KABUL, 07 July 2021, (TON): An Uzbek media outlet reports that president Ashraf Ghani will visit Tashkent to attend a conference on Central and South Asia.

The situation in Afghanistan will be discussed during the conference, which is scheduled to be held in Tashkent on July 15-16.

It added that the border crossing reopened between Uzbekistan and Afghanistan has reopened after security threats and Taliban’s attacks.

The Uzbek capital will host the international conference “Central and South Asia: Regional Connectivity. Challenges and Opportunities.

It will offer an opportunity to facilitate infrastructure projects in Afghanistan, connecting Asia and Europe.

NEW DELHI, 07 July 2021, (TON): With drones emerging as a serious security threat in Jammu & Kashmir, the central security establishment is looking to test some advanced global anti-drone systems, including Israel’s laser technology-based solutions, and have them deployed within the next couple of months at vital installations in the Union territory as well as the border with Pakistan.

According to sources, while some of the anti-drone systems, currently available with various agencies like NSG and NTRO, are already being installed and tested at locations like the Jammu airport as well as some select border stretches, the larger plan is to extend the deployment of anti-drone technologies designed to detect, intercept and inactivate drones within a possible 5-6 km range, to vital or key security installations within J&K, apart from using them to secure the border with Pakistan.

A source said that this will help not only tackle drones being sent with payloads like the one used in the recent attack on Jammu IAF base, but also those detected so far carrying weapons, narcotics and even ready-to-use IEDs.”

ISLAMABAD, 07 July 2021, (TON): Prime Minister Imran Khan said “Pakistan and China were iron brothers, emphasising that Pakistan supported China's efforts to safeguard world peace, contribute to global development and preserve international order.

Addressing the Communist Party of China (CPC) and World Political Parties Summit, he said “President Xi Jinping's vision of shared prosperity through the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) had made a major impact on global sustainable development and proved his credentials as a world statesman.”

He added that the prime minister noted that under Xi's leadership, China had achieved major success in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

He added "President Xi's declaration of making the Covid-19 vaccine a global public good is reflective of his compassion and fairness."

He credited the Chinese president's visionary leadership for China's transformation. Xi's people-centric philosophy has made a critical difference as recently China has eliminated extreme poverty, one of the greatest achievements in the history of mankind.

He also praised the CPC, saying the party "united the spirit of the Chinese people and encouraged them to wage an epic struggle for liberation from foreign occupation.”

PM said that the party's leader, Communist China's founding father Mao Zedong, had guided the Chinese people in reclaiming national dignity and self-pride, self-respect and China's rightful place in the world.

For decades, CPC's spirit instilled new vigour and hope beyond China's borders. It inspired people of the colonised nations and contributed to the end of colonialism.

He noted that CPC's astonishing success rests in the people-centric approach of its development philosophy. It remained committed to serving the people and prioritised their well-being.”

ABUJA, 06 July 2021, (TON): A member of the school said that gunmen attacked a boarding school in northwestern Nigeria's Kaduna state. Some 140 students were kidnapped, presumably to exchange them for ransom.

"Attackers took 140 students with them, 25 managed to escape," details Emmanuel Paul, who teaches at the Bethel Secondary School boarding school.

Some 165 students were sleeping in the boarding school at the time of the attack.

This is the third major attack in Kaduna in the last three days.

At least eight employees of a Kaduna State hospital were kidnapped, according to police, although local sources say 15 people were abducted, including two nurses and their baby.

Samuel Aruwan said “seven people were also killed in a nearby locality, Commissioner For Internal Security and Home Affairs Kaduna State.”

DUSHANBE, 06 July 2021, (TON): A new cargo train service was launched Monday between east China’s Shandong Province and Tajikistan, a member country of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

A train carrying 100 Twenty-foot Equivalent Units left the intermodal transportation center of the demonstration zone for China-SCO local economic and trade cooperation in the city of Qingdao for Dushanbe at 9:10 a.m., marking the inauguration of the service.

The train, loaded with machinery and construction materials worth 1.66 million U.S. dollars, is expected to arrive at Dushanbe in about 15 days.

Liu Jianjun, director of the administrative committee of the demonstration zone, said the new route is the eighth express line between China and SCO countries operated by its intermodal transportation center in Qingdao.

BAGHDAD, 06 July 2021, (TON): A coalition spokesman said “at least three rockets landed on the Ain al-Asad air base, which hosts U.S. and other international forces in western Iraq, but caused no casualties.”

U.S. Army Colonel Wayne Marotto, spokesman for the U.S.-led international military coalition, tweeted that initial reports suggested the attack took place at 2:45 p.m.. He said the damage was being assessed.

The United States accuses Iran-backed militia groups of launching regular rocket attacks against its troops in Iraq. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Monday’s attack.

KATHMANDU, 06 July 2021, (TON): The Election Commission of Nepal has released a schedule for the November snap-polls announced by the government after dissolution of House of Representatives.

In a press release issued by the poll body, it informed that the first phase of the general elections will be held on 12th November, 2021 while the second phase of the election has been scheduled for 19th November, 2021.

Furthermore, it has been learnt that the registration of the political parties at the commission, a prerequisite for participating in the polls, will commence on July 15 and last till July 30.

The constitutional body responsible for conducting and monitoring elections in Nepal, has stated that the final voter identification list will be published on September 8, 2021.

KYIV, 06 July 2021, (TON): Ukraine will host the multinational military exercise Three Swords 2021 with the participation of military from Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania and the United States on July 17-30, the press service of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces has reported on Facebook.

The report read “ the International Peacekeeping and Security Center of the Hetman Petro Sahaidachnyi National Ground Forces Academy will host Three Swords 2021, a multinational military exercise of the Lithuanian-Polish-Ukrainian Brigade named after Grand Hetman Konstanty Ostrogski.”

According to the report, Three Swords 2021 is a multinational exercise that will be conducted as a command and staff exercise and training involving troops to conduct field maneuvers.

More than 1,200 servicemen and more than 200 combat vehicles from four countries,  Lithuania, Poland, Ukraine and the United States,  will take part in the international exercise. For the first time, these exercises will be held in Ukraine.

TEHRAN, 06 July 2021, (TON): A manager told state media “Iran’s sole nuclear power plant has been brought back online after an emergency shutdown two weeks ago.”

News Agency quoted Mahmud Jafari as saying that the “technical fault” that shut down the Bushehr plant and its 1,000-megawatt reactor had been “fixed,” allowing the plant to resume power generation and be reconnected.

Jafari, who is also deputy head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), said power generation had resumed.

He also urged Iranians to help the country’s overburdened grid by minimizing power consumption as weather forecasts predicted rising temperatures in the coming days.

The AEOI blamed “a technical fault” for the plant’s shutdown and said it had given the Energy Ministry one day’s notice before going offline.

Last week, Iranian officials said engineers were working to repair the plant’s broken generator.

The United Nations’ International Atomic Energy Agency acknowledged being aware of reports about the plant, but declined to comment.

MINSK, 06 July 2021, (TON): UN special envoy for the situation with human rights in Belarus, Anais Maren, announced the deterioration of the situation with the violation of human rights in Belarus.

The 47th session of the United Nations began, at which a report was presented on the state of affairs in Belarus from April 1, 2020 to March 31, 2021.

The UN special envoy called the situation in Belarus “alarming”. According to her, the authorities seem to have launched a full-scale attack on the entire civil society against people from all walks of life.

She cited statistics according to which over 35,000 people were detained in the republic during the year for exercising their right to freedom of peaceful assembly or expression of solidarity with the detainees.

Maren noted that thousands of people were subjected to violence, beatings, humiliation and intimidation from law enforcement officials.

The situation with the Ryanair flight , which was landed in Minsk , which shocked the world community was also not ignored .