e_Paper_Wednesday_December 12, 2016

More documents

Recommendations

Info

DT 8 World WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2016 SOUTH ASIA Toxic liquor kills 24 more in Pakistan Twenty-four people, mostly Christians, were killed and dozens more sickened after consuming toxic liquor on Christmas Eve in central Pakistan, police said Tuesday, the latest case of deadly alchohol poisoning in the conservative Muslim country. The incident happened in a Christian colony in Toba Tek Singh city, 338km south of Islamabad. REUTERS INDIA India intervenes in Norway child abuse row India’s foreign minister on Tuesday urged Norway to return a fiveyear-old boy to his Indian-origin parents after authorities took the child into their custody over suspected abuse. Sushma Swaraj said India’s ambassador would meet the Norwegian authorities later Tuesday to discuss the case, promising to take a “firm stand”. AP CHINA China jails nine villagers after land protests Chinese authorities handed down prison sentences to nine protesters in a fishing village that’s received international attention for its demonstrations against land seizures, state media reported Tuesday. The villagers in Wukan were given sentences on Monday ranging from two to 10 years for offenses that included illegal assembly, blocking traffic and disrupting public order. AP ASIA PACIFIC Thai police put pressure on controversial Buddhist temple Thai police put more pressure Tuesday on a wealthy, politically influential Buddhist temple where the leader is wanted for alleged money laundering and related crimes involving millions of dollars of embezzled funds. At dawn about 400 police moved to surround the Dhammakaya temple north of Bangkok to remove a fence said to be blocking public property. REUTERS MIDDLE EAST Saudi jailed for call to end male control over women A Saudi man has been jailed for one year for calling for an end to the Muslim kingdom’s guardianship system that gives men wide controls over women, local media said Tuesday. The man, who was also fined $8,000 by a court in the eastern city of Dammam, was convicted of “inciting to end guardianship of women” in statements he posted on Twitter and in public posters. AFP UN resolution: Israel accuses Obama administration • Tribune International Desk The White House orchestrated a “gang-up” against Israel on last week’s UN settlement vote, its ambassador to Washington said Monday in the latest sign of fury between the longtime allies. Ambassador Ron Dermer said in an interview with CNN that the Israeli government plans to show evidence of the alleged US maneuvering in due time. Moreover, Israel has reportedly suspended all working ties with the embassies of 12 UN Security Council members following the passing of a UN resolution declaring the country’s settlements on Palestinian territories illegal. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called for Israel’s foreign ministry to temporarily limit working ties with the members who voted in favour of Friday’s resolution. The 12 countries are- Britain, France, Russia, China, Japan, Ukraine, Angola, Egypt, Uruguay, Spain, Senegal and New Zealand. US led UN ‘gang-up’ Israel has escalated its already furious war with the outgoing US administration, claiming that it has “rather hard” evidence that Barack Obama was behind a critical UN security council resolution criticising Israeli settlement building, and threatening to hand over the material to Donald Trump. The claims have emerged in interviews given by close Netanyahu allies to US media outlets on Monday after the Obama administration denied in categorical terms the claims originally made by Netanyahu himself. Doubling down on the claim a few hours later the controversial Israeli ambassador to Washington, Ron Dermer, went even further suggesting it had gathered evidence that it would present to the incoming Trump administration. Reducing ties with nations over UN vote Israel’s Foreign Ministry said Tuesday the country was “reducing” ties with nations that voted for last week’s UN Security Council resolution demanding a halt to settlement building in Palestinian territory. Refuting reports that ties had been suspended, the ministry’s spokesperson Emmanuel Nahshon said that Israel was “temporarily reducing” visits and work with embassies. Israel has already called back its ambassadors to New Zealand and Senegal for consultations, and cancelled aid programmes with the African state. On Tuesday, Israel informed Angola it would be freezing its aid programme there, Nahshon said. Israeli media have reported that Netanyahu, who also serves as foreign minister, has asked officials to visit the countries that voted for the resolution as little as possible for now. • Q&A What UN resolution means for US and Israel The United Nations Security Council on Friday passed a resolution condemning Israel’s settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The United States abstained on the resolution, allowing it to pass, rather than vetoing it – as it usually does with resolutions it sees as overly critical of Israel. Here are some key questions about the vote at the UN- What are the immediate effects of the UN resolution? The resolution may have no immediate practical effects on Israel, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, or the peace process. That’s because the resolution is non-binding, effectively creating guidelines and recommendations. Israel is concerned about exactly that type of action. Specifically, Israel is worried about a resolution that would set conditions for negotiations. Such a resolution would issue parameters for some of the most sensitive issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, including borders, the status of Jerusalem as a contested capital, Palestinian refugees, US President Barack Obama meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu This file photo taken on December 09 shows Israeli settlement of Qadumim and a time-limit for negotiations. What are the long-term effects? The biggest blow is to Israel’s settlement enterprise in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. This resolution has left little room for negotiation about the legality of the settlements, stating that Israel’s settlements have “no legal validity and constitutes a flagrant violation under international law.” When it comes to borders, the resolution does leave an opening for negotiations, saying there will be no changes to AFP the June 4, 1967 “other than those agreed by the parties through negotiations.” Will Donald Trump be able to repeal the resolution? Theoretically, yes, the incoming administration could repeal this resolution. Trump would have to introduce a new resolution that revokes this one entirely. Then he would need at least nine countries to vote for it and ensure that none of the Security Council’s other permanent members – Russia, UK, France, and China – vetoed it. Realistically, that is incredibly unlikely to happen. REUTERS Will the US and Israel take diplomatic action against the UN? Republican Senator Lindsey Graham has threatened to cut US money to the United Nations over this resolution. The US currently provides 22% of the UN’s budget. Israel has already cut funding to five different UN organisations, totaling nearly $8m, Netanyahu announced. Netanyahu said Israel would reevaluate its relationships with UN representatives in Israel. Is this the first time an American president has taken action? No. In fact, it’s not all that uncommon. In 1988, Ronald Reagan began dialogue with the PLO before the end of his second term. In 2000, Bill Clinton laid out his vision for peace, now known as the “Clinton Parameters.” And in 2008, George W Bush’s envoy voted in favour of Security Council resolution 1850, which called for a renewal of the peace process. • Sources: AFP, CNN
World Trump: UN just a club for people to have a good time • Tribune International Desk Donald Trump is questioning the effectiveness of the United Nations, saying it’s just a club for people to “have a good time,” after the UN Security Council voted last week to condemn Israeli settlements in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, reports the Associated Press. The president-elect wrote Monday on Twitter that the UN has “such great potential,” but it has become “just a club for people to get together, talk and have a good time. So sad!” On Friday, Trump warned, “As to the UN, things will be different after Jan. 20th,” referring to the day he takes office. The decision by the Obama administration to abstain from Friday’s UN vote brushed aside Trump’s demands that the US exercise its veto and provided a climax to years of icy relations with Israel’s leadership. That was only one subject on which Trump tweeted Monday. In an evening post, he wrote that he believes his election as president has boosted the economy. Trump also used social media to complain anew about criticism of the Donald J Trump Foundation. In one post, he said, “The DJT Foundation, unlike most foundations, never paid fees, rent, salaries or any expenses. 100 % of the money goes to wonderful charities.” He also tweeted that “I gave millions of dollars to DJT Foundation, raised or received millions more. ALL of which is given to charity, and media won’t report.” Trump had said Saturday that he wanted to dissolve his charitable foundation amid efforts to eliminate any conflicts of interest before he takes office next month. Trump’s tweet Monday about the UN ignores much of the work that goes on in the 193-member global organisation. This year the UN Security Council has approved over 70 legally binding resolutions, including new sanctions on North Korea and measures tackling conflicts and authorizing the UN’s far-flung peacekeeping operations around the world. The General Assembly has also approved dozens of resolutions on issues, like the role of diamonds in fuelling conflicts; condemned human rights abuses in Iran and North Korea; and authorized an investigation of alleged war crimes in Syria. • Who’s behind the massacres in Congo’s Beni region? • AFP, Beni, DR Congo Share of global reserves Cobalt 47% Coltan 80% Industrial diamonds 20% Sources: ipisresearch, congoresearch, UNHCR, ICCN, IRD, USGS, FAO, GRIP, UNDP CONGO REP. KINSHASA ANGOLA CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC DR CONGO Congo River Kananga Kisangani The official explanation for a twoyear wave of massacres in a restive corner of DR Congo centres on a shadowy rebel group accused of having ties to the global jihadist underground. But some basic details about the alleged killers of more than 700 victims – the latest over the Christmas weekend – haven’t quite convinced observers and experts. The truth, they say, is more complicated and may lead all the way to the halls of power in the vast, mineral-rich and chronically unstable central African nation. UN experts, referring to the claimed jihadist links in past reports, have simply stated: “There is no proof of this allegation.” But that has not stopped the Democratic Republic of Congo’s leadership and the UN peacekeeping mission Monusco from blaming the bloodbath around the town of Beni, in the country’s strife-torn northeast, on the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF). Secrecy shrouds the group, which is dominated by hardline Ugandan Muslims who were initially focused on overthrowing Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni. The group went on to absorb other rebel factions into its ranks and started carrying out attacks in 1995. Gradually pushed westwards by the Ugandan army, the ADF relocated most of its activities to DR Congo. When the Beni massacres started in October 2014, with most of the victims hacked to death, the ADF was quickly branded the culprit by both Congolese authorities and Monusco. Army troops involved? Many ADF recruits – who were drawn this year from Tanzania, Burundi, Kenya and as far as Somalia – were not hardcore ideologues but young Muslims lured by the promise of going to study in Saudi Arabia, an intelligence agent and civil society source said. Meanwhile, the ADF has not claimed any of the Beni massacres, and no experts working on DR Congo have found a link between Donald Trump Mbuji-Mayi ZAMBIA 250 km S. SUDAN Lubumbashi THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO A continent-country abounding in natural riches and human crises UGANDA Goma Bukavu RWANDA BURUNDI Lake Tanganyika TANZANIA 1,100 minerals and precious metals, including Gold Diamonds Coltan Pewter Copper, cobalt the group and the global jihadist underground. A group run by US researcher Jason Stearns published a report in March claiming several distinct groups “appear to be involved in the massacres”, including soldiers from the regular army. It said members of the Congolese army, former rebels from the RCD-K/ML group – who held the area during the 1998-2003 Second Congo War – and local militias were all involved in the mass killings. ‘Why these horrible killings?’ In an interview, Beni’s Mayor Bwanakawa Nyonyi said he believes the massacres are carried 5 2.3 million km 2 of land 80 x the size of former colonial power Belgium Huge hydraulic power potential Congo River, 4,700 km Africa’s 2 nd longest river Lake Tanganyika, 18,880 km 2 Africa’s largest freshwater reserve. As big as Belgium Exceptional biodiversity natural World Heritage Sites 152 million hectares of forest 11,000 plant species more than 1,000 bird species and 400 species of mammal REUTERS But the country endured 2 regional wars and the east is controlled by armed militia Raia Mutomboki (DRC) Mai-Mai (DRC) ADF (Ugandan) FDLR (Rwandan Hutu) FNL (Burundian) Of its 71 million people, nearly 2 mln are internal refugees 88% live in abject poverty and fewer than 10% have access to electricity and drinking water And it natural heritage is endangered, particularly its iconic Great Apes Mountain gorillas out by a nebulous group, with politically-motivated “Congolese hands” behind them. He refused to say more about the suspects or their motives. In explaining the violence, some have cited struggles for control of trafficking in various industries like timber, agricultural produce or minerals in a region with extremely rich potential. A group of UN experts has repeatedly questioned whether the Congolese military was involved in the trafficking in various industries or in some massacres. The group has also incriminated local militias in some killings that were allegedly linked to land disputes. • 9 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2016 USA Trump taps Bossert for counter-terrorism post DT US President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday announced that Thomas Bossert, former deputy homeland security adviser to President George W Bush, would be his White House adviser on security and counter-terrorism issues, according to a statement. As assistant to the president for homeland security and counter-terrorism, Bossert would be Trump’s top counter-terrorism chief. REUTERS THE AMERICAS Argentine finance minister sacked Argentine President Mauricio Macri sacked his Finance Minister Alfonso Prat-Gay on Monday, shaking up his economic team amid a stubborn recession that has made his centerright reforms deeply unpopular. Nicolas Dujovne, a respected economist, will take over as finance minister. Luis Caputo, who previously served Prat-Gay as budget secretary, will take over the newly created budget ministry. AFP UK Netanyahu snubs May over UN settlements vote Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has apparently snubbed Theresa May over the UK’s support of a highly critical UN resolution condemning Israeli settlement building. Reports in the Israeli media said Netanyahu had told ministers at his weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday that he did not intend to meet May in Davos at the forthcoming World Economic Forum. THE GUARDIAN EUROPE Romania’s first female, Muslim PM rejected Romania’s president sparked fresh political turmoil Tuesday after rejecting a proposal by the election-winning leftist party to name the EU country’s first female and first Muslim prime minister. Klaus Iohannis gave no reasons for his rejection of Sevil Shhaideh, put forward by the Social Democrats, but there was speculation that it may be due to her Syrian husband’s background. AFP AFRICA Somalia swears in new MPs amid vote criticism Somalia on Tuesday swore in new lawmakers after weeks of voting in a complex political process seen as its most democratic election in nearly five decades, despite significant flaws. The vote for president has been put off several times as a result of delays in the election of lawmakers due to clan disputes, accusations of fraud, and organisational challenges. REUTERS
Page 1 and 2: SECOND EDITION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER
Page 3 and 4: News 3 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2016
Page 5 and 6: News 5 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2016
Page 7: News 7 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2016
Page 11: World Turkey opens first trial of J
Page 15 and 16: Business 15 DT WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER
Page 17 and 18: Project 17 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 28,
Page 19 and 20: Biz Info 19 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 28,
Page 21 and 22: A radical change Opinion 21 Radical
Page 23 and 24: Opinion 23 We need to do something
Page 25 and 26: Feni Soccer staring at relegation
Page 27 and 28: Sport 27 DT WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 28,
Page 29 and 30: Downtime 29 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 28,
Page 31 and 32: Showtime Dhaka International Film F

e_Paper_Wednesday_December 12, 2016

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?