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Paris: A controversy erupted at the Eiffel Tower after female employees alleged that they were sidelined during a private visit by a BAPS delegation. The incident led to protests by staff and the Eiffel Tower being closed for a day. However, a subsequent investigation by the General Inspectorate of the City of Paris found that BAPS had made "no explicit request" to remove or exclude female employees. BAPS France has also denied asking for women to be excluded, while the probe found that an internal process at the Eiffel Tower led to female staff being replaced or asked to step…

US President Donald Trump said Thursday that Iran may be linked to the FlyDubai co-pilot accused of attempting to crash an Israel-bound passenger plane. Asked by reporters at the White House whether he had been briefed about possible links between the co-pilot and Tehran, Trump said the US was investigating. 'We're working on it right now," Trump said. Asked whether there was an Iranian connection, he added, "I would say the answer, based on what I’m hearing, is yes, but we’re working on it right now." Trump did not provide details about the alleged connection. Asked whether the US would retaliate…

Tennessee death row inmate Christa Pike was taken to hospital after an attempt to execute her by lethal injection failed, her lawyer said. Pike's legal team filed an emergency motion seeking to halt the execution while it was underway, stating that she had lost consciousness but still had a heartbeat and was audibly snoring. One of her attorneys told the BBC that the 50-year-old was being given "life-saving measures" in hospital after two syringes containing pentobarbital were administered. Pike was sentenced to death in 1996 for the murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer in 1995. Her execution was preceded by a…

Abu Dhabi: The Indian ambassador to UAE Deepak Mittal has met the injured Indian flydubai pilot Smit Machchhar a day after he got stabbed and left seriously injured by Omani copilot. "Ambassador Deepak Mittal visited Captain Smit Machchhar and his family at the hospital. Captain Machchhar is in good health and recovering well. The Embassy remains in close coordination with local authorities to ensure his continued medical care and well-being," read the Indian Embassy's post on X.    Who is flydubai Hero Indian pilot Smit Machchhar?  Captain Smit Machchhar is working with flydubai for four years. Prior to this, he…

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Thursday ordered an investigation into the incident involving the flydubai flight that was travelling to Israel's Tel Aviv from Dubai, but was diverted to Saudi Arabia on Wednesday. The probe was ordered following a direction from UAE's Attorney General Counsellor Dr Hamad Al Shamsi. In a statement, UAE's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) said a team would be constituted that would comprise specialised members of the public prosecution to probe all angles into the incident, including a "possible terrorist activity". The UAE's judicial authorities, the foreign ministry said, have the jurisdiction to probe the incident…

A day after a mid-air attack on a Tel Aviv-bound flydubai flight put the lives of around 180 passengers, most of them Israelis, at risk, Benjamin Netanyahu said the co-pilot who allegedly stabbed Indian captain Smit Machchhar had undergone Islamist radical indoctrination after Israel called the incident an attempted terror attack, with the UAE also probing this angle. Speaking to Fox News, Netanyahu said the co-pilot was currently being interrogated and that investigators would determine within days whether he had any links to Iran. "We know that he underwent Islamist radical indoctrination," Netanyahu said. Netanyahu added that authorities would investigate…