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Showing posts from February 3, 2019

India sends note verbale to Pakistan in protest against Hafiz Saeed's rally

New Delhi [India], Feb 8 (ANI): India has taken a strong note of 26/11 Mumbai attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed's recent rally in Lahore on the occasion of so-called 'Kashmir Solidarity Day' and sent a note verbale to Pakistan in protest against the Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) chief's gathering, sources said on Friday. Sources added that India registered a strong protest against the continued use of Pakistani soil by extremist and terrorist elements to freely propagate and promote violence against New Delhi. They further said that the Indian government once again called upon the Pakistani government to fulfill its international obligations and abide by it bilateral commitment to not allow any territory under its control to be used for terrorism against India, in any manner. On February 5, Saeed, a UN-designated terrorist, had taken part in the rally in Lahore as part of the so-called 'Kashmir Solidarity Day.' India, has, time and again, protested against Pakistan f

Who’s Afraid of Intra-Afghan Dialogue?

The two-day conference of mainstream Afghan politicians and Taliban representatives in Moscow on February 5-6 becomes a landmark event in the peace process.  Principally, it signifies the commencement of the ‘intra-Afghan dialogue’, a process that was struggling to be born. This process can be expected to galvanise the Afghan peace talks. Some of the most senior and influential Afghan leaders actively participated in the Moscow conference, including former President Hamid Karzai, stalwarts of the erstwhile Northern Alliance Atta Muhammad Nur, Yunus Qanooni and Muhammad Mohaqiq, Ahmad Wali Massoud and former National Security Advisor Hanif Atmar.   The embittered Afghan government led by President Ashraf Ghani  has been reduced to a rump. It has  censured the event in Moscow , but its own growing isolation is self-evident. Ghani is now openly critical of the dynamics of the US-Taliban talks, won’t associate with any ‘intra-Afghan dialogue’ and threatens to reject any peace formula

ED moves against 26/11 Mumbai attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed's foundation over money laundering allegations

Falah-e-Insaniyat Foundation is a subsidiary of Jamaat-ud-Dawah, a UN-designated terrorist organisation founded by the 26/11 Mumbai attacks mastermind. NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Saturday registered a case against Falah-e-Insaniyat Foundation (FIF), the charity organisation run by 26/11 Mumbai attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed. A case was recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) for the organisation's alleged involvement in money laundering through various hawala channels, reported news agency ANI. The foundation is a subsidiary of Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD), a UN-designated terrorist organisation founded by Saeed, who is also the co-founder of banned outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba.  The development comes within a week of India's note verbale to Pakistan, raising a strong protest Saeed's recent participation at `Kashmir Solidarity Day` rally in Lahore. According to reports, the 69-year-old – an internationally designated terrorist with a US

‘I want to behead’: US man arrested for trying to join Pakistan terror group

Washington:  A 29-year-old New York City man has been arrested while he was about to catch a flight to Pakistan to join the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), in a dangerous sign that the Pakistan-based terror group, which carried out the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, has expanded its tentacles in the US. In another instance of growing influence of the LeT in the US and radicalisation of American youths, a teenager in Texas was charged by the FBI with using social media to recruit people on behalf of the terror group and send them to Pakistan for terrorist training. Federal prosecutors on Friday announced that they arrested the Manhattan man, Jesus Wilfredo Encarnacion, on Thursday night at John F Kennedy International Airport as he was about to board an international flight with Pakistan being his final destination. Prosecutors say Encarnacion went online to try to join the terrorist organisation. Encarnacion allegedly told an unnamed co-conspirator in November that he wanted to hook up wit

At least 11 suspected drug traffickers killed in Rio

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Law enforcement officials in Brazil's second largest city say that at least 11 suspected drug traffickers were killed in a shootout with police in a slum located in the bohemian Santa Teresa neighborhood. Police spokesman Col. Mauro Fliess said the confrontation took place Friday as officers entered the area where the suspects were hiding. He said that none of the police were hurt. Officers seized drugs, rifles, guns and ammunition during the anti-drug trafficking operation. Rio de Janeiro is one of the world's most violent cities with frequent shootouts between police and drug gangs and an annual homicide rate of around 50 per 100,000 inhabitants. Source:  https://in.news.yahoo.com/least-11-suspected-drug-traffickers-killed-rio-172315347.html

Spain says Catalan separatists rejected talks needed for budget

MADRID (Reuters) - The Spanish government accused Catalan pro-independence leaders on Friday of rejecting its attempts to start a dialogue aimed at resolving the separatist crisis between Madrid and the wealthy region. The impasse comes at an uneasy time for Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's minority government ahead of a vote next week on the 2019 budget bill, which is likely to fail without the support of the Catalan parties, and of the trial of 12 jailed independence leaders starting on Tuesday. Deputy Prime Minister Carmen Calvo said the pro-independence groups had rejected the framework for talks proposed by the government because they wanted a referendum on independence included on the agenda, which Madrid would not accept. "For years they have been asking for dialogue. We have done it. If that is not enough, we need to stop," she told a news conference after the weekly cabinet meeting. Failure to approve the 2019 budget proposal could prompt a snap parliamen

6 people arrested after largest US-Australian meth seizure

SYDNEY (AP) — Australian police arrested six people after what authorities said Friday was the largest single seizure of methamphetamine in the United States and the biggest drug haul bound for Australia. U.S. Customs and Border Protection said 1,728 kilograms (3,800 pounds) of the drug were seized mid-January at the Los Angeles-Long Beach port complex along with smaller amounts of cocaine and heroin. The drugs were hidden in metal boxes labelled as loudspeakers. Australian authorities said it was also the largest haul of the drug intercepted while bound for Australia and would have provided around 17 million hits of the substance also known as ice. Australian authorities said that the operation with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Drug Enforcement Agency, Australian Federal Police and Victoria state police had stopped "a tsunami of ice" from reaching their shores. Police said that six people arrested in Australia on Thursday and Friday were tied to a U.S.

'We got it wrong': Columbine author reflects on school shootings and the media

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Dave Cullen, author of the definitive book on the Columbine massacre that occurred 20 years ago, has hailed what he believes are the first signs of hope that America might be finding a way out of the epidemic of gun violence that continues to claim scores of young lives. Writing in the Guardian in an article, Cullen praises the students of Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school in Parkland, Florida, for potentially leading America out of the bloody trap in which it has been gripped for the past two decades. The Parkland massacre was the deadliest shooting at a high school in US history. In the article, to be published by the Guardian this weekend, he labels the students’ demands for change a year ago an “uprising”, equivalent in scale to protests against the Vietnam war. “When Parkland was attacked last Valentine’s Day, supporting gun safety was considered politically toxic,” he writes. “Suddenly, for the first time in a generation, it is starting to grow politically toxic to  op

Details from Central African Republic rebel deal released

BANGUI, Central African Republic (AP) — An agreement signed by Central African Republic and 14 rebel groups earlier this week will see the dissolution of armed groups, the formation of an inclusive government and the creation of a fund for victims who have suffered in years of conflict, according to the accord seen Friday. The deal signed Wednesday is the eighth since the fighting began in 2013 but the first to emerge from direct dialogue. The 30-page peace pact, negotiated in Sudan and titled the Political Accord for Peace and Reconciliation, evokes four main points: victims, justice, peace and national reconciliation. The agreement says that armed groups will undertake to respect the legitimacy of the country's institutions, and to renounce the use of arms and violence against the defense and security forces, U.N. personnel and humanitarian workers. They also agree to refrain from any act of destruction, occupation of public buildings, place of worship and violence agains

Yemen negotiators agree to begin handover of civil war dead

AMMAN, Jordan (AP) — Negotiators say Yemen's warring sides agreed to exchange bodies of some of those killed in the country's 4-year-old civil war. Representatives of Yemen's internationally recognized government and Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they agreed Friday that each side will hand over 1,000 bodies in three stages. The first stage will see the release of bodies from morgues. The war has claimed tens of thousands of lives. The agreement came after four days of talks in Jordan, as part of efforts to implement agreements reached in principle in December. The negotiators say they also made progress on an exchange of prisoners and would now consult with their leaders. A deal on a prisoner swap has stalled because each side seeks the release of more prisoners than the other claims to be holding. Source:  https://in.news.yahoo.com/yemen-negotiators-agree-begin-handover-civil-war-dead-182429964.html

Canadian gets life sentence for killing six in Quebec mosque shooting

QUEBEC CITY (Reuters) - A Canadian man who gunned down six members of a Quebec City mosque in 2017 was sentenced to life in prison on Friday but he could be eligible for parole after serving at least 35 years. Alexandre Bissonnette, 29, pleaded guilty last year to six counts of first-degree murder and six counts of attempted murder for the attack, one of Canada's rare mass shootings. Justice François Huot said a life sentence with eligibility for parole between 35 and 42 years into the sentence was appropriate, and rejected calls by prosecutors to impose the harshest sentence handed down since Canada eliminated the death penalty. The January 2017 shooting, which Prime Minister Justin Trudeau denounced as a terrorist attack, provoked debate over the treatment of new arrivals at a time when Canadians were being tested by a growing number of migrants crossing from the United States into the province of Quebec. Huot said Bissonnette’s actions in entering the mosque at the end

3 Jawans Among 4 Injured In Blast Near Raj Bhawan In Manipur

Three jawans of Assam Rifles and one sugarcane juice vendor, a non-local, were injured in a blast near Manipur Raj Bhawan this evening in Imphal. The four people, injured in the blast, were rushed to the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences in Lamphel. Their condition is critical, sources at the hospital said. The blast took place in front of the Army administrative office in M-Sector near Raj Bhavan, a police official said. After the attack, a joint operation was launched by the state police and central forces. However, no arrests have been made so far and no insurgent group had claimed the responsibility of the attack. The blast comes at a time when Manipur, like other northeastern states,is witnessing massive protests over the citizenship amendment bill. Amid protests, PM Narendra Modi kicks off his two-day visit to the northeast on Friday. He would be visiting Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Tripura. Source:  https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/3-jawans-among-4-injured-in

Taliban Say Moscow Talks With Afghan Politicians "Very Successful"

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Moscow:  The Taliban on Wednesday hailed unprecedented talks with Afghan politicians as "very successful", despite disagreements over women's rights and the group's demand for an Islamic constitution in the war-torn country. The extraordinary two-day gathering in Moscow saw Taliban leaders stand shoulder-to-shoulder with former president Hamid Karzai, who called the insurgents his "brothers" as both sides agreed to seek lasting peace. No government official was invited to the roundtable, which saw heavyweight Afghan politicians and other sworn enemies of the Taliban praying and dining with the militants. It was the second time President Ashraf Ghani was frozen out of such talks in recent weeks, after the US held entirely separate discussions with the insurgents in Doha without Kabul. Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, who headed the Taliban delegation, made a rare appearance in front of international media besides a smiling Karzai. "This meet

Malaysia ready to facilitate Southern Thailand peace dialogue upon request, says Rahim Noor

KUALA LUMPUR (Bernama): Malaysia is ready to facilitate fresh dialogues between Majlis Syura Patani (Mara Patani) and the government of Thailand in the effort to bring peace to restive southern Thailand.  Malaysia's facilitator, former Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Abdul Rahim Noor, said Kuala Lumpur was in a “wait and see” phase following the decision of the Mara Patani dialogue panel to suspend all talks with the Thai government. “This is a domestic issue. When one side makes an inquiry or seeks development from the other side, we will facilitate. If not, we will be silent, wait and see if there is any development. “There must be a request from one side or the other for negotiations (to be held). We cannot arrange anything unless there is a request. We just facilitate,” he told Bernama when asked to comment on the decision of the Mara Patani dialogue panel. Mara Patani represents several groups in southern Thailand. The head of the panel, Shukri Hari, reportedly

Central African Republic: UN chief hails signing of new peace agreement

CAR has been grappling with conflict since 2012, as fighting between the mostly Christian anti-Balaka militia and the mainly Muslim Séléka rebel coalition killed thousands and left two out of three civilians dependent on humanitarian aid. In 2013, armed groups seized the capital and then President François Bozizé was forced to flee. After a brief period of reduced violence in 2015, and elections held in 2016, fighting intensified again at the end of the year. Peace talks  had started on 24 January this year in Khartoum, Sudan, and lasted 10 days under the auspices of the African Initiative for Peace and Reconciliation in CAR, led by the African Union (AU) with UN support. The deal was agreed in Khartoum, but formally-signed on Wednesday in CAR’s capital, Bangui. Mr. Guterres commended the stakeholders for the successful conclusion of the talks, highlighting the “leadership role” of the AU and encouraged “all stakeholders to live up to their commitments in the implementation per

South Africa says mercenary activities pose serious challenges to peace efforts

UNITED NATIONS, Feb. 4 (Xinhua) -- South Africa condemns mercenary activities in Africa, "as they pose serious challenges to our collective efforts to promote and ensure peace and stability in our respective countries," a senior South African diplomat said here Monday. Jerry Matjila, the Permanent Representative of South Africa to the United Nations, made the remark at a UN Security Council Open debate on Threats to international peace and security: Mercenary activities as a source of insecurity and destabilization in Africa. As a responsible member of the African Union and the United Nations, South Africa condemns all mercenary activities in any African or non-African country, saying that "We believe that these activities are in clear contravention of continental and international conventions and legal instruments." The recruitment, use, financing and training of mercenaries violates the principles of the Charter of the United Nations and those of the Con

The Colombian peace process under duress

On Jan. 17 a car bomb exploded in the General Santander police academy in south Bogota, killing 21 police officers and injuring 68 more plus the perpetrator. The National Liberation Army, or ELN, guerrilla group claimed responsibility for the attack four days later. Recently inaugurated President Ivan Duque Marquez (2018-2022) effectively ended the already-suspended peace talks with the ELN—Colombia’s largest remaining guerilla organization—the day after the bombing and demanded the arrest of the guerrilla’s negotiating team in Cuba. This bombing attack was Bogota’s most lethal since 2003 and the third most lethal in the city’s violence ridden history. In effect, it underscored the ongoing resurgence of guerrilla violence in the country despite the demobilization of the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces, or FARC, in November 2016 via the peace accords struck with the previous government of Juan Manual Santos (2010-2014; 2014-18) Background of the Peace Accord