Daily World Briefing, Dec. 14

China holds national memorial for Nanjing Massacre victims, calling for remembrance of history

The 12th national memorial day was observed in Nanjing on Saturday to honor about 300,000 victims killed by Japanese troops during the Nanjing Massacre, in a year that marks the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II (WWII).

Despite the winter chill, thousands dressed in dark attire gathered at the public square of the Memorial Hall of the Victims in Nanjing Massacre by Japanese Invaders in Nanjing, capital of east China's Jiangsu Province, with white flowers pinned to their chests, to take part in the ceremony.

China's national flag was flown at half-mast in front of the crowd that included survivors of the massacre, local students and international guests.

Sirens began blaring at 10:01 a.m. Drivers in the downtown area stopped their vehicles and honked in unison, while pedestrians paused to observe a moment of silence in memory of the victims.

The Nanjing Massacre took place when Japanese troops captured the then-Chinese capital on Dec. 13, 1937. Over the course of six weeks, they proceeded to kill approximately 300,000 Chinese civilians and unarmed soldiers in one of the most barbaric episodes of WWII.

China receives evidence from Russia on notorious Japanese Unit 731

China has received a batch of Russian-provided evidence related to the infamous Unit 731, a Japanese germ-warfare unit that operated during World War II, China's Central Archives said on Saturday.

The archive copies from Russia include trial records of Unit 731 members, investigation reports on the unit's crimes, and internal official correspondence of Soviet authorities, covering the period running from May 11, 1939 to Dec. 25, 1950.

During World War II, the Japanese invading forces established a biological warfare network across multiple Asian countries, with Unit 731 located in Harbin, northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, serving as a top-secret base for biological weapons and human experiments.

At least 3,000 people from China, the Soviet Union and other countries and regions were used in human experiments conducted by Unit 731.

At least 2 killed in shooting at Brown University in U.S. Rhode Island: media

At least two people were killed and several others injured in a shooting on Saturday afternoon at Brown University in Providence, U.S. state of Rhode Island, according to U.S. media reports.

"Multiple shot in the area of Brown University. This is an active investigation. Please shelter in place or avoid the area until further notice," Providence Police said on X.

Around 4:20 p.m., students at the university received a text message alerting them to a shooter on campus. The alert from the university directed them to lock doors, silence phones and stay hidden until further notice. It reminded them to run, hide or fight as a last resort to protect themselves.

Police said the incident occurred near an academic and research area on campus, and law enforcement officers were dispatched to the scene.

U.S. President Donald Trump said he has been briefed on the situation and that the FBI is at the scene.

Israeli military says senior Hamas militant killed in Gaza

The Israeli military confirmed that its forces killed a senior Hamas militant in a strike in the Gaza Strip on Saturday.

The Israel Defense Forces and the Shin Bet security agency said in a joint statement that Ra'ad Sa'ad, head of the weapons production headquarters in Hamas' military wing, was killed. Sa'ad was described as one of the planners of the Oct. 7, 2023 attack and "one of the last remaining senior militants" in Gaza.

The Israeli military claimed that Sa'ad was "directly responsible for violations of the ceasefire agreement" by Hamas in recent months, accusing him of leading the continued production of weapons during the ceasefire.

A joint statement by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said the elimination of Sa'ad was in response to the detonation of a Hamas explosive device that wounded Israeli forces on Saturday in Gaza.

Thai military destroys 2 Cambodian military targets via airstrike

Thailand's 1st Army Area Command said in a social media post on Saturday that its subordinate troops, in coordination with the Royal Thai Air Force, launched airstrikes against two Cambodian military targets at 16:09 local time, successfully destroying Cambodia's weapons and ammunition depots as well as air defense and communication systems.

A Royal Thai Navy spokesperson stated on the same day that naval fleets had carried out a military operation in the Gulf of Thailand in the early hours of the morning. The operation aimed to degrade and contain Cambodia's military capabilities in the vicinity of Koh Kong Province and safeguard the lives and property of residents along the Gulf of Thailand coast.

Separately, at a press conference on the Thailand-Cambodia border situation held on Saturday, a spokesperson for Thailand's Ministry of Defense and a health official reported that the latest round of clashes between the two countries has left 15 Thai soldiers dead and more than 270 others wounded.

As of Saturday morning, over 260,000 Thai civilians had taken shelter in refugee camps, with seven civilians confirmed dead.

Cambodia suspends all border crossings with Thailand

Cambodia's Ministry of Interior announced in a press release on Saturday that it would suspend all border crossings with Thailand until further notice.

The press release said the move was made after the Thai side had committed acts of aggression against Cambodia's sovereignty through indiscriminate attacks, causing civilian casualties and damaging residential areas and infrastructure.

In this regard, Cambodian citizens currently residing and working in Thailand are advised to continue living and working there as normal. Likewise, Thai nationals currently residing and working in Cambodia are advised to remain in Cambodia as usual, until a ceasefire is in place, it said.

Indonesia flood death toll exceeds 1,000 as rescue, recovery efforts continue

The death toll from floods and landslides that struck three provinces on Indonesia's Sumatra Island has exceeded 1,000, with 218 people still missing, according to the latest data released Saturday by the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB).

The disasters have caused extensive infrastructure damage. BNPB data listed damage to about 1,200 public facilities, as well as 219 health facilities, 581 educational facilities, 434 houses of worship, 290 office buildings and 145 bridges.

Abdul Muhari, head of BNPB's Data and Information Center, said at a press conference on Friday that data verification and cross-referencing with civil records are ongoing at the sub-district level. He noted that victims are being confirmed by name and address and that the verification process continues in several districts.

Drone attack hits UN facility in Sudan, killing 6 peacekeepers

At least six UN peacekeepers were killed and seven others wounded on Saturday when a United Nations facility in Kadugli, the capital of Sudan's South Kordofan State, was struck in a drone attack, Sudanese authorities said.

The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) accused the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of carrying out the strike, a claim the RSF denied.

According to an SAF statement, the drone fired three missiles at the UN headquarters and the Bangladesh Battalion, setting a UN storage facility on fire. All the casualties were members of the Bangladesh Battalion, which is part of the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei, a disputed area between Sudan and South Sudan.

In a separate statement, Sudan's Transitional Sovereign Council, which backs the SAF, condemned what it described as an RSF drone attack on UN premises in Kadugli, calling it a serious violation of international humanitarian law and the protections afforded to UN facilities.■