Fuel control switches for the engines of an Air India flight that crashed last month were moved from the “run” to the “cutoff” position moments before impact, starving both engines of fuel, a preliminary investigation report said early Saturday.

The report, issued by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, also indicated that both pilots were confused over the change to the switch setting, which caused a loss of engine thrust shortly after takeoff.

The Air India flight, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, crashed on June 12 and killed at least 260 people, including 19 on the ground, in the northwestern city of Ahmedabad. Only one passenger survived the crash, which is one of India’s worst aviation disasters.

The plane was carrying 230 passengers: 169 Indians, 53 British, seven Portuguese and a Canadian along with 12 crew members.

According to the report, the flight lasted around 30 seconds between takeoff and crash. It said that once the aircraft achieved its top recorded speed, “the Engine 1 and Engine 2 fuel cutoff switches transitioned from RUN to CUTOFF position one after another” within a second.

The report did not say how the switches could have flipped to the cutoff position during the flight. The movement of the fuel control switches allow and cut fuel flow to the plane’s engines.

The switches were flipped back into the run position, the report said, but the plane could not gain power quickly enough to stop its descent after the aircraft had begun to lose altitude.

“One of the pilots transmitted “‘MAYDAY MAYDAY MAYDAY’,” the report said. It also indicated confusion in the cockpit moments before the crash. In the flight’s final moment, one pilot was heard on the cockpit voice recorder asking the other why he cut off the fuel.

“The other pilot responded that he did not do so,” the report said. The preliminary report did not recommend any actions to the Boeing.

Air India in a statement said it is fully cooperating with authorities investigating the crash. “Air India is working closely with stakeholders, including regulators.

We continue to fully cooperate with the AAIB and other authorities as their investigation progresses,” it said.

The plane’s black boxes, combined cockpit voice recorders and flight data recorders, were recovered in the days following the crash and later downloaded in India.

Indian authorities had also ordered deeper checks of Air India’s entire fleet of Boeing 787 Dreamliner to prevent future incidents. Air India has 33 Dreamliners in its fleet.

The head of the United Nations’ migration agency warned Thursday that Western nations risk creating greater instability by simultaneously tightening borders and reducing development aid to countries experiencing mass migration.

Amy Pope, Director General of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), says Western nations may be fueling the very crises they aim to prevent by failing to address the root causes of migration.

“When the public sees boats coming across the Mediterranean, it creates concern about whether the government can manage migration,” Pope said. “It’s fair and appropriate for governments to address that concern. But there is real value in developing a comprehensive approach.”

She emphasized that most migrants do not initially seek to reach Europe. Instead, they move to neighboring countries where they hope to find safety, jobs, and a future. Pope urged governments not to cut development assistance to these first host countries, arguing that supporting them is key to stabilizing migration flows.

Her comments come as several European countries are adopting stricter migration policies. These include increased funding for transit countries to prevent onward movement and expanded deportation efforts.

Just last Thursday, lawmakers in Greece voted to suspend asylum applications from people arriving by sea from North Africa, signaling a harder line on irregular arrivals.

Pope’s message is clear: to manage migration effectively, governments must invest in long-term solutions, not just short-term deterrents.

Amid Kenya’s worst wave of anti-government protests in years and mounting economic hardship, President William Ruto is pressing ahead with plans to build a lavish mega church at his official residence. This project has ignited debate over the intersection of faith, power, and public accountability.

The construction of the Church in central Nairobi is estimated to cost KES 1,2 billion ($9,3 million) and fit upwards of 8.000 people, according to local media reports.

The grandiose project was met with criticism from many Kenyans, who have struggled under the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.

Economic hardships in Kenya have taken a toll on the popularity of the sitting President. Tensions escalated on Monday, when 31 people were killed and more than 500 were arrested in widespread anti-government protests.

The placement of a worship site on government grounds has prompted a legal challenge. Kenya’s high court is set to hear a petition by lawyer, Levy Munyeri, who argued that the mega church violates provisions in Kenya’s constitution, which denounces any state religion.

The President has so far been unfazed by the criticisms, “I am not going to ask anyone for an apology for building a church. The devil might be angry and can do what he wants,” Ruto said on July 4th, noting that he would pay for the Church with his own money.

“Ruto knows when push comes to shove in politics and other arms of government, he will get his way. He knows parliament cannot stop him”, said Dr. Denis Galava, Kenyan political researcher and journalist.

In an interview with Africanews, Galava points to recent developments in Kenya’s parliament, which make Ruto’s grasp on power solid despite political unrest.

Earlier this year, key allies of opposition leader Raila Odinga, were appointed to senior positions in Ruto’s cabinet, weakening the counterbalance to the sitting President.

“You can’t talk about a political movement that can stop him from doing anything, because parliament is now a lapdog”, Galava said.

Ruto is Kenya’s first evangelical Christian president. The 58-year-old politician put religion at the centre-stage of his 2022 election campaign, earning him the nickname ‘deputy Jesus’.

He has previously built a chapel in the compound at his former residence in the Karen suburb of Nairobi.