NEW ZEALAND
Muslims back Sonny Bill
Islamic leaders are pushing to have All Black and “Muslim superstar” Sonny Bill Williams listed among the world’s 500 most influential Muslims, it was reported yesterday. They are disappointed the world champion midfield back failed to make last year’s list and will be writing to compilers — the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre in Jordan — to have him included next year. The center says its annual list provides a window on the “movers and shakers of the Muslim world,” gives an insight into the ways Muslims impact on the world and “shows the diversity of how people are living as Muslims today.” Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand senior vice president Javed Khan said he would be writing to the center to tell them about Williams, the Herald reported.
INDONESIA
Workers killed in Aceh
Unidentified gunmen on a motorbike shot dead three telecoms workers and wounded seven others in Aceh Province, police said yesterday. They killed the workers from the state-owned company PT Telkom on New Year’s Eve as they were resting in their rented house in Blang Cot Tunong village in Bireuen district, local police chief Yuri Karsono said. “Three people were killed and seven had gunshot wounds. Two gunmen came on a motorcycle, one got down and started shooting at workers with a rifle,” he said. “Their motive remains unclear. We are still investigating,” he added. Last month, unidentified gunmen shot dead three oil palm plantation workers and wounded five others in north Aceh. Police suspected “economic motivation” behind the shooting.
INDIA
Girl killed as sacrifice
A seven-year-old girl was murdered in a tribal sacrifice and her liver offered to the gods to improve crop growth, police in Chhattisgarh State said yesterday. The body of Lalita Tati was found in October, one week after her family reported her missing. “A seven-year-old girl was sacrificed by two persons superstitiously believing that the act would give a better harvest,” Narayan Das, the police chief of Bijapur district, told reporters by telephone. Two men was arrested on Wednesday last week on suspicion of killing the girl. Police said the men had confessed to the crime. The girl was murdered in a jungle district of Chhattisgarh that is a stronghold of rebel Maoists who have tapped into disaffection among local tribal groups. Human sacrifices occasionally make headlines in deeply religious and superstitious areas of the country and usually occur in poor places where some people revere practitioners of black magic. The victims are often ritually killed by witchdoctors to appease gods, spirits or deities.
PHILIPPINES
Firecrackers injure hundreds
Despite a government scare campaign, firecrackers and gunfire injured nearly 500 people as revelers welcomed the new year in one of the world’s most raucous and dangerous celebrations. About a dozen flights, including two from the US, were diverted or canceled early yesterday after dark smog caused by a night of firecracker explosions obscured visibility at Manila’s airport, officials said. Health Secretary Enrique Ona said the number of injuries — 454 from firecracker blasts and 18 from stray bullets — was slightly lower than last year, but remained alarming. Injured revelers, including many children, filled hospital emergency rooms in the capital shortly after midnight.
UNITED STATES
Pirate cruise runs aground
Authorities in Florida say a Pirate-themed cruise ship carrying about 100 passengers ran aground on New Year’s Eve. Public safety officials in Clearwater, Florida, said on Saturday night that crews responded at the Memorial Causeway Bridge when the cruise ship, known as the Pirate’s Ransom, ran aground. A second vessel attempted to take some of the passengers to shore also ran aground. Police and fireboats were taking passengers to shore late on Saturday night. A city press release says a 77-year-old woman was examined at the scene, but refused treatment. There were no immediate reports of injuries. Authorities said fog is believed to have been a factor in the ships running aground. Clearwater is located on Florida’s Gulf coast.
UNITED STATES
Banana Sam found alive
A beloved squirrel monkey that had been stolen from the San Francisco Zoo has been found safe. Authorities say Banana Sam was located on Saturday evening. Police say in a release that a park visitor noticed the 17-year-old primate and lured him into his backpack. He called police who retrieved Banana-Sam and found him in apparent good health. He was returned to the zoo. Banana Sam’s theft on Thursday prompted the zoo to boost security and keep the other 17 squirrel monkeys indoors. He was taken after thieves cut through a gate and made holes in the mesh surrounding the monkey exhibit. A US$5,000 reward had been offered for his safe return.
UNITED STATES
Explosives found at airport
A man was detained after trying to go through a security checkpoint at a Midland, Texas, airport with explosives in military-grade wrapping, federal and local officials said. The man was stopped on Saturday at a security checkpoint at the Midland International Airport at about 9am and taken into custody by the FBI, they said. FBI spokesman Mike Martinez declined to say whether the man was in military uniform or how many explosives were found in the bag. He said he did not know where the man was being held, saying he was at either the airport or at the FBI office in Midland. Police Sergeant Brian Rackow told the Midland Reporter-Telegram and Odessa American that the man identified himself to investigating officials as being active in the military. He and his family had been in the area visiting relatives and were on their way back to his base in North Carolina, Rackow said. It’s not clear which base and Rackow did not immediately return phone calls for comment. City spokeswoman Tasa Watts said she had no information on the suspect, but the explosives were wrapped in military-grade wrapping.
BRAZIL
Thousands flee flooding
Flooding caused by heavy rain in the southeast has forced more than 9,000 people to flee their homes, civil defense officials said on Saturday. Officials in Minas Gerais State said in a press release that 44 municipalities have been declared to be in a state of emergency. The heavy rain has destroyed 84 homes and damaged more than 2,000 buildings, while 400 people were left homeless, the state Civil Defense said. The heavy rain has affected 2 million people living in the area, officials said. Two adults, a man and a woman were killed in the floods on Tuesday, a death toll that was unchanged on Saturday. At least 32 people have been injured, but no victims have been reported missing, officials said, adding that more rain is forecast for the weekend.
Republican US lawmakers on Friday criticized US President Joe Biden’s administration after sanctioned Chinese telecoms equipment giant Huawei unveiled a laptop this week powered by an Intel artificial intelligence (AI) chip. The US placed Huawei on a trade restriction list in 2019 for contravening Iran sanctions, part of a broader effort to hobble Beijing’s technological advances. Placement on the list means the company’s suppliers have to seek a special, difficult-to-obtain license before shipping to it. One such license, issued by then-US president Donald Trump’s administration, has allowed Intel to ship central processors to Huawei for use in laptops since 2020. China hardliners
A top Vietnamese property tycoon was on Thursday sentenced to death in one of the biggest corruption cases in history, with an estimated US$27 billion in damages. A panel of three hand-picked jurors and two judges rejected all defense arguments by Truong My Lan, chair of major developer Van Thinh Phat, who was found guilty of swindling cash from Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB) over a decade. “The defendant’s actions ... eroded people’s trust in the leadership of the [Communist] Party and state,” read the verdict at the trial in Ho Chi Minh City. After the five-week trial, 85 others were also sentenced on
Conjoined twins Lori and George Schappell, who pursued separate careers, interests and relationships during lives that defied medical expectations, died this month in Pennsylvania, funeral home officials said. They were 62. The twins, listed by Guinness World Records as the oldest living conjoined twins, died on April 7 at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, obituaries posted by Leibensperger Funeral Homes of Hamburg said. The cause of death was not detailed. “When we were born, the doctors didn’t think we’d make 30, but we proved them wrong,” Lori said in an interview when they turned 50, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported. The
RAMPAGE: A Palestinian man was left dead after dozens of Israeli settlers searching for a missing 14-year-old boy stormed a village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank US President Joe Biden on Friday said he expected Iran to attack Israel “sooner, rather than later” and warned Tehran not to proceed. Asked by reporters about his message to Iran, Biden simply said: “Don’t,” underscoring Washington’s commitment to defend Israel. “We are devoted to the defense of Israel. We will support Israel. We will help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed,” he said. Biden said he would not divulge secure information, but said his expectation was that an attack could come “sooner, rather than later.” Israel braced on Friday for an attack by Iran or its proxies as warnings grew of