Magnitude 6.7 earthquake strikes Indonesia’s Tanimbar Islands region, geophysics agency says

Update Magnitude 6.7 earthquake strikes Indonesia’s Tanimbar Islands region, geophysics agency says
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Updated 18 July 2025
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Magnitude 6.7 earthquake strikes Indonesia’s Tanimbar Islands region, geophysics agency says

Magnitude 6.7 earthquake strikes Indonesia’s Tanimbar Islands region, geophysics agency says

JAKARTA: An earthquake of magnitude 6.7 struck off the coast of Indonesia’s Tanimbar Islands region on Monday, the country’s geophysics agency said, adding there was no tsunami potential.

The quake was at a depth of 98 km (60.89 miles), the agency said.

The German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ) reported that the quake was of 6.8 magnitude and at a depth of 10 km (6.21 miles).

Tremors were felt in several small towns in eastern Indonesia, the agency said.

There was no immediate reports of damage, said Indonesia’s disaster mitigation agency.

Indonesia straddles the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, a highly seismically active zone, where different plates on the Earth’s crust meet and create a large number of earthquakes and volcanic activity.


Sri Lanka in talks with Middle East Green Initiative to explore climate partnership  

Sri Lanka in talks with Middle East Green Initiative to explore climate partnership  
Updated 19 sec ago
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Sri Lanka in talks with Middle East Green Initiative to explore climate partnership  

Sri Lanka in talks with Middle East Green Initiative to explore climate partnership  
  • Led by Saudi Arabia, MGI is a regional alliance seeking to mitigate climate change impacts
  • Sri Lanka is keen to share experience in climate resilience efforts, Colombo’s envoy says 

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka is exploring a potential partnership with the Middle East Green Initiative, Colombo’s envoy to Riyadh told Arab News on Saturday, as the island nation seeks to step up partnerships to combat climate change.

Sri Lanka — home to 22 million people — is highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and is particularly at risk of extreme weather events, such as flooding and drought. 

On Monday, the Sri Lankan Embassy in Riyadh facilitated an introductory virtual meeting between its Ministry of Environment and the MGI secretary-general “to explore potential ways and means for cooperation and partnership in the fields of environmental protection and sustainable development,” according to a statement.   

Led by Saudi Arabia, the MGI was established in 2021 as a regional alliance aimed at mitigating the impacts of climate change and forging collaborations to meet global climate targets in the region. 

“The MGI is an important regional initiative spearheaded by Saudi Arabia in combating challenges posed by climate change. We are pleased to see Saudi Arabia is giving a great leadership role in promoting climate action and environmental protection,” Ameer Ajwad, Sri Lanka’s envoy to Saudi Arabia, told Arab News. 

Colombo is also keen to share its experience in climate resilience efforts.  

“Sri Lanka is actively contributing to the global multilateral climate initiatives. Sri Lanka's expertise and rich experience in the field will be also useful for the MGI process for fostering environmental collaboration and advancing shared climate objectives,” Ajwad said. “For example, Sri Lanka could contribute its expertise in the field of mangrove conservation and sea grass management, et cetera.” 

Sri Lanka has led several climate resilience efforts throughout the years, including restoration of its mangrove forests following the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami. 

The country made a commitment to become the first to replant all of its mangrove forests — a goal the government sought to achieve by providing microloans and education to communities in exchange for mangrove conservation. 

In 2022, it launched the Sri Lankan Climate Prosperity Plan to attract foreign investment and accelerate climate adaptation while also reducing greenhouse gas emissions.


French authorities investigate if Jewish passengers were removed from flight due to religion

French authorities investigate if Jewish passengers were removed from flight due to religion
Updated 16 min 54 sec ago
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French authorities investigate if Jewish passengers were removed from flight due to religion

French authorities investigate if Jewish passengers were removed from flight due to religion
  • Several dozen French passengers on Wednesday were kicked off a flight leaving the Spanish city of Valencia for Paris
  • Barrot, contacted the CEO of Vueling, Carolina Martinoli, to express his deep concern

PARIS: French authorities are trying to establish whether a group of young French citizens were removed from a plane bound for Paris from Spain this week because they are Jewish.

The airline, Vueling, has denied the claims.

Several dozen French passengers on Wednesday were kicked off a flight leaving the Spanish city of Valencia for Paris, for what Spanish police and the airline described as unruly behavior.

France’s ministry for Europe and foreign affairs said in a statement on Saturday that the minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, contacted the CEO of Vueling, Carolina Martinoli, to express his deep concern “about the removal of a group of young French Jews from one of the company’s flights.”

Barrot also requested more information to “determine whether these individuals had been discriminated against on the basis of their religion.”

A similar request has been made to the Spanish ambassador to France.

“Ms. Martinoli assured Mr. Barrot that a thorough internal investigation was underway and that its findings would be shared with the French and Spanish authorities,” the ministry said.

Vueling previously denied reports that the incident, which involved the removal of 44 minors and eight adults from flight V8166, was related to the passengers’ religion.

Some Israeli news outlets reported that the students were Jewish and that their removal was religiously motivated, a claim that was repeated by an Israeli minister online. Spain’s Civil Guard said the minors and adults were French nationals. A Civil Guard spokesperson said the agents involved were not aware of the group’s religious affiliation.

A Vueling spokesperson said the passengers were removed after the minors repeatedly tampered with the plane’s emergency equipment and interrupted the crew’s safety demonstration. A Civil Guard spokesperson said the captain of the plane ordered the removal of the minors from the plane at Valencia’s Manizes Airport after they repeatedly ignored the crew’s instructions.

On Thursday, the Federation for Jewish Communities of Spain expressed concern about the incident. The group said that Vueling needed to provide documentary evidence of what happened on the plane.


Indian firm says it shipped non-military explosives to Russia

Indian firm says it shipped non-military explosives to Russia
Updated 39 min 29 sec ago
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Indian firm says it shipped non-military explosives to Russia

Indian firm says it shipped non-military explosives to Russia
  • One of the Russian companies listed in Indian customs data as receiving the compound is the explosives manufacturer Promsintez
  • Ideal Detonators said the material it shipped was not military grade

NEW DELHI: An Indian firm that shipped $1.4 million worth of an explosive compound with military uses to Russia in December said on Saturday it complies with Indian rules and the substance it had shipped was for civilian industrial purposes.

Reuters reported on July 24 that Ideal Detonators Private Limited shipped the compound, known as HMX or octogen, to two Russian explosives manufacturers despite US threats to impose sanctions on any entity supporting Russia’s Ukraine war effort.

One of the Russian companies listed in Indian customs data as receiving the compound is the explosives manufacturer Promsintez. An official at Ukraine’s SBU security service has said the Russian company has ties to the military and that Ukraine launched a drone attack in April against a Promsintez-owned factory.

Promsintez did not respond to a request for comment.

Ideal Detonators said in an emailed response to Reuters that the material it shipped was not military grade. “The shipment ... is for industrial activity and it’s a civil explosive,” the company said.

The US government has identified HMX as “critical for Russia’s war effort” and has warned financial institutions against facilitating any sales of the substance to Moscow.

The US Treasury Department has the authority to sanction those who sell HMX and similar substances to Russia, sanctions lawyers have said.

HMX is widely used in missile and torpedo warheads, rocket motors, exploding projectiles and plastic-bonded explosives for advanced military systems, according to the Pentagon’s Defense Technical Information Center and related defense research programs. The compound also has some limited civilian applications in mining and other industrial activities.


Senegal bans motorbikes near Mali border over militant fears

Senegal bans motorbikes near Mali border over militant fears
Updated 50 min 7 sec ago
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Senegal bans motorbikes near Mali border over militant fears

Senegal bans motorbikes near Mali border over militant fears
  • A decree published this week said the prohibition was for “security reasons“
  • The midnight-to-dawn motorbike ban applies to the Bakel region in Senegal

DAKAR: Senegal officials have imposed a nighttime ban on motorcycles in an eastern region after militants used motorbikes in recent attacks in towns just over the border in Mali.

A decree published this week said the prohibition was for “security reasons,” after attackers targeted army positions in several Malian towns on July 1, killing at least one civilian.

One of the Malian towns, Diboli, is less than 500 meters from Kidira in Senegal.

The midnight-to-dawn motorbike ban applies to the Bakel region in Senegal, which stretches around 230 kilometers (140 miles) along the border with Mali.

The July 1 attacks in Mali were claimed by the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims, known by its Arabic initials JNIM, an Islamist outfit affiliated with Al-Qaeda that is active in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso.

JNIM has risen to become the most influential militant threat in the Sahel, according to the United Nations. Analysts say it has ambitions to expand from Mali into both Senegal and Mauritania.

Contacted by AFP on Saturday, the local administration of the Bakel region declined to comment on the motorbike ban.

Mali, ruled by a junta following two successive coups in 2020 and 2021, has been gripped by insecurity and violence from Al-Qaeda- and Daesh-linked groups for over a decade.


Muslim leaders increase security after vandalism reports at Texas and California mosques

Muslim leaders increase security after vandalism reports at Texas and California mosques
Updated 26 July 2025
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Muslim leaders increase security after vandalism reports at Texas and California mosques

Muslim leaders increase security after vandalism reports at Texas and California mosques
  • “The past two years have been extremely difficult for American Muslims,” said Edward Ahmed Mitchell
  • The recent vandalism reports have left some worried and frustrated — but not entirely surprised

TEXAS: After a spate of vandalism reports involving graffiti at a few mosques in Texas and California, Muslim leaders there have stepped up existing efforts to keep their sacred spaces and community members safe.

The incidents and subsequent hypervigilance add to what many American Muslims say has already been a charged climate amid the fallout in the US from the Israel-Hamas war that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and devastated Gaza. The war started in October 2023 with a deadly attack by Hamas on Israel.

“The past two years have been extremely difficult for American Muslims,” said Edward Ahmed Mitchell, national deputy director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization.

A constant stream of images showing the death, destruction and ongoing starvation in Gaza has taken a toll, said Mitchell, as has a rise in anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian bigotry in the US


He pointed to one of the most egregious examples of that bigotry: After the war started, an Illinois man killed a 6-year-old Palestinian American Muslim boy and wounded his mother in a hate-crime attack.

Worry and frustration

The recent vandalism reports have left some worried and frustrated — but not entirely surprised.

“Since October 2023, we’ve definitely seen rise in Islamophobia,” said Rawand Abdelghani, who is on the board of directors of Nueces Mosque, one of the affected mosques in Austin, Texas. “Anti-Palestinian, anti-immigrant, all of that rhetoric that’s being said … it has contributed to things like this happening.”

Nueces security footage showed someone, their face partially covered, spray-painting what appears to be Star of David symbols at the property. CAIR Austin said similar incidents were reported at two other Austin mosques.

They all seemingly happened on the same night in May, in what the group described as part of “a disturbing pattern of hate-motivated incidents.” It called for increased security patrols and protective measures.

Shaimaa Zayan, CAIR Austin operations manager, called them an intimidation attempt.

Less than two weeks earlier, someone had spray-painted graffiti at the Islamic Center of Southern California, including the Star of David on an outer wall there, center spokesperson Omar Ricci said.

“In light of what’s going on within Palestine and the genocide in Gaza, it felt like an attack,” said Ricci, who’s also a reserve Los Angeles Police Department officer.

Some specifics remained unresolved. The LAPD said it opened a vandalism/hate crime investigation and added extra patrols, but added it has neither a suspect nor a motive and noted that nonreligious spaces were also targeted.

The Austin Police Department did not respond to Associated Press inquiries.

Nueces had already increased its security camera use following three incidents last year, including someone throwing rocks at the mosque, Abdelghani said. After the May vandalism, it also added overnight security, she added.

Nueces serves many university students and is considered a “home away from home,” Abdelghani said. It’s where they learn about their faith, meet other Muslims and find refuge, including during tense times, like when some students got arrested amid campus protests last year, she added.

CAIR says that in 2024, its offices nationwide received 8,658 complaints, the highest number it has recorded since its first civil rights report in 1996. It listed employment discrimination as the most common in 2024.

The group says last year, US Muslims, along with others of different backgrounds, “were targeted due to their anti-genocide … viewpoints.” Referencing former President Joe Biden, the CAIR report said that for “the second year in a row, the Biden-backed Gaza genocide drove a wave of Islamophobia in the United States.”

Israel has strongly rejected allegations it’s committing genocide in Gaza, where its war with Hamas has killed more than 59,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials. The initial Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, killed some 1,200 people, while about 250 were abducted.

Tensions in multiple spaces

The war has fueled tensions in myriad US settings. After it started, Muslim and Jewish civil rights groups reported a surge of harassment, bias and physical assaults reports against their community members. Pew Research Center in February 2024 found that 70 percent of US Muslims and nearly 90 percent of US Jews surveyed say they felt an increase in discrimination against their respective communities since the war began.

More recently, leaders of US Jewish institutions have called for more help with security after a firebomb attack in Colorado on demonstrators showing support for Israeli hostages in Gaza that left one person killed and others injured, as well as a fatal shooting of two Israeli Embassy staffers outside a Jewish museum in Washington, D.C.

Politically, the conflict loomed over last year’s presidential election, leaving many pro-Palestinian US voters feeling ignored by their own government’s support for Israel. It has roiled campuses and sparked debates over free speech and where political rhetoric crosses into harassment and discrimination.

There’ve been bitter disagreements, including among some Jewish Americans, about exactly what the definition of antisemitism should cover, and whether certain criticism of Israeli policies and Zionism should be included. That debate further intensified as President Donald Trump’s administration sought to deport some foreign-born pro-Palestinian campus activists.

The Islamic Center of Southern California has been targeted before, including vandalism in 2023 and separate threats that authorities said in 2016 were made by a man who was found with multiple weapons in his home.

Incidents like the latest one cause concern, Ricci said.

“People see that it’s not going to take very much to spark something in the city,” he said. “There’s a lot of emotion. There’s a lot of passion” on both the pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli sides.

Salam Al-Marayati, president of the Muslim Public Affairs Council, said “if people think they can get away with graffiti, then the next step is to firebomb a mosque or even go attack worshippers.”

Opening doors and receiving support

Al-Marayati and others praised how many have shown support for the affected Muslim communities.

“The best preparation is what we did in Los Angeles and that’s to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our allies and be there for one another,” he said.

In Texas, a gathering at Nueces brought together neighbors and others, including Christians and Jews, to paint over the vandalism, clean up the property and garden, Zayan said.

“It was beautiful,” she said.

“It’s really important to open your doors and open your heart and invite people and to rebuild this trust and connection,” she said. “For non-Muslims, it was a great opportunity for them to show their love and support. They really wanted to do something.”