INTERNACIONAL
North Korea issues nuclear ‘warning signal’ to US, South Korea
North Korea’s missile test on Monday was in fact a drill to test nuclear force preparedness, according to local media.
The incident raised alarms around the region after several short-range ballistic missiles were launched near Pyongyang and flew approximately 185 miles before falling in the waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan.
The drill’s main purpose, however, was to «demonstrate the reliability, superiority, might and diverse means» of the country’s nuclear forces and the Haekbangashoe system that serves as «a clear warning signal to the enemies» of North Korea, according to the Pyongyang Times.
The Haekbangashoe system, which means «nuclear trigger,» included the maneuver of troops into a «counterattack posture» that aimed at «substantially strengthening the prompt counterattack capacity of the state nuclear force.»
CHINA SPENDING ‘DRASTICALLY MORE’ ON MILITARY THAN DECLARED, US ADMIRAL SAYS
North Korea launched missiles from at least four launch vehicles that delivered a single firing salvo against an island within a 220-mile range, the U.S. Naval Institute reported.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un reportedly oversaw the drill, which occurred as the U.S. and South Korea started a combined joint formation drill at Kunsan Air Base, which commenced on April 12 and is expected to end April 26. He reportedly likened the weapon system to «the firing of a sniper’s rifle.»
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff claimed that any reports of such accuracy or capabilities of its weapons system were likely exaggerated, and that South Korea’s military could detect and intercept any weapons.
US INTENDS TO MONITOR NORTH KOREAN NUCLEAR WEAPONS WITH OR WITHOUT UN, AMBASSADOR SAYS
To combat North Korea’s aggressive pursuit of nuclear preparedness, Washington, Tokyo and Seoul agreed to a system of real-time missile data-sharing, which would allow the three countries to monitor Pyongyang’s launches, according to Newsweek.
U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said the launch «does not pose an immediate threat to U.S. personnel or territory, or to our allies,» stressing instead the «destabilizing impact of the DPRK’s illicit weapons program.»
Local media accused the two allies of inciting «war fever» in the region that was a «confrontation racket» against the hermit kingdom «with extremely provocative and aggressive nature.»
«The event will highlight the ROK-U.S. Alliance by demonstrating lethality in the air domain, and enhancing its ability to deter, defend, and defeat any adversary,» the United States Air Force said in a press release.
US INTENDS TO MONITOR NORTH KOREAN NUCLEAR WEAPONS WITH OR WITHOUT UN, AMBASSADOR SAYS
Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters that North Korea launched at least one ballistic missile that flew 155 miles at a maximum altitude of about 30 miles. He also said the missile tests threaten the peace and safety of Japan, the region and the international community.
North Korea in 2022 declared itself an «irreversible» nuclear weapons state and adopted a doctrine that authorizes the military to launch preemptive nuclear strike if the country’s leadership determines it is under threat, according to the Arms Control Association.
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Kim declared that he would never give up any nuclear weapons or negotiate any denuclearization, confirming suspicions that many experts and leaders had held for years.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
INTERNACIONAL
Death toll climbs to 116 in religious gathering stampede in India
Thousands of people at a religious gathering in India rushed to leave a makeshift tent, setting off a stampede Tuesday that killed more than 100 and left scores injured, officials said.
It was not immediately clear what triggered the panic following an event with a Hindu guru known locally as Bhole Baba. Local news reports cited authorities who said heat and suffocation in the tent could have been a factor. Video of the aftermath showed the structure appeared to have collapsed.
At least 116 people died, most of them women and children, said Prashant Kumar, the director-general of police in northern India’s state of Uttar Pradesh, where the stampede occurred.
AT LEAST 60 DEAD AFTER STAMPEDE AT RELIGIOUS GATHERING IN NORTHERN INDIA
More than 80 others were injured and admitted to hospitals, senior police officer Shalabh Mathur said.
«People started falling one upon another, one upon another. Those who were crushed died. People there pulled them out,» witness Shakuntala Devi told the Press Trust of India news agency.
Relatives wailed in distress as bodies of the dead, placed on stretchers and covered in white sheets, lined the grounds of a local hospital. A bus that arrived there carried more victims, whose bodies were lying on the seats inside.
Deadly stampedes are relatively common around Indian religious festivals, where large crowds gather in small areas with shoddy infrastructure and few safety measures.
Police officer Rajesh Singh said there was likely overcrowding at the event in a village in Hathras district about 220 miles southwest of the state capital, Lucknow.
Initial reports said organizers had permission to host about 5,000 people, but more than 15,000 came for the event by the Hindu preacher, who used to be a police officer in the state before he left his job to give religious sermons. He has led other such gatherings over the last two decades.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered condolences to the families of the dead and said the federal government was working with state authorities to ensure the injured received help.
Uttar Pradesh’s chief minister, Yogi Adityanath, called the stampede «heart-wrenching» in a post on X. He said authorities were investigating.
«Look what happened and how many people have lost their lives. Will anyone be accountable?» Rajesh Kumar Jha, a member of parliament, told reporters. He said the stampede was a failure by the state and federal governments to manage large crowds, adding that «people will keep on dying» if authorities do not take safety protocols seriously enough.
In 2013, pilgrims visiting a temple for a popular Hindu festival in central Madhya Pradesh state trampled each other amid fears that a bridge would collapse. At least 115 were crushed to death or died in the river.
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In 2011, more than 100 Hindu devotees died in a crush at a religious festival in the southern state of Kerala.
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