World

Seoul, June 4 (IANS) The South Korean military continued its work Sunday to search and salvage the wreckage of a North Korean rocket that crashed into the Yellow Sea earlier this week but wrapped up the day's operations due to unfavorable conditions.

The rocket, that the North claimed was carrying a satellite, crashed into the waters some 200 kilometers west of the western South Korean island of Eocheong on Wednesday morning after an "abnormal flight", Seoul's military had said.

The Navy has been trying to recover a 15-meter part of the vehicle, named Chollima-1. It is estimated to have a length ranging from 29 to 30 meters, Yonhap news agency reported.

On Saturday, the military deployed deep-sea divers from the Sea Salvage and Rescue Unit to the remote area to attach high-strength ropes to the debris, which sank to a depth of 75 meters on the seafloor.

In a message sent to reporters at around 5 p.m., the Joint Chiefs of Staff said it will wrap up the operation for the day due to unfavorable conditions and resume Monday.

"Depending on the circumstances at the site tomorrow, we plan to conduct salvage operations," it said.

Apart from the debris spotted by the South Korean military Wednesday, which is believed to be the second and third stages of the launch vehicle, officials have not found additional parts.

South Korea and the US plan to jointly examine the debris of the wreckage once it is retrieved.

--IANS
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Kabul, June 4 (IANS) A total of 2,106 Afghan refugees returned to their homeland from neighbouring Iran on Saturday, Afghanistan's Ministry for Refugees and Repatriation Affairs said in a statement on Sunday.

"A total of 2,106 Afghan refugees returned to their homeland Afghanistan on Saturday after years of living as refugees in Iran, and the process of returning the refugees to their country continues", Xinhua news agency quoted the statement.

Previously on May 31, the ministry also reported the return of nearly 2,800 Afghan refugees from Iran.

Nearly 60,000 Afghan refugees have reportedly returned home from Iran since January.

More than 2.5 million registered Afghan refugees reportedly have been living in Iran and about the same number of Afghan refugees are living in Pakistan.

The Afghan caretaker government has been calling upon Afghan refugees living abroad to return home and contribute to the reconstruction process of their war-ravaged country.

--IANS
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Jakarta, June 4 (IANS) An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.4 hit Indonesia's eastern province Papua on Sunday, the country's meteorology, climatology and geophysics agency said.

The earthquake occurred at 12:52 Jakarta time, with its epicenter at 58 km southwest of Memberamo Raya Regency and a depth of 10 km under-land, the weather agency was quoted by Xinhua news agency as saying.

The tremors of the earthquake did not potentially trigger a tsunami.

--IANS
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Islamabad, June 4 (IANS) Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has said the chances are that PTI Chairman Imran Khan could be tried in a military court in connection with his alleged involvement in the May 9 attacks on civil and military installations in different cities -- days after Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah had hinted at that possibility too, a media outlet reported.

The Defence Minister told The Express Tribune that the former premier could stand trial in a military court if evidence of his involvement in the May 9 violence surfaced in the coming days.

He also confirmed that no case had been registered against Imran so far in connection with the May 9 attacks, the media outlet reported.

"Definitely... there are chances that Imran Khan can be tried in a military court," the minister said while responding to a question if the deposed premier could be prosecuted under the Army Act.

Earlier, Asif was reported as saying that no decision had been made in connection with trying Imran under the Army Act but he had not ruled out that possibility, allegedly on the grounds that the PTI chief was the mastermind behind the May 9 violence and knew everything about what was happening on that day.

Now, Asif has said Imran's trial in a military court was more likely to take place provided that evidence of his involvement in the mayhem came to light, Express Tribune reported.

The Defence Minister's remarks have come on the heels of the statement by Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, who said Imran would face trial in a military court for his "role" in the May 9 attacks.

--IANS
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Srinagar, June 2 (IANS) Indian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Suhel Ajaz Khan, on Friday had an extensive interactive session with industry and trade associations of Jammu and Kashmir to discuss and plan strategies towards exploring buisness opportunities between the regions, an official statement said.

The session, organised by Jammu and Kashmir Trade Promotion Organisation (JKTPO), was aimed at providing a platform to foster stronger economic ties and explore mutually beneficial trade opportunities.

Speaking on the occasion, Khan emphasised the importance of strengthening bilateral trade between the UT of J&K and Saudi Arabia. He acknowledged the rich cultural heritage and entrepreneurial spirit of Kashmir and expressed his admiration for the region's contribution towards nation's economy.

He observed that unique and niche products of J&K have a lot of potential as far as the markets of Saudi Arabia are concerned.

Responding to issues and concerns raised by the participants, Khan praised the efforts of JKTPO in promoting trade and investment opportunities in Kashmir. He also conveyed the Embassy's commitment towards supporting such initiatives.

He assured the participants that the Indian government is continuously working towards creating a conducive business environment for all to flourish their businesses.

Khan added that necessary support is being extended for trade and investment activities, especially for the export of GI-tagged products of Jammu and Kashmir.

He assured to create business linkages for the exporters of J&K, adding that efforts will be made to organise delegation visits, B2B meets, exhibitions, road shows and related events in Saudi Arabia.

"This interaction marks a significant milestone in strengthening economic ties between the two regions. It reflects the shared commitment towards exploring new avenues of cooperation and leveraging the vast potential for trade and investment," Khan said.

During the event, representatives from industry and trade associations presented their perspectives on key sectors, including tourism, handloom and handicrafts, agriculture, food processing and horticulture.

They highlighted the immense potential for collaboration and investment in these sectors, showcasing the unique products and services that Kashmir have to offer to Saudi Arabia.

--IANS
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Rahul Kumar
New Delhi, June 2: The Norwegian Police Security Service (PST) has listed Pakistan as one of the countries that pose a significant threat to Norway.


Greek website Directus says that the threat assessment report 2023 prepared by the PST – Norway's domestic security service, points to several threats to Norway's security, both domestically and internationally. The department identifies and assesses threats related to intelligence, sabotage, spread of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism and extremism.

The website says: "Islamabad has the dubious distinction of appearing in the list for the last few years. It is perceived to be posing a threat to Norway in terms of proliferation of sensitive technology. Norwegian businesses, researchers and research institutes possess knowledge and technology that are sought after for the development of advanced weapons systems and weapons of mass destruction".

Analysts say Norwegian suspicions may been raised because of Islamabad's dubious track record on nuclear proliferation marshalled by none other than the rogue Pakistani atomic scientist AQ Khan, who had stolen the blueprints for nuclear technology from Norway's southern neighbour – the Netherlands.

While working at the Physical Dynamic Research Laboratory (FDO) in the Netherlands in the seventies, Khan copied blueprints for centrifuges and other components and quietly slipped back to Pakistan. Both – American and Dutch intelligence agencies got wind of Khan's intentions. Eventually, a Dutch court even convicted Khan to four years in prison in absentia for nuclear espionage.

After getting Islamabad and the Pakistani military the nuclear devices, Khan is believed to have proliferated nuclear documents to Iran, Libya and North Korea at an individual level.

The crisis-ridden Pakistan is increasingly being looked at suspiciously by global powers due to rising violence, political immaturity of its leaders, strong separatist movements and the tattered state of its economy.

In April this year, Norway's neighbour Sweden had closed its Islamabad embassy indefinitely due to security concerns. A statement on the embassy website simply said: "Due to the current security situation in Islamabad, the Embassy of Sweden is closed for visitors".

In February this year, China also shut down the consular section of its Islamabad embassy due to poor security. Simultaneously, Beijing advised its nationals to enhance personal safety measures as violence mounted across the country by the Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP) in the north-west and the Baloch insurgents in the south-west provinces.

Pakistan's reputation as a global threat is now at its peak. In October 2022, US President Joe Biden had said that the country is one of the most dangerous nations. Speaking with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Biden had said: "What I think is maybe one of the most dangerous nations in the world, Pakistan. Nuclear weapons without any cohesion".

The sentiments about Pakistan being a threat are now being echoed openly across the world.

The Directus website says that Pakistan can harm Norway through two ways – install its researchers in academic and research institutions in Norway to obtain sensitive technology and transfer it to Pakistan for the development of weapons systems.

The other route Pakistan is likely to take is to circumvent Norwegian export control regulations in a bid to obtain banned Norwegian technology. For this, the website says: "The modus operandi is to create as much uncertainty as possible around the actual end user of the good. One method is to establish a highly complex corporate structure, with nominee and front companies and complicated supply chains. Another is to use an unusual freight route to transport the product to its final destination that makes it very difficult to detect breaches of the export control regulations".

Besides highlighting Pakistan as a future threat, Norway has identified Islamist extremist violence as a mounting threat. Another Norwegian website, The Local says: "China, Iran, Pakistan, and several other states conduct active intelligence efforts in Norway".

Among the threats arising from various countries, It has also mentioned likely terrorist plots being carried out by "extreme Islamists" who feel offended at the Quran burning incidents. The Norwegian police says: "However, the most relevant targets for extreme Islamist terror will still be civilian crowds, institutions, or people who are perceived to insult the religion of Islam, as well as uniformed police and defence personnel in public spaces".

Regarding Islamist violence, the PST report says: "In Norway, we expect such events to occur in 2023. Debates and events in Norway that are perceived to inhibit religious practice will also reinforce the perception that the West is at war with Islam. When such events occur in Norway, the likelihood of radicalisation and ultimately terrorist plots against Norway increases".

(The content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com)

--indianarrative

San Francisco, June 2 (IANS) The Twitter account of OpenAI's Chief Technology Officer appears to have been hacked on Thursday evening in order to promote a fraudulent cryptocurrency scheme.

Mira Murati, who has worked at OpenAI for over five years, lost control of her Twitter account around 6.03 p.m. Pacific Time (as per timestamps on the tweets), reports VentureBeat.

Later, her account started promoting a new cryptocurrency called "$OPENAI" that was allegedly "driven by artificial intelligence-based language models".

In the unauthorised tweets, Murati's followers were encouraged to send money to an Ethereum digital wallet address in order to receive free "airdropped" coins.

The tweets were quickly deleted before reappearing minutes later with slightly altered wording, according to the report.

Murati's account had the tweets up for more than 45 minutes. Her account was restored to its original state, and the tweets were removed.

The apparent hack of Murati's account comes four months after Twitter modified its two-factor authentication policies, removing SMS text messaging as a way to secure accounts unless users subscribe to Twitter Blue.

The report said that security experts have expressed concern that the changes may make high-profile accounts more vulnerable to takeovers.

She does have a blue checkmark on her Twitter profile, indicating that she subscribes to Twitter Blue and can use SMS two-factor authentication.

--IANS
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Cairo, June 2 (IANS) One person was killed and five others were injured after a billboard collapsed in Cairo amid a massive sandstorm that hit several parts of Egypt.

The incident occurred on Thursday at the 6th October bridge in the capital city, Xinhua news agency quoted local media reports as saying.

Several road accidents were also reported nationwide, with some people wounded but no fatalities, said the reports.

The sandstorm, which led to the closure of many roads, ports and beaches nationwide, was caused by the formation of a thermal depression in the western desert area, said Eman Shaker, head of the Remote Sensing Center of the Egyptian Meteorological Authority.

"The storm led to a complete lack of vision in some places. The most affected areas were Cairo, Suez, Ismailia and the Sinai Peninsula," said Shaker.

The thermal depression formed in the western desert area is usually accompanied by the so-called "Khamaseen wind", a dry, hot and sandy wind that usually blows in Egypt in spring, she explained.

The current sandstorm and heat wave are expected to continue till Friday, Shaker added.

--IANS
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Amman, June 2 (IANS) Jordan's Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah II married Saudi Arabian architect Rajwa Al-Saif during a lavish wedding ceremony attended by Arab and foreign dignitaries, the Royal Hashemite Court announced.

At the wedding ceremony held at the Zahran Palace on Thursday, King Abdullah II of Jordan and Queen Rania warmly welcomed international royals and heads of state, including Britain's Prince and Princess of Wales and US First Lady Jill Biden, reports Xinhua news agency.

The 29-year-old bride is related to Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince and de facto ruler, Mohammed bin Salman, through her mother, who hails from the kingdom's prominent Al-Sudairi family.

The 28-year-old Crown Prince and Princess Rajwa headed to the Al Hussainiya Palace in a red motorcade that drove through the capital of Amman after the ceremony.

Many Jordanians lined up along the streets leading to the Al Hussainiya Palace to celebrate the royal marriage.

Upon arrival at the Al Hussainiya Palace, King Abdullah and Queen Rania hosted a wedding reception, which was attended by members of the royal family and members of the Al-Saif family, as well as the invited guests.

--IANS
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Mexico City, June 2 (IANS) Authorities in Mexico have found 45 bags with human remains in a ravine outside the city of Guadalajara, the capital of Jalisco state.

In an official statement on Thursday, the prosecutor's office for Jalisco state said that following a tip-off in the search for seven young call centre workers, who had been reported missing last week, police official had started searching at the Mirador del Bosque ravine where they found the bags that included body parts of both men and women.

The seven went missing from two farms in the Jardines Vallarta and La Estancia neighbourhoods of Guadalajara, it added

A search operation involving firefighters and civil defence officers with police and a helicopter crew is currently underway.

The prosecutor's office added that personnel from the Jalisco Institute of Forensic Sciences are assisting in the processing of the scene, while forensic officials are trying to determine the number of bodies and causes of death, in addition to their identification.

A black plastic bag with human remains was first found on Tuesday, but due to the difficult terrain and the lack of natural light, the search operation resumed on Wednesday and will continue until all the remains are located, it noted.

The office also clarified that it could not be immediately ascertained that the remains belong to the seven missing workers.

According to government figures, more than 100,000 people are currently missing across Mexico, with many being victims of organised crime, the BBC reported.

Government data has revealed that many disappearances have occurred since 2007, when then-President Felipe Calderon launched his "war on drugs".

Three quarters of those reported missing were men and one fifth were under the age of 18 at the time of their disappearance.

Jalisco is the heartland of a violent drug war, and some of the most powerful groups operating there include the Jalisco New Generation cartel, and their rival, Nueva Plaza, which split from the CJNG in 2017, sparking violence across Guadalajara.

--IANS
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