Pakistan PM Imran Khan has categorically rejected any possibility of establishing diplomatic relations with Israel, according to a media report. “Our position on Israel is very clear. Pakistan can never recognise Israel. If we surrender to Israel, then we must leave Kashmir,” Khan said in an interview to a private news channel to mark the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf ’s two years in power last week. “The Quaid-i-Azam (Muhammad Ali Jinnah) had said in 1948 that Pakistan could not recognise Israel unless it gave freedom to Palestinians,” he said. About UAE’s deal to establish ties with Israel, Khan said every state has its own foreign policy. Answering a question on reports of strained ties with Saudi Arabia over Kashmir, Khan said Islamabad did not wish to divide the Muslim world. “Saudi Arabia has its own foreign policy and news of breakdown in ties with Riyadh is baseless,” he said.
Israel to oppose US F-35 jet sale to UAE
Israel and the United Arab Emirates may be reaching a historic normalisation of their diplomatic ties, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said it remains opposed to future arms sales to Gulf country. And that includes reports in Israeli media that the Trump administration is planning a "giant" sale of F-35 fighter jets to the UAE as part of the deal. Last week the two countries agreed to normalize their relationship, but there has been an understanding going back decades that Washington would refrain from Middle East arms sales that could blunt Israel's military edge against regional rivals. However, the White House did signal that UAE could be free to clinch unspecified new US arms sales moving forward. Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz underlined the need for Israel's safety. "I'm telling you that we must take no security risks. At the same time I repeatedly tell you that we should promote this agreement.” The US Embassy in Jerusalem and representatives of the UAE government did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Netanyahu's office says they oppose deals that would "tip the balance."
CPC expels Xi critic
China’s Communist Party has expelled a staunch critic of President Xi Jinping who has accused him among others of “provoking” conflict with other countries, including with India, to divert the attention of the Chinese public from domestic economic and social tensions. The Communist Party of China (CPC) expelled Cai Xia, a former professor at the Central Party School, as punishment for speeches “that damaged the reputation of the country”, South China Morning Post has reported. Cai told the Post that she was safe in the US but declined to elaborate. In an interview, Cai said Xi was provoking conflict between China and India besides encouraging anti-US sentiment to consolidate his own authority. She also criticised Xi on multiple issues, including the constitutional amendment removing the two-term limit. Cai said she is “happy to be expelled”. “I believe I am not the only one who wants to leave this party,” she added.
Chinese citizens told to control food habits
Chinese President Xi Jinping called its citizens to control food habits and "maintain a sense of crisis about food security" as the country is heading for a severe food crisis. Last week, Xi announced a food waste minimisation campaign as China continues to grapple with a slowing economy and the coronavirus pandemic disrupting the food supply chain. He highlighted that the Civid -19 pandemic had "sounded the alarm" on over-eating food habits. Xi labelled attitudes toward excess food consumption "shocking and distressing". The country has faced several food crises over the past year. The food crisis made worse after record flooding across southern China, which left farms wrecked and ruined tonnes of produce and a swine fever epidemic leading to the mass culling of pigs. According to the Chinese government curbing food waste will help improve food security and strengthen the country's ability to cope with food imports.
Mosque converted into public toilet in China
A public washroom has been constructed on the site of a demolished mosque in Atush of Xinjiang province in northwestern China. According to the reports, the authorities had demolished two of three mosques there in a drive launched in 2016 to demolish Muslim places of worship, known as "Mosque Rectification" which is a small part of policies against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in China. In an interview conducted by Radio Free Asia (RFA), Uyghur neighbourhood committee chief from Suntagh village in Atush said the mosque was torn down in 2018. "It's a public toilet, they haven't opened it yet, but it's built," he added. It is being said in the past few years, China has been hell-bent on breaking the spirit of Uyghur Muslims. The campaign is part of a series of hardline policies which included carrying out the mass incarceration of 1.8 million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in its internment camps across Xinjiang since April 2017.
Erdogan turns Chora church into a mosque
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan reconverted the historic Chora church, one of Istanbul’s most celebrated Byzantine buildings, into a mosque, a month after opening the famed Hagia Sophia to Muslim worship. The mediaeval Church of the Holy Saviour in Chora, built near the ancient city walls of Constantinople, contains 14th century Byzantine mosaics and frescoes showing scenes from biblical stories. They were plastered over after the city was conquered by the Ottomans in 1453, but brought to light again when - like Hagia Sophia - the building was converted to a museum by Turkey’s secular republic more than 70 years ago. Last year a Turkish court annulled a 1945 government decision converting Chora - known as Kariye in Turkish - into a museum. Last week, an edict signed by Erdogan declared the Kariye Mosque opened to worship.
US to demand restoration of UN curbs against Iran
The Trump administration is set to demand the restoration of all international sanctions on Iran in a move that will further isolate the US at the UN, test the credibility of the UN security council and possibly deal a fatal blow to one of former President Obama’s signature foreign policy achievements. At President Trump’s direction, secretary of state Mike Pompeo will travel to New York to notify the world body that the US is invoking the “snapback” mechanism in the UNSC resolution that endorsed the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. “The US intends to restore virtually all of the previously suspended UN sanctions on Iran,” Trump said. “It’s a snapback.” But the US move faces steep opposition and could prompt a revolt from the council’s other members.
US suspends extradition treaty with HK
The Hong Kong government condemned the US’s decision to suspend bilateral extradition and tax exemption treaties with the semi-autonomous Chinese city, saying it was being used as a pawn in geopolitics. Last week, the US suspended its extradition treaty with Hong Kong. The US also suspended a bilateral agreement with Hong Kong on the reciprocal tax exemptions on income derived from the international operation of ships. “The US’ unilateral decision reflects its disrespect for bilateralism and multilateralism under the current administration and should be condemned by the international community,” the government statement said. “The HKSAR Government strongly objects to US’ action, which is widely seen as a move to create troubles in China-US relationship, using Hong Kong as a pawn.” The government said that the agreements were not preferential treatment, but were negotiated in good faith to benefit both parties.
When a Swiss town got covered in chocolate dust
Residents of a Swiss town got a bit of a shock when it started snowing particles of a fine cocoa powder after the ventilation system at a chocolate factory malfunctioned. The Lindt & Spruengli company confirmed local reports that there was a minor defect in the cooling ventilation for a line for roasted “cocoa nibs” in its factory in Olten, between Zurich and Basel. The nibs, fragments of crushed cocoa beans, are the basis of chocolate. Combined with strong winds, the powder spread around the immediate vicinity of the factory, leaving a fine cocoa dusting. The company says one car was lightly coated, and that it has offered to pay for any cleaning needed. Factory production was able to continue as normal and the company says the particles were completely harmless to people or the environment. The ventilation system has now been repaired.
Mali’s president quits after being arrested in coup
Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita resigned after being detained by a military junta that pledged to shepherd a democratic transition. Keita has faced criticism for corruption and nepotism within his administration, and the mishandling of an escalating extremism in the nation. He appeared on national TV to say that he was dissolving his cabinet and parliament, and complying with soldiers’ demands that he quit. “I don’t want a single drop of blood to be shed to keep me in office,” he said.
Man rams car into bikers in Berlin, 6 hurt
A day after a bizarre series of crashes on a Berlin autobahn left several people injured, the city’s public prosecutor’s office announced that it was investigating whether what happened was part of an Islamist terrorist attack. The 30-year -old driver, who authorities said was an Iraqi citizen, appeared to cause three separate crashes by ramming his car into two motorcycles and one scooter on different sections of the A100, an autobahn that runs through Berlin, during evening rush hour. He later yelled “God is great” in Arabic and threatened to detonate a bomb. Berlin has endured an Islamist vehicle attack before: In 2016, an assailant plowed a stolen truck through a popular Christmas market in the city, leaving 12 people dead. While the Berlin prosecutor’s office said it was still looking for any links between the suspect and known terrorist groups, it said there were indications he had a history of mental illness. Six people were wounded, three severely, in the crashes, according to authorities.
Air Force One was nearly hit by a small drone
President Trump’s jet was nearly hit by what appeared to be a small drone as it approached an air base near Washington last week, according to several people aboard Air Force One. The device, which was yellow and black and shaped like a cross, was off the right side of the plane. It was seen by several passengers on the jet, shortly before it touched down at the base in Maryland. A reporter tweeted he saw the jet flew “right over a small object, remarkably close to the president's plane”. The White House military office and the Air Force’s 89th Airlift Wing said that they were “aware of the report” and “the matter is under review”.
Pandemic now driven by young adults
The WHO said it was concerned that the coronavirus spread was being driven by people in their 20s, 30s and 40s. “The epidemic is changing,” WHO Western Pacific regional director, Takeshi Kasai, told a virtual briefing. “People in their 20s, 30s and 40s are increasingly driving the spread. Many are unaware they are infected. This increases the risk of spillovers to the more vulnerable.” A surge in new cases has prompted some nations to re-impose curbs as companies race to find a vaccine for a virus that has killed over 7,70,000 people. Countries putting their interests ahead of others in trying to ensure supplies of a possible vaccine are making the pandemic worse, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in Geneva. “No one is safe until everyone is safe,” he said, calling for an end to “vaccine nationalism”.
