Indonesia probes deadly blast at Chinese-owned nickel plant

Indonesia probes deadly blast at Chinese-owned nickel plant
Victims get treatment at Morowali Regional Hospital after an explosion at the nickel smelter furnace owned by Indonesia Tsingshan Stainless Steel (ITSS) in Central Sulawesi province on Dec. 24, 2023. (Antara)
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Updated 26 December 2023
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Indonesia probes deadly blast at Chinese-owned nickel plant

Indonesia probes deadly blast at Chinese-owned nickel plant
  • Sunday’s explosion is the third deadly incident at Chinese-owned nickel plants in Indonesia
  • Indonesia holds the world’s largest nickel reserves, at around 21 million tons

Jakarta: The death toll from an explosion at a Chinese-owned nickel plant in Indonesia’s Sulawesi island rose to 18 on Tuesday, with police ordering the facility to halt operations to investigate the incident.  

More than 40 people were also injured in the fire that occurred early Sunday morning at Indonesia Tsingshan Stainless Steel, the latest in a series of deadly incidents at nickel smelting plants in Central Sulawesi province, which has Indonesia’s largest reserves of the metal. 

Nickel is a key component in global battery production for electric vehicles, and Indonesia accounts for about 21 million tons of it, or 22 percent of the global reserves, according to the US Geological Survey. 

“Up until today, we note that 18 victims died from the incident. This includes 10 Indonesian workers and eight Chinese workers,” Dedy Kurniawan, spokesperson of the Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park where ITSS is located, said in a statement on Tuesday.  

“The company entrusts to the authorities the process of investigating this work accident in ITSS and guarantees cooperation with all parties regarding recommendations to handle the impacts that may arise in accordance with the applicable legal system.” 

A team of investigators from regional and national police is probing the incident. 

“For now, ITSS’s operations are halted until there are results from our investigation,” Agus Nugroho, Central Sulawesi police chief, told reporters.  

Indonesia has been trying to develop downstream nickel industries and attract foreign investment from manufacturers of electric vehicles and their batteries, signing more than a dozen deals worth over $15 billion just in the last three years.  

Over the last decade, Central Sulawesi’s Bahodopi district, where IMIP is located, has grown from a village of a few hundred residents to become home to thousands of workers, many of whom are working for Chinese-funded companies.  

Fifty-seven workplace-related deaths and 76 injuries befell workers across various nickel-mining sites in Indonesia between 2015 and 2020, according to Indonesian energy nonprofit Trend Asia. Many took place at the IMIP, a vast joint venture with China’s Tsingshan Holding Group.  

“Work accidents due to poor working conditions in Indonesia’s mining industry are like the tip of the iceberg,” Melky Nahar, national coordinator at the Mining Advocacy Network, told Arab News. “At IMIP, at least three deadly work accidents have occurred (this year).”  

He added that both Indonesian and Chinese workers employed at mining facilities in Sulawesi face unsafe and unstable working conditions. 

“These conditions are hidden, sometimes even maintained, by the companies. The government also couldn’t care less. When workers protest, they face intimidation, violence, and even imprisonment,” Nahar said.  


Russia’s ‘comprehensive’ treaty with Iran will include defense, Lavrov says

Russia’s ‘comprehensive’ treaty with Iran will include defense, Lavrov says
Updated 2 sec ago
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Russia’s ‘comprehensive’ treaty with Iran will include defense, Lavrov says

Russia’s ‘comprehensive’ treaty with Iran will include defense, Lavrov says
  • The United States accused Tehran in September of delivering close-range ballistic missiles to Russia for use against Ukraine
MOSCOW: A treaty that Russia and Iran intend to sign shortly will include closer defense cooperation, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday.
Military ties between the two countries are a source of deep concern to the West as Russia wages war in Ukraine while Iran and Israel have exchanged missile and air strikes in the Middle East.
“The treaty on a comprehensive strategic partnership between Russia and Iran that is being prepared will become a serious factor in strengthening Russian-Iranian relations,” Lavrov told state television.
He said the agreement was being prepared for signing “in the near future.” Russia has said it expects Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian to visit Moscow before the end of the year.
“It will confirm the parties’ desire for closer cooperation in the field of defense and interaction in the interests of peace and security at the regional and global levels,” Lavrov said. He did not specify what form the defense ties would take.
Russia has deepened its ties with Iran and North Korea, which are both strongly antagonistic toward the United States, since the start of its war with Ukraine.
President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un signed a similarly titled “comprehensive” treaty in June, including a mutual defense clause, and the US and NATO say Pyongyang has sent some 10,000 soldiers to Russia for possible deployment in the war.
Russia has not denied their presence, and says it will implement the treaty as it sees fit.
The United States accused Tehran in September of delivering close-range ballistic missiles to Russia for use against Ukraine, and imposed sanctions on ships and companies it said were involved in delivering Iranian weapons.
Tehran denies providing Moscow with the missiles or with thousands of drones that Kyiv and Western officials have said Russia uses against military targets and to destroy civilian infrastructure, including Ukraine’s electrical grid.
The Kremlin declined to confirm its receipt of Iranian missiles but acknowledged that its cooperation with Iran included “the most sensitive areas.”

India says frontier disengagement with China along their disputed border is ‘almost complete’

India says frontier disengagement with China along their disputed border is ‘almost complete’
Updated 43 min 21 sec ago
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India says frontier disengagement with China along their disputed border is ‘almost complete’

India says frontier disengagement with China along their disputed border is ‘almost complete’
  • The two countries reached a new pact on military patrols that aims to end a four-year standoff that hss strained relations
  • Ties between the two countries deteriorated in July 2020 after a military clash killed at least 20 Indian soldiers and four Chinese

NEW DELHI: India and China have moved most of their frontline troops further from their disputed border in a remote region in the northern Himalayas, India’s defense minister said Thursday, some 10 days after the two countries reached a new pact on military patrols that aims to end a four-year standoff that’s strained relations.
Rajnath Singh said the “process of disengagement” of Indian and Chinese troops near the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh is “almost complete.”
The Line of Actual Control separates Chinese and Indian-held territories from Ladakh in the west to India’s eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh, which China claims in its entirety. India and China fought a deadly war over the border in 1962.
Ties between the two countries deteriorated in July 2020 after a military clash killed at least 20 Indian soldiers and four Chinese. That turned into a long-running standoff in the rugged mountainous area, as each side stationed tens of thousands of military personnel backed by artillery, tanks and fighter jets in close confrontation positions.
Earlier this month the two neighbors announced a border accord aimed at ending the standoff, followed by a meeting between India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and China’s President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the recent BRICS summit in Russia, their first bilateral meeting in five years.
It’s not clear how far back the troops were moved, or whether the pact will lead to an overall reduction in the number of soldiers deployed along the border.
“Our efforts will be to take the matter beyond disengagement; but for that, we will have to wait a little longer,” Singh said.
Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson Zhang Xiaogang said Thursday that the frontline troops were “making progress in implementing the resolutions in an orderly manner.”
The pact called for Indian and Chinese troops to pull back from the last two areas of the border where they were in close positions. After the deadly confrontation in 2020, soldiers were placed in what commanders called “eyeball to eyeball” positions at least six sites. Most were resolved after previous rounds of military and diplomatic talks as the two nations agreed to the creation of buffer zones.
However, disagreements over pulling back from in the Depsang and Demchok areas lasted until the Oct. 21 pact.
“It is a positive move,” said Lt. Gen. D.S. Hooda, who from 2014 to 2016 headed Indian military’s Northern Command, which controls Kashmir region, including Ladakh. “Given how deep mistrust has been between the two countries and how all confidence building measures collapsed, it is quite a positive beginning,” he said.
However, Hooda added, it will take time for both countries to return to their pre-2020 positions. “It does not mean everything is going to as normal as it existed earlier. We have to re-establish traditional patrolling and also the buffer zones need to be sorted out,” he said.
The border standoff also damaged business ties between the two nations, as India halted investments from Chinese firms and major projects banned.


India says frontier disengagement with China along their disputed border is ‘almost complete’

India says frontier disengagement with China along their disputed border is ‘almost complete’
Updated 48 min 3 sec ago
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India says frontier disengagement with China along their disputed border is ‘almost complete’

India says frontier disengagement with China along their disputed border is ‘almost complete’
  • Two countries have reached new pact on military patrols that aims to end four-year standoff that has strained relations
  • India says “process of disengagement” of Indian and Chinese troops near Line of Actual Control is “almost complete”

NEW DELHI: India and China have moved most of their frontline troops further from their disputed border in a remote region in the northern Himalayas, India’s defense minister said Thursday, some 10 days after the two countries reached a new pact on military patrols that aims to end a four-year standoff that’s strained relations.
Rajnath Singh said the “process of disengagement” of Indian and Chinese troops near the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh is “almost complete.”
The Line of Actual Control separates Chinese and Indian-held territories from Ladakh in the west to India’s eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh, which China claims in its entirety. India and China fought a deadly war over the border in 1962.
Ties between the two countries deteriorated in July 2020 after a military clash killed at least 20 Indian soldiers and four Chinese. That turned into a long-running standoff in the rugged mountainous area, as each side stationed tens of thousands of military personnel backed by artillery, tanks and fighter jets in close confrontation positions.
Earlier this month the two neighbors announced a border accord aimed at ending the standoff, followed by a meeting between India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and China’s President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the recent BRICS summit in Russia, their first bilateral meeting in five years.
It’s not clear how far back the troops were moved, or whether the pact will lead to an overall reduction in the number of soldiers deployed along the border.
“Our efforts will be to take the matter beyond disengagement; but for that, we will have to wait a little longer,” Singh said.
Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson Zhang Xiaogang said Thursday that the frontline troops were “making progress in implementing the resolutions in a orderly manner.”
The pact called for Indian and Chinese troops to pull back from the last two areas of the border where they were in close positions. After the deadly confrontation in 2020, soldiers were placed in what commanders called “eyeball to eyeball” positions at at least six sites. Most were resolved after previous rounds of military and diplomatic talks as the two nations agreed to the creation of buffer zones.
However, disagreements over pulling back from in the Depsang and Demchok areas lasted until the Oct. 21 pact.
“It is a positive move,” said Lt. Gen. D.S. Hooda, who from 2014 to 2016 headed Indian military’s Northern Command, which controls Kashmir region, including Ladakh. “Given how deep mistrust has been between the two countries and how all confidence building measures collapsed, it is quite a positive beginning,” he said.
However, Hooda added, it will take time for both countries to return to their pre-2020 positions. “It does not mean everything is going to as normal as it existed earlier. We have to re-establish traditional patrolling and also the buffer zones need to be sorted out,” he said.
The border standoff also damaged business ties between the two nations, as India halted investments from Chinese firms and major projects banned.


French foreign minister: US elections must be held peacefully

French foreign minister: US elections must be held peacefully
Updated 31 October 2024
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French foreign minister: US elections must be held peacefully

French foreign minister: US elections must be held peacefully
  • Barrot said any violence surrounding the election would be devastating for democracies around the world

PARIS: French Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Thursday that he hoped next week’s US presidential election would pass off peacefully, while adding it was not clear to him if this would be the case.
“This is an extremely important election and I hope it can take place in peaceful conditions, which does not appear to me to be entirely guaranteed,” he told broadcaster BFM TV in an interview, without elaborating further.
With the Nov. 5 election just days away, officials in the most competitive battleground states are bracing for misinformation, conspiracy theories, threats and possible violence.
Barrot said any violence surrounding the election would be devastating for democracies around the world.
France would work with whoever wins the race between Republican candidate Donald Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris, he added.


Spain searches for bodies after flood of the century claims at least 95 lives

Spain searches for bodies after flood of the century claims at least 95 lives
Updated 31 October 2024
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Spain searches for bodies after flood of the century claims at least 95 lives

Spain searches for bodies after flood of the century claims at least 95 lives
  • Thousands of people were left without water and electricity and hundreds were stranded after their cars were wrecked or roads were blocked

BARRIO DE LA TORRE: Survivors of the worst natural disaster to hit Spain this century awoke to scenes of devastation on Thursday after villages were wiped out by monstrous flash floods that claimed at least 95 lives. The death toll could rise as search efforts continue with an unknown number of people still missing.
The aftermath looked eerily similar to the damage left by a strong hurricane or tsunami.
Wrecked vehicles, tree branches, downed power lines and household items all mired in a layer of mud covered the streets of Barrio de la Torre, just one of dozens of towns in the hard-hit region of Valencia, where 92 people died between late Tuesday and Wednesday morning. Walls of rushing water turned narrow streets into death traps and spawned rivers that ripped into the ground floors of homes and swept away cars, people and anything else in its path.
“The neighborhood is destroyed, all the cars are on top of each other, it’s literally smashed up,” said Christian Viena, a bar owner in Barrio de la Torre.
Regional authorities said late Wednesday it appeared there was no one left stranded on rooftops or in cars in need of rescue after helicopters had saved some 70 people. But ground crews and citizens continued to inspect vehicles and homes that were damaged by the onslaught of water.
Over a thousand soldiers from Spain’s emergency rescue units joined regional and local emergency workers in the search for bodies and survivors. The defense minister said that soldiers alone had recovered 22 bodies and rescued 110 people by Wednesday night.
“We are searching house by house,” Ángel Martínez, official of a military emergency unit, told Spain’s national radio broadcaster RNE on Thursday from the town of Utiel, where at least six people died.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is heading to the region to witness the destruction firsthand as the nation starts a three-day period of official mourning.
Thousands of people were left without water and electricity and hundreds were stranded after their cars were wrecked or roads were blocked. The region remained partly isolated with several roads cut off and train lines interrupted, including the high-speed service to Madrid, which officials say won’t be repaired for several days.
While Valencia took the brunt of the storm, another two casualties were reported in the neighboring Castilla La Mancha region. Southern Andalusia reported one death.
The relative calm of the day after has also given time to reflect and question if authorities could have done more to save lives. The regional government is being criticized for not sending out flood warnings to people’s mobile phones until 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday, when the flooding had already started in some parts.
Spain’s Mediterranean coast is used to autumn storms that can cause flooding. But this was the most powerful flash flood event in recent memory. Scientists link it to climate change, which is also behind increasingly high temperatures and droughts in Spain and the heating up of the Mediterranean Sea.