Teen injured on Tehran Metro dies
Dubai: An Iranian teenage girl injured weeks ago in a mysterious incident on Tehran’s Metro while not wearing a head scarf has died, Iranian state media reported on Saturday. The death of Armita Geravand comes after her being in a coma for weeks in Tehran and after the one-year anniversary of the death of Mahsa Amini and the nationwide protests it sparked. Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency reported her death. What happened in the few seconds after Armita Geravand entered the train on Oct. 1 remains in question. While a friend told Iranian state television that she hit her head on the station's platform, the soundless footage aired by the broadcaster from outside of the car is blocked by a bystander. Just seconds later, her limp body is carried off. Geravand’s mother and father appeared in state media footage saying a blood pressure issue, a fall or perhaps both contributed to their daughter’s injury. Activists abroad have alleged Geravand may have been pushed or attacked because she was not wearing the hijab. They demanded an independent investigation by the United Nations’ fact-finding mission on Iran, citing the theocracy’s use of pressure on victims' families and state TV’s history of airing hundreds of coerced confessions.
At least 32 killed in a multi-car pileup in Egypt
Cairo: Egypt’s health ministry said at least 32 people were killed in a multi-car pileup Saturday on a highway linking Cairo and the Mediterranean city of Alexandria. At least 63 others were injured in the crash which involved a passenger bus and other vehicles, the statement said, adding that fire erupted in some vehicles. Ambulances rushed to the scene to transfer the injured to hospital.
India to give more funding to Lankan military
Colombo: India will provide additional funding of LKR 23 million (around Rs 58,75,900) for the training of Sri Lankan Armed Forces, the Indian High Commission here has said. This was conveyed to Sri Lanka by the acting Indian High Commissioner Satyanjal Pandey when he met a senior local military delegation here on Friday. “Army Delegation led by Maj Gen Chandana Wickramasinghe met Acting HC @DrSatyanjal to discuss the conduct of upcoming Exercise Mitra Shakti, a bilateral exercise between the Armies and Air Forces of India and Sri Lanka,” the Indian mission posted on X. “Additional funding of LKR 23 million for training of Sri Lankan Armed Forces announced by India,” it said, without giving more details. The Sri Lankan side conveyed its gratitude to India for the capacity-building support extended to the Sri Lankan armed forces and was looking forward to increased engagements, a release said.
At least 21 dead in Kazakhstan coal mine fire
London: A coal mine fire in central Kazakhstan killed at least 21 workers while another 25 remained unaccounted for on Saturday, the operating company ArcelorMittal Temirtau said in a statement.Some 252 people were working at the Kostenko coal mine at the time of the blaze, believed to have been caused by a pocket of methane gas, the company said. ArcelorMittal Temirtau is the local representative for Luxembourg-based multinational ArcelorMittal, the world's second-largest steel producer. It operates eight coal mines across the Karaganda region and a further four iron ore mines in central and northern Kazakhstan. The fire is the latest in a string of workplace deaths at sites operated by ArcelorMittal Temirtau. In August, four miners were killed after a fire erupted at the same mine, while five people died following a methane leak at another site in November 2022. In the statement, the company conveyed “pain” at the lives lost and said their efforts “are now aimed at ensuring that affected employees receive comprehensive care and rehabilitation, as well as close cooperation with government authorities”. Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said on Saturday his country is stopping “investment cooperation” with ArcelorMittal Temirtau. The office of Kazakhstan’s Prosecutor General has also announced an investigation into potential safety violations in the coal mine.
Police intercept 77 migrants in North Macedonia
Skopje: Police in North Macedonia said Saturday they found 77 migrants in the country’s south and arrested seven Pakistanis suspected of human trafficking. Police said in a statement the arrests took place late Thursday near the southern town of Negorci when they responded to reports of a large group of people on the move. The 77 included 52 Syrians, 13 Pakistanis, five Iraqis, five Turks and two Indians. Seven of the Pakistanis, believed to be the organisers of the group’s illegal entry into North Macedonia from neighbouring Greece, were arrested and criminal charges were filed against them. It was the first large group of migrants crossing into North Macedonia in recent months. The migrants were being sheltered in a reception centre in the border town of Gevgelija pending deportation back to Greece. According to the police, a total of 5,280 attempts at illegal crossing were prevented in the first six months of 2023, the vast majority of them at the southern border with Greece. That is a drop of 43 per cent from the same period last year and is largely due to the European border and coast guard agency Frontex launching a joint border patrol operation with local authorities last April.
Roadside bomb kills 2 in northwest Pakistan
Islamabad: Two Pakistani soldiers and one militant were killed in a roadside bomb explosion and in a separate shootout during an overnight military operation against militant activity in the northwest alongside the border with Afghanistan, the military said on Saturday. A military statement said an intelligence-based operation was conducted in the Tirah valley of Khyber district late on Friday night. One militant was killed and two others were wounded and arrested. The military said two of its soldiers were killed when a roadside bomb exploded while a security patrol was passing by in South Waziristan overnight. Security troops were conducting a search operation in the area to eliminate militants involved in the attack. Tribal districts along the border with Afghanistan have been sanctuaries for militants for decades until the military carried out a massive operation after an attack on an army-run school in Peshawar in 2014 killed more than 150 people, mostly schoolchildren. After the yearslong operation, the army announced it had cleared the region of local and foreign militants. Occasional attacks have continued, however, raising concerns that the local Taliban, known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, found sanctuaries in Afghanistan and are regrouping in the area.
Serbian police detain 6 people after shooting
Belgrade: Serbian police have arrested six people and seized automatic weapons after a shooting between migrants near the country’s tense border with Hungary killed three people and injured one. Police said late on Friday they detained four Afghan and two Turkish nationals suspected of unlawful possession of guns and explosives. It was not immediately clear whether they would be charged with the shooting as well. The suspected clash between groups of migrants happened early Friday in abandoned farming warehouses near the village of Horgos. Police raided the area and seized two automatic rifles and ammunition. They also found 79 migrants and transferred them to reception centres, the statement said. Reports of violence and gunbattles have become common near the border between Serbia and European Union member nation Hungary. Thousands of migrants have been camping in the area, looking for ways to cross with the help of people smugglers. Serbian police have raided the border zone on several occasions over the past several months, arresting suspected people smugglers and confiscating weapons. President Aleksandar Vucic said on Friday that Serbia could bring in the military “to fix this”, state RTS television reported. The Serbia-Hungary border area lies on the so-called Balkan land route of migration toward Western Europe, which leads from Turkiye to Greece and Bulgaria, and then on to North Macedonia, Serbia or Bosnia. Hungary’s staunchly anti-immigrant government has put up razor-wire fence on the border with Serbia to stop the influx. People smuggling gangs, however, have multiplied in the border area, often clashing for control.