Syria Remains Silent On Intelligence Official’s Death

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court said Monday he is seeking arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas leaders, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in connection with their actions during the seven-month war. Karim Khan said that he believes Netanyahu, his defense minister Yoav Gallant and three Hamas leaders—Yehya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif and Ismail Haniyeh—are responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip and Israel. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Read More: Israel Has Been Accused of War Crimes in Gaza.

BEIRUT — The helicopter crash that killed Iran’s president and foreign minister has sent shock waves around the region. Iranian state media said on Monday that President Ebrahim Raisi, the country’s foreign minister, Hossein Amirabdollahian, and others have been found dead at the site after an hourslong search through a foggy, mountainous region of the country’s northwest. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Here’s what we know so far. Read More: The List of Potential Suspects in the Mysterious Death of Iran’s President Raisi Who was on board the helicopter and where were they going? The helicopter was carrying Raisi, Amirabdollahian, the governor of Iran’s East Azerbaijan province and others officials, according to the state-run IRNA news agency. Raisi was returning on Sunday after traveling to Iran’s border with Azerbaijan to inaugurate a dam with Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev when the crash happened in the Dizmar forest in Iran’s East Azerbaijan province. IRNA said the crash killed eight people in all, including three crew members aboard the Bell helicopter, which Iran purchased in the early 2000s.

It was a speech that preached harmony while highlighting differences. After William Lai Ching-te was sworn in as Taiwan’s new President on Monday, he used his first address to call for repairing cross-Strait relations, while namechecking “democracy” 31 times to underscore the gulf between his island’s government and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) determined to bring it to heel. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] “Mutual benefits and prosperous coexistence would be common goals,” Lai, 64, told the crowd that featured eight heads of state among 51 international delegations, including from the U.

The death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash raises the immediate question of who will succeed him in running the government. Raisi was not only expected to succeed the 85-year-old Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, but his death also has consequences for the future of one of the most powerful positions in the Middle East. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Read More: The List of Potential Suspects in the Mysterious Death of Iran’s President Raisi What is the difference between Supreme Leader and President? The Supreme Leader, also known as the Velayat-e Faqih in Shia Islamic theology, is the ultimate ruler in Iran and is responsible for making all major decisions concerning the state.

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman postponed a planned four-day trip to Japan due to concerns over the king’s health, Japan’s top government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi said. The trip set to start Monday was to have been the crown prince’s first visit to Japan since 2019. Hayashi said at a regular news briefing in Tokyo the two nations would reschedule the visit, without indicating when.

New Taiwan President William Lai Ching-te urged China to stop its intimidation of the democratic island, comments aimed at calming a dispute at the heart of a geopolitical rivalry involving the world’s two biggest powers. “I call on China to stop intimidating Taiwan verbally and militarily, and, together with Taiwan, to shoulder our responsibility to the world to do our utmost to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the region,” Lai said Monday in his inaugural address on an overcast day in Taipei.