WASHINGTON, 17 November 2021, (TON): The Pentagon said “US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin III has ordered the military’s top commander for the Middle East to brief him on details of a 2019 airstrike that killed dozens of women and children in Syria.”

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said “Austin requested the briefing after allegations by the New York Times that top officers and civilian officials sought to conceal the casualties of the strike.”

The 2019 strike, exposed by the NYT over the weekend, took place in the town of Baghuz, in Daesh’s last holdout before the end of its so-called caliphate.

A drone controller witnessed a jet drop a bomb on what the operator estimated to be 50 women and children, but the military has now admitted that 80 people were killed, dozens of them women and children.

“Who dropped that?” a confused analyst typed on a secure chat system being used by those monitoring the drone, two people who reviewed the chat log recalled. The NYT reported that another responded: “We just dropped on 50 women and children.”

BRUSSELS, 17 November 2021, (TON): The Cooperation Council between the European Union and Uzbekistan held its sixteenth meeting, 16 November in Brussels.

The meeting was chaired by Mr Augusto Santos Silva, Portugal’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, on behalf of Mr Josep Borrell, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.

The delegation of Uzbekistan was led by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Mr Abdulaziz Kamilov.

The Cooperation Council took stock of developments in relations between the EU and the Republic of Uzbekistan over the past two years, noting with satisfaction the intensity of contacts at all levels.

The two sides agreed on the importance of pursuing a green, sustainable economic recovery from the pandemic. The Cooperation Council discussed the Republic of Uzbekistan’s ambitious reform programme, and issues relating to the rule of law, trade, investment and energy relations, and international issues.

The Cooperation Council also discussed questions of good governance and the role of civil society, as well as measures to improve the business climate in Uzbekistan.

The EU welcomed Uzbekistan’s GSP+ membership (EU General System of Preferences that unilaterally grants duty-free access for most goods) since April 2021, and discussed progress in Uzbekistan’s application to join the WTO. Human rights questions were also discussed.

WASHINGTON, 17 November 2021, (TON): US officials said “an anti-satellite missile test Russia conducted generated a debris field in low-Earth orbit that endangered the International Space Station and will pose a hazard to space activities for years.”

NASA said “the seven-member space station crew - four US astronauts, a German astronaut and two Russian cosmonauts - were directed to take shelter in their docked spaceship capsules for two hours after the test as a precaution to allow for a quick getaway had it been necessary.”

The agency said “the research lab, orbiting about 250 miles (402 km) above Earth, continued to pass through or near the debris cluster every 90 minutes, but NASA specialists determined it was safe for the crew to return to the station's interior after the third pass.”

According to NASA “the crew was also ordered to seal off hatches to several modules of the International Space Station (ISS) for the time being.”

NASA chief Bill Nelson said in the statement that NASA will continue monitoring the debris in the coming days and beyond to ensure the safety of our crew in orbit.

Experts say the testing of weapons that shatter satellites in orbit pose a space hazard by creating clouds of fragments that can collide with other objects, setting off a chain reaction of projectiles through Earth orbit.

TEL AVIV, 17 November 2021, (TON): His office said “Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz will visit Rabat later this month to sign security cooperation agreements with his Moroccan counterpart.”

It will be the first trip to the North African country by an Israeli defense minister and the first time such bilateral agreements are signed with an Arab state.

In Israel, the assessment is that Rabat is interested in signing the security deals due to its tensions with Algeria, as the agreements will allow Morocco to procure various military items from Israel and hold joint training exercises out in the open.

Algeria formally broke off diplomatic relations with neighboring Morocco in August, citing a series of alleged hostile acts including Rabat’s recent rapprochement with Jerusalem.

Morocco was one of four Arab countries that agreed to normalize ties with Israel last year under the so-called Abraham Accords brokered by former US President Donald Trump’s administration, along with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Sudan.

WASHINGTON, 17 November 2021, (TON): A US official said as progress on the sale slows “the United States intends to move forward with the sale of 50 F-35 stealth fighters jets to the United Arab Emirates but there must be a clear understanding of Emirati obligations.”

Mira Resnick a deputy US assistant secretary of state said "we continue consulting with Emirati officials to ensure we have unmistakeable, clear mutually understanding with respect to Emirati obligations and actions before, during and after delivery.”

The sale of 50 F-35 warplanes to the UAE has slowed amid concerns in Washington over Abu Dhabi's relationship with China, including use of Huawei 5G technology in the country.

The head of the US-UAE Business Council, Danny Sebright, told media “Washington continues to press Abu Dhabi on specific commitments regarding how and where the system will be operated once delivered, some of which might be viewed by the UAE as an infringement on its sovereignty.”

KABUL, 17 November 2021, (TON): He told reporters “Hassan Kazemi Qomi, Iran’s special envoy for Afghanistan, told in his trip to Kabul that stability in the region depends on Afghanistan’s stability. “Afghanistan must achieve stability to ensure the stability of the region.”

According to him, a number of countries in the world were trying to achieve their terrorist goals through Afghanistan, but they did not succeed. He expressed support for his country’s efforts to achieve a stable Afghanistan.

The purpose of Iran’s Special Representative for Afghanistan to Kabul is to expand trade and economic cooperation and recent developments in Afghanistan, as well as to discuss Afghanistan’s engagement with the region.

KABUL, 17 November 2021, (TON): The World Food Program (WFP) said “its assessments show that almost 24 million people are facing acute hunger–including 8.7 million in a current state of emergency.

The WFP in its report on November 8 said that the combination of drought and economic meltdown caused the Afghan families to suffer from hunger ahead of the cold weather.

Officials of the WFP in Afghanistan said the office is attempting to provide humanitarian aid to 24 million Afghans across the country.

Wahidullah Amani, spokesperson for WFP in Afghanistan said “the WFP started efforts to provide food and other aid for 24 million people that will run into 2022. As our assessment shows, the situation is critical in Afghanistan.”

In the meantime, Afghan families who have been displaced for various reasons including war, have complained about the lack of options at the displaced persons camps in Kabul.

Gul Uzar, a mother of six children living in a tent, said “she is not able to provide food for her children. My children are searching for food door-to-door, they find nothing most days. We are living in desperation; it is a critical situation here.”

ISLAMABAD, 17 November 2021, (TON): The military’s media wing said “Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa has stressed upon the need for a joint national response to tackle national security challenges.”

According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) “this while addressing the participants of 23rd National Security Workshop at General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi.”

The participants were given comprehensive briefing on overall security situation and challenges being faced by Pakistan. Later, the ISPR said, an interactive session was held with the army chief.

Gen Qamar was quoted as saying “Pakistan has emerged stronger from the war against terrorism as a resilient nation, and now it is our collective responsibility to work wholeheartedly for the progress and prosperity of our nation.”

The COAS emphasised that army was focused on maintaining its operational preparedness and ensuring security of the country against all threats.

National Security Workshop is an annual event held at the National Defence University in Islamabad.

The official statement said “representatives from all segments of society, including parliamentarians attended the seminar.”

Last week, the top military leadership, including COAS Gen Qamar and Director General of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Lt Gen Faiz Hameed briefed lawmakers of the Senate and the National Assembly on matters pertaining to national security, foreign affairs, as well as internal and external challenges faced by the county.

SRINAGAR, 17 November 2021, (TON): Police and families of the victims said “four people have died in Indian-administered Kashmir after a deadly raid by government forces on in the disputed region's main city.”

The region's head of police, Vijay Kumar, said that alleged militants fired indiscriminately at police and soldiers when they cordoned off a business centre on Monday night in Srinagar, following a tip that they were hiding there.

The ensuing clash led to the deaths of two civilians and two suspected fighters, Kumar told reporters. However, families of the slain civilians said Indian troops used them as human shields during the deadly standoff.

Police said “the civilians were killed in the crossfire and were identified as the shopping centre's owner, Mohammad Altaf Bhat, and a trader, Mudassir Ahmed.”

The police chief said “Ahmed, a dental surgeon and real estate dealer who had rented an office space in the building, was an overground worker, a term Indian authorities use for rebel sympathisers and their civilian supporters.”

Eyewitnesses and family members of the two killed civilians rejected the police account, saying the shopping centre owner and trader were picked up by troops after they had cordoned off the area and taken them inside the building in the presence of dozens of civilians.

A shopkeeper, Nazir Ahmed, said government forces assembled dozens of the area's shopkeepers and others in a showroom and snatched cellphones from them.

NEW DELHI, 17 November 2021, (TON): The West Bengal state legislative assembly passed a resolution against the Indian government's decision to extend the Border Security Force's jurisdiction to conduct seize operations and make arrests.

The resolution was passed with 112 votes favouring it and 63 opposing it, reports our New Delhi correspondent.

West Bengal became the second state after Punjab where the assembly passed such a resolution on November 11.

In October, the BJP-led federal government amended the BSF Act to authorise the border guarding force to conduct search and seizure operations and make arrest within a 50km stretch, extending from 15km, from the international border in Punjab, West Bengal and Assam.

While Bengal and Punjab are ruled by TMC and Congress respectively, the BJP is in power in Assam.

The resolution in the West Bengal legislature was moved by the state's Parliamentary Affairs Minister Partha Chatterjee under Rule 169 of the Procedures of Conduct of Business of the House.

Chatterjee said ''we demand that this decision be withdrawn immediately as enhancing the area of jurisdiction of the BSF is a direct attack on the country's federal structure.”