Malala Yousafzai bags Harvard award for activism

Kasaragod: In a heartbreaking turn of events, the vibrant life of a young medical student from Kasaragod district was tragically cut short in a road accident in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, on Wednesday night.

Mohammed Rashid, a 20-year-old second-year MBBS student, hailed from the close-knit community of Kattatadka AKG Nagar in Kerala's Kasaragod district. Brimming with hope and aspirations, he had recently returned to Coimbatore to continue his studies after spending cherished moments with his family during a brief vacation back home.

On that fateful evening, around 8 PM, Rashid was crossing the road to grab dinner at a nearby hotel when tragedy struck. A speeding tipper truck hit him, leaving the young student fatally injured. Though he was rushed to the hospital, his fight for life ended before he could make it to the emergency room.

The devastating news sent shockwaves through his family and friends. His father, Ahmed, who works in the Gulf, returned immediately, heartbroken, to mourn the unimaginable loss of his beloved son. Rasheed's relatives, too, made the painful journey to Coimbatore, overcome with grief and disbelief.

The passing of Mohammed Rashid has left a deep void not only in the hearts of those who knew and loved him but in the wider community. His dreams of healing others and serving society as a doctor were tragically cut short, leaving behind an irreplaceable loss.

May his memory be a reminder of the fragility of life and the promise that he once held.

Israel began a third day of strikes in southern Lebanon on Wednesday, hours after Hezbollah confirmed the death of a senior commander in an airstrike on Beirut and a Lebanese minister said only Washington could help end the fighting.

Lebanese media reported that Israeli airstrikes had targeted several areas in the country’s south, beginning at around 5am, causing unspecified casualties.

Hezbollah meanwhile said it had launched a rocket targeting Mossad headquarters near Tel Aviv. Sirens had sounded in the Israeli city early on Wednesday, sending residents into bomb shelters, however the Israeli military later said it had intercepted the missile and no casualties or damage were reported.

Earlier on Wednesday, Hezbollah had confirmed that senior commander Ibrahim Qubaisi was among six people killed by an Israeli airstrike on an apartment block in the Lebanese capital Beirut on Tuesday, as Israel had claimed earlier. Israel said Qubaisi headed the group’s missile and rocket force.

Israel’s offensive since Monday morning has killed 569 people, including 50 children, and wounded 1,835 in Lebanon, health minister Firass Abiad told Al Jazeera Mubasher TV. Tuesday’s attacks came after Monday’s barrages racked up the highest death toll in any single day in Lebanon since the 15-year civil war that started in 1975.

Israel’s new offensive against Hezbollah has stoked fears that nearly a year of conflict between Israel and the militant Palestinian group Hamas in Gaza is escalating and could destabilise the Middle East. Britain urged its nationals to leave Lebanon and said it was moving 700 troops to Cyprus to help its citizens evacuate.

The UN security council said it would meet on Wednesday to discuss the conflict.

“Lebanon is at the brink. The people of Lebanon – the people of Israel – and the people of the world – cannot afford Lebanon to become another Gaza,” UN secretary general António Guterres said.

At the UN, which is holding its general assembly this week, US President Joe Biden made a plea for calm. “Full-scale war is not in anyone’s interest. Even if a situation has escalated, a diplomatic solution is still possible,” he said.

Lebanon’s foreign minister Abdallah Bou Habib criticised Biden’s address as “not strong, not promising” and said the US was the only country “that can really make a difference in the Middle East and with regard to Lebanon.” Washington is Israel’s longtime ally and biggest arms supplier.

The US “is the key … to our salvation,” he told an event in New York City hosted by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Up to half a million people are estimated to have been displaced in Lebanon, said Bou Habib. He said Lebanon’s prime minister hoped to meet with US officials over the next two days.

In Lebanon, displaced families slept in shelters hastily set up in schools in Beirut and the coastal city of Sidon. With hotels quickly booked to capacity or rooms priced beyond the means of many families, those who did not find shelter slept in their cars, in parks or along the seaside.

Fatima Chehab, who came with her three daughters from the area of Nabatieh, said her family had been displaced twice in quick succession.

Ramanagara, Sep 19: A case of rape, sexual harassment and criminal intimidation has been registered against BJP MLA Munirathna and six others, police said on Thursday.

It was registered following the complaint of a 40-year-old woman who alleged that the incident took place at a private resort within the Kaggalipura police station’s jurisdiction.

“We received a complaint on Wednesday night and based on it, we have registered case against seven people, including the BJP MLA under various sections for rape by public servant, sexual harassment, criminal intimidation, criminal conspiracy, voyeurism, intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace, Information Technology Act, and others,” a senior police officer said.

The matter is being investigated, he said.

The fresh FIR against the BJP MLA, also a former Minister, comes days after he was arrested by the Bengaluru Police in connection with the two cases filed against him for alleged harassment, threats and casteist abuse, police said.