Raids by the US, Turkey and Israel on post-Assad Syria

Today's news: Tug-of-war between government and opposition in South Korea continues; Taiwan raises military alert level. Indian farmers suspend (again) their protest march; Vice President Sara Duterte in the Philippines could also face impeachment motions.

SYRIA

After the fall of the regime of Bashar al-Assad, who found refuge in Russia, the US reported that it had hit more than 75 Islamic State targets in Syria. Turkey targeted Kurdish positions, while Israel advanced into the buffer zone dividing the two countries. Meanwhile, Abu Mohammed al-Julani, the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham leader who led the liberation from the regime, described the fall of Assad as an opportunity to turn Syria into a ‘beacon for the Islamic nation’.

SOUTH KOREA

The tug-of-war between President Yoon Suk Yeol and the opposition continues: the Chief Prosecutor of the Corruption Investigation Bureau for Senior Officials has issued travel bans against Yoon, who is currently under investigation for declaring martial law, and the police said they are reviewing the decision. The Defence Minister is also under investigation for alleged treason, and the Democratic Party has also accused the Prime Minister of insurrection, while the People Power Party, from which the President comes, has in recent days called for an ‘orderly exit’ of Yoon from the national political scene.

TAIWAN - CHINA

Taiwan's military has raised the alert level saying China has set up seven areas with air navigation restrictions and sent coast guard boats to waters around the island following contacts between President Lai Ching-te and US officials in the Pacific. Taiwan's Ministry of Defence announced that it had initiated combat exercises in response.

INDIA

Indian farmers' protest march was suspended for the second time in two days after police used tear gas against protesters in Shambhu, on the Punjab-Haryana border. Since February, groups of farmers have been camped out between the two states and have repeatedly attempted to march towards New Delhi to demand that the central government implement a series of reforms, including greater guarantees on so-called minimum support prices, which protect the production of agricultural products even in the event of sharp declines.

TONGA

The Prime Minister of Tonga, Siaosi Sovaleni, resigned this morning ‘for the good of the country’, as he said, preceding a no-confidence motion against him due to clashes with the monarch, King Tupou VI, over constitutional issues. Parliament will reconvene on 24 December to consider candidates for premier.

PHILIPPINES

Three out of five signatures on receipts provided by the education department to justify expenses are non-existent. The chairman of the House Committee on Good Governance, Joel Chua, made this finding public today on documents that were produced during the period when Vice President Sara Duterte was head of the department. The misuse of funds was cited in two impeachment motions against her.

TURKMENISTAN

With the approach of the national holiday of Neutrality Day in Turkmenistan, President Serdar Berdymukhamedov ordered to ‘meet the needs of the population’ by supplying the markets with products and items that are currently in short supply, opening special markets in the country's major centres, especially in Ašgabat and Arkadag.

RUSSIA

The mayor of Moscow, Sergei Sobjanin, has announced that there will be no fireworks display for New Year's Eve in the capital this year, a sensational choice given Moscow's great tradition of illuminations in the sky, without giving an explanation, but evidently to set an example to other Russian cities by saving funds to be used only for defence.

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