Pakistan raises Ayodhya to cover its treatment of minorities: India at UN

India has accused Pakistan of spreading a “culture of violence” and suppressing the rights of minorities while Islamabad brings up the Ayodhya temple construction at the General Assembly

India has accused Pakistan of spreading a “culture of violence” and suppressing the rights of minorities while Islamabad brings up the Ayodhya temple construction at the General Assembly. “Talk of ‘culture of peace’ from the delegation of Pakistan is nothing but a decoy to divert attention from their own shameful records” on the treatment of minorities “continues to foment a ‘culture of violence’ at home and across its borders”, Paulomi Tripathi, a counsellor at India’s UN Mission said on Thursday.

“Before making absurd allegations against India, where equal rights of people of all faiths are guaranteed by the constitution, the delegation of Pakistan must do itself a favour of looking at their own system and records of protecting minorities,” she said in response to Pakistan’s Permanent Representative Munir Akram’s remarks about Ayodhya and Kashmir.

She accused Akram of exploiting the Assembly’s High-Level Forum on the Culture of Peace as a “platform for hate speech against India”. She said that “Pakistan’s deplorable human rights records and discriminatory treatment of religious and ethnic minorities is a cause of persistent concern for international community”, and listed Islamabad’s main transgressions.

“Blasphemy laws are used against religious minorities such as Hindus, Christians and Sikhs, to violate their human rights and dignity. Women and girls remain particularly vulnerable as they are abducted, raped, forcefully converted and married to their violators. The pandemic has aggravated the situation.”

Indian soldiers tells Chinese troops to stop incursion, put up barbed wires

Indian soldiers have set up barbed wire obstacles at points where Chinese troops have come a few metres away from their positions at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh

Indian soldiers have set up barbed wire obstacles at points where Chinese troops have come a few metres away from their positions at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh. India has warned against attempts to enter its territory as Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) troops, armed with medieval-type weapons, have been making multiple attempts to take over Indian-held positions.

Apart from setting obstacles to avoid further escalation at the LAC and dissuade the Chinese side from provocative and aggressive movements, India has also warned it will retaliate if Chinese troops continue to make incursion attempts.

India’s clear message was given when Indian and Chinese military representatives met on Wednesday to amicably de-escalate tension at the LAC in eastern Ladakh, sources said. The meeting, however, remained “inconclusive” and the talks will continue.PLA troops had made an attempt to dislodge Indian soldiers from their positions at the LAC on Monday and warning shots were also fired.

Sources also said that India clearly stated during Wednesday’s meeting that if Chinese troops would carry out provocative military movements, Indian soldiers will retaliate. India had found that China started fresh build up at the finger area north of Pangong Tso (lake). The deployments of PLA troops have increased since Tuesday evening. They are also bringing in more material and logistics items…Read More

Former J&K CM Omar Abdullah released after 8 months of detention under PSA

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the petitioner, said the court should fix a short date for hearing the matter.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Centre and Jammu and Kashmir administration to inform by next week if it is releasing former chief minister Omar Abdullah, who has been detained since the abrogation of Article 370 in August last year. A bench of Justices Arun Mishra and M R Shah told counsel appearing for the Centre that Abdullah’s sister Sara Abdullah Pilot’s plea against his detention will be heard on merit if he is not released soon.

“If you are releasing him, then release him soon or we will hear the matter on merits,” the bench said. The observations came after counsel for the Centre and the Jammu & Kashmir administration informed the court that Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who was appearing in the matter, is arguing in another court. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the petitioner, said the court should fix a short date for hearing the matter.

To this the bench said only six benches are functioning due to the ongoing arrangement in the apex court and it does not know when the next turn will come.”Probably next week we are sitting and the matter will be taken up at that time,” the bench said.

India looking to set up separate theatre command for J&K: CDS Gen Rawat

Gen Rawat also said that submarines are a priority over aircraft carrier for the Navy

India is looking at setting up a separate theatre command for Jammu and Kashmir, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat said on Monday. The air defence command is to be rolled out by the beginning of next year and the Peninsula command by the end of 2021, Gen Rawat told a select group of journalists.

The Indian Air Force will helm the air defence command and all-long range missiles as well as air defence assets will come under it, he said. “India is looking at setting up a separate theatre command for Jammu and Kashmir,” Gen Rawat said. Indian Navy’s Eastern and Western commands will be integrated into the Peninsula command, he said.

India will also have a separate training and doctrinal command and logistics command, he said. He also favoured a policy of staggered procurement of big ticket purchases, including acquisition of 114 fighter jets. The Navy’s demand for a third aircraft carrier will be considered after assessing performance of indigenously-built aircraft carrier, he said. Gen Rawat also said that submarines are a priority over aircraft carrier for the Navy.

Protesters in Hong Kong trample a Chinese flag, set street fires

Some put a Chinese flag on the floor and took turns running over it, before defacing it and putting it in a dumpster outside, which they then pushed into a nearby river

Protesters in Hong Kong have trampled a Chinese flag, vandalized a subway station and set a fire across a wide street, as pro-democracy demonstrations took a violent turn once again.

Sunday’s action began peacefully, as protesters filled a shopping mall and, in a new twist, folded paper “origami” cranes that they tied onto a large rigging that they assembled in the mall in the Shatin district.

Some put a Chinese flag on the floor and took turns running over it, before defacing it and putting it in a dumpster outside, which they then pushed into a nearby river. Police used tear gas as they tried to advance on the protesters. Hong Kong protests, now in their fourth month, have often descended into violence late in the day and at night.

Transit authorities closed the two intermediate stations on the airport express train to guard against a possible disruption of transportation to the transportation hub. Separately an afternoon protest has been called at a shopping mall in the outlying Shatin district…

Attack on Saudi oil site was an Iranian ‘act of war’, says Pompeo

Iran, which has denied involvement in the attack, warned the US it will retaliate immediately if it is targeted

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has called the attack on Saudi Arabia’s oil installations an “act of war” against the kingdom by Iran, as the Saudis displayed missile and drone wreckage and cited other evidence they said shows the raid was “unquestionably sponsored by Iran.” Iran, which has denied involvement in the attack, warned the US it will retaliate immediately if it is targeted. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, said he is moving to increase financial sanctions on Tehran over the attack.

At a news conference, Saudi military spokesman Col. Turki al-Malki said the attack Saturday that did heavy damage to the heart of the Saudi oil industry was “launched from the north and was unquestionably sponsored by Iran.” Yemen lies to the south of Saudi Arabia, Iran and Iraq to the north. Al-Malki stopped short of accusing Iran of actually firing the weapons itself or launching them from Iranian territory.

Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels have claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was in response to the yearslong Saudi-led war in Yemen that has killed tens of thousands of people. At the news conference, the Saudis displayed broken and burned drones and pieces of a cruise missile that Al-Malki identified as Iranian weapons collected after the attack. He also played surveillance video that he said showed a drone coming in from the north.

Eighteen drones and seven cruise missiles were launched in the assault, Al-Malki said, with three missiles failing to make their targets. He said the cruise missiles had a range of 700 kilometers (435 miles), meaning they could not have been fired from inside Yemen. “This is the kind of weapon the Iranian regime and the Iranian IRGC are using against the civilian object and facilities infrastructure,” Al-Malki said, using an acronym for Iran’s Revolutionary Guard...