World
Philippines deploys new coast guard ship to Sabina Shoal, defying China's demands for withdrawal
- The Philippines is sending a new vessel to replace the coast guard ship Teresa Magbanua at Sabina Shoal, following its return to port.
- China had demanded the withdrawal of the Teresa Magbanua, saying it was “illegally stranded” at Sabina Shoal.
- China’s coast guard criticized the Philippines’ actions as a serious infringement on its territorial sovereignty.
The Philippines said it was sending a vessel to Sabina Shoal to replace a coast guard ship that returned to port on Sunday after a five-month deployment at the contested feature in the South China Sea, in a swap that would likely irk China.
Beijing had demanded the Philippines withdraw the 318-foot coast guard vessel Teresa Magbanua it claimed was “illegally stranded” at the atoll, which it asserts it owns as part of its broader claim to nearly the entire South China Sea.
“The Philippine side’s actions have seriously infringed on China’s territorial sovereignty,” Liu Dejun, a spokesperson for China’s coast guard said in a statement on Sunday about what it referred to as Manila’s “withdrawal” of its ship.
A TIMELINE OF CLASHES BETWEEN CHINA AND THE PHILIPPINES IN SOUTH CHINA SEA, FOLLOWING LATEST SHIP COLLISION
Teresa Magbanua, which was deployed at Sabina Shoal to monitor what Manila suspects to be China’s small-scale land reclamation activities in the area, has returned to port as its mission has been accomplished, the Philippine Coast Guard and National Maritime Council (NMC) said. “Another will immediately take over,” NMC spokesperson Alexander Lopez said, citing an order from the Philippine Coast Guard chief. “Definitely, we will keep our presence there.”
A Chinese Coast Guard ship is seen past the Philippine Coast Guard ship BRP Cape Engaño during a supply mission to Sabina Shoal in disputed waters of the South China Sea on Aug. 26, 2024. The Philippines said it was sending a vessel to Sabina Shoal to replace a coast guard ship that returned to port on Sunday after a five-month deployment. (JAM STA ROSA/AFP via Getty Images)
Sabina Shoal, which China refers to as Xianbin Reef and the Philippines as the Escoda Shoal, lies 93 miles west of the Philippine province of Palawan, well within the country’s exclusive economic zone.
Teresa Magbanua’s presence there has angered Beijing, turning the shoal into the latest flashpoint in the contested waterway.
Manila and Beijing have traded accusations of intentional ramming of each others’ vessels near Sabina last month, just after reaching a pact on resupply missions to a beached Filipino naval ship in the Second Thomas Shoal.
Teresa Magbanua’s return was necessary for the medical needs of its crew and to undergo repairs, and once it has been resupplied and repaired, it will resume its mission, along with other coast guard and military assets “as defenders of our sovereignty,” Lucas Bersamin, executive secretary and NMC chairman said in a statement.
The move followed high-level talks between Manila and Beijing in China last week when the Philippines reaffirmed its position on Sabina and China reiterated its demand that the vessel be withdrawn.
China’s coast guard said it would continue to carry out law enforcement activities in the waters under Beijing’s jurisdiction in accordance with the law and safeguard its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests.
China claims sovereignty over most of the South China Sea, overlapping into maritime zones of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.
In 2016, the Hague arbitration tribunal voided China’s expansive and historical claims, a decision Beijing rejects.
World
WHO declares Ebola outbreak in Central Africa a public health emergency after 80 suspected deaths
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The World Health Organization declared an Ebola outbreak in Central Africa an international public health emergency on Sunday after dozens of suspected deaths were reported in the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighboring Uganda.
The outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo virus, does not meet the criteria for a pandemic emergency, the WHO said.
The declaration follows reports of 80 suspected deaths, eight laboratory-confirmed cases and 246 suspected cases as of Saturday across at least three health zones in the Democratic Republic of Congo, including Bunia, Rwampara and Mongbwalu.
The development comes as global health officials continue monitoring a rare hantavirus outbreak tied to the MV Hondius cruise ship, which left multiple passengers and crew members sick, and caused three deaths.
NEW EBOLA OUTBREAK LEAVES 65 DEAD AS OFFICIALS WARN OF CROSS-BORDER SPREAD
A health worker sprays disinfectant on a colleague after working at an Ebola treatment center in Beni, eastern Congo, on Sept. 9, 2018. (Al-hadji Kudra Maliro/AP)
As of May 13, the WHO said 11 hantavirus cases had been identified in connection with the cruise outbreak, including eight confirmed cases, two probable cases and one inconclusive case.
In neighboring Uganda’s capital, Kampala, the WHO said two apparently unrelated laboratory-confirmed Ebola cases — including one death — were reported Friday and Saturday involving people who had traveled from the DRC.
Another laboratory-confirmed case was reported in the DRC capital of Kinshasa involving a person returning from Ituri province.
Initial tests suggested the outbreak does not involve the Ebola Zaire strain, which caused Congo’s devastating 2018–2020 epidemic that killed more than 1,000 people.
EBOLA OUTBREAK REPORTED IN AFRICAN COUNTRY — HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Health workers wearing protective suits tend to an Ebola victim in an isolation tent in Beni, Congo, on July 13, 2019. (Jerome Delay/AP)
However, unlike Ebola-Zaire strains, there are currently no approved vaccines or therapeutics for the Bundibugyo strain, which the WHO described as making the outbreak “extraordinary.”
The WHO warned the outbreak could be larger than currently reported due to the high positivity rate among initial samples and the growing number of suspected cases.
The outbreak also poses a public health risk to other countries, the WHO said, urging nations to activate emergency-management systems and implement cross-border screening measures.
‘DISEASE X’ HAS KILLED DOZENS IN THE CONGO — HERE’S WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT THE MYSTERY ILLNESS
Ambulances parked at Bunia General Referral Hospital following confirmation of an Ebola outbreak involving the Bundibugyo strain in Bunia, Ituri province, Democratic Republic of Congo, May 16, 2026. (REUTERS/Victoire Mukenge)
Ebola is a highly contagious and often fatal disease spread through bodily fluids, including blood, vomit and semen. Symptoms can include fever, vomiting, diarrhea, muscle pain and internal bleeding.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus recently said Congo has a “strong track record” responding to Ebola outbreaks while announcing the release of $500,000 in emergency funding to support containment efforts.
The WHO said it will convene an emergency committee to review recommendations for how affected countries should respond.
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Health workers dressed in protective gear begin their shift at an Ebola treatment center in Beni, Congo, on July 16, 2019. (Jerome Delay/AP)
The organization did not recommend border closures or travel restrictions.
Congo has now recorded 17 Ebola outbreaks since the virus was first identified in the country in 1976.
Fox News Digital’s Jasmine Baehr and Brittany Miller, along with Reuters, contributed to this report.
Iran to reveal its plan for Strait of Hormuz soon as Israel attacks Lebanon and Gaza, killing and wounding dozens.
Published On 17 May 2026
World
Colin Jost Says ‘SNL’ Rejected Joke About Pete Hegseth Reading ‘Pulp Fiction’ Bible Verse Two Weeks Before It Happened in Real Life
Donald Trump’s defense secretary Pete Hegseth was widely mocked in April after he read a fake Bible verse from Quentin Tarantino’s 1994 classic “Pulp Fiction” during a Pentagon worship service. It turns out Colin Jost sort of saw it coming.
During a recent visit to “The Tonight Show,” Jost revealed that before Hegseth’s viral gaffe he told the “SNL” writers room: “Would it be funny if Hegseth just did that Bible verse that they have in ‘Pulp Fiction’ Remember, from Ezekiel, Samuel L. Jackson?”
The writers shot down Jost’s pitch, deeming it “too ridiculous” and claiming it “would take up all this time in the cold open. “And then he for real did it, like two weeks later and I was like, ‘Well, the good news is, I’m being surveilled, so that’s a relief.’” Jost has been playing Hegseth on “SNL” this season to much acclaim from critics and viewers.
The real Hegseth was at a Pentagon prayer service in April when he read the altered version of Ezekiel 25:17 that’s delivered by Samuel L. Jackson’s character in “Pulp Fiction” before he shoots a man. Hegseth said the prayer was recited by the “Sandy 1” Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) mission in Iran.
Calling on everyone to pray with him, Hegseth then read a prayer that was nearly word-for-word the line delivered by Jackson in Tarantino’s film: “The path of the downed aviator is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who in the name of camaraderie and duty shepherds the lost through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother’s keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to capture and destroy my brother, and you will know my call sign is Sandy 1 when I lay my vengeance upon thee. Amen.”
Watch Jost’s full interview on “The Tonight Show” in the video below.
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