Hot war

People hold signs as they gather in Hart Plaza in downtown Detroit, Michigan, US, to call for a ceasefire and voice their support for the Palestinian cause on 28 October 2023. (Jeff Kowalsky/AFP)

Israel-Hamas conflict: Is it right to always side with the weak?

With the world divided on being for or against Israel or Hamas, Chinese academic Zhang Tiankan looks at why the weak are not necessarily in the right during a conflict against the strong, as some would assert.
Special forces personnel take part in the  Double Ten Day celebration ceremony in Taipei, Taiwan, on 10 October 2023. (Carlos Garcia Rawlins/Reuters)

Gaza, Ukraine crises have implications for Taiwan

The emerging war fatigue and the twin crises in Ukraine and Gaza have analysts weighing up the implications for Taiwan. Ultimately, the US can afford Ukraine’s failure or even let the conflict in the Middle East continue, but it will do everything possible to keep Taiwan separate from China, says US academic Zhu Zhiqun.
A Palestinian youth reacts as he sits on the rubble of a destroyed home following an Israeli military strike on the Rafah refugee camp, in the southern Gaza Strip on 15 October 2023, amid the ongoing battles between Israel and Hamas. (Mohammed Abed/AFP)

China shifts stance on Israel-Hamas conflict?

A week after the war between Israel and Hamas broke out, China has openly criticised Israel, saying that its actions “have gone beyond self-defence”. China may be worried about the larger implications of war breaking out in the Middle East, says an academic that Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Edwin Ong spoke to.
Smoke billows following Israeli strikes amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza, on 13 October 2023. (Mohammed Salem/Reuters)

Chinese academic: No country can mediate the Israeli–Palestinian conflict

In the absence of a solution to the Palestinian issue, the Palestine-Israel peace process will be at a stalemate, unless Israel is able to completely destroy Hamas and other Palestinian anti-Israel forces. In the short term, Israel’s stance on Palestine, especially the Gaza Strip, is likely to harden, says Chinese academic Fan Hongda.
An aerial view shows damage caused following a mass infiltration by Hamas gunmen from the Gaza Strip, in Kibbutz Beeri in southern Israel, 11 October 2023. (Ilan Rosenberg/Reuters)

War in Gaza a litmus test for China's diplomatic ambitions in the Middle East

China has drawn international flak for not expressing a stronger stance on the Israel-Palestinian conflict, when just a few months ago, it was lauded for helping to ease tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia. While it is a key player in the region, China could easily fall back into its “balanced vagueness” foreign policy approach, says academic Alessandro Arduino.
Pro-Israel protesters gather at the "Shoes on the Danube Bank" memorial, during the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Budapest, Hungary, on 10 October 2023. (Bernadett Szabo/Reuters)

Israel-Palestine conflict: A chance for China-US cooperation?

The conflict between Israel and Palestine is a longstanding one that has been renewed following a surprise attack by Hamas on Israel, triggering retaliation and a declaration of war by Israel. Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Yang Danxu notes that an important player in the situation is China, following its efforts in the Middle East. Could this be the middle ground for China to cooperate with the US amid their strained relations?
An activist wearing a mask of Russia's President Vladimir Putin stands next to fellow activists of the IPPNW (International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War) peace organisation posing behind a mockup of a nuclear bomb as they demonstrate for the abolition of nuclear weapons in front of the Russian embassy in Berlin on 23 June 2023. (Odd Andersen/AFP)

Will Russia act on its threat to use nuclear weapons?

Chinese academic Chu Zhaogen notes that while Russia tends to threaten the use of nuclear weapons, especially amid the current war in Ukraine, chances are that it is well aware that doing so would invite unwelcome and devastating consequences. This makes it unlikely that it will actually act on its rhetoric.
Armed vehicles and Taiwan military soldiers attend the annual Han Kuang anti-landing drill at Bali beach, New Taipei City, Taiwan, on 27 July 2023. (Sam Yeh/AFP)

Declaration of ‘Taiwan independence’ could start a war in the Taiwan Strait

During a recent geopolitics conference in Taipei, experts weighed in on the Taiwan Strait situation, assessing that political factors are more likely than military factors to trigger a war. Lianhe Zaobao journalist Miao Zong-Han tells us more about what the experts said.
Bai Chongxi was a general in the war against Japan, and the father of writer Bai Xianyong.

General Bai Chongxi: A father and his children [Photo story]

General Bai Chongxi was a war hero in the war against Japan, who taught his children to love their country and their roots. His fifth child Bai Xianyong would grow up to be a well-known writer, while eldest son Bai Xiandao would inherit his father’s looks — and a photo album, later acquired by photograph collector Zou Dehuai, who shares some of the images within.