Wednesday, October 29, 2025
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Articles by FRANCE 24

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US strikes on alleged drug-running boats in eastern Pacific kill 14
Technology

US strikes on alleged drug-running boats in eastern Pacific kill 14

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Tuesday that the US military has carried out three strikes in the eastern Pacific Ocean against boats accused of carrying drugs, killing 14 people and leaving one survivor. This was the first time multiple strikes were announced in a single day. Carried out Monday, the strikes mark a continued escalation in the pace of the attacks in South American waters, which began in early September and had been spaced weeks apart. A statement provided by a Pentagon official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to freely discuss the operation, said the strikes were conducted off the coast of Colombia. Following one attack on a boat, the military spotted a person in the water clinging to some wreckage. The military passed the survivor’s precise location to the US Coast Guard and a Mexican military aircraft that was operating in the area. Read moreUS warship docks in Trinidad and Tobago as Trump steps up military pressure on Venezuela Hegseth said Mexican search and rescue authorities “assumed responsibility for coordinating the rescue” of the sole survivor but didn’t say if that person was successfully rescued or would stay in Mexico's custody or be handed over to the US. In a strike earlier this month with two survivors, the US military rescued the pair and repatriated them to Colombia and Ecuador. Authorities released the Ecuadorian man after prosecutors said they had no evidence he committed a crime in Ecuador. Hegseth posted footage of the latest strikes to social media in which two boats can be seen moving through the water in separate clips. One is visibly laden with a large amount of parcels or bundles. Both then suddenly explode and are seen in flames. The third strike appears to have been conducted on a pair of boats that were stationary in the water alongside each other. They appear to be largely empty, with at least two people seen moving before an explosion engulfs both boats. Hegseth said “the four vessels were known by our intelligence apparatus, transiting along known narco-trafficking routes, and carrying narcotics.” The Trump administration has shown no evidence to support its claims about the boats, their connection to drug cartels, or even the identity of the people killed in these strikes. At least 57 people have been killed in 13 disclosed strikes since early September. In his announcement of the latest strikes, Hegseth also continued to draw parallels between the military’s actions against drug trafficking and the war on terrorism following the September 11, 2001, attacks. He claimed that cartels “have killed more Americans than Al-Qaeda, and they will be treated the same". US President Donald Trump has also justified the strikes by asserting that the United States is engaged in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels and proclaiming the criminal organisations to be unlawful combatants, relying on the same legal authority used by former president George W. Bush’s administration for the war on terrorism. (FRANCE 24 with AP)

Hamas returns partial hostage remains, Israel slams breach of truce
Technology

Hamas returns partial hostage remains, Israel slams breach of truce

Hamas on Tuesday faced accusations of breaching the Gaza ceasefire after returning partial remains of a previously recovered hostage instead of the body of another deceased captive, as demanded by Israel. Hamas handed over late on Monday what it said was the 16th of 28 hostage bodies it had agreed to return under the US-brokered ceasefire deal, which came into effect on October 10. However, Israeli forensic examination determined that Hamas had in fact handed over partial remains of a hostage whose body had already been brought back to Israel around two years ago, according to a statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office. Netanyahu's office and a campaign group representing hostage families accused Hamas of breaching the ceasefire deal. Read moreExcavations in Gaza underway to recover Israeli hostage bodies The premier's office decried a "clear violation of the agreement" after identification procedures revealed the latest remains belonged "to the fallen hostage Ofir Tzarfati, who had been returned from the Gaza Strip in a military operation about two years ago". It added that Netanyahu would "hold a security discussion with the heads of the security establishment to discuss Israel's steps in response". The Hostages and Missing Families Forum urged the government to take action. "In light of Hamas's severe breach of the agreement last night ... the Israeli government cannot and must not ignore this, and must act decisively against these violations," the forum said. "Hamas knows the location of the hostages and continues to act with contempt, deceiving the United States and mediators while dishonouring our loved ones." 'Break its legs' Israel's far-right national security minister also accused Hamas of stalling the release of the remaining bodies, which he said proved "the terrorist organisation is still standing". "It is time to break its legs once and for all," he added. "We must demand its very disappearance and destroy it completely." Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich also piled on the pressure for Netanyahu to act against what he called Hamas's "repeated and ongoing violations". In a post on X, he urged Netanyahu to re-arrest all those "terrorists who were released in the hostage deal to Judea and Samaria", using the Israeli Biblical term for the occupied West Bank. Read moreRed Cross, Egyptian teams join search for dead hostages in Gaza Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem on Monday protested that the claim the group knew the location of the remaining missing bodies was "false", arguing that Israel's bombardment during the two-year conflict had left locations unrecognisable. "We are determined to hand over the bodies of the Israeli captives as soon as possible," he said. Hamas has already returned all 20 living hostages as agreed in the ceasefire deal. Third set of remains During their October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, Hamas militants took 251 people hostage, most of whom had been released, rescued or recovered before this month's ceasefire. The attack itself resulted in the deaths of 1,221 people on the Israeli side, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures. Israel's subsequent assault on Gaza killed at least 68,531 people, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory's health ministry that the UN considers reliable. Despite the ceasefire, the toll has continued to climb as more bodies are found under the rubble. The health ministry also reports that 94 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since the truce took hold.

Papua New Guinea approves contentious defence treaty with Australia: PM - France 24
Technology

Papua New Guinea approves contentious defence treaty with Australia: PM - France 24

The deal will see the two nations commit to defending each other from armed attacks as they face "emerging threats" to their security. But it ran into controversy in Papua New Guinea over fears it would erode the country's hard-fought sovereignty and non-aligned foreign policy. Officials from the Pacific nation's government's legal office and foreign ministry confirmed the cabinet had approved the deal on Wednesday. Prime Minister James Marape said the treaty reflected "the depth of trust, history, and shared future between our two nations". "This treaty allows PNG's defence capacity to be elevated by leveraging Australian defence capabilities," he said. "This partnership strengthens our ability to respond to our country's key security priorities," he added. The agreement will now go to the country's parliament for ratification. The deal -- known as the Pukpuk treaty -- was set to be signed during a visit to Port Moresby by Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese last month. But that was delayed, with Albanese saying the country's cabinet had been unable to meet due to ongoing independence celebrations. The treaty ensures that "any activities, agreements or arrangements with third parties would not compromise the ability of either of the Parties to implement the Treaty" -- a nod to China's growing influence in the Pacific. Beijing's embassy in Papua New Guinea last month cautioned the country against "undermining" its interests and sovereignty in signing the deal. The agreement also enables the nations' citizens to serve in each other's militaries. Canberra has stepped up its engagement with the Pacific region in a bid to counter Beijing's influence. To the north of Australia, Papua New Guinea is the largest and most populous state in Melanesia. China has committed billions of dollars to Pacific nations over the past decade, funding hospitals, sports stadiums, roads and other public works in an attempt to win their favour. It is an approach that appears to be paying dividends. Solomon Islands, Kiribati and Nauru have all severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan in favour of China in recent years.