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Pakistan: Heatwave devastates Karachi, other parts of Sindh; at least 136 dead

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EDHI volunteers and relatives shift the dead body of a heatwave victim into an ambulance at the EDHI morgue.—AFP

EDHI volunteers and relatives shift the dead body of a heatwave victim into an ambulance at the EDHI morgue.—AFP

by Hasan Mansoor, Dawn

Karachi: Despite the Met office’s academic conclusion about Karachi’s weather sliding down a notch, a devastating heatwave gripping Sindh for several days has taken a toll of at least 136 people in the province — 132 only in the metropolis. Most of them were pronounced dead at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), officials said on Sunday.

They said 85 of the people who had suffered heatstroke were either brought dead or died in JPMC. Thirty people died in the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital (ASH) on Saturday night and Sunday, nine in Lyari General Hospital and six in the Civil Hospital Karachi (CHK).

“Some 85 people have died since late Saturday night,” Dr Seemin Jamali, joint executive director of JPMC, told Dawn.

Most of them were men aged 50 or more.

“Thirty people were brought dead while another 55, who were in critical condition, died in the hospital during treatment,” Dr Jamali said, adding that severe heat was to blame for all the deaths — the alarming number of deaths has no precedent in the country’s recent history.

“They were brought to the hospital unconscious, suffering from high grade fever with pulse hardly visible and blood pressure barely noticeable,” said the JPMC official.

Many patients told their doctors that they had collapsed suddenly during the sizzling day and suffered extreme breathing problem.

The officials said the first patient of heatstroke was brought to JPMC at around 10pm on Saturday and by the filing of this report the number of such patients almost touched 100.

“The situation is that we are still receiving patients suffering from heatstroke,” said an official at JPMC.

KARACHI: Relatives mourn the death of a heatstroke victim at an Edhi morgue on Sunday.—AFP

Dr Salma Kauser, senior director (medical and health) at the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation, which oversees all KMC hospitals, said 20 people died in ASH on Sunday. Seven people were brought dead on late Saturday late and the cause of death was ascertained hours later.

Of the 20 people, 13 were brought dead to the ASH and seven died during treatment, said Dr Kauser.

Six women and five children were among the dead.

She said that more than 100 people were under treatment in various hospitals run by the KMC.

Nine people died because of sunstroke in Lyari General Hospital, six in Civil Hospital and two in KPT Hospital.

Sindh health secretary Saeed Ahmed Mangnejo said two deaths each were reported from Jacobabad and Larkana.

Dr Hasan Murad Shah, director general health, said that since it was Sunday the figures, if any, of the heatstroke patients might be landing his office on Monday.

Saturday was the hottest day of this year’s summer in Karachi, where the mercury had shot to 45 degree Celsius. The maximum temperature of 48 degree Celsius was recorded in three districts of Sindh — Jacobabad, Larkana and Sukkur — on Saturday, which slid down to 41 on Sunday.

The officials said the city would not see any let-up on Monday when temperatures are expected to go up to 44 degree Celsius.

The highest temperature Karachi ever experienced was 48 degree Celsius on May 9, 1938.

“There might be some patients of heatstroke at some private hospitals, but no major hospitals in Nawabshah, Sukkur, Khairpur, Ghotki, Shikarpur, Nausheroferoze, Qambar and Kashmore have reported any such deaths,” Dr Shah said.

Similarly, he said, no deaths or heat-related incidents had been reported from central and southern parts of Sindh.

Most of the people died belonged to poor neighbourhoods, lived in small houses and worked on daily wages.

A volunteer sits beside a window, while waiting for the relatives of a deceased who died due to intense hot weather.—Reuters

Officials at the Edhi Foundation said they had expedited the process of burying bodies as the number of new bodies arriving in their morgue had suddenly swollen and also because the temperatures were too high for the cooling facility.

Early this month, 17 people died because of heatstroke in Sehwan during the Urs of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar.

Taliban stages deadly attack on Afghan parliament

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At least five people and seven attackers killed after suicide car bomb and gunfire rock sitting session of parliament.

The attack apparently started when a suicide car bomb exploded outside the parliament [Reuters]

The attack apparently started when a suicide car bomb exploded outside the parliament [Reuters]

by Al Jazeera

The Afghan parliament has been attacked by Taliban fighters in Kabul, with a series of explosions and gunfire forcing politicians to evacuate.

Al Jazeera’s Jennifer Glasse, reporting from Kabul, said five people were killed, in addition to the seven fighters who launched the attack on Monday.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the raid, which injured at least 21 people, including five women and three children.

About two hours after the initial explosion, police declared the operation had ended with seven attackers being killed – including a suicide car bomber.

“Suicide bombers have attacked outside the [parliamentary] building,” she said, adding that gunfire continued to be heard for more than an hour after the first explosion. “There are burning cars outside the building.”

A police source at the scene told Al Jazeera that the attack apparently started when a suicide car bomb exploded outside the parliament.

Attackers then continued the attack, firing from a building under construction across the street, the source said.

Police said at least three police officers were injured in the attack, along with others outside the building who could not yet be reached.

Local news organisations reported that at least six explosions were heard in the vicinity of the parliament.

Glasse, who was watching parliamentary proceedings on TV at the time of the attack, said that the parliamentary speaker was at the podium when the video camera started to shake.

“We heard two loud explosions and people nearby heard gunfire,” she said, adding that the politicians evacuated from the parliament.

“Right now, the parliament is empty and full of smoke.”

Monday’s session of parliament was well attended because the defence minister nominee was to be introduced by the second vice president. Neither was in the building at the time of the attack.

Members of parliament have now been evacuated to safety.

The Taliban has been on the offensive across the country in recent weeks – taking control of districts in northern Kunduz province and staging attacks in southern Helmand province.

Palestine to submit first file to ICC for Israel investigation

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“It certainly draws a grim picture of what Israel is doing and why we think that there are reasonable grounds," said Palestinian Foreign Ministry official Ammar Hijazi of the file Palestine plans to submit to the ICC. (Al Bawaba/File)

“It certainly draws a grim picture of what Israel is doing and why we think that there are reasonable grounds,” said Palestinian Foreign Ministry official Ammar Hijazi of the file Palestine plans to submit to the ICC. (Al Bawaba/File)

by Press TV

Palestinian officials are planning to submit their first file to the International Criminal Court (ICC) to open criminal proceedings against the Israeli regime.

The file will be sent to the ICC chief prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, on June 25, and will focus on the violations of international law by Israel, Palestinian Foreign Ministry official, Ammar Hijazi, told reporters in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah on Thursday.

The move is part of Palestinians’ attempt against the Tel Aviv regime and the crimes it has committed against Palestinian territories, including crimes committed during the latest Israeli war on the besieged Gaza Strip last year.

The file is “only general, it’s only statistical,” Hijazi said, adding, “But it certainly draws a grim picture of what Israel is doing and why we think that there are reasonable grounds… for the prosecutor to start (her) investigations.”

He further noted that Palestinian officials would submit the details of specific incidents if Bensouda decides to proceed with inquiries.

Bensouda’s office has already launched a preliminary examination into the crimes that took place since June 2014, when an Israeli-fueled unrest led to another war between Israel and the Palestinians of the Gaza Strip.

The Palestinian Authority officially joined the ICC on April 1, becoming the 123rd member of The Hague-based court.

The Palestinian decision to join the ICC was made in January after decades of negotiations with Israel failed to put an end to Tel Aviv’s policy of expanding illegal settlements on the occupied Palestinian lands.

Israel started its latest war on the Gaza Strip in early July last year. The offensive ended on August 26, 2014 with a truce that took effect through indirect negotiations in the Egyptian capital, Cairo.

Nearly 2,200 Palestinians, including more than 500 children, were killed in Israel’s 50-day onslaught. Over 11,100 people were also injured.

UN: Millions face food emergency in war-torn Yemen

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Ongoing conflict creating “emergency level” scarcity of staple foods and other commodities, new report finds.

Children fetching water in Yemen's capital Sana'a. (Photo: UNICEF/Yasin)

Children fetching water in Yemen’s capital Sana’a. (Photo: UNICEF/Yasin)

by Al Jazeera

At least six million people in Yemen are in urgent need of emergency food and life-saving assistance, a new United Nations (UN) investigation has found.

The UN report, released on Thursday, said 10 out of Yemen’s 22 governorates are facing an “emergency level” food security situation amid the ongoing conflict, including major areas like Aden, Taiz, Saa’da and Al Baida.

“We are seeing a serious and sharp deterioration of the food security situation because of the ongoing conflict, which is also making humanitarian access difficult,” said Salah El Hajj Hassan, Yemen Representative of the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation.

“Unless access to the affected population is guaranteed to provide humanitarian assistance, further deterioration of the situation is very likely.”

The European Union-funded study said the ongoing conflict has created “a scarcity of staple foods and other essential commodities, disrupting livelihoods, markets, agriculture and fisheries, import, export and commercial activities, among others.”

“With the fluidity of the situation and until a political solution is in place, we will continue to see an increase in the number of people struggling to feed themselves and their families and further deterioration in food security across Yemen,” said Purnima Kashyap, a World Food Programme official.

Talks in Geneva between the exiled Yemeni government and the Houthi rebel group continue to stall, and have been extended until Friday.

Shortage during Ramadan

As Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of prayer and fasting, started on Thursday, Yemenis in the Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa said they are facing difficulties with the rise of living costs.

The Saudi-led coalition’s campaign and sanctions have meant fuel shortages and power cuts as well as a near halt on imports, leading to inflation in basic food items.

“We are suffering from a lack of water, electricity, fuel and from everything else,” said Sanaa resident Abdullah Saleh.

In Sanaa, tens of men, women and children line up daily to collect water from wells run by charities and what they gather is just about enough for their needs.

Power cuts have added to residents’ woes, especially as the holy month approaches.

“I don’t know how the Yemenis are going to welcome in the first day of Ramadan in light of a total or partial lack of fuel including gas, diesel and petrol and a suffocating food crisis,” said local resident Khaled al Awbaly.

'Elephant rockets' kill dozens in Damascus suburb

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Activists say improvised bombs dropped on rebel stronghold of Douma leave at least 36 people dead.

Men search for survivors at a site hit by what activists said was heavy shelling by the Syrian government on Douma [Reuters]

Men search for survivors at a site hit by what activists said was heavy shelling by the Syrian government on Douma [Reuters]

by Al Jazeera

The Syrian government has used so-called elephant rockets in an attack on the Damascus suburb of Douma, killing at least 36 people, including children, according to activists.

The rockets, named after the distinctive noise they make when they are launched, are improvised weapons made by attaching rocket motors to much larger bombs – a process that increases their destructive power while greatly reducing accuracy.

This greatly increases their destructive effect, while accuracy is lost and range is limited.

On Wednesday, activists accused the government of using surface-to-surface missiles in Douma as clashes continued between opposition fighters and government forces.

In video posted online of Tuesday’s attack, residents were seen scrambling to rescue a brother and sister trapped after a building was destroyed.

There were shouts of joy as the girl was pulled alive from the rubble while her brother could still be heard calling for help.

More than 60 people, including many children, were injured in the bombardment, activists said.

Syria’s state-run SANA news agency said two shells struck Arnous Park in Damascus late on Tuesday as many people were out shopping ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, expected to begin on Thursday. It says the shells killed nine people and wounded 13.

Improvised arsenal

The rebel stronghold of Douma has been under attack by forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad for the last three years.

Elephant rockets are part of an improvised arsenal used by government forces, who have already been condemned for using barrel bombs and chemical weapons on civilians.

Speaking in the US on Tuesday, John Kerry, secretary of state, said he was confident Assad’s government was responsible for a “preponderance” of chemical attacks against his own people.

“I think everybody’s patience is wearing thin with respect to the extraordinary depravity of the weaponry and mechanisms for delivery which Assad has used against his own people,” he said,

Kerry said he had discussed Syria’s use of chemical weapons with Sergei Lavrov, Russian foreign minister, by phone and was confident Lavrov would raise it with Assad, who agreed in 2013 under a US-Russia brokered deal to dismantle the country’s chemical weapons arsenal.

He said chemical weapons were dropped from aircraft and the US was putting together data to support its claims that Assad’s government was responsible for the attacks.

The UN Security Council is currently debating a draft resolution that will help determine who is responsible for using chlorine as a chemical weapon. Russia questions whether a resolution, being drafted by the US, is needed.

Kerry said it was possible that Syria’s opposition may also have had access to chemical weapons “at one point in time or another”, although he emphasised that rebel forces did not have access to aircraft or helicopters.

Rescuers managed to pull several people alive from the rubble in Douma [Reuters]

Although chlorine is not a prohibited substance, its use as a chemical weapon is prohibited under a 1977 Chemical Weapons Convention, which Syria joined in 2013.

Members of the Syrian Medical Society are expected to give evidence to the US foreign affairs committee on Wednesday that shows Assad is using chlorine on civilians.

The latest developments come as the UN envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura is in Damascus pushing for a political solution to end the conflict.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, with a network of sources on the ground, says it has documented 230,000 deaths in Syria’s war, almost 70,000 of them civilians.

Egypt court upholds Morsi death sentence

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Court confirms death sentence for deposed president Mohamed Morsi on charges related to a 2011 jailbreak case.

Former president Mohamed Morsi appeared inside a cage in the courtroom where he stood trial in Cairo [EPA]

Former president Mohamed Morsi appeared inside a cage in the courtroom where he stood trial in Cairo [EPA]

by Al Jazeera

An Egyptian court upheld a death sentence against deposed president Mohamed Morsi for plotting jailbreaks and attacks on police during the 2011 uprising.

The court had initially sentenced Morsi and more than 100 other defendants to death last month.

Tuesday’s ruling comes after the court consulted Egypt’s grand mufti, the government interpreter of Islamic law who plays an advisory role.

Earlier on Tuesday, the same court sentenced Morsi, the country’s first democratically elected president, to life in prison on charges of spying for the Palestinian Hamas movement, Lebanon’s Shia Hezbollah, and Iran.

Tuesday’s verdicts can be appealed.

Then army chief and now President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi ousted Morsi on July 3, 2013, and since then has overseen a sweeping crackdown against his supporters.

The crackdown has left hundreds of Muslim Brotherhood supporters dead and thousands jailed.

Hundreds have been sentenced to death after speedy mass trials described by the United Nations as “unprecedented in recent history”.

In the jailbreak trial, exiled Egyptian-born cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi was also condemned to death in absentia from his base in Qatar.

Libya says former al-Qaeda leader killed in US strike

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Tobruk-based government says Mokhtar Belmokhtar linked to 2013 Algeria gas attack killed in coordinated attack with US.

Belmokhtar was a leader of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb [EPA]

Belmokhtar was a leader of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb [EPA]

by Al Jazeera

Libya’s recognised government says that the leader of an al-Qaeda-linked group in Algeria, Mokhtar Belmokhtar, has been killed in a coordinated attack with the US.

Earlier on Sunday, the US Department of Defence said the US military conducted a counterterrorism strike against an al-Qaeda-associated target in Libya on Saturday night, but were assessing results before providing more details.

“The Libyan government in the east of Libya confirms that the US fighter jets conducted air strikes last night in a mission which resulted in the death of the terrorist Belmokhtar,” the internationally recognised government based in Tobruk said.

Al Jazeera’s Daniel Lak, reporting from Washington, said: “They are not saying a great deal in terms of details here in Washington. On the record the defence department has said that an air strike was carried out on an al-Qaeda-affiliated group described interestingly as a mid-level target.”

“More details have come from the Libyan government. The strike apparently took place in the east of the country near Tobruk, and according to Libyan news websites it was aimed at Ansar al-Sharia group where several commanders of the group were meeting.

“What we await is word here in Washington that indeed is the case.”

‘Mr Marlboro’

Belmokhtar was a leader of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, but later split from the group in 2012 to form his own militia, called Those Who Sign With Blood, that later became al-Mourabitoun.

He has been involved in cigarette smuggling and one of his nom de guerre is “Mr Marlboro”. He has also been associated with various groups involved in attacks on governments in the region including, Mali.

“Belmokhtar has a long resume of involvement in violence in the region. He came out of the Algerian civil war and struggled in 1990s and early 2000,” Al Jazeera’s Lak said.

“He has been involved in abduction of tourists and UN officials. He looms large over the Maghreb region and the Sahara desert,” he said.

Five million dollar bounty

The death of Belmokhtar has been declared at least on four occasions in recent years. In 2013, Chad’s military claimed to have killed Belmokhtar, who was behind a bloody mass hostage-taking at an Algerian gas plant the same year.

“If this is confirmed it will be a very significant development,” the Al Jazeera correspondent said.

The Americans have charged him with terrorism and related offences in connection with the attack in 2013 on the Algerian gas refinery. At least 35 hostages, including three Americans were killed.

The US had offered a $5m reward for information on his whereabouts.

It’s the first publicised operation by the US forces in Libya since 2011, when long-time Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi was unseated from power in a NATO-backed revolt.

Libya has rival governments and parliaments, and powerful militias are battling for influence and a share of its oil wealth.

Six Yemeni inmates sent from Guantanamo prison to Oman

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Detainees transferred to Oman for resettlement as part of US plan to close controversial prison.

The resettlement follows the release of another five Yemeni inmates on January 15 from Guantanamo [AP]

The resettlement follows the release of another five Yemeni inmates on January 15 from Guantanamo [AP]

by Al Jazeera

The United States says it has sent another six Yemeni detainees from its controversial Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba to Oman for resettlement.

In a statement issued late on Friday, the Pentagon said it had transferred Idris Ahmad Abd Al Qadir Idris, Sharaf Ahmad Muhammad Masud, Jalal Salam Awad Awad, Saad Nasser Moqbil Al Azani, Emad Abdallah Hassan and Muhammad Ali Salem Al Zarnuki from the detention facility.

“As directed by the president’s January 22, 2009, executive order, the interagency Guantanamo Review Task Force conducted comprehensive reviews of each of these cases,” the statement said.

“As a result of that review process, which examined a number of factors, including security issues, these men were unanimously approved for transfer by the six departments and agencies comprising the task force.”

The statement said the US coordinated with the Omani government to ensure the transfers took place in a way that was “consistent with appropriate security and humane treatment measures”.

The resettlement follows the release of five Yemeni inmates on January 15 from Guantanamo, at least six years after they were cleared for release.

Four of those inmates were sent to Oman, while one was sent to Estonia, the first time either nation had accepted Guantanamo prisoners for resettlement.

Friday’s transfer of the six men leaves 116 inmates at the remote prison, more than 13 years after it opened and seven years after President Barack Obama promised to close it.

The prison was set up to hold alleged terror suspects after the September 11, 2001, attacks, but human rights groups have condemned the jail as a “legal black hole”, where inmates languish for years without being tried in court.

Pakistan orders international charity to leave

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Government accuses Save the Children aid group of working against national interest and seals its offices in Islamabad.

A spokesperson for Save the Children confirmed that its office in Islamabad had been sealed off without warning [AFP]

A spokesperson for Save the Children confirmed that its office in Islamabad had been sealed off without warning [AFP]

by Al Jazeera

Pakistani authorities have sealed off the offices of the international aid group Save the Children, saying the charity was “working against the country”, police and government officials say.

Government officials accompanied by police arrived at the charity’s office in the heart of the capital Islamabad on Thursday after working hours and placed a lock on the compound gate.

“We have sealed the office of Save the Children on government instructions,” Kamran Cheema, a senior government official, told the AFP news agency.

“We don’t know the reasons behind this order. We were sent a three-line notification by the interior ministry saying that this office should be sealed and all the expatriate staff be sent back to their countries within 15 days.”

The government did not make any formal announcement but an official from the interior ministry told AFP that the agency was involved in “anti-Pakistan activities”.

“Their activities were being monitored since a long time. They were doing something which was against Pakistan’s interest,” said the official without giving his name because he was not authorised to speak to the media.

Strong objection

A spokesperson for Save the Children confirmed in a statement that its office had been sealed off without warning.

“Save the Children was not served any notice to this effect. We strongly object to this action and are raising our serious concerns at the highest levels,” the spokesperson said.

“Save the Children has worked in Pakistan for more than 35 years and we currently have 1,200 [Pakistani] staff members working across the nation.

“All our work is designed and delivered in close collaboration with the government ministries across the country, and aims to strengthen public service delivery systems in health, nutrition, education and child welfare.”

Al Jazeera’s Kamal Hyder, reporting from Haripur in Pakistan, said on Friday that the suspicion against Save the Children started after the successful US mission to find al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden.

In 2012 a Pakistan intelligence report linked the aid group to Pakistani doctor Shakeel Afridi who was allegedly used by the CIA to carry out a fake vaccination programme as they searched for bin Laden.

The charity’s expatriate staff were forced to leave Pakistan after the accusations emerged.

Save the Children has always denied it had any links with Afridi or the CIA.

Our correspondent said the crackdown on the charity have come amid government efforts to introduce stricter controls on nongovernmental organisations and charities through the legislature.

“There has been deep suspicion with the government that [these groups] have colluded with foreign powers,” he said.

UN warns of worsening situation in Sudan's Darfur

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Security Council discusses violence that has seen tens of thousands displaced this year by new violence in the region.

Darfur has been in turmoil since 2003 when ethnic Africans revolted against the government of President Bashir [Reuters]

Darfur has been in turmoil since 2003 when ethnic Africans revolted against the government of President Bashir [Reuters]

by Al Jazeera

The UN has warned that violent attacks on international peacekeepers and civilians in Sudan’s conflict-torn Darfur region have been increasing, forcing tens of thousands of people from their homes.

Edmond Mulet, UN peacekeeping deputy chief, told the 15-member Security Council on Wednesday that there has been negligible progress in peace efforts for Darfur.

He blamed the second phase of the Sudanese government’s Decisive Summer military campaign to end armed uprisings for causing the new wave of displacement across the region.

Humanitarian organisations have estimated at least 78,000 newly displaced this year, while the UN has unverified reports of 130,000 more, Mulet said.

“There is also significant concern about reports of indiscriminate attacks against civilians” and other human rights violations, he said.

One diplomat speaking to Al Jazeera described UNAMID, a joint mission by the UN and the African Union, as “the most dysfunctional peacekeeping mission in the world”.

“UN officials will tell you privately that the actions of the government of Sudan are one of the reasons why UNAMID is not working,” Al Jazeera’s Diplomatic Editor James Bays reported from the UN headquarters in New York.

“Some will tell you that if UNAMID continues to fail, then eventually the UN should withdraw. But of course that’s exactly what Sudan has made it clear it wants to happen.”

UN chief Ban Ki-moon’s latest progress report on UNAMID said there were 60 “incidents and hostile attacks against UNAMID” in the three months to May 15, compared with 46 in the previous quarter.

The new surge of violence in Darfur comes as the UN holds talks with the government of President Omar al-Bashir on an exit strategy for UNAMID, which has at least 15,000 peacekeepers on the ground.

Sudan ordered UNAMID out of Darfur late last year.

Constraints on force

Abiodun Oluremi Bashua, the acting head of UNAMID, said constraints placed on the peacekeepers by the Sudanese government is one of the reasons they cannot do their job properly.

“We can leave Darfur in a year if the government creates the necessary conditions to make that possible,” he told Al Jazeera.

“Those conditions have to do with the security, the protection of civilians, the guarantees for their protection and their security, their ability to go back home without fearing that they might be attacked or something.

“We also need to have engaged and encouraged governments to address the root causes of the major inter-tribal conflicts.”

The Security Council is due to decide on June 24 on renewing the mandate of UNAMID until next year.

Darfur has been in turmoil since 2003, when ethnic Africans revolted, accusing the Arab-dominated Sudanese government of discrimination.

Rights groups accused the government of retaliating by unleashing Arab armed groups on civilians, a claim the authorities deny.

Hassan Hamid Hassan, Sudan’s deputy UN ambassador, told the Security Council that the violence and displacements were mainly due to tribal clashes and attacks by rebels, not government forces.

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