BEIJING, 08 January 2023, (TON): China lifts quarantine requirements for inbound travelers on Sunday, ending almost three years of self-imposed isolation even as the country battles a surge in Covid cases.

Beijing last month began a dramatic dismantling of a hard-line virus strategy that had enforced mandatory quarantines and gruelling lockdowns.

The containment policy has tanked China’s economy and sparked nationwide protests.

In the final unraveling of those rules, Sunday will see inbound travelers to China no longer required to quarantine.

NICOSIA, 08 January 2023, (TON): Iran’s Islamic clerical regime is divided in its response to months of unprecedented protests, wavering between repression and what it views as conciliatory gestures trying to quell the discontent, analysts say.

Nader Hashemi said “the conflicting messages we are getting from the Iranian regime suggest an internal debate on how to deal with ongoing protests.”

“In most authoritarian regimes, there are hawks and doves” who disagree on how repressive the state should be during crises.

The granting of retrials to several death-row protesters, and the release from detention of prominent dissidents, are signs that some seek to take a softer approach.

KYIV, 08 January 2023, (TON): Two thermal power plants were damaged by Ukrainian shelling in Russian-controlled parts of the country’s Donetsk region, Moscow-installed officials said.

Early information suggested that the plants in Zuhres and Novyi Svit had been hit and that some people on the spot had sustained injuries, the officials said on their Telegram channels.

Two people might be trapped under debris at the damaged Starobesheve power plant in Novyi Svit, TASS reported. Citing officials, it said the strike was carried out using a multiple rocket launcher system.

There was no immediate comment from Ukraine which never publicly claims responsibility for attacks inside Russia or on Russian-controlled territory in Ukraine.

WARSAW, 08 January 2023, (TON): Filled with sadness and hopes of a victorious 2023, hundreds of Ukrainian refugees celebrated their first Christmas since fleeing the Russian invasion at a contemporary theater in Warsaw.

The celebrants at the Nowy Teatr, a former truck repair workshop, were among the 1.5 million Ukrainians who have settled in Poland since the war began the highest number for any country.

Almost all were women as most Ukrainian men of recruitment age are not allowed to leave.

They spoke of the pain of marking the family holiday separated from husbands and sons.

QAMISHLI, 08 January 2023, (TON): The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces said they had arrested more than 100 “terrorists” in an eight-day operation against Daesh militants.

Kurdish-led forces launched the sweep dubbed Operation Al-Jazeera Thunderbolt last week, after thwarting an Daesh attempt to free fellow militants from prison in Raqqa, the extremist group’s former Syrian stronghold.

The Syrian Kurds have been seeking to underline their value as a partner to the West in its campaign against Daesh as NATO ally Turkiye keeps up its threats to launch a new cross-border assault against territory under their control.

WASHINGTON, 08 January 2023, (TON): During the week of January 9th, Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson will travel to Seattle, Washington and San Francisco and San Diego, California.

While on the West Coast, he will meet with the private sector to discuss illicit finance and financial inclusion.

Under Secretary Nelson will discuss ways to reduce de-risking that results in the indiscriminate loss of financial access for entire categories of customers rather than assessing risks and potential for mitigation in a targeted way and how to mitigate the impact it has on diaspora communities, certain kinds of small businesses, and humanitarian organizations.

 By Zia Rahman Zia

Before 1947, there were about 580 states in united India, these states were under kings and were called independent states. When the time came for the partition of India, it was decided that the independent states would have the right to decide at their own will with which country they wanted to join. That is, whether they want to join Pakistan or India, it was left to their choice. Most of the states made the decisions of their kings according to the will of their people but there were few states where the situation was opposite like Hyderabad Deccan, Junagadh and Kashmir. In Hyderabad Deccan and Junagadh, the majority were Hindus, but their rulers were Muslims who decided to join Pakistan, but India entered its forces there and occupied these states, but the situation in Kashmir was that the King was Hindu, but the majority of the population was Muslim, so the people wanted to join Pakistan, but since the Raja was a Hindu, he joined Kashmir with India on the signals of India and the British. But the Muslims of Kashmir rose up against this decision and together with the Mujahideen occupied a large area of Kashmir, but when India saw the situation deteriorating, it immediately reached the United Nations and appealed for a ceasefire. The United Nations has decided that Kashmir will be given the right to self-determination, that they will decide of their own free will which state they want to join. If the people decide to accede to India, they will be happily included in India and if they want to stay with Pakistan, they can stay with Pakistan of their own free will.

On January 5, 1949, the United Nations passed a resolution that Kashmiris would have the right to self-determination and would be given the right to decide their own future through referendum. India also accepted this decision on the condition of ceasefire, but later India turned away and, ignoring all UN resolutions, deployed more troops in Kashmir and took over the state completely. India occupied Kashmir despite the UN resolutions and the opposition of the whole world and gradually started to establish its government there. Hold elections there and start making puppet governments. The Kashmiri people are protesting against these actions of India, but India does not care about it, it martyrs the protesting Muslims and their houses are demolished.

All countries recognize that India's occupation of Kashmir is illegal and India has no right over Kashmir. If seen, Kashmir has a long border with Pakistan, while its border with India is very short. If we look at religion, then Pakistan is an Islamic country and the majority of Kashmir is also Muslim and if we look at public sentiments, the majority of the people want to join Pakistan, they protest in front of the Indian soldiers by raising the Pakistani flag, burying their martyrs in the Pakistani flag, shouting slogans of “Pakistan Zindabad”. This shows that the sentiments of Kashmiris reflect their desire to join Pakistan. Kashmiris want to live with Pakistan and are not ready to accept Indian occupation in any way.

India tried to mislead the Kashmiris in many ways so that they somehow agree to join India, sometimes development works are announced there, sometimes they try to intimidate them, but the history of intimidation is very long. This is very tragic but till date Kashmiris have not agreed to recognize the occupation of India and they always express their desire to join Pakistan. Although there are a few Kashmiris who want an independent Kashmiri state but the majority want to join Pakistan. If Kashmiris want to be independent state it is their right. In this way, at least they will be freed from the illegitimate and cruel rule of India and the Muslims who are being martyred in Kashmir day by day will be freed from India.

It is the responsibility of the United Nations and all the member states to give their right to the Kashmiris as per the resolutions of the United Nations and to hold a referendum in Kashmir to determine which state they want to live with. Neither India nor Pakistan should be heard, but a decision should be made in favor of the Kashmiris as to whether they want to join India or stay with Pakistan. It is the fundamental right of Kashmiris that according to the United Nations resolution of January 5, 1949, which India itself has recognized, to give the right of referendum to Kashmiris. This is the only way to solve the Kashmir problem through which the Kashmir problem can be solved peacefully.

NEW DELHI, 05 January 2023, (TON): India approved an incentive plan of 197.4 billion rupees ($2.4 billion) to promote the green hydrogen industry in a bid to cut emissions and become a major exporter in the field.

Green hydrogen, also called renewable hydrogen, can be used as fuel. It is produced from electrolysis of water in a process powered by renewable energy, so does not generate polluting carbon emissions.

All over the world, green hydrogen is emerging as a future alternative to fossil fuels.

It can be used in industry, to run cars, and to heat and power households. Countries such as the US, Japan, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and EU members have invested billions in strategies to develop green hydrogen projects.

UNITED NATIONS, 05 January 2023, (TON): The UN Security Council scheduled an emergency meeting Thursday at the request of the Palestinians and other Islamic and non-Islamic nations to protest the visit of an ultranationalist Israeli Cabinet minister to a flashpoint Jerusalem holy site and demand an end to Israeli extremist provocations and respect for the historic status quo at the site revered by Muslims and Jews.

Tuesday’s visit by Israel’s new National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, a West Bank settler leader who draws inspiration from a racist rabbi, to the site known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as Al-Haram Al-Sharif, Arabic for the Noble Sanctuary, drew fierce condemnation from across the Muslim world, a strong rebuke from the United States, and fueled fears of unrest as Palestinian militant groups threatened to act in response.

The Palestinian UN ambassador, Riyad Mansour, told reporters after meetings with Arab ambassadors, representatives of the 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the 120-member Nonaligned Movement and others that there is not only widespread condemnation of Ben-Gvir’s visit but also of the broader “environment of extremism” surrounding the most extremist government in Israel’s history.

LONDON, 05 January 2023, (TON): Prime Minister Rishi Sunak makes a speech setting out his priorities for 2023.

New Year should be a time of optimism and excitement. Yet I know many of you look ahead to 2023 with apprehension.

I want you to know that as your Prime Minister, I will work night and day to change that, and quickly.

Not just by providing relief and peace of mind for the months to come – although we will.