Morn News

Italy faces general strike over budget on 28 November

These strikes mark a turning point in the movement for Palestine within organized labor globally.

The general strike in Italy was the second called by Italian unions after a strike on Sept. 22 in response to the first Israeli attack on the Flotilla. This is an unprecedented display of solidarity for the people of Gaza, and for the nearly 500 activists of the Sumud Flotilla who were attacked and abducted by the Israeli Navy for the “crime” of bringing baby formula, food and medicine to a starving people.

In Italy, it is estimated that 60% of the population participated in the strike, and key sectors of the Italian economy shut down operations to demand an arms embargo and an immediate end to the war in Gaza.

The manhunt is continue for an asylum seeker who sexually assaulted a 14-year-old girl, after he was accidentally released from prison.

Essex Police said on Saturday that Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu was last seen in London, as officers continue to scour CCTV in an effort to find him.

The Ethiopian National, 38, was jailed for 12 months in September. Reports of his crimes triggered months of anti-asylum seeker protests in Epping and other areas across the country.

He was meant to be sent to an immigration detention centre to be deported, but was freed at HMP Chelmsford on Friday by mistake.

Essex Police said on Saturday morning that officers had worked through the night to track Kebatu’s movements.

“Inquiries are continuing at pace this morning to locate and arrest a man following a Prison Service releasing error yesterday,” the force said in a statement.

“Officers worked throughout the night to track his movements, including scouring hours of CCTV footage, and this work continues today.

“Our inquiries show that he was last seen in the London area, and this is our focus.

“It is not lost on us that this situation is concerning to people, and we are committed to locating and arresting him as quickly as possible.”

Justice Secretary David Lammy said on Friday night that Kebatu was “at large in London” after he was seen boarding a train at Chelmsford, and the Metropolitan Police was assisting in the hunt for him.

The father of Kebatu’s teenage victim told Sky News: “The justice system has let us down.” hitsessexnews
Manhunt continues for Epping asylum seeker released from prison by mistake
Hadush Kebatu was seen taking a train from Chelmsford towards London on Friday

Hadush Kebatu caught on police bodyworn camera

The manhunt is continuing for an asylum seeker who was accidentally released from where he was serving time for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl.

Ethiopian national Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 38, who had been living at the Bell Hotel in Epping, was jailed for 12 months in September.

Justice Secretary David Lammy said on Friday night that Kebatu was “at large in London” after he was seen boarding a train at Chelmsford, and the Metropolitan Police was assisting in the hunt for him.

The father of Kebatu’s teenage victim told Sky News: “The justice system has let us down.”

The Sun first reported on Friday that Kebatu was meant to be sent to an immigration detention centre to be deported, but was freed by mistake.

He was wrongly categorised as a prisoner due to be released on licence and handed a £76 discharge grant, the Telegraph reported.

Sir Keir Starmer said the accidental release was “totally unacceptable”.

The Prime Minister said: “I am appalled that it has happened and it’s being investigated.

“The police are working urgently to track him down, and my government is supporting them.

“This man must be caught and deported for his crimes.”

Deputy Prime Minister Mr Lammy said was “livid on behalf of the public” and added that he had launched an investigation into the error.

Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said that Kebatu’s release was “staggering incompetence” and called for a public inquiry.

He told Sky News: “We certainly need a public inquiry into how this dangerous illegal immigrant, who is also a child sex offender, got released.

“We also need an urgent apology from Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood and Justice Secretary David Lammy who have presided over this fiasco.”

A fresh statement from Essex Police on Saturday morning said: “Enquiries are continuing at pace this morning to locate and arrest a man following a prison service releasing error yesterday.

“Officers from Essex Police, the Metropolitan Police and British Transport Police are working together in this fast-moving and complex investigation.

“Officers worked throughout the night to track his movements, including scouring hours of CCTV footage, and this work continues today.

“Our enquiries show that he was last seen in the London area, and this is our focus.

“We would urge anyone who sees him, knows where he is or has any information to call 999 immediately.

“We would like to thank the public for their support and the information they have already shared.

“

The neighbors are embroiled in a bitter security row that has become increasingly violent, with each side saying they were responding to aggression from the other.

Pakistan accuses Afghanistan of turning a blind eye to armed groups that cross the border for attacks, a charge the country’s Taliban rulers reject.

Last weekend, Qatar and Turkey mediated a ceasefire to pause the hostilities. The truce has largely held, although the countries’ border remains closed except for Afghan refugees leaving Pakistan.

Afghanistan’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry said traders are losing millions of dollars a day because border transit and trade have ground to a halt.

Southern Kandahar Province was the worst-hit by the recent fighting, especially Spin Boldak on the border, where Pakistani airstrikes killed people and destroyed homes.

On Friday, the Taliban government’s chief spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, said Deputy Interior Minister Haji Najib was leading the delegation heading to Istanbul.

“The remaining issues will be discussed at this meeting,” said Mujahid, who gave no further details.

Donald Trump has departed for his five-day diplomatic tour of Asia, his first time visiting the region since returning to the White House. Trump is expected to meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping next week.PoliticsAsia
Trump travels to Asia amid government shutdown
Mahima Kapoor with AP, AFP and Reuters
5 hours ago5 hours ago
Donald Trump has departed for his five-day diplomatic tour of Asia, his first time visiting the region since returning to the White House. Trump is expected to meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping next week.

Trump seen boarding Air Force One
Trump departed for Malaysia Friday (File photo: October 17, 2025)

US President Donald Trump late Friday departed for a three-country tour to Asia with investment deals and peace efforts on the agenda, even as the US government shutdown continues with no deal in sight.

Trump’s five-day trip to the region will include stops in Malaysia for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit, Japan and then South Korea for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.

In South Korea, Trump is set to meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, marking the very first time the leaders meet in person during Trump’s second-term.

“The high-level question on this trip is really, who does the United States stand with, and what does it stand for,” said Mira Rapp-Hooper, a former official in the Biden administration.

But while the US president jets off to Asia, many federal workers missed their first full paycheck of the government shutdown.

Japanese police have arrested a knife-wielding man in front of the US Embassy in central Tokyo.

The incident occurred amid heightened security in the area ahead of a planned visit by US President Donald Trump from Monday.

Police say riot police personnel questioned a man acting suspiciously outside the embassy in Akasaka, Minato Ward, on Friday afternoon.

They say two knives were found among his possessions. The man is said to have pointed one of them at riot police, and was arrested on the spot for alleged obstruction of official duties.

A riot police officer was reportedly injured by the blade while restraining the man.

Police say the man has no fixed address and is thought to be aged around the 30s. He is said to be admitting that he harmed an officer, but is saying nothing about Trump or the United States.

When officers attempted to hold him down, he became violent. During the struggle, he injured one officer in the right ankle. The injury is not life-threatening. He has admitted the charges against him. According to local police, the man was walking while looking down and muttering to himself before being questioned by police. He told officers to kill him when he took out a knife, sources said, noting that he did not mention U.S. President Donald Trump or the embassy in Minato Ward. Tokyo’s Metropolitan Police Department is investigating the situation further. The MPD has increased security to about 18,000 personnel in anticipation of Trump’s three-day visit to Japan

Russian Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina.Sergei Ilnitsky / EPA / TASS
The Russian Central Bank on Friday announced that it was cutting the key interest rate to 16.5%, down half a percentage point from 17%.

The quarter-point reduction marks the fourth consecutive rate cut since June, when the bank began easing policy from a wartime peak of 21%.

Analysts were split ahead of the decision. Most expected the bank to hold or cut more aggressively — underscoring uncertainty over how long tight monetary conditions can coexist with slowing output and record-low unemployment.

The bank’s updated outlook suggests interest rates will average 13%-15% in 2026, up from the July forecast of 12%-13%, as it battles inflation and a tight labor market.

Businesses have railed against high borrowing costs, which they say are sapping growth and holding the economy back.

But the Central Bank says high rates are needed to bring down inflation that was still above 8% in October, driven by fuel costs and a seasonal jump in food prices.

“The Central Bank is essentially stating that next year we may see very severe economic stagnation,” Yevgeny Kogan, an independent economist, wrote on Telegram after the decision.

The regulator said it would keep policy “as tight as necessary” to bring inflation back to its 4% target, a goal it now expects to reach only in 2026-2027.

“Further decisions on the key rate will be made depending on the sustainability of the inflation slowdown and the dynamics of inflation expectations,” the statement said.

The Bank expects inflation to stay at 6.5%-7% by the end of 2025, before easing to 4%-5% in 2026.

Russia’s MOEX stock index climbed 1.4% to 2,606 after the rate cut but then fell to 2,535 within an hour, its weakest level in more than a week.

The next interest rate decision is due Dec. 19.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford has said he will pause his province’s anti-tariff advertisement campaign in the US, after it prompted President Donald Trump to terminate trade talks.

Ford said he made the decision after speaking to Prime Minister Mark Carney on Friday, adding that the TV spot will be paused on Monday “so that trade talks can resume”.

It will still run over the weekend on US networks, he said, including during the Major League Baseball World Series games.

Carney told reporters earlier on Friday that Canada is prepared to resume trade talks with the US “Trump criticised the advert late on Thursday night in a Truth Social post, calling it “FAKE” and “egregious”. He said trade talks were “HEREBY TERMINATED”.

The advert, which was sponsored by the Ontario government, quotes former US President Ronald Reagan, a Republican and icon of US conservatism, saying tariffs “hurt every American”.

The video takes excerpts from a 1987 national radio address by Reagan that focused on foreign trade.

Trump’s termination of trade talks came after the Ronald Reagan Foundation, which is charged with preserving Reagan’s legacy, released a statement saying the advert had used “selective” audio and video of the former president’s remarks.

It accused the advert of misrepresenting Reagan’s address, and said the Ontario government had not sought permission to use it.

Palestinian factions agree to hand Gaza to technocrat committee
Palestine

The main Palestinian political factions, including Hamas, said Friday they had agreed that an independent committee of technocrats would take over the running of post-war Gaza.
In a joint statement, the factions said the body would oversee daily governance and public services in coordination with Arab partners and international institutions, under international supervision and funding for reconstruction.

The move fulfills a central condition of US President Donald Trump’s peace plan, which requires Hamas to relinquish control of Gaza as part of the second phase aimed at rebuilding and disarming the Strip.

Read more: Ceasefire, hostages, reconstruction at core of Trump’s Gaza blueprint

Leaders emphasized Palestinian unity and rejected annexation or displacement in Gaza, the West Bank, and Jerusalem. They reaffirmed commitment to the ceasefire terms: Israeli withdrawal, lifting of the blockade, and reopening of crossings – particularly Rafah – for the movement of people and goods.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty had revealed on October 13 that 15 Palestinian technocrats, approved by Israel and Hamas, had been selected to manage post-war Gaza, though their identities remain undisclosed.

Trump’s plan places the transitional administration under a “Board of Peace” chaired by the US president, with the Palestinian Authority expected to assume control following internal reforms.

However, absent from the statement was any mention of President Mahmoud Abbas or Fatah, amid reports he ordered aides to boycott the talks in protest of Hamas’s inclusion.

During a meeting in Cairo, according to a joint statement published on the Hamas website, the groups agreed to hand “over the administration of the Gaza Strip to a temporary Palestinian committee composed of independent technocrats.”

It said the committee would “manage the affairs of life and basic services in cooperation with Arab brothers and international institutions.”