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Sunday, October 1, 2006

Mumbai Police Commissioner A N Roy confirmed today that investigations had revealed the involvement of the militant group Lashkar-e-Toiba and the (banned) Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) in the 11 July 2006 bombing of the city’s commuter rail network. He also stated that the attacks had been masterminded by Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and carried out by Pakistani and Indian nationals.

Fifteen people, twelve of whom were directly involved in the execution of the bombings are in custody, eleven of them are Pakistani citizens.

The conspiracy to carry out the attacks, which killed 190 people, was hatched in the vicinity of Mumbai, by militants who were trained in Bahwalpur, Pakistan. The Pakistani bombers entered India in batches, some through the porous Indo-Nepal border, others via Bangladesh and some through Gujarat. They then reached Mumbai around May 25, and were sheltered in Malad and Bandra by Faizal Sheikh. Kamaluddin Ansari and Ehtasham Siddiqui, (General Secretary of SIMI, Maharashtra) were also involved in the conspiracy.

The RDX explosive used in the blasts was brought from Pakistan by a man called Ehsanullah, while the ammonium nitrate was procured locally. The explosives were assembled in Chembur by Mumbai resident Mohammad Ali, between 8 and 10 July. On the day of the attacks, the bombs (each containing 2 – 2.5 kg of RDX and 3.5 – 4 kg of ammonium nitrate) were concealed in eight pressure cookers and transported to the railway stations in taxis.

From there two member teams of bombers placed the explosives on the trains and detonated them using quartz timers. One of the militants, Saleem, a native of Lahore, could not (as was the plan) get off the train before the explosives went off, as a result of which he perished in the blast between Khar and Bandra. Of the seven Indian suspects, four (Faizal Sheikh, Kamaluddin Ansari, Ehtashan Siddiqui and Naved) have been apprehended, while a search is on for the other three.

Mr. Roy described the bombings as a “professional, precise and well-planned”. The first clue his department got was a phone call made from Navi Mumbai to a place on the Indo-Nepal border. Based on this information Kamaluddin Ansari was arrested in from Madhubani, Bihar. Narco-analysis of the other suspects revealed that they were trained in Pakistan and also helped tie up other loose ends in the case. Faizal Sheikh also revealed that he had received Rs. 60,00,000 from Pakistan in the last few years. Police also recovered 26,000 Riyals, given to him by Rizwan Devra, an ISI operative living in Dubai, from Faizal’s house.

Pakistan’s Minister of State for Information, Tariq Azim, denied the role of the ISI in the bombings, saying that his country “rejected” the accusation, and that India should provide Pakistan with “any information if they have it”. “Such allegations only give benefit to the real culprits, who escape arrest,” he said.

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Ren and Stimpy. Bugs Bunny. Philip J. Fry and Professor Hubert Farnsworth on Futurama. Sparx. Bi-Polar Bear. Popeye the Sailor Man. Woody Woodpecker. You may not think you have ever heard Billy West, but chances are on a television program, a movie, a commercial, or as Howard Stern’s voice guru in the 1990’s, you have heard him. West’s talent for creating personalities by twisting his voice has made him one of a handful of voice actors—Hank Azaria and the late Mel Blanc come to mind—who have achieved celebrity for their talent. Indeed, West is one of the few voice actors who can impersonate Blanc in his prime, including characterizations of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd and other characters from Warner Bros. cartoons.

What is the fulcrum in Mr. West’s life that led him to realize a talent to shape personalities with his voice, and how did the discovery of that gift shape him? Wikinews reporter David Shankbone found that like many great comedians, West faced more sour early in life than he did sweet. The sour came from a physically and emotionally abusive alcoholic father (“I could tell you the kind of night I was going to have from the sound of the key in the door or the way the car pulled up.”), to his own problems with drug and alcohol use (“There is a point that you can reach in your life where you don’t want to live, but you haven’t made the decision to die.”).

If sin, suffering and redemption feel like the stages of an endless cycle of American existence, West’s own redemption from his brutalized childhood is what helped shape his gift. He performed little bits to cheer up his cowed mother, ravaged by the fact she could not stop her husband’s abuse of young West. “I was the whipping boy and she would just be reduced to tears a lot of times, and I would come in and say stuff, and I would put out little bits just to pull her out of it.”

But West has also enjoyed the sweet. His career blossomed as his talent for creating entire histories behind fictional characters and creatures simply by exploring nuance in his voice landed him at the top of his craft. You may never again be able to forget that behind the voice of your favorite character, there is often an extraordinary life.

Below is David Shankbone’s interview with renowned voice actor Billy West, who for the first time publicly talks about the horrors he faced in his childhood; his misguided search for answers in anger, drugs and alcohol; and the peace he has achieved as one of America’s most recognizable voice actors.

Friday, September 2, 2005

A man from North London is currently training for an attempt at flying a hang glider across the UK from land’s End to John O’Groats.

Shola Ogunlokun a 41 year old married father of 3 who had never flown a hangglider before taking up this challenge said yesterday “I aim to fulfill a dream offlying, use the challenge as an opportunity to meet the people of Britain andencourage people of similar ethnic backgrounds as me to pursue their dreams”.

Shola is on stage 2 of a 3 stage training programme, and has flown a glider offa 2000ft mountain on completion of stage 1 of his training. He is currentlylooking for sponsors and in talks with a TV production about making adocumentary of his attempt.

The flight attempt is currently planned for around Autumn next year, should takebetween 5-7 days, and Shola would like to spend the night of each flight at thehome of a local in the town he lands. If successful, Shola will be the firstperson to have flown a hang glider across the UK over this distance.

Shola has an online diary charting his progress at http://mbchallenge.blogspot.comFor further details, or to contact Shola, please visit his website:http://www.meet-britain.org.uk

Thursday, May 10, 2012

A plane built by Russia’s Sukhoi has crashed in Indonesia with around 50 people on board during a demonstration flight to potential customers. The Superjet 100 struck a cliff as it descended over mountains near Jakarta.

The aircraft departed Halim Perdanakusuma Airport at around 2pm local time yesterday and was due to return 50 minutes later. A search and rescue mission was dispatched to West Java, where the aircraft crashed in the Salak mountain range. Bad weather and nightfall initially hampered rescue efforts but a helicopter found the crash site after dawn.

Everything reportedly was normal that day on a preflight check and earlier demonstration flight. Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev today ordered an investigation into the accident, while Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono today said “I expect that there will be a full and careful investigation”.

Those on board include journalists, Russian diplomats, and representatives of prospective customer airlines. The flight crew had requested permission for a descent from 10,000ft to 6,000ft shortly before contact was lost. It struck a 7,000ft mountain and the reason for the descent is not immediately apparent. The jet was touring Asia on a sales promotion with stops including Pakistan, Vietnam, Laos, Kazakhstan, and Burma.

With a maiden flight in 2008, several Superjet 100s are in service and Sukhoi boasts orders for about 200 more. The first newly-designed post-Soviet Russian airliner, a commercial offering by military planemaker Sukhoi, it seats around 100 and retails for US$31.7 million. This is cheaper than products from Canada; and Sukhoi has sought the services of Western firms including Thales of France and Finmeccanica of Italy, potentially mitigating safety fears about Soviet-era technology.

Sukhoi’s top test pilot, Alexander Yablontsev, and co-pilot Alexander Kochetkov reportedly were due to be at the controls of the crashed plane. The exact number on board is reported as being from 44 to 50. Sukhoi Civil Aircraft boss Vladimir Prisyazhnyuk said the flight carried eight, including technical staff, from Russia; two from Italy; and one each from France and the United States. The wreckage is in small pieces and, following unconfirmed reports saying bodies were seen, a search team reported no survivors found but several corpses.

So far, Aeroflot of Russia and Armavia of Armenia are the only airlines to have brought the jet into service. Mexico has recently given approval to the plane, allowing Western operator Interjet to join the Russian airlines before year’s end. Sukhoi hopes to scale up production, presently below planned levels, and already has firm deals in place in Asia including with Kartika Airlines of Indonesia.

Friday, March 6, 2020

Yesterday, an all-women crew ran the Mysuru–Bengaluru Tippu Express in the Indian state of Karnataka. The state-run Indian Railways launched this event ahead of International Women’s Day, for promoting gender equality at work places.

B Shiva Parvathi was running the train as loco pilot (locomotive pilot), and 22-year-old Rangoli Patil was her loco co-pilot. The train left Mysore Junction railway station at 11:30 am IST (0600 UTC), covering a distance of 139km to reach KSR Bangalore station. The train had banners on it which mentioned “International Women’s Day Celebration”.

Speaking to newspaper Star of Mysore, B Shiva Parvathi said, “It is a proud moment for me to be steering this train today along with my Loco Pilot Rangoli and the all-women staff”. Mysore Divisional Railway Manager Aparna Garg told Wikinews only 10% of the employees in the Mysore Division were women, which constitutes about 650 female employees.

Mysore district comes under the South West Railway (SWR) branch of the Indian Railway. Mysore Division of the SWR celebration of the Women’s day started on March 1, and is planned till March 10. Various activities are being conducted in this period, including health check-ups, yoga, sports competition and trekking, newspaper The Hindu reported.

“The theme ‘Equal for All’ is an effort of the Railways to promote more women workforce and empower them. Women of today are no less to any men, be it in any field. I hope through such initiatives, more number of women are motivated to take up jobs in their respective fields of interest”, Garg told Star of Mysore.

Friday, October 27, 2006

Approximately seven videos showing school children beating their peers have been put on the Google-owned video service, YouTube.

The videos are recorded using cellphone cameras from students at Auckland Grammar School, Tauranga Boys’ College and Saint Kentigern College and other unidentified schools, according to New Zealand newspaper, The Press.

Auckland Grammar has three videos of bullying and Tauranga Boys College and St Kentigern College both have one video each.

According to The Press one video filmed in Auckland Grammar shows two students, surrounded by a large circle of boys, knock another boy unconscious. The boy appears to have convulsions. The clip was put on YouTube by I0pex a month ago and was titled “Some guy getting KNocked the fuck out.” It had a rating of four and a half stars out of a possible five.

The video was not accessible on YouTube by 27 October, 2006 at 7.36 a.m. UTC, a notice displayed said, “This video has been removed due to terms of use violation.” The Press said an unidentified clip shows two girls fighting, which was also removed for the same reason.

YouTube guidelines state: “Real violence is not allowed. If your video shows someone getting hurt, attacked or humiliated, don’t post it.”

According to NewsRoom the video showing the bullying from Tauranga Boys’ College shows three students, one student holding another while being punched on the ground in the face. When a teacher breaks up the fight, the comments for the video criticise the teacher for doing so.

One other video shows one Asian student bullying another Asian, according to The Press.

Annabel Taylor, Family Help Trust chairwoman, said: “The clips represented the worst aspects of bullying. It is premeditated, organised, intentional, choreographed even, and that’s what distinguishes it from common schoolyard bullying.”

Tauranga Boys’ College deputy principal, Robert Naumann, said: “While appropriate disciplinary action was taken against the boys involved in the incident, and none of those filmed had given their permission for the footage to be posted on the web, the film has remained within the public domain despite attempts by college staff to have it removed,” he said, “Youtube has continued to support its placement”. The video was not accessible on 27 October, 2006 at 7.36 a.m. UTC. Graham Young, principal of Tauranga Boys’ College, said: “A video posted on the Internet showing two of his students fighting is inappropriate and bizarre, but not unusual. Unfortunately technology allows teenagers to put all sorts of material about each other on websites.”

Martin Crocker, Netsafe director, said that while posting the videos did not break any law, the actions filmed in the videos did. “The terrible thing is that the aim of online notoriety is driving people to do quite extreme things,” Crocker said.

Dave Turnbull, principal of Cashmere High School, said that he is unaware of anything like that has happened in Christchurch. “The reality is it could have been any school.”

According to Paul Shamy from Stopping Violence Services Christchurch, “[I am] not surprised that the violence was in well-to-do schools such as Auckland Grammar as violence is spread throughout society.”