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India flight from Frankfurt
hit with latest fake threat
BENGALURU: The latest in a string of hoax threats made against Indian airlines targeted a flight from Germany, the airline said Thursday, with the plane landing safely in Mumbai. More than a dozen fake bomb threats have been made against flights operated by multiple Indian air services this week, prompting government and civil aviation authorities to warn that “very strict action” will be taken. India’s Vistara airline said Thursday that its passenger jet flying from Frankfurt to Mumbai the day before had received a “security threat” on social media, but landed safely at its planned destination. — AFP
Bus accident in
Turkey injures 22
ISTANBUL: At least 22 people were injured in western Turkey on Thursday when a tour bus with Japanese tourists onboard overturned on a highway, media reported. One of them was seriously injured as the bus went out of control, the DHA news agency said. It was not immediately clear how many passengers were onboard. The injured were taken to nearby hospitals, the news agency added. Bus travel is a popular mode of transport in Turkey and accidents are fairly common. — AFP
Chad president ousts
top security officials
N’DJAMENA, Chad: Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno has removed several high-ranking defense and security officials from their posts, days after dismissing the security minister. A presidential decree declared late Wednesday that the director generals of both the police and military police, the chiefs of general staff of the armed forces as well as the commanders of the national nomadic guard had all been “called to other functions”. It follows Saturday’s announcement on state television that Security Minister Mahamat Charfadine Margui had been replaced by a general, Ali Ahmat Akhabache. — AFP
Body of missing French teenager
found after 13-month search
STRASBOURG: The body of a French teenager who went missing 13 months ago has been found after a long police search halfway across the country from where she was last seen, authorities have announced. Police had been searching for the 15-year-old — referred to only as “Lina” in French media — since her mysterious disappearance on September 23 last year. They had amassed thousands of reports, conducted hundreds of interviews and analyzed hundreds of vehicles. — AFP
UK police probe parcel fire
after Russian sabotage fears
LONDON: UK anti-terrorism police on Thursday said they were investigating how a parcel burst into flames at a depot earlier this year, after a similar case in Germany blamed on Russia. The incident at a DHL warehouse near Birmingham, central England, happened on July 22. No one was injured in the fire, which was put out by staff and the fire brigade. According to The Guardian newspaper, which first reported the investigation, the parcel had been sent by air. — AFP
Seoul court acquits ex-police
chief over Halloween crush
SEOUL: A South Korean court acquitted the former Seoul police chief and two officers Thursday of professional negligence over a deadly 2022 Halloween crowd crush that killed more than 150 people, an official told AFP. The court ruled that Kim Kwang-ho—the highest-ranking police official indicted over the crush—could not be legally held accountable for the tragedy, citing a lack of evidence to establish that his neglect of duty led to the accident. “It is hard to establish beyond reasonable doubt, with the evidence put forward by the prosecution, that the defendants committed professional negligence,” the Seoul Western District Court ruled, Yonhap reported.
Thai celebrities among 18
arrested for pyramid scheme
BANGKOK: Thai police have arrested 18 people, including three celebrities, and seized luxury sports cars and millions of dollars in connection with a pyramid scheme selling health and dietary supplements, officers said Thursday. The arrests came after more than 1,000 people filed online fraud allegations against The iCon Group, a company they said had lured them into buying products and making financial commitments. The company’s founder and CEO, Warathaphon “Boss Paul” Waratyaworrakul, was detained on Wednesday along with a top TV host and an actress who had allegedly helped convince victims to join the scheme. -- AFP