Politics
Indonesia protest blaze kills 3 as anger erupts over driver death
- Makassar city council official accuses protesters of igniting blaze.
- Military chief says situation in Makassar returned to normal.
- Protesters in Bali say they want int’l attention about legal injustice.
A fire started by protesters at a council building in eastern Indonesia killed at least three people, a local official said Saturday, after demonstrations across the country following the death of a man hit by a police vehicle.
Southeast Asia’s biggest economy was rocked by protests in major cities including the capital Jakarta on Friday after footage spread of a motorcycle taxi driver being run over by a police tactical vehicle in earlier rallies against low wages and financial perks for lawmakers.
Protests in Makassar, the biggest city on the eastern island of Sulawesi, descended into chaos outside the provincial and local city council buildings, which were both set on fire as demonstrators hurled rocks and Molotov cocktails.
Three people were killed as a result of the fire at the Makassar city council, its secretary Rahmat Mappatoba told AFP. “They were trapped in the burning building,” he said, accusing protesters of igniting the blaze.
“Usually during a demonstration, protesters only throw rocks or burn a tyre in front of the office. They never stormed into the building or burned it.”
Two workers at the city council died at the scene and a third person, a civil servant, died in hospital.
At least four people were injured in the fire and were being treated at hospital, Rahmat added.
Hundreds of people were seen in footage posted by local media cheering and clapping as fire engulfed the building Friday with few security forces in sight.
One man was heard shouting: “There are people upstairs!”
In footage verified by AFP, smouldering debris was seen falling from the roof of the city council building surrounded by palm trees as charred cars flickered with flames.
Inside protesters lit several fires as parts of the building collapsed, while others smashed glass and chanted “revolution”.
By Saturday, the building appeared to be a blacked-out wreck, with dozens of charred cars around it, as local residents inspected the scene, local media footage showed.
Windiyatno, South Sulawesi’s military chief said in a statement on Saturday that the situation in Makassar had “now returned to normal”.
Makassar and South Sulawesi police did not immediately respond to AFP’s requests for comments.
Prabowo test
Protests continued on Saturday in different areas of Indonesia’s vast archipelago.
Hundreds of students and ojek drivers protested in front of the police headquarters in Bali, Indonesia’s most popular tourist hotspot.
“Bali is the centre of tourism in Indonesia, and we want to protest here to gain international attention about the legal injustice, corruption, and the impunity of police crimes,” protester Narendra Wicaksono told AFP.
Hundreds of students in Surabaya also rallied outside the East Java police headquarters, according to an AFP journalist at the scene.
In Jakarta, hundreds had massed on Friday outside the headquarters of the elite Mobile Brigade Corp (Brimob) paramilitary police unit they blamed for motorcycle gig driver Affan Kurniawan’s death the day before.
Protesters threw firecrackers as police responded with tear gas.
Police said they had detained seven officers for questioning in connection with Affan’s death.
The protests were the biggest and most violent of Prabowo Subianto’s presidency, a key test for the leader less than a year into his rule.
He has urged calm, and ordered an investigation into the driver’s death and that the officers involved be held accountable.
Prabowo said on Friday the government was “committed to guaranteeing the livelihood” of the driver’s family, posting images on social media with them at their home.
He has pledged fast, state-driven growth but has already faced protests against widespread government budget cuts to fund his populist policies including a billion-dollar free meal programme.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on Sunday claimed it had launched ballistic missile strikes targeting a US aircraft carrier, identifying the vessel as the USS Abraham Lincoln, as part of what it called “Operation True Promise 4.”
In a statement, the IRGC’s public relations office said four ballistic missiles were fired at the carrier, adding that Iran’s military campaign had entered a “new phase.” The group warned that both land and sea would become the “burial place” for what it described as aggressors.
Multiple Waves of Strikes Announced
Earlier, the IRGC said it had launched the seventh and eighth waves of strikes under the same operation, in response to what it termed ongoing aggression by the United States and Israel.
Iran claimed it had carried out precision strikes on military targets in Israeli territory, including areas near Tel Aviv and Haifa. It also alleged that Israeli officials had taken shelter due to heightened security concerns.
Targets Across the Gulf
The IRGC further stated that it had targeted US-operated facilities in West Asia, including the US Fifth Fleet base in Bahrain, as well as installations in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
There has been no immediate confirmation from US or Israeli officials regarding the reported missile strikes or the extent of any damage.
Rising Regional Tensions
The developments mark a sharp escalation in regional tensions following reported military exchanges between Iran, Israel and US forces over the weekend.
Independent verification of the claims remains pending, and international observers have urged restraint amid fears of a broader conflict across the Middle East.
A number of Iranian senior leaders, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, have embraced martyrdom in the “unprovoked and unwarranted” airstrikes by Israel and the United States.
As crowds gathered in Tehran, explosions rang out, and the Israeli military announced that it was again striking targets in the heart of the city — as more blasts were heard in Jerusalem, Riyadh, Dubai, Doha and Manama.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian declared Khamenei’s assassination a “declaration of war against Muslims” and warned: “Iran considers it its legitimate duty and right to avenge the perpetrators and masterminds of this historic crime.”
Iranian state media have confirmed the killing of several senior figures:
1. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, supreme leader of Iran
2. Ali Shamkhani, representative of the Supreme Leader in the Supreme Defence Council
3. General Abdolrahim Mousavi, Iran’s Armed Forces chief of staff
4. Major General Mohammad Pakpour, commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC)
5. Aziz Nasirzadeh, Minister of Defence
6. Gholamreza Rezaian, police intelligence chief of Iran
Separately, the daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter of Ali Khamenei also embraced martyrdom in the US and Israeli airstrikes.
- Middle Eastern airport hubs remain closed or restricted.
- Airlines reroute or cancel flights, affecting global schedules.
- Risk of prolonged disruption due to regional conflicts.
DUBAI: Global air travel remained heavily disrupted on Sunday as continued air strikes kept major Middle Eastern airports, including Dubai, the world’s busiest international hub, closed in one of the sharpest aviation shocks in recent years.
Key transit airports including Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the UAE, and Doha in Qatar, were shut or severely restricted as much of the region’s airspace remained closed, with the Gulf grappling with uncertainty after U.S. and Israeli strikes killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday.
Israel said it launched another wave of strikes on Iran on Sunday, while loud blasts were heard for a second day near Dubai and over Doha, after Iran launched retaliatory air attacks on the neighbouring Gulf states.
Dubai International Airport sustained damage during Iran’s attacks, while airports in Abu Dhabi and Kuwait were also hit. Thousands of flights have been affected across the Middle East since the U.S. first launched attacks on Iran on Saturday, according to data on FlightAware, a flight tracking platform.
Ripple effects
The airport closures have rippled far beyond the Middle East. Dubai and neighbouring Doha sit at the crossroads of east-west air travel, funnelling long-haul traffic between Europe and Asia through tightly scheduled networks of connecting flights.
With those hubs idle, aircraft and crews remained stranded out of position, disrupting airline schedules worldwide.
“It’s the sheer volume of people and the complexity,” said UK-based aviation analyst John Strickland.
“It is not only customers, it is the crews and aircraft all over place.”
Airlines across Europe, Asia and the Middle East cancelled or rerouted flights to avoid closed or restricted airspace, lengthening journeys and driving up fuel costs. The disruption has been intensified by the loss of Iranian and Iraqi overflight routes, which had grown more important since the Russia-Ukraine war forced airlines to avoid both countries’ airspace.
The Middle East airspace closures were squeezing airlines into narrower corridors, with fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan adding a further risk, said Ian Petchenik, communications director at Flightradar24.
“The risk of protracted disruption is the main concern from a commercial aviation perspective,” Petchenik said.
“Any escalation in the conflict between Pakistan and Afghanistan that results in the closure of airspace would have drastic consequences for travel between Europe and Asia.”
Middle East flights halted
Airspace over Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Israel, Bahrain, the UAE and Qatar remained virtually empty, maps by flight-tracking service Flightradar24 showed, and air strikes kept major Middle Eastern airports, including Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha shut or severely restricted.
Below is the latest on flights listed by airline in alphabetical order:
Aegean Airlines
Greece’s largest carrier suspended flights to and from Tel Aviv in Israel, Beirut in Lebanon and Erbil in Iraq until March 2.
Air Astana
The group cancelled all flights to the Middle East through March 3.
Air Canada
The airline said it has cancelled flights from Canada to Israel until March 8 and flights to Dubai until March 3.
Air Europa
The Spanish airline cancelled its flights to Tel Aviv on Sunday and Monday and is monitoring the situation to assess operations from Tuesday.
Air France KLM
Air France cancelled flights to and from Tel Aviv in Israel and Beirut in Lebanon for Saturday.
Its Dutch arm KLM said late on Saturday that this weekend’s flights to and from Dubai, Dammam and Riyadh have been cancelled. It had already brought forward suspension of its Amsterdam–Tel Aviv service to Saturday.
Air India
The carrier cancelled flights scheduled for Sunday from Delhi, Mumbai and Amritsar to London, New York, Chicago, Toronto, Frankfurt and Paris. It added that more flights to London, Birmingham, Amsterdam, Zurich, Milan, Vienna, Copenhagen and Frankfurt had been cancelled.
Azerbaijan Airlines
The airline has suspended flights to and from Dubai, Doha, Jeddah and Tel Aviv.
British Airways
IAG-owned British Airways said it has cancelled flights to Tel Aviv and Bahrain until March 3 and its flight to Amman on Saturday.
Cathay Pacific
Hong Kong’s Cathay Group, parent of Cathay Pacific Airways, suspended operations in the region, affecting passenger flights to and from Dubai and Riyadh, as well as freighter service at Al Maktoum airport. That is Dubai’s second airport after Dubai International Airport, the primary hub that handles most passenger traffic.
Emirates
Owing to multiple regional airspace closures, Emirates has suspended all operations to and from Dubai until 3pm UAE time on March 2.
Etihad
The UAE’s Etihad said flights scheduled to depart Abu Dhabi were suspended until 2pm local time on Sunday.
Flydubai
The airline said it had temporarily suspended all flights to and from Dubai until 3pm local time on Sunday.
Iberia Express
The Spanish airline owned by Iberia Group cancelled a flight to Tel Aviv scheduled for Saturday at 5pm local time.
IndiGo
IndiGo, India’s biggest airline, said it had extended a temporary suspension of select international flights using Middle East airspace until Monday.
ITA Airways
ITA Airways suspended flights to and from Tel Aviv and said it would not use the airspace of Israel, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Iran until March 7. Flights to and from Dubai were suspended until March 1.
Japan Airlines
Japan Airlines cancelled a flight on Saturday from Tokyo Haneda to Doha as well as a return flight on March 1, Nikkei said.
LOT Polish Airlines
The airline suspended flights to Tel Aviv until March 15 and cancelled flights to Dubai and Riyadh until March 2.
Lufthansa
The German airline flights to and from Tel Aviv in Israel, Beirut in Lebanon and Oman until March 7 and flights to and from Dubai on Saturday and Sunday.
It also said it would not fly through Israeli, Lebanese, Jordanian, Iraqi and Iranian airspace until March 7.
Norwegian Air
The Nordic airline suspended all flights to and from Dubai until March 4, a company spokesperson said. The carrier did not suspend flights to Tel Aviv in Israel or Beirut in Lebanon because these destinations are only active in summer, he added.
Pegasus Airlines
The airline said that flights to Iran, Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon were cancelled up to and including March 2.
Qatar Airways
The airline said flights remain temporarily suspended owing to the closure of the Qatari airspace. It will provide a further update by 9am local time on Monday.
Scandinavian Airlines
The airline told Reuters it had suspended its flight to Tel Aviv from Copenhagen on Saturday. No decision had been made regarding flights on later dates.
Turkish Airlines
The airline cancelled flights to Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Oman on Saturday and flights to Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran and Jordan until March 2.
Virgin Atlantic
Virgin Atlantic said it will temporarily avoid Iraqi airspace, resulting in some pre-planned rerouting of flights and has cancelled its VS400 service from London Heathrow to Dubai on Saturday.
Wizz Air
The Hungarian carrier halted flights to and from Israel, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Amman with immediate effect until March 7.
It added that operational decisions would continue to be reviewed and the flight schedule could be adjusted as the situation evolves.
Two ships hit near Strait of Hormuz as fears grow of oil price rises
IRGC Claims Missile Strikes on US Aircraft Carrier Amid Escalation
Maggie Gyllenhaal details emotional reunion with brother Jake Gyllenhaal
ICE cotton ticks higher on crude oil rally
Pakistan carries out precision strikes on seven militant hideouts in Afghanistan
Eye-popping rise in one year: Betting on just gold and silver for long-term wealth creation? Think again! – The Times of India
-
Fashion1 week agoICE cotton ticks higher on crude oil rally
-
Politics1 week agoPakistan carries out precision strikes on seven militant hideouts in Afghanistan
-
Business1 week ago
Eye-popping rise in one year: Betting on just gold and silver for long-term wealth creation? Think again! – The Times of India
-
Sports1 week agoKansas’ Darryn Peterson misses most of 2nd half with cramping
-
Entertainment1 week agoSaturday Sessions: Say She She performs "Under the Sun"
-
Entertainment1 week agoViral monkey Punch makes IKEA toy global sensation: Here’s what it costs
-
Sports1 week agoFloyd Mayweather to come out of retirement again
-
Business1 week agoEquinox chairman says ‘health is the new luxury’ as wellness spending soars