Tag: InternationalNews

{Anti-Terrorism Police Unit (ATPU) officers in Kenya are interrogating a British national arrested at Moi international Airport with two magazines and 42 bullets.}

Reports indicate Surone Abdiwahid, 27, was arrested at the departure section during the screening of her luggage.

Coast regional police boss Larry Keing said the woman of Somali origin was handed over to the ATPU for further interrogation and profiling.

Police said the woman holds a British passport and was to travel to Nairobi before catching a Kenya Airways flight to London.

“The 9mm ammunition were concealed in her suitcase when they were discovered. We are yet to establish if she is a licensed gun holder and what her intention of smuggling bullets to the plane was,” a senior ATPU officer said on Thursday.

The officer, who did not want to be named, said the woman will be taken to court so police seek more days to complete investigations.

He said the government has already contacted the British Embassy in Nairobi to assist in the probe.

“We are working with different agencies and foreigners in the investigation. The incident is being treated as a potential act of terrorism.”

The UK government has suffered terrorism attacks carried out by home grown terrorist groups motivated by extremist Islamic ideals.

Islamic State (IS) claimed responsibility for the Manchester suicide bombing and the London Bridge and Borough Market attacks.

Kenyan security agents are also on higher alert following sporadic attacks by terror group al Shabaab in counties including Lamu, Mandera, Garissa and Wajir.
The group has targeted both civilians and security agents.

{A major double manhunt has been launched after the sickening back-to-back assault in Birmingham. }

Detectives said the teen was first attacked in a secluded part of Witton railway station, near the Aston Villa football ground, some time between 7pm on Tuesday and 2am the following morning. The victim had walked to the station with her friend but was led away by a man who approached her.

Shortly after that attack the girl walked out of the station and flagged down a passing vehicle to ask for help. But after getting in the car she was raped a second time by another man. A major investigation, involving detectives from the British Transport Police and West Midlands Police, is now underway to try

The victim had walked to the station with her friend but was led away by a man who approached her.

Shortly after that attack, the girl walked out of the station and flagged down a passing vehicle to ask for help.

But after getting in the car, she was raped a second time by another man.

A major investigation, involving detectives from the British Transport Police and West Midlands Police, is under way to try to identify both attackers and appeal for witnesses.

The first attacker is described as Asian with light skin, brown eyes, a skinny build and about 6 feet tall. He was wearing a tracksuit top and bottoms, black trainers and was in his early 20s.

The second attacker is also described as Asian, in his early 20s, 5 feet 6 or 5 feet 7 inches tall, with a large build and a close-cropped beard and was wearing a blue shirt and black jeans.

With NYpost

{Another bizarre tweet from the president of the United States. Another round of outrage and condemnation from lawmakers.}

President Trump on Sunday morning posted to Twitter a doctored video clip that showed him slamming a man — with “CNN” superimposed on his head — to the ground. In the video, Trump then throws punches at the man’s head, before walking away.

Trump appended the tweet with two hashtags: “#FraudNewsCNN” and “#FNN.”

The video, which reportedly originated on Reddit last week, was quickly blasted on social media as not befitting of the office of the president and appearing to promote violence against CNN’s journalists. Trump has long had an antagonistic relationship with the cable news network, often accusing it of being “Fake News.”

On ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday, homeland security adviser Tom Bossert pursed his lips when shown the tweet on air, then defended Trump, saying he was communicating directly in a “genuine” way to Americans.

“I think that no one would perceive that as a threat,” Bossert told “This Week” host Martha Raddatz. “I hope they don’t.”

Lawmakers felt otherwise, taking to Twitter to blast Trump for, again, tweeting “crude, false, and unpresidential content.” Many defended the free press as critical to the nation’s democracy, especially with Independence Day on the horizon.

Source : Washington Post

{Agreement to enable Theresa May’s Conservative Party to govern the country despite losing its majority in parliament.}

Prime Minister Theresa May’s Conservatives have signed a deal with Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) that will allow them to govern Britain after losing their majority in a general election earlier this month.

The Conservatives have 317 seats in the 650-seat parliament after the June 8 election and need the support of the DUP’s 10 members of parliament to be able to govern.

“An agreement has been signed,” the UK prime minister’s spokesperson told AFP news agency.

Arlene Foster, the head of the DUP, said she was “delighted” that a deal had been struck, and that the details of the deal will be published later.

Discussions between the two began immediately after the election and centred on a “confidence and supply” deal in which the DUP would support the government in any confidence votes and to pass budgets.

Foster’s party wants tangible benefits for Northern Ireland in terms of jobs and investment in order to offer its support.

Al Jazeera’s Neave Barker said that under the agreement, Northern Ireland will receive a $1.3bn fiscal package.

“This will go on everything from hospitals to roads but also to shoring up their position in northern Irish politics,” he said.

“This will not be an easy journey for May or for this conservative government. They will be under scrutiny from start to finish.”

DUP leaders had previously said that an agreement with the Conservatives will offer stable British government.

But critics, including some members of the Conservatives, had objected to any kind of alliance with the DUP because of some of its views, including opposition to same-sex marriage and abortion.

Some of its representatives have also been criticised in the past for homophobic comments, climate-change-denial statements and sectarian rhetoric.

Enda Kenny, Ireland’s former prime minister, has cautioned that a deal with the Protestant and pro-British DUP could upset Northern Ireland’s fragile peace.

However, May, in a statement shortly after the agreement was signed, said that the DUP will back the British government on all Brexit and national security legislation.

“The DUP will support the Conservative government on votes on the queen’s speech, the budget, and legislation relating to Brexit and national security,” she said.

“The agreement makes clear that we remain steadfast to our commitments as set out in the Belfast Agreement and its successors, and in governing in the interests of all parts of the community in Northern Ireland.”

Source:Al Jazeera

{Tokyo-based car-components manufacturer is facing lawsuits and costs over airbag defect linked to at least 16 deaths.}

Takata, the Japanese car-parts manufacturer, says it has filed for bankruptcy protection in Japan and the US after faults in its airbags prompted the industry’s biggest ever safety recall.

Takata is facing lawsuits and huge costs over an airbag defect linked to at least 16 deaths globally.

News reports have said its liabilities would exceed one trillion yen ($9bn).

Key Safety Systems, an American car-components manufacturer owned by China’s Ningbo Joyson Electronic, will take over Takata, both companies said.

Takata, which is based in Tokyo, will sell its assets and businesses to Key Safety Systems for an estimated $1.588bn, they said.

Trading in Takata shares was suspended at the opening of the stock market on Monday after a week of massive volatility and the Tokyo Stock Exchange said it would delist Takata on July 27.

“At a board meeting on June 26, our company decided to begin procedures in filing for bankruptcy protection,” Takata said in a statement after making the filing with the Tokyo District Court. It said the court had accepted the measure.

Takata has 12 overseas subsidiaries that have also filed for bankruptcy protection.

Jason Luo, president and chief executive of KSS, voiced confidence in Takata’s rehabilitation.

“Although Takata has been impacted by the global airbag recall, the underlying strength of its skilled employee base, geographic reach, and exceptional steering wheels, seat belts and other safety products have not diminished,” he said in a statement.

“We look forward to finalising definitive agreements with Takata in the coming weeks, completing the transaction and serving both our new and long-standing customers while investing in the next phase of growth for the new KSS.”

Takata shares rose more than 40 percent on Friday after collapsing over the week as traders made bets on its likely bankruptcy.

Analysts attributed the surge on Friday to speculative trading among short-term investors hoping to profit from wild swings in share prices as well as to position adjustments ahead of the weekend.

Nearly 100 million cars, including about 70 million in the US, were subject to the airbag recall linked to a risk they could improperly inflate and rupture, potentially firing deadly shrapnel at the occupants.

The ultimate cause of the malfunctions has not yet been identified but three factors are suspected: a chemical component, ammonium nitrate, that responds poorly to humidity; extreme climatic conditions, such as heat and high humidity; and faulty design.

In the US, Takata agreed in January to plead guilty to wire fraud for falsifying testing data and reports provided to car manufacturers.

The penalty includes a $25m criminal fine, a $125m compensation fund for victims, and an $850m restitution fund for car manufacturers.

Three of its executives were indicted in connection with the safety defects.

Al Jazeera’s Wayne Hay, reporting from Tokyo, says filing for bankruptcy offers Takata some protection going forward, and it makes the company’s affairs more ransparent, while allowing for a bailout.

“But there is a long way to go in terms of the recall process – most of the cases have been in the United States [and] only around 38 percent of the repairs and replacements have been completed in the US,” he said.

“Because there is so much work to be done, there is a real concern that there won’t be enough money to complete all these recalls and therefore the car manufacturers themselves will have to pick up most of the costs.”

Source:Al Jazeera

{Protesters drape black flag over a symbolic statue days before visit by Xi Jinping marking 20 years since the handover.}

Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters have draped a black flag over a statue symbolising the city’s return to China by Britain, just days before a visit by President Xi Jinping to mark 20 years since the handover.

Joshua Wong, a prominent student campaigner, and a dozen demonstrators attached the black cloth to the giant golden bauhinia flower on Hong Kong’s harbourfront in an early morning protest on Monday as security tried to stop them climbing on the famous tourist attraction.

“The black-cloaked statue symbolises the hard-line rule of the authoritarian regime over the past twenty years,” the protesters said in a statement.

The sculpture of the bauhinia, which became the emblem of Hong Kong after the handover, was a present to the city from China in 1997 and stands outside the convention centre where Xi will attend anniversary events during a three-day visit starting on Thursday.

Police were called to take the flag down while the protesters chanted “democratic self-determination for Hong Kong’s future” and “one country, two systems has been a lie for 20 years”, referring to Hong Kong’s semi-autonomous status.

A guard shouted at them: “You are insulting our country! You are Chinese!”

The “one country, two systems” deal made when Britain handed Hong Kong back to China in 1997 allows the city rights denied on the mainland, including freedom of speech.

But there are increasing concerns China is trampling the agreement by interfering in a range of areas, from politics to education and media.

Campaigners like Wong are calling for democratic reforms, promised in the handover deal, to change a system where the city leader is still chosen by a pro-China committee and the legislature is weighted towards Beijing.

Wong led mass Umbrella Movement rallies calling for fully free leadership elections in 2014, but they failed to win concessions.

Since then calls for self-determination or even full independence from China have emerged for the first time.

Wong’s party Demosisto wants a public referendum on Hong Kong’s future in 2047, the year the handover agreement guaranteeing the city’s way of life and liberties expires.

“The protest action aims to express our anger and disappointment against the administration for the major political blunders since 1997,” Demosisto said in a statement.

It accused China of failing to honour promises made in the handover agreement, “depriving Hong Kong people of civil and political rights to free elections and democracy”.

Xi’s visit will be his first since becoming president in 2013 and will culminate with the inauguration of Hong Kong’s new leader, Carrie Lam, on Saturday.

Protesters say they are preparing to gather during the handover celebrations and Xi’s visit will be shrouded in a huge security operation.

Source:Al Jazeera

{Police fire rubber bullets and tear gas on LGBT activists who attempted to hold march in defiance of ban by authorities.}

Turkish police have prevented LGBT activists from holding a parade in downtown Istanbul, organisers said, as small groups attempted to defy a ban by the local authorities.

The Istanbul governorship on Saturday prohibited the march citing safety and public order concerns – but Pride organisers vowed to go on with the parade, despite warnings from ultranationalist groups who had threatened to block the event.

On Sunday, small groups gathered at various parts of central Istanbul, including Taksim Square, while a heavy police presence blocked entry to the nearby Istiklal Street where the march was supposed to take place, organisers and state media reports said.

Lara Guney Ozlen, a spokesperson for Pride Week, said police fired rubber bullets and tear gas on the LGBT activists amassing near the popular shopping street and its side roads.

Parade organisers said members of the ultraconservative groups also showed up in Taksim Square, yet police prevented a face-off between the different groups.

At least 41 people, including both LGBT activists and members of the ultraconservative groups, were detained, according to the event’s organisers. The state-run Anadolu Agency put the number of those held to at least 20.

This year’s ban, which followed similar prohibitions in 2016 and 2015, was condemned by the parade’s organisers.

“We are not scared, we are here, we will not change,” they said in a statement on Sunday. “You are scared … you will get used to it.”

Ozlen told Al Jazeera on Saturday that the reasons for the ban of the parade were not valid or convincing.

She said: “For the last two years, the march overlapped with Ramadan. This year it does not. So, that is not an excuse [to prevent it] either. I believe the ban is about not accepting our sexual orientation and it is a reaction to the movement getting stronger.”

Istanbul’s governorship said on Saturday that no proper application had been filed for the march – a statement denied by the organisers.

{{Long-held event}}

The Istanbul LGBTI Pride Week has been organised since 1993, ending with a march on Istiklal Street since 2003, according to its organisers.

The week consists of various events, such as discussion panels, workshops, social gatherings and art courses.

Organisers say the parade attracted tens of thousands of people until the early 2010s, making it the largest pride march in a Muslim-majority country.

Earlier in June, similar parades took place in Izmir, the largest city in western Turkey, the city of Kocaeli neighbouring Istanbul and the southern city of Mersin. The events passed peacefully without police intervention.

Homosexuality is not illegal in Turkey, but intolerance towards LGBT citizens exists in large parts of the society.

Source:Al Jazeera

{Defence minister says Ankara has no plans to review ties with Qatar, after Arab states issue demands to end Gulf crisis.}

Turkey has rejected a call from four Arab countries to shut down its military base in Qatar, saying the base was a guarantor of security in the Gulf and demands for its closure represented interference in its ties with Doha.

Defence Minister Fikri Isik told Turkish broadcaster NTV that he had not yet seen a request for the closure of the base, but made clear his country had no plans to review a 2014 agreement with Qatar which led to it being set up.

His reaction comes after Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries boycotting Qatar over alleged support for “terrorism” reportedly issued a list of demands, including closing down the military installation.

“If there is such a demand, it will mean interference in bilateral ties,” Isik said in an interview on Friday.

Qatar welcomes Turkish troops, wraps up war game with US
“The base in Qatar is both a Turkish base and one that will preserve the security of Qatar and the region.

“It is an important military base and no country should be disturbed by it.”

Five armoured vehicles and 23 military personnel arrived in Doha on Thursday in a deployment Turkey’s armed forces said was part of a military training and cooperation deal.

Some 88 Turkish soldiers were already in Qatar, according to the Hurriyet newspaper.

The newspaper said a joint exercise by Turkish and Qatari forces was expected following the Islamic Eid al-Fitr holiday which starts on Sunday and the number of Turkish soldiers sent to the Gulf state could eventually reach 1,000.

The Turkish military base in Qatar is a first for Turkey in the Arab world.

“Turkey’s miltary agreement with Qatar isn’t a new thing, but after the Gulf tensions erupted Turkey just fast tracked a draft bill in the parliament to deploy its troops to Doha and boost Qatar’s morale,” said Al Jazeera’s Sinem Koseoglu, reporting from Istanbul.

“According to the agreement, almost 600 Turkish military personel will be training Qatar’s soldiers.”

Turkey has been the foremost supporter of Qatar since the Gulf dispute began on June 5.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has denounced the isolation of Qatar as “inhumane and against Islamic values”.

Source:Al Jazeera