North Korea unveils first tactical, nuclear-armed submarine

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attended the unveiling ceremony of the new submarine No. 841, named the Hero Kim Kun Ok, at an undisclosed location in North Korea. (AFP)
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Updated 08 September 2023
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North Korea unveils first tactical, nuclear-armed submarine

  • Submarine No. 841 will be one of the main “underwater offensive means of the naval force” of North Korea

SEOUL: North Korea has launched its first operational “tactical nuclear attack submarine” and assigned it to the fleet that patrols the waters between the Korean peninsula and Japan, state media said on Friday.
Submarine No. 841 — named Hero Kim Kun Ok after a North Korea historical figure — will be one of the main “underwater offensive means of the naval force” of North Korea, leader Kim Jong Un said at the launch ceremony on Wednesday.
Analysts said the vessel appears to be a modified Soviet-era Romeo-class submarine, which North Korea acquired from China in the 1970s and began producing domestically. Its design, with 10 launch tube hatches, showed it was most likely armed with ballistic missiles and cruise missiles, analysts said.
But such weapons won’t add much value to the North’s more robust land-based nuclear forces, because the aging submarines used as the core of the new design are relatively noisy, slow and have limited range, meaning they may not survive as long during a war, said Vann Van Diepen, a former US government weapons expert who works with the 38 North project in Washington.
“When this thing is field deployed, it’s going to be quite vulnerable to allied anti-submarine warfare,” he said. “So I think from a sort of hard-headed military standpoint this doesn’t make a lot of sense.”
South Korea’s military said that the submarine didn’t appear ready for normal operations, and that there were signs North Korea was attempting to exaggerate its capabilities.
Shin Seung-ki, research Fellow at Korea Institute for Defense Analyzes (KIDA), cautioned that South Korea and the United States cannot be guaranteed to detect and destroy submerged submarines.
“It is evident that North Korea has significantly expanded and strengthened the operational capabilities of its naval forces compared to before,” he said.
At the launch ceremony, Kim said arming the navy with nuclear weapons was an urgent task and promised more underwater and surface vessels equipped with tactical nuclear weapons for the naval forces, news agency KCNA reported.
“The submarine-launching ceremony heralded the beginning of a new chapter for bolstering up the naval force of the DPRK,” KCNA said, using the initials of the North’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
North Korea plans to turn other existing submarines into nuclear armed vessels, and accelerate its push to eventually build nuclear-powered submarines, Kim said.
“Achieving a rapid development of our naval forces ... is a priority that cannot be delayed given ... the enemies’ recent aggressive moves and military acts,” the North Korean leader said in a speech, apparently referring to the United States and South Korea.
North Korea’s nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs are banned by United Nations Security Council resolutions, and the submarine launch drew condemnation from South Korea and Japan.
“North Korea’s military activity is posing graver and more imminent threat to our country’s security than before,” Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told a briefing.
NUCLEAR ATTACK SUBMARINE
The designation as a “tactical” submarine suggests it does not carry submarine launched ballistic missiles (SLBM) that can reach the US mainland, but rather smaller, short-range SLBMs or submarine-launched cruise missiles (SLCM) capable of striking South Korea, Japan, or other regional targets, said Choi Il, a retired South Korean submarine captain.
The rear of the submarine’s sail — the tower that juts out of the top of the hull — was expanded and 10 vertical launch tubes, 4 large and 6 small, were installed, likely for SLBMs and SLCMs, he said.
North Korea has test-fired both SLBMs and SLCMs.
Shin said it can take a year or more to evaluate a new vessel at sea, so immediate deployment may be limited.
It is unclear whether North Korea has fully developed the miniaturised nuclear warheads needed for such missiles. Analysts say that perfecting smaller warheads would most likely be a key goal if the North resumes nuclear testing.
North Korea has about 20 Romeo-class submarines, which are powered by diesel-electric engines and are obsolete by modern standards, with most other countries operating them only as training vessels.
Analysts first spotted signs that at least one new submarine was being built in 2016, and in 2019 state media showed Kim inspecting a previously unreported submarine built under “his special attention” that would operate off the east coast.
North Korea has a large submarine fleet but only the experimental ballistic missile submarine 8.24 Yongung (August 24th Hero) is known to have fired a missile.
The launching ceremony comes as North Korea is set to mark the 75th anniversary of its founding day on Saturday and follows reports that Kim plans to travel to Russia this month to meet President Vladimir Putin to discuss weapons supplies to Moscow.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday met with Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Jakarta, and asked Beijing to do more as a UN Security Council member to address North Korea’s nuclear threat.


TikTok is restoring service in US, thanks Trump

Updated 6 sec ago
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TikTok is restoring service in US, thanks Trump

  • TikTok stopped working for US users late Saturday before law shutting it down on national security grounds took effect
  • US officials had warned that under Chinese parent company ByteDance, there was a risk of Americans’ data being misused

WASHINGTON: TikTok said on Sunday it was restoring its service after President-elect Donald Trump said he would revive the app’s access in the US when he returns to power on Monday.
The statement came after US users reported being able to access the Chinese-owned service’s website while the far more widely used TikTok app itself began coming back online for some users with just a few basic services.
“In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service,” TikTok said in a statement that thanked Trump for “providing the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties (for) providing TikTok to over 170 million Americans and allowing over 7 million small businesses to thrive.”
TikTok stopped working for US users late on Saturday before a law shutting it down on national security grounds took effect on Sunday. US officials had warned that under Chinese parent company ByteDance, there was a risk of Americans’ data being misused.
Trump said he would “extend the period of time before the law’s prohibitions take effect, so that we can make a deal to protect our national security.”
“I would like the United States to have a 50 percent ownership position in a joint venture,” he wrote on Truth Social.
Trump said the executive order would specify there would be no liability for any company that helped keep TikTok from going dark before his order.
Trump had earlier said he would most likely give TikTok a 90-day reprieve from the ban after he takes office, a promise TikTok cited in a notice posted to users on the app.
“A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the US Unfortunately, that means you can’t use TikTok for now. We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office. Please stay tuned,” a message notified users of TikTok, which disappeared from Apple and Google app stores late on Saturday.
Even if temporary, the unprecedented shutdown of TikTok is set to have a wide-ranging impact on US-China relations, US politics, the social media marketplace and millions of Americans who depend on the app economically and culturally.
Trump saving TikTok represents a reversal in stance from his first term in office. In 2020, he aimed to ban the short-video app over concerns the company was sharing Americans’ personal info with the Chinese government. More recently, Trump has said he has “a warm spot in my heart for TikTok,” crediting the app with helping him win over young voters in the 2024 election.
In August 2020, Trump signed an executive order giving ByteDance 90 days to sell TikTok but then blessed a deal structured as a partnership rather than a divestment that would have included both Oracle and Walmart taking stakes in the new company.
Not everyone in Trump’s Republican Party agreed with efforts to get around the law and “Save TikTok.”
Republican senators Tom Cotton and Pete Ricketts said in a joint statement: “Now that the law has taken effect, there is no legal basis for any kind of ‘extension’ of its effective date. For TikTok to come back online in the future, ByteDance must agree to a sale that satisfies the law’s qualified-divestiture requirements by severing all ties between TikTok and Communist China.”
The US has never banned a major social media platform. The law passed overwhelmingly by Congress gives the incoming Trump administration sweeping authority to ban or seek the sale of other Chinese-owned apps.
Other apps owned by ByteDance, including video editing app CapCut and lifestyle social app Lemon8, were also offline and unavailable in US app stores as of late Saturday.
Apple and Google did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
MOVE TO ALTERNATIVES
Under the law passed last year and upheld on Friday by a unanimous US Supreme Court, the platform had until Sunday to cut ties with its China-based parent or shut down its US operation to resolve concerns it poses a threat to national security.
The Chinese Embassy in Washington on Friday accused the US of using unfair state power to suppress TikTok. “China will take all necessary measures to resolutely safeguard its legitimate rights and interests,” a spokesperson said.
Uncertainty over the app’s future had sent users — mostly younger people — scrambling to alternatives including China-based RedNote. Rivals Meta and Snap have seen their share prices rise this month ahead of the ban, as investors bet on an influx of users and advertising dollars.
‘HAIR ON FIRE’ MOMENT
Web searches for “VPN” spiked in the minutes after US users lost access to TikTok, according to Google Trends.
Users on Instagram fretted about whether they would still receive merchandise they had bought on TikTok Shop, the video platform’s e-commerce arm.
Marketing firms reliant on TikTok have rushed to prepare contingency plans in what one executive described as a “hair on fire” moment after months of conventional wisdom saying that a solution would materialize to keep the app running.
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew plans to attend the US presidential inauguration and attend a rally with Trump on Sunday, a source told Reuters.
Suitors including former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt have expressed interest in the fast-growing business that analysts estimate could be worth as much as $50 billion. Media reports say Beijing has also held talks about selling TikTok’s US operations to billionaire and Trump ally Elon Musk, though the company has denied that.
US search engine startup Perplexity AI submitted a bid on Saturday to ByteDance for Perplexity to merge with TikTok US, a source familiar with the company’s plans told Reuters. Perplexity would merge with TikTok US and create a new entity by combining the merged company with other partners, the person added.
Privately held ByteDance is about 60 percent owned by institutional investors such as BlackRock and General Atlantic, while its founders and employees own 20 percent each. It has more than 7,000 employees in the US.


Suspected Bangladeshi arrested in stabbing of Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan

Updated 19 January 2025
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Suspected Bangladeshi arrested in stabbing of Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan

  • Thursday’s attack on Khan, one of India’s most bankable stars, shocked the nation’s film industry and Mumbai residents
  • The suspect, arrested on the outskirts of Mumbai, was using the name Vijay Das and was working with a housekeeping agency

MUMBAI: A man thought to be a citizen of Bangladesh was arrested in India’s financial capital Mumbai on Sunday and is considered the prime suspect in the stabbing of Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan, police said.
Thursday’s attack on Khan, one of India’s most bankable stars, shocked the nation’s film industry and Mumbai residents, with many calling for better policing and security. He was out of danger, doctors said, and has left the hospital.
“Primary evidence suggests that the accused is a Bangladeshi citizen and after entering India illegally he changed his name,” Dixit Gedam, a deputy commissioner of police, told a press conference.
The suspect, arrested on the outskirts of Mumbai, was using the name Vijay Das but is believed to be Mohammad Shariful Islam Shehzad and was working with a housekeeping agency after having come to the city five or six months ago, Gedam said.
The police will seek custody of the suspect for further investigation, he added.
Khan, 54, was stabbed six times by an intruder during a burglary attempt at his home. He had surgery after sustaining stab wounds to his spine, neck and hands, doctors said.
Police in Mumbai detained a first key suspect in the attack on Friday, while police in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh detained a second person on Saturday.


Afghanistan blames US invasion, sanctions for environmental damage, delayed climate action

Updated 19 January 2025
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Afghanistan blames US invasion, sanctions for environmental damage, delayed climate action

  • Afghanistan ranked 7th on global index of countries most vulnerable, least prepared to adapt to climate change
  • Use of bombs and mines during wars destroyed agricultural land, left toxic footprint on environment

KABUL: The US invasion of Afghanistan and subsequent sanctions exacerbated the impacts of climate change in the country, the National Environmental Protection Agency said on Sunday, as Kabul called on the international community for support in combating the ecological crisis.

Between the 2001 US-led invasion and its chaotic withdrawal in 2021, the US military had dropped tens of thousands of bombs on Afghanistan, many of which are munitions that can leave a toxic footprint on the environment.

“The presence of American and NATO forces in Afghanistan for 20 years has had a wide-ranging impact on Afghanistan,” Dr. Zainul Abedin Abed, technical and policy deputy director-general at NEPA, told Arab News.

“Among the environmental impacts, we can mention cases such as the destruction of agricultural land … These impacts have put pressure on the Afghan environment and accelerated climate change. The US and NATO have used weapons and chemical substances, which is irreparable.”

In April 2017, the US military dropped the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb, known as “the mother of all bombs,” on Afghanistan’s eastern Nangarhar province. It is the most powerful non-nuclear bomb ever used by Washington in a conflict.

“The adverse effects of the MOAB in Tora Bora district of Nangarhar province included an increase in premature births, skin diseases and neurological problems,” Abed said, adding that the bomb also destroyed homes and caused damage to the local economy.

Afghanistan has suffered through decades of war even before the US-led invasion, including a decade of Soviet invasion that also saw foreign forces deploying chemical weapons, such as napalm, to destroy crops.

The country lost around 80 percent of its forests in the conflicts, according to Taliban Deputy Foreign Minister Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai.

“The destructive bombs that the Soviet Union used on our forests have destroyed a major part of the country’s forests. Our country faced another crisis as the US and NATO forces experimented with their weapons in Afghanistan, which couldn’t be used anywhere else, without any mercy on the people of Afghanistan,” Stanikzai said at the national climate change conference in Kabul on Wednesday.

“Now, I call on the world countries, the United Nations, the European Union, America as well as neighboring and regional countries to support Afghanistan in these difficult times. It’s their moral responsibility, especially those countries that contributed to climate change.”

Dr. Abdul Latif Nazari, Afghanistan’s deputy minister of economy, said at the conference that it was “important to lift sanctions and remove restrictions so the international organizations can work with our entities,” such as NEPA.

Afghanistan is one of the most vulnerable and least prepared countries to adapt to climate change, ranking seventh on the Notre Dame Global Adaptation Index, despite being a country with the 11th lowest contributor per capita to global carbon emissions.

“Afghanistan’s contribution to global climate change has been inconsequential,” Kabul-based environmental expert Noorudin Jalali told Arab News.

“However, the impact of international interventions on Afghanistan has been huge. Consecutive drought, deforestation, air pollution and huge damage to the country’s ecosystem are some of the major effects that climate change has had on the country’s environment.”

The use of bombs and mines “devastated the country’s environment and agriculture” and will take years and billions of dollars to recover, he added.

Afghanistan is already suffering from the impacts of climate change. After three consecutive years of drought, Afghanistan experienced severe flooding in 2024 that killed hundreds of people, devastated vast agricultural land in its northern provinces and left millions of people without their primary source of income and food.

Since the Taliban returned to power in 2021, Afghanistan has been excluded from representation under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change — which leads efforts in global climate cooperation — while major sources of funding for climate adaptation have also been suspended.

“Without the support of the international community and international organizations, Afghanistan will not be able to fight the climate change challenge. The sooner this support is facilitated, the better for the country and its people,” Jalali said.


Nigeria tanker truck blast toll rises to 86: rescuers

Updated 19 January 2025
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Nigeria tanker truck blast toll rises to 86: rescuers

LAGOS: The death toll from the explosion of a petrol tanker truck in Nigeria that killed people rushing to gather fuel has risen to 86, emergency services said Sunday.
"The final death toll from the tanker explosion is 86," said Ibrahim Audu Husseini, spokesman for the National Emergency Management Agency in Niger state.
The truck carrying 60,000 litres of gasoline exploded after flipping over on a road in the centre of the country on Saturday, authorities said.


Pope Francis calls for Gaza ceasefire to be ‘immediately respected’

Updated 19 January 2025
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Pope Francis calls for Gaza ceasefire to be ‘immediately respected’

  • Pope Francis: I also hope that humanitarian aid will even more quickly reach... the people of Gaza, who have so many urgent needs

VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis called Sunday for a ceasefire in Gaza to be “immediately respected,” as he thanked mediators and urged a boost in humanitarian aid as well as the return of hostages.
“I express gratitude to all the mediators,” the Argentine pontiff said shortly after the start of a truce between Israel and Hamas began.
“Thanks to all the parties involved in this important outcome. I hope that, as agreed, it will be immediately respected by the parties and that all the hostages will finally be able to go home to hug their loved ones again,” he said.
“I pray so much for them, and their families. I also hope that humanitarian aid will even more quickly reach... the people of Gaza, who have so many urgent needs,” Francis said.
“Both Israelis and Palestinians need clear signs of hope. I hope that the political authorities of both, with the help of the international community, can reach the right two-state solution.
“May everyone say yes to dialogue, yes to reconciliation, yes to peace,” he added.
A total of 33 hostages taken by militants during Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel are scheduled to be returned from Gaza during an initial 42-day truce.
Under the deal, hundreds of Palestinian prisoners are to be released from Israeli jails.
The truce is intended to pave the way for an end to more than 15 months of war sparked by Hamas’s attack, the deadliest in Israeli history.
It follows a deal struck by mediators Qatar, the United States and Egypt after months of negotiations, and takes effect on the eve of Donald Trump’s inauguration as US president.