KATHMANDU, 11 July 2021, (TON): India and Nepal have signed a letter of exchange (LoE) to the India-Nepal Rail Services Agreement (RSA) 2004.

A virtual ceremony was held to exchange notes verbales and signed copies of the LoE, between the two governments. From the Indian side, the ceremony was led by Sanjay Kumar Mohanty, member of operations and business development at the Ministry of Railways.

From the Nepali side, it was led by Dinesh Bhattarai, secretary at the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Supplies. The ceremony was conducted in presence of Ambassador of India to Nepal, Vinay Mohan Kwatra; the Ambassador of Nepal to India, Nilamber Acharya; Joint Secretary (North), Ministry of External Affairs of India, Anurag Srivastava; and Joint Secretary (South Asia), Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Nepal, Tirtha Raj Wagle. Also present were representatives from the two embassies and concerned ministries of both the governments.

With the entering into force of the LoE, all authorised cargo train operators which includes public and private container trains operators, automobile freight train operators, special freight train operators or any other operator authorised by Indian Railways will be able to utilise the Indian railway network to carry Nepal's container and other freight - both bilateral between India and Nepal or third country from Indian ports to Nepal.

KABUL, 11 July 2021, (TON): A Taliban delegation in Moscow said that it will not attack provincial centers, despite fighting by the group on the outskirts of many cities, including Qala-e-Naw in Badghis, over the last three days.

Sources from Kandahar said that the Taliban attacked District 7 of the city of Kandahar and captured two outposts.

The sources said that some residents of the area have left their homes, but Kandahar police said that more forces have arrived at the area to push back the Taliban attack.

Taliban negotiator Shahabuddin Delawar, who is in Moscow with two other members of the group, said that they will not attack cities to prevent bloodshed.

He said the reason behind their attacks is lack of addressing their demands for the release of their prisoners and removing the names of their leaders from UN blacklist.

Delawar said “they are in talks with other Afghans to discuss a new system that should be Islamic, Afghan-inclusive and united."

He added that they have “85% of Afghan soil under their control.”

ISLAMABAD, 11 July 2021, (TON): Inter-Services Public Relations Director General Maj Gen Babar Iftikhar said that Pakistan was a facilitator of the Afghan peace process and not a guarantor.

In an exclusive interview on the situation in Afghanistan, the ISPR chief said there were a lot of aspects to the peace process.

He said that what I can say right now is that the peace process is at a critical stage and everybody understands that he said. Pakistan has tried to move the process forward with "sincerity".

"Of course other stakeholders have been a part of this, but Pakistan has played a key role."

He stated that Pakistan has played the part of a facilitator in the Afghan peace process. It is still a facilitator of this peace process, we are not guarantors.

BALI, 10 July, 2021 (TON): The capsized passenger ship in the waters off Indonesian island Bali caused 10 casualties; while 13 remained unaccounted, authorities said.

According to the media, the tenth body was found some 500 meters from the nearest beach.  

51 individuals have been rescued out of the updated passenger list of 77, with 10 dead and 16 still missing, according to Gede Darmada, head of the Bali Search and Rescue Office.

However, the event of the KMP Yunicee ship capsized on 29 June,  near the Gilimanuk port in Bali after departing from the Ketapang port in the East Java province.

RIYADH, 10 July, 2021 (TON): On Sunday, the Sultan of Oman Haitham bin Tariq will embark on his first visit to Saudi Arabia, the official media in Riyadh confirmed.

The Saudi media reported on Friday that the two-day visit is also his first foreign visit since he became the Sultan in January 2020 after the death of the late Sultan Qaboos bin Said.

 The media stated that Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud invited Haitham.

However, it is hoped that the visit will strengthen relations and cooperation in various fields for the interest and steady progress of the citizens.  

STOCKHOLM, 10 July, 2021 (TON): Swedish government involves no re-shuffle, announced Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven on Friday.

Lofven stated at a press conference, "It is a challenging and very important time for Sweden."

He became the first sitting Prime Minister ousted in a no-confidence vote in June, was reinstated earlier this week.

In the 14 remaining months until the next scheduled elections, Lofven's government will focus on four areas; jobs, security, climate and welfare.

He said, "We Social Democrats together with the Green Party want to take Sweden forward with a green, safe and equal social construction."

He noted, "Gang crime has been growing for decades and will not go away overnight. The government and society must be ruthless towards the gangs."

Moreover,  the prime minister said his government will present a proposal shortly to scrap the current system of leniency when sentencing 18-20-year-olds who have committed serious crimes.

BAMAKO, 10 July 2021, (TON): French President Emmanuel Macron said that France would begin closing its bases in northern Mali before the end of the year, as part of a drawdown of French troops fighting Islamist extremists in the Sahel.

Military bases in Kidal, Tessalit et Tombouctou, key sectors in the fight against armed groups in the region, will also be closed.

Macron said "the shutdowns of these sections will start in the second half of 2021 and be completed by early 2022."

He added “France will, in the long run, maintain 2,500 to 3,000 military personnel in the region.”

Macron announced last month that he would start removing much of the 5,100 member Barkhane force in the Sahel after eight years of helping local forces stave off the threat from Islamist rebels linked to Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.

But the French president insisted that France would remain a long-term partner for the G5 countries of Mali, Burkina Faso, Chad, Mauritania and Niger.

GAZA, 10 July 2021, (TON): Israeli forces opened fire on hundreds of Palestinian demonstrators who rallied against an illegal outpost in the occupied West Bank, with more than 370 people wounded including 31 hit by live ammunition.

Drones dropped tear gas canisters and smoke filled the air at the scene of the protest in the West Bank town of Beita, near Nablus, where Palestinians protested illegal land confiscation.

Local media reports said “demonstrators burned tyres and threw rocks at Israeli forces.

Witnesses said “Israeli troops fired live rounds and rubber-coated steel bullets at the demonstrators after Friday prayers in Beita.”

The Palestine Red Crescent reported 379 protesters were wounded, 31 by live ammunition. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.

Similar confrontations were also witnessed in the town of Kafr Qaddum and in Beit Dajan, where dozens of Palestinians were treated for the effects of tear gas.

The Israeli army also suppressed a protest against the settlements in the Masafer Yatta area in Hebron.

NEW YORK, 10 July, 2021: The Friday’s adoption of a Resolution on Syria by the Security Council is an "important moment for their countries' relations, said the Russian and U.S. Ambassadors to the UN.

According to the media, on Friday, the Security Council (SC) unanimously adopted a Resolution on the re-authorization of the cross-border aid mechanism for Syrians after Russia and the US reached a compromise in last-minute talks.

By Thursday, two competing draft resolutions were to be voted on by the SC; one was tabled by Norway and Ireland, the other by Russia.

The Ireland-Norway text seeks a 12-month extension of the cross-border mechanism, while the Russian text would allow an extension of only six months.

Russia and the US were able to bridge the differences in the two drafts and jointly tabled the final text together with Ireland and Norway.

However, this is the first time since 2016 that the Security Council acted unanimously on the Syria humanitarian file.

WASHINGTON, 10 July 2021, (TON): Spokesman for the exercise command, US Navy Captain Stuart Bauman said that most of the ships participating in the Sea Breeze international exercises will remain in the Black Sea “for a while” to participate in the exercises in Bulgaria , but this stay will not violate the provisions of the Montreux Convention.

The Sea Breeze-2021 exercises are held from June 28 to July 10 in the Black Sea region, they involve 5 thousand military personnel, 40 aircraft and 32 ships from 32 countries.

US Navy Captain Stuart Bauman said, during a telephone briefing “most of the ships that participated in the Sea Breeze exercise will also take part in the Bulgaria-led Breeze exercise. Thus, the ships will continue to remain in the Black Sea for some time. However, this will not violate the time limit provided for by the Montreux Convention.”

Bauman stressed that the Sea Breeze maneuvers were “successful” and Washington is looking forward to holding a new round of these exercises in 2022.