GABON, 3 February, 2021 (TON): The President of Gabon, Ali Bongo Ondimba took 45 out of 52 seats and won an overwhelming majority In the first round of Saturday’s Senate elections, said the official body in charge of the poll.

Five opposition or independent senators were elected on Saturday and two seats remain to be filled in the second round on 6 February, according to a count by the Gabonese Centre for Elections (CGE). In addition, the head of state must appoint by decree 15 members of the future Senate, which will have a total of 67 members of parliament.

In addition to the 15 "personalities" chosen by Mr. Bongo for "honoring service to the state", the 52 other senators are elected for six years in an indirect uninominal ballot by members of municipal and departmental councils, themselves largely dominated by the Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG) of the head of state.

There was no suspense regarding the elections for in addition to the 15 appointed by Mr. Bongo, the PDG was the only candidate in 22 of the 52 constituencies.

As the National Assembly passes laws, so does the Senate that is dominated by the CEO, however, the lower house has the authority of word in case of any disagreement.

The only unknown to date is who will become president of the Senate, a role that has however lost its aura and importance since a constitutional revision of 29 December last.

The CEO was previously responsible for ensuring the interim of the head of state in case of vacancy or impediment, but the office now falls to a triumvirate composed of the presidents of both houses of Parliament and the Minister of Defense.

"In case of temporary unavailability" of the Gabonese leader, the three will replace the president until a new election in the event of a vacancy or, a novelty in the Constitution,

This provision is intended to fill the vacuum left during Mr. Bongo's long recovery after a stroke in October 2018 that made him for many months away from power but also from the country.

NEW YORK, 3 February, 2021 (TON): China blocked a UN Security Council statement condemning the military coup in Myanmar.

UNSC met on Tuesday but failed to agree on a joint statement for China did not agree, as China has the power of veto as one of the five permanent members of the council.

Ahead of the talks, the UN's Special Envoy on Myanmar, Christine Schraner, strongly condemned the military takeover which came after the army refused to accept the outcome of general elections held in November.

"We call upon the military to immediately end the state of emergency, restore power to the democratically-elected government, to release all those unjustly detained and to respect human rights and the rule of law," the statement released in London by the Gseven major economic powers comprising Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK, and the US.

China has been alarming that the international pressure will make the situation get worse in Myanmar. Along with Russia, it has repeatedly protected Myanmar from criticism at the UN over the military crackdown on the Muslim minority Rohingya population.

It appears as China is considering the issue as Myanmar’s internal and only a cabinet shuffle.       

TEHRAN, 3 February, 2021 (TON): During the talks in Tehran, Iran and militant Afghans blamed the U.S. for the ongoing violence in the Afghanistan territory.  

During talks in Tehran, Ali Shamkhani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran, told a Taliban delegation, "The US strategy supports the continuation of violence and war between Afghan groups within the political spectrum”.

In turn, Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban’s political bureau chief, did not cut his words and said, “We don’t trust the United States and we will fight any group that supplies mercenary services for the U.S.".

Baradar also accused the former U.S. administration of not succeeding in acting in accordance with the agreement signed of withdrawal negotiations in Doha in February last year.

Talks between the two parties are not unusual, but it has happened rarely before. The relations of the two have not always been as close as they are now as both were enemies not so long ago.

Previously, the Afghan militants have been fighting against the western-backed government in Kabul, and against army and NATO allies, funded by Saudi Arab and later by private foundations, however, soon the financing decreased and the group sought to look for a new ally that came in as Iran while, most Afghans also oppose the militant group’s relations with Iran.

WASHINGTON, 3 February, 2021 (TON): The US Senate lacks the authority to conduct his impeachment trial now that he has left office, said the former President Donald Trump’s lawyers on Tuesday.

The Democratic lawyers serving as prosecutors made him responsible for the 6 January, 2021 attack on the Capitol.

Trump’s legal team and the nine House of Representatives Democrats set to prosecute him filed briefs with the Senate one week before the trial is scheduled to begin.

The defense lawyers focused on an argument that won the support of 45 of the 50 Republicans in the 100-seat Senate in a failed vote to dismiss the case because Trump is a private citizen, who left office on 20 January, 2021.

The former President’s team also refused to accept that he had committed violence, saying in their 14-page brief that his remarks to supporters shortly before they stormed the Capitol that Democrats contend incited violence were protected under the US Constitution’s First Amendment right to free speech.

The Democrats on the other hand in the pretrial brief rejected the argument. The Democrats urged senators to convict Trump - which would require a two-thirds majority - and then bar him from again holding public office.

“There is no ‘January Exception’ to impeachment or any other provision of the Constitution,” they wrote. “Presidents do not get a free pass to commit high crimes and misdemeanors near the end of their term.”

The house impeached Trump for a charge that before the attack he incited insurrection with his speech to supporters.

“It would be perverse to suggest that our shared commitment to free speech requires the Senate to ignore the obvious: that President Trump is singularly responsible for the violence and destruction that unfolded in our seat of government on January 6,” the Democrats wrote.

Trump’s defense team argued that not only does the Senate lack the authority to put Trump on trial but that the chamber also has no jurisdiction to prevent him from holding office again.

Challenging the case against Trump on the grounds that the Senate lacks constitutional authority to put a former president on trial would enable his fellow Republicans to vote against conviction without directly defending his incendiary remarks.

Trump’s defense team argued that not only does the Senate lack the authority to put Trump on trial but that the chamber also has no jurisdiction to prevent him from holding office again.

The Constitution states that conviction can lead to “removal from Office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the United States.”

“The 45th President of the United States performed admirably in his role as president, at all times doing what he thought was in the best interests of the American people,” Trump’s defense team said.

It is noted that the lawmakers claim Trump’s conduct to be offending for the constitution, apart from that, in order to secure a conviction, 17 Republicans would need to join the Senate’s 50 Democrats in the vote which seems a daunting hurdle.

JERUSALEM, 3 February, 2021 (TON): Israel and Kosovo established diplomatic ties on Monday, with the Muslim-majority territory recognizing Jerusalem as the Jewish state’s capital.

Kosovo moved its embassy to Jerusalem that recognized the city as Israel’s capital.

The decision followed Israel’s normalization of ties with four Arab states under a series of deals made by the former US President Donald Trump, collectively known as the Abraham Accords that took place last year.

Unlike Kosovo’s decision to relocate their embassy, those who were part of the Abraham Accords - the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan have not recognized the city as the capital yet.

As a bilateral relationship, Kosovo gets recognition from Israel as the country looked to legitimize its 2008 declaration of independence from its former war foe Serbia.

The officials signed joint declarations separately on Monday in Jerusalem and Pristina.

Kosovo’s top diplomat, Meliza Haradinaj-Stublla, extended gratitude towards Israel for becoming the 117th country to recognize its independence and joining much of the Western world.

“Kosovo has waited for a very long time to establish diplomatic relations with Israel,” Haradinaj-Stublla said.

It is clear that the ties between the two are burgeoning as the two countries have recognized each other; nevertheless, there are states like China, Russia, and other five EU member states that have not granted recognition to Kosovo.

DHAKA, 3 February, 2021 (TON): The country would move forward proving its enemies wrong despite the propaganda being carried out against it at home and abroad said the Bangladesh Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday.

"Bangladesh is moving forward and it will continue doing so proving its enemies wrong. Propaganda is being carried out in different ways at home and abroad. I believe if we work with honesty, people will get the benefits of that work," she said.

She addressed in the 11^th session of the 11^th parliament, and also it was an address on the thanksgiving motion on the president’s speech.

The 11th session of Jatiya Sangsad terminated yesterday after 12 sittings.

While discussing the politics, Hasina said, the BNP was suffering from a lack of leadership and people did not have any trust and confidence in the party as convicted and fugitive accused were at its helm.

The Awami League gained people's trust and confidence, which was reflected in the results of the recent polls to local bodies, she added.

After the PM's address, the thanksgiving motion on the president's speech was adopted unanimously by the House.

Altogether, 133 lawmakers from the government and opposition benches spoke on the motion for 25 hours and 25 minutes.

Hasina said, "People are now getting services from Awami League, development of the country is going on and the people's wellbeing is being improved. Accordingly, Awami League has gained people's trust and confidence. We saw its reflection in the local government elections."

She stated that the people are enthusiastic about casting ballots and elections are being held in a free and fair manner.

"Polling is now being held through electronic voting machines (EVMs) and there is no scope for committing irregularities. I thank the people for exercising their voting rights and expressing their opinion."

She said there is no system for influencing the polls by using muscle power. "Yes, troubles might occur among councilor candidates in some places during the elections to local bodies."

The leader of the House pointed out that because of some rigging votes, some previous governments were forced to step down.

She also focused on the ongoing situation in the country, including the pandemic, imprisonments, institutions, etc.  

The leader seemed confident in coping with the condition of the country and openly claimed non-appreciation from the countrymen and others, besides being praised by the most worldwide.

DUSAMAREB, 3 February, 2021 (TON): To avoid the constitutional crisis, Somalia has opened urgent talks with the regional authorities in Dusamareb, as the nation looks certain to miss the 8 February deadline to elect the new president.

 Somalia's president, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohammed, has convened an urgent 3-day meeting with federal state leaders. 

The conference is an attempt to break the election deadlock and avoid getting into a constitutional crisis.

The president’s mandate, Farmajo expires on 8 February, 2021.

Somalia's president is elected by the country's lawmakers made up of 275 members of parliament and 54 senators. But Somalia has failed to hold the necessary ballot to choose new lawmakers, so no new president can be elected.

"We are expecting to have amicable and open discussions for a fruitful solution to unlock the deadlock and create hopes for the people of Somalia regarding the election issues," said Somalia's information minister, Osman Dubbe.

Analysts are of the view that even if the agreement is reached, it is very certain that the election cannot happen by 8 February.

"I don't think there's any chance at all of the elections taking place before the end of this government's mandate," said Bryden, Senior Strategic Advisor at Sahan, a research institute with a focus on the Horn of Africa.

"Parliament's mandate already expired last month and the president's last day in the office is less than a week away. And there have been no preparations, no agreement on the type of electoral process that's supposed to happen," he told the media.

It welcomed the Dusamareb conference and urged those attending to come to an agreement on how the elections should proceed, the UN in Somalia said

Many view this meeting as the last chance to have the hopes attached with that it would resolve the election impasse, otherwise, if the federal and regional leaders are unsuccessful at finalizing the disputed electoral models it is likely to say that Somalia will be an uncharted area with no presidential and parliamentary mandate.   

LONDON, 3 February, 2021 (TON): The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Boris Johnson has demanded urgent action from the European Union (EU) amid post Brexit rising tensions on checking at the Northern Ireland ports.

UK and EU leaders are to hold talks in an effort to calm the trade issues between Britain and Northern Ireland (NI), meanwhile, the checks on goods were suspended on Tuesday after the threats to the staff.  

Mr Johnson said the EU had "undermined" the Brexit deal by threatening emergency controls of Covid vaccine exports across the Irish border.

Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove, who will be representing the UK government in talks with the EU Commission and Northern Ireland's devolved administration, said a three-month grace period with lighter enforcement of EU rules should be extended beyond March.

The issue arose when the hauliers at the NI ports faced difficulties transporting goods from Britain, few parcel deliveries were hurdled and the supermarkets faced problems in restocking some products during the last month, although few of these problems have since been resolved.

"Trust has been eroded, the damage has been done and urgent action is therefore needed," Mr Gove told the House of Commons on Tuesday, adding that supermarkets and other businesses needed to be sure they could continue to supply consumers.

When the Brexit transition period ended in January, Northern Ireland remained in the EU single market while the rest of the UK left, meaning that checks had to be carried out on goods arriving from Great Britain.

The unionists on the other hand have criticized these rules, called the Northern Ireland protocol, as damaging to trade and posing a risk to UK unity.

Mr. Johnson said ahead of the meeting with the EU that his commitment to people of Northern Ireland and the union was "unshakeable".

He called for "urgent action from the EU to resolve outstanding problems" with the way the protocol was implemented, to preserve the Good Friday Agreement and ensure "Northern Ireland benefits from Brexit just like every other part of our United Kingdom".

He said, recent moves by the EU had "undermined the protocol and understandably provoked concern".

As it is seen, that the NI protocol was a part of the Brexit withdrawal agreement as it guarantees an open border between the EU and the NI. And it was introduced to avoid creating a hard border on the island of Ireland. However, there are some checks maintained at the products that are sent from Britain to Northern Ireland for the reason that Ireland is still a part of the EU single market for goods while rest of the UK is not.

MALI, 3 February, 2021 (TON): For the first time since 2012, when the rebels captured the fabled Malian city, a commercial flight landed in Timbuktu on Monday.

With this move, a new link for local airline Sky Mali is launched.

The flight carried a delegation including two ministers, the plane landed after making the 700-kilometer (435-mile) journey from the capital Bamako via the central city Mopti in two hours.

However, the people who travel on the same route or along the river still face attacks from the terror groups.

Owned by Emirati investment firm Al Sayegh Group, Sky Mali plans two Bamako-Timbuktu flights per week with stopovers in Mopti.

It has already set up links to Kayes on the Senegalese border and Gao in Mali's north since its founding last July.

The attacks and inter-ethnic fighting have roiled northern Mali for years, spreading southward into the country's center as well as across its borders.

Some controversial groups occupied Timbuktu in 2012, an ancient city was known until then for its treasured historic Islamic manuscripts and as an exotic destination for tourists from all over the world.

The tombs of 333 "Muslim saints" in the city are believed by locals to offer protection and have earned it the status of a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Some places were partially destroyed by the rebel group, but UNESCO helped in rebuilding them.

The condition in the area has not yet resolved, therefore, the tourist trade has not returned to Timbuktu.

BHOPAL, 3 February, 2021 (TON): Congress MP Digvijaya Singh raises FIR against the journalist and Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, after the 26 January, 2021 issue in Delhi Tractor March.

He said, "This leads to harassment of the concerned person" as they have been charged with sedition and requested the Home Minister to look into the matter.

The Congress MP, Shashi Tharoor claimed that the FIR registered in three other states is of the same type.

The Noida police booked Member of Parliament Shashi Tharoor, journalists Rajdeep Sardesai, Mrinal Pande, Vinod K. Jose (Caravan), and others for sedition.

An FIR lodged at the Sector-20 police station on Thursday, stated that they were booked for spreading fake news pertaining to the death of a farmer during the tractor rally on this Republic Day.

The names included in the FIR were Zafar Agha, the Group Editor-in-Chief of National Herald, and Ananth Nath, the Editor of Caravan.

The farmers’ issue in India has become the center of attention for all and has caught many eyes on it. The national stance on the issue is likely to be that the few politicians and journalists are being involved in promoting enmity between different groups on the basis of religion, race, living, etc, and spreading acts that are harming the national integration.