Quick Reads
News Dabba for 20 September 2024: Five stories for a balanced news diet
Here are the daily updates that the internet is talking about through various news websites.
Indie Journal brings you the daily updates that the internet is talking about through various news websites. Here's a glance through some of the National and International news updates, from Israel hitting 100 Hezbollah rocket launchers in Lebanon, Taiwan questions head of pager firm linked to Hezbollah blasts, to the Health Ministry asking for detailed report in Tirupati Laddoo row.
Israel says it hit 100 Hezbollah rocket launchers in Lebanon, BBC
Israel has carried out extensive air strikes on southern Lebanon targeting positions of the Iranian-backed group Hezbollah, BBC reports. The military says its warplanes struck more than 100 rocket launchers, as well as a weapons depot. This comes as Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant says "we are at the start of a new phase of the war". The Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, has vowed to inflict retribution after explosions of communication devices used by the group killed more than 30 people and injured thousands. Read the full report here.
Health Ministry asks for detailed report as Tirupati Laddoo row escalates
Union Health Minister JP Nadda has asked Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu for a "detailed report" on allegations there was animal fat in ghee used to make the Tirupati laddoos, NDTV reports. The laddoos are 'prasadam' to the deity at the temple and offered to crores of devotees who visit every year. Food Minister Pralhad Joshi, meanwhile, called for a thorough inquiry. "Whatever the Chief Minister said is a matter of serious concern. A detailed enquiry is required and the culprit should be punished." Naidu's Telugu Desam Party this week cited a July report from a government-run lab in Gujarat that said samples of the ghee used when his rival - YSR Congress Party boss YS Jagan Mohan Reddy - was in power, contained traces of beef tallow, fish oil, and pig fat, or lard. Read the full report here.
Taiwan questions head of pager firm linked to Hezbollah blasts: The Straits Times
The Straits Times reports that the president and founder of a Taiwanese pager company linked to the detonation of thousands of pagers targeting Hezbollah in Lebanon was questioned by prosecutors late into the night on Friday, then released. Taiwan-based Gold Apollo’s president and founder Hsu Ching-kuang has said it did not manufacture the devices used in the attack, and that they were made by a Budapest-based company BAC, which has a licence to use its brand. Images of destroyed pagers analysed by Reuters showed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with pagers made by Gold Apollo, the report says. Read the full report here.
Indian Army officer's fiancée ‘sexually abused’ by Odisha policeman, Hindustan Times reports
Former Odisha chief minister and Biju Janata Dal president Naveen Patnaik on Friday demanded a court-monitored SIT probe and a judicial inquiry into the alleged sexual harassment of an Indian Army officer's fiancée in police custody. Hindustan Times reports that Patnaik, the leader of opposition in the Odisha assembly, condemned the incident and termed it as “very shocking”. Read the full report here.
Al Jazeera: Violence rocks France overseas territories in challenge for new PM Barnier
France’s territories in the Caribbean and the Pacific are facing a new wave of unrest with security forces killing two men in New Caledonia and a curfew imposed after rioting in Martinique. Al Jazeera reports that the uptick in violence poses a challenge for new centre-right Prime Minister Michel Barnier, who has struggled to form a government following snap parliamentary elections in June, when no party won an absolute majority. In the Pacific territory of New Caledonia, police killed two men during an overnight operation, the report mentions. Separately, the prefect of France’s overseas territory of Martinique imposed a nighttime curfew to limit movement in certain districts of Fort-de-France and Le Lamentin due to violence that has rocked the Caribbean island. Read the full report here.
