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Apa Kata Jokowi Saat Debat Capres 2019 Tentang Lahan 120.000 Hektar Milik Prabowo Subianto di Aceh?

Capres nomor urut 01 Joko Widodo dan capres nomor urut 02 Prabowo Subianto berjabat tangan usai saat mengikuti debat capres putaran keempat di Hotel Shangri La, Jakarta, Sabtu (30/3/2019). Debat itu mengangkat tema Ideologi, Pemerintahan, Pertahanan dan Keamanan, serta Hubungan Internasional. (ANTARA FOTO/Hafidz Mubarak A/pras)
Capres nomor urut 01 Joko Widodo dan capres nomor urut 02 Prabowo Subianto berjabat tangan usai saat mengikuti debat capres putaran keempat di Hotel Shangri La, Jakarta, Sabtu (30/3/2019). Debat itu mengangkat tema Ideologi, Pemerintahan, Pertahanan dan Keamanan, serta Hubungan Internasional. (ANTARA FOTO/Hafidz Mubarak A/pras)

THE EDITOR – Presiden Indonesia ke-7 Joko Widodo pernah menyinggung tentang kepemilikan Presiden Prabowo Subianto akan lahan yang luasnya mencapai 120.000 hektar di Aceh Tengah dalam debat Capres yang berlangsung pada tahun 2019 lalu.

Dilansir dari Antara, Presiden Jokowi, demikian dia akrab disapa mengatakan bila di Kalimantan Timur sendiri, Prabowo Subianto memiliki lahan seluas 220.000 hektar.

“Pembagian yang saya sampaikan sebesar 2,6 juta hektare itu, agar menjadi aset produktif. Kami tidak berikan ke perusahaan yang gede-gede. Saya tahu Pak Prabowo memiliki lahan luas di Kaltim sebesar 220 ribu hektare dan di Aceh Tengah 120 ribu hektare. Saya hanya ingin sampaikan, pembagian seperti ini tidak dilakukan di masa pemerintahan saya,” ujar Jokowi saat menanggapi Prabowo terkait pemberian konsesi lahan guna mewujudkan reforma agraria dalam Debat Capres 2019 Putaran kedua di Jakarta, Minggu malam.

Saat itu Jokowi berjanji bahwa pembagian konsesi lahan di era pemerintahannya dilakukan hanya bagi rakyat berekonomi sulit agar bisa menjadi aset produktif.

Petahana itu menuturkan, di tahun 2017 dan 2018, pihaknya telah membagikan konsesi lahan lewat kehutanan sosial hingga hak ulayat sebanyak 2,6 juta hektare dari 12,7 juta hektare lahan yang telah disiapkan.

“Tidak sampai di situ, kita juga mendampingi mereka agar tanah-tanah ini jadi produktif. Ada yang ditanamai kopi, buah, dan jagung. Artinya, kami tidak hanya berikan konsesi lahannya tapi juga mendampingi agar tanahnya bisa produktif,” tambah Jokowi.

Selain itu, Jokowi menyebutkan pihaknya telah membagikan lima juta sertifikat tanah kepada rakyat miskin pada 2017. Sedangkan pada 2018, jumlah sertifikat yang diberikan lebih dari tujuh juta sertifikat.

Menurut mantan Wali Kota Solo itu, pemberikan sertifikat tanah dilakukan agar rakyat memiliki hak hukum atas tanah yang mereka miliki.

“Sertifikat ini bisa digunakan untuk jaminan dan akses permodalan ke bank. Dengan demikian, sisi akses keuangan juga mereka miliki. Ini fungsi redistribusi aset dan ini akan terus kami lakukan,” pungkasnya.

Debat capres putaran kedua ini diselenggarakan di Hotel Sultan, Jakarta Pusat, pada Minggu malam, yang dimulai sejak pukul 20.00 WIB.

Tema yang diangkat pada debat kedua tersebut adalah infrastruktur, energi dan pangan, serta sumber daya alam dan lingkungan hidup.

APA JAWABAN PRABOWO SUBIANTO SAAT ITU?

Dilansir dari Kompas.Com pada 18 Februari 2019, Prabowo Subianto membenarkan tanah yang disebutkan Jokowi memang benar miliknya.

“Saya juga minta izin tadi disinggung tentang tanah yang katanya saya kuasai ratusan ribu (hektar) di beberapa tempat itu benar, tapi itu adalah HGU, itu adalah milik negara,” kata Prabowo.

Berdasarkan Pasal 28 Undang-Undang Nomor 5 Tahun 1960 tentang Pokok-pokok Agraria (UUPA), hak guna usaha (HGU) adalah hak khusus untuk mengusahakan tanah yang bukan miliknya sendiri atas tanah yang dikuasai langsung oleh negara untuk perusahaan pertanian, perikanan, atau peternakan.

“Jadi, setiap saat negara bisa ambil kembali dan kalau untuk negara, saya rela mengembalikan itu semua. Tapi, daripada jatuh ke orang asing, lebih baik saya yang kelola karena saya nasionalis dan patriot,” kata Prabowo.

ATURAN HGU SEPERTI APA?

Berdasarkan Pasal 28 Undang-Undang Nomor 5 Tahun 1960 tentang Peraturan Pokok Dasar-dasar Agraria, HGU hanya dapat diberikan untuk keperluan pertanian, perikanan, atau peternakan dengan minimal luas tanah 5 hektar.

Kepemilikan HGU tidak dapat beralih atau dialihkan kepada pihak lain, tetapi dapat dibebani dengan hak tanggungan. Pada Pasal 29 UU yang sama, HGU dapat diberikan untuk jangka waktu paling lama 25 tahun, kecuali untuk perusahaan yang memerlukan waktu lebih lama (misalnya untuk perkebunan kelapa sawit), waktu yang diberikan menjadi 35 tahun.

Jika luas tanah yang dimohonkan HGU mencapai 25 hektar atau lebih, penggunaan HGU harus menggunakan investasi modal yang layak dan teknik perusahaan yang baik sesuai perkembangan zaman.

Hak guna usaha diberikan berdasarkan penetapan pemerintah kepada warga negara Indonesia dan badan hukum yang didirikan menurut hukum Indonesia dan berkedudukan di Indonesia. HGU tidak dapat dimiliki oleh pihak asing.

Hal ini sesuai dengan Pasal 30 UU tersebut. Pemberian HGU kepada badan hukum bermodal asing hanya jika diperlukan berdasarkan undang-undang yang mengatur pembangunan nasional semesta berencana.

Syarat-syarat pemberian HGU, peralihan, dan penghapusannya harus didaftarkan. Pendaftaran tersebut meliputi pengukuran perpetaan dan pembukuan tanah, pendaftaran hak-hak atas tanah dan peralihannya, serta pemberian surat-surat tanda bukti hak yang berlaku sebagai alat pembuktian kuat.

PT Tusam Hutani Lestari di Aceh Milik Prabowo Atau Negara?

Sumber: Jatam Nasional
Sumber: Jatam Nasional

THE EDITOR  PT Tusam Hutani Lestari (THL), perusahaan yang menguasai sekitar 97 ribu hektare hutan di Aceh Tengah, Bener Meriah, Bireuen, dan Aceh Utara, menjadi sorotan publik menyusul bencana banjir bandang yang melanda hampir sebagian besar wilayah Aceh pada awal Desember 2025. 

Perusahaan ini telah mengantongi izin Hutan Tanaman Industri (HTI) sejak diterbitkannya SK No. 556/Kpts-II/1997.

Dilansir dari Suara.Com, diketahui bila Jaringan Advokasi Tambang (Jatam) melalui akun media sosialnya (@jatamnas) mengunggah peta yang menunjukkan kawasan yang kini terendam banjir besar berada di area yang sebagian hak kelola hutannya dimiliki oleh PT Tusam Hutani Lestari.

Jatamnas menyoroti bahwa banjir parah ini terjadi bersamaan dengan hujan ekstrem di wilayah yang telah lama dipenuhi berbagai konsesi.

Isu kepemilikan Prabowo terhadap Tusam Hutani Lestari pernah mencuat pada Debat Pilpres 2019 ketika Joko Widodo secara terbuka menyebut Prabowo menguasai ratusan ribu hektare lahan konsesi di beberapa daerah, termasuk Aceh Tengah.

Kala itu, Prabowo tidak membantah, namun menegaskan bahwa lahan tersebut adalah Hak Guna Usaha (HGU) yang tetap menjadi milik negara.

Berdasarkan Data Ditjen AHU, struktur kepemilikan saham PT Tusam Hutani Lestari dikuasai oleh PT V (Inhutani V) dengan 7.947 lembar saham, yang mencerminkan perusahaan kehutanan lama (BUMN di bawah jaringan Perhutani Group).

Total modal ditempatkan dan disetor tercatat sebesar Rp19,867 miliar, seluruhnya dalam bentuk uang, tanpa ada penyertaan saham pribadi dari individu mana pun.

Tidak ada nama Prabowo Subianto dalam daftar pemegang saham ini.

JAJARAN DIREKSI TERBARU DAN IZIN KONSESI

Meskipun Prabowo tidak terdaftar sebagai pemilik saham, dokumen AHU menunjukkan figur mencolok dalam jajaran direksi. 

Meskipun Prabowo tidak terdaftar sebagai pemilik saham, dokumen AHU menunjukkan figur mencolok dalam jajaran direksi.

Dalam akta perubahan tertanggal 28 Agustus 2024, Edhy Prabowo, mantan Menteri Kelautan dan Perikanan dan Wakil Ketua Umum DPP Partai Gerindra (yang mengundurkan diri saat terjerat kasus korupsi November 2020), tercatat masuk sebagai Direktur Utama PT Tusam Hutani Lestari.

Edhy Prabowo sendiri sebelumnya sempat dikenal dekat dengan Prabowo Subianto, selaku politisi.

Direksi lainnya adalah Muhammad Harrifar Syafar dan Sofyan Alparis, didampingi Sukasno (Komisaris Utama) dan Suhary Zainuddin Basyariah (Komisaris).

Izin HTI PT THL seluas 97.300 hektare yang diterbitkan melalui SK No. 556/Kpts-II/1997, akan berakhir pada tahun 2043.

Izin ini kemudian diperbarui melalui SK Menteri LHK No. Harian Jakarta 22:28 WIB

1501/MENLHK/SETJEN/HPL.0/12/2021 yang menegaskan wilayah operasional di Provinsi Aceh.

Dalam pembagian areal PBPH terbaru, konsesi PT THL yang berada di Aceh Tengah dan Bener Meriah—wilayah yang terdampak bencana—terbagi atas:

1. Area pinus: 29.378 hektare

2. Hutan sekunder: 17.563 hektare

3. Lahan kosong berpotensi dikelola: 22.172 hektare

4. Pertanian lahan campur: 16.557 hektare

5. Kawasan permukiman: 2.058 hektare

Perlu dicatat dari data Putusan Mahkamah Agung, Tusam Hutani Lestari dilaporkan hanya memiliki izin mengolah getah pinus, sementara izin untuk menebang dan memanfaatkan kayu tidak ada. Namun, surat keputusan menteri yang diberikan kepada perusahaan ini masih dinyatakan berlaku hingga saat ini.

Kenapa Gunungan Sampah di Tangsel Tidak Diangkut Tapi Hanya Ditutup Terpal dan Disemprot Agar Tidak Bau?

Pemkot Tangsel melakukan perapihan sementara tumpukan sampah dan penyemprotan anti bau (Foto: Pemerintah Kota Tangerang Selatan/CNA)
Pemkot Tangsel melakukan perapihan sementara tumpukan sampah dan penyemprotan anti bau (Foto: Pemerintah Kota Tangerang Selatan/CNA)

THE EDITOR – Tangerang Selatan mengalami darurat sampah setelah sampah-sampah terlihat menumpuk di mana-mana—trotoar, median jalan, hingga permukiman—sejak TPA Cipeucang ditutup sementara.

Jalan Raya Serpong, kolong Flyover Ciputat, Jalan Djuanda, Dewi Sartika, RE Martadinata, sampai kawasan Pamulang berubah menjadi deretan titik krisis.

Sampah plastik, karung, dan limbah rumah tangga dibiarkan menumpuk tanpa satu pun truk pengangkut datang.

Warga mencium bau busuk yang terus menebal setiap hari. Kondisi ini mengganggu mobilitas dan menciptakan pemandangan kota yang makin tak enak dipandang.

Anton, 48, warga Serpong, mengaku sudah bertahan dengan situasi ini selama beberapa hari.

“Ini harus ada tindakan dari pemerintah,” ucapnya, menegaskan kekesalan warga yang harus hidup berdampingan dengan tumpukan sampah kepada CNA.ID pada Senin (15/12/2025).

PENUTUPAN TPA PICU EFEK DOMINO DI SELURUH KOTA

Akar masalahnya jelas adalah TPA Cipeucang overload, kemudian longsor, menutup saluran air menuju Sungai Cisadane, dan akhirnya menghentikan total aliran sampah dari Tangsel.

Untuk menata ulang timbunan yang amblas, pemerintah mengerahkan 11 eskavator, namun selama proses perbaikan berlangsung, seluruh sampah kota dipaksa menumpuk di jalanan.

Lurah Cipayung, Ciputat, Dini Nurlianti, menjelaskan bahwa sampah yang menggunung di bawah flyover bukan dari warganya—melainkan dari berbagai wilayah yang membuang sampah secara liar karena tak ada tempat lain.

Timbunan itu bahkan sempat menutup hampir separuh badan jalan sebelum akhirnya area tersebut ditutup total.

Pemerintah menutupi tumpukan dengan terpal dan melakukan penyemprotan untuk menekan bau serta mencegah penambahan sampah baru.

Kepala Dinas Lingkungan Hidup Tangsel, Bani Khosyatullah, menegaskan bahwa tindakan cepat harus dilakukan demi menjaga kondisi kota tetap terkendali dan meminimalkan gangguan bagi masyarakat.

Sementara itu, Wali Kota Tangsel Benyamin Davnie menyatakan bahwa TPA Cipeucang sedang menjalani perbaikan konstruksi dan penataan ulang timbunan. Karena itu, sampah tidak bisa masuk selama beberapa hari.

Pemerintah juga mulai menjajaki kerja sama pembuangan dengan daerah lain sebagai solusi sementara hingga TPA kembali beroperasi normal.

Mengapa Insentif Mobil Listrik Tiba-Tiba Berhenti?

Menteri Kordinator Perekonomian Airlangga Hartarto meresmikan pabrik VinFast di Subang, Jawa Barat, Senin (15/12/2025). (Foto: VinFast/CNA)
Menteri Kordinator Perekonomian Airlangga Hartarto meresmikan pabrik VinFast di Subang, Jawa Barat, Senin (15/12/2025). (Foto: VinFast/CNA)

THE EDITOR – Sebelum adanya kebijakan stimulus, tidak ada mobil listrik yang dijual di bawah dua ratus juta rupiah di Indonesia.

Pemerintah memutuskan tidak memperpanjang insentif mobil listrik yang berakhir pada 31 Desember 2025. Kebijakan ini menjadi titik perubahan penting dalam arah industri otomotif Indonesia, terutama setelah beberapa tahun pemerintah memberikan stimulus fiskal guna menarik investasi dan mempercepat adopsi kendaraan listrik.

Menko Perekonomian Airlangga Hartarto saat meresmikan pabrik VinFast di Subang, Jawa Barat, Senin (15/12), menjelaskan bahwa keputusan penghentian insentif bukan bentuk penarikan dukungan, melainkan langkah untuk mengalihkan fokus anggaran menuju pengembangan mobil nasional.

Airlangga menyebut pemerintah kini memprioritaskan pembangunan ekosistem kendaraan nasional, sekaligus menegaskan bahwa insentif yang telah diberikan sebelumnya sudah menjalankan fungsinya.

“Anggaran insentif mobil listrik mau dialihkan ke mana? Anggarannya tentu kita punya perencanaan mobil nasional (fokus pada mobil nasional), sehingga kami bisa belajar sebetulnya dari VinFast,” kata Airlangga dilansir CNA.ID pada Selasa (16/12/2025).

Stimulus fiskal tersebut mampu mendorong produsen otomotif menanamkan modal, membangun pabrik, dan mulai berkomitmen pada produksi lokal.

Menurut Airlangga, saat pabrikan mulai memproduksi di Indonesia, struktur biaya menjadi lebih efisien sehingga ketergantungan pada insentif impor tidak lagi diperlukan.

Ia mencontohkan bahwa hasil kebijakan insentif sudah terlihat di pasar. Harga mobil listrik kini mulai memasuki segmen terjangkau, termasuk model yang dibanderol sekitar seratus lima puluh dua juta rupiah.

Sebelum adanya kebijakan stimulus, tidak ada mobil listrik yang dijual di bawah dua ratus juta rupiah.

Perubahan model bisnis juga mulai muncul, salah satunya diterapkan VinFast yang menawarkan kepemilikan kendaraan tanpa membeli baterai dengan sistem sewa. Airlangga menilai pendekatan ini sebagai inovasi yang mengubah cara pandang konsumen terhadap kendaraan listrik.

PELUANG PERGESERAN PASAR OTOMOTIF

Insentif yang dihentikan mencakup pembebasan bea masuk hingga nol persen untuk impor mobil listrik completely built up. Selama ini tarif normal berada di kisaran lima puluh persen, sehingga penghentian insentif berpotensi menaikkan harga mobil listrik secara signifikan.

Meski begitu, pemerintah menegaskan bahwa pemberhentian stimulan justru menjadi momen bagi produsen yang telah memanfaatkan fasilitas fiskal untuk memenuhi komitmen membangun pabrik di Indonesia seperti yang dilakukan VinFast.

Di sisi lain, penghentian insentif membuka peluang bagi kendaraan hybrid. Tanpa dukungan fiskal penuh untuk mobil listrik, kendaraan hybrid yang masih mendapat keringanan pajak berpotensi kembali menjadi pilihan konsumen.

Segmen ini dinilai dapat menjadi jembatan menuju elektrifikasi penuh sambil menunggu ekosistem kendaraan listrik semakin matang.

Princess Eugenie Speaks Out After She and Princess Beatrice Declined Kate Middleton’s Carol Service Invite

(Left) Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie Ellie Goulding x SERVED Private Party at Royal Albert Hall on April 11, 2024; (Right) Kate Middleton at her Together at Christmas Carol Service at Westminster Abbey on Dec. 5, 2025. (Photo : Dave Benett/Getty for SERVED; Chris Jackson/Getty)
(Left) Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie Ellie Goulding x SERVED Private Party at Royal Albert Hall on April 11, 2024; (Right) Kate Middleton at her Together at Christmas Carol Service at Westminster Abbey on Dec. 5, 2025. (Photo : Dave Benett/Getty for SERVED; Chris Jackson/Getty)

THE EDITOR – Princess Eugenie shared an unexpected message after she and her sister, Princess Beatrice, missed Kate Middleton’s “Together at Christmas” carol service.

People.com on 4 December 2025 report that The Princess of Wales, 43, held her fifth annual Christmas concert at Westminster Abbey in London on Dec. 5. While many members of the royal family were among the guests, Prince William’s cousins Beatrice and Eugenie didn’t attend as they have in years past.

PEOPLE understands that Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie were invited to the Christmas service in early autumn, but they were unable to attend due to other commitments.

In a message posted to her Instagram Stories following the big event on Friday, Princess Eugenie, 35, said that she wished she and her sister could have been there.

“Wish Bea and I could have been celebrating tonight with our family,” Eugenie wrote on her Instagram Stories, using an affectionate nickname for Princess Beatrice, 37.

“Wishing @princeandprincessofwales such a special evening at her incredible carol service,” she said, tagging the official Instagram handle that Prince William and Princess Kate share. “What an amazing message of love and hope.”

Eugenie shared the message over a photo of a program from the carol service perched on a branch of a Christmas tree, resharing the shot from the Prince and Princess of Wales’ Instagram Stories.

Priness Eugenie's Instagram Stories on Dec. 5, 2025. (Photo: Princess Eugenie/Instagram)

Priness Eugenie’s Instagram Stories on Dec. 5, 2025. (Photo: Princess Eugenie/Instagram)

Princess Kate’s “Together at Christmas” service was attended by several members of the royal family, including her husband, their three children, Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, 7, Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh, Zara Tindall, Mike Tindall and more.

Both Eugenie and Beatrice have attended the annual event in the past.

Until now, Princess Beatrice and her husband, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, had gone to the Christmas carol service every year since Princess Kate launched the event in 2021. In 2023 and 2024, the couple made it a family night out by bringing Christopher Woolf, 9, Edo’s son from a previous relationship.

Meanwhile, Princess Eugenie went to the carol service in 2021, 2022 and 2023, attending with her husband, Jack Brooksbank, three years ago.

Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice’s father, the former Prince Andrew, made news in October when he announced that he was discontinuing use of his princely title and honors. The announcement came amid renewed scrutiny around the extent of Andrew’s connection to the late Jeffrey Epstein, his relationship with whom set his step back from his royal role in motion in 2019.

On Oct. 30, King Charles announced that he officially launched the process of removing Andrew’s royal style, titles and honors in a transition made official via a Letters Patent released on Nov. 3.

Prince William, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, Prince Louis and Kate Middleton at the Together at Christmas Carol Service on Dec. 5, 2025. (Photo: Aaron Chown/Pool/Getty)

Prince William, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, Prince Louis and Kate Middleton at the Together at Christmas Carol Service on Dec. 5, 2025. (Photo: Aaron Chown/Pool/Getty)

As part of the process, Andrew has been ordered to surrender his lease at Royal Lodge, his longtime home in Windsor, and his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, will no longer use her Duchess of York title.

Amid the initial Oct. 17 announcement that the King was removing Andrew’s titles, PEOPLE understood that Beatrice and Eugenie’s royal status remained wholly unaffected.

As the daughters of a son of the late Queen Elizabeth, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie retain their titles in accordance with King George V’s Letters Patent of 1917.  The sisters remain princesses and continue to hold the styling of Her Royal Highness.

Kate Middleton and Prince William Attend Palace Christmas Lunch with Kids After Missing Last Year’s Event

Prince William and Kate Middleton attend Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace on Dec. 16, 2025. (Photo : INSTARimages)
Prince William and Kate Middleton attend Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace on Dec. 16, 2025. (Photo : INSTARimages)

THE EDITOR – The royal family is coming together for King Charles’ Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace in London.

People.com on 16 December 2025 report that Kate Middleton and Prince William attended the Dec. 16 event with their children — Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, 7 — after missing last year’s holiday lunch. The Prince and Princess of Wales, both 43, were photographed in cars outside the event, with the royal heir driving — his wife beside him in the passenger seat while George, Charlotte and Louis were in the backseat.

The family was also joined by their nanny, Maria Teresa Turrion Borrallo, who has been with them since Prince George was a baby.

Prince William and Princess Charlotte attend Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace on Dec. 16, 2025. (Photo: INSTARimages)
Prince William and Princess Charlotte attend Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace on Dec. 16, 2025. (Photo: INSTARimages)

Princess Kate and her daughter twinned in festive hair bows, both wearing a half-up style and red outfits.

Although Prince William and Princess Kate were regulars at the Christmas lunch, they missed the event in 2024. At the time, the family was already in Norfolk, England, more than 100 miles away from London, where they traditionally spend the holiday.

The Prince and Princess of Wales and their children stepped out with the royal family about a week later for their annual Christmas morning walk to church, and Princess Kate later announced in January that she was in remission after undergoing treatment for cancer in 2024.

Also attending Tuesday’s lunch were Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, who were photographed driving together.

Prince Louis attends Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace on Dec. 16, 2025. (Photo: INSTARimages)

Prince Louis attends Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace on Dec. 16, 2025. (Photo: INSTARimages)

The sisters recently missed Princess Kate’s Christmas carol service, with Eugenie later expressing on Instagram that they wished they could have attended. PEOPLE understands that Beatrice, 37, and Eugenie, 35, were invited to the Christmas service in early autumn, but they were unable to attend due to other commitments.

Meanwhile, photos of Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie’s father, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor (the former Prince Andrew), horseback riding in the rain around Windsor Park were captured on Tuesday. The King stripped his brother of his royal titles and honors amid renewed interest in his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. He has not joined the royal family at events since, but he did attend his granddaughter’s private christening on Friday, Dec. 12, as did his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson.

Other members of the royal family who were spotted heading to the lunch included Prince Edward and Sophie, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh; the Duke of Kent; Lady Amelia Windsor; Lord Frederick Windsor and his wife, Sophie Winkleman; Lady Helen Taylor; and Daniel Chatto and Lady Sarah Chatto.

It’s a tradition within the royal family for the sovereign to host the extended royal family for a luncheon about a week before Christmas.

Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie attend the royal family's Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace on Dec. 16, 2025. (Photo: INSTARimages)

Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie attend the royal family’s Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace on Dec. 16, 2025. (Photo: INSTARimages)

The gathering is a private family event, meaning that no photos are released from inside the festive feast, which usually draws dozens of family members.

The custom is one of many that King Charles, 77, has continued from his mother Queen Elizabeth’s reign. The late Queen would welcome over 50 family members to the lunch in London, held about a week before she went to Sandringham House in Norfolk to celebrate Christmas.

While Queen Elizabeth typically held the Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace, King Charles and Queen Camilla switched up tradition by hosting the lunch at Windsor Castle in 2022 and 2023.

In 2024, the King held the lunch again at Buckingham Palace.

Couple in Dashcam Footage Who were Killed Trying to Fight off Bondi Shooter Identified as Boris and Sofia Gurman

Boris Gurman and Sofia Gurman were weeks away from celebrating their 35th wedding anniversary. (Photo: GoFundMe)
Boris Gurman and Sofia Gurman were weeks away from celebrating their 35th wedding anniversary. (Photo: GoFundMe)

THE EDITOR – Dramatic footage has emerged of two victims who were killed while trying to stop a gunman during the early stages of the Bondi beach terror attack on Sunday.

The couple have been identified as Boris Gurman, 69, and Sofia Gurman, 61, after their family gave a statement to the Sydney Morning Herald.

“We are heartbroken by the sudden and senseless loss of our beloved Boris and Sofia Gurman,” the family said on The Guardian on Tuesday (16/12/2025)

“They had been married for 34 years, with their 35th wedding anniversary approaching in January. We were looking forward to celebrating Sofia’s 62nd birthday on Wednesday 17th of December.”

Dashcam footage posted to the Chinese social media platform Rednote showed the moment Boris, wearing a purple shirt, tackled shooter Sajid Akram on Campbell Parade in Bondi as he emerged from his car, which had an Islamic State flag draped over the front windscreen.

Boris appears to push Akram on to the road and wrestle a gun from his hands. Sofia was also involved in the confrontation.

The footage was posted to social media by a Sydney resident whose dashcam unexpectedly caught the incident. “Such civilian heroes shouldn’t be forgotten,” she wrote in Mandarin on the post. “I’m truly heartbroken.”

Separate footage from a drone, taken afterwards, shows the couple lying motionless together on the footpath.

“Boris was a retired mechanic, known for his generosity, quiet strength and willingness to lend a hand to anyone in need. Sofia worked at Australia Post and was deeply loved by her colleagues and community,” the couple’s family said.

“Bondi locals, together they lived honest, hard-working lives and treated everyone they met with kindness, warmth and respect. Boris and Sofia were devoted to their family and to each other. They were the heart of our family, and their absence has left an immeasurable void.”

The family also paid tribute to their courage in the face of terror.

“In recent days, we have become aware of footage showing Boris, with Sofia by his side, courageously attempting to disarm an attacker in an effort to protect others,” the family said.

“While nothing can lessen the pain of losing Boris and Sofia, we feel an overwhelming sense of pride in their bravery and selflessness. This encapsulates who Boris and Sofia were – people who instinctively and selflessly tried to help others.

“We are deeply grateful for the love, compassion and support that has been shown to our family during this unimaginable time. From here, we kindly ask for privacy as we grieve.”

The couple are among the 15 victims of the Bondi beach terror attack.

Most of the victims were attending a celebration for the first day of Hanukah when the shooting began. The attack is the worst mass shooting in Australia since the 1996 Port Arthur massacre.

A further 38 people were wounded and 24, including two police officers, remained in hospital as of Tuesday afternoon.

On Tuesday afternoon, six colleagues of Sofia’s from Australia Post attended the Bondi Pavilion to pay tribute to their friend. One of the Australia Post workers, who didn’t wish to be named, worked with her for years. All arrived together in uniform and lay a single white rose each and a card.

“It’s very tragic and seeing this video made us realise just how brave she and her husband was,” a colleague of Sofia’s said.

Bystanders have been widely applauded for stepping into the line of danger during the attack to attempt to stop the gunmen.

They include Ahmed al-Ahmed, who was thanked by the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, and US president, Donald Trump, for running towards Akram, leaping on to him and wrestling the gun from his hands.

Ahmed remains in a critical but stable condition at St George hospital in Sydney after he was shot four to five times in his shoulder during the altercation, according to his parents.

The daughter of victim Reuven Morrison has identified her father as the man seen hurling an object in the same widely circulated footage.

“If there was one way for him to go on this earth, it would be fighting a terrorist. There was no other way he would be taken from us. He went down fighting, protecting the people he loved most,” Sheina Gutnick told CBS News on Tuesday.

Sajid Akram was shot dead by police, while his son Naveed remains in hospital under guard.

Kota Medan di Jaman Belanda Tidak Pernah Banjir!

People wade through the water at a flooded street in Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia. (PHOTO: Binsar Bakkara/AP/The Guardian/THE EDITOR)
People wade through the water at a flooded street in Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia. (PHOTO: Binsar Bakkara/AP/The Guardian/THE EDITOR)

THE EDITOR – Kota Medan di jaman Belanda tidak pernah alami banjir karena ratusan meter drainase di kota yang berada di Provinsi Sumatera Utara tersebut selalu mendapat perlakuan istimewa seperti di negara-negara Eropa pada umumnya. Diantaranya dengan pengecekan langsung pada saluran drainase kecil sepanjang 2 km serta penyemprotan dengan water canon pemadam kebakaran setiap satu bulan sekali di area drainase induk.

“Medan ketika di jaman Belanda itu di seluruh sistem drainasenya yang panjangnya lebih dari 200 km itu tiap hari ada petugas yang periksa. Sampah diangkat dari parit (dan) 1 bulan sekali drainase induk disemprot dengan water canon mobil pemadam kebakaran,” demikian kata Pengamat Lingkungan Hidup dari Universitas Sumatera Utara Yance dalam wawancara dengan Info Sumut pada 9 Desember 2025 kemarin.

Kata Yance, di masa lalu, Belanda telah mengkalkulasi pertambahan jumlah penduduk Medan hingga 2 kali lipat untuk menghitung potensi banjir do kota tersebut. Sistem tersebut diketahui bertahan selama 30 tahun, bahkan hingga tahun 1980-an.

ALIH FUNGSI RESAPAN RUSAK KOTA MEDAN

Lulusan Universitas Gadjah Mada ini juga mengatakan bila rusaknya sistem drainase serta area resapan hijau telah membawa mimpi buruk bagi Medan.

Salah satu area resapan hijau yang disoroti oleh Yance diantaranya adalah jalur hijau di Jalan Mongonsidi sekarang berubah fungsi menjadi Villa Polonia, Jalan Iskandar Muda, Jalan Sudirman dan Jalan Diponegoro yang seharusnya jadi kawasan pemukiman penduduk justru beralih fungsi jadi gedung perkantoran untuk perbankan, asuransi serta menjadi salah satu tempat berdirinya pusat perbelanjaan besar dengan nama Sun Plaza dan Paladium.

Kondisi ini ternyata membuat tanah harus menahan beban yang tidak semestinya karena 1000 meter luas lahan yang ada di lokasi tersebut dipaksa untuk menampung lebih dari 500 orang melalui bangunan bertingkat. Padahal, area respan air yang boleh ditempati tersebut hanya bisa dibangun 10 unit rumah saja.

“Semuanya membutuhkan air, sementara drainase tidak diubah. Disitulah jebolnya drainase bangunan Belanda,” katanya.

GUBERNUR SUMUT HARUS MAMPU KOORDINASI

Yance mengatakan bila Gubernur Sumatera Utara harus ikut campur dalam menyelesaikan persoalan banjir di Medan sebab Walikota tidak memiliki kuasa saat banjir datang dari kota-kota kabupaten lain di sekitar Medan.

“Sebab Walikota tidak punya kuasa. Walikota hanya punya kuasa di Medan,” katanya.

Yance mengatakan bila Pemprov Sumatera Utara harus mulai bersinergi untuk menangani banjir dari hulu hingga hilir. 

Yance mengaku sudah pernah menangani persoalan banjir di kawasan Jawa Tengah, menurutnya, satu-satunya jalan saat ini untuk menangani banjir adalah mempelajari cara penanganan banjir dari wilayah yang sudah berhasil menangani banjir di kota mereka.

Reuters: Bondi Beach Shooting: How the Tragedy Unfolded!

Naveed Akram has been identified as one of the alleged gunmen (Photo: The Sydney Morning Herald)
Naveed Akram has been identified as one of the alleged gunmen (Photo: The Sydney Morning Herald)

THE EDITOR – Among the thousands of people who flocked to Sydney’s famed Bondi Beach on Sunday evening, some were seeking relief from the steamy weather while others joined a local Jewish group to celebrate the beginning of Hanukkah, or festival of light. Advertisements promised a petting farm, face painting and donuts and proclaimed the goal was to “fill Bondi with joy and light”.

Hours later the scene was a bloodbath.

For between 10 and 20 minutes, two gunmen opened fire on attendees at the Hanukkah event, gunning down men, women and children as terrified beachgoers fled. More than a dozen people were killed and at least 40 wounded, some critically, including two police officers.

Reuters has pieced together the moments when the Hanukkah turned from celebration to fear through interviews with more than a dozen witnesses, comments from police and officials, video footage of the shooting and media reports.

Police have not named the two suspects, one of whom was killed and the other critically wounded in a shoot out with police. But state media ABC and other outlets have identified them as Sajid Akram and his son Naveed.

By Sunday, the men had gathered six firearms owned by the father and multiple improvised explosive devices, police said. The father was a registered firearms owner and belonged to a gun club, according to police.

The two men were residing at a spartan Airbnb in the southwestern Sydney suburb of Campsie, according to the ABC, Australia’s public broadcaster. But the son, a 24-year-old unemployed Sydney bricklayer, called his mother to tell her that he and his father, a 50-year-old shopowner, had gone for a weekend fishing trip on Australia’s eastern coast, the Sydney Morning Herald reported, quoting his mother.

In October 2019, Australia’s intelligence agency examined the son for ties to a self-proclaimed Islamic State terrorist, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in a Monday press conference. Albanese said the agency decided there had been “no indication of any ongoing threat”.

An image appearing to show alleged terror shooter Naveed Akram completing his Koran studies in western Sydney. (Photo: Facebook/ The Sydney Morning Herald)

An image appearing to show alleged terror shooter Naveed Akram completing his Koran studies in western Sydney. (Photo: Facebook/ The Sydney Morning Herald)

On Sunday evening, two men allegedly left improvised explosive devices in a silver car near Bondi’s beachfront, according to law enforcement, before heading towards the beach.

Video footage subsequently shows two figures dressed in black atop a concrete bridge leading to a park and Bondi’s crowded waters. Videos taken by bystanders showed both men shooting large, high-powered firearms from that highpoint towards the Hanukkah event.

A crowd of people had been listening to music and eating fried food, according to video from an attendee. As the shooting began, people began to scream.

Footage from a surf camera shows dozens of people sprinting across Bondi’s sand to escape the gunfire.

A man who gave his name as Terry said his 15-year-old daughter was part of the stampede.

She took refuge in the well-known Iceberg swimming pools at the southern end of Bondi, said Terry, where she used a stranger’s phone to call him at a separate Hanukkah event he was attending.

“You stand here and you think you’re safe,” he said. But growing anti-semitic violence, which many link to the war in Gaza, had made him reconsider his life in Australia. “Maybe we need to move to Israel one day,” he said. “The irony is that that’s looking like the only real safe place in the world we can be as Jews.”

A third video shows the older alleged shooter having moved off the bridge and standing by the festival site. There, the older shooter aims directly at an event attendee and fires while other people run.

Phone footage shows a man identified by local media as Sydney resident Ahmed al Ahmed hiding behind a nearby car. As the older shooter continues firing, Ahmed breaks from behind the car and tackles him from behind, tearing the weapon from his hands and pointing it at him as he retreats. Ahmed was shot twice and was being treated at hospital on Monday.

Drone video subsequently shows the older shooter back on the concrete bridge, where he lies prone while the younger gunman moves back and forth before jolting and falling down.

An image from a video received courtesy of Mike Ortiz showing beachgoers fleeing after the gunmen opened fire. (Photo: Mike Ortiz/UGC/AFP/Getty Images)

An image from a video received courtesy of Mike Ortiz showing beachgoers fleeing after the gunmen opened fire. (Photo: Mike Ortiz/UGC/AFP/Getty Images)

A sixth video shows three police officers race onto the bridge with weapons outstretched. Another shows them holding two men on the ground, while a bystander runs up to kick the men on the ground.

More footage then shows at least nine law enforcement officers on the bridge, with several kneeling over the prone men, delivering chest compressions. Police said the older man died of his wounds at Bondi.

Hussein Rifi, 18, said he was in a shower block nearby with a group of friends. “We were flexing in the mirror, taking videos, and then we hear it: bang, bang, bang,” said Rifi. Soon, he realised the noises were gunshots.

For roughly 20 minutes, he said he and his friends sheltered near the showers, until the shooting seemed to stop. When he peered around, he saw bodies on the ground.

“There were chunks of something human on the floor,” said Rifi. “It was dead people everywhere.”

Hundreds of police and paramedics descended on the scene, from which dozens of victims and the surviving shooter were taken to local hospitals. The latest death toll is 16, including a 10-year-old girl and a British-born rabbi.

Rabbi Levi Wolff lighting a menorah at Bondi Pavilion beside a memorial for the Hanukkah massacre's victims in Sydney, Australia, earlier today. (Photo: Hollie Adams/Reuters)
Rabbi Levi Wolff lighting a menorah at Bondi Pavilion beside a memorial for the Hanukkah massacre’s victims in Sydney, Australia, earlier today. (Photo: Hollie Adams/Reuters)

As darkness fell and wind scoured the beach, police began sweeping the grass and sand with flashlights, apparently searching for evidence. ABC reported that law enforcement found an Islamic State flag in the suspected gunmen’s car nearby.

On the other side of the city, law enforcement raided the men’s home in the Sydney suburb of Bonnyrigg and their AirBnB in Campsie. On Bondi’s main road, Rabbi Levi Wolff of Central Sydney Synagogue watched in disbelief. He had raced over from a religious ceremony after hearing the news.

“It’s hard to digest that this is real, that this is something that’s possible on the shores of Australia, somewhere that’s been so hospitable for generations” he said, before stepping away to take a call from the office of Israel’s president.

“The silent majority” who oppose antisemitism, he said, “has to no longer be silent.”

‘It’s Horrific. We Begged Our Government to Prevent This’: Australian Jews Are Angry After the Bondi Terror Attack

Rabbi Levi Wolff lighting a menorah at Bondi Pavilion beside a memorial for the Hanukkah massacre's victims in Sydney, Australia, earlier today. (Photo: Hollie Adams/Reuters)
Rabbi Levi Wolff lighting a menorah at Bondi Pavilion beside a memorial for the Hanukkah massacre's victims in Sydney, Australia, earlier today. (Photo: Hollie Adams/Reuters)

THE EDITOR – Australian Jews are “shocked but not surprised” by the “horrific” mass shooting on Bondi Beach, which turned a Hanukkah celebration into a tragic massacre, Australian Jewish leader Lynda Ben-Menashe said on the Haaretz Podcast on 15 December 2025.

In the two years since the October 7 attack in Israel, the Australian Jewish community “begged” their government officials to enforce laws against incitement and hate speech, which has led to an unprecedented spike in antisemitic violence. But, she said, the government’s response has been “lip service” but “no real consequences.”

“Our prime minister has said that he was distressed and shocked,” said Ben-Menashe, the head of Australia’s National Council of Jewish Women. The Jewish community has been distressed for the past two years at the lack of action from the government, and also at the growing lack of safety that we have felt. And so we weren’t shocked that this happened,” said Lynda Ben-Menashe.

Also on the podcast, Haaretz senior defense analyst Amos Harel reports on the numerous warnings passed by Israeli intelligence agencies to the Australian government, warning of the growing terrorist threats in their country.

Harel also commented on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government’s reaction to the Bondi Beach attack – namely blaming Australia’s leaders for their failure to prevent it.

Harel said it was “hard to resist noticing [the] paradox regarding the fact that Israeli ministers were so quick to blame the Australian government for its failures and note their responsibility for what has happened, while they’re insisting that Netanyahu holds no blame whatsoever for what happened two years ago” on October 7.