Home
Private jet crashes into motorbike and car in Malaysia killing 10
- Details
- Written by northsouth
- Category: Asia
- Hits: 279
KUALA LUMPUR - A small private jet crashed into a motorbike and a car while attempting to land at an airport in the outskirts of Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur, leaving at least 10 people dead, officials said on Thursday.
A Beechcraft Model 390 (Premier 1) aircraft, a light private business jet, was carrying six passengers and two crew when it crashed near Elmina township at 2.08 p.m. (0608 GMT), just before it was due to land, Selangor police chief Hussein Omar Khan told reporters.
The aircraft lost contact with the air traffic control tower and crashed into a motorbike and a car on the highway, he said.
"There was no emergency call, the aircraft had been given clearance to land," Hussein Omar said.
A search and rescue mission is underway.
The country's civil aviation authority (CAAM) said the flight had departed from the holiday island of Langkawi and was en route to Selangor's Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport near capital city Kuala Lumpur.
CAAM chief executive Norazman Mahmud said the aircraft made first contact with Subang Air Traffic Control Tower at 2.47 p.m. and landing clearance was given at 2.48 p.m.
"At 2.51 p.m., the Subang Air Traffic Control Tower observed smoke originating from the crash site but no mayday call was made by the aircraft," he said in a statement.
The CAAM said the flight was operated by Jet Valet Sdn Bhd, a Malaysian private jet services company.
Jet Valet did not immediately respond to a request for comment by Reuters, but local media cited the company as saying it will cooperate with authorities on the investigation.
North Korean hackers breached top Russian missile maker
- Details
- Written by northsouth
- Category: Asia
- Hits: 266
By James Pearson and Christopher Bing
LONDON/WASHINGTON - An elite group of North Korean hackers secretly breached computer networks at a major Russian missile developer for at least five months last year, according to technical evidence reviewed by Reuters and analysis by security researchers.
Reuters found cyber-espionage teams linked to the North Korean government, which security researchers call ScarCruft and Lazarus, secretly installed stealthy digital backdoors into systems at NPO Mashinostroyeniya, a rocket design bureau based in Reutov, a small town on the outskirts of Moscow.
Reuters could not determine whether any data was taken during the intrusion or what information may have been viewed. In the months following the digital break-in Pyongyang announced several developments in its banned ballistic missile programme but it is not clear if this was related to the breach.
Experts say the incident shows how the isolated country will even target its allies, such as Russia, in a bid to acquire critical technologies.
NPO Mashinostroyeniya did not respond to requests from Reuters for comment. Russia's embassy in Washington did not respond to an emailed request for comment. North Korea's mission to the United Nations in New York did not respond to a request for comment.
News of the hack comes shortly after a trip to Pyongyang last month by Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu for the 70th anniversary of the Korean War; the first visit by a Russian defence minister to North Korea since the 1991 breakup of the Soviet Union.
The targeted company, commonly known as NPO Mash, has acted as a pioneer developer of hypersonic missiles, satellite technologies and newer generation ballistic armaments, according to missile experts – three areas of keen interest to North Korea since it embarked on its mission to create an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) capable of striking the mainland United States.
According to technical data, the intrusion roughly began in late 2021 and continued until May 2022 when, according to internal communications at the company reviewed by Reuters, IT engineers detected the hackers' activity.
NPO Mash grew to prominence during the Cold War as a premier satellite maker for Russia's space programme and as a provider of cruise missiles.
EMAIL HACK
The hackers dug into the company's IT environment, giving them the ability to read email traffic, jump between networks, and extract data, according to Tom Hegel, a security researcher with U.S. cybersecurity firm SentinelOne, who initially discovered the compromise.
"These findings provide rare insight into the clandestine cyber operations that traditionally remain concealed from public scrutiny or are simply never caught by such victims," Hegel said.
Hegel's team of security analysts at SentinelOne learned of the hack after discovering that an NPO Mash IT staffer accidentally leaked his company's internal communications while attempting to investigate the North Korean attack by uploading evidence to a private portal used by cybersecurity researchers worldwide.
When contacted by Reuters, that IT staffer declined to comment.
The lapse provided Reuters and SentinelOne with a unique snapshot into a company of critical importance to the Russian state which was sanctioned by the Obama administration following the invasion of Crimea.
Two independent computer security experts, Nicholas Weaver and Matt Tait, reviewed the exposed email content and confirmed its authenticity. The analysts verified the connection by checking the email's cryptographic signatures against a set of keys controlled by NPO Mash.
"I'm highly confident the data's authentic," Weaver told Reuters. "How the information was exposed was an absolutely hilarious screwup".
SentinelOne said they were confident North Korea was behind the hack because the cyber spies re-used previously known malware and malicious infrastructure set up to carry out other intrusions.
'MOVIE STUFF'
In 2019, Russian President Vladimir Putin touted NPO Mash's "Zircon" hypersonic missile as a "promising new product", capable of travelling at around nine times the speed of sound.
The fact North Korean hackers may have obtained information about the Zircon does not mean they would immediately have that same capability, said Markus Schiller, a Europe-based missile expert who has researched foreign aid to North Korea's missile programme.
"That's movie stuff," he said. "Getting plans won't help you much in building these things, there is a lot more to it than some drawings".
However, given NPO Mash's position as a top Russian missile designer and producer, the company would be a valuable target, Schiller added.
"There is much to learn from them," he said.
Another area of interest could be in the manufacturing process used by NPO Mash surrounding fuel, experts said. Last month, North Korea test-launched the Hwasong-18, the first of its ICBMs to use solid propellants.
That fuelling method can allow for faster deployment of missiles during war, because it does not require fuelling on a launchpad, making the missiles harder to track and destroy before blast-off.
NPO Mash produces an ICBM dubbed the SS-19 which is fuelled in the factory and sealed shut, a process known as "ampulisation" that yields a similar strategic result.
"It's hard to do because rocket propellant, especially the oxidiser, is very corrosive," said Jeffrey Lewis, a missile researcher at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies.
"North Korea announced that it was doing the same thing in late 2021. If NPO Mash had one useful thing for them, that would be top of my list," he added.
Pakistan: Up to 30 dead and over 80 injured following train crash
- Details
- Written by northsouth
- Category: Asia
- Hits: 277
ISLAMABAD - At least 30 people have died following a train crash in southern Pakistan, reports have stated.
According to local broadcaster, Geo, a further 80 people have been injured after the train derailed near Nawabshah in the southern province of Sindh, roughly 275 km (171 miles) from the country’s largest city Karachi.
It is thought 10 carriages of the Hazara Express derailed as it travelled from Karachi to Rawalpindi.
The country’s railway minister, Khawaja Saad Rafique, said: “Ambulances are rushing towards the scene.
“An emergency has been declared at the Nawab Shah and Sukkur hospitals.”
Senior railway officer Mahmoodur Rehman Lakho said rescue crews took injured passengers to the nearby Peoples Hospital in Nawabshah.
Mohsin Sayal, another senior railway officer, said train traffic has been suspended on the main railway line as repair trains have been dispatched to the scene.
He added that alternative travel arrangements and medical care will be made available for the train's passengers.
Train crashes often occurred on poorly maintained railways tracks in Pakistan where colonial-era communications and signal systems haven't been modernized and safety standards are poor.
Imran Khan jailed for three years and banned from politics for five years
- Details
- Written by northsouth
- Category: Asia
- Hits: 254
ISLAMABAD - A trial court in Pakistan has sentenced former prime minister Imran Khan to jail for three years on charges of illegally selling state gifts, stating that the accusations against the prominent leader were proven.
Khan was arrested immediately after the court sentence in the eastern city of Lahore on Saturday by the Pakistan police.
The Islamabad trial court has also disqualified him from politics for five years, imposing a ban on his political activities.
The opposition leader has also been fined 100,000 Pakistani rupees (£278) by the trial court, which was directed to hear the case on the orders of the Pakistan High Court.
Khan’s residence in Lahore was surrounded by the police after the verdict was announced, reported local media and witnesses.
Khan, the leading opposition face in Pakistan and the chief of the major national party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, is facing more than 150 cases in the country as he continues to target the military and the current administration.
The cricketer-turned-politician has been accused of misusing his prime ministerial tenure to buy and sell gifts in state possession that his office received during foreign visits from 2018 to 2022.
The gifts, worth more than 140m Pakistani rupees (£390,357), included watches given by a royal family, according to government officials who have alleged that Khan’s aides sold the assets in Dubai.
His party, PTI, have already filed an appeal in the country’s Supreme Court over the district court order, a statement by PTI officials read.
Condemning the court’s order, his party shared a video of Khan asking the “alive” nation to “not accept slavery” and said that Khan did not resist arrest attempts.
“The decision of the Kangaroo Court of Dilawar [additional district and sessions judge Humayun Dilawar] was not yet received by anyone in the court, but the Lahore Police was already there to kidnap the chairman Tehreek-e-Insaf. Chairman Imran Khan did not resist. Every process from the beginning of the case to the trial and from the trial to the abduction is illegal,” it said in a statement on its official social media account.
On Friday, the trial over the “Toshakhana case” was halted on the directions of the High Court which asked the lower court to check whether a legal complaint filed by Pakistan’s election commission, as part of an enquiry against Khan, constituted a criminal proceeding, his lawyer Naeem Panjhuta said.
The first inquiry into the case was conducted by the country’s election commission, which found the 70-year-old politician guilty of unlawfully selling state gifts.
According to Khan’s legal team, after his arrest from Lahore he was flown to Islamabad via helicopter to begin serving his sentence.
Legal experts have said a guilty verdict can exclude Khan from national elections that are due to be held by November and severely impact his political career as he looks to make a comeback in the top role.
Main News
latest news
- Five Israeli soldiers killed by their own tank
- 'Kidnapped' man found after 27 years hidden in neighbour's cellar
- Record 75.9 million internally displaced in 2023, UN report
- South Sudan: 7 million may face high levels of food insecurity
- Fresh arson attempt was made on UNRWA HQ in East Jerusalem
- Guterres deplores Rafah escalation
- Government internet shutdowns 'worst on record' in 2023
- Will AI replace doctors who read X-rays, or just make them better than ever?
- Slovakia’s PM is expected to survive assassination attempt, deputy says
- Starlink internet shutdown in Sudan will punish millions, Elon Musk warned
- EU Projects Higher Growth in Eurozone
- China LNG imports could hit record levels in 2024
- China’s Hailiang, Shinzoom to Build Auto Battery Plants in Morocco
- US military says Gaza Strip pier project is completed while war rages on
- Top UN court is holding hearings on the Israeli military’s incursion into Rafah
- Netanyahu fends off criticism over his lack of a postwar plan for Gaza
- France declares state of emergency in New Caledonia as protests rage
- Putin heads to China with military ties front and center
- Gaza: 600,000 displaced from Rafah
- Outdated laws stall progress on women’s rights in 20 countries across Africa – study
- Germany: British-Palestinian Doctor Denied Schengen Entry
- UN says it has no more food or tents for nearly 2m people in Gaza
- facial recognition cameras trial catches 100 alleged offenders
- Palestinians mark their original 'catastrophe' with eyes on the war in Gaza
- Magician David Copperfield accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women
Europe
Slovakia’s PM is expected to survive assassination attempt, deputy says
EU Projects Higher Growth in Eurozone
Germany: British-Palestinian Doctor Denied Schengen Entry
facial recognition cameras trial catches 100 alleged offenders
Zelensky cancels all foreign trips as Ukraine pulls back troops
Slovakia PM shooting - in life-threatening condition
France: Manhunt after two prison officers killed in ambush to free drug dealer
Orcas sink sailing yacht in Strait of Gibraltar
MERA25 parties launch European Elections campaign on Nakba Day in Athens
Russia says it downs 16 Ukraine-launched missiles, 31 drones
West not doing enough to push Israel to agree on truce, Erdogan says
German-African Energy Forum in Hamburg 15-16 May
Firmly committed to two-State solution: UK, France
Sweden has more billionaires per capita than the US and here’s why
Most British people regret Brexit
Deserted islands
Orban Meets With Xi, Calls China 'One Of The Pillars Of New World Order'
How countries rank by military spending
Pro-Palestinian protests set for Eurovision final after Israel qualifies
David Cameron says UK will not withhold arms sales to Israel
Protesters rally in Sweden against Israel’s participation in Eurovision
EU deal will release £2.6bn frozen Russian assets to Ukraine yearly
Pro-Palestine student protests turn spotlight on EU research funding for Israel
Yanis Varoufakis sues the German state
EU Commission hosts antisemitism seminar as Israel launches Rafah offensive
Asia
China LNG imports could hit record levels in 2024
Putin heads to China with military ties front and center
Hundreds killed in flash floods in northern Afghanistan
Indian court grants temporary bail to opposition leader Kejriwal to campaign in elections
China's third aircraft carrier completes first sea trial
Asia is heating up faster than the global average
Scientist who gave world the Covid sequence is locked out of his lab by Chinese
Philippines accuses China of damaging its vessel in disputed South China Sea shoal
Indian Authorities Stop Australian Journalist from Covering Elections
China's Xi to visit France, Serbia and Hungary, aims to boost EU ties
Five killed as tornado strikes Guangzhou in southern China
China skips red-carpet welcome for Blinken
India's poll panel seeks responses to complaints against Modi, Rahul Gandhi
Amid China tensions, India delivers supersonic cruise missiles to Philippines
Asia is most climate disaster-impacted region, UN
India's Modi accused of anti-Muslim campaign hate speech
Nature-based solutions for flood management in Asia and the Pacific
Gunmen kill 7 customs officials in western Pakistan in two attacks
In Modi’s India, opponents and journalists squeezed ahead of election
Vietnamese billionaire sentenced to death for $44 billion fraud
People blown from apartments as typhoon-like winds ravage southern China
North Korea says it tested a new hypersonic intermediate-range missile
Strongest earthquake in 25 years rocks Taiwan, killing 9 people
India rejects China's renaming of 30 places in Himalayan border state
An Indian court sends opposition leader, Arvind Kejriwal, to jail until April 15
Africa
South Sudan: 7 million may face high levels of food insecurity
Starlink internet shutdown in Sudan will punish millions, Elon Musk warned
Outdated laws stall progress on women’s rights in 20 countries across Africa – study
EU to extend Mozambique military mission despite setbacks
How to connect Africa’s universities to its tech ecosystems
Fighting in Eastern DR Congo has reached new heights
Africa CEO Forum in Kigali 16-17 May
First UN civil society forum held in Africa heralds ‘inclusive’ Summit of the Future
Unprecedented flooding displaces hundreds of thousands across East Africa
EU opens data pact talks with Kenya, in first for Africa
Niger joins Africa’s oil producer club
Mozambique’s ruling party picked Daniel Chapo as candidate for president
Mali: Armed Groups, Ethnic Militias Commit Atrocities
Chad to hold presidential election Monday
UN agencies warn of imminent starvation risk in Sudan’s Darfur region
Attacks on civilians in DR Congo
Niger: Russian military deployed at airbase housing American troops
The world needs Africa’s critical minerals
Kenya’s president is under pressure over flood response
East and Southern Africa: Journalists targeted amid ongoing crackdown on media
US losing influential edge to China in Africa, poll
DR Congo conflict could spell catastrophe
Ecobank Group reports profit before tax of $581 million
AI in Africa opens up new battlefront for China, US
TotalEnergies CEO says Namibia could be next Guyana
Americas
US military says Gaza Strip pier project is completed while war rages on
Magician David Copperfield accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women
Biden sharply hikes US tariffs on an array of Chinese imports
US is still falling behind on electronic warfare, special operators warn
Wildfires rage in British Columbia
Blinken delivers strongest public criticism of Israel’s conduct of war in Gaza
UN expert raises alarm over unfair treatment of pro-Palestinian student protesters in US
Campus protesters are being silenced – where are the ‘free speech’ defenders now?
Israel may have broken International Law in Gaza, State Dept. Says
Another climate record: Extreme heat, hurricanes, droughts ravage Latin America and Caribbean
US paused bomb shipment to Israel over concerns of Rafah assault
Mexico is heading towards its most violent election ever
UNDP's Achim Steiner on why the G20 should care much more about debt
Democratic lawmakers tell Biden evidence shows Israel is restricting Gaza aid
Fresh chaos, arrests on US college campuses as police flatten camp at UCLA
Biden cancels $6.1 billion in debt for 317,000 students
Over 2,000 pro-Palestinian protesters arrested across US campuses
2024 US-Africa Business Summit in Dallas 6-9 May
Chinese-owned fintech sees valuation rise
Most Americans see TikTok as a Chinese influence tool, Reuters/Ipsos poll
Police arrest dozens of pro-Palestinian protesters at Columbia University
Pro-Palestinian supporters and counter-protesters clash on UCLA campus over Gaza
Alarming rise in enforced disappearances ahead of Venezuela poll
Ottawa negotiations bring global plastics treaty one step closer
Dozens arrested at Columbia University as New York police disperse Gaza protest
Australia & Pacific
France declares state of emergency in New Caledonia as protests rage
Australia’s 2024 National Defence Strategy
Sydney rocked by second mass stabbing as knifeman attacks bishop
Three dead, 1,000 homes destroyed in Papua New Guinea quake
Australia and UK sign defense and security treaty
Australia tightens student visa rules as migration hits record high
Global food crisis and the effects of climate change need urgent action, IFAD
Indonesia, Australia to sign defence pact within months
Australia to ban doxxing after pro-Palestinians publish information about hundreds of Jews
Australia launches inquiry into why Cabinet documents relating to Iraq war remain secret
Australia says AI will help track Chinese submarines under new Aukus plan
China warns Australia to act prudently in naval operations in South China Sea
Christopher Luxon sworn in as new prime minister of New Zealand
Australian Intelligence Report Identifies China as Major Backer of Cyber Crime
Thousands in Australia join pro-Palestinian march over Gaza
Australia rejects Indigenous referendum in setback for reconciliation
Qatar Airways CEO says Australian decision to block flights ‘very unfair’
Moroccan Othmane El Goumri wins Sydney marathon
More than half of Australians oppose Indigenous panel in constitution, poll
Three US Marines die in 'tragic' Australia helicopter crash
Australian bus carrying wedding guests rolls over killing 10 and injuring 25
Guam, where America’s next war may begin
Women most victims of islamophobia in Australia
Time to step up investments in rural communities in the Pacific islands
Australia’s ‘quiet diplomacy’ approach to human rights in India has failed
MENA
Five Israeli soldiers killed by their own tank
'Kidnapped' man found after 27 years hidden in neighbour's cellar
Fresh arson attempt was made on UNRWA HQ in East Jerusalem
Guterres deplores Rafah escalation
China’s Hailiang, Shinzoom to Build Auto Battery Plants in Morocco
Top UN court is holding hearings on the Israeli military’s incursion into Rafah
Netanyahu fends off criticism over his lack of a postwar plan for Gaza
Gaza: 600,000 displaced from Rafah
UN says it has no more food or tents for nearly 2m people in Gaza
Palestinians mark their original 'catastrophe' with eyes on the war in Gaza
‘No water, food, health care, toilet’: Desperation deepens in Gaza
Israeli forces back in old Gaza battlegrounds as doubts over war aims grow
Israel-Hamas ceasefire talks hit 'stalemate', Qatar says
'Outrage’: US condemns Israeli settlers’ attack on Gaza aid trucks
Palestinians mark 76 years of dispossession as catastrophe unfolds in Gaza
Calls for sustained peace efforts in Yemen as cholera outbreak worsens
Rights experts urge Iran to revoke death sentence against activist
UN security staff killed in Gaza; Guterres calls for probe
Israel moves deeper into Rafah
Nearly 360,000 people forcibly displaced from Rafah, UNRWA says
Hundreds protest in Tunisia demanding date for fair presidential elections
Egypt to join South Africa's ICJ genocide case against Israel
Donors pledge $2 billion for Gaza at Kuwait conference
Fighting rages across Gaza as death toll passes 35,000
Israeli strikes Bureij refugee camp
Videos
-
Future of car-plane, see it to believe it
-
Mehdi Hasan: Islam is a peaceful religion
-
Python swallows antelope whole in under an hour
-
Sangoku dance
-
flying 3 kites wonder!
-
Korea has talent
-
Paul Potts sings Nessun Dorma
-
Susan Boyle - Britain's Got Talent
-
Twist and Pulse - Britain's Got Talent
-
Shaheen Jafargholi (HQ) Britain's Got Talent
High-Quality clip of 12-year-old singer Shaheen Jafargholi auditioning on Britain's Got Talent 2009. First he sings Valerie by The Zutons, as performed by Amy Winehouse, but, after Simon interrupts him and asks for a different song, he just blew everyone away. -
David Calvo juggles and solves Rubik's Cubes
-
Outdoor 'bubble pod' hotel unveiled