International News
Strong Quake Hits Central Japan, Prompts Tsunami Alerts
Monday saw a forceful 7.5 magnitude earthquake hitting central Japan, according to the USGS.
The tremor triggered tsunami warnings, compelling local authorities to encourage residents in the vicinity to seek safer, elevated areas.
“All residents must evacuate immediately to higher ground,” national broadcaster NHK said after the quake hit the Noto region in Ishikawa prefecture around 4:10 pm (0710 GMT).
The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center cautioned that dangerous tsunami waves could occur within 300 kilometres (190 miles) from the earthquake’s epicentre along the Japanese coast.
A confirmed tsunami measuring 1.2 metres was reported to have reached Wajima city in Ishikawa prefecture.
The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) anticipated a considerably higher tsunami of five meters to hit Noto in the same region.
The JMA reported a rapid sequence of earthquakes in the Noto region, situated on the Sea of Japan side of Japan’s main island of Honshu, starting with a 5.7 magnitude tremor at 4:06 pm local time.
Subsequent to this, a 7.6-magnitude quake occurred at 4:10 pm, followed by a 6.1 magnitude quake at 4:18 pm, a 4.5 magnitude quake at 4:23 pm, a 4.6 magnitude quake at 4:29 pm, and a 4.8 magnitude quake at 4:32 pm.
Shortly after, the US Geological Survey reported another quake with a magnitude of 6.2.
Broadcasters swiftly switched to special programming following the largest of the quakes, issuing urgent calls for affected residents to immediately move to higher ground.
A presenter on broadcaster NHk told viewers “We realise your home, your belongings are all precious to you, but your lives are important above everything else. Run to the highest ground possible.”
Japan has maintained a stringent construction regulations aimed at ensuring buildings are capable of withstanding powerful earthquakes and regularly conducts emergency drills to prepare for significant seismic events.
However, the country is haunted by the recollection of a colossal 9.0-magnitude undersea quake off northeastern Japan in March 2011.
This seismic event triggered a devastating tsunami, resulting in approximately 18,500 people reported dead or missing.
The 2011 tsunami additionally caused three reactors at the Fukushima nuclear plant to undergo meltdowns, resulting in Japan’s worst post-war disaster and the most severe nuclear incident since Chernobyl.
In March 2022, a 7.4-magnitude earthquake off the coast of Fukushima shook extensive regions of eastern Japan, resulting in the loss of three lives.
Tokyo suffered significant devastation from a massive earthquake a century ago in 1923.
An anti-Islam agitator was stabbed and injured in a knife attack in Germany on Friday.
Michael Stürzenberger was one of several people wounded in the attack, which was captured on a live-streamed video.
Michael Stuerzenberger was one of several people wounded in the attack, which was caught on a live-streamed video.
Police shot and wounded the assailant in a market square in Mannheim, south-western Germany. There were no details about the severity of the injuries.
Mr Stuerzenberger was displaying anti-Muslim posters in the town square before the attack described by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz as “terrible”.
“My thoughts are with the victims. Violence is absolutely unacceptable in our democracy. The perpetrator must be severely punished,” Mr Scholz said.
The live stream was running on a channel called Eyes Open, which posts footage of anti-Islam rallies. The video appeared to have been deleted after the stabbing.
German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said the background to the “dreadful crime” was being investigated.
“I am shocked and appalled by this violence in my city, which I condemn in the strongest terms,” she said. “What is clear is that violence can never be a means of political debate.”
The attack comes during an EU election campaign in which Germany has been rattled by a spate of violence. A candidate for the European Parliament was badly injured while putting up posters, while a former Berlin mayor was hit over the head in a library.
Far-right politicians have used the campaign to raise fears of Islamist extremism in Germany.
Mr Stuerzenberger is a prominent figure in the far right who once set up a branch of radical street movement Pegida.
He was speaking on behalf of Pax Europa, an organisation that describes itself as “against political Islam” in Mannheim. The organisation claimed that a police officer was among the injured and that he had been transported to the hospital following the incident.
Since Mr. Stuerzenberger advocated for “patriotic resistance” in Germany, his actions have been observed by domestic intelligence services.
Asma al-Assad, the wife of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who bravely battled breast cancer in 2019, has been struck with another health challenge.
The president’s office revealed in a statement on Tuesday that she has been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia.
The statement said, “First Lady Asma al-Assad has been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia.”
More to follow…………
Iran experienced a tragic event as President Ebrahim Raisi, aged 63, lost his life in a helicopter crash.
Search and rescue teams found the wreckage on Monday, revealing that the helicopter was carrying President Raisi, alongside Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and seven other high-ranking officials.
The announcement of President Raisi’s passing was made early Monday morning.
The crash occurred in the rugged mountainous terrain of Iran’s northwest region.
This devastating event comes amid heightened tensions following Iran’s retaliatory drone-and-missile strike on Israel, sparked by an earlier attack on its diplomatic compound in Damascus.
BIZTELLERS reports that Iran faced a wave of uncertainty on Sunday as search and rescue teams navigated through fog-covered mountain terrain in the aftermath of President Ebrahim Raisi’s helicopter disappearance, which state media labeled as an “accident.”
However, concern escalated for the 63-year-old ultraconservative leader as communication with the aircraft, transporting him alongside Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and other officials in East Azerbaijan province, was lost, according to reports.
Ebrahim Raisi, known for his hardline stance, clinched the presidency in a notably uncompetitive 2021 election.
As the former chief justice, he oversaw a crackdown on dissent during a turbulent period of youth-led protests against clerical authority.
Positioned as the second-most powerful figure in Iran’s political landscape, after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khomeini, Raisi’s authority was substantial.
According to Iran’s Constitution, in the event of the president’s demise, the first vice president assumes office pending approval from the Supreme Leader.
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