United News of Bangladesh

U.S. airstrikes targeting the Ras Isa oil port held by Yemen’s Houthi rebels killed 20 people and wounded 50 others, the group said early Friday. The strikes, confirmed by the U.S. military’s Central Command, represent one of the highest reported death tolls so far in the campaign launched under President Donald Trump that has involved hundreds of strikes since March 15. The Houthis’ al-Masirah satellite news channel aired graphic footage of the aftermath of the attack, showing corpses strewn across the site. It said paramedic and civilians workers at the port had been killed in the attack, which sparked a massive explosion and fires. In a statement, Central Command said that “U.S. forces took action to eliminate this source of fuel for the Iran-backed Houthi terrorists and deprive them of illegal revenue that has funded Houthi efforts to terrorize the entire region for over 10 years.” “This strike was not intended to harm the people of Yemen, who rightly want to throw off the yoke of Houthi subjugation and live peacefully,” it added. It did not acknowledge any casualties and declined to comment when asked by The Associated Press regarding civilians reportedly being killed. US strikes spark massive fireball, kills those at port US airstrikes hit Yemen's capital overnight killing one, Houthis say The Ras Isa port, a collection of three oil tanks and refining equipment, sits in Yemen's Hodeida governorate along the Red Sea. NASA satellites that track forest fires showed an intense blaze early Friday morning at the site just off Kamaran Island, targeted by intense U.S. airstrikes over the last few days. The Ras Isa port also is the terminus of an oil pipeline stretching to Yemen's energy-rich Marib governorate, which remains held by allies of Yemen's exiled government. The Houthis expelled that government from Yemen's capital, Sanaa, back in 2015. However, oil exports have been halted by the decadelong war and the Houthis have used Ras Isa to bring in oil. The Houthis denounced the U.S. attack. “This completely unjustified aggression represents a flagrant violation of Yemen’s sovereignty and independence and a direct targeting of the entire Yemeni people,” the Houthis said in a statement carried by the SABA news agency they control. “It targets a vital civilian facility that has served the Yemeni people for decades.” On April 9, the U.S. State Department issued a warning about oil shipments to Yemen. “The United States will not tolerate any country or commercial entity providing support to foreign terrorist organizations, such as the Houthis, including offloading ships and provisioning oil at Houthi-controlled ports,” it said. The attack follows Israeli airstrikes on the Houthis which previously hit port and oil infrastructure used by the rebels after their attacks on Israel. US strikes come as part of monthlong intense campaign An AP review has found the new U.S. operation against the Houthis under President Donald Trump appears more extensive than that under former President Joe Biden, as Washington moves from solely targeting launch sites to firing at ranking personnel and dropping bombs on cities. The new campaign of airstrikes started after the rebels threatened to begin targeting “Israeli” ships again over Israel blocking aid entering the Gaza Strip. The rebels have loosely defined what constitutes an Israeli ship, meaning many vessels could be targeted. Israeli airstrikes kill senior Hamas leader, 18 others; Houthis launch missile toward Israel The Houthis targeted more than 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones, sinking two of them and killing four sailors from November 2023 until January of this year. They also launched attacks targeting American warships without success. The U.S. campaign shows no signs of stopping, as the Trump administration has also linked its airstrikes on the Houthis to an effort to pressure Iran over its rapidly advancing nuclear program.

Judges at the International Criminal Court want Hungary to explain why it failed to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu when he visited Budapest earlier this month. In a filing released late Wednesday, The Hague-based court initiated non-compliance proceedings against Hungary after the country gave Netanyahu a red carpet welcome despite an ICC arrest warrant for crimes against humanity in connection with the war in Gaza, AP reports. During the visit, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced his country would quit the court, claiming on state radio that the ICC was “no longer an impartial court, not a court of law, but a political court.” The Hungarian leader, regarded by critics as an autocrat and the EU’s most intransigent spoiler in the bloc’s decision-making, defended his decision to not arrest Netanyahu. Myanmar frees around 4,900 prisoners to mark traditional new year “We signed an international treaty, but we never took all the steps that would otherwise have made it enforceable in Hungary,” Orbán said at the time, referring to the fact that Hungary’s parliament never promulgated the court’s statute into Hungarian law. Judges at the ICC have previously dismissed similar arguments. The ICC and other international organizations have criticized Hungary’s defiance of the warrant against Netanyahu. Days before his arrival, the president of the court’s oversight body wrote to the government in Hungary reminding it of its “specific obligation to comply with requests from the court for arrest and surrender.” A spokesperson for the ICC declined to comment on the non-compliance proceedings. Hungary’s decision to leave the ICC, a process that will take at least a year to complete, will make it the sole non-signatory within the 27-member European Union. With 125 current signatory countries, only the Philippines and Burundi have ever withdrawn from the court as Hungary intends. It’s the third time in the past year that the court has investigated one of its member states for failing to arrest suspects. In February, judges asked Italy to explain why the country sent a Libyan man suspected of torture and murder home on an Italian military aircraft rather than handing him over to the court. In October judges reported Mongolia to the court’s oversight organization for failing to arrest Russian President Vladimir Putin when he visited the Asian nation. Hungary has until May 23 to submit evidence in its defense.

North Korea on Thursday threatened unspecified retaliation after the U.S. flew long-range bombers over South Korea during training with South Korean warplanes, which North Korea views as practice for an attack against it. The U.S. flew the B-1B bombers Tuesday to train with other U.S. and South Korean fighter jets. South Korea’s Defense Ministry had said the drill was meant to show the two countries’ combined deterrence capability against North Korea’s advancing nuclear program. The U.S. and South Korea routinely hold joint military exercises that they describe as defensive in nature. But North Korea regards them as an invasion rehearsal and is particularly sensitive to the U.S. mobilization of strategic assets such as long-range bombers, aircraft carriers and nuclear-powered submarines. “The recent military move of the U.S. and the ROK is an open threat to the security of our state and a grave provocation that raises the military tension in the region to an extreme dangerous level,” an unidentified spokesperson for North Korea's Defense Ministry said in a statement carried in state media. North Korea deployed 3,000 troops to Russia, says South Korea ROK stands for the Republic of Korea, South Korea’s formal name. The statement warned that North Korea “will deter by dint of powerful force the U.S. aggressive attempt to permanently fix the malignant instability element in the security environment of the region.” North Korea often test-launches missiles in response to the U.S. flyovers of B-1B bombers, which is capable of carrying a huge payload of conventional weapons. In a development that could further anger North Korea, South Korea's air force announced later Thursday that it was beginning its large-scale biannual aerial exercise with U.S. forces from Thursday. The air force said the two-week “Freedom Flag” exercise would involve 90 aircraft and other aerial assets from South Korea and the U.S. Animosities on the Korean Peninsula are running high as North Korea continues weapons tests designed to modernize his nuclear arsenal and supports Russia’s war against Ukraine by supplying weapons and troops. Since his inauguration, President Donald Trump has repeatedly boasted of his personal ties with Kim and expressed his willingness to reach out to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to revive diplomacy. North Korea fires several ballistic missiles after the US and South Korea began military drills On March 31, Trump called Kim “a very smart guy” and North Korea “a big nuclear nation.” Trump said he and Kim “have a great relationship” and that “there is communication,” though there are no known public negotiations and North Korea hasn’t publicly responded to Trump’s outreach.

The head of Myanmar’s military government granted amnesty to around 4,900 prisoners to mark the country's traditional new year, state-run media reported Thursday, but it wasn’t immediately clear how many were political detainees locked up for opposing army rule. Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the head of the ruling military council, pardoned 4,893 prisoners, MRTV reported. Thirteen foreigners will also be released and deported from Myanmar, it said in a separate statement. Other prisoners received reduced sentences, except for those convicted of serious charges such as murder and rape, or those jailed on charges under various other security acts. If the freed detainees violate the law again they will have to serve the remainder of their original sentences in addition to any new sentence, according to the terms of their release. Mass amnesties on the holiday are not unusual in Myanmar. The releases will occur at prisons nationwide. Dozens of relatives and friends of prisoners waited early Thursday outside the main gate of Insein Prison, on the northern outskirts of Yangon, the country’s largest city. No details were available about the number of prisoners released from Insein as part of the amnesty. Myanmar has been under military rule since Feb. 1, 2021, when its army ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government. The takeover was met with massive nonviolent resistance, which has since become a widespread armed struggle. The country is now in civil war. UN special envoy Julie Bishop makes trip to war-torn Myanmar after devastating earthquake Some 22,197 political detainees, including Suu Kyi, were in detention as of last Friday, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, an independent organization that keeps detailed tallies of arrests and casualties linked to the nation’s political conflicts. Many political detainees had been held on a charge of incitement, a catch-all offense widely used to arrest critics of the government or military, and punishable by up to three years in prison. This year’s celebrations of Thingyan, the New Year’s holiday, were more reserved than usual due to a nationwide grieving period following a devastating earthquake last month. The country is struggling to recover from the 7.7 magnitude quake on March 28 that hit its central heartland, killing about 3,725 people and leveling structures from new condos to ancient pagodas. In a New Year’s speech broadcast Thursday, Min Aung Hlaing said his government will carry out reconstruction and rehabilitation measures in the quake-affected areas as quickly as possible. Southeast Asian foreign ministers seek breakthrough in Myanmar conflict and South China Sea disputes He also reaffirmed plans to hold a general election by the end of the year and called on opposition groups fighting the army to resolve the conflicts in political ways. During the holiday, the violent struggle between the army and pro-democracy forces continued. There were armed clashes in the countryside but the number of casualties was unclear.

Vice President JD Vance and his family will travel to Italy and India this week and next to meet with leaders and visit cultural sites. Vance's office said Wednesday his trip from Friday to April 24 will include visits to Rome and New Delhi along with the Indian cities of Jaipur and Agra. The trip comes as Vance has taken on a prime role in the White House's engagements abroad. The Republican vice president and his wife, Usha Vance, traveled to Greenland last month, and he went to Paris and Munich in February. President Donald Trump is expected to make his first foreign trip in May to Saudi Arabia. In Rome this week, Vance is expected to meet with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who is due to visit the White House on Thursday. Vance, who converted to Catholicism in 2019, will also meet with Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, according to his office, and is expected to participate in ceremonies around Easter Sunday. China's economy grows at a 5.4% annual pace in Jan-March quarter Vance's visit to India marks his first trip to the country, which has added significance for the second family. Usha Vance is the daughter of immigrants from South India. While in India next week, Vance is expected to meet with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who met with Trump at the White House in February.

A US judge has said he could hold the Trump administration in contempt of court for "willful disregard" of an order to halt the departure of deportation flights carrying more than 200 people to El Salvador last month. The administration had invoked a 227-year-old law meant to protect the US during wartime to carry out the mass deportation, BBC reports. "The Court does not reach such conclusion lightly or hastily; indeed, it has given Defendants ample opportunity to rectify or explain their actions. None of their responses has been satisfactory," federal judge James Boasberg wrote. The decision to begin contempt proceedings escalates a clash between the White House and the judiciary over the president's powers. Harvard rejects Trump’s demands, faces multi-billion-dollar funding freeze The administration could avoid a contempt finding, or "purge" itself of contempt, if they provide an explanation of their actions and come into compliance with the original order issued last month, Boasberg said on Wednesday. That filing is due by 23 April, he said. Thursday's decision comes despite the Supreme Court's later finding that Donald Trump could in fact use the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to conduct the deportations to El Salvador. The Supreme Court's ruling against Boasberg's temporary restraining order "does not excuse the Government's violation", he said. If the administration does not provide the requested information by the 23 April deadline, Boasberg will then seek to identify the individual people who ignored the order to stop the deportations. He could then recommend prosecutions for those involved.

 An Israeli airstrike hit the northern gate of a field hospital in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, killing a medic and wounding nine other people, a hospital spokesman said. The strike hit the Kuwaiti Field Hospital in the Muwasi area, where hundreds of thousands have sought shelter in sprawling tent camps. The wounded were all patients and medics, and two of the patients were in critical condition after the strike, said Saber Mohammed, a hospital spokesman. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military. On Tuesday, a spokesman for Hamas said that strikes had caused them to lose contact with the unit guarding Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander. Hamas released a video of the 21-year-old soldier days earlier, likely speaking under duress. Hamas said a direct strike hit the location where Alexander was being held and they were trying to reach them. In a separate development, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated his opposition to Palestinian statehood in a phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron, who had said France aimed to recognize a Palestinian state later this year. Israeli airstrikes kill senior Hamas leader, 18 others; Houthis launch missile toward Israel Strikes on hospitals The military has struck and raided hospitals on several occasions during the 18-month war, accusing Hamas militants of hiding out in them or using them for military purposes. Hospital staff have denied the allegations and accused Israel of recklessly endangering civilians and gutting Gaza's health system. On Sunday, Israel struck the last major hospital providing critical care in northern Gaza after ordering an evacuation. A patient died during the evacuation, and the strike severely damaged the emergency room, pharmacy and surrounding buildings, according to Al-Ahli Hospital. The Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem, which runs the hospital, condemned the strike. Israel said it targeted a Hamas command and control center within the facility, without providing evidence. Hamas denied the allegations. Netanyahu visits Gaza In the call with Macron, Netanyahu said the creation of a Palestinian state would be “a huge reward for terrorism” and result in a militant-run entity just miles from Israeli cities. In his own statement posted on X, Macron called for another ceasefire, the release of hostages and renewing the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza, which Israel has blocked for over a month. He did not mention recognition of a Palestinian state. Macron said last week that France should aim to recognize a Palestinian state by June when it joins Saudi Arabia in hosting an international conference on implementing a two-state solution. Later on Tuesday, Netanyahu’s office said he visited northern Gaza. He’s previously entered Gaza a handful of times during the war. Population displaced The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251. Fifty-nine hostages are still inside Gaza, 24 of whom are believed to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Wounded children overwhelm Gaza hospital amid relentless Israeli airstrikes Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed over 51,000 people, according to an updated toll released by Gaza’s Health Ministry on Tuesday. That includes more than 1,600 people killed since Israel ended a ceasefire and resumed its offensive last month to pressure Hamas to accept changes to the agreement. The ministry is led by medical professionals but reports to the Hamas-run government. Its toll is seen as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and independent experts, though Israel has challenged its numbers. Israel says it has killed some 20,000 militants, without providing evidence. The ministry does not say how many were civilians or combatants but says women and children make up more than half of the dead. The offensive has destroyed much of the territory and displaced around 90% of its population of roughly 2 million Palestinians. The creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel is widely seen internationally as the only realistic way to resolve the decades-old conflict. Israel captured Gaza, the West Bank and east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, and the Palestinians want all three for a future state. The last serious and substantive peace talks broke down after Netanyahu returned to power in 2009. A number of European states have recently recognized a Palestinian state in what is largely a symbolic move aimed at reviving the peace process.

Afghan children will die because of US funding cuts, an aid agency official said Tuesday. The warning follows the cancellation of foreign aid contracts by President Donald Trump’s administration, including to Afghanistan where more than half of the population needs humanitarian assistance to survive. Action Against Hunger initially stopped all U.S.-funded activities in March after the money dried up suddenly. But it kept the most critical services going in northeastern Badakhshan province and the capital Kabul through its own budget, a measure that stopped this month. Its therapeutic feeding unit in Kabul is empty and closing this week. There are no patients, and staff contracts are ending because of the U.S. funding cuts. “If we don’t treat children with acute malnutrition there is a very high risk of (them) dying,” Action Against Hunger’s country director, Cobi Rietveld, told The Associated Press. “No child should die because of malnutrition. If we don’t fight hunger, people will die of hunger. If they don’t get medical care, there is a high risk of dying. They don’t get medical care, they die.” Pakistan urges host countries to resettle Afghan nationals by April 30 More than 3.5 million children in Afghanistan will suffer from acute malnutrition this year, an increase of 20% from 2024. Decades of conflict — including the 20-year U.S. war with the Taliban — as well as entrenched poverty and climate shocks have contributed to the country’s humanitarian crisis. Last year, the United States provided 43% of all international humanitarian funding to Afghanistan. Rietveld said there were other nongovernmental organizations dealing with funding cuts to Afghanistan. “So when we cut the funding, there will be more children who are going to die of malnutrition.” The children who came to the feeding unit often could not walk or even crawl. Sometimes they were unable to eat because they didn't have the energy. All the services were provided free of charge, including three meals a day. Rietveld said children would need to be referred to other places, where there was less capacity and technical knowledge. Pakistan intensifies pressure on afghan refugees, risking persecution in Afghanistan Dr. Abdul Hamid Salehi said Afghan mothers were facing a crisis. Poverty levels among families meant it was impossible to treat severely malnourished children in private clinics. “People used to come to us in large numbers, and they are still hoping and waiting for this funding to be found again or for someone to sponsor us so that we can resume our work and start serving patients once more.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reaffirmed his opposition to the creation of a Palestinian state during a phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday, amid growing international support for a two-state solution. According to a statement from Netanyahu’s office, he told Macron that he "strongly opposes" Palestinian statehood, describing it as "a major reward for terrorism." He warned that establishing such a state near Israeli cities would turn it into "a stronghold of Iranian terrorism" and claimed that "an overwhelming majority of the Israeli public strongly opposes it." In response, Macron posted on X (formerly Twitter) that he had reiterated France’s firm support for Israel’s security. He emphasized that securing the release of all hostages held by Hamas remains a top priority, along with the demilitarization of the militant group. Macron also stressed that a ceasefire is essential to facilitate the hostages' release and called for the urgent opening of all humanitarian aid crossings to assist civilians in Gaza. The call followed Macron's recent statement that France may formally recognize a Palestinian state by June. Speaking in a TV interview, Macron said, “We must move toward recognition… and so, in the coming months, we will.” France is set to co-host a United Nations meeting in New York with Saudi Arabia in June, aimed at advancing the two-state solution as Israel’s military operation in Gaza stretches into its 18th month. The territories sought by Palestinians for statehood — the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem — have remained under Israeli occupation since the 1967 Middle East war, despite longstanding international criticism.

Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu has ratified an act prohibiting Israeli passport holders from entering the territory of the Republic of Maldives, the President's Office said on Tuesday. The  Third Amendment to the Maldives Immigration Act was passed by the People's Majlis during the 20th sitting of the first session of the year on April 15, the President's Office said in a statement. The Maldivian government reaffirms its strong solidarity with the Palestinian cause and its ongoing commitment to promoting and protecting the rights of the Palestinian people, according to the President's Office. Jordan, Indonesia condemn Israeli Actions at Al-Aqsa Mosque The Maldives continues to advocate for accountability for violations of international law and remains vocal across various international platforms in its condemnation of Israel's actions, the President's Office said. President Muizzu has consistently reiterated the Maldives' principled support for the establishment of an independent and sovereign State of Palestine, the President's Office said.