The use of hoods, restraints and teargas on Australian aboriginal children in youth detention centres by police, as shown in footage released this week, could violate the United Nations (UN) treaty barring torture, a top UN official said today. 
 
Australia&#39;s Northern Territory on Wednesday suspended the use of hoods and restraints on children after the broadcasting of CCTV footage showing guards at a juvenile detention centre teargassing aboriginal inmates and strapping a half-naked, hooded boy to a chair. Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has ordered a Royal Commission in the treatment of children in the detention centre, the most powerful inquiry in the country, rejecting calls for a national inquiry. 
 
UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, Juan Mendez, told Australia&#39;s Radio National today that the video suggested torture may have taken place and welcomed the inquiry but warned against limiting its scope. &quot;It&#39;s hard to tell only from the video or the press coverage but I do think that it&#39;s a very worrisome development that can amount to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment under any circumstance,&quot; he said. 
 
He said there was no question that very severe pain and suffering had occurred and that the perpetrators seem to be representatives of the state. If others knew and did nothing, they too could be punished alongside those who actually committed the violence, he said. 
 
The footage, showing six aboriginal boys being stripped naked, strapped to a chair with a hood, thrown by the neck into a cell and held for long periods in solitary confinement, was shot between 2010 and 2014 at the Don Dale Youth Detention Centre near Darwin in the Northern Territory. 
 
A report into some of the incidents by the Northern Territory Children&#39;s Commissioner in 2015 found fault with the guards&#39; behaviour, but the findings were disputed by the then head of prisons and not acted upon, said Australian Broadcasting Corp, who aired the footage. The Northern Territory&#39;s corrections minister was sacked on Tuesday, just hours after the broadcast. 
 
The case highlights concern about the disproportionate numbers of aboriginal youth in custody, with indigenous leaders calling for politicians to deal with the wider issue of the treatment of aborigines in Australia. Aborigines comprise just three per cent of Australia&#39;s population but make up 27 per cent of those in prison and represent 94 per cent of the Northern Territory&#39;s juvenile inmates. Australia&#39;s roughly 700,000 indigenous citizens track near the bottom of almost every economic and social indicator for the country&#39;s 23 million people. 
 
(Reuters)

CCTV footage showed guards at a juvenile detention centre tear-gassing aboriginal inmates and strapping a half-naked, hooded boy to a chair

The use of hoods, restraints and teargas on Australian aboriginal children in youth detention centres by police, as shown in footage released this week, could violate the United Nations (UN) treaty barring torture, a top UN official said today. Australia's Northern Territory on Wednesday suspended the use of hoods and restraints on children after the broadcasting of CCTV footage showing guards at a juvenile detention centre teargassing aboriginal inmates and strapping a half-naked, hooded boy to a chair. Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has ordered a Royal Commission in the treatment of children in the detention centre, the most powerful inquiry in the country, rejecting calls for a national inquiry. UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, Juan Mendez, told Australia's Radio National today that the video suggested torture may have taken place and welcomed the inquiry but warned against limiting its scope. "It's hard to tell only from the video or the press coverage but I do think that it's a very worrisome development that can amount to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment under any circumstance," he said. He said there was no question that very severe pain and suffering had occurred and that the perpetrators seem to be representatives of the state. If others knew and did nothing, they too could be punished alongside those who actually committed the violence, he said. The footage, showing six aboriginal boys being stripped naked, strapped to a chair with a hood, thrown by the neck into a cell and held for long periods in solitary confinement, was shot between 2010 and 2014 at the Don Dale Youth Detention Centre near Darwin in the Northern Territory. A report into some of the incidents by the Northern Territory Children's Commissioner in 2015 found fault with the guards' behaviour, but the findings were disputed by the then head of prisons and not acted upon, said Australian Broadcasting Corp, who aired the footage. The Northern Territory's corrections minister was sacked on Tuesday, just hours after the broadcast. The case highlights concern about the disproportionate numbers of aboriginal youth in custody, with indigenous leaders calling for politicians to deal with the wider issue of the treatment of aborigines in Australia. Aborigines comprise just three per cent of Australia's population but make up 27 per cent of those in prison and represent 94 per cent of the Northern Territory's juvenile inmates. Australia's roughly 700,000 indigenous citizens track near the bottom of almost every economic and social indicator for the country's 23 million people. (Reuters)

Australia prison abuse could violate torture conventions: UN

Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) said today that Nigerian children are dying at high rates from malnutrition and disease in a growing humanitarian emergency in the northeast. 
 
The medical charity called on the United Nations (UN) to set up a steady food pipeline to the area being reclaimed by the Nigerian army from Boko Haram militants, where MSF said more than 500,000 people and possibly 800,000 have been cut off. 
 
&quot;The situation is a large-scale humanitarian disaster,&quot; MSF general director Bruno Jochum told a news briefing in Geneva. &quot;We are talking at least about pockets of what is close to a famine situation.&quot; 
 
(Reuters)&nbsp;

The medical charity called on the United Nations (UN) to set up a steady food pipeline to the area ?

Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) said today that Nigerian children are dying at high rates from malnutrition and disease in a growing humanitarian emergency in the northeast. The medical charity called on the United Nations (UN) to set up a steady food pipeline to the area being reclaimed by the Nigerian army from Boko Haram militants, where MSF said more than 500,000 people and possibly 800,000 have been cut off. "The situation is a large-scale humanitarian disaster," MSF general director Bruno Jochum told a news briefing in Geneva. "We are talking at least about pockets of what is close to a famine situation." (Reuters)

Nigerian children dying due to malnutrition: MSF sounds alert?

More than 37,000 people have fled South Sudan for neighbouring Uganda in the last three weeks following intense fighting between rival troops that left hundreds dead, the United Nation&#39;s (UN)&nbsp;refugee body said today. 
 
An already shaky 2015 peace deal signed after a bloody civil war in the world&#39;s newest nation looks uncertain after the clashes between troops loyal to President Salva Kiir and those allied with former rebel leader Riek Machar. 
 
&quot;In the past three weeks there have been more refugee arrivals in Uganda than in the entire first six months of 2016,&quot; when 33,838 crossed the border, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said in a statement. 
 
More than 90 per cent of the arrivals were women and children, UNHCR said, with men forcibly recruited by armed groups and prevented from crossing the border. 
 
Those who fled were from South Sudan&#39;s Eastern Equatoria region, as well as from the capital, Juba, and the last week has seen the greatest surges. 
 
Facilities on the Ugandan side were overwhelmed at first with the sheer size of the influx, UNHCR said. 
 
It used the example of Elegu, northern Uganda, where more than 11,000 refugees were at one point staying in a shelter designed for 1,000. 
 
Underfunding of the UN bodies helping those displaced compounded the problem, the refugee agency said, adding that 831,582 South Sudanese were now refugees, scattered across Ethiopia, Sudan, and Uganda. 
 
South Sudan&#39;s President Salva Kiir announced on Monday that former rebel leader Riek Machar had been replaced as vice president, confirming signs of serious divisions within the opposition. 
 
Kiir said he had appointed Taban Deng Gai to the post on the &quot;recommendation of the top leadership of the SPLM/A (IO)&quot; -- the group Machar heads. 
 
Machar has refused to come back to Juba until the deployment of a neutral force of African troops -- a plan approved by the African Union but rejected by Kiir. 
 
Machar and Kiir fell out in 2013, little more than two years after South Sudan became independent, when Kiir accused his vice president of plotting against him. 
 
(AFP)&nbsp;

'In the past three weeks, there have been more refugee arrivals in Uganda than in the entire first six months of 2016'

More than 37,000 people have fled South Sudan for neighbouring Uganda in the last three weeks following intense fighting between rival troops that left hundreds dead, the United Nation's (UN) refugee body said today. An already shaky 2015 peace deal signed after a bloody civil war in the world's newest nation looks uncertain after the clashes between troops loyal to President Salva Kiir and those allied with former rebel leader Riek Machar. "In the past three weeks there have been more refugee arrivals in Uganda than in the entire first six months of 2016," when 33,838 crossed the border, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said in a statement. More than 90 per cent of the arrivals were women and children, UNHCR said, with men forcibly recruited by armed groups and prevented from crossing the border. Those who fled were from South Sudan's Eastern Equatoria region, as well as from the capital, Juba, and the last week has seen the greatest surges. Facilities on the Ugandan side were overwhelmed at first with the sheer size of the influx, UNHCR said. It used the example of Elegu, northern Uganda, where more than 11,000 refugees were at one point staying in a shelter designed for 1,000. Underfunding of the UN bodies helping those displaced compounded the problem, the refugee agency said, adding that 831,582 South Sudanese were now refugees, scattered across Ethiopia, Sudan, and Uganda. South Sudan's President Salva Kiir announced on Monday that former rebel leader Riek Machar had been replaced as vice president, confirming signs of serious divisions within the opposition. Kiir said he had appointed Taban Deng Gai to the post on the "recommendation of the top leadership of the SPLM/A (IO)" -- the group Machar heads. Machar has refused to come back to Juba until the deployment of a neutral force of African troops -- a plan approved by the African Union but rejected by Kiir. Machar and Kiir fell out in 2013, little more than two years after South Sudan became independent, when Kiir accused his vice president of plotting against him. (AFP)

In 3 weeks, more than 37,000 people fled South Sudan for Uganda: UN

Tens of thousands of Cambodians today joined the funeral procession of a prominent government critic whose murder in broad daylight raised suspicions of a hit job. 
 
Kem Ley, a popular pro-democracy voice and grassroots rights activist, was shot dead two weeks ago while drinking coffee outside a petrol station in the capital. 
 
The murder sent ripples of fear across the country. Critics have come under increasing pressure from the government of strongman Hun Sen as he seeks to extend his 31-year grip on power. 
 
A former soldier charged with the murder claimed he shot Kem Ley over an outstanding debt. 
 
But suspicions of an assassination continue to mount in a country where the rule of law is threadbare and critics of the elite are easily silenced. 
 
&#39;He was mirror of society&#39; 
 
A massive crowd of mourners, many carrying portraits of Kem Ley, today trailed for kilometres behind Buddhist monks and a motorcade carrying the 46-year-old&#39;s body in a transparent casket. 
 
Thousands of others lined the streets to watch the procession, which marked the end of a two-week mourning period that saw people from across the country flock to the Phnom Penh temple where his body had lain. 
 
<img alt="" class="img-responsive" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/kemley1-20160724084107.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
Kem Ley was a regular critic of Hun Sen as well as of the political opposition. In photo: Cambodians stand on a trucking holding Ley&#39;s images.
</div>
&quot;He was a mirror of society, a hero. His murder is a huge loss to democracy,&quot; 39-year-old Hul Chan told AFP while he was walking alongside other mourners. 
 
Many of them wore white shirts printed with Kem Ley&#39;s face and the words: &quot;Wipe your tears, continue your journey.&quot; 
 
&#39;Straight-talker&#39; 
 
The funeral procession, the largest public gathering in the country in recent years, will see the activist&#39;s corpse returned to his home village some 70 kilometres (44 miles) south of the capital for burial. 
 
Kem Ley was a regular critic of Hun Sen as well as of the political opposition. He called for a new era of clean politics in Cambodia, one of the world&#39;s most graft-ridden countries. 
 
The frequent radio commentator was also a major advocate for land and labour rights, travelling across the impoverished country to speak directly to villagers. 
 
Am Sam Ath, from the Cambodian rights group Licadho, said Sunday&#39;s outpouring of grief reflected the people&#39;s growing disillusionment with a government accused of rampant corruption and rights abuses. 
 
&quot;Kem Ley was a straight-talking person who strongly criticised social injustices,&quot; he told AFP. &quot;The people are standing up against injustice.&quot; 
 
Shortly before his death Kem Ley gave a lengthy radio interview welcoming a report which detailed the riches amassed by Hun Sen and his family during his three decades in power. 
 
United Nations rights experts expressed concern over the circumstances of Kem Ley&#39;s killing. In a statement they said it &quot;exemplifies an alarming negative trend in Cambodia whereby political activists and human rights defenders are facing increasing restrictions&quot;. 
 
Hun Sen has ordered a thorough investigation into the murder and urged people not to turn the case into a &quot;political act&quot;. 
 
(AFP)&nbsp;

'Outpouring of grief reflected people's growing disillusionment with a government accused of rampant corruption, rights abuses'

Tens of thousands of Cambodians today joined the funeral procession of a prominent government critic whose murder in broad daylight raised suspicions of a hit job. Kem Ley, a popular pro-democracy voice and grassroots rights activist, was shot dead two weeks ago while drinking coffee outside a petrol station in the capital. The murder sent ripples of fear across the country. Critics have come under increasing pressure from the government of strongman Hun Sen as he seeks to extend his 31-year grip on power. A former soldier charged with the murder claimed he shot Kem Ley over an outstanding debt. But suspicions of an assassination continue to mount in a country where the rule of law is threadbare and critics of the elite are easily silenced. 'He was mirror of society' A massive crowd of mourners, many carrying portraits of Kem Ley, today trailed for kilometres behind Buddhist monks and a motorcade carrying the 46-year-old's body in a transparent casket. Thousands of others lined the streets to watch the procession, which marked the end of a two-week mourning period that saw people from across the country flock to the Phnom Penh temple where his body had lain. Kem Ley was a regular critic of Hun Sen as well as of the political opposition. In photo: Cambodians stand on a trucking holding Ley's images. "He was a mirror of society, a hero. His murder is a huge loss to democracy," 39-year-old Hul Chan told AFP while he was walking alongside other mourners. Many of them wore white shirts printed with Kem Ley's face and the words: "Wipe your tears, continue your journey." 'Straight-talker' The funeral procession, the largest public gathering in the country in recent years, will see the activist's corpse returned to his home village some 70 kilometres (44 miles) south of the capital for burial. Kem Ley was a regular critic of Hun Sen as well as of the political opposition. He called for a new era of clean politics in Cambodia, one of the world's most graft-ridden countries. The frequent radio commentator was also a major advocate for land and labour rights, travelling across the impoverished country to speak directly to villagers. Am Sam Ath, from the Cambodian rights group Licadho, said Sunday's outpouring of grief reflected the people's growing disillusionment with a government accused of rampant corruption and rights abuses. "Kem Ley was a straight-talking person who strongly criticised social injustices," he told AFP. "The people are standing up against injustice." Shortly before his death Kem Ley gave a lengthy radio interview welcoming a report which detailed the riches amassed by Hun Sen and his family during his three decades in power. United Nations rights experts expressed concern over the circumstances of Kem Ley's killing. In a statement they said it "exemplifies an alarming negative trend in Cambodia whereby political activists and human rights defenders are facing increasing restrictions". Hun Sen has ordered a thorough investigation into the murder and urged people not to turn the case into a "political act". (AFP)

Thousands pour onto streets to bid adieu to slain Cambodian activist

The United Nations has made the first food aid delivery to thousands of people displaced by Boko Haram Islamists in the Nigerian town of Banki, where hundreds have starved to death since March, the UN said on Friday. 
 
Officials from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) delivered 30 tonnes of &quot;various lifesaving food items&quot; transported from neighbouring Cameroon, the OCHA said in a statement.&nbsp;The convoy reached Banki on Thursday and distributed food to the more than 25,000 people in the town, it said. 
 
&quot;An additional 700 kilograms of supplementary food for malnourished children was airlifted from the state capital Maiduguri to Banki on the same day.&quot;&nbsp;It was the first aid delivery to the thousands of internally displaced in the northeast region in the last four months following deadly Boko Haram raids. 
 
They have been without food and basic supplies and relied on paltry food handouts from soldiers who have been sharing their rations.&nbsp;Last month a soldier and a vigilante assisting the military in fighting Boko Haram told AFP at least 10 people were dying from hunger every day, highlighting warnings about a food crisis in the Sahel region. 
 
The vigilante said the cemetery in Banki, some 130 kilometres (80 miles) southeast of the Borno state capital Maiduguri, was dotted with 376 graves of displaced people who died of starvation.&nbsp;The soldier said people had been reduced to &quot;walking corpses&quot; facing imminent death without food aid. 
 
When Boko Haram intensified attacks on villages in the area, residents fled to Banki where a military detachment has been based since they retook it in September.&nbsp;The United Nations said in May that 9.2 million people living around Lake Chad, which forms the border of Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon and Niger, were in desperate need of food. 
 
According to the OCHA aid distribution in Banki and other areas recently liberated by the Nigerian military was &quot;scaling up&quot; but more funds were needed to meet the &quot;lifesaving needs&quot; of people affected by Boko Haram violence in northeast Nigeria. 
 
Only 28 per cent of the $279 million required by the UN to help those affected by the violence has been realised, leaving a $200 million shortfall. 
 
The Borno state government and aid agencies have warned about acute food shortages in the Lake Chad region as a result of seven years of violence. 
 
Boko Haram&#39;s insurgency has left at least 20,000 dead in Nigeria and devastated infrastructure in the impoverished northeast. The unrest has also displaced more than 2.6 million.&nbsp;Nigeria&#39;s government has been encouraging people to return home since the recapture of swathes of territory lost to the Islamist militants in 2014 but most are still largely reliant on food handouts. 
 
There have been concerns about high death rates from severe acute malnutrition in camps for the internally displaced, while it is feared some inaccessible areas could be suffering from famine.&nbsp;A UN official compared the situation with the crisis in Darfur and South Sudan. 
 
(AFP)

The camps have seen high death rates from severe acute malnutrition in camps, even famine. A UN official compared it to the Darfur crisis

The United Nations has made the first food aid delivery to thousands of people displaced by Boko Haram Islamists in the Nigerian town of Banki, where hundreds have starved to death since March, the UN said on Friday. Officials from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) delivered 30 tonnes of "various lifesaving food items" transported from neighbouring Cameroon, the OCHA said in a statement. The convoy reached Banki on Thursday and distributed food to the more than 25,000 people in the town, it said. "An additional 700 kilograms of supplementary food for malnourished children was airlifted from the state capital Maiduguri to Banki on the same day." It was the first aid delivery to the thousands of internally displaced in the northeast region in the last four months following deadly Boko Haram raids. They have been without food and basic supplies and relied on paltry food handouts from soldiers who have been sharing their rations. Last month a soldier and a vigilante assisting the military in fighting Boko Haram told AFP at least 10 people were dying from hunger every day, highlighting warnings about a food crisis in the Sahel region. The vigilante said the cemetery in Banki, some 130 kilometres (80 miles) southeast of the Borno state capital Maiduguri, was dotted with 376 graves of displaced people who died of starvation. The soldier said people had been reduced to "walking corpses" facing imminent death without food aid. When Boko Haram intensified attacks on villages in the area, residents fled to Banki where a military detachment has been based since they retook it in September. The United Nations said in May that 9.2 million people living around Lake Chad, which forms the border of Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon and Niger, were in desperate need of food. According to the OCHA aid distribution in Banki and other areas recently liberated by the Nigerian military was "scaling up" but more funds were needed to meet the "lifesaving needs" of people affected by Boko Haram violence in northeast Nigeria. Only 28 per cent of the $279 million required by the UN to help those affected by the violence has been realised, leaving a $200 million shortfall. The Borno state government and aid agencies have warned about acute food shortages in the Lake Chad region as a result of seven years of violence. Boko Haram's insurgency has left at least 20,000 dead in Nigeria and devastated infrastructure in the impoverished northeast. The unrest has also displaced more than 2.6 million. Nigeria's government has been encouraging people to return home since the recapture of swathes of territory lost to the Islamist militants in 2014 but most are still largely reliant on food handouts. There have been concerns about high death rates from severe acute malnutrition in camps for the internally displaced, while it is feared some inaccessible areas could be suffering from famine. A UN official compared the situation with the crisis in Darfur and South Sudan. (AFP)

UN delivers food to starving displaced by Boko Haram

The United States warned on Monday it would raise concerns at the United Nations over the latest North Korean missile tests carried out in violation of Security Council resolutions. 
 
&quot;We strongly condemn this and North Korea&#39;s other recent missile tests, which violate UN Security Council Resolutions explicitly prohibiting North Korea`s launches using ballistic missile technology,&quot; said Commander Gary Ross, a Pentagon spokesman, after Pyongyang test-fired three ballistic missiles. 
 
&quot;We intend to raise our concerns at the UN to bolster international resolve in holding the DPRK accountable for these provocative actions.&quot; 
 
(AFP)

North Korea missile launch came a week after issuing threats to respond to the planned deployment of a US anti-missile system in the South

The United States warned on Monday it would raise concerns at the United Nations over the latest North Korean missile tests carried out in violation of Security Council resolutions. "We strongly condemn this and North Korea's other recent missile tests, which violate UN Security Council Resolutions explicitly prohibiting North Korea`s launches using ballistic missile technology," said Commander Gary Ross, a Pentagon spokesman, after Pyongyang test-fired three ballistic missiles. "We intend to raise our concerns at the UN to bolster international resolve in holding the DPRK accountable for these provocative actions." (AFP)

US to raise concerns at UN over North Korea missile tests

The United Nations Security Council failed on Saturday to condemn the violence and unrest in Turkey, after Egypt objected to a statement that called on all parties to &quot;respect the democratically elected government of Turkey,&quot; diplomats said. 
 
The US-drafted statement, seen by Reuters, also expressed grave concern over the situation in Turkey, urged the parties to show restraint, avoid any violence or bloodshed, and called for an urgent end to the crisis and return to rule of law. 
 
Statements by the 15-member Security Council have to be agreed by consensus. 
 
&quot;We proposed different language that respects democratic and constitutional principles, but the Americans refused to engage,&quot; Egypt&#39;s UN ambassador Amr Aboulatta told Reuters. 
 
?Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is a former general who overthrew elected President Mohamed Mursi, of the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, in 2013 after mass protests against Mursi. Turkey provided support for the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. 
 
Diplomats said Egypt asked for a call for all parties to &quot;respect the democratically elected government of Turkey&quot; to be removed from the draft statement, saying the council is &quot;in no position to qualify, or label that government - or any other government for that matter - as democratically elected or not&quot;. 
 
After the United States and Britain objected to the proposed change to the text, Egypt proposed that the council call on the parties in Turkey to &quot;respect the democratic and constitutional principles and the rule of law,&quot; diplomats said. 
 
Negotiations on the text ended at this point, diplomats said. 
 
The Egyptian foreign ministry said that it was &quot;surprised that its proposed amendment was not taken up, and with the claim that it is obstructing the release of the statement.&quot; 
 
Turkish forces loyal to President Tayyip Erdogan largely crushed an attempted military coup on Saturday after crowds answered his call to take to the streets in support of the government and dozens of rebels abandoned their tanks. 
 
(Reuters)

Egyptian diplomats said the UN council is in no position to qualify or label any government as democratically elected or not

The United Nations Security Council failed on Saturday to condemn the violence and unrest in Turkey, after Egypt objected to a statement that called on all parties to "respect the democratically elected government of Turkey," diplomats said. The US-drafted statement, seen by Reuters, also expressed grave concern over the situation in Turkey, urged the parties to show restraint, avoid any violence or bloodshed, and called for an urgent end to the crisis and return to rule of law. Statements by the 15-member Security Council have to be agreed by consensus. "We proposed different language that respects democratic and constitutional principles, but the Americans refused to engage," Egypt's UN ambassador Amr Aboulatta told Reuters. ?Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is a former general who overthrew elected President Mohamed Mursi, of the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, in 2013 after mass protests against Mursi. Turkey provided support for the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. Diplomats said Egypt asked for a call for all parties to "respect the democratically elected government of Turkey" to be removed from the draft statement, saying the council is "in no position to qualify, or label that government - or any other government for that matter - as democratically elected or not". After the United States and Britain objected to the proposed change to the text, Egypt proposed that the council call on the parties in Turkey to "respect the democratic and constitutional principles and the rule of law," diplomats said. Negotiations on the text ended at this point, diplomats said. The Egyptian foreign ministry said that it was "surprised that its proposed amendment was not taken up, and with the claim that it is obstructing the release of the statement." Turkish forces loyal to President Tayyip Erdogan largely crushed an attempted military coup on Saturday after crowds answered his call to take to the streets in support of the government and dozens of rebels abandoned their tanks. (Reuters)

Egypt blocks UN call to respect 'democratically elected' government in Turkey

At least 300 have been killed in four days of intense gunbattles in the capital of South Sudan and 42,000 have fled the city, the UN said today.

The recent violence in Juba echoed the fighting that triggered the civil war and marks a fresh blow to last year&#39;s peace deal to end the bitter conflict that began when President Salva Kiir accused ex-rebel and now Vice-President Riek Machar of plotting a coup.

&quot;It&#39;s over 300 deaths since August 8,&quot; said World Health Organization spokesman Tarik Jasarevic. The UN, however, said it did not have the number of injured.

The July 8-11 violence had left &quot;42,000 internally displaced&quot; in the world&#39;s youngest nation, said William Spindler, the spokesman for the UN refugee agency.

&quot;The number of refugees in neigbouring countries is now 835,000,&quot; he said.

However, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said many people were returning.

&quot;Humanitarian access to affected people has improved dramatically since Monday. But this can only be sustained if the ceasefire holds,&quot;&nbsp;said John McCue, IOM South Sudan head of operations.

Machar&#39;s sacking as vice-president in 2013 set off a cycle of retaliatory killing&nbsp;that split the poverty-stricken, landlocked country along ethnic lines and drove more than two million out of their homes.

The conflict has been characterised by horrific rights abuses, including gangrapes, the wholesale burning of villages and cannibalism.

According to the UN, there were some 114,000 South Sudanese refugees in neighbouring countries before December 2013 but that figure has ballooned to 835,000 now. 
 
(AFP)

About 42,000 have fled the city. The number of injured is still unknown, the UN said

At least 300 have been killed in four days of intense gunbattles in the capital of South Sudan and 42,000 have fled the city, the UN said today. The recent violence in Juba echoed the fighting that triggered the civil war and marks a fresh blow to last year's peace deal to end the bitter conflict that began when President Salva Kiir accused ex-rebel and now Vice-President Riek Machar of plotting a coup. "It's over 300 deaths since August 8," said World Health Organization spokesman Tarik Jasarevic. The UN, however, said it did not have the number of injured. The July 8-11 violence had left "42,000 internally displaced" in the world's youngest nation, said William Spindler, the spokesman for the UN refugee agency. "The number of refugees in neigbouring countries is now 835,000," he said. However, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said many people were returning. "Humanitarian access to affected people has improved dramatically since Monday. But this can only be sustained if the ceasefire holds," said John McCue, IOM South Sudan head of operations. Machar's sacking as vice-president in 2013 set off a cycle of retaliatory killing that split the poverty-stricken, landlocked country along ethnic lines and drove more than two million out of their homes. The conflict has been characterised by horrific rights abuses, including gangrapes, the wholesale burning of villages and cannibalism. According to the UN, there were some 114,000 South Sudanese refugees in neighbouring countries before December 2013 but that figure has ballooned to 835,000 now. (AFP)

300 killed in South Sudan violence: UN

The United Nations today said Ukraine&#39;s forces had indiscriminately shelled residents while pro-Russian insurgents and Kiev battalions had summarily killed civilians in what may have constituted &quot;war crimes&quot;. 
 
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) study painted a bloody picture of inhumane treatment of captives and non-combatants as well as the engagement of multiple-rocket systems never intended for use in urban areas. 
 
It particularly pointed the finger of blame at rebel groups within the self-proclaimed &quot;people&#39;s republics&quot; of Lugansk and Donetsk - a separatist region in Ukraine&#39;s eastern rustbelt that Kiev says is backed up by Russia. 
 
The 26-month revolt against the pro-Western government in Kiev has killed nearly 9,500 people and plunged Moscow&#39;s ties with the West to a post-Cold war low that has complicated the resolution of other urgent matters such as the Syrian war. 
 
The Kremlin persistently denies either plotting or backing the insurgency in order to keep its western neighbour - the largest of the former Soviet republics outside Russia - within its historic sphere of influence. 
 
The exhaustive study into the Ukrainian conflict by OHCHR was conducted between January 2014 and May of this year. 
 
&quot;OHCHR recorded executions of members of Ukrainian forces and elements of armed groups who had surrendered... mainly in 2014 and during the first half of 2015,&quot; the report said. 
 
&quot;OHCHR also recorded a considerable number of alleged summary executions and killings of civilians who were not taking part in hostilities, mostly in 2014 and in early 2015.&quot; 
 
The series of alleged crimes committed by Kiev&#39;s troops included one in which two suspected rebels were kept in a dry well and then killed by &quot;a drunken soldier&quot; who threw a grenade down the shaft. 
 
Such cases are &quot;recognised as a war crime in an armed conflict,&quot; the OHCHR said. 
 
&#39;Indiscriminate shelling&#39; 
 
The UN report estimated that about 2,000 civilians have died in one of Europe&#39;s bloodiest conflicts since the 1990s Balkans wars. 
 
&quot;The vast majority of civilian casualties, recorded on the territories controlled by the Government of Ukraine and on those controlled by armed groups, were caused by indiscriminate shelling of residential areas, in violation of the international humanitarian law (on) principle of distinction.&quot; 
 
The Ukrainian army has resorted to targeting militia-held areas from distant positions with highly imprecise rockets and shells. 
 
Human rights groups have previously accused both sides of torturing and executing their captives - a charge that Kiev has repeatedly vowed to investigate and resolve. 
 
But the OHCHR said &quot;there has been no accountability for the vast majority of alleged summary executions and killings committed in the conflict zone.&quot; 
 
February 2014 carnage 
 
The tragic chain of events began to unfold when then-president Viktor Yanukovych unexpectedly pulled out of a historic deal with the European Union in favour of closer ties with Russia in November 2013. 
 
The three months of pro-EU protests that followed culminated in more than two days of carnage that the OHCHR said killed 108 protestors and bystanders as well as 13 law enforcement officers loyal to Yanukovych. 
 
The shock of seeing more blood spilt in Ukraine than at any time since World War II prompted the government to effectively dissolve and Yanukovych to flee to Russia with the help of a secret operation conducted by Kremlin special agents. 
 
The OHCHR did not conclude who was responsible for firing the first shots during the standoff between protesters and the anti-riot police - an issue hotly disputed by Moscow and Kiev. 
 
But it noted that the demonstrations were &quot;characterised by violence and excessive use of force by the police and other law enforcement agencies.&quot; 
 
(AFP)

The study said Ukraine's forces had indiscriminately shelled residents and spoke of inhumane treatment of captives and non-combatants

The United Nations today said Ukraine's forces had indiscriminately shelled residents while pro-Russian insurgents and Kiev battalions had summarily killed civilians in what may have constituted "war crimes". The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) study painted a bloody picture of inhumane treatment of captives and non-combatants as well as the engagement of multiple-rocket systems never intended for use in urban areas. It particularly pointed the finger of blame at rebel groups within the self-proclaimed "people's republics" of Lugansk and Donetsk - a separatist region in Ukraine's eastern rustbelt that Kiev says is backed up by Russia. The 26-month revolt against the pro-Western government in Kiev has killed nearly 9,500 people and plunged Moscow's ties with the West to a post-Cold war low that has complicated the resolution of other urgent matters such as the Syrian war. The Kremlin persistently denies either plotting or backing the insurgency in order to keep its western neighbour - the largest of the former Soviet republics outside Russia - within its historic sphere of influence. The exhaustive study into the Ukrainian conflict by OHCHR was conducted between January 2014 and May of this year. "OHCHR recorded executions of members of Ukrainian forces and elements of armed groups who had surrendered... mainly in 2014 and during the first half of 2015," the report said. "OHCHR also recorded a considerable number of alleged summary executions and killings of civilians who were not taking part in hostilities, mostly in 2014 and in early 2015." The series of alleged crimes committed by Kiev's troops included one in which two suspected rebels were kept in a dry well and then killed by "a drunken soldier" who threw a grenade down the shaft. Such cases are "recognised as a war crime in an armed conflict," the OHCHR said. 'Indiscriminate shelling' The UN report estimated that about 2,000 civilians have died in one of Europe's bloodiest conflicts since the 1990s Balkans wars. "The vast majority of civilian casualties, recorded on the territories controlled by the Government of Ukraine and on those controlled by armed groups, were caused by indiscriminate shelling of residential areas, in violation of the international humanitarian law (on) principle of distinction." The Ukrainian army has resorted to targeting militia-held areas from distant positions with highly imprecise rockets and shells. Human rights groups have previously accused both sides of torturing and executing their captives - a charge that Kiev has repeatedly vowed to investigate and resolve. But the OHCHR said "there has been no accountability for the vast majority of alleged summary executions and killings committed in the conflict zone." February 2014 carnage The tragic chain of events began to unfold when then-president Viktor Yanukovych unexpectedly pulled out of a historic deal with the European Union in favour of closer ties with Russia in November 2013. The three months of pro-EU protests that followed culminated in more than two days of carnage that the OHCHR said killed 108 protestors and bystanders as well as 13 law enforcement officers loyal to Yanukovych. The shock of seeing more blood spilt in Ukraine than at any time since World War II prompted the government to effectively dissolve and Yanukovych to flee to Russia with the help of a secret operation conducted by Kremlin special agents. The OHCHR did not conclude who was responsible for firing the first shots during the standoff between protesters and the anti-riot police - an issue hotly disputed by Moscow and Kiev. But it noted that the demonstrations were "characterised by violence and excessive use of force by the police and other law enforcement agencies." (AFP)

UN sees evidence of possible war crimes in Ukraine

The Philippines urged Beijing today to respect an international tribunal&#39;s ruling that rejected Chinese claims to most of the South China Sea, escalating a row that has raised the prospect of conflict. 
 
China reacted furiously to the verdict by a UN-back tribunal on Tuesday, insisting it will ignore the decision while warning its rivals too much pressure on the issue could turn the resource-rich and strategically vital waterway into a &quot;cradle of war&quot;. 
 
Dispute to remain talking point during at ASEM&nbsp; 
 
The Philippines, which launched the legal challenge, had initially refrained from asking China to abide by the ruling. This followed President Rodrigo Duterte`s directive to achieve a &quot;soft landing&quot; with the Philippines&#39; much more powerful Asian neighbour. 
 
But Manila hardened its stance today with a statement detailing Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay&#39;s priorities when he attends an Asia-Europe summit, known as ASEM, in Mongolia this week along with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang. 
 
&quot;Secretary Yasay will discuss within the context of ASEM&#39;s agenda the Philippines&#39; peaceful and rules-based approach on the South China Sea and the need for parties to respect the recent decision,&quot; the foreign affairs department said in a statement. 
 
Even just raising the issue at the two-day summit starting on Friday will anger China, which has long bridled at Philippine efforts to have the dispute discussed at multilateral events. 
 
Chinese assistant foreign minister Kong Xuanyou insisted on Monday the ASEM summit was &quot;not an appropriate venue&quot; to discuss the South China Sea. 
 
But China appears to be in the minority -- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe also said today as he left for Mongolia that he wanted to discuss the South China Sea at the summit. 
 
China claims nearly all of the sea -- which is of immense military importance and through which about $5 trillion worth of shipping trade passes annually -- even waters approaching the coasts of the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations. 
 
US, China call on China to respect Hague ruling&nbsp; 
 
China justifies its claims by saying it was the first to have discovered, named and exploited the sea, and outlines its territory using a vague map made up of nine dashes that emerged in the 1940s. 
 
However the tribunal, in The Hague, ruled China&#39;s claimed historic rights to resources within the nine-dash map had no legal basis. 
 
It also declared that China had acted unlawfully by violating the Philippines` sovereign rights within its exclusive economic zone -- waters extending 200 nautical miles from the Filipino coast. 
 
China had done so by interfering with Philippine fishing and petroleum exploration within the exclusive zone, as well as by building artificial islands there. 
 
China has in recent years undertaken giant land reclamation works in the Spratlys archipelago, one of the biggest island groups in the sea which partly falls within the Philippines&#39; exclusive economic zone. 
 
The United States and Australia were among Philippine allies this week to call on China to respect the ruling.&nbsp; 
 
China mulling over introducing air defence zone over the sea&nbsp; 
 
But the Chinese government and state media instead unleashed a tirade of vitriol against the tribunal, and vowed never to give up its claims to the sea. 
 
&quot;Do not turn the South China Sea into a cradle of war,&quot; vice foreign minister Liu Zhenmin told reporters in Beijing on Wednesday in a warning to rivals. 
 
He also said China may introduce an air defence zone over the sea, which would give its military authority over foreign aircraft, depending on the &quot;threat&quot; level. 
 
The English-language China Daily said: &quot;Beijing certainly should, and has to, ready itself for worst-case scenarios, including potential military collisions&quot;. 
 
China and the United States had already deployed significant naval firepower in the sea ahead of the verdict.&nbsp; 
Taiwan, which has a very similar claim to the waters as China, sent a warship into the waters on Wednesday to protect its interests.&nbsp; 
 
The Philippines filed the legal challenge against China in 2013 under Duterte`s predecessor, Benigno Aquino. Relations between Beijing and Manila plummeted over the row. 
 
Duterte, who took office on June 30, has said he wants better relations with China and to attract Chinese investment for major infrastructure projects.&nbsp; 
 
Unlike Aquino, Duterte has said he wants to talk directly with China over the issue. Beijing also wants to negotiate, but at the same time insists it will never concede on sovereignty. 
 
(AFP)&nbsp;

Philippines' Foreign Secretary will discuss country's rules-based approach on South China Sea with Chinese Premier at ASEM this week

The Philippines urged Beijing today to respect an international tribunal's ruling that rejected Chinese claims to most of the South China Sea, escalating a row that has raised the prospect of conflict. China reacted furiously to the verdict by a UN-back tribunal on Tuesday, insisting it will ignore the decision while warning its rivals too much pressure on the issue could turn the resource-rich and strategically vital waterway into a "cradle of war". Dispute to remain talking point during at ASEM The Philippines, which launched the legal challenge, had initially refrained from asking China to abide by the ruling. This followed President Rodrigo Duterte`s directive to achieve a "soft landing" with the Philippines' much more powerful Asian neighbour. But Manila hardened its stance today with a statement detailing Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay's priorities when he attends an Asia-Europe summit, known as ASEM, in Mongolia this week along with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang. "Secretary Yasay will discuss within the context of ASEM's agenda the Philippines' peaceful and rules-based approach on the South China Sea and the need for parties to respect the recent decision," the foreign affairs department said in a statement. Even just raising the issue at the two-day summit starting on Friday will anger China, which has long bridled at Philippine efforts to have the dispute discussed at multilateral events. Chinese assistant foreign minister Kong Xuanyou insisted on Monday the ASEM summit was "not an appropriate venue" to discuss the South China Sea. But China appears to be in the minority -- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe also said today as he left for Mongolia that he wanted to discuss the South China Sea at the summit. China claims nearly all of the sea -- which is of immense military importance and through which about $5 trillion worth of shipping trade passes annually -- even waters approaching the coasts of the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations. US, China call on China to respect Hague ruling China justifies its claims by saying it was the first to have discovered, named and exploited the sea, and outlines its territory using a vague map made up of nine dashes that emerged in the 1940s. However the tribunal, in The Hague, ruled China's claimed historic rights to resources within the nine-dash map had no legal basis. It also declared that China had acted unlawfully by violating the Philippines` sovereign rights within its exclusive economic zone -- waters extending 200 nautical miles from the Filipino coast. China had done so by interfering with Philippine fishing and petroleum exploration within the exclusive zone, as well as by building artificial islands there. China has in recent years undertaken giant land reclamation works in the Spratlys archipelago, one of the biggest island groups in the sea which partly falls within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone. The United States and Australia were among Philippine allies this week to call on China to respect the ruling. China mulling over introducing air defence zone over the sea But the Chinese government and state media instead unleashed a tirade of vitriol against the tribunal, and vowed never to give up its claims to the sea. "Do not turn the South China Sea into a cradle of war," vice foreign minister Liu Zhenmin told reporters in Beijing on Wednesday in a warning to rivals. He also said China may introduce an air defence zone over the sea, which would give its military authority over foreign aircraft, depending on the "threat" level. The English-language China Daily said: "Beijing certainly should, and has to, ready itself for worst-case scenarios, including potential military collisions". China and the United States had already deployed significant naval firepower in the sea ahead of the verdict. Taiwan, which has a very similar claim to the waters as China, sent a warship into the waters on Wednesday to protect its interests. The Philippines filed the legal challenge against China in 2013 under Duterte`s predecessor, Benigno Aquino. Relations between Beijing and Manila plummeted over the row. Duterte, who took office on June 30, has said he wants better relations with China and to attract Chinese investment for major infrastructure projects. Unlike Aquino, Duterte has said he wants to talk directly with China over the issue. Beijing also wants to negotiate, but at the same time insists it will never concede on sovereignty. (AFP)

Manila hardens stance, tells China to respect Hague ruling

Ten of the 12 candidates vying to be the next United Nations Secretary-General took part in live televised debates on Tuesday, a first for the world body, but attempts to bring unprecedented transparency to the race will not extend to the Security Council selection process. 
 
The 193-member UN General Assembly has sought to lift a veil of secrecy that has surrounded the election of the UN chief for the past 70 years by requiring public nominations and holding campaign-style town hall events with each candidate. 
 
That transparency extended to two debates, with five candidates in each group, in the General Assembly on Tuesday, which was broadcast live around the world on the Al Jazeera television network and on the UN website. 
 
Candidates were pressed by the Al Jazeera hosts, and took questions from the audience, on issues such as leadership style, climate change, the International Criminal Court, the civil war in Syria and the recent eruption of fighting in South Sudan, where UN peacekeepers are struggling to protect civilians.&nbsp; 
 
However, when the 15-member Security Council starts holding informal secret ballots next week to choose a candidate to recommend to the General Assembly for election later this year, the results of those closed-door polls will not be made public. 
 
Council members will be given a ballot for each candidate with the options of encourage, discourage and no opinion.&nbsp; 
 
The council will tally the ballots and inform the nominating states of the results for their candidate, but the overall results will not be made known to the public.&nbsp; 
 
Ultimately, the five nations that hold a veto on the security council - the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China - have to agree on a candidate and there is no requirement for them to pay attention to the popularity of candidates with the General Assembly. The council hopes to agree on a candidate by October, diplomats say.&nbsp; 
 
Since the power to authorize military force or sanctions lies with the Security Council, the UN chief has little more than a bully pulpit. Many diplomats say the veto powers prefer a &quot;secretary&quot; rather than a &quot;general&quot;. 
 
Strength wanted 
 
Yet Britain`s UN Ambassador Matthew Rycroft said on Tuesday that the more transparent process, particularly the individual candidate town halls with the General Assembly, had shown most member states wanted a strong secretary-general.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;That`s an emerging consensus which wouldn`t have been obvious without these changes in the (selection) process. I think it makes it harder for someone who isn`t that strong to be chosen,&quot; Rycroft said. 
 
The search for a successor to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, a former South Korean foreign minister who steps down at the end of 2016 after two five-year terms, has sparked a push by more than a quarter of the 193 UN states for the world body`s first female leader. 
 
Discussion on the possibility of a female secretary-general and the role of women in the world body received enthusiastic applause during Tuesday`s debates.&nbsp; 
 
Half the candidates so far are women: UN cultural organization UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova of Bulgaria; former Croatian Foreign Minister Vesna Pusic; Moldova`s former Foreign Minister Natalia Gherman; former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark, who heads the UN Development Programme; Argentinian Foreign Minister Susana Malcorra; and former UN climate chief Christiana Figueres of Costa Rica.&nbsp; 
 
Also in the race are Montenegro Foreign Minister Igor Luksic; former Slovenian President Danilo Turk; former UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres, who is also a former Portuguese prime minister; former Serbian Foreign&nbsp; 
Minister Vuk Jeremic; former Macedonian Foreign Minister Srgjan Kerim; and Slovak Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajcak.&nbsp; 
 
Kerim and Lajcak did not take part in Tuesday`s debates. 
 
(Reuters)

UN General Assembly has sought to lift a veil of secrecy that has surrounded the election of the UN chief for the past 70 years

Ten of the 12 candidates vying to be the next United Nations Secretary-General took part in live televised debates on Tuesday, a first for the world body, but attempts to bring unprecedented transparency to the race will not extend to the Security Council selection process. The 193-member UN General Assembly has sought to lift a veil of secrecy that has surrounded the election of the UN chief for the past 70 years by requiring public nominations and holding campaign-style town hall events with each candidate. That transparency extended to two debates, with five candidates in each group, in the General Assembly on Tuesday, which was broadcast live around the world on the Al Jazeera television network and on the UN website. Candidates were pressed by the Al Jazeera hosts, and took questions from the audience, on issues such as leadership style, climate change, the International Criminal Court, the civil war in Syria and the recent eruption of fighting in South Sudan, where UN peacekeepers are struggling to protect civilians. However, when the 15-member Security Council starts holding informal secret ballots next week to choose a candidate to recommend to the General Assembly for election later this year, the results of those closed-door polls will not be made public. Council members will be given a ballot for each candidate with the options of encourage, discourage and no opinion. The council will tally the ballots and inform the nominating states of the results for their candidate, but the overall results will not be made known to the public. Ultimately, the five nations that hold a veto on the security council - the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China - have to agree on a candidate and there is no requirement for them to pay attention to the popularity of candidates with the General Assembly. The council hopes to agree on a candidate by October, diplomats say. Since the power to authorize military force or sanctions lies with the Security Council, the UN chief has little more than a bully pulpit. Many diplomats say the veto powers prefer a "secretary" rather than a "general". Strength wanted Yet Britain`s UN Ambassador Matthew Rycroft said on Tuesday that the more transparent process, particularly the individual candidate town halls with the General Assembly, had shown most member states wanted a strong secretary-general. "That`s an emerging consensus which wouldn`t have been obvious without these changes in the (selection) process. I think it makes it harder for someone who isn`t that strong to be chosen," Rycroft said. The search for a successor to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, a former South Korean foreign minister who steps down at the end of 2016 after two five-year terms, has sparked a push by more than a quarter of the 193 UN states for the world body`s first female leader. Discussion on the possibility of a female secretary-general and the role of women in the world body received enthusiastic applause during Tuesday`s debates. Half the candidates so far are women: UN cultural organization UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova of Bulgaria; former Croatian Foreign Minister Vesna Pusic; Moldova`s former Foreign Minister Natalia Gherman; former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark, who heads the UN Development Programme; Argentinian Foreign Minister Susana Malcorra; and former UN climate chief Christiana Figueres of Costa Rica. Also in the race are Montenegro Foreign Minister Igor Luksic; former Slovenian President Danilo Turk; former UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres, who is also a former Portuguese prime minister; former Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic; former Macedonian Foreign Minister Srgjan Kerim; and Slovak Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajcak. Kerim and Lajcak did not take part in Tuesday`s debates. (Reuters)

Next UN chief ballots remain secret, despite televised debates

Beleaguered Maldives President Abdulla Yameen is adamant that the first execution of a convict in sixty years will take place under his watch, as a reiteration of Maldives&#39; Islamic credentials. 
 
The politically isolated president, who is shunned by colleagues and family, is refusing to intervene despite several scholars calling the proposed execution un-Islamic. 
 
He has also ignored appeals of human rights groups and even the United Nations to stay the execution. 
 
Twenty two-year-old Hussain Humaam Ahamed was condemned to death by the Maldives Supreme Court in 2014 for the murder of a Member of Parliament, Afrasheem Ali, in 2012. 
 
The verdict was based on a confession that was obtained while he was in custody, and which he retracted later.&nbsp; 
 
The Supreme Court, over which President Yameen has a stranglehold, disregarded the claim that Humaam has a mental disability and the request for an independent psychiatric evaluation. If the death sentence is carried out, it will be the first execution in the Maldives since 1953. 
 
Islamic scholar calls execution &#39;un-Islamic&#39;&nbsp; 
 
The voices of protest have been crushed in the Maldives due to strict curbs, but renowned Islamic scholar at the University of Oxford, Tariq Ramadan, in a letter to President Yameen, has listed out reasons why the proposed execution is un-Islamic. 
 
Citing extensively from the Hudud -- the Islamic Penal Code, Ramadan has argued that 22-year-old Humaam&#39;s death penalty contravened many basic prescriptions in the Shariah.&nbsp; 
 
Stating that Humaam`s &#39;confession&#39; was forcefully obtained, undermining fairness of his trial at a basic level, Ramadan has pointed out that pleas made by Humaam`s family that he was suffering from mental disability, has been totally disregarded by the court. This, Ramadan argues, is also against Islamic law and jurisprudence as any doubt about the mental health of a murderer should play in his or her favour. 
 
The heavy conditions found in the Islamic legislation have as a raison d`etre (`illah) to avoid any doubt; if there is the slightest doubt, then the punishment should be suspended. Ramadan also emphasises that it was un-Islamic on the part of President Yameen to ignore requests of the victim`s father and brother, who have stated that they do not wish the death sentence to be implemented. 
 
This call to spare Humaam&#39;s life by two members of the victim&#39;s family cannot be ignored under Sharia law.&nbsp; 
 
According to the principles of qisas, if the family of the victim asks for the sentence not to be implemented at any time before the execution (for the majority of the `ulama`), the latter should be suspended whatever the public authority might decide. 
 
If Yameen were to respect Shariah conditions, it is imperative for him to listen to the family`s position, says the scholar. Ramadan adds that the above and beyond all of this, Rahmah (compassion) is an absolute necessity and an essential principle even if there is no element of doubt and conditions are met. 
 
Ramadan has categorically stated in his letter to President Yameen that Humaam`s execution would contravene the fundamental principles of Islamic law and urged the latter to take all possible actions to prevent the execution. 
 
The scholar also got support from human rights groups around the world who have appealed to the Maldivian president that International law prohibits the use of death penalty against people with mental disabilities.&nbsp; 
 
But President Yameen, who has reintroduced capital punishment after a moratorium of 60 years, seems determined to not just stop the arbitrary deprivation of life but also break the tenets of Islamic law. Ever since President Yameen reintroduced the death penalty in Maldives, execution facilities have been constructed at the Maldives` Maafushi Prison. The age of criminal responsibility is 10 in the Maldives which means that even juvelines could potentially face execution. 
 
(ANI)&nbsp;

The politically isolated Abdulla Yameen refuses to intervene despite several scholars calling the execution un-Islamic

Beleaguered Maldives President Abdulla Yameen is adamant that the first execution of a convict in sixty years will take place under his watch, as a reiteration of Maldives' Islamic credentials. The politically isolated president, who is shunned by colleagues and family, is refusing to intervene despite several scholars calling the proposed execution un-Islamic. He has also ignored appeals of human rights groups and even the United Nations to stay the execution. Twenty two-year-old Hussain Humaam Ahamed was condemned to death by the Maldives Supreme Court in 2014 for the murder of a Member of Parliament, Afrasheem Ali, in 2012. The verdict was based on a confession that was obtained while he was in custody, and which he retracted later. The Supreme Court, over which President Yameen has a stranglehold, disregarded the claim that Humaam has a mental disability and the request for an independent psychiatric evaluation. If the death sentence is carried out, it will be the first execution in the Maldives since 1953. Islamic scholar calls execution 'un-Islamic' The voices of protest have been crushed in the Maldives due to strict curbs, but renowned Islamic scholar at the University of Oxford, Tariq Ramadan, in a letter to President Yameen, has listed out reasons why the proposed execution is un-Islamic. Citing extensively from the Hudud -- the Islamic Penal Code, Ramadan has argued that 22-year-old Humaam's death penalty contravened many basic prescriptions in the Shariah. Stating that Humaam`s 'confession' was forcefully obtained, undermining fairness of his trial at a basic level, Ramadan has pointed out that pleas made by Humaam`s family that he was suffering from mental disability, has been totally disregarded by the court. This, Ramadan argues, is also against Islamic law and jurisprudence as any doubt about the mental health of a murderer should play in his or her favour. The heavy conditions found in the Islamic legislation have as a raison d`etre (`illah) to avoid any doubt; if there is the slightest doubt, then the punishment should be suspended. Ramadan also emphasises that it was un-Islamic on the part of President Yameen to ignore requests of the victim`s father and brother, who have stated that they do not wish the death sentence to be implemented. This call to spare Humaam's life by two members of the victim's family cannot be ignored under Sharia law. According to the principles of qisas, if the family of the victim asks for the sentence not to be implemented at any time before the execution (for the majority of the `ulama`), the latter should be suspended whatever the public authority might decide. If Yameen were to respect Shariah conditions, it is imperative for him to listen to the family`s position, says the scholar. Ramadan adds that the above and beyond all of this, Rahmah (compassion) is an absolute necessity and an essential principle even if there is no element of doubt and conditions are met. Ramadan has categorically stated in his letter to President Yameen that Humaam`s execution would contravene the fundamental principles of Islamic law and urged the latter to take all possible actions to prevent the execution. The scholar also got support from human rights groups around the world who have appealed to the Maldivian president that International law prohibits the use of death penalty against people with mental disabilities. But President Yameen, who has reintroduced capital punishment after a moratorium of 60 years, seems determined to not just stop the arbitrary deprivation of life but also break the tenets of Islamic law. Ever since President Yameen reintroduced the death penalty in Maldives, execution facilities have been constructed at the Maldives` Maafushi Prison. The age of criminal responsibility is 10 in the Maldives which means that even juvelines could potentially face execution. (ANI)

Maldives President adamant first execution in 60 years will go ahead, to reiterate country's 'Islamic credentials'

The Philippines is willing to share natural resources with Beijing in contested South China Sea areas even if it wins a legal challenge next week, foreign secretary Perfecto Yasay said today. 
 
Yasay said President Rodrigo Duterte&#39;s administration hoped to quickly begin direct talks with China following Tuesday&#39;s verdict, with the negotiations to cover jointly exploiting natural gas reserves and fishing grounds within the Philippines&#39; exclusive economic zone. 
 
&quot;We can even have the objective of seeing how we can jointly explore this territory. How we can utilise and benefit mutually from the utilisation of the resources in this exclusive economic zone where claims are overlapping,&quot; Yasay said in an interview. 
 
The Philippines, under Benigno Aquino&#39;s previous administration, filed a legal challenge with a UN-backed tribunal in The Hague contesting China&#39;s claims to nearly all of the strategically vital sea. 
 
China&#39;s claims reach almost to the coasts of the Philippines and some other Southeast Asian nations, and it has in recent years built giant artificial islands in the contested areas to enforce what it says are its indisputable sovereign rights. 
 
The Philippines&#39; case enraged China, which repeatedly vowed to ignore the tribunal&#39;s ruling and is currently holding military drills in the northern part of the sea as a show of force. 
 
Duterte, who took office on June 30, has adopted a more conciliatory approach to China than Aquino. 
 
The previous president refused to hold direct talks, and likened China&#39;s expansionist efforts in the sea to Nazi Germany&#39;s march on parts of Europe ahead of World War II. 
 
Yasay signalled on Friday that Duterte would be making no such analogies, emphasising his administration would seek to ensure the best possible relations with China. 
 
&quot;I would like to be forward-looking on these matters,&quot; he said when asked to comment on Aquino&#39;s Nazi statement. 
 
&quot;I would like to make sure whatever actions this administration will take, the statements we will be making will be in the pursuit of strengthening our relationship with everybody and will be for the purpose of making sure there will be no stumbling block to our negotiating a peaceful solution to the issue.&quot; 
 
He also said China and the Philippines had agreed not to make any &quot;provocative statements&quot; following the release of the ruling. 
 
Yasay said after the ruling the Philippines would study it closely, discuss it with allies, and then seek to launch talks with China &quot;as soon as possible&quot;. 
 
Yasay said the Philippines was open to sharing Scarborough Shoal, a rich fishing ground within the Philippines&#39; exclusive economic zone that China took control of in 2012. 
 
He said the Philippines would also consider jointly exploring a natural gas field at Reed Bank, which is also within the Philippines` exclusive economic zone. 
 
However Yasay insisted the Philippines would not concede any of its rights in the sea. 
 
Duterte and Yasay met with China&#39;s ambassador to the Philippines, Zhao Jianhua, on Thursday. Zhao was seen again at the Department of foreign affairs today. 
 
(AFP) 
 
&nbsp;

However, the Philippines' foreign secretary insisted that it will not concede any of its rights in the sea

The Philippines is willing to share natural resources with Beijing in contested South China Sea areas even if it wins a legal challenge next week, foreign secretary Perfecto Yasay said today. Yasay said President Rodrigo Duterte's administration hoped to quickly begin direct talks with China following Tuesday's verdict, with the negotiations to cover jointly exploiting natural gas reserves and fishing grounds within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone. "We can even have the objective of seeing how we can jointly explore this territory. How we can utilise and benefit mutually from the utilisation of the resources in this exclusive economic zone where claims are overlapping," Yasay said in an interview. The Philippines, under Benigno Aquino's previous administration, filed a legal challenge with a UN-backed tribunal in The Hague contesting China's claims to nearly all of the strategically vital sea. China's claims reach almost to the coasts of the Philippines and some other Southeast Asian nations, and it has in recent years built giant artificial islands in the contested areas to enforce what it says are its indisputable sovereign rights. The Philippines' case enraged China, which repeatedly vowed to ignore the tribunal's ruling and is currently holding military drills in the northern part of the sea as a show of force. Duterte, who took office on June 30, has adopted a more conciliatory approach to China than Aquino. The previous president refused to hold direct talks, and likened China's expansionist efforts in the sea to Nazi Germany's march on parts of Europe ahead of World War II. Yasay signalled on Friday that Duterte would be making no such analogies, emphasising his administration would seek to ensure the best possible relations with China. "I would like to be forward-looking on these matters," he said when asked to comment on Aquino's Nazi statement. "I would like to make sure whatever actions this administration will take, the statements we will be making will be in the pursuit of strengthening our relationship with everybody and will be for the purpose of making sure there will be no stumbling block to our negotiating a peaceful solution to the issue." He also said China and the Philippines had agreed not to make any "provocative statements" following the release of the ruling. Yasay said after the ruling the Philippines would study it closely, discuss it with allies, and then seek to launch talks with China "as soon as possible". Yasay said the Philippines was open to sharing Scarborough Shoal, a rich fishing ground within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone that China took control of in 2012. He said the Philippines would also consider jointly exploring a natural gas field at Reed Bank, which is also within the Philippines` exclusive economic zone. However Yasay insisted the Philippines would not concede any of its rights in the sea. Duterte and Yasay met with China's ambassador to the Philippines, Zhao Jianhua, on Thursday. Zhao was seen again at the Department of foreign affairs today. (AFP)

Philippines willing to share resources in South China Sea with Beijing

Thousands of people have fled renewed violence in the Central African Republic to neighbouring Chad and Cameroon, the United Nations said Friday, voicing fears that many more could follow. 
 
The UN refugee agency said that it had helped register 5,643 Central African refugees in Chad, in the villages of Sourouh and Mini next to the border, in recent weeks. 
 
Another 555 refugees had crossed to Yamba village in eastern Cameroon, UNHCR said. 
 
&quot;The exodus began on June 12 when clashes erupted between livestock herders and local arable farmers in and around the north-west town of Ngaoundaye, Ouham Pende region,&quot; it said in a statement. 
 
The agency pointed out that such clashes typically occur when herders move their animals across the land, but warned that &quot;this year, disturbingly, rival ex-Seleka and anti-Balaka militias have become involved.&quot; 
 
The violence comes as the former French colony struggles to recover from over a year of sectarian bloodletting, which drove half a million people from their homes starting in 2013. 
 
Central African Republic, one of the world&#39;s poorest countries, was plunged into chaos by the ousting in March that year of long-serving president Francois Bozize, a Christian, by the mainly Muslim Seleka rebel alliance. 
 
The coup sparked a cycle of tit-for-tat attacks by the Muslim forces and Christian vigilantes known as &quot;anti-balaka&quot; (anti-machete) militias, in which thousands of people were slaughtered. 
 
The trouble has subsided significantly in the past year. 
 
But the UNHCR warned Friday that the new clashes had forced more people from their homes. 
 
Refugees told UNHCR workers they had seen &quot;killings, kidnappings, looting and the torching of their homes,&quot; the agency said. 
 
Most of those fleeing were &quot;exhausted, weak and hungry&quot; and needed &quot;urgent aid&quot;, the refugee body said. 
 
Before the latest upsurge in violence, UNHCR was already helping provide protection to 67,000 Central African refugees in Chad, and 260,000 in Cameroon, with an additional 415,000 people displaced inside the country. 
 
The agency said it had appealed for $225.5 million to finance its operations linked to the Central African Republic crisis this year, but so far has only received $24.7 million. 
 
(AFP)

The violence comes as the former French colony struggles to recover from over a year of sectarian bloodletting

Thousands of people have fled renewed violence in the Central African Republic to neighbouring Chad and Cameroon, the United Nations said Friday, voicing fears that many more could follow. The UN refugee agency said that it had helped register 5,643 Central African refugees in Chad, in the villages of Sourouh and Mini next to the border, in recent weeks. Another 555 refugees had crossed to Yamba village in eastern Cameroon, UNHCR said. "The exodus began on June 12 when clashes erupted between livestock herders and local arable farmers in and around the north-west town of Ngaoundaye, Ouham Pende region," it said in a statement. The agency pointed out that such clashes typically occur when herders move their animals across the land, but warned that "this year, disturbingly, rival ex-Seleka and anti-Balaka militias have become involved." The violence comes as the former French colony struggles to recover from over a year of sectarian bloodletting, which drove half a million people from their homes starting in 2013. Central African Republic, one of the world's poorest countries, was plunged into chaos by the ousting in March that year of long-serving president Francois Bozize, a Christian, by the mainly Muslim Seleka rebel alliance. The coup sparked a cycle of tit-for-tat attacks by the Muslim forces and Christian vigilantes known as "anti-balaka" (anti-machete) militias, in which thousands of people were slaughtered. The trouble has subsided significantly in the past year. But the UNHCR warned Friday that the new clashes had forced more people from their homes. Refugees told UNHCR workers they had seen "killings, kidnappings, looting and the torching of their homes," the agency said. Most of those fleeing were "exhausted, weak and hungry" and needed "urgent aid", the refugee body said. Before the latest upsurge in violence, UNHCR was already helping provide protection to 67,000 Central African refugees in Chad, and 260,000 in Cameroon, with an additional 415,000 people displaced inside the country. The agency said it had appealed for $225.5 million to finance its operations linked to the Central African Republic crisis this year, but so far has only received $24.7 million. (AFP)

Thousands flee renewed central Africa violence: UN

Israel has approved hundreds of new settler homes in the occupied West Bank, an official said Monday, in a move likely to further raise tensions following a series of Palestinian attacks. 
 
The approval comes days after a key international report warned that Israel&#39;s settlement expansion and land confiscation were eroding the possibility of a two-state solution to the conflict. 
 
The report from the diplomatic Quartet, the United States, European Union, United Nations and Russia, also called on Palestinians to halt attacks and incitement to violence. 
 
Under the new approval granted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman, planning for 560 new homes in the large Maale Adumim settlement east of Jerusalem will be allowed to move forward. 
 
The Maale Adumim mayor was informed of the decision on Sunday night, a spokesman for him told AFP. The settlement established in 1975 already includes a population of more than 37,000. 
 
Netanyahu also gave approval for the planning of 240 new homes in east Jerusalem settlement neighbourhoods, as well as for 600 units for Palestinians in the city&#39;s Beit Safafa district, media reported. 
 
The offices of Netanyahu and Lieberman refused to comment on the reports of the approvals for homes in east Jerusalem or Maale Adumim. 
 
The decision follows calls among Israelis for a harsh response to a spate of Palestinian attacks in recent days. 
 
On Thursday, 13-year-old Israeli-American Hallel Yaffa Ariel was fatally stabbed in the settlement of Kiryat Arba on the outskirts of the flashpoint West Bank city of Hebron. 
 
Her 19-year-old Palestinian assailant was then shot dead by a security guard. 
 
A day later, Sarah Tarayra, 27, was shot dead after drawing a knife on Israeli forces in Hebron. She was a relative of the Kiryat Arba attacker, and both were from Bani Naim, a village just outside Hebron. 
 
Also on Friday, 48-year-old Israeli Michael Mark was killed after his car was fired on by suspected Palestinian gunmen south of Hebron. 
 
&#39;Aggressive measures&#39; 
 
Israel on Friday announced a lockdown in Hebron as it searched for the gunmen and a reduction in monthly tax payments to the Palestinian Authority after the attacks. 
 
The amount is to be cut by the equivalent of the fiscal support paid to militants&#39; families, Netanyahu&#39;s office said. 
 
Israel transfers around $127 million in customs duties levied on goods destined for Palestinian markets that transit through Israeli ports monthly. 
 
The measures, which also included increasing Israel&#39;s military presence in the West Bank, were described by the army as &quot;the most substantial&quot; in two years. 
 
&quot;We are using various means, including aggressive measures that we have not used in the past,&quot; Netanyahu told a cabinet meeting on Sunday. 
 
&quot;This includes cordoning off the entire Hebron district -- 700,000 people,&quot; he said, referring to the city and surrounding area. 
 
Checkpoints and closures were still in place at entrances to the city on Monday. 
 
Hebron has long been a flashpoint in the conflict, with hundreds of Jewish settlers living under heavy military guard in the heart of the city among some 200,000 Palestinians. 
 
A wave of violence since October has killed at least 214 Palestinians, 34 Israelis, two Americans, an Eritrean and a Sudanese. 
 
Most of the Palestinians killed were carrying out knife, gun or car-ramming attacks, Israeli authorities say. 
 
Others were shot dead by Israeli security forces during protests and clashes or killed in Israeli air strikes in the Gaza Strip. 
 
The violence had subsided in recent weeks, but a deadly shooting at a cafe in Tel Aviv by two Palestinians on June 8 and last week&#39;s series of attacks have raised concern. 
 
During a recent visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories, UN chief Ban Ki-moon condemned Palestinian attacks as &quot;terrorism&quot; but also said Israel must act to address &quot;key underlying causes of violence.&quot; 
 
They included &quot;growing Palestinian anger, the paralysis of the peace process, the nearly a half-century of occupation,&quot; Ban said. 
 
Peace talks have been at a complete standstill since a US-led initiative collapsed in April 2014. 
 
(AFP)

The decision follows calls among Israelis for a harsh response to a spate of Palestinian attacks in recent days

Israel has approved hundreds of new settler homes in the occupied West Bank, an official said Monday, in a move likely to further raise tensions following a series of Palestinian attacks. The approval comes days after a key international report warned that Israel's settlement expansion and land confiscation were eroding the possibility of a two-state solution to the conflict. The report from the diplomatic Quartet, the United States, European Union, United Nations and Russia, also called on Palestinians to halt attacks and incitement to violence. Under the new approval granted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman, planning for 560 new homes in the large Maale Adumim settlement east of Jerusalem will be allowed to move forward. The Maale Adumim mayor was informed of the decision on Sunday night, a spokesman for him told AFP. The settlement established in 1975 already includes a population of more than 37,000. Netanyahu also gave approval for the planning of 240 new homes in east Jerusalem settlement neighbourhoods, as well as for 600 units for Palestinians in the city's Beit Safafa district, media reported. The offices of Netanyahu and Lieberman refused to comment on the reports of the approvals for homes in east Jerusalem or Maale Adumim. The decision follows calls among Israelis for a harsh response to a spate of Palestinian attacks in recent days. On Thursday, 13-year-old Israeli-American Hallel Yaffa Ariel was fatally stabbed in the settlement of Kiryat Arba on the outskirts of the flashpoint West Bank city of Hebron. Her 19-year-old Palestinian assailant was then shot dead by a security guard. A day later, Sarah Tarayra, 27, was shot dead after drawing a knife on Israeli forces in Hebron. She was a relative of the Kiryat Arba attacker, and both were from Bani Naim, a village just outside Hebron. Also on Friday, 48-year-old Israeli Michael Mark was killed after his car was fired on by suspected Palestinian gunmen south of Hebron. 'Aggressive measures' Israel on Friday announced a lockdown in Hebron as it searched for the gunmen and a reduction in monthly tax payments to the Palestinian Authority after the attacks. The amount is to be cut by the equivalent of the fiscal support paid to militants' families, Netanyahu's office said. Israel transfers around $127 million in customs duties levied on goods destined for Palestinian markets that transit through Israeli ports monthly. The measures, which also included increasing Israel's military presence in the West Bank, were described by the army as "the most substantial" in two years. "We are using various means, including aggressive measures that we have not used in the past," Netanyahu told a cabinet meeting on Sunday. "This includes cordoning off the entire Hebron district -- 700,000 people," he said, referring to the city and surrounding area. Checkpoints and closures were still in place at entrances to the city on Monday. Hebron has long been a flashpoint in the conflict, with hundreds of Jewish settlers living under heavy military guard in the heart of the city among some 200,000 Palestinians. A wave of violence since October has killed at least 214 Palestinians, 34 Israelis, two Americans, an Eritrean and a Sudanese. Most of the Palestinians killed were carrying out knife, gun or car-ramming attacks, Israeli authorities say. Others were shot dead by Israeli security forces during protests and clashes or killed in Israeli air strikes in the Gaza Strip. The violence had subsided in recent weeks, but a deadly shooting at a cafe in Tel Aviv by two Palestinians on June 8 and last week's series of attacks have raised concern. During a recent visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories, UN chief Ban Ki-moon condemned Palestinian attacks as "terrorism" but also said Israel must act to address "key underlying causes of violence." They included "growing Palestinian anger, the paralysis of the peace process, the nearly a half-century of occupation," Ban said. Peace talks have been at a complete standstill since a US-led initiative collapsed in April 2014. (AFP)

Israel approves hundreds of new settler homes after attacks

A mob wielding weapons razed a Muslim prayer hall in northern Myanmar, state media reported Saturday. This is the second attack on a mosque in just over a week as anti-Muslim sentiment swells in the Buddhist-majority nation. 
 
Myanmar has struggled to contain bouts of deadly religious bloodshed in recent years, with bristling sectarian tensions and rising Buddhist nationalism posing a steep challenge to the new government led by Aung San Suu Kyi.&nbsp; 
 
On Friday villagers in Hpakant, a jade-mining town in northern Kachin state, ransacked a mosque &quot;wielding sticks, knives and other weapons&quot; before burning it down, according to the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar. 
 
&quot;The mob was unresponsive and entirely beyond control. The building was razed by the riotous crowd,&quot; the paper reported, adding that the rampage was sparked by a dispute over the mosque`s construction. &nbsp;No arrests have been made, it said. 
 
UN investigator calls on government to take strict action 
The riot coincided with the end of a 12-day visit by a United Nations rights investigator who warned that &quot;tensions along religious lines remain pervasive across Myanmar society&quot;. 
 
In a press conference concluding her trip Friday, Yanghee Lee called on authorities to investigate the destruction of another mosque in central Bago late last month.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;The government must demonstrate that instigating and committing violence against an ethnic or religious minority community has no place in Myanmar,&quot; she said. 
 
Religious intolerance has mushroomed across the country in recent years, threatening to unravel advances towards democracy since the former junta stepped down in 2011. 
 
Authorities, however, have been reluctant to launch prosecutions out of fear of stoking further unrest. 
 
Rohingya still bearing brunt of worst religious violence&nbsp; 
The worst religious violence struck western Rakhine State in 2012, leaving scores dead and pushing tens of thousands of the stateless Muslim Rohingya into destitute displacement camps.&nbsp; 
 
The state remains almost completely divided on religious grounds, with Muslim communities subject to a host of restrictions on their movements and access to basic services and employment. 
 
Lee urged the country`s new government to make ending &quot;institutionalised discrimination against Muslim communities in state... an urgent priority&quot;. 
 
Suu Kyi, the Noble peace prize winner who championed her country&#39;s struggle against a repressive military regime, has dismayed rights groups by not taking swifter moves to carve out a solution for the Rohingya.&nbsp; 
 
(AFP)

This is the second attack on a mosque in just over a week

A mob wielding weapons razed a Muslim prayer hall in northern Myanmar, state media reported Saturday. This is the second attack on a mosque in just over a week as anti-Muslim sentiment swells in the Buddhist-majority nation. Myanmar has struggled to contain bouts of deadly religious bloodshed in recent years, with bristling sectarian tensions and rising Buddhist nationalism posing a steep challenge to the new government led by Aung San Suu Kyi. On Friday villagers in Hpakant, a jade-mining town in northern Kachin state, ransacked a mosque "wielding sticks, knives and other weapons" before burning it down, according to the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar. "The mob was unresponsive and entirely beyond control. The building was razed by the riotous crowd," the paper reported, adding that the rampage was sparked by a dispute over the mosque`s construction. No arrests have been made, it said. UN investigator calls on government to take strict action The riot coincided with the end of a 12-day visit by a United Nations rights investigator who warned that "tensions along religious lines remain pervasive across Myanmar society". In a press conference concluding her trip Friday, Yanghee Lee called on authorities to investigate the destruction of another mosque in central Bago late last month. "The government must demonstrate that instigating and committing violence against an ethnic or religious minority community has no place in Myanmar," she said. Religious intolerance has mushroomed across the country in recent years, threatening to unravel advances towards democracy since the former junta stepped down in 2011. Authorities, however, have been reluctant to launch prosecutions out of fear of stoking further unrest. Rohingya still bearing brunt of worst religious violence The worst religious violence struck western Rakhine State in 2012, leaving scores dead and pushing tens of thousands of the stateless Muslim Rohingya into destitute displacement camps. The state remains almost completely divided on religious grounds, with Muslim communities subject to a host of restrictions on their movements and access to basic services and employment. Lee urged the country`s new government to make ending "institutionalised discrimination against Muslim communities in state... an urgent priority". Suu Kyi, the Noble peace prize winner who championed her country's struggle against a repressive military regime, has dismayed rights groups by not taking swifter moves to carve out a solution for the Rohingya. (AFP)

Mob razes mosque in northern Myanmar

A Palestinian attacker fatally stabbed a US-Israeli teenager in her home at a Jewish settlement in the West Bank before being shot dead by security guards on Thursday.&nbsp; 
 
The Israeli army said the young Palestinian killed the 13-year-old in her bed after breaking into her home in the Kiryat Arba settlement outside the flashpoint city of Hebron. 
 
Security personnel rushed to the house and fired on the attacker, who wounded a guard before being shot dead, it said. 
 
Girl also held US citizenship&nbsp; 
 
The girl was taken to hospital in Jerusalem in critical condition and died of her wounds.&nbsp; 
 
The State Department said later that she also held US citizenship. 
 
The attacker was identified by the Palestinian health ministry as Mohammed Nasser Tarayra, 19, from the village of Bani Naim, just outside the city, in the south of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. 
 
Hallel Yaffa Ariel&#39;s family said she was attacked in her sleep, and the military released a photograph of her blood-spattered bedroom. 
 
As mourners visited the family home, the girl&#39;s father said she had been sleeping late after a dance performance the night before and that he had been on his way to the house to wake her for work when he heard of the attack. 
 
She worked in his winery during the summer vacation which just started, he told AFP.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;At the first moment I thought everything was well, but I knew deep in my heart she was not alive,&quot; said Amichai Ariel, 59 and added, &quot;I shouted at her.&quot; 
 
Assailaint&rsquo;s home village sealed off after attack&nbsp; 
 
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held talks with Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman after the attack, and the home village of the assailant was sealed off. 
 
Israeli work permits for members of Tarayra&#39;s extended family were also to be revoked and authorities began procedures aimed at demolishing his home, a measure often taken against attackers. 
 
&quot;I expect the Palestinian leadership to clearly and unequivocally condemn this vicious murder and take immediate action to stop the incitement,&quot; Netanyahu said. 
 
&quot;The entire world needs to condemn this murder just as it condemned the terrorist attacks in Orlando (Florida) and Brussels,&quot; he added.&nbsp; 
 
The European Union (EU) also expressed its &quot;deepest sympathies to the family and friends of the victim.&quot; 
 
&quot;Hallel Yaffa Ariel was brutally murdered in her home in Kiryat Arba,&quot; it said. &quot;There can be no justification for such acts of terror.&quot; 
 
Hours later in the town of Netanya, on the Mediterranean coast north of Tel Aviv, a Palestinian from the northern West Bank stabbed a man and woman, both Israelis, before being shot dead by a passing civilian, police said. 
 
 
A flashpoint city- Hebron 
 
Hebron has been a flashpoint in a spate of deadly unrest that has rocked Israel and the Palestinian territories since last October. 
 
Hundreds of Jewish settlers live in a tightly guarded enclave in the heart of the city of more than 200,000 Palestinians, a persistent source of tensions. 
 
In New York on Thursday, the UN envoy on Middle East peace said that a report by the diplomatic Quartet, expected to be release on Friday, demands Israel take urgent steps to halt the expansion of settlements. 
 
Nickolay Mladenov told the Security Council that ongoing Israeli construction in the West Bank was one of three &quot;negative trends&quot; that must be quickly reversed to keep the hope of an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal alive. 
 
Palestinian incitement to violence and the Palestinian authority&#39;s lack of control over the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip also &quot;severely undermine hopes for peace&quot;, Mladenov said. 
 
Violence since October has killed at least 212 Palestinians, 33 Israelis, two Americans, an Eritrean and a Sudanese. 
 
Most of the Palestinians were carrying out knife, gun or car-ramming attacks, according to Israeli authorities. 
 
Others were killed in clashes with security forces or by Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip. 
 
Negotiations between Israel, Palestine at a standstill since 2014&nbsp; 
 
Analysts say Palestinian frustration with Israeli occupation and settlement-building in the West Bank, the complete lack of progress in peace efforts and their own fractured leadership have fed the unrest. 
 
Israel says incitement by Palestinian leaders and media is a leading cause of the violence. 
 
On a visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories this week, UN chief Ban Ki-moon condemned the recent wave of attacks as &quot;terrorism&quot;. 
 
But he urged Israel to address the &quot;key underlying causes of violence&quot; including &quot;growing Palestinian anger, the paralysis of the peace process, the nearly a half-century of occupation&quot;. 
 
Negotiations between the Israelis and Palestinians have been at a standstill since a US-led initiative collapsed in April 2014. 
 
France, however, is planning to hold an international conference before the end of the year in a bid to restart the peace process. 
 
Israel opposes the French initiative, calling instead for bilateral negotiations, while Palestinian leaders have expressed support for it. 
 
(AFP)&nbsp;

She was a settler. The boy broke into her home in the West Bank, stabbed her while she was in bed

A Palestinian attacker fatally stabbed a US-Israeli teenager in her home at a Jewish settlement in the West Bank before being shot dead by security guards on Thursday. The Israeli army said the young Palestinian killed the 13-year-old in her bed after breaking into her home in the Kiryat Arba settlement outside the flashpoint city of Hebron. Security personnel rushed to the house and fired on the attacker, who wounded a guard before being shot dead, it said. Girl also held US citizenship The girl was taken to hospital in Jerusalem in critical condition and died of her wounds. The State Department said later that she also held US citizenship. The attacker was identified by the Palestinian health ministry as Mohammed Nasser Tarayra, 19, from the village of Bani Naim, just outside the city, in the south of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Hallel Yaffa Ariel's family said she was attacked in her sleep, and the military released a photograph of her blood-spattered bedroom. As mourners visited the family home, the girl's father said she had been sleeping late after a dance performance the night before and that he had been on his way to the house to wake her for work when he heard of the attack. She worked in his winery during the summer vacation which just started, he told AFP. "At the first moment I thought everything was well, but I knew deep in my heart she was not alive," said Amichai Ariel, 59 and added, "I shouted at her." Assailaint’s home village sealed off after attack Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held talks with Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman after the attack, and the home village of the assailant was sealed off. Israeli work permits for members of Tarayra's extended family were also to be revoked and authorities began procedures aimed at demolishing his home, a measure often taken against attackers. "I expect the Palestinian leadership to clearly and unequivocally condemn this vicious murder and take immediate action to stop the incitement," Netanyahu said. "The entire world needs to condemn this murder just as it condemned the terrorist attacks in Orlando (Florida) and Brussels," he added. The European Union (EU) also expressed its "deepest sympathies to the family and friends of the victim." "Hallel Yaffa Ariel was brutally murdered in her home in Kiryat Arba," it said. "There can be no justification for such acts of terror." Hours later in the town of Netanya, on the Mediterranean coast north of Tel Aviv, a Palestinian from the northern West Bank stabbed a man and woman, both Israelis, before being shot dead by a passing civilian, police said. A flashpoint city- Hebron Hebron has been a flashpoint in a spate of deadly unrest that has rocked Israel and the Palestinian territories since last October. Hundreds of Jewish settlers live in a tightly guarded enclave in the heart of the city of more than 200,000 Palestinians, a persistent source of tensions. In New York on Thursday, the UN envoy on Middle East peace said that a report by the diplomatic Quartet, expected to be release on Friday, demands Israel take urgent steps to halt the expansion of settlements. Nickolay Mladenov told the Security Council that ongoing Israeli construction in the West Bank was one of three "negative trends" that must be quickly reversed to keep the hope of an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal alive. Palestinian incitement to violence and the Palestinian authority's lack of control over the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip also "severely undermine hopes for peace", Mladenov said. Violence since October has killed at least 212 Palestinians, 33 Israelis, two Americans, an Eritrean and a Sudanese. Most of the Palestinians were carrying out knife, gun or car-ramming attacks, according to Israeli authorities. Others were killed in clashes with security forces or by Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip. Negotiations between Israel, Palestine at a standstill since 2014 Analysts say Palestinian frustration with Israeli occupation and settlement-building in the West Bank, the complete lack of progress in peace efforts and their own fractured leadership have fed the unrest. Israel says incitement by Palestinian leaders and media is a leading cause of the violence. On a visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories this week, UN chief Ban Ki-moon condemned the recent wave of attacks as "terrorism". But he urged Israel to address the "key underlying causes of violence" including "growing Palestinian anger, the paralysis of the peace process, the nearly a half-century of occupation". Negotiations between the Israelis and Palestinians have been at a standstill since a US-led initiative collapsed in April 2014. France, however, is planning to hold an international conference before the end of the year in a bid to restart the peace process. Israel opposes the French initiative, calling instead for bilateral negotiations, while Palestinian leaders have expressed support for it. (AFP)

19-year-old Palestinian boy kills 13-year-old US-Israeli girl

The UN General Assembly on Thursday elected Italy to the Security Council under a deal that will see the Netherlands take over the seat in a year. 
 
The two countries agreed to split the two-year term on the council after five rounds of voting earlier this week ended with a tie. 
 
Under the deal, Italy will take up the seat on January 1 and then make way for the Netherlands to take over in 2018. 
 
The arrangement is rare but not unprecedented at the United Nations. 
 
The last split term was in 1964-65 between what was then Czechoslovakia and Malaysia. 
 
Italy was elected with 179 votes in the General Assembly, which has 193 member states. 
 
During elections on Tuesday, Kazkahstan was elected to the council for the first time along with Bolivia, Ethiopia and Sweden. 
 
The newly-elected countries will take their place alongside the five permanent council members -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States. 
 
The other five non-permanent members are: Egypt, Japan, Senegal, Ukraine and Uruguay. 
 
(AFP)

The two countries agreed to split the two-year term after five rounds of voting ended with a tie

The UN General Assembly on Thursday elected Italy to the Security Council under a deal that will see the Netherlands take over the seat in a year. The two countries agreed to split the two-year term on the council after five rounds of voting earlier this week ended with a tie. Under the deal, Italy will take up the seat on January 1 and then make way for the Netherlands to take over in 2018. The arrangement is rare but not unprecedented at the United Nations. The last split term was in 1964-65 between what was then Czechoslovakia and Malaysia. Italy was elected with 179 votes in the General Assembly, which has 193 member states. During elections on Tuesday, Kazkahstan was elected to the council for the first time along with Bolivia, Ethiopia and Sweden. The newly-elected countries will take their place alongside the five permanent council members -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States. The other five non-permanent members are: Egypt, Japan, Senegal, Ukraine and Uruguay. (AFP)

UN elects Italy, Netherlands to share Security Council seat

A group of men from a village in central Myanmar destroyed a mosque in the first serious outburst of inter-religious violence in months, coinciding with a rise in tensions over how to refer to the Rohingya, the country&#39;s persecuted Muslim minority. 
 
Villagers from Thayethamin, a remote settlement a two-hours&#39; drive northeast of Myanmar&#39;s largest city, Yangon, destroyed the mosque on Thursday after a dispute over its construction, and beat up at least one Muslim man, media and a police spokesman said. 
 
Religious tensions simmered in Myanmar for almost half a century of military rule, before boiling over in 2012, just a year after a semi-civilian government took power. 
 
Hundreds died in clashes in northwestern Rakhine State between Rohingya Muslims and ethnic Rakhine Buddhists, leading to the organised expulsion of Rohingya by Rakhine mobs. More violence between Muslims and Buddhists in other parts of the country followed in 2013. 
 
Photographs that circulated on social media on Friday, purportedly from the village, showed a seriously damaged building, furniture scattered along the streets and a large group of men roaming around, some armed with sticks. 
 
Further details of the incident were unclear. Reuters was unable to verify the photographs. 
 
&quot;Things are well under control now and action hasn&#39;t been taken against anyone yet,&quot; said colonel Zaw Khin Aung, spokesman of the Police Headquarters based in Myanmar&#39;s capital, Naypyitaw. 
 
The violence coincides with a rise in tensions over how to refer to the Rohingya, a 1.1-million group of Muslims living in apartheid-like conditions in Rakhine since the 2012 violence. 
 
Country leader Aung San Suu Kyi, whose party won in a landslide in historic November elections, faces a daunting task of resolving ethnic and religious tensions and ending human rights abuses in the state. 
 
On Monday, she told the UN Rapporteur on Human Rights in Myanmar, Yanghee Lee, that the government would not use the term &quot;Rohingya&quot; because it viewed it as inflammatory. 
 
The Rohingya identify themselves by that name. Many have lived in Myanmar for generations, but many Myanmar Buddhists call them &quot;Bengali&quot; - a term implying they are illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. 
 
Suu Kyi has appealed to people not to use either term, and instead refer to the &quot;Muslim community in Rakhine State&quot;. 
 
The UN on Monday called on the Nobel peace prize winner to make putting an end to the abuses the government&#39;s &quot;top priority&quot;. It said that the violations, which include executions and torture, may amount to crimes against humanity. 
 
(Reuters)

Abuses against Myanmar's Muslim Rohingya population include executions and torture, and may amount to crimes against humanity

A group of men from a village in central Myanmar destroyed a mosque in the first serious outburst of inter-religious violence in months, coinciding with a rise in tensions over how to refer to the Rohingya, the country's persecuted Muslim minority. Villagers from Thayethamin, a remote settlement a two-hours' drive northeast of Myanmar's largest city, Yangon, destroyed the mosque on Thursday after a dispute over its construction, and beat up at least one Muslim man, media and a police spokesman said. Religious tensions simmered in Myanmar for almost half a century of military rule, before boiling over in 2012, just a year after a semi-civilian government took power. Hundreds died in clashes in northwestern Rakhine State between Rohingya Muslims and ethnic Rakhine Buddhists, leading to the organised expulsion of Rohingya by Rakhine mobs. More violence between Muslims and Buddhists in other parts of the country followed in 2013. Photographs that circulated on social media on Friday, purportedly from the village, showed a seriously damaged building, furniture scattered along the streets and a large group of men roaming around, some armed with sticks. Further details of the incident were unclear. Reuters was unable to verify the photographs. "Things are well under control now and action hasn't been taken against anyone yet," said colonel Zaw Khin Aung, spokesman of the Police Headquarters based in Myanmar's capital, Naypyitaw. The violence coincides with a rise in tensions over how to refer to the Rohingya, a 1.1-million group of Muslims living in apartheid-like conditions in Rakhine since the 2012 violence. Country leader Aung San Suu Kyi, whose party won in a landslide in historic November elections, faces a daunting task of resolving ethnic and religious tensions and ending human rights abuses in the state. On Monday, she told the UN Rapporteur on Human Rights in Myanmar, Yanghee Lee, that the government would not use the term "Rohingya" because it viewed it as inflammatory. The Rohingya identify themselves by that name. Many have lived in Myanmar for generations, but many Myanmar Buddhists call them "Bengali" - a term implying they are illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. Suu Kyi has appealed to people not to use either term, and instead refer to the "Muslim community in Rakhine State". The UN on Monday called on the Nobel peace prize winner to make putting an end to the abuses the government's "top priority". It said that the violations, which include executions and torture, may amount to crimes against humanity. (Reuters)

Mosque demolished in Myanmar as religious, ethnic tension rise

John Ashe, a former United Nations General Assembly president accused by US prosecutors of taking $1.3 million in bribes from Chinese businessmen, has died at 61, his lawyer said on Wednesday. 
 
The death of Ashe, a former UN ambassador from Antigua and Barbuda who served as General Assembly president from 2013 to 2014 and was arrested in October on federal charges, was confirmed by his lawyer, Jeremy Schneider. 
 
Asked if his client had died from a heart attack as reported by an Antiguan media outlet, Schneider said that was his understanding. But he later clarified that he did not know the cause of death. 
 
Ashe&#39;s death marked a surprising turn in the corruption investigation, in which seven people have been charged to date. He had been in plea talks as recently as last month as prosecutors mulled further charges. 
 
The status of those plea talks was not immediately clear. Schneider said his client had been preparing for trial. 
 
A spokesman for Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara, whose office was pursuing the case, had no immediate comment. 
 
Prosecutors said Ashe received more than $500,000 in bribes from billionaire Macau real estate developer Ng Lap Seng to seek UN&rsquo;s support of a United Nations-sponsored conference centre in Macau that Ng&rsquo;s company would develop. 
 
Those bribes were paid through intermediaries that included Francis Lorenzo, a suspended deputy UN ambassador from the Dominican Republic, and Jeff Yin, Ng&rsquo;s assistant, prosecutors said. 
 
Lorenzo pleaded guilty in March while Ng and Yin have pleaded not guilty. 
 
Prosecutors said Ashe also received more than $800,000 from Chinese businessmen to support their interests within the United Nations and Antigua. 
 
Those bribes were arranged through Sheri Yan, who was the Global Sustainability Foundation&#39;s chief executive, and Heidi Hong Piao, the non-governmental organisation&rsquo;s finance director, prosecutors said. Both women pleaded guilty in January. 
 
Authorities said Ashe solicited bribes in various forms, including payments to cover a New Orleans family vacation and construction of a $30,000 basketball court at his house in Dobbs Ferry, New York. 
 
At the time of his death, Ashe had only been charged with tax fraud in connection with the bribes, amid questions about whether diplomatic immunity might preclude any bribery charges. 
 
But at a May 9 hearing, Assistant US Attorney Daniel Richenthal said prosecutors were planning to seek a new indictment in the case against Ashe. 
 
Ashe is survived by his wife, Anilla Cherian, and two children. 
 
(Reuters)

61-year-old John Ashe was accused of taking a bribe of more than $500,000 from a Chinese real estate developer in lieu of UN support

John Ashe, a former United Nations General Assembly president accused by US prosecutors of taking $1.3 million in bribes from Chinese businessmen, has died at 61, his lawyer said on Wednesday. The death of Ashe, a former UN ambassador from Antigua and Barbuda who served as General Assembly president from 2013 to 2014 and was arrested in October on federal charges, was confirmed by his lawyer, Jeremy Schneider. Asked if his client had died from a heart attack as reported by an Antiguan media outlet, Schneider said that was his understanding. But he later clarified that he did not know the cause of death. Ashe's death marked a surprising turn in the corruption investigation, in which seven people have been charged to date. He had been in plea talks as recently as last month as prosecutors mulled further charges. The status of those plea talks was not immediately clear. Schneider said his client had been preparing for trial. A spokesman for Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara, whose office was pursuing the case, had no immediate comment. Prosecutors said Ashe received more than $500,000 in bribes from billionaire Macau real estate developer Ng Lap Seng to seek UN’s support of a United Nations-sponsored conference centre in Macau that Ng’s company would develop. Those bribes were paid through intermediaries that included Francis Lorenzo, a suspended deputy UN ambassador from the Dominican Republic, and Jeff Yin, Ng’s assistant, prosecutors said. Lorenzo pleaded guilty in March while Ng and Yin have pleaded not guilty. Prosecutors said Ashe also received more than $800,000 from Chinese businessmen to support their interests within the United Nations and Antigua. Those bribes were arranged through Sheri Yan, who was the Global Sustainability Foundation's chief executive, and Heidi Hong Piao, the non-governmental organisation’s finance director, prosecutors said. Both women pleaded guilty in January. Authorities said Ashe solicited bribes in various forms, including payments to cover a New Orleans family vacation and construction of a $30,000 basketball court at his house in Dobbs Ferry, New York. At the time of his death, Ashe had only been charged with tax fraud in connection with the bribes, amid questions about whether diplomatic immunity might preclude any bribery charges. But at a May 9 hearing, Assistant US Attorney Daniel Richenthal said prosecutors were planning to seek a new indictment in the case against Ashe. Ashe is survived by his wife, Anilla Cherian, and two children. (Reuters)

Ex-UN General Assembly president in US bribery case dies

India, along with other G-4 countries, has called for reflecting the convergences that have emerged so far on issues, including Veto, in the inter-governmental parleys on Security Council reform. 
 
In a statement on behalf of the G4 countries, India&#39;s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin, said that a large number of member-states, including the G4, called for incorporation of elements of convergence achieved so far on all five key issues, including the question of Veto, categories of membership and regional representation in a consolidated and streamlined text. 
 
Other G-4 nations are Brazil,Germany and Japan. 
 
&quot;The G-4 would like to reiterate its call for reflecting the convergences that have emerged so far and also to include in the elements paper the divergent positions in the other three key areas,&quot; Akbaruddin said at the Informal Meeting of the General Assembly on the Intergovernmental Negotiations (IGN) on Security Council reform here yesterday. 
 
He said the elements paper could complement the framework document and its annex in forming a concrete basis for text based negotiations in the next session of the IGN. 
 
The G-4 has also called for submission of proposals and positions to the framework document and its annex circulated by the letter of President of the 69th session of the General Assembly dated July 2015 by those Groups/Member- States who have not yet submitted their proposals. 
 
&quot;We would like to encourage them again to do so and make positive contributions to the process. Our Group remains open to discuss all options,&quot; he said. 
 
During the last informal IGN meeting in May, Akbaruddin on behalf of the G4 had decried the &quot;out of date&quot; structure of the UN Security Council, saying the problem of &quot;imbalance of influence&quot; in the Council cannot be corrected if only non-permanent members are added to the powerful UN body as part of its reform. Expansion in both categories is essential to achieve equilibrium that reflects current global realities, he said. 
 
The G-4 had called for a consolidated and shortened negotiating text reflecting the convergences and delineated divergent positions that had emerged so far. 
 
On the key issue of regional representation, the G-4 had said it is &quot;untenable&quot; that entire continents such as Africa are not represented or under-represented in the permanent category of the Security Council. 
 
Outlining the G-4&#39;s position on the issue of categories of membership, Akbaruddin had said in the May meeting that it is evident from the positions submitted in the text circulated by former UNGA President in July 2015 that an overwhelming majority of member states support expansion in both categories. 
 
In all, 129 member states out of a total 152 or about around 85 per cent support expansion in both categories. 
 
He had urged the IGN chair to consolidate the names of those in favour of the expansion as well as those proposing additions of 5-6 countries in the permanent category. 
 
(PTI)

India, along with other G-4 countries, has called for reflecting convergences on UN reforms

India, along with other G-4 countries, has called for reflecting the convergences that have emerged so far on issues, including Veto, in the inter-governmental parleys on Security Council reform. In a statement on behalf of the G4 countries, India's Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin, said that a large number of member-states, including the G4, called for incorporation of elements of convergence achieved so far on all five key issues, including the question of Veto, categories of membership and regional representation in a consolidated and streamlined text. Other G-4 nations are Brazil,Germany and Japan. "The G-4 would like to reiterate its call for reflecting the convergences that have emerged so far and also to include in the elements paper the divergent positions in the other three key areas," Akbaruddin said at the Informal Meeting of the General Assembly on the Intergovernmental Negotiations (IGN) on Security Council reform here yesterday. He said the elements paper could complement the framework document and its annex in forming a concrete basis for text based negotiations in the next session of the IGN. The G-4 has also called for submission of proposals and positions to the framework document and its annex circulated by the letter of President of the 69th session of the General Assembly dated July 2015 by those Groups/Member- States who have not yet submitted their proposals. "We would like to encourage them again to do so and make positive contributions to the process. Our Group remains open to discuss all options," he said. During the last informal IGN meeting in May, Akbaruddin on behalf of the G4 had decried the "out of date" structure of the UN Security Council, saying the problem of "imbalance of influence" in the Council cannot be corrected if only non-permanent members are added to the powerful UN body as part of its reform. Expansion in both categories is essential to achieve equilibrium that reflects current global realities, he said. The G-4 had called for a consolidated and shortened negotiating text reflecting the convergences and delineated divergent positions that had emerged so far. On the key issue of regional representation, the G-4 had said it is "untenable" that entire continents such as Africa are not represented or under-represented in the permanent category of the Security Council. Outlining the G-4's position on the issue of categories of membership, Akbaruddin had said in the May meeting that it is evident from the positions submitted in the text circulated by former UNGA President in July 2015 that an overwhelming majority of member states support expansion in both categories. In all, 129 member states out of a total 152 or about around 85 per cent support expansion in both categories. He had urged the IGN chair to consolidate the names of those in favour of the expansion as well as those proposing additions of 5-6 countries in the permanent category. (PTI)

G4 nations call for reflecting convergences on UN reforms

India has demanded that the UN slaps sanctions against the new Taliban leader in Afghanistan, saying it is &quot;sheer folly&quot; that the leader of a proscribed entity is not yet designated as a terrorist individual. 
 
&quot;It is sheer folly that the leader of a proscribed entity is not yet designated as a terrorist individual,&quot; India&#39;s permanent representative to the UN ambassador Syed Akbaruddin said at a security council debate on the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) here yesterday. 
 
Supporting New Zealand&#39;s position that the anamoly should be corrected, Akbaruddin said the new Taliban leader should be sanctioned. 
 
The Taliban had named Mawlawi Haibatullah Akhundzada, a conservative cleric in his 50s, as its new leader after Mullah Akhtar Mansour was killed in an American drone strike last month. 
 
US state department&#39;s deputy spokesperson Mark Toner had said in a press briefing then that Akhundzada was not on any kind of a terrorist designated list. 
 
Akbaruddin further emphasised that groups and individuals perpetrating violence against the people and government of Afghanistan cannot have safe havens and should not be allowed to exercise control and wield influence over any part of Afghanistan&#39;s territory. 
 
&quot;This, in our view, is critical for lasting peace in the country,&quot; he said adding that effective implementation of the security council sanctions regime including the 1267 ISIL/al-Qaeda sanctions and 1988 Taliban&#39;s regime should also be carried out &quot;consistently and with perseverance&quot; for it to serve as a strong deterrent to the listed entities and individuals. 
 
Previously, India has slammed the UN sanctions committee for taking a &quot;selective approach&quot; in tackling terrorism when a technical hold was put on its application to include the name of Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar on the committee&#39;s list of designated terrorists. 
 
India had said in April that it finds it &quot;incomprehensible&quot; that while the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) was listed in the UN security council committee as far back as 2001 for its known terror activities and links to al Qaeda, the designation of the group&#39;s main leader, financier and motivator has been put on a technical hold. 
(PTI) 
 
 
&nbsp;

The Taliban has named Mawlawi Haibatullah Akhundzada, a conservative cleric in his 50s, as the outfit's new leader

India has demanded that the UN slaps sanctions against the new Taliban leader in Afghanistan, saying it is "sheer folly" that the leader of a proscribed entity is not yet designated as a terrorist individual. "It is sheer folly that the leader of a proscribed entity is not yet designated as a terrorist individual," India's permanent representative to the UN ambassador Syed Akbaruddin said at a security council debate on the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) here yesterday. Supporting New Zealand's position that the anamoly should be corrected, Akbaruddin said the new Taliban leader should be sanctioned. The Taliban had named Mawlawi Haibatullah Akhundzada, a conservative cleric in his 50s, as its new leader after Mullah Akhtar Mansour was killed in an American drone strike last month. US state department's deputy spokesperson Mark Toner had said in a press briefing then that Akhundzada was not on any kind of a terrorist designated list. Akbaruddin further emphasised that groups and individuals perpetrating violence against the people and government of Afghanistan cannot have safe havens and should not be allowed to exercise control and wield influence over any part of Afghanistan's territory. "This, in our view, is critical for lasting peace in the country," he said adding that effective implementation of the security council sanctions regime including the 1267 ISIL/al-Qaeda sanctions and 1988 Taliban's regime should also be carried out "consistently and with perseverance" for it to serve as a strong deterrent to the listed entities and individuals. Previously, India has slammed the UN sanctions committee for taking a "selective approach" in tackling terrorism when a technical hold was put on its application to include the name of Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar on the committee's list of designated terrorists. India had said in April that it finds it "incomprehensible" that while the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) was listed in the UN security council committee as far back as 2001 for its known terror activities and links to al Qaeda, the designation of the group's main leader, financier and motivator has been put on a technical hold. (PTI)

India slams UN for not slapping sanctions on new Afghan Taliban leader

Following a long-held tradition, thousands of yoga fans gathered in New York`s Times Square on Monday to mark the summer solstice, the longest day of the year. 
 
During the 14th edition of the annual event, yogis transformed the famous intersection in one of the world`s busiest cities into a huge outdoor yoga lesson surrounded by cars, construction and the hustle and bustle of Manhattan. 
 
The first lesson began at 5:00 am (0900 GMT), and the last at 7:30 pm. All were free and open to yoga practitioners of all levels. 
There was a heavy police presence. 
 
Thousands of yoga mats were distributed for the get-together, covering crosswalks. 
 
Last year, during the first international yoga day designated by the United Nations, some 17,000 people participated. 
(AFP)

Last year, during the first international yoga day designated by the United Nations, some 17,000 people participated

Following a long-held tradition, thousands of yoga fans gathered in New York`s Times Square on Monday to mark the summer solstice, the longest day of the year. During the 14th edition of the annual event, yogis transformed the famous intersection in one of the world`s busiest cities into a huge outdoor yoga lesson surrounded by cars, construction and the hustle and bustle of Manhattan. The first lesson began at 5:00 am (0900 GMT), and the last at 7:30 pm. All were free and open to yoga practitioners of all levels. There was a heavy police presence. Thousands of yoga mats were distributed for the get-together, covering crosswalks. Last year, during the first international yoga day designated by the United Nations, some 17,000 people participated. (AFP)

Thousands of yoga practitioners hit Times Square to welcome summer

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today joined over 30,000 people here for the second International Yoga Day celebrations as he pitched for treating diseases like diabetes through the ancient spiritual discipline. 
 
Modi, dressed in a white-coloured t-shirt and trouser along with a scarf, led over 30,000 participants, including defence forces personnel and school children, for the second International Day of Yoga celebrations here at the Capitol Complex amid tight security. 
 
The Prime Minister, who arrived here last night, participated in a mass demonstration of &#39;Common Yoga Protocol&#39;. A yoga enthusiast himself, he performed yoga &#39;asanas&#39; along with the people at the event. 
 
Over 30,000 people from all ages -- 10,000 each from Chandigarh, Punjab and Haryana -- performed yoga &#39;asanas&#39; on pink and blue coloured mats during the event. Separately, about 10,000 people also performed yoga at over 100 other locations in Chandigarh itself. 
Earlier addressing the gathering, Modi pitched for treating diabetes through yoga. 
 
&quot;I want to request trainers who are associated with yoga, from this public platform. From next year when we celebrate yoga day, in this one year, you continue to do what you do for yoga but focus on one subject and this is my subject -- diabetes -- Diabetes and yoga,&quot; he said. 
 
&quot;All people belonging to the yoga field, whatever knowledge they have, they must continue with the rest of their yoga activities but this (diabetes) must be the main focus,&quot; Modi said. 
 
Expressing concern over rising number of patients suffering from diabetes, Modi asked yoga trainers to help in controlling the disease. 
&quot;In India, patients suffering from diabetes are rising. We might be able to get rid of this disease or not but with the help of yoga, diabetes can be controlled. Can we start a public campaign to suggest measures in yoga to the common man suffering from diabetes. 
 
&quot;It will be an achievement if we can help in treating diabetes. From next year, we can take another disease. But I want that for good health, we should address any one disease every year. We should run a public campaign with an aim to address one disease,&quot; he said. 
 
Yoga is not only a way to get rid of a disease but it also guarantees wellness. For holistic development of lives, yoga is a great way, he said. 
 
(PTI)

Says it's a great way to treat diseases like diabetes

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today joined over 30,000 people here for the second International Yoga Day celebrations as he pitched for treating diseases like diabetes through the ancient spiritual discipline. Modi, dressed in a white-coloured t-shirt and trouser along with a scarf, led over 30,000 participants, including defence forces personnel and school children, for the second International Day of Yoga celebrations here at the Capitol Complex amid tight security. The Prime Minister, who arrived here last night, participated in a mass demonstration of 'Common Yoga Protocol'. A yoga enthusiast himself, he performed yoga 'asanas' along with the people at the event. Over 30,000 people from all ages -- 10,000 each from Chandigarh, Punjab and Haryana -- performed yoga 'asanas' on pink and blue coloured mats during the event. Separately, about 10,000 people also performed yoga at over 100 other locations in Chandigarh itself. Earlier addressing the gathering, Modi pitched for treating diabetes through yoga. "I want to request trainers who are associated with yoga, from this public platform. From next year when we celebrate yoga day, in this one year, you continue to do what you do for yoga but focus on one subject and this is my subject -- diabetes -- Diabetes and yoga," he said. "All people belonging to the yoga field, whatever knowledge they have, they must continue with the rest of their yoga activities but this (diabetes) must be the main focus," Modi said. Expressing concern over rising number of patients suffering from diabetes, Modi asked yoga trainers to help in controlling the disease. "In India, patients suffering from diabetes are rising. We might be able to get rid of this disease or not but with the help of yoga, diabetes can be controlled. Can we start a public campaign to suggest measures in yoga to the common man suffering from diabetes. "It will be an achievement if we can help in treating diabetes. From next year, we can take another disease. But I want that for good health, we should address any one disease every year. We should run a public campaign with an aim to address one disease," he said. Yoga is not only a way to get rid of a disease but it also guarantees wellness. For holistic development of lives, yoga is a great way, he said. (PTI)

Indian PM takes centre stage, leads 2nd International Yoga Day celebrations

A record 65.3 million people were uprooted worldwide last year, many of them fleeing wars only to face walls, tougher laws and xenophobia as they reach borders, the United Nations refugee agency said on Monday. 
 
The figure, which jumped from 59.5 million in 2014 and by 50 per cent in five years, means that 1 in every 113 people on the planet is now a refugee, asylum-seeker or internally displaced in a home country. 
 
Fighting in Syria, Afghanistan, Burundi and South Sudan has driven the latest exodus, bringing the total number of refugees to 21.3 million, half of them children, the UNHCR said in its &quot;Global Trends&quot; report marking World Refugee Day. 
 
&quot;The refugees and migrants crossing the Mediterranean and arriving on the shores of Europe, the message that they have carried is that if you don&#39;t solve problems, problems will come to you,&quot; UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi told a news briefing. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s painful that it has taken so long for people in the rich countries to understand that,&quot; he said. &quot;We need action, political action to stop conflicts, that would be the most important prevention of refugee flows.&quot; 
 
A record 2 million new asylum claims were lodged in industrialised countries in 2015, the report said. Nearly 100,000 were children unaccompanied or separated from their families, a three-fold rise on 2014 and a historic high. 
 
Germany, where one in three applicants was Syrian, led with 441,900 claims, followed by the United States with 172,700, many of them fleeing gang and drug-related violence in Mexico and Central America. 
 
Developing regions still host 86 per cent of the world&#39;s refugees, led by Turkey with 2.5 million Syrians, followed by Pakistan and Lebanon, the report said. 
 
&quot;Rise of Xenophobia&quot; 
 
Asylum-seekers fleeing conflicts or persecution are increasingly confronted with walls or anti-foreigner sentiment, Grandi said. &quot;The rise of xenophobia is unfortunately becoming a very defining feature of the environment in which we work. 
 
&quot;Barriers are rising everywhere - and I&#39;m not just talking of walls. But I&#39;m talking about legislative barriers that are coming up, including in countries in the industrialised world that have been for a long time bastions of principle in defending the fundamental rights linked to asylum.&quot; 
 
After Balkan countries closed borders, Turkey and the European Union (EU) struck a deal in March to stem an influx that brought a million refugees and migrants to Europe in 2015. 
 
&quot;The fact that that flow has stopped does not mean the problem of displacement has ended. It may have ended for some countries that don&#39;t have to deal with it anymore, for now,&quot; Grandi said. 
 
Progress has lagged on a scheme to redistribute 160,000 asylum seekers from Greece and Italy to other EU states to alleviate pressure on the two frontline countries. Only 2,406 people have been relocated, EU figures show. 
 
Grandi, asked about stalled relocation, said: &quot;There is no Plan B for Europe. Europe will continue to receive people seeking asylum.&quot; 
 
&quot;Everybody has to share responsibility now,&quot; he said.

Developing countries led by Turkey give 86% of them shelter

A record 65.3 million people were uprooted worldwide last year, many of them fleeing wars only to face walls, tougher laws and xenophobia as they reach borders, the United Nations refugee agency said on Monday. The figure, which jumped from 59.5 million in 2014 and by 50 per cent in five years, means that 1 in every 113 people on the planet is now a refugee, asylum-seeker or internally displaced in a home country. Fighting in Syria, Afghanistan, Burundi and South Sudan has driven the latest exodus, bringing the total number of refugees to 21.3 million, half of them children, the UNHCR said in its "Global Trends" report marking World Refugee Day. "The refugees and migrants crossing the Mediterranean and arriving on the shores of Europe, the message that they have carried is that if you don't solve problems, problems will come to you," UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi told a news briefing. "It's painful that it has taken so long for people in the rich countries to understand that," he said. "We need action, political action to stop conflicts, that would be the most important prevention of refugee flows." A record 2 million new asylum claims were lodged in industrialised countries in 2015, the report said. Nearly 100,000 were children unaccompanied or separated from their families, a three-fold rise on 2014 and a historic high. Germany, where one in three applicants was Syrian, led with 441,900 claims, followed by the United States with 172,700, many of them fleeing gang and drug-related violence in Mexico and Central America. Developing regions still host 86 per cent of the world's refugees, led by Turkey with 2.5 million Syrians, followed by Pakistan and Lebanon, the report said. "Rise of Xenophobia" Asylum-seekers fleeing conflicts or persecution are increasingly confronted with walls or anti-foreigner sentiment, Grandi said. "The rise of xenophobia is unfortunately becoming a very defining feature of the environment in which we work. "Barriers are rising everywhere - and I'm not just talking of walls. But I'm talking about legislative barriers that are coming up, including in countries in the industrialised world that have been for a long time bastions of principle in defending the fundamental rights linked to asylum." After Balkan countries closed borders, Turkey and the European Union (EU) struck a deal in March to stem an influx that brought a million refugees and migrants to Europe in 2015. "The fact that that flow has stopped does not mean the problem of displacement has ended. It may have ended for some countries that don't have to deal with it anymore, for now," Grandi said. Progress has lagged on a scheme to redistribute 160,000 asylum seekers from Greece and Italy to other EU states to alleviate pressure on the two frontline countries. Only 2,406 people have been relocated, EU figures show. Grandi, asked about stalled relocation, said: "There is no Plan B for Europe. Europe will continue to receive people seeking asylum." "Everybody has to share responsibility now," he said.

Record 65 million people displaced last year: UN

United Nations experts on Thursday called on India to repeal a law on foreign donations to charities, accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s government of using it to block funds to organisations considered critical of the state. 
 
Since Modi swept to power more than two years ago, his right-wing nationalist government has tightened surveillance on foreign-funded charities regulated under the Foreign Contributions Regulation Act (FCRA). 
 
More than 10,000 civil society groups in India have had their licences to receive overseas donations cancelled or suspended since 2014, impairing their ability to work in areas from health to the environment. 
 
The government says the groups violate the FCRA by not disclosing details of their donations or have used foreign funds to engage in &quot;anti-national&quot; activities. 
 
But U.N. experts said they were stunned by the way India was applying the law to stymie its critics. 
 
&quot;We are alarmed that FCRA provisions are being used more and more to silence organisations involved in advocating civil, political, economic, social, environmental or cultural priorities, which may differ from those backed by the government,&quot; said a statement by U.N. Special Rapporteurs Michel Forst, David Kaye and Maina Kiai, who focus on human rights defenders and freedoms of expression and association. 
 
Groups such as Greenpeace India, Lawyers Collective and the Sabrang Trust have had their licenses suspended, said the statement from the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights. 
 
Greenpeace campaigns against nuclear power and coal mining, Lawyers Collective works on sexual minorities rights and Sabrang Trust is run by Teesta Setalvad, a prominent human rights activist and Modi critic. 
 
A home ministry official contacted by the Thomson Reuters Foundation said he was not in a position to respond immediately to the comments by the U.N. experts. 
 
There is no official number of charities operating in India, but the government estimates at least two million non-profits work in such areas as the environment, climate change and protecting minority rights. 
 
A 2013 report by the home ministry said some 43,500 groups were registered as charities that received foreign funds but slightly less than half provided details of their donations. 
 
Home ministry officials have said they are enforcing the FCRA to make the non-profit sector compliant and transparent and ensure charities are not engaging in illegal political or anti-national activities. 
 
The U.N. experts said use of the FCRA was &quot;overly broad&quot; and activities deemed political or against the economic interest of the state were vague. 
 
They singled out the treatment of the Lawyers Collective, which works on improving the rights of sexual minorities and those living with HIV/AIDS as an attempt to intimidate, delegitimise and silence the group. 
 
&quot;Human rights defenders and civil society must have the ability to do their important job without being subjected to increased limitations on their access to foreign funding,&quot; the U.N. experts said. 
(Reuters)

More than 10,000 civil society groups in India cannot work due to cancellation of their licences to receive overseas donations

United Nations experts on Thursday called on India to repeal a law on foreign donations to charities, accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government of using it to block funds to organisations considered critical of the state. Since Modi swept to power more than two years ago, his right-wing nationalist government has tightened surveillance on foreign-funded charities regulated under the Foreign Contributions Regulation Act (FCRA). More than 10,000 civil society groups in India have had their licences to receive overseas donations cancelled or suspended since 2014, impairing their ability to work in areas from health to the environment. The government says the groups violate the FCRA by not disclosing details of their donations or have used foreign funds to engage in "anti-national" activities. But U.N. experts said they were stunned by the way India was applying the law to stymie its critics. "We are alarmed that FCRA provisions are being used more and more to silence organisations involved in advocating civil, political, economic, social, environmental or cultural priorities, which may differ from those backed by the government," said a statement by U.N. Special Rapporteurs Michel Forst, David Kaye and Maina Kiai, who focus on human rights defenders and freedoms of expression and association. Groups such as Greenpeace India, Lawyers Collective and the Sabrang Trust have had their licenses suspended, said the statement from the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights. Greenpeace campaigns against nuclear power and coal mining, Lawyers Collective works on sexual minorities rights and Sabrang Trust is run by Teesta Setalvad, a prominent human rights activist and Modi critic. A home ministry official contacted by the Thomson Reuters Foundation said he was not in a position to respond immediately to the comments by the U.N. experts. There is no official number of charities operating in India, but the government estimates at least two million non-profits work in such areas as the environment, climate change and protecting minority rights. A 2013 report by the home ministry said some 43,500 groups were registered as charities that received foreign funds but slightly less than half provided details of their donations. Home ministry officials have said they are enforcing the FCRA to make the non-profit sector compliant and transparent and ensure charities are not engaging in illegal political or anti-national activities. The U.N. experts said use of the FCRA was "overly broad" and activities deemed political or against the economic interest of the state were vague. They singled out the treatment of the Lawyers Collective, which works on improving the rights of sexual minorities and those living with HIV/AIDS as an attempt to intimidate, delegitimise and silence the group. "Human rights defenders and civil society must have the ability to do their important job without being subjected to increased limitations on their access to foreign funding," the U.N. experts said. (Reuters)

India using funding law to foil dissenting charities: UN experts

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