The US military has announced that it was cancelling $300 million in aid to Pakistan over what it calls Islamabad’s failure to take action against militant groups, a new blow to worsening bilateral ties between the two countries.

“Due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the South Asia Strategy, the remaining $300 million was reprogrammed,” Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Kone Faulkner said in a statement on Saturday.

“We continue to press Pakistan to indiscriminately target all terrorist groups,” Faulkner said, adding that the $300 million aid, which had earlier been suspended, would be now aimed at spending on other “urgent priorities” due to “a lack of Pakistani decisive actions” in tackling the issue.

The move, which needs to be approved by US Congress, is part of a broader suspension announced in January when Washington had announced that it was cutting almost all security aid to the Islamabad, reports the BBC.

Saturday’s announcement comes before US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s scheduled visit to Pakistan this week and meet the country’s newly-elected Prime Minister, Imran Khan.

The US State Department has criticised Pakistan for failing to deal with terrorist networks operating on its soil, including the Haqqani network and the Afghan Taliban with President Donald Trump also accusing Islamabad of deceiving Washington while receiving billions of dollars.

Washington has long complained that Pakistan provides a safe haven to militant groups, including the Afghan Taliban, Haqqani Network and Al Qaeda, allowing them to carry out cross-border attacks in Afghanistan.

Pakistan has denied these claims.

Since 2002, Pakistan has received over $33 billion in US assistance, including $14 billion in Coalition Support Funds, a US Defence Department programme to reimburse allies that have incurred costs in supporting counter-insurgency operations.

(IANS)

Buyoed by an absence of a tighter gun control policy despite increased mass shootings, more and more gun owners in the US are joining the political process, not only in voting but in donating money to candidates and contacting elected officials, researchers have revealed.

According to a study by University of Kansas political scientists, gun owners have increasingly become more politically active.

Conservatives seem to have done a better deal at realising this trend and seeking to politically mobilise gun owners in campaign ads and other actions.

“Part of the reason majority opinions on gun control legislation aren’t turning into policy is that gun owners are a very strong political group who hold a lot of weight and hold a lot of influence despite being a minority in American politics,” said Abbie Vegter, a graduate student in political science.

Vegter collaborated on the research with political science professors Don Haider-Markel and Mark Joslyn. The team presented their findings as part of the American Political Science Association’s annual meeting in Boston on Sunday.

In the study, the researchers examined the political behaviour of gun owners versus non-gun owners in presidential election years from 1972 to 2012.

“Our major conclusion establishes gun owners as a distinct social group, and we see how that social group influences their likelihood of participating in politics,” Vegter said.

The researchers are still exploring what has driven this shift in attitude among gun owners, whether it was in response to past gun control legislation at the state level or a reaction to certain candidates who were elected who had stronger views about gun control.

“There are a couple of lessons. For individuals, especially individual gun control advocates, in order to make a difference, you need to match this level of mobilisation and participation,” Vegter said.

“There is also a lesson there for politicians who I think traditionally have not seen gun owners as a political group to be addressed,” she added.

The findings could be key in determining why major gun control legislation in Congress has remained elusive, even after mass shootings such as Newtown in 2012 and others, even when a majority of people tend to support stricter gun laws.

Beijing, Chinese patients are expected to be able to buy 14 kinds of cancer drugs at a lower price from September, according to China’s state medical insurance administration.

The drugs are all crucial in dealing with haematological neoplasms and solid tumours, and have great clinical value and huge benefits for patients, the National Healthcare Security Administration said.

It asked pharmaceutical companies to adhere to the price cut in line with the lowered procurement prices of these drugs, Xinhua news agency reported.

A range of several more drugs have been selected to be included in the medical insurance reimbursement list later.

[IANS]

The Trump administration wants to give new Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan space to explore opportunities to improve relations with India, a senior Pentagon official has said.

Many new governments come to power in Islamabad and want to improve the relationship with India, but then soon face realities and all the difficulties, Randall G Schriver, US Assistant Secretary of Defence for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs said at an event organised by Carnegie Endowment for International Peace here.

“We want to give the new prime minister of the new government of Pakistan space to explore where there may be opportunities to improve relations with India,” he said.

He was responding to a question from moderator Ashley Tellis from Carnegie on the triangular relationship between India, the US and Pakistan.

“But in terms of separating what was said during the campaign and what he said since the election, we want to give him space to find the opportunities to improve things with India,” Schriver said.

Responding to a question on giving space to Khan, he explained that this is in the context of India-Pakistan relationship and this does not indicate any change in the policy of the Trump administration with regard to Pakistan.

The Pentagon official insisted that this means no change in its policy towards Islamabad and its current approach of cutting financial assistance would continue. “What I said about giving him space was really in the context of the India-Pakistan relationship. We’d certainly like to give him space to make the right decisions on a variety of things,” he said.

“But our approach of cutting assistance and pressuring Pakistan on their relationship with the Taliban, persuading them to come to the table, dealing with terrorist networks, that’ll be sustained. When I say give space, it’s not changing our approach or our policy. It is the context of developing opportunities between India and Pakistan,” Schriver said. The Pentagon also cautioned Pakistan on seeking massive financial assistance from China, which risks its sovereignty.

“If you look at other examples where countries went all in, or largely in with China, the results have not been particularly good. There has been an erosion of sovereignty and an erosion of control. There are many examples of that,” he said.

“So, if our friends in Pakistan want to talk about a way out of that or want to talk about strengthening their economy and deal with that, I’m sure we’d be open to that and trying to work with Pakistan, work either bilaterally or through international institutions to try to get them on a better path, Schriver said.

The US, he said, is not interested in a failed Pakistan by any stretch of the imagination. “We want them to be successful. We want them to have sovereign control and not cede that to any outside party, including China. And the economic piece is probably going to be key to that,” he said.

(Ians)

The UN has said it is alarmed by reports of the mass detention of Uighurs in China and called for the release of those held on a counter terrorism “pretext”.

This comes after a UN committee heard reports that up to one million Muslim Uighurs in Xinjiang were held in re-education camps, Xinhua news agency reported.

Beijing has denied the allegations but admitted that some religious extremists were being held for re-education.

China has blamed Islamist militants and separatists for unrest in the province.

During a review earlier in August, members of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination said credible reports suggested Beijing had “turned the Uighur autonomous region into something that resembles a massive internment camp”.

China responded that Uighurs enjoyed full rights but Beijing made a rare admission that “those deceived by religious extremism… shall be assisted by resettlement and re-education”.

Hundreds of far-right protesters are marching on the Pakistani capital Islamabad, threatening to blockade the city unless the country cuts diplomatic ties with the Netherlands over a cartoon competition deemed to be blasphemous.

Protesters belonging to the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) party began the second day of their march on the capital from the eastern city of Lahore on Thursday.

Images from the march showed TLP activists toppling a container used to block their path in the Punjab town of Jhelum, as they continued on their way towards the capital.

Security has been increased in Islamabad ahead of their arrival, with roadblocks prepared to be placed on several major roads.

The TLP activists are protesting against a competition for cartoons depicting Islam’s Prophet Muhammad by far-right Dutch opposition leader Geert Wilders, a known provocateur.

Physical depictions of God or the Prophet Muhammad are forbidden in Islam, and the TLP says the competition amounts to “blasphemy”.

The Dutch government has distanced itself from the competition, with Prime Minister Mark Rutte clarifying that Wilders is not a member of the government.

Pakistan condemns blasphemous Dutch cartoon contest
“The competition is not a government initiative,” he told a news conference last week.

The Dutch government, however, maintains that banning the competition would be a violation of the right to freedom of expression.

Foreign Minister Stef Blok echoed Rutte’s comments.

“The Netherlands very much adheres by freedom of speech, but we also adhere to treat religions respectfully,” Blok said according to Dutch news agency ANP.

He added that the competition “wouldn’t be his choice” but that there were no plans to ban the contest from happening.

Wilders leads the Dutch opposition Freedom Party (PVV) and is known for his incendiary speeches and protests against immigration and Islam.

The far-right politician told Dutch media the contest was not being held “to provoke, but to show we are marching for freedom of speech”.

On Tuesday, Dutch police arrested a man accused of plotting to kill the politician over the competition.

Clashes with riot police
The TLP rose to prominence last November, when firebrand Muslim scholar Khadim Hussain Rizvi, the party’s founder, led a three-week blockade of the Pakistani capital over a minor change to an electoral oath that he said amounted to “blasphemy”.

Riot police clashed with protesters but failed to end the demonstration, with TLP activists only vacating the sit-in after the government capitulated to all their demands, including the reversal of the change in the oath, the resignation of a federal minister, and the granting of legal immunity to all protesters.

In Pakistan’s July general election, the newly formed party bagged 2.2 million votes in national assembly constituencies nationwide, making it the fifth most popular political party in the country.

Tehreek-e-Labbaik: New far right campaigns against ‘blasphemy’
Those votes, however, only translated to two provincial assembly seats in the southern province of Sindh.

Ijaz Ashrafi, a TLP spokesperson, told Al Jazeera that his party was prepared to repeat the November blockade if their demand that Pakistan cut diplomatic ties with the Netherlands was not met.

“This issue must be resolved on an emergency basis, otherwise we will be out on the streets,” he said shortly before the protest. “I don’t mind if I die, but no one can dishonour the Prophet.”

‘They must act’
On Monday, Pakistan’s upper house of parliament passed a resolution condemning the holding of the competition, with newly elected Prime Minister Imran Khan saying his government would raise the matter with the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) and at the United Nations.

At a press briefing on Wednesday, Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said he had requested the OIC to call an emergency meeting on the issue.

“We have decided that an effective voice may be raised unanimously from the OIC platform,” he said.

“I assure the people of Pakistan that we are aware of their sentiments and we will stand with the Muslims around the world in raising the voice against this event.”

Qureshi’s statement followed an official note of protest registered with the Dutch charge d’affaires in Islamabad, as well as a phone call with Dutch Foreign Minister Blok.

It is unclear, however, if the government’s statements will be deemed sufficient by the TLP.

As the protest caravan of hundreds wound its way through Punjab province, the country’s political heartland, demonstrators carried banners condemning the Dutch government and Wilders and sang devotional songs.

Dutch police arrest man over alleged plot to kill Geert Wilders
“For our Prophet’s honour, we will lay down our lives,” they chanted, video footage from the rally showed.

Prime Minister Khan frequently referred to the blasphemy allegations raised by the TLP in November during his election campaign, and in his victory speech promised to run the country on the basis of the Prophet Muhammad’s governance of the Arab state of Medina in the 7th century.

“They have made a promise during the election, they have promised to establish a state along the lines of Medina,” said TLP spokesperson Ashrafi.

“So now they must act.”

Tokyo Fasten your seatbelt to board a flying cab soon as Uber on Thursday selected India as one of the first five shortlisted finalist countries that could be home to the first international Uber Air City within the next five years.

After evaluating countries across the globe, Uber Elevate — the ride-hailing platform’s aerial taxi arm — announced Japan, India, Australia, Brazil and France as shortlisted countries at the first “Uber Elevate Asia Pacific Expo” in Tokyo here.

Uber will choose one of the cities from these 5 shortlisted countries as its third launch city for flying taxis — after Dallas and Los Angeles in the US.

“Mumbai, Delhi, and Bengaluru are some of the most congested cities in the world, where travelling even a few kilometers can take over an hour. Uber Air offers tremendous potential to help create a transportation option that goes over congestion, instead of adding to it,” the company said in a statement.

Uber Elevate also announced plans to experiment with drone delivery for Uber Eats, and demonstrated how potential Uber Air routes in Asia Pacific cities could benefit local transportation systems.

“We are proud to host the first ever Uber Elevate Asia Pacific Expo. We are announcing a shortlist of five countries where Uber Air can immediately transform transportation and take our technology to new heights,” said Eric Allison, Head of Uber Aviation Programmes.

In the next five years, Uber customers in launch cities will be able to push a button and get a flight on demand.

To enable this, Uber has assembled a network of partners that includes vehicle manufacturers, real estate developers, technology developers and more.

Dallas and Los Angeles were previously announced as the first two US launch cities and at the second annual Uber Elevate Summit in May, Uber announced it was seeking an international city as a third partner.

“We see much potential in flying cars, and we anticipate that flying cars can be used not only to help solve traffic congestion in urban areas, but it will also help with increase mobility between city centres and remote islands and mountainous areas, promote tourism in Japan as well as enhance disaster relief operations,” said Daisaku Hiraki, Parliamentary Vice-Minister of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Japan.

“The Uber Elevate team is now inviting conversations with stakeholders across major cities in these countries, and will announce the chosen Uber Air international city within the next six months,” said the company.

Uber Elevate has established a criteria framework to select the third city, anchored around three priority principles: sizable market, local commitment and enabling conditions.

San Francisco Alex Hardiman, Head of News Products at Facebook, is joining US-based magazine and multi-platform publisher The Atlantic as its Chief Business and Product Officer.

“At The Atlantic, she will lead the product, engineering, data and growth teams and shape The Atlantic’s ongoing initiatives on digital consumer revenue,” the Adweek reported on Wednesday.

The Atlantic reportedly said it was expanding its ranks by 100 and that the teams that would report to Hardiman have doubled in size over the past one year.

“Hardiman is taking over many of the duties previously led by Kim Lau, who was promoted earlier this summer from senior vice president of digital to executive vice president of strategy and operations,” the report added.

She joined Facebook in 2016 when criticism against the social networking giant for its role in spreading “fake news” was fast spreading.

“Alex is a true leader who built a fantastic team,” a representative from Facebook was quoted as saying by TechCrunch.

She was elevated to lead Facebook’s news efforts on the product side in May 2017.

Prior to that, Hardiman has spent more than a decade at The New York Times, completing her tenure as vice president of news products.

[IANS]

San Francisco Photo-messaging app Snapchat is the most preferred social networking platform among US teenagers, surpassing the userbase of Facebook and Instagram in that age-category, says a new study.

In 2018, 16.4 million 12 to 17 year-olds are likely to use Snapchat, comapred with 12.8 million for Instagram, according to the analysis by market research company eMarketer.

Snapchat will remain dominant among teenagers till 2022, the report said.

“Snapchat and Instagram are the top social apps for teens, and this year they’ll add nearly the same number of new teen users,” the report quoted Christopher Bendtsen, Senior Forecasting Analyst, eMarketer as saying.

“Snapchat will continue to add users aged 12 to 17, while Facebook will continue to lose users in that cohort. In fact, we estimate Snapchat will add 1.2 million new users in that age group by 2022, while Facebook will lose 2.2 million,” the report said.

This year, 11.5 million people in the US ages 12 to 17 will be on Facebook, down from 12.1 million in 2017. By 2022, the number of Facebook users in that age bracket will drop to 9.3 million, it added.

However, Facebook continues to be the most used social networking app among US millennials, with 58.5 million users expected to use the platform this year followed by Instagram ranking second with 43.3 million expected users, according to the research.

[IANS]

Iran’s parliament has referred President Hassan Rouhani to the country’s judiciary after he failed to impress legislators with his explanation of his government’s handling of Iran’s economic struggles.

Rouhani was summoned by parliament on Tuesday for the first time since taking power five years ago to answer questions on a range of economic issues, including unemployment and inflation.

In voting after the session, which was broadcast live on state television, MPs expressed dissatisfaction with four out of five of Rouhani’s responses.

The leader has been under intense pressure since US President Donald Trump withdrew from a landmark nuclear deal between Iran and several world powers, worsening an economic crisis and sparkings a series of domestic protests.

In Tuesday’s session, he blamed Iran’s economic woes on an “American conspiracy” and urged parliament to support his cabinet.

“There is an anti-Iran group sitting in the White House that is planning a conspiracy against us,” Rouhani said. “But together we will tackle this phase.

Iran unemployment crisis, rising living costs bite amid sanctions
“It should not be said we are facing a crisis. There is no crisis. If we say there is, it will become a problem for society and a threat,” he said.

Political unrest
Parliament has already impeached Rouhani’s labour and economy ministers this month and the president replaced the head of the central bank, amid concerns about the sharp depreciation of the national currency, which has lost more than half of its value since April.

While Iran’s parliament has the power to impeach a president, Rouhani is protected by the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who recently said that removing the president would “play into the hands of the enemy.”

Parliament asked Rouhani about:
Unemployment, slow growth, the rial
Financial reforms
Access to global financial services
Banking
Smuggling
The MPs quizzed Rouhani on his government’s failure to tackle the rise of unemployment, slow economic growth and the fall of the rial, as well as cross-border smuggling operations.

The president said he had asked the country’s Revolutionary Guard to help stamp out illicit trade.

The only answer which legislators accepted related to international banking sanctions, which they agreed were beyond the government’s control.

Hardliners, who always opposed the nuclear deal and any thaw in relations with the West, have called on Rouhani to step down.

The case will now be referred to the country’s judiciary for consideration.

Aljazeera