MUMBAI: An Egyptian believed to be the world’s heaviest woman will fly to India for weight reduction surgery Saturday after intervention from the country’s foreign minister ensured her a visa.
Eman Ahmed Abd El Aty, aged 36 and weighing around 500 kg (1,100-pounds), is slated to arrive in India’s financial capital Mumbai in the early hours of Saturday, Muffazal Lakdawala, her doctor, said in a statement.
She will be flown on a especially modified Airbus and will be taken to Mumbai’s Saifee Hospital upon arrival, the statement said. “To prepare her for the flight, a team of doctors has been in Egypt for the last 10 days to optimize the conditions for her travel,” the statement said.
Abd El Aty’s sister had approached Lakdawala in October saying her sibling needed urgent medical attention.
Her family told the doctor that as a child she was diagnosed with elephantiasis, a condition that causes the limbs and other body parts to swell, leaving her almost immobile.
She later suffered a stroke and was rendered bedridden, triggering a series of ailments including diabetes, high blood pressure, hypertension and sleep apnoea.
After hearing about her case Lakdawala had offered to carry out the procedure free of charge.
Her request for a visa was initially rejected, prompting Lakdawala in December to tweet a request for help to India’s Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj.
At the time Swaraj was in hospital awaiting a kidney transplant but was quick to respond with an offer of help.
Abd El Aty has had a long wait as no airliners were previously willing to fly her from Egypt to India owing to her health complications.
“Transporting Eman to Mumbai is a challenging task keeping in mind the complexities of her case as she is a high-risk patient who has not been able to move or leave the house for the past 25 years,” the surgeon said.
If Abd El Aty’s weight claims are proven medically, she will beat Pauline Potter (643 pounds) from the US to become the world’s heaviest woman alive.
Bariatric surgery is essentially a stomach-shrinking bypass procedure carried out on those wanting to lose excessive weight. It is increasingly common in India, which has a growing problem with obesity, particularly in urban areas.
Egyptian woman, world’s heaviest, to be biggest yet happiest loser after India op
Egyptian woman, world’s heaviest, to be biggest yet happiest loser after India op
Sanctions? No big deal, say Russian middle-class couple
The pair drive a Chinese car, vacation in Venezuela and buy “Camembert” cheese made in Russia.
Their modest two-bedroom apartment in Mytishchi, home to 300,000 people northeast of the capital, has been recently renovated and their Chinese-made fridge is stocked with Russian goods.
Despite warnings of a looming recession and high inflation, they and many other Russians feel their economy has adapted successfully to Western sanctions, even if it means parting with some well-known Western brands for good.
“From the perspective of my everyday life — home, family, work, leisure, friends, hobbies, and interests, I honestly don’t feel the impact of sanctions,” said Maria, who works at a cosmetics company.
“There aren’t any brands that have left such a void that I can’t live without them,” the 43-year-old added.
Supermarkets have found a range of domestic and foreign alternatives to Western products, including Camembert cheese, one of Maria’s creature comforts.
“It’s delicious. I haven’t tried real French Camembert, so I can’t compare,” she admitted.
“Overall, my life hasn’t changed much,” she told AFP.
Western countries first levied economic sanctions against Russia in 2014, after Moscow annexed Crimea from Ukraine.
Those sanctions became significantly tighter following Moscow’s full-scale assault on its neighbor.
Moscow responded by ramping up production of domestic goods, shifting its trade away from the West to what it calls “friendly” nations like China and importing other items through third countries.
For ordinary Russians, the most noticeable effect of this was an exodus of Western brands from supermarket shelves and from the high street.
Among the most well-known brands to leave was fast-food chain McDonald’s, famously replaced by Russian-owned “Vkusno i tochka” (which translates to ‘Delicious, Full Stop’) in 2022.
Maria’s husband Sergei, a funeral director, said he had “no complaints” about the quality of the food.
“The kids love it,” he said of the restaurant chain.
When shopping, Maria buys a new brand of yoghurt that replaced one belonging to French company Danone.
Danone left the Russian market in 2022 and eventually sold its operations to a businessman linked to Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov.
Some Russian companies have also been able to import popular Western goods via third countries, albeit at a higher cost.
As for vacations, Maria and Sergei have opted for trips across Russia and Latin America.
Most European countries cut off direct flights to Russia shortly after the offensive began, while some tightened entry requirements for Russian citizens.
The couple said they had been to Venezuela, a country under US sanctions, which they described as a nation of “friendly people who love Russians.”
The couple admitted there were a few teething issues.
Two years ago, after a car accident, Sergei said he waited “three months” for spare parts to repair his Korean-made Kia because of sanctions.
“That’s when I realized that it probably made sense to sell my beloved Korean car and replace it with a similar Chinese one,” he told AFP.
Maria also said she noticed it was harder to find products in “certain” categories of goods.
But overall, she said, “I don’t feel deprived in any way. Certainly not when it comes to food. There’s a wide and rich selection.”
The Russian economy has been marked by volatility since Moscow launched its Ukraine offensive in 2022, a military assault that has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths.
The country reported strong economic expansion in 2023 and 2024, largely due to massive state defense spending on the conflict, but is now slowing down after a period of what officials called “overheating.”
Inflation has also been running high, clocking in at more than double the central bank’s target for over a year.
Maria and her husband’s combined income is around 300,000 rubles (around $3,800), higher than the average wage for one person of around 100,000.
While Maria acknowledged prices were going up, she said her family was not “crying” about it.
“It’s not like we used to buy a kilogramme (35 ounces) of buckwheat three years ago, and now we can only afford 600 grams,” she said.
“They are rising little by little.”
Alleged arsonist charged over fire at Australian synagogue
- Angelo Loras appeared in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court and was charged with arson, endangering life and property damage
MELBOURNE: A man was charged Sunday over an arson attack on a Melbourne synagogue in an apparent escalation of antisemitic violence in Australia’s second-most populous city.
Angelo Loras, 34, appeared in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court Sunday charged with arson, endangering life and property damage. He was also charged with possessing a “controlled weapon” on Saturday when he was arrested. The charge sheet does not say what that weapon was.
The Sydney resident did not enter a plea or apply to be released on bail. Magistrate John Lesser remanded Loras in custody to appear in court next on July 22.
Flammable liquid was ignited at the door of the East Melbourne Synagogue, also known as the East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation, on Friday night as 20 worshippers shared a Shabbat meal inside.
The congregation escaped without harm via a rear door and firefighters contained the blaze to the entrance area of the 148-year-old building.
It was the first of three apparent displays of antisemitic violence across the city on Friday and early Saturday morning.
Authorities have yet to establish a link between incidents at the synagogue and two businesses.
Antisemitism blamed for attacks on businesses
Also in downtown Melbourne on Friday night, around 20 masked protesters harassed diners in an Israeli-owned restaurant.
A restaurant window was cracked, tables were flipped and chairs thrown as protesters chanted “Death to the IDF,” referring to the Israel Defense Forces. A 28-year-old woman was arrested at the scene and charged with hindering police.
Police are also investigating the spray-painting of a business in Melbourne’s northern suburbs and an arson attack on three vehicles attached to the business before dawn on Saturday. The vehicles had also been graffitied.
Police said there were antisemitic “inferences” at the scene. The business had also been the target of pro-Palestinian demonstrations in the past year.
Political leaders condemn antisemitism
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke met with Jewish leaders at the damaged synagogue on Sunday.
Burke told reporters that investigators were searching for potential links between the three incidents.
“At this stage, our authorities have not drawn links between them. But obviously there’s a link in antisemitism. There’s a link in bigotry. There’s a link in a willingness to either call for violence, to chant violence or to take out violent actions. They are very much linked in that way,” Burke said.
“There were three attacks that night and none of them belonged in Australia. Arson attacks, the chanting calls for death, other attacks and graffiti — none of it belonged in Australia and they were attacks on Australia,” Burke added.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on the Australian government to “take all action to deal with the rioters to the fullest extent of the law and prevent similar attacks in the future.”
“I view with utmost gravity the antisemitic attacks that occurred last night in Melbourne, which included attempted arson of a synagogue in the city and a violent assault against an Israeli restaurant by pro-Palestinian rioters,” Netanyahu said in a statement on Saturday.
“The reprehensible antisemitic attacks, with calls of ‘death to the IDF’ and an attempt to attack a place of worship, are severe hate crimes that must be uprooted,” he added.
France’s Macron to visit UK as Starmer eyes ‘reset’ with EU
- Buckingham Palace confirmed that Macron would formally address the British Parliament on Tuesday
- During the visit, Macron and Starmer will host the 37th Franco-British Summit in London where they are set to discuss opportunities to strengthen defense ties between the two countries in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
PARIS: French President Emmanuel Macron is to begin a state visit to the United Kingdom on Tuesday, where he is set to address the British Parliament and co-chair a meeting on Ukraine as London seeks to strengthen its ties with Europe after Brexit.
King Charles III has invited the French leader and his wife, Brigitte, on a three-day official visit during which Macron is to hold joint discussions with Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the 37th Franco-British Summit on Thursday.
Talks will focus on aid to Ukraine, joint efforts to halt illegal migration crossing the Channel, and strengthening defense cooperation between the two countries.
“This is the first state visit to the United Kingdom by a European Union head of state since Brexit,” the Elysee Palace said on Friday, referring to the UK’s 2016 vote to leave the bloc.
“And, especially, the first since Prime Minister Starmer signalled what he called a ‘reset’ of relations between the United Kingdom and Europe,,” it added.
There were simmering political tensions between Paris and London in the immediate aftermath of Brexit under the previous right-wing Conservative British government.
But there has been a new warmth in relations under the center-left Labour government led by Starmer, and the two countries now lead European efforts to find peace for Ukraine.
Buckingham Palace confirmed on Friday that Macron would formally address the British Parliament on Tuesday, following in the footsteps of his predecessors, Charles de Gaulle and Francois Mitterrand.
The king will host Macron and his wife for a state banquet at his Windsor Castle residence, west of London, where the couple will also stay.
While in Windsor, Macron will privately visit St. George’s Chapel to lay flowers on the tomb of the late Queen Elizabeth II.
During the visit, Macron and Starmer will host the 37th Franco-British Summit in London on Thursday, where they are set to discuss opportunities to strengthen defense ties between the two countries in response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The agreements will be “adapted to this profoundly changed strategic reality,” the Elysee Palace said, without offering further details.
Macron and Starmer will also co-chair talks bringing together countries “willing” to strengthen Kyiv’s defenses against Moscow.
The two leaders will speak with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, as well as German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, the French presidency said.
This comes after the United States, Ukraine’s biggest military backer since the launch of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, said Tuesday it was halting some key weapons shipments to Ukraine.
Russia launched its largest-ever drone and missile attack on Ukraine overnight on Friday.
The summit will touch upon the deployment of “a reassurance force” to Ukraine after a ceasefire and how to “increase pressure” on Russia to accept an unconditional ceasefire, the Elysee Palace said.
Another topic high on the agenda is agreeing on a strategy to halt migrants making perilous small boat crossings of the Channel, a key political issue in the UK.
As more small boats land on English shores, and the UK government comes under mounting pressure from the far right to tackle irregular migration, London has pressed Paris to do more.
In recent weeks, France said it is considering stopping migrant boats in its shallow coastal waters, though the move raises safety and legal issues.
And on Friday, the British government said it welcomed footage showing French police stopping a small boat carrying migrants from setting off across the Channel.
The French president’s visit follows King Charles’s state visit to France in 2023, which was widely regarded as a success that helped boost relations.
The last state visit by a French president to the UK was made by Nicolas Sarkozy in 2008.
Japan to export used destroyers to Philippines to deter China, Yomiuri reports
- Tokyo and Manila say they face challenges from Beijing’s increasingly assertive moves in disputed waters
- The Abukuma-class destroyer escort is a relatively small type of destroyer with a 2,000-tonne standard displacement
TOKYO: Japan will export used navy destroyers to the Philippines to strengthen its deterrence against China’s maritime expansion, the Yomiuri newspaper reported on Sunday, as the two US allies increase cooperation to counter Beijing.
The export plan involves six Abukuma-class destroyer escorts in service by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force for more than three decades, the Japanese daily said, citing multiple unnamed government sources.
Defense ministers Gen Nakatani and Gilberto Teodoro agreed to the destroyer export when they met in Singapore last month, the Yomiuri said, adding the Philippine military is set to inspect the destroyers this summer as part of the final preparations.
A Japanese defense ministry spokesperson declined to comment on the report. A Philippine military spokesperson and China’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.
Tokyo and Manila say they face challenges from Beijing’s increasingly assertive moves in waters including the South China Sea for the Philippines and the East China Sea for Japan.
Bilateral military cooperation has included joint exercises, a Japanese radar aid package and a high-level strategic dialogue. Last year they signed a reciprocal access agreement, the first such for Japan in Asia, allowing deployment of forces on each other’s soil.
To clear military equipment export restrictions for the destroyers under Japan’s pacifist mandates, Tokyo will treat the installation of equipment and communication systems requested by Manila as a joint development project, the Yomiuri said.
The Abukuma-class destroyer escort, a relatively small type of destroyer with a 2,000-tonne standard displacement, is operated by a crew of about 120 and is armed with anti-submarine and anti-ship missiles, torpedo tubes and guns, according to a Japanese navy website.
The Philippine Navy does not have destroyers, only frigates and corvettes, which are typically smaller and lighter-armed vessels.
Eyeing early release, prison inmates produce Bulgaria’s coveted dairy products
- The “Gerzovitsa” dairy is the brainchild of former prison director Hristo Solakov, who was looking for ways to produce everything in house while helping inmates to prepare for life outside jail
SMOLYAN: At a prison nestled deep in Bulgaria’s southern Rhodope mountains, Georgi Filyanov stirs a large tank of curdling milk to make traditional feta-like cheese in the facility’s dairy operation.
Filyanov is the latest success story to emerge from the dairy located inside Smolyan prison, where about 15 selected inmates produce some of Bulgaria’s highly sought-after cheese and yogurt.
“Work is interesting — not too hard, not too easy,” said 30-year-old Filyanov, who was handed a two-and-a-half-year jail sentence for drug dealing. He has since been released early after having his sentence reduced by prison labor.
The “Gerzovitsa” dairy is the brainchild of former prison director Hristo Solakov, who was looking for ways to produce everything in-house while helping inmates to prepare for life outside jail.
From tending to herds of goats and cows, to making white cheese, prisoners are involved throughout the entire process.
Coveted by cheese lovers and often sold out at specialty stores outside prison, production has not been able to keep up with demand.
The prison is located about 20 minutes from the nearest town of the same name, in a narrow gorge surrounded by conifer-covered hills.
Once the headquarters of several Communist-run uranium mines, which were shuttered after 1989, the building is now home to around 100 inmates, who serve time in the semi-open prison for drink-driving, theft but also murder.
Prisons are not overflowing in Bulgaria, the poorest country in the European Union, which has seen a considerable exodus by those seeking a better life abroad. According to Eurostat figures, the country has only 86 prisoners per 100,000 inhabitants, trailing far behind France (111).
Nonetheless, poor conditions in Bulgaria’s prisons that have been exacerbated by dilapidated facilities and chronic staff shortages repeatedly drew criticism from the Council of Europe.
Smolyan, however, stands out — not least because of its dairy that opened in 2010.
To date it is Bulgaria’s only such rehabilitation project that enables prisoners to earn early release and a small salary of several hundred euros per month they can spend while they are inside or access upon their release.
“At first, we only kept cows, sheep, and goats — but it wasn’t profitable: the milk sold for less than the costs we had,” said Solakov, who came up with the idea of setting up a dairy in a bid “to close the circle.”
“It’s a job with responsibilities,” prisoner Ivan Patazov, 31, told AFP.
Tasked with cutting, packaging and labelling the cheese, he hopes to continue in this line of work after he gets out.
“He won’t be the first,” said Solakov, 62, adding that a former inmate successfully opened his own dairy after being released.
He praised the prison’s “high-quality” dairy products, which do without “any artificial preservatives or additives.”
With demand soaring and production capacity limited, the dairy products are sold at a higher price than comparable items.
While about half of the production is destined for other Bulgarian jails, the rest is sold at markets and grocery shops.
A few specialty stores across Bulgaria also sell various types of cheese and yogurt from Smolyan prison.
A few kilometers outside the prison, a herd of about 100 goats are grazing on a mountain meadow, where the air is thick with the scent of thyme.
Another prisoner called Pavel, who declined to give his surname, looks after the herd. Even though the meadow is close to the border with Greece, running away has never crossed his mind.
“In the old days, we used to raid dairies — now the dairy is in prison,” Solakov quipped, referring to Bulgarian partisans, who infamously robbed farmers during World War II.
But he hopes to secure funding for a new project to expand the dairy and start producing kashkaval cheese.
