Lianhe Zaobao reported that on July 16, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights pointed out that American journalist Evan Gershkovic had been sentenced by Russia for espionageThe court sentenced him to 16 years in prison, citingPeople's attention to the issue of journalists fulfilling their right to freedom of speech. It is reported that 32 year old Gershkovic is a US citizen who has worked for multiple media outlets. In 2017, he moved to Russia and became a correspondent for The Wall Street Journal in Russia. Previously, he reported on topics such as conscription, the impact of sanctions on the economy and people, Russia's increasing isolation, and the government's attempts to suppress anti war activities.

Previously, in a secret closed door trial held in Yekaterinburg, Ural District, Russia, Geshkovic was sentenced after three court trialsHe was arrested while reporting in Yekaterinburg in March 2023 and has been imprisoned in Lefortovo prison for nearly 16 months now. This is the first time since the Cold War that Russia has arrested an American journalist on charges of espionage. Russia accused him of attempting to obtain confidential information about Russia's military industry under the guise of a journalist. The European Parliament, Germany, the UK, and The Wall Street Journal have strongly criticized Russia's actions.

02Bangladesh court cancels quota system for most public positions

According to reports from Bangladesh, on July 21st, the appellate court of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh rejected the lower court's decision to restore the quota system and ordered that 93% of government positions should not have quotas. It is reported that the government of Bangladeshi Prime Minister Hasina abolished the quota system in 2018, but the lower courts reinstated the quota system last month, resulting in large-scale student protests. They are dissatisfied with the authorities' restoration of the civil service quota system and the reservation of some positions for veterans' relatives, believing that this will undermine the employment of young people. Since July 13th, the ongoing protests have resulted in at least 114 deaths and thousands of injuries. According to reports, more than half of the deaths were caused by police firing.

A spokesperson for the student group stated that although the Supreme Court's ruling partially met their demands, they will not stop protesting until the government issues an order that meets their requirements.

military

01Hamas officials deny withdrawing from Gaza ceasefire talks

According to China News Service, after Israel launched a major attack on the Gaza Strip recently, senior Hamas member Yitzhak Raqq in Qatar issued a statement denying the news that Hamas is withdrawing from the Gaza ceasefire negotiations. Previously, Israel launched an attack on a designated "humanitarian zone" in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, claiming to have eliminated Hamas military commanders, resulting in at least 90 deaths. Two Egyptian sources involved in ceasefire negotiations said that after three days of intense negotiations, the talks have now been suspended.

Izard ·Rashik said that Hamas has not withdrawn from the new round of Gaza ceasefire negotiations currently underway in the Qatari capital Doha and the Egyptian capital Cairo, and there are increasing signs that both sides are close to reaching a ceasefire agreement. He also accused Israel of intensifying its attacks on the Gaza Strip, attempting to undermine the efforts made by Egypt, Qatar, and the United States to reach an agreement.

02Shortage of key components, delayed production of Japanese Patriot missiles

Reuters reported that recently, sources revealed that Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has obtained a license from defense contractor Lockheed Martin to produce about 30 Patriot III missiles annually, and can increase this number to about 60 missiles. However, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has not yet obtained more seeker supplies for the final stage of missile flight, and it is estimated that it may take several years to increase production.

It is reported that the United States hopes to increase global annual production from approximately to as soon as possibleThe number of 500 has increased to over 750, but the production difficulties faced by Japan indicate that the United States is facing challenges in integrating global allies into its complex supply chain. Boeing has been expanding its seeker factory production in the United States by 30% since last year, but the newly added production lines will not start operating until 2027.

01North Korea's trade with China accounted for 98.3% last year

According to Yonhap News Agency, on July 21st, the "2023 North Korea Foreign Trade Trends" report released by the Korea Trade and Investment Promotion Agency showed that the bilateral trade volume between North Korea and China was 2.72 billion US dollars last year, a year-on-year increase of 96.7%. Among them, North Korea's exports to China reached 290 million US dollars, and the trade volume imported from China was 2.43 billion US dollars. The trade deficit with China has nearly doubled from 1.27 billion US dollars in 2022 to 2.14 billion US dollars.

China, Vietnam, India, Mozambique, and Austria are the five major trading partners of North Korea. The trade volume between North Korea and its largest trading partner China accounts for a certain percentage of the total98.3%, while the rest of the countries only account for 1.7%. The largest export product of North Korea is artificial cow hair and fluff, with a year-on-year increase in export value of 1332.5% to 170 million US dollars, all of which are exported to China, accounting for 51.6% of the overall exports. In addition, the largest imported categories are still mineral fuels and mineral oils such as crude oil and refined oil, but the import value decreased by 13.4% to $450 million.