This piece is freely available to read. Become a paid subscriber today and help keep Mencari News financially afloat so that we can continue to pay our writers for their insight and expertise.

Today is November 18

This is The Foreign Page, your daily portal into Mencari News's universe as well as our interpretation of the global scene.

Your subscription to Mencari will help to fund our operations as an independent media organisation.

Join over 1000 readers. Sign up here.

We'd love it if you could share the email with your friends! Just (copy the URL here.

Today's reading time is 5 minutes. - Miko Santos

Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal sentenced former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to death Monday for crimes against humanity related to her brutal crackdown on student protesters in 2024. The tribunal found Hasina and former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan guilty of ordering the use of deadly force, including helicopters, drones, and lethal weapons, against demonstrators during the July-August uprising that killed over 800 people and ultimately toppled her 15-year rule. Both were sentenced in absentia as they currently remain in exile in India.

The verdict has intensified diplomatic tensions between Bangladesh and India, as New Delhi has refused to extradite the convicted officials despite an existing extradition treaty. With Hasina unable to appeal unless she surrenders within 30 days, her Awami League party has called for a national shutdown to protest what they call a “biased and politically motivated” verdict. Bangladesh’s interim government, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, is now pressing India to return both convicts as the nation prepares for elections in February while grappling with ongoing instability and violence.

China has issued an official travel warning advising its citizens to avoid visiting Japan, marking Beijing’s most substantive retaliation yet to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s recent comments about Taiwan. The advisory, announced by China’s Foreign Ministry Friday, cites “blatantly provocative remarks on Taiwan” that have created “additional risks to the safety and security of Chinese citizens in Japan.” Major Chinese airlines including Air China, China Eastern, and China Southern subsequently began offering refunds and free ticket changes for Japan travel.

The diplomatic crisis erupted after Takaichi stated in parliament that a Chinese attack on Taiwan would constitute “a situation threatening Japan’s survival” and could trigger a military response from Tokyo. China’s Ministry of Defense separately warned Japan would “suffer a crushing defeat” if it intervened militarily in the Taiwan Strait. The escalation comes less than two weeks after Xi Jinping and Takaichi met at an international summit and agreed to pursue stable bilateral relations, highlighting how quickly China-Japan ties can deteriorate over the sensitive Taiwan issue.

Pope Leo XIV condemned a pattern of global violence against Christians following a massacre at a church-run hospital in the Democratic Republic of Congo that killed at least 17 people, including mothers who were nursing their infants. In a statement posted Monday, the pontiff called attention to what he described as growing persecution of Christians in Bangladesh, Nigeria, Mozambique, Sudan and other nations, while specifically mourning “the families of Kivu, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where in recent days there has been a massacre of civilians.”

The attack occurred Friday night when fighters from the Allied Democratic Forces, a militant group aligned with the Islamic State, stormed the diocesan health center in Byambwe, North Kivu, killing patients in their beds and setting the facility ablaze, according to local officials. Col. Alain Kiwewa told The Associated Press that “women who were breastfeeding were brutally slaughtered and found with their throats slit in their hospital beds,” with 11 women and six men killed. Several newborns are believed to have been kidnapped in the attack on the hospital, which was operated by the Little Sisters of the Presentation and provided maternal care in a region with few functioning medical facilities. The ADF, which pledged allegiance to the Islamic State in 2019, has repeatedly targeted Christians and religious facilities across eastern Congo.

In partnership with Podwires

Stay ahead of the curve with breaking news and insights, and tap into freelance marketplace opportunities tailored for podcast producers like you.

👉️ Subscribe now for free

Poland is investigating an explosion on a critical railway line leading to the Ukraine border as an “unprecedented act of sabotage” likely orchestrated by foreign intelligence services. Prime Minister Donald Tusk visited the damaged site southeast of Warsaw Monday morning, confirming the blast was deliberate and appeared aimed at derailing a train carrying passengers. Interior Minister officials later stated there was a “very high chance” the attack was carried out on foreign orders, with strong implications pointing toward Russian involvement as part of Moscow’s ongoing hybrid warfare campaign against Western nations supporting Ukraine.

The explosion occurred Sunday morning near Mika, approximately 100 kilometers southeast of Warsaw, on a rail route that serves as a vital military supply corridor for Ukraine. Investigators are also examining a second suspicious incident further down the same line where a packed passenger train was forced to make an emergency stop. Polish authorities have collected significant evidence including security camera footage, though no suspects have been detained. The attack represents the first direct assault on Poland’s railway infrastructure despite years of sabotage attempts, arson attacks, and parcel bombings attributed to Russian intelligence operations.

The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote as early as Tuesday on forcing the release of investigative files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, with passage virtually guaranteed after President Donald Trump reversed his longstanding opposition to disclosure. Trump’s dramatic about-face came days after a House petition gathered sufficient bipartisan support to force a vote, representing a rare instance where congressional Republicans defied the president’s initial wishes. Until the weekend, Trump and his staff had aggressively lobbied to prevent further release of Justice Department files from the criminal investigation into Epstein, the wealthy financier who maintained friendship with Trump during the 1990s and 2000s.

The president declared Sunday night that “House Republicans should vote to release the Epstein files, because we have nothing to hide,” while characterizing the push for transparency as a “Democrat Hoax perpetrated by Radical Left Lunatics.” Trump has simultaneously ordered Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate prominent Democrats’ ties to Epstein, marking a highly unusual public directive for a department traditionally held independent of presidential influence. If the House passes the measure, it would advance to the Senate for consideration before reaching Trump’s desk for signature. California Representative Robert Garcia stated that Trump “has tried everything to kill our Jeffrey Epstein investigation” but “has failed.”

OpenAI announced the launch of group chat functionality in ChatGPT on November 13, 2025, enabling users to collaborate with up to 20 other people and the AI assistant in shared conversations. The feature is initially available to logged-in ChatGPT users across all subscription tiers—Free, Go, Plus, and Pro—in Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, and Taiwan. The new capability allows friends, families, and coworkers to plan events, make decisions, and work through ideas collectively while maintaining privacy controls that keep personal ChatGPT memory separate from group interactions.

The non-profit organisation based in San Francisco gathers billions of web pages in a huge digital archiving project to preserve out internet history from being erased.It also stores and catalogue millions of books, records and videos from around the world.

Engagement rings are evolving in 2026 — and so are their center stones. Brides today are redefining tradition with designs that reflect personal style, creativity, and modern values. According to VRAI’s fine jewelry experts, this year’s most sought-after diamond cuts balance timeless romance with a fresh sense of individuality.

The Foreign Page is edited by Mencari’s Miko SantosWe want to hear from you. Click below to email us with your questions, ideas and feedback.