Page 2815 - Politics
Saudi journalist and govt critic 'missing in Turkey'
A veteran Saudi journalist who has been critical of the government has gone missing after visiting the kingdom's consulate in Istanbul, the Washington Post reported. Jamal Khashoggi, who writes opinion pieces for the Post, has not been seen since entering the consulate in the afternoon, according to his fiance who accompanied him but waited outside until it closed, the newspaper said. Khashoggi, a former government advisor who went into self-imposed exile in the United States last year to avoid possible arrest, has been critical of some of the policies of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Riyadh's intervention in the war in Yemen. "We have been unable to reach Jamal today and are very concerned about where he may be," the Post's international opinions editor Eli Lopez said in a statement. "We are monitoring the situation closely, trying to gather more information. It would be unfair and outrageous if he has been detained for his work as a journalist and commentator." The US ..
PMK to hold protest against fuel price hike in TN
Pattali Makkal Katchi Wednesday said it would a hold protest demonstration on October 5 across Tamil Nadu to condemn the unprecedented hike in fuel prices. PMK's founder leader Dr S Ramadoss will preside over the protest at Tindivanam and party president GK Mani will lead the stir here, a party release said. "People should be apprised about the impact of the hike in petrol and diesel prices and they too should be exhorted to take part in the protest," a party release said. The price of petrol today in Tamil Nadu is Rs 87.18 and diesel Rs 79.58 (per litre).
Pompeo to embark on 4-nation tour to East Asia
United States Secretary of State Michael Pompeo will embark on a four-nation tour to East Asia from October 6. During his three-day trip, Pompeo will be visiting Japan, North Korea, South Korea and China.He will first head to Tokyo for two days, from October 6 to October 7, and meet Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Foreign Minister Taro Kono.On October 7, Pompeo will visit Pyongyang and meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. This will be the US Secretary of State's fourth visit to the communist nation. On the same day, Pompeo will visit Seoul for two days and will meet South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha.Pompeo will then be visiting Beijing on October 8 and meet his Chinese counterparts to discuss bilateral, regional and global issues."Throughout the Secretary's trip, he will reiterate the administration's continued focus on the final, fully verifiable, denuclearisation of the DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) and longstanding ...
Amit Shah, Rahul Gandhi to visit Bikaner
BJP president Amit Shah and Congress chief Rahul Gandhi will be in Bikaner on October 4 and October 10 respectively where they will holding meetings ahead of the Assembly elections in Rajasthan. Union Minister of State for Water Resources Arjun Ram Meghwal said Shah will address SC Sammelan and Shakti Kendra Sammelan in Bikaner Thursday and will also hold a meeting of party vistarak. He will spend the night in Bikaner and leave Friday morning, Meghwal said. Party workers from Bikaner, Sriganganagar and Hanumangarh will attend the meetings. Congress president Rahul Gandhi will also be in Bikaner on October 10. "Gandhi will address a Sankalp rally in which nearly five lakh people are likely to participate from Bikaner, Sriganganagar, Churu and Hanumangarh," Leader of Opposition Rameshwar Dudi said.
Bhima Koregaon: Maha govt. moves SC against Navlakha's release
Maharashtra government on Wednesday moved the Supreme Court against the release of social activist Gautam Navlakha, who was under house arrest for his alleged involvement in the Bhima-Koregaon violence case.The state government will mention the issue before the newly sworn-in Chief Justice of India (CJI) Ranjan Gogoi, seeking an immediate stay on Delhi High Court's order and directions to restore Navlakha's house arrest.On October 1 the Delhi High had freed the activist, which, earlier had been extended by the Apex Court to four weeks. The High Court bench, while delivering the judgement, said that the detention was untenable in law.Navlakha, along with four activists, was detained on August 28 for his alleged involvement in the violence that erupted in Pune in January this year during an event organised to mark 200 years of the Bhima Koregaon battle. The clashes between the Dalit and Maratha groups left one person dead and several others injured, including 10 policemen.The ...
Justice Ranjan Gogoi sworn in as Chief Justice of India
Justice Ranjan Gogoi was Wednesday sworn in as the 46th Chief Justice of India. He succeeds Justice Dipak Misra. President Ram Nath Kovind administered the oath to the 63-year-old Justice Gogoi at a brief ceremony in Rashtrapati Bhavan's Darbar Hall. Justice Gogoi will have a tenure of a little over 13 months and would retire on November 17, 2019.
US yet to see reports on Pakistan's willingness to release Dr Afridi
The United States is yet to see reports on Pakistan's readiness to discuss Dr Shakil Afridi's release from jail. Afridi, who helped US's Central Investigation Agency (CIA) in tracking down Osama bin Laden, is considered a CIA hero.However, back home, Dr Afridi has been branded as a traitor and was sent behind bars by the Pakistani regime. Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi had recently told Fox News that Islamabad is open to talks about his release from jail.Reacting to the statement, State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said, "Yeah, I think they've been saying that for quite some time that there could be some movement on that. We have yet to see that."Nauert also spoke about Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's meeting with Qureshi on Tuesday, "I can confirm with you that the Secretary did meet with his counterpart at the State Department today. I'm not sure exactly when that was. It was sometime this afternoon. I don't have a readout of that meeting just yet. If I ...
'Trump admin unlikely to change policy on suspension of aid to Pakistan'
There is unlikely to be any changes in America's policy on suspension of aid to Pakistan until it makes substantial progress against terrorists and their safe havens, the Trump administration has told Islamabad as the two countries try to reset their strained ties. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Advisor John Bolton, during their meetings with Pakistan's new Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi here, are understood to have told the Pakistani leadership that in its assessment the US does not see any changes on the ground when it comes to taking actions against terrorists operating from its soil. Given Pakistan's influence over the Taliban, the Trump administration also wants Islamabad to bring them to the peace table. Notably, the State Department till late in the night had refrained from issuing any readout of the meeting between Qureshi and Pompeo, which is understood to have lasted for 20 minutes at their Foggy Bottom headquarters. The White House normally does
Secret Service intercepts suspicious envelope addressed to Trump
The US Secret Service has said it has intercepted a "suspicious envelope" marked for President Donald Trump and a probe is on, shortly after the Pentagon confirmed seizing packages containing deadly toxin ricin used in biological attacks by terror groups.
Italy's Salvini hits back over Brussels' budget remarks
Italy's deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini Tuesday threatened to seek damages from European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker for scaring off investors by attacking Rome's budget plans. The budget drafted last week raises spending and pushes the public deficit to around 2.4 percent of gross domestic product, which will hike public debt above its already sky-high level of 131 percent of GDP. "Juncker and other European bureaucrats' words and threats continue to increase the spread," said Salvini, who is head of the far-right League, which governs Italy with the populist Five Star Movement. The closely watched "spread" is the difference between the rates on 10-year debt paid by Italy compared with those offered by Germany. It hit its highest level in a month on Monday as fallout from the budget plans continued to shake markets. Salvini accused Juncker of unjustly comparing Italy to Greece after the head of the EU executive said Monday that "after the toughest management of the .
Canada revokes Myanmar leader Suu Kyi's honorary citizenship
Canada's Parliament has formally stripped Aung San Suu Kyi of her honorary Canadian citizenship for complicity in the atrocities committed againstMyanmar's Rohingya people. The Senate voted unanimously to strip Suu Kyi,Myanmar's civilian leader, of the symbolic honor bestowed on her in 2007. The upper house's move follows a similar unanimous vote in the House of Commons last week. Suu Kyi is the first person to have her honorary Canadian citizenship revoked. A United Nations fact-finding mission reported last month that theMyanmar'smilitary has systematically killed thousands of Rohingya civilians, burned hundreds of their villages and engaged in ethnic cleansing and mass gang rape. It called for top generals to be investigated and prosecuted for genocide. The Senate has also followed the lead of the Commons in recognizing that the crimes against humanity committed by theMyanmarmilitary against the Rohingya constitute a genocide. "We must recognize this atrocity for what it is," said .
Former Gunvor manager jailed for 12 years in China - Bloomberg
SINGAPORE (Reuters) - A former Singapore-based managing director for commodity merchant Gunvor Group was given a 12-year prison sentence in China for his role in evading Chinese tariffs on oil imports, Bloomberg reported.
Mexico marks 50 years since student massacre
Veterans of Mexico's 1968 student movement and younger generations of activists marched in Mexico City to remember the day 50 years ago when army troops massacred hundreds of people at a peaceful protest. Five decades on, it remains unclear exactly how many people were killed when the army opened fire on a rally of about 8,000 students in the Plaza of Three Cultures, in central Mexico City's Tlatelolco neighborhood. The authoritarian government at the time put the death toll at 20, claiming "terrorists" attacked the troops, forcing them to defend themselves. Independent reports say anywhere from 300 to 500 people were killed. The massacre -- which came just 10 days before Mexico City hosted the 1968 Olympics -- remains one of the darkest episodes in a year of global turbulence. The government's failure to bring those responsible to justice or explain what happened that day has become a rallying cry for the Mexican left and provokes annual protests that often turn violent. There was a .
Pompeo to travel to N.Korea, meet Kim
The US State Department has said Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will travel to North Korea for further talks concerning the country's denuclearization.
Russia completes delivery of S-300 missile systems to Syria
Russia has delivered to Syria S-300 air defence systems to improve safety of its military personnel deployed in the country, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu has said.
Barham Salih elected new president of Iraq
Iraqi lawmakers have elected Barham Salih as the new president of Iraq after a protracted political wrangling, marking a crucial step in forming the government in the next four years.
BNC condemns Pakistan's foreign minister's 'hypocritical' remarks at UN
Balochistan National Congress (BNC), a Washington D.C. based Baloch body, has strongly condemned Pakistan's Foreign Minister Makhdoom Mehmood Shah Qureshi over his "hypocritical" remarks at the UN General Assembly (UNGA) Session.The BNC said, Qureshi while speaking at the UNGA's 73rd Session in New York had called the Indian atrocities against the Kashmiri people unjust and unacceptable, but he fell short to mention Pakistan's illegal and unjust occupation of Balochistan and the Pakistan army's atrocities against the innocent and defenseless Baloch people in the occupied Balochistan."On one side Qureshi is shedding crocodile tears for the Kashmiri people, but at the same time, he has closed his eyes over Pakistan's illegal, immoral and unjust occupation of Balochistan and Pakistan army's atrocities against the innocent and defenseless Baloch citizens in the occupied Balochistan. What a hypocrite, two-faced and double standard person he is," said Dr. Baloch, the president of BNC."Under
Pompeo to visit N Korea on Oct 7, meet Kim
United States Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo will be visiting Pyongyang and meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un next week as part of his upcoming trip to Asia.The State Department spokesperson, Heather Nauert announced that Pompeo will meet with Kim in Pyongyang on October 7.Nauert, however, did not divulge the talk that the two are supposed to have but indicated that the discussion on Pyongyang's nuclear capability will be one of the issues that will be discussed."These are private diplomatic conversations, as we work toward our goal of full denuclearisation of North Korea," she asserted.Nauert also emphasised on the need for a conversation between the two countries saying, "It shows forward progress and momentum that the secretary is making his fourth trip back in less than a year.""That shows the president's commitment to agreement that he and Chairman Kim made at the Singapore summit," she said. The two are also expected to discuss the second Kim-Trump summit.Pompeo ...
BJP, CPI(M) lock horns over 'Daily Desher Katha' ban
Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader and founder-editor of 'Daily Desher Katha', Gautam Das on Monday said that the decision to ban his party's mouthpiece in the state is "politically motivated" move.West Tripura District Magistrate Sandeep Mahatme on October 1 passed an order banning the 40-year-old vernacular daily in the state on the ground of alleged discrepancies in the changeover of the management."It is politically motivated. Before passing the order state Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) secretary Rajib Bhattacharjee was in the chamber of West Tripura District Magistrate and had a long meeting, after that he (DM) passed the illegal order," Das told ANI.Das added that since the BJP-IPFT(Indigenous People's Front of Tripura) came to power last year, massive attacks had been unleashed on Left leaders and cadres and the paper was not allowed to be circulated along with curtail in its government advertisement. He also claimed that following the closure of the daily over 200 ...
Farmers end 10-day march, claim victory
Thousands of farmers on Wednesday ended their 10-day Kisan Kranti Yatra after arriving at Kisan Ghat in the national capital.