This brings the total of Vietnam's overall dredging and landfill (including both landfill and harbor/channel dredging) in disputed areas of the South China Sea to approximately 2,360 acres — roughly half of China's 4,650 acres. Currently, Vietnam's only airstrip in the Spratly Islands is a 1,300-meter runway on the eponymous Spratly Island. Trenches and coastal defense emplacements typical of Vietnam's Spratly outposts can be seen underway in several features. And temporary helipads have appeared across many of the expanding features, including Discovery Great Reef, Ladd Reef, Tennent Reef and South Reef." Advertisement[Among the 11 articles that I've written on the Vietnam threat are the following: "Vietnam: The more serious threat?," "Vietnam's militarization of the Spratlys (Kalayaan)," and "The lie-low but dangerous claimant in the South China Sea."]

3-day transport strike begins todayTraditional transport jeepneys wait for passengers at a terminal on Pedro Gil Street corner Agoncillo Street in Manila on January 2, 2024. MANILA, Philippines — The three-day transport strike begins today following assurance by Manibela president Mar Valbuena that various mobilization centers will be established, even as unconsolidated public utility jeepneys (PUJs) have asked the government to allow them to operate for at least one year. Valbuena added that Manibela strike centers are situated in Novaliches, Alabang, Parañaque, Marikina and Quezon City. “Our members contested the apprehension made by the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority as they failed to present a memo on the unconsolidated (PUJs). He added that many drivers are still hoping that they can ply their routes with the one-year extension so that unconsolidated jeepneys can still operate.

A September start to cuts would likely increase the gap between the Fed and the European Central Bank (ECB), which began easing monetary policy rates last week. After two days of debate, the Fed will publish its interest rate decision on Wednesday afternoon, US time, and will also update its economic forecasts from March. Fed chair Jerome Powell has repeatedly insisted that the Fed is "data-dependent" and will not be swayed by politics. Cutting backFutures traders see almost no chance of a rate cut before September, according to data from CME Group. AdvertisementThis marks a dramatic shift from late last year, when the financial markets were pricing in as many as six interest rate cuts for 2024, with the first of them coming as early as March.

The Executive Secretary confirmed that they had received the resignation letter of MB member V. Bruce Tolentino. Online media platform Bilyonaryo, however, had reported on Thursday night that MB member Anita Linda Aquino had already submitted her resignation. Diplomatic farewellsAt the Swedish National Day celebration, Swedish Ambassador Annika Thunborg announced that she would be leaving her post after serving three and a half years as Sweden’s top envoy in the Philippines. Also departing is Italian Ambassador Marco Clemente who will be saying his farewell to President Marcos on June 11. During his three year stint in the Philippines, Ambassador Clemente had worked tirelessly to introduce Italian opera to Filipino youth, including those in underprivileged communities.

Israel named the rescued hostages as Noa Argamani, 26, Almog Meir Jan 22, Andrey Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 41. The spokesperson for Hamas' armed al-Qassam Brigades, Abu Ubaida, said some hostages were killed during the rescue operation. Fresh airstrikes in the southern city of Rafah hit homes later on Saturday, residents and Hamas officials said. U.S. President Joe Biden welcomed the return of the four Israeli hostages rescued in Gaza. "To free four people, Israel killed dozens of innocent civilians," he said.

One passenger died and five others were injured following a crash involving a seven-seater and a sedan in Tai Po on Sunday afternoon. The accident happened at around 1.15 pm when a seven-seater was driving along Sam Mun Tsai Road towards Sam Mun Tsai Village and crashed head-to-head with a Tesla that was driving towards Tai Po. The 52-year-old driver and the four passengers - aged between 18 and 81 - on the seven-seater were injured in the collision. The 34-year-old female driver of the Tesla was also injured. The seven-seater driver was arrested for dangerous driving.

(Reuters)The Philippines will continue to maintain and supply its outposts in the South China Sea without seeking permission from any other country, the country's national security adviser said. The Philippines national security council said on Saturday it reaffirmed its commitment to uphold its sovereign rights and jurisdiction over the Second Thomas Shoal. But the Philippines remains open to dialogue and peaceful negotiations to resolve disputes in the entire South China Sea, the council said. The Philippine coastguard on Friday accused its Chinese counterpart of blocking efforts to evacuate a sick member of its armed forces in the South China Sea. It was the latest dispute in a longstanding territorial spat with China, which claims almost all of the South China Sea, a conduit for more than US$3 trillion in annual ship commerce.

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines has been elected as deputy member to the governing body of the International Labor Organization (ILO), Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma announced on Friday. The election took place during the ongoing 112th International Labor Conference in Geneva, Switzerland. ADVERTISEMENTREAD: PH 1st in Asia to ratify ILO accord vs workplace violence, harassmentThe Philippines and other elected member-states will serve a three-year term until June 2027. The governing body is the executive arm of the ILO and plays a crucial role in determining the organization’s agenda, budget, and electing the ILO director general. —Jerome Aning

China maritime forces harass Philippine scientists anewA China Coast Guard inflatable boat collides with a PCG boat, which tried to stop the Chinese from interfering with UP scientists diving at Escoda Shoal during a coral health survey last Tuesday. “If China continues to prevent our research work, the damage and the decline and the slow recovery of corals can be due to China,” Anticamara said. Last May 19, a Philippine Navy speedboat carrying a sick soldier from the BRP Sierra Madre had to make evasive maneuver as Chinese vessels apparently were attempting to stop the medical evacuation. China considers almost the entire South China Sea its territory, but the claim has been invalidated by an arbitral court ruling inn 2016. The Chinese vessels include a training ship with bow number 83 and an amphibious transport dock with bow number 999.

NEW DELHI — Prime Minister Narendra Modi's chief rival Rahul Gandhi was nominated on Saturday to lead India's opposition in parliament after an election result that rescued his Indian National Congress party from the political wilderness. 'CONGRESS' MAN Indian National Congress leader Rahul Gandhi speaks at a press conference at his party’s headquarters in the capital New Delhi on June 4, 2024. AFP PHOTOA meeting of the Congress leadership on Saturday voted unanimously to recommend Gandhi's election as India's official opposition leader, a post that had been left vacant since 2014. If elected as expected, he will be recognized as India's official opposition leader when the new parliament sits, which local media reports suggest will happen as soon as early next week. Parliamentary regulations require the opposition leader to come from a party that commands at least 10 percent of the lawmakers in the 543-seat lower house.

A 35-year-old mother has been arrested for child abuse after a video circulated online showing her slapping her daughter at Po On Road Public Library in Sham Shui Po. Sham Shui Po police said they arrested the mother, surnamed Lau, for ill-treatment or neglect of a young person around 8 pm on Friday after an investigation as the video – recorded on Thursday – came to their attention. The online video is about three-and-a-half minutes and shows the mother helping her daughter and son together at the table in the library. As the scene switches to the stairwell, the mother is seen slapping the girl numerous times again while the girl remains silent and only wipes her tears. Sources said Lau admitted and regretted treating her daughter violently, saying she was extremely anxious about her daughter’s study.

An unconscious man with multiple bruises on his body was left at the door of North District Hospital early Saturday morning and later died, prompting police to launch an investigation. Police received a report from a citizen around 5.49 am, who saw a man in his 20s collapsed right outside the hospital on Po Kin Road in Sheung Shui. According to live sources, a private car pulled up outside the hospital around 5.45 am. It is understood that the citizen who filed the report spotted a vehicle stopped at the traffic lights when crossing the road and found the unconscious man nearby as the car left. This morning, a large number of officers returned to the crime scene and cordoned off the area for investigation.

COPENHAGEN, Denmark — Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen was "hit" on Friday by a man in a Copenhagen square, her office said, with EU chiefs quickly condemning the attack. "Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen was hit by a man Friday evening on Kultorvet in Copenhagen. Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen holds a speech during the 175th anniversary of the first Danish Constitution in the Landsting Hall at Christiansborg, Copenhagen, on June 5, 2024. AFP PHOTO Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen holds a speech during the 175th anniversary of the first Danish Constitution in the Landsting Hall at Christiansborg, Copenhagen, on June 5, 2024. Copenhagen police confirmed that an incident involving the prime minister had occurred but did not provide further details.

ADVERTISEMENT“It is within the right of the lawmakers to talk about a ban on Pogos. “In Batangas, there are no Pogos,” Recto added, referring to his home province where he started his political career as a congressman. ‘Doing something else’“Today, a lot of Pogos are not really Pogos. In February 2020, when he was still a senator, Recto filed a bill imposing a 30-percent income tax and a 5-percent franchise tax on Pogos. In a January 2024 interview, however, Tengco rejected calls for a full ban on Pogos, saying it could put about 68,000 Filipinos out of work.

LIVE updates: Kanlaon Volcano restivenessResidents harvest vegetables near their house at the foot of Mount Kanlaon volcano covered in thick clouds in a village in Canlaon, Negros Occidental province, central Philippines on June 4, 2024, a day after the volcano erupted. MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology raised on June 3 the status of Kanlaon Volcano on Negros Island to Alert Level 2 due to "increasing unrest." According to state seismologists, the shallow magmatic activity is causing unrest, which could lead to more explosive eruptions or a hazardous magmatic eruption. Here are the latest updates on the volcano's activity and related events. (Can't view the updates below?