SENEGAL, 12 February, 2021 (TON): The Senegalese Army said, the operation aims to let people displaced by the conflict resettle, and to put an end to rampant timber and cannabis trafficking in the region.

The military took control of several hectares of cannabis.

"These are industrial farms of Indian hemp that fed the criminal economy of the armed gangs," Kande said.

Senegalese army officers told the media, those following years of "neither war nor peace", the operation was launched to secure the region after "abuses" committed by the rebels against civilians.

Senegal's army said on Tuesday, it has captured three rebel bases in the southern Casamance region with support from neighboring Guinea-Bissau, after fighting flared up in a long-dormant independence conflict.

Recent years had seen a return to relative calm to the region, with Sall's election in 2012 bringing about several attempts at peace, all of which failed.

The conflict in Casamance is one of Africa's oldest and has claimed thousands of lives since it first broke out in 1982.

The region had returned to an uneasy calm in recent years until the army launched a major new offensive on 26 January, the rebels accusing the government of "restarting the war".

However, Senegal's military has not reported either army or rebel casualties, or the isolated region could not give reliable figures.

DHAKA, 11 February, 2021 (TON): PM Sheikh Hasina called on the members of the Bangladesh Ansar and Village Defense Party that special attention should be given to the youth of the country ensuring that they steer clear of terrorism, militancy, and drug addiction.

Via videoconferencing from Ganabhaban on Thursday, the PM made the call during the 41^st national rally of Bangladesh Ansar and VDP.

"You (Ansar-VDP members) are also contributing to matters such as preventing child marriages, drug use, terrorism, and militancy. You are playing a special role in ensuring that the youth of our country do not get involved in such activities and you must continue doing so."

"I urge you to pay special attention so that our children do not go astray."

Bangladesh has been conducting a mass immunization drive across the country to avoid the spread of the disease, PM noted.

Addressing members of the paramilitary auxiliary forces, she said that today, we are dealing with the pandemic. I would request every member of Ansar-VDP to follow the procedures regarding the pandemic. The head of government also advised the members of the forces to follow the health and safety rules while instructing them to ensure that everyone is mindful about immunization.

NEW YORK, 11 February, 2021 (TON): General Aziz Ahmed, Bangladesh Army Chief has held several meetings with the senior UN officials during a state visit to the UN this week.

Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement, he reiterated Bangladesh's 'unwavering commitment' and 'continued support' for UN peacekeeping operations.

According to the ISPR, Gen Aziz had a meeting with Atul Khare, the UN under-secretary-general for Operational Support, on Feb 8. During the meeting, he thanked the UN for listing Bangladesh Biman as peacekeeping transport.

Khare thanked the government of Bangladesh over the successful role of Bangladesh Biman in the UN peacekeeping mission amid the pandemic and also praised and commended Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for her leading role in human rights issues, including peacekeeping, climate change, and women's empowerment.

Talks on increasing Bangladesh's manpower in various UN missions, expediting the payment of compensation to peacekeepers who were injured or dead, clearing the unpaid reimbursement to the Bangladesh Army, and the arrangements for vaccinating Bangladeshi peacekeepers, among other issues.

The activities of other Bangladeshi forces in UN missions were also discussed, the ISPR said.

On 9 February, 2021, the army chief also had a meeting with Under-Secretary-General Jean-Pierre Lacroix

Lacroix praised the professionalism, discipline, dedication, and courage of the Bangladeshi peacekeepers engaged in UN peacekeeping operations during the meeting, according to the ISPR statement.

The chief of army staff left for the US on Jan 29 at the invitation of his US Army counterpart. He will wrap up the visit and return home on 12 February, 2021.

MOSCOW, 11 February, 2021 (TON): On Thursday, Russia called on Iran to show restraint as it started producing uranium metal in a new breach of limits laid out in Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers.

“We understand the logic of their actions and the reasons prompting Iran. Despite this it is necessary to show restraint and a responsible approach,” Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told the media.

The Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said Wednesday that it had verified the production of 3.6 grams of uranium metal at a plant in Iran.

In 2015, the United States, China, Russia, Germany, France, and Britain agreed on a landmark deal that involved a 15-year ban on “producing or acquiring plutonium or uranium metals or their alloys.”

Last month, Iran said that it was researching uranium metal production, a sensitive issue because uranium metal can be used as a component in nuclear weapons.

Ryabkov said Iran’s move demonstrated Tehran’s “determination not to put up with the current situation,” after it warned that time was running out for US President Joe Biden’s administration to save the agreement.

The previous U.S. administration withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal in 2018, while imposed economic sanctions on Tehran. However, the new successor, Biden seeks to revive the agreement.

KUALA LUMPUR, 11 February, 2021 (TON): Central Bank of Malaysia said in a statement on Thursday that the country’s GDP contracted 3.4 percent year on year in the fourth quarter of the previous year that rendered 5.6 percent drop for 2020.

The bank said, it is the biggest decline in the last 23 years.

The bank said that the negative growth in Q4 was largely attributable to the imposition of the Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO) on a number of states since October 2020.

"The restrictions on mobility, especially on inter-district and inter-state travel, weighed on economic activity during the fourth quarter," it said, despite the fact that continued improvement in external demand provided support to growth.

Except for manufacturing, all economic sectors continued to record negative growth. On the expenditure side, moderating private consumption and public investment activities weighed on domestic demand.

"On a quarter-on-quarter seasonally-adjusted basis, the economy registered a decline of 0.3 percent," said the bank.

The central bank said while the near-term growth in 2021 will be affected by the re-introduction of stricter containment measures in January.

The growth trajectory is projected to improve from the second quarter onwards, it added.

The central bank said that the improvement will be driven by the recovery in global demand, where the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised upwards its 2021 global growth forecast by 0.3 percentage points to 5.5 percent.

It is expected that a turnaround by the public and private sector expenditures amid support from the policy measures, a greater rate of production from the manufacturing and mining sector will pave the way for growth.

TEHRAN, 11 February, 2021 (TON): Ground forces drill began by Iran’s Paramilitary Revolutionary Guard near the Iraqi border on Thursday.

The annual exercise dubbed the “great prophet” is ongoing in the southwest of the country and has aimed at readiness and assessment of forces, said the report.

Drones, helicopters will be used in the drill, too.

In the past month, the Guard conducted a drill and launched anti-warship ballistic missiles at a simulated target in the Indian Ocean.

Iran’s navy fired ballistic missiles as a part of a naval drill on the gulf of Oman, the previous week.

Trump in 2018 unilaterally withdrew the US from Iran’s nuclear deal, in which Tehran had agreed to limit its uranium enrichment in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions.

When the US then increased sanctions, Iran gradually and publicly abandoned the deal’s limits on its nuclear development.

In recent months, Iran has seemingly increased its military drills as the country tries to pressure President Joe Biden over the nuclear accord, which he has said America could reenter.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, 11 February, 2021 (TON): On 7 March, 2021 PM Modi is likely to attend a public rally, said party BJP party leaders.

The Yatra, to be led by state BJP chief K.Surendran, will be flagged off by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath from Kasargode on February 21.

It is seen as the launch of BJP’s election campaign for the Assembly polls.

The state BJP leadership is upbeat about the Yatra as all the top national BJP leaders, including Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and others are expected to take part.

Among those who are expected to take part in the Yatra include national BJP president J.P. Nadda, Union Ministers Ravi Shankar Prasad and Smrithi Irani, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, and Jyotiraditya Scindia.

State general secretary M.T. Ramesh said the slogan of the Yatra with the polls on the anvil is 'A New Kerala' free from corruption.

It is expected that a bevy of the top national leaders will be present and confirmation of the visit of Modi is awaited. This Yatra is basically the curtain-raiser event to launch our election campaign. At the moment there is no talk of the list of candidates as it will be taken up at the appropriate time.

SEOUL, 11 February, 2021 (TON): On Thursday, Kim Jong-un North Korean leader called on the legislation sector to strengthen legal supervision and control over the establishment and executive process of the national economic plan.

Kim on Wednesday suggested important tasks for firmly ensuring the implementation of the national economic plan by law and the fulfillment of this year's economic tasks. It happened on the third day of the plenary meeting of the Eighth Central Committee of the ruling Workers' Party.

He called on the legislative sector to remove irrational elements becoming stumbling blocks to the implementation of the national economic plan and enact and perfect new laws for every sector which help promote the efficiency of production and construction.

He particularly urged legislative bodies to check all kinds of illegal practices revealed in economic activities.

He also said party officials should intensify political guidance to achieve this year's economic tasks.

Kim unveiled a new five-year economic development plan focusing on self-reliance at the eighth congress of the Workers' Party last month.

MUMBAI, 11 February, 2021 (TON): The governor of Maharashtra, Bhagat Singh Koshyari reportedly stopped from boarding a state government aircraft to fly to Dehradun and then onto Mussoorie for an official function, airport sources said on Thursday.

Around 9 a.m. at Mumbai Airport, the incident happened when the Governor and his aide reached to take the state government aircraft to Dehradun.

There he was informed that he was not permitted to take the flight although the reasons remained unclear.

Unfazed, Koshyari, who hails from Uttarakhand, and his aides immediately booked a scheduled commercial flight and left for Dehradun.

The reports state that the governor had to address the official ceremony at the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration in Mussoorie on Friday; however, the officials remained silent.

BURUNDI, 11 February, 2021 (TON): Ethiopian President Sahle-Work Zewde’s two-day visit to Burundi ended on Wednesday.

The President was in the central African country at the invitation of President Evariste Ndayishimiye.

On Tuesday President Zewde arrived at Melchior Ndadaye International Airport and was received by Ndayishimiye together with other senior government officials.

According to a statement released by the Presidency, the two leaders discussed strengthening bilateral relations stating, "Her Excellency Ms. Sahle-Work Zewde commended the work of economic development and consolidation of democracy undertaken with determination and conviction by His Excellency President Evariste Ndayishimiye. She commended Burundi's contribution to various peacekeeping missions, particularly in Somalia and the Central African Republic. His Excellency Evariste Ndayishimiye appreciated Ethiopia's substantial participation in peacekeeping missions in Africa, particularly in Somalia", said Burundi foreign affairs minister Albert Shingiro in a press briefing.

President Sahle-Work Zewde said she was honored to visit Burundi as the Ethiopian Head of State.

Her visit comes at a time when Burundi continues to open to the world under the administration of President Evariste Ndayishimiye, who came into office in June last year ending years of isolation under late leader Pierre Nkurunziza.

The two countries vow into strengthening relations exercising several missions to enhance peace and national security within the areas.