallant officers, servicemen, and women,” he added.
Ruto said Kenya would observe three days of mourning beginning from Friday.
Ogolla is the first Kenyan military chief to die in active service.
The general joined the Kenya Defence Forces in 1984, becoming 2nd Lieutenant in 1985 before he was posted to the Kenya Air Force, according to the Ministry of Defence website.
International
JUST IN: Court orders Mohbad’s wife to do DNA test
JUST IN: Court orders Mohbad’s wife to do DNA test
A Magistrate Court sitting in the Ikorodu area of Lagos has ordered that singer late Mohbad’s wife, Wunmi, be served notice of a pending DNA test application, by substituted means.
A statement signed by a member of the legal team to the Aloba family, Monisola Odumosu, disclosed this on Wednesday, April 17.
Mohbad’s father, Joseph Aloba, in the application filed by the legal team to the family sought an order to serve Wunmi by posting all the originating processes and other processes in the suit on the last-known address of the respondent.
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The statement revealed that the legal team led by Emmanuel Oroko had argued that the sheriff had attempted twice to serve Wunmi the court process but failed.
“If the process were served on the last-known address of the respondent by Order of the Court, it would constitute good service and she would be aware of the pending suit.
The Chief Magistrate granted the order and ordered that the respondent be served by posting the court process on her last known address.
It will be recalled that the Aloba family is contesting the paternity of baby Liam and filed an application before the Family Court wherein it sought an order of the court against Wunmi to present herself and baby Liam for a DNA test at any recognised laboratory in Lagos,” Odumosu said.
JUST IN: Court orders Mohbad’s wife to do DNA test
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