Category: WORLD

Mexico, Dec 12 (IANS) Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said her administration will defend the country’s sovereignty regardless of who the United States picks as ambassador to Mexico, following the latest appointment by US President-elect Donald Trump.

“With this ambassador or any other, we will defend our sovereignty and equal status,” the President said during her usual press conference at the National Palace on Wednesday.

Sheinbaum added she was “convinced there is going to be agreement, and they should know that we are always going to defend Mexico and make it proud without subordinating ourselves to the needs of the United States alone.”

She reiterated the importance of making progress in the bilateral agenda, including combating arms trafficking from the United States into Mexico, reports Xinhua news agency.

Trump announced on Tuesday evening through his Truth Social network that his ambassador to Mexico will be retired colonel Ronald Johnson, a former CIA officer and Army Special Forces officer who served as ambassador to El Salvador during Trump’s first term.

According to Trump, Johnson “will work closely with our great Secretary of State Nominee, Marco Rubio, to promote our Nation’s security and prosperity through strong America First Foreign Policies.”

–IANS

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Sydney, Dec 12 (IANS) Being overweight has become the leading risk factor contributing to disease in Australia for the first time, according to government data.

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) on Thursday published its annual Australian Burden of Disease Study for 2024. It is estimated that Australians lost a combined 5.8 million years of healthy life due to living with disease and dying prematurely in 2024, reports Xinhua news agency.

It found that 36 per cent of the loss of healthy life, called the burden of disease, could have been avoided or reduced due to modifiable risk factors.

Being overweight, including obesity, was identified by the AIHW as the leading modifiable risk factor.

Tobacco use was previously the leading risk factor, but the AIHW said its burden of disease has declined 41 per cent since 2003.

“This fall is likely due to declines in smoking prevalence,” AIHW spokesperson Michelle Gourley said in a statement.

The study attributed 8.3 per cent of Australia’s total disease burden in 2024 to the risk factor of being overweight, with tobacco use responsible for 7.6 per cent and all dietary risks for 4.8 per cent.

A separate report published by the AIHW in June found that 66 per cent of Australian adults and 26 per cent of children and adolescents were overweight or obese in 2022.

Thursday’s report found that cancer remained the leading group of diseases causing burden in 2024, accounting for 16.4 per cent of the national loss of healthy life.

For young Australians, mental health conditions, suicide and self-inflicted injuries were the leading contributors of disease burden.

–IANS

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Washington, Dec 12 (IANS) US President-elect Donald Trump has called the resignation announcement of FBI Director Christopher Wray “a great day for America.”

Wray, on Wednesday, informed FBI employees of his intention to resign at the end of President Joe Biden’s tenure, paving the way for a smooth transition to Kashyap “Kash” Patel, should he be confirmed as Trump’s nominee to head the agency.

Reacting on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump wrote, “The resignation of Christopher Wray is a great day for America as it will end the Weaponisation of what has become known as the United States Department of Injustice.” He added, “We will now restore the Rule of Law for all Americans.”

Trump accused Wray of abusing his authority during his tenure, stating, “Under the leadership of Christopher Wray, the FBI illegally raided my home, without cause, worked diligently on illegally impeaching and indicting me, and has done everything else to interfere with the success and future of America.”

The president-elect further alleged that Wray had used his powers to “threaten and destroy many innocent Americans” and praised his nominee Kash Patel as “the most qualified nominee to lead the FBI in the agency’s history.”

Trump expressed confidence that Patel’s leadership would help restore “law, order, and justice” and said, “We want our FBI back, and that will now happen.”

While Wray still had three years remaining in his 10-year term, his position became untenable after Trump announced Patel as his nominee and signalled dissatisfaction with his leadership.

Addressing FBI employees, Wray said, “I’ve decided the right thing for the bureau is for me to serve until the end of the current administration in January and then step down.” He emphasised that his decision was aimed at avoiding dragging the bureau “deeper into the fray” and upholding its values and principles.

Trump, who had not formally asked Wray to resign, had expressed his displeasure in recent comments.

In an interview with NBC News on Sunday, Trump slammed Wray, saying, “He invaded Mar-a-Lago. I’m very unhappy with the things he’s done.”

Wray, who was appointed by Trump in 2017 to succeed James Comey, had initially been praised by Trump as “a model of integrity” and “impeccably qualified.”

However, their relationship deteriorated over time, particularly after the FBI raided Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in connection with classified documents and launched investigations into Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.

The FBI also investigated President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, for alleged violations of gun laws and tax evasion under Wray’s leadership.

Trump’s decision to nominate Patel marks another significant reshaping of the FBI’s leadership, a move aimed at consolidating his influence over the agency.

If confirmed, Patel would assume control of an organisation at the centre of controversies during Trump’s first term, including the investigations into Russian election interference and Trump’s classified document scandal.

–IANS

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Istanbul, Dec 12 (IANS) US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to visit Turkey on Friday for high-level talks on Syria’s ongoing political upheaval following the ousting of President Bashar al-Assad, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said.

Blinken is expected to meet Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Ankara to discuss Syria’s transition and broader regional issues, including developments in Israel, Gaza, and Lebanon, Xinhua news agency reported quoting a statement from the ministry.

The visit comes as Syria navigates a critical juncture, with a newly formed transitional government assuming power after al-Assad’s departure to Russia for asylum.

Turkey has long expressed concerns over the role of Kurdish groups in Syria.

Ankara views the US-backed Syrian Kurdish People’s Protection Units as an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, which it has battled for decades.

Blinken’s regional tour will also include a stop in Jordan, where he is expected to meet officials in Aqaba to build consensus on Syria’s future and address other pressing issues across the Middle East, the US State Department said on Wednesday.

–IANS

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Ankara, Dec 12 (IANS) Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met with Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to address escalating tensions between the two Horn of Africa nations.

The high-level talks, attended by top Turkish officials including Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Defense Minister Yasar Guler, focused on diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the crisis sparked by Ethiopia’s signing of an agreement with Somaliland, a self-declared independent region of Somalia, in January, Xinhua news agency reported.

Somalia has strongly denounced the agreement as a violation of its sovereignty, which grants Ethiopia access to the Red Sea in return for its recognition of Somaliland as an independent state.

Turkey has positioned itself as a mediator seeking to reduce tensions between the two countries, with Wednesday’s trilateral discussions representing a diplomatic attempt to find a peaceful resolution.

–IANS

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Khartoum, Dec 12 (IANS) At least 15 people were killed and 64 others wounded in an artillery attack by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on a displacement camp and a market south of El Fasher, the capital city of Sudan’s North Darfur State, a local health official said.

“So far, 15 people were killed and 64 others injured, while the RSF militia’s shelling on Zamzam camp and the livestock market is still continuing,” Ibrahim Khatir, director-general of North Darfur State’s health ministry, told Xinhua. He added that most of the casualties were children and women.

The Coordination of Resistance Committees in El Fasher, a local non-governmental group, confirmed in a statement that the RSF attack on the market and Zamzam camp had resulted in more than 60 injuries and 15 deaths, including children, women, and elderly people, Xinhua news agency reported.

An eyewitness described Wednesday’s shelling, which took place at 6:00 a.m. local time, as “the most violent” since the RSF began besieging El Fasher on May 10.

“About six shells fell in the middle of the Zamzam camp, which is crowded with displaced people, while four others fell in the livestock market south of El Fasher,” the eyewitness said.

Sudan has been embroiled in a conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF since mid-April 2023, resulting in more than 27,000 deaths and the displacement of over 14 million people, according to international organisations’ estimates.

–IANS

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Ottawa, Dec 12 (IANS) Canada’s Indigenous peoples continued to be overrepresented as homicide victims, Statistics Canada said.

Just over one in four homicide victims were Indigenous in 2023, despite representing 5 per cent of the overall population, Xinhua news agency reported quoting the national statistical agency.

Similarly, in 2022, 27 per cent of homicide victims were Indigenous and this heightened risk is deeply rooted in the ongoing effects of colonisation, including systemic discrimination, poverty and a legacy of trauma, the agency said.

In 2023, police services reported 778 homicides across the country, 104 fewer victims than the previous year. As a result, the national homicide rate decreased by 14 per cent, from 2.27 to 1.94 homicides per 100,000 population, according to the agency.

This overrepresentation translates to a homicide rate of 9.31 per 100,000 Indigenous people, a figure more than six times higher than the rate for non-Indigenous Canadians, said Statistics Canada.

–IANS

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Rome, Dec 12 (IANS) A young girl was rescued from the Mediterranean Sea and brought to Italy’s southern Lampedusa island after being found alone in the water, local media reported.

The rescue was carried out on Wednesday by a ship operated by the charity group Compass Collective, Xinhua news agency reported.

The girl is believed to be the sole survivor of a group of about 45 migrants who set sail from Sfax, Tunisia, last week, according to initial accounts.

Rescuers said they discovered the girl in the early hours of Wednesday.

Thousands of migrants perish each year while attempting the perilous Mediterranean crossing to reach southern Europe, with Italy, Spain, and Greece being primary destinations.

So far this year, 64,021 migrants and asylum seekers have arrived in Italy via the central Mediterranean route, compared to 153,126 during the same period in 2023, according to Italy’s interior ministry. In total, 185,623 migrants have reached southern Europe in 2024, with over 175,000 crossing the Mediterranean, according to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).

While overall arrivals have decreased compared to the peak years of 2015-2016, the death toll remains alarmingly high. So far in 2024, approximately 2,250 people have been declared missing or dead, following 4,110 in 2023 and 3,017 in 2022, UNHCR reported.

–IANS

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Tehran, Dec 12 (IANS) Iran and Turkey have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to increase bilateral trade to $30 billion within five years.

The agreement, focused on enhancing economic ties, was signed in Tehran by Iranian Roads and Urban Development Minister Farzaneh Sadegh and Turkish Trade Minister Omer Bolat, Xinhua news agency reported quoting Iran’s state news agency IRNA.

The signing marked the conclusion of the 29th session of the joint economic cooperation commission, a three-day meeting aimed at fostering trade, banking, and investment collaboration.

Currently, annual trade between the two neighbors stands at $11.7 billion according to IRNA. The MoU outlines plans for expanded trade and economic cooperation in the coming year, laying the groundwork for further discussions at the 30th meeting of the joint commission.

–IANS

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Los Angeles, Dec 12 (IANS) The large wildfire in Malibu in Southern California continues to burn and it has reached nearly 4,000 acres, according to the city authorities of Malibu.

The fire, codenamed Franklin Fire, started Monday night near the Malibu Creek State Park in Los Angeles County, Xinhua news agency reported.

The fire grew an additional 600 acres Wednesday morning. There are over 1,500 firefighters assigned to the incident, said city officials.

There were approximately 18,000 people and 8,100 homes and businesses under evacuation orders or warnings, Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna told reporters Tuesday. There are several shelters for displaced residents.

A Red Flag Warning remains in effect until Thursday afternoon, according to the city of Malibu. Currently the fire is 7 per cent contained.

–IANS

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