It’s an unprecedented state of excitement at the house of elderly Fatima in Kerala’s Kozhikode, whose son, Abdul Rahim, a death row convict in Saudi Arabia, is set to return home after securing a pardon.

It’s been an 18-year wait for the mother, whose prayers have been finally answered.

The return was made possible through a massive fund collection drive for Rs 34 crore which was given as blood money on the orders of a Saudi Arabian court. The court had ruled that in case the money was not given Rahim would be executed.

The money was handed over in April. The court yielded after the Saudi family accepted the money which enabled the legal proceedings for his release.

Rahim’s mother cannot hide her excitement, and on Friday she said she wants to see her son as soon as possible.

“Even though he calls me, that’s not enough, I just cannot wait any longer to see my son and wish he come at the earliest,” said Fatima.

Rahim’s nephew is also excited and said that the Saudi Arabian court has asked Rahim’s lawyer to be present on Sunday.

“The lawyer has told us, that on Sunday we will know when Rahim will be finally released. And once released, he will be put on a flight back home, for which the entire village is waiting,” said the nephew.

“After the orders of his release came, every minute now seems like hours,” added the nephew.

An auto driver here, Rahim was drawn to the Gulf to make more money. He reached Saudi Arabia in 2006 and got a job as a personal driver-cum-caretaker of a 15-year-old physically challenged boy, who also had a medical ailment where he breathed through an external device connected to his body.

The boy, according to Rahim, misbehaved with him one day while he was driving. As he was trying to quieten him, his hand accidentally touched the external medical device which got disconnected and the boy died.

A court in Saudi Arabia sentenced him for murder and the appeal court upheld this verdict in 2022. The decision was later confirmed by the country’s Supreme Court.

Then following numerous discussions with the Saudi family, they settled for blood money and the doors for Rahim’s freedom were finally opened. AGENCIES

The Malawian government announced it would host a virtual mining investment forum for Malawians living abroad on Saturday.

The event follows a successful 2024 Malawi Mining Investment Forum held in Lilongwe in April during the Agriculture, Tourism and Mining Week, said Malawian Minister of Mining Monica Chang’anamuno, reported Xinhua news agency.

On Thursday, the minister told local media that the upcoming virtual forum for Malawians living in the diaspora is part of the Malawian government’s ongoing efforts to promote sustainable development and growth of the mining sector.

The forum will include sessions designed for Malawians living abroad to explore unique investment opportunities in the growing mining sector of the sub-Saharan country.

Chang’anamuno said the forum is expected to attract over 200 Malawians in the diaspora, adding that they will have discussions to explore strategies and solutions for developing Malawi’s mining sector under the theme “Global Connections, Local Impact: Investing in Malawi’s Minerals.”

Malawi is rich in mineral resources, including rare earth elements, graphite, uranium, gold and gemstones. AGENCIES

Nearly 6,500 adolescent girls die in childbirth in South Asia every year, said UN agencies on Friday, calling for prioritisation of the health of girls and adolescents in South Asia.

Experts from the agencies discussed this at a two-day regional dialogue on adolescent pregnancy jointly organised by the SAARC, UNICEF Regional Office for South Asia (UNICEF ROSA), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and the World Health Organisation (WHO) in Kathmandu, Nepal.

At the event, officials and civil society representatives from India, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka reaffirmed their commitment to prioritise health for over 2.2 million adolescent girls that give birth yearly in South Asia; and to provide better opportunities to learn, set up their businesses, and earn a living.

The experts noted that most of these girls were child brides who have limited power over their reproductive health or lives.

The South Asia region “has a long way to go. I call upon everyone to resolutely address the root causes including child marriage, access to adolescent health education, and removing social stigma in managing the teenage population of SAARC region,” said Ambassador Golam Sarwar, the Secretary General of SAARC.

South Asia accounts for 290 million child brides — nearly half of the world’s burden. These girls are forced to drop out of school and face stigma, rejection, violence, unemployment as well as lifelong social challenges.

About 49 per cent of young girls in South Asia are not in education, employment, or training – the highest in the world, the experts noted.

With poorer health coverage adolescent mothers are also at increased risk of early deaths, and the babies born also face a significantly higher risk of death.

“It is high time that we reverse this trend,” said Saima Wazed, Regional Director, WHO South-East Asia.

She stressed adolescents’ “unique physical, cognitive, social, emotional, and sexual development” needs to be given “special attention in national and international policies”.

She also called for “cross-sectoral collaboration and equitable access to a variety of services”, and an increase in “investments” to tackle adolescent pregnancy and promote their healthy socio-economic development.

“This supports the well-being of the youth of today – who are the human capital of tomorrow,” the Regional Director said. AGENCIES

 Nine infants have died since the beginning of an outbreak of whooping cough in November last year, according to figures released by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).

In the first five months of 2024, 7,599 children and adults have been infected by the disease, which affects the lungs and breathing tubes and spreads easily, showed the figures released on Thursday, Xinhua news agency reported.

“Young babies are at highest risk of severe complications and death from whooping cough,” the UKHSA said in its alert.

Over half of those infected are people aged 15 or older and suffer a mild illness, the agency said, adding that high numbers continue to be reported in babies under three months of age who are at greatest risk from the infection.

Medics have urged pregnant women and babies to get whooping cough vaccinations. The UKHSA said the latest uptake data for vaccinations offered to pregnant women to protect newborn infants against whooping cough has fallen below 60 per cent.

Timely vaccination in pregnancy and childhood is important to protect vulnerable young infants from serious disease, according to the UKHSA.

“Vaccination is the best defence against whooping cough, and it is vital that pregnant women and young infants receive their vaccines at the right time,” said Mary Ramsay, director of Immunisation at the UKHSA.

Andrew Preston, a professor from the Milner Center for Evolution and the Department of Life Sciences at the University of Bath, said: “We’ve now reached levels that we haven’t seen in the UK for well over ten years. This is a genuine outbreak of pertussis (whooping cough).”

“The levels of infant vaccination against pertussis have dropped over the last ten years and thousands of infants haven’t received the vaccinations that we know provide protection,” he said.

Preston said there has also been a striking reduction in maternal vaccination coverage in some parts of the country, down as low as 25 per cent to 30 per cent in some urban parts of Britain.

“I think that’s contributing to some of the more serious cases in those very young infants,” he added.

Preston said he was not sure how long the current outbreak will last. “It’s on an upward trajectory, and to be honest, I don’t think we know when that will plateau, but I think it is probably going to be at an enhanced incidence for most of this year.” AGENCIES

 Authorities in the Australian state of Victoria said on Friday that there is no indication of the massive factory fire in Melbourne being suspicious.

Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) confirmed in a statement that 20 firefighters and five appliances are still working on the scene after a significant chemical explosion caused a huge fire in Derrimut on Wednesday.

“The incident remains under control but there are still hotspots in inaccessible areas due to structural integrity and site contamination concerns. Over the next 24 hours, FRV crews will continue to suppress hotspots and take the heat out of locations that are still burning,” said the authority.

FRV investigators are working with WorkSafe and Victoria Police to investigate the incident, while there is currently no indication the fire was suspicious, according to the fire authority, reported Xinhua news agency.

FRV Deputy Commissioner Josh Fischer said that authorities would remain at the scene for days, if not weeks.

“This is a complex and dangerous environment, there are a lot of hazards associated with this incident so we’re taking extreme caution and care as we manage those risks for our firefighters from the time of the incident and into the future,” Fischer said.

The incident unfolded at around 11:20 a.m. local time on Wednesday. Emergency services rushed to a factory on Swann Drive in Derrimut, which contained a range of chemicals including kerosene, fuel, methylated spirits, and ethanol.

Following a large explosion, flames burst out at the site, with toxic smoke billowing towards the east across Derrimut.

As of Friday, Environment Protection Authority (EPA) Victoria updated that preventing further environmental damage to waterways continues to be a major focus with more contaminated firewater being pumped away from the area and taken for disposal.

“EPA advice to avoid contact with the waters there remains in place. At this stage,” the environmental regulator said, also assuring the public that the smoke no longer poses any risk.

Local media revealed that the industrial facility was operated by the chemical blending manufacturer ACB Group, where a worker died in a chemical explosion last year. AGENCIES

 Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong has been on a visit to India to review the company’s local operations and meet with business partners, according to a report.

Lee arrived in Mumbai on Thursday, reports Yonhap News Agency, citing sources.

Samsung Electronics operates a smartphone factory in Noida, northern India, and a home appliance facility in Sriperumbudur, southern India, along with several R&D and design centres.

It also has a strong presence in the network business in India, supplying fifth-generation mobile communications (5G) equipment for more than a decade.

Meanwhile, Samsung has unveiled the all-new Galaxy Z Fold6 and Z Flip6 foldables, along with wearable devices, with new features at its ‘Unpacked’ event.

The Galaxy Z Fold6, Z Flip6 and wearable devices (Galaxy Ring, Buds3 series, Watch7 and Watch Ultra) will be available for pre-order starting July 10, with general availability from July 24.

The Galaxy Z Flip6 (12GB+256GB) will cost Rs 109,999 and the 12GB+512GB version will come for Rs 121,999.

Galaxy Z Fold6 in the 12GB+256GB variant will cost Rs 164,999 while the 12GB+512GB version will come for Rs 176,999. The 12GB+1TB (silver shadow colour) will cost Rs 200,999, informed the company. AGENCIES

Singaporean police are investigating 528 suspects for over 2,200 scam and unlicensed moneylending cases following an enforcement operation from July 1 to July 10, according to the latest statement from the police.

Up to 425 were probed for scam and money laundering offences. The police said victims lost over 10 million Singapore dollars (7.4 million US dollars) in the cases, reported Xinhua news agency.

Another 103 suspects were under investigation for loan scams and loansharking activities.

A total of 41 persons were under arrest. Investigations against all the suspects are ongoing, the police added. AGENCIES

South Korea and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) signed an agreement on a mutual recognition process for military airworthiness certification, NATO’s first such deal with an Asian country.

Korea’s Defence Acquisition Programme Administration and NATO’s Aviation Committee inked the agreement, a key measure of a plane’s suitability for safe flight, on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Washington, Yonhap news agency reported.

Under the deal signed on Thursday, NATO will recognise the Seoul government’s airworthiness certification for South Korean-made planes.

While South Korea has signed agreements with the United States, Spain, France and Poland, the new deal with NATO is expected to shorten the time required for mutual recognition with other NATO members.

President Yoon Suk Yeol expressed hope that the mutual recognition process would help increase defence industry cooperation between South Korea and NATO members.

“I welcome the signing of the airworthiness certification as it would enhance interoperability” between South Korea and NATO, Yoon said in his meeting with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

In 2022, Korea Aerospace Industries signed a deal to export 48 FA-50 light combat aircraft to Poland and has completed delivery of 12 jets. AGENCIES

 Three people went missing after a residence in western Japanese prefecture of Ehime was buried in a landslide early Friday, local media reported.

In Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture, a slope measuring around 50 meters wide and 100 meters high collapsed from a mountain at around 4 a.m. local time, with mud reported to have entered nearby houses and an apartment building,said a Japanese news agency citing police and firefighters, Xinhua news agency reported.

The report said that local authorities are searching for three people after the landslide.

The city has issued a level-five evacuation alert, the highest, in the disaster-hit Shimizu district, which requires people to immediately act to protect their lives by moving to a sturdy building, the upper floor of a house, or another safe location.

As of 8 a.m. local time on Friday, Matsuyama City had recorded 213 mm of rainfall since Wednesday, equivalent to the monthly average rainfall for July.

The landslide occurred as the country’s weather agency warned of heavy rain mainly in western Japan, urging people to be on high alert for landslides and flooding in low-lying areas.

The Japan Meteorological Agency said with a rainy-season front lingering over the Pacific side of western to eastern Japan through Saturday, the atmospheric conditions are likely to be very unstable. AGENCIES

US forces have destroyed five Houthi uncrewed surface vessels in the Red Sea, according to US Central Command.

The forces also destroyed two Houthi uncrewed aerial systems over the Red Sea and one system in a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen, late Thursday, reported Xinhua news agency citing the US Central Command’s statement.

“It was determined these systems presented an imminent threat to US, coalition forces, and merchant vessels in the region. These actions were taken to protect freedom of navigation and make international waters more safe and secure,” the US Central command said.

Early on Thursday, the Houthi group, which controls much of northern Yemen, said the US-British coalition launched five airstrikes targeting the area of Rad Issa, northwest of the Houthi-held Red Sea port city of Hodeidah, Houthi-run al-Masirah TV reported.

Since last November and in a display of solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, the Houthi group began to launch anti-ship ballistic missiles and drones targeting what they said are Israeli-linked ships transiting the Red Sea.

In response, the US-British naval coalition stationed in the waters has since January conducted air raids and missile strikes against Houthi targets to deter the group, leading to the expansion of Houthi attacks to include US and British commercial vessels and naval ships.

Houthi leader Abdulmalik al-Houthi said in a televised speech on Thursday that his group had targeted “a total of 166 ships linked to Israel, the US, and Britain” since November. AGENCIES