Other news of the day: Reporters Without Borders calls on China to release an editor and a radio host. Myanmar: 40 soldiers of the coup junta have died in the last three days. The Indian Congress party today elects its new president. A Ukrainian eparchy comes under the control of the Moscow Patriarchate.
IRAN
The death toll doubles after the fire in the evin jail, in Tehran. According to the magistracy, the victims are eight: all were in the pavilion that houses the assailants. The prison is famous because the authorities lock up political opponents there. Among those detained are many of the participants in the protests of recent days.
JAPAN
Fumio Kishida today ordered the opening of an investigation into the unification church. The approval rating of premiere Japan collapsed after the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in July, an event that revealed the hidden links between the religious organization and many members of the Liberal Democratic Party.
TAIWAN-CHINA
The Taiwanese branch of Reporters Without Borders asked Beijing for the immediate release of two dissidents, both residents of Hong Kong. Publisher Gui Minhai is serving a 10-year sentence for “espionage” while radio host Edmund Wan Yiu-sing is serving two years and eight months in prison on charges of “sedition” and money laundering.
MYANMAR
in the last three days 40 soldiers of the forces loyal to the military junta They would have died at the hands of armed ethnic and anti-coup militias. The attacks took place in Sagaing, Magwe, Bago, Rangoon and Tanintharyi regions, and in Chin, Karen and Mon states.
INDIA
The Congress party elects its president today, which for the first time in 24 years will not belong to the Gandhi family. The race is played between two historical party leaders: Mallikarjun Kharge and Shashi Tharoor. Nine thousand delegates will participate in the vote. This is the sixth election in the 137-year history of the political group.
UKRAINE-RUSSIA
The eparchy of Rovenkov – one of the eparchies of the Ukrainian territories annexed by Russia – will submit directly to the Patriarch of Moscow. The synod of the Russian Orthodox Church and the assembly of the eparchy in question made the decision jointly. As the patriarchal spokesman Legojda underlined: “Each eparchy will decide autonomously.”
KYRGYZSTAN
The Kyrgyz authorities distributed 75,000 copies of a new manual on the “History of the Development of Religions” in the country’s schools. This was announced by the head of the Ministry of Education, Samat Tojaliev. Copies in Russian, Uzbek and Tajik are being printed as part of a print run of 120,000 copies to “encourage a moderate approach to religion.”
