WASHINGTON, 26 February, 2021 (TON): Pentagon says, the U.S. military has carried out an airstrike targeting militias in Syria.

Multiple hostages and facilities located at the border control point of the militant groups were destroyed during the attack.

President Joe Biden approved the action in response to recent attacks against US and coalition personnel in Iraq.

When the rockets hit sites in Irbil, including a base used by the US-led coalition, a US service member and five other contractors were injured.

Rockets have also struck US bases in Baghdad, including the Green Zone which houses the US embassy and other diplomatic missions.

However, the operation sends an ambiguous message as per Pentagon, although it called the action a proportionate military response that was taken together with diplomatic measures, including consulting coalition partners.

WASHINGTON, 26 February, 2021 (TON): On Thursday, Jen Psaki U.S. President Joe Biden’s spokesperson said the U.S. has welcomed the agreement between India and Pakistan reaffirming their commitment to a ceasefire along the Line of Control the very day.

During her daily briefing in Washington, she said, "This is a positive step towards greater peace and stability in South Asia, which is in our shared interest and we encourage both the countries to keep building upon this progress."

She said, "The US welcomes the joint statement between India and Pakistan that the two countries have agreed to maintain strict observance of ceasefire along the Line of Control starting February 25."

On asking whether Pakistan was doing enough to combat terrorism, Psaki did not give a direct reply rather directed it to the intelligence department.

KATHMANDU, 26 February, 2021 (TON): In the after play of Nepal’s Supreme Court’s reinstating of the House of Representatives, ruling Nepal Communist Party’s (NCP) Vice-Chairman Bamdev Gautam has met the co-chair of NCP’s Dahal-Nepal faction, Pushpa Kamal Dahal.

Gautam, in his meeting, proposed to Dahal to stand for unity within the party, the media reported.

The senior NCP leader has been appealing for party unity and does not associate himself with either of the party’s warring factions.

Supreme Court repealed the government’s December 20 decision to dissolve the Lower House of the Federal Parliament.

On 23 February, the SC termed Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s decision to dissolve the HoR unconstitutional and invalidated all decisions related to the House dissolution.

Besides, the apex court ordered the government to call for a new session of Parliament within 13 days.

Meanwhile, Wednesday’s meeting between NC President Deuba and NCP faction leaders Dahal and Nepal has been viewed with much interest for Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Madhav Kumar Nepal of the NCP splinter group met Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba at his private residence in Budhanilakantha on Wednesday afternoon and the backing of the main opposition appears vital to both NCP groups.

MOSCOW, 26 February, 2021 (TON): Amid a growing number of international threats, Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that his country is facing foreign pressure in the form of a continued "policy of containment" aimed at provoking internal instability, weakening the economy and interfering in the country's internal affairs.

"A consistent and highly aggressive policy aimed at disrupting the country's development, and creating problems along our external perimeter and contour, provoking internal instability, undermining the values that unite Russian society," the president warned during his meeting with the Federal Security Service (FSB) Board on Thursday.

This foreign pressure, the president said, is not of a healthy competitive nature but rather part of a series of direct actions aimed at forcing Russia to succumb to external control.

In this context, the president thanked the FSB for providing timely information concerning planned external "provocations."

He also emphasized that the country will always protect its sovereignty and national interests, ensure the security of its citizens and protect the rights of the people to decide their future.

The analysts view it as alongside blatant aggressive rhetoric groundless claims, and conspiracy-theory-like accusations used in foreign targeted information campaigns against Russia, direct actions such as economic sanctions and the disruption of large international projects are destabilizing the economy.

AMSTERDAM, 26 February, 2021 (TON): On Thursday, a non-binding motion was passed by the parliament of the Netherland saying, the treatment of the Uighur Muslim minority in China amounts to genocide.

The Netherlands being the first European country to comment like this, it said "genocide on the Uighur minority is occurring in China," stopping short of directly saying that the country's government was responsible.

The Dutch motion said that actions by the Chinese government such as "measures intended to prevent births" and "having punishment camps" fell under United Nations Resolution 260, generally known as the genocide convention.

Earlier this week, Canada passed a resolution labeling China's treatment of the Uighurs genocide, however, Prime Minister Mark Rutte's conservative VVD party voted against the resolution, which did not recommend the Cabinet take any specific action.

RIYADH, 26 February, 2021 (TON): On Thursday, the U.S. President and Saudi Arabia’s King Salman discussed regional and global stability during a phone call.

King Salman congratulated Biden for taking charge of the office last month during the call.
Reports state the talks dealt with the most important issues in the region and reviewed developments of common interest.

Iran’s behavior in the region and its destabilizing activities and its support for terrorist groups were also discussed.

“King Salman thanked the US president for Washington’s commitment to defend the Kingdom against any threats and his assurance that Iran would not be allowed to possess nuclear weapons,” media said.

King Salman said the Kingdom was keen to reach a comprehensive political solution in Yemen and to achieve security and development for the Yemeni people.

A statement from the White House said the US president told King Salman he would work to make the bilateral relationship as strong and transparent as possible.

However, the talks ground on the importance of strengthening the partnership between the two countries and the depth of their historical relations.

LONDON, 25 February, 2021 (TON): On Thursday, British Trade minister Liz Truss said she would urgently seek a meeting with U.S. Trade Representative nominee Katherine Tai to discuss the removal of punitive tariffs.

Britain demands the U.S. to remove tariffs on some exports that were imposed when Britain was a member of the European Union.

Tai will appear at a confirmation hearing before the Senate Finance Committee on Thursday.

Britain’s Truss told the parliament, “As soon as that is finished I will be on the phone to her seeking an early resolution of these issues.”

This is the way forward, not escalating the tariff battle,” Truss said on Thursday.

Last year, in an attempt to end the row between the two, Britain unilaterally decided to drop tariffs that it imposed on U.S. goods in a bid to de-escalate the conflict and provide impetus to the ongoing discussion.

NEW YORK, 25 February, 2021 (TON): On Wednesday, the UN claimed that over the weekend at least 41 people drowned when their boats capsized in the Central Mediterranean.

The boats involved migrants fleeing conflict-stricken Libya and seeking a better life in Europe.

In a joint statement, the UN migration and refugee agencies said that the dead were among at least 120 migrants on a dinghy that left Libya on 18 February. The shipwreck took place two days later, it said.

The rescued survivors were taken o the Sicilian port town of Porto Empedocle in Italy, they added.

Citing the survivors, UNHCR said the tragedy started when the dinghy took on water about 15 hours after the migrants embarked on their perilous voyage. Within hours, at least six people fell into the sea and perished, and two others drowned while attempting to swim to a boat spotted in the distance.
Later, the commercial vessel Vos Triton arrived, and attempted to rescue survivors in what the UNHCR described as a “difficult and delicate operation.” Many others died during the rescue operation, it said.

Since 2011, Libya has been a dominant transit point for migrants fleeing war and poverty in Africa and the Middle East; thousands have drowned along the way while being smuggled. Others were intercepted and returned to Libya to fall “victim to unspeakable brutality at the hands of traffickers and militias.

MOSCOW, 25 February, 2021 (TON): On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that law enforcement forces have prevented 72 terrorist crimes in the country in the previous year.

The report stated that 2020 had more crimes prevented as compared to the year-earlier which was 57.

Putin said in a meeting of the FSB (Federal Security Service Board) that despite the fact that many of the attempts were thwarted at an early stage, terrorism remains a serious threat with terrorists using more diverse tactics.

It is necessary to better protect places of mass gathering, critical facilities, and social institutions, and more effectively coordinate the work of the FSB and other security agencies, he added.

He praised the work of counterintelligence bodies, which have thwarted the activities of 72 employees and 423 agents of foreign special services last year.

The law enforcers will have to pay special attention to detect contacts between the terrorist groups and the foreign special services as per the orders of Putin and also on the importance of protecting military information with no chances of it getting breached.

DHAKA, 25 February, 2021 (TON): The Bangladesh government is working to improve the waterways of Bangladesh to ensure that the transportation of goods on both the domestic and international fronts can be carried out smoothly stated the Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina Wazed on Thursday.

The remarks came when the PM was addressing the 'Mujib Year Graduation Parade' of the 55th batch cadets of Bangladesh Marine Academy via video link from Ganabhaban.

“We are making our river waterways more developed and mobile by restoring the navigability of our rivers so that we can transport goods very smoothly both domestically and internationally. We are paying special attention to that.”

“Bangladesh is a riverine country. On top of that, we also have a huge sea. The Father of the Nation enacted the Maritime Boundary Act in 1974 but unfortunately, those who came to power after 1975 did not take any initiative in this regard. General Ziaur Rahman, General Ershad or Khaleda Zia took no initiative," Hasina said while highlighting the government's commitment to taking the country forward.

"Since coming to power, the Awami League has taken initiatives and achieved huge maritime boundaries, which can be utilized for the economic development of the country. Moreover, our Bay of Bengal is a very important channel. Many of the world's businesses run through there.”

She also emphasized while boosting confidence among the cadets that her government’s efforts in working to create training opportunities by focusing on getting the highest standard of education to keep pace with the competitive world.