Latest world news brief today, July 26

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6 mins ago

At least 500 people stranded in Pakistan after floods destroyed bridges

By Sophia Saifi, Asim Khan

People wade through a flooded street after heavy monsoon rains in Karachi on July 25, 2022. (Photo by ASIF HASSAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Record rains in Pakistan's southwestern province of Balochistan have left some 500 people stranded after two bridges were washed away by floodwaters, according to the province's disaster management authority (PDMA).

PDMA director Gen. Naseer Nasar told CNN that bridges have collapsed in the coastal district of Lasbela in the province and "efforts are being made to facilitate" the stranded communities.

General Nasar also said that 89 people died in the month of July due to incidents related to urban flooding, the death toll includes 34 children.

Zaheeruddin Baber, director of Pakistan's Meteorological Department, told CNN that the current rainfall in Baluchistan is 443% higher than the July average and should be "a cause for concern."

This month, Pakistan has recorded above-average rainfall in the monsoon season across the country.

In a statement on Tuesday, the Pakistan Army said troops are assisting with rescue and relief efforts in urban flood-affected areas across the country, and army emergency response teams would help supply food. basic and medical attention to the affected populations.

9 mins ago

Japan's emperor emeritus recovers after heart failure diagnosis

By Emiko Jozuka

Japan's Emperor Emeritus Akihito, 88

Japan's Emperor Emeritus Akihito, 88, father of current Emperor Naruhito, is recovering after receiving a "diagnosis of heart failure on Sunday," Japan's Imperial Household Agency (IHA) reported Tuesday.

The emperor emeritus was "diagnosed with the condition when he received a cardiac MRI," an IHA spokesman told CNN.

Heart failure is different from a heart attack.

It is a condition in which the heart muscle is not able to pump blood around the body properly, usually because the heart has become too weak.

Akihito's condition has improved as he "takes his medication and makes sure he doesn't overexert himself with exercise," the IHA spokesman added.

In April 2019, Akihito became the first Japanese monarch to abdicate the Chrysanthemum Throne in 200 years, citing health reasons.

It is known that he underwent heart surgery and that he overcame prostate cancer in recent years.

12 mins ago

Tunisia approves the new Constitution in a referendum, but with little participation

By Celine Alkhaldi

Employees of the Independent Higher Authority for Elections (ISIE) start counting the ballots after the closing of polling stations on July 25, 2022 in the Ariana district, near Tunis.

(Photo by FETHI BELAID/AFP via Getty Images)

Tunisians turned out in small numbers on Monday to vote on the new constitution proposed by President Kais Saied, with only 27.5% of eligible voters, according to the country's electoral commission.

More than 90% of voters supported the president's measure, voting "yes" to the referendum, according to an exit poll, Sigma Conseil, shared by state television on Monday night.

Of the 8,929,665 registered voters in Tunisia, 2,458,985 voted on the draft of the new Constitution, said the president of the High Independent Electoral Authority (ISIE), Farouk Bouasker, at a press conference after the polls closed to 22:00 local time.

After the vote on Monday morning, Saied told state television that "there was a large turnout at the polling stations" and that the turnout would have been even higher "if the referendum had been held in two days."

He said the next step after the constitutional referendum would be to draft a new electoral law that better reflects the will of the voters.

"The president gets his legitimacy from the people, not from the House of Representatives," he said.

In May, Saied appointed a "National Consultative Commission for a New Republic" and tasked it with drafting a new constitution, which was voted on in Monday's referendum.

Published in the official gazette on June 30, the draft constitution alarmed activists and rights advocates, who say it limits the influence of parliament and essentially gives power to one man.

Saied has defended his decrees, saying they are motivated by the need to "correct the course of the revolution" and rid the country of corruption.

15 mins ago

Taiwan's air and naval forces simulate defense of the island's eastern coast in a week of military exercises

Local residents watch as an OH-58D helicopter approaches to land during the Han Kuang military exercise, which simulates the invasion of the island by the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA), on July 26, 2022 in Hsinchu, Taiwan. .

(Photo by Annabelle Chih/Getty Images)

Taiwan on Tuesday morning carried out a series of air and naval exercises off its eastern coast, simulating an attack from the east, according to its Ministry of National Defense.

The exercises lasted about two hours.

The navy deployed guided-missile destroyers and submarines for the exercise, and simulated firing missiles, cannons and torpedoes at enemy targets.

The air forces also deployed Mirage-2000 and F-16 warplanes, and practiced intercepting enemy aircraft and firing sidewinder air-to-air missiles.

Anti-submarine aircraft were also deployed during the exercise.

CNN was part of a group of journalists invited by the Taiwanese military to witness the exercises aboard a guided missile destroyer.

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen could also be seen inspecting the exercises from another ship.

The exercises are part of the week-long "Han Kuang" exercises, which are the island's largest annual military exercises and are aimed at increasing preparedness for any possible attack by Beijing.

This Wednesday morning, local time, the Taiwanese military plans to carry out a series of exercises in the port of Taipei, located next to a strategic river estuary north of the capital.

16 mins ago

Suspect in Abe murder to undergo psychiatric evaluation

By Emiko Jozuka

The suspect in the deadly shooting of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Tetsuya Yamagami, was taken out of the Nara police station on Monday morning, a Nara prefectural police official told CNN on Tuesday.

The law enforcement official told CNN the department could not comment on where Yamagami was taken.

This Monday, the Japanese public broadcaster NHK reported that the Nara District Prosecutor's Office had requested that Yamagami be transferred to the Osaka Detention House and undergo mental health checks until November 29.

The report added that Yamagami will undergo a psychiatric evaluation until November 29 to determine if he can be charged and held criminally responsible.

CNN was unable to independently confirm the report, as the Nara District Public Prosecutor's Office and the Osaka Detention Bureau told CNN they could not comment on individual cases.

Yamagami, 41, admitted to shooting Abe, according to Nara Nishi police.

JapanPakistan