COLOMBO, 17 August 2021, (TON): New Minister of Mass Media, Dullas Alahapperuma, assumed duties at the Ministry of Mass Media premises yesterday (16). There was no ceremony organised to mark the occasion.

After assuming duties, the Minister held a brief discussion with Ministry Secretary Jagath P. Wijeweera and other officials and discussed about the future plans of the ministry.

Alahapperuma said “his first priority as the new minister would be launching educational television channels for students within the next two weeks. Alahapperuma, who was the Minister of Power, was appointed as the Minister of Mass Media yesterday (16) by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

BEIJING, 17 August 2021, (TON): China is ready to deepen “friendly and cooperative” relations with Afghanistan, a government spokeswoman said on Monday, after the Taliban seized control of the country.

Beijing has sought to maintain unofficial ties with the Taliban throughout the US' withdrawal from Afghanistan, which spurred an advance by the hardliners across the country that saw them capture the capital Kabul on Sunday.

China shares a rugged 76-kilometre border with Afghanistan.

Beijing has long feared Afghanistan could become a staging point for minority Uyghur separatists in the sensitive border region of Xinjiang.

But a top-level Taliban delegation met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Tianjin last month, promising that Afghanistan would not be used as a base for militants.

In exchange, China offered economic support and investment for Afghanistan's reconstruction.

On Monday, China said it “welcomed” the chance to deepen ties with Afghanistan, a country that has for generations been coveted for its geo-strategic importance by bigger powers.

Foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters “the Taliban have repeatedly expressed their hope to develop good relations with China, and that they look forward to China's participation in the reconstruction and development of Afghanistan.”

“We welcome this. China respects the right of the Afghan people to independently determine their own destiny and is willing to continue to develop friendly and cooperative relations with Afghanistan.”

Hua called on the Taliban to “ensure a smooth transition” of power and keep its promises to negotiate the establishment of an “open and inclusive Islamic government” and ensure the safety of Afghans and foreign citizens.

PORT-AU-PRINCE, 17 August 2021, (TON): The death toll from a 7.2-magnitude earthquake in Haiti climbed to 1,297, a day after the powerful temblor turned thousands of structures into rubble and set off frantic rescue efforts ahead of a potential deluge from an approaching storm.

Saturday’s earthquake also left at least 5,700 people injured in the Caribbean nation, with thousands more displaced from their destroyed or damaged homes. Survivors in some areas were forced to wait out in the open amid oppressive heat for help from overloaded hospitals.

The devastation could soon worsen with the coming of tropical depression Grace, which is predicted to reach Haiti on Monday night. The US National Hurricane Centre warned that although Grace had weakened from tropical storm strength on Sunday, it still posed a threat to bring heavy rain, flooding and landslides.

The earthquake struck the southwestern part of the hemisphere’s poorest nation, almost razing some towns and triggering landslides that hampered rescue efforts in a country already struggling with the coronavirus pandemic, a presidential assassination and a wave of gang violence.

The epicenter was about 125 kilometres west of the capital of Port-au-Prince, the US Geological Survey said, and aftershocks continued to jolt the area on Sunday.

DHAKA, 17 August 2021, (TON): Bangladesh rejected a request from the US to give temporary shelter to a certain number of people from Afghanistan, saying Bangladesh is already facing huge challenges by giving shelter to over 1.1 million Rohingyas.

Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen told UNB over phone "yes, we've received a request from the US. We thanked them but rejected the request."

The foreign minister said “the request came from diplomatic channels in Washington and in Dhaka.”

"Don't put us in further trouble," he said, mentioning what Bangladesh conveyed to the US after receiving the request.

The US side first reached out to the Bangladesh ambassador in Washington with the request which was later conveyed to Dhaka.

Momen said “Bangladesh wanted to know the name of the countries that the US requested for giving people from Afghanistan temporary shelters and how many people were to take the shelter. "No specific reply was found."

Earlier, the foreign minister said Bangladesh will welcome the new government in Afghanistan if it is a government supported by its people.

DHAKA, 17 August 2021, (TON): Human Rights Watch said in a report released that nearly 600 people have been forcibly disappeared by security forces since 2009.

Many turned up dead, some came back alive, and at least 86 still remain missing.

The 86 cases were identified and documented in the HRW report.

It said that those who turned up dead, had become victims of extrajudicial killings that are falsely claimed to be deaths during gunfights.

Meanwhile, those alive were released or produced in court after weeks or months of secret detention.

The report, based on more than 115 interviews between July 2020 and March 2021 with alleged victims, family members and witnesses, says authorities have consistently refused to investigate enforced disappearances or to hold those responsible accountable.

The global human rights watchdog urged the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom and Canada to take a number of steps, from economic sanctions to travel restrictions to banning the export of surveillance technology to Bangladesh.

The report said that the United Nations' Department of Peace Operations should sever all ties with any units and commanders found responsible for serious human rights abuses, including commanders who failed to prevent or punish abuses by individuals under their command.

MALE, 17 August 2021, (TON): Vice President Faisal Naseem said that India has always been an important development partner for Maldives.

He made the statement in his speech as guest of honor at a reception hosted by the Indian High Commission at Hotel Jen to commemorate India’s 75th Independence Day.

In his speech, Faisal extended warm greetings on the occasion of India’s Independence Day to Indian President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Indian people.

He described the decades leading up to India attaining its independence, in 1947, as a long and grueling struggle overcome by the invaluable efforts and sacrifices of great leaders who fought for freedom.

He said that India’s journey to become a leading sovereign nation since then was an inspiration to the entire world.

Faisal noted India had been one of the first countries to recognize Maldives as a sovereign state when it gained its independence from the protectorate status under the British in 1965.

He said “in the long history of our relations, India has always extended assistance whenever we were in need.”

NAYPYITAW, 17 August 2021, (TON): A man was seriously injured after he and his 4-year-year son were shot by regime troops in a village in Chin State’s Kanpetlet Township.

The incident occurred at around 11am, when soldiers patrolling Kant Thar Yon, a village about a mile outside the town of Kanpetlet, opened fired near the man’s house.

Thirty-year-old Thang Htong and his son Naing Thang were both inside their home when they were hit by stray bullets, according to a member of the Kanpetlet Township Public Administration Committee, a civilian management group set up by opponents of Myanmar’s military junta.

Thang Htong was hit in the arm, thigh and abdomen and was taken to a public hospital in the city of Magway, about 250km away, with serious injuries. The child was not badly hurt, locals told media.

Residents of the village said the shooting was unprovoked.

One Kanpetlet resident who spoke to villagers who arrived on the scene shortly after the incident, said “the soldiers said they were shooting at a suspicious-looking man on a motorcycle, but it seems more like they were just firing shots at random.”

DHAKA, 17 August 2021, (TON): Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen said that Bangladesh will welcome any government in Afghanistan if that is of the people of that country.

Momen told journalists "if Taliban forms the government and that is a government of people, our door will remain open for them obviously."

He said, "Afghanistan is a member of SAARC, a friendly country, we want their development. We will accept any government if that is a government of the people."

About the statement of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Md Shafiqul Islam that some Bangladeshis have left for Afghanistan to join the war as part of the Taliban, the minister said, "they were not Taliban. There were few terrorists in our country who had been trained in Afghanistan. We have already evicted them. Now there are no such terrorists in our country."

By Aroussa Hafeez

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has iron grip over Indian politics since in power from 2014 and then again he came back in power with bigger victory in 2019 elections. However, it seems that Mamata Banerjee’s political victory in West Bengal elections is an event that will change the political discourse in the country. Mamata Banerjee was facing extreme formidable challenge in elections of West Bengal because she was standing against the Modi‐led BJP. The Bengal win of Banerjee has now prompted a view in the country that a possible opposition unity may be formed in 2024 elections in country against PM Modi. The Trinamool Congress party (TMC) led by the Mamata Banerjee has won more than 200 seats in the 294-seat assembly. Banerjee became the Chief Minister of West Bengal for the third time.  Modi addressed hundreds of rallies before election, hoping to widen his Hindu policy whereas, Mamata Banerjee ran his election campaign on wheel chair and won two-third majority, diminishing the hopes of Modi government. Certainly, the BJP defeat of West Bengal has reversed the political game in country.

Earlier, Banerjee lost in Lok Sabha elections of 2019 whereas, the BJP was successful in gaining the power but after the biggest flop show of BJP in West Bengal, the Indian politics will not remain the same. After the massive setback for BJP, many BJP leaders have gone back to TMC and many more members are in touch with Banerjee’s party. The outcome of elections in West Bengal has created a situation that all regional parties can unite under Banerjee’s leadership. The BJP government has very low success rate against regional parties, which will worry the BJP government now. The opposition parties also seems to be eager in overcoming internal differences, now more than ever.

Earlier on 19^th January, 2019 the foundation of a fledgling ‘Mahagathbandhan’ was laid in a rally organized by Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata, which was attended by national and state opposition leaders. Albeit, the Grand Alliance of political parties lived for very short-term and Narendra Modi returned to power with massive victory. Albeit, now after the victory of Banerjee in West Bengal new determination for a united front against BJP is noticeable. Despite the chequered history of coalition governments in India, union of opposition parties or ‘Mahagathbandhan’ has become a compulsion to stand against the BJP’s national hegemony that is constant from last few years.

Mamata Banerjee of West Bengal is now preparing to face the BJP in 2024. Speaking at an election meeting in April at Chunchura, Mamata Banerjee said, “I will win Bengal with one leg and Delhi with two legs.” The grand opposition against BJP may be possible and the united Opposition under Mamata Banerjee can trouble the BJP and also the rest of the political parties in the future elections. BJP’s defeat in West Bengal elections was a big setback for Modi government and it was the result of the mismanagement of Modi government and its least interest in making proper strategy to control the spread of coronavirus, which has left the country in crisis. The people of India now want to hold the BJP government accountable for the gross administrative negligence. It seems that more setbacks are to come for PM Modi in the near future and what happened in Bengal elections is just the start.

The schemes and projects started by PM Modi like ‘Swachh Bharat’ appears to have little or no impact. Job opportunities have decreased and the area of Foreign policy is also badly affected plus it has very few achievements. India's relations with almost all of its neighbouring countries have turned problematic. Moreover, the COVID-19 crisis has pushed the middle class Indian citizens towards poverty. The corona virus pandemic has exposed the Modi-led BJP government.  It is now hard for Modi government to wipe out these fault lines and regain the position that it had enjoyed previously. Surely, there seems hard times coming for PM Modi.

PM Modi definitely needs to improve his government and his policies. However, now it looks that there is no more Modi wave in the country and due to mismanagement to tackle COVID‐19 crisis there is a strong sense of aversion hanging in the air against the central ruling party, BJP. The win of Banerjee in Bengal elections has opened up new possibilities in the country but the strategy she adopts will be significant in terms to take hold of the local and national politics. United Opposition under Mamata Banerjee can trouble the BJP and rest of the political parties in the future elections. However, it should also not be neglected that PM Modi has two forces Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and BJP behind him that will help him hold the national political stage again. Indian political mood seems to be undergoing a shift but still the implications of the shift are unclear.   

 CAIRO, 16 August 2021, (TON): An Egyptian military spokesman said that Egypt and the UAE have concluded their joint air force exercises.

Col. Arkan Harb Gharib Abdel Hafez added said “Zayed-3 included theoretical and practical sessions to unify concepts, improve skills, and coordinate the management of joint operations in various modern air combat methods.”

Multi-role fighters from both sides carried out several joint exercises for training such as attacking enemy targets and defending vital targets in unison, as well as training in refueling in the air.

The military spokesman said the training demonstrated the “distinguished level and high professionalism reached by the coordination between the air forces of both countries.”

The training is intended to enhance the forces' ability to manage joint air combat operations efficiently and competently.

On Aug. 2, the Egyptian Armed Forces announced that the air force had arrived at Al-Dhafra Air Base in the UAE to participate in the drills.