LONDON: British MPs renewed a demand on Tuesday to interview Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg over a data privacy row that has rocked the social media giant, after he responded to an earlier request by offering to send one of his deputies.
Damian Collins, the chairman of the House of Commons digital, culture and media committee, said the seriousness of the allegations meant it was “appropriate” for Zuckerberg to offer an explanation himself, whether in person or via video-link.
His comments came amid renewed pressure from the European Union to disclose more details about how up to 50 million users’ data are alleged to have been taken from Facebook and used in political campaigns.
In a letter published by the British committee on Tuesday, Facebook offered to send chief technology office Mike Schroepfer or chief product officer Chris Cox to London next month to provide answers.
“We’d be very happy to invite Mr.Cox to give evidence. However we would still like to hear from Mr.Zuckerberg as well,” Collins said at the start of a committee hearing on Tuesday.
“We will seek to clarify with Facebook whether he is available to give evidence or not, because that wasn’t clear from our correspondence.
“And if he is available to give evidence, then we would be happy to do that either in person or via video link if that would be more convenient for him.”
The EU has given the social media giant two weeks to answer its own queries over the scandal, which has heavily hit Facebook’s share price and raised major questions over how social media companies use private data.
EU justice commissioner Vera Jourova wrote to Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg, asking what measures the company plans to take to prevent a similar scandal.
She also asked whether stricter rules were needed for companies like Facebook as exist for traditional media, and whether it would change its approach on transparency toward users and regulators.
Facebook insists it did not know the data taken from its site were being used by a British company, Cambridge Analytica, which worked on US President Donald Trump’s election campaign among others.
However, its rules at the time allowed an app developed by an academic researcher, which was downloaded by an estimated 270,000 people, to take information from millions of their friends.
In her letter, Rebecca Stimson, head of public policy for Facebook UK, revealed that the tech giant was working with regulators around the world to assess how many people in each country were affected.
“We can now confirm that around one percent of the global downloads of the app came from users in the EU, including the UK,” she wrote.
Amid investigations by lawmakers in Europe and the United States, Zuckerberg has taken out adverts in US, British and German newspapers in recent days apologizing for the “breach of trust.”
But the company is struggling to contain the growing crisis.
US consumer protection agency, the Federal Trade Commission, on Monday confirmed it had opened an investigation into whether Facebook mishandled private data or violated a 2011 agreement which settled an earlier probe.
In her letter to the British committee, Stimson said: “Facebook fully recognizes the level of public and parliamentary interest in these issues and support your belief that these issues must be addressed at the most senior levels of the company by those in an authoritative position to answer your questions.
“As such, Mr.Zuckerberg has personally asked one of his deputies to make themselves available to give evidence in person to the committee.”
She said either Schroepfer or Cox could attend “straight after the Easter parliamentary recess,” meaning April 16 at the earliest.
UK MPs demand Zuckerberg testify on data row after he offers deputy
UK MPs demand Zuckerberg testify on data row after he offers deputy
Truck bearing Daesh flag rams New Year’s revelers in New Orleans, killing 15
- Driver identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, from Texas, who was deployed to Afghanistan from 2009 to 2010
- The FBI said a Daesh flag was found on the truck. It is working to determine his potential associations with terror groups
NEW ORLEANS: A US Army veteran driving a pickup truck that bore the flag of the Daesh group wrought carnage on New Orleans’ raucous New Year’s celebration, killing 15 people as he steered around a police blockade and slammed into revelers before being shot dead by police.
The FBI said it is investigating the attack early Wednesday as a terrorist act and does not believe the driver acted alone. Investigators found guns and what appeared to be an improvised explosive device in the vehicle, along with other devices elsewhere in the city’s famed French Quarter.
The rampage turned festive Bourbon Street into a macabre mayhem of maimed victims, bloodied bodies and pedestrians fleeing for safety inside nightclubs and restaurants. In addition to the dead, dozens of people were hurt. A college football playoff game at the nearby Superdome was postponed until Thursday.
Zion Parsons, 18, of Gulfport, Mississippi, said he saw the truck “barreling through, throwing people like in a movie scene, throwing people into the air.”
“Bodies, bodies all up and down the street, everybody screaming and hollering,” said Parsons, whose friend Nikyra Dedeaux was among the people killed.
“This is not just an act of terrorism. This is evil,” New Orleans Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said.
The driver “defeated” safety measures in place to protect pedestrians, Kirkpatrick said, and was “hell-bent on creating the carnage and the damage that he did.”
The FBI identified the driver as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, a US citizen from Texas, and said it is working to determine his potential associations with terrorist organizations.
“We do not believe that Jabbar was solely responsible,” FBI Assistant Special Agent in Charge Alethea Duncan said at a news conference.
Investigators found multiple improvised explosives, including two pipe bombs that were concealed within coolers and wired for remote detonation, according to a Louisiana State Police intelligence bulletin obtained by The Associated Press.
The bulletin, relying on preliminary information gathered soon after the attack, also said surveillance footage showed three men and a woman placing one of the devices, but federal officials did not immediately confirm that detail and it wasn’t clear who they were or what connection they had to the attack, if any.
Jabbar drove a rented pickup truck onto a sidewalk, going around a police car that was positioned to block vehicular traffic, authorities. A barrier system meant to prevent vehicle attacks was being repaired in preparation for the Super Bowl in February.
Jabbar was killed by police after he exited the truck and opened fire on responding officers, Kirkpatrick said. Three officers returned fire. Two were shot and are in stable condition.
Investigators recovered a handgun and AR-style rifle, according to a law enforcement official who was not authorized to discuss the investigation publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Deadly explosions also rocked Honolulu and Las Vegas, though authorities haven’t said if they’re related to the New Orleans attack.
A photo circulated among law enforcement officials showed a bearded Jabbar wearing camouflage next to the truck after he was killed. The intelligence bulletin obtained by the AP said he was wearing a ballistic vest and helmet. The flag of the Daesh group was on the truck’s trailer hitch, the FBI said.
“For those people who don’t believe in objective evil, all you have to do is look at what happened in our city early this morning,” US Sen. John Kennedy, a Louisiana Republican, said. “If this doesn’t trigger the gag reflex of every American, every fair-minded American, I’ll be very surprised.”
Jabbar joined the Army in 2007, serving on active duty in human resources and information technology and deploying to Afghanistan from 2009 to 2010, the service said. He transferred to the Army Reserve in 2015 and left in 2020 with the rank of staff sergeant.
Hours after the attack, several coroner’s office vans were parked on the corner of Bourbon and Canal streets, cordoned off by police tape with crowds of dazed tourists standing around, some trying to navigate their luggage through the labyrinth of blockades.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry urged people to avoid the area, which remained an active crime scene.
“We looked out our front door and saw caution tape and dead silence and it’s eerie,” said Tessa Cundiff, an Indiana native who moved to the French Quarter a few years ago. “This is not what we fell in love with, it’s sad.”
Nearby, life went on as normal in the city known to some for a motto that translates to “let the good times roll.” At a cafe a block from where the truck came to rest, people crowded in for breakfast as upbeat pop music played. Two blocks away, people drank at a bar, seemingly as if nothing happened.
President Joe Biden, speaking to reporters in Delaware, said he felt “anger and frustration” over the attack but that he would refrain from further comment until more is known.
“My heart goes out to the victims and their families who were simply trying to celebrate the holiday,” Biden said in a statement. “There is no justification for violence of any kind, and we will not tolerate any attack on any of our nation’s communities.”
The attack is the latest example of a vehicle being used as a weapon to carry out mass violence, a trend that has alarmed law enforcement officials and that can be difficult to protect against.
If confirmed as Daesh-inspired, the attack would represent the deadliest such assault on US soil in years. FBI officials have repeatedly warned about an elevated international terrorism threat due to the Israel-Hamas war.
In the last year, the FBI has disrupted other potential attacks inspired by the militant group, including in October when agents arrested an Afghan man in Oklahoma accused of plotting an Election Day attack targeting large crowds.
South Korea police raid Jeju Air, Muan airport over fatal plane crash
- The conversion of data from the Jeju Air 7C2216 cockpit voice recorder to audio file is expected to be completed by Friday
- All 181 people on board the Jeju Air jet were killed on Sunday when crashed at Muan International Airport in the country’s southwest
SEOUL: South Korean police said on Thursday they had raided Jeju Air and Muan International Airport as part of its investigation into a passenger jet crash that killed 179 people on Sunday.
A Jeju Air spokesperson said it is checking the situation.
South Korea’s acting President Choi Sang-mok said on Thursday immediate action must be taken if a special inspection of all Boeing 737-800 aircraft operated in the country finds any issues as authorities ramp up a probe into Sunday’s deadly air crash.
The conversion of data from the Jeju Air 7C2216 cockpit voice recorder to audio file should be completed by Friday, Choi told a disaster management meeting, which could provide critical information on the final minutes of the doomed flight.
All 175 passengers and four of six crew members were killed on Sunday when the Jeju Air jet belly-landed at Muan International Airport in the country’s southwest and slammed into an earth-and-concrete embankment, bursting into flames.
Two crew members, located near the tail of the Boeing 737-800, survived.
“As there’s great public concern about the same aircraft model involved in the accident, the transport ministry and relevant organizations must conduct a thorough inspection of operation maintenance, education, and training,” Choi said.
Choi’s comments at the start of the meeting were provided by his office.
Questions by air safety experts on what led to the deadly explosion have focused on the embankment designed to prop up navigation equipment that they said may have been built too close to the end of the runway.
The aircraft’s flight data recorder, which sustained some damage, is being taken to the United States for analysis in cooperation with the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
Investigators from the NTSB, US Federation Aviation Administration and the maker of the aircraft, Boeing, are in South Korea to help probe the worst air disaster in the country.
Choi asked no effort be spared in helping the families of the victims as the remains of those killed are handed over them. He also asked the police to take action against anyone posting “malicious” messages and fake news on social media related to the disaster.
Daesh-inspired driver expressed desire to kill before deadly New Orleans rampage, Biden says
- Investigators found multiple improvised explosives, including two pipe bombs that were concealed within coolers and wired for remote detonation, say police
- The attacker, identified as former US Army soldier Shamsud-Din Jabbar, was killed by police after he exited the truck and opened fire on responding officers
NEW ORLEANS: The US Army veteran who rammed a pickup truck on New Orleans’ raucous New Year’s celebration, was inspired by the Daesh group, US President Joe Biden said on Wednesday, hours after the attack that left 15 people dead.
The FBI said it is investigating the attack early Wednesday as a terrorist act and does not believe the driver acted alone. Investigators found guns and a Daesh flag on the truck, and what appeared to be an improvised explosive device in the vehicle, along with other devices elsewhere in the city’s famed French Quarter.
Biden said Wednesday evening that the FBI found videos that the driver had posted to social media hours before the attack in which he said he was inspired by the Daesh group and expressed a desire to kill.
The rampage turned festive Bourbon Street into a macabre mayhem of maimed victims, bloodied bodies and pedestrians fleeing for safety inside nightclubs and restaurants. In addition to the dead, dozens of people were hurt. A college football playoff game at the nearby Superdome was postponed until Thursday.
Zion Parsons, 18, of Gulfport, Mississippi, said he saw the truck “barreling through, throwing people like in a movie scene, throwing people into the air.”
“Bodies, bodies all up and down the street, everybody screaming and hollering,” said Parsons, whose friend Nikyra Dedeaux was among the people killed.
“This is not just an act of terrorism. This is evil,” New Orleans Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said.
The driver “defeated” safety measures in place to protect pedestrians, Kirkpatrick said, and was “hell-bent on creating the carnage and the damage that he did.”
The FBI identified the driver as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, a US citizen from Texas, and said it is working to determine his potential associations with terrorist organizations.
“We do not believe that Jabbar was solely responsible,” FBI Assistant Special Agent in Charge Alethea Duncan said at a news conference.
Investigators found multiple improvised explosives, including two pipe bombs that were concealed within coolers and wired for remote detonation, according to a Louisiana State Police intelligence bulletin obtained by The Associated Press.
The bulletin, relying on preliminary information gathered soon after the attack, also said surveillance footage showed three men and a woman placing one of the devices, but federal officials did not immediately confirm that detail and it wasn’t clear who they were or what connection they had to the attack, if any.
Jabbar drove a rented pickup truck onto a sidewalk, going around a police car that was positioned to block vehicular traffic, authorities said. A barrier system meant to prevent vehicle attacks was being repaired in preparation for the Super Bowl in February.
Jabbar was killed by police after he exited the truck and opened fire on responding officers, Kirkpatrick said. Three officers returned fire. Two were shot and are in stable condition.
Investigators recovered a handgun and AR-style rifle, according to a law enforcement official who was not authorized to discuss the investigation publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
There were also deadly explosions in Honolulu and outside a Las Vegas hotel owned by President-elect Donald Trump. Biden said the FBI is looking into whether the Las Vegas explosion was connected to the New Orleans attack but had “nothing to report” as of Wednesday evening.
A photo circulated among law enforcement officials showed a bearded Jabbar wearing camouflage next to the truck after he was killed. The intelligence bulletin obtained by the AP said he was wearing a ballistic vest and helmet. The flag of the Daesh group was on the truck’s trailer hitch, the FBI said.
“For those people who don’t believe in objective evil, all you have to do is look at what happened in our city early this morning,” US Sen. John Kennedy, a Louisiana Republican, said. “If this doesn’t trigger the gag reflex of every American, every fair-minded American, I’ll be very surprised.”
Jabbar joined the Army in 2007, serving on active duty in human resources and information technology and deploying to Afghanistan from 2009 to 2010, the service said. He transferred to the Army Reserve in 2015 and left in 2020 with the rank of staff sergeant.
Hours after the attack, several coroner’s office vans were parked on the corner of Bourbon and Canal streets, cordoned off by police tape with crowds of dazed tourists standing around, some trying to navigate their luggage through the labyrinth of blockades.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry urged people to avoid the area, which remained an active crime scene.
“We looked out our front door and saw caution tape and dead silence and it’s eerie,” said Tessa Cundiff, an Indiana native who moved to the French Quarter a few years ago. “This is not what we fell in love with, it’s sad.”
Nearby, life went on as normal in the city known to some for a motto that translates to “let the good times roll.” At a cafe a block from where the truck came to rest, people crowded in for breakfast as upbeat pop music played. Two blocks away, people drank at a bar, seemingly as if nothing happened.
Biden, speaking from the presidential retreat at Camp David, called the attack a “despicable” and “heinous act.” Addressing the victims and the people of New Orleans, he said: “I want you to know I grieve with you. Our nation grieves with you as you mourn and as you heal.”
“My heart goes out to the victims and their families who were simply trying to celebrate the holiday,” Biden said in a statement. “There is no justification for violence of any kind, and we will not tolerate any attack on any of our nation’s communities.”
The attack is the latest example of a vehicle being used as a weapon to carry out mass violence and the deadliest IS-inspired assault on US soil in years.
FBI officials have repeatedly warned about an elevated international terrorism threat due to the Israel-Hamas war. In the last year, the agency has disrupted other potential attacks, including in October when it arrested an Afghan man in Oklahoma for an alleged Election Day plot targeting large crowds.
UK plans tough laws to fight people smugglers
- PM Keir Starmer has prioritized tackling illegal migration by cracking down on the gangs who smuggle people across the English Channel
- Government data show that over 36,800 people made the dangerous crossings to arrive in Britain in 2024, a 25 percent year-on-year surge
LONDON: Suspected people smugglers will face severe curbs under new laws in Britain, the government said on Thursday, as it steps up efforts to fight illegal migration and strengthen border security.
Those suspected will face travel bans, social media blackouts and restrictions on phone usage to help the government “dismantle organized immigration crime networks,” the statement added.
“We will give law enforcement stronger powers they need to pursue and stop more of these vile gang networks,” interior minister Yvette Cooper said, describing border security as one of the foundations of the government’s recently laid out ‘plan for change’.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer, elected to office in July, has prioritized tackling illegal migration by cracking down on the gangs who smuggle people across the English Channel, one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes, into Britain from France.
Over 36,800 people made the dangerous crossings to arrive in Britain in 2024, a 25 percent year-on-year surge, according to government data. Several dozen have died attempting to do so, with the Refugee Council charity terming it the deadliest year on record for such crossings.
The planned interim serious crime prevention orders (SCPO) will allow immediate action to disrupt and deter suspected serious criminality, including organized immigration crime, the statement said.
The fresh powers are designed to mirror those already used to disrupt other offenses such as knife crime, slavery and trafficking.
Currently, securing an SCPO on suspects can be a complex and lengthy process. The interim orders will speed up the process.
Two killed in Russian drone strike on Kyiv, Ukraine says
- Two floors of a residential building in central Kyiv were partially destroyed in the strike, according to the State Emergency Service. Two people were killed, it said
KYIV: Russia launched a New Year’s Day drone strike on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv early on Wednesday, killing two people, wounding at least six others and damaging buildings in two districts, authorities said.
Explosions boomed across the morning sky as Ukraine’s air force warned of incoming drones and Mayor Vitali Klitschko said air defenses were repelling an enemy attack.
Two floors of a residential building in central Kyiv were partially destroyed in the strike, according to the State Emergency Service. Two people were killed, it said.
Photos posted by the agency showed firefighters dousing a gutted corner of a building and rescuers helping elderly victims.
The National Bank of Ukraine said in a statement that one of its buildings nearby had been damaged by debris from a downed drone. Debris also damaged a non-residential building in a different neighborhood, authorities said.
“Even on New Year’s Eve, Russia was only concerned about how to hurt Ukraine,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said on social media in response to the strike.
Kyiv’s military said it had shot down 63 out of 111 drones launched by Russia overnight across various regions of Ukraine. Another 46 had been downed by electronic jamming, it added.
Russia has carried out regular air strikes on Ukrainian towns and cities far behind the front line of its nearly three-year-old invasion, in which its troops are claiming village after village in a grinding march across eastern Ukraine.
On Tuesday, Moscow’s forces fired 21 missiles at Kyiv and the northern Sumy region during an overnight strike, damaging buildings and infrastructure in the city of Shostka.
Separately on Wednesday, a 23-year-old volunteer worker was killed by Russian shelling in the southern front-line city of Kherson, city officials said.
The governor of Kherson region, Oleksandr Prokudin, later said that a resident of a town northeast of the city died in hospital of injuries suffered during a drone attack.
