French police detained two people on suspicion of human trafficking.
French police detained two people a day after France grounded a Nicaragua-bound plane carrying more than 300 Indian passengers on suspicion of "human trafficking". Indian officials have also reached the spot and are investigating the situation.
France on Friday stopped a charter flight going to Nicaragua to conduct a judicial investigation. About 303 Indian passengers are said to be on board.
The Airbus A340, belonging to Romanian charter company Legend Airlines, took off from the United Arab Emirates and landed at Vatry airport in eastern France to refuel.
The Paris public prosecutor said authorities took drastic action and stopped the flight following an anonymous tip of "human trafficking". According to the news, some passengers on the flight were "victims of human trafficking".
Two people have been detained by a unit specializing in organized crime and are being interrogated.
India has been given consular access to reach the people on board the plane. Officials have reached the spot to investigate and ensure the well-being of the passengers.
The Indian Embassy in France said in a post on Twitter: "French authorities informed us that a flight carrying 303 people from Dubai to Nicaragua was stopped at a French airport due to technical snag. Most of the questions about the flight were The people were of Indian origin. The embassy team has reached and consular access has also been granted. We are investigating the situation and also ensuring the well-being of the passengers."
According to news agency AFP, officials suspect that the passengers may have planned to go to Central America to try to enter the US or Canada illegally.
After the flight landed in France, all the passengers were first kept in the plane, but then they were taken out and given separate beds in the terminal building. "The reception hall at Watari Airport was converted into a waiting area with individual beds to provide better facilities to passengers," the prefect office said.
303 Indians spent the night at the airport and authorities have not yet given an update on when they will be allowed out.
If a foreign national lands in France and is prevented from traveling to his intended destination, border police may initially detain him for up to four days. French law allows that period to be extended to eight days. If a judge approves, this period can be extended by a further eight days, up to a maximum of 26 days in exceptional circumstances.
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'Human rights violations': Baloch Solidarity Committee protest sit-in in Islamabad
The organizer of the sit-in, Saira Baloch, told Independent that a camp had been set up outside the National Press Club for the past 25 days. Today, more people have joined this camp and now it has turned into a sit-in.
Organized by the Baloch Solidarity Committee, a regional organization working for the rights of Baloch, a protest sit-in is underway outside the press club in the federal capital Islamabad against ' enforced disappearances ' and 'extra-judicial killings'.
Saira Baloch, organizer of the sit-in, told Independent that a camp had been set up at this location for the past 25 days. Today, more people have joined this camp and now it has turned into a sit-in.
This protest is taking place at a time when a long march of the Baloch Solidarity Committee led by 30-year-old Dr. Mahrang Baloch called for a judicial inquiry into the incident of Baloch Bakhsh, a Baloch youth killed in an alleged police encounter in Turbat area of Balochistan and the missing persons . had left Islamabad from Turbat at the beginning of this month for the recovery of
When it reached the federal capital on the night of December 20, the Islamabad police conducted an operation against them and arrested dozens of people, against which the committee approached the Islamabad High Court.
Discussions regarding the extra-judicial killing of 24-year-old Balach began after the controversial operation conducted by the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) in Turbat district on November 23 , but the state agencies deny their involvement.
Mah Rang Baloch wrote on X yesterday: 'Tomorrow at 10 am a peace rally will be held in front of the Islamabad Press Club.'
He appealed to journalists, human rights activists and people from all walks of life to 'support us in this struggle by participating in this rally and our protest camp.'
Meanwhile, the Islamabad Police has rejected the protestors' claims of mistreatment of women and children, calling it a 'systematic disinformation campaign'.
A statement from the Islamabad Police on X said that 'no woman or child was abused at any time during the Baloch Solidarity March on 21-22 December. All the women were escorted by their relatives or friends with security.'
"All the persons have been produced in court and will be released through due process as per the directives of the ministerial committee constituted by the Prime Minister of Pakistan," the police added.
Earlier, when this long march of the Baloch Solidarity Committee reached the federal capital from Turbat area of Balochistan on Wednesday (December 20) night, they were stopped from going to the National Press Club, after which the participants of the march marched to the Motorway Toll Plaza. Picked up picket number 26 near Chongi.
Between Wednesday and Thursday, the Islamabad Police conducted an operation against the protesters and dispersed the protesters at Choongi No. 26, and also pulled down the tents of the protesters outside the Red Zone and the National Press Club, while arresting several people went.
Islamabad Police had said that a 'non-lethal' method was adopted to prevent the long march of Baloch protesters from entering the high security zone of the federal capital, while some arrests were also made.
The Baloch Solidarity Committee approached the Islamabad High Court on the arrests of the protestors, after which the Islamabad High Court ordered the Inspector General (IG) Islamabad Akbar Nasir Khan to The women participants present should be handed over to the organizers of the long march.
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) had strongly condemned the state's violence against Baloch citizens and said that the state's attitude towards peaceful protesters was a cause of great concern.
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