Closing of Philippine Tourist Hub Stirs Fears of Military Takeover
As the central Philippine island resort of Boracay prepares to bar tourists for six months beginning Thursday, residents fear the militarization of the tourist hot spot as President Rodrigo Duterte vows to clean up what he calls an environmental “cesspool." Duterte ordered the closing of Boracay early this month, saying that the water around the tiny island “smells” and that it poses a danger to people’s health. With tourism the main source of income for its estimated 40,000 inhabitants, Duterte’s assertion threw the island into disarray. Last year the island drew 2 million tourists who spent more than $1 billion.
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Macron Critiques Trump’s Policies in Speech to Congress
One day after President Emmanuel Macron of France and President Donald Trump showered each other with praise, the French president spoke more critically of his host’s foreign policy, trade and environmental decisions in a speech to Congress that amounted to an implicit rebuke of Trump’s “America First” approach. Macron, who hoped to persuade the U.S. president not to walk away from the Iran nuclear deal, reiterated his argument for preserving the deal even as he said he and Trump had decided to pursue “a more comprehensive deal” to restrain Tehran.
Danish Inventor Is Convicted of Killing Journalist
A Danish inventor who admitted to dismembering a journalist and discarding her body from the submarine he built was convicted Wednesday of killing her, in one of the most gruesome and closely watched cases in Scandinavian history. A court in Copenhagen found the submarine inventor Peter Madsen, 47, guilty of premeditated killing — equivalent to murder — in the death of Kim Wall, 30, whom prosecutors said he bound, tortured, sexually assaulted and stabbed repeatedly after she went on his submarine, the UC3 Nautilus, to interview him. He was sentenced to life in prison.
Pope to Host 3 Chilean Victims of Sexual Abuse to Ask Their Forgiveness
Pope Francis will host three victims of Chile’s sexual abuse scandal this weekend at the Vatican hotel where he lives, to ask their forgiveness and listen to their suggestions, the Vatican announced Wednesday, as he tries to make amends for voicing doubts about their accusations. The three men, Juan Carlos Cruz, James Hamilton and José Andrés Murillo, have been among the most vocal survivors of abuse by priests in Chile. Until recently, the pope had defended Bishop Juan Barros Madrid, who victims say witnessed and covered up abuse by the Rev. Fernando Karadima, the country’s most notorious pedophile priest.
Madrid Leader Resigns After Shoplifting Video Emerges
The chief of the Madrid regional government, once seen as a rising star who could become prime minister of Spain, resigned Wednesday after a website posted video that appeared to show her being detained for shoplifting — the latest in a series of blows to the governing Popular Party. The politician, Cristina Cifuentes, 53, president of the Community of Madrid — roughly equivalent to the governor of a state — had been under pressure to step down for weeks, since separate reports had emerged that she had received her master’s degree without doing the necessary work.
Behind a Roadside Hit in Malaysia, Israeli-Palestinian Intrigue
Fadi al-Batsh, an electrical engineering lecturer who moved seven years ago to Malaysia from Gaza, was gunned down Saturday in Kuala Lumpur by two men on a motorcycle. It was the Palestinian man’s undercover job — what intelligence officials described as a technology expert for the Gaza-based Hamas movement — that had put him in the cross hairs of Mossad, the Israeli spy agency. Middle Eastern intelligence officials confirmed the killing was part of a broader operation to dismantle a Hamas project that sends Gaza’s most promising scientists and engineers overseas to gather know-how and weaponry.
Japan Worries It’ll Be Forgotten as Its Allies Talk to North Korea
Amid hurried preparations for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s upcoming meetings with the presidents of South Korea and the United States, even the dessert menu is making Japan nervous. Upon learning of plans to serve Kim a mango mousse decorated with a map of the Korean Peninsula that includes islands over which Tokyo claims sovereignty, Japan’s Foreign Ministry lodged an official complaint with its neighbor. What might seem like a petty protest speaks to anxiety in Japan that it is being left out as high-stakes talks with Kim on the fate of his nuclear arsenal begin.