CharlieH

Earlier this year, Mr Kim pulled off a seemingly impossible escape from North Korea. He fled by sea with his entire family - his pregnant wife, his mother, his brother's family, and an urn containing his father's ashes. They are the first people to have fled the country this year and make it to the South. When Covid struck, North Korea's government panicked and sealed the country off from the rest of the world, closing its borders and cutting off trade. Defections, once fairly common, virtually ceased. Mr Kim told the BBC how he masterminded such a remarkable escape, in the first interview with a defector to have got out since the pandemic. He revealed new details about life in the country, including cases of people starving to death and increasing repression. He asked us not to use his full name, to help protect his family here and back in the North. The BBC cannot independently verify all of Mr Kim's account, but much of the detail tallies with what we have been told by other sources.   The night of the escape was a turbulent one. Fierce winds swept up from the south, bringing a storm in their wake. This was all part of Mr Kim's plan. The rough seas would force any surveillance ships to retreat, he hoped.   He had been dreaming of this night for years, planning it meticulously for months, but this did little to temper his fear.  His brother's children were asleep, knocked out by sleeping pills he had fed them. He and his brother now had to carry them through a minefield in the dark, to where their getaway boat was secretly moored. They inched along, careful to avoid the beams from the guards' searchlights. FULL STORY RELATED ARTICLE : North Korea: Residents tell BBC of neighbours starving to death

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The new deal represents a four per cent increase on the previous agreement TNT Sports retain rights for 12.30pm kick-offs and get two midweek slates Man City are vulnerable, but come the spring they will put on the afterburners. Leaders Arsenal must seize their moment now - Listen to It's All Kicking Off The Premier League has confirmed its status as the richest league in the world by agreeing a new domestic TV deal with Sky Sports and TNT Sports worth £6.7billion over four years between 2025 and 2029. In an outcome predicted by Mail Sport when the auction began last month Sky are the biggest winners having bought the rights to 215 matches-per-season, while TNT have held on to the primetime Saturday lunchtime slot which will give them 52 live games each year. Mail Sport also revealed the other main elements of the new domestic rights deal earlier this year, which will see all Premier League matches that do not kick off at 3pm on Saturdays televised live from 2025 and the BBC continue to show highlights through Match of the Day for another four years. The Premier League are thrilled with the new deal having secured a four per cent increase in the value of their live rights, which no other European competition has achieved, despite limited competition. Amazon have lost their Premier League matches after six years of providing live coverage and there was only a modest bid from ambitious streaming platform DAZN, and none at all from Apple TV. FULL STORY

Covid inquiry expected to be told former PM was open to ‘military options’ to obtain ‘impounded’ jabs from factory in Leiden Boris Johnson’s appearance before the Covid-19 inquiry is not until Wednesday but it is already making headlines in the Netherlands amid a mixture of amusement and alarm at claims he asked for British spies to plan a “raid” on a Dutch vaccine plant. The operation – according to sources who briefed Johnson’s employer, the Daily Mail – would have taken place against the backdrop of a tit-for-tat row in March 2021 between the then prime minister and the EU, which was moving towards restricting exports of vaccines across the Channel. An “enraged” Johnson asked security services to draw up “military options” to obtain “impounded” doses of AstraZeneca vaccine from a plant in Leiden after Britain had negotiated a deal with the company. But while Britain’s security services were spared their biggest debacle on Dutch soil since Operation Market Garden, the claim has been widely reported on front pages in the Netherlands. Elsewhere, Russian state media generated a po-faced report on the claims, interspersing clips of Johnson with footage of British special forces and overlaying them with a sinister backing track. The Dutch ministry of foreign affairs confirmed it was “aware” of the report but declined to comment. Johnson is expected to refer to the episode, potentially in a written statement accompanying his evidence to the inquiry, which will take place over the course of Wednesday and Thursday. Figures close to Johnson have been busily briefing the media before his appearance, advising that he will reject claims that he was not sufficiently engaged in policy during the 10-day period. The former Conservative leader will reject claims that he did not concentrate on the looming threat of the pandemic during the half-term break in February 2020 because he was supposedly writing a biography about William Shakespeare. A spokesperson for Johnson previously rejected reports that he was focused on the book during the critical period in question but Downing Street also did not deny that Johnson had worked on the book, for which he received a £88,000 advance from his publisher Hodder & Stoughton UK in 2015, since becoming prime minister in July 2019. FULL STORY

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg warned there could be bad news coming out about Ukraine, as fears grow of a stalemate with Russia and allies such as the U.S. debate whether to send more aid to the country. “Wars develop in phases. We have to support Ukraine in both good and bad times. We should also be prepared for bad news,” Stoltenberg said in an interview with German broadcaster ARD on Saturday, according to Politico Europe. Stoltenberg said Ukraine’s small victories are important in ending the war, despite Ukraine’s recent counter-offensive not resulting in major headway. However, Ukrainian troops secured a victory last month by pushing Russian forces back on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River. “These are big victories even though they haven’t been able to move the front line,” Stoltenberg said. The NATO chief also urged allies to continue sending support to Ukraine in the interview. “The more we support the Ukraine, the faster the war will end,” he said. Stoltenberg’s comments come just as the White House issued a warning Monday saying it will run out of funds to provide weapons to Ukraine in its fight against Russia without congressional action by the end of the year. Additional aid for Ukraine has hit a wall in the House, while Senate Republicans are looking to tie support for Kyiv with border security changes. FULL STORY

In letter to Congress, White House urges lawmakers to support Ukraine White House Office of Management and Budget director Shalanda Young said the U.S. will run out of approved money for Ukraine at the end of the year. Young said it was urgent that Congress act on President Biden’s $61 billion request to support Ukraine. “We are out of money to support Ukraine in this fight,” Young wrote, warning a failure to pass aid soon would “kneecap” the embattled country on the battlefield. Congress has failed to pass a bill for Ukraine all year, largely because the GOP-controlled House has struggled to muster enough support for Kyiv. More conservative House Republicans have expressed skepticism about Ukraine, which is now approaching two years of its fight with Russia. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has expressed support for Ukraine but tied any legislation approving new aid with GOP border security efforts. Johnson on Monday accused the White House of failing to answer Republicans’ concerns on Ukraine. “The Biden Administration has failed to substantively address any of my conference’s legitimate concerns about the lack of a clear strategy in Ukraine, a path to resolving the conflict, or a plan for adequately ensuring accountability for aid provided by American taxpayers,” he wrote on X. The Ukraine request is part of Biden’s $106 billion ask to also support Israel, the border and the Indo-Pacific region. The president requested Congress act in October, shortly after the Israel-Hamas war broke out. FULL STORY

Headlines blaring warnings about how a second Trump presidency could slip toward dictatorship on Monday prompted a stiff pushback from allies of the ex-president, who is topping GOP primary polls just weeks before the Iowa caucuses. The Washington Post, The Atlantic and The New York Times each published stories referencing a “Trump dictatorship” in recent days, arguing a new Trump presidency posed a threat to democracy. The Times wrote a second Trump term likely would be more radical than his first. “All of these articles calling Trump a dictator are about one thing: legitimizing illegal and violent conduct as we get closer to the election,” Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), a Trump ally, wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “Everyone needs to take a chill pill.” “It’s August 2016 all over again. Skyrocketing cost of health care has millions worried. President Trump’s Dem. opponent off the campaign trail & hiding from the press,” senior Trump adviser Jason Miller wrote on X. “Dems & their media allies have given up on debating issues & have shifted to name-calling & rhetorical fearmongering,” he added. The Atlantic announced Monday the magazine’s January/February issue would be dedicated to what a second Trump term would mean for immigration, civil rights, the Justice Department, climate and more. The magazine’s editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, wrote an editor’s note titled, “A Warning,” to introduce the series. The New York Times on Monday published its latest piece in a series focused on what a second Trump term might mean for the country. In it, the reporters noted Trump’s rhetoric on the campaign trail “has attracted growing alarm and comparisons to historical fascist dictators and contemporary populist strongmen.” And a Washington Post opinion column penned by editor-at-large Robert Kagan headlined, “A Trump dictatorship is increasingly inevitable. We should stop pretending,” made an extensive case that Trump’s reelection could feasibly set the U.S. on a path to becoming a dictatorship. FULL STORY

A former Tesla employee has told the BBC he believes the technology powering the firm's self-driving vehicles is not safe enough to be used on public roads. Lucasz Krupski leaked data, including customer complaints about Tesla's braking and self-driving software, to German newspaper Handelsblatt in May. He said attempts to highlight his concerns internally had been ignored. Tesla did not respond to requests for comment. Elon Musk, the chief executive of Tesla, has championed its self-driving technology. "Tesla has by far the best real-world AI," Mr Musk said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, on Saturday. But, in his first UK interview, Mr Krupski told the BBC's technology editor, Zoe Kleinman, he was concerned about how AI was being used - to power Tesla's autopilot service. Its autopilot feature, for example, includes assisted steering and parking - but, despite its name, it does still require someone in the driver's seat with their hands on the wheel. "I don't think the hardware is ready and the software is ready," he said. "It affects all of us because we are essentially experiments in public roads. So even if you don't have a Tesla, your children still walk in the footpath." Mr Krupski said he had found evidence in company data which suggested that requirements relating to the safe operation of vehicles that had a certain level of autonomous or assistive-driving technology had not been followed. He added that even Tesla employees had spoken to him about vehicles randomly braking in response to non-existent obstacles - known as "phantom braking". This also came up in the data he obtained around customer complaints. Mr Krupski said he had felt compelled to share what he had found with data protection authorities. FULL STORY

Top officials at the United Nations are warning of an “apocalyptic” situation in war-torn Gaza with “no place safe to go” for civilians, as Israel’s war with Hamas spreads into the south, where many had previously sought refuge. “Every time we think things cannot get any more apocalyptic in Gaza, they do,” said Martin Griffiths, the top UN emergency relief official, in a statement on Monday. “People are being ordered to move again, with little to survive on, forced to make one impossible choice after another,” he said. “Such blatant disregard for basic humanity must stop,” he also said. Israel has been intensifying its aerial bombardment of southern Gaza in pursuit of Palestinian militant group Hamas and said over the weekend that it will expand ground operations to the whole of the territory. “Intense battles” are still taking place in northern Gaza, where two Israeli soldiers were killed during “close-quarter combat” with Hamas fighters, the military said on Monday. United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres on Monday appealed to the IDF to spare civilians from more suffering. “Civilians – including health workers, journalists and UN personnel - and civilian infrastructure must be protected at all times,” Guterres’ statement said, noting that despite evacuation orders, “there is nowhere safe to go in Gaza.” FULL STORY

French police have arrested a man suspected of killing one person and injuring two others in a knife and hammer attack in central Paris. The attack took place at Bir Hakeim, near the Eiffel Tower, France’s Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin told reporters at the scene on Saturday night. One man – a German tourist born in the Philippines – was killed in the attack and two others sustained non-life threatening injuries, he added. One of those wounded was a British national, the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said Sunday. The other was French, a spokeswoman for the anti-terrorism prosecutor’s office said. One of the police officers responding to the scene used a taser to neutralize the attacker, Darmanin said. The suspect’s life is not at risk, he added. “After his arrest, he said he could no longer bear to see Muslims dying in both Afghanistan and Palestine,” Darmanin said. Suspect was known to intelligence services Addressing reporters, Darmanin said that the suspect was born in France in 1997 and had been sentenced to four years in prison back in 2016 for planning “violent action.” The suspect was known to intelligence services for having “serious psychiatric disorders,” Darmanin added. The minister said he had been told by police that the attacker had reportedly shouted “Allahu Akbar” during the assault. FULL STORY

President Joe Biden’s administration is publicly attempting to avoid a war with Iran, but American officials continue to fan the flames of war with incendiary rhetoric as the war in Gaza risks expanding into a broader regional conflict. For instance, on Nov. 26, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) said the Biden administration needs to take a “massive retaliation” against Iran to end attacks on U.S. assets. Ultimately, congressmembers, the Biden administration, and former defense officials are all sharing sentiments that Washington could escalate its move toward armed conflict in the face of Iranian aggression. But despite the confidence of hawks, a war with Iran would be disastrous for the United States and the broader Middle East. Regardless of the goals of the mission — from destroying Iran’s nuclear capabilities to regime change — there are only two real paths for Washington to directly attack Iran: an air and naval campaign designed to impose significant costs on the regime; or a ground invasion dependent on establishing air and naval superiority. Both options, however, are more untenable than policymakers suggest, and reflect a fundamental miscalculation of Iran’s military strength. A campaign that relies on air and naval power to rapidly beat Iran into submission will meet significant challenges. Iran’s military is designed to prevent such an invasion and impose significant costs on any potential attack by air or sea. They have 600-mile range cruise missiles, advanced long-range air defense systems, short-range air defense systems, anti-aircraft missiles, 3,000 ballistic missiles, 6,000 naval mines, and the most capable unmanned aerial vehicles in the region. FULL STORY

An American warship and numerous commercial vessels came under fire in the Red Sea on Sunday, prompting the warship to open fire in self-defense. The Associated Press (AP) first reported news of the assault Sunday, saying that the attack was claimed by Yemen’s Houthi rebels. This marks another incident of escalation in the Middle East connected to the Israel-Hamas war, which is approaching two months of fighting. “We’re aware of reports regarding attacks on the USS Carney and commercial vessels in the Red Sea and will provide information as it becomes available,” a Defense Department official said in a statement to The Hill. According to the U.S. Central Command, the USS Carney, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, opened fire in self-defense Sunday in the attack that lasted hours. The Carney responded after a Bahamas-flagged bulk carrier said it was under missile fire. The Carney shot down two drones during the attack, CENTCOM said in a post online. CENTCOM said at this time it cannot determine if the Carney was a target for the drone. There was no damage to the Carney or injuries to personnel. The Unity Explorer reported minor damage from the missile strike, CENTCOM said in a post. “These attacks represent a direct threat to international commerce and maritime security,” CENTCOM said. “They have jeopardized the lives of international crews representing multiple countries around the world.” CENTCOM said it has reason to believe the attacks were “fully enabled by Iran.” FULL STORY

Ukraine has launched an investigation after a video emerged purportedly showing Russian troops killing two Ukrainian soldiers who had surrendered. Ukrainian prosecutors say the footage shows "a group of people in Russian uniforms" shooting the unarmed Ukrainians at close range. The prosecutors say the killing of prisoners of war is a "gross violation" of the laws and customs of conflict. The video has not been independently verified. Russia has not commented. Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, both Kyiv and Moscow have accused each other of violating the Geneva conventions - a set of international humanitarian laws regulating the conduct of armed conflict, and specifically the treatment of POWs. Has Russia carried out war crimes in Ukraine? In a statement on Sunday, Ukraine's prosecutor general's office said a pre-trial investigation was launched "for violation of the laws and customs of war, combined with intentional murder". It said the killing of POWs qualified as "a grave international crime". Preliminary data suggested that the shooting happened near the village of Stepove in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region, the office added. It gave no details about who shot the video and when. The area has seen fierce fighting in recent weeks, as Russian troops have been attempting to seize the nearby town of Avdiivka - a Ukrainian stronghold just outside the Russian-held regional capital of Donetsk. In a separate statement on Sunday, Ukraine's military urged the world community to "condemn Russia's actions and bring to justice the military leadership of the aggressor country". Russia's military is yet to publicly comment on the allegations. FULL STORY

Israeli ground forces are pushing into southern Gaza, after three days of heavy bombardment. Initial reports from Israeli army radio effectively confirmed Israel has launched a ground operation to the north of Khan Younis. The BBC has also verified images of an Israeli tank operating near the city. The head of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) later told troops the IDF was also fighting "strongly and thoroughly" in south Gaza. Lt General Herzi Halevi was speaking to reservists from the Gaza division about military objectives and the IDF's killing of Hamas commanders. He told the soldiers: "We fought strongly and thoroughly in the northern Gaza Strip, and we are also doing it now in the southern Gaza Strip". An IDF spokesman later confirmed Israel "continues to expand the ground incursion" across all of Gaza, including troops "conducting face to face battles with terrorists". Since a week-long ceasefire ended on Friday, Israel has resumed a large-scale bombing campaign on Gaza, which residents of Khan Younis have described as the heaviest wave of attacks so far. The seven-day truce saw Hamas release 110 hostages being held in Gaza in return for 240 Palestinians being released from Israeli prisons. On Sunday morning, the Israeli army issued evacuation orders for several districts of Khan Younis, urging people to leave immediately. Israeli authorities believe members of the Hamas leadership are hiding in the city, where hundreds of thousands of people have been sheltering after fleeing fighting in the north in the early stages of the war. A UN official has described a "degree of panic" he has not seen before in a Gaza hospital, after the Israeli military shifted the focus of its offensive to the south. James Elder, from the children's agency Unicef, described Nasser Medical Hospital in Khan Younis as a "warzone". An adviser to Israel's prime minister said Israel is making "maximum effort" to avoid killing civilians. Mr Elder told the BBC he could hear constant large explosions close to the Nasser hospital and children were arriving with head injuries, terrible burns, and shrapnel from recent blasts. "It's a hospital I've gone to regularly and the children know me now, the families know me now. Those same people are grabbing my hand, or grabbing my shirt saying 'please take us somewhere safe. Where is safe?'" "They are unfortunately asking a question to which the only answer is there is nowhere safe. And that includes for them, as they know, that hospital," he said. The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza says more than 500 people have been killed since the bombing resumed. More than 15,500 people have been killed in the strip since the war began, the ministry also said. FULL STORY

Get the METV as recommended above.The rest play by ear and adjust as required after you are on the ground. One thing you MUST consider is Health or at the very least accident insurance.! Medical issue or accident could wipe you out of what little finances you have so DONT RISK IT.

Video removed. If posting videos in Health forum you need to provide a link as to its source and it must be from a recognised credible source or it will be removed. Thank you.

Live out in the sticks so for me Sunday is the same as any other day. quiet and peaceful.

2000bt, hit that 5 times this year.

Must try harder 4/10 CLOSED

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There is a specific forum that discusses the Air Quality etc of Chiang Mai and other areas of Thailand, its a sub-forum of the Green Forum, "Pollution in Thailand" https://aseannow.com/forum/424-air-pollution-in-thailand/

World leaders have for the first time promised to tackle the huge responsibility that food and agriculture have in climate change. More than 130 countries signed up to a declaration about food, on the second day of the UN climate summit COP28 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Food contributes a third of the warming gases increasing global temperatures. Leaders including King Charles told COP28 that time was running out to tackle climate change. The Emirates Declaration on Sustainable Agriculture, Resilient Food Systems and Climate Action has been welcomed by many experts and charities who say it is long overdue. Countries that have signed up represent 5.7bn people and 75% of all emissions from global food production and consumption, according to the COP28 host nation the UAE. Nations should now include food emissions in their plans to tackle climate change - also called Nationally Determined Contributions. Sunak denies abandoning climate fight at COP28 The US, China, the EU and the UK - some of the largest emitters of greenhouse gases per capita from food - signed up. "The declaration sends a powerful signal to the nations of the world that we can only keep the 1.5 degree goal in sight if we act fast to shift the global food system in the direction of greater sustainability and resilience," said Edward Davey, head of research group World Resources Institute UK. Debates around food and climate often focus on whether people should eat less meat and dairy. Research has shown that a big meat-eater's diet produces 10.24 kg of greenhouse gasses each day. And as food prices have gone up around the world, focus has turned to how growing weather unpredictability caused by climate change could also increase the cost of a supermarket shop. But this declaration is unlikely to lead to government policies like a tax on meat or lower food prices in the short-term, says Edward Davey. Eating less meat 'like taking 8m cars off road' Leaders of global organisations representing farmers cautiously welcomed the declaration. FULL STORY

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree increasing Russian troop numbers by 15%. Some 170,000 will be added to the number of serving personnel in stages, bringing the total to 1,320,000. The defence ministry said the move was a response to an increase in threats, including from the expansion of Nato. Russia is thought to have sustained heavy casualties in more than a year-and-a-half of fighting in Ukraine, even though it does not release figures. The Russian defence ministry statement posted on the Kremlin's website said the numbers would be increased gradually through a recruitment drive, and not by mobilisation or changes to conscription. "The increase in the number of servicemen of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation is being implemented in stages, based on citizens who express a desire to undergo military service under a contract," it added. Russia widens its conscription net: 'I live in constant fear' How many Russians have left during war - and who are they? It explained the increase by the "growth of the joint armed forces of [Nato] near Russia's borders" and threats associated with the "special military operation", which is how Russia describes its war in Ukraine. Nato has recently expanded to include Finland, which has a long border with Russia. Sweden has also applied to join. The alliance says Ukraine can join "when conditions are met", though it has given no timeframe. Ukraine cannot join Nato while it is still at war with Russia. Earlier on Thursday Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for reinforcements and stronger defences along the front line with Russia, as temperatures in the region fall below freezing. FULL STORY