SYDNEY: Australia voiced unease on Tuesday over anonymous letters reportedly offering hefty rewards for information on a Hong Kong activist now living in Melbourne.
Australian citizen Kevin Yam, a lawyer and longtime Hong Kong pro-democracy activist, was targeted in letters that carried his photo and alleged national security offenses.
The letters, first reported in The Guardian newspaper, offered a reward of HK$1 million ($128,000) to anyone who could provide information about him and the allegations or “take him to Hong Kong or Australia Metropolitan Police.”
They were sent to homes next to two Melbourne locations cited in the notices as being linked to Yam, the paper said.
“The Australian government will not tolerate surveillance, harassment or intimidation against individuals or family members here in Australia — this undermines our national sovereignty and the security and safety of Australians,” said a spokesperson for Foreign Minister Penny Wong.
“We are raising our concerns directly with Chinese and Hong Kong authorities.”
In a message on social media, Yam said he would continue to live his “everyday life.”
“I will not voluntarily return to Hong Kong before it is free,” he said.
“I will not kill myself.”
Beijing expressed “strong dissatisfaction and resolute opposition” to what it called “Australia’s blatant interference” in Hong Kong’s law.
“Hong Kong affairs are purely a Chinese internal affair and brook no interference from any outside powers,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning told a regular briefing, when asked about the case concerning Yam.
“China urges Australia to earnestly respect China’s sovereignty... and create favorable conditions and atmosphere for the sustainable development of China-Australia relations,” she added.
The letters were not signed but asked for information to be sent to a Hong Kong police email address used for tip-offs on wanted people.
The Hong Kong government said it does not issue anonymous letters.
Recipients should “remain cautious to verify the authenticity” of any such letters and seek help from local police if needed, a government spokesman told AFP.
Hong Kong law enforcement will pursue overseas suspects in accordance with the law and “take every measure” to stop them from continuing to endanger national security, the spokesman added.
Yam reportedly returned to Australia in 2022 after two decades in Hong Kong.
In 2023, Hong Kong chief executive John Lee called on eight overseas activists including Yam to turn themselves in for violating the national security law.
At the time, he backed a police decision to offer HK$1 million for information leading to their arrests, and warned the activists to surrender or “spend their days in fear.”
All eight fled Hong Kong after Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law on the financial hub in 2020 to quell dissent after huge, sometimes violent, pro-democracy protests in 2019 were quashed.
Australia slams reported targeting of citizen by Hong Kong
https://arab.news/m25m2
Australia slams reported targeting of citizen by Hong Kong
- The letters offered a reward of $128,000 to anyone who could provide information about him
- “The Australian government will not tolerate surveillance, harassment or intimidation against individuals or family members here in Australia,” said a spokesperson
In Dhaka, a century-old lassi shop keeps family recipe alive with every sip
- Since Beauty Lassi first opened in 1922, its owners have used the same recipe
- Its famed lassi drinks are popular on hot summer days and throughout Ramadan
DHAKA: In the streets of Old Dhaka, a shop specializing in lassi has captured people’s hearts for generations, offering a version of the flavored yogurt drink that many have deemed unique.
Since the store first opened more than a century ago, the owners of Beauty Lassi have kept to the original recipe, preserving a legendary inheritance that has withstood the test of time.
“We use yoghurt, sugar, and ice cubes to prepare our lassi. It has been carried with the same recipe from the beginning. We have been following the same methods as our grandfather did,” Mohammad Javed Hossain, 55, told Arab News.
“It’s fully natural,” he said.
“There is no adulteration here and no presence of any chemical. It’s completely chemical-free, very tasty, and mouthwatering. That’s why people like it very much.”
Tucked amid the hustle and bustle of the historic neighborhood known for its rich cultural heritage and traditional architecture, Beauty Lassi has stood as a witness to the changing tides of the Bangladeshi capital.
But as its famed lassi remained unchanged, the shop became an iconic establishment itself, beloved by old timers and a go-to spot for the younger generation.
“This business was started in 1922. My late grandfather, Abdul Aziz, launched the journey. Then my late father, Abdul Gaffar Mia, continued the business.
“Following his footsteps, now my brother Mohammad Manik and I are running the business,” Hossain said, adding that his son and nephew would continue the legacy.
Since taking over the shop about three decades ago, Hossain said he has served customers of all ages from different parts of the country and also the world.
Most people are more fond of the sweet lassi rather than the salted ones, he said.
“People from all ages visit our shop. But on average, the new generation of youths come more,” he said. “Our sales depend on the temperature (and) weather. The hotter the weather, the more business it brings for us.”
The first sip of the popular lassi has often been described as rejuvenating, a satisfying refresher in a country with a humid, tropical climate.
During Ramadan, when many people opt for the iconic flavored yogurt drinks to cap off iftar or sahoor, Dhaka residents would often make their way to Beauty Lassi for a taste of its unique flavor.
“It’s the best in the world. I tried lassi in other places too, but every time the taste of this one would come to mind. My Ramadan remains incomplete without this lassi,” Delwar Hossain, a businessman from Dhaka’s Nawabpur road, told Arab News.
“The first time I came here to have lassi … that was probably in 1981 or 1982 … Since then, I have been coming here again and again.”
Some of Hossain’s favorite memories are connected to Beauty Lassi, such as the times he visited the shop with his children, and when he took a rickshaw with his father to visit the shop over 40 years ago.
“That day, he drank three glasses of lassi. It was in 1984,” he said, adding that it was one of his last times with his old man.
“If people living in Dhaka don’t taste this drink, they can’t be considered as the residents of Dhaka.”
For many of the city’s residents, Beauty Lassi is a beacon of tradition.
“Beauty Lassi is a tradition of Old Dhaka. I grew up in this area, I have known this shop since my childhood. I am now 45 years old, and I think I have been having this drink for at least the last 35 years,” Ashiqul Islam, a teacher who lives in the neighborhood, told Arab News.
“It’s unique, I have not seen any other (lassi shop) like this. People come here for its name and fame. They bear the prestige of tradition.”
To make Beauty Lassi’s famed drink, one begins by scooping big spoonfuls of yogurt into a large bowl of water.
Next comes the syrup and a few drops of rose water, before everything is mixed by spinning a manual wooden blender. The ice cubes are last, just before the drinks are served.
This is a familiar routine for Mohammad Shahidullah, who has worked at Beauty Lassi for the past 40 years.
“Beauty lassi is a very tasty drink,” he told Arab News as he prepared a new batch for customers.
“A sip of this drink during hot summer brings much comfort.”
Large areas of Spain and Portugal hit by massive power blackout
- Authorities were unable to explain the cause of the outage at least an hour after it occurred, though a possible cyberattack had not been ruled out
MADRID/LISBON: Spain and Portugal were hit by a widespread power blackout on Monday that paralyzed public transport, caused large traffic jams and delayed airline flights, and utility operators were scrambling to restore the grid.
Authorities were unable to explain the cause of the outage at least an hour after it occurred, though a possible cyberattack had not been ruled out and investigations were ongoing, officials said. A crisis committee was set up in Spain to manage the situation, according to people familiar with the situation.
The Spanish and Portuguese governments convened emergency cabinet meetings after the outage, which also briefly affected a part of France, which borders northeastern Spain.
Portugal’s utility REN confirmed a cut in electricity across the Iberian Peninsula that also affected part of France, while Spanish grid operator Red Electrica said it was working with regional energy companies to restore power.
“All plans for the phased restoration of energy supply are being activated, in coordination with European energy producers and operators,” a REN spokesperson said.
“REN is in permanent contact with official entities, namely the National Civil Protection Authority. At the same time, the possible causes of this incident are being assessed.”
Play at the Madrid Open tennis tournament was suspended, forcing 15th seed Grigor Dimitrov and British opponent Jacob Fearnley off the court as scoreboards went dark and overhead cameras lost power.
Spanish radio stations said part of the Madrid underground was being evacuated. There were traffic jams at Madrid city center as traffic lights stopped working, Cader Ser Radio station reported.
Hundreds of people stood outside office buildings on Madrid’s streets and there was a heavy police presence around key buildings, directing traffic as well as driving along central atriums with lights, according to a Reuters witness.
One of four tower buildings in Madrid that houses the British Embassy had been evacuated, the witness added.
Local radio reported people trapped in stalled metro cars and elevators.
Portuguese police said traffic lights were affected across the country, the metro was closed in Lisbon and Porto, and trains were not running.
Lisbon’s subway transport operator Metropolitano de Lisboa said the subway was at a standstill with people still inside the trains, according to Publico newspaper.
A source at Portugal’s TAP Air said Lisbon airport was running on back-up generators, while AENA, which manages 46 airports in Spain, reported flight delays around the country.
In France, grid operator RTE said there was a brief outage but power had been restored. It was investigating the cause.
Russia declares a ceasefire in Ukraine on May 8-10 for WWII Victory Day
- The Kremlin said Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the full cessation of hostilities on “humanitarian grounds” for the Victory Day on May 9
- Putin had refused to accept a complete unconditional ceasefire, linking it to a halt in Western arms supplies to Ukraine and Ukraine’s mobilization effort
KYIV: The Kremlin on Monday declared a full ceasefire in Ukraine on May 8-10 as Russia celebrates the Victory Day over Nazi Germany.
The truce will start at 0000 on May 8 (2100 GMT May 7) and last through May 10. The Kremlin said that Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the full cessation of hostilities on “humanitarian grounds” for the Victory Day on May 9.
It comes as US President Donald Trump’s scaled up efforts to broker a peace deal in Ukraine. Until that moment, Putin had refused to accept a complete unconditional ceasefire, linking it to a halt in Western arms supplies to Ukraine and Ukraine’s mobilization effort.
Trump struggles to make good on promises to quickly end Ukraine and Gaza wars
- Trump’s inability to broker deals in Ukraine and Gaza to date might be the most demonstrable evidence his effort to more broadly shake up US foreign policy
WASHINGTON: Ahead of his second go-around in the White House, President Donald Trump spoke with certainty about ending Russia’s war in Ukraine in the first 24 hours of his new administration and finding lasting peace from the devastating 18-month conflict in Gaza.
But as the Republican president nears the 100th day of his second term, he’s struggling to make good on two of his biggest foreign policy campaign promises and is not taking well to suggestions that he’s falling short. And after criticizing President Joe Biden during last year’s campaign for preventing Israel from carrying out strikes on Iranian nuclear sites, Trump now finds himself giving diplomacy a chance as he tries to curb Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program.
“The war has been raging for three years. I just got here, and you say, ‘What’s taken so long?’” Trump bristled, when asked about the Ukraine war in a Time magazine interview about his first 100 days. As for the Gaza conflict, he insisted the war “would have never happened. Ever. You then say, ‘What’s taking so long?’“
Measuring a US president by his first 100 days in office is an arbitrary, albeit time-honored, tradition in Washington. And brokering peace deals between intractable warring parties is typically the work of years, not weeks.
But no other president has promised to do as much out of the gate as Trump, who is pursuing a seismic makeover of America’s approach to friends and foes during his second turn in the White House.
Trump has moved at dizzying speed to shift the rules-based world order that has formed the basis for global stability and security in the aftermath of World War II.
All sides have scrambled to acclimate as Trump launched a global tariff war and slashed US foreign aid all while talking up the ideas of taking Greenland from NATO ally Denmark and making Canada the 51st state.
But Trump’s inability to broker deals in Ukraine and Gaza — at least to date — might be the most demonstrable evidence that his effort to quickly shake up US foreign policy through sheer will could have its limits.
And Trump hasn’t obscured his frustration, particularly over the Ukraine war, which he’s long dismissed as a waste of US taxpayer money and of lives lost in the conflict.
The president and his team have gone hot and cold about prospects for peace in Ukraine since Trump’s Oval Office blowup with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in February.
In that encounter, both Trump and Vice President JD Vance lectured the Ukrainian leader for being insufficiently grateful for US assistance in the fight to repel Russia’s invading forces before asking him to leave the White House grounds.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has warned that the White House is ready to walk away if Ukraine and Russia don’t make substantial progress toward a peace deal soon.
And Trump on back-to-back days this past week lambasted Zelensky for “prolonging” the “killing field” and then Russian President Vladimir Putin for complicating negotiations with “very bad timing” in launching brutal strikes that pummeled Kyiv.
But by Friday, Trump was expressing optimism again after his special envoy Steve Witkoff met in Moscow with Putin. Following the talks, Trump declared that the two sides were “very close to a deal.”
Less than 24 hours later, Trump was once again downcast after he met with Zelensky on the sidelines of Pope Francis’s funeral, expressing doubt in a social media post that Putin was serious about forging a deal.
“It makes me think that maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war, he’s just tapping me along,” Trump said of Putin and Russia’s ongoing bombardment of Ukraine.
Trump again expressed frustration with Putin in an exchange with reporters on Sunday evening. “I want him to stop shooting, sit down and sign a deal,” Trump said. “We have the confines of a deal, I believe. And I want him to sign it and be done with it.”
White House National Security Council spokesman James Hewitt said Trump remains committed to getting a deal done and is “closer to that objective than at any point during Joe Biden’s presidency.”
“Within 100 days, President Trump has gotten both Ukraine and Russia to the negotiating table with the aim to bring this horrific war to a peaceful resolution,” Hewitt said. “It is no longer a question of if this war will end but when.”
Peace in Gaza remains elusive
Trump started his second term with some momentum on ending the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
His envoy Witkoff, a fellow New York real estate maverick turned high-stakes diplomat, teamed up with the outgoing Biden Middle East adviser Brett McGurk to get Israeli and Hamas officials to agree to a temporary ceasefire deal that went into effect one day before Trump’s inauguration.
On the eve of his return to office, Trump took full credit for what he called an “epic” agreement that would lead to a “lasting peace” in the Middle East.
The temporary ceasefire led to the freeing of 33 hostages held in Gaza and the release of roughly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
But the truce collapsed in March, and fighting resumed, with the two sides unable to come to an agreement for the return of 59 remaining hostages, more that half of whom Israeli officials believe are dead.
Conditions in Gaza remain bleak. Israel has cut off all aid to the territory and its more than 2 million people. Israel has disputed that there is a shortage of aid in Gaza and says it’s entitled to block the assistance because, it claims, Hamas seizes the goods for its own use.
Trump, as he flew to Rome on Friday for the pope’s funeral, told reporters that he’s pressing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “very hard” to get food and medicine into Gaza but dismissed questions about how the Israeli leader is responding to his appeal.
“Well, he knows all about it, OK?” Trump told reporters.
Hewitt, the National Security Council spokesman, pushed back on the notion that Trump has fallen short on his effort to find an endgame to the Gaza conflict, setting the blame squarely on Hamas.
“While we continue to work to secure the release of all remaining hostages, Hamas has chosen violence over peace, and President Trump has ensured that Hamas continues to face the gates of hell until it releases the hostages and disarms,” Hewitt said.
Trump’s team says the president has racked up more foreign policy wins than any other US president this early in a term.
The White House counts among its early victories invoking a 1798 wartime law, the Alien Enemies Act, to deport Venezuelan migrants it accuses of being gang members, securing the release of at least 46 Americans detained abroad, and carrying out hundreds of military strikes in Yemen against Houthi militants who have been attacking commercial shipping vessels in the Red Sea.
Trump hopeful for Iran nuclear deal breakthrough
The White House this month also launched direct talks with Iran over its nuclear program, a renewed push to solve another of the most delicate foreign policy issues facing the White House and the Middle East.
Trump says his administration is making progress in its effort to secure a deal with Iran to scupper Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program.
Witkoff flew directly from meeting with Putin in Moscow to Muscat, Oman, to take part in talks on Saturday, the third engagement between US and Iranian officials this month.
The US and other world powers in 2015 reached a long-term, comprehensive nuclear agreement that limited Tehran’s enrichment of uranium in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions. But Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from the nuclear agreement in 2018, calling it the “worst deal ever.”
Since Trump pulled out of the Obama-era deal, Iran has accelerated its production of near weapons-grade uranium.
The president said on Friday that he’s open to meeting with Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei or President Masoud Pezeshkian, while also indicating military action — something that US ally Israel has advocated — remains an option.
As Trump increasingly expresses his preference for diplomacy rather than military action, Iran hawks at home are urging him to tread carefully in his hunt for a legacy-defining deal.
“The Iranians would have the talking point that they forced the same person who left the deal many years later, after them resisting maximum pressure, into an equal or worse deal,” said Behnam Ben Taleblu, senior director of the Iran program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
But Trump wants a solution, and fast.
“I think a deal is going to be made there,” Trump said Sunday “That’s going to happen pretty soon.”
Conclave to elect new pope starts May 7: Vatican
- The date for the conclave has not yet been set but it can only begin after a nine-day period of mourning
- For inspiration they will also have the great beauty of the frescos painted by Michelangelo and other renowned Renaissance artists
VATICAN CITY: Catholic cardinals meeting in Rome on Monday have set May 7 as the start date for the conclave to elect a successor to Pope Francis, the Vatican spokesman said.
The cardinals will take part in a solemn mass at St Peter’s Basilica, after which those eligible to vote will gather in the Sistine Chapel for the secretive ballot, spokesman Matteo Bruni said.
The Vatican on Monday closed the Sistine Chapel to begin preparations for the conclave, during which Catholic cardinals from around the world cast ballots to elect a new pope.
“Notice is hereby given that the Sistine Chapel will be closed to the public as of Monday 28 April 2025 for the requirements of the conclave,” the Vatican Museums said on its website, ahead of an expected announcement of the conclave date.
