Day: May 25, 2023

At least one person was killed in a new outbreak of violence in the northeastern Indian state of Manipur as the death toll from communal riots reached 70, prompting local authorities to reimpose curfew in a district to maintain law and order, a police official said on Thursday. The official told Anadolu over the phone, requesting anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media, that the man was killed in the Bishnupur district on Wednesday morning by suspected Kuki militants, referring to the ethnic tribe present in Manipur and Mizoram states who are alleged to be receiving help from Myanmar and demanding a separate Kukiland. An indefinite curfew has been reimposed in Bishnupur district, the official said, adding that around 70 people have been killed so far during the unrest that erupted in the state earlier this month. The situation is still described by local media as critical in many parts of the state. On May 4, the army was called in to assist law enforcement after a curfew was imposed in eight districts of Manipur following violence that erupted during protests against the inclusion of the Meitei community in the Scheduled Tribes category, giving them some special privileges. In another incident in the state, Public Works Department Minister Govindas Konthoujam's house was attacked and vandalized in Bishnupur district on Wednesday. The minister and his family were not present in the house when the incident occurred, the police official said. Meanwhile, Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced on Thursday that he will visit the violence-plagued state soon and stay for three days. "I will go to Manipur in a few days and stay for three days to talk to the people of Manipur about establishing peace," Shah said. The minister said the federal government will ensure that justice is served to all who suffered in the clashes, but that people must engage in dialogue to ensure peace in the state. Thousands of people have been displaced by ethnic violence in the state, forcing them to flee to neighboring Mizoram. Manipur-based human rights activist Babloo Loitongbam said the main reason why the violence still continues is the government's handling of the situation. "The government isn't interested in resolving the issue. It should have started the peace initiative by now," Babloo told Anadolu. "Relief work has not begun. We haven't seen any indication of how they plan to handle the situation. It's been three weeks and no efforts have been made to bring peace to the state," he alleged, adding that the government is not making any serious efforts. What led to violence? The violence followed a Manipur High Court ruling on April 19 that directed the state government to submit recommendations for the inclusion of the Meitei community in the Scheduled Tribe category, which enraged the state's tribal population. The Meitei people are the predominant ethnic group of Manipur. A community granted Scheduled Tribe status is entitled to political representation, reserved seats in schools, and government jobs. Because of existing laws, the Meitei community, which accounts for nearly 60% of the state's population, is not permitted to settle in hilly areas. The Naga and Kuki tribes are concerned that if the Maitei community is granted Scheduled Tribe status, their proportions in government jobs and landownership will shrink. The Meitei community seeks to be recognized as a tribe as well. The community approached the Manipur High Court for this. Their argument is that Meitei should be recognized as a tribe in order to protect this community, their ancestors' land, traditions, culture, and language. The Meitei community is mostly Hindu. There is a greater percentage of Meitei in the state's population. On the other hand, Nagas and Kukis communities are mostly Christians.

Source: Anadolu Agency

France expressed "concern" on Thursday regarding Iran's recent test-firing of a ballistic missile, citing a violation of the UN Security Council resolution that supports the 2015 nuclear deal, according to a statement from the French Foreign Ministry. The statement from Paris followed Tehran's announcement in the early hours of Thursday about the successful test launch of a ballistic missile with a potential range of 2,000 kilometers (1,242 miles). Anne-Claire Legendre, the spokeswoman for the French Foreign Ministry, expressed worry during a Paris briefing, citing the "continuing escalation of Iran's nuclear program" as a reason for concern. The upgraded version of the Khorramshahr ballistic missile, called Kheibar, has a range of 2,000 kilometers and is equipped with a 1,500-kilogram (3,307-pound) warhead. In January 2017, Iran had previously tested the Khorramshahr ballistic missile, which has a range between 1,000 and 2,000 kilometers, with a 1,800-kilogram warhead.

Source: Anadolu Agency

US President Joe Biden and Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy signaled Thursday progress towards a hitherto elusive deal to raise the national debt and prevent an economic meltdown. Biden told reporters during a White House event that he and McCarthy have "had several productive conversations, and our staffs continued to meet, as we speak as a matter of fact, and they're making progress." "I've made clear time and again that defaulting on our national debt is not an option. The American people deserve to know that their social security payments will be there, veterans' hospitals remain open, and that economic progress will be made, and we're going to continue to make it," he said. "Default puts all that at risk. Congressional leaders understand that and they've all agreed there will be no default. And it's time for Congress to act. Now," he added. McCarthy also sounded upbeat on the prospects for striking an accord, telling reporters on Capitol Hill that negotiators from his team and Biden's worked past midnight Wednesday to finalize a deal, and continued talks Thursday morning. He acknowledged that neither side is going to receive all of the demands they entered the talks with. "I don't think everybody is going to be happy at the end of the day," he reportedly said. Lawmakers are departing Washington for the long Memorial Day weekend, however, making the timing for votes in the House of Representatives and Senate far from clear. Republicans in control of the House of Representatives have demanded that any action to raise the debt ceiling, or the amount of money the US is legally allowed to borrow, be paired with budget cuts. White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre declined to comment on one Republican lawmaker's forecast for a deal to be reached Friday afternoon, but she echoed McCarthy in saying neither side will walk away from the talks with everything they wanted. "Neither side is going to get everything that they want. And so that's what we're working towards. That's what you've been seeing from the negotiation team," she said. The Treasury Department has warned that the US could run out of funds as early as June 1.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Anti-abortion stickers on rental bicycles in Paris triggered public outrage on Thursday, local media reported. Anti-abortion group Les Survivants (Survivors) admitted that they pasted stickers on Velib rental bikes on the night from Wednesday to Thursday, according to broadcaster BFMTV. "What if you had let them live?" the stickers asked in colorful fonts, with drawings showing the evolution of an embryo to a toddler then a child on a bike. Isabelle Rome, the minister for gender equality, diversity and equal opportunities, denounced the campaign in a tweet and said it is "unacceptable." "Abortion is one of women's fundamental rights," she said. "We will allow nobody to violate it. I notified the Paris municipality." District mayors of Paris condemned the action, BFMTV reported, and Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo on Twitter said that this action is "a shame for our Republic, Paris and its values." She promised to take all the measures to prevent it in the future. Head of the Velib service provider, Sylvain Raifaud, on Twitter announced that they will file a complaint, BFMTV added. Raifaud said this campaign was absolutely not authorized. "Whatever it may be, advertising on public bikes in Paris is strictly prohibited," he said.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Earthquake survivor football coaches provide training to children in container city, located in the city center of Trkiye's southeastern Malatya. Provincial Directorate of Youth Services and Sports trainer Savas Gunay, 34, told Anadolu that his home was severely damaged and that his 7-month pregnant wife and one child were placed in the Teknokent Temporary Accommodation Center container city. Gunay, 34, said they try their best for children to cope with earthquake psychology. "We provide football training by dividing children into groups. We are trying to teach the basic techniques of football infrastructure," he said. The trainer said they would give basic training, teach something here, and send it to other teams, adding, " There is a great demand for football here." Quake survivor invites Fatih Terim to Malatya Hakan Koc, one of the coaches in the earthquake zone, said that he wished to organize an activity for children with the participation of the renowned Turkish manager Fatih Terim. "Officials of the Turkish Football Federation, we can organize events with former football players and raise the morale of the children to a higher level," he said. The 32-year-old trainer added that they aim to discover talented players here and bring them into Turkish football. More than 50,000 people were killed and over 107,200 injured in two powerful earthquakes that rocked southern Trkiye on Feb. 6, according to the latest official figures. The 7.7 and 7.6 magnitude earthquakes affected more than 13 million people across 11 provinces, including Kahramanmaras, Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, Elazig, and Sanliurfa.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Ukraine on Thursday announced that 106 military personnel were returned to the country as part of a prisoner exchange with Russia. 'These are soldiers from the Bakhmut direction - eight officers and 98 soldiers and sergeants,' said Andriy Yermak, the head of Ukraine's Presidential Office, in a statement on Telegram. Many of those returned were considered to be missing, Yermak said, noting that the team at the coordination headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War continued to fulfill President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's task of "returning everyone home as soon as possible.' 'Our real home is where we are thought of. Ukraine, which we are all building together, is a place where a person, a citizen, is of the highest value. A country that thinks about people. Our society thinks in such categories,' he said. He added that they are continuing to work in this regard and that each prisoner exchange brings them 'one step closer' to this goal. More than 2,000 prisoners have been exchanged between Russia and Ukraine since the war began in February 2022, according to figures compiled by Anadolu.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Ukraine on Thursday claimed that Moscow replaced forces of the Wagner paramilitary group in Bakhmut city, Donetsk region, with 'regular army units.' 'In the suburbs of Bakhmut, the enemy replaced Wagner's units with army regular units. At the moment, the Wagnerites remain in the same city of Bakhmut,' said Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar in a statement on Telegram. Maliar also claimed that Ukrainian forces controlled the Litak area in the city's southwest, indicating that Russian forces are trying to halt their advances on the flanks and are placing additional units in this area. Russian forces are conducting offensives in several directions, including Avdiivka, Marinka, Lyman, Kupiansk, and Bakhmut, she claimed, adding that they have been "unsuccessful." 'Battles are currently ongoing on Kupiansk. The enemy attacks, tries to capture a bridgehead for further advance, suffers losses,' according to her. Russian forces have been trying for months to capture Bakhmut, a transport and logistics hub in the Donetsk region, which is part of the largely Russian-speaking industrialized Donbas region. Last Saturday, the Russian Defense Ministry and the Wagner paramilitary group claimed their forces took complete control of the city. However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy denied the claims during a press conference after the most recent G-7 summit in Japan.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Firefighters from the British Bases and 84 Squadron took part in the Cyprus Fire Service's Pyrsos exercise on Wednesday, as part of the annual joint fire safety training. According to a statement from the Bases, the exercise, which took place in Kyvides, in Limassol, simulated an agroforestry fire RoC firefighting aircraft work alongside, the British Bases and Jordan, who provided two helicopters and Slovenia as observers. It is added that Puma helicopters from 84 Squadron provided rainmaker support and members of Defence Fire and Rescue (DFR) were on the ground in a liaison capacity and offering expert advice. Speaking shortly after Fire Exercise, the DFR Episkopi Station Manager, Aristos Aristeidou said the exercise included scenarios of wildfire near a residential area and provided a valuable opportunity to share knowledge, expertise, and best practices, not only between the two fire services but with all emergency services in the RoC, and also helped to identify gaps and challenges in the current firefighting procedures and equipment, which will be addressed before the beginning of the hot season. He added that it was also a great opportunity for our new on island helicopter fleet - Puma - to work on its aerial firefighting along with all the other RoC flight units and helped strengthen the existing excellent relationship between BFC and the RoC, it enhanced our interoperability and communication skills, while promoting regional cooperation and mutual understanding. For his part, RoC Fire Service Press Officer and Public Relations Representative Andreas Kettis said that the exercise, which is under the supervision, administrative and operational coordination of the Cyprus Fire Service, is conducted within the framework of the preparation of the firefighting summer season and aims to establish the operational readiness and coordination of all 'Repression Services, adding that this joint exercise also sees the RoC implement the IKAROS Plan, which in real-time is a multi-nation firefighting operation. He added that the goal of the exercise during which the 'IKAROS PLAN' is activated, is to involve all aerial forces of the Cyprus Republic, DFR and 84 Squadron of the British Bases in Cyprus, as well as the two aerial means of the neighbouring friendly country of Jordan, together with ground forces of all Services that will be involved in extinguishing fires during the firefighting season. He also said that apart from the Cyprus Fire Service and the Forest Department, Repression Services of the Cyprus Republic in such fires are the National Guard, the Police, the Civil Defence, District Administration Offices, the Game and Fauna Service, Community Councils and Volunteer Firefighting Teams, while help and support in extinguishing such fires every year is being provided by DFR from the British Bases, with the contribution of ground and especially aerial forces by 84 Squadron.

Source: Cyprus News Agency