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Air Canada CEO will retire this year after his English-only crash message was criticized

By
The Associated Press
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TORONTO (AP) — Air Canada announced Monday its CEO will retire later this year, after Michael Rousseau was criticized for his English-only message of condolence following this month’s deadly crash in New York.

Canada’s largest airline, based in French-speaking Quebec, said Rousseau told the board he will leave by the end of the third quarter.

Canada is an officially bilingual nation, and Prime Minister Mark Carney had said the English-only message showed a lack of compassion and judgment. Quebec’s premier and others called on the airline executive to resign.

Antoine Forest, one of the two pilots killed in the crash at LaGuardia Airport, was a French-speaking Quebecer. Forest and Mackenzie Gunther died when the Air Canada Jazz flight from Montreal collided with a fire truck on the runway shortly after landing.

Canada’s largest airline is headquartered in Montreal. Rousseau previously had been criticized for not speaking French. He delivered his condolence video message in English, with French subtitles. The Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages has received hundreds of complaints about it.

Steven MacKinnon, Canada’s transport minister, thanked Rousseau in a social media post and said the government will continue to work closely with Air Canada to ensure it “provides safe, reliable, affordable, and bilingual service to all Canadians.”

Quebec Premier François Legault noted that when Rousseau was appointed president of the airline in February 2021, he promised to learn French.

Quebec’s identity has been contentious since the 1760s, when the British completed their takeover of what was then called New France. Quebec is about 80% French-speaking.

Iran says its expelled ambassador won’t leave Lebanon as political tensions soar

By
The Associated Press
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BEIRUT (AP) — Iran on Monday defied Lebanon’s expulsion order for its ambassador by saying he would stay, further increasing tensions in a country in the crosshairs of the latest fighting between the Iranian-backed Hezbollah and Israel.

Lebanon had declared Ambassador Mohammad Reza Shibani “persona non grata” in an effort to weaken Iran’s diplomatic presence and have a charge d’affairs at its embassy instead. But the deadline to leave the country was Sunday.

“Our embassy in Lebanon is active,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei told journalists. “Our ambassador, following remarks made by relevant Lebanese bodies and the conclusions reached, will continue his mission in Beirut and he is still there.”

Lebanese officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It was not clear what Lebanon would might do next or how diplomatic relations might be affected. The Iranian ambassador is reportedly in the embassy, where he is believed to have diplomatic immunity.

The Lebanese Hezbollah militant group entered the Iran war by firing at Israel, which has responded by invading southern Lebanon and bombing parts of the capital, Beirut. Health officials in Lebanon say over 1,200 people have been killed, with over 1 million people displaced.

“This morning, the Iranian ambassador is drinking his coffee in Beirut and making a mockery of the ‘host’ country,” Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said Monday on X. “Lebanon is a virtual country that is effectively occupied by Iran.”

Lebanon banned activities by Iran’s Guards and Hezbollah

Lebanon, under increasing pressure to disarm Hezbollah, earlier this month announced a ban on its military activities as well as those by Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guard. Then came the ambassador’s expulsion order.

Hezbollah called it a “reckless and reprehensible measure” and “a clear capitulation to external pressures and dictates.” It organized a rally near the Iranian embassy to back the ambassador.

A Lebanese diplomatic official said that over the past week, Iran “put extreme pressure” on the government and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a key political ally of Hezbollah, in an bid to reverse the decision.

Beirut is concerned that Iran’s inclusion of the war in Lebanon among its conditions for dialogue with Washington would affect Lebanon’s efforts to disarm Hezbollah, the official added, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

Hezbollah says Iran has been a key ally of the group that claims it serves as a military deterrent to Israel while providing social services, largely for Lebanon’s Shiite Muslim community.

But critics say Hezbollah’s armed presence, the most powerful in the country, and its independent decision-making violates Lebanese sovereignty and compromises its relationship with other Arab countries and the West.

Diplomatic efforts are at risk

The rift has weakened Lebanon’s efforts to find a way to end the war.

President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, while critical of Israel’s invasion, have condemned Hezbollah’s firing of rockets towards Israel, in solidarity with Iran, that sparked the latest fighting.

Even before the war, Aoun and Salam were scrambling to win trust that they could disarm Hezbollah without aggressive confrontation. The militant group was weakened by its previous war with Israel, and many saw a chance to act. Aoun and Salam came to power not long after the last war ended in November 2024, pledging to disarm Hezbollah and all non-state actors.

But frictions inside Lebanon are worsening, especially after Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji, a staunch opponent of Hezbollah, announced the expulsion order for the Iranian ambassador.

“Don’t play with fire because this fire will burn you, your people, and those behind you,” Mahmoud Qamati, a senior official in Hezbollah’s political bureau, said in a recent fiery address aimed at Rajji, who is a cabinet pick by the Christian Lebanese Forces party, Hezbollah’s bitter rival.

City police calls – March 30

By
Staff Reports
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EDITOR’S NOTE: The following information is summarized from the records of city, county and state police, fire and hospital agencies.

Arrests

Thursday

Johnathon R. Goff, 21, of 719 Werner Ave. Apt. 2, Columbus, Bartholomew County warrant, 4:10 p.m., by the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department, held in lieu of $10,000 bond.

Maruwe Exauce, 21, Indianapolis, obstruction of justice, false identity statement, false informing/reporting, 7:20 p.m., by the Indiana State Police, released on $16,000 bond.

Ever Toledo-Barradas, 61, of 3049 Rosewood Lane, Columbus, operating a vehicle while intoxicated – endangering, operating a vehicle while intoxicated, operating a vehicle without ever obtaining a license, 11:30 p.m., by the Columbus Police Department, held in lieu of $10,000 bond.

Fire, medic runs

Friday

2:08 a.m. — Person injured in a fall in the 9800 block of West Ridgeway Court.

4:02 a.m. — Structure fire in the 3100 block of 15th Street.

4:16 a.m. — Person injured in a fall in the 2200 block of Buffalo Court.

11:15 a.m. — Structure fire in the 1000 block of Charles Street.

1:02 p.m. — Unconscious person in the 600 block of Third Street.

Incidents

Friday

12:21 a.m. — Property-damage accident in the 3600 block of South County Road 225W.

1:36 a.m. — Residential entry in the 2700 block of Scotland Drive.

7:28 a.m. — Property-damage accident at West Market Place Drive and North U.S. 31.

7:29 a.m. — Personal-injury accident in the 11900 block of North U.S. 31.

7:35 a.m. — Property-damage accident at 27th Street and Central Avenue.

7:48 a.m. — Property-damage accident at West Market Place Drive and North U.S. 31.

8:21 a.m. — Property-damage accident in the 4000 block of North County Road 150W.

8:41 a.m. — Property-damage accident in the 2900 block of Rosewood Lane.

10:47 a.m. — Threats in the 12300 block of South Hillview Drive.

10:51 a.m. — Theft in the 1600 block of New York Avenue.

1:18 p.m. — Theft in the 1700 block of West County Road 650N.

1:40 p.m. — Fraud reported to the Columbus Police Department.

1:50 p.m. — Property-damage accident in the 4800 block of Progress Drive.

2:32 p.m. — Animal abuse in the 400 block of Pence Street.

3:06 p.m. — Property-damage accident in the 2400 block of West Jonathan Moore Pike.

3:07 p.m. — Property-damage accident in the 4400 block of West State Road 46.

3:11 p.m. — Drug violations in the 1400 block of 25th Street.

3:24 p.m. — Leaving the scene of an accident in the 4500 block of Central Avenue.

3:28 p.m. — Property-damage accident at Market Street and North National Road.

3:31 p.m. — Vandalism reported to the Columbus Police Department.

3:34 p.m. — Theft reported to the Columbus Police Department.

3:35 p.m. — Shoplifting in the 2000 block of Merchants Mile.

3:36 p.m. — Property-damage accident at North National Road and Washington Street.

4:06 p.m. — Property-damage accident at North National Road and Washington Street.

5:05 p.m. — Fraud in the 1000 block of Eighth Street.

5:29 p.m. — Domestic disturbance in the 5100 block of North Adkins Street.

5:42 p.m. — Residential entry in the 900 block of Sycamore Street.

5:53 p.m. — Property-damage accident at West County Road 650N and Branton Drive.

6:03 p.m. — Personal-injury accident at Wedgewood Drive and 25th Street.

7:30 p.m. — Property-damage accident in the 2000 block of 17th Street.

7:42 p.m. — Theft in the 400 block of Seventh Street.

9:12 p.m. — Illegal dumping in the 2200 block of McKinley Avenue.

9:49 p.m. — Property-damage accident in the 6700 block of North River Road.

10:01 p.m. — Shots fired in the 300 block of Cleveland Street.

10:16 p.m. — Theft reported to the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department.

Region police calls – March 30

By
Staff Reports
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JENNINGS COUNTY

Arrests

Friday

Joseph Douglas, 36, North Vernon, operating a vehicle while intoxicated, possession of marijuana, possession of paraphernalia, 12:30 a.m., by the Jennings County Sheriff’s Department, $905 bond.

Leroy Sodders, 55, Washington, Georgia, leaving the scene of an accident, 2 p.m., by the Jennings County Sheriff’s Department, $605 bond.

Donald Friley, 58, North Vernon, warrant, 10:08 p.m., by the Indiana State Police, $3,155 bond.

Incidents

Friday

5:08 p.m. — Burglary in the 1100 block of Summit Street.

5:31 p.m. — Leaving the scene of an accident in the 400 block of South State Street.

6:11 p.m. — Property-damage accident at South Gum and White streets.

6:41 p.m. — Fraud reported to the Jennings County Sheriff’s Department.

Rescue teams search for 27 missing after a passenger boat sinks in eastern Indonesia

By
The Associated Press
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PALU, Indonesia (AP) — Rescue teams raced Monday to find 27 people missing after a passenger boat sank in rough seas on its way to a remote village in eastern Indonesia.

The boat, the Nazila 05, was carrying 27 passengers and crew members when it departed Taliabu Island in North Maluku province just after dusk on Sunday. It was bound for Kema, a coastal village in the same province, said Muhammad Rizal, who heads the search and rescue office in Central Sulawesi’s Palu city, near where the boat sank.

He said the incident was first reported to authorities on Monday morning by the ship’s owner, Rifani Samatia, after the Nazila 05’s captain contacted him to report that the vessel’s bow had broken after it was hit by high waves during rough weather. About 30 minutes later, the captain reported that the vessel had sunk.

“All 27 people aboard managed to evacuate using a longboat before the ship went down,” Rizal said, “However, their current location remains unknown.”

A search-and-rescue team was dispatched using a rescue vessel, supported by navigational equipment and communication tools, a helicopter and assisted by local fishers, Rizal said.

He said the Nazila 05 was frequently used to transport tourists and was also known locally as a fishing or small passenger vessel.

Indonesia is an archipelago with more than 17,000 islands, where boats are a common form of transportation. With lax safety standards and problems with overcrowding, accidents occur frequently.

AP Decision Notes: What to expect in Arkansas’ primary runoff elections

By
The Associated Press
-

WASHINGTON (AP) — Two Arkansas Republicans with competing visions on how best to implement President Donald Trump’s agenda to overhaul elections and voting will vie for their party’s nomination for the state’s top elections job on Tuesday.

U.S. Army veteran Bryan Norris and state Sen. Kim Hammer were the top two vote-getters in the March 3 GOP primary for Arkansas Secretary of State, but both candidates fell far short of the majority vote needed to avoid Tuesday’s primary runoff election.

The winner will face Democrat Kelly Grappe, who ran unopposed for her nomination.

The duties of the Arkansas Secretary of State include overseeing state business filings and maintaining the state capitol building and its grounds, but the office is probably best known for its administration of federal, state and district elections in Arkansas.

Both Norris and Hammer have touted their support of Trump’s election agenda, but the two disagree on some key points of election administration. For example, Norris supports hand-counting ballots in elections without the use of automated tabulation equipment. Hammer authored a 2023 law that requires hand-counted ballots to be compatible with state tabulation equipment and requires counties that hand-count ballots to bear any associated costs.

The call to fully hand-count ballots has been a popular refrain among many Trump supporters since the president’s failed attempts to overturn the 2020 election. But some attempts at full hand-counts since then have shown the process to be time-consuming, expensive and prone to human error.

Hammer has endorsements from much of the state’s Republican Party establishment, including U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Lt. Gov. Leslie Rutledge, Attorney General Tim Griffin and outgoing Secretary of State Cole Jester. Norris’ backers include former national security adviser Michael Flynn and MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, both prominent 2020 election deniers and Trump allies.

In his endorsement of Hammer, Jester called on Norris to drop out of the race over the candidate’s past confrontational and expletive-laden social media posts. In an interview with KATV, Norris acknowledged using “some salty language from time to time” but added, “you’re never going to hear me talk or speak that way again.”

Norris edged Hammer in the competitive three-way primary with both candidates receiving about 34% of the vote. Miller County Judge Cathy Hardin Harrison received about 32% of the vote.

Just more than half the primary vote was cast in counties Trump carried with 70% or more of the vote in 2024. Norris performed slightly better than Harrison and Hammer in these areas, while Hammer slightly outperformed the others in the rest of the state.

Pulaski, Benton and Washington counties are the biggest population centers in the state, and they contributed the most votes in the March 3 primary. Pulaski is home to Little Rock and is where former Vice President Kamala Harris posted her best performance in the state in the 2024 presidential election. Although Pulaski is Arkansas’ most populous county, Benton tends to have more influence in Republican contests, as was the case on March 3.

Regardless of who wins, the eventual Republican nominee will have an advantage heading into the general election. It’s been 20 years since Arkansas elected a Democrat as secretary of state and no Democrat has won statewide office since 2010.

Some Arkansas voters in a handful of districts across the state will also choose nominees for state Senate and House. Republicans hold lopsided majorities in both chambers.

The Associated Press does not make projections and will declare a winner only when it’s determined there is no scenario that would allow a trailing candidate to close the gap. If a race has not been called, the AP will continue to cover any newsworthy developments, such as candidate concessions or declarations of victory. In doing so, the AP will make clear that it has not yet declared a winner and explain why.

Arkansas does not have automatic recounts, but candidates may request and pay for one, with the costs refunded if the outcome changes. The AP may declare a winner in a race that is subject to a recount if it can determine the lead is too large for a recount or legal challenge to change the outcome.

Here are some of the key facts about the election and data points the AP Decision Team will monitor as the votes are tallied:

When do polls close?

Polls close at 7:30 p.m. local time, which is 8:30 p.m. ET.

What’s on the ballot?

The AP will provide vote results and declare winners in the Republican primary runoffs for secretary of state and state House Districts 5, 6, 46, 52, and 92, as well as the Democratic primary runoffs for state Senate District 15 and state House District 35.

Who gets to vote?

Voters do not need to have voted in the March 3 primary to participate in the March 31 runoff. But primary voters may only vote in the runoff of the same party as they did in the primary. In other words, Republican primary voters may not vote in a Democratic primary runoff or vice versa. Voters in the non-partisan primary may vote in either party’s runoff.

For voters who did not participate in a party primary, Arkansas Democrats allow any registered voter to vote in Democratic contests, while Republicans bar registered Democrats from voting in Republican contests.

What do turnout and advance vote look like?

There were about 1.8 million registered voters in Arkansas as of the March 3 primary.

More than 266,000 voters participated in the Republican primary for secretary of state. The state Senate District 15 Democratic primary had about 9,300 total votes, while five of the six state House Districts forced to a runoff each had total votes of between 4,400 and 5,200 total votes. The lone exception was the Democratic primary for state House District 35, which had about 1,700 total votes.

In the 2022 primaries for statewide offices, about 52% of Democratic voters and 42% of Republican voters cast their ballots for governor before Election Day.

More than 13,000 statewide Republican runoff ballots had already been cast as of Thursday.

How long does vote-counting usually take?

In the GOP U.S. Senate primary on March 3, the AP first reported results at 8:32 p.m. ET, or two minutes after polls closed. The last vote update of the night was at 2:04 a.m. ET with more than 99% of total votes counted.

When are early and absentee votes released?

County elections officials throughout the state have said they tend to release all or nearly all results from early and absentee voting in the first vote update of the night, before any in-person Election Day results are released.

Are we there yet?

As of Tuesday, there will be 217 days until the 2026 midterm elections.

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Follow the AP’s coverage of the 2026 election at https://apnews.com/projects/elections-2026/.

Apollo’s impatient old-timers are rooting for NASA’s return to the moon with Artemis II launch

By
The Associated Press
-

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — The people who toiled night and day to put astronauts on the moon during Apollo are thrilled that NASA is finally going back. They just wish these Artemis moonshots had happened sooner while more of Apollo’s workforce was still alive.

Now in their 80s and 90s, the dwindling survivors of NASA’s greatest generation would also like to see more enthusiasm for Artemis.

So few of them are left from the original 400,000 that no reunion is planned to celebrate the upcoming Artemis II flight around the moon by four astronauts as soon as April 1. Those living near Florida’s Kennedy Space Center will watch the launch from their backyards.

“Because it was the first time, there was an energy. There was a passion that probably is not exactly the same today and hasn’t been for a while,” said Charlie Mars, 90, who worked on Apollo’s command and lunar modules and helped establish the American Space Museum in nearby Titusville.

Retired engineer JoAnn Morgan is still fuming that the last three Apollo moon landings were canceled under President Richard Nixon’s watch because of budget cuts, risk concerns and shifting priorities. She was the lone woman inside launch control when Apollo 11’s Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins rocketed to the moon in 1969. Three years later, Apollo 17 closed out the grand era.

“I’m just trying to stay alive so I can see us actually get back and step foot on the moon,” she said. “I’m 85 and still feeling cheated after 53 years.”

Morgan isn’t the only one frustrated with NASA’s — and the nation’s — dawdling.

“It’s a good thing I’m not in charge,” Mars said, “because I would be out there beating the bushes and whipping up on people to get moving.”

One big difference this time are all the women in key roles.

NASA’s Artemis launch director is Charlie Blackwell-Thompson. The Artemis II crew includes Christina Koch, who holds the record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman — 328 consecutive days in orbit.

“It will be even greater when they actually have a woman who plants her boots on the moon,” Morgan said.

Apollo 16’s Charlie Duke points out that half the world’s population was not yet born when he walked on the moon in 1972.

NASA’s new administrator Jared Isaacman, a tech billionaire who paid his own way to space twice, is one of them.

Apollo’s old-timers are heartened that the 43-year-old Isaacman is accelerating the pace of Artemis launches to more closely match Apollo’s speed and safety record. Artemis has been trudging along at a once-every-three-years flight rate, which Isaacman deems unacceptable.

He’s added a test flight in orbit around Earth to practice docking with lunar landers before they’re used to put astronauts on the moon. And last week, he released a blueprint for a moon base that, along with a battalion of lunar drones and rovers, is expected to cost $20 billion over the next seven years.

NASA’s self-described “moon base guy,” Carlos Garcia-Galan, promises “cool cameras” on everything to ramp up excitement.

In the near term, the overriding goal is to beat the Chinese to the lunar surface. NASA aims to land astronauts in 2028, China by 2030.

The U.S. trounced the Soviet space program in the first race to the moon, landing 12 astronauts from 1969 through 1972.

John Tribe, 90, who managed spacecraft propulsion for Apollo, considers NASA’s revised Artemis plan “a whole lot more sensible.”

“The other approach was ridiculous,” Tribe said. “Whether we’re going to beat the Chinese back, I don’t know.”

Apollo 9’s Rusty Schweickart also likes the refashioned Artemis. As for topping Apollo’s excitement, though, good luck.

“We can all recall Columbus,” Schweickart said in an email, but who can remember “who came along 50 years afterward?”

One of only four moonwalkers still alive, Duke anticipates the thrill of Apollo will return once Artemis astronauts start landing, especially for the younger crowd that missed out before.

“If the first ones are successful and we start landing at the south pole,” Duke said, “I think millions are going to be watching that. I know I will if I’m still here.”

___

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Spain says it has closed its airspace to US planes involved in the Iran war

By
The Associated Press
-

MADRID (AP) — Spain has closed its airspace to U.S. planes involved in the Iran war, Defense Minister Margarita Robles said Monday, marking another step in the country’s opposition to the U.S. and Israel’s conflict in the Middle East.

Spain had already said the U.S. could not use jointly operated military bases in the Iran conflict, which Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has described as illegal, reckless and unjust.

Defense Minister Robles said Monday the same logic applied to the use of Spanish airspace in the conflict.

“This was made perfectly clear to the American military and forces from the very beginning. Therefore, neither the bases are authorized, nor, of course, is the use of Spanish airspace authorized for any actions related to the war in Iran,” Robles told reporters. Spanish newspaper El Pais first reported the closure of Spain’s airspace, citing military sources.

Spain’s government under Sánchez has been Europe’s loudest opposing voice against U.S. and Israeli military actions in the Middle East.

After Sánchez’s government denied the U.S. use of the Rota and Morón military bases in southern Spain, U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to cut trade with Madrid.

Sánchez was also among the most vocal critics of Israel’s actions in its war in Gaza.

“I think everyone knows Spain’s position; it’s very clear,” Robles said, calling the war in Iran “profoundly illegal and profoundly unjust.”

Sysco expands into high-margin restaurant segment with $29 billion deal

By
The Associated Press
-

NEW YORK (AP) — Sysco, the nation’s largest food distributor, will acquire supplier Restaurant Depot in a deal worth more than $29 billion.

The acquisition would create a closer link between Sysco and customers that rely on Restaurant Depot for supplies needed quickly in an industry segment known as “cash-and-carry wholesale.”

Sysco, based in Houston, serves more than 700,000 restaurants, hospitals, schools, hotels, supplying them with everything from butter and eggs to napkins. Those goods are typically acquired on a regular basis to cover items that these locations know they’ll need.

Restaurant Depot offers memberships to mom-and-pop restaurants and other businesses, giving them access to warehouses stocked with supplies for when they run short of what they’ve purchased from suppliers like Sysco.

It is a fast growing and high-margin segment that will likely mean thousands of restaurants will rely increasingly on Sysco for day-to-day needs.

Restaurant Depot shareholders will receive $21.6 billion in cash and 91.5 million Sysco shares. Based on Sysco’s closing share price of $81.80 as of March 27, 2026, the deal has an enterprise value of about $29.1 billion.

Restaurant Depot was founded in Brooklyn in 1976. The family run business then known as Jetro Restaurant Depot, has become the nation’s largest cash-and-carry wholesaler.

The boards of both companies have approved the acquisition, but it would still need regulatory approval.

Cambodia advances a scam center law with penalties of up to life in prison

By
The Associated Press
-

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Cambodian lawmakers on Monday unanimously adopted a new law targeting online scam operations with up to life in prison, following a government pledge to shut them down by the end of April.

All 112 members of parliament present voted to approve the legislation, which marks Cambodia’s first legal framework specifically aimed at a lucrative, illicit industry that has transformed the country into a global hub for cybercrime.

The scam operations typically involve bogus investment schemes and feigned romances that collectively extort tens of billions of dollars from victims around the world every year.

Justice Minister Keut Rith noted that thousands of people, especially from other Asian nations, are lured with fraudulent job offers and forced to work in scam centers in conditions of near-slavery,

Keut Rith told lawmakers that these crimes threaten public security and significantly damage Cambodia’s global reputation.

The legislation awaits review by the Senate and final approval by King Norodom Sihamoni.

Directing what’s described as a technology fraud site would carry five to 10 years in prison and fines reaching $250,000. For cases involving human trafficking, illegal confinement or violence, the prison term is 10 to 20 years.

If a worker dies, as is often associated with failed escape attempts, offenders face 15 to 30 years or even life imprisonment.

Senior Minister Chhay Sinarith, who leads the Commission for Combating Online Scams, recently announced that authorities have targeted 250 suspected locations since July, successfully shutting down 200.

He said the enforcement efforts resulted in 79 legal cases against nearly 700 ringleaders and associates. Over the same period, the government has repatriated nearly 10,000 scam center workers from 23 countries.

Experts are skeptical. Jacob Sims, a visiting fellow at Harvard University’s Asia Center, pointed out in response to Chhay Sinarith’s remarks that past crackdowns often failed because they left financial and protection networks intact, allowing criminal operations to quickly start again.

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