The electoral campaign for the upcoming presidential election, scheduled for October 6, officially began on Tunisian soil, two days after it began abroad.

According to Tunisia’s Independent High Authority for Elections (ISIE), the campaign which started on Saturday will continue until midnight on October 4, Xinhua news agency reported.

On September 2, the ISIE announced the final list of three candidates: incumbent President Kais Saied, who is running for a second five-year term; Secretary-General of the People’s Movement party, Zouhair Maghzaoui; and Secretary-General of the Azimoun Movement, Ayachi Zammel, who is still in detention for election-related irregularities.

In the case of a second round, the presidential campaign will resume the day after the publication of the final results of the first round.

The final results of the presidential election will be announced by November 9 at the latest.

The ISIE has already published the model of the ballot paper and established rules of transparency and neutrality during the campaign, with specific prohibitions to ensure a fair trial.

Among these measures, it is forbidden to publish political polls until the official announcement of the results.

The Central Bank of Tunisia has also issued a circular regarding the electoral accounts of the candidates, specifying the methods of financing and prohibiting any contribution from foreign entities or individuals.

Despite the start of the campaign, the climate in the country appears marked by a certain disinterest and concern for possible reactions from the opposition or attempts at sabotage.

Earlier on Friday, demonstrations in Tunis saw hundreds of people, including activists and members of civil society, protesting for the defence of rights and freedoms, demanding the cancellation of decrees considered repressive, such as Article 54 that regulates crimes in the media.

In recent days, moreover, the Tunisian authorities have arrested dozens of activists, including members of the Islamist movement Ennahda, generating further political tensions in the country.

Tunisia holds a presidential election every five years, with Saied having served as President since his election in 2019.

AGENCIES

Tropical storm Bebinca left the Philippines with six dead and at least two missing, the Philippine government said on Sunday.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said four died in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao and two in Zamboanga Peninsula in the southern Philippines.

It added that one is missing in the Zamboanga Peninsula and the other in the Western Visayas region in the central Philippines, reports Xinhua news agency.

The agency said that Bebinca, the sixth tropical cyclone to lash the Philippines since January this year, has affected over 200,000 people in nearly 300 villages. Almost 14,000 displaced villagers are in government-run temporary shelters.

Bebinca damaged infrastructure, including roads, bridges, and houses.

Bebinca exited the Philippines on Saturday afternoon. However, it continued to bring rain after enhancing the Southwest monsoon.

An average of 20 typhoons pound the Philippines yearly, triggering severe flooding, landslides, and other extreme natural disasters and resulting in heavy casualties to human life and destruction of crops and properties.

AGENCIES

At least three people were killed and 49 others injured in a two-train collision in Sharqiya Province north of the Egyptian capital Cairo, according to Egypt’s Ministry of Health.

The health conditions of 44 injured individuals were stable, and were anticipated to be discharged from the hospitals in the coming hours, said the ministry in a statement on Saturday, noting that five other individuals with unstable conditions required further monitoring, reports Xinhua news agency.

The ministry said earlier that 39 ambulances were dispatched to the scene of the accident in Zagazig City of Sharqiya to evacuate the injured.

Meanwhile, Hazem al-Ashmouny, Governor of Sharqiya Province, told Egypt’s local Extra News TV channel that all passengers were evacuated from the two trains, and efforts are underway to restore train traffic on the railway line.

Egypt’s National Railway Authority said in a statement that a committee of railway specialists was formed to determine the technical causes that led to the accident.

AGENCIES

Russia and Ukraine have exchanged 206 prisoners of war, said the Russian Defence Ministry.

“A total of 103 Russian servicemen who were taken prisoner in Kursk region have been released. In exchange, 103 Ukrainian prisoners of war have been transferred,” Russian Defence Ministry said on Saturday in a statement.

All the exchanged Russian soldiers are in Belarus where they are provided necessary assistance, Xinhua news agency reported.

The UAE made humanitarian mediation efforts for the exchange, it said.

The exchange was the second one in two days, Ukrainian authorities said on Saturday.

A total of 103 Ukrainian military troops, including 21 officers, were released, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote in a post on Telegram.

“Our people are home. We have successfully brought back another 103 warriors from Russian captivity to Ukraine. Eighty-two privates and sergeants. 21 officers. Defenders of the Kyiv and Donetsk regions, Mariupol and Azovstal, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kharkiv regions. Warriors of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the National Guard of Ukraine, border guards, and police officers,” Zelensky wrote on social media platform X.

“I thank our exchange team for delivering such good news for Ukraine,” he added.

Despite ongoing hostilities, Russia and Ukraine have managed to swap hundreds of prisoners throughout the two-and-half-year conflict, often in deals brokered by the UAE, Saudi Arabia or Turkey.

The announcement came just three weeks after Russia and Ukraine swapped 115 prisoners of war each in an exchange deal also mediated by the UAE.

The UAE’s Foreign Ministry hailed the deal as a “success” and thanked both sides for their cooperation on Saturday.

The prisoner swap came as Russia on Saturday pushed ahead in eastern Ukraine, where it claims to have captured a string of villages in recent weeks.

The Russian Defence Ministry said in a daily briefing it had “liberated” the village of Zhelanne Pershe, less than 30 km (19 miles) from the key Ukrainian-held logistics hub of Pokrovsk.

Pokrovsk lies on the intersection of a key road that supplies Ukrainian troops and towns across the eastern front and has long been a target for Moscow’s army.

More than half of the city’s 60,000 residents have fled since the invasion began in February 2022, with evacuations ramping up in recent weeks as Moscow’s army closes in.

Ukraine had hoped its major cross-border incursion into the Kursk region last month would slow down Russia’s advances in the east.

But Zelensky has conceded that while the Russian advance in eastern Ukraine had slowed down, the situation on the eastern front was “very difficult”.

Ukraine made a new call on Saturday on the West to allow it to strike deeper into Russia after a meeting between US and British leaders on Friday produced no visible shift in their policy on the use of long-range weapons.

“Russian terror begins at weapons depots, airfields, and military bases inside the Russian Federation,” Ukrainian presidential adviser Andriy Yermak said on Saturday.

“Permission to strike deep into Russia will speed up the solution.”

The call came a day after US President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer met in Washington, D.C., but no decision on allowing Ukraine to fire long-range missiles into Russian territory was taken.

Zelensky has been pressing the US and other allies to allow his forces to use Western weapons to target air bases and launch sites deep inside Russia.

On Saturday morning, the Ukrainian President did not directly comment on the Biden-Starmer meeting.

But he said Ukraine needed to boost its long-range capabilities.

“We need to boost our air defence and long-range capabilities to protect our people,” Zelensky wrote on social media.

“We are working on this with all of Ukraine’s partners.” AGENCIES

Russia’s patience regarding a nuclear response to Western actions in Ukraine is wearing thin, warned Dmitry Medvedev, Deputy Chairman of Russia’s security council, in a message posted on his Telegram channel.

Medvedev said that while “a nuclear conflict is in no one’s interest,” Russia has thus far exercised restraint in utilising its nuclear capabilities in response to Western involvement, particularly concerning high-precision strikes deep into Russian territory. However, he cautioned that “even the greatest patience has its limits.”

This warning came following recent US discussions regarding the provision of Army Tactical Missile Systems to Ukraine, which could enable strikes deeper into Russian territory, Xinhua news agency reported.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov claimed that Western leaders had already decided whether to allow Ukraine’s use of long-range missiles and had informed Kyiv — forcing Moscow to respond with its own actions.

“The decision has been made, the carte blanche and all indulgences have been given (to Kyiv), so we are ready for everything,” Ryabkov said, state-owned RIA news agency reported.

The Kremlin has also signalled its awareness of the escalating threat, with the Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov noting that Russia is preparing countermeasures. AGENCIES

A three-month-old baby was killed and 12 people went missing following a landslide in the town of San Luis Ayucan in the central State of Mexico, local authorities confirmed.

Adrian Hernandez Romero, head of Civil Protection for the State of Mexico, said the landslide occurred on Friday night after heavy rainfall drenched the region.

The collapse damaged at least 10 homes and businesses, Xinhua news agency reported, quoting Romero.

Authorities have set up an emergency shelter at a nearby church and begun evacuating residents in the surrounding areas due to fears of further landslides.

Search and rescue efforts are ongoing with personnel from the Navy, the Army, the National Guard, local police, and specialised search dogs combing the area for the missing people.

AGENCIES

Iran’s Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi has denounced certain Western countries over fresh sanctions imposed on Tehran, which was accused of selling ballistic missiles to Russia.

The Iranian Foreign Minister made the remarks in an interview with Iran’s IRIB news agency, which was published on Saturday, while reacting to the sanctions imposed by the US, France, Britain, and Germany on Iran.

“The Western states should know, and it is surprising that they still do not know, that sanctions are a failed tool and they will not be able to impose their intentions on Iran, whether with regard to the nuclear issue or other ones, through sanctions,” Araghchi said.

He stressed that Iran would “continue its path with strength,” adding that although the country had always been open to dialogue and had never abandoned “constructive” talks on achieving a common understanding about different issues, such a diplomatic process should be based on mutual respect, not threats or pressure, Xinhua news agency reported.

Also on Saturday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said that any claim about Iran’s sales of ballistic missiles to Russia is “basically false,” while referring to the Western sanctions as “a path that not only fails to help resolve problems, but also is part of the problem and will be responded by Iran”.

Iran has condemned allegations by Western countries that it has supplied short-range missiles to Russia for use against Ukraine and pledged to respond to new sanctions imposed by a trio of European states.

Tehran’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Araghchi said last Wednesday that Iran had not delivered ballistic missiles to Russia and that the US and its allies were acting on “faulty intelligence”.

Last Tuesday, the Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani called the sanctions announced by Britain, France and Germany “economic terrorism” against the people of Iran and pledged that the three European countries would face “appropriate and proportionate action”.

France, Germany and Britain announced the sanctions earlier last Wednesday after the US formally accused Iran of supplying the weapons to Moscow.

The measures revoke bilateral deals for providing air services to Iran and impose sanctions on flag carrier Iran Air that will restrict its ability to fly to Europe.

“In addition, we will pursue the designations of significant entities and individuals involved with Iran’s ballistic missile programme and the transfer of ballistic missiles and other weapons to Russia,” the three European states said.

The Iranian spokesman’s statement did not mention similar sanctions that were announced by the US.

“Any claim that the Islamic Republic of Iran has sold ballistic missiles to the Russian Federation is completely baseless and false,” Kanaani said.

AGENCIES

Indonesia has inaugurated its first electric vehicle (EV) battery factory, which will operate entirely on renewable energy at the Neo Energy Morowali Industrial Estate in Central Sulawesi.

Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto said on Saturday that the factory was part of the critical minerals downstream policy aimed at boosting national economic competitiveness, improving public welfare and utilising environmentally friendly technology, Xinhua news agency reported.

“Successful downstream processing of nickel has significantly boosted the export value of nickel derivatives, rising from $4.31 billion in 2017 to $34.44 billion in 2023,” Airlangga said at the event.

With abundant mineral resources especially nickel, Indonesia holds substantial potential for EV battery production, with an estimated annual capacity of 210 GWh.

The factory’s high-pressure acid-leaching smelter will process nickel ore into mixed hydroxide precipitate (MHP), a key material for EV battery cathodes, adding 120,000 tons of MHP to the country’s production capacity each year.

The Investment Ministry revealed that as of June 2024, the total investment in nickel downstream activities, particularly smelter and EV battery factory development, has reached $30 billion in the country.

On May 6, Indonesian President Joko Widodo had told the media that the first electric vehicle (EV) battery factory in the country will begin operating in June.

Speaking at the EV exhibition of the Indonesian Electric Vehicle Industry Association or Periklindo Electric Vehicle Show in 2024, he emphasised that the factory’s operation signals that the domestic environmentally friendly vehicle ecosystem is starting to form in the country.

The factory which is said to be owned by PT Hyundai LG Industry (HLI) Green Power, is located in Karawang, West Java, with a maximum capacity of up to 10 GW per hour and is capable of producing 32.6 million battery units.

The Indonesian President said that Indonesia currently hosts 59 electric vehicle manufacturers, with plans for expansion in the pipeline.

According to him, with current infrastructure, Indonesia can make up to 1.6 million electrical motorbikes yearly.

However, the production of new electric motorbikes is 100,000 motorbikes now, so Indonesia sees room to develop the industry. AGENCIES

A case has been filed against 59 people, including former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, on charge of attempting to murder a student during an anti-government protest in Dinajpur on August 4.

Fahim Faisal, 22, a resident of Rajbati area in Dinajpur, filed the case at Kotwali police station on Friday, claiming he was shot and injured during the demonstration, The Daily Star reported.

Officer-in-Charge of the police station Farid Hossain confirmed the development to The Daily Star on Saturday.

According to the case statement, Faisal, who participated in the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, was shot during an attack on protesters near Dinajpur Sadar Hospital.

Protesters were assaulted with firearms and local weapons, resulting in multiple injuries to Faisal’s face, chest, arms, and other parts of his body. He was treated at Dinajpur Medical College Hospital and recovered partially.

Former whip Iqbalur Rahim, Dinajpur Sadar Upazila Chairman Imdad Sarkar, and general secretary of the district’s Jubo League Anwar Hossain are among the accused.

With this, Hasina is now facing 155 cases, including 136 for murder, seven for crimes against humanity and genocide, three for abduction, eight for attempted murder and one for the attack on a BNP procession.

Sheikh Hasina and former local lawmaker Iqbalur Rahim were listed as the first and second accused in the case, respectively, with 57 others named and several additional individuals left unidentified, the OC added.

Since the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government, the former whip has so far been accused in the four cases.

AGENCIES

The financial problems faced by the Maldives are temporary, and there is no need to seek assistance from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the country’s state media reported quoting the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Moosa Zameer.

Zameer is currently in Sri Lanka to engage with its banks and officials as part of a broader diplomatic and economic outreach, reports Xinhua news agency, quoting state media PSM.

The Maldives is facing a temporary problem related to a decline in reserves, and this can be solved without external financial intervention, Zameer said on Saturday.

He said the government’s strategy to address the current issues includes reforming the tax regime, cost-cutting measures for government-owned enterprises and strengthening bilateral relations with China and India.

Recent data by the Maldives government shows that usable reserves increased to US$61 million in August, up from US$45 million in July. AGENCIES