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US ends ‘shoe bomber' security check, travellers now won't have to remove footwear at airports
In a major relief to travellers, US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem Tuesday (July 8) declared that they won't be required to remove shoes during security screenings at airports.
'I think most Americans will be very excited to see they will be able to keep their shoes on, and it will be a much more streamlined process,' Noem said.
However, she added travellers may still be asked to remove their footwear 'if we think additional layers of screening are necessary,' adding that the requirement was just being deleted from the standard procedure.
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History
In 2006, shoe removal became mandatory for security screening following Richard Reid's unsuccessful 'shoe bomber' attempt to down a Paris-to-Miami flight in late 2001.
Passengers aged 12 to 75 were then required to remove their shoes, which would be scanned with carry-on bags and items like outerwear.
Those enrolled in the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) PreCheck programme, costing about $80 for five years, could previously bypass this rule. The programme allowed travellers to keep shoes, belts, and light jackets on and leave laptops and bagged toiletries in their bags during screening.
PreCheck programme
PreCheck will remain the easier option for the time being since people going through regular screening stations still will have to put items besides shoes on a conveyor belt for scanning, Noem said Tuesday.
'TSA plans to review other rules and procedures to see how airport screenings can be simplified and expedited, she said. The agency is testing separate lanes for military personnel and families with young children, and expects to pilot other changes in the next six to eight months,' the secretary said.
American federal authorities have recently adopted facial recognition technology and Real ID requirements to verify passenger identities. Despite regular travellers' familiarity with airport security procedures, long lines during peak times and bags being flagged for items like forgotten water bottles can make the process challenging.
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The Print
24 minutes ago
- The Print
Once anti-tech, Taliban is now media-savvy. A tongue-in-cheek video invites Americans to Afghanistan
The video, which has been uploaded on Raza Afghanistan's Instagram page, then pans out, showing a man doing pull-ups on the barrel of a rusted tank. Another swims across a lake with an assault rifle in hand. A rifle, still stamped 'Property of US Government', is examined casually as someone laughs off its unsecured safety switch. The 50-second video, produced by Yosaf Aryubi, the owner of a tour company, Raza Afghanistan, begins with a staged execution scene—an unsettling image of five armed Afghan men standing behind three kneeling, hooded figures who appear to have been abducted. Then, abruptly, the script flips. One hood is pulled off to reveal a grinning man, apparently a foreigner, who flashes a thumbs-up. 'Welcome to Afghanistan!' he exclaims. New Delhi: A promotional video circulating on Taliban-linked social media is grabbing international attention. A blend of dark humour, military imagery, and scenic landscapes, the video extends an unexpected and ironic invitation: Americans, come visit Afghanistan. Cutting between these vignettes is more traditional tourist fare, of foreigners dressed in Afghan clothing, sampling local cuisine, and receiving warm greetings from villagers. The message is clear: Afghanistan is rugged, raw, and open for tourism. The once anti-tech Taliban has long been using social media to change perspectives. Alongside the invitation video, social media influencers, including US adult film actress Whitney Wright and Somali-American content creator Marian Abdi, have shared their travel experiences in the country through their posts. But the messaging is a jarring contradiction—Afghanistan is presented as a nation safe for tourists while Afghan women remain barred from public life, higher education and employment. Speaking about the video, Raghav Sharma, Director, Centre for Afghanistan Studies at OP Jindal Global University, told ThePrint: 'This is more of a symbolic move aimed to shore up the Taliban's quest for external legitimacy. It makes for a rather jarring contrast with their lack of regard for forging domestic legitimacy and their atrocious track record on rights and freedoms, especially for women. American influencers including porn artists are welcomed but Afghan women find themselves stifled.' Sara Wahedi, founder of Civaam, a women-led civic platform in Afghanistan, said that 'although the Taliban has imposed a clear ban on TikTok, it turns a blind eye when it comes to tourism companies, who require Taliban approval to operate, promoting travel to the country'. 'There is no doubt that these tour guides are heavily monitored by the Taliban, permitting visits to historical sites and landscapes. Yet, in a dystopian sense, they are exchanging orientalist fascination for tourism—inviting travel to the 'other', Afghanistan—while fetishising a country where girls and women are systematically erased from society.' 'The invitation is clear: 'come see our country', but what you relinquish in return is the ability to fully acknowledge what is happening here,' she added. Also Read: 2 yrs of Taliban in Afghanistan — ways 'Taliban 2.0' is different, and not so different after all Taliban's social media outreach Post their takeover of Kabul in 2021, the Taliban have aggressively used platforms like X, Telegram, WhatsApp and YouTube to shape international perceptions. The promotional video is part of this increasingly sophisticated media campaign aimed at rebranding the nation under their rule. While they had banned the internet in their previous rule, the Taliban have seemingly turned into savvy users of social media. Even before reclaiming power in 2021, they had a strong online presence through platforms like the website Alemarah and used social media during the two-decade war with the US to spread their message and boost morale of cadres and supporters. As they advanced across Afghanistan in 2021, the Taliban shared videos and photos of surrenders, territorial gains, and even light-hearted moments like eating ice cream as a way to portray themselves as a victorious, modern force. A July 2024 article published in East West Centre on the usage of social media by Taliban 2.0 notes that the Taliban are far more media-savvy than they were in the 1990s, with leaders like spokesperson Suhail Shaheen gaining hundreds of thousands of followers online. Despite these rebranding efforts, the US continues to advise against travel to Afghanistan. Its State Department maintains a level four 'do not travel' advisory for Afghanistan, citing terrorism, crime and the risk of abduction. Since the fall of Kabul in 2021 and suspension of operations at the American embassy there, US consular support is no longer available for its citizens. Social media influencers do, however, venture into the country, even as the line between independent creator and state propaganda is murky in Afghanistan. In 2023, when Afghan journalist-turned-YouTuber Hamed Latifee launched Afghanistan Streets, a channel offering viewers glimpses of daily life under Taliban rule, it highlighted humanitarian projects and development initiatives. Often, Latifee was joined by Rafiullah Ahmadzai, then a Kabul city official. But Latifee's rising profile didn't go unnoticed. In March 2024, the channel was taken down, part of a broader effort by YouTube to clamp down on Taliban-affiliated content following reporting by The Washington Post. According to Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid, anyone launching a YouTube channel must obtain a permit of regulations from the previous government. The aim, he says, is to ensure content complies with Sharia, supports national interests, and avoids 'fake news'. In practice, that means if a YouTube channel is operating from inside Afghanistan, it's likely under Taliban oversight, and approval. The Walrus reported, citing an article in the Afghan newspaper Etilaatroz, that the Taliban are paying up to $190 per month to individuals to push government-friendly narratives and drown out dissent. As many as 90 online personalities may be involved in this effort, it said, adding that Mujahid denies this, saying content creators are motivated by patriotism, not paychecks. Still, the Taliban's digital footprint continues to grow. In 2022, Meta shut down the Facebook and Instagram pages of state-run agencies like Bakhtar News and Radio Television Afghanistan. WhatsApp followed suit in 2023, suspending accounts linked to Taliban officials. But enforcement is inconsistent, and platforms like X have proven more lenient. While the company claims to remove content glorifying violence or promoting hate speech, it does not automatically suspend pro-Taliban accounts. (Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui) Also Read: Taliban rejects US peace deal 5 yrs after Kabul's fall. What this means for Afghan citizens, neighbours
Scroll.in
2 hours ago
- Scroll.in
When a unique university on a ship sailed up to India for ‘cultural immersion'
In January 1927, a large contingent of American students from the Floating University travelled by train from Bombay to Agra, a journey of two nights and one day, to see the Taj Mahal. When Dewitt Reddick, a 23-year-old newly-minted journalism graduate, got his first glimpse of the Mughal monument, he said it was 'gleaming in the morning a dream palace from the Arabian Nights'. A few hours later, 'under the hot rays of the sun, the building was sparkling, shining like a cold sun with a glistening marble surface,' Reddick wrote in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. The mausoleum clearly left the young man, as it has it so many others, awestruck. He concluded his gushing write-up, saying, 'Silently white at night, coldly white even in the blazing sun of India's noon, the Taj Mahal stands in faraway central India, a thing of grace and beauty, symbolic of the spirit of India.' Reddick was one of nearly 500 students of the Floating University – a unique educational experiment on a cruise ship that aimed to provide pupils with 'experiential learning through travel and cultural immersion' while imparting 'traditional classroom learning'. Over nine months from September 1926 to May 1927, the ship wended its way around the world, stopping at 42 ports, visiting iconic sites like the Taj Mahal and the Acropolis. The most detailed account of it appears in Australian academic Tamson Pietsch's 2023 book The Floating University: Experience, Empire and the Politics of Knowledge. Pietsch discovered the university by accident when she came across a two-page pamphlet in a book. The advertisement promised that the university would help students 'develop the ability to think in world terms…through first hand contact with places, people and problems'. Apart from a chance to experience lands far and beyond, the Floating University offered academic credits just like any land-bound university. Over 70 subjects were taught and tested on, including psychology, mathematics, history, languages (French, Spanish and German), and journalism (at least three publications were produced on board). A Holland American liner, named SS Ryndam, was enlisted for the experiment. As many as 306 young men and 57 young women, all recent graduates, signed up. Joining them on board were 133 adults, who were combining travel with education, as well as 63 faculty and staff from major American universities. The ship's crew was mainly Dutch and spoke little English. Experiential learning It puzzled Pietsch that, soon after the experiment, its story vanished from academic and popular discourse, though-study abroad semesters are still offered as part of degree programmes in the United States. Given the controversy surrounding the Floating University and its founder, Professor James Edwin Lough, shouldn't the buzz have lasted longer? James Edwin Lough was born in 1871 in Eaton, Ohio. He studied at Miami University in Ohio and taught at schools in Eaton and Stockton before joining Harvard University for a doctorate in psychology. Among his teachers at Harvard were William James and John Dewey, both educationists and philosophers who profoundly influenced Lough. From James, Lough imbibed the belief in educational psychology and pragmatism, and from Dewey, he learned to have faith in democracy and building public opinion with free exchange of ideas. Lough married Dora Bailey, a Massachusetts native, and moved permanently to the East Coast, joining New York University's school of pedagogy as professor of psychology. His initial experiments focused on getting professionals to teach students. It was only after World War I, a time when America's influence was growing in the world, that Lough conceived the Floating University. In his imagination it was to be a chance for students to spend a year abroad, exploring different lands and cultures for hands-on, experiential learning. To turn this dream into reality, Lough assembled an impressive team. Dr Charles Thwing of Case Reserve Western University in Ohio became the university president. Albert Heckel, George E Howes, William Haigh, Daniel Chase and Walter Harris served as deans. Henry Allen, the former Kansas governor and newspaper baron, oversaw the publishing of the daily four-page student magazine The Binnacle. And writer-illustrator Holling C Holling supervised the arts magazine The Student-Magellan. For reasons known to him, Lough did not disclose that he was the president of the company overseeing the visa and travel arrangements. When this conflict became public, it drew criticism and ultimately led to the withdrawal of New York University's sponsorship of the voyage. As Pietsch notes, objections stemmed over the control over knowledge and the authority to dispense it. Uninformed ideas SS Ryndam set off on September 18, 1926, moving south from New York to Cuba and Panama, then travelling west to Los Angeles, and then sailing across the Pacific towards Asia. Three months later, following visits to Hawaii, Japan, China, Manila, Siam and Ceylon, the ship docked at Bombay. Accompanying Lough on the voyage were his wife and four children. His 12-year-old daughter Dorothea or Betty, the youngest in the family, was the university mascot, the 'girl geographer' on board. His eldest son Edwin, meanwhile, was documenting the trip in the Floating University, a magazine produced on board. Edwin wrote specifically about their India visit in the newspaper Brooklyn Eagle. Agra was a highlight of the trip – the first time, Lough wrote, such a large group had visited the Taj Mahal. Equally memorable was a hunting trip that yielded an unexpected kill, a jackal. A few students made an out-of-the-way trip, several hundred kilometres east of Bombay, to Wardha, where the 'saviour of India', Mahatma Gandhi, had his ashram. In the eyes of those students, Gandhi's importance as a world figure was only as much as the Fascist leader Benito Mussolini, who had kept communists in check in Italy. When they saw him in Wardha, they were not impressed. He sat 'Buddha-fashion on a dais, wearing a dirty loin cloth, a shawl and a cheap nickel watch on a white cord suspended from his throat'. Opinions changed when they saw the reverence the Mahatma received: 'People dropped to their knees and many kissed the hem of his shawl.' The students who saw Gandhi compared notes with another group that had gone to meet the Maharaja of Baroda Sayajirao Gaekwad, 'a reformer who had made education compulsory in his province'. 'Gandhi's method was in general to oppose modern civilization while the Maharaja, in his own words, believed in 'keeping up with changes in the world',' Edwin wrote. In the pages of the magazine Floating University, the students recorded other observations and opinions. Bombay was 'in many ways the finest city in the Far East,' wrote James Andrews. 'Somewhat westernized architecturally and civically, it was still essentially Indian. On the streets were all kinds of people wearing all kinds of headgear and clothing.' Florence Stauffer, one of the few women students, wrote blithely: 'We had quite a time about our 'caste'. Fearing that we might do something to lower it, we were considerably exercised. Virginia had read somewhere that no members of the upper caste ever lifted their hands to do anything for themselves, a regime to which we took like ducks take to water.' For all the novelty of the experiment, the Floating University generated considerable bad press. Several newspapers reported on the expulsion of some students for drunken behaviour at the Hotel Imperial in Tokyo. The presence of young women, it was reported, encouraged romances, scandalising many readers. The New York University suspended Lough from all teaching duties citing irregularities. After a legal settlement, Lough moved to Texas, where, as president of the University Travel Association, he continued to arrange educational tours. He died in 1952. The Floating University remained a unique endeavour. When a similar Semester at Sea programme was founded in 1963, on its board was James Price – one of the students of the Floating University.
Time of India
10 hours ago
- Time of India
'Integrity fee' more than doubles US visa cost from 16k to over 37k
Representative image HYDERABAD: To the painfully long wait for a US visa, now add punishing costs as the Donald Trump administration slaps a $250 (around Rs 21,450) "visa integrity fee" that will more than double the cost of student, tourist and work visas, beginning January 2026, reports . The fee is refundable under strict conditions. Indians applying for B1/B2 visas (business or tourist), which cost under Rs 16,000 ($185), would need to pay around Rs 37,500 with the new fee. Almost all non-immigrant categories, including students, will bear the brunt. The fee was part of a sweeping immigration process overhaul cleared earlier in July. Cost isn't the only concern," said Sanjeev Rai of Hyderabad Overseas Consultant, a US immigration consultancy. "The visa integrity fee is refundable only under certain conditions, including full compliance with visa terms and departure within five days of expiry. Any overstay, unauthorised employment or violation of status would mean forfeiting the entire amount. This is like asking every applicant to put down a security deposit for good behaviour." by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like American Investor Warren Buffett Recommends: 5 Books For Turning Your Life Around Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo Consultants say that Indian students, already burdened by an increase in tuition and living expenses in the US, have been hit the hardest. Many are now reconsidering studying in the US or speeding up their applications to get interview slots before the fee kicks in. "We have seen at least a 20% spike in inquiries from people who want to finish the process before the new fee kicks in," said Arvind Manduva from I20 Fever, an immigration consultancy. According to the US National Travel and Tourism Office, nearly 1.9 million Indian visitors entered the US between Jan and Oct 2024. With the introduction of the new fee, consultants predict a surge in applications over the next five months, followed by a potential dip post-Jan. The policy, many worry, can also complicate matters for US universities and tech firms. While the US department of homeland security has described the fee as a "compliance tool" and not a punitive measure, ambiguity surrounds the refund process. "H-1B employees and students often face minor documentation lapses or delays in status updates. Linking visa compliance to a monetary penalty like this adds another layer of anxiety," said Arunteja Bukkaparupa, an immigration consultant who handles H-1B and B1/B2 visa applications. "Worse, it's unclear if the refund process will be straightforward." Academics in the US have flagged the possibility of these factors leading to reduced demand for undergraduate and graduate admissions to universities. "The irony is that those most likely to overstay won't care about the refund. It's the genuine applicants who will feel the pinch. The demand for US jobs among Indian nationals will fall," said Orn Bodvarsson, an economist and retired dean of an American university.
