PARIS: France's interior minister said four suspected traffickers were arrested Wednesday on suspicion of being linked to a deadly migrant boat sinking in the English Channel that killed at least 31 people.
Two of the suspects appeared in court Wednesday, and all four are suspected of a link to the sunken boat, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin told reporters in the French port city of Calais.
The regional prosecutor opened an investigation into aggravated manslaughter after the sinking, the deadliest to date in the channel.
Darmanin said 34 people were believed to have been on the boat. Authorities found 31 bodies and two survivors. One person appeared to still be missing.
A joint French-British operation to search for survivors was still under way Wednesday evening.
While the incident was the deadliest day in the channel to date, Darmanin noted other deadly incidents in the past and lashed out at “criminal traffickers” driving thousands to risk the crossing.
The nationalities of the travelers was not released.
Britain's prime minister convened a meeting of the government's crisis committee, and France's interior minister rushed to see survivors in a Calais hospital. The two governments have long been at odds over how to prevent the increasingly dangerous migrant crossings, with both sides blaming the other for not doing enough.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was “shocked, appalled and deeply saddened."
A French naval boat spotted several bodies in the water around 2 p.m. and retrieved an unknown number of dead and injured, including some who were unconscious, a maritime authority spokesperson said.
Three French patrol boats were joined by a French helicopter and a British helicopter in searching the area, according to the French maritime agency for the region.
Jean-Marc Puissesseau, head of the ports of Calais and Boulogne, told AP that he spoke to one of the rescuers who brought some of the bodies to the Calais port.
“Traffickers are assassins,” he said. “We were waiting for something like this to happen.”
While deaths are occasionally reported on the crossing, such a large number of people losing their lives in one boat is rare.
The victims' nationalities were not immediately released. People fleeing conflict in Afghanistan, Iraq, Eritrea and Sudan have been among those gathered along towns in northern France seeking to cross to Britain.
“Strong emotion after the drama of numerous dead in the sinking of a boat of migrants in the channel,” Darmanin tweeted. He slammed migrant smuggling networks that organize such journeys.
The Dunkirk prosecutor’s office said it opened an investigation for aggravated manslaughter in the wake of the tragedy.
The number of migrants using small boats to cross the channel has grown sharply this year, despite the high risks that are worsening in autumn weather. A number of people are also believed to have reached Britain in small boats on Wednesday.
More than 25,700 people have made the dangerous journey in small boats this year — three times the total for the whole of 2020.
With changeable weather, cold seas and heavy maritime traffic, the crossing is dangerous for the inflatables and other small boats that men, women and children squeeze into.
French and British authorities have picked up thousands of migrants off both the French and British coasts in recent weeks in scores of rescue operations.
“How many more times must we see people lose their life trying to reach safety in the UK because of the woeful lack of safe means to do so?" said Tom Davies, Amnesty International U.K.’s refugee and migrant rights campaign manager.
“We desperately need a new approach to asylum, including genuine Anglo-French efforts to devise safe asylum routes to avoid such tragedies happening again," he added.
Johnson said more needed to be done to “break the business model of the gangsters who are sending people to sea in this way.”
4 suspected traffickers arrested over migrant boat sinking
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4 suspected traffickers arrested over migrant boat sinking
- Two of the suspects appeared in court Wednesday and all four are suspected of a link to the sunken boat, said Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin
- The regional prosecutor opened an investigation into aggravated manslaughter after the sinking, the deadliest to date in the channel
US Supreme Court to hear ‘ghost guns’ regulation case
- The ATF rule also requires commercial sellers of what are known as “buy-build-shoot” kits to be licensed and maintain records
Gun manufacturers and owners are objecting to a 2022 rule from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) that requires ghost guns, like other firearms, to have serial numbers and for purchasers to undergo background checks.
The ATF rule also requires commercial sellers of what are known as “buy-build-shoot” kits to be licensed and maintain records.
Attorney General Merrick Garland has defended the rule under the Gun Control Act of 1968, saying it makes it “harder for criminals and other prohibited persons to obtain untraceable guns.”
According to ATF figures, nearly 20,000 ghost guns were recovered at crime scenes in the United States in 2021, a tenfold increase from 2016.
Ghost guns, some of which include parts made by 3D printers, are sold online or in stores in kits that can be assembled at home.
Gunmakers and gun rights groups challenged the ATF rule. A federal judge in Texas ruled that the bureau had exceeded its authority and that such regulation is up to Congress.
The Biden administration appealed to the US Supreme Court after the district court ruling was upheld by a conservative-dominated appeals court panel.
The Supreme Court, by a slim 5-4 vote, stayed the order of the lower courts striking down the ATF rule pending Tuesday’s oral arguments in the case.
In their brief to the Supreme Court, the gun rights groups said “an incomplete collection of parts is not a ‘weapon’” and ghost gun kits should not be considered “firearms” under the Gun Control Act.
Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar, in her brief, said ghost gun manufacturers are seeking to get around the ATF rule using “trivial evasion” and included an analogy to the Swedish home goods giant IKEA.
“If a State placed a tax on the sale of tables, chairs, couches, and bookshelves, IKEA could not avoid paying by insisting that it does not sell any of those items and instead sells ‘furniture parts kits’ that must be assembled by the purchaser,” Prelogar wrote.
“So too with guns: A company in the business of selling kits that can be assembled into working firearms in minutes... is in the business of selling firearms.”
The Supreme Court is expected to deliver a decision in the case before the end of June 2025.
North Korea’s Kim Jong Un wants to speed up becoming a nuclear superpower
- North Korea has for decades pursued a nuclear weapons program and is believed to have enough fissile materials to build dozens of the weapons
SEOUL: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his country will speed up steps toward becoming a military superpower with nuclear weapons and would not rule out using them if it came under enemy attack, state news agency KCNA said on Tuesday.
Kim mentioned South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol by name for the second time in a week in denouncing Seoul for colluding with Washington to destabilize the region to gloss over the fact it does not even have proper strategic weapons.
“Yoon Suk Yeol made some tasteless and vulgar comment about the end of the Republic in his speech, and it shows he is totally consumed by his blind faith in his master’s strength,” KCNA quoted Kim as saying, referring to the South’s alliance with the US
“To be honest, we have absolutely no intention of attacking South Korea,” he said in the speech at the Kim Jong Un National Defense University, a training ground for elite military specialists.
“Every time I stated our position on the use of military force, I clearly and consistently used the qualification ‘if.’ If the enemies try to use force against our country, the Republic’s military will use all offensive power without hesitation. This does not preclude the use of nuclear weapons.”
“Our footsteps toward becoming a military superpower and a nuclear power will accelerate,” he added.
North Korea has for decades pursued a nuclear weapons program and is believed to have enough fissile materials to build dozens of the weapons. It has conducted six underground nuclear detonation tests.
Last week, South Korea marked an annual armed forces day with a large military parade showcasing a ballistic missile capable of carrying a massive warhead and featuring a flypast of a US strategic bomber.
In his address that day, Yoon warned the North against using nuclear weapons. “That day will see the end of the North Korean regime.”
North Korea may be building a new submarine, the South Korean defense ministry said citing intelligence indications in a report to a member of parliament. In January, Kim reportedly ordered a nuclear submarine to be built.
The construction was at an early stage and it was not clear if the vessel was a nuclear-powered submarine, said the report.
North Korea is also working on a submarine drone that could be developed to carry nuclear weapons, possibly with the help of Russia, it said.
KCNA said Kim made his “military superpower” remarks on Monday, the same day the North has said its Supreme People’s Assembly would meet to discuss amending the country’s constitution. The news agency has made no mention of the assembly’s deliberations since Monday.
The session is being closely watched because of the likelihood it would approve a constitutional amendment to reflect Kim’s statement that unification is no longer possible and the South was a separate country and “a principal enemy.”
Such a move would formalize Kim’s break with decades-old goal espoused by both countries of national unification and attempts to improve ties, including a 2018 summit where their leaders declared there will be no more war and a new era of peace has opened.
In a separate report, KCNA said Kim sent a birthday message to Russian President Vladimir Putin, calling him his “closest Comrade and saying “strategic and cooperative relations” between the two countries will be raised to a new level.
South Korea’s Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun said “there was a high possibility” North Korea could deploy troops to help Russia in the war with Ukraine.
Kim also told a parliament hearing news reports of North Korean military officers having been killed in a Ukrainian strike in Russian-occupied territory were likely true.
Kim Jong Un and Putin in June adopted on a comprehensive strategic partnership that includes mutual defense pact.
The two countries have denied accusations by US and South Korean officials the North was supplying arms to Russia.
Philippines’ Marcos signs law to revitalize country’s defense industry
- The Philippines has a relatively small defense industry capable of producing small arms and ammunition
- But it has yet to achieve large-scale production of advanced military systems such as fighter jets
MANILA: Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr signed into law a bill on Tuesday that aims to develop the country’s defense industry to reduce its reliance on imported sources and create equipment tailored to its security challenges.
“It’s a logical move forward for a country that finds itself at the fulcrum of geopolitical shifts and volatilities. At its core this act is about cultivating a robust and sustainable national defense industry,” Marcos said after signing the bill.
To promote and encourage investments in the country’s defense technology and production, the new self-reliant defense law will offer fiscal incentives ranging from tax breaks and government-backed financing, Marcos said.
“We will prioritize R&D to develop systems that meet our unique requirements to stay ahead of evolving threats, particularly asymmetrical threats that traditional systems may not be completely equipped to address,” Marcos said.
The new law, Marcos added, will also prioritize the production of critical defense materiel in the country, from small arms and tactical vehicles to more sophisticated systems.
“It establishes a structured approach to defensive development, starting with research and production capabilities that align our defense sector with our strategic objectives,” Marcos said.
The law is expected to complement government efforts to modernize its military, as it would help ensure that the Philippines can manufacture, maintain and upgrade military equipment.
The Philippines has a relatively small defense industry capable of producing small arms and ammunition, but it has yet to achieve large-scale production of advanced military systems such as fighter jets.
It is embarking on the latest phase of a multi-billion-dollar effort to modernize its military at a time of rising tension in the South China Sea.
It has allocated $35 billion for the buildup, spread over the next decade, as it has faced off with China in sea and air confrontations over contested areas of the busy waterway.
India PM Modi’s BJP trails in vote count in two provincial elections, TV says
- Defeats could be a fresh setback for BJP after it failed to win clear majority in general election earlier this year
- Losing Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir would be dampeners for BJP ahead of elections in Maharashtra, Jharkhand
NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) trailed in two provincial elections as votes were counted on Tuesday, TV channels said, a fresh setback after it failed to win a clear majority in the general election this year.
Elections in the northern state of Haryana and the troubled Himalayan territory of Jammu and Kashmir were held in phases that ended on Saturday, the first test of popularity since Modi returned as prime minister for a record third, straight term in June, albeit with the help of regional parties.
Losing Haryana and not winning power in Jammu and Kashmir is not expected to impact the Modi government’s ability to make federal policies but will be seen as dampeners for BJP ahead of elections in the more politically crucial states of Maharashtra and Jharkhand.
Exit polls had predicted a win for the main opposition Congress party in Haryana and gave an edge to Congress and its regional ally National Conference (NC) in Jammu and Kashmir.
The counting showed BJP was leading in 22 seats in Haryana, where it has held power for a decade, while Congress was ahead in 57 seats, TV channel CNN-News18 reported.
In Jammu and Kashmir, it said BJP was leading in 29 seats while the Congress-NC alliance was ahead in 44 seats in the first provincial poll there in a decade, and the first since the state was split into two federally administered territories in 2019.
Both legislatures have 90 seats each.
The industrial hub of Maharashtra is presently ruled by a BJP coalition, and an opposition alliance is in power in mineral-rich Jharkhand.
Elections in both states, although yet to be announced, are expected to be held in November.
Victory for Congress in Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir will come as a major boost for its leader, Rahul Gandhi, the scion of a dynasty that gave India three prime ministers but who was blamed for the party’s slump since Modi swept to power in 2014.
Gandhi was also the face of the two-dozen party opposition alliance that denied Modi an outright majority in the parliamentary election and is currently the leader of the opposition in the lower house of parliament.
Trump says Americans must ‘never forget’ October 7 attacks in Israel
- Trump says October 7 attack 'would never have happened' if he was president
MIAMI: Republican US presidential nominee Donald Trump warned Monday that Americans should “never forget” the October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel by Hamas militants as he paid tribute to the victims at a campaign event.
“We can never forget the nightmare of that day,” Trump told a crowd of a few hundred at an event at his Trump National Doral Golf Club in southern Florida to commemorate the first anniversary of the attacks, claiming that “the October 7 attack would never have happened if I was president.”
