Latest news with #Afar
Daily Mirror
30-05-2025
- Daily Mirror
People are only just realising why we always board a plane from the left
When you board a plane, you'll always step onto the aircraft from the left - and it turns out there is a very good reason for this - and it's all to do with ships and boats As we gear up for the summer holiday rush and prepare to soak up the sun, there's a curious constant in our plane-boarding experience that might have escaped your notice. Whether you're buzzing with excitement or grappling with pre-flight jitters, you've probably never pondered why you always board an aircraft from the left-hand side. Despite the leaps in aviation technology, the boarding process has remained steadfastly the same, and Michael Oakley, managing editor of The Aviation Historian, has shed light on this intriguing tradition. Originally, commercial aircraft featured passenger doors on the left due to historical practices, but today it's all about operational efficiency. Speaking to Afar, Michael revealed: "Much of aviation terminology had its origins in maritime lore (rudder, cockpit, cabin, bulkhead, knots, etc), and similarly, the aeronautical ways of doing things owe a lot to sailing." He further explained: "Just as boats and ships have a port side – the side of the vessel conventionally adjacent to the dock when in port – aircraft are the same. Sensibly, people decided to continue to board on the port (or left) side." Boats were traditionally designed with the steering oar on the right side (starboard), leading to passengers and cargo being loaded onto the opposite side. This practice was carried over to aircraft until United Airlines in the 1930s and 40s decided to place their doors on the right. However, as air travel became more popular, it proved more efficient for everyone to board planes from the same side using the same terminals. "Since the pilot sits on the left, airports began to be built with gates on the left so the pilot could better judge distances as they taxied to the gate,' explained Matthew Burchette, senior curator at the Museum of Flight in Tukwila, Washington. He added: "As soon as more complex airports were developed, with passengers using Jetways as a means of walking directly aboard from the terminal, ground operations were a lot easier if every aircraft did the same thing in the same direction." This arrangement also makes life easier for airport ground staff, who can work on the right-hand side away from passengers, while passengers are kept clear of any machinery.
CBS News
12-04-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Award-winning Boston bookstore is dedicated to spotlighting Black and Brown authors
A bookstore in Boston's Nubian Square is the only Black-owned bookstore in the city and it's known for embracing literature and the community for almost 20 years. At Frugal Bookstore in Roxbury, it's about more than the literary works lining the shelves but the community they've served since 2008. "I've always been a reader, you know, so the chance to have a bookstore, for one, was big," said co-owner Leonard Egerton. "And then to have a bookstore in the community that I grew up in was huge. To be able to provide children and adults with books with people who look like them, it's big." For Egerton and his wife Clarissa Cropper Egerton, it's all about making sure their customers connect with the pages they read. "People love our selection of books because they can see themselves on the covers of the books and inside the stories of the books," said Cropper Egerton. With a special spotlight on Black and Brown authors, Frugal is not just about selling books but about celebrating culture. The neighborhood fixture has become a hotspot in Roxbury. It also gained national attention on The Drew Barrymore Show after a fire in the building damaged part of the store. "We had a huge increase in our online sales," said Cropper Egerton. In 2024, the city of Boston awarded Frugal Bookstore as a legacy business for their contribution to the community. This past February, they were named as one of the top 13 best Black-owned bookstores in the country by travel publication Afar. "And they just keep coming because they know that it's needed," said Egerton. Frugal Bookstore is filling the need for a place where everyone feels at home as they live up to their motto "Changing minds one book at a time." "It's joyous in a word to see a child come in and say, 'Oh, I've read that book,' 'Oh, she looks like me' or 'He looks like me,'" said Egerton. "I want to thank the community and all of our supporters and customers who over the years has been, I don't know, like almost 18 years and just thank you for your support and we really appreciate it," said Cropper Egerton.
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Altered map falsely shows Eritrea's Assab port as being part of Ethiopia
The post, published in English on Facebook on March 13, 2025, reads: 'Assab, Afar Ethiopia', followed by an emoji with the Ethiopian flag. Afar is an ethnic group found in the Horn of Africa, mainly in Ethiopia but also in Eritrea and Djibouti. 'Assab is a port city in the Southern Red Sea Region of Ethiopia,' the post adds. 'It is situated on the west coast of the Red Sea. Languages spoken in Assab are predominantly Afar, and Arabic.' The post is accompanied by a map of the Horn of Africa in which Ethiopia's borders appear to extend to the coast of the Red Sea, which is not the case in reality. Similar posts were shared here and here on Facebook. Tensions are rising in the conflict-ridden Horn of Africa after landlocked Ethiopia recently made a strong plea to regain access to the Red Sea. Ethiopia had access to the Red Sea via Assab before Eritrea became independent in 1993 and took over control of the port (archived here). However, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy told parliament on March 20, 2025, that his country would not invade neighbouring Eritrea to gain access to the sea (archived here). AFP Fact Check found that the map allegedly showing the port of Assab as part of Ethiopia has been redrawn. AFP Fact Check conducted reverse image searches and tracked down the original map (archived here). It was published in 2000 by Mapsland, a website that shares collections of maps from across the globe (archived here). The original map is captioned in English and reads: 'Ethiopia large detailed political map with roads, railroads and major cities - 2000.' But, in this original map, Ethiopia does not border the Red Sea, and the port of Assab is located in Eritrea. These are the same borders as can be seen on current maps, including Google Maps. In the altered version of the map, Ethiopia's borders have been moved to reach the sea and therefore encompass Assab. The map has been redrawn to support the false claim that 'Asab is in the southern Red Sea region of Ethiopia'. The following image presents a comparison of the original and modified maps. Meanwhile, the text in the post describing the location of Assab appears to have been lifted directly from the Wikipedia entry for the port, with one major change: the post has replaced the word 'Eritrea' with 'Ethiopia'. AFP Fact Check has previously debunked claims related to Ethiopia controlling the port of Assab here.
AFP
21-03-2025
- Politics
- AFP
Altered map falsely shows Eritrea's Assab port as being part of Ethiopia
Ethiopia's quest for access to the Red Sea has become a hotly debated topic on social media. Posts with a map of the Red Sea region in the Horn of Africa claim that Eritrea's port of Assab is located in Ethiopia. However, this is false: the map has been altered. The area where the port is located in Eritrea has been redrawn within the border of Ethiopia. The post, published in English on Facebook on March 13, 2025, reads: 'Assab, Afar Ethiopia', followed by an emoji with the Ethiopian flag. Image Screenshot of the altered post, taken on March 20, 2025 Afar is an ethnic group found in the Horn of Africa, mainly in Ethiopia but also in Eritrea and Djibouti. 'Assab is a port city in the Southern Red Sea Region of Ethiopia,' the post adds. 'It is situated on the west coast of the Red Sea. Languages spoken in Assab are predominantly Afar, and Arabic.' The post is accompanied by a map of the Horn of Africa in which Ethiopia's borders appear to extend to the coast of the Red Sea, which is not the case in reality. Similar posts were shared here and here on Facebook. Tensions are rising in the conflict-ridden Horn of Africa after landlocked Ethiopia recently made a strong plea to regain access to the Red Sea. Ethiopia had access to the Red Sea via Assab before Eritrea became independent in 1993 and took over control of the port (archived here). However, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy told parliament on March 20, 2025, that his country would not invade neighbouring Eritrea to gain access to the sea (archived here). AFP Fact Check found that the map allegedly showing the port of Assab as part of Ethiopia has been redrawn. Redrawn map AFP Fact Check conducted reverse image searches and tracked down the original map (archived here). It was published in 2000 by Mapsland, a website that shares collections of maps from across the globe (archived here). The original map is captioned in English and reads: 'Ethiopia large detailed political map with roads, railroads and major cities - 2000.' But, in this original map, Ethiopia does not border the Red Sea, and the port of Assab is located in Eritrea. These are the same borders as can be seen on current maps, including Google Maps. In the altered version of the map, Ethiopia's borders have been moved to reach the sea and therefore encompass Assab. The map has been redrawn to support the false claim that 'Asab is in the southern Red Sea region of Ethiopia'. The following image presents a comparison of the original and modified maps. Image Screenshots of the original map published by Mapsland (left) and the modified map, taken on March 20, 2025 Meanwhile, the text in the post describing the location of Assab appears to have been lifted directly from the Wikipedia entry for the port, with one major change: the post has replaced the word 'Eritrea' with 'Ethiopia'. Image Screenshots from Wikipedia's description of Assab (left) and from the false post, taken on March 20, 2025 AFP Fact Check has previously debunked claims related to Ethiopia controlling the port of Assab here.
Khabar Agency
15-02-2025
- Politics
- Khabar Agency
Eritrean Recruit's Confessions Reveal Iranian-Backed Houthis Plot in Horn of Africa
Explosive confessions from an Eritrean recruit, captured by Yemen's National Resistance forces, have unmasked an alleged Iranian scheme to destabilize the Horn of Africa by replicating the Houthi militia model. The plan, aimed at securing Tehran's dominance over the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, involves covert training camps in Yemen and the recruitment of Afar tribe youth across Eritrea, Djibouti, and Ethiopia. Ali Ahmed Mohammed Yaa'idi, the detained recruit, said in a video released by the National Resistance's military media that Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is orchestrating the creation of a Shiite armed movement. 'Iran wants to turn the Afar into a force stronger than the Houthis or Hezbollah,' Yaa'idi stated, alleging that tribal leaders were promised unprecedented military and financial backing in exchange for secessionist efforts to carve out an Iran-aligned Afar state. From Djibouti to Yemen: A Recruitment Pipeline Yaa'idi detailed how he was recruited in Djibouti by Mohammed Ali Musa, an operative linked to Iran's regional network. Lured by promises of employment, he and nine others were smuggled via boat to Hodeidah, a Houthi-controlled Yemeni port. There, Afar leader Mohammed Alawsen and Houthi officials allegedly transported the group to a coastal camp for two months of ideological indoctrination, followed by advanced combat training in Sana'a. Child Soldiers and Strategic Ambitions The recruit emphasized that Iran and its Houthi allies are prioritizing boys aged 10–20 for indoctrination, describing them as 'easy to mold.' After training, youths are reportedly sent back to their home countries to clandestinely build militias. Yaa'idi claimed an Afar commander in Yemen boasted that the region's strategic value—gateway to the Red Sea—exceeds even Yemen's, warranting greater Iranian investment than the Houthis received. The camps, hidden in northern Hodeidah and Sana'a, operate under strict secrecy to avoid international scrutiny. Analysts warn the revelations underscore Iran's escalating bid to control critical maritime chokepoints, leveraging proxy forces to project power. The Afar region's split across three nations (Eritrea, Ethiopia, Djibouti) could inflame existing ethnic tensions, further destabilizing a volatile corridor vital to global trade.
