100 FEARED KILLED IN JUNTA STRIKES ON MYANMAR VILLAGE

Airstrikes by Myanmar’s military on Tuesday killed as many as 100 people, including many children, who were attending a ceremony held by opponents of Army rule, said a witness, a member of a local pro-democracy group and independent media.

The military is increasingly using airstrikes to counter a widespread armed struggle against its rule, which began in February 2021 when it seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. More than 3,000 civilians are estimated to have been killed since then by security forces.

A witness said a fighter jet dropped bombs directly into a crowd of people who were gathering at 8 a.m. for the opening of a local office of the country’s opposition movement outside Pazigyi village in Sagaing region’s Kanbalu township. The area is about 110 km north of Mandalay, the country’s second largest city.

About half an hour later, a helicopter appeared and fired at the site, said the witness, who asked not to be identified because he feared punishment by the authorities.

Initial reports put the death toll at around 50, but later tallies reported by independent media raised it to about 100. It was impossible to independently confirm details of the incident because reporting is restricted by the junta. There were no immediate reports about the attack in state media. In past cases, the military has denied using disproportionate force.

LEAKS SHOW EGYPT SOUGHT TO COVERTLY SHIP ROCKETS TO RUSSIA: REPORT

Egypt planned to secretly provide rockets, artillery and gunpowder to Russia to support the country’s forces in Ukraine, according to a Washington Post report on the latest batch of leaked Pentagon documents.

The Post obtained documents from March and February uploaded to the chat forum site Discord that indicated Cairo sought to provide the munitions to support Russia in its grinding war on Ukraine, while keeping the arms deal secret from western allies.

One document says Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi ordered 40,000 rockets to be produced and covertly shipped to Russia.

El-Sisi allegedly told his subordinates to keep the distribution of the rockets secret “in order to avoid problems with the West,” according to The Post. The documents also say the Egyptian leader planned to provide artillery and gunpowder.

White House national security spokesman John Kirby said the U.S. had not seen evidence that Egypt followed through on those plans.

“I don’t want to speak to the validity of these leaked documents. But what I will tell you is we’ve seen no indication that Egypt is providing lethal weaponry capabilities to Russia,” he said.

The Pentagon is currently reviewing the leaked documents for accuracy, at least one of which was altered to overestimate Ukrainian casualties and reduce the number of Russians killed in combat.

South Korea has also disputed leaked documents that indicated the U.S. was spying on Seoul.

According to the document, dated 23 March, the UK has the largest contingent of special forces in Ukraine (50), followed by fellow Nato states Latvia (17), France (15), the US (14) and the Netherlands (1).

The document does not say where the forces are located or what they are doing.

TWITTER EX-CEO PARAG AGRAWAL, 2 OTHERS SUE CO OVER LEGAL BILLS

San Francisco : Three top Twitter executives who were sacked by Elon Musk last year when he took over the social media company filed suit on Monday, seeking to be reimbursed for costs of litigation, investigations and congressional inquiries related to their former jobs. Ex-CEO Parag Agrawal, along with the company’s former chief legal and financial officers, claim in the suit that they are owed a total of more than $1 million, and that Twitter is legally bound to pay them. Twitter responded to an AFP request for comment with a poop emoji, as has become itspractice.

The court filing outlined numerous expenses related to inquiries by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the department of justice (DOJ), but does not include details on the nature of the investigations or whether they are still ongoing. Agrawal and then-chief financial officer Ned Segal provided testimony to the SEC last year and “have continued to engage with federal authorities,” according to court documents. The SEC is investigating whether Musk complied with securities rules when he amassed Twitter shares. Former Twitter chief legal officer Vijaya Gadde was called on to take part in a US congressional hearing about big tech and free speech following Musk’s release late last year of so-called “Twitter Files” related to the site’s content moderation.

The three former executives argue that Twitter is bound by agreements to reimburse them, but has done no more thanacknowledge it received their invoices.

TWITTER ‘NO LONGER EXISTS’ AFTER BEING MERGED WITH X CORP, SHOW DOCUMENTS

Twitter has ceased to be an independent company after merging with a newly formed shell firm called X Corp, driving speculation about what Elon Musk intends for the social media platform. Twitter “no longer exists” after being merged with X Corp, according to an April 4 document submitted in a California court for a lawsuit filed against the company and its former CEO, Jack Dorsey, last year by conservative activist Laura Loomer. It’s unclear what the change means for Twitter, which has seen a sweeping overhaul since Musk bought the company. The billionaire has in the past suggested that buying Twitter would be an “accelerant” for creating X — which he dubbed an “everything app”. Musk tweeted about the move Tuesday with the single character “X”. Musk has professed his desire to make X similar to China’s WeChat, a super-app owned by Tencent used for everything from payments and booking event tickets to messaging. But he’s been vague about how it will fit in with his sprawling business empire. Musk also owns the domain “X.com” — the name of the online payments firm he started and merged with PayPal. Musk first set up a trio of holding companies in Delaware with a variation of the name “X Holdings” in April last year as part of his takeover bid for Twitter. But X Corp. was set up on March 9 in Nevada, as per records filed in the state. Musk is president of the firmand its parent, X Holdings Corp, which was also set up last month and has an authorised capital of $2 million, filings show.

UKRAINE WAR: RUSSIAN PARLIAMENT APPROVES ONLINE CALL-UP

The Russian parliament has approved legislation to start serving call-up papers online.

The Kremlin has denied the move is aimed at speeding up further mobilisation of Russian men or putting a stop to widespread draft-dodging.

Thousands of Russians have avoided the draft to escape the war in Ukraine.

Critics say the law is further evidence of authorities creating an "electronic Gulag", referring to the Soviet-era network of prison camps.

Until now, conscription papers in Russia have had to be served in person or via an employer.

In reality, it has meant many avoiding the draft by moving away from where they were registered to live, or simply not opening the door when military officials came calling.

Under the new legislation, call-up papers will be deemed to be served as soon as they appear on a special "State Services" government portal called "Gosuslugi".

"The summons is considered received from the moment it is placed in the personal account of a person liable for military service," Andrei Kartapolov, chairman of the Russian parliament's defence committee, said on TV.

From that moment, a conscript will be obliged to turn up at his local enlistment office.

Citizens who fail to show up will be banned from travelling abroad and could face other restrictions. They will not be able to buy or sell property, their driving licences will be invalidated and they will be unable to register small businesses.

PROTESTERS DISRUPT MACRON SPEECH ON DUTCH STATE VISIT

Protesters interrupted French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday as he gave a keynote speech about European sovereignty during a state visit to the Netherlands.

The 45-year-old French leader has faced a series of protests and strikes in France against his pension reforms, with a new day of industrial action scheduled for Thursday.

“Where is French democracy? When did we lose it?” shouted the demonstrators, who were in the audience in the Amare theatre in The Hague where Mr. Macron was starting his address.

Two women protesters held up a yellow banner saying “President of violence and hypocrisy”.

A group of around two dozen protesters also chanted slogans outside the theatre before the speech.

Macron’s response

Mr. Macron went on to say that it was “very important to have social debate” and that “I can answer all the questions you have on what we are discussing in France”. He said that people who do “whatever (they) want” against laws they disagree with “put democracy at risk”.

Mr. Macron is facing the biggest challenge of his second term over his flagship pension overhaul, which includes raising the retirement age from 62 to 64.

COURT IN PAKISTAN-HELD KASHMIR REMOVES IMRAN KHAN’S PROTÉGÉ

In a blow to Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan, a top court in the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir on Tuesday removed his protégé and head of the local government from office. The territory's premier, Tanveer Ilyas, was charged and convicted of insulting judges in public remarks, officials and media reported.

U.S. TIES VITAL TO SECURITY OF EUROPE, SAYS POLAND PM

The alliance with the U.S. is “an absolute foundation” of European security, Poland’s Prime Minister said on Tuesday, after controversial remarks by French President Emmanuel Macron about ties with the U.S. and China.

Mateusz Morawiecki said his country’s EU presidency in 2025 would make the partnership with Washington its “main priority”.

“The alliance with the United States is an absolute foundation of our security,” said Mr. Morawiecki. “Some Western leaders dream of cooperation with everyone, with Russia and with some powers in the Far East,” he added, without naming those leaders.

JOE BIDEN HEADS TO BELFAST FOR N. IRELAND PEACE ANNIVERSARY

U.S. President Joe Biden arrives in Belfast on Tuesday to launch the 25th-anniversary commemorations of the historic deal that brought peace to Northern Ireland.

Mr. Biden will be welcomed on the tarmac by British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who is looking to break the political deadlock in the U.K. province which, alongside security concerns, threaten to overshadow the historic milestone.

Underlining the threat, masked youths pelted police vehicles with petrol bombs on Monday during an illegal march by dissident pro-Irish republicans in Londonderry, known to nationalists as Derry.

Despite the concerning scenes — which have played out on other occasions in recent years in Northern Ireland as political tensions simmer — U.S. officials said Mr. Biden was “very excited for this trip”.