KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Swiss watchmaker Swatch won a suit against the Malaysian government on Monday after a court ordered the return of 172 Swatch watches that were seized last year due to designs that authorities said bore LGBT elements.
Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution, in an immediate response, said the government will wait for the court's full judgment before deciding whether to appeal.
The Kuala Lumpur High Court ruled that the watches were seized illegally without a warrant, the Bernama national news agency said. The court ordered the watches to be returned within 14 days and said Swatch can demand compensation if the watches were damaged, Bernama reported.
Swatch officials couldn't be immediately reached for comments.
Predominantly Muslim Malaysia criminalizes same-sex relationships, with punishments ranging from caning under Islamic laws to 20 years in prison for sodomy under colonial-era civil laws.
Authorities raided Swatch outlets in various malls across Malaysia in May last year, seizing watches from the Pride Collection. The watches come in various designs, some with rainbow colors on their straps and others in a choice of six single colors that correlate to the gay pride flag. Swatch contested allegations that the watches were harmful, saying they carried a message of peace and love.
A few months after the seizure, the government banned all Swatch products that contain lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer elements — including watches, wrappers and boxes. The ban was made part of a printing law that includes distribution and possession, amid concerns that such products were detrimental to the nation’s morality. Anyone found with one could be jailed for up to three years or face a fine.
FILE - A man walk pass Swatch outlet at a shopping mall in Putrajaya, Malaysia, Thursday, Aug. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian, File)
VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — A DHL cargo plane crashed on approach to an airport in Lithuania's capital and skidded into a house Monday morning, killing a Spanish crew member, officials said. The cause of the accident is under investigation.
A surveillance video from a nearby company showed the plane descending normally as it approached the airport, and then exploding into a huge ball of fire behind a building. The moment of impact could not be seen in the video.
The head of the country’s firefighting service said that the plane skidded a few hundred meters (yards), and photos showed smoke rising from a damaged structure in an area of barren trees.
“Thankfully, despite the crash occurring in a residential area, no lives have been lost among the local population,” Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė said after meeting with rescue officials.
Rescue workers sealed off the area, and fragments of the plane in the company’s trademark yellow color could be seen amid wreckage scattered across the crash site.
The cargo aircraft was carrying four people when it crashed at 5:30 a.m. local time. One person, a Spanish citizen, was declared dead and the other three crew members — who were Spanish, German and Lithuanian citizens — were injured, said Ramūnas Matonis, the head of communications for Lithuanian police in an email.
The DHL aircraft was operated by Swiftair, a Madrid-based contractor. Neither DHL nor Swiftair offered immediate comment.
“Residential infrastructure around the house was on fire, and the house was slightly damaged, but we managed to evacuate people," said Renatas Požėla, chief of the Fire and Rescue Department.
One eyewitness, who gave her name only as Svaja, ran to a window when a light as bright as a red sun filled her room, and then heard an explosion followed by flashes and black smoke.
“I saw a fireball,” she said. “My first thought is that a world (war) has begun and it’s time to grab the documents and run somewhere to a shelter, to a basement.”
Lithuanian’s public broadcaster LRT, quoting an emergency official, said two people had been taken to the hospital after the crash, and one was pronounced dead.
The person who was killed was a member of the flight crew but not a pilot, officials said. Firefighters freed two pilots from the cockpit, one of whom was more seriously injured, according to the General Commissioner of the Lithuanian Police Arūnas Paulauskas.
He said that investigators were considering possible causes including technical failure and human error, and have not ruled out the possibility of a terrorist act.
The prime minister cautioned against speculation, saying investigators needed time to do their job.
“The responsible agencies are working diligently," Šimonytė said. "I urge everyone to have confidence in the investigating authorities’ ability to conduct a thorough and professional investigation within an optimal timeframe. Only these investigations will uncover the true causes of the incident — speculation and guesswork will not help establish the truth.”
The Lithuanian airport authority identified the aircraft as a DHL cargo plane arriving from Leipzig, Germany, which is a major freight hub.
Flight-tracking data from FlightRadar24, analyzed by the AP, showed the aircraft made a turn to the north of the airport, lining up for landing, before crashing a little more than 1.5 kilometers (1 mile) short of the runway.
Weather at the airport was around freezing at the time of the crash, with clouds before sunrise and winds around 30 kph (18 mph).
The Boeing 737 was 31 years old, which is considered by experts to be an older airframe, though that’s not unusual for cargo flights.
This story corrects the title of Renatas Požėla.
Gera reported from Warsaw, Poland, and Gambrell from Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Lithuanian emergency personnel prepare to work near the site where a DHL cargo plane crashed into a house near Vilnius, Lithuania, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
Lithuanian emergency personnel work by parts of the wreckage of a DHL cargo plane which crashed into a house near the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, Lithuania, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
A piece of debris from a DHL cargo plane which crashed into a house is seen near the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, Lithuania, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
Lithuanian police investigators work near the site where a DHL cargo plane crashed into a house near the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, Lithuania, Lithuania, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
Lithuanian Emergency Ministry employees work near the site where a DHL cargo plane crashed into a house near the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, Lithuania, Lithuania, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
Lithuanian Emergency Ministry employees and police officers stand near the place where a DHL cargo plane crashed into a house near the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, Lithuania, Lithuania, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
Lithuanian Emergency Ministry employees work near the site where a DHL cargo plane crashed into a house near the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, Lithuania, Lithuania, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
Police guard an area near the place where a DHL cargo plane crashed into a house near the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
Lithuanian Emergency Ministry employees work near the place where a DHL cargo plane crashed into a house near the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, Lithuania, Lithuania, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
Lithuanian Emergency Ministry employees work near the place where a DHL cargo plane crashed into a house near the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, Lithuania, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
A smoke rises from the place where a DHL cargo plane crashed into a house near the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, Lithuania, Lithuania, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
Lithuanian Emergency Ministry employees work near the place where a DHL cargo plane crashed into a house near the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, Lithuania, Lithuania, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
Lithuanian Emergency Ministry employees work near the place where a DHL cargo plane crashed into a house near the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, Lithuania, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
