KALAMATA: A Greek judge dismissed a case Tuesday against nine Egyptian men accused of causing a shipwreck that killed hundreds of migrants last year and sent shockwaves through the European Union’s border protection and asylum operations, after a prosecutor told the court Greece lacked jurisdiction.
The decision by Presiding Judge Eftichia Kontaratou came shortly after the trial opened in the southern Greek city of Kalamata, and was greeted with cheers and applause from supporters of the defendants at the courthouse.
More than 500 people are believed to have gone down with the overcrowded fishing trawler, which had been traveling from Libya to Italy. Only 104 people were rescued from the Adriana — all men, the vast majority from Syria, Pakistan and Egypt — and 82 bodies were recovered.
Prosecutors accused the defendants, most in their 20s, of being part of the trawler’s crew — something the defense denied — and therefore being responsible for the mistreatment of the passengers and the massively overcrowded conditions which authorities argued led to the boat capsizing and sinking on June 14 last year. The nine men faced up to life in prison had they been convicted of the multiple criminal charges against them, including people smuggling and causing a deadly shipwreck.
The judge’s ruling followed a recommendation by public prosecutor Ekaterini Tsironi for the case to be dismissed because the trawler sank outside Greek territorial waters.
“Clearly the shipwreck clearly occurred in international waters and … the jurisdiction of the Greek courts cannot be established,” she said. “I propose that they be declared innocent.”
The case had faced criticism from international human rights groups, who argued that the defendants’ right to a fair trial was compromised because they faced judgment while a separate Naval Court investigation into the sinking and the Greek coast guard’s actions is still under way.
Spyros Pantazis, one of the lawyers in the defense team, said the court had “delivered justice today.”
“This case needed a lot of work and a lot of effort. After such a long time, the whole defense team is really happy,” he said.
It was not immediately clear when the nine, who have been in pre-trial detention since being rescued last year, would be released. After the verdict was read, they were taken away to be processed.
Dalia Abdel-Magid, the aunt defendant Mohammed Emad Abdel-Magid, reacted emotionally to the news that her nephew had been acquitted.
“I’m so happy that I just want to hug him and take him with me,” she said. “I hope that everything gets better for him now.”
Earlier, a small group of protesters clashed with riot police outside the courthouse. There were no reports of serious injuries but two people were detained. Officers from the special police forces maintained order in the courtroom.
“Justice prevailed. These people stayed in jail for a year even though they were innocent, and this must not happen again,” said Stelios Kouloglou, a Greek member of the European Parliament. “There are 2,000 innocent people in Greek jails, accused of or convicted of smuggling. The vast majority are innocent.”
As the trial started, Kontaratou questioned all nine defendants through an interpreter. The accused said their intention had been to travel to Italy, not Greece, and several declared their innocence.
She acknowledged that on the ship there “were no Greeks on board, it was not under a Greek flag and all the documents refer to the (vessel being) 47 nautical miles away.”
United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres last year described the shipwreck as “horrific.”
The sinking renewed pressure on European governments to protect the lives of migrants and asylum seekers trying to reach the continent, as the number of people traveling illegally across the Mediterranean continues to rise every year.
The indictments against the nine were based on testimonies from another nine survivors. Defense lawyers had argued the witness testimonies had been coerced, and that their clients had been paying passengers who were scapegoated by authorities eager to put the blame for the sinking on overcrowded conditions.
Several survivors have said the capsizing happened after the Greek coast guard attempted to tow the ship. The exact circumstances of the sinking remain unclear.
The European border protection agency Frontex says illegal border detections at EU frontiers increased for three consecutive years through 2023, reaching the highest level since the 2015-2016 migration crisis, driven largely by arrivals at the sea borders.
Greek judge dismisses case against nine accused of shipwreck that killed hundreds, including Pakistanis
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Greek judge dismisses case against nine accused of shipwreck that killed hundreds, including Pakistanis
- More than 500 people are believed to have gone down with the overcrowded fishing trawler, which had been traveling from Libya to Italy
- Only 104 people were rescued from the Adriana — all men, the vast majority from Syria, Pakistan and Egypt — and 82 bodies were recovered
Forest fires in Islamabad’s Margalla Hills caused by ‘mischief, negligence,’ says official
- Fire erupted at various locations throughout Islamabad’s picturesque Margalla Hills last week
- There are no species in Islamabad’s wildlife that can catch fire by themselves, says government official
ISLAMABAD: The recent forest fires in Islamabad’s Margalla Hills were caused by “negligence and mischief,” a government official said on Monday, days after authorities spent hours dousing flames that erupted in different locations of the picturesque mountains in the city’s capital.
The Margalla range, part of the Himalayan foothills, has often experienced bushfires in the summer months. The mountain range has caught fire different times this month as various parts of the country remain in the grip of a severe heat wave.
“There are no species in Islamabad’s forests that can catch fire by themselves,” Irfan Niazi, the director-general of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) told Geo News. “This is either the result of someone’s negligence or mischief which is done deliberately and then it spreads.”
The official explained that high temperature, high-speed winds, and “fuel” were the main ingredients of a forest fire. He added that fuel was already present at Margalla Hills in the form of dry leaves and fallen tree trunks.
“As soon as the temperature rises, the wind turns warm and rises upwards,” he said. “However, the cold wind that comes along to take its place results in high-speed winds. Now all these things are conducive for a forest fire. Then when anyone engages in mischief, it causes the fire to rise and spread.”
Niazi said no loss of life or damage to property due to the fires have been reported so far. He said whenever a fire erupts, the CDA prioritizes dousing the flames nearest to the areas where people reside.
Niazi said during the previous years, the CDA hired 300-350 additional personnel for three months to battle forest fires. However, the authority has increased this number to 450 to ensure the forest fires remained contained.
In response to a question, he said it was difficult to transport heavy machinery or trucks to mountainous terrains where fires often erupt.
“We transport firefighters in vehicles but then they have to walk miles to reach the fire site,” Niazi said. “We use conventional techniques like beating bushes and also cutting them to douse the fire.”
Pakistan’s Punjab issues guidelines to protect sacrificial animals from heat wave
- Parts of Pakistan saw temperatures as high as 52.2 degrees Celsius last week as heat wave rages on
- Authorities direct cattle market owners to ensure sacrificial animals have access to water, shelter
ISLAMABAD: The disaster management authority in Pakistan’s Punjab province recently shared guidelines on how to protect sacrificial animals from the heat wave, as temperatures in certain parts of the country last week surged past 50° Celsius.
Increased exposure to heat, and more heat waves, have been identified as one of the key impacts of climate change in Pakistan, with people experiencing extreme heat and seeing some of the highest temperatures in the world in recent years. The South Asian country of more than 241 million, one of the ten most vulnerable nations to climate change impacts, has also recently witnessed untimely downpours, flash floods and droughts.
Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) last week warned the heat wave would persist across parts of Sindh and Punjab in June, with temperatures likely to remain above 48 degrees Celsius.
Makeshift cattle markets have sprung up in various parts of the country as the Islamic Eid Al Adha, or the Feast of Sacrifice event nears. Muslims around the world slaughter an animal, usually a goat, sheep or cow on Eid Al Adha and distribute its meat among relatives and the poor.
“The provision of water for animals should be ensured in cattle markets,” an advisory by the Punjab Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) on Saturday said. “The PDMA has also issued directives for temporary shelters to be built in markets.”
The authority also called on cattle market owners to ensure health centers near their markets, warning that the heat wave is likely to persist throughout June.
“Through precautionary measures, one can ensure safety against the heat wave,” PDMA Punjab said. “Those buying and selling cattle in markets should adhere to precautionary measures.”
Pakistan’s Meteorological Department (Met) said on Monday that the weather is expected to remain hot in most parts of the country, adding that the country’s plain areas would expect “very hot” weather for the next 24 hours.
Climate change-induced extreme heat can cause illnesses such as heat cramps, heat exhaustion, heatstroke, and hyperthermia. It can make certain chronic conditions worse, including cardiovascular, respiratory, and cerebrovascular disease and diabetes-related conditions, and can also result in acute incidents, such as hospitalizations due to strokes or renal disease.
According to the Global Climate Risk Index, nearly 10,000 Pakistanis died while the country suffered economic losses worth $3.8 billion due to climate change impacts between 1999 and 2018. A deadly heat wave that hit Pakistan’s largest city of Karachi, the capital of Sindh, claimed 120 lives in 2015.
In 2022, torrential monsoon rains triggered the most devastating floods in Pakistan’s history, killing around 1,700 people and affecting over 33 million, a staggering number close to the population of Canada. Millions of homes, tens of thousands of schools and thousands of kilometers of roads and railways are yet to be rebuilt.
Pakistan top court hears case to decide if Imran Khan-backed party gets reserved parliamentary seats
Pakistan top court hears case to decide if Imran Khan-backed party gets reserved parliamentary seats
- Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa heads 13-member full bench formed to hear Sunni Ittehad Council’s petition
- Peshawar High Court in March upheld election regulator’s decision to deny SIC share in reserved seats
ISLAMABAD: A full-court bench of Pakistan’s top court on Monday began hearing a plea filed by the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) party, backed by former prime minister Imran Khan, challenging the order by a high court which denied it reserved seats for women and minorities in parliament.
The full-court 13-member bench is being headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa. Bench members include Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Yahya Afridi, Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Justice Ayesha A. Malik, Justice Athar Minallah, Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, Justice Shahid Waheed, Justice Irfan Saadat Khan and Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan.
Pakistan’s top court on May 6 suspended the PHC’s earlier decision in which it said the SIC, which was joined by Khan-backed candidates who won the Feb. 8 national election, was not eligible for reserved seats in parliament. Following the decision, Pakistan’s Attorney-General Mansoor Usman Awan had highlighted that under Section 4 of the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act 2023, the present case should be heard by a larger bench of the Supreme Court since the issue concerns interpretation of constitutional provisions.
A Supreme Court bench headed by Justice Shah had ordered placing the SIC’s plea before a three-judge committee that determines the constitution of benches for the reconstitution of a larger bench. The committee decided with a majority of two to one to constitute a 13-judge full court instead of a larger bench comprising seven judges.
“As per a letter issued by the Election Commission of Pakistan dated 25-4-2024, he submits that it has been acknowledged that the SIC is a parliamentary party having 82 general seats in the National Assembly,” Faisal Siddiqui, the SIC’s lawyer, read out the May 6 order of the top court in front of the bench during the hearing.
“Therefore, SIC is entitled to reserved seats as per the proportional representation system in terms of Article 51 (6d and e)and 106 (2c) of the constitution.”
The dispute arose after Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party couldn’t contest the Feb. 8 elections under its traditional electoral symbol, a cricket bat, which it was denied on technical grounds. The PTI subsequently struck an alliance with the SIC in a bid to secure reserved seats for women and minorities in parliament.
Under Pakistan’s election rules, political parties are allotted reserved seats in proportion to the number of parliamentary seats they win in the election. This completes the National Assembly’s total strength of 336 seats.
The Election Commission had ruled in March that the SIC was not eligible for reserved seats, a decision the alliance had appealed in the PHC, which also rejected it.
Pakistan’s inflation eases to 11.8% in May, lowest in 30 months
- Consumer prices fell 3.2% in May 2024 compared to decrease of 0.4% in April 2024, data shows
- Analysts hope easing inflation would help the central bank ease Pakistan’s monetary policy
KARACHI: The rate of inflation in Pakistan for May 2024 eased to 11.8% year-on-year basis, data from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) revealed on Monday, the lowest since November 2021 and below the finance ministry’s projections.
Pakistan has recorded inflation above 20% since May 2022. In May 2023, the rate of inflation jumped as high as 38% as the South Asian country navigated a tricky path to economic recovery, undertaking painful reforms as part of an International Monetary Fund bailout program.
On a month-on-month basis, the inflation rate decreased 3.2% in May 2024 compared to a decrease of 0.4% in April 2024, and an increase of 1.6% in May 2023, as per data by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
“CPI for the month of May 2024 clocked in at 11.8% YoY, lowest inflation since November 2021,” Muhammad Sohail, CEO of Topline Securities, said. “Tighter monetary and fiscal policies, record agricultural production in Pakistan and stable currency helped achieve this inflation level.”
Prices of food commodities, including onions, increased by 86.64%, tomatoes by 55.46%, condiments and spices by 39.17% while the price of wheat decreased by 29.06%, wheat flour by 28.48%, and chicken by 22.30% on an annual basis in May 2024, according to data shared by the PBS.
Pakistani analysts hope the easing of the inflation rate in the country to the lowest level in about 30 months, will lead to the central bank easing the country’s monetary policy.
“We continue to believe that soon central bank will cut the interest rate,” Sohail said.
The central bank cumulatively has raised the policy rate by 1500 basis points during FY22 and FY23 and maintained it at 22%, as adjustments in administered energy prices in the backdrop of longstanding structural issues.
In its monthly economic report released last week, Pakistan’s finance ministry said it expected inflation to hover between 13.5% and 14.5% in May and ease to 12.5% to 13.5% by June 2024.
Pakistan’s aviation ministry orders inquiry after security officials cut woman pilgrim’s hair
- Woman’s hair was cut by Airport Security Force in Karachi after an ASF member voiced suspicion about it
- Inquiry board to determine whether ASF officials’ actions were in line with established protocols or not
KARACHI: Pakistan’s aviation secretary recently ordered an inquiry into an incident in which an Airport Security Force (ASF) official cut a Hajj woman pilgrim’s hair over some suspicion, a notification from the ministry said, adding that the probe would ascertain whether the action was taken in line with established protocols or if he transgressed his authority.
As per a notification shared by the official of the aviation ministry, the security team’s officials stopped a family comprising Ms. Seema Bano and her husband Muhammad Shafi Ahmed on June 1, to search them at the international departure at the Jinnah International Airport in Karachi.
The notification said Bano’s hair was cut by ASF officials after an ASF staffer raised suspicion about it, despite the fact that she received clearance from the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF). The inquiry order did not specify what suspicion the ASF official harbored.
“After scanning she was cleared to board,” the inquiry order dated June 1 read. “Therefore, it is considered necessary to inquire into this matter to ascertain facts of the incident and fix responsibility.”
It said the aviation secretary has constituted a four-member Board of Inquiry (BoI) led by Khurram Shehzad Warraich, the deputy secretary of the Ministry of Aviation, to probe the matter. M. Arsalan Khan, a section officer at the Ministry of Aviation, Wing Cdre. (retd) Jamal from the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority and Khalid Hussain, deputy director of Appeals and Regulations at the ASF, are other members of the board.
The inquiry order said the BoI’s terms of reference would include investigating and ascertaining facts of the case and examining established procedures and protocols for passenger screening at airports.
“To examine responsibilities of government entities working at the airport associated with passenger screening and scanning,” it said, adding that the inquiry would also determine whether the action taken by the ASF officials was in line with established protocols or if they transgressed their authority.
It said the BoI would finalize its report within two working days and submit a report to the secretary aviation.
