Four dead and 21 injured in Majorca building collapse
Images from the scene show emergency personnel moving sizeable debris outside the building
Four people have died and 21 are injured after a two-storey building collapsed in Majorca, emergency services say.
Several people are believed to be trapped at the site of the Medusa Beach Club, a beachside restaurant on Cartago Street in Palma de Majorca.
The incident reportedly happened at about 20:30 local time (19:30 BST).
Local emergency services said psychologists have also been called to the scene.
Eyewitness told local media that many of those inside the building at the time of the collapse were tourists. May is the beginning of the busy tourist season in the area.
The mayor of Palma, Jaime Martínez, is said to have travelled to the scene with the Deputy Mayor of Tourism.
A fire truck pictured outside the building in Palma de Majorca
The president of the Balearic Islands, Marga Prohens, said she was shocked by the incident and sent her condolences to the victims’ families.
Ms Prohens also thanked the emergency services and Pedro Sánchez, Spain’s Prime Minister, for his support.
The prime minister said he is closely following the incident and said his government is willing to collaborate with “all the means and personnel” needed, in a statement on X.
Majorca is one of Spain’s Balearic Islands, which more than 14 million tourists visited last year according to official figures.
President Emmanuel Macron says he will not force through a controversial voting reform in the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia following deadly rioting.
Speaking on a visit to the main island, Mr Macron said local leaders should engage in dialogue to find an alternative agreement for the archipelago's future.
Six people including two police officers have been killed and hundreds more wounded in riots, looting and arson.
Currently, voting in the territory is restricted to indigenous Kanaks and those who arrived from France before 1998.
The planned reform would see more French residents - including any who have been in New Caledonia for at least 10 years - able to vote.
Many Kanaks - who make up about 40% of the population - fear this would dilute their political voice and make any future independence referendum harder to achieve.
"I have pledged that this reform will not pass today in the current context," Mr Macron said.
"We will allow some weeks to allow a calming of tensions and resumption of of dialogue to find a broad accord" among all parties, he added, saying he would review the situation in a month.
Reuters
However Mr Macron insisted that the result of the last independence referendum, in which residents voted to remain part of France, could not be called into question.
New Caledonia has held four referendums on independence. The first two showed slim majorities for remaining part of France. The third was boycotted by pro-independence parties after the authorities refused to postpone the vote due to the Covid epidemic.
During his trip, Mr Macron had meetings with New Caledonian pro- and anti-independence leaders.
If the two sides were able to reach a new deal, the territory could then vote to adopt it in a referendum, he said.
Under the 1998 Nouméa Accord, France agreed to give New Caledonia - a group of islands between Australia and Fiji that became a French territory in the 19th Century - more political autonomy and to limit voting in provincial and assembly elections to those who were residents then.
More than 40,000 French nationals have moved to New Caledonia since.
Last week, the National Assembly in Paris proposed granting voting rights to French residents who had lived in the territory for 10 years, sparking a violent reaction.
The unrest has caused hundreds of millions of dollars worth of damage. None of the six people killed were shot by French security forces, French prosecutors say.
A state of emergency would be lifted when all the protesters' barricades had been dismantled, Mr Macron added. He described the violence as an "unprecedented insurrection movement" that no-one saw coming.
A 3,000-strong force deployed from France would remain in the territory including during the Paris Summer Olympics if needed, he said.
The airport in Nouméa, New Caledonia's capital, remains closed to commercial flights.
Military flights airlifted about 300 Australian and 50 New Zealand holidaymakers out of the territory. They reported witnessing arson and looting and experiencing food shortages.
Two people have been killed and at least 12 have been injured after a building collapsed on a beach in Majorca, emergency services said.
The building collapsed in the capital of the island, Palma - a tourist hotspot.
Spanish media is reporting the building affected is a restaurant.
Firefighters and local police were called to the scene just after 8pm local time, the Majorca Daily Bulletin reports.
Witnesses reported the terrace at the top of a popular restaurant had collapsed.
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Related: ‘Troublemaker’ William Lai Ching-te to take oath as Taiwan’s new president
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A furious China has launched major military exercises surrounding Taiwan, saying they are “punishment” for the comments of newly elected Taiwanese president Lai Ching-Te.
China, which claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, derides Mr Lai as “separatist”, and earlier this week denounced Mr Lai’s inauguration speech in which he called on China to stop its threats and said the two sides of the strait were “not subordinate to each other”.
Taiwan has scrambled its own jets and put missile, naval and land units on alert after the Chinese People’s Liberation Army started joint military drills, involving the army, navy, air force and rocket force, in areas around the island at 7.45am.
Taiwan’s defence ministry called the Chinese drills an “irrational provocation that has jeopardised regional peace and stability”. It said that though Taiwan does not seek conflict, it “will not shy away from one”.
The top US general in the Pacific has condemned China’s drills, calling it “the normalisation of abnormal action”. The statement drew an immediate sharp reaction from Beijing, which asked the US to stop supporting “Taiwan independence”.
Countries including Australia, South Korea and the US have raised concerns about the escalation of tensions as they called for “peace and stability” to be maintained.
Asian countries call for peace and stability in region
South Korea’s foreign ministry said that peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait should be maintained when asked during a briefing about simmering tension between China and Taiwan.
Japan also called on Taiwan and China to resolve the issue “peacefully through dialogue”.
“It is important to clearly communicate the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait directly to China, and work closely with allies including the United States and clearly communicate the shared position of each country,” said Yoshimasa Hayashi, the chief cabinet secretary of Japan.
In pictures: Taiwan scrambles jets as China encircles self-ruled island
Two people ride a motorcycle as a Taiwanese Air Force Mirage 2000 fighter jet approaches for landing at an air force base in Hsinchu in northern Taiwan on 23 May 2024 (AFP via Getty Images)
Ground staff members transport missiles near a Taiwan Air Force Mirage 2000-5 aircraft at Hsinchu Air Base, in Hsinchu (Reuters)
A Taiwan Air Force Mirage 2000-5 aircraft prepares to land at Hsinchu Air Base in Hsinchu (Reuters)
Taiwan Air Force Mirage 2000-5 aircraft prepare to take off at Hsinchu Air Base, in Hsinchu (Reuters)
China’s mock drill aims to ‘warn’ newly inaugurated Taiwan president
China’s mock military drill is not meant to accomplish anything “more than warn the just-inaugurate” Lai Ching-te administration that they are more than ready to react, and to deter any moves towards so-called Taiwan independence, says Collin Koh, a senior fellow at the institute of defence and strategic studies in Singapore.
Warning about potential escalation between the two, he says: “These opposing forces could actually be operating in pretty close proximity. The Taiwan forces are not just shadowing the individual Chinese assets... that brings them into direct contact with Chinese forces... there is the risk of inadvertent or accidental military clashes.”
For Beijing, Lai Ching-te’s speech asserting Taiwan’s sovereignty “is a declaration of war”, explains Victor Gao, chair professor at Soochow University in China. This is because Mr Lai “clearly distinguished China from Taiwan and completely destroyed the one-China principle.
“China wants to show that if Lai still wants to take the path of Taiwan independence... it can make Taiwan collapse without a war within a week or two, which will deal a fatal blow to the people of Taiwan. I think cross-Strait relations have reached a watershed, if Lai dares take a wrong step forward then there will be a cataclysm.”
Taiwan president says he will continue to defend freedom and democracy
Taiwan president Lai Ching-te said that he will continue to defend the values of freedom and democracy in the face of “external” challenges and threats.
Mr Lai made the comments to military officers in the northern city of Taoyuan, on the same day China launched drills around Taiwan.
Taiwan president Lai Ching-te speaks during a visit to inspect military troops in Taoyuan on 23 May 2024 (AFP via Getty Images)
China’s military drills ‘normalisation of abnormal action’
China’s military drills near Taiwan is “the normalisation of abnormal action,” says Lieutenant General Stephen Sklenka, deputy commander of US-Indo-Pacific command in Canberra.
“Just because we expect that behaviour doesn’t mean we shouldn’t condemn it,” he says.
“We need to condemn it publicly and it needs to come from us but it also needs to come from nations in the region ... it is far more powerful when it comes from nations in this region. It is concerning but I also believe in my heart of hearts that conflict between our two nations is not inevitable and its not a foregone conclusion.”
A Taiwan Air Force Mirage 2000-5 aircraft prepares to land at Hsinchu Air Base in Hsinchu (Reuters)
China could launch further military drills, Taiwan officials say
China could launch further military drills after the current one near Taiwan is over, having so far staged a series of exercises including mock attacks on Taiwanese and foreign ships, Taiwanese security officials said.
Some Chinese coast guard boats near Taiwan also conducted mock ship-boarding and inspection drills, the officials said, speaking anonymously given the sensitivity of the situation.
A Taiwan Air Force Mirage 2000-5 aircraft lands at Hsinchu Air Base in Hsinchu (Reuters)
China urges US to stop supporting ‘Taiwan independence’ forces
China’s foreign ministry urged the United States to stop supporting and encouraging “Taiwan independence” forces, and that its military exercises around Taiwan are a “necessary and legitimate move.”
Spokesperson Wang Wenbin made the comment in response to media reports of remarks by US Lieutenant General Stephen Sklenka’s remarks, who called the drills expected but “concerning.”
People look at a Taiwan Air Force Mirage 2000-5 aircraft as it prepares to land at Hsinchu Air Base in Hsinchu, Taiwan 23 May 2024 (Reuters)
Drills aims to shock Lai and blow to US, says expert
China’s drills encircling Taiwan is an attempt to shock newly elected president Lai Ching-te and the island’s independence force, says Wu Xinbo, the director of the Centre for American Studies at Fudan University in Shanghai.
“This is also certainly a blow to the US,” he says as he adds that the drills are a way of showing that “the mainland is willing to increase its deterrence towards Taiwan independence forces and strengthen its capability to mould the Taiwan Strait situation in response to the domestic changes in Taiwan.”
Taiwan scrambles jets and puts naval units on alert
Taiwan scrambled jets and put missile, naval and land units on alert over China’s military exercises.
China’s military said its two-day exercises around Taiwan were punishment for separatist forces seeking independence.
Beijing claims the island is part of China’s national territory and the People’s Liberation Army sends navy ships and warplanes into the Taiwan Strait and other areas around the island almost daily to wear down Taiwan’s defences and seek to intimidate its people, who firmly back their de facto independence.
A Taiwan Air Force Mirage 2000-5 aircraft prepares to land at Hsinchu Air Base in Hsinchu (Reuters)
The People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theatre Command said the land, navy and air exercises around Taiwan were meant to test the navy and air capabilities of the PLA units, as well as their joint strike abilities to hit targets and win control of the battlefield, the command said on its official Weibo account.
“This is also a powerful punishment for the separatist forces seeking ‘independence’ and a serious warning to external forces for interference and provocation,” the statement said.
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Six Britons are still fighting for their lives in hospital and survivors have spoken out after a Singapore Airlines flight was hit by “severe extreme turbulence”.
There was a total of 20 passengers in intensive care units in Bangkok on Wednesday evening as investigators arrived in the Thai capital to learn how the turbulence sent the plane into a sudden dive.
The incident happened 10 hours into the flight from London Heathrow to Singapore, when the Boeing 777 carrying 211 passengers and 18 crew members, dropped 6,000ft in about three minutes.
The dive tossed people around the cabin, with some suffering head injuries from hitting the ceiling.
After regaining control, the captain diverted the plane to Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport, where medical teams evaluated those aboard and sent more than 80 to hospital.
One person onboard the flight said passengers were ‘doing somersaults’ as the plane was hit by severe turbulence (Reuters)
In its latest update, Samitivej Srinakarin Hospital, where most of the injured were taken, said 20 people were being treated in intensive care, including the six Britons.
A total of 58 people were still under treatment at multiple medical facilities, and 27 had been discharged.
There was also tragedy, with 73-year-old Geoffrey Kitchen dying from a suspected heart attack. Mr Kitchen, from Thornbury near Bristol, was described as “the most wonderful human” by a friend on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, passengers who survived the ordeal emerged to speak to the press.
Josh Silverstone, who suffered a cut to his eye and a chipped tooth, said he woke up on the floor of the plane (AP)
Jerry, who was travelling to his son’s wedding, told the BBC the day was “the worst of my life”.
Speaking with a bandage covering part of his head, he said: “[It was] so sudden, there was no warning at all, and I ended up hitting my head on the ceiling, my wife did.
“Some poor people walking around ended up doing somersaults. It was absolutely terrible, and then suddenly it stopped and it was calm again, and the staff did their best to tend to the injured people.”
The British man killed in severe turbulence was named as Geoffrey Kitchen, from Thornbury near Bristol (Facebook)
Josh Silverstone, from south London, was discharged from hospital after suffering a cut to his eye and a chipped tooth.
The 24-year-old, who was on his way to Bali, said: “I woke up on the floor, I didn’t realise what happened, I must’ve hit my head somewhere. There were people laying out on the floor, they were paralysed.”
Fellow passenger Beverley Mayers, who was not injured, described the situation inside the plane as “sheer terror”.
“The whole plane was shuddering ... great pieces were falling off and dropping on the floor, people getting hit in the head,” she told Australia’sTV channel Nine.
Singapore Airlines said the flight encountered “sudden extreme turbulence” at 37,000ft above Myanmar’s Irrawaddy basin.
131 passengers and 12 crew members were well enough to travel on to Singapore‘s Changi Airport on Wednesday morning (EPA)
The airline’s chief executive, Goh Choon Phong, said: “We are very sorry for the traumatic experience that everyone on board SQ321 went through. We are fully cooperating with the relevant authorities on the investigations.”
The carrier said 131 passengers and 12 crew members from Flight SQ321 who were well enough to travel were picked up on a special flight and arrived early Wednesday at Singapore‘s Changi Airport.
A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson said officials are supporting the family of the passenger and are in contact with local authorities.
The east coast of Taiwan has long been the island's military redoubt.
It lies on the far side of a very high mountain range which rises close to 4,000 meters above sea level.
This coast is rugged with few areas suitable as landing beaches. Because of this Taiwan has built much of its hardened military infrastructure along this coast, including a large underground airbase inside a mountain near the city of Hualien.
It is also close to Japan’s southern islands, and a natural resupply route.
For many decades China did not possess the ability to attack Taiwan from the east, or to close the air and sea space on that side of the island. However, since 2022 China has sought to demonstrate that it can now do both.
In August 2022, for the very first time, it fired a ballistic missile over the top of Taiwan in to the Pacific Ocean.
Since then it has repeatedly sent naval and air patrols to the east. Today it is doing the same, only on a larger scale.
The aim is to show Taiwan that its eastern redoubt is now exposed to Chinese attack, and to show the Americans that any effort to resupply or re-enforce Taiwan from the east is vulnerable to Chinese missile strikes and naval attack.
Child among at least nine dead at Mexico election rally
Presidential candidate Jorge Alvarez Maynez was holding a rally at the time
At least nine people have been killed, including a child, and about 50 have been injured after part of a stage collapsed at an election rally in Mexico's northern Nuevo León state, the local governor has said.
The incident occurred as centre-left presidential candidate Jorge Alvarez Maynez was delivering a speech in the city of San Pedro Garza Garcia, near Monterrey.
Mr Maynez was uninjured in the collapse, and was seen speaking to supporters following the incident. Several members of his team had been hurt, he said.
The collapse was caused by a sudden gust of wind, Mr Maynez said in a post on X.
Footage has emerged apparently showing the moment the lighting structure collapsed as a number of people were on the stage.
Video posted on social media showed Mr Maynez waving to his supporters and then running to the back of the stage for safety as he realised part of the structure was toppling over.
People can also be heard screaming and running from the stage.
''First I saw the musicians' drums, from the group that was going to play, were going to get blown away," Mr Maynez said.
"When the others noticed, they ran in different directions; some jumped to the sides and I jumped back," he added.
The sudden gust of wind came without forewarning, Mr Maynez said, describing it as an "atypical [weather] event".
"What we experienced happened in just a few seconds: A gale came, a sudden wind, and unfortunately, it collapsed the stage, resulting in a fatal accident,” he told reporters at the scene.
The victims were eight adults and one child, State Governor Samuel Garcia said.
Three of those injured required surgery, he added, following a visit to a local hospital.
Posting on social media, Mr Garcia urged local residents to stay indoors because of thunderstorms and strong winds in the area.
"If you can, avoid going out because there are storms and atypical winds. I will keep you informed," he wrote on X.
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said he was sending "a hug to family members, friends of the victims and political supporters".
Emergency services took the injured to various nearby hospitals
Mr Maynez, 38, is the candidate of the Citizens' Movement party and is currently trailing in third place in national polls behind Claudia Sheinbaum of the ruling Morena Party and Xóchitl Gálvez, from the opposition coalition.
Mr Garcia was the Citizens' Movement Party's original candidate, but nominated his campaign co-ordinator Mr Maynez instead after a dispute over who would step in as governor while he campaigned. Mexican law requires officials to step down if they run for office.
As a result, Mr Maynez entered the presidential race in January - a relatively late start compared with Ms Sheinbaum and Ms Gálvez's September entries.
His previous role as campaign co-ordinator means he is relatively unknown against the two front-runners.
Mr Maynez announced that he would suspended upcoming campaign events, and Ms Sheinbaum said she had cancelled an appearance in nearby Monterrey on Thursday.
“My condolences and prayers with the families of the dead, and my wishes for a speedy recovery to all those injured,” Ms Gálvez wrote on social media.
The lead-up to the election, which is due to take place on 2 June, has been among the most deadly in Mexico's history.
A recent survey by Mexican political consultancy firm Integralia said some 200 public servants, politicians and candidates have been murdered or threatened in the lead up to the poll. There have been no reported incidents at campaign events.
