Latest world news
Trump visit is to strengthen Israel against Iran: Tillerson
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Secretary of State Rex Tillerson says Iran has destabilized the Middle East
By Abu Turab
US President Donald Trump’s upcoming visit to Saudi Arabia is aimed to “stand in unity” with Israel against Iran.
In an exclusive interview to NBC on Sunday, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said, “I think there is a broad view and consensus among all in the region, among all Arab nations, among Israel and among others of Iran’s destabilizing activities in the region.”
In a recent interview to al-Arabia TV, Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, who is also the Defence Minister, had rejected the possibility of normalising ties with Iran and threatened military intervention in Iran. He said, “We will not wait until the battle is in Saudi Arabia, but we will work so the battle is there in Iran.”
Arguing the purpose of Trump’s maiden foreign trip to Saudi Arabia, Israel and the Vatican, Tillerson said, “I think the important aspect of this visit that the President is making is to bring a message of unity’ among the followers of these religions (Judaism, Christianity and Muslims) in the face of the threats posed by Daesh (IS) and al-Qaeda.”
When NBC anchor Chuck Todd asked if Trump was going to touch sectarian conflicts (Sunni-Shia) in the region, Tillerson said, “However, there is a strong element of the role that the nation of Iran plays in support of terrorism.”
Meanwhile, renowned writer Patrick Cockburn, in his article published in the Independent on May 12, said, “The next week’s meeting of Donald Trump, the most dangerous man on the planet, with Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, a source of instability in the Middle East, is a threat to peace.”
Cockburn is an Irish journalist who has worked as Middle East correspondent for the Financial Express and Independent. His professional assignments took him to Moscow and Washington as well. He has written three books on recent Iraq history and received several prizes. Renowned American journalist Seymour Hersh has described him the “best western journalist at work in Iraq today”.
The writer criticised the Prince’s aggressive and reckless foreign policy approach, especially his aggression against Yemen and Saudi support for al-Qaeda linked militants in Syria. He said the 31-year-old Deputy Crown Prince “has won a reputation for impulsiveness, aggression and poor judgment in the two-and-a-half years he has held power”. Cockburn said the Prince would seek Trump’s help in his confrontation with Iran.
Press TV, Iran’s official network, in its May 5 report, said that Trump is planning to sign a multi-billion dollar weapons deal with Saudi Arabia, including the possible sale of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile system, developed by Lockheed Martin, similar to the one the US has sent to South Korea.
Trump will also offer a $11.5-billion deal for four multi-mission warplanes and technical support, which was approved by the State Department in 2015, but could not be finished because of disagreements on both sides.
Saudi Arabia had distanced itself from Washington after former US President Barack Obama’s push for the historic nuclear deal between Iran and the six world powers.
It would be interesting to note that the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) was founded on May 25, 1981, a few months after then Iraqi ruler Saddam Hussein invaded Iran in September 1980. The GCC member states: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE, all US allies in the region, extended full moral and material support to Saddam Hussein for crushing the newly-established government after the Islamic Revolution of 1979.
In 2011, Saudi Arabia moved a proposal to transform the GCC into a ‘Gulf Union’ with tighter economic, political and military coordination to counterbalance the Iranian influence in the region.
According to the Saudi Gazette, Riyadh will host three different summit meetings including US-Saudi, US-GCC and US-Leaders from Arab and Islamic States, which are part of the Islamic Alliance to combat terrorism.
This alliance is engaged in the war against Yemen since March 2015. Till date over 12000 civilians have been killed while 3.3 million people, including 2.1 million children, are currently suffering from acute malnutrition.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
Latest world news
Suicide bombing near Turkey Parliament building in Ankara, 2 cops injured
Turkey’s main opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu has slammed the attack in Ankara and stated that terrorism is a crime against humanity.
Turkey’s interior minister Ali Yerlikaya on Sunday asserted that two terrorists carried out a bomb attack in front of the ministry buildings in Ankara. He added that one of them died in the explosion and the other was “neutralised” by authorities there.
Earlier, Turkish media reported that an explosion was heard near the parliament and ministerial buildings, and broadcasters showed footage of debris scattered on a street near the Interior Ministry. A footage from Reuters showed soldiers, ambulances, fire trucks and an armoured vehicle gathered near the centre of Turkey’s capital, where the police have blocked multiple key roads.
Taking to social media X, formerly Twitter, Ali Yerlikaya, the interior minister, said that two police officers were slightly injured in the incident at 9:30 a.m. He added that two terrorists came with a light commercial vehicle in front of the entrance gate of the General Directorate of Security of their Ministry of Internal Affairs and carried out a bomb attack.
The interior minister further mentioned that one of the terrorists blew himself up and the other was neutralised, which usually means was killed. He noted that their struggle will continue until the last terrorist is neutralised.
Reports said that Ankara’s chief prosecutor initiated an investigation into what it also called a terrorist attack. Authorities did not identify any specific militant group, as yet.
Meanwhile, Turkey’s main opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu has slammed the attack in Ankara and stated that terrorism is a crime against humanity. The leader of the Republican People’s Party mentioned that no matter from whom and where it came from, they will fight it together as a country and will never give treacherous ambitions a chance.
The concerned authorities in Ankara have cautioned the citizens over suspicious packages and bags that are being detonated in a controlled manner. Ankara Security Directorate asked citizens not to panic.
Latest world news
Balochistan blast: Pakistan alleges India’s involvement in suicide attack, toll rises to 60
Sarfaraz Bugti told media that civil, military and all other institution will jointly strike against the elements involved in the Mastung suicide bombing.
Pakistan interior minister Sarfaraz Bugti in a shocking claim alleged India’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) intelligence agency for the suicide blast in Balochistan. The blast that took place on Friday claimed the lives of nearly 60 people, leaving 60 others injured. The Indian government, on the other hand, is yet to make an official statement on Sarfaraz Bugti’s allegations.
The suicide bomb attack targeted a procession which gathered to celebrate Prophet Muhammad’s birthday near the Madina Masjid at a place called Mastung. The blast tore through the mosque in the southern province of Balochistan after the bomber denoted his explosive near a police vehicle where the people gathered for the procession.
Sarfaraz Bugti told media at Quetta that civil, military and all other institution will jointly strike against the elements involved in the Mastung suicide bombing. Without providing much details or evidence, the Pakistan minister claimed that RAW is involved in the suicide attack.
Wasim Baig, the spokesman for Balochistan’s health department, asserted that seven more people had died in hospital since Friday, which had caused the rise in the death toll. He added that more patients remained in critical condition.
In addition, a second attack on Friday at a mosque in northern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had killed nearly five people. Police on Saturday lodged a report to initiate an investigation, mentioning that they had sent DNA from the suicide bomb attacker to be analysed.
So far, no group has claimed responsibility for either attack. A surge in terror attacks in Pakistan’s western provinces has cast a shadow on preparations and public campaigning in the run-up to January’s general elections, but until now the attacks had mostly targeted security forces.
The Pakistani Taliban (TTP), which is responsible for some of the bloodiest attacks in Pakistan since the group’s formation in 2007, denied responsibility for Friday’s blasts. On Saturday, a statement from the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) said that an FIR with murder charges and terrorism offences has been registered against an unidentified attacker.
The caretaker government of Balochistan announced three days of mourning in the wake of the attack.
Latest world news
Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, Mahmood Qureshi held guilty in cipher case
The PTI leaders’ trial has been requested by the FIA, and it is expected that they would be sentenced in accordance with the law.
Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi were found guilty on Saturday by Pakistan’s top investigating agency in the cypher case, a case involving the alleged exposure of state secrets.
The charge sheet against Khan, the Tehreek-e-Insaf party chairman, and Qureshi, who are both presently being held in custody on judicial remand, was submitted by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to a special court set up under the Official Secrets Act, according to the Pakistan Observer website.
Imran Khan, 70, was detained last month following the filing of a complaint against him for allegedly breaking the Official Secrets Act by revealing a covert diplomatic cable (cypher) issued by the nation’s embassy in Washington last year in March.
The PTI leaders’ trial has been requested by the FIA, and it is expected that they would be sentenced in accordance with the law.
The vice chairman of PTI is 75-year-old Shah Mahmood Qureshi. Asad Umar, the former general secretary of the PTI, is not on the FIA’s list of suspects, but former principal secretary Azam Khan has been portrayed as a key witness in the FIA’s case against Imran Khan, according to GeoTV, a well-known news outlet. The challan also contains Azam Khan’s statement recorded under sections 161 and 164.
The speeches by Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Imran Khan from March 27 are also included in the FIA’s attachment.
The Pakistan Observer further noted that the FIA had provided the court with a list of 28 witnesses in addition to the charge sheet. According to the report, the list of witnesses includes names such as current foreign secretary Asad Majid, previous foreign secretary Sohail Mahmood, and additional foreign secretary Faisal Niaz Tirmizi.
Imran Khan had been imprisoned on remand three times earlier on September 26. Along with Qureshi, his judicial remand was initially extended until September 13 and then again until September 26.
The former PM was transferred from Attock prison to the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi on the same day, one day after the Islamabad High Court instructed authorities to do so.
