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China Says Opposes Any Targeting of New Iran Leader

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun takes a question from a journalist at a press conference in Beijing, China January 7, 2025. (Reuters)
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun takes a question from a journalist at a press conference in Beijing, China January 7, 2025. (Reuters)
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China Says Opposes Any Targeting of New Iran Leader

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun takes a question from a journalist at a press conference in Beijing, China January 7, 2025. (Reuters)
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun takes a question from a journalist at a press conference in Beijing, China January 7, 2025. (Reuters)

China said Monday that Iran's decision to name Mojtaba Khamenei as its new supreme leader following the killing of his father was a domestic matter, and it opposed any attempt to target him.

Israel's military has threatened to target any successor to former supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed in the first wave of US and Israeli strikes on Iran.

US President Donald Trump had previously dismissed Mojtaba Khamenei as a "lightweight" and insisted he should have a say in appointing a new Iranian leader.

China's foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told reporters on Monday that Iran's decision to appoint the younger Khamenei was "based on its constitution".

"China opposes interference in other countries' internal affairs under any pretext, and Iran's sovereignty, security, and territorial integrity should be respected," he said when asked about the threats against the new leader.

Israel and the United States have continued pounding Iran in recent days, with Tehran retaliating by launching waves of missile and drone attacks on Israel and Gulf neighbors hosting US forces.

Beijing is a close partner of Tehran and condemned the killing of the former supreme leader, but it has also criticized the Iranian strikes against Gulf states.

China's envoy to the Middle East urged de-escalation when he met Saudi Arabia's foreign minister for talks on Sunday.

"China urges all parties to immediately cease military operations, prevent further escalation of tensions, and avoid causing greater harm to the people of regional countries," Zhai Jun told his counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah.

China's Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, said Sunday that the war "should never have happened" and called for an end to fighting.

The conflict has threatened global energy security and trade, as well as China's oil supplies.

More than 80 percent of Iranian oil exports went to China last year, according to analytics firm Kpler.

That accounted for a relatively small proportion of China's total seaborne oil imports, standing at about 13 percent, Kpler data shows.

However, more than half of China's total seaborne crude imports last year came from the wider Middle East, Kpler said, making it highly dependent on transit through the Strait of Hormuz.

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World

Pope Leo Marks First Easter as Pontiff with Call for Hope Amid Global Conflicts

Pope Leo XIV presides over Easter Mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026 (AP)
Pope Leo XIV presides over Easter Mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026 (AP)
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Pope Leo Marks First Easter as Pontiff with Call for Hope Amid Global Conflicts

Pope Leo XIV presides over Easter Mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026 (AP)
Pope Leo XIV presides over Easter Mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026 (AP)

Pope Leo celebrated his first Easter Mass as pontiff with a call Sunday to exercise hope against “the violence of war that kills and destroys,” saying “we need this song of hope today” as conflicts spread around the world.

With the US-Israeli war on Iran in its second month and Russia’s ongoing campaign in Ukraine, Leo has repeatedly called for a halt in hostilities. In his Easter homily, the pope singled out those who wage war, abuse the weak and prioritize profits.

Leo, the first US-born pope, addressed the faithful from an open-air altar in St. Peter’s Square flanked with white roses, while the steps leading down to the piazza where the faithful gathered were filled with spring perennials, symbolically resonating with the pope’s message of hope.

The pontiff implored the faithful to keep their hope in the face of death, which lurks “in injustices, in partisan selfishness, in the oppression of the poor, in the lack of attention given to the most vulnerable.

“We see it in violence, in the wounds of the world, in the cry of pain that rises from every corner because of the abuses that crush the weakest among us, because of the idolatry of profit that plunders the earth’s resources, because of the violence of war that kills and destroys,” he said.

He quoted his predecessor Pope Francis in warning against falling into indifference in the face of “persistent injustice, evil, indifference and cruelty,” because “it is also true that in the midst of darkness, something new always springs to life and sooner or later produces fruit.”

He will later deliver the traditional “Urbi et Orbi” message — Latin for “to the city and the world.”

Christians in the Holy Land were marking a subdued Easter Traditional ceremonies at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, revered by Christians as the traditional site of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection, were scaled back under an agreement with Israeli police. Authorities have put limits on the sizes of public gatherings due to ongoing missile attacks.

The restrictions also dampened the recent Muslim holy month of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr holiday, as well as the current weeklong Jewish festival of Passover. On Sunday, the Jewish priestly blessing at the Western Wall — normally attended by tens of thousands — was limited to just 50 people.

The restrictions have strained relations between Israeli authorities and Christian leaders. Police last week prevented two of the church’s top religious leaders, including Latin Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa, from celebrating Palm Sunday at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

On Tuesday, the pope had expressed hope that the war could be finished before Easter.

World

China Executes Frenchman Convicted in 2010 for Drug Trafficking

A child holds a Chinese national flag near the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests in Beijing, China, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP)
A child holds a Chinese national flag near the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests in Beijing, China, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP)
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China Executes Frenchman Convicted in 2010 for Drug Trafficking

A child holds a Chinese national flag near the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests in Beijing, China, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP)
A child holds a Chinese national flag near the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests in Beijing, China, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP)

A Frenchman sentenced to death in China in 2010 for drug trafficking has been executed, France's foreign ministry announced on Saturday, expressing its "consternation."

Chan Thao Phoumy, a 62-year-old Frenchman born in Laos, was executed, "despite the efforts of the French authorities, including efforts to obtain a pardon on humanitarian grounds for our compatriot", said a ministry statement.

His defense team did not get access to the final court hearing, in violations of his rights, the ministry added. The sentence was carried out in Guangzhou the south of the country.

The ministry reaffirmed France's opposition to the death penalty "everywhere and in all circumstances" and called for "its universal abolition".

China's foreign ministry did not comment on the specifics of the case when asked on Sunday about the execution.

"Cracking down on drug-related crime is a shared responsibility of all countries," a statement provided to AFP said.

China "treats defendants of different nationalities equally, handles cases strictly and fairly in accordance with the law and protects the lawful rights and treatment of the parties involved", it said.

World

Iran Internet Blackout Is Longest Nationwide Shutdown on Record, Says NetBlocks

Iranians pose for pictures as they celebrate Iranian Nature's Day on the thirteenth day of Nowruz (Persian New Year), in a park in Tehran, Iran, 02 April 2026. (EPA)
Iranians pose for pictures as they celebrate Iranian Nature's Day on the thirteenth day of Nowruz (Persian New Year), in a park in Tehran, Iran, 02 April 2026. (EPA)
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Iran Internet Blackout Is Longest Nationwide Shutdown on Record, Says NetBlocks

Iranians pose for pictures as they celebrate Iranian Nature's Day on the thirteenth day of Nowruz (Persian New Year), in a park in Tehran, Iran, 02 April 2026. (EPA)
Iranians pose for pictures as they celebrate Iranian Nature's Day on the thirteenth day of Nowruz (Persian New Year), in a park in Tehran, Iran, 02 April 2026. (EPA)

Iran's internet blackout, first imposed well over a month ago, is now the longest nationwide shutdown on record, according to the monitor NetBlocks.

"Iran's internet blackout is now the longest nation-scale internet shutdown on record in any country, exceeding all other comparable incidents in severity having entered its 37th consecutive day after 864 hours," NetBlocks said in a tweet.

In another tweet, the monitor noted some countries had experienced intermittent or regional-level shutdowns over longer periods, while North Korea had never been connected to the global internet at all.