As violence&nbsp;spreads&nbsp;in Afghanistan, India has brought back personnel from its consulate in Kandahar. India has brought back its diplomats and Indo-Tibetan Border Police&nbsp;(ITBP)&nbsp;personnel from the consulate in the city.&nbsp;

In a statement,&nbsp;India's ministry of external affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi,&nbsp;said,&nbsp;"Due to the intense fighting near Kandahar city, Indian&nbsp;personnel have been brought back for the time being" and this is "purely temporary measure until the situation&nbsp;stabilises".&nbsp;The consulate is being operated through local staff members. Meanwhile, the Indian embassy in Kabul will continue the delivery of visa and&nbsp;other&nbsp;consular services.&nbsp;

The MEA statement&nbsp;said,&nbsp;"The safety and security of our personnel is paramount. The Consulate General of India in Kandahar has not been closed."&nbsp;&nbsp;

India has been&nbsp;'closely monitoring the evolving security situation'&nbsp;in Afghanistan even as a few days ago,&nbsp;the Afghan envoy to India Farid&nbsp;Mamundzay&nbsp;briefed about the development in the country to India's foreign secretary Harsh&nbsp;Shringla.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Kandahar is the second-largest city in the country and in the past has been the Taliban's base. It is the same city that saw the Indian Airlines IC 814 being taken to by Pakistani terror groups after being hijacked in December 1999. Currently, around 10 districts of the province have fallen into the hands of the Taliban.&nbsp;

As violence spreads in Afghanistan, India has brought back personnel from its consulate in Kandahar. India has brought back its diplomats and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel from the consulate in the city.

As violence spreads in Afghanistan, India has brought back personnel from its consulate in Kandahar. India has brought back its diplomats and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel from the consulate in the city. In a statement, India's ministry of external affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi, said, "Due to the intense fighting near Kandahar city, Indian personnel have been brought back for the time being" and this is "purely temporary measure until the situation stabilises". The consulate is being operated through local staff members. Meanwhile, the Indian embassy in Kabul will continue the delivery of visa and other consular services. The MEA statement said, "The safety and security of our personnel is paramount. The Consulate General of India in Kandahar has not been closed." India has been 'closely monitoring the evolving security situation' in Afghanistan even as a few days ago, the Afghan envoy to India Farid Mamundzay briefed about the development in the country to India's foreign secretary Harsh Shringla. Kandahar is the second-largest city in the country and in the past has been the Taliban's base. It is the same city that saw the Indian Airlines IC 814 being taken to by Pakistani terror groups after being hijacked in December 1999. Currently, around 10 districts of the province have fallen into the hands of the Taliban.

As violence escalates, India brings back personnel from its Kandahar consulate

Israeli officials said on Tuesday they would allow a right-wing march in Jerusalem's Old City to go ahead next week under certain conditions, a day after police barred the event's route fearing it would rekindle conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza. 
 
Several right-wing Israeli groups had planned a flag-waving procession through the walled Old City's Damascus Gate and into its Muslim quarter on Thursday, drawing warnings from Gaza's rulers Hamas of renewed hostilities should it proceed. 
 
The far-right groups cancelled the Thursday march after police denied them a permit. But following a meeting of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet on Tuesday, his office said ministers had agreed the march could be held next week if organisers and police reached agreement. The principal issue is the route. 
 
"The parade will take place this coming Tuesday (June 15) in a format to be agreed between the police and the parade's organisers," a statement from Netanyahu's office said. 
 
Netanyahu faces an end to his long hold on power on Sunday when the country's legislature is scheduled to vote on approving a government of diverse parties that came together to unseat him. 
 
If that vote is successful, it will be up to prime minister-hopeful Naftali Bennett and his partner opposition leader Yair Lapid to decide whether to proceed with the march. 
 
Tal Schneider, a leading political reporter in Israel, said on Twitter: "The flag parade has been postponed to June 15, two days after the government is sworn in, meaning it will be Naftali Bennett`s headache." 
 
Tensions are likely to remain high in Jerusalem whether or not the march goes ahead. Protests have flared in the East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah, where Palestinian families face possible eviction after an Israeli court accepted Jewish settler land claims. 
 
Far-right lawmaker Itamar Ben-Gvir rejected the march's postponement as a 'surrender to Hamas',&nbsp;saying on Twitter he would still "arrive on Thursday in the Old City of Jerusalem and march with Israeli flags." 
 
An original march on May 10 was re-routed at the last minute as tensions in Jerusalem led Hamas to fire rockets towards the holy city. Israel responded with air strikes, and the most serious cross-border fighting with Hamas in years raged for 11 days before a fragile ceasefire was reached. 
 
Israel annexed East Jerusalem, in a move that has not won international recognition, after capturing the area in the 1967 Middle East war. It considers all of Jerusalem its capital. 
 
Palestinians want East Jerusalem to be the capital of a state they seek to establish in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip. 
 
(With inputs from agencies)

Israeli officials said on Tuesday they would allow a right-wing march in Jerusalem's Old City to go ahead next week under certain conditions, a day after police barred the event's route fearing it would rekindle conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza.

Israeli officials said on Tuesday they would allow a right-wing march in Jerusalem's Old City to go ahead next week under certain conditions, a day after police barred the event's route fearing it would rekindle conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza. Several right-wing Israeli groups had planned a flag-waving procession through the walled Old City's Damascus Gate and into its Muslim quarter on Thursday, drawing warnings from Gaza's rulers Hamas of renewed hostilities should it proceed. The far-right groups cancelled the Thursday march after police denied them a permit. But following a meeting of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet on Tuesday, his office said ministers had agreed the march could be held next week if organisers and police reached agreement. The principal issue is the route. "The parade will take place this coming Tuesday (June 15) in a format to be agreed between the police and the parade's organisers," a statement from Netanyahu's office said. Netanyahu faces an end to his long hold on power on Sunday when the country's legislature is scheduled to vote on approving a government of diverse parties that came together to unseat him. If that vote is successful, it will be up to prime minister-hopeful Naftali Bennett and his partner opposition leader Yair Lapid to decide whether to proceed with the march. Tal Schneider, a leading political reporter in Israel, said on Twitter: "The flag parade has been postponed to June 15, two days after the government is sworn in, meaning it will be Naftali Bennett`s headache." Tensions are likely to remain high in Jerusalem whether or not the march goes ahead. Protests have flared in the East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah, where Palestinian families face possible eviction after an Israeli court accepted Jewish settler land claims. Far-right lawmaker Itamar Ben-Gvir rejected the march's postponement as a 'surrender to Hamas', saying on Twitter he would still "arrive on Thursday in the Old City of Jerusalem and march with Israeli flags." An original march on May 10 was re-routed at the last minute as tensions in Jerusalem led Hamas to fire rockets towards the holy city. Israel responded with air strikes, and the most serious cross-border fighting with Hamas in years raged for 11 days before a fragile ceasefire was reached. Israel annexed East Jerusalem, in a move that has not won international recognition, after capturing the area in the 1967 Middle East war. It considers all of Jerusalem its capital. Palestinians want East Jerusalem to be the capital of a state they seek to establish in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip. (With inputs from agencies)

Israel says right-wing march can be held next week in Jerusalem Old City

The head of Israel's domestic security service issued a rare warning on Saturday of possible violence during one of the most politically charged periods in decades, with the country on the verge of unseating Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, its longest serving leader. 
 
Netanyahu is facing the prospect of an end to his 12-year run as premier after Israel's centrist opposition leader Yair Lapid announced on Wednesday that he had succeeded in forming a governing coalition following a March 23 election. 
 
The new government, yet to be sworn in, is an unlikely patchwork of left-wing, liberal, rightist, nationalist and religious parties, as well as - for the first time in Israel's history - an Arab Islamist party. 
 
Netanyahu in online posts has warned the partnership was 'a dangerous leftist government'. 
 
Some right-wing groups are angry at Naftali Bennett, head of a small ultra-nationalist party, who is slated to replace Netanyahu in a power-sharing pact with Lapid, garnering many postings attacking him on social media. 
 
Before the election, Bennett had promised he would not join the centrist Lapid, or any Arab party in a coalition. 
 
"We have recently identified a rise in increasingly extreme violent and inciteful discourse particularly on social networks," Nadav Argaman, head of the Shin Bet security force, said in a statement without mentioning any names. 
 
"This discourse may be interpreted among certain groups or individuals, as one that permits violent and illegal activity that may even cause physical harm," he said. 
 
Since Bennett announced he was joining forces with Lapid, security services have ramped up his protection with right-wing demonstrations held near the homes of his party members, hoping to keep them from joining the government. 
 
Argaman called on political and religious leaders to show responsibility and tone down potential incitements. His warning was reminiscent to some in Israel of the days leading up to the 1995 assassination of then-prime minister Yitzhak Rabin, who was shot by a Jewish ultra-nationalist for pursuing a land-for-peace deal with the Palestinians. 
 
Israel's left has for years pointed the finger at Netanyahu, then head of the opposition, for playing a part in incitement that preceded the assassination. Netanyahu has vehemently rejected the accusation and has repeatedly condemned Rabin's killing. 
 
Lapid and Bennett have said they hope their 'unity government' will heal deep political divides among Israelis and end hate. A poll by Israel's N12 Television's Meet the Press on Saturday showed that 46% of Israelis support the Bennett-Lapid government, 38% would prefer another election - the fifth in about two years - and 15% did not state a preference. 
 
Tensions could flare further this week, when a Jewish right-wing march is expected to pass through Jerusalem's Old City's Damascus gate. Eleven days of intense fighting broke out last month between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, sparked by Israeli-Palestinian confrontations in Jerusalem, in and around the Old City. A similar march, its route diverted at the last minute, was held the day the fighting broke out. 
 
In the nearby flashpoint East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah, where the potential eviction of Palestinians by Jewish settlers played a major role in the buildup to the latest Israel-Hamas conflict, scuffles broke out on Saturday. 
 
Media network Al Jazeera said one of its reporters, Givara Budeiri, had been assaulted and arrested by Israeli police while covering a protest there. 
 
A police spokesperson said that Budeiri had assaulted officers and had refused to identify herself. Footage posted online showed Budeiri, wearing a press vest, being pulled and pushed while led away by three or four officers. Al Jazeera also said the reporter's camera was smashed. 
 
Al Jazeera said the journalist was released a few hours later and was banned from entering Sheikh Jarrah for 15 days. 
 
(With inputs from agencies)

The head of Israel's domestic security service issued a rare warning on Saturday of possible violence during one of the most politically charged periods in decades, with the country on the verge of unseating Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, its longest serving leader.

The head of Israel's domestic security service issued a rare warning on Saturday of possible violence during one of the most politically charged periods in decades, with the country on the verge of unseating Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, its longest serving leader. Netanyahu is facing the prospect of an end to his 12-year run as premier after Israel's centrist opposition leader Yair Lapid announced on Wednesday that he had succeeded in forming a governing coalition following a March 23 election. The new government, yet to be sworn in, is an unlikely patchwork of left-wing, liberal, rightist, nationalist and religious parties, as well as - for the first time in Israel's history - an Arab Islamist party. Netanyahu in online posts has warned the partnership was 'a dangerous leftist government'. Some right-wing groups are angry at Naftali Bennett, head of a small ultra-nationalist party, who is slated to replace Netanyahu in a power-sharing pact with Lapid, garnering many postings attacking him on social media. Before the election, Bennett had promised he would not join the centrist Lapid, or any Arab party in a coalition. "We have recently identified a rise in increasingly extreme violent and inciteful discourse particularly on social networks," Nadav Argaman, head of the Shin Bet security force, said in a statement without mentioning any names. "This discourse may be interpreted among certain groups or individuals, as one that permits violent and illegal activity that may even cause physical harm," he said. Since Bennett announced he was joining forces with Lapid, security services have ramped up his protection with right-wing demonstrations held near the homes of his party members, hoping to keep them from joining the government. Argaman called on political and religious leaders to show responsibility and tone down potential incitements. His warning was reminiscent to some in Israel of the days leading up to the 1995 assassination of then-prime minister Yitzhak Rabin, who was shot by a Jewish ultra-nationalist for pursuing a land-for-peace deal with the Palestinians. Israel's left has for years pointed the finger at Netanyahu, then head of the opposition, for playing a part in incitement that preceded the assassination. Netanyahu has vehemently rejected the accusation and has repeatedly condemned Rabin's killing. Lapid and Bennett have said they hope their 'unity government' will heal deep political divides among Israelis and end hate. A poll by Israel's N12 Television's Meet the Press on Saturday showed that 46% of Israelis support the Bennett-Lapid government, 38% would prefer another election - the fifth in about two years - and 15% did not state a preference. Tensions could flare further this week, when a Jewish right-wing march is expected to pass through Jerusalem's Old City's Damascus gate. Eleven days of intense fighting broke out last month between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, sparked by Israeli-Palestinian confrontations in Jerusalem, in and around the Old City. A similar march, its route diverted at the last minute, was held the day the fighting broke out. In the nearby flashpoint East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah, where the potential eviction of Palestinians by Jewish settlers played a major role in the buildup to the latest Israel-Hamas conflict, scuffles broke out on Saturday. Media network Al Jazeera said one of its reporters, Givara Budeiri, had been assaulted and arrested by Israeli police while covering a protest there. A police spokesperson said that Budeiri had assaulted officers and had refused to identify herself. Footage posted online showed Budeiri, wearing a press vest, being pulled and pushed while led away by three or four officers. Al Jazeera also said the reporter's camera was smashed. Al Jazeera said the journalist was released a few hours later and was banned from entering Sheikh Jarrah for 15 days. (With inputs from agencies)

Israel domestic security warns of violence as Netanyahu faces unseating

Taliban insurgents show no sign of reducing the level of violence in Afghanistan to facilitate peace negotiations with the government, and appear to be trying to strengthen their military position as leverage, with the unprecedented violence of 2020 carrying into 2021, UN experts said in a new report circulated on Friday.

The panel of experts said the Taliban are reported to be responsible for the great majority of assassinations that have become a feature of the violence in Afghanistan, targeting government officials, women, human rights defenders and journalists among others.

These attacks 'appear to be undertaken with the objective of weakening the capacity of the government and intimidating civil society,' it said.

In the 22-page report to the UN&nbsp;Security Council, the panel said the withdrawal of US&nbsp;and NATO forces by September&nbsp;11, the anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States, 'will challenge Afghan forces by limiting aerial operations with fewer drones and radar and surveillance capabilities, less logistical support and artillery, as well as a disruption in training.'

The Taliban were ousted from power in Afghanistan in 2001 by a US-led coalition for harbouring Osama bin Laden, the architect of the September 11 attacks. A peace deal that Washington brokered with the Taliban and signed in February 2020 was aimed at bringing American troops home and ending more than four decades of relentless wars following the 1979 Afghan invasion by forces from the former Soviet Union.

Negotiations between the Taliban and Afghan representatives began last September in Doha, Qatar and continued earlier this year. But the Taliban announced on April 13, a day before President Joe Biden's announcement that all US troops would leave by September 11, that it would not take part in any conference intended to decide the future of Afghanistan until all foreign troops were gone.

The UN experts, who monitor sanctions against the Taliban, predicted more violence in the run-up to their departure. "Taliban rhetoric and reports of active Taliban preparations for the spring fighting season indicate the group is likely to increase military operations for 2021, whether or not a spring offensive is announced," they said.

The experts also questioned how Afghan forces would fare without coalition support. "Afghan forces have successfully reversed many Taliban gains with the assistance of international coalition close air support, but have done so with heavy casualty rates," they said.

"It remains to be seen how Afghan forces will perform without it." The panel of experts painted a grim picture of the violence in Afghanistan, which had been expected to decrease in 2020 but instead soared to the highest level ever recorded by the United Nations in the country, more than 25,000 incidents, a 10% increase over 2019.

Violence surged as the Doha talks began, the experts said, and incident rates in the usually calmer winter were higher than those in the spring or summer of 2020.

"Unprecedented violence over the winter carried into 2021, with 7,177 security incidents recorded countrywide between January&nbsp;1 and March 31, representing a 61 per cent increase over the same period in 2020," they said.

The panel said the number of Taliban fighters remains robust, with estimates ranging from about 58,000 to 100,000. The panel said many sources its members spoke to, which include governments, believe the Taliban used the 2020 fighting season 'to further strengthen strangleholds around several provincial capitals, seeking to shape future military operations when levels of departing foreign troops are no longer able to respond'.

While no one claimed responsibility for most assassinations, the experts said it is widely believed that approximately 85 per cent of them were carried out by the Taliban. The UN recorded an increase in reported assassinations from 780 in 2019 to 996 in 2020, the report said.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

Taliban insurgents show no sign of reducing the level of violence in Afghanistan to facilitate peace negotiations with the government, and appear to be trying to strengthen their military position as leverage, with the unprecedented violence of 2020 carrying into 2021, UN experts said in a new report circulated on Friday.

Taliban insurgents show no sign of reducing the level of violence in Afghanistan to facilitate peace negotiations with the government, and appear to be trying to strengthen their military position as leverage, with the unprecedented violence of 2020 carrying into 2021, UN experts said in a new report circulated on Friday. The panel of experts said the Taliban are reported to be responsible for the great majority of assassinations that have become a feature of the violence in Afghanistan, targeting government officials, women, human rights defenders and journalists among others. These attacks 'appear to be undertaken with the objective of weakening the capacity of the government and intimidating civil society,' it said. In the 22-page report to the UN Security Council, the panel said the withdrawal of US and NATO forces by September 11, the anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States, 'will challenge Afghan forces by limiting aerial operations with fewer drones and radar and surveillance capabilities, less logistical support and artillery, as well as a disruption in training.' The Taliban were ousted from power in Afghanistan in 2001 by a US-led coalition for harbouring Osama bin Laden, the architect of the September 11 attacks. A peace deal that Washington brokered with the Taliban and signed in February 2020 was aimed at bringing American troops home and ending more than four decades of relentless wars following the 1979 Afghan invasion by forces from the former Soviet Union. Negotiations between the Taliban and Afghan representatives began last September in Doha, Qatar and continued earlier this year. But the Taliban announced on April 13, a day before President Joe Biden's announcement that all US troops would leave by September 11, that it would not take part in any conference intended to decide the future of Afghanistan until all foreign troops were gone. The UN experts, who monitor sanctions against the Taliban, predicted more violence in the run-up to their departure. "Taliban rhetoric and reports of active Taliban preparations for the spring fighting season indicate the group is likely to increase military operations for 2021, whether or not a spring offensive is announced," they said. The experts also questioned how Afghan forces would fare without coalition support. "Afghan forces have successfully reversed many Taliban gains with the assistance of international coalition close air support, but have done so with heavy casualty rates," they said. "It remains to be seen how Afghan forces will perform without it." The panel of experts painted a grim picture of the violence in Afghanistan, which had been expected to decrease in 2020 but instead soared to the highest level ever recorded by the United Nations in the country, more than 25,000 incidents, a 10% increase over 2019. Violence surged as the Doha talks began, the experts said, and incident rates in the usually calmer winter were higher than those in the spring or summer of 2020. "Unprecedented violence over the winter carried into 2021, with 7,177 security incidents recorded countrywide between January 1 and March 31, representing a 61 per cent increase over the same period in 2020," they said. The panel said the number of Taliban fighters remains robust, with estimates ranging from about 58,000 to 100,000. The panel said many sources its members spoke to, which include governments, believe the Taliban used the 2020 fighting season 'to further strengthen strangleholds around several provincial capitals, seeking to shape future military operations when levels of departing foreign troops are no longer able to respond'. While no one claimed responsibility for most assassinations, the experts said it is widely believed that approximately 85 per cent of them were carried out by the Taliban. The UN recorded an increase in reported assassinations from 780 in 2019 to 996 in 2020, the report said. (With inputs from agencies)

UN: Unprecedented Taliban violence in 2020 carries into 2021

Florida Police officers shot a 14-year-old girl on Tuesday night after she and a 12-year-old boy opened fire on deputies. The girl was shot in the abdomen and the arm and is in stable condition, while the boy had surrendered and was not injured. The sheriff's office has released the videos.

Florida: 12 & 14-year-olds involved in shootout with police

India has expressed its "deep concern" over violence in Jerusalem at the United Nations security council session on the ongoing Israel-Palestine escalating situation.

Israel-Palestine Conflict: Israel, Palestine clash at UNSC meet

Saudi Arabia on Sunday condemned "flagrant violations" of Palestinian rights by Israel and called for global action to end the recent spike of violence.

Israel-Palestine Conflict: Saudi calls for revival of peace talks

Citizens all over the world are holding rallies in support of the Palestinians. These marches come amid the worst Israeli-Palestinian violence since a 2014 war in Gaza.

Worldwide protest against Israel over Gaza violence

Israeli planes renewed air strikes in Gaza early on Saturday and Hamas militants responded by firing rockets into Israel as their battle entered a fifth night and US and Arab diplomats sought an end to the violence.&nbsp;

Palestinian medics said at least 12 people were killed overnight in air strikes throughout Gaza. Health officials said a woman and her three children were among the dead after their house was hit in a refugee camp.&nbsp;

The Israeli military said it carried out strikes on a Hamas military intelligence facility and a number of rocket launching sites in northern Gaza.&nbsp;

The Palestinian religious affairs ministry said Israeli planes destroyed a mosque. A military spokesman said the army was checking the report.&nbsp;

Across the border, sirens sounded throughout much of southern Israel, sending residents running for shelter. In the cities of Beersheba and Ashdod buildings were struck by rockets. There were no immediate reports of injuries.&nbsp;

With no sign of an end to the fighting, casualties spread further afield, with Palestinians reporting on Friday 11 killed in the occupied West Bank amid clashes between protesters and Israeli security forces.&nbsp;

At least 132 people have been killed in Gaza since Monday, including 32 children and 21 women, and 950 others wounded, Palestinian medical officials said.&nbsp;

Among the eight dead in Israel were a soldier patrolling the Gaza border and six civilians, including two children, Israeli authorities said.&nbsp;

Ahead of a session of the UN Security Council on Sunday to discuss the situation, Biden administration envoy Hady Amr, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Israel and Palestinian Affairs, flew in on Friday.&nbsp;

The US Embassy in Israel said the aim was "to reinforce the need to work toward a sustainable calm."&nbsp;

Israel launched day-long attacks on Friday to destroy what it said were several kilometres of tunnels, launch sites and weapons manufacturing warehouses used by the militants in an effort to halt the rocket attacks.&nbsp;

Across central and southern Israel, from small towns bordering Gaza to metropolitan Tel Aviv and southern Beersheba, people have adjusted to sirens wailing, radio and TV broadcast interruptions and the beeps of cellphones bearing red alerts that send them rushing for cover.&nbsp;

Cross-border hostilities between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza have been accompanied by violence in mixed communities of Jews and Arabs in Israel. Synagogues have been attacked and street fights have broken out, prompting Israel's president to warn of civil war. &nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

Israeli planes renewed air strikes in Gaza early on Saturday and Hamas militants responded by firing rockets into Israel as their battle entered a fifth night and US and Arab diplomats sought an end to the violence.

Israeli planes renewed air strikes in Gaza early on Saturday and Hamas militants responded by firing rockets into Israel as their battle entered a fifth night and US and Arab diplomats sought an end to the violence. Palestinian medics said at least 12 people were killed overnight in air strikes throughout Gaza. Health officials said a woman and her three children were among the dead after their house was hit in a refugee camp. The Israeli military said it carried out strikes on a Hamas military intelligence facility and a number of rocket launching sites in northern Gaza. The Palestinian religious affairs ministry said Israeli planes destroyed a mosque. A military spokesman said the army was checking the report. Across the border, sirens sounded throughout much of southern Israel, sending residents running for shelter. In the cities of Beersheba and Ashdod buildings were struck by rockets. There were no immediate reports of injuries. With no sign of an end to the fighting, casualties spread further afield, with Palestinians reporting on Friday 11 killed in the occupied West Bank amid clashes between protesters and Israeli security forces. At least 132 people have been killed in Gaza since Monday, including 32 children and 21 women, and 950 others wounded, Palestinian medical officials said. Among the eight dead in Israel were a soldier patrolling the Gaza border and six civilians, including two children, Israeli authorities said. Ahead of a session of the UN Security Council on Sunday to discuss the situation, Biden administration envoy Hady Amr, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Israel and Palestinian Affairs, flew in on Friday. The US Embassy in Israel said the aim was "to reinforce the need to work toward a sustainable calm." Israel launched day-long attacks on Friday to destroy what it said were several kilometres of tunnels, launch sites and weapons manufacturing warehouses used by the militants in an effort to halt the rocket attacks. Across central and southern Israel, from small towns bordering Gaza to metropolitan Tel Aviv and southern Beersheba, people have adjusted to sirens wailing, radio and TV broadcast interruptions and the beeps of cellphones bearing red alerts that send them rushing for cover. Cross-border hostilities between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza have been accompanied by violence in mixed communities of Jews and Arabs in Israel. Synagogues have been attacked and street fights have broken out, prompting Israel's president to warn of civil war. (With inputs from agencies)

Death toll rises as violence rocks Gaza, Israel and West Bank 

Hostilities between Israel and Hamas escalated overnight, with 35 Palestinians killed in Gaza and five in Israel in the most intensive aerial exchanges in years.&nbsp;

Israel carried out hundreds of airstrikes in Gaza into the early hours of Wednesday, as the Islamist group and other Palestinian militant groups fired multiple rocket barrages at Tel Aviv and Beersheba.&nbsp;

One multi-storey residential building in Gaza collapsed and another was heavily damaged after they were repeatedly hit by Israeli airstrikes. Israel said it attacked Hamas targets, including intelligence centres and rocket launch sites. 
 
Gravitas: Israel &amp; Hamas exchange rocket fire

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It was the heaviest offensive between Israel and Hamas since a 2014 war in Gaza and prompted international concern that the situation could spiral out of control.&nbsp;

UN Middle East peace envoy Tor Wennesland tweeted: "Stop the fire immediately. We're escalating towards full-scale war. Leaders on all sides have to take responsibility of de-escalation.&nbsp;

"The cost of war in Gaza is devastating &amp; is being paid by ordinary people. UN is working w/ all sides to restore calm. Stop the violence now," he wrote. &nbsp;

Into the early hours of Wednesday morning, Gazans reported their homes shaking and the sky lighting up with Israeli attacks, outgoing rockets and Israeli air defence missiles intercepting them.&nbsp;

Israelis ran for shelters or flattened themselves on pavements in communities more than 70 km (45 miles) up the coast and into southern Israel amid sounds of explosions as interceptor missiles streaked into the sky.&nbsp;

In the mixed Arab-Jewish town of Lod, near Tel Aviv, two people were killed after a rocket hit a vehicle in the area. Israeli media reported one was a 7-year-old girl. &nbsp;

Hamas's armed wing said it fired 210 rockets towards Beersheba and Tel Aviv in response to the bombing of the tower buildings in Gaza City.&nbsp;

For Israel, the militants' targeting of Tel Aviv, its commercial capital, posed a new challenge in the confrontation with the Islamist Hamas group, regarded as a terrorist organisation by Israel and the United States.&nbsp;

The violence followed weeks of tension in Jerusalem during the Muslim fasting month of Ramzan, with clashes between Israeli police and Palestinian protesters in and around Al-Aqsa Mosque, on the compound revered by Jews as Temple Mount and by Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary.&nbsp;

These escalated in recent days ahead of a, now postponed, court hearing in a case that could end with Palestinian families evicted from East Jerusalem homes claimed by Jewish settlers.&nbsp;

Violence has also flared in the occupied West Bank, where a 26-year-old Palestinian was killed by Israeli gunfire during stone-throwing clashes in a refugee camp near the city of Hebron.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

Hostilities between Israel and Hamas escalated overnight, with 35 Palestinians killed in Gaza and five in Israel in the most intensive aerial exchanges in years.

Hostilities between Israel and Hamas escalated overnight, with 35 Palestinians killed in Gaza and five in Israel in the most intensive aerial exchanges in years. Israel carried out hundreds of airstrikes in Gaza into the early hours of Wednesday, as the Islamist group and other Palestinian militant groups fired multiple rocket barrages at Tel Aviv and Beersheba. One multi-storey residential building in Gaza collapsed and another was heavily damaged after they were repeatedly hit by Israeli airstrikes. Israel said it attacked Hamas targets, including intelligence centres and rocket launch sites. Gravitas: Israel & Hamas exchange rocket fire It was the heaviest offensive between Israel and Hamas since a 2014 war in Gaza and prompted international concern that the situation could spiral out of control. UN Middle East peace envoy Tor Wennesland tweeted: "Stop the fire immediately. We're escalating towards full-scale war. Leaders on all sides have to take responsibility of de-escalation. "The cost of war in Gaza is devastating & is being paid by ordinary people. UN is working w/ all sides to restore calm. Stop the violence now," he wrote. Into the early hours of Wednesday morning, Gazans reported their homes shaking and the sky lighting up with Israeli attacks, outgoing rockets and Israeli air defence missiles intercepting them. Israelis ran for shelters or flattened themselves on pavements in communities more than 70 km (45 miles) up the coast and into southern Israel amid sounds of explosions as interceptor missiles streaked into the sky. In the mixed Arab-Jewish town of Lod, near Tel Aviv, two people were killed after a rocket hit a vehicle in the area. Israeli media reported one was a 7-year-old girl. Hamas's armed wing said it fired 210 rockets towards Beersheba and Tel Aviv in response to the bombing of the tower buildings in Gaza City. For Israel, the militants' targeting of Tel Aviv, its commercial capital, posed a new challenge in the confrontation with the Islamist Hamas group, regarded as a terrorist organisation by Israel and the United States. The violence followed weeks of tension in Jerusalem during the Muslim fasting month of Ramzan, with clashes between Israeli police and Palestinian protesters in and around Al-Aqsa Mosque, on the compound revered by Jews as Temple Mount and by Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary. These escalated in recent days ahead of a, now postponed, court hearing in a case that could end with Palestinian families evicted from East Jerusalem homes claimed by Jewish settlers. Violence has also flared in the occupied West Bank, where a 26-year-old Palestinian was killed by Israeli gunfire during stone-throwing clashes in a refugee camp near the city of Hebron. (With inputs from agencies)

35 killed in Gaza, 5 in Israel, as violence escalates 

An Indian national who was working as a caregiver has been killed in a Hamas rocket attack at Ashkelon in Israel.

According to the family members of 31-year old Soumya Santhosh, the rocket fell on her residence in the city of Ashkelon while she was talking to her husband Santhosh, who is in the southern Indian state of Kerala, over a video call in the evening.

"My brother heard a huge sound during the video call. Suddenly the phone got disconnected. Then we immediately contacted fellow Malayalees working there. Thus we came to know about the incident," Santhosh's brother Saji said.

Soumya Santosh, who hailed from Kerala's Idukki district, worked as a caregiver attending to an elderly woman at a house in the southern Israeli coastal city of Ashkelon.

Ashkelon, which borders the Gaza Strip, has come under massive fire from the Palestinian terrorists.

Soumya was reportedly living in Israel for the past seven years. She has a nine-year-old son whom she had left with her husband in Kerala. Her 80-year-old elderly charge is said to have survived the direct hit on the house and is hospitalised in a serious condition, local media reports said.

Soumya is the daughter of former Kanjikuzhy panchayat member Satish and Savithri. Her last visit to Kerala was in 2017. The deadly rocket attack directly struck the house of the elderly woman.

Channel 12 reported that the rocket shelter was at least a minute's run away from the woman's home and the pair could not manage to reach it in time.

The home lacked a fortified room of its own.

Some media reports said that a technical glitch with an Iron Dome battery (an all-weather air defence system that intercepts and destroys short-range rockets) during the massive rocket barrage towards the Israeli coastal city prevented some rockets from being intercepted and may have been responsible for the casualties and deaths.

Ashkelon's Mayor Tomer Glam said that some 25 per cent of the residents do not have access to a protected area when rockets are fired at the city. It is impossible when normal life becomes a state of emergency within minutes, Glam told Army Radio.

There are houses from the 1960s where there is no basic protection. It is time for treasury officials and decision-makers to understand what is happening here in the city, he stressed.

Israel's ambassador to India Ron Malka on Tuesday took to Twitter to condole the Indian woman's death.

"On behalf of the state of Israel, I convey heartfelt condolences to the family of Soumya Santosh, murdered by Hamas indiscriminate terror attack on innocent lives. Our hearts are crying with her 9-years-old son that lost his mother in this cruel terrorist attack," he said. 
 
"I just spoke to the family of Ms. Soumya Santosh, the victim of the Hamas terrorist strike. I expressed my sorrow for their unfortunate loss &amp; extended my condolences on behalf of the state of Israel. The whole country is mourning her loss &amp; we are here for them."

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I just spoke to the family of Ms. Soumya Santosh, the victim of the Hamas terrorist strike. I expressed my sorrow for their unfortunate loss &amp; extended my condolences on behalf of the state of Israel. The whole country is mourning her loss &amp; we are here for them. <a href="https://t.co/btmoewYMSS">pic.twitter.com/btmoewYMSS</a>
— Ron Malka 🇮🇱 (@DrRonMalka) <a href="https://twitter.com/DrRonMalka/status/1392358596227203073?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 12, 2021</a></blockquote>
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Newly-elected MLA and Nationalist Congress Kerala leader Mani C Kappan condemned the incident.

In a Facebook post, Kappan, who is representing Pala seat in the Kerala Assembly, said thousands of Keralites working in Israel were living in fear. He also sought the intervention of the central and state governments.

(With inputs from agencies)

An Indian national who was working as a caregiver has been killed in a Hamas rocket attack at Ashkelon in Israel. According to the family members of 31-year old Soumya Santhosh, the rocket fell on her residence in the city of Ashkelon while she was talking to her husband Santhosh, who is in the southern Indian state of Kerala, over a video call in the evening.

An Indian national who was working as a caregiver has been killed in a Hamas rocket attack at Ashkelon in Israel. According to the family members of 31-year old Soumya Santhosh, the rocket fell on her residence in the city of Ashkelon while she was talking to her husband Santhosh, who is in the southern Indian state of Kerala, over a video call in the evening. "My brother heard a huge sound during the video call. Suddenly the phone got disconnected. Then we immediately contacted fellow Malayalees working there. Thus we came to know about the incident," Santhosh's brother Saji said. Soumya Santosh, who hailed from Kerala's Idukki district, worked as a caregiver attending to an elderly woman at a house in the southern Israeli coastal city of Ashkelon. Ashkelon, which borders the Gaza Strip, has come under massive fire from the Palestinian terrorists. Soumya was reportedly living in Israel for the past seven years. She has a nine-year-old son whom she had left with her husband in Kerala. Her 80-year-old elderly charge is said to have survived the direct hit on the house and is hospitalised in a serious condition, local media reports said. Soumya is the daughter of former Kanjikuzhy panchayat member Satish and Savithri. Her last visit to Kerala was in 2017. The deadly rocket attack directly struck the house of the elderly woman. Channel 12 reported that the rocket shelter was at least a minute's run away from the woman's home and the pair could not manage to reach it in time. The home lacked a fortified room of its own. Some media reports said that a technical glitch with an Iron Dome battery (an all-weather air defence system that intercepts and destroys short-range rockets) during the massive rocket barrage towards the Israeli coastal city prevented some rockets from being intercepted and may have been responsible for the casualties and deaths. Ashkelon's Mayor Tomer Glam said that some 25 per cent of the residents do not have access to a protected area when rockets are fired at the city. It is impossible when normal life becomes a state of emergency within minutes, Glam told Army Radio. There are houses from the 1960s where there is no basic protection. It is time for treasury officials and decision-makers to understand what is happening here in the city, he stressed. Israel's ambassador to India Ron Malka on Tuesday took to Twitter to condole the Indian woman's death. "On behalf of the state of Israel, I convey heartfelt condolences to the family of Soumya Santosh, murdered by Hamas indiscriminate terror attack on innocent lives. Our hearts are crying with her 9-years-old son that lost his mother in this cruel terrorist attack," he said. "I just spoke to the family of Ms. Soumya Santosh, the victim of the Hamas terrorist strike. I expressed my sorrow for their unfortunate loss & extended my condolences on behalf of the state of Israel. The whole country is mourning her loss & we are here for them." I just spoke to the family of Ms. Soumya Santosh, the victim of the Hamas terrorist strike. I expressed my sorrow for their unfortunate loss & extended my condolences on behalf of the state of Israel. The whole country is mourning her loss & we are here for them. pic.twitter.com/btmoewYMSS — Ron Malka 🇮🇱 (@DrRonMalka) May 12, 2021 × Newly-elected MLA and Nationalist Congress Kerala leader Mani C Kappan condemned the incident. In a Facebook post, Kappan, who is representing Pala seat in the Kerala Assembly, said thousands of Keralites working in Israel were living in fear. He also sought the intervention of the central and state governments. (With inputs from agencies)

Indian woman killed in Israel was struck by rocket strike during a video call with husband

Thousands of people gathered outside the Israeli embassy in Ankara and its consulate in Istanbul to protest at Israeli actions against Palestinians on Monday while President Tayyip Erdogan spoke to Middle East leaders about the rising violence.&nbsp;

Despite a full lockdown aimed at curbing coronavirus cases, the protesters in Istanbul, including Syrians and Palestinians, carried Palestinian flags while chanting, "(Turkish soldiers) to Gaza" and "Down with Israel, down with America."&nbsp;

Erdogan spoke by phone with King Abdullah of Jordan, Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Sabah, as well as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. Turkish Foreign Minister Cavusoglu discussed the issue with his counterparts in Iran, Algeria, Pakistan and Russia.&nbsp;

According to a statement from his office, Erdogan told King Abdullah that the 'inhumane' attacks against Palestinians were aimed at all Muslims, adding that Turkey and Jordan needed to work together to stop them.&nbsp;

Violent clashes over Jerusalem escalated dramatically on Monday with Gaza health officials saying at least 20 people, including nine children, were killed by Israeli air strikes launched after Palestinian militant groups fired rockets close to Jerusalem.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies) &nbsp;

Thousands of people gathered outside the Israeli embassy in Ankara and its consulate in Istanbul to protest at Israeli actions against Palestinians on Monday while President Tayyip Erdogan spoke to Middle East leaders about the rising violence.

Thousands of people gathered outside the Israeli embassy in Ankara and its consulate in Istanbul to protest at Israeli actions against Palestinians on Monday while President Tayyip Erdogan spoke to Middle East leaders about the rising violence. Despite a full lockdown aimed at curbing coronavirus cases, the protesters in Istanbul, including Syrians and Palestinians, carried Palestinian flags while chanting, "(Turkish soldiers) to Gaza" and "Down with Israel, down with America." Erdogan spoke by phone with King Abdullah of Jordan, Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Sabah, as well as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. Turkish Foreign Minister Cavusoglu discussed the issue with his counterparts in Iran, Algeria, Pakistan and Russia. According to a statement from his office, Erdogan told King Abdullah that the 'inhumane' attacks against Palestinians were aimed at all Muslims, adding that Turkey and Jordan needed to work together to stop them. Violent clashes over Jerusalem escalated dramatically on Monday with Gaza health officials saying at least 20 people, including nine children, were killed by Israeli air strikes launched after Palestinian militant groups fired rockets close to Jerusalem. (With inputs from agencies)

In Turkey, protests against Israel over surge in violence 

Jerusalem descended into chaos after Israeli police unleashed a wave of violence on Palestinian protesters- injuring more than 300 of them. Palki Sharma tells you why Palestinians are protesting and how the world has reacted to Israel's crackdown.

Gravitas: Hundreds injured as Israeli cops storm Al-Aqsa mosque

Pakistan's army chief visited Afghanistan on Monday to meet President Ashraf Ghani, Afghan government sources said, at a time of heightened uncertainty for the region as violence rises while the United States withdraws troops. 
 
Pakistani Army Chief of Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa was meeting Ghani as well as other Afghan leaders in Kabul, the sources told Reuters on condition of anonymity as they were not authorised to speak with media. 
 
The media wing of Pakistan`s military did not immediately respond to the request for comment or confirm the visit. 
 
It was not immediately clear what would be discussed during the meeting. Neighbouring Pakistan is regarded as a key player in the Afghan peace process. In the past Islamabad has been accused of harbouring the insurgent Taliban but in recent years Washington and other Western powers have acknowledged its efforts to push the militant group to take part in peace talks. 
 
Bajwa on Monday also met Britain`s Chief of Defence Staff General Nicholas Patrick Carter Monday for talks on Afghan peacemaking, according to a statement from Pakistan`s military media wing. The venue of the meeting was not given. 
 
In recent weeks, Taliban and diplomatic sources told Reuters, Pakistan has been negotiating with insurgents to try and get them to commit to a ceasefire, agree to an extension of the U.S.-Taliban agreement which stipulated forces should withdraw by May, and to continue to take part in peace talks at a planned conference in Turkey. 
 
Violence has risen starkly in Afghanistan in recent weeks with the Taliban launching attacks throughout the country and a huge unclaimed attack taking place on a school in Kabul on Saturday that killed dozens of students. 
 
The Taliban announced on Sunday night that they would commit to a three-day ceasefire for the Islamic religious holiday of Eid later this week.

Pakistan's army chief visited Afghanistan on Monday to meet President Ashraf Ghani, Afghan government sources said, at a time of heightened uncertainty for the region as violence rises while the United States withdraws troops.

Pakistan's army chief visited Afghanistan on Monday to meet President Ashraf Ghani, Afghan government sources said, at a time of heightened uncertainty for the region as violence rises while the United States withdraws troops. Pakistani Army Chief of Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa was meeting Ghani as well as other Afghan leaders in Kabul, the sources told Reuters on condition of anonymity as they were not authorised to speak with media. The media wing of Pakistan`s military did not immediately respond to the request for comment or confirm the visit. It was not immediately clear what would be discussed during the meeting. Neighbouring Pakistan is regarded as a key player in the Afghan peace process. In the past Islamabad has been accused of harbouring the insurgent Taliban but in recent years Washington and other Western powers have acknowledged its efforts to push the militant group to take part in peace talks. Bajwa on Monday also met Britain`s Chief of Defence Staff General Nicholas Patrick Carter Monday for talks on Afghan peacemaking, according to a statement from Pakistan`s military media wing. The venue of the meeting was not given. In recent weeks, Taliban and diplomatic sources told Reuters, Pakistan has been negotiating with insurgents to try and get them to commit to a ceasefire, agree to an extension of the U.S.-Taliban agreement which stipulated forces should withdraw by May, and to continue to take part in peace talks at a planned conference in Turkey. Violence has risen starkly in Afghanistan in recent weeks with the Taliban launching attacks throughout the country and a huge unclaimed attack taking place on a school in Kabul on Saturday that killed dozens of students. The Taliban announced on Sunday night that they would commit to a three-day ceasefire for the Islamic religious holiday of Eid later this week.

Pakistan's army chief to meet Afghan president as violence surges

Palestinian protesters threw rocks and Israeli police fired stun grenades and rubber bullets in clashes outside the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem on Monday as Israel marked the anniversary of its capture of parts of the city in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. &nbsp;

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said more than 180 Palestinians were injured in the violence, of whom more than 80, including one person in critical condition, were transferred to hospitals.&nbsp;

Al-Aqsa, Islam's third-holiest site, has been a focal point of violence in Jerusalem throughout the Muslim holy month of Ramzan. The clashes have raised international concern.&nbsp;

Tensions were particularly high as Israel marked 'Jerusalem Day', its annual celebration of the capture of East Jerusalem and the walled Old City that is home to Muslim, Jewish and Christian holy places. &nbsp;

In an effort to ease the situation, Israeli police said they had banned Jewish groups from paying Jerusalem Day visits to the holy plaza that houses al-Aqsa, and which Jews revere as the site of biblical Jewish temples.&nbsp;

Police were also considering whether to reroute a traditional Jerusalem Day march in which thousands of Israeli flag-waving Jewish youth walk through the Old City's Damascus Gate and the Muslim Quarter.&nbsp;

Police fired tear gas, stun grenades and rubber bullets at hundreds of Palestinians, who hurled rocks at them on al-Aqsa's stone-strewn plaza, witnesses said. &nbsp;

"Extremist Palestinians planned well in advance to carry out riots today on the Temple Mount," Ofir Gendelman, a spokesman for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tweeted. "What we see now is the result of that."&nbsp;

Police said they had deployed thousands of officers in Jerusalem streets and on rooftops to keep the peace.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

Palestinian protesters threw rocks and Israeli police fired stun grenades and rubber bullets in clashes outside the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem on Monday as Israel marked the anniversary of its capture of parts of the city in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.

Palestinian protesters threw rocks and Israeli police fired stun grenades and rubber bullets in clashes outside the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem on Monday as Israel marked the anniversary of its capture of parts of the city in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said more than 180 Palestinians were injured in the violence, of whom more than 80, including one person in critical condition, were transferred to hospitals. Al-Aqsa, Islam's third-holiest site, has been a focal point of violence in Jerusalem throughout the Muslim holy month of Ramzan. The clashes have raised international concern. Tensions were particularly high as Israel marked 'Jerusalem Day', its annual celebration of the capture of East Jerusalem and the walled Old City that is home to Muslim, Jewish and Christian holy places. In an effort to ease the situation, Israeli police said they had banned Jewish groups from paying Jerusalem Day visits to the holy plaza that houses al-Aqsa, and which Jews revere as the site of biblical Jewish temples. Police were also considering whether to reroute a traditional Jerusalem Day march in which thousands of Israeli flag-waving Jewish youth walk through the Old City's Damascus Gate and the Muslim Quarter. Police fired tear gas, stun grenades and rubber bullets at hundreds of Palestinians, who hurled rocks at them on al-Aqsa's stone-strewn plaza, witnesses said. "Extremist Palestinians planned well in advance to carry out riots today on the Temple Mount," Ofir Gendelman, a spokesman for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tweeted. "What we see now is the result of that." Police said they had deployed thousands of officers in Jerusalem streets and on rooftops to keep the peace. (With inputs from agencies)

Violence erupts at al-Aqsa mosque as Israel marks Jerusalem Day 

Arab countries, including four that last year agreed to normalise relations with Israel, have condemned a weekend of violence after hundreds of Palestinians were wounded in clashes with Israeli security forces.

The violence around east Jerusalem's revered Al-Aqsa mosque compound and the Old City is the worst since 2017, fuelled by a years-long bid by Jewish settlers to take over Palestinian homes.

Criticism of Israeli conduct has poured in from Sudan, Morocco, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, all nations that last year agreed to normalise, or normalised, relations with the Jewish state.&nbsp;

Khartoum labelled Israeli measures in Jerusalem against Palestinians as "repression", and "coercive action" in a foreign ministry statement late Saturday.

It called on the Israeli government "to refrain from taking unilateral steps that diminish the chances for resuming peace negotiations."

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/stop-clashes-pope-francis-calls-for-end-to-violence-in-jerusalem-383901">'Stop Clashes': Pope Francis calls for end to violence in Jerusalem</a>

The UAE and Bahrain condemned Friday's storming of the Al-Aqsa mosque by Israeli security forces, and the ensuing crackdown on worshippers seeking to access the site.&nbsp;

Abu Dhabi urged Israeli authorities to "take responsibility for de-escalation" of violence at the holy site, while Manama called on the Israeli government "to stop these rejected provocations against the people of Jerusalem."&nbsp;

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/jerusalem-nightly-violent-encounter-injures-178-palestinians-and-6-police-officers-383586">Jerusalem: Nightly violent encounter injures 178 Palestinians and 6 police officers</a>

Meanwhile, Morocco expressed "deep concern" over the violence saying King Mohammed VI "considers these violations... (are) likely to fuel tensions."&nbsp;

Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry said it "rejected" Israeli plans to evacuate Palestinian households from Jerusalem, and called for the reinstatement of the pre-1967 borders.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/turkeys-erdogan-calls-israel-terror-state-over-palestinian-clashes-at-al-aqsa-383800">Turkey's Erdogan calls Israel 'terror state' over Palestinian clashes at Al-Aqsa&nbsp;</a>

Israel occupied east Jerusalem during the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it, in a move not recognised by most of the international community. &nbsp;

Arab countries, including four that last year agreed to normalise relations with Israel, have condemned a weekend of violence after hundreds of Palestinians were wounded in clashes with Israeli security forces.

Arab countries, including four that last year agreed to normalise relations with Israel, have condemned a weekend of violence after hundreds of Palestinians were wounded in clashes with Israeli security forces. The violence around east Jerusalem's revered Al-Aqsa mosque compound and the Old City is the worst since 2017, fuelled by a years-long bid by Jewish settlers to take over Palestinian homes. Criticism of Israeli conduct has poured in from Sudan, Morocco, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, all nations that last year agreed to normalise, or normalised, relations with the Jewish state. Khartoum labelled Israeli measures in Jerusalem against Palestinians as "repression", and "coercive action" in a foreign ministry statement late Saturday. It called on the Israeli government "to refrain from taking unilateral steps that diminish the chances for resuming peace negotiations." Also read | 'Stop Clashes': Pope Francis calls for end to violence in Jerusalem The UAE and Bahrain condemned Friday's storming of the Al-Aqsa mosque by Israeli security forces, and the ensuing crackdown on worshippers seeking to access the site. Abu Dhabi urged Israeli authorities to "take responsibility for de-escalation" of violence at the holy site, while Manama called on the Israeli government "to stop these rejected provocations against the people of Jerusalem." Also read | Jerusalem: Nightly violent encounter injures 178 Palestinians and 6 police officers Meanwhile, Morocco expressed "deep concern" over the violence saying King Mohammed VI "considers these violations... (are) likely to fuel tensions." Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry said it "rejected" Israeli plans to evacuate Palestinian households from Jerusalem, and called for the reinstatement of the pre-1967 borders. Also read | Turkey's Erdogan calls Israel 'terror state' over Palestinian clashes at Al-Aqsa Israel occupied east Jerusalem during the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it, in a move not recognised by most of the international community.

Arab nations hit out at Israel over Jerusalem violence

Unrest and violence in the Tigray region in Ethiopia has left more than 1.7 million people, including children homeless. Thousands of children have either been separated from their parents or have lost them to war. WION brings you a report on how children in Tigray are having to become victims of a political war.

Food, water, shelter for children remains a challenge in Tigray

Colombia's defence minister on Monday blamed illegal armed groups for looting and vandalism during five days of street&nbsp;protests&nbsp;but would not confirm how many demonstrators had died.

The&nbsp;protests, which began last week, demanded the withdrawal of a tax reform proposed by the government of President Ivan Duque, who said on Sunday, the legislation would be retracted.

Demonstrations resumed on Monday in the capital, Bogota, and other cities including Medellin and Cali despite the announcement, with highways also blocked in some areas of the country.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="Colombia's president withdraws tax reform after protests ">Colombia's president withdraws tax reform after protests&nbsp;</a>

"Colombia&nbsp;faces particular threats from criminal organizations that are behind these violent acts," Defence Minister Diego Molano told a news conference, adding those committing violence were not those marching peacefully.

Molano cited intelligence information in his allegation but did not offer further evidence.

Violent groups were financed and organized by leftist guerrillas of the National Liberation Army (ELN) and former FARC rebels who reject a 2016 peace deal, Molano added.

"We are saddened for all those who lost their lives due to criminal actions during these&nbsp;protests," Molano said.

He would not give specific details on the death toll, saying the attorney general's office would investigate.

The national human rights ombudsman has identified 18 civilians and one police officer who were killed during five days of&nbsp;protests, while the procurator's office said on Sunday it was investigating connections between the&nbsp;protests&nbsp;and 14 violent deaths.

A local human rights group has reported more than 20 deaths.

Truck drivers' and taxi drivers' unions, which had threatened to join&nbsp;protests&nbsp;on Monday, backed out of strikes following the withdrawal of the tax reform.

But some streets were closed by vehicles in Bogota and Medellin, while highways were blocked on the capital's outskirts, as well as in the center and southeast of the country.

Bogota Mayor Claudia Lopez said 25% of the capital's mass transit system was out of service following vandalism and urged those who attended marches to get tested for COVID-19.

One major union said in a message on Twitter, it would hold another national strike on Wednesday to protest a health reform, among other things.

Colombia's defence minister on Monday blamed illegal armed groups for looting and vandalism during five days of street protests but would not confirm how many demonstrators had died.

Colombia's defence minister on Monday blamed illegal armed groups for looting and vandalism during five days of street protests but would not confirm how many demonstrators had died. The protests, which began last week, demanded the withdrawal of a tax reform proposed by the government of President Ivan Duque, who said on Sunday, the legislation would be retracted. Demonstrations resumed on Monday in the capital, Bogota, and other cities including Medellin and Cali despite the announcement, with highways also blocked in some areas of the country. Also read: Colombia's president withdraws tax reform after protests "Colombia faces particular threats from criminal organizations that are behind these violent acts," Defence Minister Diego Molano told a news conference, adding those committing violence were not those marching peacefully. Molano cited intelligence information in his allegation but did not offer further evidence. Violent groups were financed and organized by leftist guerrillas of the National Liberation Army (ELN) and former FARC rebels who reject a 2016 peace deal, Molano added. "We are saddened for all those who lost their lives due to criminal actions during these protests," Molano said. He would not give specific details on the death toll, saying the attorney general's office would investigate. The national human rights ombudsman has identified 18 civilians and one police officer who were killed during five days of protests, while the procurator's office said on Sunday it was investigating connections between the protests and 14 violent deaths. A local human rights group has reported more than 20 deaths. Truck drivers' and taxi drivers' unions, which had threatened to join protests on Monday, backed out of strikes following the withdrawal of the tax reform. But some streets were closed by vehicles in Bogota and Medellin, while highways were blocked on the capital's outskirts, as well as in the center and southeast of the country. Bogota Mayor Claudia Lopez said 25% of the capital's mass transit system was out of service following vandalism and urged those who attended marches to get tested for COVID-19. One major union said in a message on Twitter, it would hold another national strike on Wednesday to protest a health reform, among other things.

Colombia blames armed groups for protest violence, death toll still unclear

More than 100 Afghan security force personnel have been killed over the last two weeks amid a surge of Taliban attacks following Washington's announcement it would pull all US&nbsp;troops out by September&nbsp;11, officials said on Thursday.

Senior Afghan officials say the Taliban is putting on a show of force and seeking to gain territory as foreign forces pull out. The Taliban has waged a two-decade-long insurgency since being ousted from power by US-led foreign troops in 2001.

According to two senior security officials, around 120 Afghan security forces personnel, 65 civilians and over 300 Taliban fighters have been killed in the last 15 days of fighting, and scores more wounded across the country.

A spokesman for the Interior Ministry, Tariq Arian, said the Taliban have carried out at least six suicide bombings and several targeted killings and had planted 65 roadside bombs to target government troops.

He added that more than 60 civilians have been killed and 180 injured. He did not provide figures for casualties suffered by security forces, in keeping with usual government practice.

Dozens of Taliban fighters, including several commanders, have been killed during operations, Arian said.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid rejected the government's claim the group had inflicted civilian casualties, saying these were caused by air and ground operations by Afghan forces. He did not comment on the deaths of Taliban or security forces.

President Joe Biden earlier this month announced the United States would begin its final military withdrawal on May 1, completing it by Sept. 11. Foreign troops under NATO command will also withdraw, NATO allies agreed.

Since that announcement, violence has increased by nearly a quarter around the country, with Taliban attacks reported in 21 of the 34 provinces, an Afghan Defence Ministry spokesman said.

"We are already in the middle of Taliban's annual spring offensive but we are prepared and conducting our operations," said a senior government official, who asked not to be named.

Afghan chief of intelligence Ahmad Zia Siraj said the Taliban have increased violence "to the highest level" in recent days.

Top security leaders flew to the central province of Ghazni on Thursday to assess the situation amid reports of the Taliban amassing fighters in the area to overrun the strategic province.

Peace efforts stalled after the Taliban and the Afghan government began talks in the Qatari capital of Doha last year. Washington pushed for a summit in Turkey this month but that was postponed because the Taliban refused to participate, and no new date has been set.

The troop pullout deadline of Sept. 11 is later than a May 1 deadline agreed between the Taliban and United States in Doha last year. The Taliban, which has not attacked foreign troops since the Doha agreement, has called the delay unacceptable.

More than 100 Afghan security force personnel have been killed over the last two weeks amid a surge of Taliban attacks following Washington's announcement it would pull all US troops out by September 11, officials said on Thursday.

More than 100 Afghan security force personnel have been killed over the last two weeks amid a surge of Taliban attacks following Washington's announcement it would pull all US troops out by September 11, officials said on Thursday. Senior Afghan officials say the Taliban is putting on a show of force and seeking to gain territory as foreign forces pull out. The Taliban has waged a two-decade-long insurgency since being ousted from power by US-led foreign troops in 2001. According to two senior security officials, around 120 Afghan security forces personnel, 65 civilians and over 300 Taliban fighters have been killed in the last 15 days of fighting, and scores more wounded across the country. A spokesman for the Interior Ministry, Tariq Arian, said the Taliban have carried out at least six suicide bombings and several targeted killings and had planted 65 roadside bombs to target government troops. He added that more than 60 civilians have been killed and 180 injured. He did not provide figures for casualties suffered by security forces, in keeping with usual government practice. Dozens of Taliban fighters, including several commanders, have been killed during operations, Arian said. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid rejected the government's claim the group had inflicted civilian casualties, saying these were caused by air and ground operations by Afghan forces. He did not comment on the deaths of Taliban or security forces. President Joe Biden earlier this month announced the United States would begin its final military withdrawal on May 1, completing it by Sept. 11. Foreign troops under NATO command will also withdraw, NATO allies agreed. Since that announcement, violence has increased by nearly a quarter around the country, with Taliban attacks reported in 21 of the 34 provinces, an Afghan Defence Ministry spokesman said. "We are already in the middle of Taliban's annual spring offensive but we are prepared and conducting our operations," said a senior government official, who asked not to be named. Afghan chief of intelligence Ahmad Zia Siraj said the Taliban have increased violence "to the highest level" in recent days. Top security leaders flew to the central province of Ghazni on Thursday to assess the situation amid reports of the Taliban amassing fighters in the area to overrun the strategic province. Peace efforts stalled after the Taliban and the Afghan government began talks in the Qatari capital of Doha last year. Washington pushed for a summit in Turkey this month but that was postponed because the Taliban refused to participate, and no new date has been set. The troop pullout deadline of Sept. 11 is later than a May 1 deadline agreed between the Taliban and United States in Doha last year. The Taliban, which has not attacked foreign troops since the Doha agreement, has called the delay unacceptable.

Hundreds die in surge of violence in Afghanistan

At least 40 people have been killed and 58 injured in three days of clashes in Sudan's West Darfur state, the United Nations said on Monday. 
 
After clashes at the weekend, residents of El Geneina, capital of West Darfur and close to the border with Chad, said gunfire erupted in the city at dawn on Monday, with shells exploding in the suburbs. 
 
Plumes of smoke rose high into the sky as people fled the violence, witnesses reported. 
 
"Since April 3, 40 people have been killed," the UN humanitarian coordination office OCHA said in a statement. 
 
It said the clashes pitted Arab groups against the non-Arab Massalit ethnic community in the city of El Geneina, where the situation remained "tense". 
 
Sudan's top security body, the defence council, late Monday declared a state of emergency in West Darfur state and deployed troops to the region. 
 
"On Monday, we woke up to the sound of gunfire," Abdelrahman Ahmed, an eyewitness, told AFP. Clashes "spread to the western suburbs". 
 
It is unclear what sparked the latest violence.

Women and children fleeing 
The vast Darfur region was ravaged by a civil war that erupted in 2003, leaving around 300,000 people dead and 2.5 million displaced, according to the UN. 
 
It flared when ethnic minority rebels rose up against dictator Omar al-Bashir's Arab-dominated government. 
 
Khartoum responded by unleashing a notorious Arab-dominated militia known as the Janjaweed from among the region's nomadic tribes. 
 
The conflict has subsided over the years, and the latest in a string of peace deals was agreed in October. 
 
But after years of conflict, the region is awash with automatic weapons. Clashes still erupt, often over land and access to water. 
 
Residents long displaced during the worst years of the war are returning to find others have occupied their lands. 
 
Eyewitnesses said fighting still raged on Monday afternoon, as thick smoke billowed over El Geneina. 
 
"We stayed in our homes, but we've been hearing gunfire close by -- a shell landed at our neighbour's home," said Adam Issa, another resident. 
 
The West Darfur Doctors' Committee said an ambulance carrying wounded victims was attacked. 
 
Clashes often pit nomadic Arab pastoralists against settled farmers from non-Arab ethnic groups. 
 
Saleh Issa, another El Geneina resident, said he saw a "cloud of smoke" covering swathes of the city.&nbsp; 
 
"Some residents from these neighbourhoods have fled towards our area -- most of are women and children," he added. 
 
Sudan is in the midst of a rocky transitional period following the toppling of long-time president Omar al-Bashir in April 2019 off the back of mass protests against his rule. 
 
The transitional government has pushed to build peace with rebel groups in Sudan's main conflict zones, including Darfur. 
 
On December 31, the UN and African Union ended a 13-year peacekeeping mission in Darfur, even as residents feared further violence. 
 
More than 200 people were killed in clashes in January, in some of the worst bloodshed the region had witnessed in years.

At least 40 people have been killed and 58 injured in three days of clashes in Sudan's West Darfur state, the United Nations said on Monday. After clashes at the weekend, residents of El Geneina, capital of West Darfur and close to the border with Chad, said gunfire erupted in the city at dawn on Monday, with shells exploding in the suburbs.

At least 40 people have been killed and 58 injured in three days of clashes in Sudan's West Darfur state, the United Nations said on Monday. After clashes at the weekend, residents of El Geneina, capital of West Darfur and close to the border with Chad, said gunfire erupted in the city at dawn on Monday, with shells exploding in the suburbs. Plumes of smoke rose high into the sky as people fled the violence, witnesses reported. "Since April 3, 40 people have been killed," the UN humanitarian coordination office OCHA said in a statement. It said the clashes pitted Arab groups against the non-Arab Massalit ethnic community in the city of El Geneina, where the situation remained "tense". Sudan's top security body, the defence council, late Monday declared a state of emergency in West Darfur state and deployed troops to the region. "On Monday, we woke up to the sound of gunfire," Abdelrahman Ahmed, an eyewitness, told AFP. Clashes "spread to the western suburbs". It is unclear what sparked the latest violence. Women and children fleeing The vast Darfur region was ravaged by a civil war that erupted in 2003, leaving around 300,000 people dead and 2.5 million displaced, according to the UN. It flared when ethnic minority rebels rose up against dictator Omar al-Bashir's Arab-dominated government. Khartoum responded by unleashing a notorious Arab-dominated militia known as the Janjaweed from among the region's nomadic tribes. The conflict has subsided over the years, and the latest in a string of peace deals was agreed in October. But after years of conflict, the region is awash with automatic weapons. Clashes still erupt, often over land and access to water. Residents long displaced during the worst years of the war are returning to find others have occupied their lands. Eyewitnesses said fighting still raged on Monday afternoon, as thick smoke billowed over El Geneina. "We stayed in our homes, but we've been hearing gunfire close by -- a shell landed at our neighbour's home," said Adam Issa, another resident. The West Darfur Doctors' Committee said an ambulance carrying wounded victims was attacked. Clashes often pit nomadic Arab pastoralists against settled farmers from non-Arab ethnic groups. Saleh Issa, another El Geneina resident, said he saw a "cloud of smoke" covering swathes of the city. "Some residents from these neighbourhoods have fled towards our area -- most of are women and children," he added. Sudan is in the midst of a rocky transitional period following the toppling of long-time president Omar al-Bashir in April 2019 off the back of mass protests against his rule. The transitional government has pushed to build peace with rebel groups in Sudan's main conflict zones, including Darfur. On December 31, the UN and African Union ended a 13-year peacekeeping mission in Darfur, even as residents feared further violence. More than 200 people were killed in clashes in January, in some of the worst bloodshed the region had witnessed in years.

At least 40 dead in fighting in Sudan's Darfur, says UN

U.S. diplomats are trying to build on parts of the peace deal made with the Taliban last year, specifically the classified portions that outlined what military actions — on both sides — were supposed to be prohibited under the signed agreement, according to American, Afghan and Taliban officials.

The negotiations, which have been quietly underway for months, have morphed into the Biden administration’s last-ditch diplomatic effort to achieve a reduction in violence, which could enable the United States to still exit the country should broader peace talks fail to yield progress in the coming weeks.

If these discussions and the separate talks between the Afghan government and Taliban falter, the United States will likely find itself with thousands of troops in Afghanistan beyond May 1. That is the deadline by which all U.S. military forces are meant to withdraw from the country under the 2020 agreement with the Taliban and would come at a time when the insurgent group likely will have begun its spring offensive against the beleaguered Afghan security forces.

Both of these conditions would almost certainly set back any progress made in the past months toward a political settlement, despite both the Trump and the Biden administrations’ fervent attempts to end the U.S.’ longest-running war.

“Time is really running out for the Biden administration,” said Asfandyar Mir, an analyst at the Center for International Security and Cooperation at Stanford University. “If there is no breakthrough in the next two to three weeks, Biden will have scored his first major foreign policy failure.”

The proposed agreement specific to two annexes of the 2020 deal, which were deemed classified by the Trump administration, is intended to stave off an insurgent victory on the battlefield during the peace talks by limiting Taliban military operations against Afghan forces, according to U.S. officials and others familiar with the negotiations. In return, the United States would push for the release of all Taliban prisoners still imprisoned by the Afghan government and the lifting of United Nations sanctions against the Taliban — two goals outlined in the original deal.

These new negotiations, which exclude representatives from the Afghan government, are being carried out amid a contentious logjam between the Taliban and the Afghans, despite pressure from international and regional actors on both sides to commit to some form of a path forward.

With May 1 just a few weeks away, there is a growing sense of urgency and uncertainty looming over all sides.

The United States currently has around 3,500 troops in the country, alongside thousands of contractors and international forces still on the ground. Withdrawing those forces and all their equipment by May 1 is, at this point, almost logistically impossible, experts and officials said.

The U.S.’ unilateral negotiations with the Taliban have drawn ire from Afghan negotiators, who see the side discussions as a distraction from the broader peace talks. Even if the United States and the Taliban reach a deal to reduce violence, it is not likely to result in a full cease-fire, said one of the Afghan government negotiators, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Specifically, the United States is pushing for three months of reduced violence and has been for some time — though U.S. diplomats hope that timeline could be extended.

But in recent months, the Taliban submitted their own proposal, first reported by Tolo News, with requests that were not fully accepted by the U.S. negotiators and included severe restrictions on U.S. air power.

Many of the delays in securing a new deal to reduce violence stem from the original February 2020 agreement.

That deal loosely called for the Taliban to stop suicide attacks and large-scale offensives in exchange for the U.S. forces scaling back drone strikes and raids, among other types of military assaults. But both sides interpreted those terms differently, officials said, and both have accused one another of violating the deal. The Taliban are also supposed to cut ties with al-Qaida and other terrorist groups, but the U.S. intelligence community has seen little movement toward that goal.

Under the current arrangement, U.S. forces can defend their Afghan allies if they are being attacked, but the Taliban said U.S. airstrikes have been carried out against their fighters who were not attacking Afghan forces.

Digital spreadsheets maintained by the Taliban and viewed by The New York Times detail hundreds of purported U.S. violations. They record in detail the group’s wounded and killed, along with civilian casualties and property damage. However, the Taliban often do not distinguish between offensive operations carried out by Afghan security forces from those by U.S. forces, and several of the events the Times was able to independently verify from June 2020 did not involve U.S. troops.

The new terms for a reduction in violence have been a serious point of contention during the past several months, during meetings frequently held at the Sharq Village and Spa, a luxurious resort in Doha, Qatar.

Meetings between U.S. officials and the Taliban in Doha — including with high-level officials like then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in November and the chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Mark Milley, in December — attempted to scale back Taliban attacks and stop the bloody assassination campaign wreaking havoc across the country but made little headway.

With time running out, the Biden administration is hoping for more success, though these discussions continue to hit roadblocks.

Negotiations between the Afghans and the Taliban, which began in September, have practically come to a halt as the insurgent group has remained reluctant to discuss any future government or power-sharing deal while the United States remains noncommittal about whether it will withdraw from Afghanistan by May 1.

The Biden administration’s recent push for talks in Turkey could be promising, officials and experts said, but the Taliban have yet to agree to attend.

The insurgent group thinks Biden’s negotiators are manipulating the proposed agreement to reduce violence by asking for “extreme” measures, such as halting the use of roadside bombs and pausing attacks on checkpoints, according to people close to the negotiations.

Taliban negotiators say they believe the U.S.' requests equate to a cease-fire, while U.S. military officials say that if certain parameters are not clearly outlined, then the Taliban will shift their tactics to exploit any loopholes they can find — like they have done in the past.

Some of the more striking episodes happened in the past week when CIA-backed militia forces were accused of killing more than a dozen civilians in a Taliban-controlled village in Khost province in southeastern Afghanistan.

In retaliation, the Taliban authorized their fighters to attack the U.S. military and CIA base there and publicly took responsibility for the rocket attack that followed: a first for the insurgent group since it has mostly stopped, or refused to acknowledge, attacks against U.S. bases and troops, per the terms of the 2020 deal.

Some Taliban officials believe the CIA-backed forces should be disbanded and their operations stopped if the insurgent group agrees to any further reduction in violence, according to people close to the negotiations, but it is unclear if the insurgent group has raised those concerns directly. Regardless, any such request is likely to fall on deaf ears, as the U.S. military and intelligence community views these forces as some of the Afghans’ most effective, despite the litany of human rights abuses leveled against them.

The Khost incident highlights the difficulty of reaching an understanding when it comes to decreasing the intensity of the war, and the need for an international third-party monitoring body, such as the United Nations, in any future cease-fires or agreements to reduce violence, experts said.

It is unlikely the United States and Taliban will reach a new deal before May 1, analysts say, unless U.S. officials are willing to make serious concessions to prevent a violent offensive this spring, one that seems to already have started given the series of large attacks and assassinations by the Taliban in recent days.

Some experts have criticized the U.S.’ narrow focus on a short-term reduction of violence as a distraction from the larger effort of reaching a political settlement between the Afghan government and the Taliban.

“I am hard-pressed to see what payoff there’s been for the amount of effort that has been put into trying to get limited violence reduction front-loaded in the peace process,” said Laurel Miller, a former top State Department official who worked on Afghanistan and Pakistan diplomacy under the previous two administrations. “It might be helpful for political optics in covering for an American withdrawal. But what’s going to make this stick afterward if there isn’t a real settlement? Nothing.”

U.S. diplomats are trying to build on parts of the peace deal made with the Taliban last year, specifically the classified portions that outlined what military actions — on both sides — were supposed to be prohibited under the signed agreement, according to American, Afghan and Taliban officials.

U.S. diplomats are trying to build on parts of the peace deal made with the Taliban last year, specifically the classified portions that outlined what military actions — on both sides — were supposed to be prohibited under the signed agreement, according to American, Afghan and Taliban officials. The negotiations, which have been quietly underway for months, have morphed into the Biden administration’s last-ditch diplomatic effort to achieve a reduction in violence, which could enable the United States to still exit the country should broader peace talks fail to yield progress in the coming weeks. If these discussions and the separate talks between the Afghan government and Taliban falter, the United States will likely find itself with thousands of troops in Afghanistan beyond May 1. That is the deadline by which all U.S. military forces are meant to withdraw from the country under the 2020 agreement with the Taliban and would come at a time when the insurgent group likely will have begun its spring offensive against the beleaguered Afghan security forces. Both of these conditions would almost certainly set back any progress made in the past months toward a political settlement, despite both the Trump and the Biden administrations’ fervent attempts to end the U.S.’ longest-running war. “Time is really running out for the Biden administration,” said Asfandyar Mir, an analyst at the Center for International Security and Cooperation at Stanford University. “If there is no breakthrough in the next two to three weeks, Biden will have scored his first major foreign policy failure.” The proposed agreement specific to two annexes of the 2020 deal, which were deemed classified by the Trump administration, is intended to stave off an insurgent victory on the battlefield during the peace talks by limiting Taliban military operations against Afghan forces, according to U.S. officials and others familiar with the negotiations. In return, the United States would push for the release of all Taliban prisoners still imprisoned by the Afghan government and the lifting of United Nations sanctions against the Taliban — two goals outlined in the original deal. These new negotiations, which exclude representatives from the Afghan government, are being carried out amid a contentious logjam between the Taliban and the Afghans, despite pressure from international and regional actors on both sides to commit to some form of a path forward. With May 1 just a few weeks away, there is a growing sense of urgency and uncertainty looming over all sides. The United States currently has around 3,500 troops in the country, alongside thousands of contractors and international forces still on the ground. Withdrawing those forces and all their equipment by May 1 is, at this point, almost logistically impossible, experts and officials said. The U.S.’ unilateral negotiations with the Taliban have drawn ire from Afghan negotiators, who see the side discussions as a distraction from the broader peace talks. Even if the United States and the Taliban reach a deal to reduce violence, it is not likely to result in a full cease-fire, said one of the Afghan government negotiators, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. Specifically, the United States is pushing for three months of reduced violence and has been for some time — though U.S. diplomats hope that timeline could be extended. But in recent months, the Taliban submitted their own proposal, first reported by Tolo News, with requests that were not fully accepted by the U.S. negotiators and included severe restrictions on U.S. air power. Many of the delays in securing a new deal to reduce violence stem from the original February 2020 agreement. That deal loosely called for the Taliban to stop suicide attacks and large-scale offensives in exchange for the U.S. forces scaling back drone strikes and raids, among other types of military assaults. But both sides interpreted those terms differently, officials said, and both have accused one another of violating the deal. The Taliban are also supposed to cut ties with al-Qaida and other terrorist groups, but the U.S. intelligence community has seen little movement toward that goal. Under the current arrangement, U.S. forces can defend their Afghan allies if they are being attacked, but the Taliban said U.S. airstrikes have been carried out against their fighters who were not attacking Afghan forces. Digital spreadsheets maintained by the Taliban and viewed by The New York Times detail hundreds of purported U.S. violations. They record in detail the group’s wounded and killed, along with civilian casualties and property damage. However, the Taliban often do not distinguish between offensive operations carried out by Afghan security forces from those by U.S. forces, and several of the events the Times was able to independently verify from June 2020 did not involve U.S. troops. The new terms for a reduction in violence have been a serious point of contention during the past several months, during meetings frequently held at the Sharq Village and Spa, a luxurious resort in Doha, Qatar. Meetings between U.S. officials and the Taliban in Doha — including with high-level officials like then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in November and the chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Mark Milley, in December — attempted to scale back Taliban attacks and stop the bloody assassination campaign wreaking havoc across the country but made little headway. With time running out, the Biden administration is hoping for more success, though these discussions continue to hit roadblocks. Negotiations between the Afghans and the Taliban, which began in September, have practically come to a halt as the insurgent group has remained reluctant to discuss any future government or power-sharing deal while the United States remains noncommittal about whether it will withdraw from Afghanistan by May 1. The Biden administration’s recent push for talks in Turkey could be promising, officials and experts said, but the Taliban have yet to agree to attend. The insurgent group thinks Biden’s negotiators are manipulating the proposed agreement to reduce violence by asking for “extreme” measures, such as halting the use of roadside bombs and pausing attacks on checkpoints, according to people close to the negotiations. Taliban negotiators say they believe the U.S.' requests equate to a cease-fire, while U.S. military officials say that if certain parameters are not clearly outlined, then the Taliban will shift their tactics to exploit any loopholes they can find — like they have done in the past. Some of the more striking episodes happened in the past week when CIA-backed militia forces were accused of killing more than a dozen civilians in a Taliban-controlled village in Khost province in southeastern Afghanistan. In retaliation, the Taliban authorized their fighters to attack the U.S. military and CIA base there and publicly took responsibility for the rocket attack that followed: a first for the insurgent group since it has mostly stopped, or refused to acknowledge, attacks against U.S. bases and troops, per the terms of the 2020 deal. Some Taliban officials believe the CIA-backed forces should be disbanded and their operations stopped if the insurgent group agrees to any further reduction in violence, according to people close to the negotiations, but it is unclear if the insurgent group has raised those concerns directly. Regardless, any such request is likely to fall on deaf ears, as the U.S. military and intelligence community views these forces as some of the Afghans’ most effective, despite the litany of human rights abuses leveled against them. The Khost incident highlights the difficulty of reaching an understanding when it comes to decreasing the intensity of the war, and the need for an international third-party monitoring body, such as the United Nations, in any future cease-fires or agreements to reduce violence, experts said. It is unlikely the United States and Taliban will reach a new deal before May 1, analysts say, unless U.S. officials are willing to make serious concessions to prevent a violent offensive this spring, one that seems to already have started given the series of large attacks and assassinations by the Taliban in recent days. Some experts have criticized the U.S.’ narrow focus on a short-term reduction of violence as a distraction from the larger effort of reaching a political settlement between the Afghan government and the Taliban. “I am hard-pressed to see what payoff there’s been for the amount of effort that has been put into trying to get limited violence reduction front-loaded in the peace process,” said Laurel Miller, a former top State Department official who worked on Afghanistan and Pakistan diplomacy under the previous two administrations. “It might be helpful for political optics in covering for an American withdrawal. But what’s going to make this stick afterward if there isn’t a real settlement? Nothing.”

U.S. looks to build on secret portions of Taliban deal to reduce violence

Prime Minister Narendra Modi added much&nbsp;lustre&nbsp;to the ongoing birth centenary of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the Golden jubilee celebrations of Bangladesh’s independence on his Dhaka visit (March 26-27). His bilateral talks on a wide range of issues with the top Bangladesh leadership, visit to a couple of Hindu temples, meeting with a cross section of politicians and minority leaders, and homage to father of the nation, Mujibur Rahman at&nbsp;Tungipara&nbsp;were well received. Similarly, awarding the Gandhi Peace prize posthumously to Bangabandhu was an outstanding gesture. Modi’s powerful and emotional rhetoric in praise of Sheikh Mujib and India’s relations with Bangladesh augured very well as Indo-BD ties were placed on a new pedestal by the historic recent trip by the Indian Prime Minister and Bangladesh exuded immense warmth and enthusiasm on the&nbsp;visit.&nbsp;

However,&nbsp;madarsa&nbsp;inspired fundamentalist religious outfit,&nbsp;Hefazat-e-Islam displayed while flexing its muscles by&nbsp;organising&nbsp;anti-Modi protest demonstrations in Dhaka and other cities of Bangladesh airing its ire on the Bangladesh government for having invited the Indian PM,&nbsp;who was alleged to have carried out discriminatory policies against the Muslims of India. Law enforcing agencies in Bangladesh used force to keep the protesting&nbsp;Hefazat&nbsp;cadres at bay. Closer to PM Modi’s departure to India, the elite Border Guards Bangladesh (BGB) [equivalent to the Border Security Force (BSF) of India] was also deployed in Dhaka to maintain tranquil arising out of the&nbsp;Hefazat&nbsp;acts of vandalism and destruction of public property. That shows the seriousness and gravity of the prevailing emerging situation, then. It was indeed threatening.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Coincidentally, or otherwise,&nbsp;Hefazat&nbsp;led well planned and orchestrated violence engulfed parts of Dhaka, Narayanganj,&nbsp;Sunamgunj,&nbsp;Habigunj, Chittagong, Brahmanbaria, Sylhet and&nbsp;Munshigunj. Police stations were set alight, police officers in uniform targeted and worse,&nbsp;in many cases,&nbsp;Hindu temples were desecrated and in some places of worship, ornaments of the deity were allegedly looted. This instilled a sense of insecurity amongst the Hindu minority feeling terribly unsafe by the onslaught of the communal forces. In Brahmanbaria, the renowned Ustad Allauddin Khan music academy came under violent attack. Ustad Allauddin Khan, the legendary maestro, and father of Annapurna Devi and sarod player Ustad Ali Akbar Khan belonged to this&nbsp;city who later established the&nbsp;Maihar&nbsp;gharana in India. The assault on the academy named after the famous musician, shows to what extent the religious extremists can go to harm the hapless.&nbsp;

Amid these unfortunate unfolding of violent happenings, it becomes imperative to quickly examine how&nbsp;Hefazat&nbsp;e Islam got emboldened to go on such a violent spree when the government was at its feet to foil any protests? How could&nbsp;Hefazat&nbsp;be able to&nbsp;organise&nbsp;such&nbsp;large&nbsp;scale&nbsp;demonstrations in places other than the port city Chittagong which is its principal bastion? What are the internal and external forces which lent moral and material support to the protestors? These questions need to be answered sooner than later.&nbsp;Hefazat&nbsp;led violence cost more than scores of lives and wanton vandalism of property. Worryingly, violent attacks on the Hindu temples and defiling of the idols need to shake up the establishment more so as the country celebrates the twin occasions of Mujib centenary and 50 years of independence.&nbsp;

Minority communities have legitimate expectations from the Hasina-led government in place in Dhaka. She is seen as&nbsp;the&nbsp;saviour&nbsp;and protector of the minority. That trust merits to be maintained with no cushion for any deficit. Also, there has been a public perception that&nbsp;Hefazat&nbsp;was close to the ruling dispensation and enjoyed its patronage. In the year 2013, many liberals and bloggers were hacked to death.&nbsp;Hefazat&nbsp;was reportedly complicit in the killings. Subsequently, this outfit was extra vocal in removal of statues from the Supreme Court describing their presence as un-Islamic. Their demand was met giving rise to speculations that the government was accommodative to&nbsp;Hefazat&nbsp;diktats.&nbsp;During and after the Modi visit, they have raised their ugly head, again.&nbsp;

In the light of these developments, it’s equally important for the intelligence and security agencies to ascertain the source(s) of funding to such&nbsp;destabilising&nbsp;communalists’ inspired agitation. If any extraneous and hostile forces are involved, they ought to be exposed to prevent recurrences of such&nbsp;unsavoury&nbsp;incidents bringing embarrassment to a regime thought to be progressive. Further, we know Jamaat e Islami (JeI)&nbsp;stands de franchised but the elements remain and possibly alive and kicking.&nbsp;They, by deduction, may have infiltrated into&nbsp;Hefazat.&nbsp;Many&nbsp;Jamaatis&nbsp;who had collaborated with Pakistani occupation forces in 1971, had been hanged to death after trials by a tribunal. The communal forces fifty years ago had connived with the then West Pakistan army. It’s a sad commentary that when the country is&nbsp;celebrating today its half a century of&nbsp;independence,&nbsp;the same very forces are now attempting to undermine the spirit of liberation and supreme sacrifice of the millions of proud&nbsp;Bangalis. It’s time for harsher measures to contain the menace. The space being vulnerable, political opposition like the BNP may also like to fish in the troubled waters trying to&nbsp;capitalise&nbsp;on the developments. Prime Minister Hasina and her government would do well to act astutely and&nbsp;disallow any breathing space to their political adversary to surface over ground for any revival in active association with&nbsp;zealots.&nbsp;&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The views of the writer do not represent the views of WION or ZMCL. Nor does WION or ZMCL endorse the views of the writer.)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi added much lustre to the ongoing birth centenary of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the Golden jubilee celebrations of Bangladesh’s independence on his Dhaka visit (March 26-27).

Prime Minister Narendra Modi added much lustre to the ongoing birth centenary of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the Golden jubilee celebrations of Bangladesh’s independence on his Dhaka visit (March 26-27). His bilateral talks on a wide range of issues with the top Bangladesh leadership, visit to a couple of Hindu temples, meeting with a cross section of politicians and minority leaders, and homage to father of the nation, Mujibur Rahman at Tungipara were well received. Similarly, awarding the Gandhi Peace prize posthumously to Bangabandhu was an outstanding gesture. Modi’s powerful and emotional rhetoric in praise of Sheikh Mujib and India’s relations with Bangladesh augured very well as Indo-BD ties were placed on a new pedestal by the historic recent trip by the Indian Prime Minister and Bangladesh exuded immense warmth and enthusiasm on the visit. However, madarsa inspired fundamentalist religious outfit, Hefazat-e-Islam displayed while flexing its muscles by organising anti-Modi protest demonstrations in Dhaka and other cities of Bangladesh airing its ire on the Bangladesh government for having invited the Indian PM, who was alleged to have carried out discriminatory policies against the Muslims of India. Law enforcing agencies in Bangladesh used force to keep the protesting Hefazat cadres at bay. Closer to PM Modi’s departure to India, the elite Border Guards Bangladesh (BGB) [equivalent to the Border Security Force (BSF) of India] was also deployed in Dhaka to maintain tranquil arising out of the Hefazat acts of vandalism and destruction of public property. That shows the seriousness and gravity of the prevailing emerging situation, then. It was indeed threatening. Coincidentally, or otherwise, Hefazat led well planned and orchestrated violence engulfed parts of Dhaka, Narayanganj, Sunamgunj, Habigunj, Chittagong, Brahmanbaria, Sylhet and Munshigunj. Police stations were set alight, police officers in uniform targeted and worse, in many cases, Hindu temples were desecrated and in some places of worship, ornaments of the deity were allegedly looted. This instilled a sense of insecurity amongst the Hindu minority feeling terribly unsafe by the onslaught of the communal forces. In Brahmanbaria, the renowned Ustad Allauddin Khan music academy came under violent attack. Ustad Allauddin Khan, the legendary maestro, and father of Annapurna Devi and sarod player Ustad Ali Akbar Khan belonged to this city who later established the Maihar gharana in India. The assault on the academy named after the famous musician, shows to what extent the religious extremists can go to harm the hapless. Amid these unfortunate unfolding of violent happenings, it becomes imperative to quickly examine how Hefazat e Islam got emboldened to go on such a violent spree when the government was at its feet to foil any protests? How could Hefazat be able to organise such large scale demonstrations in places other than the port city Chittagong which is its principal bastion? What are the internal and external forces which lent moral and material support to the protestors? These questions need to be answered sooner than later. Hefazat led violence cost more than scores of lives and wanton vandalism of property. Worryingly, violent attacks on the Hindu temples and defiling of the idols need to shake up the establishment more so as the country celebrates the twin occasions of Mujib centenary and 50 years of independence. Minority communities have legitimate expectations from the Hasina-led government in place in Dhaka. She is seen as the saviour and protector of the minority. That trust merits to be maintained with no cushion for any deficit. Also, there has been a public perception that Hefazat was close to the ruling dispensation and enjoyed its patronage. In the year 2013, many liberals and bloggers were hacked to death. Hefazat was reportedly complicit in the killings. Subsequently, this outfit was extra vocal in removal of statues from the Supreme Court describing their presence as un-Islamic. Their demand was met giving rise to speculations that the government was accommodative to Hefazat diktats. During and after the Modi visit, they have raised their ugly head, again. In the light of these developments, it’s equally important for the intelligence and security agencies to ascertain the source(s) of funding to such destabilising communalists’ inspired agitation. If any extraneous and hostile forces are involved, they ought to be exposed to prevent recurrences of such unsavoury incidents bringing embarrassment to a regime thought to be progressive. Further, we know Jamaat e Islami (JeI) stands de franchised but the elements remain and possibly alive and kicking. They, by deduction, may have infiltrated into Hefazat. Many Jamaatis who had collaborated with Pakistani occupation forces in 1971, had been hanged to death after trials by a tribunal. The communal forces fifty years ago had connived with the then West Pakistan army. It’s a sad commentary that when the country is celebrating today its half a century of independence, the same very forces are now attempting to undermine the spirit of liberation and supreme sacrifice of the millions of proud Bangalis. It’s time for harsher measures to contain the menace. The space being vulnerable, political opposition like the BNP may also like to fish in the troubled waters trying to capitalise on the developments. Prime Minister Hasina and her government would do well to act astutely and disallow any breathing space to their political adversary to surface over ground for any revival in active association with zealots. (Disclaimer: The views of the writer do not represent the views of WION or ZMCL. Nor does WION or ZMCL endorse the views of the writer.)

﻿Shameful violence in aftermath of PM Modi’s Dhaka visit 

US President Joe Biden's administration has announced a set of measures to counter the rising violence against the Asian-American community. The White House has allocated $49.5 million from COVID-19 relief funds community programs that help victims.

White House announces new measures to counter hate and violence

US spy agencies have said that racially motivated extremists and militia extremists present the most lethal domestic terrorism threats, adding the threats could grow this year.

The assessment issued by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said racially motivated extremists were most likely to conduct major attacks against civilians, while militia members typically target police and government personnel and buildings.

The report defines “racially-motivated extremists” as those with “ideological agendas bias, often related to race or ethnicity”.

Alongside racially-motivated violence, militia violence “present the most lethal [domestic violent extremism] threat” to “law enforcement and government personnel and facilities”.

The agencies who contributed to the report, including the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security and the National Counterterrorism Center, said that domestic extremists who promote white racial superiority have potentially troubling contacts with foreign extremists and that a small number of American extremists have traveled abroad to network with overseas counterparts.

The agencies said that other domestic extremist categories which concern government investigators include animal rights and environmental activists, anti-abortion protesters, anarchists and people who call themselves sovereign citizens who "believe they are immune from government authority and laws."

The report concluded that “escalating support from persons in the United States or abroad, growing perceptions of government overreach related to legal or policy changes and disruptions, and high-profile attacks spurring follow-on attacks” could cause the threat of violence to increase in 2021 and beyond.

The agencies said that recent political and social developments -- such as claims by Republican former President Donald Trump and his supporters about fraud in the recent US presidential election, restrictions related to COVID-19, fallout from the January 6 US Capitol riot, and conspiracy theories - "will almost certainly spur" some domestic extremists "to try to engage in violence this year."

Five people died after the riot, including one US Capitol Police officer.

(with inputs)

US spy agencies have said that racially motivated extremists and militia extremists present the most lethal domestic terrorism threats, adding the threats could grow this year.

US spy agencies have said that racially motivated extremists and militia extremists present the most lethal domestic terrorism threats, adding the threats could grow this year. The assessment issued by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said racially motivated extremists were most likely to conduct major attacks against civilians, while militia members typically target police and government personnel and buildings. The report defines “racially-motivated extremists” as those with “ideological agendas bias, often related to race or ethnicity”. Alongside racially-motivated violence, militia violence “present the most lethal [domestic violent extremism] threat” to “law enforcement and government personnel and facilities”. The agencies who contributed to the report, including the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security and the National Counterterrorism Center, said that domestic extremists who promote white racial superiority have potentially troubling contacts with foreign extremists and that a small number of American extremists have traveled abroad to network with overseas counterparts. The agencies said that other domestic extremist categories which concern government investigators include animal rights and environmental activists, anti-abortion protesters, anarchists and people who call themselves sovereign citizens who "believe they are immune from government authority and laws." The report concluded that “escalating support from persons in the United States or abroad, growing perceptions of government overreach related to legal or policy changes and disruptions, and high-profile attacks spurring follow-on attacks” could cause the threat of violence to increase in 2021 and beyond. The agencies said that recent political and social developments -- such as claims by Republican former President Donald Trump and his supporters about fraud in the recent US presidential election, restrictions related to COVID-19, fallout from the January 6 US Capitol riot, and conspiracy theories - "will almost certainly spur" some domestic extremists "to try to engage in violence this year." Five people died after the riot, including one US Capitol Police officer. (with inputs)

US spy agencies warn of growing domestic terrorism threat

At least five people have died in demonstrations sparked by the arrest of Ousmane Sonko, Senegal’s most prominent opposition leader. It is the worst political unrest in years in a country widely seen as one of West Africa’s most stable.

Situated in the western-most part of Africa, Senegal is a majority-Muslim nation with relatively low human development. It is witnessing the worst unrest in nearly a decade.&nbsp;

Sonko, who enjoys strong support among the young, was arrested after an employee of a beauty salon accused him of raping her. Sonko denies the allegation and says it is politically motivated.

His supporters say — the charges are politically motivated. They accuse Senegal’s president Macky Sall of trying to sideline and kill the political prospects of this leader in the 2024 general election.

The opposition Movement to Defend Democracy coalition, which called three days of nationwide protest starting from Monday, said the charges were politically motivated. It called on the Senegalese people “to pursue its mobilization and peaceful struggle by using all of its constitutional rights to reject the dictatorship of Macky Sall,” the country’s president.

Following his release, Sonko said at a news conference that the street protests would continue and state authorities must pay compensation to the families of those killed during the protests and the assailants had to be brought to justice.

Sonko said that "This mobilization must be maintained. It must even be much larger, but it must above all be peaceful. It must be peaceful. Today, the people have regained the right that Macky Sall confiscated nine years ago at the demonstration. The people have taken it back by force; we must not lose this right."

Political pressure has mounted on President Sall, whose presidency has been plagued by accusations that he unjustly torpedoes political rivals and worries that he may seek to extend his rule beyond his allotted two-term limit.

The economic devastation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and a nightly curfew to contain its spread have only stoked frustrations.

(With inputs from agencies)

At least five people have died in demonstrations sparked by the arrest of Ousmane Sonko, Senegal’s most prominent opposition leader. It is the worst political unrest in years in a country widely seen as one of West Africa’s most stable.

At least five people have died in demonstrations sparked by the arrest of Ousmane Sonko, Senegal’s most prominent opposition leader. It is the worst political unrest in years in a country widely seen as one of West Africa’s most stable. Situated in the western-most part of Africa, Senegal is a majority-Muslim nation with relatively low human development. It is witnessing the worst unrest in nearly a decade. Sonko, who enjoys strong support among the young, was arrested after an employee of a beauty salon accused him of raping her. Sonko denies the allegation and says it is politically motivated. His supporters say — the charges are politically motivated. They accuse Senegal’s president Macky Sall of trying to sideline and kill the political prospects of this leader in the 2024 general election. The opposition Movement to Defend Democracy coalition, which called three days of nationwide protest starting from Monday, said the charges were politically motivated. It called on the Senegalese people “to pursue its mobilization and peaceful struggle by using all of its constitutional rights to reject the dictatorship of Macky Sall,” the country’s president. Following his release, Sonko said at a news conference that the street protests would continue and state authorities must pay compensation to the families of those killed during the protests and the assailants had to be brought to justice. Sonko said that "This mobilization must be maintained. It must even be much larger, but it must above all be peaceful. It must be peaceful. Today, the people have regained the right that Macky Sall confiscated nine years ago at the demonstration. The people have taken it back by force; we must not lose this right." Political pressure has mounted on President Sall, whose presidency has been plagued by accusations that he unjustly torpedoes political rivals and worries that he may seek to extend his rule beyond his allotted two-term limit. The economic devastation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and a nightly curfew to contain its spread have only stoked frustrations. (With inputs from agencies)

Violence paralyses Senegal: Country witnessing the worst unrest in a decade

An increase in Islamic insurgency has led to the displacement of nearly 670,000 people in east Arica's Mozambique. Jihadist violence has been a major reason behind displacement at this level. Oil wells have become the source of conflict for which insurgency has been dragged for 3 years.

Africa: Islamic insurgency led displacement of over 670,000 people

Some fled after the US-led invasion, others during sectarian bloodshed and more following jihadist attacks. Iraq's last two violent decades have hollowed out its Christian community which dates back two millennia.

After first settling in the fertile plains of Nineveh province before heading for the busy boulevards of Baghdad, more than one million Christians have in more modern times been uprooted by Iraq's consecutive conflicts.

"By the age of 24, I had already lived through and survived three wars," said Sally Fawzi, an Iraqi Chaldean Catholic, who left her country more than a decade ago and is now living in the US state of Texas.

Some members of Iraq's historic Christian community escaped to the nearby autonomous Kurdish region, others waited in neighbouring Jordan to emigrate and then resettled in countries as far away as Australia.

Many lost hope in their homeland long ago, but see next month's scheduled visit by Pope Francis -- the first-ever papal trip to Iraq -- as an important opportunity for him to use his voice to garner international support for Iraqis of their faith.

Iraq's Christian community is one of the oldest and most diverse in the world, featuring Chaldean, Armenian Orthodox, Protestant as well as other branches of Christianity.

By 2003, when then-dictator Saddam Hussein was toppled, there were 1.5 million Christians in a country of 25 million people, or around six percent of the population.

But as Iraq's population mushroomed, the percentage of the minorities shrank.

Today, only 400,000 Christians remain in a predominantly Muslim country of 40 million people, said William Warda, co-founder of the Hammurabi Human Rights Organisation.

Among those who left, nearly half a million resettled in the United States. Others ended up dispersed in Canada, Australia, Norway and other parts of Europe.

The first wave

Rana Said, 40, had tried her hardest to stay.

Her aunt and uncle were killed in 2007, when US soldiers blindly opened fire on the streets of Mosul after an attack in the regional capital of the northern province of Nineveh.

Still, she remained in the city with her husband Ammar al-Kass, 41, a veterinarian.

The following year, with Iraq gripped by sectarian bloodletting, a string of assassinations, including of Christians, pushed the Kass family to move to the relative safety of Iraqi Kurdistan.

But by 2013, the region was growing increasingly unstable.

The couple finally left their ancestral Iraq and were resettled on the Gold Coast of Australia where they found jobs in their respective professions and have raised three daughters: Sara, 10, Liza, six, and three-year-old Rose.

The young girls have never visited Iraq, although they speak Arabic and a modern dialect of Assyrian -- the ancient language of Christ -- at home.

A year after they resettled, jihadists from the so-called Islamic State group swept through their city. The family watched in horror from halfway around the world.

"The fall of Mosul wasn't easy for us," Ammar recounted, particularly IS's destruction of the city's Church of the Virgin Mary, a 1,200-year-old piece of treasured heritage.

"That's where my father was married. It was razed and obliterated to the ground," he said.&nbsp;

He tried to keep his wife -- pregnant with Liza at the time -- away from computers and phones, afraid the added stress would harm the baby.

"I used to have nightmares about IS entering and killing and raping my family. It was a repetitive, horrible dream," Rana said emotionally, of the jihadists who forced women of the Yazidi religious minority and those of other minorities into sexual slavery.&nbsp;

Lingering in limbo

Saad Hormuz lived the IS nightmare in person.

On August 6, 2014, IS fighters swept into Bartalla, the diverse town on the edges of Mosul where Hormuz had worked as a taxi driver.

"First, we fled towards Al-Qosh," another Christian town further north, he told AFP.

But as the jihadists kept up their pillaging of Nineveh, they escaped to Arbil, the capital of the Kurdish region.

With his wife Afnan, 48, and their four children -- Natalie, 7, Nores, 15, Franz, 16, and Fadi, 19 -- they lived in a church for a month before renting an apartment at $150 per month for nearly three years.&nbsp;

That severely strained their finances.

Three years later, Iraq's military declared it had freed Bartalla from IS's grip. The Hormuz family was elated and rushed back to resume life in their hometown.

But they found their home had been torched and ransacked, and that members of the Hashed al-Shaabi, a powerful state-sponsored paramilitary network formed from mostly-Shiite armed groups and volunteers to fight IS, now controlled Bartalla.

"We lived in fear. There were checkpoints and militias everywhere. Once, they even asked my wife to wear a veil," said Hormuz.

"So I decided to sell everything, even my car, and move to Jordan," he told AFP.

They have lived in a two-bedroom apartment in Amman since February 2018, hoping to be resettled permanently in Canada, where he and his wife have family connections.

With Covid-19 slowing down all international travel, the immigration process has been indefinitely frozen as their savings dwindle further.

Registered as a refugee in Jordan, Hormuz does not have the right to work legally and relies on soup kitchens at Amman's few churches to keep his family fed.

"I hope that through his visit to Iraq, the pope will ask countries receiving Christian refugees to help us," he said.

"Going back to Iraq is out of the question."

Exile and rebirth

Many in Chaldean Bishop Saad Sirop Hanna's parishes in Sweden feel the same way.

Born in Baghdad, Hanna, 40, was sent in 2017 to lead Europe's largest Chaldean congregation of around 25,000 people, who had arrived in Sweden in waves over the past four decades.

He lived through much of the violence they had fled, describing it as "great chaos."

In 2006, he was kidnapped after presiding over mass in the Iraqi capital.

"I was held and went through lots of experiences -- including torture and isolation," Hanna told AFP.

"This experience also gave me strength, truth be told. I was born again. I look at life again with a great blessing and a great love," he said.

There are more than 140,000 Iraqi-born residents in Sweden, including Raghid Benna, a native of Mosul who resettled in the eastern town of Sodertalje in 2007.

"There are so many Chaldeans here that I don't even feel like I'm in exile," said Benna, a father of two.

For Sally Fawzi, 38, who was resettled in the US as a refugee in 2008, memories of home can be painful.

"My family was devastated in 2007 when we learned that my two great aunts in Kirkuk had been stabbed to death at night in their home just because they were Christians," she told AFP.

"Today, I have a house, a beautiful family of my own, a job, and my immediate family live in the same city, but I miss my Baghdad house and friends the most," Fawzi said.

"It will never be the same."

From bloodshed to bankruptcy

As young families escape Iraq, they often leave their older relatives behind, said Warda of the Hammurabi Human Rights Organisation.

"A Christian family was typically five members. Now it's down to three," he said.

In Baghdad, the once-thriving community of 750,000 Christians has shrunk by 90 percent.

Among them is Younan al-Farid, a priest who has stayed on in the capital even after his brother emigrated to Canada and his sister to the United States.

With fewer worshippers, "up to 30 percent of Iraq's churches closed," Farid told AFP.

After nearly two decades of bloodshed and bombings, Iraq entered a period of relative calm following IS's territorial defeat in late 2017.

But that hasn't stopped the flight of minorities.

"People are still leaving. Christians are just trying to save up enough money, and then as soon as they can, they emigrate," said Farid.

The country's parlous economy is the main driver of emigration now, Christians across the country told AFP.

The pandemic triggered a worldwide recession, and Iraq faced the additional challenge of collapsing oil prices, which slashed state revenues from crude sales.

That has led to delays or cuts in public sector salaries in federal Iraq as well as the autonomous Kurdish region, where many Christians still live.

"I only receive one salary every two months, and sometimes not even the full salary," lamented Haval Emmanuel, a Chaldean government worker originally from northern Iraq.&nbsp;

"As soon as I get paid, I have to pay debts from the preceding weeks and then I have nothing left."

An 'angel', meeting 'demons'

Emmanuel grew up in Iraq's southernmost city of Basra, then married and lived in Baghdad until 2004, when a bomb detonated outside the school his children attended.

Now grown, one of his daughters has emigrated to Norway with her husband, and his brother and sister have each moved their families to Lebanon.

Emmanuel, his wife and their three other children are eking out a living in Arbil as they await a response for their own resettlement requests.

"We're suffocating: there's no social care, no health services, no public schools, no work," he told AFP at his modest home near Arbil's Chaldean Archdiocese.

It irked him to see the lack of public services in oil-rich Basra, piles of rubbish disfiguring Baghdad's historic Rasheed Street, or posters of late Iranian supreme leader Ruhollah Khomeini in squares and streets in southern Iraq.

"It's supposed to be a public place, but it makes me feel like I have no place here," said Emmanuel.

"If they open everything up, I guarantee that by tomorrow, there won't be any Christians left. At least abroad, we will finally feel respected as humans."

The economic downturn, the poor quality of life, the shrinking space for minorities -- Emmanuel blamed it all on an entrenched political class seen as deeply corrupt.&nbsp;

And there's little the pope can do to change that.&nbsp;

"The pope is like an angel coming down on Iraq, but how many demons will he find here? A man of peace visiting a group of warlords -- how could he change them?" he said.

Emmanuel, whose daughter will sing in the choir that is set to welcome Pope Francis when he arrives in Arbil, broke into a bitter smile.&nbsp;

"We're expecting the pope. But we're not expecting much from his visit."

Some fled after the US-led invasion, others during sectarian bloodshed and more following jihadist attacks. Iraq's last two violent decades have hollowed out its Christian community which dates back two millennia.

Some fled after the US-led invasion, others during sectarian bloodshed and more following jihadist attacks. Iraq's last two violent decades have hollowed out its Christian community which dates back two millennia. After first settling in the fertile plains of Nineveh province before heading for the busy boulevards of Baghdad, more than one million Christians have in more modern times been uprooted by Iraq's consecutive conflicts. "By the age of 24, I had already lived through and survived three wars," said Sally Fawzi, an Iraqi Chaldean Catholic, who left her country more than a decade ago and is now living in the US state of Texas. Some members of Iraq's historic Christian community escaped to the nearby autonomous Kurdish region, others waited in neighbouring Jordan to emigrate and then resettled in countries as far away as Australia. Many lost hope in their homeland long ago, but see next month's scheduled visit by Pope Francis -- the first-ever papal trip to Iraq -- as an important opportunity for him to use his voice to garner international support for Iraqis of their faith. Iraq's Christian community is one of the oldest and most diverse in the world, featuring Chaldean, Armenian Orthodox, Protestant as well as other branches of Christianity. By 2003, when then-dictator Saddam Hussein was toppled, there were 1.5 million Christians in a country of 25 million people, or around six percent of the population. But as Iraq's population mushroomed, the percentage of the minorities shrank. Today, only 400,000 Christians remain in a predominantly Muslim country of 40 million people, said William Warda, co-founder of the Hammurabi Human Rights Organisation. Among those who left, nearly half a million resettled in the United States. Others ended up dispersed in Canada, Australia, Norway and other parts of Europe. The first wave Rana Said, 40, had tried her hardest to stay. Her aunt and uncle were killed in 2007, when US soldiers blindly opened fire on the streets of Mosul after an attack in the regional capital of the northern province of Nineveh. Still, she remained in the city with her husband Ammar al-Kass, 41, a veterinarian. The following year, with Iraq gripped by sectarian bloodletting, a string of assassinations, including of Christians, pushed the Kass family to move to the relative safety of Iraqi Kurdistan. But by 2013, the region was growing increasingly unstable. The couple finally left their ancestral Iraq and were resettled on the Gold Coast of Australia where they found jobs in their respective professions and have raised three daughters: Sara, 10, Liza, six, and three-year-old Rose. The young girls have never visited Iraq, although they speak Arabic and a modern dialect of Assyrian -- the ancient language of Christ -- at home. A year after they resettled, jihadists from the so-called Islamic State group swept through their city. The family watched in horror from halfway around the world. "The fall of Mosul wasn't easy for us," Ammar recounted, particularly IS's destruction of the city's Church of the Virgin Mary, a 1,200-year-old piece of treasured heritage. "That's where my father was married. It was razed and obliterated to the ground," he said. He tried to keep his wife -- pregnant with Liza at the time -- away from computers and phones, afraid the added stress would harm the baby. "I used to have nightmares about IS entering and killing and raping my family. It was a repetitive, horrible dream," Rana said emotionally, of the jihadists who forced women of the Yazidi religious minority and those of other minorities into sexual slavery. Lingering in limbo Saad Hormuz lived the IS nightmare in person. On August 6, 2014, IS fighters swept into Bartalla, the diverse town on the edges of Mosul where Hormuz had worked as a taxi driver. "First, we fled towards Al-Qosh," another Christian town further north, he told AFP. But as the jihadists kept up their pillaging of Nineveh, they escaped to Arbil, the capital of the Kurdish region. With his wife Afnan, 48, and their four children -- Natalie, 7, Nores, 15, Franz, 16, and Fadi, 19 -- they lived in a church for a month before renting an apartment at $150 per month for nearly three years. That severely strained their finances. Three years later, Iraq's military declared it had freed Bartalla from IS's grip. The Hormuz family was elated and rushed back to resume life in their hometown. But they found their home had been torched and ransacked, and that members of the Hashed al-Shaabi, a powerful state-sponsored paramilitary network formed from mostly-Shiite armed groups and volunteers to fight IS, now controlled Bartalla. "We lived in fear. There were checkpoints and militias everywhere. Once, they even asked my wife to wear a veil," said Hormuz. "So I decided to sell everything, even my car, and move to Jordan," he told AFP. They have lived in a two-bedroom apartment in Amman since February 2018, hoping to be resettled permanently in Canada, where he and his wife have family connections. With Covid-19 slowing down all international travel, the immigration process has been indefinitely frozen as their savings dwindle further. Registered as a refugee in Jordan, Hormuz does not have the right to work legally and relies on soup kitchens at Amman's few churches to keep his family fed. "I hope that through his visit to Iraq, the pope will ask countries receiving Christian refugees to help us," he said. "Going back to Iraq is out of the question." Exile and rebirth Many in Chaldean Bishop Saad Sirop Hanna's parishes in Sweden feel the same way. Born in Baghdad, Hanna, 40, was sent in 2017 to lead Europe's largest Chaldean congregation of around 25,000 people, who had arrived in Sweden in waves over the past four decades. He lived through much of the violence they had fled, describing it as "great chaos." In 2006, he was kidnapped after presiding over mass in the Iraqi capital. "I was held and went through lots of experiences -- including torture and isolation," Hanna told AFP. "This experience also gave me strength, truth be told. I was born again. I look at life again with a great blessing and a great love," he said. There are more than 140,000 Iraqi-born residents in Sweden, including Raghid Benna, a native of Mosul who resettled in the eastern town of Sodertalje in 2007. "There are so many Chaldeans here that I don't even feel like I'm in exile," said Benna, a father of two. For Sally Fawzi, 38, who was resettled in the US as a refugee in 2008, memories of home can be painful. "My family was devastated in 2007 when we learned that my two great aunts in Kirkuk had been stabbed to death at night in their home just because they were Christians," she told AFP. "Today, I have a house, a beautiful family of my own, a job, and my immediate family live in the same city, but I miss my Baghdad house and friends the most," Fawzi said. "It will never be the same." From bloodshed to bankruptcy As young families escape Iraq, they often leave their older relatives behind, said Warda of the Hammurabi Human Rights Organisation. "A Christian family was typically five members. Now it's down to three," he said. In Baghdad, the once-thriving community of 750,000 Christians has shrunk by 90 percent. Among them is Younan al-Farid, a priest who has stayed on in the capital even after his brother emigrated to Canada and his sister to the United States. With fewer worshippers, "up to 30 percent of Iraq's churches closed," Farid told AFP. After nearly two decades of bloodshed and bombings, Iraq entered a period of relative calm following IS's territorial defeat in late 2017. But that hasn't stopped the flight of minorities. "People are still leaving. Christians are just trying to save up enough money, and then as soon as they can, they emigrate," said Farid. The country's parlous economy is the main driver of emigration now, Christians across the country told AFP. The pandemic triggered a worldwide recession, and Iraq faced the additional challenge of collapsing oil prices, which slashed state revenues from crude sales. That has led to delays or cuts in public sector salaries in federal Iraq as well as the autonomous Kurdish region, where many Christians still live. "I only receive one salary every two months, and sometimes not even the full salary," lamented Haval Emmanuel, a Chaldean government worker originally from northern Iraq. "As soon as I get paid, I have to pay debts from the preceding weeks and then I have nothing left." An 'angel', meeting 'demons' Emmanuel grew up in Iraq's southernmost city of Basra, then married and lived in Baghdad until 2004, when a bomb detonated outside the school his children attended. Now grown, one of his daughters has emigrated to Norway with her husband, and his brother and sister have each moved their families to Lebanon. Emmanuel, his wife and their three other children are eking out a living in Arbil as they await a response for their own resettlement requests. "We're suffocating: there's no social care, no health services, no public schools, no work," he told AFP at his modest home near Arbil's Chaldean Archdiocese. It irked him to see the lack of public services in oil-rich Basra, piles of rubbish disfiguring Baghdad's historic Rasheed Street, or posters of late Iranian supreme leader Ruhollah Khomeini in squares and streets in southern Iraq. "It's supposed to be a public place, but it makes me feel like I have no place here," said Emmanuel. "If they open everything up, I guarantee that by tomorrow, there won't be any Christians left. At least abroad, we will finally feel respected as humans." The economic downturn, the poor quality of life, the shrinking space for minorities -- Emmanuel blamed it all on an entrenched political class seen as deeply corrupt. And there's little the pope can do to change that. "The pope is like an angel coming down on Iraq, but how many demons will he find here? A man of peace visiting a group of warlords -- how could he change them?" he said. Emmanuel, whose daughter will sing in the choir that is set to welcome Pope Francis when he arrives in Arbil, broke into a bitter smile. "We're expecting the pope. But we're not expecting much from his visit."

Iraq's ancient Christian community, decimated by violence, fear 

Protesters clashed with police for a third night over the jailing of a rapper for his controversial tweets. Angry demonstrations erupted after police detained Pablo Hasel (32) on Tuesday. Hasel was holed up in a university in Catalonia to avoid jail in a highly contentious free speech case. Dozens of people have been arrested since Tuesday night.

The violence has thrust the hard-left Podemos party -- the junior partner in Spain's leftwing coalition which has opposed Hasel's jailing and publicly supported the protesters -- into the firing line.&nbsp;

Police reported six arrests in Barcelona on Thursday after protesters set up barricades, prompting police to fire tear gas.

Burning rubbish bins and furniture was seen in the centre of the Catalan capital.

<img alt="Spain protests" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="6df8d1f3-67a3-4227-99ac-cc6208d4afa2" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/000_93B9LD.jpg" />

Newsroom of the newspaper El Periodico de Cataluna was attacked. Images of clashes in Valencia were shown on TVE television.

Hundreds of people gathered in Madrid's Puerta del Sol square calling for Hasel's release. The people hurled bottles at police who charged at them. The clashes lasted several hours as per AFP.

Police arrested 19 people, while the city's emergency services said 55 people were injured, among them 35 police officers.&nbsp;

In Barcelona and three other Catalan cities, demonstrators lobbed objects at police and set barricades ablaze on Wednesday, with police charging the protesters and in some places firing foam rounds. Some 50 people were arrested across the country. &nbsp;

<img alt="Spain protests" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="5d145efc-1aae-4780-8566-bae0ae20c6d9" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/000_93C27C.jpg" />

The director of Catalonia's regional police force, Pere Ferrer, said officers faced a "highly complex scenario" because of the "high volume of public disorder" which included looting.

The force has opened an investigation after a young woman lost an eye on Tuesday night in Barcelona as a result of a foam projectile used by police to dispel the protesters, he added.

'Absolute red line'

Hasel, known for his hard-left views, was arrested after failing to turn himself in on Friday to start a nine-month sentence over tweets calling former king Juan Carlos I a mafia boss and accusing police of torturing and killing demonstrators and migrants.

A court in his hometown of Lerida on February 12 sentenced the rapper to another jail term of two and a half years for threatening to kill a man at a bar, according to a ruling published Thursday.

Hundreds of artists have rallied to Hasel's cause, including filmmaker Pedro Almodovar and Hollywood actor Javier Bardem. Amnesty International said jailing him for song lyrics and tweets was "unjust and disproportionate" while campaigners say prosecuting him is a dangerous assault on free speech.&nbsp;

(With AFP inputs)

Protesters clashed with police for a third night over the jailing of a rapper for his controversial tweets. Angry demonstrations erupted after police detained Pablo Hasel (32) on Tuesday.

Protesters clashed with police for a third night over the jailing of a rapper for his controversial tweets. Angry demonstrations erupted after police detained Pablo Hasel (32) on Tuesday. Hasel was holed up in a university in Catalonia to avoid jail in a highly contentious free speech case. Dozens of people have been arrested since Tuesday night. The violence has thrust the hard-left Podemos party -- the junior partner in Spain's leftwing coalition which has opposed Hasel's jailing and publicly supported the protesters -- into the firing line. Police reported six arrests in Barcelona on Thursday after protesters set up barricades, prompting police to fire tear gas. Burning rubbish bins and furniture was seen in the centre of the Catalan capital. Newsroom of the newspaper El Periodico de Cataluna was attacked. Images of clashes in Valencia were shown on TVE television. Hundreds of people gathered in Madrid's Puerta del Sol square calling for Hasel's release. The people hurled bottles at police who charged at them. The clashes lasted several hours as per AFP. Police arrested 19 people, while the city's emergency services said 55 people were injured, among them 35 police officers. In Barcelona and three other Catalan cities, demonstrators lobbed objects at police and set barricades ablaze on Wednesday, with police charging the protesters and in some places firing foam rounds. Some 50 people were arrested across the country. The director of Catalonia's regional police force, Pere Ferrer, said officers faced a "highly complex scenario" because of the "high volume of public disorder" which included looting. The force has opened an investigation after a young woman lost an eye on Tuesday night in Barcelona as a result of a foam projectile used by police to dispel the protesters, he added. 'Absolute red line' Hasel, known for his hard-left views, was arrested after failing to turn himself in on Friday to start a nine-month sentence over tweets calling former king Juan Carlos I a mafia boss and accusing police of torturing and killing demonstrators and migrants. A court in his hometown of Lerida on February 12 sentenced the rapper to another jail term of two and a half years for threatening to kill a man at a bar, according to a ruling published Thursday. Hundreds of artists have rallied to Hasel's cause, including filmmaker Pedro Almodovar and Hollywood actor Javier Bardem. Amnesty International said jailing him for song lyrics and tweets was "unjust and disproportionate" while campaigners say prosecuting him is a dangerous assault on free speech. (With AFP inputs)

Spain: Hundreds protest for third night after rapper's jailing

Messaging application Telegram recently cracked down on public calls for violence in the United States. The application’s founder Pavel Durov claimed that the service took down the calls keeping in mind the company’s terms of service.

On Monday, Telegram put out a public post in which its founder reiterated the company’s commitment to banning hate speech.

“Telegram welcomes peaceful debate and protest, but our Terms of Service explicitly prohibit distributing public calls to violence,” he wrote in the public post. 
 
&nbsp;“Сivil movements all over the world rely on Telegram in order to stand up for human rights without resorting to inflicting harm”, the post added. 
 
Over time, Telegram has cracked down on threats of violence and terrorism in public spaces, but has largely remained against making these conversations available to law enforcement.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/technology/final-nail-in-coffin-telegram-again-trolls-whatsapp-over-new-privacy-update-356104" hreflang="en">Final nail in coffin: Telegram again trolls Whatsapp over new privacy update</a>

In the aftermath of the violence which shook US Capitol on January 6, debates surrounding the value of chat encryption have popped up. Many critics feel that wearing privacy protections is the only way to encrypt chat services. 
 
Durov added that Telegram had witnessed an increase in violent threats, as reported by other services over the last month.

“In early January, the Telegram moderation team started to receive an increased number of reports about US-related public activity on our platform,” the post said.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/thailand-authorities-restrict-telegram-app-over-protests-336444" hreflang="en">Thailand authorities restrict Telegram app over protests</a> 
 
It added that the team had acted by “clamping down on US channels that advocated violence”.

“Thanks to these efforts, last week our moderators blocked and shut down hundreds of public calls for violence that could’ve otherwise reached tens of thousands of subscribers”, it added.

Messaging application Telegram recently cracked down on public calls for violence in the United States. The application’s founder Pavel Durov claimed that the service took down the calls keeping in mind the company’s terms of service.

Messaging application Telegram recently cracked down on public calls for violence in the United States. The application’s founder Pavel Durov claimed that the service took down the calls keeping in mind the company’s terms of service. On Monday, Telegram put out a public post in which its founder reiterated the company’s commitment to banning hate speech. “Telegram welcomes peaceful debate and protest, but our Terms of Service explicitly prohibit distributing public calls to violence,” he wrote in the public post. “Сivil movements all over the world rely on Telegram in order to stand up for human rights without resorting to inflicting harm”, the post added. Over time, Telegram has cracked down on threats of violence and terrorism in public spaces, but has largely remained against making these conversations available to law enforcement. Also read: Final nail in coffin: Telegram again trolls Whatsapp over new privacy update In the aftermath of the violence which shook US Capitol on January 6, debates surrounding the value of chat encryption have popped up. Many critics feel that wearing privacy protections is the only way to encrypt chat services. Durov added that Telegram had witnessed an increase in violent threats, as reported by other services over the last month. “In early January, the Telegram moderation team started to receive an increased number of reports about US-related public activity on our platform,” the post said. Also read: Thailand authorities restrict Telegram app over protests It added that the team had acted by “clamping down on US channels that advocated violence”. “Thanks to these efforts, last week our moderators blocked and shut down hundreds of public calls for violence that could’ve otherwise reached tens of thousands of subscribers”, it added.

Telegram claims to have 'shut down hundreds of calls for violence' last week in US

China has removed US travel firm TripAdvisor & 104 other apps from app stores in the country, under a new campaign to cleanse stores of apps it deems spread content related to pornography, prostitution, gambling and violence.

China removes TripAdvisor, 104 other apps from stores under 'cleansing campaign'

Polls opened in Burkina Faso on Sunday in a presidential election dominated by jihadist violence, which has cost over 2,000 lives this year and will prevent voting in hundreds of villages.

President Roch Kaboré is seeking a second five-year term, campaigning on achievements such as free healthcare for children under the age of five and paving some of the red dirt roads that snake across the arid West African country.

But a surge in attacks by groups with links to the militant groups al Qaeda and Islamic State has eclipsed everything else. Three weeks after his inauguration, al Qaeda`s regional branch attacked a hotel and a cafe in the capital, killing 32 people. An ambush on mine workers in the east last year killed 39.

"We need someone who is going to bring peace to our country. The president needs a second mandate to end what has started," said secretary Maimouna Tapsoba, 59, who wiped purple ink from her finger after voting in Ouagadougou.

Small numbers of early voters waited in a large sandy schoolyard to cast their ballots after polls opened at 6 a.m. (0600 GMT).

Kaboré faces stiff opposition from former finance minister Zephirin Diabré, the runner-up in 2015, and Eddie Komboigo, who runs the party of Blaise Campaoré, the president of 27 years who was overthrown in 2014. Analysts expect a tight race that could go to a second round if no candidate wins more than 50%.

Provisional results of the first round are expected by midweek.

In a press conference on Saturday, Diabré said the president was orchestrating "massive fraud" ahead of the vote, without providing evidence.

The electoral commission says polling stations will remain shut across much of the north and east for fear of violence.

At least 400,000 people - nearly 7% of the electorate - will be unable to cast their votes, official data show.

Polls opened in Burkina Faso on Sunday in a presidential election dominated by jihadist violence, which has cost over 2,000 lives this year and will prevent voting in hundreds of villages.

Polls opened in Burkina Faso on Sunday in a presidential election dominated by jihadist violence, which has cost over 2,000 lives this year and will prevent voting in hundreds of villages. President Roch Kaboré is seeking a second five-year term, campaigning on achievements such as free healthcare for children under the age of five and paving some of the red dirt roads that snake across the arid West African country. But a surge in attacks by groups with links to the militant groups al Qaeda and Islamic State has eclipsed everything else. Three weeks after his inauguration, al Qaeda`s regional branch attacked a hotel and a cafe in the capital, killing 32 people. An ambush on mine workers in the east last year killed 39. "We need someone who is going to bring peace to our country. The president needs a second mandate to end what has started," said secretary Maimouna Tapsoba, 59, who wiped purple ink from her finger after voting in Ouagadougou. Small numbers of early voters waited in a large sandy schoolyard to cast their ballots after polls opened at 6 a.m. (0600 GMT). Kaboré faces stiff opposition from former finance minister Zephirin Diabré, the runner-up in 2015, and Eddie Komboigo, who runs the party of Blaise Campaoré, the president of 27 years who was overthrown in 2014. Analysts expect a tight race that could go to a second round if no candidate wins more than 50%. Provisional results of the first round are expected by midweek. In a press conference on Saturday, Diabré said the president was orchestrating "massive fraud" ahead of the vote, without providing evidence. The electoral commission says polling stations will remain shut across much of the north and east for fear of violence. At least 400,000 people - nearly 7% of the electorate - will be unable to cast their votes, official data show.

Voting starts in Burkina Faso under looming threat of violence

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