Evening NEWS DIGEST
27 Dec.2016: 27 Rabiul
Awwal 1438: Vol:8, No:73
Historian Narayanan terms
SC ruling on National anthem stupidity:‘India not a nation, but federation of
nationalities’
New Delhi: Historian MGS
Narayanan has termed as “stupidity” the Supreme Court ruling making the
National Anthem mandatory before movie screenings. Calling it a good example of
judicial overreach, the former chairman of the Indian Council of Historical Research
(ICHR) said there was no need to justify or criticise the same as the order
will fail on its own if people don’t make it fail.“People who come to cinemas
for entertainment don’t need to be force-fed nationalism. This move to impose
nationalism won’t succeed. In fact, it will fail,” he said in an interview
published in Mathrubhumi Weekly. Narayanan, who is one of India’s top
authorities on ancient history, said India does not have a nationalism as it is
more a civilisation. “We can call it a federation of nationalities, but not a
nation. I have never felt it is a nation,” he said. “The national anthem comes
into relevance only when there is a feeling of nationalism. But this feeling
cannot be created by force, it should come naturally,” he said, adding that the
efforts to force these feelings will in the end have a negative impact. Narayanan,
who was appointed head of ICHR during NDA rule, said these moves reminded him
of a “dictatorial minority”, which was against the concept of democracy.
“Article 51(A) in our Constitution is clear that the respect of our country and
its symbols is not something that should be achieved judicial force,” he said,
adding that the 1986 Supreme Court ruling in the case pertaining to students
from the Jehova’s Witness community underlines that our culture teaches us
tolerance and our spiritual leaning espouses tolerance. indianexpress
NIA failed to establish our
IM link: Hyderabad blast convicts
Hyderabad: Convicts in the
Dilsukhnagar bomb blast case on Monday moved the Hyderabad High Court,
appealing the death penalty awarded by a special NIA court. They said the NIA
had failed to establish that they were members of the Indian Mujahideen.T
Srinivasa Rao, additional district and sessions judge cum special judge for
scheduled offences under the NIA Act, on Dec.13 had awarded the death penalty
to Yasin Bhatkal and a Pakistani
national, Zia-ur-Rahman alias Waqas, Asadullah Akhtar alias Haddi, Tahaseen
Akhtar alias Monu and Ajaz Shaikh for the blasts which claimed 18 lives and
left more than 100 injured in 2013.NIA had claimed that the IM had hatched a
conspiracy to wage war against India and decided to carry out bomb blasts in
Hyderabad to create terror further its activities. The appellants in their
appeal relied on the ground which was pointed out by the special court
judge.The judge had said that “the question that fails for my determination is
does the prosecution prove the accused No 2 to 6 along with absconding accused
No 1 (Yasin Bhatkal) during the period between 2010 to 2013 Feb.were members of
the unlawful association namely IM which has been declared as unlawful by
notification under Section 3 of the UAPA.”The judge had noted that the
prosecution had not produced any notification issued by the Centre under
Section 3 of the Act 1967. Meanwhile NIA special court referred the case to the
Hyderabad High Court for confirmation of the death sentence.Deccan Chronicle.
Bring Bhatkal to city:
Lawyer for 2011 blasts accused
Mumbai: The men arrested on
charges of masterminding the July 13, 2011 triple blasts have requested the
MCOCA court that prime accused, Yasin Bhatkal, be brought from Hyderabad jail
to the city so that the pending trial in the case could begin. Bhatkal and 4
others —Tahseen Akhtar, Zia Ur Rehman alias Waqas, Asadullah Akhtar and Aizaj
Sheikh—were awarded the death sentence by a court in connection with their role
in Dilsukhnagar blasts. Advocate Shareef Shaikh, lawyer for the other accused
in the Mumbai blasts cases, said, "We have requested the court to pass an
order to bring Bhatkal and Sheikh, to Mumbai so that the hearing could
begin." Bhatkal is accused of providing explosives and assembling the
bombs while Sheikh along with another accused was suspected to have stolen an
two-wheeler and planting a bomb on it.The accused in the Mumbai case had
earlier told court that their trial should be conducted at the earliest. timesofindia
Dilsukhnagar blast: convicts
appeal against verdict
Notice served on legal
counsel of Zakir Naik’s IRF
Mumbai police on Monday
served a notice received from the UAPA, set up to examine the evidence on the
basis of which the Centre banned Zakir Naik’s NGO IRF last month, on the
organisation’s legal counsel in Mumbai. “Notice was received from the registrar
of the tribunal and was served on IRF’s legal counsel SHA Jamati at the
organisation’s office here,” a police spokesperson said. The tribunal was set
up to adjudicate whether or not there was sufficient cause for declaring IRF an
“unlawful association” under UAPA. IRF was declared an unlawful association
under section 3(1) of UAPA, with the gazette notification, dated Nov.17,stating
that the NGO and its members, particularly its founder Naik, had been
“encouraging and aiding its followers to promote or attempt to promote
disharmony or feelings of enmity, hatred or ill-will between different
religious communities and groups”. Tribunal issued notices seeking responses
from Maharashtra govt, IRF and other “interested persons” after its preliminary
hearing. NGO has been granted time till Feb.6 for filing its response.PTI
Notice served on legal
counsel of Zakir Naik's NGO
Muslim body asks centre to
appoint commission to re-examine UAPA cases
Kozhikode: Association of
Muslim Scholars of India has urged the Centre to set up a commission to
re-examine the cases registered under UAPA against "innocent people"
in the guise of national security. "Centre should appoint a commission to
re-examine the cases filed under UAPA that have been imposed on innocent people
under the guise of national security," General Secretary of the
Association, Kanthapuram A P Abubacker Musliyar said.He was delivering the
keynote address at the international Milad Conference.He further said, the
freedom of religion and freedom to believe and practice ones faith is one of
the cornerstones provided in the Constitution. A host of Muslim scholars
representing different countries and international associations attended the
conference. news18.com
5000 OBCs perform 'ghar wapsi', convert to Buddhism
60 years after Dr Bhimrao
Ambedkar led 6 lakh Dalits to abandon Hinduism for Buddhism, more than 5,000
people belonging to other backward classes converted to Buddhism on Sunday in
Nagpur.Ceremony at Deekshabhoomi was the culmination of 5 years of planning by
the Satyashodhak OBC Parishad, an activist group based in Maharashtra. The
group had initially thought to convert in Nagpur on the anniversary of
Ambedkar’s conversion, but abandoned the idea as the city would be too crowded
that day. “We finally decided to convert on Dec.25 for three reasons,” said
Dhanaji Gurav, one of the organisers of the event. “This was the day Savitribai
[Phule] started her first school for girls, it is Christmas and also it is
Manusmriti Dahan Divas, the day on which Babasaheb burnt the Manusmriti
[in1927].”The date had the added advantage of being commemorated by women’s
organisations associated with group as their day of liberation, he said.Since
2011, when their recruitment drive began, the group has been emphasising the
history of OBCs as “nagvanshis”,who were Buddhists in medieval times.They have
termed this their true “ghar wapsi”, or homecoming.RSS and other Hindu
organisations have used the phrase “ghar wapsi” for efforts to convert Indians
from other religions to Hinduism.scroll.in
Naqvi says govt not
thinking of uniform civil code now
Thrissur: Union Minister of
State for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi categorically stated on Tuesday
that the govt was not taking any
initiative for bringing in common civil code on its own."There is no
discussion or decision or even thinking on common civil code at the govt level
now. If at all any govt takes such an
initiative, it will be after discussions with all concerned sections and
building up a consensus," the minister said here .The minister was
responding to questions from a group of reporters on the sidelines of the
inauguration of the Ayurveda wing of Jubilee Mission Hospital, run by the
Thrissur Archdiocese.He said the govt was ready to talk to the genuine minority
groups who are running quality educational or healthcare institutions and
render all possible help to them. He claimed that Modi govt was committed to
avert leakages in various schemes including in the programmes for the welfare
of the minorities. "We want to completely block the loot lobby, by
eliminating the middlemen and power brokers," he said.TOI
TN: Parties join chorus
against uniform code
Chennai: All mainstream
political parties, including the ruling AIADMK and the opposition DMK, joined
the chorus against the imposition of uniform civil code (UCC) in the country. Addressing
a meet against UCC organised by various Islamic organisations held here on
Sunday,they reiterated their opposition to the move of the Centre to force the
common code upon the Muslims and the PM to concentrate on developmental
programmes. Senior leader of AIADMK and MP S Anwar Raja said his party would
raise the issue on the floor of Parliament. “Late CM, Jayalalithaa, opposed UCC
in a strong manner. Following in her footsteps, AIADMK will register its
opposition to the common code in Parliament,” he said. Talking tough on the
issue, DMK’s deputy general secretary VP Duraisamy said, “The country’s
strength lies in diversity. If the UCC is brought into force, it will harm the
religious sentiments of Muslims and trigger destabilisation of harmony.” S
Thirunavukkarasar, president of Tamil Nadu Congress Committee, said, “Congress
will never allow BJP-led govt to implement the UCC.” He also noted that
personal laws are in existence not only for Muslims but also for other
religions in the country.
UCC, ploy to impair
religious harmony:Kanimozhi
Education, jobs top on
Minority Affairs Ministry list in 2017
New Delhi:Empowering
minorities by providing them education and employment opportunities will top
the 2017 priority list of Union Minority Affairs Ministry which said bringing
socio-economic schemes “out of papers and computers” and taking them to ground
were its biggest achievement this year. 2016 saw change of guard in the
Ministry with Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi assuming its charge following resignation of
Najma Heptulla (now Manipur Governor) while management of Haj pilgrimage was
also transferred to it from Ministry of External Affairs from Oct.1.Often under
attack from Opposition over issues relating to minorities, particularly in the
wake of lynching of Akhlaq in UP’s Dadri in 2015, govt also sought to combat “Opposition’s
propaganda” against it by undertaking outreach programme like‘Progress
Panchayat’ in minority-dominated pockets.PTI
Maharashtra Lawyers Forum,
Muslim Personal Law Board seek 5% reservation for Muslims
Aurangabad: Maharashtra
Muslim Lawyers' Forum and All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) want the
state govt to implement the
recommendations of Justice R M Bapat (retired) Maharashtra State Commission for
Backward Classes that 5% reservation be given to Muslims.The Commission had
recommended 5% reservation for 50 Muslim communities listed as Special Backward
classes in the schedule of the Ordinance called Maharashtra State (Reservation
of seats for admission in educational institutions and for appointment of post
in public services under the state) for Special Backward Classes. Lawyers'
Forum and All India Muslim Personal Law Board had organised a 2-day workshop,
when a resolution was passed to make the demand with the govt .The conference
that concluded on Sunday evening was presided over by Shakeel Ahmed, senior
advocate of Supreme Court. Eminent high court lawyer Satish Talekar was invited
to deliver a talk on the subject of reservation for Muslims.TOI
India taps Saudi for release
of priest abducted in Yemen
New Delhi: In the absence
of any govt in Yemen, India says it is
reaching out to other regional countries like Saudi Arabia and local Yemeni
authorities to reach Indian Catholic priest Father Tom Uzhunnalil, held captive
by Islamists in Yemen since early 2016.After a new video of Father Tom
surfaced, which appealed to the Indian govt and the Church for help to secure his release,
an MEA spokesperson said India was continuing with efforts to secure his
release. "With regard to the safe release of Father Tom who was abducted
some months ago, we have been in regular touch with countries in the region,
especially Saudi Arabia as also the local Yemeni authorities."But
obviously the Indian efforts have fallen short, largely because of the state of
instability prevailing in Yemen. The country has been a battleground between
the Iran-supported Houthis and the Saudi Arabia supported govt of President
Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, which has claimed over 7000 lives so far. timesofindia
UP: 70-year-old dies after
being forced to stand on one leg to atone death of calf
In another shocking
incident of cow vigilantism, a 70-year-old farmer from the Bundelkhand region
died, reportedly after he was made to stand on one leg for the death of a
calf.According to a report in The Telegraph, the panchayat in Bada Malhera
village of Chhattarpur district asked Har Singh Lodhi to atone for his sins
after a calf was found dead on his farm and a bottle of rat poison was found
near it.While the cause of his death was not certain, his son Dariyab told the
newspaper that Lodhi had to go through purification rituals like taking a dip
in the Sangam, shave his head and even pay a fine of Rs 500 for the calf's
death."My father was himself keen to undertake the punishment as he had
been feeling low since the calf died. After three hours of suffering and constantly
changing legs, he fainted. He was taken to hospital where doctors declared him
dead on arrival," Dariyab told The Telegraph.
DEMONETISATION
Mamata, Rahul dare Modi to
resign for 'failure of note ban'
New Delhi: Trinamool leader
Mamata Banerjee stole the show at a joint opposition press conference today and
said that instead of making the country cashless, the Centre has made its own
existence "baseless" and rendered itself "faceless"
following the Nov 8 decision to scrap high-value currency notes. Banerjee dared
PM Narendra Modi to resign saying that he had promised if the cash crunch
situation doesn't improve in 50 days from demonetisation, he would personally
answer for it. And in a direct hit alleging the PM is authoritarian , Banerjee
also said the govt should have taken the Parliament into confidence before
taking such a big step like demonetisation ."Will you resign as the PM, if
things don't get stable in 50 days, which is now almost over? What you've done
(currency ban), has sent the country 20 years back in time," the West Bengal
CM thundered at a joint press conference
with the Congress party, RJD and a few other parties that earlier held a joint
meeting to discuss what could become a "common minimum agenda" to
take on the Centre.Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who also addressed the press
conference, focussed not just on demonetisation but also on what he calls
"the personal corruption of the PM". TOI
Will you resign if things
don’t improve 50 days after demonetisation, Mamata asks PM
MP: Ailing 86-old man
forced by bank to be personally present for money deposit dies
Bhopal: An 86-year-old
ailing man, whose personal presence or written permission was insisted upon by
SBI officials in Mandsaur of MP, died on Sunday without being able to deposit
Rs 40,000 in old currency notes.Before this, at least 7 persons have lost lives
in different parts of MP due to demonetization related issues.In the Mandsaur
case, the old man, Shantilal Jain was brought to the SBI branch twice on Dec.21
and 22, despite his being on oxygen support, as the bank officials insisted
that Jain either gave permission for the deposit either orally on in
written.However, Jain was in no condition to speak or write and kept sitting in
an autorickshaw in which he was brought to the bank by his son. Despite the
personal presence of Jain, bank officials refused to deposit the
money.NewsBits.in
Farmers sacrificed in
Modi’s yagna: Rahul
Demonetisation will end up
making UP polls more costly: Survey
Demonetisation has forced
candidates to find “innovative ways to pump in black money” for campaigning which
will end up making UP Assembly polls more costly, a survey has claimed. Survey conducted
jointly by Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and UP Election Watch to
study impact of demonetisation on poll expenses said, “Demonetisation will have
no impact in the campaigning or the poll expense.”In the survey, 69% of prospective
candidates and party office-bearers admitted that compared to previous polls,
the cost of contesting polls would rise by at least 10% due to demonetisation.PTI
I-T Dept to issue notice to
those who bought car afterNov8
New Delhi: After a series
of raids across the country following demonetisation, the Income Tax Department
is now taking a close look at car sales that were made after November 8.Car
dealers across the country have been asked to share details of those buyers who
made purchase after PM Narendra Modi
made the big demonetisation announcement in a live TV address. I-T officials,
in fact, plan to issue tax notices to these customers between 1-15 January. businesstoday
Rs. 100 cr. in party’s
account entirely accounted for, asserts Mayawati
Lucknow:BSP supremo
Mayawati on Tuesday asserted that the Rs. 100 crore detected by the Enforcement
Directorate (ED) in her party’s account was entirely accounted for and
deposited following due procedures.Addressing a press conference here, ex-UP CM
said:“Money belongs to the party, which
has been deposited following due procedures. The entire money is accounted
for.”Ms. Mayawati accused the BJP of using the state machinery to malign the
BSP ahead of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.IANS
Why demonetisation is a
disaster – detailed analysis of RBI data: James Wilson
OTHERS
Refugee vs refugee turns
into Kashmir vs Jammu: Identity certificates spark protests and violence
Jammu: In an echo of the
Amarnath land row, the issue of ‘identity certificates’ to West Pakistan
refugees in J&K is threatening to divide the state on regional and
religious lines. While protests have erupted in the Valley, with separatists
and the mainstream opposition accusing the PDP-BJP coalition govt of trying to
dilute state subject laws by giving the certificates to the refugees, leaders
in Jammu have raised the settlement of Rohingya Muslims in the region in
return, calling it an attempt to change its demography.’Govt has defended the
identity certificates saying the West Pakistan refugees, almost all Hindus, who
came to J&K at the time of Partition, continue to be “non-state
subjects”.“We are only issuing them identity certificates so as to help them
get jobs in paramilitary forces and other central govt establishments as
citizens of India,” said state govt spokesperson and Education Minister Naeem
Akhtar. Such clarifications, however, have fallen on deaf ears in the Valley,
where many point out that the issue of identity certificates to West Pakistan refugees
forms part of the Agenda of Alliance between the ruling PDP and BJP.There were
violent protests in Sopore town in Kashmir over the West Pakistan refugees
after the prayers on Friday, with police lobbing teargas shells and using
lathis to control the crowd. JKLF chairman Yasin Malik was detained in
Srinagar, while Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq led another protest in old
Srinagar town. National Conference described the issue of certificates to the
refugees as a “first step” towards getting them permanent resident status and
property rights in the state. In Jammu, BJP leaders said they would raise the
issue of the “increasing number” of Rohingya Muslim refugees in the state in
the coming Budget Session of the Assembly.“There are no records regarding them,
and their settlement in a sensitive border state is a great threat to national
security as these people can be easily used by anti-national elements,” said
BJP Nowshera MLA Ravinder Raina.. indian express
J&K HC quashes Masrat
Aalam’s detention under PSA
Srinagar: J&K High
Court Tuesday quashed the detention of Muslim League Head Masarat Aalam under
Public Safety Act and ordered the detaining authority to release him without
any delay. Aalam was booked under Public Safety Act by District authorities
Baramulla under a case vide FIR number 396/2016. Justice Muzaffar Hussain
Atthar after hearing the arguments from the public prosecutor Asif Maqbool and
Cousel for the petitioner Advocate Mian Abdul Qayoom maintained that: by
issuance of writ of Certiorari, order of detention bearing number
85/DMB/PSA/2016 dated 01 Sept.2016, passed by District Magistrate, Baramulla,
is quashed with further direction to the respondents to release the person of
Masrat Aalam Bhat, forthwith from preventive custody.” brighterkashmir
China calls for 'strategic
balance' in South Asia after Agni-V test-firing
Beijing:Without referring
to Pakistan, China has advocated “preserving the strategic balance and
stability in South Asia,” after India successfully test-fired Agni-V ballistic
missile. “China always maintains that preserving the strategic balance and
stability in South Asia is conducive to peace and prosperity of regional
countries and beyond,” said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying
in response to a question.thehindu
Communal tension erupts in
Bhind after missing man found dead:HT
Bhopal:Communal tension
erupted in Gormi locality of MP’s Bhind district after the body of a
50-year-old man, who was missing since Dec.16, was found in a river on Sunday.
After the body of the missing man was found, some unidentified persons
allegedly burnt down about 12 houses and 6 vehicles reportedly owned by the
members of a particular community, said sources. District administration has
clamped prohibitory orders in the area under Section 144 of CrPc. According to
sources who didn’t wish to be named, deceased, Munnalal Samadhia, a resident of
Gormi locality, was allegedly missing since Dec.16.On that day, he had gone to
market to buy some grocery but didn’t return after that. The next day, members
of his family lodged a complaint about it and suspected the role of 2 of his
neighbours in his sudden disappearance as they too were also untraceable since
Dec.16.
Manipur Editors’ Guild to
publish blank edit page tomorrow against bomb threat
Imphal: Editors’ Guild in
Manipur on Monday decided to halt all media-related activities and publish
blank editorial pages in protest against a hand grenade being found at the
gates of an evening daily PANDM, located at at Wahengbam in Imphal West
district. The police said the Chinese-made grenade was suspected to be left
behind by cadres of the banned KCP outfit. The suspected militants also left a
note, which read: “It is a new year gift to the paper of Manipur”.PTI
Blockade: Manipur
journalists seek Centre’s intervention
Manipur Govt extends
suspension of mobile data for another week
Muslims give land for Hindu
fair in Kota town: HT
Jaipur:Two Muslim villagers
in Rajasthan’s Kota did not tilt their land this Rabi season to facilitate
Hindu community to hold a 228-year-old fair on their farmland, setting an
example of communal harmony against the backdrop of growing religious
intolerance in the country.Abdul Hameed (60) set aside 18 bighas of his
farmland while 55-year-old Sabir Khan kept free 2.5 bighas for the fair which
commenced on January 28 at the district’s Kherabad town.Hameed, a farmer is
also a former sarpanch of Khairabad gram panchayat.Khan, a trader by
profession, further constructed 10 houses of 100-square-foot each on his land
for the use of pilgrims.HT
Muslim journalist
threatened for writing against 'Hindu outfits'; caller says “apologise, or you
will be killed”
For the past 6 months,
Bhopal-based freelance journalist Anam Ibrahim keeps a look over his shoulder.
And for good reason too: his car was rammed into by a truck, twice: it was then
burnt right outside his house, and a person once walked into the office he was
working with a cleaver in hand, threatening to kill him. And all this, because
he has written “against right-wing Hindu organisations”.The latest threat came
a couple of days ago, when an unknown caller, claiming to be from RSS, promised
to eliminate him unless he stopped writing. “Listen to me carefully...you have
committed a grave mistake by writing against the Hindu Sangh...you have got
yourself into a big trouble...you better take responsibility and apologise, or
you will lose your life this week…” said the caller, who went on to abuse
Ibrahim at length for “writing against Hindus”. Ibrahim, who has been working
as a reporter since his late teenage years, clears the idea that his reporting
is only against Hindus. “Of course, people eye it with suspicion every time I,
a Muslim reporter, write against a right-wing organisation. But no one can ever
say that I am biased,” he explains. “As a journalist for the past 15 years, I
have written on issues that impact everyone. I wrote against Jamat-e-Islami and
Owaisi also. Does that mean I am anti-Muslim?” he asks. “You cannot be against
anyone when you work as a journalist. I have always worked against issues, not
personalities,”he adds.TCN
7 members of fact-finding
commission on way to Chattisgarh arrested in Telangana, handed over to Police
A 7-member team of lawyers,
journalists and human rights activists belonging to Telangana Democratic Forum
and other organisations have been arrested and handed over to the Chattisgarh
Police.The team, Dec.25,2016 was in the village of Dummagudam village of
Bhadrachalam District of Telangana and were planning to visit Chhattisgarh to
enquire into complaints of human rights violations suffered by Adivasis of
Chhattisgarh at the hands of security forces. 7 members of the team: Balla
Ravindranath, Advocate.High Court, AP and Telangana, Chikkudu Prabhaker,
Advocate,Durga Prasad, Journalist Hyderabad, Duddu Prabhaker, President, AP
Kula Nirmulana Poratta Samiti, Rajendra Prasad, Telangana Vidhyarthi Vedika,
Nazeer, Telangana Vidhyarthi Vedika and Ramananda Lakshmay, were arrested and
handed over to Chhattisgarh police atKunta Police Station on same day.TCN
Mangaluru: Police foil
attempt to disrupt inter-faith marriage registration
Mangaluru:Timely
intervention by the police foiled attempts of Hindutva activists to prevent a
Muslim boy and Hindu girl from applying for marriage registration in Bantwal on
Monday. Siddique, a resident Badakaje village in Bantwal, had come to the
Sub-Registrar’s office with Ponnamma, a resident of a village in Madikeri, to
submit an application for registration of marriage.Just as they were submitting
the form, several Hindutva activists affiliated to various groups started
assembling at the office located on BC Road in Bantwal.thehindu
Dark-skinned Kerala Jews
suffered from discrimination and racist attitude from Israel govt, tells a Jew
story of Cochin Jews who immigrated to Israel: indianexpress
FCRA licence of 20,000 - or
more than 50% - of India's NGOs
cancelled
WORLD
Romania President rejects nomination
of first Muslim PM of an EU country
Romanian President Klaus
Iohannis has rejected PM candidate nominated by left-of-centre Social
Democrats.Sevil Shhaideh would have been Romania's first female and first
Muslim PM . President Iohannis has given no reasons for his decision.But MsShhaideh
has been criticised for lacking political experience, only serving once as a
regional minister.Social Democrats (PSD) won vote, and hope to form a
coalition."I have properly analysed the arguments for and against and I
have decided not to accept this proposal," Iohannis said."I call on
the.... coalition to make another proposal," he said.The president did not
explain the factors he considered in making his decision but there have been
allegations that Ms Shhaideh would be PSD leader Liviu Dragnea's
"puppet" if she became PM. PSD nominated her after its resounding
election win on 11 Dec when its pledges to raise pensions and implement tax
cuts secured it about 45% of the vote.bbc
Romanian president rejects
the nomination of first Muslim PM of an EU country
Hamas slams state Bahrain state
dignitaries, businessmen for hosting "Zionist" delegation
Gaza,(PIC)Hamas Movement
has strongly denounced Bahraini businessmen for hosting a delegation it called
a “group of Zionist fanatics” and partying with them in Manama. Movement
expressed its shock and dismay over seeing a group of businessmen and
dignitaries from the State of Bahrain having fun and dancing with "a
Zionist delegation of extremist and racist Jewish figures,” describing the
scene as “humiliating and disgraceful.”The Movement added that “this shameful
incident has happened while there is growing momentum for the international
solidarity with the Palestinian cause and the international boycott of
Israel.”Hamas also saw what happened as “provocative to the feelings of the
Palestinian people and harmful to the reputation of Bahrain.” It called on
Bahrain and all other Arab and Islamic countries to work on ending all forms of
relations with Israel, stressing that “the Palestinian people are exposed to
daily crimes by Israel in full view of the whole world.”A delegation of Jewish
American Businessmen, notorious for supporting extremist settler groups and
settlement activities in occupied Palestine, visited Bahrain a few days ago in
order to strike trade deals.A video circulated recently on the internet have
showed Bahraini businessmen and dignitaries partying with members of the
delegation. Jewish delegation’s itinerary also includes Oman and Dubai.
Hamas condemns video of
Muslim and Jewish people dancing as 'disgraceful spectacle'
Bahraini king hosts a
Hanukkah candle lighting -
Erdogan extends Hanukkah
greetings
2,000 Palestinian homes
demolished by IOA in W. Bank
O.Jerusalem, (PIC) Israeli
occupation authorities (IOA) had approved 35 Palestinian structures in C areas
of the West Bank and gave demolition orders to over 2,000 other structures
during the past three years, the Israeli daily Haaretz said on Tuesday. Haaretz
said the number of Palestinian structures demolished is 18 times more than
those approved.According to the information from Civil administration, in 2014,
nine building permits were approved. In 2015 seven were approved and in 2016
only 37 were approved. In exchange, 2,000 demolition orders were given, 983 of
them have already been carried out.
Israeli bulldozers raze more
Palestinian lands in Salfit
https://english.palinfo.com/news/2016/12/27/Israeli-bulldozers-raze-more-Palestinian-lands-in-Salfit
Salfit, (PIC)2 Israeli
bulldozers and a truck wreaked havoc on Palestinian farmlands on Tuesday
morning in Deir Ballut town west of Salfit province to the north of occupied
West Bank. Eyewitnesses affirmed that bulldozers belonging to the Israeli
illegal settlement of Leshem razed Palestinian agricultural lands located near
the local homes in the town.
Netanyahu warns he will
target UNRWA via Trump
Benjamin Netanyahu is
planning to target UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) when US President-elect
Donald Trump takes office next month,Yedioth Ahranoth reported on Monday. He
made his threat in the wake of Friday’s UN Security Council Resolution 2334
which condemned Israeli settlement activities in Palestinian territories
occupied since 1967.“PM Netanyahu plans
to target UNRWA, UN Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the
Palestinian people and the anti-Israel [sic] UN employees,” the newspaper
reported.middleeastmonitor
PA plans response to
Israeli aggression with ICC action
Israel 'reducing ties' with
nations over settlements
Israel's foreign ministry has
said the country is "reducing" ties with nations that voted for last
week's UN SC resolution demanding a halt to settlement building in Palestinian
territory.Foreign ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon said that Israel was
"temporarily reducing" visits and work with embassies, without
providing further details. aljazeera
Syrian army escalates
campaign to capture Damascus water supply
Syrian army escalated aerial
bombing of a rebel-held valley northwest of Damascus in an offensive begun last
week to recapture the strategic area where a major spring provides most of the
capital’s water supplies, rebels and residents said on Tuesday.They said the
army shelled and bombarded several towns in Wadi Barada valley about 18 km northwest
of the capital in a major offensive launched since Friday. The roads leading to
the towns in the valley and the mountain cliffs surrounding the area are under
the control of elite Republic Guards and the Lebanese Shi’ite Hezbollah group,
they said.
Mossad assassinated Tunisian
engineer: Israeli journalist
A senior Israeli journalist
has revealed that the Israeli Mossad spy agency assassinated Tunisian drone
engineer Mohamed Al-Zawari in front of his home earlier this month, Al-Araby
Al-Jadid reported on Sunday.After a long investigation, Alon Ben David of
Channel 10 TV published an article in Maariv, in which he said that Al-Zawari
was ensnared by a female spy, who was the “bait” in a honeytrap. The woman
introduced herself to Al-Zawari as a fellow journalist. middleeastmonitor
Russia, Iran interest
conflict in Syria
Russia and Iran have been
closely coordinating their support for the Syrian regime President, Bashar
Al-Assad in order to achieve their interests in the war-torn country. However,
rivalry between the two countries appears to surface every now and then,
leaving Assad as the biggest loser after gradually depriving him of his
influence.This rivalry is clearly reflected in the strategic province of Homs
where both sides try to impose their authority, especially in the country’s
notorious security branches. Suriya Net reported that recently senior officers
and the head of the security branch in Homs have all been removed from their
positions by Moscow. The reshuffle was carried out in order to sever the
branch’s ties with the Iranian-backed national defence apparatus and reduce
Tehran’s attempts to block Russian reconciliation efforts in the area.
Idlib overwhelmed by influx
of Aleppo's wounded
Pakistan: 30 die after
drinking tainted liquor at Xmas party
30 people, most of them
Christians, died and 60 more fell sick after drinking moonshine served at a
Christmas party near Toba Tek Singh in Pakistan’s Punjab province, officials
said on Tuesday. Dozens of people attended the party in Mubarakabad area on
Saturday, when guests drank illegally brewed tainted alcohol after a Christmas
cake was cut. Soon after, many people started vomiting and were rushed to the
nearby district headquarters hospital. Doctors pronounced at least seven men
dead on arrival.At least two Muslims were among the dead, a police official
said. Police arrested a father-son duo for brewing the tainted liquor and
authorities formed a committee to probe the incident.Police officials said most
Christian communities brew their own alcohol in the absence of cheap
alternatives and, in some instances, the liquor becomes toxic.Alcohol was
prohibited in Muslim-majority Pakistan in 1977, but laws allow non-Muslims to
purchase liquor from licensed shops.HT
Compiled and edited by Anwarulhaq (Released at: 8:23 PM)
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