Search goes on for Harvey survivors, new evacuations in Houston

Jenna Fountain and her father Kevin carry a bucket down Regency Drive to try to recover items from their flooded home in Port Arthur, Texas, on Friday. (AFP)
Updated 02 September 2017
Follow

Search goes on for Harvey survivors, new evacuations in Houston

ORANGE, Texas/HOUSTON: Rescuers searched painstakingly through flooded neighborhoods across southeastern Texas on Friday for people stranded by Hurricane Harvey’s deluge as Houston’s mayor warned residents of the city’s west side that their homes may not dry out for weeks.
The storm, one of the costliest to hit the United States, has displaced more than 1 million people, with 50 feared dead from flooding that paralyzed Houston, swelled river levels to record highs and knocked out the drinking water supply in Beaumont, Texas, a city of 120,000 people.
Though the sun was out in Houston on Friday and water levels down in many areas, Mayor Sylvester Turner called for voluntary evacuations on the city’s west side. He said already-flooded neighborhoods there may be in greater danger as the Army Corps of Engineers continues to release water into the adjacent Buffalo Bayou to prevent dam and levee failures.
About 80 miles (130 km) to the east, the Neches River, which flows into Beaumont and nearby Port Arthur, was forecast to crest on Friday.
“There still remain areas that are deadly dangerous,” Texas Governor Greg Abbott told reporters. “The Neches River continues to rise. It is about 7 feet (2.1 meters) above the record and it will continue to remain at or be near that high for about the next week. This flooding poses an ongoing threat.”
Rescue officials were still working to determine the scope of flooding, said Rodney Smith, deputy chief of the Cedar Hill, Texas, Fire Department.
The storm’s impacts played out in ways large and small, a full week after Hurricane Harvey slammed into the Texas coast Friday night as a Category 4 storm.
At the Hollywood Community Cemetery in Orange, floodwaters had caused three coffins to pop out of their concrete vaults. One belonged to Dewey Mosby, who died in 2003 at the age of 82.
“He won’t stay put,” said Ron Kendall, 63, who helps maintain the cemetery and said he knew Mosby well in life. Kendall had helped direct Mosby’s coffin back to its resting place after the 2008 floods from Hurricane Ike and again during floods in 2016.
“Everybody knows where Mr. Mosby goes now because he always comes up,” Kendall said.

BURNING CHEMICALS
At chemical maker Arkema SA, a fire started on Thursday in a truck storing chemicals at a flooded plant east of Houston had burned itself out by Friday. But more blasts were likely in eight other trucks storing the same chemicals. .
Aerial images broadcast by NBC showed thick black smoke rising from the plant.
Meanwhile a new storm, Irma, had strengthened on Friday into a Category 3 on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale. It remained hundreds of miles from land but was forecast to possibly hit Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and Haiti by the middle of next week.
Harvey was the most powerful hurricane to hit Texas in half a century, and went on to dump unprecedented amounts of rain and leave devastation across more than 300 miles (480 km) of the state’s coast.
A list of the dead put out by Harris County officials painted a grim picture of the storm’s brutality, describing bodies found floating face down in floodwaters, lying in ditches or across fences. Many were unidentified.
The storm shut about a fourth of US refinery capacity, much of which is clustered along the Gulf Coast, and caused gasoline prices to spike to a two-year high ahead of the long Labor Day holiday weekend.
The national average for a gallon of regular gasoline has risen 17 cents since the storm hit, hitting $2.519 as of Friday morning, according to motorists group AAA.
Supply concerns prompted the US Energy Department to authorize the release of up to 4.5 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
Several East Coast refineries have run out of gasoline, raising fears that travelers will face fuel shortages during the three-day holiday.
In major Texas cities including Dallas, there were long lines at gas stations. Abbott said the state was taking steps to ensure adequate supplies, adding, “Don’t worry. We will not run out of gasoline.”
Harvey came on the 12th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, which killed about 1,800 around New Orleans. Then-US President George W. Bush’s administration was roundly criticized for its botched early response to the storm.
Signaling that he did not want to be seen as repeating those mistakes, President Donald Trump plans a second visit to the region on Saturday.
“The people of Texas and Louisiana were hit very hard by a historic flood and their response taught us all a lesson, a very, very powerful lesson,” Trump said. “There was an outbreak of compassion only ... and it really inspired us as a nation.”
Some 440,000 Texans have already applied for federal financial disaster assistance, and some $79 million has been approved so far, Abbott said.
Lawmakers will replenish a federal disaster relief fund to keep aid flowing, but full assistance will come from Congress in installments, US House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan said.
Moody’s Analytics estimated the economic cost from Harvey for southeastern Texas at $51 billion to $75 billion.


Saudi-run terminal in Chittagong expands as major hub for Bangladesh’s foreign trade

Updated 11 March 2025
Follow

Saudi-run terminal in Chittagong expands as major hub for Bangladesh’s foreign trade

  • Red Sea Gateway Terminal is the first foreign company to operate Bangladeshi ports
  • It is now exploring new opportunities, including in the country’s deep-sea port

DHAKA: Saudi developer Red Sea Gateway Terminal, which last year started operations at Bangladesh’s largest port, plans further expansion as it already facilitates about 10 percent of the country’s imports and exports.

Chittagong Port is the busiest container port on the Bay of Bengal. Last year, it handled about 3.3 million TEU, or 20-foot equivalent units, serving as the main gateway for Bangladesh’s ocean cargo import and export.

RSGT, which in June last year started operations at Chittagong’s Patenga Container Terminal, is the first foreign company operating Bangladeshi ports.

According to its agreement with the Chittagong Port Authority, RSGT will run the terminal for the next 22 years.

“RSGT Chittagong operates 24/7, 365 days a year, ensuring seamless and uninterrupted service for the trade community … Our operations facilitate around 10 percent of Bangladesh’s total imports and exports,” Erwin Haaze, CEO of RSGT Bangladesh, told Arab News on Monday.

“We manage all containerized shipments passing through Patenga Terminal efficiently, facilitating smooth trade for a diverse range of industries, from manufacturing to retail.”

The company is steadily increasing the terminal’s output and is expected to have a maximum annual capacity of 600,000 TEU.

It also plans to more than double its permanent workforce.

“RSGT has plans to invest approximately $170 million in the RSGT Terminal. This investment has already created more than 300 permanent jobs, which are expected to increase to more than 700 when in full operation,” Haaze said.

“Regarding indirect employment, RSGT Chittagong is committed to growing with the community and has engaged with many local vendors to participate in different tasks in RSGT Chittagong. With further expansions, we anticipate generating even more job opportunities in the coming years.”

Following the success of the Patenga Terminal, Saudi investors are exploring more opportunities in port-related sectors in Bangladesh, including the Matarbari Port — the country’s first deep-sea port, which the government wants to build some 120 km south of the Chittagong Port.

Saudi Ambassador to Dhaka Essa Al-Duhailan told Arab News that talks with the relevant authorities were already underway.

“The investment in Chottogram (Chittagong) Bay Terminal is between $300 million and $400 million, and the other one (Matarbari Deep Sea Port) will be maybe $700 million to $800 million,” he said.

“The intention is there, and the willingness is there. The excellent performance of the Saudi company, Red Sea Gateway, is already shown to the Bangladeshis and they are satisfied … The experience is encouraging so far.”


Philippine ex-president Duterte arrested after ICC warrant

Updated 11 March 2025
Follow

Philippine ex-president Duterte arrested after ICC warrant

  • Court estimates death toll from Duterte’s anti-drug campaign could be 30,000
  • Any state can comply with ICC arrest warrant, human rights lawyer says

MANILA: Former President Rodrigo Duterte was taken into custody on Tuesday after the Philippine government said it received an International Criminal Court warrant over his involvement in suspected crimes against humanity related to the country’s bloody “war on drugs.”

The ICC had been investigating Duterte over his administration’s deadly anti-drugs campaign, in which according to official data over 6,000 Filipinos were killed during the ex-president’s six-year term since 2016. ICC prosecutors estimate, however, that the number of extrajudicial killings committed by security forces could be as many as 30,000.

He was arrested at Manila’s main airport after returning from a trip to Hong Kong, the office of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said in a statement.

“Earlier this morning, Interpol Manila received the official copy of the arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court,” the Presidential Communications Office said.

“Upon his arrival, the prosecutor general presented the ICC notification for an arrest warrant against the former president for crimes against humanity … As of now, he is in the custody of the authorities.”

Duterte won the Philippine presidency in 2016 on a promise to eradicate illegal drugs, after serving for more than two decades as mayor of Davao, the second-largest city in the Philippines, where he allegedly ran a deadly anti-drug crackdown with impunity.

The ensuing nationwide campaign drew international condemnation.

The 79-year-old has repeatedly defended the crackdown and denied the extrajudicial killing of alleged drug suspects, although he has also openly admitted to instructing police to kill in self-defense.

Duterte officially withdrew the Philippines from the ICC in 2019 as it began to look into allegations of systematic killings under his leadership.

But under the court’s withdrawal mechanism, it keeps jurisdiction over alleged crimes committed while a country was a member. While the Philippine government had refused to cooperate, the Marcos administration signaled in November that it would comply if an arrest warrant was issued.

The Philippines also remains a member of Interpol, which can seek Duterte’s arrest on behalf of the ICC.

“Under the rules of the ICC, any state, whether a state party or non-state party, can accede to the request of the ICC,” human rights lawyer Neri Colmenares told Arab News.

For the families of victims of Duterte’s deadly anti-drug campaign, his arrest has sparked new hopes for justice.

“The families of the victims see a light in, at least a glimmer of light, at the end of the tunnel for their search for justice for their loved ones who were mercilessly killed during the time of President Duterte,” Colmenares, who also serves as one of the legal counsels for the families, said.

“We will demand from President Marcos … that he should pursue the ends of justice, because that is his obligation under the Philippine laws, to execute the law and, of course, afford justice to the Filipino people.”

Rights group Karapatan is also calling on Marcos to make sure that Duterte “is actually delivered to the ICC for detention and trial.”

If transferred to the Hague, Duterte may become Asia’s first former head of state to go on trial at the ICC.

“(Marcos) should also cooperate in ensuring that Duterte is convicted by making available to the International Criminal Court additional pieces of evidence in the hands of the government,” Maria Sol Taule, Karapatan deputy secretary-general, said in a statement.

“With Duterte’s arrest, the Filipino people are hopefully a step closer to attaining justice and accountability for Duterte’s many crimes.”


Beijing warns UK against ‘provoking tensions’ over South China Sea

Updated 11 March 2025
Follow

Beijing warns UK against ‘provoking tensions’ over South China Sea

  • China claims the strategically important waterway in nearly its entirety
  • ‘The South China Sea is currently one of the safest and freest maritime routes in the world’

BEIJING: China warned Britain on Tuesday against “provoking tensions” in the South China Sea after its foreign minister David Lammy called Beijing’s actions in the disputed waters “dangerous and destabilising.”
In a video partly filmed alongside a vessel belonging to the Philippine Coast Guard, Lammy on Monday condemned “dangerous and destabilising activities” by Beijing in the South China Sea.
China claims the strategically important waterway in nearly its entirety, despite an international ruling that its claims have no legal basis.
Asked about Lammy’s comments, foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said “the UK should respect China’s territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea and refrain from provoking tensions or sowing discord over regional disputes.”
“The South China Sea is currently one of the safest and freest maritime routes in the world,” Mao said.
Beijing has deployed navy and coast guard vessels in a bid to bar Manila from crucial reefs and islands in the South China Sea, leading to a string of confrontations in recent months.
In a Saturday meeting with his Filipino counterpart Enrique Manalo, Britain and the Philippines signed a joint framework to boost defense and maritime cooperation.
The Philippines has similar agreements with the United States, Australia and Japan.


India brings home nearly 300 citizens rescued from Southeast Asian scam centers

Updated 11 March 2025
Follow

India brings home nearly 300 citizens rescued from Southeast Asian scam centers

  • Thousands of people have been freed from cyber scam centers
  • Countries are working together to crack down on the criminal networks

NEW DELHI: India has brought home nearly 300 of its nationals who were lured to various southeast Asian countries, including Myanmar, with fake job offers and made to engage in cybercrime and other fraudulent activities in scam compounds, the government said.
Thousands of people have been freed from cyber scam centers along the Thailand-Myanmar border this year as countries work together to crack down on the criminal networks.
China and Indonesia repatriated some of their citizens last month.
“Indian embassies in Myanmar and Thailand have coordinated with local authorities to secure the repatriation of 283 Indian nationals today by an IAF (Indian Air Force) aircraft from Mae Sot in Thailand,” India’s foreign ministry said late on Monday.
Thailand arrested 100 people last week as a part of its crackdown on the scam centers.
Criminal gangs have trafficked hundreds of thousands of people to the centers, which generate billions of dollars a year from illegal online schemes, according to the United Nations.
India also warned its citizens against the scams, advising them to “verify” the credentials of foreign employers and check the “antecedents” of recruiting agents and companies before taking up job offers.


WHO warns difficult decisions ‘unavoidable’ as it slims down recruitment

Updated 11 March 2025
Follow

WHO warns difficult decisions ‘unavoidable’ as it slims down recruitment

  • The WHO has begun “prioritization” work to make the global health agency sustainable, the document says

GENEVA: The World Health Organization has warned that difficult decisions will be “unavoidable” in an internal memo seen by Reuters on Tuesday announcing a recruitment freeze and a one-year limit on new fixed-term contracts.
The WHO has begun “prioritization” work to make the global health agency sustainable, the document says, adding that staff are working to secure additional funding from countries, private donors and philanthropists.