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Los Angeles Times
3 hours ago
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
Cambodia makes more than 1,000 arrests in crackdown on cybercrime
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — Cambodia on Wednesday said that an order by Prime Minister Hun Manet for government bodies to crackdown on criminal cybercrime operations being run in the country had resulted in the arrest of more than 1,000 suspects so far this week. Hun Manet issued the order authorizing state action for 'maintaining and protecting security, public order, and social safety.' 'The government has observed that online scams are currently causing threats and insecurity in the world and the region. In Cambodia, foreign criminal groups have also infiltrated to engage in online scams,' Hun Manet's statement, dated Tuesday, said. The United Nations and other agencies estimate that cyberscams, most of them originating from Southeast Asia, earn international criminal gangs billions of dollars annually. More than 1,000 suspects were arrested in raids in at least five provinces between Monday and Wednesday, according to statements from Information Minister Neth Pheaktra and police. Those detained included more than 200 Vietnamese, 27 Chinese, and 75 suspects from Taiwan and 85 Cambodians in the capital Phnom Penh and the southern city of Sihanoukville. Police also seized equipment, including computers and hundreds of mobile phones. At least 270 Indonesians, including 45 women, were arrested Wednesday in Poipet, a town on the border with Thailand notorious for cyberscam and gambling operations, the minister said. Elsewhere, police in the northeastern province of Kratie arrested 312 people, including nationals of Thailand, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Myanmar and Vietnam, while 27 people from Vietnam, China and Myanmar were arrested in the western province of Pursat. Amnesty International last month published the findings of an 18-month investigation into cybercrime in Cambodia, which the human rights group said 'point towards state complicity in abuses carried out by Chinese criminal gangs.' 'The Cambodian government is deliberately ignoring a litany of human rights abuses including slavery, human trafficking, child labor and torture being carried out by criminal gangs on a vast scale in more than 50 scamming compounds located across the country,' it said. Human trafficking is closely associated with cyberscam operations, as workers are often recruited under false pretences and then held captive. 'Deceived, trafficked and enslaved, the survivors of these scamming compounds describe being trapped in a living nightmare – enlisted in criminal enterprises that are operating with the apparent consent of the Cambodian government,' Amnesty International's Secretary General Agnes Callamard said. Cambodia's latest crackdown comes in the midst of a bitter feud with neighboring Thailand, which began with a brief armed skirmish in late May over border territory claimed by both nations and has now led to border closures and nearly daily exchanges of nationalistic insults. Friendly former leaders of both countries have become estranged and there have been hot debates over which nation's cultural heritage has influenced the other. Measures initiated by the Thai side, including cutting off cross-border electricity supplies and closing crossing points, have particularly heightened tensions, with Cambodia claiming they were churlish actions of spite to retaliate for its intention to pursue its territorial claims. Thailand said its original intention was to combat long-existing cyberscam operations in Poipet. Cheang writes for the Associated Press. AP writer Grant Peck in Bangkok contributed to this report.
NBC News
3 hours ago
- Politics
- NBC News
Cambodia makes 1,000 arrests in latest crackdown on cybercrime
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — Cambodia on Wednesday said that an order by Prime Minister Hun Manet for government bodies to crackdown on criminal cybercrime operations being run in the country had resulted in the arrest of more than 1,000 suspects so far this week. Hun Manet issued the order authorising state action for 'maintaining and protecting security, public order, and social safety.' 'The government has observed that online scams are currently causing threats and insecurity in the world and the region. In Cambodia, foreign criminal groups have also infiltrated to engage in online scams,' Hun Manet's statement, dated Tuesday, said. The United Nations and other agencies estimate that cyberscams, most of them originating from Southeast Asia, earn international criminal gangs billions of dollars annually. More than 1,000 suspects were arrested in raids in at least five provinces between Monday and Wednesday, according to statements from Information Minister Neth Pheaktra and police. Those detained included more than 200 Vietnamese, 27 Chinese, and 75 suspects from Taiwan and 85 Cambodians in the capital Phnom Penh and the southern city of Sihanoukville. Police also seized equipment, including computers and hundreds of mobile phones. At least 270 Indonesians, including 45 women, were arrested Wednesday in Poipet, a town on the border with Thailand notorious for cyberscam and gambling operations, the minister said. Elsewhere, police in the northeastern province of Kratie arrested 312 people, including nationals of Thailand, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Myanmar and Vietnam, while 27 people from Vietnam, China and Myanmar were arrested in the western province of Pursat. Amnesty International last month published the findings of an 18-month investigation into cybercrime in Cambodia, which the human rights group said 'point towards state complicity in abuses carried out by Chinese criminal gangs.' 'The Cambodian government is deliberately ignoring a litany of human rights abuses including slavery, human trafficking, child labor and torture being carried out by criminal gangs on a vast scale in more than 50 scamming compounds located across the country,' it said. Human trafficking is closely associated with cyberscam operations, as workers are often recruited under false pretences and then held captive. 'Deceived, trafficked and enslaved, the survivors of these scamming compounds describe being trapped in a living nightmare — enlisted in criminal enterprises that are operating with the apparent consent of the Cambodian government,' Amnesty International's Secretary General Agnes Callamard said. Cambodia's latest crackdown comes in the midst of a bitter feud with neighboring Thailand, which began with a brief armed skirmish in late May over border territory claimed by both nations and has now led to border closures and nearly daily exchanges of nationalistic insults. Friendly former leaders of both countries have become estranged and there have been hot debates over which nation's cultural heritage has influenced the other. Measures initiated by the Thai side, including cutting off cross-border electricity supplies and closing crossing points, have particularly heightened tensions, with Cambodia claiming they were churlish actions of spite to retaliate for its intention to pursue its territorial claims. Thailand said its original intention was to combat long-existing cyberscam operations in Poipet.
Arab News
3 hours ago
- Politics
- Arab News
EU refusal to suspend Israel agreement a ‘cruel and unlawful betrayal': Amnesty chief
LONDON: The EU's refusal to suspend its association agreement with Israel is a 'cruel and unlawful betrayal' of European values, the head of Amnesty International has said. Agnes Callamard's statement came after the bloc decided against suspending the agreement, dashing hopes that the EU would take a unified stand against Israel's war in Gaza and its illegal occupation of the Palestinian territories. 'The EU's refusal to suspend its agreement with Israel is a cruel and unlawful betrayal — of the European project and vision, predicated on upholding international law and fighting authoritarian practices, of the European Union's own rules and of the human rights of Palestinians,' she said. 'European leaders had the opportunity to take a principled stand against Israel's crimes, but instead gave it a greenlight to continue its genocide in Gaza, its unlawful occupation of the whole Occupied Palestinian Territory and its system of apartheid against Palestinians.' EU foreign ministers met in Brussels on Tuesday to review 10 options for potentially suspending the agreement, in full or in part. These included a full suspension, a pause on preferential trade and research, a weapons embargo, sanctions on Israeli ministers, and ending visa-free travel for Israeli citizens to Europe. However, ministers opted against taking any of the options. Callamard said: 'The EU's own review has clearly found that Israel is violating its human rights obligations under the terms of the association agreement. 'Yet, instead of taking measures to stop it and prevent their own complicity, member states chose to maintain a preferential trade deal over respecting their international obligations and saving Palestinian lives. 'This is more than political cowardice. Every time the EU fails to act, the risk of complicity in Israel's actions grows. 'This sends an extremely dangerous message to perpetrators of atrocity crimes that they will not only go unpunished but be rewarded.' Amnesty International, in a statement after the EU decision, highlighted the precedence of international law over EU and national law. Last July, the International Court of Justice described Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories as illegal. EU members must take measures to act based on that opinion under international law, Amnesty said. 'Victims are entitled to far more than empty words,' Callamard said. 'Member states must now take matters into their own hands and unilaterally suspend all forms of cooperation with Israel that may contribute to its grave violations of international law, including a comprehensive embargo on the export of arms and surveillance equipment and related technology, and a total ban on trade with and investment in Israel's illegal settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.'
The Irish Sun
4 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
The Open star who learned to play golf with a broom handle can't go back to his homeland over threats to his life
JHONATTAN VEGAS revealed 'it is not safe for me and my family' to go back to his homeland… because of the country's dictator. Vegas, 40, was born in Venezuela where he learnt to play golf with a broom handle. Advertisement 1 Jhonattan Vegas cannot return to his homeland of Venezuela Credit: Getty But when his father Carlos signed a petition against former president Hugo Chavez, who incidentally hated golf, the Vegas family faced persecution. And with the help of Now, with Nicolas Maduro running Venezuela since Chavez's death in 2013, the country has been deemed guilty of systematic attacks on objectors by Amnesty International, with some 'disappearing'. So as much as Vegas wants his kids, nine and six, to see where he grew up in Maturin, he realises it is not worth the risk of kidnapping - or worse. Advertisement READ MORE ON THE OPEN The world No55 told 'I think I'm the only person in Venezuela to 'It's not safe politically, and not safe for me and my family. 'The country is run by a dictator government and I just read a case of an actor getting his passport cancelled and not being able to leave the country. Advertisement Most read in Golf Revealed CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS 'Even though it's my country and I love it more than anything in the world, it's just a risk I'm not willing to take. 'My immediate family is in the US with me. A couple of things happened where their life was threatened. The secret underground tunnel where Open golfers hide from thunderstorms but only certain stars can use it at Portrush 'We just made a decision that it was time to leave everything behind because being safe is more important than all the material stuff. Advertisement 'I'm not an activist but I've always been very outspoken and clear that what's happening is not right for people.' Vegas now lives in Houston, Texas. But Donald Trump has cracked down on Venezuelans travelling to the US as part of his new travel restrictions and immigration policies. Vegas added: 'I just feel sad for all those people who came into the US with a dream to succeed in life, like I did, and have everything taken away in the blink of an eye just because the president decided to go after them for no reason. Advertisement 'The US is a country that was built by immigrants. I was welcomed and I'm thankful. 'I know there has to be order but at the same time, create a path for people who want to make the US better. 'That's why I haven't agreed with what the president has done. 'Immigrants don't deserve that type of treatment anywhere in the world.' Advertisement
GMA Network
4 hours ago
- GMA Network
Cambodia arrests 1,000 in cyberscam crackdown
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia - Cambodian authorities have arrested more than 1,000 people in raids on internet scam centres, police said Wednesday, as Prime Minister Hun Manet ordered a crackdown on cybercrime sweatshops. The United Nations has described Southeast Asia as the "ground zero" of scam centers, where workers typically use romance or business cons to defraud social media users of an estimated $40 billion annually. Hun Manet issued a directive made public on Tuesday, telling law enforcement and the military "to prevent and crack down on online scams", warning they risk losing their jobs if they fail to take action. Over three days, authorities raided sites across the country, including in the capital Phnom Penh, the Thai border city of Poipet and the coastal city of Sihanoukville. Just over 1,000 suspects were detained, according to police reports, which continued to be announced late on Wednesday night. The vast majority of the reported arrests were foreign nationals -- including at least 271 Indonesians, 213 Vietnamese and 75 Taiwanese. Many of those freed from Southeast Asian scam centres say they were trafficked or lured there under false pretences. Abuses in Cambodia's scam centres are happening on a "mass scale", Amnesty International said in a report published last month. There are at least 53 scam compounds in Cambodia where organised criminal groups carry out human trafficking, forced labour, child labour, torture, deprivation of liberty and slavery, the report said. In March, Cambodia deported 119 Thais -- among 230 foreign nationals detained during raids on alleged cyber scam centres in Poipet. The UN Office on Drugs and Crime warned in April that the scam industry was expanding outside hotspots in Southeast Asia, with criminal gangs building up operations as far as South America, Africa, the Middle East, Europe and some Pacific islands. — Agence France-Presse
