Comment on The Quick Read on MBS’s Tour of Pakistan, India and China

Thai activist-turned-lawmaker Chonthicha “Lookkate” Jangrew—a prominent figure of the country’s pro-democracy movement and a member of the Move Forward Party that galvanized the public during last year’s parliamentary elections—was sentenced on Monday to two years in prison for royal defamation related to her involvement in a 2021 demonstration. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Lookkate, who was recently included in TIME’s list of Next Generation Leaders, which published in print also on Monday, denies the charge and has filed an appeal.

At least 40 Palestinians were killed in an Israeli airstrike at a camp for displaced people in the southern city of Rafah late Sunday, the Hamas-run ministry of health said. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] The strike came two days after the International Court of Justice issued a ruling that many interpreted as ordering Israel to halt its operations so as to save civilians.

Geneva — A global treaty to fight pandemics like COVID is going to have to wait: After more than two years of negotiations, rich and poor countries have failed — for now — to come up with a plan for how the world might respond to the next pandemic. After COVID-19 triggered once-unthinkable lockdowns, upended economies and killed millions, leaders at the World Health Organization and worldwide vowed to do better in the future.

The U. K. is headed for a general election on July 4, after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak requested that King Charles III dissolve parliament earlier this week, sooner than many analysts expected. While the U. K. has transitioned to a parliamentary democracy over the last few centuries, the monarchy still plays a symbolic role in many aspects of the U.

TEL AVIV, Israel — The bodies of three more hostages killed on Oct 7. were recovered overnight from Gaza, Israel’s army said Friday, as the top United Nations court prepares to rule on whether Israel must halt its military operations and withdraw from the enclave. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] The bodies of Hanan Yablonka, Michel Nisenbaum, and Orion Hernandez Radoux were found and their families have been notified.

Kabosu, the Japanese shiba inu that became famous as the face of the ‘doge’ meme and inspired one of the largest cryptocurrencies, has died at 18 years old. She “passed away quietly” while being stroked by her owner, Atsuko Sato, who shared the news in a blog post on Friday.