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Turkey says parts of Syria to become ‘safe zones’

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Foreign minister says areas cleared of fighters belonging to ISIL can become haven for Syrians displaced by war.

Turkey says areas cleared of ISIL fighters in Syria could be used as safe zones for displaced Syrians [Reuters]

Turkey says areas cleared of ISIL fighters in Syria could be used as safe zones for displaced Syrians [Reuters]

by Al Jazeera

Turkey has said areas in north Syria cleared of fighters belonging to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group will become safe zones.

Saturday’s announcement made by Mevlut Cavusoglu, the Turkish foreign minister, came after Ankara announced it had begun bombing ISIL positions in Syria and and Kurdish fighters’ camps in northern Iraq.

“When areas in northern Syria are cleared of the (ISIL) threat, the safe zones will be formed naturally,” Cavusoglu told a news conference.

“We have always defended safe zones and no-fly zones in Syria. People who have been displaced can be placed in those safe zones.”

The conflict in Syria has displaced more than 10 million people, with many residing in makeshift camps near the Turkish border.These areas have been targeted a number of times by Syrian military bombardment. The Turkish government has repeatedly called for the setting-up of safe zones to protect these people.

Several Turkish media outlets had earlier reported the government was considering setting up a 33km-wide safe zone inside Syria, stretching from the outskirts of Kurdish-held Kobane to areas controlled by pro-Western rebel groups.

Its purpose would be to strengthen the rebels’ hand against ISIL and prevent the Kurdish fighters from capturing new border areas.

Third wave of attacks

Turkish forces on Saturday unleashed a third wave of air strikes and ground attacks against the two targeted factions.

“We have given instructions for a third series of strikes in Syria and Iraq. Air and ground operations are under way,” Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told reporters in Ankara, adding that 590 suspected ISIL and PKK members were arrested in raids across Turkey.

The military action by Ankara was seen as a potential game changer in the war against ISIL.

Turkey earlier this week approved the full use of its airbases by the US-led coalition against ISIL, according to the foreign ministry, marking a major change in its policy following a suicide bomb attack in Suruc , bordering Syria.

The offensive against the PKK came after the Kurdish group claimed attacks on security forces in the last days.

A spokesman in Iraq for the PKK, which has been fighting Turkey for autonomy since 1984 and is considered a terrorist organization by Ankara and its allies, said the strikes likely spelled the end of the peace process.

“Turkey has basically ended the cease-fire,” Zagros Hiwa told the AP news agency.

Delhi court dismisses allegations against Sreesanth, two others

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Sreesanth

New Delhi: A Delhi court on Saturday discharged three accused cricketers, including S. Sreesanth, Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan.
All the 36 accused persons including former India capped cricketer S Sreesanth were discharged in the IPL-6 spot fixing case by a Delhi court.

Other two prominent IPL players -Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan who were on bail were also discharged in the case in which six persons including underworld don Dawood Ibrahim and his aide Chhota Shakeel were declared proclaimed offenders.

All are discharged (from the case), Additional Sessions Judge Neena Bansal Krishna said while pronouncing the order. The case was today put for order on framing of charges against the 36 accused persons who were on bail.

Sreesanth, 32, broke down on hearing the order while the other accused including the players present in the courtroom started hugging each other.

Sreesanth said “at last justice has been done to him, adding, God willing, I will be able to return to cricket. I have no regrets, no complaints.

The court had on May 23 reserved for today the order on framing of charges in the case. Special Cell of Delhi Police had named 42 accused in the case in its charge sheet out of whom six are absconding.

Police had told the court that properties of Dawood and Shakeel in Mumbai have already been attached in connection with the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case and that they have not visited India since 1993.

Police had informed the court that Dawood had properties in his name at Dongri in Mumbai whereas Shakeel owned properties in Nagpada there.

The court had earlier issued non-bailable warrants against Dawood and Shakeel, Pakistan-based Javed Chutani, Salman alias Master and Ehteysham, who all are considered to be Dawood’s associates.

The police had filed a 6,000-page charge sheet against various accused in the case. It had also filed supplementary charge sheet later on. The court had granted bail to Sreesanth, Chavan and other accused for lack of evidence against them under the provisions of stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).

Other accused, including Chandila, were also granted bail later on by the court. The police, in its charge sheet, had claimed that Dawood and Shakeel, who have been controlling the fixing and betting market in cricket in India, were behind IPL spot-fixing.

(Agencies)

Karnataka: Angry Siddaramaiah flings copy of budget into well of Assembly

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Siddaramaiah

Bengaluru: Ruling Congress and BJP members were locked in a verbal clash in Karnataka Assembly today over alleged cut in funding of centrally-sponsored schemes, with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, angry with disruptions, flinging a copy of the budget into the well of the House.

Amidst chaos and charges, the Assembly passed demands for grants by various departments and the money Bill by a voice vote.

The two parties sparred during the Chief Minister’s reply to the discussion as he accused the NDA government of reducing funding for centrally-sponsored schemes.

Angered by BJP’s repeated disruption and allegations of giving wrong information, Siddaramaih threw a copy of budget into the well of the House, which led to heated arguments between both sides.

Following this, the BJP members entered into the well of the House shouting slogans against the Congress government and the Chief Minister.

As repeated attempts by Speaker Kagodu Thimmappa to convince BJP members to allow Chief Minister to continue with the reply failed, he put the demands and money Bill to vote, and amidst protest and sloganeering they were passed by a voice vote.

In his reply, Siddaramaiah claimed his government is transparent and corruption free.

“Ours is a corruption free, pro-people government. There have been no allegations of corruption against our government in the last two years,” he said.

He also measured transparency standard of his government by pointing out that it has handed over six cases till date to CBI while the previous BJP government had not handed over even a single case.

(Agencies)

CBSE’s new dress code: Kerala nun denied from giving AIPMT with veil, cross

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AIPMT

Thiruvananthapuram: A Keralite nun was today denied permission to take the the All India Pre Medical Entrance Test (AIPMT) here after she refused to remove her veil and Holy cross as required under the CBSE’s new dress code.

Sister Saiba, who was to take the test at the Jawahar central school here this morning, said she sought permission to write the examination with her veil and cross.

However, the school Principal told her about the guidelines issued by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE).
She then requested for a separate room to write the examination without the veil and cross, but it was not accepted by the school authorities, she told mediapersons.

“I requested that I may be given a separate room where I will remove the veil and cross and write the test, but that was not allowed,” she said.

The Principal told her that she was also a Christian and understood her plight, but as per CBSE guidelines, veil and Holy cross cannot be permitted inside the examination hall.

Many students were seen removing head scarfs, ear ringsand all other articles banned before entering the hall at various examination centres in the state. They were allowed inside only after body frisking.

The Supreme Court had yesterday refused to entertain plea of an Islamic organisation that Muslim girl applicants be allowed to wear ‘hijab’ (scarf), a customary religious dress, while appearing for the AIPMT.

“Faith is something different from wearing some kind of cloth,” a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice H L Dattu stated, adding the AIPMT was being held again at its direction and some “reasonable restrictions” were needed.

Kerala High Court had earlier granted conditional permission to two Muslim girls to appear for the test wearing hijab.
In the backdrop of large scale irregularities in the AIPMT held in May this year, the apex court had directed CBSE to conduct a second test following which CBSE imposed a strict dress code, banning jeweleries, hair pins, head scarf or veils, shoes, watches and all electronic devices.

Reacting to the incident, Syro Malabar Church spokesperson Father Paul Thelekkat, said it was “unfortunate” that the nun was not permitted to write the test.

“The Catholic church does not consider veil as the most important religious symbol of the Catholic faith. At the same time, we do not subscribe to the view of the Supreme court Chief Justice that 3-4 hours without veil does not make any difference. It does make and it is up to the citizen to take the decision”, he said here.

(Agencies)

Impotency, love affairs behind farmer suicides, says Modi’s Agriculture Minister

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Radha-Mohan-Singh

New Delhi: Dowry, love affairs and impotency were among the reasons for the deaths of over 1,400 farmers in India this year, Narendra Modi-led Union government’s Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh said in a written reply in Rajya Sabha on Friday.

“According to the National Crime Records Bureau, causes of (farmer) suicides include family problems, illness, drugs…dowry, love affairs and impotency,” he told the Rajya Sabha in a written reply to a question as to what caused the death of so many farmers in the country.

The minister’s reply, however, did not rule out debt as one of the reasons. The remarks on suicide by over 1,400 farmers in the last one year, by the government’s own admission, are bound to provide fresh fodder to a belligerent opposition, which has been targeting the Narendra Modi government on the controversial land bill, dubbed as “anti-farmer and anti-poor”.

A total of 5,650 farmers committed suicide in 2014, with the maximum deaths reported from Maharashtra, Telangana and Chhattisgarh, official data revealed.

According to “Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India 2014” report released by the bureau, of the 5,650 farmers who committed suicide, 5,178 were men and 472 were women. “The highest incidents of 2,568 suicides of farmers were in Maharashtra (45.5%), followed by 898 suicides in Telangana (15.9%) and 826 in Madhya Pradesh (14.6%),” the data revealed.

(Agencies)

US air strike kills top Al Qaeda commander in Afghanistan

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Al Qaeda commander in Afghanistan

Baghdad: A US air strike in Afghanistan killed a senior Al Qaeda commander in charge of suicide bombing and two other militants, the Pentagon said Friday.

The attack, which occurred in Paktika province on July 11, killed Abu Khalil al-Sudani, a “high-ranking Al-Qaeda operational commander”, the Pentagon said in a statement released to reporters in Iraq who were travelling with US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter.

“Al-Sudani was one of three known violent extremists killed in the strike. The death of al-Sudani will further degrade Al Qaeda operations across the globe,” the statement said.

The Pentagon described Sudani as a senior shura member and head of Al Qaeda’s suicide and explosive operations, and said he was directly linked to plotting attacks against the United States.

“He also directed operations against Coalition, Afghan and Pakistani forces, and maintained a close association with Aymar al-Zawahiri, Al Qaeda’s leader,” the statement said.

In the statement, Carter said the killing of Sudani underscored the work done by General John Campbell, the commander of Nato forces in Afghanistan, and his troops “to take the fight to Al Qaeda”.

“We will continue to counter violent extremism in the region and the world,” Carter said

(AFP)

Bombay HC Extends Teesta Setalvad’s Interim Bail for 2 Weeks

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Teesta Setalvad

Mumbai: The Bombay high court on Friday granted protection from arrest for two weeks to activist Teesta Setalvad and her husband, hours after a lower court denied them anticipatory bail amid accusations that their NGO received funds from the United States-based Ford Foundation without government authorisation.

Setalvad, a long-time critic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said she was being persecuted by the government for her campaign against the Gujarat riots of 2002 when the BJP leader was chief minister.

“I am shocked and aggrieved by the verdict as this is a petty offence. My sympathisers feel that this is an attempt (by the government) to intimidate and possibly eliminate us by the powers (sic),” she said after the sessions court rejected her bail application.

The couple’s lawyers approached the high court anticipating arrest for custodial interrogation sought by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The agency registered a case against Setalvad and her husband, Javed Anand, on July 8 and raided their home and offices a week later.

A bank account of the NGO, Sabrang Communications and Publishing Pvt Ltd located in Mumbai, was frozen on the instructions of the home ministry. Sources said documents recovered by the agency appeared to support its allegations.

The activist recently said she was cooperating with the CBI and her organisation’s arrangement with the Ford Foundation was permitted under law, while she panned the investigating agency for calling her a “national threat”.

Setalvad has also been accused by Gujarat police of using funds meant for victims of the Gujarat riots on purchasing wine and expensive mobile phones, apart from tampering with evidence.

(Agencies)

Pro Kabaddi: Telugu Titans beat Bengal Warriors

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telugu-titans-kabaddi

Kolkata: Telugu Titans came out on top of Bengal Warriors in a Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) encounter that had forutnes swinging like a pendulum at the Netaji Indoor Stadium here on Thursday.

Last two raid points from Rahul Chaudhuri and a tackle made all the difference as the visitors edged past the Kolkata-based franchise 32-30.

With the win, Titans remain second on the leader board, collecting three wins from as many games whereas Warriors are still fourth, managing only one win from three outings.

The Titans were off to a steady start as they pocketed three consecutive points, but the Warriors roared back into the contest with successful raids from skipper Dinesh Kumar.

Kumar was well supported by South Korean recruit Jang Kun Lee who tried being cheeky and was smart with his little toe flicks.

The Titans too had their moments in the first half as their allrounder Deepak Nivas Hudda – adjudged best defender of the match – later collected eight points for his team.

But it was Lee – declared best raider – again who gave the home side the advantage in the last few seconds of the first half as he collected three touch points from a raid.

At the breather, Warriors led 16-10.

The Titans were quick off the blocks again amassing four consecutive points. Warriors responded with Lee pocketing two more but the rivals kept on coming at them.

With the home side ahead 19-18, Warriors star raider Sunil Jaipal accounted for three off the rival players in a “super raid” collecting four precious points.

However, the Titans with their never say die attitude, rallied back, courtesy some superb defending and dashy raids from Prashant Rai K. and Hudda.

With Titans leading by a point, Lee once again came to the forefront with a few good points including a “super raid”.

But Chaudhuri settled the issueby dragging two defenders to the middle line.

(IANS)

Noam Chomsky: ‘The Real Question is…What Exactly Is The Threat of Iran?’

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Scholar and activist questions the need for a nuclear agreement when Iran has not violated the nonproliferation treaty

Noam Chomsky tells Al Jazeera that Iran did not deserve to be sanctioned to begin with. (Photo: Andrew Rusk/flickr/cc)

Noam Chomsky tells Al Jazeera that Iran did not deserve to be sanctioned to begin with. (Photo: Andrew Rusk/flickr/cc)

by Nadia Prupis, Common Dreams

As U.S. Congress considers signing the unprecedented nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers announced earlier this month, renowned scholar and activist Noam Chomsky on Wednesday asked a less-considered question: “Why is the deal being pursued?”

The deal constrains what is referred to as “the Iranian threat,” Chomsky said, “but what exactly is the threat?”

In an interview with Al Jazeera reporter Antonio Mora, Chomsky stated that Iran—which is a party to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT), an agreement that seeks to achieve global disarmament—has “lived up to” the mandates of that accord, despite allegations it has violated some of them by failing to declare its enriched uranium program.

“I don’t think anyone ought to have nuclear weapons, including the United States, but that’s not the issue,” Chomsky said. “If Iran’s alleged noncompliance with the NPT is an issue—and I add alleged—that certainly doesn’t require sanctions or a treaty or any other actions.”

Chomsky, who has previously described the U.S. treatment of Iran as “torture,” said on Wednesday that the U.S. and Israel “freely use force and violence” throughout the Middle East—unlike Iran, which would only use nuclear power as a deterrent.

“Furthermore, the U.S. is quite open about [their use of force],” Chomsky continued.

Asked what the U.S. should do if a terrorist plot was developing in a remote area of the region, Chomsky noted that the question illustrates the egregious double-standards of American foreign policy. “We feel free to attack people anywhere and kill them who we claim might be planning to harm us in the future. If anyone else did that, we’d nuke them,” he said.

Watch the interview below:

Amanath Bank Case: Every penny of the depositors should be returned, says judge

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Amanath-Bank

Bengaluru: A single bench by Justice Nazir adjourned the Ama­nath Co-operative Bank trial on Thursday after the strong argument on the recovery of the depositors’ fund.

Bench also asked for meeting all the depositors before confirming on the conversion of the deposits to the share capital and recover the loss.

Every penny of the depositors should be returned, said the judge.

Rahmatullah Kotwal, Amanath Bank’s defense counsel, told Nasheman.in that 32 crores of the depositors’ money will be converted to share capital. He also said that if former Union Minister C.K. Jaffer Sharief, as part of his attempt to revive the loss-making bank, deposit Rs. 75 crore as share capital, then he will have the liberty to choose his own set of directors.

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