Xi's special envoy visits Laos

Liu Haixing, special envoy of General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee Xi Jinping, visited Laos on Tuesday to congratulate the successful convening of the 12th National Congress of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP) and Thongloun Sisoulith on his election as general secretary of the 12th LPRP Central Committee.

Liu, head of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee, delivered a congratulatory letter from Xi to Thongloun and conveyed a message.

The message stated that China stands ready to work with Laos to advance the continuous development of a China-Laos community with a shared future, guided by the important consensus reached by the top leaders of the two parties and two countries.

Thongloun expressed his sincere appreciation and extended warm greetings to Xi.

He noted that the new central leadership of the LPRP attaches great importance to developing relations with China and is willing to work closely with China to continuously elevate bilateral relations between the two parties and two countries to a higher level.

Tehran was hit by a barrage of airstrikes on Tuesday, with thick smoke rising in many parts of the city, according to a China Media Group (CMG) reporter stationed in the Iranian capital.

Video footage shot by the reporter showed smoke and dust engulfing nearby buildings after one airstrike.

Airstrikes also threw up thick columns of smoke in western, eastern, and far northeastern Tehran, with all the explosions occurring within minutes of each other, according to the reporter.