At least 18 killed after a small plane crashes in a remote part of South Sudan

Update At least 18 killed after a small plane crashes in a remote part of South Sudan
The wreckage of a plane that crashed, killing 18 people as it was heading to the capital Juba, at the Unity oilfield airport, Unity State, South Sudan, Jan. 29, 2025. (Reuters)
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Updated 29 January 2025
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At least 18 killed after a small plane crashes in a remote part of South Sudan

At least 18 killed after a small plane crashes in a remote part of South Sudan
  • The plane crashed while it was taking off near an oil field

JUBA: An official says at least 18 people were killed Wednesday when a small plane crashed in a remote part of South Sudan.
The flight, chartered by Chinese oil firm Greater Pioneer Operating Company, had 21 people on board, including two pilots, said Gatwech Bipal, the minister of information in the oil-rich Unity state, where the crash happened earlier on Wednesday.
The plane crashed while it was taking off near an oil field to head to the international airport in Juba, the South Sudanese capital, he said.
It was not immediately clear what caused the crash, and authorities had not yet revealed the identities of the victims. Local media reported that the plane was carrying oil workers.


Cholera kills 15 in western Ethiopia: health official

Cholera kills 15 in western Ethiopia: health official
Updated 57 min 24 sec ago
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Cholera kills 15 in western Ethiopia: health official

Cholera kills 15 in western Ethiopia: health official
  • “Fifteen people have died, and we have 234 cases since the beginning of February,” said Gillo
  • “The situation is not yet under control and we don’t have enough medication currently”

ADDIS ABABA: A cholera outbreak in western Ethiopia has killed 15 people and struck more than 200 people this month, a regional health official said Friday, appealing for more medicine.
Several regions of Ethiopia and other African countries have been fighting cholera outbreaks in recent weeks, including Sudan and Angola.
“Fifteen people have died, and we have 234 cases since the beginning of February,” Nigiw Gillo, an emergencies manager in the Gambella region health bureau, told AFP.
“The situation is not yet under control and we don’t have enough medication currently, and we are asking our partners to provide.”
Cholera causes severe diarrhea, vomiting and muscle cramps, and is generally contracted by eating or drinking food or water that is contaminated with the bacterium, according to the World Health Organization.
It said the number of reported cholera cases rose by 13 percent in 2023 from a year earlier, with deaths from the disease surging by more than 70 percent.
Cholera killed 4,000 people in 2024, despite being “preventable and easily treatable,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said last year.


Five newly naturalized Germans will head to the polls

Five newly naturalized Germans will head to the polls
Updated 21 February 2025
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Five newly naturalized Germans will head to the polls

Five newly naturalized Germans will head to the polls
  • For the new Germans originally from Syria, the election is weighted with extra significance
  • Many of them fled their country because of the civil war that followed former president Bashar Assad’s crackdown on protests calling for greater democratic freedom

BERLIN: More than half a million newly naturalized citizens will have the opportunity to vote in a German national election for the first time this weekend.
Almost a third of the new Germans are originally from Syria. Most of them left their home countries in the last decade, fleeing war, political instability and economic hardship. In 2015-2016 alone, more than 1 million migrants came to Germany, most from Syria, but also from Afghanistan and Iraq.
Since the last national election in 2021, the number of naturalizations in Germany has risen sharply: More than 500,000 people were naturalized between 2021 and 2023, according to the country’s Federal Statistical Office.
While the numbers for 2024 are not yet available, experts estimate that more than 250,000 people were naturalized in Germany last year.
Many of the new citizens who will vote for the first time in Germany on Sunday have expressed a mix of excitement, hope for change, and a feeling of empowerment about their voting rights. Some worry about the rise of the far-right, anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany, or AfD, party.
For the new Germans originally from Syria, the election is weighted with extra significance. Many of them fled their country because of the civil war that followed former president Bashar Assad’s crackdown on protests calling for greater democratic freedom. He was toppled in November, but whether Syria will now become a democracy remains unclear. In the meantime, they are able to vote in multi-party elections in their new home.
Here’s what five of the newcomers say about voting in Germany:
Logeen Faour Shahna, 24, wants to give other migrants a voice
Originally from Idlib in Syria, Faour Shahna arrived in 2015 and is now studying mathematics at Berlin’s Technical University. She says her new German passport gives her a sense of security as she is now no longer afraid of being deported. She wants to go vote on Sunday, “because every vote counts.”
“It may be that others still see me as a foreigner, but I also want to pass on the voices of foreigners (and show) that not everyone is the same. You should not see us as foreigners, but as human beings, and you should see what we will do for the German state in the future.
“I am clearly against AfD. ... I think there are also many others who are against AfD, whether they were born as foreigners or whether they are German. I don’t think they’ll ever rule Germany. Otherwise we would be back in the 1930s.”
Syamend Al Othman, 31, hopes the next government will boost the economy
Al Othman, a Syrian Kurd, came to Germany in 2014. He currently works in online marketing but dreams of opening his own coffee place in Berlin. He says he and his wife are just like other Germans, working, paying their taxes, not committing any crimes, and visiting family on weekends. He hopes that the next government can make sure that ” Germany’s economy will get better again.”
“This is my first national election after becoming a German. Of course it has a lot of meaning for me that my wife and I have an influence on German elections, that we also decide who governs us.
“I talked to my father (in Syria) the other day. My father has never voted. And that’s why we think it’s so important. It’s nice that we can vote and that we also have democracy here in Germany. There is still not much real democracy in Syria and no elections yet, because Assad has only been gone for a few weeks and we still need time to get democracy in Syria.”
Ketevan Asatiani-Hermann, 35, says voting is more important than ever as democracy is under threat
Asatiani-Hermann came to Germany from Georgia, in the Caucasus, in 2011 and was naturalized in October. She is married to a German and lives in Magdeburg, where she has a job as a social worker helping migrant teenagers integrate in society. She voiced concern that discrimination of migrants may further grow after a deadly attack by a Saudi physician on a Christmas market in Magdeburg that killed six and injured more than 200.
“I have never felt before that democracy is under such threat. This is a very good time for me to perhaps contribute with my vote to ensure that people vote for democracy and that hate and racism are not promoted. ... It also gives me a sense of affirmation and that I’m allowed to have a say ... I’m very pleased that I’ll have that opportunity this year.
“I very much hope that the next government will ensure that there is more cohesion in our society again. That it’s not so much about them and us anymore and that people who are different for whatever reasons won’t get excluded.”
Sedra Hanina, 23, wants Germany to provide more security especially for women wearing hijab
Hanina came from Damascus in 2016, when she was 15 years old. She’s married, has one daughter, and studies chemistry in Berlin. The young woman hopes that the next government will provide more security, especially for women like herself who wear the hijab, as she often feels badly treated. But most of all she is excited to vote for the first time in her life.
“It’s a big challenge that you have to find out which party, which advantages, which disadvantages, what the goals of the respective party are. And I’m actually really looking forward to seeing what happens after the elections and which party wins.
“I hope there will be more of a focus on social justice, integration, and freedom of people ... that everyone is treated the same as everyone else, no matter where you come from, how you look, and how you act. The main thing is that everyone is treated equally.”
Hassan Salameh, 40, says German passport, right to vote are a reward for his efforts to integrate
The pharmacist and father of two small children is originally from Aleppo. Since his arrival in Germany in 2014, he studied German until he was fluent, worked to get his pharmacy degree recognized, found a job and waited for more than three years until his application for German citizenship was approved.
” I see the German passport as a reward after such a long time of efforts, difficulties, hope and stress — we’ve put so much effort into making sure that we make a future for ourselves as a small family.
“For me, the moment when I go to vote for the first time is very, very special. ... It is a responsibility for us and for society to make the right decision this time to ensure our future, security and wellbeing, and that Germany continues to lead in Europe.”


Their mosque burned down in LA-area wildfire. They’re still determined to gather for Ramadan

Their mosque burned down in LA-area wildfire. They’re still determined to gather for Ramadan
Updated 21 February 2025
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Their mosque burned down in LA-area wildfire. They’re still determined to gather for Ramadan

Their mosque burned down in LA-area wildfire. They’re still determined to gather for Ramadan
  • The Masjid Al-Taqwa in Altadena burned to the ground in one of the Los Angeles area’s deadliest fires in January

PASADENA, California: All that remains of Masjid Al-Taqwa is a sign that bears its name.
The mosque in Altadena, which served a tight-knit Muslim community for 42 years, burned to the ground in one of the Los Angeles area’s deadliest fires in January — leaving the congregation heartbroken and without a place to pray and break their upcoming Ramadan fast together.
With that weighing on their minds, about 20 mosque members and a few connected families met on a recent Saturday at a local Islamic school to pray and share a meal, their first together since the fire. Many who came are living in motels or with family after losing their homes in the Eaton fire, which killed 17 people and scorched thousands of homes and over 14,000 acres across Los Angeles County.
With Ramadan just days a way, their volunteer imam, Junaid Aasi, had good news to share. Clad in a white robe, black jacket and prayer cap, he walked onto the plush blue prayer rugs and placed a small karaoke machine in the middle of the multipurpose room at New Horizon Islamic School.
Aasi announced the school was offering this space for four nights each week during Ramadan. There were gasps of relief, and utterances of “Alhamdulillah,” an Arabic phrase that means “praise be to God.”
Aasi said many in the community have been anxious about Ramadan and having this room, even if only for some days each week, is a blessing.
“Ramadan is not only a time when we pray and eat together, but we also help and support each other and others in the community,” he said. “This year, with so many who have lost so much, it’s going to be more important than ever.”
The imam, with a secular job as an IT professional, has volunteered at the mosque for the past 25 years. He has been revisited the property since the fire. Sometimes, he says, he can still see everything the way it was when he closes his eyes.
The place where people would perform wudu — the ritual washing of hands, feet and face before coming in to pray. The thick carpets where they prayed. Copies of the holy Qur’an. A fig tree outside.
“I still can’t believe it’s all gone,” Aasi said.
He said many members are still displaced and hurting emotionally.
“One member just texted me that they were on their way here but stopped to check out their (burned) home,” Aasi said. They were so overwhelmed, he added, that they couldn’t bring themselves to the gathering.
Aaron Abdus-Shakoor, one of the mosque’s founders and current board president, lost his home, the building that housed his real estate business and several investment properties around Altadena. He said the mosque, which began in the 1970s as a meeting place for Nation of Islam members, evolved into a mainstream, multicultural Muslim community. It was called the Pasadena-Altadena Daawa Center until members in 1997 renamed it Masjid Al-Taqwa, which means “pious and god-conscious.”
“All these years, we’ve been good citizens,” Abdus-Shakoor said. “We’ve always kept our doors open and have tried to be a positive influence in the community.”
In the early days, the communal Ramadan celebration only happened on Eid Al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month, he said. But for many years now, members have hosted a daily community iftar, the evening meal during Ramadan, which breaks the day-long fast.
For many, the mosque has been a second home.
Salah Eddine Benatia, an Algerian immigrant, has only been in the country three months. He discovered Al-Taqwa online and had been riding the bus from Pasadena for prayers.
“I felt so warmly welcomed by this community,” he said. “I miss home a lot especially around Ramadan. I was so sad when I heard the mosque burned down. Being here gives me a sense of being with family.”
Farzana Asaduzzaman, who has lived in the neighborhood since 2016, said Ramadan at the mosque has always been “a family affair.”
“Everyone brings food, we fast, we break our fast together,” she said. “The kids would play Uno, make arts and crafts, and assemble Eid gift bags. We would put up heaters in the outside area, sit down, sip hot chai and talk for hours.”
Asaduzzaman, her husband and their three children, ages 14, 10 and 3, lost their home in the fire as well. They spent two and a half years renovating the property before it burned down.
“Our masjid may be gone and our neighborhood may be gone, but our community is strong,” she said. “This is our support system. We’ll be together for Ramadan, no matter where it is. We’ll find a place where we can see our kids run around and where we can gather and be together again.”
For Mohammed AlDajani, a second-year medical student, the mosque was a five-minute walk from his condo, which was also lost in the fire. For AlDajani, who had no relatives or friends nearby, the mosque fulfilled the need for social and spiritual nourishment.
“The masjid was actually a nice incentive for me to move here,” he said. “It’s a place that has helped ground me in this community.”
AlDajani said, unlike many mosques he has attended, Masjid Al-Taqwa’s members represent many nationalities and ethnicities — Arab, African American, Afghan, Indian, Bangladeshi, Turkish and North African among them.
“I found that very unique,” he said.
Last year was his first Ramadan in Southern California. The mosque’s youth painted a mural of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, a disputed holy site that has become a flashpoint in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As a Palestinian American, AlDajani said the community project touched him profoundly at a time when his heart was broken by the suffering of those in Gaza.
He said he learned about the Altadena mosque’s destruction even before he found out his home was gone.
“It’s just like my chest sank when I saw the images,” AlDajani said. “It was difficult because I was there for morning and night prayers every day. It was my little haven. It doesn’t feel right, having that empty space there.”
As he tries to find a place to rent, AlDajani says the mosque community has been “keeping him afloat.”
“Our prayer group still meets on the weekends,” he said. “I was anxious about Ramadan. It’s nice to know we’ll still be able to gather and pray, and this haven will still exist.”
Sakeenah Ali’s children, who attended Elliott Magnet Middle School across the street from the mosque, lost their school in the fire.
“They would hear the afternoon call to prayer from their school, which was very special,” she said, adding that she went out and saw the mosque burn and the parking lot covered in ash.
“Cars were on fire, trees were smoldering,” Ali recalled. “You could hear explosions everywhere – boom, boom.”
But she believes that her community is resilient.
“The key is to keep showing up,” Ali said. “Make sure we have our prayer time, stay connected and be consistent. We are going to rebuild.”


Night-time excursions on Italy’s Etna volcano spark safety concerns

Night-time excursions on Italy’s Etna volcano spark safety concerns
Updated 21 February 2025
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Night-time excursions on Italy’s Etna volcano spark safety concerns

Night-time excursions on Italy’s Etna volcano spark safety concerns
  • Europe’s highest and most active volcano erupted in spectacular fashion last week
  • “Spending a night out at these temperatures can be very risky,” La Pica said on Friday

ROME: Tourists climbing Sicily’s Mount Etna volcano at night in sneakers and light clothing to get a close-up view of an ongoing eruption may be risking their lives, rescuers warned on Friday.
Europe’s highest and most active volcano erupted in spectacular fashion last week, lighting up the night sky with explosions and bright red molten lava.
“We had a number of people who got lost and could not find their way back because of the fog that suddenly appeared. Spending a night out at these temperatures can be very risky,” Leonardo La Pica, regional president of the Sicilian Alpine Speleological Rescue Service, said on Friday.
Speaking to broadcaster Radio24, La Pica said that the lava flow had reached more accessible areas than usual, at around 1850 meters above sea level.
That has prompted many tourists to venture out at night when the flare is more scenic. But some do not go properly equipped and often get too close to the lava, he said, with the risk of being hit by pieces of rock thrown out by the explosions.
“The ground is impervious, with ice and snow, it is cold and the weather can change abruptly,” La Pica added.


Macron’s message to Trump: ‘You can’t be weak in the face of Putin’

Macron’s message to Trump: ‘You can’t be weak in the face of Putin’
Updated 21 February 2025
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Macron’s message to Trump: ‘You can’t be weak in the face of Putin’

Macron’s message to Trump: ‘You can’t be weak in the face of Putin’
  • Macron will travel to Washington to meet with Trump on Monday, the White House said
  • Putin “doesn’t know what he (Trump) is going to do, he thinks (Trump) is capable of anything,” Macron said

PARIS: French President Emmanuel Macron said that he intends to tell US counterpart Donald Trump that it’s in the joint interest of Americans and Europeans not to “be weak” in the face of Russian leader Vladimir Putin amid US-led negotiations to end the nearly three-year war in Ukraine.
Macron will travel to Washington to meet with Trump on Monday, the White House said.
In a one-hour question and answer session on social media Thursday, Macron said that he’ll tell Trump: “’You can’t be weak in the face of President Putin. It’s not you, it’s not your trademark, it’s not in your interest. How can you then be credible in the face of China if you’re weak in the face of Putin?’”
Trump’s recent statements that echo Putin’s narrative and plans to have direct negotiations with Moscow have left European allies and Ukrainian officials worried. But Macron suggested Trump’s strategy to create “uncertainty” in talks with Russia could actually make Western allies stronger in these talks.
Putin “doesn’t know what he (Trump) is going to do, he thinks (Trump) is capable of anything,” Macron said. “This uncertainty is good for us and for Ukraine.”
Macron said that he would seek to persuade Trump that US interests and Europeans’ interests are the same, telling him: “If you let Russia take over Ukraine, it would be unstoppable.”
That means any peace deal must be negotiated with Ukrainians and Europeans around the table, Macron said.
“We want peace. But we don’t want a ceasefire that means Ukraine surrendering, because that’s dangerous. And we know that would lead to Russia going further. We’ve already experienced it,” he said.
Macron also appeared ready to answer Trump’s call to boost defense spending. “Us, Europeans, we must increase our war effort,” he said.
Asked about whether he’s considering sending French troops to Ukraine, he said he wouldn’t send soldiers to fight in Ukraine but rather to be part of a security force meant to bring “guarantees” once a peace deal is achieved.
“We don’t rule out, within a framework planned with our allies, the possibility of having forces which, once peace has been negotiated, could contribute to guaranteeing Ukraine’s security,” he said.