Evening NEWS DIGEST
29 Sept. 2016: 26 Zil Hajj 37: Vol:7, No:169
INDIA:KASHMIR
ISSUE & SUOTH ASIA
India 'launches strikes against militants'
across LoC: BBC
India's army says it has
carried out "surgical strikes" against suspected militants along the
de-facto border with Pakistan in Kashmir. The operation was aimed at preventing
attacks being planned by Pakistan-based militants, senior army official said. He
said "significant casualties have been caused to the terrorists and those
who are trying to support them".Pakistan denies India carried out any
strikes and says two of its soldiers were killed in cross-border shelling.
"The notion of surgical strike linked to alleged terrorists' bases is an
illusion being deliberately generated by India to create false effects,"
the Pakistani military said in a statement.Pakistan said its soldiers died in
"unprovoked" firing along the Line of Control dividing the disputed
region.India's military gave few details of the operation it says it carried
out overnight.At a joint press briefing by the army and the foreign ministry,
officials said the "motive of the operation was to hit out at terrorists who
were planning to infiltrate into our territory".India's DG of Military
Operations, Lt Gen Ranbir Singh, also blamed Pakistan for "being unable to
control terror activities in territories under its control"."Based on
receiving specific and credible inputs that some terrorist teams had positioned
themselves at launch pads along the LoC to carry out infiltration and conduct
terrorist strikes inside J&K and in various metros in other states, the
Indian army conducted surgical strikes at several of these launch pads to
pre-empt infiltration by terrorists," a statement said. It said the
"surgical strikes" had caused "significant damage to
terrorists". But the army did not say whether troops had entered
Pakistan-administered Kashmir or had fired across the border. However, PTI
quoted sources saying the operation took place between midnight and 04:30 local
time today, that it was a combination of helicopter and ground forces, and 7
militant "launch pads" had been targeted.Some unconfirmed Indian
media reports said more than 30 militants had been killed in the operation.
India claims surgical
strikes in PoK: NYT
India conducted surgical
strikes last night along LoC to safeguard our nation: Defence Ministry
Army’s surgical strikes
inflict terrorist casualties across LoC: HT
HT: India held back strike
till Sushma’s UN speech
Govt says all parties support army’s surgical
strikes
India claims striking
suspected rebels in Pak: Aljazeera
India hits Pakistan along
LoC, casting spotlight on savage, secret war:Praveen Swami's story
India’s claim of surgical
strikes ‘fabrication of truth’: Pak army
Islamabad: Pakistan on
Thursday denied that Indian troops had carried out surgical strikes across the LoC,
saying it had responded to “cross-border fire” from the Indian side that killed
two soldiers. Pakistan’s civilian and military leadership reacted after India’s
Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) Lt Gen Ranbir Singh said Indian
soldiers conducted surgical strikes on terrorist launch pads across the LoC,
causing significant casualties.In the first reaction from the Pakistani side, military’s
media arm said in a strongly worded statement: “There has been no surgical
strike by India, instead there had been cross-border fire initiated and
conducted by India which is existential phenomenon.“As per rules of engagement
same was strongly and befittingly responded by Pakistani troops.” The statement
added, “Pakistan has made it clear that if there is a surgical strike on
Pakistani soil, same will be strongly responded.” It said the “notion of (a)
surgical strike linked to alleged terrorists bases” was an illusion aimed at
creating “false effects”. Defence minister Khawaja Asif said the Pakistan Army
had given a “befitting response” to “small arms fire last night on five sectors
across the LoC”. He did not make any reference to surgical strikes.HT
Pak Army rubbishes India's
claim of 'surgical strikes' along LoC
'Indian Army is lying':
Pakistan claims India is creating false effects; Nawaz Sharif calls for meet
Pak Air Force 'ready' to
combat external aggression: IANS
Pakistan destroys 3 Indian
security posts: Pak media
India has right to respond
to attack on sovereignty: Bangladesh on surgical strike
Surgical strikes: India
briefs envoys of 25 countries including the US, China, Russia, the UK and
France
Surgical strikes: We stand
united with the Army and the country, says Asaduddin Owaisi
China ‘using multiple
channels’ to defuse Indo-Pak tensions
Beijing: China today
signalled that it was actively engaged in defusing tensions between India and
Pakistan, using multiple channels, to prevent a spillover of friction between
New Delhi and Islamabad in region.As for the tension between Pakistan and
India, recently Chinese side has been in communication with both sides through
different channels,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told a
media briefing in Beijing.He added: “We hope that Indian and Pakistan can
enhance communication and properly deal with differences and work jointly to
maintain peace and security of the region.” Geng was responding to questions on
whether the cross-border raid in Uri, in which 18 soldiers were killed,
featured during the maiden counter-terrorism and security dialogue that was
held between India and China earlier this week. The hindu
Govt meet to review Pak’s
‘most-favoured nation’ status pushed to next week
New Delhi:A meeting convened
by PM Narendra Modi to review Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status to Pakistan on
Thursday morning has been deferred to the next week, official sources said. hindustantimes
Want Indian Army to conduct
surgical strikes in Balochistan: Dilshad, Son of Naela Qadri Baloch
New Delhi: Supporting India
after it conducted surgical strike at LoC, son of activist Naela Qadri Baloch,
Mazdak Dilshad Baloch said, "We support such strikes and want Indian Army
to conduct surgical strikes in Balochistan as well." Mazdak Dilshad Baloch's
statement supporting India for its surgical strike is an another snub for
Pakistan and further exposes the retaliation of people in Balochistan who have
been reportedly targeted by Pakistani army. This is not the first time when
Mazdak has supported India and PM Modi, as earlier also speaking on Kashmir, he
had said, "Kashmir India's integral part,world should follow Narendra Modi
on Balochistan."NewsX
Baloch leader says he will
welcome help from India
Get ready for the long haul in
Kashmir, Centre tells forces
US security adviser Susan Rice
calls Ajit Doval, says ' we expect Pakistan to act against terror'
John Kerry spoke to Sushma
twice over 2 days: Do not escalate situation with Pak
open to using ‘tactical
devices’ against India: Pak Minister
New Delhi:Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja
Muhammad Asif on Wednesday said Pakistan is open to using ‘tactical devices’
against India should it feel threatened by its neighbouring country. The
minister said this in an interview to Pakistan news channel SAMAA.In an edited
version of the interview, put out by the news channel on its website, the
minister is heard saying: “Tactical weapons joh hain, joh hamne yeh progammes
develop kiya hua hai, yeh apne hifazat ke liye develop kiya hua hai. Hamne
devices jo hain just as showpieces toh nahin rakhe hue. Lekin agar hamare
salamati ko khatra hua, toh hum nestanabhut kar denge unko (Tactical weapons,
our programmes that we have developed, they have been developed for our
protection. We haven’t kept the devices that we have just as showpieces. But if
our safety is threatened, we will annihilate them (India).” indian express
Muslims are moresafe in India
than anywhere else: Mufti
Pathankot search called off as
nothing suspicious found
Day 82: Curfew returns to many
parts as forces stop freedom rallies; 40 injured: greaterkashmir
Srinagar:Authorities on Wednesday imposed strict
curfew in various parts of Kashmir to foil a series of pro-freedom rallies
organised by locals on the call of joint resistance leadership.At least 40
people sustained pellet and tear gas shell injuries in the forces’ action
across Kashmir. An elderly man was hit by pellets in old Srinagar when he was
coming out of masjid.
One student seriously injured:
Ruckus in Jhajjar college after Valley student called ‘terrorist’
Jhajjar: An argument between a student from UP
and another from Kashmir at a college in Jhajjar, Haryana, led to a physical
altercation and brawl late Tuesday evening after the former allegedly called
the latter a “terrorist”, leading to serious injury to at least one student and
minor injuries to a few others.The incident took place around 9pm at Ganga
Institute of Technology and Management (GITAM), in Jhajjar’s Kablana area. The
institute’s director, Aman Aggarwal, Wednesday said the issue stands resolved
and the student who called a Kashmiri student terrorist, and thereby sparked
the ruckus, has been rusticated. Kaleemullah Babu, a 2nd year BTech
student who is from Kashmir, claimed that he was “joking around” with his
friends and throwing water on them when Kasim, 3rd year BBA student
from UP who was sitting close by, also got wet. “Kasim became aggressive and
started abusing me. He eventually called me a terrorist, and said all Kashmiris
are terrorists,” Kaleemullah alleged.As the argument escalated, others also got
involved, and it soon turned physical, according to students.Many of the 70 or
so Kashmiri students at the college — enrolled through the PM’s
Scholarship Programme for J&K —
allege that the security guard on duty also got involved and beat them
up.indian express
Now Facebook also isolates
Pakistan; removes official page of Pak Jamaat-i-Islami
Facebook also appears to be
isolating Pakistan after the Uri attack. The social media giant has removed the
official page of Pakistan's Jamaat-i-Islami party, after the political outfit
posted provocative content on the unrest in Kashmir Valley. The social media
head of the party, Shamsuddin Amjad, said that the FB page was removed on
Wednesday evening. 2 more pages of the party were also removed from FB in the
last 2 days. "The party pages representing Jamaat's zonal sections Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa and Women Wing were removed on Tuesday," Amjad told Dawn.com.
FB also suspended around 24 personal accounts of admins of the Jamaat's
official page.According to a statement from the party, Jamaat-i-Islami's
facebook page had more than 3 million FB 'likes' and was apparently the second
most liked page of any local political party. It said that Facebook removes
Jamaat-i-Islami page for covering Indian atrocities in held Kashmir. catchnews
Facebook removes Pak
Jamaat-i-Islami's page for covering 'Indian atrocities' in held Kashmir:Pak’s Dawn
OTHERS
Marathas pay in kind, back
Muslims’ demand for quota; Thank Muslims for support to ongoing Maratha morchas
Pune: In what could perhaps lead to a new potent
alliance in Maharashtra, Maratha community leaders on Wednesday made a strong
pitch for reservations for Muslims in govt jobs. Praising the Muslim community
for backing the Maratha Kranti Morcha and extending help to silent marches, Maratha
community leaders said Muslims voluntarily joined their marches at different
places.“They did not just join the marches, but also extended help like giving
water and refreshments to the participants. And this happened across
Maharashtra,” said Ajay Bhosale of the Sambhaji Brigade, which has been leading
Maratha morchas from the front across the state. Abid Shaikh, a businessman
from Kondhwa, along with his friends provided 1.46 lakh mineral water bottles
to the morchaites. “We are not attached with any political party. We felt the
demand raised by the Maratha community were just and reasonable and it would be
good gesture if we backed and helped them,” he said. Bhosale said that like the
Maratha community, Muslims too have a large section which is poor and
struggling to get jobs and seats in educational institutes. “This is because
they have no reservations. Govt should provide reservations to the community
after discussing with them. We will support the demand raised by the Muslim
community,” he said.The support extended by Muslims to the Maratha community
and vice-versa assumes significance since the Dalit community has already
extended similar support. “Which means, now the Marathas, Muslims and the
Dalits are together and govt cannot ignore their demands,” said a Maratha
community leader.Dalit leaders like Prakash Ambedkar and Ramdas Athawale had
backed the silent Maratha morchas while denying any plans for counter-marches. Welcoming
the support from the Maratha community, MIM leader Imtiaz Jaleel said, “It is a
good development. Muslim community has supported Marathas on their demand for
reservations and also lent its cooperation to the morchaites,” he said.Jaleel
said the Muslim community, taking a cue from massive Maratha morchas, was also
planning similar morchas in Mumbai and other parts of the state. “We are
contemplating such morchas in support of our demand for reservations. The
morchas are happening, but the schedule is yet to be finalised,” he said.
indian express
Behind faceless Maratha
protests, support of 100 organisations
Maharashtra govt faces demands
from Maratha, Muslim and Dalit communities
Another silent march in Latur
by Dalits, backs by Muslims
Payback time: Marathas vouch
for Muslim community’s demand for reservation in govt jobs
Maratha Kranti Morcha owes its
success to social media, not mainstream media
Maratha protests get Dalit,
Muslim morchas going
Maratha Kranti Morcha in Dhule
reiterates punishment for rapists, quota for the community
Govt targeted my online
fundraising drive, says Gujarat Dalit leader Mewani: HT
New Delhi:Gujarat Dalit leader Jignesh Mewani
alleged on Thursday that online crowdsourcing platform Bitgiving closed down a
campaign to gather funds for his movement following pressure from the govt.Mewani,
in a series of tweets and Facebook posts,said he received a mail from the platform
that purportedly said the campaign had to be closed because of an FIR lodged
againsthim recently. Dalit leader has been detained several times in the past 3
weeks.“This is shocking behaviour. Under the pretence of an offence, this is an
attempt to muzzle people’s movements,” Mewani said.“We aren’t an NGO, we don’t
receive funds from any political party or corporate. If you stop even our
crowdfunding efforts, how do we survive?”Bitgiving wasn’t available immediately
for a response.
Centre launches Muslim
outreach programme from Mewat
Palwal:Centre today launched its Muslim outreach
programme, with Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi holding an
interactive session with the community members here in Haryana, telling them
that NDA dispensation is committed to empower and provide equal opportunity to
all.Seeking to "remove any misconceptions" among the Muslims at the
first Progress Panchayat, Naqvi hit out at "so- called political champions
of secularism" who he said are only engaged in exploitation of minorities.
Launch of the outreach programme from this Muslim- dominated area comes days
after PM Modi said that Muslims should be treated as "own" and should
be empowered."We have come to hold dialogue with people as per Modijis
instructions. Earlier the outreach was limited to electioneering but ministers
will reach out to people even after elections and this is the prime
example," Naqvi said."Our steadfast concern remains development and
we will not deviate from that agenda," the Minority Affairs Minister
said.PTI
Owaisi slams ‘progress
Panchayat’ as propaganda, questions its efficacy
Mewat Biryani raids have
permanently damaged livelihoods of poor Muslims: Harsh Mander
Madrasas influence
separatists, shut them down; Gujarat IPS officer DG Vanzara
Vadodara: Calling for the closure of madrasas, ex-Gujarat
IPS officer DG Vanzara Wednesday said that “education imparted in madrasas” had
influenced separatists in J&K. Vanzara said that had it not been for the
encounters in Gujarat, the state would have turned into a haven for terrorism,
like J&K .Vanzara said, “Ongoing anti-national activities must be
destroyed. In 2002, fire that raged through Godhra also affected Gandhinagar. While
I do not want to go into much details, the terrorists located outside India,
who were helping the terrorists (in India), were eliminated in an encounter by Gujarat
Police as per the law and the procedure. But we have a 70-year-old politics in
our country to which the Gujarat police fell prey. Terrorism should not be an
issue of parties or vote banks. The country suffered because we were sent to
jail.”Speaking on Pakistan, Vanzara said, “India has fought Pakistan to
eliminate terrorism in 1948, 1965, 1971 and 1999. If you do not kill
terrorists, terrorists will kill you. Even Kashmiri Hindus cannot live there.
What has to be done with Pakistan will be done, but right now we have to deal
with Kashmiri separatists who are influenced by the teachings in madrasas.
These are the teachings of madrasas… they should be restrained, or better still
such education should be stopped.” he added,indianexpress
Why only online application
for minority scholarships: HC
ew Delhi:Why is it mandatory for students from
minority communities to apply online for scholarships meant to benefit them,
the Delhi High Court asked the Centre today."Why have you made it
mandatory to apply online only," a bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and
Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal said and asked the Centre to file its response
to it.The bench told a petitioner that the challenge to Centre's decision
making Aadhaar card mandatory for students from the minority communities to
apply for scholarships has been taken care of by the Supreme Court, which was
seized of the matter. PTI
Is Azamgarh the new
Muzaffarnagar? the hindu
Azamgarh: Ahead of the UP Assembly polls,
attempts are on to drive a wedge between Muslims and Dalits in the district Azamgarh.
It was in mid-May that a clash between Hindus and Muslims broke out at
Khodadadpur village in the district. But it still comes up in conversations
here.“2017 will be a Hindu-Muslim election, that’s my sense,” says Bijendra
Singh, owner of Hotel Garuda in Azamgarh town and one-time Samajwadi Party
activist, who is no longer in active politics.In the past so many months, he
says, there have been a string of incidents involving the two communities in
the district. Some were so small, he continues, that they escaped major media
notice, but they are enough to keep the communal cauldron gently bubbling in
this largely rural district.The one in Khodadadpur, of course, hit the
headlines. It started out as a violent quarrel between two individuals, rivals
in local panchayat politics. The fact that one was a Dalit, Musafir Ram, and
the other a Muslim, Danish, was then used by adherents of the Hindu Vahini —
and of ex-BJP MP Ramakant Yadav — to turn the issue into a full-blown
Hindu-Muslim battle, a civil rights activist, Rajeev Yadav, says.But the way
the story played out in the headlines was that it was a Dalit-Muslim clash,
though most of those who participated on the Hindu side in the violence that followed
the first episode on May 14 were largely Yadavs.Indeed, IGP, Varanasi, S.K.
Bhagat who rushed to Azamgarh at that time to prevent the situation from
escalating further, told The Hindu: “From a professional point of view, I can
say that the first episode [between Musafir Ram and Danish] was the fallout of
panchayat elections. It was not a case of a Dalit-Muslim clash, but rivalry
between 2 individuals. What happened on subsequent days was a full-scale
Hindu-Muslim clash, largely between Yadavs and Muslims.”So why was the May 14
episode highlighted as a Dalit-Muslim clash, while the bigger incidents that
followed it did not get the same notice? thehindu
Dadri lynching case: A year
after incident, scars that refuse to heal
Dadri lynching: Bisara’s women
threaten suicide unless their sons are released
RSS gives protest call against police action
on pracharak across MP: indianexpress
Stepping up pressure on the BJP govt in Madhya Pradesh to arrest police officials
involved in the alleged attack on one of its pracharaks, the RSS has given a
call for Balaghat bandh and silent protests across the state today.Zila
pracharak Suresh Yadav, who is undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Jabalpur,
was allegedly attacked on Sunday in Baihar town when the police went to RSS
office to take him into custody following a complaint against him for an
anti-Islam post.
‘Unknown’outfit claims it
killed Jagdish Gagneja, Shiv Sena leader
jalandhar:A day after Union Home Minister
Rajnath Singh said RSS leader Jagdish Gagneja’s killers “will not be spared”, a
mysterious note surfaced Wednesday in which an outfit — “Dashmesh Regiment” —
claimed responsibility for assassinating Gagneja and a Shiv Sena leader, Durga
Prasad Gupta. A militant outfit with the same name, with its headquarters in
Amritsar and affiliation with Khalistan Armed Force, used to be active in
Punjab in the 1980s.Top Punjab police officers, however, said “it was a
non-existent organisation as on date and also the signatory was not a
recognised terrorist face”.indian express
No action against Umar Khalid,
4 others till Oct 18: Delhi High Court to JNU
New Delhi: Delhi High Court Wednesday extended
the protection given to JNU students Umar Khalid and four others against
implementation of the disciplinary proceedings against them till Oct.18.
Khalid, Anirban Bhattacharya and three other students were punished for their
alleged role in Feb.9 incident on campus this year.The students had challenged
the orders of the Appellate Authority of JNU — which had upheld the
disciplinary action against them — on the grounds that they had not been given
a proper hearing.The counsel appearing for JNU told the court of Justice
Sanjeev Sachdeva that the students had been given “adequate time” — nearly
three hours — to consider the documents during the disciplinary hearing against
them. The University has also said that it will not implement the punishments
till court orders.indian express
NIA takes over probe in
radicalisation bid case: The hindu
Kochi: More than a month after it launched a
probe into the missing of 20-odd Muslim youths from the State between May and
July this year, NIA has taken over the investigation into the alleged attempts
to radicalise Abin Jacob, 25, of Kochi who is the brother of Merin aka Mariyam,
one the missing youths.In a FIR submitted before the NIA special court here,
the agency has arraigned Mumbai-native Arshid Qureshi, guest relation officer
of Mumbai-based IRF, as first accused.Bestin Vincent, aka Yahiya, of Palakkad,
the husband of Merin, is the second accused.Meanwhile, Rizvan Khan, another
Mumbai native arrested by the State police in connection with the case, has
been omitted from the list of accused.the hindu
Gujarat: Muslim youth killed,
another critical as beaten up by mob for
allegedly stealing goats
Surat:One Person died and another was critically
injured after they were beaten up by some people for allegedly trying to steal
goats in Pandesara area of Surat on Wednesday.The victim has been identified as
Shakil Qureshi, 30, a resident of Udhna area. According to reports, Qureshi and
his friend Mansuri Abdul Naeem, 32, a resident of Maruti Nagar in Limbayat,
tried to steal two goats tied outside a house in Siddharth Nagar, in Pandesara,
which is a predominantly Hindu area.The duo were reportedly caught by the owner
of the goats, Jagannath Sanyasi, who shouted for help. Some residents of the
area then reportedly thrashed them. They were rushed to hospital after police
reached the spot. Qureshi was declared dead on arrival, while Naeem is reported
to be in a critical condition. Qureshi’s brother, Allahrakha, has filed a
complaint of murder against a group of 6-8 unknown persons. “We have been told
by police that both Naeem and Qureshi went to steal goats, and they were caught
and beaten up. They have not done any such thing till now… We want those
involved to be identified and punished,” he said. indian express
Minor's rape leads to communal
tension in Mathura
Mathura: Communal tension mounted in Magorra
Village, Mathura, after a 14 year old jat girl was allegedly raped by 2 men,
Yunis (35) and Anees (24) on the intervening night of Tuesday and
Wednesday.According to report lodged by the victim, she was watching TV in her
house when someone knocked the door. She alleged that when she opened the door,
she was pulled out by the suspects, who then dragged her to the rear side of
the house and raped her.She said the suspects gagged her when she tried to
raise an alarm. However, hearing her cries, her mother came out and raised an
alarm and neighbours also gathered there.While one of the suspects managed to
flee, Yunis was caught and thrashed by the crowd. Meanwhile extra police
enforcements have been posted in the village to avert any untoward incident.TOI
Mumbai: Minor mother
approaches HC, seeks custody of her child
In a rare instance of seeking custody of a
child, a minor mother has approached the Bombay High Court and sought custody
of her infant daughter.The writ petition filed by a merely 17-year-old mother
has sought the custody of her infant daughter, who is currently being looked
after by a Hindu Mahila Ashram, in Matunga, Mumbai.In the petition it is stated
that the petitioner (minor mother), who is Hindu by religion had married a
Muslim man of major age. (i.e above 18 years). The mother has stated in her petition that she
married her husband by following Muslim rituals in a mosque, as her Hindu
family was against their love relationship, especially her father. She
has alleged that her father also lodged an FIR against her husband under
several sections of POCSO Act and another complaint with the said Ashram to
take away the child.“My father had registered an FIR on his own will and accord
and that too without asking me. Around 15-days after the FIR, the Hindu Mahila
Ashram, took away my baby from me,” the petition states. freepressjournal
Don't unleash Shahabuddin
terror by allowing him out on bail: Bihar govt
to SC
New Delhi: Will
criminal turned politician and RJD leader Shahabuddin be remain a free bird out
on bail or be sent behind bars by cancelling his bail granted by Patna HC? The
Supreme Court will deliver its verdict on Friday deciding his fate.A bench of
Justices PC Ghose and Amitava Roy reserved its verdict on plea of Bihar govt and
victim's family seeking cancellation of his bail. Making a last ditch effort to
convince the court to send Shahabuddin behind bars,Nitish govt pleaded to the
court not to "unleash" terror of the dreaded criminal on people of
Bihar by allowing him to remain out on bail.TOI
Zulfiqar film –attempt to negatively
stereotype Muslims
World
Afghanistan: Ashraf Ghani,
Hekmatyar sign peace deal
Afghan President Ashraf
Ghani has formalised a peace treaty with Hezb-i-Islami, armed group led by
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, a deal the govt hopes will lead to more agreements with other
fighters.Hekmatyar also signed the agreement on Thursday via a video link into
Kabul's presidential palace.Ceremony was broadcast live on TV.It is the first
peace treaty Afghan govt has completed
since the war with Taliban began in 2001.The accord with the largely dormant
Hezb-i-Islami has been welcomed by the international community as a possible
template for any future peace deal with the Taliban, who have been fighting to
overthrow the Kabul govt for 15
years.The Afghan president also pledged to lobby the US and the United Nations
for the lifting of international sanctions on Hekmatyar, who was designated a
"global terrorist" by the Washington for his suspected ties to
al-Qaeda and Taliban.Once international sanctions are lifted, Hekmatyar is
expected to return to Afghanistan after 20 years in exile. He is believed to be
in Pakistan.The head of his delegation in Kabul, Amin Karim, said that he
believes the sanctions could be lifted within weeks. 25-point peace agreement
gives Hekmatyar and his followers immunity for past actions, and grants them
full political rights.In a speech greeted with chants of "Long Live Hekmatyar"
from his supporters, who had gathered in the presidential palace, he called on
Afghan govt to start peace talks with the Taliban."I call on all sides to
support this peace deal and I call on the opposition parties of the govt to
join the peace process and pursue their goals through peaceful means,"
Hekmatyar said in his message."We hope that the day comes when foreign
interference has ended, foreign troops have departed fully from Afghanistan,
and peace has been achieved."Alexey Yusupov, Afghanistan director at the
Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Foundation, German think-tank, said deal was highly
symbolical but it was unlikely to result in a peace agreement with Taliban, “Although
you could say Hezb-i-Islami is the second largest insurgent group, their importance
for what is going on inAfghan battlefield this year is fairly
non-existent," he said. Al Jazeera. Al Jazeera
Former Afghan rebel leader
Hekmatyar calls Taliban to peace after agreeing to put down arms
US air strike reportedly
kills 13 Afghan civilians
At least 13 civilians have
been killed in a US air strike targeting ISIL that hit a residential house in
eastern Nangarhar province, an Afghan official says.Esmatullah Shinwari, Nangarhar
politician, said that a crowd had gathered at the house in Achin district to
welcome home a tribal leader returning from the Hajj.He said at least six fighters
loyal to the ISIL were killed in the incident. According to Shinwari, 12 more
people were wounded, including the tribal leader.Mohammad Ali, the police chief
of Achin, gave a different death toll to the AFP, saying 3 civilians and 15
fighters were killed in the attack. aljazeera
US strike on IS in
Afghanistan kills 21, maybe some civilians: Reuters
Somalia: US accused of
killing 22 troops in air strike
An American air strike in
northern Somalia killed as many as 22 soldiers, an official from the region
alleged, suggesting that US had been duped into attacking Somali troops. Galmudug
region's Security Minister Osman Issa said 22 of his soldiers had been killed
in the strike early Wednesday, adding that the rival region of Puntland had
requested air support on the pretext that the men were al-Shabab
fighters."Puntland misinformed the United States and thus our forces were
bombed," Issa told Reuters news agency.Reuters
More than 600,000 Syrians
in Aleppo at a risk of genocide, warns opposition
Spokesman for the
opposition High Negotiation Committee, Riad Nassan Agha, has warned that more
than 600,000 Syrians in eastern Aleppo are at risk of genocide. The threat of
mass extermination is very real, he insisted.According to Al Arabiya channel,
Agha said on Wednesday that two million people are without drinkable water
after water treatment plants in Aleppo were bombed by the regime and Russia.middleeastmonitor
UN says 'war crimes'
committed in Aleppo offensive
New York:Russia and the
Syrian regime “know they are committing war crimes”, UN Secretary General Ban
Ki-moon said.“This morning, we awoke to reports of strikes on 2 more hospitals
in Aleppo,” Ban said.“Let us be clear. Those using ever more destructive
weapons know exactly what they are doing. They know they are committing war
crimes,” he said.AA
Syria talks 'very difficult
with bombs falling': UN envoy
Russia proposes 48-hour
'humanitarian pause' in Aleppo
A US threat to suspend
talks on Syria over the bombardment of Aleppo's rebel-held areas constitutes
"an emotional breakdown", according to a top Russian official, who
says that Moscow will support a 48-hour "humanitarian pause" around
the besieged city. Sergei Ryabkov, Russia's deputy foreign minister, rejected
on Thursday US calls for a 7-day truce as "unacceptable", but said a 2-day
ceasefire could allow desperately needed aid to reach the more than 250,000
civilians trapped in Aleppo. aljazeera
US to raise number of Iraq
advisors to 8,000: Baghdad
Baghdad: Washington will
increase the number of its advisors in Iraq in line with a request by Baghdad,
according to an Iraqi govt statement
issued Wednesday."Reason for the increase of US advisors in Iraq is to
provide the necessary support for the imminent campaign to recapture Mosul from
the Daesh group," the statement read."Iraqi govt has consulted with
US president on this issue," it added, stressing that "any increase
[in the number of advisors] will be carried out under the auspices of the
international coalition".US is currently leading a 60-nation anti-Daesh
coalition, which has carried out numerous airstrikes on Daesh targets since terrorist
group overran vast swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria in 2014.US forces
have also provided tactical advice and combat training to Iraqi security forces
with a view to enhancing the latter’s capacity to fight Daesh. On Tuesday,
however, Colonel John Dorian, a spokesman for anti-Daesh alliance, put number
of coalition troops now on the ground in Iraq at 8,000, including 4,500
Americans.Anadolu
IS loses control of last
oil wells in Iraq - oil ministry
US To Send More Troops To
Iraq Ahead Of Mosul Battle
‘Saudi could cut
anti-terror ties over US 9/11 lawsuit bill’
Riyadh: Saudi Arabia could
reduce valuable security and intelligence cooperation with longstanding ally
Washington after a Congressional "stab in the back" allowing 9/11
victims to sue the kingdom, experts warn.Cutting such cooperation is among the
options available to Riyadh after Congress voted overwhelmingly on Wednesday to
override President Barack Obama's veto of the JASTA."I'm afraid that this
bill will have dire strategic implications" for US, Salman al-Ansari, president
of Saudi American Public Relation Affairs Committee said."This partnership has helped provide
US authorities with accurate intelligence information" that helped stop
attacks, said Ansari, whose committee is a private initiative to strengthen
Saudi-US ties.JASTA allows attack survivors and relatives of terrorism victims
to pursue cases against foreign govt s in US federal court and to demand
compensation if such govt s are proven to bear some responsibility for attacks
on US soil.AFP
Obama: Congress' veto
override of 9/11 bill to sue Saudi 'a mistake'
Saudi riyal falls, bond may
be delayed after US 9/11 vote
Congress rejects Obama
veto, Saudi 9/11 bill becomes law
Iraqi Kurds hold memorial
service for Shimon Peres
Hundreds of Kurds attended
a memorial service in the northern Iraqi city of Duhok today to pay their
respects to Israeli statesman Shimon Peres who died on Tuesday at age 93, the
Kurdish Rudaw news agency reported.According to organisers, the 2-day ceremony
is for Kurds to “honor and remember a friend” who showed support for the
establishment of a Kurdish state.“Peres was one if the first – if not the only
– head of state who openly showed support for Kurdish independence and we are
here to remember him as a friend,” Baiar Zaweti, one of the organisers,told
Rudaw. Middleeastmonitor
Obama defends decision not
to use term Islamic terrorism
Iran fires mortar shells
into Pak’s Balochistan
Compiled and edited by
Anwarulhaq (Released at: 9:03 PM)
Posts
