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Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2025/1/8/live-israeli-forces-kill-49-in-gaza-including-children-in-tent-camp

Many also injured as tremors felt as far away as Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu, and northern India. Chinese officials report that a strong earthquake has killed at least 53 people in Tibet and left many others injured and trapped. The official Xinhua News Agency, citing the regional disaster relief headquarters, reported that 62 people were injured in the quake on Tuesday, as dozens of aftershocks shook the region of western China and the neighbouring state of Nepal. Some 1,500 firefighters and rescue workers were deployed to search for people in the rubble, the Ministry of Emergency Management said. The quake struck at 9:05am local time (01:05 GMT) at a depth of 10km (6.2 miles), according to the China Earthquake Networks Center, which recorded a magnitude of 6.8. However, the United States Geological Survey measured its magnitude as 7.1. A magnitude 6.8 earthquake is considered strong and capable of causing severe damage. Multiple aftershocks were also reported, with the strongest measuring a magnitude of 4.4. Xinhua reported that at least nine people were killed in three townships – Changsuo, Quluo and Cuoguo – in Shigatse’s surrounding Tingri county, where many buildings had collapsed, and local media report that dozens of people died. Al Jazeera’s Katrina Yu, reporting from Beijing, said images from the affected areas showed many collapsed buildings and homes. “These are very remote villages in mountainous areas that are difficult to access and that difficulty will be increased by the fact that it is winter now, very cold and not very close to any major city,” Yu said. She said the death toll was likely to rise. Very strong 7.0 #quake hits near Shigatse, Tibet, China – info, user reports and updates | Jan 7, 2025 09:05 am (Shanghai time): https://t.co/WRKs73D34j — Earthquake Monitor (@EQAlerts) January 7, 2025 The Reuters news agency said crumbled shop fronts could be seen in a video showing the aftermath in Lhatse, about 150km (93 miles) east of Shigatse city, with debris spilling onto the road. Shigatse is one of Tibet’s holiest cities and the seat of the Panchen Lama, one of the most important figures in Tibetan Buddhism, whose spiritual authority is second only to the Dalai Lama. Powerful tremors were also felt in northern India’s Bihar state and Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu, some 400km (248 miles) away, where residents reportedly ran from their houses as buildings shook. Areas around Lobuche in Nepal’s Himalayan region near Mount Everest were also rattled by the tremors and aftershocks. “It shook quite strongly here, everyone is awake, but we don’t know about any damages yet,” said Jagat Prasad Bhusal, a government official in Nepal’s Namche region, which lies near Everest. Nepal: An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.1 on the Richter scale struck 93 km northeast of Lobuche, at 06:35:16 IST today. Strong tremors were felt across Kathmandu and other western districts pic.twitter.com/ysEiNulN7L — IANS (@ians_india) January 7, 2025 There have been no reports of casualties in Nepal so far. However, police and other security forces have been mobilised to collect information on the impact of the quake, a local official told Reuters. Nepal and southwestern parts of China have been hit frequently by earthquakes. According to Chinese broadcaster CCTV, there have been 29 earthquakes with magnitudes of 3 or higher within 200km (124 miles) of the Shigatse quake epicentre in the past five years, all of which were smaller than the most recent. A huge earthquake in China’s Sichuan province in 2008 killed almost 70,000 people. In 2015, a magnitude 7.8 quake, Nepal’s worst, struck near Kathmandu, killing about 9,000 people and injuring thousands. Source: https://aljazeera.com/news/2025/1/7/earthquake-hits-tibets-shigatse-city-tremors-felt-in-nepals-kathmandu

Convoy, originally scheduled to deliver goods on January 4, remains stranded in Tal for fourth day Fragile peace in Kurram has stalled the aid convoy’s departure, leaving Parachinar residents in desperate need as tensions remain high after last week’s gun attack on the deputy commissioner. The convoy, originally scheduled to deliver goods on January 4, has been stranded in Tal for the fourth day as the Tal-Parachinar Road remains closed for transit today (Tuesday) as well. There are concerns that vegetables, fruits, and other food items may perish. According to the administration, if the convoy proceeds, the curfew will be imposed from Chapri Check Post to Tari Mangal. To ensure the safe passage of the convoy, authorities had announced a curfew along the main highway during its transit while Section 144 was also imposed in the district following the attack. Meanwhile, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government temporarily suspended aid to the victims of violence in Kurram after the attack that left Kurram Deputy Commissioner Javedullah Mehsud and six others injured. Sources told Geo News that Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur had ordered financial assistance for those affected by the violence in the restive Kurram tribal district. Following his instructions, a 90% survey of households and shops in Bagan was completed to ensure compensation for the affected people. But the government took strong notice of the armed attack on the official vehicle. When contacted, Adviser to the KP Chief Minister on Information Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif confirmed the development but said that financial aid would be halted for communities found not cooperating with the government. In a meeting in Kohat on Sunday, the government had demanded the tribal elders hand over the perpetrators of the attack or else the monetary aid will be suspended. Aid convoy to proceed only after security clearance Despite the delay in the departure of aid convoy, Barrister Saif continued to downplay the gravity of the situation created by the attack on Kurram DC. Speaking in Geo News’ programme ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath’ on Monday night, Saif said that the incident had certainly caused some unpleasantness but it was unlikely to affect the peace process. He said that the first information report (FIR) into the matter had been lodged and identification of the assailants was underway. “The tribal elders have been asked to handover the assailants to us as per the peace agreement. Both parties of the conflict have condemned the incident and assured the administration of cooperation,” Barrister Saif said. He added that the aid convoy will be allowed to proceed in a day or two after the security clearance. Arrests Meanwhile, as the law enforcement agencies personnel continued crackdown on suspects involved in an attack on Mehsud, one more suspected assailant was apprehended, bringing the total number of arrests to three out of the five named in the FIR. Officials said that efforts were underway to locate the remaining suspects and other unidentified attackers. Apart from that, authorities in the restive Kurram district arrested three tribal elders namely Syed Rahman, Saifullah and Karim Khan for their refusal to sign the recently brokered peace agreement. The district administration said the peace agreement, approved by the KP apex committee and the government, must be implemented at all costs to ensure stability in the region. In a related development, a new case was registered against 200 protesters who staged a sit-in outside Parachinar Press Club for allegedly blocking the main highway and violating Section 144. The administration said that the restoration of transportation routes remained a top priority and warned against any actions that disrupted public movement. It reiterated its commitment to ensuring peace and holding those responsible for violence accountable through thorough investigations and strict enforcement of the law. The Kurram region has been wracked by tribal violence for decades, but around 140 people have been killed since a fresh bout of fighting broke out in November. As feuding tribes have battled with machine guns and heavy weapons, the remote and mountainous region bordering Afghanistan has been largely cut off from the outside world. The months-long blockade of roads has left residents of Parachinar and surrounding areas in dire need of essential supplies. After a truce was called on January 1, the convoy was attacked as it travelled to collect the first aid delivery of food and medicine sent by road since November, officials said. Source: https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/1269538-aid-convoy-hold-up-leaves-kurram-waiting-for-relief

Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2025/1/7/live-israel-kills-22-in-gaza-launches-manhunt-in-west-bank-after-shooting

Here are the key developments on the 1,047th day of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Here is the situation on Monday, January 6: Fighting Politics and diplomacy Advertisement Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/1/6/russia-ukraine-war-list-of-key-events-day-1047

German official’s body recovered after missing work for two days, say police Thomas Fielder, the Second Secretary at the German Embassy in Islamabad, was found dead in his apartment within the Diplomatic Enclave.  According to police officials, Fielder’s body was recovered after German Embassy staff, concerned over his absence from work for two days, broke into his apartment and found him unresponsive. The embassy immediately alerted the local authorities, who transported the body to the hospital for a post-mortem examination. Police said that the cause of death remains undetermined and will be ascertained following the autopsy report. Initial investigations revealed that the diplomat had previously suffered a minor heart attack, which could potentially be a contributing factor. The German Embassy has been informed of the incident, and further investigations are underway to establish the circumstances surrounding the diplomat’s death, they said. Source: https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/1269226-german-embassy-official-found-dead-in-islamabad

Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2025/1/6/live-israel-pounds-gaza-as-ceasefire-talks-with-hamas-gains-momentum

At least 27 people have died after two boats carrying migrants sunk off the coast of Tunisia on Wednesday, according to state broadcaster Tunisia TV. The vessels were carrying Africans from sub-Saharan countries, Tunisia TV reported. Some 83 people were rescued three miles off Alataya in Tunisia’s Kerkennah Islands, where the boats sank, it said. The Red Cross told CNN Thursday that there have been at least four shipwrecks in the area in the last week, claiming 84 lives in total. Of these disasters, three boats set off from Tunisia and one departed from Libya, it said. This comes after UNICEF announced on Wednesday that more than 2,200 people died in the Mediterranean during 2024. This figure includes “hundreds of children, who make up one in five of all people migrating through the Mediterranean,” the UNICEF statement said. The majority of these children are fleeing violent conflict and poverty, it added. Just hours before midnight on New Year’s Eve, a boat sank off the coast of Lampedusa, Italy, UNICEF said, leaving more than 20 people missing, including women and children. Among the seven survivors is an 8-year-old child whose mother is unaccounted for, it said. Related articleGirl, 11, survives migrant shipwreck by clinging to tire tubes for 3 days Lampedusa is an Italian island in the Mediterranean, far closer to Tunisia’s coast than either mainland Italy or the island of Sicily. Many in Northern Africa aiming to reach Europe travel to Lampedusa, as it requires a shorter journey than reaching the mainland continent. In total, at least 31,184 migrants have either died or gone missing in the Mediterranean since 2014, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), which last updated its figures on December 31, 2024. Most of these incidents took place on the Central Mediterranean route, where migrants attempted to cross from North Africa to Italy or Malta, the IOM said. A total of 66,317 migrants landed in Italy in 2024, the Italian government said on Thursday, down from 157,651 in 2023 and 105,131 in 2022. Most of these migrants were reported to be from Bangladesh, Syria or Tunisia, the report said. Despite this, deaths and disappearances in the Mediterranean over the last few years have stayed roughly consistent, according to the IOM. Some 3,155 people died or went missing in 2023, the IOM said, with the same happening to 2,411 people in 2022. ‘Europe’s borders continue to kill’ The support service Alarm Phone told CNN on Thursday that “over the last days and weeks, many deadly incidents occurred along the migration routes in the Atlantic and Mediterranean.” “While people in Europe and elsewhere enjoy the holiday season and end-of-year festivities, Europe’s borders continue to kill. We mourn all those who lost their lives and stand in solidarity with their loved ones,” a spokesperson for the organization said in a statement. Separately, UNICEF called on governments to prioritize safeguarding children, including through “coordinated search and rescue operations, safe disembarkation, community-based reception, and access to asylum services.” “Governments must address the root causes of migration and support the integration of families into host communities, ensuring children’s rights are protected at every stage of their journey,” it said. Italy’s hard-right administration is trying out a number of ways to reduce the amount of migrants seeking refuge at its shores. In October, 16 migrants that traveled to Italy were sent to centers in Albania for processing. The International Rescue Committee (IRC) called the opening of the centers a “dark day for the EU’s asylum and migration policies” and said it hoped that the Albanian protocol would not be a blueprint for others. Source: https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/02/world/tunisia-migrants-shipwrecks-death-intl/index.html

Javedullah Mehsud, who played important part to restore peace in district, shifted to hospital Kurram Deputy Commissioner Javedullah Mehsud was shot and injured in a fresh incident of firing as violence broke out in the Bagan area despite the deal to restore peace in the crisis-hit region.  The deputy commissioner, who had been playing a key role in efforts to restore peace in the region, was rushed to hospital. The incident comes as the authorities geared up for sending an aid convoy to Parachinar following the signing of peace accord on January 1, which saw the groups involved in the conflict agree to end violence and surrender arms to the authorities. The first convoy carrying essential items was set to pass through the Tal-Parachinar road today as the key thoroughfare reopened after three months, marking a significant milestone in restoring connectivity to the crisis-hit region. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Secretary Nadeem Aslam Chaudhry had said that the peace committees were responsible for ensuring the protection of the convoy and adherence to the agreements in place. These committees, comprising local residents, tribal elders, and political leaders representing all sects and communities, are tasked with maintaining harmony in the area, he had said. Government sources revealed that local residents have pledged to surrender their weapons to the state within 15 days, as part of a phased process, while the dismantling of local bunkers is expected to be completed within a month. Source: https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/1268543-kurram-dc-injured-in-latest-gunfire-incident-despite-peace-deal

Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2025/1/4/live-israels-bombing-carnage-escalates-as-gaza-ceasefire-talks-resume