What We’re Watching: Italy paralyzed by flotilla protests, Australia revamps military, and who will Japan’s new PM be?

Italy frozen by protests over Gaza aid flotilla

Over 200,000 people protested across Italy on Friday in a nationwide strike supporting the Gaza aid flotilla. Demonstrators waved Palestinian flags and blocked trains, ports, and highways in cities from Milan to Naples, where tens of thousands marched. Unions accused Rome of failing to press Israel to lift its blockade on aid reaching Gaza, which the UN says has created famine conditions. Opposition leader Elly Schlein demanded an arms embargo against Israel and the official recognition of a Palestinian state. But Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni branded the flotilla “dangerous” and dismissed the strike by joking that "long weekends and revolution do not go together."

Australia gives its military a makeover

Australia has announced a $16 billion defense boost after Chinese naval drills off its eastern coast underscored the limits of relying on remote geography for security. The spending marks the country’s largest increase since World War II, and comes amid US pressure for allies to raise defense outlays. Australia is planning to spend more than $500bn on its military over the next decade. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is set to meet Donald Trump on October 20, where defense spending and Indo-Pacific security will top the agenda.

Japan’s ruling party to elect new leader

Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party votes Saturday to replace outgoing Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, raising the prospect of a historic shift: either the country’s first female premier, Sanae Takaichi, or its youngest modern-era leader, Shinjiro Koizumi, 44. With the LDP weakened by recent electoral defeats, a sluggish economy, and an upstart ultranationalist challenge from the right, the leadership contest could reshape both the party and Japan’s political future. Read more here

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