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Fire in Malaysia’s Sabah destroys 1,000 homes, thousands displaced

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A fire that tore through a Malaysian coastal settlement on Borneo Island destroyed about 1,000 homes and displaced over 9,000 people, authorities said. The fire started early Sunday in the Sandakan district and spread rapidly through rows of wooden houses constructed on stilts above the sea, according to the fire and rescue department. Officials said strong winds and the close proximity of the structures helped fuel the fire, while narrow access routes and low tide conditions made it harder for emergency crews to reach affected areas and contain the flames. No deaths have been reported, though thousands of residents have been forced from their homes and moved to temporary shelter. The cause of the fire has not been confirmed and remains under investigation. Water villages — informal settlements built over the sea — are found along much of the coastline of Sabah, one of the poorest states in Malaysia. The homes are tightly packed, made from combustible materials and often lack basic...
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North Korea fires ballistic missile as regional tensions simmer

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By HYUNG-JIN KIM and MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press North Korea launched multiple ballistic missiles toward the sea on Sunday, its neighbors said, days after the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog warned that North Korea was making “very serious” advances in efforts to build nuclear weapons. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the launches happened on Sunday morning from the Sinpo area, an eastern coastal site where North Korea has a major shipyard used for building submarines. South Korea’s military said it has bolstered its surveillance posture and is closely exchanging information with the U.S. and Japan. South Korea’s presidential office said its National Security Council plans to hold an emergency meeting to discuss the launches. Japan’s Defense Ministry also detected the launches, saying the weapons were believed to have landed in the waters off North Korea’s east coast. It said Tokyo strongly protested to Pyongyang, saying Sunday’s launches threaten regional and international pea...
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Haiti hunger crisis deepens as almost 6 million face acute food insecurity

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Nearly 6 million people in Haiti are expected to face acute food insecurity in the coming ‌months, underscoring how gang violence, mass displacement and economic strain are ‌keeping the Caribbean nation in the grip of a deepening humanitarian crisis, according to ​a new assessment published on Thursday. About 5.8 million Haitians – more than half the population – are facing acute food insecurity, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) said, with more than 1.8 million of them in the emergency phase ‌and in urgent need ⁠of food assistance. The crisis has been fueled by worsening insecurity, economic shocks and repeated disruption to markets and ⁠farming, the report said. Armed groups have expanded their control in parts of the country, while more than 1.4 million people have been displaced, straining ​food supplies ​and pushing vulnerable households deeper into ​hunger. The latest IPC projection is ‌slightly below an earlier estimate of 5.91 million people facing acut...
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Russian missiles hit Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities, three dead

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Overnight strikes killed three people including a boy in Ukraine and two children in Russia, officials from both countries said on Thursday. Moscow has fired hundreds of drones on its neighbour almost nightly since the beginning of the four-year war, with Kyiv regularly carrying out strikes within Russia in response to its attacks. “As a result of the enemy attack on the capital, two people died – a 12-year-old boy and a 35-year-old woman,” Kyiv’s mayor Vitali Klitschko wrote on Telegram. Another person was killed in Ukraine’s central city of Dnipro, Oleksandr Ganzha, head of the regional administration posted on Telegram. Around 10 people were wounded in the attack, with a 40-year-old woman hospitalised in “serious condition”, Ganzha said earlier. It was not immediately clear if the hospitalised woman was the person reported dead. On the Russian side, two children were killed in the southern Krasnodar Krai region, its governor Veniamin Kondratyev said Thursday. “A terrorist...
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As war rages, Israel and Lebanon hold first direct talks since 1993

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Direct talks between Israel and Lebanon concluded in Washington on Tuesday, with Israel’s envoy hailing a “wonderful exchange” and saying the two countries are “on the same side” in opposing Iran-backed Hezbollah. “We enjoyed it together. We had a wonderful exchange of over two hours,” Israeli Ambassador Yechiel Leiter told reporters following the talks. “We discovered today that we’re on the same side,” he said, adding: “We are both united in liberating Lebanon from (an) occupation power dominated by Iran called Hezbollah.” There was no immediate reaction from the Lebanese side. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio — who mediated the talks — had earlier urged the two countries to seize a “historic opportunity” for peace. “We understand we’re working against decades of history and the complexities that have led us to this unique moment and the opportunity here,” Rubio said at the State Department as he welcomed the ambassadors of the two countries. “The hope today is that we can out...
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North Korea tests cruise and anti-ship missiles from naval destroyer

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By Kyu-seok Shim Reuters North Korea conducted another test of strategic cruise missiles and anti-warship missiles on Sunday as part of operational efficiency trials ‌of its destroyer Choe Hyon, state media KCNA said on Tuesday. Leader Kim Jong ‌Un observed the test alongside senior defence officials and naval commanders, the report said. Two strategic cruise missiles and ​three anti-warship missiles were fired to check the warship’s integrated weapons command system, train crews in missile-launch procedures and verify the accuracy and anti-jamming performance of upgraded navigation systems, KCNA said. The cruise missiles flew for about 7,869 to 7,920 seconds and the anti-warship missiles for about 1,960 ‌to 1,973 seconds over waters ⁠off the country’s western coast, striking their targets with what the report described as ultra-precision accuracy. KCNA said Kim was briefed the same day on ⁠weapons system plans for two additional destroyers under construction, indicating preparati...
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Hungarian PM Viktor Orban concedes defeat in European electoral earthquake

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By Justin Spike and Sam McNeil, Associated Press Hungarian voters ousted long-serving Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Sunday after 16 years in power. The result is seen as a rejection of the authoritarian policies and global right-wing movement that Mr Orban embodied, in favour of a pro-European challenger in a bombshell election result with global repercussions. Election victor Peter Magyar, a former loyalist of Mr Orban who campaigned against corruption and on everyday issues such as health care and public transport, has pledged to rebuild Hungary’s relationships with the European Union and Nato — ties that frayed under Mr Orban. European leaders quickly congratulated Mr Magyar. It is not yet clear whether Mr Magyar’s Tisza party will have the two-thirds majority in parliament to govern without a coalition. With 77% of the vote counted, it had more than 53% support to 38% for Mr Orban’s governing Fidesz party. It is a stunning blow for Mr Orban, a close ally of both US President...
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