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A6 WORLD NEWS
Thursday 27 July 2023

A freighter carrying nearly 3,000 cars catches fire in the North Sea

By MIKE CORDER still unable to extinguish the
Associated Press flames and smoke was bil-
THE HAGUE, Netherlands lowing out of the hold.
(AP) — A fire on a freight Images published in the af-
ship carrying nearly 3,000 ternoon by the coast guard
cars was burning out of showed gray smoke pour-
control Wednesday in the ing out of the stricken ship.
North Sea, killing one crew Its location is close to a
member and injuring oth- chain of Dutch and Ger-
ers, the Dutch coast guard man islands popular with
said. tourists in the shallow Wad-
The agency said it was den Sea, a World Heritage-
working to save the vessel listed area described by
from sinking close to an im- UNESCO as “the largest
portant habitat for migra- unbroken system of inter-
tory birds. tidal sand and mud flats
Boats and helicopters were in the world” and “one of
used to get the 23 crew the most important areas
members off the ship after for migratory birds in the
they tried unsuccessfully to world.”
put out the blaze, the coast Versteeg said the vessel
guard said in a statement. was carrying 2,857 cars,
The cause of the blaze Smoke and flames are seen on a freight ship in the North Sea, about 27 kilometers (17 miles) including 25 electric cars,
wasn’t immediately known, north of the Dutch island of Ameland, Wednesday, July 26, 2023. making fighting the flames
and it wasn’t clear how the Associated Press more difficult.
crew member died. ship that could be used to emergency services said. least bad situation is going “It’s not easy to keep that
The Fremantle Highway was tow it, the coast guard said. “Currently, there are a lot to happen,” Versteeg said. kind of fire under control
sailing from the German Some of the crew mem- of vessels on scene to mon- Asked if it was possible the and even in such a ves-
port of Bremerhaven to bers jumped off the ship’s itor the situation and to ship would sink, she said, sel it’s not easy,” Versteeg
Singapore when it caught deck into the sea and were see how to get the fire un- “It’s a scenario we’re tak- said.
fire about 27 kilometers (17 picked up by a lifeboat, der control,” coast guard ing into account and we’re The ship’s Japanese own-
miles) north of the Dutch is- the lifeboat’s captain told spokesperson Lea Versteeg preparing for all scenarios.” er, Shoei Kisen Kaisha Ltd,
land of Ameland. Dutch broadcaster NOS. said by phone. “But it’s all By early afternoon, two said it was working in co-
As the blaze continued Some of the crew suffered depending on weather ships were alongside the operation with the local
throughout the day, a sal- broken bones, burns and and the damage to the freighter, hosing down its authorities of the Nether-
vage company sent an ex- breathing problems and vessel. So we’re currently sides in an attempt to cool lands, a salvage company
pert to assess the possibility were taken to hospitals in working out to see how we them, the coast guard and a ship management
of fastening a cable to the the northern Netherlands, can make sure that ... the said, but firefighters were company.q

U.N. panel says it’s concerned about human rights violations in

Uganda

By RODNEY MUHUMUZA The panel’s report was its Uganda’s security forces U.S. ally who has held pow- mosexuals has put Uganda
Associated Press first review of Uganda since face growing allegations of er since 1986. under an intense interna-
KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — 2004.A government spokes- brutality in their encounters Cases of extrajudicial kill- tional spotlight. The law,
Human rights violations in- man was not immediately with perceived opponents ings “should be looked which has wide support at
cluding extrajudicial killings available for comment on of the government of Presi- upon and perpetrators home, has been criticized
in Uganda in recent years the committee’s findings. dent Yoweri Museveni, a punished,” the U.N. panel by rights activists and eco-
have raised the concern of said, urging Uganda’s se- nomic benefactors includ-
a panel of United Nations curity forces to “stick strictly ing the World Bank. The U.S.
experts. to the principles of neces- has warned of economic
The U.N. Human Rights sity and proportionality.” consequences over legisla-
Committee in findings re- The opposition National tion described by Amnesty
leased Wednesday also Unity Platform party has International as “draconian
urged authorities in the East led calls for Museveni and and overly broad.”
African country to repeal a some members of his secu- “We don’t understand this
recently enacted law that rity personnel to face pos- law,” Jose Manuel Santos
prescribes the death pen- sible criminal charges at Pais, a member of the U.N.
alty for some homosexual the International Criminal committee, said Wednes-
acts. Court. While Museveni has day. He added that his
The committee pointed to condemned some security panel was “appalled” by
reports of arbitrary arrests personnel for using exces- the legislation.
and detention by police sive force when dealing Homosexuality is criminal-
and security forces target- with civilians, his critics say ized in more than 30 of Af-
ing political opponents, Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni attends the state funeral of he should be held respon- rica’s 54 countries. Some
journalists, lawyers, human Kenya’s former president Daniel Arap Moi in Nairobi, Kenya on sible for abuses committed Africans see it as behavior
rights defenders, sex work- Feb. 11, 2020. under his watch. imported from abroad and
ers, and LGBTQ+ people. Associated Press A new law targeting ho- not a sexual orientation.q