Anonymous ID: 9f9f04 Dec. 25, 2019, 12:37 p.m. No.7619449   🗄️.is đź”—kun   >>9462 >>9475

Gaza rocket fired at Israeli city during Netanyahu visit - TV

 

A rocket was launched from the Gaza Strip at a southern Israeli city on Wednesday as it hosted a campaign visit by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, prompting him to briefly take shelter, Israeli TV stations reported.

 

The Israeli military confirmed the launch against Ashkelon, which is 12 km (7.5 miles) from the coastal Palestinian enclave, saying the rocket was shot down by an Iron Dome air defence interceptor.

 

There was no immediate claim of responsibility in Gaza, which is under the control of Hamas Islamists and where a smaller armed faction, Islamic Jihad, exchanged fire with Israel during a two-day surge of violence last month.

 

Israeli TV stations showed Netanyahu, who is campaigning to keep the helm of the conservative Likud party in an internal election on Thursday, being escorted off a stage by bodyguards.

 

The stations reported that he was taken to a bomb shelter after rocket sirens sounded but then returned to resume the event.

 

Netanyahu’s office had no immediate comment.

 

While Netanyahu is widely expected to retain Likud’s leadership, he faces a tough battle ahead of a March general election in Israel - its third in a year, after he and his centrist rival Benny Gantz failed to secure majorities in two previous ballots. Netanyahu’s standing has been dented by an indictment on corruption charges that he denies.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-israel-palestinians-violence/gaza-rocket-fired-at-israeli-city-during-netanyahu-visit-tv-idUKKBN1YT0PA

Anonymous ID: 9f9f04 Dec. 25, 2019, 12:56 p.m. No.7619567   🗄️.is đź”—kun

>>7619537

They picked up three moar in same arrest.

 

Japan ruling party legislator Akimoto, 3 others arrested over graft allegations

 

Prosecutors on Dec. 25 arrested ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) legislator Tsukasa Akimoto on suspicion of taking bribes from a Chinese business in connection with a project to open an integrated resort (IR) including a casino. The Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office's special investigation unit also arrested three other individuals linked to the case, including those associated with the Chinese firm that was seeking to take part in the IR project, on suspicion of giving bribes to the lawmaker.

 

Akimoto, 48, a member of the House of Representatives, denied the allegations against him, telling the Mainichi Shimbun the same day, "I didn't receive any money. I will fight it out."

 

The three individuals arrested the same day are: Masahiko Konno, 48, who served as an adviser to the Chinese firm; Katsunori Nakazato, 47, former member of the Urasoe Municipal Assembly in Okinawa Prefecture; and a 37-year-old former director of the Japanese arm of the Chinese company. Akimoto is accused of receiving 3 million yen in cash sometime around late September 2017 when he was serving as state minister of land, infrastructure, transport and tourism, as well as state minister of the Cabinet Office. He is also suspected of accepting favors worth around 700,000 yen as expenses for a trip to Hokkaido and other costs around February 2018.

 

Konno is a self-proclaimed consultant and was apparently based in Okinawa and China. He had posted a photo of himself and Akimoto in the latter's office on social media, in an apparent bid to highlight their close relationship. Nakazato, meanwhile, is acquainted with Akimoto and Konno and was engaged in activities to help the Chinese firm's participation in the IR project. The third individual, the director of the firm's Japanese subsidiary, is also suspected of bringing massive amounts of cash into Japan without notifying customs.

 

The Chinese firm supplies online games and sports lotteries, among other businesses, and established the Japanese arm in July 2017. The following month, the firm announced its plan to invest in Okinawa to develop an IR there at a symposium held in Naha, the capital of the southernmost prefecture. Akimoto delivered a keynote speech at the event.

 

The Chinese company also frequently approached senior officials of the Rusutsu Municipal Government in Hokkaido, which had also declared its bid to host an IR. When a resort operator in the northernmost prefecture unveiled its plan to host an IR in Rusutsu in January 2018, the Chinese firm came forward to invest in the project.

 

Furthermore, the Chinese firm also repeatedly held meetings with individuals associated with the Rusutsu Municipal Government at the introduction of the resort operator. In around April 2018, Nakazato visited Akimoto's office to attend a petition seeking the legislator's cooperation in the village's bid to host an IR.

https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20191225/p2a/00m/0na/009000c