WASHINGTON, 09 October 2021, (TON): Former US President Donald Trump "grossly exaggerated" the profitability of his Washington DC hotel, a probe by a congressional committee has found.

It also said “he appeared to hide potential conflicts of interest.”

The Trump International Hotel lost over $70m (£51.3m) during his term, though Mr Trump had previously claimed it earned at least $150m during that time.

The Trump Organization has denied wrongdoing and called the report "misleading".

In a statement, the House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Reform said that documents provided by the General Services Administration (GSA) - which oversees federal spending - showed that Mr Trump had "grossly exaggerated the financial health" of the hotel.

The committee said “losses forced Mr Trump's holding company to inject at least $24m to help the struggling hotel, located just a few blocks from the White House.”

The report also found Mr Trump seemed to have "concealed potential conflicts of interest" related to his ownership of the hotel and his roles as its lender and the guarantor of third-party loans.

Newly obtained documents show that the hotel received $3.7m in payments from foreign governments - enough to cover 7,400 nights at the hotel on an average daily rate, according to the committee.

The lawmakers said that the amount raised concerns about potential violations of constitutional regulations aimed at preventing foreign influence on federal officials.

BEIRUT, 09 October 2021, (TON): An Israeli missile strike on an air base in central Syria wounded six Syrian service personnel, state media reported.

The official SANA news agency said “at around 9 p.m. (1800 GMT), the Israeli enemy, fired a volley of missiles toward the T4 military airport.”

It added “the aggression wounded six soldiers and led to some material damage.”

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the attack targeted a drone depot at the base.

Since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011, Israel has routinely carried out air strikes inside Syria, mostly targeting Iranian and Lebanese Hezbollah forces as well as Syrian government troops.

ATHENS, 09 October 2021, (TON): Greece said “it would investigate reports that some of its officials were illegally pushing back migrants at the border, a day after Brussels pressed it to look into the accusations.”

Several European media outlets reported this week that Greek and Croatian officials were illegally and sometimes violently pushing back migrants. The European Union’s executive called for an investigation.

Reuters has not independently verified the media reports.

Greek Migration Minister Notis Mitarachi said “he had told EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson that the claims would be investigated.”

He told reporters at an EU meeting in Luxembourg “every claim made is investigated by the judiciary and by our internal audit.”

Johansson earlier said “Croatia had promised to investigate the accusations and she had made it clear to Greece that it needed to do the same.”

She said “EU countries needed to protect the bloc’s external borders, but they also had to uphold values, the rule of law and fundamental rights.”

ABUJA, 09 October 2021, (TON): Police said “Nigerian security forces have rescued nearly 200 kidnap victims during raids on camps of criminal gangs in dense forests in the country's northwest.”

Heavily armed gangs known locally as bandits have plagued northwest and central Nigeria for years, raiding and looting villages and abducting for ransom, but violence has surged over the past year.

Police said “the rescued victims 187 men, women and children were freed in Zamfara State, where they had been kidnapped in separate bandit attacks.”

Police released photographs showing dozens of men, women and children sitting huddled on the ground after they were freed.

RIYADH, 09 October 2021, (TON): The Arab Coalition supporting Yemen’s legitimate government said “ten people were injured during a drone attack by Iran-backed Houthi militia on the King Abdulaziz Airport in Jazan.”

Coalition spokesman Brig. Gen. Turki Al-Maliki was quoted by state media as saying two armed drones launched from Yemen were shot down from the sky by Saudi air defenses.

The coalition said “falling debris from the destroyed unmanned aerial vehicles caused minor injuries on passengers and airport personnel.”

Among the injured were six Saudi passengers and airport employees, three Bangladeshi workers and a Sudanese worker.

The coalition also intercepted a ballistic missile and two bomb-laden drones launched by the Houthis toward Khamis Mushayt city in nearby Asir region.

Four people were also slightly injured after a Houthi drone was intercepted at Abha International Airport, also in Asir.

TEHRAN, 09 October 2021, (TON): Iran's foreign minister said in Beirut “discussions between Iran and Saudi Arabia are on the right track but it will take more time to restore bilateral ties.”

Iran and Saudi Arabia have been engaged in talks since April with the aim of improving relations, for the first time since cutting ties in 2016.

The discussions were launched under Iran's former moderate president Hassan Rouhani and have continued since his ultraconservative successor, Ebrahim Raisi, took office in August.

"The Iran-Saudi dialogue is on the right track," Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said during a news conference at the Iranian embassy in Beirut, on the second day of a 48-hour visit to Lebanon.

He added "we have achieved results and agreements, but we still need more dialogue.”

He said "the two parties will announce these agreements at the appropriate time. We welcome the continuation of the talks and the results that benefit both sides and the region.”

NAYPYITAW, 09 October 2021, (TON): Locals have told media “Junta forces detained 15 people in a village in Ayeyarwady Region following the killing of an alleged military informant last week.”

Win Myint Aung, also known as Gyat Gyi, was shot dead in Thapyay Kone village, Myan Aung Township, on October 1, prompting junta forces to detain six women and nine men who were known to be supporters of the ousted National League for Democracy (NLD) government. 

One local resident said “they were arrested on the same night of the assassination and they’re still arresting more and more people to this day.”

“They didn’t even give us any reason for their arrests. They’re just arresting whoever they want.”

In July soldiers started hunting for resistance fighters in villages around Myan Aung, which sits next to the Rakhine Mountains, believing that the People’s Defence Force (PDF) was training people in the area. A number of young people fled the area during those raids.

Junta forces made dozens of arrests in Ayeyarwady Region last month as part of its efforts to prevent armed resistance to the coup regime taking hold there like it has in Sagaing, Chin, Magway and elsewhere.

The 15 people arrested this month were taken to the Thapyay Kone regional police station for interrogation, the resident said. Myanmar Now was unable to reach the station to speak to police there about the arrests and was unable to confirm the detainees’ names.

NAYPYITAW, 09 October 2021, (TON): Scores of local administrators across the country have left their posts in recent weeks after the underground National Unity Government (NUG) demanded they quit and resistance fighters threatened more assassinations of those who continue to serve the coup regime.

At least 152 local administrators in Yangon, Sagaing, and Magway regions have stepped down since the NUG issued the demand as part of its September 7 declaration of war against the junta.

Many who quit cited health, family and security concerns in their resignation letters.

Those who stepped down are based in Katha, Htigyaing and Chaung-U townships in Sagaing, Yesagyo in Magway, and Khayan and Mingaladon in Yangon.

In Yesagyo in particular, 44 administrators quit between mid-September and October 6.

Locals have speculated that a statement issued by the anti-junta People’s Defence Force (PDF) in the township warning administrators to resign by September 30 likely prompted the mass walkout.

The day after the PDF’s deadline, San Lin, the administrator for Thazi village, was shot dead.

He had previously used a megaphone to announce to the village that he was “not afraid of anyone” and would continue to serve as the local administrator “no matter what.”

DHAKA, 09 October 2021, (TON): Some 19,000 of the refugees are now staying in Bhashan Char island

Bangladesh wants to send more than 80,000 Rohingya refugees to Bhashan Char facilities after sealing an agreement for the United Nations.

Some 19,000 of the refugees have already relocated from Cox's Bazar to Bhashan Char, despite doubts raised by aid groups.

He told media “Bangladesh refugee commissioner Shah Rezwan Hayat said that tens of thousands more would go once the monsoon storms end in November. "We are aiming to relocate some 81,000 Rohingya] to Bhashan Char by the end of February to complete the 100,000 quota.”

The government has spent about $350 million building shelters on the 53 square kilometre (20 square mile) island which was formed by tidal silt deposits about 20 years ago.

Some Rohingya groups alleged that people were forced to go to Bhashan Char, which is 60 kilometres (37 miles) from the Bangladesh mainland.

More than 850,000 Rohingyas have been living in camps in Cox's Bazar since they fled a Myanmar military clampdown in 2017 that the UN says could be genocide.

DHAKA, 09 October 2021, (TON): British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Robert Chatterton Dickson has called on Chief of Army Staff of Bangladesh General SM Shafiuddin Ahmed at the Army Headquarters.

A press release issued by the Inter Service Public Relations (ISPR) directorate said “during the meeting, they exchanged greetings and discussed various issues related to the existing good relations and future progress between the armies of the two countries.”