The Week - World

two-days-to-go-for-biden-inauguration-us-capitol-briefly-put-under-lockdown

Mon, 18 Jan 2021 20:32:39 GMT

The Capitol Hill, the complex comprising of US Congress and its buildings, was briefly put under lockdown on Monday due to "an external security treat", local police said after a fire was reported a few blocks away.

"All buildings within the Capitol Complex: External security threat, no entry or exit is permitted, stay away from exterior windows, doors. If outside, seek cover," US Capitol Police said in a message, sending a security scare.

The lockdown was later lifted.

The American capital has been put under heightened security with the deployment of nearly 25,000 National Guards to prevent repeat of January 6 incident when thousands of supporters of outgoing US President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol Hill disrupting the constitutional process of certification of electoral college votes by a joint session of the US Congress.

Five people died in the violence that followed. Lawmakers were forced to take shelter at safe places.

In days after that an unprecedented level of security has been placed in entire Washington DC. The FBI and other intelligence agencies have received reports of armed violence in the city.

The entire city has now been converted into a garrison city with thousands of armed national guards being placed in the nook and corners of the city and eight feet high iron barricade around key places including Capitol Hill and the White House.

US Capitol Police said that the message of lockdown was due to an "external security threat located under the bridge on I-295 at First and F Streets SE." The lockdown was later lifted.

Local media reports said that there was a fire a few blocks away from the Capitol Hill resulting in the security message.

Personnel participating in rehearsal of the inauguration were evacuated as an abundance of caution. President-elect Joe Biden is slated to be sworn in as the 46th President of the United States on January 20.

global-outcry-as-putin-critic-navalny-jailed-on-arrival-in-russia

Mon, 18 Jan 2021 19:06:23 GMT

Following his recovery in Germany five months since he was poisoned by a nerve agent in Siberia, Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was arrested on his arrival in Moscow airport, following which a judge sentenced him to 30 days in custody.

Navalny’s arrest has sparked a global outcry as it is seen as a crackdown on President Vladimir Putin’s most fervent critic. The United Nation’s Humans Rights Office called for his immediate release, saying it was “deeply troubled” by his arrested and called for his due process rights to be respected in line with the rule of law.

Amnesty International declared Navalny a “prisoner of conscience” and said it believed the charges against him are “trumped-up”.

Russia’s prison services accuses Navalny for “repeated violations” of his probation period, while Russian prosecutors have also investigated him on fraud charges related to transfers of money to charities including his Anti-Corruption Foundation.

US President-elect Joe Biden's pick for national security adviser called on Russian authorities to free Navalny.

Mr Navalny should be immediately released, and the perpetrators of the outrageous attack on his life must be held accountable, Jake Sullivan tweeted.

The outgoing US secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, said the US strongly condemns the decision to arrest Navalny.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas noted that Navalny had returned of his own volition and said "it is completely incomprehensible that he was detained by Russian authorities immediately after his arrival.

“Russia is bound by its own constitution and by international commitments to the principle of the rule of law and the protection of civil rights,” Maas added. “These principles must of course also be applied to Alexei Navalny. He should be released immediately.”

Despite knowing he would likely be arrested on his return to Russia, Navalny was adamant to return home. Navalny was detained at passport control at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport after flying in Sunday evening from Berlin.

With inputs from agencies

trump-doesnt-plan-to-pardon-himself-draws-up-exhaustive-list-of-100-clemencies

Mon, 18 Jan 2021 15:59:33 GMT

US President Donald Trump is preparing an expansive list of more than 100 pardons, but at this point is opting not to issue a pardon for himself, Reuters reported a source close to the White House as saying.

White House advisers have revealed that the President has privately debated with advisers whether to issue a pardon for himself. Administrators have, however, advised against it as it would make him look guilty. According to several scholars, a self-pardon would be unconstitutional. They have said that it violates the basic principle that no one should be the judge in their own case. Besides, it has been clearly stated in historical texts that the nation’s founding fathers discussed self pardon, but did not add an explicit limitation on that power.

Trump, in December, issued 41 pardons, including to his son-in-law Jared Kushner’s father and former campaign ally Paul Manafort. The President in the past month has met with advisors to finalise a list of more than 100 pardons and commutations.

Among Trump’s clemency list, he is expected to include a prominent eye doctor from Palm Beach, Dr Salomon Melgen, who is serving time after being convicted on dozens of counts of health care fraud.

Trump, who has been rambling on about voter fraud since November, is at the end of his term. Trump plans to skip swearing-in of President-elect Joe Biden. After he leaves the White House on Wednesday, Trump will begin his post-presidency life at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida.

a-paraplegic-scales-250-metres-of-a-skyscraper-in-hong-kong

Mon, 18 Jan 2021 13:50:02 GMT

Lai Chi-wai, a paraplegic on Saturday, scaled more than 250 metres of a skyscraper on a wheelchair.

The 37-year-old pulled himself up Nina Tower on the Kowloon peninsula for 10 hours. He undertook the feat to raise money for spinal cord patients. The event raised HK$ 5.5 million ($1 million). The height of Nina Tower stands tall at 320 metres— Chi-wai’s climb was called off for safety reasons. Prior to 2011, Chi-wai was four-times Asia champion for rock climbing and was ranked eighth globally one of the years.

"I was quite scared. Climbing up a mountain, I can hold onto rocks or little holes, but with glass, all I can really rely on is the rope that I'm hanging off,” Chi-wai told Reuters. Chi-wai was paralysed from the waist down 10 years ago on account of a car accident.

“In a way, I forgot that I was a disabled person, I could still dream and I could still do what I liked doing,” Chi-wai said.

The athlete slapped his helmet a few times to remain awake and took small breaks to rest his arms, as he battled icy night-time weather and windy conditions to haul his wheelchair.

"Some people don't understand the difficulties of disabled people, some people think that we are always weak, we need help, we need assistance, we need people's pity," Chi-wai, who undertook the feat on the 10th anniversary of his accident, said. In 2016, Chi-wai climbed Hong Kong's Lion Rock on a wheelchair.

melania-trump-favourability-drops-not-reached-out-to-jill-biden-tea

Mon, 18 Jan 2021 12:40:05 GMT

First lady Melania Trump’s favourability rating according to a CNN poll has slipped rating has slipped by double digits. Her favourability is at 43 per cent, down 11 percentage points from the 54 per cent in October. Percentage points of those who found her unfavourable also rose by 6 per cent. Melania’s favourability numbers reportedly peaked in early May at 57 per cent, after her first official state dinner and in April 2018, when she attended former first lady Barbara Bush’s funeral.

Former First Lady Michelle Obama has continued being a popular figure, years after exiting the White House. As per a Gallup poll, Obama was the most admired woman of 2019.

On January 14, it was speculated that Melanie, Trump, who has been criticised by the media for being cold-hearted, hasn’t reached out to Dr Jill Biden— wife of President-elect Joe Biden for the traditional tea shared by the incoming and outgoing first women.

The First Lady, known to be stoic, on January 11, broke her silence on a pro-Trump mob storming the Capitol building. She wrote, “I am disappointed and disheartened with what happened last week. I find it shameful that surrounding these tragic events there has been salacious gossip, unwarranted personal attacks, and false misleading accusations on me—from people who are looking to be relevant and have an agenda. This time is solely about healing our country and its citizens. It should not be used for personal gain.” She also expressed grief over the lives lost in the incident on January 6 and added, “Our Nation must heal in a civil manner. Make no mistake about it, I absolutely condemn the violence that has occurred on our Nation’s Capital. Violence is never acceptable.”

When incumbent President Donald Trump refused to concede to Joe Biden’s election victory. Michelle Obama wrote a long post on Instagram on November 2020, where she recalled welcoming the Trumps to the White House. First Lady Hillary Clinton, in November 2020 posted two images of her being welcomed to the White House by former First Lady Barbara Bush— wife of former president George W Bush Sr on Instagram. Clinton also posted an image of her welcoming Laura Bush, wife of president George Bush Jr.

In November 2020, rumours that Melania Trump counting days until her husband Donald was out of the house to divorce him floated. In October, there was speculation that the First Lady has a body double and that the President asked the double to accompany him on some campaign trails. These are just a few bizarre things about Melanie Trump, who, in June 2018, was criticised by the media for wearing a questionable jacket while visiting immigrants. She wore a jacket that had the words, ‘I really don’t care, do u?’ printed on the back. The timing she chose to don the jacket couldn’t be more inappropriate— it came when Melanie Trump made an unannounced trip to a youth shelter for migrants and a Border Patrol processing centre, a one day after President Donald Trump made a sudden decision to end the practice of splitting immigrant families that left more than 2,300 minors separated from their parents or guardians.

moon-urges-biden-to-learn-from-trump-north-korea-diplomacy

Mon, 18 Jan 2021 11:27:08 GMT

South Korea's president on Monday urged the incoming Biden administration to build upon the achievements and learn from the failures of President Donald Trump's diplomatic engagement with North Korea.

A dovish liberal and the son of northern war refugees, Moon Jae-in had lobbied hard to help set up Trump's three summits with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, but their diplomacy stalemated over disagreements over easing crippling U.S.-led sanctions for the North's disarmament.

Biden has accused Trump of chasing the spectacle of summits rather than meaningful curbs on the North's nuclear capabilities. North Korea has a history of staging weapons tests and other provocations to test new U.S. presidents, and Kim vowed to strengthen his nuclear weapons program in recent political speeches that were seen as aimed at pressuring the incoming Biden administration.

The South Korean leader has been desperate to keep alive a positive atmosphere for dialogue in the face of Kim's vows to further expand a nuclear and missile program that threatens Asian U.S. allies and the American homeland.

And while Moon acknowledged that Biden is likely to try a different approach than Trump, the South Korean leader stressed that Biden could still learn from Trump's successes and failures in dealing with North Korea.

During a mostly virtual news conference in Seoul, Moon claimed that Kim still had a clear willingness to denuclearize if Washington and Pyongyang could find mutually agreeable steps to decrease the nuclear threat and ensure the North's security. Most experts see Kim's recent comments as further evidence he will maintain his weapons programme to ensure his regime's survival.

When asked about the North's efforts to increase its ballistic capacity to strike targets throughout South Korea, including U.S. bases there, Moon said the South could sufficiently cope with such threats with its missile defense systems and other military assets.

The start of the Biden administration provides a new opportunity to start over talks between North Korea and the United States and also between South and North Korea, which have stalled amid the stalemate in nuclear negotiations, Moon said.

The erosion in inter-Korean relations have been a major setback to Moon, who met Kim three times in 2018 while expressing ambitions to reboot inter-Korean economic engagement held back by U.S.-led sanctions against the North.

During Trump's first summit with Kim in June 2018, they pledged to improve bilateral relations and issued vague aspirational vows for a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula without describing when and how it would occur.

But the negotiations faltered after their second meeting in February 2019 when the Americans rejected the North Korean demands for major sanctions relief in exchange for the dismantling of an aging nuclear reactor, which would have amounted to a partial surrender of its nuclear capabilities.

Moon said that Trump and Kim's agreement in their first meeting was still relevant and the Biden administration should take lessons from the failures of their second meeting.

kremlin-critic-navalny-detained-after-returning-to-russia-5-months-after-being-poisoned

Mon, 18 Jan 2021 10:28:30 GMT

Alexei Navalny, the vociferous critic of the Kremlin and Vladimir Putin, was detained at a Moscow airport on Sunday minutes after he returned home for the first time, five months after he was poisoned. The lawyer and activist was detained at passport control at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport within an hour after he flew in from Berlin. Navalny’s detention was condemned by the European Union.

“The detainment of Alexei Navalny upon arrival in Moscow is unacceptable. I call on Russian authorities to immediately release him,” European Council president Charles Michel wrote on Twitter.

European Parliament President David Sassoli tweeted, Navalny's arrest "is an offence to the international community, to Europe that helped save his life. We ask the Russian authorities for his immediate release. We are ready to invite him to the European Parliament."

Navalny was originally supposed to land in Moscow’s Vnukovo airport. But, minutes before the plane landed, authorities of Pobeda airlines— the aircraft carrying Navalny were told that Vnukovo was closed for arriving aircraft and the aeroplane was diverted to Sheremetyevo airport. Navalny was detained by four uniformed policemen wearing black masks and led him away after a hug and a kiss from his wife Yulia. He has been detained for “multiple violations” of a 2014 suspended sentence for fraud, and that “he will be held in custody” until a court ruling, Russia’s FSIN (Federal Penitentiary Service) prison service said.

Several of Navalny’s top allies, who were waiting for him at Vnukovo were detained, too.

Navalny, who said he wasn’t afraid to have returned to Russia, told CNN, “All the criminal cases against me are fabricated."

His wife Yulia Navalnaya, said that Navalny’s arrest showed that the authorities were scared of her husband; and detaining a large number of people, “just over a man who is returning to his motherland."

Navalny’s lawyer Olga Mikhailova told AFP, “Alexei was detained without the reason being explained. Everything that is happening now is against the law”.

Navalny is known to publish popular videos of YouTube investigations into the wealth of Russia's political elites. The activist’s team, which has been a target of police raids, jail stints and lawsuits has been given negative press by the state-controlled TV. Navalny has never held an elected office.

arnab-whatsapp-chats-imran-plays-up-references-to-pulwama-balakot

Mon, 18 Jan 2021 09:09:17 GMT

The purported WhatsApp messages between Republic TV editor in-chief Arnab Goswami and a former CEO of the Broadcast Audience Research Council is continuing to make headlines.

The transcripts of the messages that were 'leaked' last week attracted much social media attention for Arnab flaunting his proximity to the Narendra Modi government.

Now, the Arnab Goswami WhatsApp transcripts are being played up in Pakistan for their references to the Pulwama suicide bomb attack, which left over 40 CRPF jawans dead in February 2019, and the Balakot air strike that India carried out in retaliation the same month.

In the transcripts, Arnab purportedly referred to the Pulwama attack on February 14, 2019, as "This attack we have won like crazy". Three days before the Balakot air strike on February 26, 2019, Goswami purportedly wrote India's response would be “Bigger than a normal air strike. And on the same time something major on Kashmir. On Pakistan the government is confident of striking in a way that people will be elated...”

Since 2019, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, his ministers and even the Pakistan Army have frequently alleged the Narendra Modi government could carry out 'false flag' operations to lay grounds for pursuing punitive action against Islamabad. In military terms, a false flag operation is typically a covert action carried out by a country, which then pins blame on another nation or actor.

Imran Khan tweeted on Monday the transcripts vindicated his government's claims about the Modi government's intentions.

Imran tweeted, "In 2019, I spoke at UNGA on how India’s fascist Modi govt used the Balakot crisis for domestic electoral gains. Latest revelations from communication of an Indian journalist, known for his warmongering, reveal the unholy nexus between the Modi govt & Indian media that led to a dangerous military adventurism to win an election in utter disregard for the consequences of destabilising the entire region. Pakistan averted a larger crisis by a responsible, measured response to Balakot. Yet, Modi govt continues to turn India into a rogue state."

Imran added "Indian sponsorship of terrorism in Pakistan, its abuses in IIOJK [Pakistan's name for Jammu and Kashmir] & a 15-year Indian global disinformation campaign against us all stand exposed. Now India's own media has revealed the dirty nexus that is pushing our nuclearised region to the brink of a conflict it cannot afford. I want to reiterate that my govt will continue to expose India's belligerent designs towards Pakistan & Modi govt's fascism. Int community must stop India from its reckless, militarist agenda before the Modi govt's brinkmanship pushes our region into a conflict it cannot control."

Foreign Office response

The Pakistan Foreign Office issued a statement on the Arnab Goswami Whatsapp transcripts.

"The recent transcripts revelations in India further vindicate our consistent position that RSS-BJP Govt. stages 'false flag' operations; maligns Pakistan with terrorism-related allegations; stokes hyper-nationalism in its bid to win elections," The Pakistan Foreign Office tweeted.

"The transcripts also illustrate the unholy nexus b/w the ‘Hindutva’ regime & its cronies in the Indian media. Such actions by the reckless regime driven by considerations of domestic politics are gravely imperiling regional peace and security. We hope that the international community would take full cognizance of the situation and hold India accountable for its actions vitiating the regional environment and endangering peace and security in South Asia," the Foreign Office added.

Senator Shibli Faraz, the minister for information and broadcasting in Imran Khan's government, also spoke about the Arnab Goswami transcript.

Faraz tweeted, "One after another India’s lies and deceptions are being unveiled to the world. From their support to terrorism in Pakistan, their disinformation campaign across the world, to their false flags. It vindicates Pakistan’s stance that Pulwama attack and Balakot crisis were false flag ops planned to whip anti-Pakistan sentiment for Modi’s election victory. The transcripts of an Indian anchor lay bare the unholy nexus between BJP’s Hindutva majoritarian gov, Indian intelligence and its war mongering media."

protests-around-heavily-fortified-statehouses-us

Mon, 18 Jan 2021 07:12:13 GMT

Small groups of right-wing protesters—some of them carrying rifles—gathered outside heavily fortified statehouses around the country Sunday, outnumbered by National Guard troops and police brought in to prevent a repeat of the violence that erupted at the US Capitol. As darkness fell, there were no reports of any clashes.

Security was stepped up in recent days after the FBI warned of the potential for armed protests in Washington and at all 50 state capitol buildings ahead of President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration on Wednesday.

Crowds of only a dozen or two demonstrated at some boarded-up, cordoned-off statehouses, while the streets in many other capital cities remained empty. Some protesters said they were there to back President Donald Trump. Others said they had instead come to voice their support for gun rights or decry government overreach.

"I don't trust the results of the election," said Michigan protester Martin Szelag, a 67-year-old semi-retired window salesman from Dearborn Heights. He wore a sign around his neck that read, in part, We will support Joe Biden as our President if you can convince us he won legally. Show us the proof! Then the healing can begin.

As the day wore on with no bloodshed around the US, a sense of relief spread among officials, though they were not ready to let their guard down.

The heavy law enforcement presence may have kept turnout down. In the past few days, some extremists had warned others against falling into what they called a law enforcement trap.

Washington State Patrol spokesman Chris Loftis said he hoped the apparently peaceful day reflected some soul-searching among Americans.

I would love to say that its because weve all taken a sober look in the mirror and have decided that we are a more unified people than certain moments in time would indicate, he said.

The security measures were intended to safeguard seats of government from the type of violence that broke out at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, when far-right Trump supporters galvanised by his false claims that the election had been stolen from him overran the police and bashed their way into the building while Congress was certifying the Electoral College vote.

The attack left a Capitol police officer and four others dead. More than 125 people have been arrested over the insurrection.

Dozens of courts, election officials and Trumps own attorney general have all said there was no evidence of widespread fraud in the presidential race.

On Sunday, some statehouses were surrounded by new security fences, their windows were boarded up, and extra officers were on patrol. Legislatures generally were not in session over the weekend.

Tall fences also surrounded the U.S. Capitol. The National Mall was closed to the public, and the mayor of Washington asked people not to visit. Some 25,000 National Guard troops from around the country are expected to arrive in the city in the coming days. US defense officials told The Associated Press those troops would be vetted by the FBI to ward off any threat of an insider attack on the inauguration.

The roughly 20 protesters who showed up at Michigan's Capitol, including some who were armed, were significantly outnumbered by law enforcement officers and members of the media. Tensions have been running high in the state since authorities foiled a plot to kidnap Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer last year.

At the Ohio Statehouse, about two dozen people, including several carrying long guns, protested outside under the watchful eyes of state troopers before dispersing as it began to snow.

Kathy Sherman, who was wearing a visor with Trump printed on it, said she supports the president but distanced herself from the mob that breached the US Capitol.

"Im here to support the right to voice a political view or opinion without fear of censorship, harassment or the threat of losing my job or being physically assaulted, she said.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, said he was pleased with the outcome but stressed that authorities "continue to have concerns for potential violence in the coming days, which is why I intend to maintain security levels at the Statehouse as we approach the presidential inauguration.

Utah's new governor, Republican Spencer Cox, shared photos on his Twitter account showing him with what appeared to be hundreds of National Guard troops and law enforcement officers standing behind him, all wearing masks. Cox called the quiet protests a best-case scenario and said many agitating groups" had cancelled their plans for the day.

At Oregon's Capitol, fewer than a dozen men wearing military-style outfits, black ski masks and helmets stood nearby with semiautomatic weapons slung across their bodies. Some had upside-down American flags and signs reading such things as Disarm the government.

At the Texas Capitol, Ben Hawk walked with about a dozen demonstrators up to the locked gates carrying a bullhorn and an AR-15 rifle hanging at the side of his camouflage pants. He condemned the insurrection at the US Capitol and said he did not support Trump.

All we came down here to do today was to discuss, gather, network and hang out. And it got blown and twisted completely out of proportion, Hawk said.

At Nevada's Capitol, where demonstrators supporting Trump have flocked most weekends in recent months, all was quiet except for a lone protester with a sign.

pakistan-approves-emergency-use-of-oxford-astrazeneca-covid-19-vaccine

Sun, 17 Jan 2021 17:33:47 GMT

Pakistan has approved the emergency use of Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine and the government hopes to make the drug available by the first quarter of the year, as the country's coronavirus tally surged to 519,291.

Special assistant to Prime Minister Imran Khan on Health Dr Faisal Sultan confirmed on Saturday that the Drug Regulatory Authority Pakistan (DRAP) has granted approval for emergency use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine across the country, according to a report in the Geo TV.

Minister for Planning Asad Umar, who is also the chief of National Command and Operations Centre (NCOC), the country's coronavirus control body, said the vaccine will be rolled out by March, the report said.

In the first phase, the vaccine will be given to health workers and those aged 65 years and above, Umar said.

The vaccine is designed by scientists at the University of Oxford and produced by AstraZeneca, a British-Swedish multinational pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical company.

Pakistan reported 43 deaths in the last 24 hours, taking the total number of fatalities due to the disease to 10,951, according to the ministry of National Health Services.

The total number of COVID-19 cases in the country reached 519,291 after 2,521 new infections were detected in the past 24 hours.

Dr Sultan said on Friday that Pakistan was in touch with China and other companies to purchase the COVID-19 vaccine.

He said trials of the vaccine produced by the Chinese firm, Cansino, were near completion and if its tests were found to be successful, the government would register the medicine with the DRAP for procurement.

He said international coalition Covax had announced that it would provide Pakistan 50 million free doses of COVID-19 vaccine.

As 100pc population cannot be vaccinated in any country, we need to target 70pc of the vaccineable population, which is 70 million, he said.

South-african-coronavirus-variant-found-in-uk-tier-4-lockdown-expanded

Wed, 23 Dec 2020 21:13:08 GMT

As the UK finds itself increasingly isolated from the world following an outbreak of a more-transmissible variant of the novel coronavirus, another strain—also suspected to be more transmissible—has been identified in the country, this one having earlier been seen in South Africa.

Two cases of this more transmissible variant have been detected, both linked to travel to South Africa, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said on Wednesday. Calling the new strain “highly concerning” Hancock said it appears to have mutated further than the new variant that has been discovered in the UK.

While travel restrictions have been imposed on South Africa, all those who have travelled to the country in the past fortnight and anyone in contact with those people are being told to quarantine immediately.

South African authorities believe the new variant features a similar mutation to the one in the UK and appears to be transmitting more readily among young people.

Hancock said, "We are incredibly grateful to the South African government for the rigour of their science and the openness and the transparency with which they have rightly acted as we did when we discovered a new variant here."

As a result, even more parts of the UK are set to be put under the strictest level of lockdown after ministers held talks earlier on Wednesday following the UK registering 36,804 positive coronavirus cases, the largest daily number of infections recorded at any time during the pandemic.

Millions more in the east and south-east England will be placed into the Tier 4 highest alert level from December 26, celebrated as Boxing Day the day after Christmas, as the new UK variant of coronavirus continues to show high transmissibility.

Sussex, Oxfordshire, Suffolk, Norfolk and Cambridgeshire now included under the stricter lockdown zone. As per the UK government, under Tier-4 restrictions, “You cannot meet other people indoors, including over the Christmas and New Year period, unless you live with them, or they are part of your support bubble. Outdoors, you can only meet one person from another household. These rules will not be relaxed for Christmas for Tier 4 – you cannot form a Christmas bubble in Tier 4.”

While the new variant transmits more easily than the previous one, there is no evidence that it is more likely to cause severe disease or mortality, says Public Health UK.

In promising news, PHE has confirmed that lateral flow devices (LFDs) used in mass testing can detect the new COVID-19 variant. The ability to test and isolate new strains or new viruses can prove critical in containing them at an early stage, as many countries found out during the onset of the coronavirus, when testing kits were often unavailable in sufficient supply.

The new mutation and its trajectory in the UK is meanwhile being analysed by scientific experts at Porton Down, the country's specialist laboratory in south west England.

The minister also revealed that the Oxford University vaccine being produced by AstraZeneca has submitted its full data package for regulatory approval, even as the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine rollout continues.

"I know how hard 2020 has been for everybody But we mustn't give up now we know that we can control this virus we know we can get through this together I know from the bottom of my heart, that there are brighter skies ahead," he said.

The briefing comes as the new variant identified in the UK last week, named VUI-202012/01 and with much higher transmissibility, led to several countries including India cutting off transport links with the UK in an effort to try and contain its spread outside Britain.

The backlog of lorries built up on the UK border with France have now begun to gradually clear up after an agreement was reached.

France agreed to lift its ban on UK arrivals on the condition of a negative coronavirus test. However, there have been reports of scuffles on the UK-France border as truckers face days ahead before the nearly 1,500 lorries can start moving towards their destinations.

With inputs from PTI

royal-revenge-porn-nudes-of-thai-kings-mistress-leaked

Wed, 23 Dec 2020 20:38:41 GMT

Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn often makes headlines for controversial reasons. In March, it was because he had gone into “isolation” in a German luxury hotel in the Alps with a harem of 20 women. Now, amid mass unrest in Thailand over the status of the monarchy, nude photos of the king’s alleged mistress have leaked in what is suspected to be an act of royal revenge porn.

Over 1,400 photos of Sineenat Wongvajirapakdi taken from her phone have been leaked in a seeming act of “revenge porn”, a year after she was accused of disloyalty and stripped of her title of “Royal Noble Consort”. Wongvajirapakdi was accused of conducting a rivalry with Queen Suthida. Her titles were later restored as the government’s Royal Gazette stated that she was “untainted”.

King Vajiralongkorn was crowned monarch in 2019 after taking the throne in 2016 following the death of his father, who reigned for 70 years. He married the deputy head of his personal bodyguard, Suthida Tiidjai, and two months later, conferred the total of Royal Noble Consort to Wongvajirapakdi.

She spent ten months in a correctional facility before being released from detention in September.

Wongvajirapakdi was reportedly airlifted out of the facility to meet with Vajiralongkorn in Germany, where he spends much of his time, prior to being pardoned. The leak of over 1,400 selfies, many sexually explicit, and taken from her phone, coincides with her return to the palace. The act is suspected to have been performed on behalf of the Queen’s loyalists, who opposes Wongvajirapakdi’s return to the royal court.

The photos were sent to a journalist known to be critical of the monarchy, Andrew MacGregor Marshall. In a Facebook post, Marshall wrote of the images: 'Most of the images are photographs she took of herself, and dozens of them are very explicit."

"It seems probable that she had taken these explicit photographs of herself to send to Vajiralongkorn... and that the images of Koi (Ms Sineenat's nickname) were leaked in an effort to sabotage her return as Vajiralongkorn's consort."

Pro-democracy protests have been raging for five months in Thailand as activists call to reform the monarchy and reduce the powers of King Vajiralongkorn.

hong-kong-media-tycoon-jimmy-lai-granted-bail

Wed, 23 Dec 2020 15:37:43 GMT

The media tycoon and pro-democracy activist, 73-year-old Jimmy Lai, who spent 20 days in police custody, has been granted bail by Hong Kong’s high court. Lai was detained on charges of fraud and foreign collusion.

Lai, the founder of Next Digital, which Apple Daily newspaper was released into house arrest on a HK$10 million bond on Wednesday afternoon. Lai has been asked to surrender all travel documents and has been banned from talking to the press, making public statements, using social media or meeting foreign officials.

Lai and two other Next Digital Media executives have been accused of breaching land-lease terms by misusing Next Digital’s office space in Tseung Kwan O for other purposes. The space was said to have been subleased to a secretarial firm, Dico Consultants Limited, from June 27, 2016, to May 22, 2020, violating a 1999 land lease, enabling Next Digital to earn rent. The charges of foreign collusion on Lai were reportedly based on his tweets and interviews with foreign media.

Lai’s release was ordered by a judge in the high court, who was appointed to oversee national security cases.

Under the national security law imposed by Beijing, officials can book those involved in the Hong Kong protests on charges of secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces to intervene in Hong Kong’s internal affairs.

Some of the alleged crimes cited by police occurred prior to the non-retroactive law coming into effect, including a tweet to Donald Trump calling on him to sanction Chinese officials.

Both cases are scheduled to return to court in early April. More than 30 people have been arrested under the national security law since it was imposed in June, mostly for political crimes.

uae-islamic-body-oks-vaccines-even-with-pork

Wed, 23 Dec 2020 14:01:32 GMT

The United Arab Emirates' highest Islamic authority, the UAE Fatwa Council, has ruled that coronavirus vaccines are permissible for Muslims even if they contain pork gelatin.

The ruling follows growing alarm that the use of pork gelatin, a common vaccine ingredient, may hamper vaccination among Muslims who consider the consumption of pork products "haram", or forbidden, under Islamic law.

If there are no alternatives, Council Chairman Sheikh Abdallah bin Bayyah said that the coronavirus vaccines would not be subject to Islam's restrictions on pork because of the higher need to "protect the human body".

The council added that in this case, the pork gelatin is considered medicine, not food, with multiple vaccines already shown to be effective against a highly contagious virus that "poses a risk to the entire society".

three-police-officers-shot-dead-in-france

Wed, 23 Dec 2020 13:32:09 GMT

Three policemen have been shot dead, and a fourth wounded, in central France. The incident took place near the village of Puy-de-Dome, when the policemen were responding to a domestic violence incident, the interior ministry said. Search is underway for the person who shot the policemen.

According to the ministry, the policemen were aged 21, 37 and 45.

The officers were attempting to rescue a woman from a domestic violence incident when they were shot by a 48-year-old man involved in the tussle.

The suspect set fire to his house after he shot one officer. He later fired again as reinforcements arrived, killing the other two. The policemen have ben identified as Arno Mavel, Remi Dupuis and Cyrille Morel.

The incident began with a family dispute, when policemen were sent to the scene to evacuate the residents living in the area. The woman, who had taken refuge on the roof of the house, was rescued. Firefighters reached the scene and brought the blaze under control.

This is a developing story.

trump-pardons-15-including-2-who-pleaded-guilty-in-mueller-probe

Wed, 23 Dec 2020 12:07:35 GMT

US President Donald Trump, who has less than a month remaining in office, on Tuesday announced 15 pardons, including two men who pleaded guilty in Robert Mueller’s investigation. Pardons were also extended to Republican allies who once served in Congress and military contractors involved in the deadly shooting of Iraqi civilians.

Included among the people who received a pardon from the president is Alex van der Zwaan, the Dutch lawyer who was sentenced to 30 days in jail after pleading guilty of lying to the Mueller investigators. Steve Stockman—a former Republican congressman who was convicted of money laundering, conspiracy and other charges related to a scheme defrauding charitable donors in 2018—had his sentence commuted by Trump. Last month, the president, who had been weighing issuing clemency grants, pardoned Michael Flynn, his former national security adviser who was also charged in connection with Mueller's investigation.

Congressmen Duncan Hunter of California and former Trump campaign foreign policy advisor George Papadopoulos are included among those who received the presidential pardons. Hunter, who was due to begin serving an 11-month sentence next month, had in 2019 pleaded guilty of misusing campaign funds and stealing over $250,000 over several years along with his wife. A pardon was also granted to former New York representative Republican Chris Collins. Collins, last year, pleaded guilty to sharing classified information about a pharmaceutical company’s failed drug trial.

Two former US Border Patrol agents—Ignacio Ramos and Jose Compean—who were convicted of shooting an unarmed illegal alien, who was trafficking 700 pounds of marijuana in 2005, were also granted pardons. In 2009, then president George W. Bush had commuted their prison sentences.

donald-trump-threatens-not-to-sign-covid19-relief-bill

Wed, 23 Dec 2020 11:00:58 GMT

Donald Trump, who has less than a month left in office has threatened not to sign the COVID-19 relief bill put together by the Congress. The Congress, thought the package hoped to provide help for people whose lives have been upended by the pandemic. Trump said he wants the congress to increase the amount in to the stimulus checks to $2000 for individuals and $4000 for couples instead of the current amount of $600, which is “ridiculously low”.

He also complained about money in the legislation for foreign countries, the Smithsonian Institution and fish breeding, among other spending. “I’m also asking Congress to immediately get rid of the wasteful and unnecessary items from this legislation, and to send me a suitable bill, or else the next administration will have to deliver a COVID relief package,” Trump told Reuters.

Trump made his rejection of the stimulus bill known via a video on Twitter. Trump hadn’t been involved in the negotiations for the stimulus bill. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, on Wednesday tweeted, “Republicans repeatedly refused to say what amount the President wanted for direct checks. At last, the President has agreed to $2,000 — Democrats are ready to bring this to the Floor this week by unanimous consent. Let’s do it!”

israel-heads-to-new-elections-as-government-collapses

Wed, 23 Dec 2020 09:18:17 GMT

Israel's divided government collapsed early Wednesday, triggering the country's fourth election in under two years and bringing an unprecedented threat to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's lengthy grip on power.

Netanyahu, who is used to labeling his opponents as weak leftists, finds himself confronted by a trio of disgruntled former aides who share his hard-line ideology, led by a popular lawmaker who recently broke away from the prime minister's Likud party.

Whether Netanyahu can fend off these challengers or not, the country is almost certain to be led by a right-wing politician opposed to concessions to the Palestinians, complicating hopes of the incoming Biden administration to restart peace talks.

The prospects of Israel's center-left bloc appear worse than in previous contests because its leader, Defense Minister Benny Gantz, entered into the ill-fated alliance with Netanyahu. Gantz has lost the support of much of his disappointed base, and the bloc has been left leaderless.

Netanyahu and Gantz formed their coalition last May after battling to a stalemate in three consecutive elections. They said they were putting aside their personal rivalry to form an "emergency" government focused on guiding the country through the health and economic crises caused by the pandemic.

Under the deal, Gantz assumed the new role of "alternate prime minister" and was assured he would trade places with Netanyahu next November in a rotation agreement halfway through their term. The immediate cause of the collapse was their failure to pass a budget by the midnight Tuesday deadline. That caused the parliament to automatically dissolve and set new elections for late March.

But the deeper cause was their troubled partnership, which was plagued by mutual hostility and mistrust from the outset. For seven months, Gantz has suffered a number of humiliations and been kept out of the loop on key decisions, such as a series of US-brokered diplomatic agreements with Arab countries.

Netanyahu accuses Gantz's Blue and White party of acting as an "opposition within the government." At the heart of this dysfunctional relationship is Netanyahu's corruption trial. Gantz has accused Netanyahu of undermining their power-sharing deal in hopes of remaining in office throughout his trial, which is to kick into high gear in February when witnesses begin to take the stand.

He and other critics believe Netanyahu ultimately hopes to form a new government capable of appointing loyalists to sensitive positions who could grant him immunity or dismiss the charges against him.

"A criminal defendant with three indictments is dragging the country to a fourth round of elections," Blue and White said Tuesday night. "If there wasn't a trial, there would be a budget and there wouldn't be elections."

Netanyahu is charged with fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes in a series of scandals in which he is accused of offering favors to powerful media figures in exchange for positive news coverage about him and his family. His legal troubles, and questions about his suitability to govern, have been the central issue in the string of recent elections.

"The ongoing political crisis will continue as long as Mr Netanyahu remains prime minister and no government can be formed without him," said Yohanan Plesner, a former lawmaker who is president of the Israel Democracy Institute.

"I think it is quite safe to assume that this won't end until either Mr Netanyahu is replaced or if he finds a way, through legislation or political maneuvering, to either put his trial on hold or suspend it altogether," he said.

In the previous three elections, Netanyahu was unable to put together a majority coalition with his traditional religious and nationalist allies. Yet he controlled enough seats to prevent his opponents from cobbling together an alternate coalition.

According to recent opinion polls, that equation may be changing, with a number of rivals poised to control a parliamentary majority without him.

Those rivals are led by Gideon Saar, a stalwart in Netanyahu's Likud who announced this month that he was breaking away and forming a new party. Saar, who once served as Netanyahu's Cabinet secretary, has accused the prime minister of turning the Likud into a "personality cult" focused on ensuring its leader's political survival.

If elections were held today, Saar's party would finish second behind the Likud, appearing to give him a veto over a Netanyahu-led government, according to polls. Saar has vowed he will not serve under Netanyahu.

Naftali Bennett, another former aide who had a falling out with Netanyahu, leads a religious right-wing party that also has surged in the polls. And Avigdor Lieberman, Netanyahu's former chief of staff and a longtime Cabinet minister who now leads his own party, also says the prime minister is unfit to lead.

All of these rivalries are more personal than ideological, meaning that Israel's next government led by Netanyahu or not almost certainly will have a right-wing ideology that opposes Palestinian independence and supports continued Israeli settlement construction in the occupied West Bank.

The recent polls indicate that Gantz, who appealed to left-wing voters in previous elections, may not receive enough votes to even enter the next Knesset.

uk-regulator-fines-republic-bharat-for-programme-airing-hate-speech-against-pakistanis

Tue, 22 Dec 2020 21:28:34 GMT

The United Kingdom’s regulatory authority for telecom and broadcasting, the Office of Communications (OFCOM), has announced a £20,000 (Rs 19.73 lakh) fine on Worldview Media Network Limited’s Republic Bharat channel for breaching guidelines on hate speech, offensive language, and abusive or derogatory treatment of individuals, groups, religions or communities.

OFCOM’s decision concerns a segment aired on September 6, the show Poochta Hai Bharat presented by Republic Editor in Chief Arnab Goswami. The debate, ostensibly about India’s Chandrayaan-2 moon mission, focussed on Indo-Pakistani relations and featured guests from India and Pakistan. OFCOM said this programme contained “uncontextualised hate speech and that this content was potentially highly offensive”.

“In the programme, the presenter and some of his guests conveyed the view that all Pakistani people are terrorists, including that: ‘their scientists, doctors, their leaders, politicians all are terrorists. Even their sports people’; ‘every child is a terrorist over there. Every child is aterrorist. You are dealing with a terrorist entity’. One guest also described Pakistani scientists as ‘thieves’, while another described Pakistani people as ‘beggars’. In the context of these criticisms, the presenter, addressing Pakistan and/or Pakistani people, said: ‘We make scientists, you make terrorists’,” OFCOM said in its findings.

“We considered these statements to be expressions of hatred based on intolerance of Pakistani people based on their nationality alone, and that the broadcast of these statements spread, incited, promoted and justified such intolerance towards Pakistani people among viewers,” it added.

OFCOM noted a particular incident where Pakistani people were outright threatened with violence: “A third guest, General Sinha said, ‘Oh you useless people. Beggars. Oh beggars, oh beggars. We will douse you with 1.25kg, .75kg-, with two inches. PoK, PoK, we are coming to the PoK. We are coming to the Gilgit, Baltistan, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa…We are going to come, be ready. People in your country are shivering with fear that the Indian army may come. We will barge inside your home in Baluchistan, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, in Karachi, in your area, in Multan, in Rawalpindi and kill you. From Lahore, from Karachi to Gilgit-Balistan when we will have control.’”

OFCOM also noted the use of the ‘Paki’ slur, calling it “a racist term that is highly offensive and unacceptable to a UK audience.” OFCOM noted that the licensee “argued that the use of the term ‘Paki’ was not intended to be offensive, nor would be interpreted as such particularly when used in the sub-continent.” OFCOM’s view was that “these negative descriptions constituted uncontextualised abuse and derogatory treatment of Pakistani people on the ground of their nationality.”

Besides the fine, the channel was directed to broadcast OFCOM’s findings and not to repeat its offences.

Worldview Media, which owns the rights to broadcast Republic Bharat in the UK, said that it was “deeply concerned” that the programme may have been viewed as containing expressions of hatred based on intolerance of Pakistani people. It said that it had considered the topic of Kashmir and its history would be a topic within audience expectations especially in view of rising tensions between India and Pakistan.

Accordingly, the channel's representation said that it had “failed in differentiating what content/speech may constitute hate speech” in accordance with the Code. It emphasised that it broadcast a public apology 28013 times “to substantiate how apologetic we are”. It said that the “particularly heavy rotation of apologies… demonstrates our efforts to convey a deep apology” and that it regretted that the apology was not sufficiently specific and detailed to convey Ofcom’s concerns." It said it accepted Ofcom’s preliminary view to direct it to broadcast a statement of Ofcom’s findings.

nepal-prachanda-led-communist-party-faction-removes-pm-oli-from-chairman-post

Tue, 22 Dec 2020 18:48:51 GMT

The ruling Nepal Communist Party's Central Committee faction led by Executive Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' on Tuesday removed Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli from the post of chairman and decided to take disciplinary action against him, virtually splitting the party more than two years after its formation.

The Central Committee unanimously nominated senior leader Madhav Kumar Nepal as the party's second chairman in place of Oli. Prachanda is the first chairman of the party.

"Now Dahal and Nepal will chair the meetings in turn as stated in the party statue," said Rekha Sharma, a central committee member.

"Oli has been expelled as the party chair for going against the party," Sharma was quoted as saying by the Kathmandu Post.

Former prime minister Jhalanath Khanal and former agriculture minister Ghanashyam Bhushal were among the senior leaders who attended the Central Committee meeting of Prachanda-led faction.

Nearly two-thirds of the Central Committee members were present in the meeting. Out of 446 central committee members, 313 were present at the meeting organized by Prachanda-led faction.

Prachanda would be elected as the parliamentary party leader on Wednesday, the paper said, citing party leaders.

The Prachanda-led faction, having a majority in all the party committees, has decided to take disciplinary action against Oli on Sunday, the paper said.

The next meeting of the Central Committee has been scheduled for Thursday, said party spokesperson Narayankaji Shrestha.

The Prachanda-led faction has also decided to file a separate petition in the Supreme Court seeking reinstatement of the dissolved House of Representatives. Eleven writ petitions have already been filed in the apex court on Sunday and Monday demanding for reinstatement.

The party will also launch nationwide protest rallies in collaboration with other major political parties, said Sunil Manandhar, central member of the party.

Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Oli, one of the two chairmen of the ruling party, organised a separate meeting of the Central Committee leaders close to him at Baluwatar, the prime minister's official residence.

Oli announced a new 1,199-member committee to organise the party's general convention on November 18-23 in Kathmandu next year. Earlier the party's convention was scheduled from April 7 to 12, 2021.

Foreign Minister Pradeep Gyawali, a Standing Committee member, was appointed as the new spokesperson of the party by the Oli-led faction.

Nepal on Sunday plunged into a political crisis after Oli got the President to dissolve Parliament, a controversial move amidst a prolonged tussle for power between him and former premier Prachanda' within the ruling dispensation.

The ruling party has now been virtually divided more than two years after it was formed following the merger of CPN-UML led by Oli and CPN-Maoist Centre led by Prachanda.

However, a formal split of the party is yet to be announced.

Both factions of the party have intensified efforts to retain official party recognition along with the election symbol. The two factions are now busy making strategies to wrest control of the party.

Oli-led faction on Tuesday submitted an application to the Election Commission claiming that his party should get official recognition. Oli had added 556 new Central Committee members while submitting the application to the Election Commission.

On Monday, the Prachanda-led faction informed the Election Commission of the party's Standing Committee's decision to take action against chairperson Oli for breaching party discipline.

Oli has defended his move to abruptly dissolve Parliament, saying he was forced to seek a fresh mandate through elections as the rift within the ruling Nepal Communist Party severely affected his government's functioning.