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Danish National Suspected of Spying for Iran on Jewish Targets in Berlin, Prosecutors Say

A German police officer guards the Holocaust Memorial after a man was seriously injured in a stabbing near the US Embassy in Berlin, Germany, February 21, 2025. (Reuters)
A German police officer guards the Holocaust Memorial after a man was seriously injured in a stabbing near the US Embassy in Berlin, Germany, February 21, 2025. (Reuters)
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Danish National Suspected of Spying for Iran on Jewish Targets in Berlin, Prosecutors Say

A German police officer guards the Holocaust Memorial after a man was seriously injured in a stabbing near the US Embassy in Berlin, Germany, February 21, 2025. (Reuters)
A German police officer guards the Holocaust Memorial after a man was seriously injured in a stabbing near the US Embassy in Berlin, Germany, February 21, 2025. (Reuters)

A Danish national has been arrested in Denmark on suspicion of spying for Iran with the aim of collecting information on Jewish sites and individuals in Berlin, German prosecutors said on Tuesday.

They said the man, who they named as only Ali S under German privacy law, spied on three properties in June in preparation for further intelligence activities, including possibly attacks on Jewish targets.

He is suspected of having received his orders from Iranian intelligence services in early 2025, prosecutors said, Reuters reported.

The Iranian embassy in Berlin rejected the allegations as "unfounded and dangerous accusations" that it said appeared to be designed to distract from Israeli attacks on Iran.

"Previous discussions with relevant German authorities have already highlighted that certain third parties are attempting to divert public perceptions from the actual events through artificial staging," it said in a statement.

According to Der Spiegel magazine, the suspect took photos of houses. Those included the headquarters of the German-Israeli Society and a building where the President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, Josef Schuster, was said to occasionally stay.

After being transferred from neighboring Denmark, the suspect will be brought before an investigating judge of Germany's Federal Court of Justice, prosecutors said.

The suspect was remanded in custody until July 23, pending extradition to Germany, Denmark's PET national security and intelligence service said in a statement.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said last month, during the air war between Iran and Israel, that Germany was prepared for Iran targeting Israeli or Jewish targets in the country, without going into detail.

The German-Israeli Society called on the German government to summon Iran's ambassador and also on the European Union to list Iran's Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist organisation.

"The extended arms of Iranian terror must have no place in Germany," it said in a statement.

Schuster called it a "clear alarm signal" in an emailed statement.

"The German government should not only remain vigilant but also take active political action against the Iranian regime —there can be no other consequence for this allegedly planned terrorist attack," he said.

The Danish justice ministry and foreign ministry both referred enquiries to the Danish intelligence service.

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World

Trump Says He Will Make Telephone Call to Stop Renewed Thailand-Cambodia Fighting 

Vehicles carrying people who evacuate, amid deadly clashes between Thailand and Cambodia along a disputed border area, wait in a long line to get into a refugee camp in Chong Kal, Oddar Meanchey Province, Cambodia, December 10, 2025. (Reuters)
Vehicles carrying people who evacuate, amid deadly clashes between Thailand and Cambodia along a disputed border area, wait in a long line to get into a refugee camp in Chong Kal, Oddar Meanchey Province, Cambodia, December 10, 2025. (Reuters)
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Trump Says He Will Make Telephone Call to Stop Renewed Thailand-Cambodia Fighting 

Vehicles carrying people who evacuate, amid deadly clashes between Thailand and Cambodia along a disputed border area, wait in a long line to get into a refugee camp in Chong Kal, Oddar Meanchey Province, Cambodia, December 10, 2025. (Reuters)
Vehicles carrying people who evacuate, amid deadly clashes between Thailand and Cambodia along a disputed border area, wait in a long line to get into a refugee camp in Chong Kal, Oddar Meanchey Province, Cambodia, December 10, 2025. (Reuters)

Thailand and Cambodia accused each other of targeting civilians in border attacks on Wednesday, as US President Donald Trump said he would make a telephone call to stop the fighting and salvage a ceasefire he brokered in July.

The Southeast Asian neighbors have blamed each other for the clashes that started on Monday, and remain at odds over a diplomatic solution to months of simmering tension.

Asked about the prospect of further intervention by Trump, a Thai government spokesperson said there had been no talks with him so far, while Bangkok's position was that negotiations should not be initiated by a third party.

"It should not start with a mediator, but it must start with Cambodia changing its stance, stopping threatening Thailand and formally requesting negotiations with Thailand," Siripong Angkasakulkiat told Reuters.

Cambodian government spokesperson Pen Bona said Phnom Penh's position remained the same, that it wanted only peace, and had only acted in self-defense.

The responses followed Trump's offer to halt the renewed Southeast Asian hostilities, made at a rally in Pennsylvania after enumerating the wars he claimed to have helped stop, such as those between Pakistan and India, and Israel and Iran.

"I hate to say this one, named Cambodia-Thailand, and it started up today, and tomorrow I am going to have to make a phone call," he added.

"Who else could say, 'I'm going to make a phone call and stop a war of two very powerful countries, Thailand and Cambodia?'"

In an interview on Tuesday, Thailand's foreign minister had said he saw no potential for negotiations, adding that the situation was not conducive to third-party mediation.

A top adviser to Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Manet told Reuters that day his country was "ready to talk at any time".

CLAIMS CIVILIAN AREAS HIT

On Wednesday, Cambodia withdrew its athletes from the Southeast Asian Games in Thailand, citing safety reasons and their families' concern.

Thailand's military said BM-21 rockets fired by Cambodian forces landed near the Phanom Dong Rak Hospital in Surin district on Wednesday, forcing the evacuation of patients and staff to a shelter.

Drones and BM-21 rockets and tanks were used at other border points, including the vicinity of the contested Preah Vihear temple complex, it added.

"Our forces destroyed an anti-drone position to the south of Chong Chom in order to support operations to clear Cambodian elements in a mango plantation ... across the line of operations," the military said in an update, referring to a Thai border town.

Cambodia's military said Thailand used artillery fire and armed drones in attacks in Pursat province, fired mortars into homes in Battambang province, while its F-16 fighter jets entered Cambodian airspace to drop bombs near civilian areas.

LAND MINE ALLEGATIONS RAISED TENSION

Trump has previously spoken to leaders of both countries and been central to the fragile truce between them since five days of fighting in July, which killed at least 48 people and was their heaviest conflict in recent history.

In July, Trump used the leverage of trade negotiations to broker a ceasefire. Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow told Reuters on Tuesday he did not think tariff threats should be used to pressure his country into talks.

Last month, Thailand suspended de-escalation measures agreed at an October summit in Trump's presence, after a Thai soldier was maimed by a landmine that Bangkok said was newly laid by Cambodia, which rejects the accusation.

Both countries have said they have evacuated hundreds of thousands from border areas, though some people have stayed behind, hoping to avoid the fighting.

"I have to stay behind," said Wuttikrai Chimngarm, as he hunkered down behind a makeshift bunker of tires stacked six high while shelling shook Thailand's border province of Buriram.

"I'm the head of the village, if not me, then who? Who will be safeguarding the houses and belongings of the villagers from looters?"

As soon as Monday's fighting erupted, wary residents fled the disputed village of Kaun Kriel, about 25 km (15 miles) northwest of Cambodia's city of Samraong.

"This is my second run because the place I live ... was under attack both times," said Cambodian Marng Sarun, a 31-year-old harvester who left with his wife and two children.

World

US Backs Japan in Dispute with China Over Radar Incident 

An undated photograph taken and provided by Japan’s Ministry of Defense shows China’s aircraft carrier "Liaoning", issued on 08 December 2025. (EPA/Japan’s Defense Ministry via Jiji Press)
An undated photograph taken and provided by Japan’s Ministry of Defense shows China’s aircraft carrier "Liaoning", issued on 08 December 2025. (EPA/Japan’s Defense Ministry via Jiji Press)
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US Backs Japan in Dispute with China Over Radar Incident 

An undated photograph taken and provided by Japan’s Ministry of Defense shows China’s aircraft carrier "Liaoning", issued on 08 December 2025. (EPA/Japan’s Defense Ministry via Jiji Press)
An undated photograph taken and provided by Japan’s Ministry of Defense shows China’s aircraft carrier "Liaoning", issued on 08 December 2025. (EPA/Japan’s Defense Ministry via Jiji Press)

The United States has for the first time criticized China for aiming radars at Japanese military aircraft during a training exercise last week, an incident over which the Asian neighbors have given differing accounts amid escalating tensions.

The run-in near Japan's Okinawa islands comes after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi triggered a dispute with Beijing last month with her remarks on how Tokyo might react to a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan.

China claims democratically governed Taiwan and has not ruled out using force to take control of the island, which sits just over 100 km (62 miles) from Japanese territory and is surrounded by sea lanes on which Tokyo relies.

"China's actions are not conducive to regional peace and stability," a State Department spokesperson said late on Tuesday, referring to the radar incident.

"The US-Japan Alliance is stronger and more united than ever. Our commitment to our ally Japan is unwavering, and we are in close contact on this and other issues."

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara welcomed the comments, saying they "demonstrate the strong US-Japan alliance".

BEIJING DEFENDS MILITARY DRILLS

Speaking in Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun avoided direct criticism of the US remarks, reiterating that China's training and exercise activities were in line with international law and conducted safely in a restrained manner.

"We hope that the international community can tell right from wrong and not be hoodwinked by the Japanese side. Japan's allies, in particular, should heighten their vigilance and not be manipulated by Japan," he added.

Japan late on Tuesday scrambled jets to monitor Russian and Chinese air forces conducting joint patrols around the country. On Wednesday, Japan's coast guard said its ships spotted four Chinese coast guard vessels inside what it says is its territory near the disputed but Japan-administered Senkaku islands in the East China Sea, and that it was attempting to make them leave.

China's coast guard said it was carrying out a "legal" operation to safeguard the country's rights and interests. China calls the uninhabited islands the Diaoyu.

MOST SERIOUS INCIDENT IN YEARS

The Chinese fighter jets aiming their radars at the Japanese planes on Saturday was the most serious run-in between the East Asian militaries in years.

Such moves are seen as a threatening step because they signal a potential attack and may force the targeted plane to take evasive action. Tokyo blasted the moves as "dangerous".

Beijing, however, said that the Japanese aircraft had repeatedly approached and disrupted the Chinese navy as it was conducting previously announced carrier-based flight training east of the Miyako Strait.

Speaking to reporters in Taipei on Wednesday, Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said China's drills were "very inappropriate behavior".

"We also call upon China to demonstrate the responsibility befitting a major power. Peace is priceless; war has no winners. Peace must be fostered by all parties, and China shares this responsibility," he said.

Relations between Asia's two largest economies have soured sharply since Takaichi told parliament last month that a Chinese attack on Taiwan could amount to a "survival-threatening situation" and trigger a potential military response from Tokyo.

Beijing has demanded she retract the remarks, accusing Tokyo of threatening it militarily and advising its citizens not to travel to Japan.

US Ambassador to Japan George Glass has publicly expressed support for Japan in several social media posts since the diplomatic dispute began, but President Donald Trump and other senior US officials have remained silent.

Trump, who plans to visit Beijing next year for trade talks, phoned Takaichi last month, urging her not to escalate the dispute, people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

World

US Imposes Sanctions on Network it Accuses of Recruiting Colombians in Support of Sudan’s RSF

Sudanese refugee children from el-Fasher stand at sunset in the Tine transit camp amid the conflict between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese Army, in eastern Chad, November 23, 2025. (Reuters)
Sudanese refugee children from el-Fasher stand at sunset in the Tine transit camp amid the conflict between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese Army, in eastern Chad, November 23, 2025. (Reuters)
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US Imposes Sanctions on Network it Accuses of Recruiting Colombians in Support of Sudan’s RSF

Sudanese refugee children from el-Fasher stand at sunset in the Tine transit camp amid the conflict between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese Army, in eastern Chad, November 23, 2025. (Reuters)
Sudanese refugee children from el-Fasher stand at sunset in the Tine transit camp amid the conflict between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese Army, in eastern Chad, November 23, 2025. (Reuters)

The US imposed sanctions on Tuesday on actors it accuses of fueling the war in Sudan, taking aim at what it said was a transnational network that recruits former Colombian military personnel and trains soldiers, including children, to fight for the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.

The US Treasury Department said in a statement that it imposed sanctions on four individuals and four entities that were part of the network, which it said was largely comprised of Colombian nationals and companies.

“The RSF has shown again and again that it is willing to target civilians, including infants and young children. Its brutality has deepened the conflict and destabilized the region, creating the conditions for terrorist groups to grow,” Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence John Hurley said in the statement.

It said since the beginning of the conflict in April 2023, the RSF and its allied militias have repeatedly targeted civilians, systematically killing men and boys, even infants, and deliberately assaulting women and girls through rape and other forms of sexual violence. “Despite recent attempts to downplay its misdeeds, the RSF continues to perpetrate these atrocities, most recently in el-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur,” the statement continued.

It said that supported by Colombian fighters, the RSF captured El Fasher on October 26, 2025, after an 18-month siege, and subsequently engaged in mass killings of civilians, ethnically targeted torture, and sexual violence.

On January 7, 2025, the State Department announced its determination that members of the RSF committed genocide.

The US said it remains committed to the principles outlined in the September 12, 2025, Joint Statement on Restoring Peace and Security in Sudan, which calls for a three-month humanitarian truce followed by a permanent ceasefire and a transparent transition process leading to an independent, civilian-led government.

The Treasury statement said that since September 2024, hundreds of former Colombian military personnel have traveled to Sudan to fight alongside the RSF.

These Colombians provide the RSF with tactical and technical expertise, serving as infantry and artillerymen, drone pilots, vehicle operators, and instructors, with some even training children to fight in the RSF.

The Colombian fighters have participated in numerous battles across Sudan, including in its capital, Khartoum, as well as Omdurman, Kordofan, and el-Fasher. The presence of Colombian fighters in Sudan would not be possible without the assistance of numerous individuals and companies, mostly from Colombia.

Among those targeted was Alvaro Andres Quijano Becerra, a dual Colombian-Italian national, is a retired Colombian military officer based in the United Arab Emirates who plays a central role in recruiting and deploying former Colombian military personnel to Sudan.

Quijano, a former associate of the Colombia-based Notre del Valle Cartel, is supported by a network of associates and companies that specializes in recruiting fighters and facilitating the movement of funds related to their deployment.

In Colombia, Bogota-based International Services Agency (A4SI), an employment agency that Quijano co-founded, is the main recruiting node, having engaged in campaigns via its website, group chats, and townhalls to fill positions, including drone operators, snipers, and translators.

Quijano’s wife, Colombian national Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, is A4SI’s owner and manager.

As for Maine Global Corp SAS (Maine Global Corp), it is a Bogota, Colombia-based employment agency managed by dual Colombian-Spanish national Mateo Andres Duque Botero, who serves as the shareholder, president, director or manager of firms in Colombia, the United States, and the United Kingdom.

Maine Global Corp manages and disburses funds for Global Staffing and the company that hired the Colombians, with the support of US-based firms associated with Duque.

This includes processing payroll payments for the Colombian fighters and serving as a foreign exchange intermediary, converting euros and Colombian pesos to US dollars, the Treasury statement showed.

It said in 2024 and 2025, US-based firms associated with Duque engaged in numerous wire transfers, totaling millions of US dollars, with Maine Global Corp, Global Staffing, and the company hiring the Colombian fighters.

The statement added that Colombian national Monica Munoz Ucros, is Maine Global Corp’s alternate manager and the manager of Bogota, Colombia-based Comercializadora San Bendito, which engaged in wire transfers with a US company associated with Duque and directly with Duque.