DAMASCUS, 29 July 2021, (TON): The United States is taking action to promote accountability for entities and individuals that have perpetuated the suffering of the Syrian people. 

The United States is sanctioning eight Syrian prisons, five Assad regime officials in the institutions that run those facilities, two militia groups, and two militia leaders.  These actions underscore the U.S. commitment to promote respect for human rights and accountability for abuse against Syrians.

Many of the prisons designated today were highlighted in the pictures provided by Caesar, a Syrian regime defector who worked as an official photographer for the Syrian military and exposed the regime’s ruthless and cruel treatment of detainees. 

Today’s action furthers the goals of the Act named after him, the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act of 2019, which seeks to promote accountability for the Assad regime’s abuses.

The Assad regime has detained and abused a vast number of Syrians since the start of the conflict, as has been well documented by the UN Commission of Inquiry (COI) and human rights groups.  More than 14,000 detainees have reportedly died after being tortured at the hands of the Assad regime, according to the Syrian Network for Human Rights, while 130,000 Syrians are reportedly still missing or detained.

The United States is imposing sanctions on Saydnaya Military Prison pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13894 for having engaged in the commission of serious human rights abuse, including torture or other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment and extrajudicial executions, since the start of the Syrian crisis.

The United States is also designating seven additional prisons operated by the Syrian General Intelligence Directorate and Syrian Military Intelligence for being owned or controlled by entities blocked pursuant to E.O. 13572, and five regime officials in charge of Syrian prisons.

ISLAMABAD, 29 July 2021, (TON): Foreign Office Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri said in a tweet “Deputy Prime Minister of Bahrain Shaikh Muhammad bin Mubarak Al Khalifa on Wednesday met Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, who is on a two-day official visit to the kingdom.”

He said that the two sides discussed bilateral relations, and regional and international issues of mutual interest, adding that FM Qureshi underlined the importance Pakistan attaches to its fraternal ties with Bahrain.

The foreign minister highlighted that Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) is an important forum for collaboration between the two countries in a number of fields.

Taking to his official Twitter handle, FM Qureshi said that both sides agreed to work in close collaboration on areas of mutual interest. "Shared Pakistan’s focus on geo-economics, connectivity and as a partner for peace and development."

During his visit, FM Qureshi also met with Bahraini counterpart Dr Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani ahead of the Joint Ministerial Conference.

He said "we share a similar outlook in our desire to further expand our bilateral engagements with a particular focus on trade, investment, energy and culture."

Earlier today, FM Qureshi arrived in Bahrain’s capital Manama on a two-day official visit.

RABAT, 29 July 2021, (TON): Moroccan authorities have arrested a Uyghur activist in exile based on a Chinese warrant distributed by Interpol, according to information from Moroccan police and Safeguard Defenders, a rights group that tracks people detained by China.

Activists fear Yidiresi Aishan will be extradited to China, and say the arrest is politically driven and part of a broader Chinese campaign to hunt down perceived dissidents outside its borders.

Morocco’s General Directorate for National Security said that a Chinese citizen was arrested after landing at Mohammed V International Airport in Casablanca on July 20, upon arrival from Istanbul.

He was the subject of a red notice issued by Interpol due to his suspected belonging to an organization on the lists of terrorist organizations.

The red notice,  the equivalent of being put on Interpol’s most-wanted list - was issued at the request of China, which is seeking his extradition, the directorate said. It added Moroccan authorities notified Interpol and the Chinese authorities about the arrest, and the Chinese citizen was referred to prosecutors pending the extradition procedure.

Moroccan police didn't publicly name the arrested man, but nongovernmental organization Safeguard Defenders identified him as Aishan. The group specializes in cases of people detained by China.

ISLAMABAD, 29 July 2021, (TON): Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement that Pakistan has returned five more Afghan soldiers who were given safe passage by the Pakistan Army after losing control of a military post on the Pak-Afghan border.

The military's media wing said that the soldiers were handed over to Afghan authorities at Nawa Pass in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa's Bajaur district after the due procedure at 17:45 Pakistan Standard Time (PST) on Wednesday.

The official communiqué read "These Afghan soldiers were given safe passage into Pakistan, on their own request, by the Pakistan Army in Arundu Sector of Pak-Afghan International Border, Chitral, on 26th July."

After necessary clearance, the ISPR said, the Afghan soldiers crossed into Pakistan. The soldiers have now been returned to Afghan authorities on their request.

According to the ISPR “the Afghan National Army (ANA) soldiers and Border Police were given safe passage into Pakistan by the army on July 25.”

KABUL, 29 July 2021, (TON): A police official said that Taliban attacks in Nijrab district in the central province of Kapisa were pushed back by security forces and members of the public uprising forces early morning.

Kapisa police spokesman Shayiq Shorish said “the attacks happened in Dara-e-Farokh Shah and Dara-e-Kalan areas in Nijrab district.”

He said “the clashes started shortly after midnight and continued until 4 am. Shorish said that six people, including two civilians and four members of the public uprising forces, were killed in the clashes.”

 This comes as former Kapisa governor Mehrabuddin Safi said that weak coordination among public uprising forces led to the fall of many key areas to the Taliban in the province, including Nijrab district.

Safi said that the presence of a large number of Taliban fighters also led to the fall of the Kapisa districts. Security forces left key parts of the Nijrab district two weeks ago, while the Tagab and Ala Sai districts in the province fell to the group earlier in the month.

ANKARA, 29 July 2021, (TON): A December 2020 deal between Turkey and Ukraine for the sale of an unknown batch of Turkish-built corvettes has turned out to involve two vessels.

Ukraine’s consul general in Istanbul, Alexander Haman, said on a Turkish television show that the deal covered two Ada-class corvettes to be co-produced by Turkey’s state-controlled defense technologies company STM and a Ukrainian shipyard.

Under the deal, the first vessel will be delivered to Ukraine by the end of 2023 unfinished, to then be completed in Ukraine.

The Ukrainian Navy plans to deploy the corvettes in both the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov.

A Turkish procurement source said the contract’s value is about €200 million (U.S. $236 million), though that could change depending on workshare agreements and ship configurations.

The Ada-class corvette can perform location, classification, identification and destruction of air, surface and underwater targets as well as provide naval gunfire support. It can also perform maritime surveillance, patrol missions, and coastal and infrastructure protection.

The 99.44-meter vessel has a maximum speed of 29 knots. It can carry two S70 Seahawk helicopters. Its sensors and weapons include 3D radar. It will also be equipped with electro-optical sensors, an electronic support system, a laser warning system, a torpedo detection/countermeasure capability, hull-mounted sonar, and two 12.7mm guns with an electro-optical capability.

DHAKA, 29 July 2021, (TON): Saudi Arabia's recent amendment to a law allowing non-citizens to run businesses without local sponsors has opened up opportunities for Bangladeshi traders in the kingdom.

Manpower experts said “Bangladeshis running businesses with mandatory Saudi sponsors had long been subjected to exploitations.”

They pointed out that the sponsors often use the renewal of "Iqamah" (temporary residency permits) as leverage to extract huge sums from Bangladeshis and take a cut from the profits without any investment.

The experts said that the amendment to the Anti-Commercial Concealment Law, which took effect in March, would enable Bangladeshis to do business independently and also allow them to send more remittance back home.

As per the changes in the law, both Saudi and non-Saudis can get their businesses registered by August 23 this year. Besides, a provision was included in it through another amendment for stricter punishment for running illegal businesses.

The move is part of the Kingdom's Vision 2030, which seeks economic reforms by providing investment opportunities, stimulating local investment, and attracting foreigners by providing assistance to investors and incentive programmes.

Over two million Bangladeshi migrants live in Saudi Arabia, said Bangladesh embassy in Riyadh.

NAYPYITAW, 29 July 2021, (TON): According to protesters who managed to escape “regime forces shot three people, killing at least one, during a crackdown on an anti-coup demonstration in Mandalay.”

Around 20 people were taking part in a flash mob protest near the east gate of Mandalay’s famous Mahamuni pagoda when they suddenly came under attack at around noon, witnesses told media.

Without warning, junta forces in plain clothes opened fire with live ammunition, shooting two men and a woman as they attempted to flee.

One of the victims, 25-year-old Thu Thu Zin, was shot in the head and died instantly. It was unclear if the two men, one of whom was shot in the neck, were still alive.

A protester who later returned to the scene to speak to other witnesses said “the girl [Thu Thu Zin] fell down right before my eyes. I couldn’t save her, as I was running for my life, too.”

Thu Thu Zin, 25, was shot and killed while taking part in a protest in Mandalay on July 27.

According to some vendors in front of the pagoda who saw everything, it’s very likely that all three were fatally shot. They were dragged into the pagoda compound right after they fell,” the protester told Myanmar Now.

He added that police later confirmed Thu Thu Zin’s death.

The protesters were members of the Mya Taung protest column, which continues to stage peaceful demonstrations against the regime despite its routine use of lethal force.

The group’s protests are regularly joined by a wide cross-section of local people, including student activists, monks, and ordinary citizens.

Members of the group condemned the junta’s brutal violence against unarmed protesters.

WASHINGTON, 29 July 2021, (TON): The chief of naval operations has confirmed that the U.S. Navy no longer has concrete plans to increase the number of littoral combat ships deploying to the Indo-Pacific region on a rotational basis.

Speaking to reporters at a virtual media roundtable while visiting Singapore, CNO Adm. Mike Gilday said that “there are no plans right now to actually increase the numbers that rotate in and out of Singapore,” adding that he thinks the current operating model meets the Navy’s operational commitments.

However, he noted that I would like to see more LCS deploy to the Western Pacific in the future, although we have not yet settled on what the basing model of those ships might be.

Previous plans called for four LCS to be rotationally deployed to the region by 2016. This target was subsequently moved back to 2018 in light of troubles with the LCS program and a subsequent revamp of the operating and crewing model for the ships.

Singapore agreed to host these LCS rotational deployments, with its naval base at Changi acting as the maintenance and logistics hub.

Despite this, Gilday was upbeat about the ongoing LCS deployments to the region. The Navy recently deployed two Independence-class LCS to the Indo-Pacific, with the Charleston and the Tulsa arriving in Singapore and Okinawa, respectively, in mid-June.

The CNO also touted a new operationally unpredictable model for the LCS deployed to the region, with the Navy now looking to quickly move the ships around the Western Pacific instead of staying at a given location for too long.

He also said “efforts to improve the program are going well and increasing the operational availability of the LCS. The LCS program has been bedeviled by costs, engineering and development issues.”

COLOMBO, 29 July 2021, (TON): The Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) has summoned the Sri Lanka Football Federation before the Committee on August 03 rd whilst The Department of Probation and Child Care Services has been summoned before the Committee on Public Accounts (COPA) on August 04th .

Secretary-General of Parliament Mr. Dhammika Dasanayake said “the Committee on Public Enterprises, the Committee on Public Accounts and 13 Committees including a number of Consultative Committees are scheduled to meet during the first week of August.”

The COPE Committee will meet under the chairmanship of Hon. Prof. Charitha Herath and the Committee on Public Accounts will meet under the chairmanship of Hon. Prof. Tissa Vitarana.

The COPA Committee will review the Special Report of the Auditor General on the process of supplying Medical Supplies Division of the Ministry of Health, Nutrition and Indigenous Medicine Auditor General's Special Report on the Medical Processing Process carried out by the Medical Supplies Division of the Ministry of Health, Nutrition and Indigenous Medicine on August 03rd .

Additionally, the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Justice chaired by Hon. Minister of Justice Ali Sabry and the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Health chaired by the Hon. Health Minister Pavithra Devi Wanniarachchi are also scheduled to meet on the 03rd .