India bringing in a new law to curb the menace of hoax bomb threat calls disrupting airlines flying

India bringing in a new law to curb the menace of hoax bomb threat calls disrupting airlines flying
The Indian government is working on a new law to punish those spreading the menace of hoax bomb threat calls. (AP)
Short Url
Updated 22 October 2024
Follow

India bringing in a new law to curb the menace of hoax bomb threat calls disrupting airlines flying

India bringing in a new law to curb the menace of hoax bomb threat calls disrupting airlines flying
  • The Indian government is working on a new law to punish those spreading the menace of hoax bomb threat calls

NEW DELHI: The Indian government plans a new law to punish those making hoax bomb threats against flights, which disrupt the schedules of airlines and cause massive inconvenience to thousands of passengers.
In less than two weeks, more than 120 flights operated by Indian carriers have received bomb threats, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.
Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan said on Monday that the government is planning to introduce legislation that would put offenders on a no-fly list and amend the 1982 Civil Aviation Act so that they can be arrested and investigated without a court order.
On Tuesday, IndiGo, a private Indian airline, said nine of its flights destined for Jeddah and Dammam in Saudi Arabia and some flights from Turkiye had received such hoax calls. The flights were diverted to the nearest airports for security checks.
“We worked closely with the relevant authorities and followed standard operating procedures,” the airline said in a statement.
The hoaxers have largely gone untraced so far. The Mumbai police said they detained a 17-year-old boy from eastern Chhattisgarh state on Wednesday for allegedly posting bomb threat messages on the social media of various airlines.
Police officer Maneesh Kalwaniya said the boy’s motive was to implicate another person involved in a business dispute with him.
The Press Trust of India said 30 domestic and international flights operated by Indian airlines, including IndiGo, Vistara, and Air India, received bomb threats on Monday night alone.
“Even though bomb threats are hoaxes, things cannot be taken non-seriously,” Rammohan said.


Father and stepmother jailed for girl’s murder after UK trial

Father and stepmother jailed for girl’s murder after UK trial
Updated 6 sec ago
Follow

Father and stepmother jailed for girl’s murder after UK trial

Father and stepmother jailed for girl’s murder after UK trial
LONDON: The father and stepmother of Sara Sharif, a 10-year-old girl who was found dead in her home in Britain, were on Tuesday jailed for 40 and 33 years respectively for her murder after a trial which heard harrowing details of Sara’s treatment.
Sharif was found dead in August 2023 at her home in Woking, a town southwest of London, after what prosecutors said was a campaign of “serious and repeated violence.”
The family fled to Pakistan immediately after Sara Sharif was killed, before they were arrested in September 2023 at London’s Gatwick airport after flying from Dubai.
Prosecutor Bill Emlyn Jones told jurors at the start of the trial that Sara had suffered injuries including burns, multiple broken bones and bite marks.
Sara’s father Urfan Sharif, 43, and his wife Beinash Batool, 30, stood trial at London’s Old Bailey court charged with her murder, which they denied.
Last week, the jury convicted Urfan Sharif and Batool of Sara’s murder. Sara’s uncle Faisal Malik, 29, was found not guilty of murder but guilty of causing or allowing Sara’s death.
Sharif and Batool appeared in the dock at the Old Bailey, where they heard a statement read on behalf of Sara’s mother Olga Domin who called them “executioners.”
“You are sadists, although even this word is not enough for you,” her statement read. “I would say you are executioners.”
Judge John Cavanagh sentenced Sharif to a minimum of 40 years in prison and Batool to a minimum of 33 years. Malik was sentenced to 16 years.
“The courts at the Old Bailey have been witness to many accounts of awful crimes, but few can have been more terrible than the account of the despicable treatment of this poor child that the jury in this case have had to endure,” Cavanagh said.
“It is no exaggeration to describe the campaign of abuse against Sara as torture.”

Serving the forgotten: Delhi woman performs last rites for city’s abandoned dead

Serving the forgotten: Delhi woman performs last rites for city’s abandoned dead
Updated 17 December 2024
Follow

Serving the forgotten: Delhi woman performs last rites for city’s abandoned dead

Serving the forgotten: Delhi woman performs last rites for city’s abandoned dead
  • Pooja Sharma has performed funeral rites for more than 5,000 people since 2022
  • She is featured on the BBC’s list of 100 inspirational women around the world

NEW DELHI: Pooja Sharma’s life was turned upside down when her older brother was killed, leaving her with a tragic responsibility that soon became a mission of serving those no one thought to serve — New Delhi’s unclaimed dead.

The 27-year-old spends most of her time collecting bodies released from mortuaries by the police and taking them to a crematorium for their final dignified farewell.

“My elder brother was shot dead in front of my eyes because of a small tiff with some goons. No one came to help me out. When I took him to the hospital, he was declared dead and my father went into a coma. When my brother’s dead body came home from the hospital there was no male member to perform the last rites,” Sharma told Arab News.

“I did the last rites of my brother, tying a turban on my head. When I went to the cremation ground to collect his ashes, I started crying inconsolably. That day I took a vow that, from now on, no dead body will go unattended to the cremation ground.”

Quitting her job as an HIV counsellor at a government hospital, she established Bright the Soul Foundation, which has since helped perform funerary rites for more than 5,000 people.

“I perform the last rites not only for Hindus, but also Christians and Muslims and other religions too,” Sharma said.

“God has made us human, and we deserve respect both while living and while dead. I want to serve the dead.”

Delhi police data shows that thousands of unidentified bodies are found in the city every year. After an investigation and attempts to locate relatives, officers either bury them in mass graves or cremate them. Or they call Sharma.

She performs funeral rites for about eight people every day and tries to raise awareness on her Instagram page and the foundation’s website, hoping she will be able to expand the reach of her service.

“I want to spread the wings of my organization across the country so that the orphaned dead bodies can get their respect and decent cremation. There are some states which are really poor, and poor people when they die, they don’t get their due respect. They are buried or cremated in a very rude manner,” Sharma said.

“I feel it’s important that the dead bodies also get their rights, and they should be buried with full religious and ritual rites.”

Earlier this month, Sharma’s work was recognized when the BBC included her on its 2024 “100 Women” list of inspiring and influential women from around the world.

She hopes the recognition will help more women enter the service of final rites and destigmatize their presence. Sharma herself has faced resistance from priests and the wider community as the role is traditionally held by men in Hinduism.

She has also sacrificed her personal life in pursuit of her mission.

Living with her father and grandmother, who also financially support her work, Sharma does not feel accepted by society at large.

“People don’t talk to me normally. They are scared of me, and they don’t mingle with me. Even my childhood friends have also stopped talking to me. They say that their parents have stopped them from talking to me, and they say that if they talk to me, they will turn impure,” she said.

“This is a lonely journey for me, but I have accepted my fate ... My life is dedicated to the service of humanity.” 


Ireland ‘won’t be silenced’ over Israel’s conduct in Gaza

Ireland ‘won’t be silenced’ over Israel’s conduct in Gaza
Updated 11 min 21 sec ago
Follow

Ireland ‘won’t be silenced’ over Israel’s conduct in Gaza

Ireland ‘won’t be silenced’ over Israel’s conduct in Gaza
  • Taoiseach Simon Harris: ‘Scale of civilian deaths’ is ‘reprehensible’
  • Says he is proud of his country’s support for Palestinians

LONDON: Ireland’s leader has said his country will “not be silenced” in its criticism of Israel’s war in Gaza after Tel Aviv closed its Dublin embassy.

Taoiseach Simon Harris accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of “the diplomacy of distraction,” and said Ireland had unequivocally supported Israel’s right to defend itself.

But Harris leveled strong criticism of Israel’s conduct in Gaza, and said he is proud of Ireland’s support for the Palestinians.

“You know what I think is reprehensible? Killing children, I think that’s reprehensible,” he told reporters. “You know what I think is reprehensible? Seeing the scale of civilian deaths that we’ve seen in Gaza.

“You know what I think is reprehensible? People being left to starve and humanitarian aid not flowing.”

The embassy closure followed Ireland’s decision last week to support an International Court of Justice petition accusing Israel of genocide.

Irish Foreign Minister Micheal Martin said the decision had “not been motivated by anything other than respect for international humanitarian law.”

He added: “The utilisation of the international courts by Ireland … where there can be international accountability for war crimes in any part of the world, including in Gaza, should not be seen as a hostile act.”


US building support in UN for Houthi ship inspections: Envoy

US building support in UN for Houthi ship inspections: Envoy
Updated 17 December 2024
Follow

US building support in UN for Houthi ship inspections: Envoy

US building support in UN for Houthi ship inspections: Envoy
  • Existing UN mission has limited powers to inspect ships for weapons deliveries
  • Tim Lenderking: Washington also considering re-designating Yemeni militia as terrorist group

London: The US is building international support for a UN campaign to disrupt supplies heading for the Houthi militia in Yemen, Washington’s special envoy to the country has said.

Tim Lenderking added that the US is also considering re-designating the militia as a terrorist group.

Last week, he visited the UN Verification and Inspection Mission for Yemen, based in Djibouti on the opposite side of the Red Sea.

The mission’s focus is to inspect ships arriving in Houthi-controlled ports, to intercept weapons deliveries.

Though the UN Security Council has imposed an arms embargo, UNVIM, established in 2016, has limited means to interdict ships.

Lenderking said he is researching ways to make the mission more effective at preventing Houthi access to foreign weaponry.

The Houthis have said their Red Sea campaign is a stand of solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

The campaign will come to an end if a ceasefire is reached between Israel and Hamas, Houthi leaders have said.

“UNVIM is not equipped or given the mandate to do interdictions. We are working with partners to look at a change to the mandate,” Lenderking said.

“We all have to plug the holes, and that requires a different mindset and different sort of focus than simply escorting ships.”

The number of commercial ships transiting the Red Sea has halved in the past year due to the Houthi campaign. The US and UK militaries have staged a series of attacks on the militia’s positions in Yemen.

As a result, Houthi leaders are “much more careful how they are moving around,” said Lenderking. “They have altered their communications in light of the walkie talkie attacks on Hezbollah.”

 


Philippines launches national halal office to boost global market presence

Philippines launches national halal office to boost global market presence
Updated 17 December 2024
Follow

Philippines launches national halal office to boost global market presence

Philippines launches national halal office to boost global market presence
  • New office will be a central coordinating body for nationwide halal development efforts
  • It will also lead ‘Halal-Friendly Philippines’ campaign to attract non-Muslims

MANILA: The Philippine government launched on Tuesday the National Halal Industry and Development Office to coordinate the country’s efforts to become a top player in the global halal market by next year.

The predominantly Catholic Philippines — where Muslims constitute about 10 percent of the almost 120 million population — has been working to tap into the global halal market, which is estimated to be worth more than $7 trillion.

The Department of Trade and Industry is establishing NHIDO “to propel the Philippines to the forefront of the global halal industry by 2025,” it said in a statement.

“This strategic move aligns with the country’s goal to boost the domestic halal market and expand the export potential of Filipino products and services.”

In the Philippines, efforts are underway to double the number of its halal-certified products and services, raise 230 billion pesos ($3.9 billion) in investments and generate around 120,000 jobs by 2028.

Manila has also been promoting its domestic halal industry at international exhibitions, including in Saudi Arabia and Malaysia, where the strength of the Filipino halal market — its agricultural products, such as coconut oil, baked goods and wellness items — were showcased.

With the establishment of the NHIDO, the office will act as a central coordinating body for all halal development efforts in the Philippines, said Dimnatang M. Radia, DTI’s halal industry and trade office program manager.

It will also lead the nationwide “Halal-Friendly Philippines” campaign, which is aimed at raising awareness of the economic potential of halal products and also attracting non-Muslims.

“The establishment of NHIDO marks a turning point for the Philippine halal industry,” Radia said.

“It will serve as a unifying force to transform our goals into reality, unlocking opportunities for businesses, creating jobs, and elevating the Philippines as a halal-friendly destination globally.”