Turkey: Passengers overpower hijacker on a Norway bound flight

Passengers aboard a Turkish Airlines flight from Oslo overpowered a would-be hijacker as theplane landed at Istanbul airport on Wednesday, fellow passengers told the media.

Police said the man was a Turk who had demanded that the plane return to Norway. His motive was unclear. The pilot notified emergency services at Istanbul’s Ataturk airport. Passengers were quickly taken off after landing and the man was arrested and the bomb found to be a fake. A man started to shout from the back of the plane. He was shouting for the crew to turn the plane back to Oslo. He covered his face with a shawl, one of the 59 passengers aboard said. Police said a passenger had been sitting on top of the hijacker when they entered the plane. Police identified the hijacker as Cuma Yasar. Private Norwegian television network TV2 quoted witness Salim Tahar as saying someone in the back of the plane had put on a mask and threatened to blow up the plane in the air. There were no reports of anyone being hurt in the incident.

Man throws book at Obama during campaign rally

During a weekend rally in Philadelphia, an overly excited author hurled a copy of his own book onto the stage where President Obama was standing.
The incident happened at a Philadelphia campaign rally in front of nearly 20,000 people but President Obama did not react to this incident. According to the reports that the Secret Service questioned and released the thrower after the law enforcement agency concluded that the man posed no threat to Obama. A Secret Service spokesman said the man had written the book and wanted the president to read it.

Indian killed in Australia: Racial attack

CANBERRA: An Indian man fatally stabbed in a Melbourne park had feared for his life because of a previous attack at a railway station, his housemate has said.

The 21-year-old man staggered into a Hungry Jack’s restaurant on the corner of Somerville Road and Geelong Road, West Footscray, asking for help before collapsing about 10pm (AEDT) on Saturday.

The man, from Newport, was taken to the Royal Melbourne Hospital, where he later died.
His housemate Parminder Singh said the man had previously been attacked at the Newport railway station.

“They were just drunk and they wanted to find anyone to beat,” he told the ABC.
“If they find someone alone they just beat (them) because they know nothing is going to happen after that.

“What will happen? Police will not do anything. They will just take them to the jail or just let them sit there, they will give them food and all facilities so they’re not scared of anything.”

The attack comes after a series of violent incidents against Indians in Melbourne and Sydney in 2008.

The violence led to protests and made headlines across India and internationally, creating potential problems for Australia’s $15.5 billion education export industry.

Police said the man stabbed on Saturday had travelled to Yarraville train station about 9.30pm (AEDT), then walked along Anderson Street to Cruickshank Park where he was stabbed in the abdomen.

He then staggered about 300 metres to the Hungry Jack’s restaurant where he worked part-time.

Homicide squad Senior Sergeant Dave Snare said the attack was vicious and the motive not known.

He said there was no evidence the man was targeted because of his race.

“I think to draw any conclusion as to the motive may interfere with the investigation and would be presumptuous at this stage,” he told reporters in Melbourne.

The victim, a single man who had permanent residency in Australia, is understood to be originally from India’s Punjabi region. But Federation of Indian Students spokesman Gautum Gupta said race was a clear factor in the attack.

“Nothing was stolen. The wallet was there, mobile phone was there, so there’s no other motivation other than race,” he said.

Police are trying to contact the man’s relatives abroad and determine if he has any in Australia.

Sen Sgt Snare said at this stage police had no leads and urged any witnesses to come forward. police particularly want to hear from a group of people who were in the park earlier that night.

They say while there is no suggestion they were involved in the attack, they could help the investigation. Some of the man’s belongings were found in the park and police are asking locals to keep an eye out for other items.

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Indian killed in Australia: Racial attack was first posted on January 3, 2010 at 7:44 pm.