Politics
France intensifies hunt for Louvre raiders as museum security scrutinised
French police on Tuesday stepped up the hunt for thieves who stole priceless royal jewels from the Louvre museum, as scrutiny mounted over security at the country’s cultural institutions.
Sunday’s audacious daylight robbery— which lasted just seven minutes— was the latest in a string of thefts from French museums in recent months, and has left authorities scrambling to increase protection measures.
In a separate case, a prosecutor said on Tuesday that a Chinese woman had been charged over taking part in the theft of more than $1 million worth of gold nuggets from another Paris museum last month.
Scores of investigators were still looking for Sunday’s culprits, working on the theory that it was an organised crime group that clambered up a ladder on a truck to break into the museum, then dropped a diamond-studded crown as they fled.
Detectives were scouring video camera footage from around the Louvre as well as of main highways out of Paris for signs of the four robbers, who escaped on scooters.
‘Worrying level of obsolescence’
The heist has reignited a row over the lack of security in French museums, after two other institutions were hit last month.
A report by France’s Court of Auditors seen by AFP covering 2019 to 2024 points to a “persistent” delay in security upgrades at the Louvre. Only a fourth of one wing was covered by video surveillance.
In January, Louvre president Laurence des Cars warned Culture Minister Rachida Dati of a “worrying level of obsolescence”, citing the urgent need for major renovations.
Interior Minister Laurent Nunez on Monday said he would tighten security outside cultural institutions.
In Sunday’s heist, thieves parked a truck with an extendable ladder, like those used by movers, below the museum’s Apollo Gallery shortly after it opened, climbing up and using cutting equipment to get through a window and open the display cases to steal the jewellery.
They made off with eight priceless pieces, including an emerald-and-diamond necklace that Napoleon I gave his wife, Empress Marie-Louise and a diadem that once belonged to the Empress Eugenie, which is dotted with nearly 2,000 diamonds.
The museum on Tuesday hit back at criticism that the display cases protecting the jewellery were fragile, saying they were installed in 2019 and “represented a considerable improvement in terms of security”.
Chinese arrest
Just last month, criminals broke into Paris’s Natural History Museum, making off with gold nuggets worth more than $1.5 million.
French authorities announced on Tuesday a 24-year-old Chinese woman has been charged and put in detention in that case after she was arrested in Barcelona, while trying to dispose of nearly one kilogramme (2.2 pounds) of melted gold pieces.
Also last month, thieves stole two dishes and a vase from a museum in the central city of Limoges, the losses estimated at $7.6 million.
“Museums are increasingly targeted for the valuable works they hold,” according to the Central Office for the Fight against Trafficking in Cultural Property.
Labour unions have complained that security staff positions at the Louvre have been cut, even as attendance at the world-famous museum, whose extensive collections include the Mona Lisa, has soared.
“We cannot do without physical surveillance,” on union source said.
The Louvre was shut per its usual schedule on Tuesday, having been closed on Sunday and Monday after the heist, leaving crowds of disappointed tourists.
- Afghan nationals convicted of rape given long detention sentences.
- Both Afghan teenagers arrived in Britain last year.
- Govt seeking to stop influx of migrants arriving in small boats.
LONDON: Two teenage Afghan asylum seekers, who had both arrived in Britain alone in the last year, were given long detention sentences on Monday for raping a 15-year-old girl in central England.
The boys, Jan Jahanzeb and Israr Niazal, both aged 17, carried out the attack in a park in Leamington Spa in May after taking the girl, who was very drunk at the time, away from her friends, prosecutors told Warwick Crown Court.
The court was played footage that the highly distressed girl had managed to capture during the attack, in which she could be heard sobbing loudly and screaming: “Please help me … let me go … I want to go home.”
“The day I was raped changed me as a person,” the girl, who said the incident was her first sexual experience, said in a victim statement.
MAJOR POLITICAL ISSUE
Crimes, particularly sexual offences, committed by asylum seekers have become a major political issue in Britain, especially as the government is seeking a solution to stop thousands of migrants arriving in small boats from across the Channel.
Last month, an Afghan national pleaded guilty to raping a 12-year-old girl in Nuneaton, in central England, while an Ethiopian man was jailed in September after being convicted of sexually assaulting a teenage girl and another woman in Epping, north of London.
Both cases sparked large-scale protests, some of which turned violent, and prompted demonstrations across the country at hotels housing asylum seekers. Immigration concerns have also helped to propel the populist Reform UK party to leads in opinion polls.
In an acknowledgement of the public concern, the judge Sylvia de Bertodano ordered that the two teenagers, who pleaded guilty in October, could be named despite being only 17, saying it was in the public interest to do so.
Jahanzeb, who turns 18 at the start of next year, was given detention of 10 years and eight months, while Niazal was sentenced to nine years and 10 months in detention.
Jahanzeb’s lawyer Robert Holt said his client had travelled through Europe alone to get to Britain in January, succeeding on his fourth attempt to cross the Channel on a small boat. He faces automatic deportation after his sentence is completed.
Joshua Radcliffe, the lawyer for Niazal, said he had come alone to Britain last November to escape the Taliban, who had murdered his father, formerly in the Afghan army. He is waiting for a decision on his asylum claim, but the judge said she would recommend his deportation after he served his sentence.
De Bertodano said the two teenagers had betrayed the interests of those who came to Britain fleeing harm.
The Sindhi Association of North America (SANA) brought a vibrant slice of South Asian heritage to Texas this weekend as families from across Dallas–Fort Worth gathered to celebrate Sindhi Cultural Day.
What unfolded inside a packed community hall was more than a cultural programme; it was a reaffirmation of identity for a diaspora thousands of miles away from its ancestral soil.
The event drew notable attendees, including Texas State Representative Salman Bhojani, Farhan Ahmed, Vice Consul at the Consulate of Pakistan in Houston, SANA’s Central Vice President Asghar Pathan, Central General Secretary Asad Shaikh, and several community leaders who added stature to the celebration.
Addressing the audience, Rep Bhojani described Sindh’s culture as “a living symbol of peace, love, and tolerance,” adding that Dallas had paid respect to that legacy by gathering in such large numbers. Vice Consul Farhan Ahmed noted that the Sindhi topi and ajrak are not merely garments but “icons of Pakistan’s cultural identity,” and said that Sindhi Cultural Day strengthens a positive image of Pakistan around the world.
SANA leaders Asghar Pathan and Asad Shaikh emphasised that Sindhis carry their traditions wherever they go, calling it their pride and their inheritance. Other speakers highlighted that Sindh is not just a geographical region but a civilisational idea grounded in human dignity, poetry, music, and centuries of coexistence. Ajrak, topi, literature, and folk arts, they said, are living testaments to a culture that refuses to fade.
The programme was elegantly steered by SANA Dallas President Amir Memon, while Suhail Khaskheli, Sarfaraz Abbasi, Shehryar Arshad, Ghulam Nabi Kalwar, Imran Pirzada, Muhammad Shafi, and Fahad Junejo welcomed guests with traditional ajraks and caps.
Among the attendees were prominent Pakistani American community members, including Barkat Basria, Democratic candidate Attorney Sofia Anwar, and Nadeem Akhtar of Pak Pack Group.
One side of the hall showcased hand-crafted Sindhi arts. On the other hand, children performed with a joy that felt like an emotional bridge between generations. Many attendees remarked that for a moment, Dallas felt like Hyderabad, Tando Allahyar, Larkana, or Khairpur — places where identity is woven into daily life and where culture is lived, not displayed.
The evening concluded with the traditional “Ho Jamalo” dance, as women, men, youth, and children joined in a circle, celebrating not only the past but the resilience of a culture carried proudly across continents.
Former Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan wants to return home to play a match in all three formats before ending his international career, the 38-year-old said.
Considered the greatest cricketer ever produced by Bangladesh, Shakib left the country after the toppling of the Sheikh Hasina-led government last year.
The all-rounder had been a member of parliament for the Awami League led by Hasina, whose 15-year rule as prime minister ended with her fleeing to India following deadly protests.
“I am officially not retired from all formats,” Shakib said on the Beard Before Wicket podcast on Sunday. “This is the first time I’ll be revealing that. My plan is to go back to Bangladesh, play one full series of ODI, Test, and T20, and retire.
“I mean, [I can] retire from all formats in a series … I want to play a whole series and retire. That’s what I want.”
Shakib has not played international cricket since his 71st Test in India last year, after which he announced his retirement from T20 Internationals.
He then requested to play a farewell Test at home in the series against South Africa but the interim government was unable to guarantee his safety due to his political past.
The all-rounder said been playing franchise cricket around the world in the hopes he will be able to play for Bangladesh again.
“I am hopeful. That’s why I’m playing [T20 leagues]. I think it will happen,” he added.
Mohamed Salah left out of Liverpool’s Champions League squad after explosive interview
Prince Harry slowly turning public tide toward him in UK
Two Afghan teenagers jailed for raping girl in England
-
Tech1 week agoGet Your Steps In From Your Home Office With This Walking Pad—On Sale This Week
-
Sports1 week agoIndia Triumphs Over South Africa in First ODI Thanks to Kohli’s Heroics – SUCH TV
-
Entertainment1 week agoSadie Sink talks about the future of Max in ‘Stranger Things’
-
Fashion1 week agoResults are in: US Black Friday store visits down, e-visits up, apparel shines
-
Politics1 week agoElon Musk reveals partner’s half-Indian roots, son’s middle name ‘Sekhar’
-
Tech1 week agoPrague’s City Center Sparkles, Buzzes, and Burns at the Signal Festival
-
Sports1 week agoBroncos secure thrilling OT victory over Commanders behind clutch performances
-
Entertainment1 week agoNatalia Dyer explains Nancy Wheeler’s key blunder in Stranger Things 5