AFP Asia

Fugitive former Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina orchestrated a “systematic attack” that amounted to crimes against humanity in her attempt to crush the uprising that toppled her government, Bangladeshi prosecutors said at the opening of her trial on Sunday.Up to 1,400 people were killed between July and August 2024 after Hasina’s government launched its crackdown, according to the United Nations.Hasina, 77, fled by helicopter to her old ally India as the student-led uprising ended her 15-year rule and she has defied an extradition order to return to Dhaka.Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) is prosecuting former senior figures connected to Hasina’s ousted government and her now-banned party, the Awami League.”Upon scrutinising the evidence, we reached the conclusion that it was a coordinated, widespread and systematic attack,” ICT chief prosecutor Mohammad Tajul Islam told the court in his opening speech.”The accused unleashed all law enforcement agencies and her armed party members to crush the uprising.”Islam lodged five charges each against Hasina and two other officials that included “abetment, incitement, complicity, facilitation, conspiracy, and failure to prevent mass murder during the July uprising”.Prosecutors say such acts are tantamount to “crimes against humanity”.- ‘Not an act of vendetta’ -Hasina, who remains in self-imposed exile in India, has rejected the charges as politically motivated.As well as Hasina, the case includes ex-police chief Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun — who is in custody but did not appear in court on Sunday — and former interior minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, who is also on the run.The prosecution of senior figures from Hasina’s government is a key demand of several of the political parties now jostling for power. The interim government has vowed to hold elections before June 2026.The hearing is being broadcast live on state-owned Bangladesh Television.Prosecutor Islam vowed that the trial would be impartial.”This is not an act of vendetta but a commitment to the principle that, in a democratic country, there is no room for crimes against humanity,” he said.Investigators have collected video footage, audio clips, Hasina’s phone conversations and records of helicopter and drone movements, as well as statements from victims of the crackdown, as part of their probe. The prosecution argues that Hasina ordered security forces, through directives from the interior ministry and police, to crush the protesters.”They systematically committed murder, attempted murder, torture, and other inhuman acts,” Islam said. Prosecutors also allege that security forces opened fire from helicopters after Hasina’s directives.They also accused Hasina of ordering the killing of student protester Abu Sayeed, who was shot dead at close range in the northern city of Rangpur on July 16.He was the first student demonstrator killed in the police crackdown on protests and footage of his last moments was shown repeatedly on Bangladeshi television after Hasina’s downfall.The ICT court opened its first trial connected to Hasina’s government on May 25. In that case, eight police officials face charges of crimes against humanity over the killing of six protesters on August 5, the day that Hasina fled the country.Four of the officers are in custody and four are being tried in absentia.The ICT was set up by Hasina in 2009 to investigate crimes committed by the Pakistani army during Bangladesh’s war for independence in 1971.It sentenced numerous prominent political opponents to death and became widely seen as a means for Hasina to eliminate rivals.Separately on Sunday, the Supreme Court restored the registration of Bangladesh’s largest Islamist party, Jamaat-e-Islami, allowing it to take part in elections.Hasina had banned Jamaat-e-Islami and cracked down on its leaders.Bangladesh’s interim government banned the Awami League in May, pending the outcome of her trial, and those of other party leaders.

Fugitive former prime minister Sheikh Hasina orchestrated a “systemic attack” to try to crush the uprising against her government, Bangladeshi prosecutors said at the opening of her trial on Sunday.Up to 1,400 people were killed between July and August 2024 when Hasina’s government launched its crackdown, according to the United Nations.Hasina, 77, fled by helicopter to her old ally India as the student-led uprising ended her 15-year rule, and she has defied an extradition order to return to Dhaka.The domestic International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) is prosecuting former senior figures connected to Hasina’s ousted government and her now-banned party, the Awami League.”Upon scrutinising the evidence, we reached the conclusion that it was a coordinated, widespread and systematic attack,” Mohammad Tajul Islam, ICT chief prosecutor, told the court in his opening speech.”The accused unleashed all law enforcement agencies and her armed party members to crush the uprising.”Islam lodged charges against Hasina and two other officials of “abetment, incitement, complicity, facilitation, conspiracy, and failure to prevent mass murder during the July uprising”.- ‘Not an act of vendetta’ -Hasina, who remains in self-imposed exile in India, has rejected the charges as politically motivated.As well as Hasina, the case includes ex-police chief Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun — who is in custody, but who did not appear in court on Sunday — and former interior minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, who like Hasina, is on the run.The prosecution of senior figures from Hasina’s government is a key demand of several of the political parties now jostling for power. The interim government has vowed to hold elections before June 2026.The hearing is being broadcast live on state-owned Bangladesh Television.Prosecutor Islam vowed the trial would be impartial.”This is not an act of vendetta, but a commitment to the principle that, in a democratic country, there is no room for crimes against humanity,” he said.Investigators have collected video footage, audio clips, Hasina’s phone conversations, records of helicopter and drone movements, as well as statements from victims of the crackdown as part of their probe. The ICT court opened its first trial connected to the previous government on May 25. In that case, eight police officials face charges of crimes against humanity over the killing of six protesters on August 5, the day Hasina fled the country.Four of the officers are in custody and four are being tried in absentia.The ICT was set up by Hasina in 2009 to investigate crimes committed by the Pakistani army during Bangladesh’s war for independence in 1971.It sentenced numerous prominent political opponents to death and became widely seen as a means for Hasina to eliminate rivals.Earlier on Sunday, the Supreme Court restored the registration of the largest Islamist party, Jamaat-e-Islami, allowing it to take part in elections.Hasina banned Jamaat-e-Islami during her tenure and cracked down on its leaders.In May, Bangladesh’s interim government banned the Awami League, pending the outcome of her trial, and of other party leaders.

Bangladesh will open the trial on Sunday of fugitive former prime minister Sheikh Hasina on charges of crimes against humanity related to the killings of protesters by police, prosecutors said. Hasina, 77, fled by helicopter to her old ally India in August 2024 at the culmination of a student-led mass uprising that ended her 15-year rule, and has defied an extradition order to return to Dhaka.”The prosecution team … is set to submit charges against former prime minister Sheikh Hasina,” said Gazi MH Tamim, one of the prosecutors.Up to 1,400 people were killed between July and August 2024 when Hasina’s government launched a brutal campaign to silence the protesters, according to the United Nations.The domestic International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) is prosecuting former senior figures connected to the ousted government of Hasina and her now-banned Awami League party.The prosecution of senior figures from Hasina’s government is a key demand of several of the political parties now jostling for power. The interim government has vowed to hold elections before June 2026.The hearing is expected to be broadcast live on state-owned Bangladesh Television.Prosecutors submitted their report into the case against Hasina last month with the court on Sunday expected to open proceedings by issuing formal charges.ICT chief prosecutor Tajul Islam said on May 12 that Hasina faces at least five charges, including “abetment, incitement, complicity, facilitation, conspiracy and failure to prevent mass murder during the July uprising”.Investigators have collected video footage, audio clips, Hasina’s phone conversations, records of helicopter and drone movements, as well as statements from victims of the crackdown as part of their probe. Hasina remains in self-imposed exile in India and has defied an arrest warrant and extradition orders from Dhaka to face trial in person.She has rejected the charges as politically motivated.The same case is also expected to include former interior minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal and former police chief Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun. They face similar charges.The ICT court opened its first trial connected to the previous government on May 25. In that case, eight police officials face charges of crimes against humanity over the killing of six protesters on August 5, the day Hasina fled the country.Four of the officers are in custody and four are being tried in absentia.The ICT was set up by Hasina in 2009 to investigate crimes committed by the Pakistani army during Bangladesh’s war for independence in 1971.It sentenced numerous prominent political opponents to death and became widely seen as a means for Hasina to eliminate rivals.

Torrential monsoon rains in India’s northeast triggered landslides and floods that swept away and killed at least five people in Assam, disaster officials said Saturday.India’s annual monsoon season from June to September offers respite from intense summer heat and is crucial for replenishing water supplies, but also brings widespread death and destruction.The deaths recorded are among the first of this season, with scores often killed over the course of the rains across India, a country of 1.4 billion people.The monsoon is a colossal sea breeze that brings South Asia 70-80 percent of its annual rainfall.Rivers swollen by the lashing rain — including the mighty Brahmaputra and its tributaries — broke their banks across the region.But the intensity of rain and floods has increased in recent years, with experts saying climate change is exacerbating the problem.Assam State Disaster Management Authority officials on Saturday confirmed five deaths in the last 24 hours.A red alert warning had been issued for 12 districts of Assam after non-stop rains over the last three days led to flooding in many urban areas.  The situation was particularly bad in the state capital Guwahati.City authorities have disconnected the electricity in several districts to cut the risk of electrocution.Several low-lying areas of Guwahati were flooded, with hundreds of families forced to abandon homes to seek shelter elsewhere.Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said his government had deployed rescue teams. “We have been reviewing the impending situation for the last three days”, he said in a statement, saying that supplies of rice had been dispatched as food aid.South Asia is getting hotter and in recent years has seen shifting weather patterns, but scientists are unclear on how exactly a warming planet is affecting the highly complex monsoon.On Monday, lashing rains swamped India’s financial capital Mumbai, where the monsoon rains arrived some two weeks earlier than usual, the earliest for nearly a quarter century, according to weather forecasters.

Thousands of Afghans protested across the country on Friday against the Israeli bombardment in Gaza, responding to a nationwide call by the Taliban authorities.Large crowds gathered in several cities after Friday prayers waving Palestinian flags and burning pictures of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.”We are out in support with Gaza. And to show the world that Gaza is not alone, we are standing with them. Wherever Muslims are oppressed, we strongly defend them and condemn it,” said 28-year-old Jannat, who goes by one name, in the capital Kabul.Negotiations to end nearly 20 months of war have so far failed to achieve a breakthrough, with Israel resuming operations in Gaza in March, ending a six-week truce.Israel has in recent days partially eased a total aid blockade on the Palestinian territory that it imposed on March 2.The blockade led to severe shortages of food and medicine with the United Nations warning that “100 percent” of Gazans are at risk of famine. Taliban Prime Minister Hassan Akhund condemned on Friday Israel’s actions in Gaza, labelling them a “genocide” and expressing growing concern over the escalating violence against Palestinian civilians. “The situation continues to deteriorate daily, in blatant violation of fundamental humanitarian principles,” he said in a statement.   The Taliban government, which is not internationally recognised, has long maintained vocal support for the Palestinian cause and regularly condemns Israeli actions in the occupied territories.

Thousands of Nepali royalists marched in the capital Kathmandu on Friday, demanding the restoration of the monarchy and chanting slogans in support of the king deposed 17 years ago.The Hindu-majority nation became a secular republic in 2008 after parliament abolished the monarchy as part of a peace deal that ended a decade-long civil war in which more than 16,000 people were killed.The protests are the latest in a string of rallies, as support for the restoration of the monarchy and a Hindu state has grown amid dissatisfaction over political instability, corruption and slow economic development.”King, come and save the nation”, the marchers shouted in unison, beating drums, blowing horns and waving Nepal’s national flag.”I am here to fight against this corrupt system,” said Prem Bahadur Magar, 58. “We need a constitutional monarchy and a Hindu nation to preserve our national identity.”Magar travelled to Kathmandu for the rally from his home, about 200 kilometres (125 miles) away. Riot police stood guard but there were no immediate reports of any violence.”Seventeen years ago, I came to the streets to protest and overthrow the monarchy,” he said. “But now, I feel sorry for that. Now I realise that the king was far better than these corrupt leaders.”- ‘Just a daydream’ -The rally comes a day after the Communist Party of Nepal Unified Marxist-Leninist (CPN-UML) — the party of Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli — held marches to mark the Himalayan nation’s Republic Day.There were also royalist marches on Thursday.CPN-UML party supporter Bijay Lama, 34, said the return of the king was “just a daydream”, saying that most in the nation of some 30 million people wanted the republic to remain.”If a few thousand people call for the return of the monarchy, this is simply not possible”, Lama said, during the rally on Thursday.In March, two people were killed and more than 100 arrested during pro-monarchy protests, with security forces using live fire and tear gas to disperse the rally.The last king of Nepal, Gyanendra Shah, expressed sorrow at the violent demonstrations the following month — while lending tacit support.Shah was crowned in 2001 after his elder brother king Birendra Bir Bikram Shah and his family were killed in a palace massacre. His coronation took place as a Maoist insurgency was raging in far-flung corners of Nepal.Shah suspended the constitution and dissolved parliament in 2005, triggering protests in which the Maoists sided with Nepal’s political establishment — leading to the eventual end of the war.

Airline bosses meet from Sunday in New Delhi at their annual industry conference, battling to mitigate the impact of Donald Trump’s policies that have hit travel to the United States and potentially raised costs for aviation.Trump’s bid to impose tariffs on the United States’ trading partners have upended commercial flows, with legal challenges against his plan adding to uncertainties.The tense atmosphere in the United States, from Trump’s plans to revoke foreign students’ visas to reports of travellers detained at US borders, has also put a dampener on tourism.”The airline sector is always sensitive to the economic and political climate,” Paul Chiambaretto, professor of strategy and marketing at France’s Montpellier Business School, told AFP.”Any form of uncertainty will reduce traffic,” he added, noting it “especially” impacted business travellers, the most profitable segment.The influential International Air Transport Association (IATA) is due to update its traffic and profitability projections as the delegates from the group gathering 350 airlines hold their talks.In December it forecast a record 5.2 billion air journeys in 2025 — up 6.7 percent from an already unprecedented 2024. It predicted carriers would generate $36.6 billion in cumulative net profit, on revenue exceeding $1 trillion.However, the US president’s “Liberation Day” tariff blitz and his administration’s stance on issues from immigration to education could throw a spanner in the works.- Putting up the ‘closed’ sign -As early as March, the North American air transport market, which represents 23 percent of global traffic, began to decline and several US-based airlines warned they would not meet their financial targets. A study released this month by the World Travel and Tourism Council and Oxford Economics found that the United States was on track to lose some $12.5 billion in revenue from foreign tourists this year owing to worries about travelling to the country.The group, made up of leading travel firms, said this “represents a direct blow to the US economy overall, impacting communities, jobs, and businesses from coast to coast”.”While other nations are rolling out the welcome mat, the US government is putting up the ‘closed’ sign,” WTTC president Julia Simpson said.Didier Brechemier, an airline industry expert at Roland Berger, said: “Today, bookings for the North Atlantic are lower than they were at the same time last year.”IATA Director General Willie Walsh noted on Thursday “some signs of fragility of consumer and business confidence with continued weakness in the US domestic market and a sharp fall in North American premium class travel”.Air transport has for decades benefited from the removal of import taxes, rising living standards — particularly in Asia — and open borders, with the number of air trips tripling since 2000.But the return of protectionism is endangering the industrial model of aircraft manufacturers, whose assembly lines mobilise suppliers worldwide, with costs likely to increase, putting more of a burden on carriers.- Lower energy costs -There’s good news for carriers, though, with oil prices falling owing to an anticipated slowdown in economic growth.That could help firms reduce their fuel bills — representing between a quarter and a third of their operational costs — by hundreds of millions of dollars.Washington’s new Republican administration is also fully supporting the development of fossil fuels, in contrast to that of Democratic former president Joe Biden, who subsidised Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).Sustainable development “has largely disappeared from the airline industry’s immediate priorities”, says Jerome Bouchard, a partner at consultants Oliver Wyman.Also likely on the agenda for IATA will be the impact of geopolitical tensions on the industry.India is experiencing explosive growth, with the number of airports and passengers in the world’s most populous nation doubling over the past decade, while major airlines IndiGo and Air India have hundreds of aircraft on order.Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to address delegates on Monday, organisers said.The country’s recent deadly spat with neighbour Pakistan, which saw the two sides impose airspace bans on each other, highlighted the fragility of civil aviation in the face of such upheavals.The row poses an additional complication for connections to Asia, as Russia has banned US and EU aircraft overflights in retaliation for sanctions linked to its invasion of Ukraine.

Crowds cheer as muscular men in tight loincloths slap sacred scented soil on their bulging thighs and arms for a mud wrestling bout in India.”When we fight, we sweat,” said 33-year-old Mauli Jamdade, a wrestling star in Maharashtra state, rubbing red-brown earth onto his body for each clash.”The mud gives us grip and helps us grapple better.”Unlike conventional wrestling matches played on mats with regulated draws, India’s mud wrestling is more raw — but has been the training ground for Olympic success.This style of wrestling, known as “kushti” or “dangal”, has millennia-old roots but emerged during the period of India’s Mughal rulers in the 16th century, blending traditional hand-to-hand combat with Persian martial arts.There are no blows or kicking, but plenty of throws to the ground, and it remains hugely popular.It took Jamdade over 15 minutes to defeat his rival, starting with a slow circling dance then twisting, turning and locking arms, before he pinned him down. The bout ends when one wrestler pins his opponent’s back to the mud, irrespective of how long it takes.- From mud into the Olympics -Both men and women Indian wrestlers have won medals at the Olympics and Commonwealth Games in the more regulated form of the sport.But it is the mud, not mat, version that is popular in swathes of rural areas — with supporters saying it is not just a spectacle but a tradition that many want to uphold.Bank cashier Anil Harale ended his wrestling career after injuring his leg, but after work still slips out of his office clothes for a dirty wrestle. “I miss it,” said the 46-year-old, who hopes his “unfulfilled dream” will be realised by his teenage son, an aspiring wrestler.Wrestler KD Jadhav, who took bronze at the 1952 Olympics — the first Indian to win an individual Olympic medal — began his sporting career as a mud wrestler in Kolhapur, a city in Maharashtra.”It is from mud that wrestlers reach the Olympics,” said excited fan Sachin Mote, among hundreds cheering the wrestlers at a bout. – Mud, milk, oil -Kolhapur is a core base of the sport with its centuries-old residential gymnasiums known as talims.Jamdadejoined the Gangavesh talim aged 14.A picture of the Hindu monkey god Hanuman — a deity worshipped by wrestlers for his strength and devotion — gazes over waist-deep pits where the soil is dug.The earth is mixed with turmeric, yoghurt and milk, as well as neem tree leaves and oil, before it is ploughed and smoothened across the ring.For the wrestlers, the soil is sacred.”It is everything,” said Jamdade. “There is nothing without it.”More than a hundred wrestlers — some as young as 10 — train at the talim.It is an austere life. The rigorous training includes waking up before dawn, running, hundreds of push-ups, rope climbing and grappling.Tobacco and alcohol are strictly prohibited, phone usage is restricted and pre-marital relationships are considered a distraction.- ‘Never end’ -For Jamdade, the first year at the talim was all about gaining weight — and that is an expensive affair.”There are people who weigh 125-130 kilos (275-285 pounds),” he said.”To fight with them, and match their strength, I need to be at least 120 kilos.”So when he is not in the ring or training, Jamdade focuses on eating.That includes at least five kilos of goat meat each week, some 70 egg whites, 24 apples, leafy vegetables and dry fruits.He washes that down with at least 21 litres of milk, 14 litres of sweet lemon juice and a protein shake made with almonds, cashews, honey, cardamom seeds, honey and milk.His monthly food bill totals $350 but the prize money he has won helps his family, who are from a poor farming background.Winnings range from a few hundred dollars to $1,700 — more than the annual average income of an agricultural household in India.While the popularity of more organised wrestling on mats has grown, Jamdade believes mud bouts have a safe future as a core part of village fairs.”Fairs will always continue,” he said. “Mud wrestling will never end.”

French President Emmanuel Macron bestowed Indonesia’s leader with France’s top award on Thursday, before announcing a new cultural partnership with Jakarta on a visit to the world’s largest Buddhist temple.Macron’s trip to Indonesia is the second stop of a three-nation, six-day tour of Southeast Asia that began with Vietnam and concludes in Singapore.After meeting for talks in the capital Jakarta, Macron and his counterpart Prabowo Subianto flew by helicopter on Thursday from Javan city Yogyakarta to a military academy in Magelang, a city in Central Java surrounded by mountains.The pair attended a military parade and Macron gave Prabowo the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour, France’s highest military or civil award.Prabowo is an ex-general accused of rights abuses under dictator Suharto’s rule in the late 1990s. He was discharged from the military over his role in the abductions of democracy activists but denied the allegations and was never charged.Macron rode in a jeep driven by Prabowo with the pair welcomed by a marching band and hundreds of students waving Indonesian flags.Macron then visited Borobudur, a Buddhist temple built in the 9th century that is the world’s largest, where the pair announced they were boosting cultural ties.”In front of this temple, we are taking an important step by launching a new cultural partnership,” said Macron.”The first pillar is heritage and museum cooperation. The second pillar is cultural and creative industries,” he said.Macron said the basis of the new partnership would be cinema and fashion, as well as video games, design and gastronomy.The French leader will now depart for Singapore where he will deliver the opening address Friday at the Shangri-la Dialogue, Asia’s premier security forum.On Wednesday, the pair called for progress on “mutual recognition” between Israel and the Palestinians at a key meeting next month as Macron brought the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation into his diplomatic efforts.”Indonesia has stated that once Israel recognises Palestine, Indonesia is ready to recognise Israel and open the diplomatic relationship,” said Prabowo.Indonesia has no formal ties with Israel and support for the Palestinian cause among Indonesians runs high.The nations also signed a series of agreements on cooperation in a range of fields including defence, trade, agriculture, disaster management, culture and transport.

East Timor deported an Interpol-wanted Filipino murder suspect on Thursday whose case the government has linked to its aspirations to join the regional ASEAN bloc, after more than two years of political wrangling.Former Philippines congressman Arnolfo Teves allegedly masterminded a March 2023 attack that killed then-provincial governor Roel Degamo and nine others.AFP journalists saw him boarding a turboprop plane with Philippine Air Force markings that then took off from Presidente Nicolau Lobato International Airport.Teves was detained at a driving range in the capital Dili last year, but a Timorese court blocked his extradition. The Philippines justice secretary suggested the decision may have been bought, saying it was “obvious that some people are making money out of this”.In an abrupt turnaround, East Timor announced Teves’ impending deportation late on Wednesday, saying his continued presence represented a security risk.”The Government hereby informs that Arnolfo Teves Jr. will be deported from Timor-Leste,” it said in a statement, using the country’s alternate name.It added that East Timor’s “imminent full accession” to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) had reinforced its responsibility to collaborate regionally on legal matters.On Thursday, the Philippines’ Department of Justice said it was preparing a team to facilitate Teves’ repatriation based on deportation documents from East Timor.Ex-lawmaker Teves is the prime suspect in the murder of Degamo, the former governor of Negros Oriental province.Degamo had been distributing aid at his home in Pamplona when six people carrying rifles and dressed in military fatigues entered the compound and opened fire on March 4, 2023.The killings came months after Degamo was declared winner of a disputed vote, unseating Henry Teves, the ex-lawmaker’s brother.Arnolfo Teves was expelled from the House of Representatives after refusing to return to the Philippines to face murder charges. On Wednesday, Teves’ son Axl posted videos on social media of his father being dragged away by Timorese police, claiming he had been “kidnapped”.Degamo’s widow Janice, meanwhile, called the arrest a “significant step toward justice”.