Indian expat accused of murder in Kuwait dies
Dubai, Sep 6: An Indian expat in Kuwait, accused of murdering a Filipina domestic worker, died in a hospital where he was admitted for treatment of self-inflicted wounds, the Kuwait Public Prosecution said. The Indian stabbed the worker several times until she died at her sponsor’s residence in Omariya, a Kuwaiti suburb, The Khaleej Times reported on Tuesday. The prosecution said that after receiving the report of stabbing, investigation procedures were carried out at the crime scene to examine the victim’s body. After stabbing the victim, the attacker turned the weapon on himself, and was quickly moved to Farwaniya hospital where he succumbed to his injuries, the prosecution said. The report didn’t mention the type of weapon used for killing. The name of the expat and the victim was withheld by the authorities, which only identified them as Asians. (IANS)
China bans govt officials from using iPhones
Hong Kong, Sep 6: Amid the escalating rivalry between the US and China, the Xi Jinping government has reportedly barred officials from using iPhones at work, the media reported on Wednesday. Beijing has instructed some government staff to stop using iPhones through chat groups or meetings, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.Apple relies heavily on Greater China region for both manufacturing and sales of its iPhones and has a major chunk of its product manufacturing in the country amid its future plans to make India the next big manufacturing hub. “Restrictions on foreign devices are the latest step in Beijing’s campaign to reduce reliance on overseas technology and could hurt Apple’s success in the country,” the report noted. China apparently ordered officials at central government agencies not to use iPhones and other foreign-branded devices for work or bring them into the office. (IANS)
Myanmar journalist gets 20-year sentence
Bangkok, Sep 6: A court in Myanmar sentenced a photojournalist for an underground news agency to 20 years in prison with hard labour for his coverage of a deadly May cyclone’s aftermath, the media organisation said Wednesday. The sentence given Sai Zaw Thaike, a photographer for the independent online news service Myanmar Now, appeared to be the most severe for any journalist detained since the military overthrew the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021. The press freedom group Reporters Without Borders said in April that Myanmar is the world’s second- biggest jailer of journalists, behind only China. The country ranks near the bottom of the group’s 2023 World Press Freedom Index, placing 176th out of 180 countries. Myanmar Now, which operates underground, reported that a military tribunal tried, convicted and sentenced Thaike, 40, during the first court hearing since he was detained in the western state of Rakhine. The proceedings took place inside Insein prison in Yangon, Myanmar’s biggest city, where the photographer was jailed after his arrest. (AP)