31 migrants found in truck
Berlin: German news agency dpa says police and customs officers discovered some 31 migrants hidden inside a refrigerated truck near the border with the Czech Republic.
The truck was stopped on Tuesday night on the A 17 highway leading from the border to the eastern German city of Dresden. It had a Turkish number plate and was also carrying fruit.
The migrants were all male and aged between 18 and 47 years, public broadcast station MDR reported. They came from Turkey, Syria, Iran and Iraq. The driver of the truck was a 57-year-old Turkish citizen who was detained by police. (AP)
Tanker off UAE ‘hijacked’
Dubai: An oil tanker sought by the US over allegedly circumventing sanctions on Iran was hijacked on July 5 off the coast of the United Arab Emirates, a seafarers organisation said on Wednesday.
Satellite photos showed the vessel in Iranian waters on Tuesday and two of its sailors remained in the Iranian capital. It wasn’t immediately clear what happened aboard the Dominica-flagged MT Gulf Sky, though its reported hijacking comes after months of tensions between Iran and the US.
The Emirati government, the US Embassy in Abu Dhabi and the US Navy’s Bahrain-based 5th Fleet did not respond to requests for comment. (AP)
Drug ‘pipeline’ shut down
Providence (US): Federal authorities have shut down what they described as a cocaine pipeline” that may have shipped more than 100 kilograms (220 pounds) of cocaine from Puerto Rico to Rhode Island.
Five people have been charged in connection with the alleged drug ring that shipped the cocaine through the U.S. Postal Service, according to a statement Tuesday from U.S. Attorney for Rhode Island, Aaron Weisman.
Four people are in custody and an arrest warrant has been issued for a fifth suspect. (AP)
Turkey, US discuss Libya
Ankara: Turkish and US presidents held talks over the phone about the developments in Libya and bilateral economic ties, Turkey’s Communications Directorate said.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his US counterpart Donald Trump agreed to keep coordination for reaching a lasting peace and stability in war-torn Libya, as well as achieving the trade target. Libya has been suffering from escalating violence ever since the fall of the late leader Muammar Gaddafi’s regime in 2011. (IANS)