عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
World

Munich Airport Reopens After Drone Sightings Halt Flights 

A general view of the Munich International Airport in Germany, February 16, 2023. (Reuters) 
A general view of the Munich International Airport in Germany, February 16, 2023. (Reuters) 
TT
TT

Munich Airport Reopens After Drone Sightings Halt Flights 

A general view of the Munich International Airport in Germany, February 16, 2023. (Reuters) 
A general view of the Munich International Airport in Germany, February 16, 2023. (Reuters) 

Germany's Munich airport reopened on Friday after shutting overnight due to drone sightings that forced the cancellation or diversion of dozens of flights on the eve of a national holiday and heightened concerns about the vulnerability of critical infrastructure in Europe.

As operations resumed early on Friday morning, a Reuters witness saw passengers checking in for a flight to Varna in Bulgaria, and the departure board showed only a few flights had been cancelled. A flight from Bangkok was the first of the day to land at around 5:25 a.m. (0325 GMT), according to the airport's website.

The airport said several drone sightings late on Thursday evening had forced air traffic control to suspend operations, leading to the cancellation of 17 flights and disrupting travel for nearly 3,000 passengers, who were provided with camp beds, blankets and food.

Another 15 arriving flights were diverted to other cities including Stuttgart, Nuremberg, Vienna and Frankfurt, the airport said.

The drones were sighted in the late evening above the airport, a police spokesman told newspaper Bild. But because it was dark, the size and types of the drones could not be determined, he added. Police did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.

The disruption in Munich is the latest in a string of similar drone incidents that have rattled European aviation and raised broader security concerns, coming after airspace intrusions temporarily shut airports in Denmark and Norway last week.

The incidents prompted a sharp response from European Union leaders, who backed plans at a summit in Copenhagen on Wednesday to bolster the bloc's defenses with anti-drone measures.

"Europe must be able to defend itself," Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said after the meeting.

Authorities have not publicly blamed a specific actor for the Munich drone incident, but some European officials have suggested Russia is behind other recent airspace violations.

"Russia tries to test us. But Russia also tries to sow division and anxiety in our societies," European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin joked on Thursday that he would not fly drones over Denmark anymore, but Moscow has denied responsibility for the incidents.

The airport disruption in Munich added to a tense week for the city after its popular Oktoberfest was closed temporarily due to a bomb threat and the separate discovery of explosives in a residential building in the city's north.

Friday is German Reunification Day, a public holiday.

Most Viewed

 
 
World

Teen Sentenced to 20 Years for UK Murder Plot Tied to Iran-linked Group

A red double-decker bus rides past as a Union Jack flag flutters on the Victoria Tower at the Houses of Parliament in London, Britain, October 15, 2026. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes
A red double-decker bus rides past as a Union Jack flag flutters on the Victoria Tower at the Houses of Parliament in London, Britain, October 15, 2026. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes
TT
TT

Teen Sentenced to 20 Years for UK Murder Plot Tied to Iran-linked Group

A red double-decker bus rides past as a Union Jack flag flutters on the Victoria Tower at the Houses of Parliament in London, Britain, October 15, 2026. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes
A red double-decker bus rides past as a Union Jack flag flutters on the Victoria Tower at the Houses of Parliament in London, Britain, October 15, 2026. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes

A Norwegian teenager who planned to commit murder in Britain after being recruited by a Swedish organized crime group linked to the Iranian government was on Friday sentenced to 20 years' detention.

Johannes Natland, now 19, was arrested in a hotel room in Huddersfield, northern England, in March ⁠2025 with two ⁠firearms and ammunition in his possession.

Natland was recruited by the Foxtrot Network, a Swedish organized crime group used by the Iranian state and sanctioned by ⁠both Britain and the United States, prosecutors said.

He admitted possessing a semi-automatic pistol, a revolver and ammunition, but denied conspiracy to murder and claimed he did not intend to carry out the plan.

But he was convicted in July after a retrial ⁠and ⁠was sentenced at London's Woolwich Crown Court to detention for 20 years.

Natland was the latest young adult to stand trial in Britain and elsewhere over serious criminal acts allegedly carried out after being recruited online for money, often as an unwitting proxy for a foreign state.

World

UN: Millions May Be Forced to Move as Climate Change Hits South Asia

International Organization for Migration (IOM) chief Amy Pope, seen here in 2023, warned of a lack of urgency globally about the risks that vulnerable communities are facing. Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP
International Organization for Migration (IOM) chief Amy Pope, seen here in 2023, warned of a lack of urgency globally about the risks that vulnerable communities are facing. Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP
TT
TT

UN: Millions May Be Forced to Move as Climate Change Hits South Asia

International Organization for Migration (IOM) chief Amy Pope, seen here in 2023, warned of a lack of urgency globally about the risks that vulnerable communities are facing. Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP
International Organization for Migration (IOM) chief Amy Pope, seen here in 2023, warned of a lack of urgency globally about the risks that vulnerable communities are facing. Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP

Climate change is threatening livelihoods and forcing people from their homes across South Asia, but technology and government action could help limit the damage, the UN migration chief told AFP on Friday.

Rising seas, flooding and drought threaten homes and farmland, Amy Pope, Director General of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), said during a visit to New Delhi.

In the Himalayas, she pointed to Nepal's August 26 disaster, when a mountain and glacier collapse triggered deadly flooding, where IOM sent humanitarian aid to help.

In a worst-case scenario, up to 40.5 million people in South Asia may be forced to move by 2050, according to IOM.

"When they can't produce food, when they can't feed their livestock, it increases the likelihood of displacement," said Pope. "The first adaptation is often for people to move."

Pope said climate change was also accelerating urbanization in India.

"As people seek shelter from heat, they're going into urban centers," she said.

- 'Migration as a tool' -

The risks are particularly acute in South Asia, where vast populations and limited resources leave many communities vulnerable.

"There's a lack of urgency globally about the risks that vulnerable communities are facing," Pope said, warning that funding to help residents prepare for climate change remained inadequate.

"The cost of a humanitarian disaster is in the billions. The cost of investing in some of the resilience measures can be far less," she said.

Better data and artificial intelligence could help governments identify communities at risk before disaster strikes, Pope said.

"With the advancements in AI forecasting, you can now better anticipate those communities that are at high risk of displacement," Pope said.

By combining weather forecasts with information about local livelihoods, authorities can identify which communities most need help.

"If you know a community is at risk, we don't need to wait until they're displaced to respond," she said.

Measures could include improving farming methods, training people for other jobs and, where necessary, relocating communities repeatedly hit by floods or drought.

Finding the money for such programs is a major obstacle, Pope said, with governments often struggling to navigate the systems available to fund climate adaptation.

India's investments in early-warning systems, disaster response and technology offer grounds for optimism, she said. But no government can meet the scale of the challenge alone.

International migration can also help people earn a living while filling labor shortages abroad.

South Asia already has established migration routes, offering opportunities to build on existing links.

"Here we have government partners who recognize both the threats to their communities but they're also using migration as a tool for development," Pope said.

She warned that growing demand for workers must be matched by safe, legal routes to employment.

Otherwise, migrants risk exploitation by traffickers and smugglers, including through fraudulent overseas job offers.

India's technological capacity could also help its workers compete internationally as artificial intelligence reshapes employment, Pope said.

AI could threaten some jobs, particularly those involving routine analysis of documents and reports, but other sectors still rely heavily on human labor.

"If we can marry that capacity with the labor mobility, so that the workers are being skilled for those jobs as they're emerging, they will be ahead," Pope said.

"This is a place where I have more optimism than in places where we're dealing with the most acute crises," she said.

World

Iran President Says Conflict in Mideast Amounts to 'Ecocide'

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian visits an exhibition that showcases the defense ministry's latest advancements in defense and space in Tehran. Photo: -/Iranian Presidency/dpa
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian visits an exhibition that showcases the defense ministry's latest advancements in defense and space in Tehran. Photo: -/Iranian Presidency/dpa
TT
TT

Iran President Says Conflict in Mideast Amounts to 'Ecocide'

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian visits an exhibition that showcases the defense ministry's latest advancements in defense and space in Tehran. Photo: -/Iranian Presidency/dpa
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian visits an exhibition that showcases the defense ministry's latest advancements in defense and space in Tehran. Photo: -/Iranian Presidency/dpa

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian on Friday urged countries to condemn what he called "ecocide" in the Middle East caused by "wars of aggression".

Pezeshkian said the conflicts in Gaza and the wider Middle East had inflicted a significant toll on nature that extended beyond borders and required "international solutions", AFP said.

"What has occurred in our region as a result of wars of aggression is ecocide, or environmental genocide, and it must be condemned," Pezeshkian told a nature summit in Armenia attended by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.