WAR CRIME

Desperate children and adults in Gaza struggle to get food as Israel blocks aid

MOHAMED JAHJOUH and JULIA FRANKEL
Fri, May 2, 2025 


FILE.- A Palestinian girl struggles as she and others try to get donated food at a distribution center in Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza Strip, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana,File)ASSOCIATED PRESS

FILE.- Palestinians wait for donated food at a distribution center in Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza Strip, Sunday, March 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana,File)ASSOCIATED PRESS

Palestinians wait to get food at a community kitchen in Khan Younis, in southern Gaza Strip, Thursday April 24, 2025.(AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)ASSOCIATED PRESS

Palestinian children and women struggle to get donated food at a community kitchen in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Thursday April 24, 2025.(AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)ASSOCIATED PRESS


KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — Screaming in anguish as the desperate crowd crushes them against a barrier, young children and adults frantically wave pots and pans at charity workers, begging for a portion of some of the last food aid left in Gaza: Rice.

The chaos at the community kitchen in Khan Younis in southern Gaza on Friday was too overwhelming for Niveen Abu Arar. She tried and tried, but the 33-year-old mother of eight didn’t get to the front of the crowd in time. She left with her pot empty, and her eyes full of tears.

“Until when will life be like that? We’re slowly dying. We haven’t eaten bread for a month and a half. There is no flour. There is nothing,” said Abu Arar, whose ninth child, a 1-year-old boy, was killed in an Israeli strike near their home at the start of the war in 2023. “We don’t know what to do … We don’t have money. What do we get for them?”


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She cradled a toddler in her lap as she spoke. With no milk to provide, she poured water into a baby bottle and pressed it into her youngest daughter’s mouth, hoping to stave off the baby's hunger pangs.

With Israel blocking any form of aid — including food and medicine – into Gaza for the past two months, aid groups have warned that Gaza’s civilian population is facing starvation.

Israel has said that the blockade and its renewed military campaign aim to pressure Hamas to release the remaining hostages it still holds and to disarm. Aid groups stress that blocking humanitarian aid is a form of collective punishment and a violation of international law.

Israeli authorities didn't immediately respond when asked about accusations that starvation was being used as a weapon of war, but in the past they have accused the Hamas militant group governing Gaza of stealing aid.


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In an emergency call with reporters on Friday to discuss Gaza’s humanitarian crisis, aid groups described a territory nearly out of food, water and fuel, with prices for the meager supplies remaining skyrocketing beyond the reach of many.

With nearly the entire population reliant on humanitarian aid, according to the United Nations, warehouses are empty, community kitchens are closing down, and families are skipping meals.

A 25-kilogram (55-pound) bag of flour now goes for 1,300 shekels ($360), said Ghada al Haddad, Oxfam’s media coordinator in Gaza.

“Mothers in Gaza now feed their children one meal per day, dinner, so they don’t wake up and complain they are starving,” she said.

Amjad Shawwa, the director of the Palestinian NGO network, said that more than 70 of their community kitchens inside Gaza would close within the week if the Israeli blockade continues.

Israeli airstrikes have also taken out large swaths of Gaza’s agricultural land and livestock, making it nearly impossible for the territory to produce its own food, said Gavin Kelleher, a humanitarian manager with the Norwegian Refugee Council who recently left Gaza. Even fisherman have been targeted, he said, killed in small fishing boats by Israeli naval forces.

“Israel has engineered a situation where Palestinians cannot grow their own food or fish for their own food,” he said.

Kelleher, whose organization coordinates the provision of shelter to Gaza, said that not a single aid group has any tents left to distribute — as 1 million people inside Gaza remain in need of shelter given the devastation caused by the nearly 19-month war.

In Khan Younis, Mustafa Ashour said he had walked for an hour to get to the charity community kitchen, and waiting for another two hours before he managed to get food.

“The situation is hard in Gaza. The crossings are closed. It’s a full siege,” said Ashour, who was displaced from the southern city of Rafah. “There is no food. There is no water. There are no life necessities. The food being sold is expensive and very little.”

As for Abu Arar and her family — left without a handout from the charity kitchen — another family in a neighboring tent took pity, and shared their own meager portions of rice.

Keller of the NRC said that if Israel continues its blockade, “thousands of people will die, there will be a complete breakdown of order, telecommunication networks will come down and we will struggle to understand the situation because it will be unfolding in the dark.”

___

Julia Frankel reported from Jerusalem. Fatma Khaled contributed to this report from Cairo.

NAKBA  2.0

'I saved my ID card and my dog': Israel expands demolitions of West Bank refugee homes

Emir Nader - BBC World Service, London 

and Alaa Daraghmeh - BBC Arabic, West Bank
Fri, May 2, 2025 

Jumaa Zawayda was ordered by Israeli forces to leave his home [BBC]


On the night Israeli forces entered Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank and began ordering its 20,000 Palestinian residents to leave their homes, 66-year-old Jumaa Zawayda said he would refuse.

"My family all left but I told them I had to stay, if Israeli forces come to raid our house I want to be there to stop it being damaged."

What followed was three days of fear, with the constant sound of gunfire, explosions and drones flying through the neighbourhood, and issuing of orders that Jumaa couldn't make out amid the noise. Then water and electricity was cut off, his phone ran out of battery and Jumaa felt he could no longer stay.

Now, three months later, Jumaa is standing on a hill in Jenin city, looking out over the ghost town of the refugee camp to which he and the other residents are still prevented from returning by the Israeli military.

He's trying to see if his home is one of the many destroyed by the Israeli forces during their operations against Palestinian armed groups that were present in the camp. The sound of ongoing explosions can be heard below.

"Some people have told me they think our building was demolished, but we don't know for certain," says Jumaa, struggling to express himself through his emotion.

The father of nine, who used to work in construction, stayed for three months in a school-turned-shelter for the camp's displaced residents. He has now moved into accommodation for university students that he shares with his brother.

Before the outbreak of the war in Gaza in October 2023, Israel was already engaged in a military campaign against armed groups in the West Bank.

A number of groups emerged in the densely-populated urban refugee camps created for Palestinians who fled or were expelled from their homes during the war that followed the creation of the state of Israel in 1948.

The main groups in Jenin camp are affiliated to Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas. Their fighters have mostly attacked Israeli military forces, alongside sporadic attacks on Israeli settlers in the West Bank.

The number of fighters is unknown but local journalists estimate that there were around 150 fighters in Jenin camp prior to the recent operations by both Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

The Palestinian Authority, which governs parts of the West Bank, launched its own crackdown in Jenin camp in December 2024 and its forces only withdrew when the Israeli military began its major operation there in January.

Israel's defence minister has called the camps "nests of terror" and in January stepped up its campaign against the armed groups operating inside them – entering and blockading a number of refugee camps in the northern West Bank that are home to tens of thousands of Palestinians.

It ordered residents to leave and began a wave of building demolitions, while giving some residents brief opportunities to gather belongings.

Jumaa managed to retrieve his family dog and his refugee card from his home [BBC]

But with Israel almost entirely blocking access to the camps and not publicly announcing which buildings they've destroyed, many Palestinians are distraught about whether they have a home to return to.

The UN's Palestinian refugee agency Unrwa says its best estimate is that Israel has razed at least 260 buildings containing around 800 apartments during "Operation Iron Wall", focusing on three refugee camps in the north of the West Bank: Jenin, Tulkarem and Nur Shams. Unrwa estimates that 42,000 Palestinians have been displaced from the camps since January.

In February, the Israeli military announced it had killed 60 fighters in its operations and arrested 280 others. Meanwhile Palestinian health officials say 100 people have been killed in the West Bank since the start of Israel's January operation until today.

Defence Minister Israel Katz said the army was destroying weapons and infrastructure "on an extensive scale" and said he had instructed the military to remain in the refugee camps for a year and prevent residents returning there.

The Israeli military told the BBC that the militias "exploit the civilian population as human shields and endanger them by planting explosive devices and hiding weapons".

On 1 May, Israel gave Palestinian officials in the West Bank a new map of 106 buildings it said it would demolish in Tulkarem and Nur Shams refugee camps in the next 24 hours for "military purposes". It said residents could apply for a brief window to return home to retrieve essential belongings.

Aid agencies say that Israel's campaign has caused the largest forced displacement of Palestinians in the West Bank in decades.

"What's happening is unprecedented," says Roland Friedrich, Unrwa's West Bank director.

"In terms of the number of displaced people and the level of destruction, we've never seen anything like it since 1967," he added, referring to the year Israel began its military occupation of the West Bank.

Amid the destruction, Israeli forces detain Palestinian municipality workers in Jenin camp [BBC]

While filming an interview with the mayor of Jenin, the BBC witnessed Israeli forces detain several Palestinians, including municipality workers who were attempting to enter the camp in order to clear a route to a nearby hospital. They were kept for three hours before being released.

"There are big challenges, in terms of providing services to citizens. As everyone knows, the infrastructure in Jenin camp has been totally demolished," says Mayor Mohammad Jarrar.

"Israel's goal is to try to make Jenin camp totally unfit to live in, and I'm telling you it has now become completely unliveable."

Israel's blockade of West Bank refugee camps has made establishing information about what is happening inside nearly impossible, says Unrwa's Roland Friedrich, including the exact extent of demolitions.

Jumaa is among some of the displaced Palestinians who were granted a brief visit home by Israeli forces in order to retrieve belongings. He was able just to grab his UN ID card and the family dog. Then two months later, in March, Israel issued a map of over 90 buildings it identified for demolition in Jenin. Jumaa's residence looked to be among them.

The Israeli military told the BBC that it was necessary to demolish these buildings in order to improve "freedom of movement" for its forces, but did not confirm whether Jumaa's home was indeed destroyed.

The BBC has compared Israel's March demolition map to satellite imagery of Jenin taken a week later. We have been able to confirm that, by 27 March, at least 33 buildings on the list, including Jumaa's, were destroyed. Satellite imagery reveals many further demolitions have taken place since January, including the construction of new roads by Israeli forces where buildings previously stood.

"Why did they demolish my house? I want to know. I want the Israeli army to give me justification. I had no links to militants. I'm a peaceful person," says Jumaa.

"I worked job to job for 50 years to build my home."

Despite learning that his house was demolished, Jumaa remains insistent that he will return home.

"I won't leave the camp. If they won't let me rebuild my house, I will set up a tent in its place," he said.

"Isn't it enough that my family were displaced in 1948, now we must face displacement again?"

Israeli forces to demolish more than 100 homes in Israeli-occupied West Bank, local governor says

JULIA FRANKEL
Fri, May 2, 2025


Residents of the now evacuated Palestinian refugee camp of Tulkarem return to collect belongings before the destruction of their homes as Israeli forces prepare to carry out the demolition of 116 homes across the two refugee camps of the Israeli occupied West Bank city of Tulkarem, Friday, May 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)ASSOCIATED PRESS

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli forces were preparing on Friday to carry out home demolitions across two northern urban refugee camps in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, according to the governor of one of the camps and Israeli military documents shared with The Associated Press by the United Nations.

Abdallah Kamil, the governor of Tulkarem, wrote on Facebook on Thursday that the military was preparing to demolish 116 homes across the Tulkarem and Nur Shams refugee camps, two main targets of Israel’s raid into the northern West Bank.

The Israeli military said in a statement that it was implementing changes in the camps “to improve mobility for the soldiers” and prevent militancy. The military said that it had tried to minimize the number of buildings affected and invited the public to “contact the authorities to explore options for evacuating their belongings from buildings.”

Two demolition orders indicated that the buildings would be demolished in 24 hours, according to military documents shared by a U.N. official on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.

The news sent residents of the now evacuated Nur Shams and Tulkarem camps scrambling back to collect belongings before the destruction of their homes. The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, said there were reports of Israeli forces arresting and firing warning shots at Palestinians as they did so.

The Israeli military has been carrying out an operation in the West Bank over the past several months that displaced, at its height, approximately 40,000 Palestinians. It had emptied and largely destroyed several urban refugee camps in the northern West Bank, like Tulkarem and Nur Shams, that housed the descendants of Palestinians who fled or were driven from their homes in previous wars. That’s the largest displacement in the West Bank since Israel captured the territory in the 1967 Mideast war.

Israel has said that troops will stay in some camps for a year.

Residents of the now evacuated refugee camp of Tulkarem return to collect belongings before the destruction of their homes as Israeli forces prepare to carry out the demolition of 116 homes across the two refugee camps of the Israeli occupied West Bank city of Tulkarem, Friday, May 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)ASSOCIATED PRESS

White House dismisses Chamber push for small businesses tariff relief

Reuters
Thu, May 1, 2025

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House on Thursday rebuffed an effort to give small U.S. business owners any immediate relief from tariffs, saying those companies would get economic relief from tax cuts that Congress is seeking to extend.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, in a letter to U.S. President Donald Trump's administration, asked for small companies to be excluded from tariffs if they can show it would harm U.S. workers and for products that cannot be made in the United States or are not readily available.

"The relief for small businesses is going to come in the form of the largest tax cut in American history," White House deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller told reporters when asked about the request.

Asked if that was a no to short-term small business tariff relief, Miller added: "It's a yes on tax relief for small businesses."

Trump's fellow Republicans in Congress are seeking to pass legislation to extend U.S. President Donald Trump's 2017 tax plan, which expires at the end of this year.

Congressional Republicans, who have a 220-213 hold on the House and a 53-47 advantage in the Senate, have said they aim to enact their tax-cut bill by July 4, though they must navigate their narrow majorities in each chamber.

The Chamber said it supports Trump's goal of eliminating unfair trade but that small businesses are being hurt by higher costs and interrupted supply chains amid ongoing tariff negotiations, calling on the administration to "work together to avoid a recession."

"These deals take time, and many businesses simply can’t afford to wait while negotiations proceed," the business lobbying group's President and CEO Suzanne Clark said in a separate statement. "They need immediate relief from tariffs."

She added that the Chamber was also seeking an exclusion for businesses of all sizes where U.S. jobs were threatened.

"The reality is certain things just can’t be produced in the United States," Clark said. "Raising prices on those products will only hurt families struggling to pay their bills."

Elon Musk Admits He Failed to Cut $2 Trillion in Federal Fat, But Says at Least He Enjoyed His Trump Sleepovers With Ice Cream

Noor Al-Sibai
Fri, May 2, 2025 

FUTURISM


Failson

Elon Musk failed miserably at his goal to cut $2 trillion in federal spending — but he did shout out his sleepovers with Donald Trump during his time at the White House.

In his first (and presumably last) time meeting press in the West Wing, Musk told reporters from Fox News, Axios, CNN, and a handful of other outlets that his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has cut about $160 billion in federal spending.

That might sound like an impressive figure, at least until you remember that Musk promised to trim $2 trillion, or that the US has already spent $200 billion more than it did during the same period last year


"In the grand scheme of things, I think we've been effective," the South African-born billionaire said of his DOGE tenure, which is ending imminently because his special government employee status is about to expire. "Not as effective as I like... but we've made progress."

During that same press gaggle, Musk boasted that his DOGE cuts have thus far resulted in one percent of the federal workforce, or about 20,000 people, having their jobs slashed. He added that he and his minions have "probably" gotten the job done right about "70-80 percent of the time."

We All Scream

The wide-ranging interview wasn't all about dollars and cents.

When asked where he spends his nights in Washington — the subject of ample speculation, especially after Wired revealed that he and his staff often sleep in the DOGE's Capitol Hill offices — Musk dished that the president had invited him to stay in the White House on more than one occasion.


This situation arose, per the billionaire's retelling, when Trump asked Musk where he was staying one night.

"I was like: ''I don't know. At a friend's house, I guess,'" the world's sometimes-richest man told reporters. "And then he was like: 'Why don't you stay here?' I was like: 'Sure.'"

While Musk refused to say exactly how many nights he slept over in the White House's Lincoln bedroom, he admitted that it was "more than once" — and that on one such occasion, the president urged him to sample the kitchen's ice cream selection.

"He'll actually call me late night and say, 'by the way, make sure you get ice cream from the kitchen,'" the 53-year-old recounted, per Fox News. "I ate a whole tub of ice cream — caramel Häagen-Dazs."

"Yeah, it's epic," Musk said. "Don't tell RFK."

LESE MAJESTÉ IN SIAM

Prosecutors in Thailand drop royal defamation case against US scholar

Story by the Associated Press
Thu, May 1, 2025 



American political science lecturer Paul Chambers stands outside the police station in Phitsanulok, Thailand, where he was arrested on charges of insulting the monarchy. - AP/File

State prosecutors in Thailand announced Thursday that they don’t intend to press charges against an American academic arrested for royal defamation, an offense punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

The arrest last month of Paul Chambers, a political science lecturer at Naresuan University in the northern province of Phitsanulok, had drawn concern from the academic community, especially from Asian studies scholars around the world, as well as the US government

The decision not to prosecute the 58-year-old Oklahoma native doesn’t immediately clear him of the charge of insulting the monarchy— also known as “lèse majesté” — or a related charge of violating the Computer Crime Act, which covers online activities.

The announcement said that the Phitsanulok provincial prosecutor will request the provincial court to drop the charges and forward the case file and nonprosecution order to the commissioner of Provincial Police Region 6, covering Phitsanulok, who may review and contest the decision.

Chambers, a 58-year-old Oklahoma native with a doctorate in political science from Northern Illinois University, was arrested in early April on a complaint made by the northern regional office of the army’s Internal Security Operations Command.

He has studied the power and influence of the Thai military, which plays a major role in politics. It has staged 13 coups since Thailand became a constitutional monarchy in 1932, most recently 11 years ago.

The army’s Internal Security Operations Command told a parliamentary inquiry that it filed the complaint based on a Facebook post that translated words from a website operated by ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute, a think tank in Singapore, about a webinar on Thai politics that included Chambers as a participant.

Chambers’ supporters said that the blurb for the webinar, which was cited in his charge sheet as evidence, wasn’t written by him.

He had been jailed in April for two nights after reporting himself to the Phitsanulok police, and then granted release on bail, with several conditions, including wearing an ankle monitor. A court on Tuesday allowed him to take off the device.

Chambers’ visa was revoked at the time of his arrest on the basis of an immigration law barring entry to foreigners who are deemed likely to engage in activities contrary to public order or good morals, prostitution, people smuggling and drug trafficking. It wasn’t immediately clear whether the revocation will stand.

“This case reinforces our longstanding concerns about the use of lèse majesté laws in Thailand,” a US State Department statement said after Chambers’ arrest. ”We continue to urge Thai authorities to respect freedom of expression and to ensure that laws are not used to stifle permitted expression.”

Thailand’s lèse majesté law calls for three to 15 years imprisonment for anyone who defames, insults or threatens the king, the queen, the heir apparent or the regent. Critics say it’s among the harshest such laws anywhere and also has been used to punish critics of the government and the military.

The monarchy has long been considered a pillar of Thai society and criticizing it used to be strictly taboo. Conservative Thais, especially in the military and courts, still consider it untouchable.

However, public debate on the topic has grown louder in the past decade, particularly among young people, and student-led pro-democracy protests starting in 2020 began openly criticizing the institution.

That led to vigorous prosecutions under the previously little-used law. The legal aid group Thai Lawyers for Human Rights has said that since early 2020, more than 270 people — many of them student activists — have been charged with violating the law.

LA REVUE GAUCHE - Left Comment: Search results for Lèse-majesté 

  THE KING AND I 

German spy agency brands far-right AfD as 'extremist', opens way for closer surveillance

Fri, May 2, 2025 
By Sarah Marsh and Friederike Heine

BERLIN (Reuters) -Germany's spy agency on Friday classified the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) as "extremist", enabling it to step up monitoring of the country's biggest opposition party, which decried the move as a "blow against democracy".

A 1,100-page experts' report found the AfD to be a racist and anti-Muslim organisation, a designation that allows the security services to recruit informants and intercept party communications, and which has revived calls for the party's ban.

"Central to our assessment is the ethnically and ancestrally defined concept of the people that shapes the AfD, which devalues entire segments of the population in Germany and violates their human dignity," the BfV domestic intelligence agency said in a statement.

"This concept is reflected in the party’s overall anti-migrant and anti-Muslim stance," it said, accusing the AfD of stirring up "irrational fears and hostility" towards individuals and groups.

The BfV agency needs such a classification to be able to monitor a political party because it is more legally constrained than other European intelligence services, a reflection of Germany's experience under both Nazi and Communist rule.

Other organisations classified as extremist in Germany are neo-Nazi groups such as the National Democratic Party (NDP), Islamist groups including Islamic State, and far-left ones such as the Marxist-Leninist Party of Germany.

The agency was able to act after the AfD last year lost a court case in which it had challenged its previous classification by the BfV as an entity suspected of extremism.

The move follows other setbacks the far-right across Europe has suffered in recent months as it seeks to translate surging support into power. They include a ban on France's Marine Le Pen contesting the 2027 presidential election after her embezzlement conviction, and the postponement of Romania's presidential vote after a far-right candidate won the first round.

"VERY SERIOUS. After France and Romania, another theft of Democracy?" wrote Matteo Salvini, deputy Italian prime minister and leader of far-right party, the League, on X.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Germany should reverse course on branding the AfD as "extremist," while U.S. billionaire Elon Musk, who threw his support behind the party ahead of February elections, warned against banning it

"Banning the centrist AfD, Germany's, most popular party, would be an extreme attack on democracy," said Musk on X.

Rubio and German Foreign Ministry spar on X over comments accusing Germany of ‘tyranny in disguise’

The AfD denounced its designation as a politically motivated attempt to discredit and criminalize it.

"The AfD will continue to take legal action against these defamatory attacks that endanger democracy," co-leaders Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla said in a statement.

A BAN?

German parliament could now attempt to limit or halt public funding for the AfD - but for that authorities would need evidence that the party is explicitly out to undermine or even overthrow German democracy.

Meanwhile, civil servants who belong to an organisation classified as "extremist" face possible dismissal, depending on their role within the entity, according to Germany's interior ministry.

The stigma could also make it harder for the AfD, which currently tops several polls and is Germany's most successful far-right party since World War Two, to attract members.

The BfV decision comes days before conservative leader Friedrich Merz is due to be sworn in as Germany's new chancellor and amid a heated debate within his party over how to deal with the AfD in the new Bundestag, or lower house of parliament.

The AfD won a record number of seats in the national election in February, coming in second behind Merz's conservatives, which in theory entitled it to chair several key parliamentary committees.

A prominent Merz ally, Jens Spahn, has called for the AfD to be treated as a regular opposition party to prevent it casting itself as a "victim".

However, other established parties, and many conservatives have rejected that approach - and could use Friday's news to justify blocking AfD attempts to lead committees.

"Starting today, no one can make excuses anymore: This is not a democratic party," said Manuela Schwesig, premier of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and senior member of the Social Democrats (SPD), who are about to form a government with the conservatives.

Under the new government, the authorities should review whether to ban the AfD, SPD leader Lars Klingbeil told Bild newspaper.

SPD's outgoing chancellor Olaf Scholz on Friday called for a careful evaluation and warned against rushing to outlaw the party.

Created in 2013 to protest the euro zone bailouts, the eurosceptic AfD morphed into an anti-migration party after Germany's decision to take in a large wave of refugees in 2015.

(Reporting by Sarah Marsh, Friedrike Heine, Holger Hansen, Andreas Rinke, Matthias Williams and Rachel More in Berlin and Angelo Amante in Rome, Editing by Gareth Jones, Tomasz Janowski and Ros Russell)

Germany's intelligence service moves against far-right AfD, sets off quarrel with US

RFI
Sat, May 3, 2025



Une pancarte montrant la candidate de l'AfD à la chancellerie, Alice Weidel, à Oberreifenberg, en Hesse.


Germany's domestic intelligence service on Friday designated the far-right AfD party as an extremist group, setting off a diplomatic spat with the United States.


The BfV intelligence agency, which had already designated several local branches of the anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) as right-wing extremists, said it moved against the entire party due to its attempts to "undermine the free, democratic" order in Germany.

The classification gives authorities greater powers to monitor the party by lowering the barriers for such steps as intercepting telephone calls and deploying undercover agents.

The conservative US administration quickly condemned the move.

US Vice President JD Vance on Friday accused Germany of rebuilding a "Berlin Wall".

"The West tore down the Berlin Wall together. And it has been rebuilt -- not by the Soviets or the Russians, but by the German establishment," Vance, who in February defiantly met the AfD leader in Munich, wrote on X. He said the AfD was "the most popular party in Germany".

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called it "tyranny in disguise" and said "Germany should reverse course". President Donald Trump's billionaire advisor Elon Musk has also previously defended the AfD.

The German foreign ministry took the unusual step of replying directly to Rubio on X to say: "This is democracy."

The ministry said that the "decision is the result of a thorough and independent investigation to protect our constitution" and could be appealed.

(With newswires)

AfD ‘extremist’ label sets up political high-wire act for Friedrich Merz

Kate Connolly in Berlin

THE GUARDIAN
Fri, May 2, 2025 

The AfD, Germany’s largest opposition party, is now classed ‘extremist’ by the country’s domestic spy agency.

Photograph: Craig Stennett/Getty Images

The decision by Germany’s domestic spy agency to call the far-right Alternative für Deutschland party “extremist” amounts to the starkest move yet by authorities to try to stop the advance of the populist political force.

Friday’s classification by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) will open up the possibility for the security services to monitor the country’s largest opposition party, including by recruiting people to inform against it and enabling interception of its communications.

AfD leaders denounced it as a “blow against democracy”, and nothing short of an attempt to disfranchise the more than 10 million people who voted for it in February’s election.

Its leaders vowed to take legal action against what they called “defamatory” and “politically motivated attacks”.

According to the experts who compiled the BfV’s 1,100-page report, the AfD is “a racist and anti-Muslim organisation”, which, through its strict, ethnically and ancestrally defined version of who is German and who is not, “deprecates whole sections of the population in Germany and infringes their human dignity”.

It has also “incited irrational fears and hostility” in society, steering the blame towards individuals and groups, the report said.

In itself, the step is not much of a surprise, although the timing is. The outgoing interior minister, Nancy Faeser, made the bombshell announcement on what is effectively her last day in office.

Faeser said “there was no political influence on the assessment”, despite the AfD’s insistence to the contrary. But the move puts the incoming conservative-led government of Friedrich Merz under great pressure, as well as Faeser’s Social Democrat colleagues, who will be the junior partners in the new coalition that gets to work next Tuesday.

On the back of the decision, Merz will now be responsible – on top of the myriad other challenges in his in-tray – for deciding whether and how to ban the AfD, a decision that will involve the most precarious of political tightrope walks.

Migration, Ukraine, Trump and an ailing economy are among the burgeoning issues that he will also have to tackle with urgency. The growing mood of dissatisfaction over these and other issues, exacerbated by the six months of political deadlock that followed the premature collapse of the previous government – which induced an added layer of nationwide ennui – has already caused the AfD to creep up in the polls.

Having won second place in February’s election – doubling its previous result and making it the strongest opposition party, second only to the conservative CDU/CSU – in recent days the AfD has come top of the polls for the first time ever.

The ruling by the BfV is unlikely to put people off supporting the AfD.

Finding a way to reduce the AfD has been at top of the agenda among all of the political parties since it emerged as a protest force of professors and academics in 2013 on the back of anger over the euro bailouts. The challenge has only grown in importance, as the populists – morphing from anti-euro to anti-migrant over time – have grown their success at the ballot box.

Merz would like to be seen as a pragmatic rationalist, aiming to reduce the AfD to what he refers to as the “marginal phenomenon” it once was by addressing the nation’s concerns, taking the wind out of the sails of the AfD’s successful modus operandi of inciting fear and insecurity.

Tackling “irregular” immigration is therefore at the top of his domestic agenda, as he seeks to address the topic viewed as having added the most fuel to the AfD’s fire.

But many others believe it is too late for that, arguing that an extremist classification, followed by a ban, would be the only way to stop the flourishing party.

Others say such a move would be in grave danger of backfiring, arguing that the AfD would turn such a branding by the state into its own “seal of approval”, which would serve to enhance its already strong sense of victimhood or martyrdom.

Merz’s party, the Christian Democratic Union, has been torn over how to deal with the AfD. Merz tacitly cooperated with the party earlier this year – despite insisting he would not – to push migration policies through parliament. And on the local level, his party and the AfD have cooperated on issues such as a ruling that the German flag should be hoisted in schools.

Jens Spahn, Merz’s close ally, recently prompted scorn by suggesting the AfD should be treated as a “normal opposition party”, arguing that excluding the party from parliamentary procedures only boosted its popularity.

Those who reject that approach say Friday’s ruling will now give them more justification to block the party at every opportunity – but they argue that this will only work if a cross-party consensus prevails

Rubio mocked for calling German policy ‘tyranny in disguise’ and backing extremist AfD party

Gustaf Kilander
Fri, May 2, 2025 

THE INDEPENDENT UK

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is facing criticism after slamming Germany for giving “its spy agency new powers to surveil the opposition.”

Rubio lashed out on Friday following the decision by Germany’s domestic intelligence agency to classify the far-right party Alternative for Germany (AfD) as a “proven right-wing extremist organization.”

“That’s not democracy—it’s tyranny in disguise,” the secretary wrote on X. “What is truly extremist is not the popular AfD—which took second in the recent election—but rather the establishment’s deadly open border immigration policies that the AfD opposes. Germany should reverse course.”

Within hours, the German foreign office responded, writing on Elon Musk’s social media platform that “This is democracy. This decision is the result of a thorough & independent investigation to protect our Constitution & the rule of law.”

“It is independent courts that will have the final say. We have learnt from our history that rightwing extremism needs to be stopped,” the office added.

“Nothing to see here—just the Secretary of State attacking one of our strongest allies, falsely accusing it of 'tyranny in disguise,' all in defense of a far-right, Holocaust-denying, pro-Putin party. This is INSANE,” the group Republicans against Trump wrote.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio slammed the German classification of the Alternative for Germany as an extremist organization (Getty Images)

Wolfgang Ischinger, a former German Ambassador to the United States between 2001 and 2006, asked: “You are aware a new German govt has been elected which will assume power next week, and which has already announced much tougher Immigration rules?”

The conservative Christian Democratic Party, which ex-Chancellor Angela Merkel formerly led, came out victorious in the February elections, and incoming Chancellor Friedrich Merz is set to form a government with the Social Democrats, having joined with other parties to commit to blocking the AfD from power.

The leaders of the AfD, which tops some polls, have trivialized the Holocaust, used Nazi slogans, and derided foreigners and immigrants.

The decision by the German Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution does give German authorities more power to conduct oversight and surveillance of the AfD. Previously, some state-level branches of the party have received the label, including in Saxony and Thuringia. However, this is the first time in modern German history that a political party represented across the country on the federal level has been classified as extremist, Politico noted.

In the February federal elections, the AfD won 152 of the 630 parliamentary seats and received 20.8 percent of the vote.

Following a three-year probe, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution published a 1,000-page report, pointing to breaches of constitutional principles such as human dignity and the rule of law.

President Donald Trump and his allies have mostly been backing the AfD, whose co-leader, Alice Weidel, was invited to attend Trump’s second inauguration. Meanwhile, Musk has continually supported the party, speaking at a campaign event for them in January of this year.

Alice Weidel was invited to attend Trump’s second inauguration (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

“Banning the centrist AfD, Germany’s most popular party, would be an extreme attack on democracy,” he wrote on X on Friday.

One AfD leader, Stephan Brandner, told the German news agency D.P.A., “This decision by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution is complete nonsense in terms of substance, has nothing to do with law and justice, and is purely political in the fight between the cartel parties against the AfD.”


Rubio urges Germany to 'reverse course' after AfD labelled extremist

DPA
Fri, May 2, 2025

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio attends the American-Russian talks on Ukraine war in Diriyah Palace in Riyadh. Freddie Everett/US Department of State/dpa


US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has condemned a classification of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party as "confirmed right-wing extremist" by domestic intelligence, calling on the country to "reverse course."

"Germany just gave its spy agency new powers to surveil the opposition. That's not democracy - it's tyranny in disguise," Rubio wrote on social media platform X.

"What is truly extremist is not the popular AfD—which took second in the recent election—but rather the establishment’s deadly open border immigration policies that the AfD opposes," he said."Germany should reverse course."

Shifting targets, growing support: The rise of Germany's AfD

FILE PHOTO: Supporters of the AfD party wave flags during an event to rally support for Sunday's European Parliament elections in Berlin


By Thomas Escritt

Fri, May 2, 2025 

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's domestic security agency classified the Alternative for Germany (AfD) as "extremist" on Friday, allowing for closer monitoring of the country's largest opposition party, which condemned the move as a "blow against democracy".

Here is a timeline for the AfD, Germany's most successful far-right party since World War Two.

2013

February 6 - Founded by right-wing economists, the party opposes Germany helping to bail out Greece at the height of the eurozone debt crisis, rejecting then-Chancellor Angela Merkel's assertion that there was "no alternative".

Headed by Bernd Lucke and Frauke Petry, the party grows quickly, fuelled by ample donations from small businesses and attracting disillusioned conservative and neoliberal politicians and voters.

September 22 - It narrowly misses the 5% threshold for winning seats in that year's parliamentary election

2014

May 25 - The party wins 7% in European Parliament elections, allowing it to send seven members to Brussels.

Though nativist overtones are never far from the surface, the party denies any racist motivation for its opposition to bailing out Greece and other heavily indebted countries.

August - A string of regional election victories in eastern Germany fuels the AfD's move further to the right, and Bjoern Hoecke, the party's nativist leader in the state of Thuringia, becomes one its most emblematic figures.

2015

The refugee crisis sees more than one million, mostly Muslim migrants fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East and Africa arrive in Germany, propelling the AfD's nativist wing to the fore and giving the party a toehold in western Germany.

2016

March 13 - The AfD scores double-digit results in west German regional elections for the first time and wins nearly a quarter of the vote in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt - at the time the best result ever for a far-right party.

2017

January - Hoecke achieves notoriety for describing Berlin's Holocaust memorial as a "monument of shame". A court overrules Petry's attempts to kick him out of the party the following year.

January 21 - The party's growing prominence is signalled by its presence at an international gathering of far-right politicians in Koblenz, where Petry rubs shoulders with France's Marine Le Pen and the Netherlands' Geert Wilders.

September - Petry is ousted, in a defeat for the economic libertarian wing of the party, and is replaced by Alice Weidel, who leads the party to this day, and Alexander Gauland, a right-wing former Christian Democrat.

September 24 - The party wins 12.6% in Germany's federal election, entering the national parliament for the first time and becoming the largest opposition party.

2019

January 15 - The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) places the AfD under examination, and labels The Wing - a nativist grouping within the party led by Hoecke - and the party's youth wings as suspected far-right cases.

2020

April 30 - The Wing is dissolved.

2021

January 20 - The AfD mounts a legal challenge against being classified as a suspect far-right case.

February 25 - The BfV confirms the party is suspected far-right.

September 26 - Partly as a result of growing concerns about the cluster of far-right figures at the top of the party, and partly thanks to a buoyant economy, the party falls to 10.3% in the parliamentary election.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the slowing economy subsequently give the party a boost, and it also benefits from infighting in Chancellor Olaf Scholz's unwieldy three-way coalition.

Leaning heavily into culture war issues with demands for enquiries into alleged mishandling of the pandemic, critiques of modern architecture or rejection of supposed "gender ideologies", the party is able to secure and expand its base.

2022

April 5 - The party's youth wing is declared officially right extremist.

2024

January - A series of scandals - a bombshell report that senior figures had discussed deporting citizens of non-German ethnicity, the discovery of an alleged Chinese spy in one politician's office, and allegations that another had taken money from pro-Russian propaganda outlets - sparks months of protests but fails to sustainably dent support.

Increasingly, the party relies on a strategy of attempting to gum up government, peppering courts and ministries with filings and questions that critics regard as frivolous, in a way that seems designed to slow and discredit the state.

Hoecke is the leading champion of this strategy, deploying slogans that resemble those used by Adolf Hitler's Nazis in a manner guaranteed to command attention.

May 13 - A court rules that the classification as suspected far-right - one step short of Friday's confirmed far-right classification - is justified. The party had called members from ethnic minorities to testify that it was not.

May 22 - Le Pen distances herself from the AfD after Maximilian Krah, one of its most popular figures, fails to condemn Hitler's paramiltary SS in a newspaper interview.

2024

September 1 - The party becomes the first far-right party to top a regional election since World War Two.


2025

January - Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of Tesla and adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump, interviews AfD co-leader Alice Weidel, declaring weeks ahead of a federal election: "Only the AfD can save Germany."

February 23 - The AfD comes second in the federal election, the best result for a far-right party since the German Federal Republic's founding.

March 31 - The party's youth wing is dissolved to make way for a replacement under closer supervision of party headquarters.

(Reporting by Thomas Escritt; Editing by Gareth Jones)

Germany's domestic intelligence agency on Friday designated the anti-immigration AfD as a confirmed "right-wing extremist" organization that "disregards human dignity" and threatens democracy.

The new classification, which gives the agency broader surveillance power over the AfD, is the result of a comprehensive review, the findings of which are laid out in a 1,100-page internal report.

Singapore’s ruling party extends hold with sweeping win in general elections

SINGAPORE IS A ONE PARTY CITY STATE 

NOT A COUNTRY

Shahana Yasmin
Sun, May 4, 2025

Singapore’s ruling party extends hold with sweeping win in general elections

Singapore’s People’s Action Party (PAP) has secured another decisive victory in Saturday’s general election, winning 87 out of 97 parliamentary seats and 65.6 per cent of the popular vote, according to the Election Department.

The result marks a strong endorsement for prime minister Lawrence Wong in his first electoral test as head of government, a year after he took over leadership of the long-ruling party.

The outcome not only extends the PAP’s uninterrupted 66-year rule but also reflects a swing in support from its near-record low of 61.2 per cent in the 2020 polls.

Voters backed the party in a campaign shaped by economic headwinds and regional instability, delivering early wins in key battlegrounds like Punggol GRC, Tampines GRC, and Jalan Kayu SMC.

At a press conference following the vote count, Mr Wong described the result as “deeply humbling” and “a clear signal of trust, stability and confidence” from Singaporeans. He acknowledged that voters also wanted more alternative voices in government, but said the strong PAP mandate would give Singapore the best chance to navigate an uncertain world.

“The results will put Singapore in a better position to face this turbulent world,” he said. “We will honour the mandate you have given us.”

Lawrence Wong greets his supporters at the party's gathering centre during the general election results (AFP via Getty Images)

Thanking voters for their support, Mr Wong said his immediate priority would be to form a Cabinet and confirmed that all key MPs had been returned to Parliament. “I will announce the Cabinet line-up when ready,” he added.


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A US-trained economist and current finance minister, Mr Wong had appealed for a strong mandate to guide Singapore through economic headwinds worsened by global trade tensions and protectionist policies. At 52, he now faces the challenge of addressing rising living costs and a housing crunch, even as the economy braces for a potential recession.

Despite retaining its 10 seats, the opposition Workers’ Party saw heavy losses in many constituencies. PAP candidates won more than two-thirds of the vote in 18 of 33 contested races.

Leader of the Opposition and the WP’s secretary general Pritam Singh told supporters: “We start work again tomorrow, and we go again.

“Your support has been so important in the mission of achieving and working towards a more balanced parliament. That work also continues.”

“The voters have spoken and they have voted for stability, for continuity, for certainty – and they voted to give Prime Minister Lawrence Wong a strong mandate,” said Mustafa Izzuddin, adjunct senior lecturer at the National University of Singapore, told Reuters.

Supporters of the leader of the opposition and secretary-general of the Workers' Party, Pritam Singh, react as he delivers his speech after the preliminary results of the general elections were announced (EPA)

Mr Wong’s victory marks the beginning of a new chapter in Singapore’s leadership. He succeeded Lee Hsien Loong in May 2024, becoming the city-state’s fourth prime minister. Mr Lee, who stepped down after 20 years in office, remains in Cabinet as a senior minister. His retirement closed a significant chapter in Singapore’s political history, ending a family dynasty that began with founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew, who led the nation for 31 years and transformed it into one of the world's most developed economies.

Speaking after the results, Mr Wong acknowledged emerging signs of a slowdown in Singapore’s economy and pledged to treat it as a priority. “We will do more to get Singapore through the storm safely,” he said.

He emphasised that the real contest was not between the PAP and the opposition, but between Singapore and a turbulent global environment.

Framing the country as a perennial underdog, Mr Wong urged unity over division: “Singapore is the underdog we have always been, and we will continue to be, despite what we have achieved today. So to improve our chances, we cannot afford to fight one another.”

Speaking after the results, Mr Wong acknowledged emerging signs of a slowdown in Singapore’s economy and pledged to treat it as a priority (EPA)

He also warned against attempts to sway voters along racial or religious lines, reinforcing the PAP’s message of multiracial harmony and national resilience.

World leaders were quick to extend their congratulations to Mr Wong and the PAP following their victory.

The US, a longstanding ally, reaffirmed its commitment to the relationship. Secretary of State Marco Rubio highlighted the nearly 60-year strategic partnership between the two nations, calling it “strong and enduring.”

“We look forward to continuing to work closely with the newly elected government and Prime Minister Wong to strengthen economic growth and our bilateral defence and security ties,” he said.

Regional leaders echoed the sentiment. Indonesian president Prabowo Subianto praised the “decisive victory” as a reflection of Singaporeans’ trust in Wong’s leadership and said he looked forward to strengthening bilateral ties.

Japanese prime minister Shigeru Ishiba also extended his congratulations, adding that he hoped to deepen cooperation as the two countries approach the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2026.

Heartfelt congratulations to @LawrenceWongST on the outcome of the general election.
Looking ahead to the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Japan and Singapore next year, I look forward to working even more closely with Prime Minister Wong to strengthen the…

— 石破茂 (@shigeruishiba) May 4, 2025

My heartfelt congratulations to the Honourable @LawrenceWongST on the victory of The People’s Action Party (PAP) of Singapore.

The decisive victory reflects the trust, stability and confidence of the people of Singapore in the strong leadership of Honourable Wong and the PAP. I…

— Prabowo Subianto (@prabowo) May 4, 2025



Heartiest congratulations @LawrenceWongST on your resounding victory in the general elections. India and Singapore share a strong and multifaceted partnership, underpinned by close people-to-people ties. I look forward to continue working closely with you to further advance our…

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 4, 2025

India’s prime minister Narendra Modi described the Singapore-India relationship as “strong and multifaceted” and said he looked forward to working closely with Mr Wong to advance the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

Malaysia’s prime minister Anwar Ibrahim spoke of the “enduring ties of kith and kin” between the two countries, highlighting the importance of the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone and said it could become “a shining example of what neighbours can achieve, with conviction and shared purpose”.






As PAP triumphs again in Singapore, Workers' Party emerges as main opposition

Reuters
Sun, May 4, 2025 


Singapore general election

Singapore general election



SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said the convincing re-election of his People's Action Party would help the city-state face turbulent times, as analysts said the weekend poll also showed one party emerging as the main opposition group.

The PAP's 14th successive election victory was never in question. Instead, the focus was on the mandate voters would give Wong in his first electoral test since assuming the top job a year ago.

The PAP, which has ruled since before Singapore's 1965 independence, won 87 of the 97 parliamentary seats up for grabs in Saturday's vote, the election commission said. Wong said the PAP won 65% of the vote, improving on the 61% achieved in the 2020 contest.

"The results will put Singapore in a better position to face this turbulent world," Wong said in the early hours of Sunday.

Unspoken was the cause of that turbulence, with U.S. President Donald Trump's upending of the global order and tariff regime posing a threat to Singapore, a small, open and trade-driven nation.

Australia's Labor Party won an increased majority in an election on Saturday and last week Canada's Liberal Party retained power with the Trump factor also cited as a key factor.

"Hence, this suggests that there is indeed a strong element of a flight to safety among voters," said Gillian Koh, Senior Research Fellow in governance and economy at the Institute of Policy Studies, although she added there were also local factors at play.

The 10 seats that the PAP did not win on Saturday were all won by the Workers' Party.

"It was a very difficult fight for the Workers' Party, as you know, any opposition party in Singapore, to make inroads into our political system, the challenges are real," party leader Pritam Singh told reporters on Sunday.

Analysts said the Workers' Party had solidified its position as the main challenger to the PAP's stranglehold on power.

"It is a hard, thankless slog, but they are attracting really high-quality candidates, running a tight outfit, and using these elections to give new people valuable electioneering experience," said Associate Professor Michael Barr of the College of Business, Government and Law at Flinders University.

Koh also noted the Workers' Party had pulled ahead of other parties, though a sustained challenge to the PAP remained distant.

"It takes Singapore firmly into a one-and-a-half party system, albeit not immediately and well less than its medium-term goal of denying the PAP the supermajority in parliament."

Explainer-What's at stake in Singapore's May 3 election?

Martin Petty
Tue, April 29, 2025 
REUTERS



People's Action Party rally ahead of general election in Singapore

Workers’ Party rally ahead of the general election in Singapore


By Martin Petty

(Reuters) - Singapore holds a parliamentary election on May 3, the first big test for new Prime Minister Lawrence Wong as his People's Action Party seeks to extend its unbroken rule of the city-state and emerge with a stronger mandate.

HOW WILL IT PLAY OUT?

The PAP is almost certain to win most seats in the election as it has every election since Singapore's independence in 1965, with candidates fielded in all 33 constituencies for 97 seats in parliament.

With a track record of good governance, attracting investment and ensuring stability of the trade-reliant economy, the PAP remains the dominant force in Singapore politics with resources that dwarf its opponents and a big party membership to draw from. Of the total 211 election candidates running, 46% are PAP.

No opposition party can mount a challenge alone, with the PAP's biggest rival, the Workers' Party, running in only a quarter of the races, meaning the most it can win is 26 seats. The third party from the previous parliament, the Progress Singapore Party, is contesting only 13 seats.

WHAT'S AT STAKE?

Despite the odds overwhelmingly in the PAP's favour and defeat highly unlikely, the election has the potential to alter the dynamic of Singapore politics in the years ahead and create a path towards greater political plurality.

Steady gains by the opposition in recent elections have been widely interpreted as signs of disenchantment with the ruling party's monopoly and a desire among some Singaporeans, particularly younger voters, for more diverse politics, with alternative voices and ideas, greater policy scrutiny and more robust debate.

The PAP's share of the popular vote fell to 61% in 2020 from 70% in 2015. If it sees another decline and the opposition Workers' Party builds on its record 10 seats in 2020, it could be interpreted as a sign that after six decades in charge, the PAP's mandate and grip on power is slowly weakening.

Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who was premier for two decades, warned at a PAP rally on Sunday that opposition seat gains would "weaken the ruling party's ability to govern" and result in the loss of experienced ministers.

WHAT ARE THE KEY ISSUES?

The opposition is taking aim at the PAP over living costs and housing availability, a perennial problem in Singapore, among the world's most expensive cities.

The PAP has sought to head that off with a raft of giveaways in February's budget, including groceries vouchers, tax rebates and cash handouts. Wong has pledged more if Singapore's economy suffers collateral damage from global trade tensions, with recession possible.

Some opposition parties are also campaigning for tighter controls on foreign workers in high-paid jobs and free or reduced-price healthcare, an issue for Singapore's ageing population. Wong has warned of "many tempting proposals" from opponents that could weaken public finances and hurt investment and incomes.

WHAT ADVANTAGE DOES PAP HAVE?

Wong called the election at short notice on April 15, giving opponents little preparation time. Singapore's unique model also works favourably for his party, with both single- and multi-member constituencies, where teams of up to six candidates run.

Unlike the PAP, opposition parties struggle to recruit enough candidates for multi-member contests and steep deposits of S$13,500 ($10,280) per candidate are a deterrent.

More than half of constituencies are multi-member and the PAP already has five seats in the bag after a walkover in one of those when no opposition parties contested.

Singapore also regularly revises electoral divisions, ostensibly to reflect population shifts, which has worked to the PAP's advantage. It has previously denied allegations of gerrymandering.

WHAT'S CONSIDERED A GOOD PAP MANDATE?

The PAP watches its share of the popular vote closely, even though its worst performance of 60.1% in 2011 still translated to 93% of seats and would still be considered a landslide in many democracies.

Some analysts say a vote share of 60% to 65% would look good for Wong in his first election as premier.

"Anything that indicates a significant dip from the last election would likely be attributed to voters’ perception of weakening confidence in the new leadership," said National University of Singapore sociologist Tan Ern Ser.

(Reporting by Martin Petty; Additional reporting by Jun Yuan Yong; Editing by Michael Perry)

Woman dies when a bomb she is carrying explodes in the Greek city of Thessaloniki, police say

COSTAS KANTOURIS

AP
Sat, May 3, 2025 









Greek policemen and forensic experts are seen at the area where a 38-year-old woman was killed early Saturday when a bomb she was carrying exploded in her hands outside a bank branch, local police said, in Thessaloniki, northern Greece, May 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Giannis Papanikos)ASSOCIATED PRESS


THESSALONIKI, Greece (AP) — A woman was killed early Saturday in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki when a bomb she was carrying exploded in her hands, police said.

The 38-year-old woman apparently was carrying the bomb to place outside a nearby bank around 5 a.m., police said.

Several storefronts and vehicles were damaged by the explosion.

Police said the woman, whom they did not publicly identify, had a criminal record related to drugs and prostitution and had been involved in at least one robbery and thefts in the past. The Greek police's division for organized crime was investigating the incident, while authorities were also investigating whether the woman might have had ties to extreme leftist groups.

Greece has seen occasional bombings, as well as targeted killings, attributed to various organized crime groups. The country also has a long history of politically motivated violence dating back to the 1970s, with domestic extremist groups carrying out small-scale bombings that usually cause some damage but rarely lead to injuries.

While the groups most active in the 1980s and 1990s, whose preferred targets tended to be politicians, foreign businesses and diplomats, have been dismantled, new small groups have emerged.

Last year, a man believed to have been trying to assemble a bomb was killed when the device he was making exploded in a central Athens apartment. A woman inside the apartment was severely injured. It was unclear what their intended target might have been.

The blast had prompted Minister of Citizen Protection Michalis Chrisochoidis to warn of an emerging new generation of domestic extremists.

The explosion near the train offices resulted in limited damage to the building and no injuries. It had been preceded by an anonymous call to local media 40 minutes before the blast warning about the device, leading police to evacuate and cordon off the area.

The group that claimed responsibility said the bombing was part of an armed struggle against the state.

The bombing at the train offices came shortly after the second anniversary of Greece's worst railway disaster, in which 57 people were killed and dozens more injured when a freight train and a passenger train heading in opposite directions were accidentally put on the same track.

The deadly accident sparked widespread anger and exposed severe deficiencies in Greece’s railway system, including in safety systems. Some of the relatives of the victims led mass protests against the country’s conservative government on the occasion of the accident’s second anniversary.

___

Demetris Nellas in Athens, Greece, and Elena Becatoros in Jerusalem contributed.

Kashmir: on the brink of a 'catastrophic' war

The Week UK
Sat, May 3, 2025 



Demonstrators at an anti-India protest in Muzaffarabad, in the Pakistan-administered region of Kashmir. | Credit: Farooq Naeem / AFP / Getty Images

Kashmir has experienced its share of violence over the past 70 years, said Daily Excelsior (Jammu), but last week's massacre in the "idyllic" Baisaran valley was a "grim" new low for the Indian-administered territory. As families and honeymooners relaxed in Pahalgam, one of Kashmir's "most tranquil corners", gunmen from a militant group called The Resistance Front slaughtered 26 people in a meadow, all but one of whom was Indian.

Relations between India and Pakistan are now "cratering", pushing the nuclear-armed rivals to the brink of outright war, said Rhea Mogul on CNN (New York). India's prime minister, Narendra Modi, accused Pakistan of organising the attack, vowing to pursue the perpetrators "to the ends of the Earth"; New Delhi then downgraded ties with Islamabad and shut a key border crossing. The two sides have exchanged fire over the "line of control" in the Himalayan territory, and India has taken the unprecedented step of suspending a vital treaty that allows both countries to share control of the Indus River System – a move that Islamabad called an "act of war".


Pakistan may deny it "a hundred times", said Aaj Ki Baat on India TV (Noida), "but the entire world" knows it was behind this attack. Just look at the videos of the massacre: they show gunmen kitted out with sophisticated weapons and bodycams killing their Hindu victims at point-blank range. This was "a planned, professional job", most likely organised by Pakistan's army and its powerful intelligence agency, the ISI.

It has been the same with almost every major attack on India, said Vir Sanghvi in The Print (New Delhi). After the 2008 Mumbai attacks, when 166 people were killed by Pakistani Islamists, the Manmohan Singh government ignored the angry cries for retribution, saying a war would not benefit anyone. Hailed as "statesman-like", such restraint now "looks more and more like a terrible miscalculation". Pakistan walked away knowing it could kill Indian civilians without consequences. It's time India showed Pakistan that terrorism has a price, even if that means war.

India wants to drag Pakistan into this "deplorable" episode, said Dawn (Karachi). But perhaps Modi's nationalist government should look a little closer to home and "review its brutal rule" in Kashmir, and the "immense discontent" that has bred in the "occupied" territory. In 2019, Modi revoked Kashmir's already limited constitutional autonomy, bringing it under the direct control of New Delhi. He claims "all is well" in the region, but there will be no end to these "blood-soaked episodes" if India continues to stamp out Kashmiri autonomy "through brute force and intimidation".

Modi's long-term goal is to choke off Pakistan's water supply, said The Nation (Lahore), and he happily seized the opportunity last week by withdrawing from the Indus Waters Treaty, which splits control of the rivers flowing down from the Himalayas between India and Pakistan. The Indian PM is "playing with fire": 80% of Pakistan's irrigated agriculture is supported by that treaty, and if he disrupts that supply and undermines our economic and food security, Pakistan will have no choice but to respond – with possibly "catastrophic" results "for the entire region".

India can't actually disrupt Pakistan's water supply, said Abhishek De in India Today (New Delhi). It would take years to build the reservoirs and dams required to plug the water flow from the Indus. It's more of a "psychological" tactic by Modi, who is under severe domestic pressure to respond to the attacks.