Forty-four people were killed and over 200 injured as a suicide bomber detonated explosives at a political rally in northwestern Pakistan on Sunday. The blast occurred when around 400 people had gathered at a workers’ convention of the conservative Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) party on the outskirts of Khar in Pakistan’s northwestern Bajaur district bordering Afghanistan. No one has claimed responsibility for the blast so far.
Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto remarked on Sunday that Italy made an “improvised and atrocious” decision when it joined China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) four years ago. In an interview with the Corriere della Sera newspaper, Crosetto said that the decision did little to boost Italy’s exports like it did for China’s exports to Italy. Crosetto is a part of PM Giorgia Meloni’s administration, which is considering how to withdraw from BRI without damaging relations with Beijing.
During a meeting with the Chinese delegation visiting Pyongyang to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the end of the Korean War on Friday, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed to develop the two countries’ relations to a “new high.”
China and Georgia have upgraded their relationship to a strategic partnership, according to a joint statement reported by Chinese state media Xinhua, on Monday.
Russia’s Defence Ministry claimed early Sunday that it shot down three Ukrainian drones that attempted to hit Moscow, the second such attack in a week, which damaged a high-rise building thought to house government offices. According to Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, no one was injured, and the attack caused only minor damages to the facades of two office buildings in the Moskva-Citi business region.
Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles and US Defence Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III met with commanders and troops participating in Exercise Talisman Sabre at Lavarack Barracks on Sunday. US and Australian commanders toured the exercise headquarters in Townsville, stating that the exercise fosters more than just military expertise and interoperability, it also engenders bonds and friendships that will be beneficial in the years ahead. The actual exercise covers a large region of Australia and adjacent waterways. More than 30,000 military men are participating in the 10th iteration of Exercise Talisman Sabre.
Ukrainian forces were seen firing North Korean missiles, which they said were captured by a “friendly” country before being transferred to Ukraine. The North Korean weapons, whose deployment by Ukraine was previously not reported, were shown to a media source by forces using Soviet-era Grad multiple-launch rocket systems (MLRS) near the ruined city of Bakhmut.
Supporters of the military coup in Niger attacked the French embassy in Niamey on Sunday. They set fire to French flags and pelted the former colonial nation’s embassy with stones, prompting the police to respond with tear gas. Pictures circulated afterwards showed the embassy walls ablaze and wounded people being loaded into ambulances.