Upheaval in New Caledonia
Demonstrators hold Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front (FLNKS) flags during a gathering in Paris, Thursday May.16, 2024. Violence raged across New Caledonia for the third consecutive day Thursday, hours after France imposed a state of emergency in the French Pacific territory, boosting security forces’ powers to quell unrest in the archipelago that has long sought independence. (AP Photo/Thomas Padilla)
France declared a state of emergency in its Pacific Islands territory of New Caledonia. At least three Indigenous Kanak people and two police officers have been killed in violence that began Monday night over a proposed amendment to the French constitution that expands French citizens’ eligibility to vote in the archipelago’s local elections. And, the US military says the first aid shipment has arrived in the Gaza Strip via a floating pier off the coast of the territory. Humanitarian aid officials say basic necessities are desperately needed in Gaza. But the pier is also a sign of a failure in US-Israeli cooperation. Also, nearly a week after flash floods caused by heavy rain devastated villages in northern Afghanistan, survivors are struggling with basic needs like shelter and food. The floods left at least 300 dead and many are still missing. Plus, the Vatican adopts new laws to evaluate supernatural phenomena.
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