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Moscow, May 14 (IANS) The Kremlin has rejected the ruling of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Council, which placed the responsibility for the 2014 Malaysia Airlines crash on Russia.The UN body, ICAO, recently alleged that Russia was responsible for the July 17, 2014, downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine that killed all 298 people on board.”Russia will not recognise the Council’s ruling. It is illegitimate and violates the 1944 Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation and its own rule of procedure. Unlike the biased majority on the Council, Russia remains committed to UN Security Council resolution 2166 (2014) and the cause of identifying the real causes of the air crash,” the country’s foreign ministry said.The ministry denied any involvement of Russia in the Malaysia Airlines crash.”Last year, on June 17, 2024, Russia halted its participation in this investigation because it was impossible to ensure the unbiasedness of the probe amid numerous procedural violations by the ICAO Council and Secretariat. Moscow’s principles position, however, remains unchanged — Russia has nothing to do with the MH17 crash and all allegations otherwise by Australia and the Netherlands are in opposition to the facts,” it said.”Prior to this, Russia presented to the Council convincing factual and legal evidence of its noninvolvement in the crash and shared this data with all member countries of the Council. It was Kyiv that refused to close the airspace over the combat operations zone and used civilian passenger aircraft, such as MH17, as a shield for its bombers,” the ministry asserted.Earlier on Tuesday, addressing a press briefing, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russia sees the findings of an investigation into the MH17 crash as biased and does not accept them.”I am not going to comment on this. Our position is well known. Russia was not among the parties that took part in investigating the accident. This is why we don’t accept any of the prejudiced conclusions,” the Russian presidential spokesman noted.Meanwhile, the Russian foreign ministry stressed that Moscow had several times suggested that the Council conduct a thorough and independent international investigation of the MH17 crash in line with UNSC resolution.”But being guided by political motives and in violation of the established procedure, the Council refused to conduct such an investigation and instead took for granted Australia’s and the Netherlands’ allegations and the findings of the joint investigative team, which includes Australia, the Netherlands, and Ukraine, or countries that are directly interested in demonising Russia,” the ministry noted.–IANSint/scor/sd/

Los Angeles, May 14 (IANS) Singer-songwriter Justin Bieber made a surprise appearance on his Instagram, and posted a series of 13 videos in his recent post.
The singer spoke about a wide range of topics, from faith and fishing to honor and integrity, in his recent Instagram post, reports ‘People’ magazine.The two-time Grammy winner posted an Instagram carousel that included 13 different videos of him speaking directly to the camera with a filter that distorted his face and altered his voice to a higher pitch.As per ‘People’, in his post, the 31-year-old musician opened with claims that he lived in Alaska from ages 17 to 19. He recalled “Alaska living”, and said he would “reel in” fish and could catch “a half a dozen on a good day”.Bieber is from Canada and has never gone on record saying he lived in Alaska after rising to fame when he was 12 years old in 2009. He then started sharing a different train of thought, and beginning on slide three, as he said, “I don’t mean to get in between the stuff you got going on and the people around ya, it’s what we like to say, it’s no buena (sic)”.“Question, you ask around, you say, ‘You’re worried about the what’”, he then said in a short clip on slide four. Then slide five featured him saying, “You’ve been hurt. You’ve been afraid. You have been shut down. But let me tell you a little something”, and the video seemingly continued on slide six. “G-o-d. Our boy Jesus, he’s got a plan, and he works all things together for Gucci”, he said, before clarifying, “Gucci is what we mean when we mean good”.He then pivoted his sentiment and said, “They want to be like a rat, stealing your cheese. Running the little wheel, going crazy, trying to take away every last bit of your sanity”. On slide eight, he asked, “Are you tired of them telling you, ‘You must become like your older brother Marcus?’ ‘You must become like your older sister Helga?’ ‘You must become like so-and-so that you work with until you retire?’ And you say”, but the video cut out once more.On slide nine, Bieber said, “I live by two things: loyalty and conviction. Now, let me tell you one thing about loyalty. I’m always there for the people that made me, because that’s just the kind of guy”.–IANSaa/

Mumbai, May 14 (IANS) Anupam Kher, who is currently attending the prestigious Cannes Film Festival 2025, has humorously referred to himself as a ‘Hindi Medium boy’ while asking his fans to overlook his pronunciation of English words.

The veteran actor, known for his versatility, embraced his roots with charm and wit. On Wednesday, Anupam Kher took to Instagram to share a video of himself reading a magazine that features him on the cover. In the video, he also recites some of the lines written about him, reflecting on the honor. Sharing the video, he wrote in the caption, “I have always looked at my life like a film. At an early stage of my humble beginnings it helped me go into a dream world. Where I was always a hero. It has also helped me to have a constant ‘Sense Of Wonder’ about life.”“Even after having achieved so much in the last 40 years by God’s blessings and my hard work, I still get excited with small little/big happenings in my life. And I love to share them with you all. So, while I read out the article from #Variety magazine Ignore the small town Hindi medium boy’s pronunciation of English words and ENJOY the content. Jai Ho! #KuchBhiHoSaktaHai #CannesDiaries #TanviTheGreat,” Anupam Kher added.In the sweet video, the 70-year-old actor could be heard saying, “Friends, I have a photo in Cannes. Let me show it to you. This is a special issue of Cannes. And who is this young man inside? Who is he? Can you see? Who is he? Different but no less. Tanvi the Great. Wow, amazing. Where did this boy from Shimla come from? Now, after 22 years, he returns to the director’s chair to bring to life the story that resides deepest in his soul. His most personal and poignant work yet. Tanvi the Great. Thank you very much.”Anupam Kher’s directorial debut, ‘Tanvi The Great,’ is set to have its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival 2025. The film will be showcased at the Marché du Film, the official film market held alongside the prestigious festival. Kher will take the stage to personally present the film.–IANSps/

New Delhi, May 14 (IANS) Former India captain Mohammad Kaif has claimed that Virat Kohli might not have gotten the backing he anticipated from the BCCI and selectors, which in turn led to him ending his Test cricket career with immediate effect.
Kohli, who scored 9,230 runs in 123 matches at an average of 46.85, wrote on Instagram on Monday that he would be retiring from Tests with immediate effect. His decision comes just five days after India captain Rohit Sharma retired from Test cricket.“I think he wanted to continue in the format. There must have been some internal talks with the BCCI, the selectors may have cited his form in the past 5-6 years and told him his spot in the team may no longer be there. We will never find out what happened, it is very difficult to guess what actually took place behind the scenes.”“But given the last minute decision, having played the Ranji trophy, I definitely think he wanted to come back in the upcoming Tests. The developments in the last few weeks, he may have not gotten the support he thought he will get from BCCI and selectors which he may not have gotten,” said Kaif in an exclusive conversation with IANS.In recent times, Kohli had struggled to make consistent runs in Tests. He scored 190 runs in nine innings of the 2024/25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, which India lost 3-1. 100 of those runs came in an unbeaten second innings knock at Perth. Kaif felt Kohli being in a hurry to score runs in Australia was also an indication that his Test career was coming to a swift end.“In the Border Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25, he looked in a hurry to score runs. You have to stay out for hours and grind in Test cricket, which he has done in the past but the constant edging of the ball moving away from him while attempting to drive, made me feel his patience was a bit less.”“Maybe he was thinking ‘I am in the last phase of my career what’s the point of scoring a gritty century, there used to be a different level of patience on display from him before, he used to leave the balls, take his time, tire the bowlers and then took them down but I did not see that from him in Australia’.”“That one method of dismissal at the slips perhaps shows that he was not ready to spend hours at the crease. The communication from BCCI and the self-realization in red-ball cricket may have led to the decision,” he elaborated.While Kaif was certain about Rohit retiring from Tests after making himself unavailable for the Sydney Test earlier this year, he still expressed surprise over Kohli leaving the longer format. “On the other hand, Virat’s decision left me confused. Yes in his Test career his numbers have come down in the past few years but a 36-year-old fit Virat Kohli could have comeback like he has proved before.”“It felt he would play for a few years, guiding the youth players. This is a very private decision, he always used to say that it is his favourite format. If you look at any interview of his he always used to ring praises of the Test format.”“He used to enjoy it because he used to love the gruelling challenge and he often encouraged the youngsters to follow his route to keep Test cricket from dying. He used to tell youngsters to earn the Test cap and it highly benefited Indian cricket,” concluded Kaif.–IANSnr/

Kolkata, May 14 (IANS) The sleuths of the Kolkata Police’s Security Control Organisation are now trying to track down foreign nationals who arrived in the city with proper documents but did not leave even after their visa terms expired.

Insiders from the city police said that the new initiative has been mooted following apprehension that many such foreign nationals have managed to arrange fake Indian identity documents, including Indian passports for themselves through unfair means, and have started residing in the city posing as Indian citizens.In this hunting exercise, sources said, special focus is on foreign nationals from Bangladesh and Pakistan who arrived with proper visas but never went back.During the last one-and-a-half months, at least six such people have been tracked in the city who came from these two countries, arranged for their fake Indian identity documents and then started living permanently in the city posing as Indian citizens.The most serious among the six cases is that of Azad Mullick, originally a Pakistani citizen, who was arrested by the officials of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the city last month. It was later learnt that Azad, a Pakistani citizen, first arranged Bangladeshi citizenship through fake documents and started residing there.In due course, he shifted to Kolkata and subsequently arranged for Indian identity documents, including an Indian passport for himself, using fake documents. He was also running rackets on hawala, fake Indian passports, and fake visas for certain foreign nations from his residence in the northern outskirts of Kolkata.Again, earlier this month, the security control organisation sleuths identified four members of the same family who had been residing in Kolkata for quite some time, with all of them possessing both Indian and Bangladeshi passports.The four persons have been identified as Vijay Modi, his wife Kasaulya Modi, and their sons Dilip Modi and Asish Modi.Preliminary investigation revealed that they came to India with valid visas and started residing at Palm Avenue in South Kolkata. However, they stayed back in Kolkata even after the term of their visas expired, and in the meantime, arranged their fake Indian identity documents, starting with AADHAAR and EPIC cards, and finally Indian passports on the basis of the other Indian identity documents.Also, during the current month, the security control organisation sleuths identified one original Bangladeshi citizen, Sheikh Ramzan, who was staying at a rented accommodation at Tangra in Kolkata.He also came to Kolkata with proper visas and subsequently arranged Indian identity documents for himself and started residing permanently in the city, posing as an Indian citizen.–IANSsrc/svn

New Delhi, May 14 (IANS) The security detail of External Affairs Minister (EAM), S. Jaishankar has been further strengthened with…

Mumbai, May 14 (IANS) “Final Destination: Bloodlines” directors Adam Stein and Zach Lipovsky have expressed their excitement about joining the franchise, which began in 2000.

Lipovsky said that the most thrilling part of making a “Final Destination movie is that it’s a Final Destination movie.”He added: “You’re part of this franchise, this history, that has touched culture for the last 25 years in a way that people in their normal lives—when something out of left field happens to them—they say, ‘Well, that was a Final Destination moment.’He said it is a part of the culture of everyone who loves movies.“And to be able to enter into that world and play in that sandbox as a filmmaker is just so exciting. Not only do you want to honor everything that’s come before, but you also want to push it forward into a realm in which it hasn’t been. And that’s a really, really exciting challenge.”Stein said that one of the most exciting things about making Final Destination Bloodlines was all the practical effects and stunts they were able to do.“The team, the producers, the studio were really excited to do as much of this movie practically, “right in front of our eyes,” as we could. So, we built the giant restaurant… and then we blew it up,” said Stein.Lipovsky added: “Built a cabin in the woods, and then we blew it up.”The two directors said that they “blew a lot of stuff up.“Which, when you’re a filmmaker, it’s just really fun to be able to do. Also, the team we got to work with was really at the top of their game—the best crew, creating the craziest stunts and effects that you can imagine in order to really bring the epic scope of this movie to life,” said Stein.Distributed in cinemas worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, the film will release in India on May 15.–IANSdc/

In a major diplomatic and economic milestone, the newly signed India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA) is set to open exciting…

New Delhi, May 14 (IANS) Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on Madhya Pradesh BJP Minister Vijay Shah over his controversial remarks targeting Indian Army Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, demanding that the BJP and the Centre take stringent action against him.Shah had stirred a political storm during a public address in Mhow while referring to ‘Operation Sindoor’.He claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had sent a “sister from the same community” as that in Pakistan to avenge the April 22 terror strike in Pahalgam, Kashmir. The remark was widely seen as targeting Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, who is from the Muslim community.Reacting strongly to Shah’s comments, Mayawati took to X and posted, “The disgusting, uncivilised and indecent remarks first against the Foreign Secretary and then against the lady Army officer are really going to destroy the whole good atmosphere of enthusiasm and excitement which the whole country is enjoying due to the success of Indian Army’s ‘Operation Sindoor’ against Pakistan, which is extremely sad and shameful.””In this sequence, the BJP and the Central Government should take seriously the indecent remarks made by a senior minister of Madhya Pradesh regarding the Muslim Army spokesperson and take strict action against him, so that the nefarious designs of the enemies fail and the mutual brotherhood and harmony in the country is not spoiled,” she further added.The remarks sparked widespread outrage across political circles and on social media.Madhya Pradesh BJP chief V.D. Sharma summoned Shah on Tuesday evening for a closed-door meeting. Following the meeting, Shah issued a clarification, stating that his remarks had been misinterpreted and taken out of context.”I have nothing to say on the wisdom of those who are twisting my remarks. Colonel Sofiya Qureshi has made the nation proud. We respect both the sisters. I did not intend to hurt anyone and offer my sincere apologies,” Shah said after the meeting.Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, along with Wing Commander Vyomika Singh of the Indian Air Force, played a prominent role in briefing the media during the course of Operation Sindoor — India’s decisive military response to the April 22 terrorist attack in Pahalgam, which claimed the lives of 26 people.The Opposition Congress also launched a fierce attack on Shah, accusing him of dishonouring not just Colonel Qureshi but the entire armed forces.Sharing the video clip of Shah’s comments, Congress leader Jitu Patwari said during a press conference in Bhopal, “The brave daughters of our Army are sisters of terrorists. This disgusting utterance has been made by MP Minister Vijay Shah. This is an insult to our mighty army.”He demanded Shah’s immediate removal from the MP Cabinet. “If the Chief Minister fails to sack Shah, it will be seen as the state Cabinet endorsing his indecent and communal remarks,” Patwari stated.Patwari also pointed to Shah’s past controversies, recalling that he had previously been removed from the state Cabinet in 2013 for making lewd remarks against former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s wife, Sadhna Singh.–IANSsd/rad

Los Angeles, May 14 (IANS) Hollywood actress Halle Bailey has levelled accusations against her ex-boyfriend and father of her child, DDG, of abuse, and was granted a temporary restraining order against him.

The ‘Little Mermaid’ star, 25, detailed alleged incidents of abuse she claims to have endured at the hands of DDG, 27, whose full name is Darryl Dwayne Granberry, reports ‘People’ magazine.The former couple’s son, Halo Saint Granberry, born in December 2023, is also protected from DDG under the temporary restraining order, which was filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court.As per ‘People’, the temporary restraining order requires DDG, a rapper and Twitch streamer, to remain over 100 yards away from Bailey and Halo at all times, including at Halo’s school and Bailey’s vehicle. Bailey and DDG began their relationship in 2022 and ultimately split in 2024. TMZ was the first to report the news.Bailey’s request for a restraining order obtained by ‘People’ details several incidents of alleged abuse, with specific instances dating back to January 2025.“I realize that there is no placating Darryl. I cannot allow this abuse any longer”, Bailey wrote in the documents. Among the allegations made against DDG are that he frequently verbally abused Bailey, often calling her “a bitch” or “evil” in front of their 2-year-old son.”Whenever he wishes to cause upset, he starts badmouthing me to his several millions of fans”, Bailey wrote in her declaration. The declaration continued, “He claims I am withholding our son and that I am with other men. As a result, I then receive threats and hate on social media. He seems to try to set up drama for his fans. He goes ‘live’ ranting about me and alleges that I am keeping Halo from him. This is false. I have requested a set schedule, which he refuses”.–IANSaa/