MEXICO CITY, Oct. 29– Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Tuesday voiced opposition to recent U.S. attacks on suspected drug trafficking vessels in international waters and confirmed the launch of a rescue operation for a survivor.

Speaking at her daily press conference at the National Palace in Mexico City, Sheinbaum said the operation was conducted by the Mexican Navy “on humanitarian grounds and in accordance with international treaties.”

“We do not agree with these attacks,” Sheinbaum said, adding that she has instructed the foreign ministry and the Navy to open a dialogue with U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ronald Johnson to clarify the incidents and ensure compliance with international agreements.

According to U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, three strikes were carried out Monday against four vessels suspected of carrying drugs in the Eastern Pacific, resulting in the deaths of 14 “narco-terrorists” and leaving one survivor.

The Mexican Navy later confirmed that it launched a maritime search and rescue mission in the southwest waters off the port of Acapulco in southern Guerrero state, deploying a long-range patrol ship and a maritime patrol aircraft.

“Based on the subsequent statement by the U.S. Secretary of Defense, the survivor is now believed to be a crew member of one of the vessels targeted in the operation,” the Navy said on social media. (Xinhua)

CANBERRA, Oct. 28  — Social media companies TikTok, Meta and Snap told the Australian parliament on Tuesday that they will comply with the nation’s world-first social media ban for under-16s.

Under laws passed by the Australian government in 2024, children younger than 16 will be blocked from holding accounts on social media platforms from Dec. 10, 2025.

Addressing a senate inquiry on Tuesday, executives from TikTok parent company ByteDance, Snapchat owner Snap and Meta, parent company of Facebook and Instagram, said they would comply with the ban and start deactivating children’s accounts once the law takes effect.

Jennifer Stout, Snap’s senior vice president of global policy, told the inquiry via video link that the company would comply despite its opposition to the law.

Snapchat and the Google-owned YouTube had previously argued that they are not social media platforms and should be exempt from the ban.

Stout said on Tuesday that the ban could drive teenagers towards other messaging services that lack Snapchat’s safety and privacy protections.

“We will comply with the law, even though we believe it has been unevenly applied,” she said. Meta’s policy director for Australia and New Zealand, Mia Garlick, told the inquiry that the company would soon approach around 450,000 under-16 Facebook and Instagram account holders in Australia, offering a choice between deleting their data or storing it until they turn 16.

ByteDance and Snap said they would take similar steps. Under the legislation for the ban, social media companies that fail to take reasonable steps to prevent children younger than 16 from accessing their platforms will face fines worth up to 49.5 million Australian dollars (32.4 million U.S. dollars). (Xinhua)

JERUSALEM/GAZA, Oct. 28 — Israel on Monday night received the body of an unidentified hostage who had been held by Hamas in Gaza, the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement.

Hamas handed the coffin to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Gaza, which then transferred it to the Israeli military and the Shin Bet security agency inside the enclave.

The coffin will be taken to the National Center of Forensic Medicine in Tel Aviv, the office said. “Once the identification process is complete, an official notification will be delivered to the family,” it added.

A Hamas source said the body was recovered earlier in the day from the Al-Tuffah neighborhood in eastern Gaza City. It was the latest exchange of captives and bodies under a ceasefire that took effect 11 days ago, under which Hamas released all 20 living Israeli hostages and Israel freed about 2,000 Palestinian detainees.

Israel estimates that the bodies of 28 hostages remain in Gaza, some killed before being taken, and others who died in captivity. Hamas had previously returned 15 bodies. (Xinhua)