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marking Saigon's 50th anniversary, Viet Thanh Nguyen—USC professor and Pulitzer winner for The Sympathizer—recalled arriving in America as a 1975 child refugee. The Vietnamese-American scholar linked US failures in Vietnam to current Middle East campaigns, calling Israel's actions "settler colonialism" and noting America's pattern of backing occupations. Having lived through Saigon's fall, he compared Afghan and Vietnamese refugees' desperation when "betrayed" by US withdrawals. An outspoken critic of US foreign policy, Nguyen argued successive administrations only learned "to wage wars better", repeating mistakes from Iraq to Palestine. His novels dissect these war legacies while his academic work examines displacement trauma. Speaking as both refugee and intellectual, he stressed how colonialism shaped Vietnamese-American identity—a duality informing his critique of US global interventions. The interview highlighted his unique perspective bridging lived experience and geopolitical analysis.

Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip have killed at least 19 Palestinians since dawn on Wednesday. Children were among those killed in strikes on Deir Al Balah. The dead and injured have been taken to Al Aqsa Hospital. Multiple residential buildings were targeted in the Nuseirat refugee camp. At least 8 Palestinians were killed in those attacks. In Jabalia, northern Gaza, three members of the same family were killed in an air strike on their home. And in Gaza City, a fisherman was killed on his boat.

The UN's top court will hold its third day of hearings on Wednesday, to assess Israel's humanitarian responsibilities as an occupying power in Palestinian territories. On day two, South Africa condemned Israel's actions in Gaza, while Saudi Arabia called on the international community to end illegal settler encroachment in the occupied West Bank. In about 30 minutes - Israel's biggest ally - the US - will open day three with a statement. Russia will follow.

Wednesday marks the 50th anniversary of the fall of Saigon and the end of the Vietnam War, a conflict that exposed the limits of American power abroad. The event will be marked with ceremonies across the country, commemorating the sacrifice of the more than three million people who died.

Israel is perpetrating a “live-streamed genocide” in Gaza, committing illegal acts with the “specific intent” of wiping out Palestinians, Amnesty International has said. Israeli forces in Gaza have violated the United Nations Genocide Convention with acts that include “causing serious bodily or mental harm to civilians” and “deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical destruction”, the human rights organisation said in its annual report released on Monday. “Since 7 October 2023 – when Hamas perpetrated horrific crimes against Israeli citizens and others and captured more than 250 captives – the world has been made audience to a live-streamed genocide,” Amnesty’s secretary-general, Agnes Callamard, said in the introduction to the report. “States watched on as if powerless, as Israel killed thousands upon thousands of Palestinians, wiping out entire multigenerational families, destroying homes, livelihoods, hospitals and schools.” Israel and “its powerful allies, first among them the USA, claimed that or acted as if international law did not apply to them”, Callamard said. “The situation has never been more serious for Gaza, Palestinians, Israelis and the world. We are on the edge of an abyss,” Callamard concluded.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has begun its second day of hearings into Israel’s humanitarian obligations to Palestinians, more than 50 days into Israel’s total blockage on aid entering the Gaza Strip.

The US military sprayed millions of hectares of Vietnamese land with Agent Orange, a defoliant containing dioxin — a chemical linked to cancer, birth defects, and long-term environmental damage. Vietnam estimates 400,000 people were killed by the toxin. Although the US had been helping with the cleanup, efforts stopped following aid cuts by the Trump administration.

Canada’s governing Liberal Party has won national elections dominated by United States President Donald Trump’s trade war and annexation threats. Prime Minister Mark Carney will keep the top job after projections showed his Liberals on course to win the most seats in the 343-member parliament, national broadcaster CBC and CTV News reported late on Monday. It was not clear if Carney, a career economist who cast himself as a champion for Canada in the face of Trump’s threats, would be able to form a majority government or need to rely on the support of a smaller party.

The Hague, Ardi Imseis, a legal representative for the state of Palestine at the ICJ, condemned Israel’s occupation as a breach of international law, stating it must prioritise Palestinian welfare – the opposite of current actions. He described unprecedented atrocities including starvation warfare and indiscriminate bombing. The hearing, he told Al Jazeera, focused on Israel’s binding duty to facilitate humanitarian aid. While ICJ rulings aren’t enforceable, Imseis emphasised their authority as the UN’s highest legal pronouncements, shaping global legitimacy. The court’s advisory opinion, he stressed to Al Jazeera, would compel the General Assembly to address Israel’s violations. This forms part of a wider legal strategy to challenge what he termed an “illegal occupation”.

The Hague hears another case against Israel, in what could be a test of Israeli defiance of international law. More than 40 nations argue that the ban on the UN Palestinian rights agency is a breach of the UN charter. But Israel has shown in the past that it has no issue ignoring international law. So, will any decision made in Europe have an impact on the millions of Palestinians in Gaza struggling to find food under an Israeli blockade that's now lasted nearly two months?