Snowstorm traps hundreds of hikers on Mount Everest during China’s national holiday
Rescuers were helping hundreds of hikers trapped by heavy snow at tourist campsites on a slope of Mount Everest in Tibet, Chinese state media said, Associated Press reported.
About 350 hikers had reached a meeting point in Tingri country and rescuers were in contact with another 200, state broadcaster CCTV said late Sunday. There was no immediate update on rescue efforts on Monday.
The hikers were trapped at an elevation of more than 4,900 meters (16,000 feet), according to an earlier report from Jimu News, a Chinese online site. Mount Everest is about 8,850 meters (29,000 feet) tall.
A hiker who rushed to descend before snow blocked the way told Jimu News that others still on the mountain told him the snow was 1 meter (3 feet) deep and had crushed tents, according to Associated Press.
Israel and Hamas prepare for negotiations in Egypt ahead of possible Gaza ceasefire
Israel and Hamas prepared for indirect negotiations in Egypt on Monday, as hopes for a possible ceasefire in Gaza grew after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said a hostage release could be announced this week, Associated Press reported.
Tuesday marks two years since the Hamas attack that sparked the war.
President Donald Trump has welcomed the Hamas statement accepting some elements of the U.S. peace plan. Israel has said it supported the new U.S. effort. Under the plan, Hamas would release the remaining 48 hostages — about 20 believed to be alive — within three days. It would give up power and disarm.
The delegation led by top Israeli negotiator Ron Dermer will leave Monday for the talks in Sharm el-Sheikh, Netanyahu’s office said. An Egyptian official said the Hamas delegation had arrived. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to brief reporters, said U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff is joining the talks, according to Associated Press.
Death toll from Indonesia school collapse rises to 54
The death toll from the collapse of a school in Indonesia has risen to 54, authorities said, with rescuers still searching for more than a dozen missing people, BBC reported.
Hundreds of students, most of them teenage boys, had gathered for prayers at the Al Khoziny Islamic boarding school in East Java when it collapsed last Monday while undergoing construction.
Indonesia's disaster mitigation agency says it is the country's deadliest disaster this year. Rescuers are expected to complete their search for 13 victims trapped under the rubble by the end of the day.
Investigators are still looking into the cause of the collapse. Some officials said the two-storey building caved in because its foundation was unstable, according to BBC.
Billionaire populist Andrej Babis' party wins Czech parliamentary election
Billionaire businessman Andrej Babis has won parliamentary elections in the Czech Republic, although his populist ANO party fell short of an overall majority, BBC reported.
ANO received just under 35% of the vote, earning them 80 seats in the 200-seat lower house – up from 72 seats four years ago, according to preliminary results.
Babis – who served as prime minister from 2017 to 2021 – is expected to be invited to lead talks on forming a new coalition.
"This is a historic success," Andrej Babis announced to cheering supporters at the ANO headquarters in the suburbs of Prague, according to BBC.
