Since May, data on the grounds for court rulings relating to political and social repression, cases against military personnel, and those concerning defendants and convicts who are being sent to fight in the war in Ukraine have become inaccessible in Russia. In recent years, the figures had revealed an exponential rise in convictions for treason, espionage and collusion with foreign powers.
Fourteen of 23 ministers have been named, with Interior and Defence still without office holder amid tensions between political parties. Two secret Israeli bases in Iraq were used to attack Iran. Pope Leo XIV met with Kurdistan's President Barzani. The newly elected Chaldean Patriarch Nona arrived in Baghdad, with his official inauguration on 29 May.
The blast occurred in the courtyard of St Paul's Church, Intan Jaya Regency, shortly after Sunday Mass. The injured are all civilians from the local community. Indonesian authorities have not yet clarified the origin of the device, delivered by a drone, nor identified those responsible. Meanwhile, fighting between separatists and Indonesian forces intensifies.
An incentive plan has been launched to encourage residents to move from densely populated areas to new developments connected to metro stations. Some of the targeted areas are currently undergoing redevelopment. The capital's new master plan envisions development along a multipolar and multicentric structure, with the Red River as the main ecological and cultural axis.
Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te responded to US President Donald Trump's statement that he is “not looking to have somebody go independent”, made after the summit with Xi Jinping in Beijing. Concerns are growing in Taiwan about Washington’s possible "transactional" approach, with Beijing leveraging these concerns to promote political reunification.
Five days of dialogue in Thailand on the role of the family in the Catholic Churches of Asia: 52 delegates from 11 countries discussed pastoral challenges, synodality, the role of young people and interfaith dialogue. The Christian family is at the heart of the Church’s mission and the transmission of the faith. A roadmap inspired by the 2023 Bangkok Document has been approved.
