A passenger plane with 181 people onboard crashed in the South Korean city of Muan on Sunday.

The plane, Jeju Air, which had malfunctioning landing gear veered off the runway, hit a fence, before going up in flames at the airport.

The Jeju Air jetliner was carrying 175 passengers and six crew when it crashed on landing at the airport in Muan county.

The ill-fated plane was returning from Bangkok in Thailand when the incident occured.

AP News quoted South Korean media as reporting that the fire left over 28 people either dead or injured, while two people were evacuated to safety.

South Jeolla province Fire Service Headquarters said that the number is expected to grow as recovery operations continue.

The office said the fire was put out and rescue officials were trying to remove passengers from the aircraft.

However, a fire department official who spoke to CNN said the airplane had been “almost completely destroyed” by fire.

Universities in the United States have urged international students to resume before president-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration.

Trump is set to be sworn in on January 20.

The universities advised international students to return early from winter break amid promises of another travel ban by the incoming president.
Many international students were stranded abroad when Trump imposed a travel ban at the start of his first administration.
The president-elect has been vocal about his hardline immigration stance.

Some of the actions Trump has promised to take include a travel ban on people from predominantly Muslim countries and the revocation of student visas of “radical anti-American and antisemitic foreigners”.

Niger Republic’s Head of State, General Abdourahamane Tiani, has alleged that France is providing financial support to Nigerian authorities to establish a military base in Borno State.

Tiani said the plan is purportedly to destabilize Niger and its neighboring countries.

Zagazola Makama, a Lake Chad Basin counterterrorism and insurgency expert, made this known in a post on his X handle on Wednesday.

Makama said the Niger’s junta leader made the claim during a recent address, accusing France of meddling in the region and harboring ulterior motives.

“France has even offered to give money to Nigerian authorities to establish a base in Borno State, with the sole aim of destabilizing our countries.

“We have informed Nigerian authorities, including Nuhu Ribadu and Ahmed Abubakar Rufa’i, of a massive conspiracy to destabilize Niger.

“The Gaba Forest, located on the border between Sokoto (Nigeria) and Niger, was chosen as a base by terrorists recruited by France and ISWAP.

“Unfortunately, it seems we have chosen our interlocutors badly, because it is their skills that have been exploited by France in an attempt to destabilize us on the Niger, Nigeria, Benin and Burkina Faso borders,” Makama quoted a statement purportedly made by General Tiani.

The security expert stated that the assertion marks the latest in a series of accusations directed at France by the Nigerien leader.

He said the development reflects the deteriorating relations between Niger and its former colonial power following the military coup in July 2023.

“Tiani’s administration has consistently accused France of interfering in Niger’s internal affairs and supporting factions opposed to the ruling junta,” Makama said.

In his analysis, the security expert
stated that General Tiani’s allegations appear to be grounded more in speculation than substantiated fact.

He said, “These allegations seem part of a broader narrative aimed at isolating Nigeria due to its strong ties with France.”

Makama argued that such continued, unfounded accusations against Nigeria pose a significant threat to diplomatic relations between the two nations.

“General Tiani’s accusations not only undermine these important initiatives but also risk fueling unnecessary tensions between nations that share a common goal of achieving stability and peace in the Sahel region,” he added.