Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Indian Police Investigate Who Helped US Citizen Killed On Remote Island

Indian authorities said on Friday (23) they are investigating whether a young American believed to have been killed by an isolated tribe on a remote island, may have had help from more people than initially thought to make his illegal trip.

John Chau (26), was allegedly killed on November 17 by people of the Sentinelese tribe who inhabit the North Sentinel Island in the Andaman and Nicobar island chain. Chau's family said in a social media post he was a Christian missionary and mountaineer.


It is illegal for people to visit the island and seven people suspected of helping Chau reach it, including fishermen, have been arrested.

The fishermen told police that they saw Chau's body being dragged across a beach and buried in the sand.

Police are now investigating if Chau had help from other people to travel to North Sentinel, said Vijay Singh, senior superintendent of police in Andaman and Nicobar islands, in a statement.

Police plan to investigate "the sequence of events, the sea route followed", and other matters, said Singh.

The Sentinelese, hunter-gatherers armed with primitive spears and bows and arrows, are considered to be the last pre-Neolithic tribe in the world and the most isolated such group.

The tribe, estimated to be only a few dozen in number, have for decades aggressively resisted contact with the outside world.

Anthropologists were briefly in contact with the tribe in the early 1990s, but their effort was abandoned due to fears that contact with the outside world could expose the tribe to pathogens and lead to their extinction.

North Sentinel, 50 km (31 miles) west of Port Blair - the capital of the island cluster - is protected by laws which bar even fishing within a 5-nautical mile radius of the island.

The law also bars tourism or photography of the Sentinelese and certain other tribes in the Andaman islands. Those found guilty of breaking the law face jail of up to three years.

In their social media post, Chau's family called on authorities to release his friends in the Andaman Islands saying they did not blame anyone for his death.

Dependra Pathak, director general of police in the Andaman and Nicobar islands, told Reuters police had to follow the law.

"I understand the emotional concern of the family," he said. "But we'll be handling the entire issue keeping in mind the law."

He said authorities were looking into whether they could retrieve Chau's body.

"We have to respect the utmost sensitivities in this case," he said, adding it was a moral duty to protect and respect the tribe that has lived in isolation for millennia.

Reuters

More For You

reeves-spring-statement

To prevent a budget deficit, Reeves has announced cuts to disability welfare payments and reductions in government departmental budgets, citing global economic uncertainty.

Government cuts growth forecast, announces public spending cuts

THE UK government reduced its 2025 growth forecast by half on Wednesday and announced spending cuts to manage public finances amid economic challenges.

The Spring Statement update comes as the Labour government, which won a landslide election in July, faces slow economic growth and rising borrowing costs.

Keep ReadingShow less
Slough Council writes off £382,000 in unpaid business rates

Two companies that owed the money had dissolved, while a third – which owed the largest amount – had gone into liquidation.

CRM

Slough Council writes off £382,000 in unpaid business rates

Nick Clark

AN ‘eyewatering’ £382,000 in unpaid business rates has been written off by Slough Borough Council with the agreement of council leaders – with one branding the sum ‘frightening’.

Leading councillors voted to approve the write off last Monday (17), after all attempts to collect the debt – owed by just three companies – had been ‘exhausted’. Councillor Wal Chahal, responsible for finance, said: “It’s an eyewatering number to be writing off, it’s just frightening.

Keep ReadingShow less
man-city-getty

Last year, Manchester City and Techno India Group launched the first Manchester City Football School in India, based in Kolkata. (Representational image: Getty)

Manchester City signs MoU to open sports school in Bengal: Mamata Banerjee

MAMATA BANERJEE, chief minister of the Indian state of West Bengal, has announced that Manchester City has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish a sports school in the state.

The Premier League club, which has won the league title for four consecutive seasons, is expanding its football education initiatives in the region.

Keep ReadingShow less
IMF Finalizes £1 Billion Loan Agreement for Pakistan

The IMF said in a statement on Tuesday that the 28-month agreement aims to support Pakistan’s efforts in tackling climate change. (Photo: Reuters)

REUTERS

IMF announces agreement on £1 bn loan deal for Pakistan

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has reached an agreement with Pakistan on a new £1 billion loan programme and reviewed an existing bailout, which could unlock an additional £770 million if approved.

The IMF said in a statement on Tuesday that the 28-month agreement aims to support Pakistan’s efforts in tackling climate change.

Keep ReadingShow less