Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, the head of Myanmar’s military government, has alleged that a major offensive in the country’s north-east, by an alliance of armed ethnic minority organisations, was partly funded by profits derived from the group’s lucrative drug trade in the region.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen began two days of meetings with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng on Thursday, with the aim to limit the economic fallout from tensions between the two superpowers and keep the lines of communication open.
The UK government is planning to add India to its list of safe states in a decision that will expedite the process of returning Indians who have unlawfully left the country and eliminate their ability to seek refuge in Britain. According to the draft legislation in the House of Commons on 8 November, India and Georgia are the two countries to be added to the list. The UK Home Office stated that the step aims to strengthen the country’s immigration system and help prevent abuse by people making unfounded protection claims.
The Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) rejected the ruling by an Australian court that ordered former Indian High Commissioner Navdeep Singh Suri to compensate his former domestic employee with thousands of dollars within 60 days after she accused him of unfair working conditions and exploitation. Asking Australia to uphold its obligations under the Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations, the MEA said on Thursday that the Australian authorities do not have any locus standi to adjudicate on matters concerning India-based service staff of its high commission.
The White House said on Thursday that Israel will begin daily four-hour pauses in the northern Gaza Strip to allow Palestinians to evacuate fighting in the coastal enclave, following President Joe Biden’s request for pauses of three days or more. Biden told reporters he intended to seek a longer pause. “Yes,” he said, “I’ve asked for a pause longer than three days.”
US military forces carried out a self-defence strike on an Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and linked organisations site in eastern Syria on 8 November. Secretary of Defence Lloyd J. Austin stated that the strike was carried out by two F-15 aircraft against a weapons storage depot. “The US is fully prepared to take further necessary measures to protect our people and our facilities. We urge against any escalation. US personnel will continue to conduct counter-ISIS missions in Iraq and Syria,” Austin said.