Malaysia: Woman Plunges Into 8-meter Deep Hole after Pavement Sinks

Malaysia Fire and Rescue Department officers inspect the site where a woman fell into an eight-meter deep sinkhole in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 23 August 2024. EPA/FAZRY ISMAIL
Malaysia Fire and Rescue Department officers inspect the site where a woman fell into an eight-meter deep sinkhole in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 23 August 2024. EPA/FAZRY ISMAIL
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Malaysia: Woman Plunges Into 8-meter Deep Hole after Pavement Sinks

Malaysia Fire and Rescue Department officers inspect the site where a woman fell into an eight-meter deep sinkhole in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 23 August 2024. EPA/FAZRY ISMAIL
Malaysia Fire and Rescue Department officers inspect the site where a woman fell into an eight-meter deep sinkhole in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 23 August 2024. EPA/FAZRY ISMAIL

A woman plunged Friday into an 8-meter deep sinkhole in the Kuala Lumpur city center after the pavement she was on caved in, burying her alive, Malaysian authorities said.
The incident happened in Dang Wangi area of the Malaysian capital, where local police chief Sulizmie Affendy Sulaiman said that based on eyewitness accounts, the woman was walking along the pavement when the earth suddenly collapsed beneath her.
Kuala Lumpur's fire and rescue department, which received a distress call early Friday, has said the woman was believed to be an Indian national.
But Sulizmie said he couldn't confirm her identity, as investigations are ongoing. Rescuers have barricaded part of the area and used an excavator to clear the debris in the hole, but there was no sign of the victim yet.
“The search will continue until the victim is found,” he said. He declined to comment when asked about the possible condition of the woman, or the cause of the incident.



Countries Tell Ukraine ‘You Are Not Alone’ after UN Adopts Neutral Stance on War

 People attend a demonstration to mark three years since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, in Times Square in New York City, US, February 24, 2025. (Reuters)
People attend a demonstration to mark three years since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, in Times Square in New York City, US, February 24, 2025. (Reuters)
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Countries Tell Ukraine ‘You Are Not Alone’ after UN Adopts Neutral Stance on War

 People attend a demonstration to mark three years since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, in Times Square in New York City, US, February 24, 2025. (Reuters)
People attend a demonstration to mark three years since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, in Times Square in New York City, US, February 24, 2025. (Reuters)

Dozens of countries rallied behind Ukraine at a meeting at the United Nations in Geneva on Tuesday, a day after the UN Security Council adopted a US-drafted resolution that takes a neutral stance on the conflict.

The event, held to commemorate "resistance to the Russian aggression", follows the resolution adopted in New York on the war's third anniversary that reflects President Donald Trump's upending of US policy on Ukraine and his more conciliatory stance towards Russia.

"You are not alone. Norway and other countries, all the countries who are here, but also other countries, will continue to support you as you fight for your territorial integrity, your sovereignty and your human dignity," Norway's Deputy Foreign Minister Andreas Motzfeldt Kravik told a packed room of ministers and diplomats.

Thousands of Ukrainian citizens have died since Russia invaded in 2022 and more than 6 million are refugees abroad. Russia has said it had no choice but to launch what it calls its "special military operation" due to the NATO alliance's eastwards expansion.

Estonia's Minna-Liina Lind, Undersecretary for Global Affairs, told the room she was "extremely worried" by the fact that the Security Council passed a resolution that does not include long-held language on Ukraine's territorial integrity.

"But I think the European resolve is even greater. When there's someone else not as strong, the others fill in," she told Reuters after the meeting, co-organized by Ukraine and Liechtenstein on the sidelines of the UN Human Rights Council.

The US failed to convince the UN General Assembly to pass the same resolution that passed in the Security Council on Monday. The General Assembly instead adopted motions seen as more favorable for Ukraine, in a diplomatic victory over Washington.

Most countries attending the Geneva event were European and included France and Germany, but others such as Türkiye, South Korea, Australia and Japan were also present. Washington sent a delegate who did not take the floor.

Ukraine's ambassador Yevheniia Filipenko, who at one point became emotional while addressing the room, asked countries to continue their support for rebuilding Ukraine and seeking accountability for crimes committed since Russia's invasion.

"The road ahead is very challenging but when we are united we can prevail," she said.