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Showing posts from February 23, 2014

U.S. human rights report draws extensive criticisms

BEIJING, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. State Department's annual country reports on human rights has drawn criticisms from various countries. Pierre Picquart, an expert on China and Chinese issues at the University of Paris-VIII, said that China has achieved remarkable progress in human rights, while the United States also faces its own human rights problems. Picquart said although he has not yet read the report, he does appreciate the great achievements China has made over the past few decades, such as the efforts to feed its huge population and to improve health care and education for the Chinese people. However, on the other side, the latest revelations about the tapping program PRISM and the infamous U.S. prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, have exposed U.S.'s own problems with human rights both domestically and internationally, he told Xinhua. The Spanish EFE news agency reported Friday that Colombian Vice President Angelino Garzon said the U.S. State Department's

UN says 703 Iraqis killed in violence in February

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/UN-says-703-Iraqis-killed-in-violence-in-January/articleshow/31220553.cms BAGHDAD: The United Nations said on Saturday that a total of 703 Iraqis were killed by violence in February, excluding deaths of  insurgents  and those from an embattled western province. The figures issued by the UN's mission to Iraq is close to that of January's toll of 733 and shows that a surge of violence, that began 10 months ago with a government crackdown on a Sunni protest camp, is not receding. A total of 564 civilians and 139 members of the security forces were killed. UNAMI added that 1,381 more Iraqis, including 1,179 civilians, were wounded. The capital, Baghdad, was the worst affected with 239 people killed. Two predominantly Sunni provinces — central Salaheddin with 121 killed and northern Ninevah with 94 killed — followed. As in January figures, UNAMI statement excluded deaths from ongoing fighting in Anbar, due

Colombian rebels want U.S. to participate in peace talks

HAVANA (Reuters) - Colombia's FARC rebels asked for the United States to join its peace talks with the Colombian government, saying on Friday it would speed up the process because Washington was making all the important decisions anyway. The Colombian government and the U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to the request, which was likely to be rejected by the Colombian government on the grounds of national sovereignty. "We are discussing a matter of interest for the United States," Ivan Marquez, head of the FARC's negotiating team in Havana, told reporters before entering the latest round of talks. "Who is really determining what happens or not here is the U.S. government, so we would like to speak with the government of the United States... We would reach an understanding much quicker," Marquez said. For the past 15 months Cuba has hosted talks aimed at ending a half-century guerrilla conflict, the longest in Latin America, which has

Three Maoist women arrested in Odisha

Police have arrested three  Maoist  women from a camp in Odisha 's Gajapati District, and recovered a huge cache of arms and ammunition from them. During a combing operation, police raided a Maoist camp in a forest near Mohana about 300 km away from Bhubaneswar, after which rebels belonging to a breakaway Maoist group called the Odisha Maobadi Party (OMP), which is led by Sabyasachi Panda, were detained. Deputy Inspector General of Police (Southern Range) Amitabh Thakur confirmed the arrest, and also informed mediapersons about the arms and ammunitions recovered from the Maoist camp. Thakur also provided information absconding Maoist rebel Sabyasachi Panda. Local media reports said that an AK-47, two INSAS, four SLRs, three 9mm and two 2mm pistols, one tiffin bomb, 13 magazines and cash worth Rs 10.5 lakh were seized from the possession of the arrested Maoists. Thakur said: "Sabyasachi Panda had suffered an injury when a bullet pierced through his right thigh.

Syrian troops kill 55 rebels amid ongoing conflict

DAMASCUS, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Syrian troops on Friday killed 55 armed rebels in separate operations across the country, the official SANA news agency said. The army killed 20 rebels in an ambush in the eastern al-Ghouta suburb of Damascus, a couple of days after killing 175 others who were attempting to sneak into Damascus. Also, the army killed 25 rebels in Douma and four in Jobar, both eastern suburbs of Damascus, and six rebels in Deir Attieh town in the north, according to SANA. While the army is winning battles in Damascus countryside, the rebels reportedly are planning a counterattack there in an attempt to divert the government forces from the central region where they are also advancing. The Lebanese al-Manar TV and pro-government Syrian TV outlets said some Western and Arab countries are stepping up support to the rebels in Syria, mainly in the southern province of Daraa which borders Jordan. Meanwhile, pro-government demonstrations have returned to the street

13 killed in clashes between army, Shiite rebels in NE Yemen

SANAA, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- Clashes erupted on Friday between the Yemeni army and Shiite Houthi rebels in Yemen's northeastern province of al-Jawf, leaving at least 13 people dead and several others wounded, tribal sources said. The fighting took place after the Shiite rebels tried to seize the government's main facilities in al-Hazm, the capital city of al-Jawf province, a local tribal source told Xinhua anonymously. "Three soldiers and more than 10 Shiite rebels were killed in the fighting," the source said. However, Ali al-Bukhaity, the spokesman of the Houthi group in capital Sanaa, denied that his group was seeking to seize the government installations. He told Xinhua that the fighting broke out after the group concluded a peaceful demonstration on Friday morning in al-Hazm, demanding the resignation of the coalition government. He said after the demonstration, the Houthi group had disputes with Sunni soldiers at a checkpoint in the city, which led to t

5 militants killed in W. Afghan operation: police

HERAT, Afghanistan, March 1 (Xinhua) -- At least five militants were killed while eight others wounded as a result of a military operation in Afghanistan's western province of Herat, a police chief said on Saturday. "The military raid was carried out by army and police in Obe district, western of the provincial capital Herat city. Several rounds of weapons and ammunition were also seized following the operation," district police chief Shiragha Alokozai told Xinhua. No soldier was hurt in the operations, he noted. The army and police have stepped up efforts to clear the militants across Afghanistan as the country is preparing for the presidential and provincial council elections slated for April 5 this year. The Taliban militant group is yet to make comments. Separately, nearly 50 policemen joined the ranks of Afghan National Police following receiving eight-week training in Herat Police Training Center, an Interior Ministry official told Xinhua earlier in the

Pakistani Taliban announce monthlong ceasefire

MIRANSHAH:  Pakistani Taliban spokesman Shahidullah Shahid on Saturday announced a month-long  ceasefire  to allow the resumption of stalled peace talks with the  Pakistan government .  "We announce a month-long ceasefire from today and appeal to all our comrades to respect the decision and refrain from any activity during this period," the  Pakistan Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP) spokesman told AFP.  "Because of a positive response from the government, an appeal from the religious scholars and for the better future of Pakistan we have decided not to carry out any activity (attacks) for one month," he said.  Last month Islamabad began peace talks with the Taliban in an attempt to end a seven-year insurgency which has cost thousands of lives.  But the militant group continued to carry out attacks in the country on a near-daily basis.  Government mediators later suspended dialogue with their Taliban counterparts after the insurgents claimed they had executed 23 kidnapped so

S Sudan refugees rebuilding lives in Kenya's Kakuma camp

Ongoing violence in South Sudan has prompted tens of thousands to flee the country into neighbouring Kenya. At least 20,000 people have entered the country so far in 2014, according to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees. Once there, they are housed in Kakuma, a refugee camp that has been home to South Sudanese refugees since 1992. Caroline Karobia reports from Kakuma. Source  http://bbc.com/news/world-africa-26377017

Israel shoots dead woman near Gaza border

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Israel shoots dead woman near Gaza border Last updated: 7 hours ago Fifty-year-old Palestinian woman killed by the Israeli military for walking too close to the border. Israeli military shot dead a Palestinian woman in the Gaza Strip in an area near the border that Israel has declared a no-go zone for Palestinians, local hospital officials have said. Gaza residents said it was not clear why 50-year-old Amna Qdaih, who they said suffered from a mental illness, was near the separation wall that runs between Israel and the Gaza Strip, Reuters news agency reported.  Asked about the report, an Israeli military spokeswoman said soldiers identified a number of suspects in the area late on Friday and called on them to back away. After they did not, the soldiers fired at their legs and one was hit, she said. Qdaih's body was found and transferred to a hospital in Gaza early on Saturday. Israel and Hamas, which rules Gaza, agreed in 2012 to a ceasefire. The border has remained relatively qui

Mursi’s son, friend held over drugs

M Police find two cigarettes stuffed with five grams of hashish in their possession By Ramadan Al Sherbini Correspondent March 1, 2014 Cairo: A son of Egypt’s toppled Islamist president Mohammad Mursi has been arrested for allegedly possessing drugs, the official Middle East News Agency reported Saturday. Abdullah Mohammad Mursi, 25, was arrested along with a friend inside a parked car in Qaliubia north of Cairo, according to the report. When searched, police found in their possession two cigarettes stuffed with five grams of hashish, said the agency. The suspects were being investigated. There was no immediate comment from Mursi’s family. The Islamist leader is a father of three sons and a daughter. In July last year, the army deposed Mursi, Egypt’s first democratically elected president, after enormous street protests against his troubled one-year rule. Mursi himself is being tried on multiple charges ranging from inciting protester deaths, conspiring with foreign organisations, a ja

Venezuela's growing middle-class revolt

On Monday, Venezuelans woke up to find barricades of pipes, trash and branches burning in the streets. Improvised roadblocks, cutting off neighbourhoods from each other and from the central core of certain cities, appeared simultaneously in eight states of Venezuela, most of them in middle-class areas, and show no signs of letting up. Even the start of a week-long national holiday on Thursday, to culminate in the March 5 anniversary of former president Hugo Chavez's death from cancer, has not stopped the demonstrations — or the government's tear-gas response. On Monday, Venezuelans woke up to find barricades of pipes, trash and branches burning in the streets. Improvised roadblocks, cutting off neighbourhoods from each other and from the central core of certain cities, appeared simultaneously in eight states of Venezuela, most of them in middle-class areas, and show no signs of letting up. Even the start of a week-long national holiday on Thursday, to culminate in the Mar

China issues report on US human rights

China published a report on the United States' human rights record on Friday, in response to US criticism and "irresponsible remarks" about China. "The Human Rights Record of the United States in 2013" was released by the Information Office of the State Council, China's cabinet, in response to "Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2013" made public by the US State Department on Thursday. China's report states that there were serious human rights problems in the US in 2013, with the situation deteriorating in many fields. Once again posing as "the world judge of human rights", the US government "made arbitrary attacks and irresponsible remarks" on almost 200 countries and regions, the report says. The United States carefully concealed and avoided mentioning its own human rights problems, according to the report. THE WORLD THROUGH PRISM The US government spies on its own citizens to a "massive and unrestrained&qu

Foreign militants jeopardise Pakistan's peace

Terrorists from several countries, whom Pakistan hosted and used first, against the Soviets and, later US and NATO forces in Afghanistan, have turned against their host and are compounding the security problem facing the country. The latest air strikes in Swat and Waziristan by the Pakistan Army were directed mostly against them in retaliation for their attacks on military posts and convoys at several places causing casualties. With the operations in Afghanistan drawing to a close as foreign forces are due to leave by the end of this year, these foreigners are turning their attention increasingly towards the Pakistan State and its Army, demanding immediate imposition of Sharia rule. In utter desperation, the Nawaz Sharif Government had opened Taliban factions, involving to strike a deal on ending terrorist activity. It thought Tehrik-e-Taliban and the foreign terrorists would be isolated and it would be easy for the Army to deal with them. But, considering the atmosphere prevailing in

100 Pakistanis Flee To Afghanistan

UNITED NATIONS, March 21 (Bernama) -- Nearly 100 people have crossed into Afghanistan from northern Pakistan as the Pakistani government is mulling a full-scale offensive to root out militants in its restive northern tribal region, Xinhua news agency reported. United Nations (UN) spokesman Martin Nesirky said based on reports of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), close to 20,000 people have been displaced since Feb 20 due to military operations in the North Waziristan region in Pakistan. The OCHA is in contact with the Pakistani local authorities to provide emergency aid including food supplies and medical assistance to the displaced people. Pakistani forces on Tuesday launched a coordinated air and ground assault on militants' hideouts in North Waziristan and neighbouring tribal areas that left more than 40 rebels dead. The military operation came after peace talks faltered between the Pakistani government and the Taliban, who recently launched two

Muslim Syrian extremists tweets horrific images of man's hand being cut, account suspended by Twitter

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The first image that was tweeted Twitter On Friday, Twitter users were horrified and shocked as a Syrian extremists group's Twitter account @reyadiraq tweeted images of a series of photographs of a man's hand being cut off in a live-update as a punishment for robbing in northern Syria. Warning: Graphic Images in this story The group claimed the man requested the punishment to 'cleanse him from sin' and is in keeping with the teachings in religion that say if a part of your body causes you to sin it is better to cut it off than enter hell with that part, heaven can be yours if the sinful part is removed.  The live-feed of the amputation that was carried out in the northern town of Maskanah, near Aleppo, was re-tweeted by several Jihadi social media handles and went viral on social media drawing various reactions from people. The group responsible for the amputation and posting the video was militant organisation ISIS - Islamist State in Iraq and Syria. The account that p

ISIS retreats in Syria

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Syria's opposition is greatly fragmented, with frequent infighting between various rebel groups. (AFP/File) The al-Qaeda linked Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS,  has retreated from Aazaz and other key positions  in Northern Aleppo, AFP reports. Their retreat comes in response to  an ultimatum  issued by al-Nusra Front earlier this week. Nusra Front, a powerful rival, blames ISIS for the death of Abu Khaled al-Suri, a senior Islamist commander, and threatened to expel ISIS from Syria if it did not appear before an Islamic court. “ISIS has withdrawn from Aazaz, its most important bastion in Aleppo province, as well as the Minnigh military airport, the Mayer region and the villages of Deir Jamal and Kafin,” said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. “ISIS is heading to areas that neighbor Raqa province where it has its main stronghold in the city of Raqa,”  Rami Abdel Rahman, the Observatory’s director, told AFP. A war between Nusra Front and ISIS would greatly hinder both

Six security personnel injured in blast in northwest Pakistan

Peshawar:   At least six security personnel, guarding a polio team, were wounded today in a blast in the restive Khyber tribal region in northwest Pakistan. The blast occurred near Jamrud area of Khyber Agency. According to reports, polio vaccination workers were carrying out their work in Jamrud tehsil when they were attacked. Six Khasadar force men were wounded in the attack that also destroyed their vehicle. The condition of three injured is said to be critical. The area has been cordoned off and a search operation is underway. Source  http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/six-security-personnel-injured-in-blast-in-northwest-pakistan-489854

Sri Lankan family finds mass grave in garden

Colombo: A Sri Lankan family has stumbled upon the remains of at least nine bodies buried in the garden of their home, police said on Saturday, the latest mass grave to be discovered in the country's former war zone. The family made the grisly find on Friday while clearing out their garden in the town of Puthukkudiririppu in the northern district of Mullaittivu, police spokesman Ajith Rohana said. "Remains of nine people had been found so far and the skeletal remains were taken for analysis by the judicial medical officer in the area," Rohana told reporters. The discovery comes just days after officials raised the number of bodies found in December in an unmarked mass grave in the adjoining district of Mannar to 80. It was the first grave uncovered in the ex-war zone since troops defeated Tamil rebels nearly five years ago following a decades-long conflict for a separate homeland for ethnic minority Tamils. The final battles between government forces and Tamil

Aid Group Told to Leave Troubled Burma State

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Authorities in Burma, also known as Myanmar, said they will not allow the international aid organization Doctors Without Borders (MSF) to continue their work in troubled Rakhine State, home to Muslim minorities including the stateless Rohingya. Presidential spokesman U Ye Htut told the  Myanmar Freedom  newspaper on Friday that the government would not extend the organization's working permit under a Memorandum of Understanding because the group lacked transparency in its work. He criticized the group for saying that more than 40 Rohingya were killed in an attack in the remote northern part of the state last month. The government insists that only one Buddhist policeman died.   MSF said on Jan. 24 it had treated 22 people in the area of the alleged massacre for injuries including a gunshot wound, stab wounds and beatings.   A diplomatic source who declined to be identified told Reuters that MSF was in negotiations with officials in the capital, Naypyitaw, after suspending operati

Annual Human Rights Report on USA: Amnesty International

Forty-three men were executed during the year, and concerns about cruel prison conditions continued. Scores of detainees remained in indefinite military detention at Guantánamo. Pre-trial proceedings continued in six cases in which the administration was intending to seek the death penalty following trials by military commission. Use of lethal force in the counter-terrorism context continued to raise serious concerns, as did continuing reports of the use of excessive force in domestic law enforcement. Counter-terror and security Detentions at Guantánamo At the end of 2012, nearly three years after President Obama’s deadline for closure of the Guantánamo detention facility, 166 men were still held at the base, the vast majority without charge or criminal trial. Four men were transferred from the base during the year, two of whom had been convicted by military commission.Two Uighur detainees, who had been held without charge or trial at the base since 2002, were transferred to El S