News Headlines - 10 August 2019

▽India set to withdraw Kashmir's special status and split it in two | The Guardian

India is set to withdraw the special status of the disputed territory of Kashmir and split the state in two, in a move likely to face major resistance in the Muslim-majority state and escalate tensions with Pakistan.
The proposal, which has been advocated by Hindu nationalists for decades, is the most radical change any government has suggested for Kashmir’s status since the region was granted autonomy in exchange for joining the Indian union after independence in 1947.

▽China demands Cathay Pacific suspend staff supporting protests - Reuters

China’s aviation regulator on Friday issued a major safety alert to Cathay Pacific Airways demanding the carrier to suspend personnel who have engaged in and supported illegal protests in Hong Kong on mainland flights from August 10.

▽Huawei launches HongmengOS, or HarmonyOS, its own operating system

Huawei has launched its own operating system - the HongmengOS, known in English as the HarmonyOS, said the CEO of the Chinese tech giant’s consumer division, Richard Yu, on Friday.
Speaking at the Huawei Developer Conference in the Chinese city of Dongguan, Yu said the operating system can be used across different devices from smartphones to smart speakers and even sensors. It’s part of Huawei’s play in the so-called Internet of Things, which refers to devices connected to the internet.

▽'I was terrified': How Epstein allegedly built a network of victims | AFP.com

A month before Jeffrey Epstein's death by apparent suicide in a New York prison, a federal indictment cast light on what prosecutors said was a sprawling network of high school and college students lined up by young recruiters and then forced to satisfy the hedge fund billionaire's insatiable sexual appetite... Epstein allegedly relied upon an army of recruiters, often not much older than their targets, whom they would smoothly approach, presenting the former math teacher as a benefactor... Epstein favored "economically disadvantaged minor girls," said US Attorney Geoffrey Berman.
Epstein's "little black book" eventually included the names of more than 100 recruits from areas where he had residences, including Paris, the Miami Herald reported.

▽Using drones to watch refugees drown exposes the inhumanity of border enforcement | The Guardian

International law obliges the master of a ship at sea to provide assistance to people in distress, “regardless of the nationality or status of such persons”. At the same time many European countries and the EU itself are trying to restrict such activities, even as the death toll in the Mediterranean rises.
The European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex, appears to have come up with an ingenious solution: use drones. The legal obligation to aid a vessel in distress does not apply to an unmanned aerial vehicle, or UAV. You can avoid the politically fraught argument about who should take care of rescued migrants if you never rescue them in the first place. This is part of a long trend in policy designed to ensure that migrants are unable to cross the Mediterranean. If we are obliged to rescue those who ask us for help, the solution seems to be to ensure we cannot hear their request.