Comment on Official: Palestinian operatives helped free Syria hostages

President Vladimir Putin has been sworn for a record-breaking fifth term as Russia’s leader. In a lavish Tuesday ceremony at Andreyevsky Hall in the Grand Kremlin Palace, Putin swore an oath of allegiance by placing his right hand on Russia’s constitution. The ceremony—widely boycotted by Western diplomats following what election watchdogs called a sham vote in March—marked the start of a new six-year presidential term. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] “We are a united and great people and together we will overcome all obstacles, we will bring to life everything we have planned.

Erin Patterson, an Australian woman who is accused of murdering her ex-husband’s elderly parents and aunt last year by serving them poisonous mushrooms at a lunch, pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to three counts of murder and five counts of attempted murder. The 49-year-old denied the charges via a video call from the Melbourne prison she’s been held in for months, having not applied for bail. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Days after consuming beef Wellington prepared by Patterson at her home in Leongatha, a rural town in regional Victoria, on July 29, 2023, three guests—her former parents-in-law, Don and Gail Patterson, both 70, and her ex-husband’s aunt Heather Wilkinson, 66—died in hospital.

NEW DELHI — Millions of Indian voters across 93 constituencies were casting ballots on Tuesday as Prime Minister Narendra Modi mounted an increasingly shrill election campaign, ramping up polarizing rhetoric in incendiary speeches that have targeted the Muslim minority. In recent campaign rallies, Modi has called Muslims “infiltrators” and said they “have too many children,” referring to a Hindu nationalist trope that Muslims produce more children with the aim of outnumbering Hindus in India.

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — Police arrested about 125 activists as they broke up a pro-Palestinian demonstration camp at the University of Amsterdam early Tuesday, as protests that have roiled campuses in the United States spread into Europe. Police in the Dutch capital said in a statement on the social media platform X that their action was “necessary to restore order” after protests turned violent.

An Israeli tank brigade seized control Tuesday of the Gaza Strip side of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, authorities said, moving forward with an offensive in the southern city even as cease-fire negotiations with Hamas remain on a knife’s edge. The move comes after hours of whiplash in the Israel-Hamas war, with the militant group on Monday saying it accepted an Egyptian-Qatari mediated cease-fire proposal.

BEIJING — Chinese state media are reporting a knife attack with possible deaths at a hospital in the country’s southwest. The official Xinhua News Agency said there were more than 10 casualties in what it called a “vicious assault” on Tuesday in Yunnan province. An online post from Guizhou province television citing unnamed authorities said that two had died and 23 people were injured. A suspect has been arrested, the Guizhou TV post said.