ASIA TODAY Five Indian soldiers killed in Kashmir

Today’s news: In Myanmar, more than a quarter of public schools are closed due to the war. New Caledonia elected a pro-independence candidate to the Farnese National Assembly for the first time. A former government official accused of slavery was acquitted by a court in North Sumatra. Indian universities are strengthening ties with Israel.

INDIA

Five soldiers were killed in an ambush suspected militants in Kathua district of Jammu and Kashmir. Reinforcements arrived quickly and a search operation was launched to locate the attackers. Kashmir has been the scene of an armed insurgency against Indian rule since 1989.

MYANMAR

More than a quarter, some 13,700 of Myanmar’s 48,753 public schools, have been closed due to the country’s civil warthe military junta’s education ministry said. In the western state of Chin, the scene of fierce fighting since the military coup in 2021, only 38 schools out of some 1,500 remain open, according to figures released by the ministry.

OCEANIA

For the first time in almost four decades, New Caledonia elected an independence candidateEmmanuel Tjibaou, for the French National Assembly in elections that ended on Sunday. It was another setback for French loyalists as unrest continued in the Pacific island territory despite significant security reinforcements sent from Paris.

INDONESIA

An Indonesian court has acquitted a former government official accused of human trafficking after people were found in cages near his palm oil plantation, a ruling the country’s rights body said established impunity for state agents. Prosecutors vowed to appeal the decision by judges at a North Sumatra court on Monday.

ISRAEL – INDIA

Since the start of the Gaza war, Indian universities have stepped up their ties with Israeli universities and arms companies, even as several US and UK institutions have been forced to review exchanges due to the rising death toll. as revealed by Middle East EyeIn recent months, Indian universities have increased their collaborations in the fields of defence, robotics and artificial intelligence (AI).

KAZAKHSTAN

The international military exercise Birlestik-2024 (“Union-2024”), involving military contingents from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, has begun in the Mangistau region of Kazakhstan, with the aim of “conducting operations to localize armed conflicts”, with more than 4,000 soldiers deployed.

CHINA – NORTH KOREA

Trade between Beijing and Pyongyang is expanding, with the Russians starting to import soap, shampoo, toilet paper and other personal hygiene items from North Korea. There are also plans to open up to textiles and clothing, banned by UN sanctions, but the Koreans only make “traditional” jeans, not the skinny, ripped ones.