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Nov 29, 2025 - World

More than 350 people killed on Indonesia’s Sumatra island with 162 reported dead across ThailandThe death toll from devastating floods and landslides in south-east Asia reportedly climbed past 500 on Saturday as clean-up and search-and-rescue operations got under way in Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia.Heavy monsoon rain overwhelmed swathes of the three countries this week, killing hundreds and leaving thousands stranded, many on rooftops awaiting rescue. Continue reading...

Nov 29, 2025 - World

President Donald Trump’s saber-rattling about potential military action in Venezuela is indeed about drugs, but not cocaine. It is about a far more dangerous drug that former President George W. Bush admitted (in his 2006 State of the Union address) the US is addicted to.Oil.Venezuela has the largest proven oil reserves in the world — 300 billion barrels — even larger than reserves in Saudi Arabia. Mr. Trump and his oil industry friends may imagine that by deposing President Nicolás Maduro and installing a friendly government there, the US would have unlimited access to this huge oil reserve, which is five times larger than the proven reserves in the US. Never mind the fact that for any hope of future climate stability, most of this oil needs to stay right where it is: in the ground.We’ve seen this tragic play before. The Bush administration justified its disastrous 2003 invasion of Iraq with the pretext that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction which, as it turned out, it didn’t. As US Central Command commander General John Abizaid admitted about the Iraq War at the time: “Of course it’s about oil, it’s very much about oil, and we can’t really deny that.” The invasion killed tens of thousands of people, mostly civilians, and destabilized the broader Middle East region for years.And now here we go again. A similar pretext — this time “drug interdiction” — is being used to justify a potential US invasion and regime change in Venezuela. But this is not about stopping the flow of dangerous drugs, it is about actually increasing the flow of the dangerous drug some pushers want to keep us all hooked on.Oil. As Colombian President Gustavo Petro recently stated on the US-Venezuela threat: “Oil is at the heart of the matter.”Instead of admitting their addiction, the damage it causes, and committing to recovery, hardcore junkies are always desperate for more supply. It seems Mr. Trump and his oil industry friends are the most dangerous narco-traffickers we need to worry about.Richard Steiner was a marine professor with the University of Alaska from 1980 to 2010, stationed in the Arctic and Prince William Sound. He advises on oil and environment through Oasis Earth.

Nov 29, 2025 - World

Two Palestinian children reportedly killed on Saturday as Israel continues its strikes after latest ceasefireThe Palestinian death toll has surpassed 70,000 since the Israel-Gaza war began, Gaza’s health ministry said on Saturday, while a hospital reported Israeli fire killed two Palestinian children in the territory’s south.The toll has continued to rise after the latest ceasefire took effect on 10 October. Israel still carries out strikes in response to what it has called violations of the truce, and bodies from earlier in the war are being recovered from the rubble. Continue reading...

Nov 29, 2025 - World

The High Commission of India in Colombo on Saturday set up an emergency help desk at Colombo's Bandaranaike International Airport to assist Indian citizens stranded due to Cyclone Ditwah.

Nov 29, 2025 - World

Bangladesh Nationalist Party's self-exiled acting chairman Tarique Rahman on Saturday said his return to home country was not entirely in his control even as his mother and former prime minister Khaleda Zia fights a "very critical" ailment.