CANBERRA: Sydney’s international airport came alive with tears, embraces and laughter on Monday as Australia’s border opened for the first time in 20 months, with some arriving travelers tearing away mandatory masks to see faces of loved ones they’ve been separated from for so long.
“Just being able to come home without having to go to quarantine is huge,” Carly Boyd, a passenger who had traveled from New York, told reporters at Sydney’s Kingsford-Smith Airport, where Peter Allen’s unofficial national anthem “I Still Call Australia Home” was playing.
“There’s a lot of people on that flight who have loved ones who are about to die or have people who died this week. So for them to be able to get off the plane and go see them straight away is pretty amazing,” Boyd added.
Australia is betting that vaccination rates are now high enough to mitigate the danger of allowing international visitors again after maintaining some of the lengthiest and strictest border controls anywhere during the coronavirus pandemic.
Thailand, too, was reopening its border Monday. Fully vaccinated tourists arriving by air from 46 countries and territories no longer have to quarantine and can move freely. And local restrictions such as a curfew in some areas were being lifted.
Before the pandemic, Sydney was Australia’s busiest international airport but until Monday had been almost deserted.
The new freedoms mean that outbound fully vaccinated Australian permanent residents and citizens can leave the country for any reason without asking the government for an exemption from a travel ban that has trapped most at home since March 25, 2020.
Incoming vaccinated Australians are able to come home without quarantining in a hotel for two weeks. The cap on hotel quarantine numbers had been a major obstacle for thousands of Australians stranded overseas. That cap now only applies to unvaccinated travelers.
Sydney was the first Australian airport to announce it would reopen Monday because New South Wales was the first state where 80 percent of the population aged 16 and older have been fully vaccinated. Melbourne and and the national capital Canberra also opened on Monday after Victoria state and the Australian Capital Territory achieved the vaccination benchmark.
Sydney had 16 scheduled inbound international flights on Monday and 14 outbound. Melbourne, Australia’s second largest city, had five scheduled in and five out. Canberra had none.
The first regular international passenger flight to land in Australia was a Singapore Airlines flight from Singapore that landed before 6 a.m. local time, followed by a Qantas Airways flight that had flown 15 hours from Los Angeles.
Qantas customer service manager Paul Wason said landing in Sydney was a “huge day” for passengers and crew alike.
“Very much mixed emotions, great emotions, lots of happiness, lots of sadness, lots of excitement as well,” Wason said.
An Australian who lives in San Francisco, who identified himself only as Jeremy, said he had been trying to fly back to Sydney with his wife and baby daughter since July. They had been prevented at short notice four times from flying, twice because flights were delayed and twice because quarantine caps had been reduced in response to the COVID-19 delta variant taking hold in Sydney in June.
“At every moment until we were sitting on the plane, it just felt like something was going to go wrong and I’m so glad that it all worked out and that we’re here,” Jeremy told Australian Broadcasting Corp. at Sydney’s airport.
Initially only Australian permanent residents and citizens will be free to enter the country. Fully vaccinated foreigners traveling on skilled worker and student visas will be given priority over international tourists.
But now the government expects Australia will welcome international tourists back before the year ends to some degree.
Some of Australia’s 1.6 million temporary residents feel left out of Australia’s reopening plan and unsure of their travel status.
“I think that it’s vague around the definition of residents and where we get to be involved in that national plan,” said Jennifer Clayburn, an American living with her family in Melbourne since January last year on a short-term visa for skilled workers.
“We have been doing it tough, alongside all Australians. We too want to be around the table at Christmas with our family, but we do not want to be summarily locked out of Australia upon return,” she added.
Graham Turner, chief executive of Australia largest travel agency Flight Center, said international travel to Australia was not expected to return to normal until mid-2024.
“It will come back quickly for those people who really want to travel. Initially. it’s the friends and relatives. People who haven’t seen each other for a long time,” Turner said.
“That will be the first wave. And the traveling wave will tend to come a little bit later, once people see what the scenario is like,” Turner added.
While Australians are now free to travel overseas, four Australian states and a territory place pandemic restrictions on crossing state lines.
Australian Ethen Carter, who landed at Sydney’s airport from Los Angeles expressed his frustration at having to apply for permission to visit his dying mother in Western Australia state.
Western Australia has little COVID-19 and has the nation’s lowest level of vaccinations, with only 63 percent of the target population fully vaccinated.
Carter pleaded through the media to Western Australia Premier Mark McGowan to let him in. McGowan has said the state border will not open this year.
“Mark, think of the people that are suffering, like, mentally to see their family. That’s also a health issue. And we know we’ve got to protect people’s lives, but you’ve got to bring families together again, you have to,” Carter said.
McGowan said his government would consider allowing Carter to enter the state if he applied for an exemption.
“These situations are very sad and very difficult and we’ve seen much of this over the course over the last two years,” McGowan said.
Australians reunite as border reopens after 20-month ban
https://arab.news/rv6wg
Australians reunite as border reopens after 20-month ban
- Australia is betting that vaccination rates are now high enough to mitigate the danger of allowing international visitors again
Russia drone barrage sparks fire in western Ukraine
KYIV: A barrage of more than 100 Russian drones sparked a fire at an industrial facility in western Ukraine and damaged residential buildings in other regions, Ukrainian officials said Monday.
The Ukrainian airforce said Moscow had dispatched 104 drones, including attack drones, and that 57 of the unmanned aerial vehicles had been shot down.
Emergency services in the western Ivano-Frankivsk region said the strikes had resulted in two fires at an industrial facility, and that firefighters were working to extinguish one.
They did not specify the type of facility hit but said there were no casualties.
The airforce said there was damage in four Ukrainian regions including Kyiv, where AFP journalists heard drones flying overhead and air defense systems countering the attack.
’Deaths’ during mass prison break in DR Congo’s Goma: security source
The prison, which holds around 3,000 inmates, was “totally torched” following a huge jailbreak that resulted in “deaths,” the security source said, without giving further details.
Fleeing prisoners could be seen in the surrounding streets, according to an AFP journalist.
Bird feathers and bloodstains found in Jeju jet engines: South Korea report
- The Boeing 737-800 was flying from Thailand to Muan in South Korea on Dec. 29 when it crash landed
- It was the worst aviation disaster on South Korean soil, killing 179 of the 181 passengers and crew
SEOUL: Bird feathers and bloodstains were found in both engines of the Jeju Air plane that crashed in December, according to a preliminary investigation released Monday.
The Boeing 737-800 was flying from Thailand to Muan in South Korea on December 29 when it crash landed and exploded into a fireball after slamming into a concrete barrier.
It was the worst aviation disaster on South Korean soil, killing 179 of the 181 passengers and crew.
South Korean and American investigators are still probing the cause of the disaster, with a bird strike, faulty landing gear and the runway barrier among the possible issues.
Both engines recovered from the crash site were inspected, and bird bloodstains and feathers were “found on each,” the report said.
“The pilots identified a group of birds while approaching runway 01, and a security camera filmed HL8088 coming close to a group of birds during a go-around,” the report added, referring to the Jeju jet’s registration number.
It did not specify whether the engines had stopped working in the moments leading up to the crash.
DNA analysis identified the feathers and blood as coming from Baikal teals, migratory ducks which fly to Korea in winter from their breeding grounds in Siberia.
After the air traffic control tower cleared the jet to land, it advised the pilots to exercise caution against potential bird strikes at 8:58 am, the report said. Just a minute later, both the voice and data recording systems stopped functioning.
Seconds after the recording systems failed, the pilots declared mayday due to a bird strike and attempted a belly landing.
The Jeju plane exploded in flames when it collided with a concrete embankment during its landing, prompting questions about why that type barricade was in place at the end of the runway.
Last week, authorities said they would replace such concrete barriers at airports nationwide with “breakable structures.”
The captain had over 6,800 flight hours, while the first officer had 1,650 hours, according to the report. Both were killed in the crash, which was survived only by two flight attendants.
Lukashenko pockets massive win in Belarus election scorned by the West
- Alexander Lukashenko took 86.8 percent of the vote in Sunday’s election
- European politicians have said the vote was neither free nor fair
MELBOURNE: Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko extended his 31-year rule with a massive win in a presidential election that Western governments have rejected as a sham, according to preliminary results on Monday.
“You can congratulate the Republic of Belarus, we have elected a president,” the head of the country’s Central Election Commission of the Republic Igor Karpenko told a press conference in the early hours of Monday, according to Russian state media.
According to results published on the Central Election Commission’s Telegram account, Lukashenko took 86.8 percent of the vote in Sunday’s election.
European politicians said the vote was neither free nor fair because independent media are banned in the former Soviet state and all leading opposition figures have been sent to penal colonies or forced to flee abroad.
“The people of Belarus had no choice. It is a bitter day for all those who long for freedom & democracy,” German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock posted on X.
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski expressed mock surprise that “only” 87.6 percent of the electorate appeared to have backed Lukashenko.
“Will the rest fit inside the prisons?” he wrote on X.
Asked about the jailing of his opponents, Lukashenko said they had “chosen” their fate.
“Some chose prison, some chose ‘exile’, as you say. We didn’t kick anyone out of the country,” he told a rambling press conference on Sunday that lasted more than four hours and 20 minutes.
The close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin had earlier defended his jailing of dissidents and declared: “I don’t give a damn about the West.”
UN Security Council demands pullout of Rwanda-backed armed group from DR Congo
- UN Security Council condemns ‘flagrant disregard’ for sovereignty in DR Congo
- Congo late Saturday broke off relations with Rwanda, which has denied backing the M23 despite evidence collected by UN experts and others
- US, France tells Rwanda to back off, warning that the US would hold accountable those responsible for sustaining the armed conflict
UNITED NATIONS/GOMA, Congo: The UN Security Council on Sunday denounced the “flagrant disregard” for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), demanding the withdrawal of “external forces” without explicitly naming them.
The Council “condemned the ongoing flagrant disregard for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the DRC, including the unauthorized presence in the Eastern DRC of external forces as reported by the Group of Experts and demanded that these forces withdraw immediately,” it said in a statement Sunday evening, referencing a UN expert report that criticized the presence of Rwandan forces and their support for the M23 armed group fighting the Congolese army.
During an emergency meeting of the Security Council, UN‘s special representative for Congo said the attacking forces has caused “mass panic” in eastern Congo’s largest city, Goma, a humanitarian and security hub and home to 2 million people.
“M23 has declared the airspace over Goma closed,” UN special representative, Bintou Keita said. “In other words, we are trapped.”
Keita said M23 fighters were using residents “as human shields” as they advanced, while others fled for their lives.
The M23 rebels’ offensive at the heart of the mineral-rich region threatens to dramatically worsen one of Africa’s longest wars and create further misery for what is already one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises, with millions of people displaced.
‘Declaration of war’
Congo late Saturday broke off relations with Rwanda, which has denied backing the M23 despite evidence collected by UN experts and others. Congo’s government called it a “declaration of war.”
The surge of violence has killed at least 13 peacekeepers over the past week. And Congolese were again on the run.
The M23 has made significant territorial gains along Congo’s border with Rwanda in recent weeks, after months of regional attempts to make peace failed. On Sunday night, the rebels called on Congo’s army to surrender their arms and present themselves at a local stadium by 3 a.m. or they would take the city.
The Uruguayan army, who are in Goma serving with the UN peacekeeping mission, said in a statement on X late Sunday that some Congolese soldiers have laid down their weapons.
“More than a hundred FARDC soldiers are sheltered in the facilities of the “Siempre Presente” base awaiting the (Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration) process,” the statement said.
In photos shared with the statement, armed men are seen registering with the peacekeepers in a mix of military uniforms and civilian clothing.
Congo’s foreign minister, Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner, told the Security Council that Rwanda was committing “a frontal aggression, a declaration of war which no longer hides itself behind diplomatic maneuvers.”
Rwanda’s ambassador to the UN, Ernest Rwamucyo, did not confirm or deny Congo’s claims. He blamed Congo’s government, saying the crisis could have been been averted if it had “demonstrated a genuine commitment to peace.”
US and France weigh in
The United States and France called for a ceasefire and appealed to Rwanda to withdraw its support to M23, with acting US Ambassador Dorothy Shea warning that the US would “consider all the tools at its disposal” to hold accountable those responsible for sustaining the armed conflict.
In the past 48 hours, two UN peacekeepers from South Africa and one from Uruguay were killed and 11 others were injured and hospitalized, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ spokesman said ahead of the Security Council meeting.
The UN chief reiterated his “strongest condemnation” of the M23 offensive “with the support of the Rwanda Defense Forces,” and called on the rebel group to immediately halt all hostile action and withdraw, spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
Congo, the United States and UN experts accuse Rwanda of backing M23, which is mainly made up of ethnic Tutsis who broke away from the Congolese army more than a decade ago. It’s one of about 100 armed groups that have been vying for a foothold in the mineral-rich region, where a long-running conflict has created one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises.
Rwanda’s government denies backing the rebels, but last year acknowledged that it has troops and missile systems in eastern Congo to safeguard its security, pointing to a buildup of Congolese forces near the border. UN experts estimate up to 4,000 Rwandan forces are in Congo.
Congo’s foreign ministry said late Saturday it was severing diplomatic ties with Rwanda and pulling all diplomatic staff from the country “with immediate effect.”
Rwandan Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe told The Associated Press on Sunday that the decision to cut ties was a unilateral move by Congo.
“For us, we took appropriate measures to evacuate our remaining diplomat in Kinshasa, who was under permanent threat by Congolese officials,” Nduhungirehe said.
The M23 took Goma once before in 2012, withdrawing after considerable international pressure was put on Rwanda.
Civilians flee the rebel advance
On Sunday morning, heavy gunfire resonated across Goma, a few kilometers (miles) from the front line. Scores of children and adults fled the Kanyaruchinya camp, one of the largest in eastern Congo for displaced people, near the Rwandan border.
“We are fleeing because we saw soldiers on the border with Rwanda throwing bombs and shooting,” said Safi Shangwe, who was heading into the city.
Some of the displaced worried they would not be safe in Goma, either. “I heard that there are bombs in Goma, too, so now we don’t know where to go,” said Adèle Shimiye.
Hundreds of people attempted to flee to Rwanda. Migration officers at a border crossing east of Goma carefully checked travel documents.
“I am crossing to the other side to see if we will have a place of refuge because for the moment, security in the city is not guaranteed,” Goma resident Muahadi Amani told the AP.
UN deputy humanitarian chief Joyce Msuya said the situation was rapidly deteriorating. “If hostilities spill into Goma – a densely populated urban center – the impact on civilians could be devastating,” she said.
Congo’s army has said it was fending off the M23 offensive with the help of allied forces, including UN peacekeepers and soldiers from the Southern African Development Community Mission, also known as SAMIDRC.
In addition to the two South African peacekeepers, seven South African troops with SAMIDIRC have been killed in recent days, South Africa’s defense ministry said.
Since 2021, Congo’s government and allied forces — including the 14,000-strong UN mission — have been keeping M23 away from Goma.
Goma resident Bahati Jackson’s family has been hearing gunfire and remembers fleeing M23’s seizure of the city in 2012. But this time, they’re staying.
“If we’re going to die, it’s better to die here,” Jackson said.
