Politician rebuked for wearing burqa in Australian Senate

In this combination of photos, Sen. Pauline Hanson takes off a burqa she wore into the Senate chamber at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, Thursday. (AP)
Updated 17 August 2017
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Politician rebuked for wearing burqa in Australian Senate

SYDNEY: Australian anti-immigration politician Pauline Hanson caused a furor Thursday when she entered the Senate wearing a full burqa, earning a blistering rebuke from the country’s top lawyer for the “appalling” stunt.
Hanson wore the garment in the chamber to highlight what she said were the security issues it posed, linking it to terrorism as fellow senators heckled her.
“Will you work to ban the burqa in Australia in light of what is happening with national security?” she said after whipping off the garment to question Attorney-General George Brandis.
She added: “Terrorism is a true threat to our country, many Australians are in fear of it.”
Brandis said his conservative government had no such plans, warning Hanson she risked offending the Muslim community by wearing a burka when she was not a follower of Islam.
“To ridicule that community, to drive it into a corner, to mock its religious garments is an appalling thing to do, and I would ask you to reflect on what you have done,” he said.
Brandis, his voice cracking with emotion, also said that being a strict adherent Muslim, such as those who wear the burka, was “absolutely consistent” with being a law-abiding citizen.
“We have about half-a-million Australians in this country of the Islamic faith and the vast majority of them are law-abiding, good Australians,” he said.
Brandis’ remarks prompted a standing ovation from his political opponents in the Labor and Greens parties.
Independent Sen. Derryn Hinch labelled Hanson’s conduct “disgusting.”
“Pauline Hanson mocked the religion of some Australians ... she made a mockery of an honorable place (the Senate),” he told Sky News.
Labor senator Sam Dastyari accused Hanson of stoking extremism in a poorly timed bid for “a cheap headline.”
“In the same week that we saw white nationalism rear its ugly head in the country of our closest ally — in that week a stunt like this gets pulled in the Australian Senate,” he said.
“It is hurtful, it is offensive, it is wrong,“
Hanson first gained prominence in the 1990s, when she warned Australia was in danger of being “swamped by Asians.”
After a 12-year hiatus from politics she returned in 2014, this time targeting Muslims and was elected to the Senate two years later as leader of the right-wing One Nation party.
In her first speech after returning to parliament, she said Islam was “a culture and ideology that is incompatible with our own.”
Hanson was unrepentant after her latest stunt, telling commercial radio: “Is it extreme? Yes. Is it getting my message across? I hope so.”


1 dead, others injured after London-Singapore flight hit severe turbulence, Singapore Airlines says

Updated 1 min 21 sec ago
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1 dead, others injured after London-Singapore flight hit severe turbulence, Singapore Airlines says

  • The airline said the aircraft was a Boeing 777-300ER with a total of 211 passengers and 18 crew on board
BANGKOK: Singapore Airlines says a person has died aboard and others were injured when a London-Singapore flight encountered severe turbulence.
Singapore’s Flight SQ321 from Heathrow was diverted to Bangkok and landed at 3:45 p.m. local time at Suvarnabhumi Airport, the airline announced in its Facebook page. The airline said the aircraft was a Boeing 777-300ER with a total of 211 passengers and 18 crew on board.
Local emergency crews from Samitivej Srinakarin Hospital were on site to transfer injured people off the runway for treatment. Videos posted on the LINE messaging platform by Suvarnabhumi Airport showed a line of ambulances streaming to the scene.

Injuries, 1 death after 'severe turbulence' on flight from London: Singapore Airlines

Updated 1 min 10 sec ago
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Injuries, 1 death after 'severe turbulence' on flight from London: Singapore Airlines

One person died and multiple people were injured on a Singapore Airlines flight that experienced "severe turbulence" while heading from London to Singapore before it was diverted to Bangkok on Tuesday, the company said.
"We can confirm that there are injuries and one fatality on board the Boeing 777-300ER. There were a total of 211 passengers and 18 crew on board," the airline said on Facebook.


STA launches summer program to boost tourism sector

Updated 4 min 1 sec ago
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STA launches summer program to boost tourism sector

RIYADH: The Saudi Tourism Authority has launched its summer program for 2024 with a lineup of events taking place across seven destinations in the Kingdom. 

According to a press statement, the program launched under the title “Saudi Summer is Next Door” will run for a duration of four months until the end of September. 

The seven destinations included in the summer campaign are Riyadh, Jeddah, AlUla, and the Red Sea, as well as Aseer, Al Baha, and Taif. 

Ahmed Al-Khateeb, Saudi Arabia’s minister of tourism, said that the Kingdom is witnessing rapid growth in the hospitality sector, as it received record-breaking numbers of incoming visitors in 2023. 

“Saudi Arabia is witnessing a transformative period in tourism, driven by our vision to position the Kingdom as a premier global destination. The Saudi Summer Program 2024 is our commitment to showcasing the rich cultural heritage, natural beauty, and unparalleled hospitality that Saudi Arabia offers,” said Al-Khateeb. 

According to the UN’s World Tourism Barometer, Saudi Arabia’s number of visitors arriving in 2023 reached 106 million, a 156 percent increase on 2019.

This year’s summer program will also see the return of the Jeddah Season and the launch of the Aseer Season, featuring numerous family activities and events.

“We invite local and international tourists to experience the diversity of our seven unique destinations and take advantage of the exceptional offers and packages designed to create unforgettable memories,” added Al-Khateeb. 

Developing the tourism sector is crucial for Saudi Arabia, as the Kingdom is steadily diversifying its economy by reducing its dependency on oil. 

Saudi Arabia’s National Tourism Strategy aims to attract 150 million visitors by 2030 and increase the sector’s contribution to the Kingdom’s gross domestic product to 10 percent from the current 6 percent. 

Commenting on the summer program, Zurab Pololikashvili, secretary general of the World Tourism Organization, said: “Saudi tourism is witnessing unparalleled development at all levels, achieving great leaps in recent years. Saudi Arabia has global indicators related to the number of tourists, which has qualified it to top the UN World Tourism list of significant tourist destinations.” 

For his part, Fahd Hamidaddin, CEO and board member of STA, noted that this year’s summer program includes more than 550 tourism products and 150 special offers, including discounts on hotel bookings. 

Moreover, the launch of the summer program comes at a time when visiting Saudi Arabia has become more accessible. To accelerate the number of incoming tourists, Saudi Arabia launched the eVisa and made it available to citizens of 66 countries, which made the Kingdom’s visa 20 percent less expensive. 


Britain’s new protest laws unlawful, London court rules in rights group’s challenge

Updated 20 min 58 sec ago
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Britain’s new protest laws unlawful, London court rules in rights group’s challenge

  • Civil rights group Liberty took the government to court over changes to public order laws made last year
  • Judge rules new regulations gave the police almost unlimited powers to shut down protests

LONDON: Britain unlawfully gave police wider powers to impose conditions on peaceful protests which cause “more than minor” disruption to the public, London’s High Court ruled on Tuesday.
Civil rights group Liberty took the government to court over changes to public order laws made last year, which it says gave the police almost unlimited powers to shut down protests.
The case was heard in February amid a wider crackdown on protest movements in Britain and across Europe, as environmental activists have used direct action protests to demand urgent government action against climate change.
Judges David Bean and Timothy Kerr ruled in the group’s favor on Tuesday, finding that the regulations granting the new powers were unlawful.
The High Court granted the government permission to appeal and suspended its decision that the new powers should be quashed pending the outcome of the appeal.
Liberty’s legal action focused on the Public Order Act, under which the police can impose conditions on a protest if it could cause “serious disruption to the life of the community.”
The law was amended last year, so police could impose conditions in cases where a protest could cause “more than minor” disruption, which Liberty said was unlawful.
Government lawyers argued that ministers were given express powers to amend the law on what amounted to serious disruption.
But the High Court ruled that the government exceeded its powers, which “did not extend to lowering the threshold for police intervention.”


Over 570,000 Afghans expelled since Pakistan deportation drive began last year — state media

Updated 40 min 23 sec ago
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Over 570,000 Afghans expelled since Pakistan deportation drive began last year — state media

  • 9,685 Afghan nationals returned to Afghanistan in last ten days, Radio Pakistan says
  • Government says deportations not targeted at Afghans but all those living illegally in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Over half a million Afghans living in Pakistan have been repatriated to their home country since the government launched a deportation drive last year, state broadcaster Radio Pakistan said on Tuesday, with almost 10,000 returning in the last ten days.

Until November last year before it began the deportation drive, Pakistan was home to over 4 million Afghan migrants and refugees, about 1.7 million of whom were undocumented, according to the government. Afghans make up the largest portion of migrants, many of whom came after the Taliban took over Kabul in 2021, but a large number have been present since the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

The expulsion drive started after a spike in suicide bombings last year which the Pakistan government — without providing evidence — said mostly involves Afghans. Islamabad has also blamed them for smuggling and other militant violence and crime. At the time, cash-strapped Pakistan, navigating record inflation and a tough International Monetary Fund bailout program, also said undocumented migrants had drained its resources for decades.

At the same time, Islamabad insists the deportation drive is not aimed specifically at Afghans but at all those living illegally in Pakistan. 

“9,685 more illegal Afghan nationals returned to their country over the last ten days,” Radio Pakistan reported. “The [total] figure of illegal Afghan returnees has reached 577,239.”

In October 2023, Pakistan announced phase one of the ‘Illegal Foreigners’ Repatriation Plan’ with a 30-day deadline for “undocumented” aliens to leave the country or be subject to deportation, putting 1.4 million Afghan refugees at risk.

In phase two of the ‘repatriation plan,’ around 600,00 Afghans who hold Pakistan-issued Afghan citizenship cards (ACCs) will be expelled while phase three is expected to target those with UNHCR-issued Proof of Registration (PoR) cards.

The deportation drive has led to a spike in tensions between Pakistan and the Taliban rulers in Afghanistan. 

Islamabad accuses Afghans of being behind a spate of recent suicide attacks in the country and accuses the Taliban of harboring such militants. The Taliban deny the allegations and say Pakistan’s security issues are a domestic issue.