An Indian in Canada has been allegedly racially abused over a parking dispute with a white woman who yelled "go back to your country" and called him a "Paki", according to a media report. Rahul Kumar, who moved from India to Canada seven years ago, was also called a "loser" with "shit-coloured skin." In the video which Kumar made, a woman yells at him over a parking dispute. "You can film all you want Paki. Yes, Paki, that's you with the shit-coloured skin," the report said, citing the video. The woman who made the comments called CTV Edmonton after the report aired and criticised the coverage, saying that she is "not a racist." Asked whether the parking disagreement justifies the racist language used, she said, "It doesn't matter if it justifies it or not; it happened and that's where I took it. I have no problem with what happened," she was quoted as saying.
ICJ may hear Jadhav case in Feb
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) will hear for a week in February the case of Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav, who was sentenced to death by a military court in Pakistan on spying charges, according to a media report. Jadhav, 47, was sentenced to death by the military court in April last year. Pakistan claims that its security forces arrested Jadhav from its Balochistan province in March, 2016 after he reportedly entered from Iran. India denies all charges. India moved the ICJ in May last year against the verdict. The ICJ halted Jadhav’s execution on India’s appeal pending the final verdict by it. According to reports, the court will hear the case daily for a week in February next year.
Five killed in Pakistan over animal sacrifice
Five people were killed in a firing incident following a dispute over animal sacrifice in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Officials said a long-standing dispute between two families of Mardan escalated during the sacrifice of animals on the occasion of Eid, resulting in the tragedy. Both the groups lost two of their members in the incident, while a passerby was also killed in the exchange of fire. Six others were injured and taken to hospitals..
Taliban fire rockets at prez palace in Kabul
The Taliban fired a pair of rockets toward the presidential palace in Kabul as the Afghan president was delivering his holiday message for Eid, police said, prompting a aerial response with helicopter gunships bombing the house from where the rockets were reportedly launched. The first rocket landed somewhere near the presidential building while the second hit near a Nato compound and the US embassy but no one was hurt, said police official Jan Agha. The boom of the rockets was heard in the live broadcast of President Ashraf Ghani’s speech. As he also heard the thud, Ghani interrupted his message to say: “If they are thinking the rocket attack will keep Afghans down, they are wrong.” Police spokesman said they had noticed a suspicious vehicle earlier and followed it to a mud-brick house near the Eid Gah mosque where hundreds had gathered to offer prayers for Eid. Once inside the house, the suspects are believed to have fired the rockets. A helicopter gunship bombed the location, destroying the house and the vehicle.
Kids survive alone for days after car wreck kills mom
A 3-year-old boy and his 1-year-old brother survived alone for about two days after their mother was killed in car crash in Arkansas. The older boy was found first, wandering alone along a road, the Ouachita County sheriff office said. Authorities posted the boy’s photo online in hope of identifying him and learned that his mother hadn’t been seen for days. Later, police returned to the area where the boy was found and discovered a wrecked car in a ravine. They found the mother’s body and his brother awake and alert in his car seat. Investigators believe the wreck happened two days earlier and that the older boy was able to climb out of the wreckage.
Hundreds of women, men in US march topless for gender equality
Hundreds of women and some men marched through numerous cities in the US to show their breasts, demanding gender equality and to protest against the "commercialization and the double standards" which affects their lives and jobs. In its eleventh edition, the mobilization known as International Go Topless Day held 20 marches across the US, Germany, Canada, Chile, Colombia and France. In New York, the first state in the US to pass a law allowing breastfeeding in public, and in other cities women were also joined by a group of topless men. "This is a way to promote gender equality and a reminder that nudity and sex are not the same," a participant said, adding that "to appreciate the female body does not mean to stop respecting women. Some of the demonstrators carried posters with phrases like "Free the nipple", "Your body is not a mistake" or "Let's make the body normal again."
Cop who breastfed hungry baby promoted
A woman police sergeant on duty breastfed a crying baby to calm her down, following which she was promoted to the rank of an officer. The sergeant was on patrol at a children’s hospital in Argentina’s Berriso when she heard a baby crying. Provincial police said that the officer, Celeste Jaqueline Ayala, spoke to the hospital authorities before breastfeeding the baby. The baby was recently separated from her mother. The reason for the separation is not known yet.
Thai monk beats 9-year-old to death for disrupting prayer
A nine-year-old Buddhist novice has died after a beating by a Thai monk who allegedly battered him with a stick and slammed his head against a pillar, officials said. Monk Suphachai Suthiyano, 64, flew into a rage during a prayer session last weekend when the young disciple disrupted the ceremony with his “playful” behaviour. The monk allegedly assaulted Wattanapol Sisawad with a bamboo stick at the temple in Kanchanaburi, striking him on his back several times before bashing his head into a pillar. The child fell into a coma and passed away later, a hospital worker said.
Man held for depicting Nepal PM as monkey in FB post
A man in Nepal was arrested for sharing a doctored image on Facebook showing Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s head superimposed on a monkey's body, police said. Homnath Sigdel, 44, was taken into custody for “sharing indecent photos that targeted the PM”, officer Narendra Prasad Uprety said.
Saudi Arabia seeks death for woman activists
Saudi Arabia’s public prosecutor is seeking the death penalty for five human rights activists currently on trial, rights group, including Human Rights Watch (HRW) said. Among the detainees is Israa al-Ghomgham, whom Saudi activists said was the first woman to possibly face the death penalty for rights-related work. Charges against her include incitement to protest and providing moral support to rioters. “Any execution is appalling, but seeking the death penalty for activists like Israa al-Ghomgham, who are not even accused of violent behavior, is monstrous,” Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at HRW, said. Activists said the trial was ongoing, and denied social media reports that the detainees had already been executed. Saudi Arabia, where public protests and political parties are banned, has enacted some high-profile social and economic reforms in recent years under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. They have, however, been accompanied by a crackdown on dissent, with dozens of clerics, intellectuals and activists arrested, including women who had campaigned for the right to drive.
NZ politician who cycled to hospital gives birth to boy
A New Zealand minister who cycled to hospital for the birth of her first child has delivered a healthy baby boy, her office said. Minister for women, Julie Anne Genter, chose to cycle the distance of 1km for the delivery.
Scott Morrison is new Australian PM
Australia’s new Prime Minister Scott Morrison promised a stable government at the end of a tumultuous week in which his predecessor was forced out of office, 13 ministers resigned and Parliament was shut down for an afternoon. Disgruntled government lawmakers forced former PM Malcolm Turnbull from office, arguing that most had lost faith in his leadership. Morrison distanced himself from the turmoil, saying he had not been part of the push led by fellow lawmaker Peter Dutton to oust Turnbull over four chaotic days that was inspired by a feud between hard-right conservatives and moderates. “The work of government continues. I want to assure all Australians that those normal wheels are turning,” Morrison told reporters. Morrison has been dubbed the “accidental PM” because he had no plans to nominate himself till Turnbull declared he would not re-contest his job.
African tycoon linked to Lord Hain arrested
A controversial South African businessman with links to the former Labour cabinet minister Lord Hain has been arrested and will face a court in Munich this week. Zunaid Moti, 45, was detained while trying to leave Germany on August 19 under an Interpol “red notice” issued by Russia on charges of defrauding Alibek Issaev, a Russian citizen, in an alleged bogus mining deal and theft of a pink diamond worth £27 million. Lord Hain, who grew up in South Africa, has been criticised for working as an adviser to the businessman’s conglomerate, the Moti Group. Ulrich Roux, Moti’s lawyer, said: “The alleged charges are evidently a complete fabrication and part of a continued stratagem adopted by the Russian mafia to extort payment from Moti.”
