INDIA
Kashmir attack kills nine
The government is investigating an attack in which suspected militants fired at a bus carrying Hindu pilgrims in Kashmir, killing nine and injuring 33, officials said yesterday. The attack on Sunday caused the vehicle to fall into a deep gorge in Jammu Province’s Reasi District. The bus was carrying pilgrims to the base camp of the Hindu temple Mata Vaishno Devi. A team from the National Investigation Agency has reached the site of the attack, the Press Trust of India news agency reported. Security forces were also trying to track down those suspected to be responsible. Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha announced compensation of US$11,975 each for families of those killed, as well as nearly US$600 to those who were injured. Federal Minister Amit Shah said he was in touch with Sinha and the local administration was providing speedy medical attention. A police officer said some of the victims had gunshot wounds and blamed the attack on Muslim militants who are fighting Indian rule in Kashmir.
AUSTRALIA
US consulate vandalized
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese yesterday urged activists on both sides of the Israel-Palestinian debate to “turn the heat down” after the US consulate in Sydney was vandalized earlier in the day. CCTV footage showed a person wearing a dark hoodie using a small sledgehammer to smash nine holes in the reinforced glass windows of the building in North Sydney after 3am, a police statement said. Two inverted red triangles, seen by many as a symbol of Palestinian resistance, were also painted on the front of the building. Calling for “respectful political debate and discourse,” Albanese told reporters: “People are traumatized by what is going on in the Middle East, particularly those with relatives in either Israel or in the Palestinian Occupied Territories.” However, “measures such as painting the US consulate do nothing to advance the cause of those who have committed what is, of course, a crime to damage property,” he said. The consulate was closed yesterday because of a public holiday in New South Wales state, but would reopen today, a consulate statement said. New South Wales Premier Chris Minns said an overwhelming majority of Australians did not approve of such vandalism.
JAPAN
Deportation rules tightened
Japanese laws making it easier for the country to deport failed asylum seekers took effect yesterday, with campaigners warning that the new system would put lives at risk. The world’s fourth-largest economy has long been criticized for the low number of asylum applications it accepts. Last year, refugee status was granted to a record 303 people, mostly from Afghanistan. Now the government can deport asylum seekers rejected three times, under immigration law changes enacted last year. Previously, those seeking refugee status had been able to stay in the country while they appealed decisions, regardless of the number of attempts made. The revised law is “meant to swiftly deport those without permission to stay, and help reduce long-term detentions,” Minister of Justice Ryuji Koizumi said last month. Critics have raised concerns over the transparency of the screening process, saying the new rules could heighten the risk of applicants facing persecution after repatriation. “We’re strongly concerned that the enforcement of this law will allow refugees who have fled to Japan to be deported, and endanger their lives and safety,” the Japan Association for Refugees said on X.
The Philippine Department of Justice yesterday labeled Vice President Sara Duterte the “mastermind” of a plot to assassinate the nation’s president, giving her five days to respond to a subpoena. Duterte is being asked to explain herself in the wake of a blistering weekend press conference where she said she had instructed that Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr be killed should an alleged plot to kill her succeed. “The government is taking action to protect our duly elected president,” Philippine Undersecretary of Justice Jesse Andres said at yesterday’s press briefing. “The premeditated plot to assassinate the president as declared by the self-confessed mastermind
Texas’ education board on Friday voted to allow Bible-infused teachings in elementary schools, joining other Republican-led US states that pushed this year to give religion a larger presence in public classrooms. The curriculum adopted by the Texas State Board of Education, which is controlled by elected Republicans, is optional for schools to adopt, but they would receive additional funding if they do so. The materials could appear in classrooms as early as next school year. Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott has voiced support for the lesson plans, which were provided by the state’s education agency that oversees the more than
Ireland, the UK and France faced travel chaos on Saturday and one person died as a winter storm battered northwest Europe with strong winds, heavy rain, snow and ice. Hampshire Police in southern England said a man died after a tree fell onto a car on a major road near Winchester early in the day. Police in West Yorkshire said they were probing whether a second death from a traffic incident was linked to the storm. It is understood the road was not icy at the time of the incident. Storm Bert left at least 60,000 properties in Ireland without power, and closed
CONSPIRACIES: Kano suspended polio immunization in 2003 and 2004 following claims that polio vaccine was laced with substances that could render girls infertile Zuwaira Muhammad sat beside her emaciated 10-month-old twins on a clinic bed in northern Nigeria, caring for them as they battled malnutrition and malaria. She would have her babies vaccinated if they regain their strength, but for many in Kano — a hotbed of anti-vaccine sentiment — the choice is not an obvious one. The infants have been admitted to the 75-bed clinic in the Unguwa Uku neighbourhood, one of only two in the city of 4.5 million run by French aid agency Doctors Without Borders (MSF). Kano has the highest malaria burden in Nigeria, but the city has long
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