Indonesia in talks with UK over repatriation of rapist Reynhard Sinaga

The British government is speaking with Indonesia about repatriating the most prolific rapist in UK history.

Reynhard Sinaga, 41, was in 2020 found guilty of assaulting 48 men in Manchester.

Sinaga met his victims at bars and clubs, then took them back to his apartment, where he drugged and raped them.

He was sentenced to at least 30 years in prison for 159 offences, which he committed between January 2015 and May 2017.

Indonesia’s senior minister for law and human rights affairs Yusril Ihza Mahendra told reporters late on Thursday that talks with the British government were at an early stage.

The mechanism for such a repatriation would be decided later, he said, either through a prisoner transfer or through an exchange with a British prisoner jailed in Indonesia.

“No matter how wrong a citizen is, the country has the obligation to defend its citizen,” Yusril said.

“It’s not an easy job for us,” he said, adding there are many things that need to be negotiated with the British government.

The British embassy in Indonesia did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Indonesia is also looking at ways to repatriate Riduan Isamuddin, better known as Hambali, who was accused of being involved in some deadly attacks including the 2002 Bali bombings.

Under British rules, Sinaga is only able to file for leniency after he has been in jail for 30 years, Yusril said.

Sinaga’s family have met with the ministry’s representative to seek his repatriation.

If the British government agrees to his return he would be jailed in a maximum security prison, Yusril said. “Otherwise he will cause new problems.”

Sinaga, who has been in the UK since 2007, targeted young men who looked drunk or vulnerable and rendered them unconscious with a sedative.

The rape investigation was the largest in British legal history.

Visas and deportations on agenda as Modi prepares to visit Trump

Narendra Modi is visiting Washington DC next week to meet Donald Trump amid concerns over trade tariffs and visas for Indian skilled workers.

The Indian prime minister is only the second foreign leader, after Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu, to be invited by the White House since Mr Trump started his second term last month.

The trip comes as anger is growing in India over the humiliating deportation by the US of over a hundred illegal migrants back to the South Asian country this week.

Foreign policy experts believe that Mr Modi and Mr Trump will talk immigration, trade, and arms sales. China is also set to be on the agenda as Mr Trump looks to India to help counter the Asian giant.

Mr Modi’s visit was announced hours after a US military plane deposited 104 Indian illegal migrants, shackled and chained, in the northern city of Amritsar.

The deportation flight to India was part of Mr Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration in the US, in fulfilment of a key election promise.

The return of the migrants, aged 4 to 46, is being seen as an embarrassment for India and Mr Modi, who boasts of having a personal relationship with the new American president.

Indian foreign minister S Jaishankar told parliament it was standard practice for US authorities to restrain deportees, but this wasn’t done to women and children on the plane, a claim disputed by the returned migrants who said even women were chained.

“We are, of course, engaging with the US government to ensure returning deportees are not mistreated in any manner during the flight,” he said.

Mr Modi’s government has already committed to repatriating nearly 18,000 Indians living in the US, Bloomberg News reported, a decision that is being interpreted as an attempt to placate the new US administration and avoid a trade war.

The Pew Research Center estimates that there are 725,000 illegal Indian immigrants in the US.

Mr Trump has said he is sure India “will do the right thing” when it comes to illegal immigration.

India is hoping the Trump administration will safeguard legal migration pathways for its citizens, including student visas and H-1B visas for skilled workers amid worries that the US will cut the number of permits for Indians.

The sought-after H-1B visas are for skilled workers, typically working in technology, healthcare, engineering, and finance. Indians received around three-quarters of the 386,000 H-1B visas issued in 2023.

Mr Trump has said that he likes “very competent people coming into our country even if that involves them training and helping other people that may not have the qualifications they do”.

But New Delhi remains anxious over the American president’s hawkish outlook on Brics, a group of major economies that includes India and China.

“India’s posture of appeasement is not unique, but it’s very clever,” Milan Vaishnav, director of the South Asia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told The Washington Post. “By making preemptive concessions on relatively minor issues, governments can allow Trump to put quick wins on the board without enduring too much pain themselves.”

Mr Trump in his second term wants more from India. He has called Mr Modi a “great leader” and last week said they were “committed to a mutually beneficial and trusted partnership”.

But he has previously accused India of charging excessive tariffs, even calling the country a “tariff king”, and threatened to impose reciprocal levies.

The president emphasised the importance of “moving towards a fair bilateral trade relationship” during a phone call with Modi last week, according to a White House readout.

India, on its part, has sought to avoid a trade war with its biggest trading partner.

The commerce ministry recently cut tariffs on heavyweight bikes with engines above 1,600cc from 50 per cent to 30 per cent and on smaller models to 40 per cent – complying with Mr Trump’s longstanding demand to reduce levies on high-end motorcycles like the Harley Davidson.

Mr Trump has begun his second presidency by launching a trade war with China. The two countries have announced tit-for-tat levies on a range of goods in recent days.

The US president has also threatened to hit Brics with 100 per cent tariffs if they attempt to introduce an alternative currency to the dollar.

Mr Trump is expected to push Mr Modi to purchase more American military equipment for India, the largest defence importer in the world.

Amitendu Palit, economist at the National University of Singapore, said one risk for India seeking to appease Mr Trump is that it could result in more demands from the US.

“Trump’s trajectory is if you agree to him once, you can’t be sure that it is done forever, because he will come back asking for a higher price,” he told Bloomberg. “That’s a challenge.”

Report points to far higher death toll in Kumbh Mela stampede

At least 79 people died in last week’s stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela in India, far exceeding the toll of 30 claimed by the provincial government, an investigation by a news outlet has found.

The government in northern Uttar Pradesh state, run by Narendra Modi’s BJP party, has been facing criticism for mismanaging the Hindu religious festival in Prayagraj and accused of covering up the death toll from the stampede, with opposition leaders demanding transparency and accountability.

The state’s chief minister, a Hindu monk called Yogi Adityanath, has been under fire for his administration’s delayed response to the tragedy on 29 January and his failure to release casualty figures promptly.

While his government has since ordered an investigation, it has not revised the initial toll.

An investigation by independent news outlet Newslaundry found the actual toll was far higher. A senior government official gave the outlet a list containing the names of 69 people who had reportedly been brought dead from the Kumbh to the Motilal Nehru Medical College in Prayagraj. At least 66 of the bodies had been handed over to their families by 3 February while three remained unidentified.

Ten of these victims were men and the rest women. The bodies were stored in a large freezer space, instead of the mortuary, the same facility used after a 2013 Kumbh stampede. None of the corpses were taken for postmortem, the outlet found, raising further questions about the government’s handling of the tragedy.

“The responsibility for postmortems lies with the police,” Newslaundry quoted a state official as saying. “The hospital only carries them out upon police request, but the administration wanted to send the bodies home as soon as possible.”

Relatives were provided with free ambulances, accompanied by police personnel, to take away the bodies. They were given receipts to claim the bodies as well, but two such receipts reviewed by the news outlet did not carry a date.

Further discrepancies were found at the Swaroop Rani Hospital in Prayagraj where a bulletin board initially listed seven dead and 36 injured. The list had been taken down the next day.

Records examined by Newslaundry at a nearby station suggested six unidentified bodies had been brought to the hospital from the Kumb grounds. While two were the same as on the hospital’s list, one person had died at 10.27pm, taking the tally to 10.

Taken together with the 69 fatalities recorded at the Motilal Nehru Medical College, the death toll from the Maha Kumbh stampede rises to at least 79.

The official count of 30 deaths has also been met with scepticism from opposition leaders.

Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav accused the Adityanath government of hiding the true figures and mishandling the situation. Speaking in the Lok Sabha, the lower chamber of the parliament, he alleged that earthmovers and tractors were used to clear away bodies.

“Footwear and clothing were scattered at the scene and JCB machines and tractor trolleys were used to remove the dead,” Mr Yadav, a former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, said. “When this sparked outrage, the government scrambled to cover it up.”

He demanded that “the figures for deaths, injured individuals, medical facilities, food, water, and transport should be disclosed in the parliament” of India.

Mallikarjun Kharge, leader of the main opposition Congress party, caused an uproar in the parliament by claiming “thousands” of people had died at the Kumbh, prompting upper house chairperson Jagdeep Dhankar to demand that he authenticate the number or withdraw the statement. “This is my estimate and if this is not right, you should tell what the truth is,” Mr Kharge said, addressing the government.

Trinamool Congress member Saugata Roy called the stampede one of the worst tragedies of independent India.

The ruling BJP, however, downplayed the incident. Senior MP Hema Malini described the stampede as a minor event. “We visited the Kumbh, everything was well-managed,” she said. “It is true that the incident happened, but it wasn’t that big. It is being exaggerated.”

Mr Adityanath, meanwhile, claimed on Tuesday that the stampede was a conspiracy and threatened strict action against anyone found responsible.

The Independent has contacted the Uttar Pradesh government for comment.

Fake alcohol warning after 100 die from poisoning in tourist spot

Turkey this week issued a warning on bootleg alcohol, with the number fatally poisoned by illicit booze in Turkey rising to 103 since the beginning of the year.

The deaths happened in Ankara and Istanbul, NTV reported on Friday, after authorities warned about rising sales of illicit booze being passed off as big-name brands.

In Istanbul, 70 people have died since 14 January, NTV said. Another 33 have died in the capital Ankara since the start of the year, NTV said, citing Ankara governor Vasip Sahin.

Another 230 people in the two cities had been hospitalised. Of those in hospitals, 40 were in a critical condition.

The price of alcoholic drinks has rocketed in recent years due to heavy taxes imposed by president Tayyip Erdogan’s Islamist-rooted ruling AK Party. Alcoholic drinks makers have also faced an increasingly onerous tax burden and other restrictions.

The high costs have pushed some consumers and shops, restaurants, and bars to rely on bootleg alcohol and homemade drinks, leading to rising poisoning in recent years.

The government again hiked taxes on alcohol and tobacco products for 2025 on 3 January. The office of Istanbul‘s governor could not immediately be reached for comment.

Last month, the Istanbul governor’s office said it had taken steps to combat bootleg sales and distribution, including mandatory cameras at shops selling alcohol, suspending or revoking sale licences, and carrying out regular inspections.

Authorities have arrested 13 people in Ankara and 11 others in Istanbul, NTV said, citing the local governors. They have seized 102 tons of methanol and ethanol in Ankara, and over 86,000 litres of bootleg or smuggled alcohol in Istanbul, it added.

The warning comes a few months after six people, including a British backpacker, died after apparently drinking tainted alcohol in Laos.

British backpacker and lawyer Simone White, 28, from Orpington in Kent was among those to have died from suspected methanol poisoning after allegedly being served free drinks in Laos‘s Vang Vieng area.

Two Danes, two Australians and an American have also died after being taken to the hospital with similar symptoms.

Homemade alcohol, popular in southeast Asia, may accidentally contain too much methanol because of the distillation process. Or it may be used as a cheap substitute for ethanol – effectively a counterfeit alcoholic drink.

Hong Kong continues to suspend packages for US

Hong Kong’s post office announced late Thursday it would continue to suspend shipping items containing goods to the United States until further notice, despite its American counterpart having reversed its ban on packages from the region and other parts of China.

The Hong Kong government said in a statement that Hongkong Post was in talks with the U.S. postal administration but further clarification was still needed on certain matters, including over a tariff. It reiterated its strong disapproval over the U.S. imposition of additional duty on Hong Kong products, urging the U.S. to take “urgent actions to rectify its wrongdoing.”

The U.S. post office had announced Tuesday that it would no longer accept parcels from China, including Hong Kong, after the U.S. imposed an additional 10 per cent tariff on Chinese goods and ended a customs exception that allowed small-value parcels to enter the U.S. without paying tax.

It reversed course Wednesday but gave no reason, saying it would work with Customs and Border Protection to implement a collection process for the new tariffs to avoid delivery disruptions.

Although the ban was short-lived and the U-turn came within the same day for those who live in the Hong Kong time zone, it confused those who wanted to post to the U.S. from the trading hub.

It also sparked concerns over the potential impact on online shopping platforms like Shein and Temu, popular with younger shoppers in the U.S. for cheap clothing and other products, usually shipped directly from China.

Cheap, direct postal service helps these companies keep costs low, as did the “de minimis” exemption that previously allowed shipments to go tax-free if their value is under $800.

The U.S. imported about $427bn worth of goods from China in 2023, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Consumer electronics, including cellphones, computers and other tech accessories, make up the biggest import categories.

Four killed after US military contractor plane crashes in Philippines

A US military-contracted aircraft crashed in the southern Philippines on Thursday, killing one service member and three defence contractors, the US Indo-Pacific Command has confirmed.

The aircraft was on a routine intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance mission at the request of Philippine authorities when it went down in a rice field in Maguindanao del Sur province, the command said. The cause of the crash is under investigation.

Local officials reported that the wreckage was found in the town of Ampatuan, with all four bodies recovered from the site. Ameer Jehad Tim Ambolodto, a safety officer in the province, said authorities were withholding the victims’ identities until their families were notified.

“The incident occurred during a routine mission in support of US-Philippine security cooperation activities,” the Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement about the crash on Mindanao island.

“We can confirm no survivors of the crash,” said the US military.

Windy Beaty, a provincial disaster officer, told the Associated Press that witnesses saw smoke and heard an explosion before the aircraft crashed less than a kilometre from a cluster of farmhouses. No residents were injured, though a water buffalo was killed in the impact.

Police and military personnel have secured the area to prevent any interference with the investigation. Officials have not disclosed details about the aircraft or its mission, citing security protocols.

The Philippine military has also refused to release more information on crash, saying the matter was classified and is under investigation, reported AFP. A regional spokesperson, Jopy Ventura, told the French wire agency that the officers had not yet determined the cause of crash.

US forces have maintained a presence in the southern Philippines for years, assisting the country’s military with intelligence and training in counterterrorism efforts.

Additional reporting by agencies

Mandatory jail term for Nazi salute under new rules in Australia

Australia on Thursday passed anti-hate crime laws under which a Nazi salute in public, among other similar offences, will be punishable by a mandatory jail sentence.

The laws were passed in an effort to tackle a wave of high-profile antisemitic attacks targeting Jews in Australia in the wake of Israel’s war on Gaza.

The laws will impose jail sentences between 12 months for less serious hate crimes, such as giving a Nazi salute in public, and six years for those found guilty of terrorism offences.

Recent months have seen an escalation of attacks on synagogues, buildings and cars of Jewish community members across the country, including the discovery of a caravan laden with explosives with a list of Jewish targets in Sydney.

“I want people who are engaged in antisemitism to be held to account, to be charged, to be incarcerated,” prime minister Anthony Albanese, who had initially opposed mandatory minimum sentences for hate crimes, told Sky News.

The government’s hate crimes bill was first introduced to parliament last year, creating new offences for threatening force or violence against people based on their race, religion, nationality, national or ethnic origin, political opinion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and intersex status.

Home minister Tony Burke, who introduced the amendments enabling the provisions late on Wednesday, said the changes were the toughest laws Australia has ever had against hate crimes.

Self-described Nazi Jacob Hersant was the first person to be convicted in the state of Victoria last year for performing the outlawed Nazi salute.

The 25-year-old gave the salute and praised Nazi leader Adolf Hitler in front of news media cameras outside the Victoria County Court on 27 October 2023, after he had appeared on an unrelated charge. It was six days after the Victoria state government had made the salute illegal.

Three men were convicted in June 2024 of performing the Nazi salute during a soccer match in Sydney on 1 October 2022. New South Wales state had banned Nazi symbols in 2022. They were each fined and have appealed.

Netflix India shares 2025 lineup heavy on Bollywood star children

Netflix has revealed its Indian original content lineup for 2025, with over 25 projects across films, series, sports, and unscripted programming.

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan makes his Netflix debut with The Ba***ds of Bollywood, which he directed. The series, which follows an ambitious outsider and his friends as they navigate the larger-than-life yet uncertain world of Bollywood, is produced by Shah Rukh Khan and wife Gauri Khan’s production company Red Chillies Entertainment.

From YRF Entertainment comes Akka, set in the 1980s matriarchal society of a fictional city of Pernuru, South India and will star National award winner Keerthy Suresh, Radhika Apte, and Tanvi Azmi.

Also from YRF is Mandala Murders, a moody series starring Vaani Kapoor and Surveen Chawla that delves into ritualistic killings linked to a centuries-old secret society.

Glory, starring Divyenndu, Pulkit Samrat, and Suvinder Vicky, is a murder mystery set in the sporting world, following legendary boxing coach Raghubir Singh who is forced to reunite with estranged sons after a savage attack.

Marking Netflix’s first foray into Telugu series, Super Subbu stars Sundeep Kishan and Mithila Palkar in a comedy drama about a man’s job as an adult sex education teacher in a remote, conservative village.

Bringing together two Bollywood legacies is Nadaaniyan, starring Saif Ali Khan’s son Ibrahim Ali Khan in his debut and Sridevi’s daughter Khushi Kapoor in a film that follows a South Delhi diva who hires a boy with a middle-class background to pose as her boyfriend. Hijinks ensue in the romance that also stars Mahima Chaudhary, Suniel Shetty, Dia Mirza and Jugal Hansraj.

Speaking of Bollywood legacies, Netflix will also release Dining with the Kapoors, which claims to offer an intimate look into Bollywood’s iconic Kapoor family, featuring multiple generations including Ranbir Kapoor, Karisma Kapoor, Kareena Kapoor Khan.

The Royals brings together The Perfect Couple’s Ishaan Khatter with Bhumi Pednekar in a breezy romcom that follows prince Aviraaj Singh trying to save his dysfunctional royal family from financial ruin with CEO Sophia Kanmani Shekhar, who in turn is hoping to keep her startup away from aggressive investors.

Toaster, starring Rajkummar Rao, Sanya Malhotra, and an ensemble cast including Archana Puran Singh and Abhishek Banerjee, looks to be a fun ride as it follows a miser obsessed with the titular toaster he gifted at a wedding and somehow finds himself in the midst of murder and utter chaos.

Saif Ali Khan reunites with his Salaam Namaste director Siddharth Anand in the latter’s streaming debut, Jewel Thief – The Heist Begins. A high stakes thriller about a jewel thief hired by a powerful crime lord to steal the elusive African Red Sun diamond, the film sees what happens when a meticulously planned heist goes awry.

New seasons of popular series Khakee, Rana Naidu, Kohrra, and international Emmy-winning Delhi Crime are also set to return to Netflix this year.

Earlier this year, Netflix released subscriber numbers for the last quarter of 2024, which showed that the streamer’s gamble with live sporting events had paid off spectacularly, as November’s Mike Tyson and Jake Paul boxing match drew 108 million viewers worldwide, making it the most-streamed sporting event ever.

With that in mind, Netflix will be hosting more live events like WWE wrestling, which will be available with Hindi commentary this year.