Sayidina

Category: NEWS

  • Flash flood sweeps away hamlet as Vietnam storm toll rises to 141 dead

    People stand on their balcony above a flooded street in Trang Dinh district, Lang Son province after Typhoon Yagi swept through northern Vietnam. (File/AFP)

    HANOI, Vietnam — A flash flood swept away an entire hamlet in northern Vietnam, killing 16 people and leaving dozens missing as deaths from a typhoon and its aftermath climbed to 141 on Wednesday.

    Vietnamese state broadcaster VTV said the torrent of water gushing down from a mountain in Lao Cai province Tuesday buried Lang Nu hamlet with 35 families in mud and debris.

    Only about a dozen are known so far to have survived. Rescuers have recovered 16 bodies and are continuing the search for about 40 others.

    The death toll from Typhoon Yagi and its aftermath has climbed to 141 as 69 others remain missing and hundreds were injured, VTV said.

    Yagi was the strongest typhoon to hit the Southeast Asian country in decades. It made landfall Saturday with winds of up to 149 kph (92 mph) and despite weakening on Sunday, downpours have continued and rivers remain dangerously high.

    Floods and landslides have caused most of the deaths, many of which have come in the northwestern Lao Cai province, bordering China, where Lang Nu is located.

    AN-AP

  • Dozens arrested as Melbourne anti-war protests turn violent

    A man waves a Palestinian flag as protesters confront police outside the Land Forces 2024 arms fair in Melbourne on September 11, 2024. (AFP)

    SYDNEY — Anti-war protesters and police clashed outside a defense exhibition in Australia’s second-largest city of Melbourne on Wednesday, with dozens arrested as police used sponge grenades, flash-bang devices and irritant sprays to control parts of the hostile crowd.

    Police were pelted with rocks, horse manure and bottles filled with liquid as they tried to protect attendees of the expo, some of whom were assaulted by protesters, a Victoria state police spokesperson said in a statement. Two dozen police officers required medical treatment and 39 people had been arrested for offenses including assaulting, obstructing or hindering police, arson and blocking roads, Shane Patton Chief Commissioner of Victoria Police told a press conference.

    Protesters lit fires in the street, disrupted traffic and public transport, while missiles were thrown at several police horses but no serious injuries were reported, police said.

    Some police have been spat at by protesters, whilst other officers have been sprayed with a liquid irritant, some of which was identified as acid, Patton added. “This is the type of disgusting behavior that we saw today from a group who were intent on confronting us,” he said.

    “If you wish to come and protest, do so peacefully. We will not tolerate criminal behavior.”

    About 1,200 people attended the protest outside the venue hosting the biennial Land Forces International Land Defense Exposition, authorities said.

    Many chanted pro-Palestine slogans through loud speakers and waved Palestine flags while others had signs and flags representing other conflicts and causes, video showed.

    Dumpsters were pushed toward police lines and one protester climbed on top of a truck that was stopped at traffic lights.

    Australian media reported it was the largest police operation in Melbourne since 2000 when Australia’s second-largest city hosted the World Economic Forum.

    About 1,000 exhibiting organizations from 31 countries are expected to attend the event through Friday, which the organizers said was Australia’s largest defense expo.

    Some attendees were doused in a red liquid by protesters, ABC News reported.

    Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said people had the right to protest but had to do it in a peaceful manner.

    “You don’t say you’re opposed to defense equipment by throwing things at police. They’ve got a job to do and our police officers should be respected at all times,” Albanese told Channel Seven.

    AN-REUTERS

  • Remaja 17 tahun masuk bilik teman wanita melalui tingkap sebelum rogol

    BATU PAHAT — Remaja lelaki berusia 17 tahun didakwa di Mahkamah Majistret di sini hari ini atas tuduhan merogol kenalan perempuan bawah umur selepas masuk ke rumah mangsa melalui tingkap bilik.

    Tertuduh dihadapkan di hadapan Majistret Suhaila Shafi’uddin untuk pendakwaan mengikut Seksyen 376 (1) Kanun Keseksaan yang memperuntukkan hukuman penjara sehingga 20 tahun dan juga sebatan, jika sabit kesalahan.

    Dia didakwa merogol mangsa berusia 16 tahun itu di sebuah rumah di daerah ini pada jam 1.05 pagi, Sabtu lalu.

    Berdasarkan laporan polis, tertuduh datang ke rumah remaja perempuan itu dan masuk melalui tingkap bilik yang sudah dibuka mangsa sebelum merogolnya sebanyak dua kali.

    Perbuatan itu terbongkar selepas abang mangsa ternampak kelibat tertuduh di luar bilik tanpa memakai baju lalu menahannya yang ketika itu cuba melarikan diri.

    Laporan dibuat ahli keluarga mangsa di Balai Polis Sri Medan, dekat sini pada 7 September dan tertuduh ditahan pada hari sama.

    Remaja lelaki itu yang tidak diwakili peguam mengaku bersalah sebelum mahkamah membenarkan ikat jamin RM1,000 dan menetapkan 23 Oktober ini untuk Jabatan Kebajikan Masyarakat (JKM) menyediakan laporan akhlak selain fakta dan hukuman.

    Pendakwaan dikendalikan Timbalan Pendakwa Raya Farah Wahidah Mohd Sharip.

    BH ONLINE

  • Cabul remaja di pasar malam, gelandangan dipenjara lima tahun

    MUAR — Seorang gelandangan dipenjara lima tahun dan satu sebatan selepas mengaku bersalah di Mahkamah Sesyen hari ini atas pertuduhan melakukan amang seksual fizikal terhadap pelajar di sebuah pasar malam di Kluang, Julai lalu.

    Hakim Sayani Mohd Nor menjatuhkan hukuman itu terhadap Ho Khek Chung, 50, selepas mengambil kira pengakuan bersalah dan pemberatan hukuman daripada pihak pendakwaan terhadap kesalahan tertuduh.

    Tertuduh yang masih bujang didakwa melakukan perbuatan itu terhadap pelajar perempuan berusia 15 tahun di sebuah pasar malam di Kluang pada jam 4.15 petang, 31 Julai lalu.

    Dia didakwa mengikut Seksyen 14 (a) Akta Kesalahan-Kesalahan Seksual Terhadap Kanak-Kanak (AKKSTKK) 2017 dan boleh dihukum mengikut Seksyen 14 akta sama.

    Seksyen itu memperuntukkan hukuman penjara sehingga 20 tahun dan sebatan jika sabit kesalahan.

    Berdasarkan fakta kes, mangsa ditemani ibunya ke pasar malam terbabit untuk membeli makanan.

    Ketika mangsa berselisih dengan tertuduh, lelaki itu mengambil kesempatan melakukan perbuatan terbabit.

    Selepas kejadian itu, mangsa menangis dan menceritakan kepada ibunya sebelum membuat laporan di Ibu Pejabat Polis Daerah (IPD) Kluang pada hari sama.

    Pendakwaan dikendalikan Timbalan Pendakwa Raya, Danial Munir manakala tertuduh tidak diwakili peguam.

    Hukuman penjara tertuduh bermula dari tarikh dia ditahan pada 31 Julai lalu.

    Mahkamah turut memerintahkan tertuduh menjalani pengawasan polis selama setahun sebaik selesai hukuman.

    BH ONLINE

  • Fitnah kematian anggota polis, tukang cuci dipenjara 7 hari, denda RM800

    TAPAH — Seorang tukang cuci dihukum penjara tujuh hari dan denda RM800 oleh Mahkamah Majistret, di sini, hari ini, kerana bersalah memfitnah dan menghasut sehingga merosakkan nama baik anggota polis yang terkorban dalam insiden tembakan di Balai Polis Ulu Tiram, Johor pada Mei lalu.

    Majistret Anis Zainab Pawanteh memerintahkan tertuduh, Wan Abd Qayyum Wan Mohd Radzuan, 25, menjalani hukuman penjara itu bermula dari tarikh dia ditangkap pada 5 September lalu dan lanjutan tempoh penjara selama tujuh hari jika gagal membayar denda.

    Anis Zainab turut mengarahkan telefon bimbit Wan Abd Qayyum yang digunakan sebagai medium sebaran fitnah itu, dilucuthak kepada kerajaan.

    Berdasarkan kertas pertuduhan, dia didakwa melakukan fitnah terhadap Ahmad Azza Fahmi Azhar, 22, dengan menyiarkan kepada Nur Azza Assyaqiren Azhar, 29, melalui komen di media sosial Facebook ‘Wan Qayyum.”

    Komen itu bersifat fitnah dengan maksud merosakkan nama baik jika si mati masih hidup dan menyakitkan perasaan Azhar Khaiden, 54, iaitu bapa si mati.

    Perbuatan itu dikesan dilakukan Wan Abd Qayyum di Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) FELDA Sungai Klah Sungkai, daerah Batang Padang kira-kira jam 2 petang 28 Ogos lalu.

    Dia didakwa mengikut Seksyen 500 Kanun Keseksaan yang sabit kesalahan boleh dipenjara sehingga dua tahun atau denda atau kedua-duanya.

    Pertuduhan dikendalikan Timbalan Pendakwa Raya, Noor Nabilah Norzam, manakala tertuduh diwakili peguam Yayasan Bantuan Guaman Kebangsaan (YBGK), Amani Williams-Hunt.

    Ketika prosiding berlangsung, majistret turut memanggil Azhar ke kandang saksi bagi memberi pernyataan yang memaklumkan perbuatan tertuduh itu, selain dianggap menyinggung perasaan keluarga mereka, ia juga satu penghinaan kepada arwah anaknya serta keluarganya secara umum.

    “Apabila saya baca kenyataan ‘Wan Qayyum’ yang menyatakan seolah-olah arwah anak saya memang patut meninggal kerana selalu ‘pau’ duit tepi orang, ia satu penghinaan terhadap arwah (Ahmad Azza Fahmi) dan keluarga saya.

    “Perasaan keluarga kami kecewa, marah dan tersinggung dengan kenyataan seolah-olah anak saya yang mati di Ulu Tiram kerana kes rasuah,” katanya.

    Ketika merayu hukuman ringan, Amani berkata, anak guamnya hanya bekerja sebagai tukang cuci di sebuah kilang di Pasir Gudang, Johor dengan pendapatan RM1,500 sebulan.

    Dalam kejadian di Balai Polis Ulu Tiram pada 17 Mei lalu, Ahmad Azza Fahmi dan Konstabel Muhamad Syafiq Ahmad Said, 24, terbunuh selepas diserang lelaki bersenjatakan parang, dengan pelakunya dipercayai anggota Jemaah Islamiyah

    Serangan kira-kira jam 2.45 pagi itu juga menyebabkan Koperal Mohd Hasif Roslan, 38, cedera ditembak.

    BH ONLINE

  • Yusoff Rawther didakwa milik senjata api, ganja

    KUALA LUMPUR — Bekas pembantu penyelidik Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Muhammed Yusoff Rawther, ditahan kerana didakwa memiliki dua pucuk pistol dan ganja seberat 305 gram dalam kereta dinaikinya, Jumaat lalu.

    Peguamnya, Muhammad Rafique Rashid Ali, berkata Muhammed Yusoff ditahan sepasukan anggota polis di ibu negara kira-kira jam 9.30 pagi.

    Muhammad Rafique berkata, siasatan dijalankan mengikut Akta Dadah Berbahaya 1952 selepas reman di bawah Akta Senjata Api 1960 ditolak.

    Katanya, Muhammed Yusoff menafikan dadah dan pistol itu miliknya, sebaliknya mendakwa ia diletak oleh pihak yang berdendam atau permusuhan bagi memerangkap dirinya.

    “Ujian saringan air kencing negatif dan nama individu yang dipercayai bertanggungjawab dan mempunyai hubungan dengan pemimpin politik juga sudah diberikan.

    “Kami sudah memohon membuat laporan polis bagi menyokong dakwaan itu,” katanya.

    Beliau berkata, laporan polis dibuat supaya pembelaan Yusoff dapat dilakukan seawal mungkin supaya tidak dilabel sebagai rekaan atau difikirkan kemudian.

    Reman terhadap Muhammed Yusoff tamat esok dan perkembangan selanjutnya akan diketahui lewat petang ini.

    BH ONLINE

  • Lelaki tersepit bawah teksi

    SEPANG — Lelaki tersepit di bawah teksi selepas dilanggar kenderaan itu ketika mangsa keluar memeriksa keretanya yang terbabit dalam kemalangan berhampiran Lapangan Terbang Antarabangsa Kuala Lumpur (KLIA) Terminal 2, di sini, hari ini.

    Penolong Pengarah Bahagian Operasi Jabatan Bomba dan Penyelamat Malaysia (JBPM) Selangor, Ahmad Mukhlis Mukhtar berkata, pihaknya menerima panggilan pada 6.57 pagi ini sebelum pegawai dan anggota bomba dari Balai Bomba dan Penyelamat (BBP) KLIA ke lokasi kejadian.

    Menurutnya, kemalangan membabitkan tiga kereta di mana seorang lelaki berusia 40-an tersepit di bawah teksi dan tidak sedarkan diri.

    “Mangsa sebelum itu keluar dari keretanya yang terbabit kemalangan sebelum sebuah teksi terlanggar mangsa menyebabkan dia tersepit di bawah kenderaan itu.

    “Kerja penyelamatan sedang dijalankan,” katanya dalam kenyataan, hari ini.

    BH ONLINE

  • ‘Ini baru hukuman dunia’, bertaubatlah – Hakim nasihat Guru Besar

    IPOH — Seorang guru besar sekolah rendah di Teluk Intan, didenda RM10,000 oleh Mahkamah Sesyen hari ini, selepas mengaku bersalah menggunakan jawatan untuk memalsukan dokumen, tiga tahun lalu.

    Pengakuan bersalah oleh Rosnah Mat Zain, 57, dibuat atas pertuduhan pilihan mengikut Seksyen 471 Kanun Keseksaan.

    Dalam penghakimannya, Hakim Datuk Ibrahim Osman menetapkan Rosnah dipenjara sebulan jika gagal membayar denda, namun tertuduh membayar denda dikenakan.

    Mengikut pertuduhan, Rosnah didakwa menggunakan suatu dokumen sebagai tulen iaitu Invois Brickwork Resource bertarikh 6 Disember 2021 kepada sebuah sekolah rendah di Teluk Intan untuk pembayaran pembelian alat muzik piano digital berserta bangku hitam berjumlah RM10,200 yang mana dokumen itu adalah palsu.

    Perbuatan itu dilakukan di sebuah sekolah rendah di Teluk Intan, pada 9 Disember 2021.

    Bagi kesalahan itu, dia didakwa mengikut Seksyen 471 Kanun Keseksaan dan sabit kesalahan boleh dipenjara maksimum dua tahun atau denda atau kedua-duanya.

    Mengikut fakta kes, tertuduh memilih syarikat milik menantunya bagi kerja pembekalan alat muzik yang mana tertuduh mempunyai kepentingan.

    Pendakwaan dikendalikan Timbalan Pendakwa Raya Sharul Azuan Ghazali dan Maziah Mansor, manakala tertuduh tidak diwakili peguam.

    Selepas membacakan keputusan penghakimannya, Ibrahim menasihati tertuduh bertaubat dan berhati-hati membuat keputusan sebagai penjawat awam.

    “Selepas ini berhati-hatilah dalam membuat keputusan sebagai penjawat awam. Ini baru (hukuman) dunia, belum akhirat. Bertaubatlah,” katanya.

    BH ONLINE

  • Syphilis cases in Tokyo increasing at record pace

    TOKYO — Syphilis infections in Tokyo are increasing at a record pace, with over 2,400 cases reported so far this year, official data has shown.

    Some 2,460 cases have been reported in the capital, data from the Tokyo Metropolitan Infectious Disease Surveillance Center showed, with experts noting an acceleration at a pace to approach last year’s all-time annual high of 3,701.

    Men accounted for about 70 percent of the cases, while women made up 30 percent, the data showed. Infections were particularly rising among men in their 20s to 50s and women in their 20s.

    Many infected individuals mistakenly believed they were safe because they knew their partners or were unaware of their infection for years, highlighting syphilis as an often overlooked disease, according to the institute.

    To address the record-breaking increases in syphilis cases, Tokyo has established free, anonymous testing and consultation rooms in areas such as Shinjuku and Tama.

    Tests are also available at public health centers, with the Shinjuku center offering 24-hour online reservations and weekend testing.

    The Tokyo Metropolitan Government has urged residents to get tested immediately should they have any concerns.

    Congenital syphilis, transmitted chiefly through sexual contact, can cause rashes and abnormalities in newborns. Infected children can develop symptoms such as inflammation of the eyes and hearing loss in a few years, even if they show no symptoms as infants.

    A complete cure is possible for the disease if proper treatment is given at an early stage, but serious complications may develop in the brain and heart if syphilis is left untreated.

    XINHUA

  • At least 9 killed in Israeli airstrike on N. Gaza

    GAZA — At least nine Palestinians were killed and several others injured in an Israeli airstrike targeting a house in Jabalia town in the northern Gaza Strip, Palestinian sources said Tuesday.

    The Israeli aircraft attacked the home of Dr. Akram al-Najjar from Al-Quds Open University on Gaza Street in Jabalia, killing nine people, including three children and two women, and injuring others in neighboring houses, said Mahmoud Bassal, a spokesperson for the Palestinian Civil Defense in Gaza.

    Civil defense teams are still working to rescue the missing, who are potentially under the rubble of the targeted house and its adjacent buildings, Bassal added.

    The deceased and injured have been taken to the Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza, Bassal noted.

    So far, there has been no comment from the Israeli side on the attack.

    Israel has launched a large-scale offensive against Hamas in Gaza to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on Oct. 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 others taken hostage.

    The Palestinian death toll from the ongoing Israeli attacks on Gaza has risen to 41,020, local health authorities said in a statement on Tuesday.

    XINHUA

  • Israel shares video of cramped, bloody tunnel where hostages were held and killed

    A tunnel that is said to be where six Israeli hostages were found killed is seen in this still image taken from a handout video released on September 10, 2024. Israeli Army/Handout via REUTERS

    JERUSALEM — Blood on the ground of a dark, cramped tunnel sealed by an iron door, bullets and a chess set are seen in a video released by the Israeli military of the passageway deep underground where it said six slain hostages were held and killed by Hamas.

    The video was filmed by the military last Friday, its spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said, as a forensic team investigated the hostage deaths. It was released to the public on Tuesday after it had been viewed by their families and the Israeli security cabinet.

    The six hostages were killed on the night of Aug. 29, Hagari said. Their bodies were found and retrieved by Israeli soldiers in the southern Gaza area of Rafah around two days later.

    Hagari said at least two Hamas gunmen shot them dead in the tunnel, which is 20 metres (66 ft) below ground, less than 170 centimetres (5.6 ft) high and about 80 centimetres (32 inches) wide. It has an exit shaft used by the militants, below a children’s room in a house.

    The hostages had likely been held in the dank tunnel, where it is hard to breathe and to stand up straight, for some time, possibly weeks, Hagari said.

    A version of the video with English narration shows Kalashnikov rifle magazines, bags containing plastic bottles filled with urine and a bucket in a hole that served as a toilet. Women’s clothing is strewn on the ground. The Hebrew version, broadcast live on Israeli television channels, also shows a chess set.

    Reuters was not able to independently verify the location or the date when the video was filmed.

    Israeli troops were in the area, fighting Hamas militants above ground, when the hostages were killed, Hagari said, adding that the soldiers had not been attempting a rescue operation. The military did not have precise verified intelligence about the hostages’ presence in the area, he said.

    The six dead hostages were two women and four men aged between 23 and 40, five of whom were taken from the Nova dance festival attacked by militants on Oct. 7 last year.

    One of them was a father whose baby was born after he was taken hostage. The killings have sparked outrage and an outpouring of grief in Israel.

    Efforts to secure a ceasefire in Gaza that would include a hostage release deal have faltered, with Israel and Hamas trading blame for the deadlock. Mass protests last week demanded Israeli leaders do more for their release.

    Hamas-led fighters took around 250 foreign and Israeli hostages when they burst into Israel on Oct. 7 and killed 1,200 people, according to Israeli tallies.

    Israel’s offensive in Gaza has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians since.
    Around 100 hostages remain in Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed dead. More than 100 hostages were released in return for Palestinian prisoners in November and eight have been rescued by Israeli forces.

    REUTERS

  • 2 Italian and 2 South Korean climbers are found dead close to Mont Blanc’s summit

    This Feb 19, 2003 file photo shows Mont Blanc, western Europe’s highest mountain. (AP/File)

    PARIS — French rescue officials said Tuesday they found the bodies of two Italian and two South Korean climbers close to the peak of Mont Blanc on the French side after they went missing over the weekend in bad weather.

    The Chamonix-Mont Blanc search and rescue team found the two pairs of climbers at an altitude of 4,700 meters (more than 15,400 feet) on the Alps’ highest peak. They died of hypothermia, rescue officials said.

    The unaccompanied climbers had alerted rescuers on Saturday afternoon, but weather conditions continued to deteriorate, preventing rescuers from reaching their location from the ground or by helicopter.

    Two other Korean climbers were successfully rescued on Sunday morning at an altitude of 4,100 meters (more than 13,400 feet) after rescuers deployed a highly complex operation.

    French authorities have opened an investigation.

    AP

  • Houthis say Taiz school stampede after US, UK strikes killed 2, injured 10

    AL-MUKALLA — Two students were killed and at least 10 were injured in a stampede at a Yemeni school caused by US and UK airstrikes in the southern province of Taiz, Houthi media said on Tuesday.

    The Houthi-run Al-Masirah channel reported that American and British jets carried out strikes on a location, believed to be a military base, near Aiysha school in Taiz’s Al-Janad, causing frightened students to stampede through the school’s doors, killing two and injuring at least 10.

    Houthi media broadcast footage from a local medical facility in Taiz, showing what appeared to be the bodies of two dead female students wrapped in white garments while other wounded students received treatment.

    The reported strikes by US and UK aircraft are the latest in a series of military operations against Houthi targets in response to the militia’s attacks on ships.

    On Tuesday, Monday and Sunday, the Houthis reported that US and UK aircraft struck Ibb, Hodeidah and Taiz, respectively.

    Abdul Basit Al-Baher, a Yemeni military officer in Taiz, told Arab News that Al-Janad in Taiz has at least five military bases, and he believes the warplanes may have targeted the Al-Janad army base, which is the closest military site to the school.

    Al-Baher said that the Tariq Air Base is Al-Janad’s largest military base, where “Iranian and Lebanese military experts assemble missiles and drones.”

    It came as Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea claimed on Tuesday that militia forces shot down a new US MQ-9 Reaper drone over the northern province of Saada, the second such claim in less than a week and the ninth since the militia’s anti-ship campaign began in November.

    On Saturday, the Houthis claimed to have shot down a US MQ-9 drone that was carrying out “hostile operations” over the central provinces of Marib.

    Unlike previous videos released following their announcements, the Houthis have not broadcast footage of the latest two drones being shot down to support their claims.

    At the same time, US Central Command said on Tuesday morning that its forces destroyed two Houthi missile systems and one support vehicle in Houthi-held Yemeni territory, as well as one Houthi drone over the Red Sea, over the previous 24 hours.

    During the past 10 months, the Houthis have fired hundreds of ballistic missiles, drones and drone boats at international commercial and naval ships in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and other seas, claiming to be acting in support of Palestinians against Israel’s war in Gaza.

    AN, Sept 10, 2024

  • Israel says 3 senior Hamas militants killed in attack on Gaza’s humanitarian zone

    JERUSALEM — The Israeli military said on Tuesday it had killed three senior Hamas militants in strikes on a designated safe zone in southern Gaza.

    The strikes targeted a crowded tent camp housing displaced Palestinians in the Mawasi area of Khan Younis, killing at least 19 people, with more being trapped under the rubble, according to Gaza-based health authorities.

    Video footage on social media showed dozens of tents caught on fire and large craters resulting from the strikes.

    The Israeli military confirmed in a statement that it attacked the location, describing it as an intelligence-based “precise strike” targeting “senior Hamas terrorists operating within a command and control center embedded inside the humanitarian area in Khan Younis.”

    According to the Israeli military, the strikes killed Samer Ismail Khadr Abu Daqqa, head of Hamas’s aerial unit in the Gaza Strip, Osama Tabesh, head of the observation and targets department in Hamas’s military intelligence headquarters, and Ayman Mabhouh, a senior Hamas militant.

    The three militants were “directly involved” in the Hamas attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and had been “recently planning terror activities against the Israel Defense Forces and the State of Israel,” the military said.

    Later, the Israeli army conducted another attack on the Al-Farouq Mosque in the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza. The army said the attack aimed to destroy another Hamas command and control center located within the mosque.

    The Palestinian news agency Quds News reported an unspecified number of casualties and injuries in Bureij.

    XINHUA

  • Norway condemns Israeli airstrike this morning on a safe zone in Khan Yunis

    OSLO — Norway condemned the massacre committed by the Israeli army on Tuesday against displaced citizens’ tents in the safe humanitarian zone of al-Mawasi in the city of Khan Yunis in the southwestern Gaza Strip.

    Norway’s Foreign Minister, Espen Barth Eide, said in a post on X that all parties have an obligation to protect civilians in warfare.

    “The presence of armed groups does not nullify the obligation to comply with international humanitarian law.”

    “The war must end,’ he said.

    The Israeli army’s shelling of displaced people’s tents in the Mawasi area this morning killed at least 40 civilians and wounded 60 others, with scores of people still missing under the rubble.

    WAFA

  • Two Palestinians fatally shot by Israeli forces’ fire in Tulkarem

    TULKAREM — Two Palestinians were fatally shot on Monday by Israeli forces’ live fire in the city of Tulkarem, in the northern occupied West Bank, according to the Ministry of Health.

    The Ministry of Health said that two Palestinians, including a female, were shot dead by the Israeli forces.

    The slain Palestinian was identified as Ahmad Majduba, 24. The identity of the slain female is still unknown.

    Earlier, Israeli military jeeps stormed the city of Tulkarem and its camp and besieged the Thabet Thabet Governmental Hospital.

    At least 10 other Palestinians were injured in the military incursion and transferred to hospital. Their wounds were described as moderate to mild.

    WAFA

  • Philippines opens Muslim women-dedicated beach in top resort island

    The island of Boracay in the Philippine Aklan province is seen in a video released by its Tourism Office on Sept. 10, 2024. (Malay-Boracay Tourism Office)

    MANILA — Philippine tourism authorities inaugurated on Tuesday a beach for Muslim women travelers in Boracay, the country’s top resort island, to attract visitors from neighboring Muslim-majority countries and the Middle East.

    Located in the province of Aklan, in the center of the Philippine archipelago, Boracay is known for its white sand beaches and coral reefs that make it one of the world’s most popular holiday islands.

    Developing Muslim-friendly properties and attractions in Boracay has been on the Philippine Tourism Department’s agenda since earlier this year, as it undertook initiatives to ensure that visitors have access to halal products and services.

    The new Muslim-friendly cove area — Marhaba Boracay — is located in Boracay Newcoast township and is a place “where Muslims, especially women, would feel comfortable,” Tourism Undersecretary Myra Paz Abubakar told Arab News.

    “We know that a lot of foreign visitors go to Boracay. So, it’s also a good invitation for our Muslim brothers and sisters to consider also to visit Boracay because now we have something to offer there, like halal food. Then this beachfront is also for our Muslim friends.”

    The Philippines is enjoying an increasing number of visitors from neighboring Muslim-majority Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei, as well as from Middle Eastern countries.

    “Marhaba cove represents our dedication to ensuring that all travelers, regardless of faith, can enjoy the world-renowned shores of Boracay,” Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco said during the inauguration ceremony.

    “We reaffirm our commitment to transforming the Philippines into a destination for everyone to enjoy.”

    In 2023, visitor arrivals from Muslim-majority countries increased by 120 percent compared with the previous year, according to data from the Department of Trade and Industry. Last year, Muslim visitors comprised nearly 11 percent of the Philippines’ total foreign arrivals.

    “This year, we are on track to continue this positive trajectory with nearly 270,000 Muslim visitors recorded in just the first half of 2024,” Frasco said.

    “The Department of Tourism has also proactively ensured that our Muslim guests feel at home during their stay. Hence, we have accredited 289 Muslim-friendly accommodation establishments and 237 restaurants across the country with significant concentrations in certain areas of the country.”

    The Marhaba cove is developed by Megaworld, one of the largest Philippine hospitality chains, with whom the DTI signed an agreement earlier this year that all of its properties would be converted into Muslim-friendly tourism establishments.

    AN

  • Islamic scholar Tariq Ramadan convicted of rape on appeal in Switzerland: court

    Swiss leading Islamic scholar Tariq Ramadan arrives at Geneva’s courthouse on May 27, 2024, prior to his appeal trial over charges of rape and sexual coercion. (AFP)

    GENEVA — A Swiss appeals court on Tuesday said it found Islamic scholar Tariq Ramadan guilty of rape and sexual coercion in a Geneva hotel 15 years ago, overturning an earlier lower court acquittal.

    The court said it “annuls the judgment of 24 May 2023,” and sentenced the 62-year-old former Oxford University professor to three years in prison, two of them suspended.

    The announced verdict, first reported by public broadcaster RTS, was slightly more lenient than the three years prison — half suspended — requested by the prosecutor in the case.

    Ramadan, a charismatic yet controversial figure in European Islam, has always maintained his innocence.

    Ramadan’s accuser, a Muslim convert identified only as “Brigitte,” had testified before the court that he subjected her to rape and other violent sex acts in a Geneva hotel room during the night of October 28, 2008.

    The lawyer representing Brigitte said she was repeatedly raped and subjected to “torture and barbarism.”

    Ramadan said that Brigitte invited herself up to his room. He let her kiss him, he said, before quickly ending the encounter.

    He said he was the victim of a “trap.”

    Brigitte was in her forties at the time of the alleged assault. She filed a complaint 10 years later, telling the court she felt emboldened to come forward following similar complaints filed against Ramadan in France.

    AN-AFP

  • Israel strike on Lebanon kills Hezbollah commander: source, army

    BEIRUT — An Israeli strike Tuesday on eastern Lebanon killed a Hezbollah commander, a source close to the group and the Israeli military said, the latest in near-daily exchanges throughout the Gaza war.

    The Iran-backed Lebanese group has traded fire with Israeli forces in support of ally Hamas since the Palestinian militant group’s October 7 attack triggered war in the Gaza Strip, with repeated escalations during more than 11 months of the cross-border violence.

    A source close to Hezbollah told AFP that Mohammad Qassem Al-Shaer, “a field commander” in the group’s elite Radwan Force, “was targeted in an Israeli strike on a motorcycle in the Bekaa” Valley in Lebanon’s east, far from the Israeli border.

    Hezbollah earlier announced Shaer had been killed by Israeli fire, but did not refer to him as a commander.

    The Israeli military said its air force had “eliminated the terrorist Mohammad Qassem Al-Shaer in the area of Qaraoun,” in the Bekaa Valley.

    It referred to Shaer as “a Hezbollah Radwan Force commander.”

    Elsewhere in Lebanon, the health ministry said an “Israeli enemy” strike on a building in the southern city of Nabatiyeh “caused light injuries to nine people.”

    The cross-border violence since early October has killed some 615 people in Lebanon, mostly fighters but also including 138 civilians, according to an AFP tally.

    On the Israeli side, including in the annexed Golan Heights, authorities have announced the deaths of at least 24 soldiers and 26 civilians.

    AN

  • Bayi 30 hari maut selepas diberi susu oleh jururawat

    KOTA BHARU — Bayi lelaki berusia 30 hari meninggal dunia selepas diberi susu oleh seorang jururawat yang ditugaskan menjaga bayi itu di sebuah pusat jagaan ibu bersalin di sini, petang semalam.

    Dalam kejadian kira-kira jam 5.30 petang itu, bayi berkenaan disahkan meninggal dunia ketika dibawa untuk mendapatkan rawatan di Kota Bharu Medical Centre (KBMC) di sini.

    Ketua Polis Daerah Kota Bharu, Asisten Komisioner Mohd Rosdi Daud, berkata siasatan awal mendapati kejadian berlaku jam 5.30 petang di sebuah pusat jagaan ibu bersalin di sini.

    “Dalam kejadian itu, mangsa seorang bayi lelaki berusia 30 hari didapati tidak sedarkan diri selepas diberikan susu oleh seorang jururawat sebelum disahkan meninggal dunia ketika dibawa ke KBMC.

    “Susulan kejadian berkenaan, pihak polis menahan jururawat berusia 20-an yang ditugaskan menjaga bayi terbabit jam 6 petang tadi untuk siasatan lanjut,” katanya dalam kenyataan hari ini.

    Mohd Rosdi berkata, polis akan mendapatkan perintah tahanan reman terhadap jururawat itu di Mahkamah Majistret esok.

    “Kes disiasat mengikut Seksyen 31(1) (a) Akta Kanak-Kanak 2001,” katanya.

    BH ONLINE