'Pandora's box': alarm bells in Indonesia over rising military role

One of the architects of US President Donald Trump's tariff blitz has advocated a shake-up of the global trade and financial systems, centred on a radical strategy to weaken the dollar.
Democratic US Senator Chris Van Hollen flew to El Salvador on Wednesday to press for the release of a US resident mistakenly deported to the Central American country.
The United Nations nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi warned Wednesday that Iran was "not far" from possessing a nuclear bomb, shortly before he arrived in Tehran for talks.
President Donald Trump called Harvard a "joke" Wednesday and said it should lose its government research contracts after the top US university refused to accept demands to come under outside political supervision.
President Emmanuel Macron warned Wednesday that assailants behind a wave of coordinated arson and gunfire attacks on French prisons would be "found, tried and punished".
The Bank of Canada on Wednesday held its key lending rate at 2.75 percent, pausing a stream of recent cuts due to shifting US trade policy and tariffs.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was headed Wednesday to Paris for talks on ending the war in Ukraine, his office said.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese promised on Wednesday to defend Australia's interests in its trade tangle with the United States, in a televised debate ahead of May 3 national elections.
Assailants targeted cars and a building lobby linked to prison staff in France overnight, the authorities said Wednesday, the latest in a series of coordinated attacks that have put the government on edge.
Global trade is expected to plummet this year in the wake of President Donald Trump's tariff offensive, fuelling uncertainty that threatens "severe negative consequences" for the world, the World Trade Organization warned Wednesday.
Google on Wednesday said it would "vigorously" defend itself after some 250,000 UK businesses filed a multi-billion-pound legal claim against the US tech giant for allegedly overcharging for online advertising.
Andre Onana will start in goal for Manchester United in their season-defining Europa League match against Lyon on Thursday, manager Ruben Amorim has confirmed.
Tiktok has banished a user who posted a "starter kit" meme targeting Gisele Pelicot, a French feminist icon who survived nearly a decade of rapes by dozens of men, the popular video app said Wednesday.
It's a world-famous scene: a steady and slightly chaotic stream of cyclists pedalling out of Amsterdam's Centraal Station, heading for the canals and cafes of the Dutch capital. Almost no one is wearing a helmet.
President Xi Jinping on Wednesday urged greater cooperation with Malaysia in the face of "shocks to the global order", during the Chinese leader's regional tour against the backdrop of a US trade war.
France on Wednesday urged Russia to immediately release four journalists sentenced to long prison terms for their association with the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
Gabon international striker Aaron Boupendza died on Wednesday at the age of 28 when he fell from the 11th floor of a building in China, according to the national football federation (Fegafoot).
Britain's Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that the legal definition of a "woman" is based on a person's sex at birth, a landmark decision with far-reaching implications for the bitter debate over trans rights.
Paris Saint-Germain's bid to win a first Champions League crown remains on course but the French giants only just survived a bumpy ride against Aston Villa on Tuesday as old ghosts almost came back to haunt them.
European and Asian stock markets mostly retreated Wednesday after the US government imposed restrictions on exports of a key Nvidia chip to China, the latest trade war salvo between the world's biggest economies.
Chinese President Xi Jinping met Malaysia's king on Wednesday in a state visit analysts said was aimed at burnishing Beijing's credentials as a reliable partner and "not a hegemon".
Israel said Wednesday it would keep blocking humanitarian aid from entering Gaza, where a relentless military offensive has turned the Palestinian territory into a "mass grave", a medical charity reported.
In the mainly Christian Palestinian town of Zababdeh, the runup to Easter has been overshadowed by nearby Israeli military operations, which have proliferated in the occupied West Bank alongside the Gaza war.
A pocket watch, tickets and money found among the belongings of passengers on the Titanic are among items on sale at a UK auction later this month.
Britain's Supreme Court ruled Wednesday the legal definition of a "woman" is based on a person's sex at birth, a landmark decision with far-reaching implications for the bitter debate over trans rights.
All Black centre Rieko Ioane is to join Champions Cup semi-finalists Leinster for next season, the player and his New Zealand franchise Blues announced on social media on Tuesday.
Barcelona reached the Champions League semi-finals for the first time since 2019 but Wednesday's defeat by Borussia Dortmund gave the Catalans cause for concern.
China told Washington on Wednesday to "stop threatening and blackmailing" after US President Donald Trump said it was up to Beijing to come to the negotiating table to discuss ending their trade war.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Wednesday that Iran's enrichment of uranium as part of its nuclear programme was "non-negotiable" after US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff called for a halt.
US President Donald Trump's aggressive but fast-changing trade policy has foisted difficult questions on carmakers that they have not yet been forced to answer.
The spectator who threw a water bottle at Mathieu van der Poel during the Paris-Roubaix race last weekend has apologised for his "stupid gesture".
Ailing Red Bull arrive on the Red Sea for this weekend's Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Jeddah desperate to prevent their 2025 season sinking into mediocrity.