Iranian man detained at Suvarnabhumi Airport on February 24 after being suspected of sexually harassing a female motorcycle taxi driver, with CCTV footage (right) serving as evidence.
BANGKOK — An Iranian man suspected of sexually harassing a female motorcycle taxi driver was arrested at Suvarnabhumi Airport early Tuesday morning as he attempted to flee the country. The incident occurred while the victim was transporting him in the Khlong Toei district of Bangkok.
Ms. Namphung (pseudonym), a 40-year-old motorcycle taxi driver, reported to police that her foreign customer, who appeared to be Middle Eastern, inappropriately touched her chest and body while riding as a passenger on her motorcycle. The incident happened around 8 PM on February 23 near the Tobacco Monopoly area in Khlong Toei.
According to the victim, when the harassment began, she drove toward the main road intending to report the incident to police. The man pleaded with her to turn back, and believing he would stop, she complied. However, he continued the inappropriate behavior despite her attempts to push his hands away, even trying to touch her genitals.
CCTV footage shows an Iranian man riding as a passenger on a motorcycle driven by a female taxi driver in Khlong Toei district, Bangkok, around 8 PM on February 23, 2025.
Namphung used a translation application to communicate in English, asking him to stop and respect women, but he ignored her requests. She eventually jumped off her motorcycle at a police booth near Wireless Road intersection and screamed for help. Finding no officers present, she called out to nearby pedestrians for assistance, causing the man to flee without paying his fare.
She filed a report at Lumphini Police Station and messaged the customer to meet her there, but he didn’t appear. Instead, he allegedly offered money to settle the matter and denied the harassment claims. Namphung refused and insisted on pursuing legal action.
Namphung, a female motorcycle taxi driver, files a report at Lumphini Police Station that she was harassed by a foreign customer on Feb. 23, 2025.
After taking the victim’s statement and gathering evidence including video clips and CCTV footage that clearly showed the suspect’s behavior, police identified the suspect as Mr. Mohsen, a 31-year-old Iranian national. The court approved an arrest warrant on February 24 on charges of committing indecent acts with use of force against a person unable to resist.
Later that evening around 9:30 PM, Lumphini Police Station investigators were notified by Suvarnabhumi Airport police that they had detained the suspect as he was attempting to leave the country.
Immigration officers held him until morning before transferring him to Lumphini Police Station for questioning and legal proceedings, as they were aware the investigating officer was female and preferred to avoid nighttime interrogation of the suspect.
Co-hosted by Nunthinee Tanner, in conjunction with the Columbia Alumni Association Bangkok, “Bridging Communities and Building Legacies” conference and luncheon will profile Columbia University’s Weatherhead East Asian Institute and address the state of Southeast Asian Studies in the current higher education landscape.
BANGKOK, Thursday, February 20, 2025 — The Weatherhead East Asian Institute at Columbia University, a distinguished hub for the study of modern East, Inner, and Southeast Asia, will present a day of programming at 140 Wireless showcasing its commitment to the academic discipline of Southeast Asian Studies. Its partners in the series of talks and discussions are Thailand’s Chulalongkorn University and the National University of Singapore.
The one-day conference is a feat of logistics and collaborative planning made possible by the contributions of Nunthinee Tanner, Managing Director of LBG Limited and co-founder of the Thai Polo and Equestrian Club, and Chatchai Piyasombatkul, President of the Columbia Alumni Association of Bangkok.
Lien-Hang T. Nguyen, Director of the Weatherhead East Asian Institute, will deliver a keynote address, “Thailand’s Role in Columbia’s Global Footprint,” introducing the Institute, and highlighting the importance of Southeast Asian Studies and the Masters in Regional Studies East Asia degree program (MARSEA) to Weatherhead’s mission.
Following Nguyen’s remarks, the first of two panel discussions will bring together James Cheng, Director of the C. V. Starr East Asian Library at Columbia University; Weatherhead East Asian Institute Associate Director of External Affairs Sarah Jessup; Lee Cheng Ean, Advisor & Head of Global Relations, National University of Singapore Libraries; Natalie Pang, University Librarian of the National University of Singapore Libraries; and Neungreudee Lohapon, Director of the Digital Archive of Modernized Siam Project, Chulalongkorn University for a conversation on the necessity of establishing heritage collections and the challenges they entail.
In a second panel discussion, James Cheng will join Weatherhead Artist-in-Residence and Columbia School of the Arts Adjunct Lecturer Tony Bui to engage historian and writer Daryl Yeap for a multifaceted look at the life of a book, from research to publication to the big screen. Yeap’s book, As Equals: The Oei Women of Java, tells the story of modernity at the turn of the 20th century through the lives of three remarkable women—Lucy Ho, Ida Oei, and Oei Hui Lan—wife and daughters of Java’s first Sugar King, Oei Tiong Ham. Born between the late 19th and early 20th centuries, they were super-rich, highly educated, fiercely independent, and ultra-modern individuals who redefined conventional ideas of womanhood. The book explores how and why they became such trailblazers, the environment in which they were raised, the challenges they faced, and the ways they carved out space in the public sphere.
After closing remarks by Chatchai Piyasombatkul, the conference will break for a luncheon intended to foster networking opportunities and follow-up discussions. Speakers and special guests will be available for press interviews and a photo session.
The Weatherhead East Asian Institute at Columbia University is an integrated center for research and teaching that brings together faculty, research scholars, and students from across Columbia, and advances knowledge and understanding of the region through academics, research programs, renowned publications series, and a robust calendar of public events. Visit https://weai.columbia.edu/ for more information, and please email [email protected] with specific questions.
Pavena Hongsakul (center) with the parents of Mind, a Thai woman missing in Oman, meets with Royal Thai Police Foreign Affairs officials led by Police Major General Suraphan Thaipraser on February 24, 2025, to seek international assistance in the investigation.
BANGKOK — The parents of a Thai woman missing in Oman for three months met with Thai Interpol officials on Monday, following claims she was killed by her Bangladeshi husband. The 29-year-old woman, known as “Mind,” reportedly sent photos showing severe physical abuse before her disappearance.
On February 24, Pavena Hongsakul, Chairwoman of the Pavena Foundation for Children and Women, accompanied the parents and friends of Mind, a Thai woman who has been missing in Oman for three months, to meet with officials from the Foreign Affairs Division of the Royal Thai Police, led by Police Major General Suraphan Thaipraser.
The foundation had previously requested assistance from Thai Interpol to track information regarding disappearance of Mind who had been living with her Bangladeshi husband in Oman. Before her disappearance three months ago, she had sent photos showing severe physical abuse to her relatives in Thailand, who subsequently sought help from Pavena.
Mind, a Thai woman who has been missing in Oman for three months
Pavena revealed that after speaking with Mind’s friend in Oman, she received disturbing information suggesting that Mind had died and her body had been hidden in a sofa, removed from her residence, and cremated at a mountain in Salalah, Oman, to conceal evidence. Police in Salalah later interrogated Mind’s husband, who had been previously arrested on drug charges, and he reportedly confessed to the crime.
With this information, Pavena has requested that Thai Interpol coordinate with Omani Interpol to verify the facts. If remains are found, she asks for personal identification and determination of who committed the crime, so the family can receive closure. Pavena will then coordinate with Thai Interpol, Omani Interpol, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for further assistance.
Police Colonel Sila Tantrakul of the Interpol Division stated that Interpol has 190 member countries, and upon receiving the request, they will coordinate with Oman. He noted that the amount of information they can share depends on the confidentiality level of the case and when progress can be disclosed. While unable to provide a specific timeframe, he assured that Interpol would do everything possible.
Mind’s father expressed his deep sorrow and appealed for authorities to uncover the truth. If his daughter has indeed died, he wishes to bring her remains or bones back to her hometown for proper funeral rites. He described Mind as the family’s main provider, sending money to support her disabled mother and her 10-year-old special needs nephew. The family last spoke with Mind in May 2024, when she reminded her father to take good care of her mother, who is blind, and promised to continue sending them money.
Pavena thanked the officials, noting that Thai Interpol has successfully assisted the foundation in several cases, including rescuing a Thai woman who was deceived into selling her eggs in a surrogacy operation in Georgia in just three days. She emphasized that the Oman case is another situation where they seek accuracy, justice, and human dignity.
“A small woman living in a foreign country deserves justice, and we believe Omani police will cooperate fairly with Thai Interpol so we can learn about Mind’s fate as soon as possible,” Pavena concluded.
Armed with this information, Pavena has asked Thai Interpol to work with their Omani counterparts to investigate the claims. She specifically requested DNA testing of any discovered remains and identification of the perpetrators to give the family closure. Pavena plans to facilitate cooperation between Thai Interpol, Omani authorities, and Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs for next steps.
Salalah, Oman
Police Colonel Sila Tantrakul explained that Interpol’s 190-member network will enable coordination with Oman, though he cautioned that information sharing would depend on case confidentiality protocols. While declining to provide a timeline, he promised the agency would exhaust all resources in the investigation.
Mind’s distraught father pleaded for authorities to reveal the truth about his daughter’s fate. Should the worst be confirmed, he hopes to repatriate her remains for traditional funeral ceremonies in her homeland.
He described Mind as his family’s breadwinner who supported her blind mother and a 10-year-old nephew with special needs. Their final conversation in May 2024 included Mind’s promise to continue sending money home and her request that her father care for her vulnerable mother.
In expressing gratitude to officials, Pavena highlighted Thai Interpol’s previous successes, including a three-day operation that rescued a Thai woman from an egg-selling scam in Georgia. She stressed that the Oman case fundamentally concerns justice and human dignity.
“Every woman, no matter how seemingly insignificant, deserves justice when abroad,” Pavena stated. “We’re confident that Omani authorities will cooperate with Thai Interpol to quickly determine Mind’s fate.”
Thai Customs Department officials arrest an American woman for concealing methamphetamine (ice) in bed sheet sets at Phuket International Airport on Feb. 23, 2024.
PHUKET — Thai Customs Department officials have arrested an American woman for concealing methamphetamine (ice) in bed sheet sets at Phuket International Airport. The contraband weighed 4,300 grams including packaging and is valued at 1.29 million baht ($38,500).
Theeraj Attanawanich, Director-General of the Customs Department, revealed that on February 23, the Investigation and Suppression Division identified a high-risk American female passenger traveling from Phuket International Airport in Mai Khao, Thalang District, Phuket, Thailand to Singapore Changi International Airport. Officials suspected she was attempting to smuggle drugs out of the kingdom.
Authorities divided into two teams for the operation. The first team coordinated with airline staff to separate the suspect’s luggage and direct it to the oversized baggage area on the third floor of the international passenger terminal. The second team monitored the suspect in the international departure hall until they identified her matching the intelligence profile.
Four bed sheet packages containing white crystals that tested positive for methamphetamine (ice), a Category 1 narcotic, weighing 4,300 grams valued at approximately 1.29 million baht.
The second team tracked the passenger’s baggage and found a black soft-sided rolling suitcase with luggage tags matching the suspect’s name. Initial X-ray screening revealed suspicious objects with abnormal density inside the suitcase. Officials then identified themselves and conducted a thorough search of the luggage.
The search uncovered clothing, four bed sheet sets, and other belongings. Upon detailed examination of the bed sheets, officials noted they were unusually heavy. Inside, they discovered four rectangular packages wrapped in brown tape, carbon paper, brown paper, and clear plastic.
Thai Customs Department officials have arrest an American woman for concealing methamphetamine (ice) in bed sheet sets at Phuket International Airport on Feb 23, 2025.
The packages contained cloudy white crystals that tested positive for methamphetamine (ice), a Category 1 narcotic, weighing 4,300 grams including packaging, valued at approximately 1.29 million baht.
This action constitutes an attempt to export Category 1 narcotics from the kingdom without permission and possession of Category 1 narcotics without authorization. Officials detained the female suspect and transferred her to Narcotics Suppression Bureau investigators for prosecution and further investigation to determine the source of the drugs.
The Customs Director-General added that officials are intensifying efforts to prevent and suppress drug trafficking in accordance with PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra administration’s policy. He has instructed officials to increase vigilance and continue cracking down on drug smuggling through all routes.
During the 2025 fiscal year, from October 1, 2024, to February 24, the Customs Department has seized Category 1 methamphetamine (ice) in 20 cases, with a total weight of approximately 1,719 kilograms valued at about 515.19 million baht ($15.4 million).
Senate President Mongkol Surasajja, along with Gen. Kriengkrai Srirak, First Deputy Senate President, and members of the Senate, at a press conference following the Senate Special Affairs Committee meeting at the Parliament Building on February 24, 2025.
BANGKOK — Thailand’s political landscape is being rattled by an escalating confrontation between the Ministry of Justice and the Senate’s majority faction as investigators probe allegations of widespread vote manipulation in the Senate selection process.
Justice Minister Pol. Col. Thawee Sodsong, known for his connections to former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, is standing firm against mounting pressure as the Department of Special Investigations (DSI) pursues evidence of electoral irregularities. The investigation has particularly focused on the so-called “Blue Senators,” allegedly affiliated with the Bhumjaithai party.
Evidence of Systematic Manipulation
The DSI’s investigation has uncovered several concerning patterns in the Senate selection results. According to testimony from electoral experts, the final selection order matched exactly with a discovered “cheat sheet,” defying statistical probability.
The geographic distribution of selected senators has raised additional red flags, with 13 provinces representing 68-80 elected deputies failing to secure any senatorial positions, while other provinces showed unusually high concentrations of senators.
Documents leaked from the investigation, dated February 3, 2025, detail a sophisticated operation involving approximately 1,200 candidates. The scheme allegedly included the distribution of yellow shirts and coordinated transportation to Muang Thong Thani during the final round of voting in June 2024. Investigators believe the operation secured 138 seats for selected candidates, with two reserves.
Justice Minister Pol. Col. Tawee Sodsong (far left), Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Poomtham Wechayachai (fourth from left), and Thaksin Shinawatra, during a tour of the southern border provinces – Narathiwat, Pattani, and Yala – on Sunday, February 23, 2025.
Legal Implications
The DSI is considering charges under multiple statutes:
The 2018 Organic Law on Senatorial Selection
Criminal Code Section 209 regarding conspiracy to form a secret society for criminal purposes
The 1999 Anti-Money Laundering Act
The investigation has characterized the operation as an organized crime network, complete with IT specialists who allegedly programmed voting calculations and coordinated groups ensuring predetermined outcomes.
Constitutional Standoff
Senate President Mongkol Surasajja and the Senate leadership have strongly rejected the investigation’s legitimacy, arguing it represents unconstitutional executive interference. They maintain that all senators were legally elected and certified by the Election Commission.
Senator Nantana Nantavorapass, operating independently from the “Blue Network,” has suggested that DSI involvement could help address public concerns about the Senate’s legitimacy, particularly given the Election Commission’s seven-month period of inaction.
Newin Chidchob, the power broker behind the ‘Blue Network,’ arrives at Pullman Bangkok King Power Hotel. However, neither Thaksin nor Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra appeared for the rumored meeting on February 24, 2025.
Political Chess Game
The crisis comes at a particularly sensitive time for Thailand’s coalition government. The Pheu Thai Party faces scrutiny over Thaksin Shinawatra’s special treatment in police hospital custody, while independent agencies formerly aligned with the military-backed government have shifted toward the Blue Network’s influence.
Adding to the political intrigue, speculation surrounded a potential meeting between Newin Chidchob, Bhumjaithai party’s influential figure, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, and Thaksin Shinawatra at the Pullman Bangkok King Power hotel, though the meeting did not fully materialize as planned.
The Special Case Committee (SCC) meeting scheduled for February 25, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Poomtham Wechayachai, will determine whether the DSI can proceed with a special investigation. The decision could significantly impact Thailand’s political power dynamics and the future of democratic institutions in the country.
A group of United States Agency for International Development workers, carry their personal belongings after retrieving them from the USAID's Bureau of Humanitarian Affairs office, in Washington, Friday, Feb. 21, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration moved its fast-paced dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development toward what appeared to be its final phases, telling all but a fraction of staffers worldwide that they were on leave as of Monday and notifying at least 1,600 of the U.S.-based staffers they were being fired.
The move was the latest and one of the biggest steps in what President Donald Trump and cost-cutting ally Elon Musk say is their goal of gutting the six-decade-old aid and development agency in a broader campaign to slash the size of the federal government.
The move comes after a federal judge on Friday allowed the administration to move forward with its plan to pull thousands of USAID staffers off the job in the United States and around the world. U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols rejected pleas in a lawsuit from employees to keep temporarily blocking the government’s plan.
“As of 11:59 p.m. EST on Sunday, February 23, 2025, all USAID direct hire personnel, with the exception of designated personnel responsible for mission-critical functions, core leadership and/or specially designated programs, will be placed on administrative leave globally,” according to the notices sent to USAID workers that were viewed by The Associated Press.
Flowers and a sign are placed outside the headquarters of the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID, Friday, Feb. 7, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
At the same time, the agency said in the notices to staffers that it was beginning a firing process called reduction in force that would eliminate 2,000 U.S.-based jobs. A version of the notice posted later on USAID’s website put the number of positions to be eliminated lower, at 1,600.
The administration gave no explanation for the discrepancy. USAID and the State Department did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment.
Within hours of that notice, individual staffers began reporting receiving the notices of their upcoming dismissal under the reduction in force.
The Trump appointee running USAID, deputy administrator Pete Marocco, has indicated he plans to keep about 600 mostly U.S.-based staffers on the job in the meantime, in part to arrange travel for USAID staffers and families abroad.
The move escalates a monthlong push to dismantle the agency, which has included closing its headquarters in Washington and shutting down thousands of aid and development programs worldwide following a freeze on all foreign assistance. A judge later temporarily blocked the funding freeze. Trump and Musk contend that USAID’s work is wasteful and furthers a liberal agenda.
Lawsuits by government workers’ unions, USAID contractors and others say the administration lacks the constitutional authority to eliminate an independent agency or congressionally funded programs without lawmakers’ approval.
The Trump administration efforts upend decades of U.S. policy that aid and development work overseas serves national security by stabilizing regions and economies and building alliances.
The notices of firings and leaves come on top of hundreds of USAID contractors receiving no-name form letters of termination in the past week, according to copies that AP viewed.
A United States Agency for International Development worker, puts her personal belongings down to greet their supporters outside the USAID’s Bureau of Humanitarian Affairs office in Washington, Friday, Feb. 21, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
The blanket nature of the notification letters to USAID contractors, excluding the names or positions of those receiving them, could make it difficult for the dismissed workers to get unemployment benefits, workers noted.
A different judge in a second lawsuit tied to USAID said this past week that the administration had kept withholding foreign aid despite his order temporarily blocking the funding freeze and must restore the funding to programs worldwide.
The separate ruling from Nichols, a Trump appointee, on Friday also cleared the way for the administration to start the clock on a planned 30-day deadline for USAID staffers and their families to return home if they want their travel paid for by the government.
The judge said he was satisfied by Trump administration assurances that workers abroad would be allowed to stay in their jobs while on leave beyond the 30 days even if they chose to remain overseas.
Foreign staffers fear that continued problems with funding flows and the gutting of most of the headquarters staff will make a safe and orderly return difficult, especially those with children in school, houses to sell and ill family members.
USAID’s notice Sunday said it was “committed to keeping its overseas personnel safe” and pledged not to cut off USAID staffers abroad from agency systems and other support.
A Thai woman negotiates with a British man who was threatening to jump from the edge of Suvarnabhumi Airport's elevated roadway on February 21, 2025.
SUVARNABHUMI — A potential tragedy was averted at Thailand’s Suvarnabhumi Airport when police successfully intercepted a British man attempting to jump from an elevated roadway, with crucial assistance from a Thai woman who acted as an negotiator during the tense situation.
The incident, which occurred on February 21 at approximately 8:00 p.m. on Exit Route 1 of the airport’s elevated road system, was first revealed through social media on February 23 when the “Jor Jae Jab Jorn” Facebook page shared footage of the rescue operation.
Police Colonel Jakrapong Nuchpadung, Superintendent of Suvarnabhumi Airport Police Station (Airport 1), reported that authorities received an alert about a foreign man sitting and standing precariously on the outer edge of the elevated roadway. Recognizing the high-risk situation, police quickly assembled a response team including tourist police and airport patrol units.
The moment Suvarnabhumi Airport police officers charge the British man at the spot where he was threatening to jump from the airport’s elevated roadway on February 21, 2025.The moment Suvarnabhumi Airport police officers move in to secure the British man from the spot where he was threatening to jump from the airport’s elevated roadway on February 21, 2025.
The 30-year-old British national, identified only as Mr. Bradley, appeared to be in severe emotional distress. Police cleared the area of bystanders to reduce pressure on the situation and carefully planned their rescue approach.
A breakthrough came when a Thai woman volunteered to assist with negotiations, owing to her English language proficiency. As part of the carefully orchestrated rescue plan, she approached on foot to engage Mr. Bradley in conversation, while police in a private vehicle made what appeared to be a routine drive-by before making their move.
The rescue culminated in a swift operation where officers managed to safely restrain Mr. Bradley while he was distracted by the conversation. The successful intervention brought relief to both officials and passing motorists who had witnessed the tense situation.
Following the rescue, authorities noted that Mr. Bradley appeared disoriented and provided inconsistent responses during questioning. The British Embassy has been contacted, and family members have indicated they will arrive to assist with his care.
Leader of far right AfD Alice Weidel waves a German flag at the AfD party headquarters in Berlin, Germany, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, after the German national election. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)
BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s conservative opposition leader Friedrich Merz won a lackluster victory in a national election Sunday, while Alternative for Germany nearly doubled its support, the strongest showing for a far-right party since World War II, projections showed.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz conceded defeat for his center-left Social Democrats after what he called “a bitter election result.” Projections for ARD and ZDF public television showed his party finishing in third place with its worst postwar result in a national parliamentary election.
Merz vowed to move quickly to put together a coalition government. But that’s likely to be a complicated task.
A discontented nation
The election took place seven months earlier than originally planned after Scholz’s unpopular coalition collapsed in November, three years into a term that was increasingly marred by infighting. There was widespread discontent and not much enthusiasm for any of the candidates.
The campaign was dominated by worries about the years-long stagnation of Europe’s biggest economy and pressure to curb migration — something that caused friction after Merz pushed hard in recent weeks for a tougher approach. It took place against a background of growing uncertainty over the future of Ukraine and Europe’s alliance with the United States.
Friedrich Merz, the candidate of the mainstream conservative Christian Democratic Union party, gestures while addressing supporters at the party headquarters in Berlin, Germany, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, after the German national election. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
Germany is the most populous country in the 27-nation European Union and a leading member of NATO. It has been Ukraine’s second-biggest weapons supplier, after the U.S. It will be central to shaping the continent’s response to the challenges of the coming years, including the Trump administration’s confrontational foreign and trade policy.
The projections, based on exit polls and partial counting, put support for Merz’s Union bloc around 28.5% and the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany, or AfD, about 20.5% — roughly double its result from 2021.
They put support for Scholz’s Social Democrats at just over 16%, far lower than in the last election and below their previous all-time low of 20.5% from 2017. The environmentalist Greens, their remaining partners in the outgoing government, were on a little over 12%.
Out of three smaller parties, one — the hard-left Left Party — strengthened its position, winning up to 9% of the vote after a remarkable comeback. Two other parties, the pro-business Free Democrats — who were the third party in the collapsed government — and the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance, hovered around the threshold of the 5% support needed to win seats.
People react after first projections are announced during the election party at the Social Democratic Party (SPD) headquarters in Berlin, Germany, Sunday, March 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
A difficult task for the winner
Whether Merz will have a majority to form a coalition with Scholz’s Social Democrats or need a second partner too will depend on how many parties get into parliament. The conservative leader said that “the most important thing is to re-establish a viable government in Germany as quickly as possible.”
“I am aware of the responsibility,” Merz said. “I am also aware of the scale of the task that now lies ahead of us. I approach it with the utmost respect, and I know that it will not be easy.”
“The world out there isn’t waiting for us, and it isn’t waiting for long-drawn-out coalition talks and negotiations,” he told cheering supporters.
The Greens’ candidate for chancellor, Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck, said that Merz would do well to moderate his tone after a hard-fought campaign.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, left, and the top candidate Robert Habeck attend the election party of the Greens (Buendnis 90/Die Gruenen) in Berlin Germany, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025.(Fabian Sommer/dpa via AP)
“We have seen the center is weakened overall, and everyone should look at themselves and ask whether they didn’t contribute to that,” said Habeck. “Now he must see that he acts like a chancellor.”
The Greens were the party that suffered least from participating in Scholz’s unpopular government. The Social Democrats’ general secretary, Matthias Miersch, suggested that their defeat was no surprise — “this election wasn’t lost in the last eight weeks.”
A delighted far-right party doesn’t have a partner
AfD co-leader Tino Chrupalla told cheering supporters that “we have achieved something historic today.”
“We are now the political center and we have left the fringes behind us,” he said. The party’s strongest previous showing was 12.6% in 2017, when it first entered the national parliament.
The party’s candidate for chancellor, Alice Weidel, said it is “open for coalition negotiations” with Merz’s party, and that “otherwise, no change of policy is possible in Germany.” Merz has repeatedly ruled out working with AfD, as have other mainstream parties — and did so again in a televised post-election exchange with Weidel and other leaders.
Weidel suggested AfD wouldn’t have to make many concessions to secure a theoretical coalition, arguing that the Union largely copied its program and deriding its “Pyrrhic victory.”
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz waves after first projections are announced during the election party at the Social Democratic Party (SPD) headquarters in Berlin, Germany, Sunday, March 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
“It won’t be able to implement it with left-wing parties,” she said. If Merz ends up forming an alliance with the Social Democrats and Greens, “it will be an unstable government that doesn’t last four years, there will be an interim Chancellor Friedrich Merz and in the coming years we will overtake the Union.”
Merz dismissed the idea that voters wanted a coalition with AfD. “We have fundamentally different views, for example on foreign policy, on security policy, in many other areas, regarding Europe, the euro, NATO,” he said.
“You want the opposite of what we want, so there will be no cooperation,” Merz added.
Scholz decried AfD’s success. He said that “that must never be something that we will accept. I will not accept it and never will.”
More than 59 million people in the nation of 84 million were eligible to elect the 630 members of the lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, who will take their seats under the glass dome of Berlin’s landmark Reichstag building.
Deacons take part in a mass for their jubilee in St. Peter's Basilica at The Vatican, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, that was supposed to be presided over by Pope Francis who was admitted over a week ago at Rome's Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic and is in critical condition. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
ROME (AP) — Pope Francis, in critical condition with a complex lung infection, rested well during a peaceful night following a respiratory crisis and blood transfusions, the Vatican said Sunday.
Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni’s one-line statement early Sunday didn’t mention if Francis was out of bed or eating breakfast. “The night passed quietly, the pope rested.”
The brief update came after doctors said the 88-year-old pope, who had part of one lung removed as a young man, was in critical condition. On Saturday morning, he suffered a prolonged asthmatic respiratory crisis while being treated for pneumonia and a complex lung infection.
The pope received “high flows” of oxygen to help him breathe. He also received blood transfusions after tests showed low counts of platelets, which are needed for clotting, the Vatican said in a late update.
Archbishop Rino Fisichella, left, ordains new deacons during a mass for the Jubilee of Deacons, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, in St. Peter’s Basilica at The Vatican which was supposed to be presided over by Francis who was admitted over a week ago at Rome’s Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic and is in critical condition. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
The Saturday statement also said that the pontiff “continues to be alert and spent the day in an armchair although in more pain than yesterday.” Doctors said the prognosis was “reserved.”
Doctors have said Francis’ condition is touch-and-go, given his age, fragility and pre-existing lung disease.
Prayers for pope at Vatican
Francis was supposed to have celebrated Mass on Sunday morning in St. Peter’s Basilica and ordained hundreds of deacons as part of the Vatican’s yearlong Holy Year commemoration.
The organizer of the Holy Year, Archbishop Rino Fisichella, celebrated the Mass in his place and offered a special prayer for Francis from the altar before delivering the homily the pope had prepared.
“Even though he is in a hospital bed, we feel Pope Francis close to us, we feel him present among us,” Fisichella told the hundreds of white-robed deacons. “And this compels us to make even stronger and more intense our prayer that the Lord will assist him in his time of trial and illness.”
The main threat facing the pope is sepsis
Doctors have warned that the main threat facing Francis would be the onset of sepsis, a serious infection of the blood that can occur as a complication of pneumonia. As of Friday, there was no evidence of any sepsis, and Francis was responding to the various drugs he is taking, the pope’s medical team said in their first in-depth update on the pope’s condition.
Saturday’s blood tests showed that he had developed a low platelet count, a condition called platelopenia or thrombocytopenia. Platelets are cell-like fragments that circulate in the blood that help form blood clots to stop bleeding or help wounds heal. Low platelet counts can be caused by a number of things, including side effects from medicines or infections, according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health.
Francis, who has chronic lung disease and is prone to bronchitis in winter, was admitted to Gemelli hospital on Feb. 14 after a weeklong bout of bronchitis worsened.
Doctors first diagnosed the complex viral, bacterial and fungal respiratory tract infection and then the onset of pneumonia in both lungs. They prescribed “absolute rest” and a combination of cortisone and antibiotics, along with supplemental oxygen when he needs it.
FILE — In this Saturday, Dec. 9, 2023 file photo, Pope Francis followed by Cardinal Fernando Vergez Alzaga, right, President of Vatican City Governorate and Sister Raffaella Petrini, Secretary General of Vatican City Governorate arrives in the Paul VI Hall at The Vatican. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Vatican hierarchy tamps down speculation Francis might resign
Meanwhile, the Vatican hierarchy went on the defensive to tamp down rumors and speculation that Francis might decide to resign. There is no provision in canon law for what to do if a pope becomes incapacitated. Francis has said that he has written a letter of resignation that would be invoked if he were medically incapable of making such a decision. The pope remains fully conscious, alert, eating and working.
The Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, gave a rare interview to Corriere della Sera to respond to speculation and rumors about a possible resignation. It came after the Vatican issued an unusual and official denial of an Italian media report that said Parolin and the pope’s chief canonist had visited Francis in the hospital in secret. Given the canonical requirements to make a resignation legitimate, the implications of such a meeting were significant, but the Vatican flat-out denied that any such meeting occurred.
Parolin said such speculation seemed “useless” when what really mattered was the health of Francis, his recovery and return to the Vatican.
“On the other hand, I think it is quite normal that in these situations uncontrolled rumors can spread or some misplaced comment is uttered. It is certainly not the first time it has happened,” Parolin was quoted as saying. “However, I don’t think there is any particular movement, and so far I haven’t heard anything like that.”
Mr Menachem Mendel Zajac, the 29-year-old Jewish religious leader and caretaker of the Chabad House in Pai.
This week saw an unprecedented level of paranoia and rumours spreading on social media and centred on the once idyllic northern tourist town of Pai, in Mae Hong Son province. Some claimed that 30,000 Jewish settlers and tourists are overwhelming the small town of 28,000 people, hiding weapons, and turning the town into a new Promised Land.
The fears were widespread enough that PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra had to speak earlier this week, assuring the public that the fears about the “takeover” of the town of Pai by Israelis is unsubstantiated.
This is almost a stuff of fiction as Thailand is far away from the conflicts in Gaza, and the Middle East, and most Thais, for better or worse, made no public stance as to whether they support the state of Israel or Hamas and Jewish settlers, or the Palestinians in the occupied lands, and in Gaza.
Nevertheless, online disinformation has spread like a wildfire, partly driven by a few unruly and misbehaved Israeli tourists – four of them have been deported this week. Eventually, the Embassy of Israel in Bangkok broke silence and issued an unprecedented statement, essentially urging their citizens who are tourists in Thailand to behave and respect local ways and culture.
The guidelines given by the Embassy include: Avoid making loud voices in the streets, at hotels, and public places. Avoid disturbing others. Follow rules at various locations such as temples, markets, and public places. Dress appropriately and modestly in public. And strictly follow Thai laws and avoid problematic or illegal behaviour.
Thai officials from different agencies took turns inspecting the town and unanimously said there’s nothing illegal there and the fears hold no water.
Then a Jewish religious leader in Pai who cares for the Chabad House in Pai invited the local Thai media to tour the house in an attempt to dispel fears that war weapons are being hidden there, and told the press that everything was done and registered legally and jointly with a Thai citizen.
Mr Menachem Mendel Zajac, the 29-year-old Jewish religious leader and caretaker of the Chabad House in Pai, then told local journalists that due to security concerns, particularly after an Israeli citizen was killed in India, the house is off limits to foreigners (including Thais) and they have to request police protections from the local Thai police.
This is the unfortunate side effect of the on-going conflicts in the Middle East as it means they do feel vulnerable when abroad as they do not know who may have nefarious intentions towards them.
The fact that it’s also off limits to Thais will likely, if not inevitably, continue to be a cause of contention to some Thais and it’s hard to imagine a balanced approach that would satisfy both parties. Zajac stressed however that there are only about 40 to 50 Jewish families residing in Pai and not 30,000 people as claimed on social media. Perhaps locals and some Thai netizens got mixed up between tourists, or short-term visitors, and that of expat residents like Zajac.
Uncheck and unfettered rumours on social media can be poisonous if uncritically consumed. That’s one takeaway from the Pai-Israeli incident this week. While this writer is not advocating censorship, people need to be critical when consuming contents of anything posted as “news” or “fact” on social media, particularly by individuals. Do not share sensitive content uncritically or before being able to fact check them via other official and media sources.
In the final analysis, at the roots of the fears and mistrust about Israelis taking over Pai and turning the town into a new Promise Land is the decades-long conflicts in the Middle East and the fact that some Israelis continue to live in occupied lands and driving Palestinians away from conflict zones, or turn occupied lands into a colony, a settlement – thus stoking the fears of some locals in Pai and Thai netizens that Pai is also turning into an occupied land – no matter how far fetch the prospect may be.
This is why there’s little concern about Russians in Pattaya or Phuket, and the only other foreign group in Thailand that will continue to generate fears and resentments are Chinese from Mainland China. But that is due to their sheer and overwhelming number, money, reluctance to integrate, and the penchant for some to engage in crimes and illegal activities.
Thailand has embraced people of various cultures and ethnicities over the centuries and they have influenced and enriched our Thai cultures and so we should welcome a possible Jewish contribution to our culture, and even gene pool. Thailand, after all, is a nation of mongrels. We should welcome all here as long as they are willing to integrate (at least to a certain level) and adapt to local norms and laws.
Meanwhile, the relatively new Israeli families and religious leaders will have to try harder to differentiate themselves from some unruly Israeli tourists in Pai. They will have to try to integrate, at least to a certain level, and interact more with locals and seek to engage in activities that will be mutually beneficial to them and the local Thais, in order to avoid appearing to be turning Pai into an occupied East Bank.
