Foreign
Taiwan shuts down as Typhoon Gaemi approaches
By Francesca Hangeior.
Taiwan closed schools, suspended the stock market, and declared a typhoon holiday Wednesday as Gaemi barrelled towards the island, bringing torrential rains and whipping winds to its northeast.
Typhoon Gaemi, packing sustained wind speeds of 190 kilometres (118 miles) per hour, also affected Japan and the Philippines — which announced government offices would close for the day.
It is expected to make landfall in northeast Taiwan by 10 pm (1400 GMT), and President Lai Ching-te urged everyone to “put safety first” during a morning emergency briefing.
“Gaemi is this year’s first typhoon to make landfall in Taiwan,” Lai said.
“I hope that through our joint efforts, impact from the typhoon can be minimised… I also encourage fellow citizens across the country not to go out unless necessary during the typhoon, especially not to dangerous places.”
The weather forced the self-ruled island to cancel some of its annual Han Kuang war games — which test preparedness for a Chinese invasion — but an anti-landing drill went ahead as scheduled on Wednesday morning on Penghu island, west of Taiwan.
Authorities evacuated more than 4,000 people living in precarious conditions in the northern regions, particularly Hualien — a mountainous area with high risk of landslides.
By afternoon, authorities said nearly 60 people were injured across the island from the typhoon’s impact.
Trains and ferry services were suspended and hundreds of international and domestic flights cancelled on Wednesday.
“We expect that the impact of the typhoon will be extended to four days (until Friday),” said Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration chief Cheng Jia-ping, adding that the public would need to “take precautions against heavy rain and strong wind”.
The typhoon is expected to pass through the Taiwan Strait and hit China by Thursday in the eastern Zhejiang and Fujian provinces, where authorities have issued a red storm alert.
In Taiwan’s northeastern Yilan County, massive waves crashed against the shore, while market vendors worked quickly to protect their stalls with canvas and shops had taped glass windows.
At a harbour crowded with docked vessels, a fisher surnamed Hsu tied down his boat at a typhoon shelter.
“I am worried about the typhoon — the boats are my tool for making money,” he said.
In the capital Taipei, government offices were closed and streets emptied, while some stores sandbagged their entrances to prevent potential floodwater.
Taiwanese chip giant TSMC, the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said it would maintain normal production and the firm “has activated routine typhoon alert preparation procedures” at all fabrication plants.
Taiwan is accustomed to frequent tropical storms from July to October, but experts say climate change has increased their intensity, leading to heavy rains, flash floods and strong gusts.
In neighbouring Japan, authorities of a southern island region of Okinawa urged residents to “exercise strong vigilance” against storms, high waves and floods.
In the Philippines, meanwhile, heavy downpours in Manila triggered widespread flooding and a landslide in a nearby mountainous province killed four people.
US federal prosecutors said Sunday an Iranian national was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport for allegedly trafficking arms to Sudan on behalf of Tehran.
Shamim Mafi, 44, is charged with “brokering the sale of drones, bombs, bomb fuses and millions of rounds of ammunition manufactured by Iran and sold to Sudan,” US Attorney Bill Essayli wrote in an X post.
A resident of the Los Angeles suburb of Woodland Hills, Mafi “is an Iranian national who became a lawful permanent resident of the United States in 2016,” the prosecutor said.
Mafi was arrested Saturday and faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison if convicted.
The post was accompanied by images of a woman presumed to be Mafi surrounded by federal agents at the airport, a large drone on a tarmac, a woman’s ID image and bundles of cash.
The United Nations recently warned that Sudan is at risk of slipping into “full-scale famine and collapse,” as the war between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) enters its fourth year.
The UN Sudan chief, Denise Brown, told AFP Thursday that Sudan is facing the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, and weapons from outside sources deserve part of the blame.
The UN has repeatedly called on foreign powers to stop fueling the war, but has not accused specific states.
On one side, the Sudanese army has been backed by Egypt and Saudi Arabia, and deployed Turkish and Iranian-made drones.
However, most of the blame has been pointed at the United Arab Emirates, which denies evidence that it has funnelled arms to the RSF, who have been accused of genocide.
AFP
United States President Donald Trump has claimed that Iran has agreed to hand over its remaining stockpile of enriched uranium and abandon ambitions for a nuclear weapon, describing negotiations as being on the verge of a major breakthrough.
Speaking to reporters at the White House on Thursday before departing for Las Vegas, Trump said: “We’re very close to making a deal with Iran. We had to make sure that Iran never gets a nuclear weapon… They’ve totally agreed to that. They’ve agreed to almost everything.”
He added that Iran had consented to return its enriched uranium, which he has repeatedly called “nuclear dust”, material believed to be buried deep underground following earlier U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.
“They’ve agreed to give us back the nuclear dust,” Trump stated. He also suggested that the next round of talks could take place over the weekend and expressed uncertainty about whether the current fragile ceasefire would need extension.
The comments come amid efforts to end six weeks of conflict in the Middle East that has disrupted global energy supplies and raised fears over the Strait of Hormuz, a vital chokepoint for oil exports.
However, Iran has not publicly confirmed Trump’s assertions. Multiple reports indicate that Tehran has previously pushed back against similar claims, describing them as exaggerated.
Recent direct talks in Islamabad on April 11-12 collapsed without agreement, with core disputes remaining over the future of uranium enrichment inside Iran and the removal of existing stockpiles.
The White House has been discussing a possible second round of negotiations in Pakistan, with officials expressing optimism.
A U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports remains in place, adding pressure on Tehran.
Analysts caution that any final deal would require strict verification mechanisms, especially given the deeply buried nature of the material in question.
For Nigeria and other oil-producing nations, progress toward de-escalation could help stabilise crude prices, which have spiked due to fears of prolonged disruption in the Strait of Hormuz.
A lasting agreement might also open the door for sanctions relief on Iran, potentially shifting global energy dynamics.
Trump has maintained that preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons is a non-negotiable red line, while offering the prospect of broader regional stability in return for Iranian concessions.
No immediate reaction from Iranian officials was available as of press time. Further developments are expected in the coming days as diplomatic channels continue.
A devastating shooting at a middle school in southeastern Turkey on Wednesday has left at least four people dead and 20 others wounded. The incident, which occurred in the province of Kahramanmaras, marks a harrowing second day of educational violence in the region, an anomaly in a country where school shootings are exceedingly rare.
The local governor, Mukerrem Unluer, confirmed to reporters that the fatalities included three pupils and one teacher. The perpetrator, identified as an eighth-grade student at the school, also died during the attack.
According to Governor Unluer, the assailant, typically aged 13 or 14 arrived at the institution concealing an arsenal within his backpack. The weapons, which authorities believe belonged to his father, a retired police officer, included five firearms and seven ammunition magazines.
“An eighth-grade student entered two classrooms occupied by fifth-grade students and opened fire indiscriminately,” Governor Unluer stated. The victims in the fifth grade are generally between the ages of 10 and 11.
The Governor further disclosed that four of the wounded are currently in critical condition and are undergoing emergency surgery.
Television footage from the site depicted a harrowing scene as police cordoned off the school gates while frantic crowds gathered nearby. Ambulances were seen transporting at least two victims from the premises as emergency services worked to stabilise the survivors.
The Justice Minister, Akin Gurlek, announced via the social media platform X that a formal investigation has been launched into the circumstances surrounding the massacre. Authorities are expected to scrutinise how the minor gained access to his father’s service weapons.
This tragedy follows a similar incident on Tuesday in the neighbouring province of Sanliurfa, where a former student opened fire at a school, wounding 16 individuals including staff and pupils before taking his own life.
The back-to-back attacks have sent shockwaves through the Turkish nation, prompting urgent discussions regarding firearm security and the safety of academic environments.
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