Israel’s finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, has called for the return of Jewish settlers to the Gaza Strip after the war and said Gaza’s Palestinian population should be encouraged to emigrate, according to AFP.

“To have security, we must control the territory,” Smotrich told Israel’s Army Radio in response to a question about the prospect of re-establishing settlements in Gaza.

“In order to control the territory militarily for a long time, we need a civilian presence.”

The Israeli government under Benjamin Netanyahu has not officially suggested plans to evict Gazans or to send Jewish settlers back to the territory since the war broke out on 7 October.

Israel unilaterally withdrew the last of its troops and settlers in 2005, ending a presence inside Gaza that began in 1967, but maintained near complete control over the territory’s borders.

All settlements on occupied Palestinian land are regarded as illegal under international law, regardless of whether they were approved by Israel.

Taiwan: Presidential candidates debate in shadow of China

Amid fierce military and political pressure from Beijing, presidential candidates in Taiwan clashed over the island’s ties to mainland China in a televised debate.

Taiwan‘s presidential candidates argued over ways to handle the island’s relationship with Beijing during a TV debate on Saturday, two weeks ahead of the election set for January 13.

Beijing, which sees Taiwan as part of its territory, had previously halted high-level communications with the administration of outgoing Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen amid the rising threat of conflict.

What happened during the debate?

Tsai’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has campaigned for the election on a ticket of sovereignty separate from China.

During Saturday’s often testy debate, the DPP’s candidate Lai Ching-te described himself as a “pragmatic worker of Taiwan independence.”

DR Congo’s President Tshisekedi wins second term with 73% of the vote

Congo’s President Felix Tshisekedi won reelection with more than 70% of the vote, the country’s election commission said Sunday. The preliminary results of the Dec. 20 election were announced in the capital, Kinshasa, amid demands from the opposition and some civil society groups for the vote to be rerun due to massive logistical problems that put the validity of the outcome into question.

Tshisekedi was followed by businessman Moise Katumbi, who received 18% of the vote, and Martin Fayulu, who received 5%. Nobel Peace Prize winner Denis Mukwege, a physician renowned for treating women brutalized by sexual violence in eastern Congo, got less than 1%.

The election had more than a 40% turnout with some 18 million people voting. The results will be sent to the constitutional court for confirmation, election chief Denis Kadima said.

Opposition candidates opposing the results have two days to submit their claims, and the constitutional court then has seven days to decide. The final results are expected on January 10, and the president is scheduled to be sworn in at the end of that month.

Renowned Australian journalist John Pilger passes away at 84

From Palestine to Cambodia, Pilger worked extensively to expose human suffering caused by imperialist governments.

John Pilger, the renowned Australia-born investigative journalist who was a trenchant critic of the West’s “imperialist” foreign policy, has died at age 84.

His family released a short statement on his social media accounts on Sunday to confirm his passing in London, the British capital, a day earlier.

“His journalism and documentaries were celebrated around the world, but to his family he was simply the most amazing and loved Dad, Grandad and partner. Rest in peace,” the statement read.

He is survived by long-time partner, journalist Yvonne Roberts, and his two children, Sam and Zoe.

Navalny sends ‘Arctic hugs and polar greetings’ from Siberian prison in New Year’s Eve message

Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny says he doesn’t feel lonely and is in a “great” mood despite serving a lengthy prison sentence in Siberia, but he still misses interacting directly with his family and friends.

In a New Year’s Eve message shared by Navalny’s team on social media, Navalny is quoted as saying that this will be the third time “I have taken the traditional family New Year’s Eve photo with Photoshop.”

“I am trying to keep up with the times, and this time I asked an artificial intelligence to draw me. I hope it turned out something fantastic – I will not see the picture myself until the letter with it arrives on Yamal,” he joked.