International

Argentine case into crimes against Rohingya begins

AFP

A representative for Myanmar’s Rohingya minority community testified in an Argentine court Thursday as a part of an investigation into alleged crimes against humanity by the Asian country’s military rulers.

The court agreed to investigate the allegations based on the principles of universal jurisdiction, which holds that some acts — including war crimes and crimes against humanity — are so horrific they are not specific to one nation and can be tried anywhere.

A 2017 army crackdown on Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar, which the UN says could amount to genocide, has triggered an exodus of more than 740,000 members of the community, mainly to Bangladesh.

“Recently they announced new orders of restrictions for the Rohingya people,” Tun Khin, president of the British-based Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK, told reporters outside the court in Buenos Aires ahead of the hearing.

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“We worry that the situation may get worse so that is very important that we push the international community seeking justice, not only this court, but other cases for the international community to support.”

Other proceedings against Myanmar and its leaders are already under way at the International Criminal Court and the UN’s International Court of Justice.

It is not the first time Argentine courts have taken up cases of universal jurisdiction, having done so in relation to ex-dictator Francisco Franco’s rule in Spain and the Falun Gong movement in China.

In August, six women testified remotely to the court from refugee camps in Bangladesh, claiming to have been the victims of sexual violence and to have lost family members during the crackdown.

In a statement, the UK Rohingya organization said, “Tun Khin’s testimony will focus on his personal history, which in many ways reflects the tragic modern history of the Rohingya people.”

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His parents were forced into exile in Bangladesh in 1978, and Khin himself left Myanmar in the 1990s after he was unable to attend university “simply because he was a Rohingya,” the statement said.

On Thursday, Khin said he appreciated the humanitarian aid the Rohingya have received, but that he wanted more support for court cases and much “stronger action… to restore the rights of the Rohingyas and to stop this genocide.”

Myanmar denies committing genocide, justifying the 2017 operations as a means of rooting out Rohingya militants.

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International

Hiroshima survivor who embraced Obama dies at 88

The emotional embrace between Barack Obama and Hiroshima survivor Mori—who was eight years old when the United States dropped the atomic bomb in 1945—resonated around the world.

According to Asahi Shimbun and other local media, Mori died on Saturday at a hospital in Hiroshima.

Mori, known for his research on the fate of American prisoners of war in Hiroshima, was thrown into a river by the force of the explosion on August 6, 1945, during the atomic bombing of the city.

In a past interview with AFP, ahead of his meeting with Obama at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial in 2016, Mori recalled the chaos and desperation that followed the blast.

He described how, after emerging from the water, he encountered injured civilians seeking help amid the devastation, an experience that stayed with him throughout his life.

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In 2016, Obama became the first sitting U.S. president to visit Hiroshima, where he paid tribute to the victims of the first atomic bomb used in warfare. During the visit, Mori was visibly moved as he met the president, sharing a brief but powerful moment that symbolized remembrance and reconciliation.

The bombing of Hiroshima resulted in the deaths of approximately 140,000 people, including those who succumbed to radiation exposure in the aftermath.

Three days later, a second atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki, killing an estimated 74,000 people and contributing to the end of World War II.

International

Colombia seeks ‘total suffocation’ of armed groups with regional support

Colombia is advancing a strategy aimed at the “total suffocation” of illegal armed groups, seeking to corner them in border regions with the support of Ecuador and Venezuela, Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez said in an interview with AFP.

According to the minister, coordinated pressure from neighboring countries—backed by United States—aims to dismantle criminal networks that use cross-border routes to traffic Colombian cocaine toward North America and Europe.

For decades, armed groups involved in Colombia’s internal conflict have relied on border territories as strategic rear bases to evade military operations and maintain logistical support.

However, Sánchez said that dynamic is beginning to change.

“We expect a total suffocation between both nations so they have no spaces where they can live or feel safe […] to close off any room they might have,” he stated during the interview in Bogotá, less than five months before the end of President Gustavo Petro’s term.

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Regional developments have reinforced this strategy. Following the capture of Nicolás Maduro in a U.S. military operation, Washington has increased its influence in Caracas, where interim leader Delcy Rodríguez has implemented a renewed anti-narcotics policy.

Meanwhile, in Ecuador, President Daniel Noboa—a key U.S. ally in the region—has launched a two-week security plan under strict curfews to combat criminal gangs, with U.S. support.

Sánchez argued that these combined efforts leave illegal organizations with fewer escape routes and operational spaces, effectively placing them in a “dead end.”

International

Two killed in shooting at restaurant near Frankfurt Airport

Two people were shot dead early Tuesday at a restaurant in Raunheim, near Frankfurt Airport, according to local police.

Preliminary findings indicate that an armed individual entered the establishment at around 03:45 local time (02:45 GMT) and opened fire on the victims, who died at the scene from their injuries.

The suspect fled and remains at large, while the motive behind the shooting is still unclear, German media reported. Authorities have launched a large-scale search operation.