31-01-2019

INTERNATIONAL THURSDAy,
JANUARy 31, 2019
7
This photo released Dec. 4, 2018 by the al-Qaida-affiliated Ibaa News Agency, shows al-Qaida-linked
fighters driving their vehicles during a military drill in northern Syria.
Photo : AP
Al-Qaida’s advance in northern
Syria threatens fragile truce
It only took a few days for al-Qaidalinked
militants to seize more than
two dozen towns and villages in
northern Syria from rival insurgents
earlier this month, expanding and
cementing their control over an area
the size of neighboring Lebanon,
reports UNB.
The advance by Hayat Tahrir al-
Sham, or the Levant Liberation
Committee, was the most serious
blow yet to a September cease-fire
brokered by Russia and Turkey that
averted a major government offensive
in Idlib province, the last main
stronghold of the Syrian opposition.
It highlighted the growing threat
posed by al-Qaida at a time when its
rival, the Islamic State group, is on
the verge of defeat and the U.S. is
preparing to withdraw its 2,000
troops from Syria. Although HTS has
formally severed ties with al-Qaida,
experts say it is still closely linked to
the global network founded by
Osama bin Laden and could use its
base in Syria to launch attacks in the
West.
Fawaz Gerges, professor of Middle
Eastern politics at the London School
of Economics, says there is a "real
danger" that the group's advance
"will not only worsen the humanitarian
crisis for the 3 million inhabitants
there, but also give (President
Bashar) Assad and his allies the justification
to assault the province."
"Such a scenario would be as devastatingly
bloody as the battle for
Aleppo," he said, referring to the
months of heavy fighting over Syria's
largest city in 2016, which killed
thousands of people and ended
with government forces and their
allies capturing the rebel-held east.
HTS includes large numbers of battle-hardened
al-Qaida fighters, and
its capture of most of rebel-held
Syria could force aid agencies to
withdraw, leaving tens of thousands
of civilians to fend for themselves.
The opposition's Free Aleppo Medical
Directorate said that some
250,000 people will lose medical
support after 43 facilities it runs
cease operations due to a drop in
aid from Western agencies after the
latest HTS offensive.
The government has meanwhile
stepped up its bombardment of
Idlib and neighboring rebel-held
areas. Pro-government media say
Defense Minister Gen. Ali Ayoub
and Brig. Gen. Suheil al-Hassan,
who commands the elite Tiger
Force, have recently visited the
front lines with Idlib, raising fears of
a new government offensive.
HTS now controls an area of about
9,000 square kilometers (3,475
square miles) or about 5 percent of
Syria's territory. The area is home to
some 3 million people, many of
whom have been displaced from other
parts of the country.
German
police arrest
3 suspected
of planning
attack
German news site Spiegel
Online reports that police
have arrested three men on
suspicion of planning to carry
out a bomb attack, reports
UNB.
The site reported that the
three Iraqis were arrested
early Wednesday around
Dithmarschen, in the northern
state of Schleswig-Holstein.
A spokeswoman for Germany's
federal police,
Daniela Kiss, confirmed that
officers were involved in an
operation together with state
police, but referred to federal
prosecutors for further
details. German federal
prosecutors, who couldn't
immediately confirm the
reports, are responsible for
investigating serious crimes
including terrorism.
Spiegel Online reports the
men, identified as Shahin F.,
Hersh S. and Rauf S., wanted
to use fireworks to build
an explosive and had
ordered a detonator from
Britain.
Their surnames weren't
provided in line with German
privacy rules.
Venezuela opposition urges
walkouts to pressure Maduro
Opposition leader Juan Guaido is looking to
ratchet up pressure on President Nicolas
Maduro with walkouts across Venezuela on
Wednesday, just a day after the embattled
socialist administration barred Guaido from
leaving the country while he is investigated
for anti-government activities, reports UNB.
The man challenging Maduro's claim to
the presidency is urging Venezuelans to step
outside their homes and workplaces for two
hours beginning at noon in the first mass
mobilization since he declared himself the
nation's rightful leader a week ago during
another round of big protests.
"Venezuela is set on change," Guaido said.
The surge in political maneuvering has
seen two dozen nations, including the United
States and several big Latin American
countries, back Guaido, and the Trump
administration has imposed sanctions that
could starve the already distressed nation of
billions in oil revenue.
But Maduro is holding firm in refusing to
step down. He oversaw military exercises in
recent days while seeking to consolidate support
from the armed forces and he is accusing
Washington of staging a coup.
In an interview with Russia's state-owned
RIA Novosti news agency on Wednesday,
Maduro said he was "willing to sit down for
talks with the opposition for the sake of
Venezuela's peace and its future." Maduro
said the talks could be held with mediation of
other countries. Russia is one of the
staunchest supporters of Maduro and has
offered to mediate.
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court barred
Guaido from leaving the country after chief
prosecutor Tarek William Saab announced
that he was opening a criminal investigation
of Maduro's foe, who heads the oppositioncontrolled
congress. Saab is a key Maduro
ally and the high court is stacked with
Maduro loyalists.
"Once more we'll come out victorious,"
Maduro, dressed in a green cap and shirt,
said Tuesday while standing before rows of
troops. "We are on the right side of history."
The court move came after U.S. national
security adviser John Bolton warned that
the Maduro government would face "serious
consequences" if Guaido is harmed.
Guaido has thus far managed to avoid
arrest and the Supreme Court did not strip
him of his legislative immunity, though the
new investigation could signal that Maduro's
administration is moving to take a more
punitive approach.
Speaking Tuesday outside the National
Assembly, Guaido said he was aware of personal
risks.
"I don't underestimate the threat of persecution
at the moment, but here we are," he
said.
The U.S. has emerged as Guaido's most
powerful ally, announcing on Tuesday that it
was giving him control of Venezuela's U.S.
bank accounts.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo certified
that Guaido has the authority to take
control of any Venezuelan government
accounts at the Federal Reserve Bank of
New York or any other U.S.-insured banks.
He said the certification would "help
Venezuela's legitimate government safeguard
those assets for the benefit of the
Venezuelan people."
Indonesia’s Merapi
volcano unleashes
river of lava
Indonesia's volatile Mount
Merapi volcano has
unleashed a river of lava that
flowed 1,400 meters (4,590
feet) down its slopes, reports
UNB.
Merapi, on the island of
Java, has entered an "effusive
eruption phase," Kasbani,
head of the Volcanology
and Geological Hazard
Mitigation Center, said
Wednesday.
Kasbani, who goes by a
single name, said the volcanic
material that spewed
out late Tuesday was the volcano's
longest lava flow since
it began erupting again in
August.
He said the alert level of
the volcano has not been
raised but people should
stay out of a 3-kilometer
(1.8-mile) danger zone
around the crater.
The 2,968-meter (9,737-
foot) mountain, located near
the ancient Indonesian city
of Yogyakarta, is the most
active of dozens of Indonesian
volcanoes.
Its last major eruption in
2010 killed 347 people.
Indonesia, an archipelago
of more than 260 million
people, is prone to earthquakes,
tsunamis and volcanic
eruptions because it
straddles the Pacific "Ring of
Fire."
Clash kills 4 militants,
wounds 7 in northern
Afghanistan
At least four militants were
killed and seven others sustained
injuries as government
forces stormed Taliban
hideouts in Qaisar district of
the northern Faryab
province on Tuesday, an
army spokesman Mohammad
Hanif Rezai said
Wednesday, reports UNB.
The government forces,
according to the official,
attacked a Taliban hideout
in Arkalic area of Qaisar district
Tuesday evening, killing
four insurgents on the spot
and wounding seven others.
China to award highest state
honor to contributors
China will award national medals and honorary
titles to both citizens and foreigners
who have made great contributions to the
country as it marks the 70th anniversary of
the founding of the People's Republic of China
this year, reports UNB.
The deceased can also be nominated,
according to a circular on the nomination
and selection of award-winners issued by the
General Office of the Communist Party of
China Central Committee.
This is the first time for the country to
conduct the selection and conferment of
these highest national honors to commend
a number of exemplary contributors
to the construction and development
of the PRC.
Among them, Medals of the Republic
will be awarded to those who have given
great contributions and meritorious service
and are of high moral character and
recognized by the public.
The nominees for the Medals of Friendship
should be foreigners who have made
outstanding contributions to China's
socialist modernization drive, promoted
exchange and cooperation between China
and the world, helped maintain world
peace and who are firm in their long-term
friendship with China.
Meanwhile, national titles of honor will
be awarded for prominent figures who
have made great contributions and earned
reputations in fields such as economy,
national defense, education, science, culture
and sports.
Nomination of candidates and selection
of award-winners will be led by the
working committee on the Party and
state medals and honorary titles and
should be transparent and fair, the circular
read.
Among them, Medals of the Republic
will be awarded to those who have given
great contributions and meritorious service
and are of high moral character and
recognized by the public.
The nominees for the Medals of Friendship
should be foreigners who have made
outstanding contributions to China's
socialist modernization drive, promoted
exchange and cooperation between China
and the world, helped maintain world
peace and who are firm in their long-term
friendship with China.
Ceremonies to present the honors will be
held on important occasions and anniversaries,
such as the National Day, according
to a law approved by the National People's
Congress Standing Committee, China's
top legislature, in late 2015 to introduce
the honorary system.
China will award national medals and honorary titles to both citizens
and foreigners who have made great contributions to the country as it
marks the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of
China this year.
Photo : AP
Venezuelan Bolivarian National Guardsmen line up near a Divine Mercy Jesus Christ poster outside
the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2019. Venezuela's chief prosecutor
on Tuesday asked the country's top court to ban opposition National Assembly President Juan
Guaido from leaving the country, launching a criminal probe into his anti-government activities
while international pressure builds against President Nicolas Maduro.
Photo : AP
German police arrest 3
suspected of extremist
bomb plot
German authorities arrested three suspected
Islamic extremists Wednesday on allegations
they were planning a bombing attack,
and searched properties in three states in
connection with their investigation, reports
UNB.
Federal prosecutors said Iraqis Shahin F.
and Hersh F., both 23, and Rauf S., 36, were
taken into custody in an early morning raid
by a police SWAT team in the area of Dithmarschen,
near the border with Denmark.
In addition, searches were carried out of
residences in two other states of people
linked to the three but not currently suspected
of any crime.
The two younger men are suspected of
preparing a bomb attack and violating
weapons laws, and Rauf S. is alleged to have
aided them. Their last names were not given
in line with German privacy laws.
The men appear to have been in the early
stages of planning, and had not yet built a
functioning bomb nor decided upon a target
for attack, prosecutors said in a statement.
Prosecutors allege Shahin F. and Hersch F.
decided in late 2018 to "carry out an attack
motivated by Islamic extremism in Germany."
There are indications that they sympathized
with Islamic State, but a direct link
to the extremist group or others is currently
under investigation.
In December, Shahin F. downloaded "various
instructions" on how to build a bomb,
and ordered a detonator from a contact person
in Britain, prosecutors said. Its delivery,
however, was stopped by British law enforcement
agencies.
At the same time, the two carried out tests
using explosive powder from New Year's
fireworks and asked Rauf S. to procure a
firearm, prosecutors said.
He's alleged to have contacted Walid
Khaled Y.Y. - a man already under investigation
- who allegedly offered them a Russian
semi-automatic Makarov 9mm pistol, prosecutors
said. It was considered too expensive
and was not purchased, they added.
In preparation for the possibility of using a
vehicle in the attack, Shahin F. started taking
driving lessons, prosecutors said.
It was not clear how the plot was first
detected nor when the suspects came to Germany,
and prosecutors' spokeswoman Kerstin
Wacker would not elaborate beyond the
written statement provided. She also would
not provide any more information on Khaled
Y.Y.
More than 1 million asylum seekers
entered Germany in 2015-16, most from Syria,
Iraq and Afghanistan. The involvement of
several asylum-seekers in extremist attacks
or plots has helped boost support for the
anti-migrant Alternative for Germany party.
In the only mass-casualty Islamic extremist
attack in Germany, Tunisian asylumseeker
Anis Amri hijacked a truck in 2016
and drove it into a crowded Christmas market
in Berlin, killing 12 people and wounding
dozens. The Islamic State group later
claimed responsibility.
Bangkok schools closed
over air pollution concerns
More than 400 schools in Thailand's capital,
Bangkok, have been shut as several weeks of
dangerously unhealthy air pollution causes
increasing concern, reports UNB.
Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha directed
Bangkok's governor to order the closure
of 437 schools from noon Wednesday
through the end of the week after officials
said the pollution would continue until next
Monday. They said still air and heavy traffic
are causing a buildup of particles in the air.
The Pollution Control Department said the
amount of particularly dangerous tiny "PM
2.5" particles has risen in all areas in and
around Bangkok since Monday.
The Public Health Ministry said people
should refrain from outdoor activities and
exercise.
Amnesty urges
travel sites to ban
Israel settlement
listings
Amnesty International on
Wednesday urged online travel
sites to ban listings from
Israeli settlements in the occupied
West Bank, reports UNB.
The London-based rights
group's report, titled "Destination:
Occupation," said rental
sites Airbnb, Booking.com,
Expedia and TripAdvisor are
driving tourism to settlements
that most of the world considers
illegal.
Airbnb announced last
November that it would
remove West Bank settlement
listings but has yet to implement
its decision. The company
says it is working to identify
the "precise boundaries" of
areas subject to the policy.
Amnesty called on Airbnb to
immediately implement its
ban and to extend it to east
Jerusalem, which Israel captured
along with the West
Bank in the 1967 Mideast War.
The Palestinians seek these
lands for a future independent
state. On Twitter, Israeli Cabinet
Minister Gilad Erdan
called the Amnesty statement
"an outrageous attempt to distort
facts, deny Jewish heritage
& delegitimize Israel."
The World Jewish Congress
said it was disheartened by
Amnesty's report and called on
it to shift its focus back to
human rights.
"Amnesty International is a
serious and respected human
rights organization, whose
work to stop abuses around
the world should never be
underrated, but its singular
focus on corporate entities
doing business in Israeli settlements
is gravely misguided,"
said WJC CEO and Executive
Vice President Robert Singer.