Foreign News
Iranian Police Call Woman’s Death in Custody an ‘Unfortunate Incident’
Iranian police said on Monday the death of masha Amini, 22, was an “unfortunate incident” denying accusations of mistreatment that have fuelled protests.
Amini, was arrested on September 16, 2022 in the Kurdistan province in Tehran by the morality police for failing to adhere to the strict rule of wearing hijab and loosed outfit.
The police reported that Amini fell into a coma and died following her arrest, sparking protests in parts of Iran including Tehran and the Kurdistan province where she came from.
Videos shared on Twitter on Sunday showed protesters demonstrating in Sanandaj, capital of Kurdistan province.
A video posted by Kurdish rights group Hengaw showed security forces in riot gear running down a street in the city, at least one of them firing what appeared to be a gun.
However, Reuters could not verify the videos’ accuracy.
The police have said Amini fell ill as she waited with other women being held by the morality police, who enforce strict rules imposed since Iran’s 1979 Islamic revolution requiring women to cover their hair and wear loose fitting clothes.
However, her father told pro-reform Emtedad news website on Sunday that his daughter was fit with no health problems.
He said Amini had suffered bruises to her legs and held the police responsible for her death.
Stepping up denials of any wrongdoing, Greater Tehran Police Commander Hossein Rahimi said “cowardly accusations” had been made against Iranian police, Amini suffered no physical harm, and the police had “done everything” to keep her alive.
“This incident was unfortunate for us and we wish to never witness such incidents,” Rahimi said in the statement reported by the Fars news agency.
The police screened a video showing a woman identified as Amini walking into a room and taking a seat alongside others.
It then fast-forwards to show her on her feet talking to someone who appeared to be inspecting part of her clothing.
The woman identified as Amini then raised her hands to her head and collapsed.
Rahimi said paramedics arrived within one minute of her collapse.
Amini’s father told Emtedad on Sunday that the police took two hours to transfer her to hospital and if she had arrived earlier she would not have died.
Rahimi said he could not comment on the cause of death because this was a medical rather than a security issue, adding that the morality police were “doing positive work”.
Amini’s death could ramp up tension between the establishment and a Kurdish minority numbering eight to 10 million. (NAN)
Foreign News
Russian Army Fires Ballistic Missiles at Kiev from Crimean Peninsula
The Russian Army has hit the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, with ballistic missiles, injuring four people and damaging an uninhabited three-storey building, according to officials.
Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko said that two of the injured people were in a central neighbourhood and had been taken to hospital.
Rocket debris also fell in two other neighbourhoods.
According to the Ukrainian air force, two ballistic missiles were fired at the city of millions, from the Russian-controlled Crimea Peninsula.
Both were shot down.Half a dozen explosions from anti-aircraft missiles had previously been heard in the city centre.
The air raid warning was only triggered a few seconds beforehand, it said.
Ukraine has been facing Russian invasion for over two years.
Since then, the Ukrainian air defence system has been massively reinforced with Western systems. (dpa/NAN)
Foreign News
Cambodia Arrests 2 Foreigners for Smuggling 2.27 kg Narcotics
Cambodian customs police at the Phnom Penh International Airport said they have arrested two South Korean nationals for an attempt to smuggle 2.27 kg narcotics to South Korea.
The duo, a man and woman, were caught Sunday night while they checked in for a ZA215 flight bound for Seoul.
The General Department of Customs and Excise of Cambodia said in a news release on Monday.
In their body searches, our customs officials found many packs of drugs wrapped around their waists, the news release said.
“As a result, some 1.29 kg of crystal methamphetamine and 0.98 kg of ketamine were seized from the two suspects’ possession.’’
The Southeast Asian country has no death sentence for a drug trafficker.
Under its law, someone found guilty of trafficking more than 80 grammes of illicit drugs could be jailed for life.
According to the country’s Anti-Drug Department (ADP), Cambodia nabbed 3,899 drug-related suspects, including 106 foreigners, in 1,659 cases from Jan. 1 to March 3, 2024.
According to the report they confiscated a total of 2.79 tonnes of narcotics.
Most of the seized drugs were ketamine, crystal methamphetamine, methamphetamine tablets, heroin, ecstasy, and cocaine. (Xinhua/NAN)
Foreign News
February Ends with Extreme Heat – WMO
The UN weather agency, the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), says February saw more extreme heat and unusually high temperatures in both hemispheres.
Summarising the state of the climate, it said the month ended with extreme heat in the southern hemisphere where it is summer, while high temperatures atypical of the northern hemisphere winter prevailed.
Parts of North and South America, northwest and southeast Africa, southeast and far eastern Asia, western Australia and Europe all saw record-breaking temperatures, either on a daily basis or for all of February.
“The anomalous heat is consistent with the persisting warming observed since June 2023, with seven consecutive new global monthly temperature records, including January 2024,” Alvaro Silva, a climatologist working with the WMO, said in a statement.
Global sea surface temperatures were record high. While the El Niño weather pattern “has stoked temperatures in some parts of the world, human induced climate change is the long-term major contributing factor,” he added.
Conversely, a large part of northwestern Canada, central Asia – and from southern central Siberia to southeastern China – witnessed exceptional cold during the last week of the month.
The meteorological winter in the northern hemisphere and summer in the southern hemisphere finished officially at the end of February.
Meanwhile, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) raised increasing concern on Friday that more refugees would cross into Chad from Darfur in the coming weeks amid a worrying lack of food and other essentials.
Almost a year since the start of the civil war between rival militaries in Sudan, neighbouring Chad urgently needs more humanitarian aid and significant development investment, the agency reported, especially in its eastern areas which are hosting the refugee influx.
This investment will allow the country to continue its generous open-door stance towards refugees.
“Chadian officials are concerned that many more hungry Sudanese families will come in the next weeks,” said Kelly Clements, UNHCR’s Deputy High Commissioner, who is in the country to review the relief operation.
“The country is committed to keeping its borders open, despite the fragility of this region.
“But, doing so will put even more strain on Chad, which has so graciously been hosting refugees from Sudan’s war – now raging almost a year – and other refugees still here from earlier emergencies.” (NAN)