08/07/2025

TUESDAY | JULY 8, 2025

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Reuters X account restored in India after suspension

VIETNAM APARTMENT BLOCK FIRE KILLS EIGHT HANOI: A blaze that tore through an apartment block in Ho Chi Minh City killed eight people, including two children, local authorities said yesterday. The fire was sparked late on Sunday on the ground floor of a five-storey apartment block, with all eight fatalities due to smoke inhalation, Ho Chi Minh City authorities said. Residents battled the flames with fire extinguishers as blasts were heard from inside the property, before emergency service crews arrived, according to media reports. “There were shouts for help from the apartment. Several residents on higher floors had to jump down to escape. It was terrible,” a neighbour said. – AFP 33 THAI PROVINCES ON ALERT FOR FLOODS, LANDSLIDES BANGKOK: The Thai government has placed 33 provinces on high alert this week, bracing for flash floods and landslides amid forecasts of continued heavy rainfall. Deputy government spokesperson Sasikan Watthanachan said the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation has issued warnings for provinces in the northern, northeastern, central and southern regions to monitor for flash floods, forest runoff, landslides and flooding in low-lying areas. “Relevant agencies in high-risk zones have been instructed to remain on standby and be ready to respond to any emergency,” she said. – Bernama

BR I E F S

o Govt spokesperson says no block request issued

its removal was sought or the entity that had lodged the complaint. While the email did not specify which entity had made the request or what content they sought to remove, it said X had been advised that in such cases, a user could contact the Information and Broadcasting Ministry secretary. The secretary, Sanjay Jaju, did not respond to requests seeking comment. The 2000 law allows designated government officials to demand the takedown of content from social media platforms they deem to violate local laws, including on the grounds of national security or if a post threatens public order. X has long been at odds with India’s government over content-removal requests. In March, the company sued the federal government over a new government website the company says expands takedown powers to “countless” government officials. The case is continuing. India has said X wrongly labelled an official website a “censorship portal”, as the website only allows tech companies to be notified about harmful online content. – Reuters

matter and get the Reuters account reinstated in India as soon as possible. Reuters World, another X account operated by the agency which was blocked in India, was also restored late Sunday night. The main Reuters account, which has more than 25 million followers globally, had been blocked in India since Saturday night. A notice told X users that “@Reuters has been withheld in IN (India) in response to a legal demand”. In an email to the Reuters social media team on May 16, X said: “It is our policy to notify account holders if we receive a legal request from an authorised entity (such as law enforcement or a government agency) to remove content from their account. “In order to comply with X obligations under India’s local laws, we have withheld your X account in India under the country’s Information Technology Act, 2000; the content remains available elsewhere.” Reuters could not ascertain if the May 16 email was linked to Saturday’s account suspension nor could it determine what specific content the demand referred to, why

NEW DELHI: The Reuters News account on X was restored in India on Sunday, a day after the social media platform suspended it, citing a legal demand. “At this time, we are no longer withholding access in India to your account,” X said in an email to the Reuters social media team, without elaborating. Representatives for X, Reuters and the Indian government did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the restoration of the account. Earlier on Sunday, a Press Information Bureau spokesperson told Reuters that no Indian government agency had required withholding the Reuters handle, adding that officials were working with X to resolve the problem. A Reuters spokesperson had said the agency was working with X to resolve this

Bali flights nixed by eruption JAKARTA: Dozens of flights to and from Bali were cancelled yesterday after a volcano belched a colossal ash tower 18km into the sky.

Despite some carriers cancelling flights, the airport manager said “the spread of volcanic ash has not affected the Bali airspace”” The volcanology agency warned of the possibility of hazardous lahar floods – a type of mud or debris flow of volcanic materials – if heavy rain occurs, particularly for communities near rivers. There were no immediate reports of damages or casualties. The activity level at the volcano was “very high, marked by explosive eruptions and tremors”, geology agency head Muhammad Wafid said in a statement. He urged residents to stay at least 6km away from the volcano and to wear face masks. – AFP

Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki on Flores erupted at 11.05am (same time in Malaysia), the volcanology agency said. It forced the cancellation of 24 flights at Bali’s international airport, general manager Ahmad Syaugi Shahab said. “Several airlines serving the routes to Labuan Bajo (on Flores), Australia, Singapore, and South Korea have confirmed cancellations and delays,” he said in a statement. He said the airlines included Virgin Australia, Jetstar Airways and AirAsia Indonesia.

The collapsed archway of Nankunshen Daitian temple and the flooded courtyard in Tainan. – AFPPIC

Typhoon Danas lashes southern Taiwan TAIPEI: Typhoon Danas lashed southern Taiwan with record winds and strong rain early yesterday, killing two people and injuring more than 330 in a rare hit to the island’s densely populated west coast, where businesses and schools were shut. whole of Taiwan will be affected by the wind and rain one after another,” President Lai Ching-te said in a post on Facebook, urging citizens to make preparations. There was no major report of damage in the Tainan Science Park that houses tech giants such as TSMC. Maritime officials in eastern China’s Zhejiang province raised their emergency response to the second highest level yesterday, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

Power to more than half a million homes was cut and over 300 domestic and international flights were cancelled, government data showed. The north-south high-speed rail line scaled back services. The National Fire Agency said one person was killed by a falling tree while driving and another died after their respirator malfunctioned due to a power cut. Record winds of around 220kph were recorded in the southwestern county of Yunlin, while more than 700 trees and street signs were blown over across western cities and towns, government data showed.

Taiwan is regularly struck by typhoons but they generally land along the mountainous and sparsely populated east coast facing the Pacific. Typhoon Danas , at one point listed by Taiwan’s weather authority at the second-strongest level, headed north towards the Taiwan Strait after making landfall along its southwestern coast late on Sunday. It has greatly weakened since and was forecast to hit eastern China later this week. “The typhoon track is rare ... the

As of 10am (10am in Malaysia), 121 passenger vessels and 64 ferry routes had been suspended across the province, CCTV reported. Authorities also halted 181 construction projects, including wind farms, as a precaution. Danas is expected to gradually approach the coastal areas between Zhejiang’s city of Taizhou and Fuzhou city in neighbouring Fujian province, according to the China Meteorological Administration. The typhoon is forecast to make landfall late today. – Reuters

Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki belching ash 18km into the sky. – AFPPIC