9 International Tuesday, July 9, 2019 ‘Black box’ reveals last moments of doomed Himalayan climbers Rescue team analyze GoPro footage; British climber still missing NEW DELHI: Indian authorities yesterday showed heart- an aircraft giving an insight into the last few moments wrenching images of the final moments of an international of the climbers.” team of climbers swept away in an avalanche as they attempted to scale an unconquered Himalayan peak. The Put our lives at risk 154 second clip shows the four Britons, two Americans, an Nambadia said the operation to find the bodies at an Australian and their Indian guide roped together in bright altitude of 6,100 meters had been “extremely challenging”. sunshine as they take nervous, synchronized steps along a Twelve climbers had started the expedition, but four narrow ridge towards a snow-capped peak. Then the Britons were rescued after breaking away. The missing screen goes blank. climbers last communicated on May 26, a day before heavy “Suddenly we noticed a loud noise. The video went snow fell in the region. On June 3, a military helicopter blank and stopped,” said Vivek Kumar Pandey, spokesman spotted the bodies and climbing equipment in the snow but for the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP). “They were several attempts to airlift the bodies away were aborted crossing a very dangerous ridge. The snow cornice must due to fierce winds and the difficult terrain. The ITBP then have given away because of their weight, triggering an sent its expert climbers on foot to bring the bodies down. avalanche,” he said. The camera, that was carried by the S S Deswal, the ITBP director general, said the rescue final climber in the line, was found buried in snow near team risked their own lives to retrieve the bodies “with where seven bodies were uncovered. An eighth climber, respect and dignity”. “We put our own lives at risk and British team leader Martin Moran, is still missing, accord- undertook the operation by foot. We slept with the dead ing to Indian authorities. bodies on the side for days,” said Ratan Singh Sonal, an In addition to Moran, the climbers were Britons John ITBP officer who led the rescue team. “At night we would McLaren, Rupert Whewell and University of York lec- bury the bodies under snow outside our tents to slow turer Richard Payne, US nationals Anthony Sudekum down the decomposition process,” Sonal said. “But we and Ronald Beimel, Australian Ruth McCance and were not afraid. We felt we are all a part of humanity.” Indian guide Chetan Pandey. “It was mesmerizing for us Nambadia said the exhausted rescue team almost to see the footage,” said A P S Nambadia, the ITBP cracked emotionally when they found the climbers’ deputy inspector general who planned the operation to belongings such as a toy penguin. “They were emotionally retrieve the bodies. “It will help us to analyze what charged when they found the baby (toy) penguin. It was UTTARKASHI: In this handout photo Indo Tibetan Border Patrol (ITBP) personnel carry the body of a moun- went wrong with their mission,” he told a press brief- symbolic of the emotions of a mountaineer and my team taineer from Nanda Devi at base camp on the mountain before airlifting the remains down to Pithoragarh in ing. “The GoPro has proved to be like the black box of could relate to it.” — AFP the Indian state of Uttarakhand. — AFP Hong Kong protesters moot Bank of China South Korean follows ‘stress test’ parents in rare defection to North HONG KONG: Anti-government protesters in Hong Kong began circulating plans yesterday to “stress test” the Bank of China in their bid to keep pressure on the city’s pro- SEOUL: A South Korean man has defected to North Beijing leaders, after five people were arrested in the latest Korea, following in the footsteps of his political parents clashes with police. The finance hub has been plunged into who also made a high-profile switch of allegiance in the its worst crisis in recent history following a month of huge 1980s, according to Pyongyang’s state media. Years of marches as well as separate violent confrontations with repression and poverty in the reclusive North have led police involving a minority of hardcore protesters. around 30,000 people to flee to its democratic neigh- The rallies were sparked by a now-suspended law that bor in the decades since the Korean War, but defec- would have allowed extraditions to mainland China, but have tions in the other direction are extremely rare. since morphed into a wider movement calling for democrat- Choe In-guk-the son of former South Korean for- ic reforms and a halt to sliding freedoms in the semi- eign minister Choe Dok-shin, who died in 1989, three autonomous territory. Sunday night saw fresh political vio- years after moving to North Korea with his wife-land- lence break out in the district of Mongkok as police baton- ed in Pyongyang on Saturday, reported state-run out- charged small groups of masked, largely young protesters let Uriminzokkiri. In video footage filmed at an airport who were walking along roads and refused to disperse fol- and posted by the website on Sunday, the 72-year-old lowing another massive, peaceful rally earlier in the day. Choe said he had arrived in the North Korean capital Police said the group were taking part in an “unlawful HONG KONG: A protester reacts as he is detained by police officers during clashes between demonstrators and “for residency”. “I can’t find words to describe my assembly” and had been warned that officers would take police in the Mong Kok district in Kowloon after taking part in a march to the West Kowloon rail terminus action. “Some protesters resisted and police arrested five against the proposed extradition bill in Hong Kong. — AFP gratitude to the Republic that has embraced me,” he persons for assaulting a police officer and obstructing a said in the clip. police officer in the execution of duties,” a statement said. Choe added that he had decided to live in the North tion’s liquidity. Shares in the bank were down about one stop characterizing protesters as “rioters”, a definition that Another protester was arrested earlier in the day for fail- to “fulfill the wishes” of his parents. Seoul’s unification percent yesterday in line with the broader market. carries much steeper jail terms. Beijing has thrown its full ing to provide identification during a stop and search. ministry said Monday it was not aware of Choe’s The state-owned Bank of China’s towering Hong Kong support behind the embattled Lam, calling on police to defection until the report was published, noting it does headquarters is one of the most recognizable buildings in pursue anyone involved in the parliament storming and Excessive force not track individuals because it “respects freedom of the territory’s famous skyline and the organization is one other clashes. With the exception of a pre-dawn press con- Activists hit out at the police tactics, saying the pro- movement”. A small number of South Koreans in eco- of three banks licensed to issue its own notes. Public anger ference after parliament was stormed, Lam has virtually testers had remained peaceful as they made their way nomic difficulty have defected to the North in the past, has soared against the city’s pro-Beijing leaders and its disappeared from public view in recent weeks with little home, and that violence was started by a shield wall of riot but Pyongyang has repatriated many people as they police force after officers used tear gas and rubber bullets clue as to what direction her administration intends to take. officers that had blocked the crowd’s path. “HKers joined hold little value for its propaganda platform. to disperse protesters outside parliament last month. Her office announced she planned to speak to the media on rally peacefully... against extradition bill result in being It returned two South Koreans last year, said min- Last Monday, anger peaked as hundreds of demonstra- Tuesday morning, the first appearance in over a week. beaten and assaulted by HK Police,” democracy activist istry spokesman Lee Sang-min, without elaborating. tors stormed and trashed the city’s parliament. Those Despite repeated requests, police have not released Joshua Wong wrote in a tweet accompanying pictures of The government doesn’t keep a record of the number unprecedented scenes-and renewed huge marches-have a breakdown of how many people have been detained in at least two protesters with bleeding head wounds. “Just of South Korean defectors to the North, he added. failed to persuade the government, whose sole concession the last month of protests. A tally kept by AFP shows at another example of excessive force used by the police,” he Pyongyang, which is under heavy economic sanctions so far has been to suspend the loathed extradition bill. least 72 people have been arrested, though it is not added in another tweet. clear how many have been charged. Sunday’s rally out- because of its multiple nuclear tests and long-range By yesterday morning, online groups were already Protester demands side a controversial train station that runs to the main- missile launches, denounces defectors to South Korea planning more protests on encrypted messenger apps and Protesters are demanding the bill be scrapped entirely, land drew 230,000 people, organizers said, after calls as “human scum”. chat forums that have been successfully used by demon- an independent inquiry into police tactics, amnesty for for the gathering started on online forums and snow- Those who do find their way to the South are an strators to bring out huge crowds.