News of the World

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CHINA ATTACKS PHILIPPINE VESSELS
WITH WATER CANONS
U.S. RESPONDED

Chinese coast guard ships attacked Filipino vessels near Scarborough Shoal using water cannons. The United States condemned the aggressive actions of China, according to AP.

Filipino fishing bureau ships had reportedly approached Scarborough Shoal to deliver humanitarian aid, primarily fuel and food, to impoverished fishermen.

Filipino officials stated that the Chinese coast guard and accompanying ships engaged in dangerous and aggressive actions. They used water cannons at least eight times whenever Philippine government vessels approached Scarborough Shoal.

The officials added that the Chinese coast guard set up a floating barrier near the entrance to the Scarborough Shoal's fishing lagoon and deployed personnel aboard small motorized boats to deter Filipino fishermen awaiting humanitarian aid.

"To prevent the distribution of humanitarian support is not only illegal but also inhumane," said the official statement from the Philippines.

The United States has warned China that Washington will defend the Philippines if their troops, planes, or ships come under armed attack, particularly in the South China Sea.

In October, a Chinese coast guard ship collided with a Philippine resupply boat. Two hours later, a Chinese maritime police vessel encountered a Philippine coast guard ship during the same resupply operation in the South China Sea.

At that time, the Philippines accused Beijing of encroaching into their waters. U.S. President Joe Biden stated that the United States would be forced to intervene if China attacked Philippine vessels.

On December 9, the U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines, Mary Kay Carlson, condemned China's aggressive and unlawful actions.

"This (Chinese) behavior violates international law and endangers lives and livelihood. We stand with our Philippine friends, partners, allies in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific," she stated.

CNN ANCHOR GRILLS UN OFFICIAL
ON REFUSING TO CONDEMN
HAMAS RAPES ON OCTOBER 7
Gets Brutal Word Salad Response

Sarah Hendriks, Deputy Executive Director for UN Women, spoke with CNN anchor Bianna Golodryga this week and received a tough line of questioning regarding the UN’s refusal to condemn Hamas for using systematic rape and sexual violence as a weapon during its devastating attack on Israel.

“UN Women is deeply, deeply alarmed at the disturbing reports of gender-based and sexual violence on October 7th,” Hendriks said during the interview, adding:

And as we’ve said in the Security Council and through various platforms, we absolutely, unequivocally condemn all forms of violence against women and girls, especially in the context of conflict. As you just heard Ruth say, this is never acceptable. And gender-based violence as a weapon of war is totally reprehensible.

Certainly, we have called from the beginning for the need to protect civilians, including and especially women and girls, in the context of this conflict. And we’ve called for the need for any allegations of gender-based atrocities to be fully investigated with the utmost priority.

“Is there a reason, though, Sarah, that you can’t specifically call out Hamas and the mounting evidence now over seven weeks that Israeli investigators have collected, that we’ve shown our viewers about the atrocities they committed, specifically on October 7th?” Golodryga followed up.

“Because I think that’s the crux of the issue here. It’s not just condemning sexual violence against women and in any war in general. It’s specifically what occurred on October 7th perpetrated by Hamas,” Golodryga added.

“Indeed. UN Women always supports impartial, independent investigations into any serious allegations of gender-based or sexual violence and within the UN family these investigations are led by the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights,” Hendriks replied, adding what can best described as a word salad of bureaucratic jargon:

And just to provide a little bit of context in terms of UN women’s role, UN women specifically provides and has extensive knowledge on gender-based violence and provides and supports investigations, as we do with all UN investigations.

And so consequently, in this context and within the UN system, it is the Independent International Commission of Inquiry, which for us has the mandate to investigate all alleged violations. It is absolutely important for the rights, for the needs, for the protection, for the dignity, for the survivors of violence to be supported throughout a process. And that’s why we work through these globally mandated mechanisms. That notwithstanding, we understand and certainly we encourage and support national-level efforts. The ones that you’ve heard about today, the civil commission in Israel, which has brought together women’s organizations to document gender-based atrocities impartially. Our work will be on the backside of the Independent International Commission.

The UN and other major human rights groups have come under increasing scrutiny over their lack of condemnation regarding Hamas’s brutality and use of sexual violence on Oct. 7th. Sheryl Sandberg recorded an emotional plea last week calling for greater awareness and more action on the issue.

PUTIN REELING AS RUSSIA
LOSES 3K TROOPS IN THREE DAYS
IN FIERCE UKRAINE BATTLE

Russian forces have lost 3,010 soldiers as well as 32 tanks in just three days as Vladimir Putin's military suffers a massive blow on the frontlines.

The unverified numbers were posted to Facebook by Ukraine's General Staff who vowed to "beat the occupier!" at the end of each post. Kyiv said Russia suffered 1,120 casualties on December 7, 990 on December 8 and 900 on December 9 - it didn't specify the amount of wounded vs dead.

Many of these losses are likely to have occurred around the embattled city of Avdiivka which Moscow has been attempting to storm since mid-October with devastating consequences.

The town in eastern Donetsk has become a focal point of the fighting with Russia launching massive human wave attacks that have, so far, failed to capture significant amounts of territory.

However, Moscow is continuing its onslaught in the area, according to a spokesman for the Defence Forces of the Tavria region, Oleksandr Shtupun.

He said: "The enemy continues to try to advance. Almost all of his activity is concentrated in the Avdiivka and Maryinka areas. More than 90 percent of the clashes of the past day took place there."

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) - a think tank covering the conflict - said on December 7 and 8 that Russian forces had made advances in the area.

ISW said: "Geolocation footage released on December 8 shows that Russian troops have advanced to the treatment facilities south of Krasnohorivka (5 km northwest of Avdiivka)."

The think tank also said that the number of Russian casualties in Ukraine could be outpacing the Kremlin's ability to mobilize more troops.

In an update on December 7, it said: "Russian and Ukrainian officials have reported that Russian crypto-mobilization efforts produce roughly 20,000 to 40,000 personnel a month, a rate that could be lower than Russia's current casualty rate in Ukraine.

It added: "Ukrainian officials reported in spring and summer 2023 that Russia recruits roughly 20,000 personnel through crypto-mobilization efforts per month.

"Ukrainian officials have reported that the Russian force grouping along the Kharkiv-Luhansk Oblast front has roughly not changed since summer 2023, suggesting that the commitment of new personnel to the area is offsetting Russian losses but not increasing the strength of that grouping."