Indonesia Highlights: Families of Indonesian Victims in Sriwijaya Air Disaster Sues Boeing | Indonesia Denies International Pressure Behind Seizure of Tankers | Meteor Creates A Stir Upon Landing in L

Indonesia Denies International Pressure Behind Seizure of Tankers

The Indonesian Maritime Security Agency or Bakamla has denied external factors was behind its decision to seize two foreign motor tankers in waters off Pontianak, West Kalimantan province on Sunday, January 24.

“The seizing of the MT Horse from Iran and the Panama flagged MT Freya was not carried out because of pressure from the international community or the Indonesian [government],” said Bakamla head for the Western Maritime Zone Vice Admiral Hadi Pranoto on Thursday, January 29.

However, the Iranian government disagreed. “Iran has demanded an explanation from Indonesia about Jakarta’s seizure of the [MT Horse],” said Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh on Monday, January 25, as quoted by the Reuters state news agency.

“We are still trying to determine if [the Horse] committed any criminal or administrative wrongdoing.” The Bakamla patrol vessel KN Marore-322 seized the MT Horse and MT Freya as the two tankers were illegally transferring fuel.

Bakamla spokesman Wisnu Pramandita said the agency will hold the ships for a number of infractions.

They include “illegally transferring fuel, concealing the vessels’ identities, violating the right of transit passage, failing to raise their flags and turning off their automatic identification system [AIS].” “The Freya was even responsible for an oil spill.”

According to the Refinitiv Eikon shipping website, both ships have the capacity to carry over two million barrels of oil.

Source:

https://go.kompas.com/read/2021/01/29/221111574/indonesia-denies-international-pressure-behind-seizure-of-tankers. 

Meteor Creates A Stir Upon Landing in Lampung Province

Residents of Lampung province’s Lampung Tengah regency received a jolt from the sky, after a rock hit the house of one of the locals.

Footage of the meteor, which hit the house of a woman named Katmini on the night of Thursday, January 28 went viral, as netizens were struck by how the sky fell and left a hole on her roof.

Academics were just as intrigued, among them researchers from the Sumatra Institute of Technology or Itera. “We have come to the site of the incident and took a sample of the rock,” said Robiatul Muztaba, a lecturer in Atmospheric Science on Friday, January 29.

“But we cannot verify just yet if the rock was a meteor, or even if it fell from the sky. We also have to study its natural properties, or whether it has magnetic like many meteorites [and asteroids]. We will also examine whether it has black streaks caused by friction with the Earth’s atmosphere.”

The phenomena comes three days after a similar incident occurred in Bali’s Buleleng Regency on January 24.

Source:

https://regional.kompas.com/read/2021/01/29/19300211/batu-diduga-meteorit-hantam-rumah-warga-ahli-sudah-ambil-sampelnya?page=all#page2.