Authorities in the United States have been searching for two bodies since a JetBlue plane’s wheel well arrived in Florida, in the state of Florida.
The bodies were found on Monday night during a routine post-flight inspection, according to the airline. The jet had arrived in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, from the John F Kennedy International Airport in New York City.
The identities of the individuals and the circumstances surrounding their access to the aircraft are still under investigation, according to a statement from JetBlue.
We are committed to working closely with the authorities to help them understand how this happened because this is a heartbreaking circumstance.
Paramedics declared both of the individuals dead at the scene, according to the Broward County Sheriff’s Office.
It said the department’s homicide and crime scene units are investigating. The bodies’ location was unknown at the time of their release, and it was unclear how long they had been traveling.
People frequently attempt to secretly board aircraft using wheel wells. However, hiding in the opening, where wheels are retracted after takeoff, often proves deadly.
In 89 cases of people stowing away in aircraft’s external compartments, including the wheel wells, an FAA report from 2011 looked into these areas. Just 18 survived, indicating an 80-percent fatality rate.
Deaths from engine heat, falling from the plane, and being crushed by the landing gear are among the causes. The extreme cold and lack of oxygen also cause death in people.
Still, there have been some high-profile instances of people surviving such journeys in recent years, including a 16-year-old runaway who survived a five-hour flight from California to Maui, Hawaii, while hiding in a wheel well in 2014.
A body was discovered in the wheel well of a plane in the US for the second time in less than a month during the incident on Monday.
A United Airlines plane made its way to Maui on December 24 after taking off in Chicago, Illinois, and a body was discovered inside the wheel well.
Donald Trump Jr., the son of President-elect Donald Trump, has made a “private” visit to Greenland as he reiterates his desire to annex the autonomous Danish territory with the United States.
No Greenlandic or Danish officials are expected to meet with the younger Trump because his Tuesday visit to the sprawling Arctic island was not authorized.
However, rumors that the president-elect would try to buy Greenland when he takes office on January 20 have remained unfounded despite the trip.
Late on Monday, Trump added more cred to the rumor to his Truth Social account.
“I am hearing that the people of Greenland are ‘ MAGA'”, Trump wrote, referring to the Make America Great Again movement. “My son, Don Jr, and various representatives, will be traveling there to visit some of the most magnificent areas and sights”.
“Greenland is an incredible place, and the people will benefit tremendously if, and when, it becomes part of our nation”, Trump added. “We will protect it, and cherish it, from a very vicious outside world. MAKE GREENLAND GREAT AGAIN”!
Mute Egede, the prime minister of Greenland, claims that the island needs to shed its colonial past for good. In 1721, the island was given a colony by Denmark, and it became a sovereign island in 1953.
As more Danish colonial abuses of the predominately Inuit population have been exposed in recent years, the independence movement has grown.
However, Egede has previously opposed a US membership for Greenland.  , In a statement, Greenland’s government confirmed Trump Jr’s visit would take place “as a private individual”.
Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said on Tuesday that “Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders”. The island is “not for sale,” she added.
For his part, Trump Jr, speaking on a podcast on Monday, also denied his visit had any political motive.
“No, I am not buying Greenland”, the younger Trump said. “Funny enough, I’m actually going on a very long personal day trip to Greenland”.
Absolute necessity
Prior to his first term as president, Trump had previously suggested purchasing Greenland from 2017 to 2021. He even delayed a visit to Denmark in 2019 after Danish Prime Minister Frederiksen objected.
The president-elect has indicated that this time around, he will approach foreign policy with a similar disruptive approach. That includes efforts to expand the US reach, even as he has espoused isolationism.
In December, Trump said US control of Greenland was an “absolute necessity”.
A sizable US military base is located on the island, which is regarded as strategically important as China and Russia compete for control of the Arctic.
Trump also threatened to retake control of the Panama Canal from Panama in that month, citing the importance of the trade route’s cross-Cemafro-centricity. In accordance with a 1977 treaty signed by the late President Jimmy Carter, Washington gave up control of the waterway in 1999.
At a ceremony in Accra, with about 20 African leaders present, John Mahama sworn in as the president of Ghana for a second term.
In the presidential election held on December 9, Mahama defeated vice president Mahamudu Bawumia to win 41% of the vote.
Mahama takes over from outgoing President Nana Akufo-Addo, who served two terms in power.
“Today should mark the opportunity to reset our country”, the 66-year-old new president, wearing the West African country’s national dress, told a jubilant crowd decked in the green, red, black and white hues of his National Democratic Congress (NDC) party on Tuesday.
A sea of elated faces waved Ghanaian and NDC flags, chanted, and began to dance incognito to the beat of drums and the blaring honk of vuvuzelas.
Among those present were Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Senegal’s Bassirou Diomaye Faye, Burkina Faso’s leader Ibrahim Traore, Kenyan President William Ruto, President Felix Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Gabon’s Brice Oligui Nguema.
Mahama, 66, was sworn in alongside Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, the first woman to become vice president in Ghana.
People gather ahead of John Mahama’s swearing-in ceremony for his second term as Ghana’s president, in Accra, Ghana]Francis Kokoroko/Reuters]
Mahama’s return to the presidency ends eight years in power for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) under President Nana Akufo-Addo, whose last term was marked by Ghana’s worst economic turmoil in years, a bailout by the International Monetary Fund, and a debt default.
Mahama, who led Ghana from 2012 to early 2017, had previously failed twice to win back the presidency. But in December’s election, he managed to tap into expectations of change among Ghanaians.
On Black Star Square, supporters of the elected leader exuded joy, hope and optimism.
“I’ve never been so proud to be Ghanaian”, Akosua Nyarko, 28, a teacher from the southern city of Cape Coast, told the AFP news agency. The energy is “awesome,” and this represents the start of a new era!
Mohammed Abubakar, a 50-year-old farmer from Tamale in northern Ghana, said he was confident Mahama would prioritise rural development.
The farmer said, “Coming here to Accra for this historic event is a dream come true,” adding that Mahama’s “leadership gives me hope that my children’s future will be better.”
Mahama, a writer and fan of Afrobeat music, said that his childhood experiences during the 1966 military coup had altered him as a result of his writing and devotion to the genre.
His home, the only one in the village with a diesel generator, was born in northern Ghana as a child of privilege.
His father, who served as a junior government minister, was briefly detained and interrogated by the 1966 coup leaders but later released unharmed.
Mahama served as the president of the West Africa Caucus at the Pretoria Pan-African Parliament as well as a member of parliament.
With a history of political stability, Ghana’s two main parties, the ruling NPP and the NDC, have alternated in power equally since the return to multi-party democracy in 1992.
After nine years in power, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced he would step down and bow before lawmakers alarmed by his Liberal Party’s miserable pre-election results.
Trudeau, the 53-year-old son of Pierre Trudeau, one of Canada’s most famous prime ministers, became deeply unpopular with voters over a range of issues, including the soaring cost of food and housing, as well as surging immigration.
After his long-awaited and devoted minister, Chrystia Freeland, left the Cabinet last month, he also struggled to recover.
Trudeau announced on Monday that he would remain in charge of the Liberal Party until a new leader is chosen to lead it in the party’s upcoming election, which must take place by late October.
Because all three opposition parties said they intend to use a no-confidence vote against the Liberal party at the first opportunity, leading to an election, the Liberals must elect a new leader before the session resumes on March 24. The new leader might not be in office for very long.
Here’s a look at some of the politicians who could replace Trudeau.
Chrystia Freeland
Chrystia Freeland]File: Blair Gable/Reuters]
Freeland, a member of parliament for Toronto, is considered to be the early frontrunner for Trudeau’s replacement. She performs best among liberal politicians before elections because she is seen as a trustworthy and stable alternative to Trudeau, according to polls.
A former journalist, Freeland worked for the Financial Times, the Globe and Mail, and Thomson Reuters. She marked her transition from journalism to politics in 2013, winning a by-election in Toronto’s University-Rosedale riding as a Liberal candidate.
Freeland played a significant role in the negotiations of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) during her tenure as Canada’s finance minister, becoming the first woman to do so.
Trudeau stated to Freeland last month that she could remain the deputy prime minister and the focal point for US-Canada relations, but that he no longer wanted her to serve as the finance minister.
Freeland could no longer serve as a minister because she no longer believed Trudeau would win her over, according to a source close to Freeland’s press release to the Associated Press. Due to the fact that they were not permitted to discuss the matter in public, the official added that Freeland would meet with her colleagues this week and talk about the coming steps.
Freeland stated that she disagreed with Trudeau regarding how to respond to Trump’s threat to impose a 25% tariff on Canadian goods as one of the reasons for resigning.
After she resigned, Trump called Freeland “totally toxic” and “not at all conducive to making deals”.
Far-right conspiracy theories claim that the World Economic Forum (WEF) has skewed goals in order to influence global policies, but Freeland, 56, serves on its board.
Trump has stated that he wants the US to reconsider its strategy in the wake of Trump’s comments that she is also of Ukrainian descent and has a steadfast support for Ukraine in its conflict with Russia.
Mark Carney
Mark Carney]File: Jeenah Moon/Reuters]
He has been providing economic advice to the Liberal government after serving as the Bank of Canada’s former governor.
Carney, 59, became the first foreigner to head the Bank of England since it was established in 1694 with the designation of “first foreigner governor.” After Canada recovered from the financial crisis in 2008 more quickly than many other nations, the appointment of a Canadian was met with bipartisan support in the United Kingdom. Along the way, he gained a reputation as a strict regulator.
Carney is credited with helping Canada escape the worst effects of the global economic crisis in 2008 and with guiding the UK through Brexit as a highly educated economist with Wall Street experience.
Carney lacks political experience, but she has long been interested in running for president and becoming prime minister. If Carney were to win the party leadership, the current chair of Brookfield Asset Management would need to win a seat in parliament.
Dominic LeBlanc
Dominic LeBlanc]File: Patrick Doyle/Reuters]
Seen as a close ally of Trudeau, LeBlanc was appointed finance minister after Freeland’s departure.
He has served as a member of parliament for Beausejour in New Brunswick since 2000 and is a politician and lawyer in Canada.
He served as the minister of fisheries, oceans, and the Canadian Coast Guard from 2016 to 2018, and as the minister of intergovernmental affairs, northern affairs, and internal trade from 2018 to 2019. Prior to his appointment as minister of intergovernmental affairs in 2020, he was the minister of finance.
LeBlanc, 57, recently joined the prime minister at a dinner with Trump at Mar-a-Lago, the US president-elect’s Florida estate. Prior to the trip, LeBlanc’s office stated in a statement that they would highlight “the adverse effects that the imposition of 25-percent tariffs would have on both Canada and the United States.
LeBlanc praised the prime minister after his resignation announcement that he had been a babysitter for Trudeau when he was a child.
He stated on X that serving alongside you in the Commons and in your Cabinet was the “honor of a lifetime.”
Melanie Joly
Melanie Joly]File: Valentyn Ogirenko/Reuters]
Joly, the country’s current foreign affairs minister, has a reputation abroad and will be in charge of handling Trump-related matters when he assumes office.
Joly, 45, has a steadfast support for Trudeau and traveled to Mar-a-Lago with him to meet Trump.
Before becoming minister of foreign affairs, Joly served as the minister of Canadian heritage from 2015 to 2018, minister of tourism, official languages, and la Francophonie from 2018 to 2019, and minister of economic development from 2019 to 2021.
Palestinian Canadians and human rights activists sued Joly over the export of military equipment to Israel, alleging that it violated both Canadian and international law.
The lawsuit requested that the Canadian government stop issuing export authorizations for Israeli-made military equipment and technology. Since the case was filed, no public information has been released.
Champagne, 54, has been the minister of innovation, science and industry since 2021. Before that, Champagne held several key ministerial roles. He served as the minister of foreign affairs from 2019 to 2021, the minister of infrastructure and communities from 2018 to 2018, and the minister of international trade from 2017 to 2018.
Trump was warned in December that Champagne’s proposed tariffs could start a trade war between China and Champagne.
“If you say no to Canada, you’re basically saying yes to China when it comes to strategic supply chains”, Champagne said on the POLITICO Tech podcast. “I don’t think that’s what the American people would want”.
Champagne noted in the podcast that the fact that Canada and the US share one of the world’s largest trading partners and have common objectives is a key determinant of their future.
Would the Liberals be able to avoid defeat with a new leader?
No matter who the leader is, polls consistently predict that the Liberals will lose. But the scale of the defeat could be tempered if , Trudeau , is not in charge.
In the latest poll by Nanos, a Canadian polling firm, the Liberals trail the opposition Conservatives 47 percent to 21 percent.
“Trudeau’s announcement might help the Liberals in the polls in the short run and, once a new leader is selected, things could improve further at least for a little while but that would not be so hard because, right now, they’re so low in the polls”, said Daniel Beland, a political science professor at McGill University in Montreal.
“Moreover, because Trudeau waited so long to announce his resignation, this will leave little time to his successor and the party to prepare for early elections”, Beland told The AP.
The next government, according to many analysts, will be led by Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre. Poilievre, for years the party’s go-to attack dog, is a firebrand populist who blamed Canada’s cost of living crisis on Trudeau.
Jean-Marie Le Pen, the co-founder of France’s far-right National Front party, has died aged 96.
His death was confirmed by his daughter Marine Le Pen’s political party, National Rally (Rassemblement National) on Tuesday.
Jean-Marie Le Pen’s ferocious rhetoric against immigration earned him acclaim from both devoted supporters and widespread condemnation.
Le Pen, a polarizing figure in French politics, made statements that divided his political cadres, including those that included a 1987 proposal to forcibly isolate people with AIDS and denials of the Holocaust.
Le Pen contested the presidency of France five times and co-founded the National Front in 1972. When he succeeded in the second round of the presidential election, which Jacques Chirac won, in 2002, he shook France to the floor.
French President Emmanuel Macron said: “A historic figure of the far right, he played a role in the public life of our country for nearly 70 years, which is now up to history.”
Le Pen’s daughter, Marine, renamed his National Front party and transformed it into one of France’s most powerful political forces. She also distanced the party from her father’s extremist image.
Despite Jean-Marie Le Pen’s eventual exclusion from his own party in 2015, his divisive legacy endures.
He used his charisma to captivate audiences with his anti-immigration message, both as a wily political strategist and gifted orator.
His daughter was in a crucial moment when he died. If found guilty in an embezzlement trial, she now faces a potential prison sentence and a ban on running for political office.
Several convictions
Le Pen, who in his youth lost an eye in a street fight, was a force that politicians had to ignore throughout French politics.
He was frequently accused of racism and xenophobia and was repeatedly found guilty of anti-Semitism. Le Pen responded that he was merely a patriot guarding the “eternal France” identity.
He was found guilty in 1990 of making the radio remark that described the Nazi gas chambers as a “detail in World War II history.”
In 2015, he repeated the remark, saying he “did not at all” regret it, triggering the ire of his daughter – by then the party leader – and a new conviction in 2016.
He also was convicted for a 1988 remark linking a Cabinet minister with the Nazi crematory ovens, and for a 1989 comment blaming the “Jewish international” for helping seed “this anti-national spirit”.
In contravention of the 27-nation bloc’s rules, Jean-Marie Le Pen and his daughters Marine and Yann have been accused of using funds intended for European Union parliamentary aides to pay their own staff.
A powerful , earthquake has struck a remote region of Tibet, killing at least 126 people and wounding more than 100 others, with tremors felt in Nepal, Bhutan and parts of northern India.
The China Earthquake Networks Center (CENC) recorded a magnitude of 6.8 while the earthquake on Tuesday was measured at 7.1 on the Richter scale.
The Shigatse high-altitude county of Dingri, which is situated on the Chinese side of Mount Everest and is home to about 62, 000 people, was the epicenter of the quake. The Dalai Lama, a significant figure in Tibetan Buddhism, whose spiritual authority is second only to the Dalai Lama, is residing in Shigatse.
More than 1, 000 homes have been reportedly infected by the earthquake, which struck the area at a depth of about 10 kilometers (6 miles) at 9:05 am (01:05 GMT), according to the Xinhua state news agency.
According to state broadcaster CCTV, “Dingri county and its surrounding areas experienced very strong tremors, and many buildings have collapsed close to the epicentre.”
“A total of 126 people have been confirmed dead and 188 others injured as of 7: 00pm (11: 00 GMT) Tuesday”, Xinhua reported.
Temperatures in Dingri are currently minus 8 degrees Celsius (17.6 degrees Fahrenheit). By Tuesday evening, the mercury will be minus 18 degrees Celsius (0. 4 degrees Fahrenheit).
