Page 1443 - Politics
Rival Israel rallies after Netanyahu indictment
Opponents and supporters of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took to the streets on Saturday evening after the country's attorney general said he intended to file graft charges against him. In central Tel Aviv, Netanyahu loyalists waved blue and white Israel flags and carried placards, reading "Netanyahu, the people are with you" and "Netanyahu, my prime minister". Separated from them by a police cordon, opponents waved signs proclaiming "Crime Minister" and "Time for Netanyahu to Go", an AFP photographer said. Police declined to give an estimate of numbers. Under Israeli law, the premier is not obliged to resign unless he is charged, convicted and loses all appeals -- a lengthy process. Netanyahu is running for a fifth term in an April general election. He said after the attorney general's Thursday announcement that he planned on being prime minister for a long time to come, despite the allegations. In Ramle, near Tel Aviv, opposition Labour activists projected onto a wall ..
PM Modi seeking credit for valour of Armed forces as last resort for 2019 polls: Surjewala
Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has blatantly politicised the bravery and martyrdom of India's soldiers with an eye on 2019 Lok Sabha elections."Having failed on every front, Narendra Modi is indulging in shameless credit-seeking for the valor of Armed Forces as a last resort for the 2019 elections. He has blatantly politicised the bravery and martyrdom of India's soldiers as a political pamphlet," said Surjewala."The nation today witnessed a monologue by a narcissistic Prime Minister sans any sense of accountability. Prime Minister is obsessed with one word - 'Modi'. He forgets that India is a thriving democracy of 132 crore people with a multitude of opinions and not an oligarchy of BJP-RSS loaded by Narendra Modi," he said."Compromising national security and gross intelligence failure are the characteristic style of a non-functioning Modi Government. When will Modi take decisive action against Pak-sponsored terror?" Surjewala ...
Senator Bernie Sanders kicks off 2020 election campaign
Democrat Senator Bernie Sanders on Saturday (local time) initiated his campaign for the 2020 Presidential elections Brooklyn, his birthplace, by attacking President Donald Trump to be "the most dangerous president in modern American history.""Thank you for being part of a campaign which is not only going to win the Democratic nomination, which is not only going to defeat Donald Trump, who is the most dangerous president in modern American history but with your help, we are going to transform this country," CNN quoted Sanders as saying."Donald Trump wants to divide us up based on the colour of our skin, based on where we were born, based on our gender, our religion and our sexual orientation. What we are about is doing exactly the opposite. We are going to bring our people together," the Senator added.During the campaign, the Vermont Senator also got nostalgic remembering his childhood days. Sanders' father was a Polish immigrant who came to America at 17 years old and later worked as .
Russian Defence Minister calls up Nirmala Sitharaman, expresses condolence over Pulwama attack
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoygu called his Indian counterpart Nirmala Sitharaman to express condolences for the Pulwama terror attack and further strengthened the military cooperation between the two countries."Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoygu called Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to express condolences for the Pulwama attack and emphasized on the determination to strengthen Indo-Russian military cooperation," the Defence Ministry of India tweeted.Around 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel lost their lives after a suicide bomber rammed his explosive-laden vehicle into the convoy of the security forces in Pulwama in South Kashmir. Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), a terror outfit based in Pakistan, claimed the responsibility of orchestrating the attack.On February 26, India carried out air strike on a JeM training camp in Balakot in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, following which Jammu and Kashmir saw heightened military activity from February 27 onwards. ..
Kangana Ranaut defends her 'Pakistan destruction' statement
Actress Kangana Ranaut says her "Pakistan destruction" comment came naturally to her after hearing about the Pulwama terror attack.
Modi politicising bravery of soldiers: Congress
The Congress on Saturday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of politicising the bravery and martyrdom of soldiers, saying he was resorting to credit-seeking for the valour of armed forces as a last resort before the Lok Sabha elections.
Russia to respond to US moves on space militarisation
Russia will have to take reciprocal and asymmetrical measures in response to possible threats brought by intentions of the US to use outer space for military purposes, a Russian military official said on Saturday.
India a very high tariff nation, would charge reciprocal tax: Trump
US President Donald Trump on Saturday (local time) accused India of being a "high tariff nation" and threatened to impose "a reciprocal tax" to match the heavy duties that New Delhi imposes on goods imported from the United States.Addressing the last day of a four-day annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Maryland, the US President said, "India is a very high tariff nation. When we send a motorcycle to India, they charge 100 per cent tariff. When India sends a motorcycle to us, we charge nothing. I want a reciprocal tax, at least I want to charge a tax."A reciprocal tax is a form of tariff applied to imports from other countries that charge a similar duty on goods exported by the US.President Trump has repeatedly called out India for its high tariffs."We cannot allow a country to charge 100 per cent and we get nothing for the same exact product. For one thing, they don't respect us. They think we are stupid," Trump said."But let me tell you something. The world ...
Lavrov condemns 'flagrant interference' by US in Venezuela
Russian Foreign Secretary Sergei Lavrov on Saturday condemned what he called America's "flagrant interference" and "destructive influence" in Venezuela, in a telephone conversation with his US counterpart Mike Pompeo. "The provocation and external destructive influence, under the hypocritical pretext of humanitarian aid has nothing to do with the democratic process," said Lavrov, in comments cited by his foreign ministry.
UK's Hunt holds Saudi talks on Yemen conflict, rights
British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt held talks Saturday with his Saudi counterpart in Riyadh that focused on journalist Jamal Khashoggi's murder and the jailing of women activists in the kingdom. Hunt also discussed a fragile truce in the flashpoint Yemeni city of Hodeida with the Saudi foreign minister of state Adel al-Jubeir and Yemen's President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, who is based in Riyadh. Hunt's visit came after he failed last month to convince Germany to end its ban on arms exports to Saudi Arabia, as Berlin shrugged off his warnings that the embargo was hurting the European defence industry and efforts to bring peace in Yemen. "Important discussion with @AdelAljubeir about human rights reforms and current issues including Khashoggi, women activists," Hunt said on Twitter, without offering any details. The murder of Khashoggi, a Saudi insider-turned-critic, at the kingdom's Istanbul consulate last October sparked global uproar and tarnished the reputation of Crown Prince ...
French yellow vests protest for 16th straight weekend
Thousands of French yellow vests protested Saturday for a 16th straight weekend in Paris and other cities to show they are keeping up momentum against the government's economic policies they see as favouring the rich. In Paris, more than a thousand protesters marched peacefully through well-off western neighbourhoods of the capital, starting from the Arc de Triomphe monument to reach a southern plaza. The demonstration was placed under tight security. Police forces were dispersing dozens of protesters who remained near the Champs-Elysees avenue. Many other rallies were organized across the country. Some brief scuffles between protesters and police broke out in the cities of Lyon, Lille and Nantes, but no serious injuries were reported. Organizers said they want to maintain pressure on the government as a two-month "grand debate" initiated by Macron to let ordinary French people express their views on the country's economic and democratic issues is ending this month. Sophie Tissier, a .
Kashmir integral part of India, says MEA on OIC resolutions
With the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation adopting resolutions on Jammu and Kashmir, India on Saturday said that the state is an integral part of India and its matters are strictly internal.
Sitting BJP MP Savitribai Phule joins Congress
Sitting Member of Parliament (MP) Savitribai Phule joined Congress on Saturday in the presence of party president Rahul Gandhi, General Secretary for UP (East) Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and General Secretary for UP (West) Jyotiraditya Scindia.Phule was elected from the Baharaich Lok Sabha constituency in 2014 elections from the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP).Speaking to ANI, Phule said, "I have Congress to save constitution of the country. And I will strengthen the hands of Congress party who can stop BJP."On December 6, Phule had resigned from the BJP accusing it of dividing the society and not doing enough on the issue of reservation.Phule won for the first time from this reserved seat. She started her career in Bahujan Samaj Party but later joined the BJP.
Army test fires anti-tank guided missile during training exercise
An anti-tank guided missile detachment fired at a mock target during a field live firing training exercise undertaken for troops of the Army's Eastern Command on Saturday.This comes in the wake of the ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan.Less than two weeks after 40 CRPF personnel lost their lives in a terror attack in Pulwama on February 14, the Indian Air Force carried out air strikes in Pakistan's Balakot targetting terror launch pads. The targets included the control rooms of Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) which claimed responsibility for the February 14 attack. Pulwama terror attack had led to nationwide outrage and Prime Minister Narendra Modi had vowed to punish those behind the attack.The international community, too, extended support to India in the wake of the attack.
IAF pilots like Abhinandan flying outdated jets because of you: Rahul hits out at PM
Congress president Rahul Gandhi hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday over the 'delay' in the delivery of Rafale jets, claiming that Indian Air Force pilots like Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman were "risking their lives by flying outdated jets."Rahul also claimed that Prime Minister Modi was "solely responsible" for the "delay" in the arrival of the Rafale jets..
We never had alliance with AAP, says Cong; will win all 7 LS seats in Delhi, says BJP
The Congress never had an alliance with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), said the party's senior leader Shakeel Ahmed on Saturday, while the BJP claimed to retain all the seven Lok Sabha seats in the city-state.The two-party's reaction came after Delhi's Cabinet Minister Gopal Rai on Saturday announced AAP's candidates for six Lok Sabha seats, thus bringing all speculations about the Congress-AAP alliance to an end.Ahmed told ANI: "AAP is a party, but we never had an alliance with them. They have declared their Lok Sabha candidates. We will fight on all seven Lok Sabha seats alone in Delhi. We will announce our candidates for Delhi when we announce our candidates for all other Lok Sabha seats."AAP has fielded Brajesh Goyal from New Delhi, Atishi from East Delhi, Dilip K Pandey from North East Delhi, Raghav Chadha from South Delhi, Pankaj Gupta from Chandani Chowk, and Gugan Singh from North West Delhi. AAP has not yet announced the candidate for West Delhi Lok Sabha seat.Congress leader ...
Visitors' entry stopped at Lucknow international airport
The entry of visitors at Chaudhary Charan Singh International (CCSI) airport here has been stopped with immediate effect, officials said on Sunday.Directives were issued by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security in view of the prevailing threat perception.Extra security measures have been enforced and the ban on entry will remain in force till further orders, officials further said.In the aftermath of the February 14 terror attack in south Kashmir's Pulwama district, the Intelligence Bureau (IB) issued warnings to avoid any kind untoward incident.In line with this, existing security has been beefed up at all civil aviation installations including airports. On February 14, as many as 40 CRPF personnel lost their lives in an attack carried out by Pakistan-based terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) in Pulwama. Two weeks after the attack, the Indian Air Force (IAF) carried out air strikes at terror launch pads in Pakistan's Balakot.
Telangana EC asks candidates of Gram Panchayat polls to submit election expenditure
Telangana State Election Commission on Saturday asked the elected candidates and the candidates who had filed nominations in Gram Panchayat elections to submit an account of pre-election expenses within 45 days.The release of State Election Commission read, "Every candidate who filed nomination irrespective of whether he/she has withdrawn or unanimously elected shall submit election expenditure for the period from the date of filing of nomination to the date of declared as elected on the day of counting or unanimously elected, as the case may be. Even, if he/she did not incur any money, he/she has to file election expenditure accounts as nil." A candidate who fails to lodge an account of election expenditure within a time period of 45 days and in the manner required will be disqualified to contest in elections to Panchayat Raj Bodies for 3 years and in case of elected candidates, they will cease to hold office in addition to disqualification to contest for 3 years, the statement ...
Top BJP leaders launch bike rallies across the country ahead of polls
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday launched a nationwide mega motorcycle rally ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, in which the BJP claimed lakhs of members of the party's youth wing took part.
Russian Defence Minister calls up Sitharaman
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoygu called up Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and emphasised on the determination to strengthen Indo-Ruassian military cooperation. He also expressed his condolences over the Pulwama terror attack in Kashmir, in which 40 CRPF jawans were killed. "Russian Defence Minister General Sergei Shoygu called Smt @nsitharaman. Over the telecon, he expressed condolences for the Pulwama attack and emphasized on the determination to strengthen Indo-Russian military cooperation (sic)," the defence minister's official Twitter handle posted.